Gently bite the jasmine

Lin Xi went upstairs, and Duan Mingxuan was taken aback when he saw her: "What's with your outfit?"

Lin Xi: "Why did you call me up here?"

Duan Mingxuan frowned and questioned, "Why are you with him again?"

"If Grandpa hears you muttering 'heh heh' all day long, he'll be unhappy with you again," Lin Xi reminded him.

Duan Mingxuan scoffed: "He seems to care that I call him 'Big Brother'?"

Lin Xi was exhausted. She went to the refrigerator, grabbed a bottle of water, took a couple of sips, and quietly looked at Duan Mingxuan. Suddenly, she said, "Zhang Mo is looking for me."

Duan Mingxuan's alarm bells rang: "Did she cause you trouble?"

“No,” Lin Xi said. “She just wants to see you and asked me to be her intermediary.”

Duan Mingxuan frowned slightly: "I've said it before, I can't tolerate her treating you like that."

Lin Xi didn't know whether to be happy or sad: "Whether it's breaking up or getting back together, it's better to be clear about it."

Duan Mingxuan was inexplicably annoyed, but he didn't refuse her: "I understand, I'll explain it to her."

Lin Xi hesitated to ask whether it was a breakup or reconciliation, then casually fiddled with her phone for a couple of seconds, pretending to be very busy.

"You still haven't told me why you came back with him?" Duan Mingxuan asked.

Lin Xi replied, "After I parted ways with Zhang Mo, I ran into his car on the road and we went back together. Is there any other question?"

Duan Mingxuan shook his head: "Call me next time, and I'll come pick you up."

Lin Xi gave a vague reply.

"Let's not talk about that. The end of next month is the anniversary of your parents' death. I'll go back with you and stay for a few more days."

Lin Xi had looked at the calendar beforehand and found that her parents' death anniversary was on a Sunday, so she planned to go there on Saturday.

But Duan Mingxuan said he would go with her, so can we go on Friday night?

He had said a long time ago that he wanted to go to Rong County to see where she was born, but he had been delayed for various reasons.

She doesn't go back every year because she's studying abroad and hasn't been back for three years. She also missed this year's Qingming Festival, so she's determined to go back this time no matter what.

Lin Xi wanted to bring Duan Mingxuan back home before so that her parents could see the person she liked, and it's the same now.

But considering the lingering connection between Duan Mingxuan and Zhang Mo, she didn't rush to agree. She simply smiled and said:

"Let's see. If something else comes up, we won't be able to stay for that many days."

Duan Mingxuan was very efficient, but he returned to the villa with a swollen face the next evening.

When Lin Xi got off work and saw the finger marks on his face, she was stunned: "What happened to you?"

Duan Mingxuan laughed awkwardly: "We bumped into each other."

Lin Xi's eyes darted around: "Did Zhang Mo make the call?"

Duan Mingxuan slumped into the sofa like a wretch, complaining, "I offered her a breakup fee, but she refused and even slapped me."

Lin Xi sighed, "I'll go get you some ice to cool you down."

Duan Mingxuan followed her to the kitchen like a tail.

Lin Xi changed into loose-fitting home clothes, her long hair was tied up, revealing only a section of her fair neck.

She found a clean towel, gestured for Duan Mingxuan to come closer, and gently touched the ice pack to his face.

Seeing the evenly spaced finger marks on his face, Lin Xi suddenly laughed: "This seems to be the first time you've ever been slapped in the face since you were a child."

Duan Mingxuan glared at her angrily: "It wasn't you who said it. Explain yourself. I just want to cut ties with her completely."

Lin Xi paused slightly, her heart fluttering at Duan Mingxuan's words, "cut it off cleanly."

"Xiao Xi?"

"Ok?"

Lin Xi subconsciously looked up, her eyes slightly bright and clear, carrying a bewildered look.

These are very beautiful and innocent almond-shaped eyes.

For some inexplicable reason, Duan Mingxuan said, "How about I marry you?"

Duan Yiheng came to deliver project documents to Lin Xi, and because of Duan Mingxuan's words, they stopped at the corner of the kitchen entrance.

For a moment, Lin Xi wondered if she was hallucinating.

When she was eighteen, her grandfather, seeing that she and Duan Mingxuan had a good relationship, brought up the matter of marriage for the first time, in a lighthearted and joking tone, testing Duan Mingxuan.

Duan Mingxuan jokingly replied, "Okay."

Chen Baiwei looked unwell and said the children were too young.

That very night, she came to me and asked me to go to America.

When she was twenty-two, the old man fell ill and underwent major surgery, and he brought up her engagement to Duan Mingxuan again.

Chen Baiwei said that her studies are her priority at the moment.

Lin Xi also rejected her grandfather's offer to secure her life through marriage, because they both wanted to be together.

The third time it was mentioned was at the dinner table on the night she returned to China, where Chen Baiwei still objected.

Even if he had agreed, Lin Xi would not have been able to agree at that time.

Because Duan Mingxuan already has a girlfriend.

But at this moment, Duan Mingxuan broke up with his girlfriend.

Lin Xi had liked him for many years, so it was impossible for her to be unmoved by his words, "How about I marry you?"

She once thought that her destiny lay with the Duan family, with Duan Mingxuan.

At a young age, without the protection of her parents, it was Duan Mingxuan who accompanied her through the dark night of initially living under someone else's roof.

He never let anyone bully her; his kindness towards her seemed to be ingrained in his very being.

In her teens, Lin Xi couldn't resist his radiant presence, like a ray of sunshine shining upon her.

She and Duan Mingxuan were childhood sweethearts with a deep bond, so it was only natural that she liked him.

He was her childhood and adolescence.

Upon learning that he had a girlfriend, Lin Xi swallowed her bitterness and pain, pretending to be nonchalant, but in reality, she was choked with rage.

She was grateful that Duan Yiheng had let her into Silver Sail, pulling her out of the tangled mess of pain and bringing her a sliver of clarity.

Duan Mingxuan's breath, so close to hers, suddenly made her slightly flustered.

Duan Yiheng's eyes darkened, and he coughed lightly, breaking the ambiguous atmosphere at the opportune moment.

Lin Xi was startled, pushed Duan Mingxuan away, and tilted her head.

Upon seeing that it was Duan Yiheng, she involuntarily straightened up, looking as if she was waiting for instructions.

Duan Mingxuan also breathed a sigh of relief. He had indeed blurted out those words without thinking, and he had even frightened himself.

Lin Xi is not someone who can be treated casually.

Duan Mingxuan looked at Duan Yiheng evasively: "What are you doing here?"

Lin Xi pulled Duan Mingxuan back: "Speak more politely."

Duan Yiheng gently patted the document along the hem of his suit trousers.

Lin Xi knew at a glance that it was for her. She glanced at Duan Mingxuan and asked, "Are you going out again tonight? Did you make plans with someone?"

Duan Mingxuan shook his head: "No."

Lin Xi: "So, do you want to play games with Yu Lang?"

"I'm not playing." Duan Mingxuan looked at her, puzzled. "Why do you look like you're trying to get rid of me?"

"No." Lin Xi smiled. "I'm a little tired, I'm going upstairs first."

Duan Mingxuan followed her, completely ignoring Duan Yiheng.

Lin Xi turned around and gave Duan Yiheng a "wait a minute" look.

After being pestered by Duan Mingxuan for about ten minutes, Lin Xi hurriedly went downstairs, but the living room was empty.

Thinking Duan Yiheng had left, Lin Xi turned and ran outside, but in the courtyard downstairs she saw a tall figure.

Lin Xi ran over, somewhat surprised and delighted: "You haven't left yet?"

Suddenly, Duan Mingxuan's voice came from the second-floor balcony. It sounded like Zhang Mo was pestering him relentlessly.

"Hurry up and go inside." Lin Xi pushed Duan Yiheng towards the corner. "Don't let him see us."

Duan Yiheng leaned against the wall obediently, and said jokingly without expression, "Do you know what kind of behavior you're behaving on a dark and windy night, alone with a man and a woman?"

Lin Xi was taken aback: "What does it look like?"

Duan Yiheng chuckled softly, leaned close to her ear, and said in a deep voice, "Like having an affair."