"I haven"t congratulated you yet." Daisy looked at Sheng Jiaoyang.
Sheng Jiaoyang saw that Daisy kept stroking her belly subconsciously. She smiled and said, "Then should I congratulate you as well?"
Daisy smiled.
"How many months?" Sheng Jiaoyang asked curiously.
"Three months."
"Then both your babies are around the same age!"
Daisy looked at Lina before taking a glance at her belly, which still didn"t have an obvious baby bulge yet. "That"s such a coincidence."
After chatting for a few more moments, Sheng Jiaoyang said sentimentally to Lina as they were leaving, "I have had rather rich experiences for the past two years. I actually became friends with a princess."
"Before you were friends, both of you were love rivals. Only you have the ability to turn a love rival into a good friend," replied Lina.
"Love rival? She likes Lin Yan too?"
Lina turned to look at the person approaching Sheng Jiaoyang from behind. Sheng Jiaoyang turned around as well, and she saw Shen Zhining and Sven walking towards them. They were just a few steps away.
Instantly, Sheng Jiaoyang felt a tinge of unexplainable guilt in her heart, and that feeling of guilt intensified when she saw Shen Zhining"s gaze, which seemed to be conveying an underlying message. She felt even more uneasy when she thought of how her words could be easily misinterpreted.
"Mei Niu, don"t you want to return to China with me and enjoy yourself for a few days?" Sheng Jiaoyang attempted to use Lina to ease the awkward situation.
Lina rejected her offer. Their company was in the midst of expanding their business, and she had to go back to oversee the expansion.
Sheng Jiaoyang understood where she was coming from, so she could only regretfully bid Lina goodbye.
On their way back to Aureate Manor, Shen Zhining didn"t speak a single word to Sheng Jiaoyang. Throughout the whole journey, he kept his eyes closed.
Sheng Jiaoyang wanted to speak to him on several occasions, but he didn"t seem to want to cooperate. Hence, she decided to toy with her phone instead.
When they arrived at Aureate Manor, they were just in time for dinner.
As soon as Fu Lailin saw her, she immediately congratulated her, and even got the servants to open a bottle of champagne.
"Jiaojiao, I wish you every success in your career!" Fu Lailin raised the wine gla.s.s up.
"Thank you, Grandmother Andy. I also wish Grandmother Andy and Grandfather Shen health and longevity." Sheng Jiaoyang returned the toast.
Grandfather Shen gave a restrained nod, but there was a smiling glint in his eyes. This showed that he approved of her thoughtful blessing. However, when he caught a glimpse of Shen Zhining with a look of indifference on his face, he pressed down on his lips and said, "Both of you have been together for quite some time. When are you going to bear me a great-grandchild?"
Fu Lailin let out a cough, "Why are you in such a hurry? They are not even married yet."
"I looked at the calendar. The 23rd of February of next year is an auspicious date for marriage. It"s the 8th day of the first month of the lunar calendar," said Grandfather Shen.
Sheng Jiaoyang blinked her eyes, "Grandfather Shen, wouldn"t it be too rushed?"
"How is it rushed? You would have close to a year to prepare for it. I think it"s settled. Later, I will hire the top wedding planning team. You guys can communicate with them if you have any ideas," Grandfather Shen rasped his fingers against the tabletop and proclaimed dictatorially.
Sheng Jiaoyang looked at Shen Zhining, but saw that the latter had his eyes fixated on the swirling wine gla.s.s in his hand. There was no response; he neither agreed to the proposition nor turned it down.
"Don"t give the kids too much stress. Jiaojiao"s career is on the rise now. It"s still a bit too early for her to get married and have children," Fu Lailin commented understandingly.
Sheng Jiaoyang flashed a smile at Fu Lailin. Grandmother Andy has always been so understanding and thoughtful.
"Haven"t she already clinched the Best Actress award? How much further does she want to go? Moreover, she still has another year. If she wants to strive hard in her career, just go for it. Or do you have no plans to be with Zhining?" As Grandfather Shen spoke the last sentence, he looked toward Sheng Jiaoyang with a dissatisfied gaze. It was as though he was looking at a heartbreaker.
Shen Zhining looked towards Sheng Jiaoyang.
"Grandfather Shen, I don"t mean that. It"s just that…" Before Sheng Jiaoyang could complete her sentence, Shen Zhining stood up all of a sudden.
Sheng Jiaoyang froze momentarily and watched as Shen Zhining walked off.
*Well… *
"Is A"Ning in a bad mood today?" Fu Lailin was slightly astonished.
Sheng Jiaoyang stood up, "I"ll go check on him."
"Of course he would be. It"s just getting married and yet she"s hesitating so much. She clearly doesn"t want to get married to him," Grandfather Shen nagged.
"Alright, just let the youngsters resolve their own issues. Don"t meddle in their affairs," Fu Lailin remarked helplessly.
Grandfather Shen pursed his lips and mumbled, "If I don"t meddle in it, when am I going to get a great-grandchild?"
Meanwhile, Sheng Jiaoyang had already caught up with Shen Zhining.
"What"s wrong? Tell me directly if you feel there is something unsatisfactory about me." Sheng Jiaoyang caught Shen Zhining by his arm.
Shen Zhining looked at her icily, "I should be the one asking you this question. What is so unsatisfactory about me?
"Nothing."
"Then why do you have someone else in your heart?"
Indeed, it was that statement I blurted out earlier in the day! Sheng Jiaoyang could only hurriedly explain, "I wasn"t thinking about another man. Before we parted ways, Mei Niu said Daisy was once my love rival, and hence I asked her that."
"Yeah! In your heart, the person you love will forever be Lin Yan," Shen Zhining"s lips were twisted in a wry smile. He pushed Sheng Jiaoyang"s hand away and entered the room.
Sheng Jiaoyang was about to follow after him, but she said, "It"s a fact that I used to like Lin Yan."
Bang! The door was shut in her face.
Sheng Jiaoyang was at a loss of words. What"s wrong with this guy today? He seemed to have spilled a whole vat of vinegar.
Knock knock knock. Sheng Jiaoyang knocked at the door.
"Zhining, can you hear me out?"
There was no response.
Sheng Jiaoyang stood in silence for half a minute before she turned and walked away.
As she lied down on the bed in the guest room, she started thinking more about it, and the more she thought about it, the more she felt that she had to talk things out with him. Otherwise, it would become like an unbearable thorn in her flesh.
As to who was able to make Shen Zhining open the door, it would definitely be Grandmother Andy. Hence, she went to seek Grandmother Andy out for her help. As expected, Shen Zhining opened the door.
Shen Zhining looked at Sheng Jiaoyang as she stood behind his grandmother and his gaze darkened. He coldly asked, "What"s the matter?"
"You two, if there"s anything, lay it out on the table and talk it out. Don"t keep it to yourself. Even a quarrel is better than a cold war," Fu Lailin said gently.
Sheng Jiaoyang nodded her head successively. She concurred with Grandmother Andy. Any huge problem could be resolved, as long as they were willing to talk it out.
Shen Zhining had to give in for Fu Lailin"s sake and took a step to the side, "Come in."
Joy crept up Sheng Jiaoyang"s face as she thanked Fu Lailin before entering the room.
"A"Ning, it"s not easy to stay together. Both of you should talk things out clearly."
"I understand, Grandmother," Shen Zhining nodded.
He naturally had his own plans for putting on such a show. He wouldn"t do something as stupid as closing the door on Sheng Jiaoyang for no reason.
After he closed the bedroom door, only the two of them were left in the room.
"Zhining," Sheng Jiaoyang called out, but Shen Zhining just walked past her.
She raised an eyebrow slightly and followed behind him while activating her nagging mode, "I know you felt uncomfortable that I mentioned Lin Yan. I won"t bring him up again on my own accord next time, alright? Don"t be upset with me anymore. I a.s.sure you, I only have you in my heart now. Even though I"ve forgotten everything that happened before, I only have feelings for you now."
"Then why did you turn down the Grandfather"s proposition for us to get married?" Shen Zhining turned to face Sheng Jiaoyang.
"I didn"t turn it down. I just felt that February next year was too early."
"It"s not because you think it"s too early, but because you"re not sure if you want to be with me!"
Sheng Jiaoyang parted her lips. She felt like she couldn"t talk her way through this.
She was finally aware that if Shen Zhining wanted to act unreasonably, he was actually highly skilled in doing it.
Actually, the best solution right now would be for her to burst into tears. She believed that Shen Zhining would definitely turn softhearted. Yet, the main point was that she wasn"t able to cry now, and if she faked her tears, it would probably backfire on her.
In the next few seconds, Sheng Jiaoyang suddenly thought up a great deal. The next moment, she lowered her head and replied dejectedly, "If you have to use marriage to prove something, then let"s go ahead with Grandfather Shen"s plan and get married in February next year. Previously, I wanted to get married in Spring, when the flowers are fully blooming everywhere. But since you want to get married in February, then February it is."
Sheng Jiaoyang lifted her head to look at Shen Zhining with pitiful eyes and said, "I shall not disrupt you from resting. Goodnight." She then turned and headed out.
"Wait."
Sheng Jiaoyang halted, and the corners of her lips rose up. She then continued speaking in a tone that seemed to carry the message that she was wronged, but she was stronger than that, "You really don"t have to doubt me. If I wasn"t sure I wanted to be with you, I wouldn"t have gotten intimate with you in the first place."
She paused briefly before continuing, "For me, the more casually I talk about something, the less I care about it. Also, I hate messy ends, if you still feel that…"
A pair of hands reached out from behind her, wrapped themselves around her waist, and pulled her into an embrace.
"Alright, don"t I have the right to be jealous? She said that Daisy was your love rival, and yet the first person you thought of was Lin Yan. How do you want me to feel about it?"
Sheng Jiaoyang was slightly elated that the ball was now in her field after she took a step back in order to gain some ground. However, she still felt that she needed to give a thorough explanation to Shen Zhining"s question. Otherwise, he would definitely bring this up and make a fuss out of it down the road.
She turned and hooked her arms around Shen Zhining"s waist.
"It"s normal for me to think of Lin Yan instantly. Because I didn"t think Daisy would like you."
Shen Zhining"s face turned a shade darker at Sheng Jiaoyang"s words.
"Am I such a bad person in your heart?"
Sheng Jiaoyang replied, "It"s just that I feel that if she likes you, I would definitely wish nothing but to stay far away from her. How would I possibly be friends with her?"
Shen Zhining froze.
Sheng Jiaoyang studied his expression as a smiling glint flashed across the recesses of her eyes. She took the opportunity and cooed, "Dear, don"t be upset with me anymore, okay?"
Many times, dealing with a man was like rearing a cat or a dog. You have to brush their hair in the direction of its growth. Then, when he got comfortable, he would naturally be obedient to your calling.
In Shen Zhining"s memories, ever since they had gotten together, Sheng Jiaoyang had never addressed him so affectionately. The endearing way she called him "dear" soothed every cell in his body.
"I have never heard you addressing me in that manner when I"m not angry." He felt at ease in his heart now, but he had to put on a front on the outside. He couldn"t just let things go so easily.
Sheng Jiaoyang rolled her eyes before she narrowed them into smiling crescents, "Then I will address you in this manner next time."
"Dear is too common of an endearment. It doesn"t invoke any feelings."
"So you want some feels. I see—" Sheng Jiaoyang dragged out the last syllable. "Then how would you like me to address you? Brother Zhining? Zhining? Ningning? Or…"
Sheng Jiaoyang raised her hands and hooked it around Shen Zhining"s neck. She leaned in to whisper in his ear.
"Darling Ning?"
It was impossible for Shen Zhining to restrain himself anymore. Sheng Jiaoyang teased him to such an extent that he immediately pounced on her.