Chapter 397: I Just Really Want to Kiss You
"Yingzi is quite introverted and doesn’t have many friends. Previously, she had a good relationship with you. After... whatever happened between you two, you’re the most aware of. After that, she hasn’t made any new friends and has been solitary. Although I advised her to make some friends, she wasn’t happy, so I didn’t force her. I think, deep down, she still considers you her best friend."
"Alright, stop with the sentimental talk. Just tell me what you want to say?" Ningwan interrupted him.
Wen Jianan coughed lightly, then continued, "I want to marry Yingzi; her family approves of me and has been urging us. But, she herself seems not very willing. I’ve proposed twice, but she evades the topic. She just doesn’t engage with this matter at all."
"So, you want me to ask her what she’s really thinking?" Ningwan asked.
Wen Jianan nodded.
Ningwan replied, "But shouldn’t this be something you ask her yourself? You two are a couple; you should ask her directly what she’s thinking. Whether to get married is a straightforward matter, you can just ask."
"You think everyone is as straightforward as you, saying whatever comes to mind or asking directly? Not everyone finds it easy to express themselves. Even if I ask, Yingzi won’t talk if she doesn’t want to," Wen Jianan replied.
Ningwan was speechless: "You make it sound like I’m a gossip, wanting to tell everyone everything. If I don’t want to talk about something, others won’t be able to ask it out either, alright."
"Yes, yes, my mistake," Wen Jianan quickly apologized, "Could I ask you to help with this affair?"
"Of course, no problem, but I also have something for you to help with in return, you can’t refuse," Ningwan said.
Wen Jianan murmured under his breath, "You’re really not willing to take any loss."
"What did you say?" Ningwan raised her eyebrows.
At this moment, Zhan Hanjue pushed the door open and entered.
He walked directly to Ningwan, pulled a chair over, and sat down.
"What are you two discussing? Talking for so long, and still not finished?"
"Why are you here?" Ningwan asked curiously.
Zhan Hanjue smiled, "Just happened to pass by."
As he spoke, he stretched out his arm possessively around Ningwan’s shoulder and glanced at Wen Jianan with a light smile.
Wen Jianan was speechless, stood up, and said, "We’ve discussed almost everything, so I’ll leave first. I don’t want to be another third wheel."
Ningwan smiled lightly with pursed lips and nodded, allowing him to leave.
After Wen Jianan left, Ningwan immediately pushed off Zhan Hanjue’s arm, turned her face towards him, and asked, "Just happened to pass by?"
"Hmm, or should I deceive you?" Zhan Hanjue proudly replied.
Ningwan smiled incredulously and pinched his face, "If you’re worried about me, just say so. I’m not going to laugh at you. Where could you be going to just happen to pass by here? You had Wu send someone to follow me, thinking I wouldn’t know."
"I was concerned for your safety." Zhan Hanjue explained awkwardly when he realized she knew everything.
Ningwan nodded, "Understandable, after the broken mirror was finally mended, back home the newly returned wife hasn’t warmed up yet, how could one be assured."
Zhan Hanjue was amused and embraced her, asking, "So, the unwarmed wife, when does she plan to let me warm up?"
"What, is Mr. Zhan craving for some affection?" Ningwan extended her arm, hooking around his neck, and flirtatiously blinked her eyes.
Zhan Hanjue’s heart stirred with warmth, spontaneously leaned in, wanting to kiss her lips.
However, Ningwan reached out her hand to block him.
She chuckled incredulously, saying, "What are you doing? This is a restaurant, in broad daylight, what do you want?"
"Want to kiss you." Zhan Hanjue’s eyes were smiling.
He pulled aside Ningwan’s hand without hesitation and kissed her.
Ningwan hadn’t expected him to dare kiss her so openly in broad daylight.
However, she enjoyed the moment and didn’t push Zhan Hanjue away.
After separating, the two gazed at each other deeply.
Zhan Hanjue suddenly thought of something, held her hand, and stood up to walk out.
"Excuse me, you two haven’t paid your bill yet." Suddenly, a blushing waiter ran over to block their path.
Zhan Hanjue awkwardly replied, "Does kissing require payment?"
Ningwan’s face flushed red as she hurriedly apologized to the waiter and immediately took out her card for the bill.
"I ordered coffee with Wen Jianan, didn’t pay the bill." Ningwan explained softly to Zhan Hanjue.
Zhan Hanjue was embarrassed and murmured quietly, "Wen Jianan is really stingy, leaving without paying."
"With you here, surely he thought you would pay the bill," Ningwan said with a smile.
At this point, the waiter returned with the card and handed it back to Ningwan.
Ningwan left arm in arm with Zhan Hanjue.
"How is grandma doing? I’ll go home to see her later."
On the way, Ningwan and Zhan Hanjue chatted while walking.
Zhan Hanjue replied, "Just the same, memory is a mess, always forgetting many things, but still remembering things from my childhood. But such simplicity is somewhat joyful."
Ningwan bit her lip and tentatively asked, "Jue, have you considered, grandma might be poisoned?"
Zhan Hanjue nodded, "I hadn’t thought of it before, but after my memory recovered, I considered it. I even asked Mrs. Chen, she admitted it."
"Mrs. Chen?"
"She asked for my forgiveness, hoping to continue staying by grandma’s side to take care of her, as a form of redemption. I agreed; she’s been with grandma for years, and grandma needs her."
"I’ll try to see if I can detoxify grandma," Ningwan said.
Zhan Hanjue frowned.
Ningwan asked, "You don’t want grandma to recover?"
Zhan Hanjue shook his head, hesitated for a moment, and softly said, "I’m just reminded of your reluctance to give me an antidote before. Actually, I have similar reservations for grandma now."
Ningwan responded, "It’s different; I hesitated then because I worried you’d be hurt by the truth after knowing. But for grandma, if she regains clarity, she’d likely be happy! Especially with Little Tuantuan by her side, along with us."
"Hmm, you’re right, let’s go home," Zhan Hanjue tightened his grip on her hand and quickened the pace.
However, things didn’t turn out as beautifully and smoothly as they had hoped.
Ningwan gave Old Mrs. Zhan a thorough checkup and found that her condition was different from Zhan Hanjue’s.
She hadn’t taken a large number of medications, her condition was mainly due to age combined with a sudden stroke, causing cognitive decline and confusion.
Certainly, if she hadn’t taken those drugs, the situation wouldn’t have escalated to this extent.
But having taken them, it became irreversible.
Thus, there’s no medicine to take, no poison to detoxify.
"Jue, I’m sorry," Ningwan apologized softly.
Zhan Hanjue hugged her and said, "It’s alright, you’ve done your best."
However, his eyes gradually deepened.