stonecrandall Page 46
Page 46
Following the address provided by Chen Nanxing, Su Chang stood nervously at the entrance of apartment 203, building 3 of Anju Jiayuan residential complex. He held a large bouquet of roses in his hands and thought to himself, "Xu Hongdou, Xu Hongdou, this time I'm going to catch you and make sure you don't run away and stop answering my calls or replying to my messages."
Su Chang knocked on the door, and soon Xu Hongdou's voice came from inside: "Who is it?"
Having no other choice, Su Chang, fearing that Xu Hongdou would avoid her, could only lower her voice and, holding a large bouquet of roses, hide to one side of the door and reply, "Miss Xu, I'm delivering a package. Please open the door and sign for it."
Xu Hongdou looked out through the peephole but didn't see anyone. She couldn't help but feel suspicious: "Why would a delivery person hide? After all, whether it's a courier or a food delivery person, they usually face the door so the homeowner knows what they're doing there." She felt a surge of anxiety, thinking, "Could it be a bad guy?"
Seeing that Xu Hongdou hadn't opened the door for so long, Su Chang had no choice but to knock again and said in a low voice, "Miss Xu, could you please open the door and sign for the package? I still have a lot of orders to deliver, otherwise it wouldn't be good if the packages downstairs got stolen."
Xu Hongdou didn't believe Su Chang's nonsense. She thought to herself, "This person is definitely suspicious. I need to stall for time until the security guards arrive." So she deliberately said, "Wait a minute, I just finished showering and haven't put my clothes on yet. Wait a little longer, or you can give it to someone else first."
When Su Chang heard Xu Hongdou say she had just finished showering, he couldn't help but picture a beautiful fairy emerging from her bath. Little did he know that Xu Hongdou had already texted the property management for help. He thought to himself with a smug smile, "Hongdou must smell wonderful right now." So he casually replied, "Okay, please hurry up." Then he waited patiently.
Xu Hongdou waited anxiously inside for the security guards to arrive, wondering, "Why aren't they here yet?" At the same time, she was also thinking about how to deal with the people outside the door.
Finally, the security guards arrived. They were speechless when they saw Su Chang, a handsome young man hiding in the blind spot of the peephole, holding a large bouquet of red roses. They probably guessed that this was a boyfriend coming to surprise his girlfriend. Whether he was happy or not, he didn't know, but he was definitely shocked.
Su Chang looked surprised when she saw the security guard, and muttered to herself, "What's going on? In my past life, when I watched videos of my boyfriend making a mistake and apologizing to his girlfriend, he would pretend to be a deliveryman to knock on the door if he was afraid she wouldn't open it. Why doesn't it work for me? Why did I have to call the security guard?"
Although the head security guard guessed that Su Chang was not the bad person Xu Hongdou described, he still walked up to Su Chang and asked according to procedure, "Sir, what is your name, and what is your relationship with the homeowner?"
·· ··Requesting flowers··· ········
Su Chang felt a little helpless, but still tried to remain calm and replied, "Uh! My name is Su Chang, and the homeowner, Xu Hongdou, is my girlfriend. What's wrong?" As he spoke, he took out his ID card and handed it to the security guard.
The security guard took it and saw that it was indeed named Su Chang, so he returned it to him and then knocked on Xu Hongdou's door again.
A moment later, the door opened, and Xu Hongdou came out. Su Chang immediately realized this didn't look like she was taking a shower, and he knew he'd gone too far. He cursed those video bloggers for scamming people, but still wore a fawning smile and said, "Hi! Hongdou, I'm here!"
Although Xu Hongdou was overjoyed, she still gave Su Chang a disapproving look, thinking to herself, "What's this guy up to! He's so old, why is he playing hide-and-seek and making me misunderstand?" But she still turned to the security guard apologetically and said, "I'm sorry, security guard, it's all a misunderstanding."
The security guard didn't want to linger. It was obvious the young couple had a disagreement, and the boyfriend had come over to apologize. Staying any longer would be impolite and could lead to a complaint.
He laughed and said, "It's alright, since it's a misunderstanding, that's fine. We have other things to do, so we'll be leaving now." With that, he dragged the few young people who still wanted to watch the drama unfold away with him.
..... ..... ...
Su Chang watched the security guard's departing figure and breathed a sigh of relief. He turned to Xu Hongdou and said cautiously, "Hongdou, I was wrong, please don't be angry anymore, okay?"
Xu Hongdou rolled her eyes at him and said, "What did you do wrong?"
Su Chang scratched his head and said, "I shouldn't have been so reckless. I came over without telling you beforehand, and I even played hide-and-seek with you. Did I scare you?"
Xu Hongdou snorted and said, "Hmph! What else?"
Su Chang quickly handed the red rose in her hand to Xu Hongdou and said, "I bought this for you. Do you like it?"
Xu Hongdou took the flowers, her expression softening slightly, but she still wouldn't let Su Chang off the hook, and continued to ask, "Don't think that a bouquet of flowers can let you escape the problem. Tell me, what else did you do wrong?"
Seeing that Xu Hongdou's attitude had changed somewhat but remained firm, Su Chang had no choice but to say with a forced smile, "Um... how about we go inside and talk? It's not appropriate to stand at the entrance."
Xu Hongdou thought for a moment and said, "Okay, come in, but if you can't figure out where you went wrong, then get out of here."
Su Chang was overjoyed. He knew that Xu Hongdou's attitude had improved. He quickly followed Xu Hongdou into the room, secretly thinking about how to win her over later.
"Stand up! Who told you to sit? You dare to sit without explaining the mistake you made." The two entered the living room, and Su Chang was about to sit down when Xu Hongdou coldly shouted at him.
"Ahem! Um... Red Bean, look, I rushed over here so early this morning and haven't even had a sip of water yet. Could you pour me a glass of water?" Su Chang tried to change the subject with a grin.
"Su Chang, stop grinning at me. If you don't honestly confess your mistakes, don't even think about getting a drink of water." Xu Hongdou stared at Su Chang with a serious expression.
"Um... Hongdou, am I late? I've really been busy lately, and you know Xiaoming, he just recovered from his illness, and Andy is busy too, so I just made arrangements for Xiaoming and came over." Su Chang had no choice but to dodge the question and selectively skip over Andy's matter. He was also betting that Xu Hongdou was just guessing that he and Andy had some kind of relationship.
"Oh? Is that so? Then what's your relationship with Andy? Not only did you help her cure her brother's illness, but you also arranged a living for Xiaoming. Don't tell me you're just neighbors or friends." Xu Hongdou wasn't going to let Su Chang off so easily. She'd been losing sleep over Su Chang and Andy's situation for a long time now.
Chapter Ninety-One: Confession
Su Chang knew he might not be able to get away with it this time, but he was unsure whether to tell the truth. What if Xu Hongdou ran away after he confessed? He remembered that in "With the Wind," Xu Hongdou was a woman who had a strong pursuit of love.
Seeing Su Chang deep in thought, Xu Hongdou guessed what was going on, and her expression turned cold. But she was still waiting for Su Chang to give her a definite answer, otherwise she would not be satisfied.
Su Chang considered for a moment, then looked at Xu Hongdou with a serious expression and said, "Hongdou, do you believe me?"
Xu Hongdou replied directly, "Stop with the nonsense, just get to the point."
Su Chang took a deep breath and decided not to hide it anymore. He said seriously, "Okay, Hongdou, I don't want to hide it from you either. Andy is one of my girlfriends."
"Okay, I knew it..." Upon hearing this answer, Xu Hongdou's face turned pale instantly. Her eyes were filled with disappointment and anger. She bit her lip, trying hard not to let her tears fall.
"What did you say? One of your girlfriends?" Xu Hongdou suddenly sensed something was wrong and stared at Su Chang with a hostile expression. Her voice trembled slightly, and she couldn't believe her ears.
Su Chang coughed twice helplessly and said, "583, cough cough! Yes, Andy is one of my girlfriends."
Xu Hongdou jumped up from the sofa, her eyes wide with anger, and roared, "So you have more than one girlfriend besides Andy? Then why are you bothering me? You scumbag! Does Andy even know you have more than one girlfriend?"
Since Su Chang had already prepared himself for the situation by choosing to be honest, he braced himself and replied, "Yes, Andy knows, but I need to correct you on one point. I'm not a scumbag, I'm just promiscuous."
Upon hearing Su Chang's words, Xu Hongdou laughed in anger, her laughter filled with sarcasm and helplessness.
"Really? Then tell me what the difference is." Xu Hongdou's voice turned cold, and her eyes revealed deep despair.
Looking at Xu Hongdou's expression, Su Chang felt guilty and helpless. He knew that Xu Hongdou couldn't accept his views on relationships for the time being.
"Red Bean, I know you might not be able to accept me like this, but I still want to say that I really like you," Su Chang tried to explain.
Xu Hongdou sneered and said, "You like me? Su Chang, is this how you like me? What do you take me for? Your plaything? Or your mistress?"
"Hey! Red Bean, let me put this to you, I have no plans to get married in this life, and you can probably guess what my wealth is. I just want to find a few girls I like to spend my life with, and I don't intend to categorize my women into different classes. In my heart, you are all the same, so..."
"Stop! Mr. Su Chang." Xu Hongdou interrupted Su Chang abruptly, addressing him as "Mr. Su Chang": "First of all, I am very grateful for your help to me and Nanxing. Secondly, I also thank you for your affection, but I am not the kind of woman you think I am. Please take your affection and get out of here. I don't want to see you again."
As she uttered her last words, Xu Hongdou burst into tears, forcefully pushing Su Chang towards the door. Su Chang looked helpless. He possessed an indestructible body; with Xu Hongdou's small arms and legs, he could easily stand and prevent her from pushing him. However, he also knew that now was not the time to explain, otherwise the situation would only worsen. He apologized to Xu Hongdou while reminding her to take care of herself, but Xu Hongdou seemed not to hear him, remaining silent.
Xu Hongdou's eyes were filled with sadness and anger. She bit her lip tightly, and tears streamed down her face. She pushed Su Chang away forcefully with both hands, as if she wanted to vent all her grievances and pain on him. After pushing Su Chang out the door, she slammed the door shut and squatted on the ground, crying bitterly.
Hearing Xu Hongdou's cries and seeing her so heartbroken, Su Chang felt a pang of sympathy. He sighed helplessly and silently left Xu Hongdou's house.
He didn't go far; he bought a pack of cigarettes at a local store, sat on a bench, smoked, and pondered what to do.
Su Chang looked extremely agitated. He frowned, a cigarette dangling from his mouth. He took a puff and was choked so badly that tears streamed down his face, but he didn't throw it away, taking another puff every now and then. He was conflicted, unsure how to comfort Xu Hongdou or how to get her to accept him. He couldn't possibly abandon Jiang Lai, Andy, Xu Li, and all the other beautiful women in the future for Xu Hongdou.
Just then, the phone rang. Su Chang saw the caller ID and gave a wry smile. He knew it was Chen Nanxing calling. After hesitating for a moment, he answered. But he held the phone away from his ear, knowing Chen Nanxing would definitely yell at him.
Sure enough, as soon as the call connected, Chen Nanxing's roar came from the other end: "Su Chang, you bastard! What do you mean? Do you think it's fun to bully our Hongdou? If you don't want to take responsibility, why did you provoke our Hongdou in the first place..." Chen Nanxing's voice was full of anger and accusation, and Su Chang could only listen helplessly.
Su Chang's face turned ugly; he felt incredibly wronged. He thought to himself, "I didn't do anything! Why do I feel like I did something heinous to Xu Hongdou? All I wanted was to find a few more girlfriends, is that so wrong?"
(Author's monologue: That's outrageous! They didn't even give me one!)
It wasn't until about ten minutes later that the roaring gradually subsided: "Su Chang, you bastard, are you still listening?"
Su Chang replied softly with a helpless expression, "Ahem! Nanxing, I'm still here. Don't be angry. Let me explain. I didn't say I wouldn't take responsibility for Hongdou, and I didn't bully her." His voice carried a hint of helplessness and grievance, hoping that Chen Nanxing could understand him.
"Didn't you bully her?" Chen Nanxing sneered, "You bastard, tell me where you are, I'm coming right now."
"Uh! I'm still downstairs at Xu Hongdou's house." Although Su Chang had a bad feeling, she still answered truthfully.
"Fine, you stay there and don't move. If you dare to leave, I'll go to Shanghai and ambush you." Chen Nanxing said angrily and hung up the phone. Su Chang shook his head helplessly and continued smoking, feeling extremely irritated.
Half an hour later, Su Chang was smoking and deep in thought when a sudden shout came: "Su Chang!"
"Oh my god!" Su Chang looked up and saw Chen Nanxing rushing towards her with a baseball bat. Su Chang immediately got up and ran, shouting back as she ran, "Grandma, calm down."
"Su Chang, you bastard, stop right there! I'll cripple you today!" Chen Nanxing chased after him relentlessly, determined to destroy Su Chang.
"Nanxing, calm down! You've just recovered, you can't do such strenuous exercise." Su Chang was worried that Chen Nanxing would hurt himself if he ran too fast, so he could only slow down and keep a safe distance from Chen Nanxing.
"Mind your own business, you bastard! Stop right there! Do you think Hongdou's family is nobody?" Chen Nanxing continued to relentlessly pursue him.
"Stop right there!" The two were chasing each other with abandon when suddenly a shout came from afar.
As the shouts rang out, Su Chang and Chen Nanxing both stopped and turned around to see who it was—Xu Hongdou.
Chen Nanxing then turned around and said angrily, "Hongdou, don't worry about it. I'll beat this bastard to death today." With that, he was about to continue chasing after Su Chang.
Su Chang stared intently at Xu Hongdou, muttering to himself, "Why is Hongdou here? Has she been watching from up there? I have an indestructible body. If I wasn't afraid of injuring Chen Nanxing, I wouldn't bother running away. Besides, even if being hit by her doesn't hurt, it would be too embarrassing to be seen by others."
Xu Hongdou ran to Chen Nanxing's side, grabbed her arm, and said urgently, "Alright, he is your savior after all, and you've just recovered from your illness, so you can't do strenuous exercise. Take a rest."
Chen Nanxing was still not satisfied and said angrily, "Hmph! Hongdou, don't worry, I'm perfectly healthy now! So what if he's my savior? If he dares to bully you, I'll never forgive him!"
Xu Hongdou sighed helplessly, thinking, "Wasn't it you who leaked my position? Now you're all indignant." But she still continued to comfort him, "Alright, as long as he doesn't show up in front of me again. As for you saying he bullied me, that's not true. At most, it was just deceiving my feelings."
“To deceive your feelings is even more despicable, I…” Chen Nanxing became even angrier, her eyes wide open as if they were about to spit fire.
"Hey! Wait a minute, how did I deceive your feelings? I didn't lie to you at all," Su Chang immediately protested, his face full of grievance and helplessness.
Upon hearing Su Chang's words, Xu Hongdou and Chen Nanxing, true to their best friend bond, both gave Su Chang a death stare, their eyes filled with anger and warning, as if to say, "If you say that again, you'll regret it!"
Su Chang wisely chose to keep quiet. He knew that trying to reason with a woman at this point would be foolish.
"You should leave now and never appear in front of me again," Xu Hongdou said to Su Chang as if shooing away a fly. Then she turned to Chen Nanxing and grabbed his arm. "Nanxing, let's go home together."
"Hmph!" Chen Nanxing snorted coldly, glared fiercely at Su Chang, and gave him a "you just wait" look.
Su Chang sighed helplessly, watching their departing figures with a sense of loss. He knew that his image in their eyes had plummeted, and it would be extremely difficult to win them back. However, he didn't regret his honesty and could only silently leave the neighborhood.
Su Chang arrived outside the residential compound, feeling utterly lost and unsure of where to go. In this unfamiliar city of Kyoto, despite owning numerous businesses, he knew practically no one. Xu Hongdou ignored him, and Chen Nanxing hated him to the core, wishing he could kill him. He felt an overwhelming sense of loneliness and isolation.
Chapter Ninety-Two: Workers' Stadium Bar
He didn't take a taxi, but just wandered aimlessly through the streets, eventually arriving at a park. Seeing the park, he thought, "Since I'm bored anyway, I might as well go in and take a stroll." When he reached the park's plaza, he suddenly noticed a large group of middle-aged women gathered there. Curious, he approached them to see what was going on.
Upon closer inspection, he discovered that a matchmaking event was being held. Su Chang had never seen anything like it before and found it quite interesting, so he wandered around the square. He saw all sorts of marriage advertisements: some were simple large sheets of paper with photos and detailed personal profiles below, including height, weight, age, and income; others were more unusual, listing the amount of dowry or bride price his parents would provide if he got married. This made him feel like he was looking for a job, not a marriage partner.
Su Chang's appearance attracted the attention of many middle-aged women. Seeing that Su Chang was young, handsome, and fashionably dressed, they all guessed that he must be a wealthy and influential person. As a result, many middle-aged women immediately swarmed around him, asking about Su Chang and enthusiastically recommending their daughters to him.
Su Chang was taken aback by this sudden enthusiasm. He quickly waved his hand and said loudly, "I'm only 21 years old, and I haven't thought about getting married yet."
Hearing him say that, most of the middle-aged women left disappointed. However, two women remained where they were, staring at Su Chang with eager eyes.
Su Chang felt uneasy under their gazes. He thought to himself, "Why aren't these two old ladies leaving? Are they planning to eat me alive? I can't accept that."
A helpless and embarrassed smile appeared on his face: "Ladies, is there anything else?"
The two middle-aged women exchanged a glance, their eyes gleaming with unwavering determination, as if engaged in a silent contest. They clutched their marriage proposals tightly, as if they were their most prized possessions.
The sturdier woman quickly handed the form to Su Chang, a smug smile on her face. "Young man, look," she said, "this is my daughter, Lan Weiwei. She's a yoga teacher. Look at the photo, isn't she beautiful?" Her eyes radiated pride and confidence in her daughter.
Looking at the photo on the form, Su Chang felt a sense of familiarity, but couldn't quite place it. Then he paused, realizing it wasn't the epitome of voluptuousness—it was Sister Yan. Just as he was looking at the photo, another middle-aged woman eagerly shoved a form into Su Chang's hand, saying impatiently, "Young man, my daughter is very beautiful too! Look at the photo. My daughter's name is Yang Tao. Isn't she even more beautiful? And she's a manager at a four-star hotel, very capable." Her face beamed with anticipation, as if waiting for Su Chang's approval.
Su Chang's eyes lit up when he saw the photo. The frustration he felt from Xu Hongdou's rejection lessened considerably. It was Goddess Yuan Yuan! He was secretly delighted. He thought to himself, if Xu Hongdou was a fairy godmother, then Goddess Yuan Yuan was his childhood dream from a past life! He was very familiar with this TV series—"Let's Get Married."
However, before he could reply, the two middle-aged women started arguing, and Su Chang also started watching the drama unfold, after all, Lan Caiping and Xue Sumei were a pair of real fake sisters.