TYAM Chapter 96

Jiang Wang normally didn’t overthink things when dealing with old ladies before, but after receiving Ji Linqiu’s message, he suddenly felt like a high schooler caught in an early romance under the principal’s watchful eye.  

Meanwhile, as they were leaving, Chen Danhong was still reluctant to look away from the bearded foreign teacher. She pointed, “Look at the one in purple over there.”  

“Oh, you mean David?”  

“What David? The woman,” Chen Danhong said, eyeing an elderly lady with a mix of admiration and envy. “I heard she only has one daughter, but her daughter fully supports her learning English and even wants to take her abroad for university. Can you imagine how lucky she is?”  

“At her age, she can study whatever she wants, and she even dares to dream about studying abroad!”  

Jiang Wang then noticed the elderly woman in a purple coat with permed curls standing behind the foreign teacher, holding a notebook and waiting attentively.  

He hadn’t expected that even middle-aged and elderly people would compare each other academically. Smiling, he said, “If you want to study, Linqiu can accompany you too.”  

“No way,” Chen Danhong waved her hands. “I’m not that naive. Besides, even if I do want to travel abroad, I have to stay here to help raise my grandchildren. Linqiu is almost thirty and still not married.”  

Jiang Wang popped a mint into his mouth and chewed absentmindedly, not taking the bait.  

As they drove from the parking lot to the harbor restaurant, Chen Danhong flipped through the science booklet her teacher had handed out. After a while, noticing the car was too quiet, she glanced at Jiang Wang.  

“Little Jiang… ah…”  

“Actually, Linqiu already told me,” she said with a smile. “You two are dating, aren’t you?”  

Jiang Wang hadn’t expected her to say it so directly. Just as he was braking at a red light, he chuckled helplessly. “Auntie, don’t joke with me. Aren’t we just on our way to have a nice meal?”  

“Oh, come on!” Chen Danhong smacked his shoulder, beaming like a mother-in-law looking at her son-in-law. “Still pretending with me?”  

“Auntie, I’m driving,” Jiang Wang replied, keeping a straight face. “This road is still under construction Yuhan’s been fixing it for years and it’s still not done. If you keep messing with me, I’ll get distracted and take the wrong turn, and that’s three points off my license. The fine will be on you.”  

“Alright, alright,” Chen Danhong waved dismissively. “Young people these days, so thin-skinned.”  

---

Dinner was at an old restaurant by the harbor. Their drunken shrimp and braised catfish were local specialties, and during peak hours, it was often fully booked.  

The weather was nice, and their table was on an open-air terrace overlooking the river. As soon as they went upstairs, they were greeted by the mixed scents of fresh water, beer, and the spicy aroma of fish head stew.  

Jiang Wang scanned the restaurant past a dozen tables and immediately spotted Ji Linqiu.  

The latter seemed slightly worried, but Jiang Wang simply shook his head slightly. He was careful with his words, always putting Ji Linqiu’s considerations first.  

Peng Xingwang was already seated beside Ji Changxia, with a little red star sticker from his language teacher on his cheek. Seeing Jiang Wang, he happily waved, but before he could say anything, he let out two loud soda burps.  

The food was delicious, the broth rich and the fish tender, making for an enjoyable meal.  

Jiang Wang continued to drink and toast with Mr. Ji, smiling as usual. The only time he stepped away was for a cigarette break, trying to clear his mind.  

He was someone who always made swift decisions and was straightforward about his emotions. Yet tonight, he had to hide and suppress them, acting against his nature.  

Ji Linqiu came over after a while, as if he knew Jiang Wang would be waiting for him.  

Under the cover of the lingering smoke, they stole a quick kiss, then leaned against the gray-blue wall, listening to the clang of pots and pans from the kitchen. Halfway through his cigarette, Jiang Wang stubbed it out and spoke in a low voice, “She was testing me today. I didn’t give anything away, but you should be careful too.”  

Hearing this, Ji Linqiu’s smile faded slightly, turning colder. Though he didn’t stop smiling entirely, there was a certain chill to it.  

“Seems like she’s noticing how close we are.”  

“Well, it makes sense,” he continued. “I refused to live with my parents, had more than enough money to buy a house in Beijing but still chose to rent with a ‘friend,’ and we’re glued to each other all the time. If that’s not suspicious, I don’t know what is.”  

“If it really comes to it, I can move to Luhu District,” he said. “I’ll say I’m opening a new business there and need to be on-site. You can come live at my place.”  

As soon as he spoke, he regretted it. Jiang Wang’s expression made it clear. He knew it sounded ridiculous.  

They were successful and financially secure, yet their relationship felt like an affair, forcing them to arrange secret rendezvous spots just to spend time together.  

Jiang Wang thought for a moment, absentmindedly rubbing his finger against the rusty railing, leaving a streak of red.  

“How about this,” he said. “Let’s take some time apart first. I just got approval to open a real estate company in Shanghai, so I’ll focus on that. You move back in with your parents, cut down on how often we see each other, and avoid raising suspicion.”  

“When I have work trips, I’ll schedule more business in Jiangsu and Anhui. I’ll come find you then.”  

Ji Linqiu responded softly. Seeing that Jiang Wang intended to return to the table with him, he reached out to stop him. “I’ll go back first. You say you went out to sober up and smoked a couple of cigarettes. Wait ten minutes before coming back.”  

Jiang Wang looked at him and nodded slowly.  

Fifteen minutes later, he returned to the dinner table.  

On the way, he stopped by the front desk to settle the bill, only to find that Ji’s father had already paid. He had no choice but to let it go.  

The Ji family, having eaten and drunk their fill, still lingered in conversation, waiting for him before officially wrapping up the evening.  

###  

“I’m sleeping at home tonight,” Ji Linqiu said, waving at Peng Xingwang. “See you tomorrow. I’ll go over grammar with you later.”  

“Bye, Brother Linqiu!”  

Jiang Wang glanced at Ji Linqiu one last time before finally leading Peng Xingwang away.  

Ji Linqiu didn’t look back. He helped his parents with their coats and steadied his sister as they headed downstairs.  

“Walk slower.”

Ji Guoshen had drunk too much and kept happily talking about his days as a teacher in his youth. Ji Changxia held the car keys, feeling uneasy, and turned to ask her mother if there were any hangover pills at home. Chen Danhong was in a daze for a while before saying she couldn’t remember.  

When they drove back to the neighborhood and everyone settled down, Ji Changxia waved goodbye, but Chen Danhong suddenly called her back.  

“Sit down, I have something to say.”  

Ji Linqiu had a bad feeling about this. Before he could speak, Ji Guoshen frowned disapprovingly. “You’re doing this again? It’s late, what’s so urgent? Just go to bed. It’s not safe for her to drive home alone at this hour.”  

Chen Danhong, rarely this stubborn in front of him, insisted, “No. Ji Changxia, you and your brother sit down.”  

Ji Changxia looked uneasily at Ji Linqiu.  

The siblings sat down one after another. Chen Danhong’s face turned cold as she asked directly, “Ji Linqiu, are you and Jiang Wang serious?”  

Ji Guoshen was stunned. He was feeling parched from the alcohol and downed a glass of warm water in front of him, finding her words absurd. “I mentioned this to you before, and you thought I was overthinking. What’s gotten into you now?”  

Ji Linqiu’s face paled. He wanted to force a smile and say something polite but found himself unable to control his expression.  

“Mom! How could Brother Jiang possibly—”  

“I’m not asking you,” Chen Danhong cut off Ji Changxia’s words, staring directly at Ji Linqiu. “You’re not a kid who knows how to lie. Answer me.”  

Ji Linqiu opened his mouth, but it felt like he was nailed to his seat. His back stiffened with pain, and even sitting upright became inexplicably difficult.  

His throat turned cold, as if he had fallen into an ice cave.  

Ji Guoshen thought the whole thing was ridiculous. He reached out to pull Chen Danhong’s shoulders and make her look at him. “Danhong, did someone say something to you? Or did you see something bad?”  

“Is someone stirring up trouble, trying to drive a wedge between us and Boss Jiang?”  

Even as Ji Guoshen turned her shoulders, Chen Danhong’s eyes never left Ji Linqiu, as if his face already bore the answer. Suddenly, she began shaking her head.  

First, it was just a small shake, then a forceful one, as if desperately trying to shake something off. These thoughts, this reality – it all felt like a plague, and she felt sick just being tainted by it.  

“Ji Linqiu, say something. Say something!!”  

Ji Changxia was anxious, wanting to call Jiang Wang back but afraid it would only make things worse. “Mom, even if you want to question my brother, you need some proof! You can’t just make baseless assumptions about him! What kind of mother does this? Hasn’t Brother Linqiu and Brother Jiang been nothing but good to us?”  

Chen Danhong suddenly raised her voice. “I never wanted to believe this!”  

“Your dad suspected it two or three times before, and I brushed it off every time. When you told him you weren’t interested in women, I just laughed. I was pretending to be clueless, do you know that?!”  

“Ji Linqiu, do you know how much I wanted to trust you? You are my son, my own son!”  

“Your dad was suspicious, but I never wanted to hear it. I wanted to defend you, to scoff at him for even thinking such nonsense. But did you ever give me a reason to stand tall and defend you?”  

Tonight, watching them part ways — it was like a husband lingering over his wife and child before finally leaving. Her son had chosen to stay behind to appease her, but his heart had already gone with Jiang Wang.  

She didn’t need any evidence. For the past two years, they had been inseparable—eating together, living together, even their offices were next to each other. She could always see them talking and laughing, glued together—  

And to any woman, Jiang Wang had never shown that kind of expression. And her son, never, not once!  

There were so many female teachers at the company, had they ever truly paid attention to any of them?!  

Ji Guoshen initially thought she was being irrational, but after her outburst, he sobered up instantly, his words stumbling. “Linqiu, your mother is just overthinking. Y-you should say something to put her at ease.”  

Ji Linqiu snapped back to reality and slowly stood up. Then, silently, he knelt down. His back was straight, and he said nothing.  

That was an admission. A complete admission.  

Chen Danhong’s eyes turned red in an instant. She threw herself at him, holding him and wailing.  

Ji Guoshen had long dismissed such an absurd idea, but now it felt like a bolt of lightning striking him. His trembling hand was raised mid-air. “Linqiu, you can like whoever you want, but Jiang Wang is a man.”  

“Linqiu, he’s a man. Have you really thought this through?”  

Ji Linqiu smiled weakly and nodded.  

Chen Danhong cried herself hoarse. In her fury, she didn’t care that her son was still kneeling and immediately stood up to start packing.  

Ji Changxia panicked and rushed to stop her. “Mo—Mom, what are you doing?!”  

“We’re leaving. Right now. Give him back the house, give him back the shop, every favor we owe him. We’ll repay it cleanly! We’re never staying in this godforsaken place again! You’re never coming back to Yuhan!” Chen Danhong yelled.  

“Mom, this house was bought by my brother himself! It has nothing to do with Brother Jiang!”  

“I don’t care! We’re leaving tonight!”  

Ji Guoshen couldn’t bear to see his son in such a devastated state and hurried to help him up. “Don’t do this—”  

Ji Linqiu suddenly let out a quiet “mm” and lowered his head, helping to pack alongside her.  

Chen Danhong froze in place, watching him gather photo frames, books, throwing them into the trash, even the notebooks he had just stayed up late organizing.  

She had steeled her heart to cut off everything tying them to Jiang Wang immediately, but she never expected her son wouldn’t even struggle.  

“Don’t make things hard for Brother Jiang. I’ll go with you.”  

When he looked up again, his eyes were empty.