readytorunbook Chapter 21 Eating Oranges
Chapter 21 Eating Oranges
Zhu Tingyue upstairs had already heard the voices below. It seemed that Shen Yanqiu had arrived as well? What was he doing here?
Filled with questions, Zhu Tingyue went downstairs.
Several people looked at her, but she ignored them and started peeling an orange.
She rarely peeled nails herself before, largely because peeling them was slow and inconvenient after getting a manicure. But this time, she peeled one very quickly.
An unusual silence fell over the scene. Zhu Tingyue seemed oblivious, handing a few peeled orange segments to Madam Shen: "Please try some."
Madam Shen looked at the oranges handed to her and the open and honest expression on "Shen Yanqiu's" face, and for a moment she was in a daze. She had never eaten an orange that Yan Zhen had peeled for her! Yet Shen Yanqiu had handed it to her! Regardless of what she thought, she accepted it.
"Here you go." She handed a few more petals to Chen Can, as he was a guest and should be served first.
"Thank you!" Chen Can's impression of him improved even more, not because of the few orange segments, but because of his thoughtfulness, which made him much better than Shen Yanzhen.
She only had a few orange peels left. Should she eat them herself or give them to Shen Yanqiu? She hesitated. Judging from Shen Yanqiu's behavior today, she felt it would be a waste to give him orange peels, but he was the only "woman" present. Everyone else had some, and it wouldn't be good if he didn't.
After thinking it over, she handed out the last few segments of orange: "Would you like some?"
Shen Yanqiu was annoyed by the question she used! Why should she use affirmative sentences for others, but have to ask questions for herself? If she didn't want to, she wouldn't give it to him; a few segments of orange, who cares?
"No thanks!"
As expected, Zhu Tingyue was relieved. Anyway, she had already asked him, and he didn't want it, so it wasn't her fault.
She ate the orange in a few bites, then peeled and picked up another one. Her lunch had been mostly digested, so she wanted to eat something to tide her over.
Madam Shen didn't want to eat anymore. Seeing that she was peeling the food again, she immediately got up and said, "I'll go to the kitchen to see if the food is ready. You two can talk for a while."
Shen Yanzhen and Chen Can agreed, and once she left, the scene quieted down again.
Chen Can looked at that one, then at this one, and felt that something was wrong.
A woman's intuition told her that Zhu Tingyue and Shen Yanqiu seemed strangely familiar. The atmosphere between them was odd, but hadn't Shen Yanqiu just returned to the Shen family? How did they know each other?
She had questions in her mind, but couldn't ask them, so she decided to focus on solving her own problems.
"Aren't you going to show me around?" she asked Shen Yanzhen.
There are other people sitting here! How could she be so presumptuous? Shen Yanzhen didn't understand her thinking and instinctively refused: "No, it's nice here, it's lively with lots of people."
Even without Chen Can, Zhu Tingyue would be furious upon hearing this. Was he even speaking human language? The other person meant she wanted to go out with him alone, and what did he say in response?
It's lively with lots of people? It is quite lively! Everyone's just there to watch the excitement.
Chen Can indeed fell silent, glaring angrily at Shen Yanzhen. If it weren't for the fact that there were other people present, she would have immediately come over and punched Shen Yanzhen.
"Shall I take you for a walk?" Unable to bear seeing the beauty suffer, Zhu Tingyue offered to take her for a walk.
None of those present expected her to say that, and they all looked at her.
Zhu Tingyue felt quite innocent: Chen Can is such a beauty, it's one thing for Shen Yanqiu to ignore her, but Shen Yanzhen even speaks coldly to her, why should she put up with his attitude? She just can't stand it!
"Okay!" Chen Can smiled again, though it sounded a little forced.
Following Shen Yanqiu into the courtyard, she didn't know what to say. The two weren't familiar with each other, having only met twice and exchanged no more than five sentences, yet he managed to get her out of an awkward situation.
"Thank you!" She looked at Zhu Tingyue with eyes full of gratitude.
"It's nothing. I haven't really looked at this yard much either. I should thank you for enjoying the scenery with me!"
Chen Can relaxed her brows, smiled sweetly, and a shallow dimple appeared on her round face. Her clear eyes were full of laughter.
Without Zhu Tingyue asking, she herself explained her relationship with Shen Yanzhen in detail.
The two met in college. Shen Yanzhen was a prominent figure in the medical school and the heartthrob of all the girls.
Just like in the novel, Chen Can made a bet with his friend that he could definitely win him over within three months. Two years have passed since then, and he hasn't even touched his hand, let alone won him over!
Not only that, he also hid from me, and when I finally caught him, he always made up all sorts of excuses.
It wasn't that she hadn't considered giving up, but a promise is a promise, and Miss Chen meant what she said. Whether he agreed or not, she would pursue him first.
Zhu Tingyue didn't know what to say. After looking at her for a while, she finally praised her, "You really have perseverance."
"It's not that I have great perseverance, it's just that it's been so long, and I feel really unwilling to give up!" She scratched her head and answered apologetically.
"Have you ever thought about changing your target?"
"Change the target? Who?" Chen Can had never imagined it could be like this.
"Three-legged toads are hard to find, but aren't two-legged men easy to find? There are so many men in the world, why insist on hanging yourself on this one tree?" Zhu Tingyue shared her experience without reservation.
"Oh, I see! How about you take over then?"
Chen Can slapped his forehead and looked at her with bright, sparkling eyes.
Cough cough, Zhu Tingyue was startled by her words. What kind of thought process was that?
"No, I mean you should replace it with someone else."
"It's the same for everyone, are you unwilling?"
Zhu Tingyue didn't want to discourage her, but she would never agree: "No, can't you find someone better? Find someone better than Shen Yanzhen, and make him furious."
“You’re no worse than him!” Chen Can said sincerely, he was not lying.
Even though she wasn't praising herself, Zhu Tingyue was still very happy, as it proved that she had good judgment and that Shen Yanqiu did have some merits.
"That's true, but it can't be me." She admitted without hesitation, without the slightest bit of guilt.
"Can you tell me why?" Chen Can pressed for an answer.
"No reason."
"Hmph, don't lie to me! You like Zhu Tingyue, don't you? I've known for a long time that something's not right between you two!"
Her words were astonishing, and Zhu Tingyue was truly taken aback: Shen Yanqiu liked her? No, it was she who liked Shen Yanqiu? How could that be? The two had just broken up, and the only reason she was still willing to see Shen Yanqiu was because of their identity swap. If it weren't for that connection, she would have forgotten about him long ago!
"You don't need to pretend to be surprised. Let me tell you, I've seen it all, I see it clearly!"
What are you talking about? She can't even understand her own affairs, yet she's criticizing her? Zhu Tingyue was convinced she was talking nonsense and ignored her.
Chen Can didn't care whether she believed him or not; she had given him a new idea: he could start looking for new targets.