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Chapter 27: Reading

Yuan Hong had already given Song Xian a wedding gift. The other colleagues began to wonder if they should chip in for something together. Since He Xiaoying was closest to Song Xian, they pulled her into a private group chat and asked, [What kind of gift would be good?]

He Xiaoying had been planning to give a gift on her own. Not only had Jiang Liuyi helped them out in a big way recently, but Song Xian was her friend—getting married definitely deserved a gift. The only reason she hadn’t acted yet was that she’d been going back and forth over what to give.

[Something practical maybe? They just got married, right? We could get something useful for their home.]

[But they’ve probably already bought all that stuff. I think we should give them something meaningful, how about that?]

The moment He Xiaoying saw the words “something meaningful,” she lit up with interest. She turned and asked Song Xian, “When you and Ms. Jiang are at home, what do you two like doing most?”

Caught in the middle of a busy moment, Song Xian glanced up, her gaze calm and cool. “What we like doing most?”

She and Jiang Liuyi liked having sex the most.

Could she say that?

Then she remembered how Jiang Liuyi had stopped her from saying anything inappropriate at the dinner party. But aside from that… they didn’t really have any other shared hobbies. Song Xian frowned slightly.

He Xiaoying clapped her hands. “I’ve got it!”

She remembered how Song Xian had lingered in bed that morning, so she leaned in and asked in a hushed voice, “How’s your sex life, usually?”

As soon as the words left her mouth, her face flushed red with embarrassment. Song Xian, by contrast, remained composed. Her gaze was as serene as still water. At the question, she simply nodded. “It’s quite harmonious.”

“Got it.” He Xiaoying turned back to the group chat and started typing furiously: [I know what to get!]

Everyone perked up, waiting to see. But the moment her message popped up, the group exploded.

[You’re so inappropriate!]

[No no no, don’t send that—what if Ms. Jiang finds out?]

[He Xiaoying, how do you even come up with this stuff? Aren’t you the least bit ashamed?]

He Xiaoying’s face turned as red as Guan Gong’s. Gritting her teeth, she defended herself. 

[No, come on, they’re married! It’s not a big deal. When my best friend got married, I gave her the same thing—she and her wife loved it! Everyone gets tired sometimes! This one’s a substitute. Helps relieve things a bit—what’s so wrong with that? Ugh, I’m telling you all, stop being so uptight. What era do you think we’re living in? We’re modern women now!]

Her little offbeat argument didn’t manage to convince anyone. In the end, He Xiaoying gritted her teeth and went on an adult novelty site to pick out a classic four-piece set. The moment she clicked “order,” her face burned so hot it felt like it might catch fire. She didn’t even dare sit next to Song Xian at lunch, and when she spoke, she stammered.

Eventually, the group settled on gifting a camera, since they definitely couldn’t afford a piano.

Though He Xiaoying had bought her own private gift, she still chipped in for the camera. At lunch, Song Xian was surrounded by her colleagues, eating while listening to their usual gossip.

“Yu Cai got docked again. I’m thrilled. Hey, did any of you catch Sister Yuan on the phone just now?”

Wu Ying looked puzzled. “Isn’t it normal for her to be on a call?”

Xiao Li grinned. “Guess who it was.”

Everyone perked up, curious.

“Someone from Meixiu, maybe?”

“There’s no way it was Yu Cai.”

Xiao Li turned to Song Xian. “You guess too, Song Xian?”

Everyone’s eyes shifted to her. She paused for two seconds, thinking. “Qian Li?”

That was the rising actress Sister Yuan had mentioned as a potential interviewee. Wu Ying frowned. “Qian Li? Isn’t she that celebrity?”

Xiao Li burst into laughter. “Of course not—it was Zhang Susu!”

“What! She still has the nerve to call? Don’t tell me she didn’t know about what happened with Song Xian!”

Xiao Li said, “From what I gathered from Sister Yuan, she was calling to apologize. Probably still wants to collaborate with us at Man Tong.”

That made sense. After all, landing Jiang Liuyi had raised the bar significantly. If Zhang Susu wanted to work with them for the next issue, it wasn’t entirely out of the question. Wu Ying asked, “So is it confirmed? Is Zhang Susu the next feature?”

“Nope.” Xiao Li grinned. “Sister Yuan turned her down. Said we could collaborate sometime in the future, but the next issue’s already set.”

“Serves her right. She totally ran her mouth last time.”

“Exactly. Now that she sees how well our issue did, with Ms. Jiang front and center, she wants in? Let her keep working with Meixiu.”

“Didn’t you see her post on Weibo today? So passive-aggressive—basically calling Meixiu useless at promotion.”

Wu Ying rolled her eyes. “Meixiu’s practically shouting from a megaphone already. Useless at promotion, my ass.”

A colleague nearby looked curious. “So, do we already have someone lined up for the next issue?”

Xiao Li glanced at Song Xian. “What was that you said about Qian Li just now? Is there something going on behind the scenes?”

Song Xian had just finished eating. She set down her chopsticks and answered calmly, “There’s no inside story. The editor-in-chief mentioned it—Qian Li’s the next interview.”

Wu Ying blinked. “Wait, Qian Li? The one who’s been blowing up lately?”

Song Xian didn’t know much about the entertainment industry. It wasn’t something she followed. But judging by Sister Yuan’s attitude, she nodded. “Mm, it’s her.”

Her coworkers immediately perked up with excitement again.

Holding her tray, Song Xian said, “I’m heading back to retouch photos.”

Wu Ying called after her, “I’ll bring you a milk tea later—do you want it hot or cold?”

“Hot,” Song Xian replied.

The weather had turned chilly. Hot drinks were good for warming the body—and the heart. She suddenly thought of being wrapped in Jiang Liuyi’s arms. That warmth was something else. But Jiang Liuyi’s recent emotional swings had been intense—too intense. Song Xian was starting to feel worn out.

Jiang Liuyi’s stamina was far better than she’d expected. She also recovered quickly.

It was exhausting.

Song Xian gave a small shake of her head. This can’t go on, she thought. When she returned to her desk, He Xiaoying scooted over and whispered, “I got you a wedding present. It hasn’t arrived yet, but once it does, I’ll give it to you.”

She spoke with exaggerated secrecy, her face flushed like a ripe apple. Song Xian, as calm as ever, nodded. “Got it.”

He Xiaoying mumbled, “It’s not anything expensive, I just hope you won’t hate it.”

After all, Song Xian always looked so serene and self-possessed, with that cool, elegant air of hers. It was hard to tell if she’d like something like that. Song Xian gave a faint smile. “It’s fine. If it’s useful, I’ll like it.”

He Xiaoying beamed. “Oh, it’s definitely useful!”

Song Xian lowered her gaze and caught sight of a red brocade box—Sister Yuan’s wedding gift to them. She picked it up and opened it. He Xiaoying leaned in. “A fortune bead?”

“It’s a nice one. Couple’s design,” she added.

Inside were indeed two fortune beads, each tied with red string. They weren’t large, but as Song Xian looked closer, she noticed something engraved on them—one had the character “Song,” the other “Jiang.” It reminded her of school days, when she’d received many confessions. Fortune beads were popular gifts back then, though none had been engraved.

He Xiaoying smiled. “Sister Yuan really put some thought into this.”

Song Xian gave a slight nod and closed the box. He Xiaoying asked, “Do you think Ms. Jiang will like it?”

Jiang Liuyi?

She didn’t seem like someone who cared much for jewelry. When she went out, she typically just wore a watch. Song Xian smiled lightly.

Jiang Liuyi was sitting by the window at that moment, taking a call from Zhao Yuebai. Zhao said, “Did you know your wife ran into Yu Bai a few days ago?”

“Yu Bai?” Jiang Liuyi straightened up. “When?”

Zhao Yuebai said, “Just a few days ago, I think. They ran into each other at a jewelry store—apparently both had their eye on the same necklace. Yu Bai even went whining to Lin Qiushui, saying the birthday gift she picked out for me got snatched by your wife.”

Jiang Liuyi frowned. “Impossible.”

That wasn’t Song Xian’s nature. She simply wasn’t the type to fight over things.

Zhao Yuebai gave a cold laugh. “Whether it’s true or not, I hope she did. Someone needs to knock Yu Bai down a peg and show her the world doesn’t revolve around her.”

The brief sense of joy Yu Bai’s return had stirred in Qian Shen, Lin Qiushui, and the others had already been squandered—worn thin by her presence. Even Zhao Yuebai, who had once looked up to her, was beginning to lose respect for her.

Back then, Yu Bai had left without a word, no explanation, no goodbye. In fact, Zhao had once secretly reached out. Right before Jiang Liuyi’s birthday, she’d left Yu Bai a message, hoping she’d come back to surprise her. Yu Bai replied she’d try—but in the end, she didn’t come.

Which only confirmed to Zhao that not telling Jiang Liuyi had been the right choice. Yu Bai really hadn’t changed.

Now she found herself increasingly disillusioned with Yu Bai—and, in contrast, genuinely fond of Song Xian.

Finally, Jiang Liuyi had someone who truly cared for her.

Zhao Yuebai said, “Anyway, don’t worry about it. Let them do whatever they want. You just focus on living your life. How’ve things been between you and your wife these past few days?”

Jiang Liuyi lowered her gaze. “Pretty good.”

“As long as things are good,” Zhao Yuebai said. “To be honest, when you first got married, I thought it was a bad idea. I mean, how fast was that? Not even three months of knowing each other. But looking back now, I think it’s turned out well. Your wife’s really something—you need to treat her right.”

A trace of a smile surfaced in Jiang Liuyi’s eyes. “I know.”

Song Xian really was wonderful. And endearing, too.

Someone called for Zhao Yuebai on the other end, so she hung up. As Jiang Liuyi put her phone away, she updated Zhao Yuebai’s contact name—Advisor Zhao.

Without Zhao Yuebai, she wouldn’t have realized so soon that Song Xian had truly fallen for her.

Feeling pleased, Jiang Liuyi went back to the sofa and sprawled out. She scrolled through Weibo for a while, replied to a few messages from colleagues, and as she exited WeChat, her eyes landed on her phone’s wallpaper—still the one Song Xian had designed.

Something felt off.

If Song Xian was using her as her wallpaper, shouldn’t she do the same?

Of course she should.

With that thought, Jiang Liuyi opened her photo album—only to realize she didn’t have any pictures of Song Xian. She quickly messaged her:

[What are you doing?]

Song Xian looked down at the sudden notification and replied, cool as ever:

[Working.]

Jiang Liuyi pressed her lips together and sent another:

[Do you have any photos?]

Song Xian frowned slightly. Photos? What kind of photos?

Song Xian replied: [Yours?]

Jiang Liuyi: [Yours.]

Song Xian blinked in confusion. What did she want her photo for? She rarely took any. Her phone was filled with work files—nothing personal. She responded: [I don’t have any. Why?]

Not even one?

Jiang Liuyi paused. Guess she’d have to take one herself later tonight. She wrote back: [It’s nothing. Get back to work.]

Then she glanced at the time on her phone—it was nearly 5:30. She followed up with: [Aren’t you getting off soon?]

That message made Song Xian instantly think of how things had been in bed lately—far too frequent. Jiang Liuyi’s mood swings had been intense, and with them came heightened desire. It was becoming unsustainable. As she glanced sideways at an open Taobao tab, something caught her eye: a recommended self-help book.

An idea formed.

After a short pause, Jiang Liuyi received a somewhat unexpected question: [Do you like reading?]

She frowned and answered honestly: [I read when I have time.]

Song Xian replied: [I’ve got a few to recommend.]

Right after that, a file came through.

Jiang Liuyi tapped it open—only to find the titles:

How to Better Regulate Your Emotions

Mastering Your Emotions: A Guide to Self-Discipline

100 Ways to Balance Your Emotional State

Jiang Liuyi stared at the list, utterly baffled.