It seemed he had brought over Jiang Shao’s little girlfriend. What an incredible coincidence—the beautiful young girl he had searched for from H City!

Jiang Ren made a phone call to instruct others about some matters to attend to later, then led Meng Ting towards the exit.

“Will it be alright if you leave?” she asked.

“It’s fine,” he replied.

“Where are we going?”

He paused before answering, “My home.”

Meng Ting’s eyes widened as she looked at him, her tea-colored irises filled with surprise, expressing a “Are you crazy?” look.

Jiang Ren gripped the steering wheel tightly. “You don’t want to?”

She was just startled. Bringing a girl home during the New Year usually wasn’t a simple matter of bringing a playmate.

Of course, she was unwilling.

It was too frightening; she was only in her early teens.

“We were just arguing,” she said, her face flushing. “Let me process this.”

“I wasn’t arguing with you.”

“But you said we should break up.”

He pressed his lips together. That wasn’t an argument; it was his most desperate retreat. How could he argue with her? Even with Meng Ting by his side, he knew there were some emotions she couldn’t understand.

“I won’t say that again. My father isn’t home. I’ll take you to change into some clothes.”

He had arrived by car and left by car.

Meng Ting knew his father wasn’t home, which relieved her, but she still felt odd. If she insisted on not going, he would surely overthink it.

However, as soon as they entered, they saw an elderly person eating a candied haw in the living room. She froze for a moment, instinctively looking at Jiang Ren. He patted her head and said, “That’s Grandmother.”

Grandmother Jiang turned her head, saw her grandson, and broke into a smile. “Little Ren is back from school. Grandmother has candied haws for you.”

The old lady came over with half a stick of candied haws.

She had eaten two, leaving three, and preciously tried to feed them to Jiang Ren.

Grandmother Jiang was only 1.5 meters tall, while her eldest grandson was nearly 1.87 meters. However, in the old lady’s eyes, her grandson was still that four or five-year-old child with no one to care for him, rejected by others. Even in her dementia, she wouldn’t forget this.

Jiang Ren lowered his gaze and, not minding if it was dirty, ate one.

Satisfied that her grandson had eaten, Grandmother Jiang then noticed the girl her obedient grandson was holding hands with. The girl was very pretty, wearing a snow-white winter dress with fluffy fur trimming the hem.

Nervously, the girl said, “Grandmother Jiang.”

Grandmother Jiang was overjoyed: “The Guanyin Bodhisattva has come to our home! Would the Bodhisattva like some auspicious fruit?”

She held the candied haw to Meng Ting’s lips.

Before Meng Ting could react, a long-fingered hand grasped the old woman’s wrinkled palm and pushed it back. He said, “Grandmother, please don’t fuss. Go sit down. Where’s the caretaker? Come watch her.”

The old lady, lacking mental stability, became very anxious, fearing that the Guanyin Bodhisattva would be angry and think her grandson was stingy, and wouldn’t bless him anymore.

The caretaker hurriedly came over with fruit prepared for the old lady, nervously wiping her apron. “I’m sorry, Young Master Jiang. The old madam just wanted some fruit.”

Jiang Ren was about to say something when his phone rang. It was his father calling. He frowned, “I’ll go take this call.”

Meng Ting nodded, and he went to the floor-to-ceiling window in the hallway to answer the phone.

This left just Meng Ting and Grandmother Jiang.

Grandmother Jiang still thought she was little Guanyin, beautiful and auspicious. Seeing that her grandson wasn’t around, she secretly tried to share the candied haws with her.

Meng Ting knew the old lady likely suffered from senile dementia.

She lowered her long lashes and bit off one haw.

The old lady beamed with joy, muttering, “You must bless my eldest grandson, Guanyin Bodhisattva.”

“I will,” she responded softly, smiling as she took a tissue to wipe the sugar residue from Grandmother Jiang’s clothes.

“Great fortune, great fortune.”

When Jiang Ren returned, he didn’t see this scene. He only saw his grandmother, like a child, asking Meng Ting to make things appear.

The young girl smiled and said okay. She had nothing on her, so she could only take off the white feather collar from her neck and give it to Grandmother Jiang. Grandmother Jiang was extremely happy. She only had two things of her own; the rest belonged to Jun Yang and had to be returned. The collar and crown were things she had bought for ballet dancing in the past.

Now, one was thrown to Jiang Ren, and the other was given to Grandmother Jiang.

Oddly enough, both items seemed to strike his chest.

There were no women’s clothes in the Jiang residence, but someone had sent some over. Jiang Ren, worried she might be cold, told her to go change.

The villa had heating, so it wasn’t cold. Meng Ting obediently went to the guest room to change. When she came out, she saw Jiang Ren by the door.

“My grandmother isn’t very lucid. Don’t mind her,” he said.

She shook her head.

“Why didn’t you let me eat Grandmother Jiang’s candied haws?” She blinked, genuinely curious. The old lady had been sad for a long time earlier. Grandmother Jiang’s world was so much simpler. Although she had secretly eaten some later, making the old lady happy. There was still a sweet and sour taste in her mouth.

His fingers lightly touched her soft, warm cheek. After a moment of silence, he told her in a hoarse voice, “An elderly person’s things can be a bit dirty.”

This was the truth, especially for a not-so-lucid elderly person.

So he’d rather his grandmother be unhappy than let her eat it.

He didn’t mind at all, lowering his head to casually chew one.

Meng Ting was stunned. She hadn’t expected Jiang Ren to say this.

She had always thought he was fierce, but today this young man showed her a protective, responsible, yet particularly gentle side. He didn’t despise the old lady but feared that she might feel wronged or scared.

That’s why Jiang Ren had pushed the old lady’s hand away.

Her heart felt warm and amused.

No wonder Jiang Ren could jump into the water without hesitation to save her grandfather and carry him a long way. It was only when his head was patted that he got angry.

Her heart softened: “Jiang Ren, Grandmother Jiang just called me little Guanyin Bodhisattva.”

He curved his lips slightly: “Mm, you’re beautiful.” And wearing a white dress, so their grandmother had mistaken her.

“She also made a wish,” Meng Ting bit her lip, smiling with a red face, “for me to bless her grandson.”

The sound of cartoons could still be heard from the living room.

His heart raced as he leaned in on either side of her, asking with a low chuckle, “Will you bless me, hm? Little Guanyin Bodhisattva?”

She put on a solemn face and said in a sweet, serious tone, “I don’t bless bad guys and scoundrels.”

He couldn’t help but laugh: “It doesn’t matter. I’m not a believer; I have no faith. What I want, I’ll get myself.”

He lowered his head to kiss her. He had missed her for a long time, from when she cried outside his hospital room last year to when all of B City was covered in heavy snow. His heart was desolate yet deeply yearning.

But Meng Ting didn’t want to let him kiss her. Although she had placated him, he would get upset at the slightest thing, almost really breaking up with her. Besides, this was his home. Couldn’t he be a bit more mindful?

She pushed his face away, not allowing him to touch her.

“I haven’t forgiven you yet. You say you don’t want me and then you do. How can things be so easy?”

If something like this happened again, and he turned cold as ice, she, an ordinary citizen, if he refused to see her, might never see him again in her life. She wasn’t Jiang Ren; she couldn’t withstand this back-and-forth torment.

She pressed against his shoulder: “I’m still angry.”

Yet her tone was soft and sweet, making one want to dote on her terribly.

His Adam’s apple bobbed: “Then how can I be forgiven?”

“…” She was at a loss for words. If asked to say it, she really couldn’t.

She looked at him blankly, and his heart melted.

“It’s all my fault. Don’t be angry, treasure. I’ll make it up to you however you want. I never said I didn’t want you.”

He called her “treasure” in a low voice as if he had called her that countless times in his heart. Her ears turned red; what an embarrassing term of endearment. Moreover, Jiang Ren was so shameless. He clearly did say it, but now he could utter any lie.

Meng Ting tried hard to ignore his term of endearment: “I need to go home. I have a flight tonight. Dad and my brother are waiting for me for the reunion dinner.”

After all, it was the New Year. She had told Father Shu earlier that she’d be back tonight. Shu Yang would also come to pick her up. She couldn’t very well stay in B City, let alone in someone else’s home. It wouldn’t be appropriate.

His pupils constricted slightly.

The first day she returned to his side, she was already in a hurry to go home. It made Jiang Ren feel as if he had been driven mad and was experiencing a hallucination.

In this hallucination, she told him she liked him, that in her heart he wasn’t incomplete.

His mouth tasted of blood. Feeling the pain and the metallic taste, he finally confirmed this was real, trying to keep his agitated heart from losing control.

“I’ll go back with you.”

Meng Ting hurriedly shook her head.

Jiang Ren wasn’t alone in the world. During the New Year, if he went to her home, Father Shu would probably chase him out with a broom. Besides, what about his father and grandmother?

“My brother will come to pick me up,” she blinked her eyes. “Are you still studying now that you’re back in B City?”

“Mm.” Most of the time he was working on strategies.

“Then come to H City when you’re on break.”

He remained silent, his dark eyes calm. He seemed to think this was a roundabout way of distancing herself.

Meng Ting held back her smile: “I need to study hard for the college entrance exam. Puppy love affects grades.”

Jiang Ren had never had grades to speak of.

“Getting recommended for admission doesn’t allow you to choose a suitable university, Jiang Ren. I need to test into a university in B City.” Because you’re here.

He was stunned.

It seemed he couldn’t believe what he had heard. Jiang Ren had always known that going to university was her dream, but one day, her dream became linked to him. He had always thought that his importance in her heart was far less than that of her family and her dreams. He was self-aware enough to know this.

Even as Jiang Ren sent her to the airport, he still felt it was absurd.

As Meng Ting was about to board the plane in the night, he irritably loosened his tie.

She had taught him to strive for the long term, so he couldn’t focus on the immediate.

But who the hell could endure the day-to-day?

She was almost through security, and Jiang Ren truly feared that by next spring, she would have changed her mind.

He grasped her wrist: “Huo Yifeng, did you ever like him?”

“No,” she shook her head, almost wanting to bite him.

“Why didn’t you like him?”

Huo Yifeng wasn’t Xu Jia. He was rich, good-looking, had good grades, and no rumors about him. Jiang Ren had checked; this person’s character was indeed not bad.

She gritted her back teeth. This bastard was so infuriating. What did he mean, why didn’t she like him? Did she have to like every excellent man?

“Do you want me to like him?” She was furious. “Then I’ll give it a try.”

“You’re not allowed,” he said. “You’re not allowed to go.”

“What if I insist on going?”

He looked at her quietly.

For a moment, Meng Ting seemed to understand his meaning. It sent chills down her spine.

She was scared by Jiang Ren.

He closed his pitch-black eyes and hugged her, burying his face in the crook of her neck: “Don’t like him and don’t like anyone else. I love you.”