Jiang Jiang stood side by side with Ji Xu'an in front of the tombstone, and one after the other stepped forward to place the flowers in their hands on the ground.
After setting them down, Ji Xu'an turned her head to look at Jiang Jiang and extended her hand toward her.
Jiang Jiang placed her hand into Ji Xu'an's palm. The two of them interlocked their fingers tightly, their bodies bathed in sunlight, casting a harmonious shadow on the ground.
Ji Xu'an spoke in a low voice. Her tone was not intense; within the calmness there was a trace of solemnity.
"Dad, Mom, this is my girlfriend. Her name is Xie Jiang Jiang."
Jiang Jiang listened very carefully. She did not interrupt Ji Xu'an. Only after Ji Xu'an finished introducing her did Jiang Jiang softly say, "Hello, Uncle and Auntie."
A gentle breeze drifted from afar, passing through layers of overlapping leaves. Amid the faint rustling sound, it lifted the long hair resting on their shoulders, as if it were some kind of silent response.
Ji Xu'an's brows and eyes grew even more tender. Her voice was low, and only Jiang Jiang standing beside her could clearly hear what she was saying.
"All of us are doing very well. You don't need to worry. If your spirits are watching from heaven, please bless Jiang Jiang and me so that our lives can be smooth and safe."
Jiang Jiang did not know what to say. In the past, she had not believed so much in ghosts and gods, but ever since she exchanged identities with Xie Xiao, Jiang Jiang began to believe that perhaps there truly was some indescribable existence in this world.
And precisely because of that, she did not make any promises to Ji Xu'an's parents.
On the contrary, Ji Xu'an seemed to have many things she wanted to say.
Jiang Jiang noticed that Ji Xu'an seemed to glance at her hesitantly. Before Ji Xu'an could speak, Jiang Jiang took the initiative to release Ji Xu'an's hand and considerately said, "Sister, you must still have other things to talk about with Uncle and Auntie. I'll go wait over there first."
Ji Xu'an did not refuse.
So Jiang Jiang walked back along the path they had come from. After turning a corner, she went down a few steps before stopping and turning her head to look toward where Ji Xu'an was.
From Jiang Jiang's angle, most of Ji Xu'an's body was blocked by trees, only a small piece of her clothing hem visible.
Jiang Jiang lifted her head to look at the sunlight above. The dazzling light forced her to narrow her eyes slightly. Those beautiful almond-shaped eyes seemed almost translucent under the sunlight.
This scene clearly fell into another person's eyes.
Her steps paused, and then she quickened her pace, walking toward Jiang Jiang.
"Miss Xie?"
Only after the person stopped in front of her did Jiang Jiang shift her gaze onto her.
The other woman wore a black mask and a hat. This attire hid most of her face, leaving only a pair of eyes exposed to the air.
Jiang Jiang had a good memory. She had already guessed the identity of the person in front of her, yet there was no extra reaction on her face. She even frowned in confusion.
"You are…?"
The woman tugged her mask down slightly, revealing a bright and elegant face. As she smiled, she extended her hand toward Jiang Jiang.
"Hello, my name is Zhou Zisuo."
—-
Ji Xu'an was still completely unaware of what was happening not far away.
She indeed had some private words she wanted to say, and for certain reasons, Ji Xu'an did not want Jiang Jiang to hear them.
So when Jiang Jiang proposed to leave, Ji Xu'an did not stop her.
After Jiang Jiang had gone far away, Ji Xu'an let out a soft breath and fixed her gaze on the photo on the tombstone.
"Dad, Mom, I don't know whether after people die they continue to exist in the form of spirits. Maybe death is not a complete departure."
She paused.
"Perhaps you are somewhere watching over little Yuan and me."
"If that is really the case, could you help me?"
Her voice grew even softer, like smoke rising from a burning match. Before it could drift far, it had already dissipated into the wind.
"I don't know where Jiang Jiang came from, nor do I know whether she will leave again. Maybe saying this is unfair to the real Xie Xiao, but if possible, I still hope Jiang Jiang can stay forever."
"If she truly has to leave, could you also let me…"
Ji Xu'an did not finish the words that followed. She stood there silently, gazing for a long time at the smiling faces of her parents in the photo.
From afar, there seemed to be two bird calls. In the unseen, Ji Xu'an seemed to have some kind of premonition. She turned her head to look in Jiang Jiang's direction.
The tall trees blocked Jiang Jiang's figure. Ji Xu'an suddenly felt a bit flustered. She pressed her lips together, and there was a trace more uncertainty in her tone.
"Dad, Mom, we will be happy, right?"
No one answered her.
Ji Xu'an clenched her fist and then loosened it. There was a trace more melancholy in her eyes.
"In fact, I know that some things can only rely on oneself, but…"
But what, even until the end, Ji Xu'an did not say it aloud.
She did not stay long in front of her parents' grave. After saying what she wanted to say, Ji Xu'an prepared to leave.
At this time, Jiang Jiang had already been chatting with Zhou Zisuo for a while.
Perhaps worried about being recognized, after saying her self-introduction, Zhou Zisuo quickly put her mask back on.
"You've probably heard my name before, right?" Zhou Zisuo said in a joking tone.
She was a popular female celebrity. Even those who did not follow celebrities had more or less heard her name. But Jiang Jiang felt that there seemed to be another layer of meaning behind Zhou Zisuo's words.
It was Jiang Jiang's first time seeing Zhou Zisuo in person. Even though it had only been a brief glance earlier, Jiang Jiang had already memorized Zhou Zisuo's facial features.
Zhou Zisuo in reality looked somewhat different from how she appeared on television programs. Perhaps because she was not wearing makeup today, Jiang Jiang recalled her face, and a sudden sense of familiarity arose in her heart.
Before she could figure out where that familiarity came from, Zhou Zisuo's next words interrupted her thoughts.
"Why aren't you speaking? Did I scare you?"
Jiang Jiang came back to her senses. "I have indeed watched Miss Zhou's variety shows. But I'm very curious, how does Miss Zhou know me?"
Upon hearing this, the smile on Zhou Zisuo's face seemed to fade slightly.
There could be thousands of reasons for Jiang Jiang to know Zhou Zisuo, but for Zhou Zisuo to know Jiang Jiang, there was only one possibility.
That was because Jiang Jiang was Ji Xu'an's fiancée.
Zhou Zisuo's lapse lasted only a moment. From beginning to end, there was a faint smile in her eyes, giving people an extremely friendly feeling.
"I know that you are Xu'an's…" Zhou Zisuo paused, then corrected herself. "You are President Ji's girlfriend."
When mentioning Ji Xu'an, the emotions in Zhou Zisuo's eyes suddenly became complicated.
"I've always been curious what kind of girl you are. Today I finally got to see."
Jiang Jiang let out an "Oh."
"Why would Miss Zhou be curious about me? Are celebrities all this gossipy?"
Wasn't that so? She even concerned herself with her former boss's girlfriend. That was indeed meddling a bit too much.
Previously, Zhou Zisuo had always heard that Jiang Jiang was a timid and gentle girl. Only after truly interacting with Jiang Jiang today did she realize that the information she had received was problematic.
So sharp-tongued. It did not seem very related to timid and gentle at all.
"Not exactly. In the end, it's still because of Miss Xie's identity." Zhou Zisuo did not avoid the topic. Her attitude was open and straightforward. "I have always paid a bit more attention to President Ji's matters."
Jiang Jiang had once suspected that Ji Xu'an and Zhou Zisuo had a past. Although later Ji Xu'an denied it and Grandma also said there was no such thing, judging from Zhou Zisuo's attitude toward Ji Xu'an now, something must have happened between them.
Jiang Jiang did not know Ji Xu'an's feelings, but she could be certain that Zhou Zisuo definitely liked Ji Xu'an.
Jiang Jiang curved her lips slightly.
"Thank you for your concern about us. I don't know much about Sister's friends. If I have offended you in any way, I hope you won't mind."
Zhou Zisuo was stunned for a moment, then laughed again.
"I understand."
Jiang Jiang fell silent. Although Zhou Zisuo's attitude was fairly good, saying in front of Jiang Jiang, the girlfriend, that she cared a lot about Ji Xu'an was in itself an impolite thing.
Zhou Zisuo probably also understood what kind of personality Jiang Jiang had. Seeing that Jiang Jiang remained silent, she softly asked again, "Aren't you angry seeing me?"
Jiang Jiang asked in return, "Why should I be angry?"
Zhou Zisuo was silent for two seconds. Instead of answering, she asked, "Has Ji Xu'an never mentioned me in front of you?"
Jiang Jiang blinked.
"Why would Sister mention you in front of me?"
Every sentence Zhou Zisuo spoke was hinting that there was some special relationship between her and Ji Xu'an. If someone else heard these words, there might already be a grudge in their heart, and it would more or less show on their face.
But Jiang Jiang did not know whether she was pretending to be foolish or truly foolish. Zhou Zisuo simply could not see even a trace of rejection or dislike in her eyes. It was as if she truly had not heard the implication behind Zhou Zisuo's words.
This gave Zhou Zisuo a powerless feeling, as if her punch had landed on cotton.
"You're right. I was overthinking. It really isn't suitable for her and me to mention each other too much anymore." Zhou Zisuo shook her head. "I'm sorry, Miss Xie, for taking up your time."
"Just pretend I never said these things today."
She had thought Jiang Jiang would at least ask one more question, but Jiang Jiang followed her words and nodded seriously.
"Alright."
She even considerately added, "Don't worry. I won't tell Sister about this."
Zhou Zisuo: …
All the words Zhou Zisuo wanted to say were blocked in her throat. But this suited her just fine. So she smiled again.
"Thank you, Miss Xie. With you taking care of her, I'm relieved."
Jiang Jiang's brows and eyes curved, and the dimples on her cheeks rippled with a shy smile.
"Actually, when we're together, Sister takes care of me more. I sometimes suspect she treats me like a child."
The blush on her face stung Zhou Zisuo's eyes. Zhou Zisuo fell silent once more.
She had thought she could calmly face Jiang Jiang, but the hand hidden in her sleeve still unconsciously tightened against her palm.
The two of them were silently looking at each other when Ji Xu'an, not far away, saw this scene and quickened her steps toward them.
Jiang Jiang and Zhou Zisuo both looked toward Ji Xu'an. The expressions on their faces were different, but Ji Xu'an's gaze fell only on Jiang Jiang.
Not only that, after stopping in front of them, she used her body to block Zhou Zisuo's line of sight toward Jiang Jiang.
After doing all this, Ji Xu'an lowered her eyes to look into Jiang Jiang's eyes and softly asked, "Jiang Jiang, what just happened?"
From her tone, it seemed she was afraid Zhou Zisuo had bullied Jiang Jiang.
As soon as Ji Xu'an said this, Jiang Jiang clearly saw a flash of loneliness in Zhou Zisuo's eyes.
She shook her head.
"It's nothing. I just chatted with Miss Zhou for a few sentences."
Ji Xu'an reached out and tightly held Jiang Jiang's fingers.
"What did you talk about?"
She did not look at Zhou Zisuo at all. She only wanted to hear Jiang Jiang speak, as if no matter what Jiang Jiang said, Ji Xu'an would believe her.
Before Jiang Jiang could answer, Zhou Zisuo at the side could no longer endure being ignored.
"President Ji." Zhou Zisuo took a deep breath.
"It's been a long time."
—
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