Chapter 611 - 626: Demure
An Guoming was getting impatient, while Yin Xuemei was hungry for gossip.
An Ning said frankly, "It’s just that I know he likes me, and he knows I like him. But he said he wants to give me a proper courtship, so he’s pursuing me right now."
As An Ning spoke, the smile on her face grew wider, unable to hide her smug delight and the aura of someone in love.
"Honey, don’t you smell something sour?"
"Huh? No."
Yin Xuemei’s simple "no" left An Guoming standing there, looking wronged. The big man started talking in a whiny, whimpering tone.
"I knew it! I knew it! You love her more than me! I—oooooh—"
Yin Xuemei looked at An Guoming clutching his chest in mock agony and shoved him aside in disgust.
"Go wash your hands and get ready for dinner. We’re both hungry."
The moment he heard that, An Guoming dropped the act and scurried off to wash his hands.
Yin Xuemei stifled a laugh, walked over to An Ning, and linked her arm. "So, are you planning to say yes as soon as Jiang Xia chases you a little?"
"Isn’t that the plan?"
An Ning looked at Yin Xuemei in confusion.
Yin Xuemei mulled it over for a moment. Of course, she wanted the two of them to get together. Of everyone they knew, no one was a better match for An Ning than Jiang Xia.
’But for a girl... it’s never wrong to be a little more reserved. The trick is getting the balance right, though.’
"Yes and no," Yin Xuemei said. "First, let me ask you: when are you planning to accept?"
"Probably around the time he gets back from his business trip."
Yin Xuemei pressed, "Let me ask you this, then. How many dates have you been on? Have you held hands? Have you kissed?"
A blush crept onto An Ning’s face.
It wasn’t a blush of shyness, but one of anticipation.
"Is kissing allowed?"
The sight of An Ning, a complete novice at romance, looking at her with such nervous anticipation made Yin Xuemei feel like a big bad wolf teaching a lesson to a little white rabbit.
Except, in this scenario, she was starting to feel like the little white rabbit herself.
"Why do I get the feeling you’re the one who’s really excited about this?"
"Of course I’m excited. I’ve been wanting to make a move on someone in my own backyard for a long time."
She said it with such righteous conviction that it left Yin Xuemei feeling completely stumped.
"An Ning, I feel like you two should go on at least ten dates or so. Honestly, the ambiguous, flirty stage of a chase is a beautiful thing too."
An Ning thought about this very seriously for a moment.
"But can you even call our situation ’ambiguous’? I feel like we’re walking into an exam with the answer key. We both already know the outcome."
"Mmm... I guess you could say that. Your second brother and I both knew we liked each other toward the end, but we still had a flirty, ambiguous phase for a while. Still, this is just a suggestion. You should just play it by ear and see how things go."
Yin Xuemei didn’t dare give too much advice. An Ning’s brain was wired differently from most people’s, and she was afraid her suggestions might end up making Jiang Xia cry.
"Alright, I’ll play it by ear."
An Ning agreed readily and helped Yin Xuemei inside for dinner.
During dinner, An Ning asked about what had happened with Yin Xuelan at the door. An Guoming gave a concise summary.
"She found out we have money and that your sister-in-law is pregnant, so she thought she had a chance to offer herself up and take her place. Disgusting people have disgusting thoughts."
An Ning’s mouth fell open, a bite of food frozen on her chopsticks halfway to her lips. "People can really be that shameless?" she asked in disbelief.
"Of course. Let your second brother tell you something, Little Sis: once a man becomes successful, there will be tons of women throwing themselves at him. But Jiang Xia wouldn’t dare. He’d be too afraid you’d beat him to death. When weighed against his own life, staying alive is pretty important."
"OW—what’d you pinch me for?"
An Guoming glanced at Yin Xuemei beside him and immediately backpedaled. "I wouldn’t dare either! My mom, my dad, my little sister... any one of them would kill me! I’m way more terrified!"
"Besides, even if I had the inclination, I don’t have the guts. The cost of messing up is way too high. I’m not stupid enough to make a trade that’s a guaranteed loss."
An Guoming’s half-joking remarks earned him a look from Yin Xuemei, a silent rebuke for his glibness.
"Second Sister-in-law, don’t worry. When it comes down to it, I side with what’s right, not with family."
Yin Xuemei smiled and put some food on An Ning’s plate. The three of them ate in harmony, enjoying the happy atmosphere.
As for Yin Xuelan, An Guoming promised she would never appear before Yin Xuemei again.
"Second Brother, are you going to—"
An Ning made a throat-slitting gesture, leaving An Guoming at a loss for whether to laugh or cry.
"Little Sis, what kind of person do you take your second brother for?"
"A thug."
The answer hit him where it hurt, making An Guoming’s eyes go wide.
"Is that really what you think of your second brother?"
"Well, whose fault is it that you have so many ’brothers’ working for you?"
An Guoming was at a loss for words, but he still protested loudly, "It’s a logistics company! Logistics! Who said they were my ’brothers’?"
An Ning asked innocently, "Then why do they call you Brother Ming, instead of ’Boss’ or ’Manager’?"
An Guoming’s bluster faltered. ’Now that she mentions it, that does seem to be the case.’
The siblings dropped the argument, and Yin Xuelan’s name wasn’t mentioned again.
"So, Little Sis, what brings you over today?"
"I’m heading home. I just came to let you know."
An Guoming understood immediately. "Ah, so because Jiang Xia’s on a business trip and you’ve got nothing to do, you’re just going to go home and wait."
"Yep."
The blunt reply made An Guoming’s lip twitch. ’Couldn’t she be a little more subtle about it?’
As it turned out, she could not.
Since An Ning was going home, An Guoming asked Yin Xuemei if she wanted to go back as well.
Yin Xuemei rubbed her belly. Thinking of An Guoming being here all alone, she decided against it.
An Ning didn’t mind either way; she had just come to give them a heads-up.
After dinner, An Ning packed up some leftovers for a late-night snack.
She was planning on taking the key to the siheyuan to An Guoping.
An Guoping’s hospital wasn’t too far away. He was currently living in a house near the hospital that An Guoming had bought for him some time ago.
A little after nine in the evening, An Ning arrived at the hospital entrance, carrying the late-night snack she’d snagged from An Guoming’s place, and waited for An Guoping to get off work.
An Guoping should have been off work long ago, but he’d been held up by an emergency surgery. As a medical student, opportunities to even step into an operating room were rare, so even though he was just an assistant, the chance was too precious to pass up.
After about half an hour of waiting, An Guoping emerged from the entrance, dressed in casual clothes with a backpack slung over his shoulders.
An Guoping spotted An Ning the moment he walked out.
He immediately picked up his pace, breaking into a run to meet her. The two of them smiled warmly at each other, laughing and chatting over the container of food.
A number of his colleagues then saw An Guoping ride off on his electric scooter with the young woman sitting behind him.
"Is that Doctor An’s girlfriend?"
"I don’t know. They kind of have that ’couple look,’ you know? They look a bit alike."
"Yeah, I thought so too. They just have this similar look about them."
"What are you even guessing for when you don’t know anything!"
A girl resentfully shoved her way between the two speakers. She radiated such a bristling aura of indignation that the two behind her just pursed their lips and said nothing.
’Better not to mess with her. She’s got powerful connections!’
The indignant girl who had pushed past them kept her eyes glued to the direction An Guoping had gone, growing angrier the longer she stared.
’So this is why you rejected me?’
Never in her entire life had she been rejected.
’An Guoping, you will be mine.’
Far from all this, An Guoping rode on with An Ning, heading back to his little apartment.
It was a top-floor apartment on the fifth floor, a two-bedroom, one-living-room unit of about seventy-something square meters with good cross-ventilation from north to south.
"Sis—fair warning, it might be a little messy."