MTLNOVEL Chapter 87 - Hug
Today, Tang Yuan’s responses earlier were very slow, and by the afternoon, she stopped replying altogether.
Jiang Zi thought it was because the messages she had sent were too boring, or maybe Tang Yuan had been busy with other things and had forgotten to reply. With work keeping her occupied, she called Tang Yuan right after finishing a meeting.
The first call went unanswered.
The second call, still no response, and Jiang Zi was beginning to feel anxious.
After the third call went unanswered, she tracked Tang Yuan’s location and saw that it was slowly moving away from the city.
Where was she going?
Jiang Zi kept calling, but still no answer.
So, she quickly followed her, parking here to wait.
Knowing that Tang Yuan had gone in with Meng Yao’er, Jiang Zi dared not follow them in. Waiting outside was like sitting on pins and needles. She could only keep calling.
She had lost count of how many calls she had made when, at last, someone answered.
She didn’t dare ask where they had gone or what secret things they were hiding from her. She couldn’t even confront them, fearing it might escalate into a quarrel, leading to a painful fallout.
All she could do was hug and kiss Tang Yuan strongly, feeling her presence and soothing her anxious heart.
If she couldn’t hear Tang Yuan’s true thoughts, Jiang Zi thought, she would surely drown in endless suspicion.
Two and a half hours passed, and Jiang Zi didn’t let up, wanting to bit Tang Yuan at every moment, while Tang Yuan, mindful of the people around them, didn’t dare react too openly, fearing causing a scene.
Finally, they returned to Dingxinghai.
As soon as they entered the house, Tang Yuan was pinned to the door. She fumbled for the light switch, and as the harsh light came on, she instinctively squinted. When she looked up again, she realized that the beauty in front of her had red eyes.
Jiang Zi was wearing a light blue shirt, the collar open with two buttons undone, the fabric wrinkled and slightly disheveled, making her seem like the victim.
But in reality, Tang Yuan was wearing a square-collared, pale yellow floral dress, and her exposed collarbones had deep bite marks on both sides, especially on the left, where the skin had even been broken. There were also kiss marks scattered over her chest, neck, and behind her ears—old and new, all of them visible.
Tang Yuan, unable to see her own state, was easily tricked by Jiang Zi’s act of looking pitiful.
“Sister, I really know I was wrong. I promise I won’t miss so many calls next time, so you don’t have to worry about me.”
Jiang Zi’s finger gently traced over the bite marks on her collarbone, making Tang Yuan flinch.
Pinning her against the door, Jiang Zi pulled down the puffed sleeves on her shoulder and leaned in to plant more kisses there.
Yet she feigned indignation, “So, can you tell me what you did today?”
Tang Yuan, unable to escape, and feeling guilty, let Jiang Zi have her way and obediently explained, “I went to meet Meng Yao’er today. She gave me some things.”
Tang Yuan kicked the bag of documents at her feet. “It’s these. I haven’t had a chance to look at them yet.”
“You spent the whole day with her?”
Tang Yuan, feeling wronged, explained, “She made an appointment at a fishpond, which was far away. Then, after picking up the documents, she had to go to the place we just came from. It took a long time to drive.”
“Sister, there’s nothing between me and Meng Yao’er. Really.”
Jiang Zi hummed softly, “I know.”
“But you’re hiding something from me.”
It seemed she would have to get a specific answer out of Tang Yuan. With a sigh of resignation, Tang Yuan confessed everything.
“Meng Yao’er wants to kill Lu Shan’en. My goal is similar—I want to bring down Chu Yu. I thought I could get to him through Lu Shan’en, so I asked her to cooperate.”
After hearing Tang Yuan’s confession, Jiang Zi fell silent momentarily, then continued pressing, “Why didn’t you ask me to cooperate?”
Tang Yuan smiled helplessly. “Sister.”
“Alright, alright, no more hugging. It’s hot.” Tang Yuan called out the Ai robot’s and gave the order: “Turn on the air conditioning.”
Jiang Zi reluctantly moved back.
Little Tang Yuan was so diligent, working hard on her mission, even going to see Meng Yao’er.
But Tang Yuan was the only one who could truly make a difference. Even after years of planning, Jiang Zi’s efforts were in vain—the world’s rules prevented her from doing harm to Chu Yu.
But Tang Yuan was different. She was the only one who could harm him.
“I’m so hungry. Have you had dinner, sister? Should we order takeout?”
As soon as she finished speaking, there was a knock at the door.
Jiang Zi opened it and took the delivery inside.
“Let’s eat.”
…
Meanwhile, Meng Yao’er caught up with Su Qingyao, who was trying to escape by opening her car door.
Meng Yao’er stepped forward and grabbed her car key. “Qingqing, did you come here just to see me?”
Su Qingyao couldn’t avoid her gaze and had to look at her.
“Meng Meng.” Su Qingyao took a step back. “I just… remembered today is Aunt’s memorial day.”
They had been in a relationship for six years, and every year on this day, Su Qingyao would accompany Meng Yao’er to visit her mother’s grave, except for today.
Meng Yao’er’s eyes, filled with innocence, stared at her. “So you came here to visit my mother?”
Su Qingyao parted her lips, but no words came out.
Today, Tang Yuan had asked for Meng Yao’er’s contact information, only saying there was something urgent. Then, she stopped replying, leaving Su Qingyao worried and anxious. She feared that Meng Yao’er might do something foolish.
So she went to the cemetery, finding that Meng Yao’er had already paid her respects. In a rush, she came here to check if Meng Yao’er had done anything reckless.
But she didn’t dare call her, afraid of either being ignored or causing trouble.
Only when she saw Meng Yao’er safe did she feel relieved—but she had been caught.
“Qingqing, do you remember? Our first month together, it was my mother’s memorial day, and we fought. I went alone to visit her grave.” Meng Yao’er stepped closer to her. “I was young then, crying on my knees in front of the grave.”
“You walked over with an umbrella, holding a bouquet of fresh flowers, and quietly held the umbrella over me.” Meng Yao’er pouted, as if blaming herself. “I was so bad, I knocked the umbrella over and threw it away.”
Meng Yao’er stood before Su Qingyao, looking up at her with tears falling without warning. “But back then, Qingqing, you loved me so gently. You squatted down and hugged me.”
Looking into Su Qingyao’s dazed eyes, Meng Yao’er cried silently, “Qingqing, don’t you want to hug me anymore? Not even today?”
Tears filled her eyes, her aura lonely and isolated, as though she had become distant from the world, losing all vitality.
Su Qingyao’s heart clenched, and without thinking, she reached out to embrace her.
She let Meng Yao’er’s hot tears soak into her shoulder.
Hearing the person in her arms sigh softly, she mumbled in a tearful tone, “Qingqing, you’re still so soft-hearted…”