Jiang Jiang's tone was too humble and pitiful. Ji Xu'an subconsciously tightened her arms around her shoulders, her cheek gently pressing against the top of Jiang Jiang's head, and murmured, "Don't say things like that."
Even though she clearly knew this was only Jiang Jiang's hypothesis and that such a thing would probably never happen, Ji Xu'an would still feel her heart tremble at such a possibility.
She could not accept losing Jiang Jiang, not even in imagination.
Ji Xu'an only thought this sentence in her heart and did not say it aloud. Many times she worried that some of her thoughts would make Jiang Jiang afraid.
Jiang Jiang knew nothing of Ji Xu'an's certain negative thoughts. She rested her head on Ji Xu'an's shoulder, tightened her arms around Ji Xu'an's waist, and shrank her whole body into Ji Xu'an's embrace. "So no matter what others say, Sister will not abandon me, right?"
Ji Xu'an came back to her senses. She gave a soft "mm" and did not say more words of promise. After all, a hundred promises could not compare to one action. Ji Xu'an only wanted to prove her feelings through practical actions.
She gently patted Jiang Jiang's back, and the thoughtful look in her eyes deepened.
What exactly should she do for Jiang Jiang to truly feel her sincerity?
After receiving Ji Xu'an's affirmative reply, Jiang Jiang let out a breath as if relieved of a heavy burden. "If Sister has any dissatisfaction with me, you must say it. I am not clever enough to guess Sister's thoughts."
She paused. "I am not afraid of Sister doubting me. As long as Sister gives me a chance to explain, that is enough."
Ji Xu'an cupped Jiang Jiang's cheeks with her hands. Her fingertips moved slightly, gently rubbing the corner of Jiang Jiang's eyes. After only two strokes, Ji Xu'an's fingertips were stained with a trace of moisture.
Jiang Jiang's tears fell soundlessly. Her silence made Ji Xu'an's heart ache even more.
Her tone was gentler and softer than ever before, as if she feared that even a slightly louder voice would frighten the person in her arms. "I have said before, with me, you will always have the right to make mistakes."
"As long as you are willing to explain to me, no matter what you say, I will believe it."
The premise was that Jiang Jiang was willing to tell her the truth, rather than bottling everything up in her heart and bearing the pressure and pain alone.
From the tone Ji Xu'an used when she said this, Jiang Jiang judged that perhaps Ji Xu'an knew she had not told the complete truth, but just as Ji Xu'an herself had said, as long as Jiang Jiang spoke, she would believe.
If Jiang Jiang did not speak, she would not press further.
Jiang Jiang silently closed her mouth. If it were some trivial matter, she would be willing to lay everything bare before Ji Xu'an, but this matter was different. Unless it reached a point where she had no other choice, it would be difficult for Jiang Jiang to tell Ji Xu'an the entire truth.
The two embraced each other wordlessly. Neither of their moods was particularly bright, yet the arms holding one another never loosened, as if they were drawing the last bit of warmth from each other.
Ji Xu'an naturally still had many questions she wanted to ask, but considering that Jiang Jiang's spirits were low and her emotions were extremely downcast, she ultimately swallowed the words that had reached her lips.
Jiang Jiang was actually waiting for Ji Xu'an to speak again, but until the car had driven all the way to the company building, Ji Xu'an still did not say a word.
Jiang Jiang did not believe that Ji Xu'an was not curious, but why did she not ask?
Was she waiting for Jiang Jiang to confess on her own initiative?
Seeing that even the elevator doors had already closed and Ji Xu'an still remained silent, Jiang Jiang could only move closer on her own.
"Sister, I still have something I want to ask you."
As she spoke, she shook their interlocked hands.
Just after getting out of the car, Ji Xu'an had naturally taken her hand, and she had not released it all the way into the elevator.
Jiang Jiang noticed that the receptionist had been secretly glancing at them, her phone still in her hand, looking as though she was typing.
Thinking that her "affection" with Ji Xu'an would soon be known by many people, Jiang Jiang felt an indescribably complicated emotion. It was not so much shyness, after all she had experienced this more than once.
Moreover, this should be what Ji Xu'an wanted, since she understood her employees better than Jiang Jiang did.
From the moment she chose to hold Jiang Jiang's hand into the company, she should have already anticipated what kind of situation would occur.
Jiang Jiang did not refuse.
Although she guessed Ji Xu'an's intention, she did not think deeply about it. She only knew that Ji Xu'an did it on purpose, but she did not realize that Ji Xu'an had not acted on a whim but had long planned this.
Originally, Old Liu should have driven the car to the underground garage, but Ji Xu'an had specifically sent him a message afterward telling him that whenever Jiang Jiang was present in the future, he was to park the car at the company entrance.
But Ji Xu'an would not tell Jiang Jiang this matter, and the only person who knew, Old Liu, had also been specifically reminded by Ji Xu'an.
Jiang Jiang thought Ji Xu'an was acting on a sudden impulse, but she did not know that Ji Xu'an had been looking forward to this day for a very long time.
Originally, she should have done this last time, but at that time Ji Xu'an had not understood her own feelings and had wasted a perfect opportunity.
But now was not too late.
Thinking of this, Ji Xu'an tightened her fingers and lowered her head to move closer to Jiang Jiang. "What is it?"
Jiang Jiang's lips were very close to Ji Xu'an's ear. The breathy sound of her voice was clearly audible. "What is going on with Liang Junsheng?"
Using her height to block the surveillance camera, Ji Xu'an could not help but let her free hand rest against Jiang Jiang's cheek again, her gaze roaming over Jiang Jiang's brows and eyes.
"When we get to the office in a moment, I will tell you, all right?"
This tone of coaxing a child made Jiang Jiang's face heat up. It was not that she had to know right now. She only wanted to find a topic to break the silence.
"Oh." Jiang Jiang answered very softly.
Ji Xu'an rolled her fingertips, her voice slightly hoarse. "I kind of want to kiss you."
Jiang Jiang: "Ah?"
The topic shifted too quickly. Jiang Jiang was completely caught off guard.
One or two minutes earlier, they had still been rendered speechless because of the matter of the real and fake Xie Xiao, the atmosphere tense and oppressive. Jiang Jiang had even suspected that after Ji Xu'an thought it over, she still could not forgive her deception.
Who would have thought that after being silent for so long, what Ji Xu'an had been thinking about was actually this?
Jiang Jiang blushed and pressed her lips together. "No."
Ji Xu'an took the opportunity to ask another matter she cared about. "Over there, where you come from, is this kind of question considered very rude?"
Jiang Jiang was stunned for a moment. "Not exactly."
There were few cases of women in love with women in Great Zhao, so Jiang Jiang could only view this matter through her habitual way of thinking.
Although men and women were distinct, after betrothal, they could be slightly closer. As long as they did not cross the final boundary, secretly hugging and kissing behind others' backs was quite common.
Ji Xu'an let out a breath of relief. It seemed kissing was still permissible.
"Then what about going a step further?" she asked again.
Jiang Jiang's reply was as faint as a mosquito's buzz. "No."
Ji Xu'an showed little disappointment on her face upon hearing this, but instead pursued further. "Why is it not allowed?"
Jiang Jiang thought for a moment. "Because we are not yet married. It is not allowed…"
She stammered, unable to say the rest.
Ji Xu'an picked up the thread and analyzed seriously, "There is no such rule here, and you are referring to the situation of a man and a woman in love. We are both women. It does not count as overstepping."
Is that so?
Jiang Jiang felt that what she said seemed somewhat reasonable, and yet also not very reasonable. She replied vaguely, "Perhaps."
Ji Xu'an pondered for several seconds. "This body of yours seems to be eighteen as well. As far as I know, in ancient times most women married quite early."
"Do you remember… whether you had ever been betrothed before?"
After circling around for so long, it turned out that this was what Ji Xu'an truly wanted to ask.
Jiang Jiang understood. "I do not remember very clearly…"
She did not dare to say that she had long since had a fiancé, and that her fiancé even looked exactly like Ji Xu'an's own younger sister.
In any case, Ji Xu'an did not know her situation.
Jiang Jiang tried hard to remain calm. She frowned and pretended to think. After a moment, she said uncertainly, "Probably not?"
Probably.
This word caused Ji Xu'an's heart to sink once more. At the thought that Jiang Jiang might have already had someone she loved, or even had married another person, Ji Xu'an could not control the jealousy and sourness surging in her heart.
"Does Sister mind this matter very much?" Jiang Jiang stared at Ji Xu'an without blinking. "If I truly had been betrothed, would Sister dislike me?"
Ji Xu'an's lips moved slightly. "I do not mind."
Her expression was indifferent, completely revealing nothing of the turmoil inside her. "After all, that is already in the past."
"Even if you truly had been betrothed before, it does not matter. Since you no longer remember that person, it shows that he was not very important."
"Perhaps you and that person were only bound by your parents' orders and a matchmaker's words, with no feelings between you."
"It is very normal to remarry after divorce."
She spoke in a rapid string, not giving Jiang Jiang any chance to interrupt. With such a reaction, how could it be said that she did not mind?
Jiang Jiang endured and endured, but ultimately did not ask the sentence, "What if there was no divorce?"
She had a premonition that if she truly asked that, Ji Xu'an might completely lose her composure.
But speaking of it, Ji Xu'an's intuition was quite accurate.
Even without knowing the full situation, she could guess seven or eight parts of the truth.
She was already so bothered by it now. If she were to learn that what Zheng Zhouzhou had said was actually true, that the person fated with Jiang Jiang was indeed not Ji Xu'an herself but someone else, only that that person was not the Ji He Yuan here but the Crown Prince of another spacetime.
If Ji Xu'an heard this, who knew how angry she would become?
Thinking of this, Jiang Jiang reached out and patted Ji Xu'an's shoulder. "Sister is right. That person is already in the past. Sister is the present and the future."
And indeed, just as Ji Xu'an had said, Jiang Jiang did not like the Crown Prince at all.
Upon hearing this, Ji Xu'an finally felt somewhat better.
But immediately afterward, she could not help but think again, so there truly was such a person?
Jiang Jiang was worried that she would be angry, so she deliberately did not tell her?
The more Ji Xu'an thought, the deeper her thoughts spiraled. She even wondered whether Jiang Jiang did not like her because the person she truly liked was actually that one.
So was it that she, as the current one, could not compare to the former one?
—
Author's Note:
President Ji: A qualified ex should be like dead :）
Little Bird: What is going on? Why does my back suddenly feel a little cold?
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