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Love Story (and Other Tales of Suspense and Horror) Chapter 1 [MDZS; XiCheng]
Title: Love Story (and Other Tales of Suspense and Horror)
Fandom: Modaozushi | The Untamed
Characters/Ship: Lan Huan | Xichen / Jiang Cheng | Wanyin; background WangXian and XuanLi, Shi Qingxuan, background beefleaf
Additional Tags: Modern day AU, meet cute, wedding planners, crack
Word count: ~2.5k; Chapter 1 / 3
Summary: Jiang Cheng has read enough romance novels to know that he'll never be the star in one of them, not like his dramatically and happily married siblings. With this in mind, he tries to find completely tropeless employment for the summer.
When Jiang Cheng begins his search for a summer job at the tail end of his junior year of university, he knows he has to be pickier than he ever has been before. The precedents are clear, and they force him to cross off a worrying number of local businesses from his list of potentials.
Take his sister as an example. Jiang Yanli is four years older than Jiang Cheng, and on graduating from university herself, she ignored their parents’ demands and found a job in a small bakery and cafe. Beloved by all, she established a regular clientele and soared through the ranks until she was effectively running the entire bakery, despite being no closer to legal ownership. And then one day, a handsome young businessman walked through the door. Jiang Yanli emerged from the subsequent series of misunderstandings and brief but poignant heartbreaks as the owner of her own business, and Jiang Cheng is now eagerly anticipating the imminent arrival of his first nephew.
Or, of course, Jiang Cheng can point to his brother. At one year and 5 days older than Jiang Cheng, Wei Ying’s own summer job between his junior and senior years of university had been at a tattoo parlour. Despite Jiang Cheng’s mother’s loud premonitions of doom, the parlour ended up being a very successful outlet for Wei Ying’s creative energies, and that summer was one of the calmest they had ever experienced since Wei Ying joined their family—at least, it was until he eloped at the end of it with a handsome young heir who was mysteriously working in a flower shop around the corner. Jiang Cheng wasn’t invited to said elopement, and he remains bitter about that to this day.
With these real-life demonstrations of occupational risk, he knows he must be careful moving forward. His cold disposition has kept him safe until now, but he absolutely must not select a seasonal job that has ever made its way onto a romance trope list.
Flower shops, tattoo parlours, and bakeries are clearly all ineligible. Barista? No. Bookstore? No. Library? No. General store? No. Sex shop? No. Gym? No. Dog walker? Jiang Cheng’s heart twinges as he forces himself to cross that one off, too.
The list is demoralisingly long.
On the last day of classes before the long slog of final’s week, Jiang Cheng goes on a slow walk around his small hometown, eying the local businesses without much hope.
“Jiang Cheng?”
Jiang Cheng looks up from his forlorn trudging to see Mr Shi peering around the glass door of his little storefront. Jiang Cheng doesn’t know Mr Shi well, but a lifetime in a small town and parents who are professors at the local university have given him a familiarity with many of the town’s long-term residents, so he knows enough to recognise the strangeness in seeing Mr Shi’s usually cheerful face marred by a frown.
“Good evening, Mr Shi,” Jiang Cheng greets politely.
“I’m surprised you aren’t revising already!” says Mr Shi. “Is everything alright?”
“Yes, sir, thank you,” Jiang Cheng tries to dismiss, but then Mr Shi brightens in realisation.
“Oh, but that’s it, isn’t it? You’re already on the hunt for your summer job?” Mr Shi eyes him thoughtfully. “A bookshop, maybe? Oh! Or maybe you could be a surly but competent barista at a coffee shop!”
Jiang Cheng turns bright red, feeling caught out, though Mr Shi’s open acknowledgement makes it clear that his caution is well-warranted. “No, sir.”
Mr Shi—a fully grown adult—pouts at him. “No? Your sister was very successful at her bakery, wasn’t she? I thought you might head in a similar direction as her.”
Jiang Cheng hesitates, but he decides there’s no harm in telling Mr Shi the truth. No doubt Wei Ying will squeeze it out of Jiang Cheng eventually, and once Wei Ying knows, the whole world will find out, anyway. “I’m specifically looking for a job that isn’t a romance trope,” he admits.
Mr Shi narrows his eyes at him thoughtfully. “Come inside, Jiang Cheng.”
“I’m not sure—”
But Mr Shi gestures him inside so firmly that Jiang Cheng nervously inches past the door, which Mr Shi then locks behind him, turning the sign to “Closed” with an air of ominous finality.
“Sit down, Jiang Cheng,” Mr Shi says, and busies himself with pouring Jiang Cheng and himself glasses of water.
Jiang Cheng sits down at the edge of one of the ornate but uncomfortable chairs facing Mr Shi’s surprisingly business-like desk. The bookshelf behind the desk is weighed down with massive 3-ring binders, and the walls are plastered with photos of elaborately decorated halls and rooms.
“Tell me, Jiang Cheng,” says Mr Shi, seating himself behind his desk and passing Jiang Cheng a cup of water. “There’s nothing wrong with avoiding romance, but is there a reason you’ve chosen to do so this summer?”
Jiang Cheng makes a face. “I’m not avoiding romance, I’m just avoiding that kind of romance,” he argues.
Mr Shi nods encouragingly, steepling his fingers as he leans his elbows on the surface of his desk. “What kind of romance is that?”
“The storybook kind.” Jiang Cheng shrugs, looking down. “It’s alright for my sister and brother—they fit right into those tropes. But the characters in romance stories who are like me are always the jealous friend, or—or some other kind of villain. And I don’t want to be that kind of person,” he adds firmly, “so I’m not entering that kind of story.”
“I see,” says Mr Shi, leaning back in his chair with his fingers still steepled. “You know, Jiang Cheng, I’ve been looking for some seasonal help myself this summer.”
“Absolutely not,” says Jiang Cheng without missing a beat.
Mr Shi pouts, his dramatic pose collapsing in on itself. “Why not? It’s perfect! Don’t you know what kind of business this is?”
Jiang Cheng raises an unimpressed eyebrow. “Event planning,” he says. “I can name fifteen related romance novels off the top of my head.”
“Ah, but Jiang Cheng,” says Mr Shi, shaking his head with a smile. “I am the event planner. And as I’m sure you’re aware, I’ve already fallen to that particular trope.” Mr Shi pointedly turns a framed portrait on his desk around so that it’s facing Jiang Cheng. The portrait displays a glowing Mr Shi, decked out in elaborate white robes, standing next to his dour-faced husband, Mr He. Mr Shi pauses for a moment, smiling down at the portrait, before continuing. “How many romance books have you read featuring the married event planner’s summer assistant?”
Jiang Cheng frowns. “None,” he admits.
“None!” cheers Mr Shi. “You’ll just be helping file and research things, and occasionally responding to emails. You’ll barely even interact directly with the clients. And, of course, I’ll offer you a competitive wage for your work. What do you say?”
Jiang Cheng examines this from every angle. Finally, he says, “Alright. I can bring you my updated CV tomorrow, if you’d like. What other paperwork should I submit to you? How long do you think it will take for you to decide which candidates to interview?”
Mr Shi smiles and leans over his desk to pat Jiang Cheng on the head fondly. “You’re so adorable,” he says. “Be here at 7 in the morning next Monday, after your finals are over. A-Xuan will have your contract ready for you by then.”
“Uh…”
“Off you go now,” says Mr Shi, standing to unlock his door and shoo Jiang Cheng outside. “Back to your revision!”
Working for Mr Shi is… odd.
As promised, Jiang Cheng assists Mr Shi in administrative work, particularly in organisation, which is Mr Shi’s weakest area. He takes over Mr Shi’s appointment diary, develops a new indexing system for Mr Shi’s many files, and exchanges phone calls and emails with Mr Shi’s many affiliated vendors. It’s busy, but it’s work that Jiang Cheng is particularly skilled in, having been in charge of his family’s schedule since he was tall enough to read the wall calendar without standing on a stool.
He settles into his new routine, and he is just starting to think that Mr Shi had been right after all when the door chimes one day and Jiang Cheng looks up to meet the eyes that he is instantly, irrevocably, certain belong to the love of his life.
Mr Shi had left to tour venues with some of his current clients. He had no in-store meetings on the books, and with walk-in clients being rare, he had no compunctions over leaving Jiang Cheng alone to watch the shop for the day.
And yet, here a walk-in client is, gently closing the glass door behind him as he enters. He smiles sweetly at Jiang Cheng as he greets him, and Jiang Cheng feels his heart soar even as he returns the stranger’s smile automatically.
He wants to cry.
This stranger, this newly discovered love of Jiang Cheng’s life, is so far out of Jiang Cheng’s league that it feels like a joke. It’s obvious in everything about him, from his careful, precise movements, to the tips of his long, dark eyelashes, down to the clean-cut lines of his exquisitely tailored, dove-grey suit. This is not the sort of person who would ever look at Jiang Cheng twice, or even once.
This is further reinforced when the man’s purpose for visiting is revealed. “I’d like to plan a one-year anniversary party,” he says, his tone shy, and Jiang Cheng’s heart, which had been slower on the uptake than his brain, plummets to his feet.
Jiang Cheng nods with every ounce of professionalism he possesses. “I’m afraid that Mr Shi is out at the moment, but I can ask you some preliminary questions so that your first appointment with Mr Shi will be as productive as possible.”
The stranger nods. It’s starting to be difficult to breathe, with those warm eyes fixed on him over that soft smile.
“What type of party are you imagining? What is the date?”
The stranger tilts his head to the side. It isn’t fair that he’s able to look so elegantly handsome and cute at the same time. “Nothing too elaborate, really. The anniversary is at the end of August.”
Jiang Cheng frowns even as he writes the information down carefully. “Even for a fairly simple event, August is short notice,” he tells the man. “What size are you anticipating the party will be? We can start checking for vacancies once we know how large of a venue we’ll need, and how much food.”
“I know, and I’m very sorry. It was something of a spur of the moment decision to hold a celebration. But the party should be small—only immediate family and a few friends. Maybe twenty people at the most?”
“Hmm,” says Jiang Cheng as he writes, mentally scrolling through the list of local venues and vendors. “Something that size should be doable. Are you thinking of having full meal service?”
“No—actually, I’ve already secured the agreement of Lotus Pier Sweets to do the catering. We were just thinking of having snacks and pastries, that kind of thing.”
Jiang Cheng’s hand stutters at the realisation that he’ll be working with his sister on this event—well, really, Mr Shi will be working with his sister. Jiang Cheng will be on the sidelines, mourning his dreams of ever having his own happily ever after. “Understood,” he says.
He extracts the rest of the information about the anniversary plans from the stranger without any mishap. It’s only as they’re both standing and Jiang Cheng is walking the stranger to the door that he remembers to ask, “I’m sorry, I forgot to ask—what is your name and contact information?” He feels himself flush a little at the question, so he quickly clarifies, “I need to add it to your file for Mr Shi.”
The stranger’s smile beams as he replies, “My name is Lan Huan,” and he passes Jiang Cheng his card. “Call me any time.”
“Thank you very much, Mr Lan,” says Jiang Cheng, accepting the card. “We will be in touch with you soon.”
Lan—that’s the surname of Wei Ying’s husband, though his personal name is Zhan and not Huan. Maybe they’re related? Lan Huan does look quite a bit like Lan Zhan, now that Jiang Cheng is looking for it and not simply dazzled by his smile. They could be brothers, maybe.
But if that’s the case, Jiang Cheng reflects, then it’s even more unbelievably rude that Wei Ying and Lan Zhan eloped last year. After all, they were married at the end of August as well, which must have been within weeks or even days of Lan Huan’s own wedding.
Not that Jiang Cheng would put it past them, given that they were so rude as to not invite him, Jiang Cheng, to their elopement.
Mr Shi returns not long later, and Jiang Cheng passes the information about their newest client on to him.
“Oh, how lovely!” says Mr Shi. “Yes, I know the Lans—I’m not at all surprised that they’ve decided to hold an anniversary celebration after last year’s—well.”
So Lan Huan is related to Lan Zhan, and the elopement did interfere with his own nuptials! Jiang Cheng feels his heart, already lost to the man, fall a little further. It must have been so hard for Lan Huan, so embarrassing. He’ll have to remember to give Wei Ying a little punch the next time he sees him.
“But I’m sure you know all about that,” adds Mr Shi delicately. “Do you already know Lan Huan, Jiang Cheng?”
“No, I’ve never met any of Lan Zhan’s family before,” Jiang Cheng admits, watching Mr Shi’s face closely for a last piece of evidence to support his suspicions.
Mr Shi nods, unsurprised. “Yes, they’re not a local family,” he says. Jiang Cheng is relieved to hear that, but then Mr Shi adds, “Though perhaps they will be soon.” He refuses to elaborate, and instead asks Jiang Cheng what he thought of Lan Huan.
Jiang Cheng hesitates. He could tell Mr Shi the truth, of course—he already knows everything else. But Mr Shi was so kind in the face of Jiang Cheng’s summer employment dilemma, though everyone else he knows will mock him furiously for it when they find out, and Mr Shi was so sincere in his desire to help him. Jiang Cheng doesn’t want to tell him that this was the summer job that will be his undoing after all.
So Jiang Cheng only says, “He seems nice.”
Mr Shi hums thoughtfully, but he’s distracted by the paperwork, and Jiang Cheng leaves for a late lunch break to cry quietly into an extra-thick chocolate milkshake. That is the only reprieve he allows himself—he will not be the villain of this story, he promises. No one, especially Lan Huan and his no doubt perfect spouse, will ever find out about Jiang Cheng’s unfortunate fall to love at first sight.
Next Chapter
Fandom: Modaozushi | The Untamed
Characters/Ship: Lan Huan | Xichen / Jiang Cheng | Wanyin; background WangXian and XuanLi, Shi Qingxuan, background beefleaf
Additional Tags: Modern day AU, meet cute, wedding planners, crack
Word count: ~2.5k; Chapter 1 / 3
Summary: Jiang Cheng has read enough romance novels to know that he'll never be the star in one of them, not like his dramatically and happily married siblings. With this in mind, he tries to find completely tropeless employment for the summer.
When Jiang Cheng begins his search for a summer job at the tail end of his junior year of university, he knows he has to be pickier than he ever has been before. The precedents are clear, and they force him to cross off a worrying number of local businesses from his list of potentials.
Take his sister as an example. Jiang Yanli is four years older than Jiang Cheng, and on graduating from university herself, she ignored their parents’ demands and found a job in a small bakery and cafe. Beloved by all, she established a regular clientele and soared through the ranks until she was effectively running the entire bakery, despite being no closer to legal ownership. And then one day, a handsome young businessman walked through the door. Jiang Yanli emerged from the subsequent series of misunderstandings and brief but poignant heartbreaks as the owner of her own business, and Jiang Cheng is now eagerly anticipating the imminent arrival of his first nephew.
Or, of course, Jiang Cheng can point to his brother. At one year and 5 days older than Jiang Cheng, Wei Ying’s own summer job between his junior and senior years of university had been at a tattoo parlour. Despite Jiang Cheng’s mother’s loud premonitions of doom, the parlour ended up being a very successful outlet for Wei Ying’s creative energies, and that summer was one of the calmest they had ever experienced since Wei Ying joined their family—at least, it was until he eloped at the end of it with a handsome young heir who was mysteriously working in a flower shop around the corner. Jiang Cheng wasn’t invited to said elopement, and he remains bitter about that to this day.
With these real-life demonstrations of occupational risk, he knows he must be careful moving forward. His cold disposition has kept him safe until now, but he absolutely must not select a seasonal job that has ever made its way onto a romance trope list.
Flower shops, tattoo parlours, and bakeries are clearly all ineligible. Barista? No. Bookstore? No. Library? No. General store? No. Sex shop? No. Gym? No. Dog walker? Jiang Cheng’s heart twinges as he forces himself to cross that one off, too.
The list is demoralisingly long.
On the last day of classes before the long slog of final’s week, Jiang Cheng goes on a slow walk around his small hometown, eying the local businesses without much hope.
“Jiang Cheng?”
Jiang Cheng looks up from his forlorn trudging to see Mr Shi peering around the glass door of his little storefront. Jiang Cheng doesn’t know Mr Shi well, but a lifetime in a small town and parents who are professors at the local university have given him a familiarity with many of the town’s long-term residents, so he knows enough to recognise the strangeness in seeing Mr Shi’s usually cheerful face marred by a frown.
“Good evening, Mr Shi,” Jiang Cheng greets politely.
“I’m surprised you aren’t revising already!” says Mr Shi. “Is everything alright?”
“Yes, sir, thank you,” Jiang Cheng tries to dismiss, but then Mr Shi brightens in realisation.
“Oh, but that’s it, isn’t it? You’re already on the hunt for your summer job?” Mr Shi eyes him thoughtfully. “A bookshop, maybe? Oh! Or maybe you could be a surly but competent barista at a coffee shop!”
Jiang Cheng turns bright red, feeling caught out, though Mr Shi’s open acknowledgement makes it clear that his caution is well-warranted. “No, sir.”
Mr Shi—a fully grown adult—pouts at him. “No? Your sister was very successful at her bakery, wasn’t she? I thought you might head in a similar direction as her.”
Jiang Cheng hesitates, but he decides there’s no harm in telling Mr Shi the truth. No doubt Wei Ying will squeeze it out of Jiang Cheng eventually, and once Wei Ying knows, the whole world will find out, anyway. “I’m specifically looking for a job that isn’t a romance trope,” he admits.
Mr Shi narrows his eyes at him thoughtfully. “Come inside, Jiang Cheng.”
“I’m not sure—”
But Mr Shi gestures him inside so firmly that Jiang Cheng nervously inches past the door, which Mr Shi then locks behind him, turning the sign to “Closed” with an air of ominous finality.
“Sit down, Jiang Cheng,” Mr Shi says, and busies himself with pouring Jiang Cheng and himself glasses of water.
Jiang Cheng sits down at the edge of one of the ornate but uncomfortable chairs facing Mr Shi’s surprisingly business-like desk. The bookshelf behind the desk is weighed down with massive 3-ring binders, and the walls are plastered with photos of elaborately decorated halls and rooms.
“Tell me, Jiang Cheng,” says Mr Shi, seating himself behind his desk and passing Jiang Cheng a cup of water. “There’s nothing wrong with avoiding romance, but is there a reason you’ve chosen to do so this summer?”
Jiang Cheng makes a face. “I’m not avoiding romance, I’m just avoiding that kind of romance,” he argues.
Mr Shi nods encouragingly, steepling his fingers as he leans his elbows on the surface of his desk. “What kind of romance is that?”
“The storybook kind.” Jiang Cheng shrugs, looking down. “It’s alright for my sister and brother—they fit right into those tropes. But the characters in romance stories who are like me are always the jealous friend, or—or some other kind of villain. And I don’t want to be that kind of person,” he adds firmly, “so I’m not entering that kind of story.”
“I see,” says Mr Shi, leaning back in his chair with his fingers still steepled. “You know, Jiang Cheng, I’ve been looking for some seasonal help myself this summer.”
“Absolutely not,” says Jiang Cheng without missing a beat.
Mr Shi pouts, his dramatic pose collapsing in on itself. “Why not? It’s perfect! Don’t you know what kind of business this is?”
Jiang Cheng raises an unimpressed eyebrow. “Event planning,” he says. “I can name fifteen related romance novels off the top of my head.”
“Ah, but Jiang Cheng,” says Mr Shi, shaking his head with a smile. “I am the event planner. And as I’m sure you’re aware, I’ve already fallen to that particular trope.” Mr Shi pointedly turns a framed portrait on his desk around so that it’s facing Jiang Cheng. The portrait displays a glowing Mr Shi, decked out in elaborate white robes, standing next to his dour-faced husband, Mr He. Mr Shi pauses for a moment, smiling down at the portrait, before continuing. “How many romance books have you read featuring the married event planner’s summer assistant?”
Jiang Cheng frowns. “None,” he admits.
“None!” cheers Mr Shi. “You’ll just be helping file and research things, and occasionally responding to emails. You’ll barely even interact directly with the clients. And, of course, I’ll offer you a competitive wage for your work. What do you say?”
Jiang Cheng examines this from every angle. Finally, he says, “Alright. I can bring you my updated CV tomorrow, if you’d like. What other paperwork should I submit to you? How long do you think it will take for you to decide which candidates to interview?”
Mr Shi smiles and leans over his desk to pat Jiang Cheng on the head fondly. “You’re so adorable,” he says. “Be here at 7 in the morning next Monday, after your finals are over. A-Xuan will have your contract ready for you by then.”
“Uh…”
“Off you go now,” says Mr Shi, standing to unlock his door and shoo Jiang Cheng outside. “Back to your revision!”
Working for Mr Shi is… odd.
As promised, Jiang Cheng assists Mr Shi in administrative work, particularly in organisation, which is Mr Shi’s weakest area. He takes over Mr Shi’s appointment diary, develops a new indexing system for Mr Shi’s many files, and exchanges phone calls and emails with Mr Shi’s many affiliated vendors. It’s busy, but it’s work that Jiang Cheng is particularly skilled in, having been in charge of his family’s schedule since he was tall enough to read the wall calendar without standing on a stool.
He settles into his new routine, and he is just starting to think that Mr Shi had been right after all when the door chimes one day and Jiang Cheng looks up to meet the eyes that he is instantly, irrevocably, certain belong to the love of his life.
Mr Shi had left to tour venues with some of his current clients. He had no in-store meetings on the books, and with walk-in clients being rare, he had no compunctions over leaving Jiang Cheng alone to watch the shop for the day.
And yet, here a walk-in client is, gently closing the glass door behind him as he enters. He smiles sweetly at Jiang Cheng as he greets him, and Jiang Cheng feels his heart soar even as he returns the stranger’s smile automatically.
He wants to cry.
This stranger, this newly discovered love of Jiang Cheng’s life, is so far out of Jiang Cheng’s league that it feels like a joke. It’s obvious in everything about him, from his careful, precise movements, to the tips of his long, dark eyelashes, down to the clean-cut lines of his exquisitely tailored, dove-grey suit. This is not the sort of person who would ever look at Jiang Cheng twice, or even once.
This is further reinforced when the man’s purpose for visiting is revealed. “I’d like to plan a one-year anniversary party,” he says, his tone shy, and Jiang Cheng’s heart, which had been slower on the uptake than his brain, plummets to his feet.
Jiang Cheng nods with every ounce of professionalism he possesses. “I’m afraid that Mr Shi is out at the moment, but I can ask you some preliminary questions so that your first appointment with Mr Shi will be as productive as possible.”
The stranger nods. It’s starting to be difficult to breathe, with those warm eyes fixed on him over that soft smile.
“What type of party are you imagining? What is the date?”
The stranger tilts his head to the side. It isn’t fair that he’s able to look so elegantly handsome and cute at the same time. “Nothing too elaborate, really. The anniversary is at the end of August.”
Jiang Cheng frowns even as he writes the information down carefully. “Even for a fairly simple event, August is short notice,” he tells the man. “What size are you anticipating the party will be? We can start checking for vacancies once we know how large of a venue we’ll need, and how much food.”
“I know, and I’m very sorry. It was something of a spur of the moment decision to hold a celebration. But the party should be small—only immediate family and a few friends. Maybe twenty people at the most?”
“Hmm,” says Jiang Cheng as he writes, mentally scrolling through the list of local venues and vendors. “Something that size should be doable. Are you thinking of having full meal service?”
“No—actually, I’ve already secured the agreement of Lotus Pier Sweets to do the catering. We were just thinking of having snacks and pastries, that kind of thing.”
Jiang Cheng’s hand stutters at the realisation that he’ll be working with his sister on this event—well, really, Mr Shi will be working with his sister. Jiang Cheng will be on the sidelines, mourning his dreams of ever having his own happily ever after. “Understood,” he says.
He extracts the rest of the information about the anniversary plans from the stranger without any mishap. It’s only as they’re both standing and Jiang Cheng is walking the stranger to the door that he remembers to ask, “I’m sorry, I forgot to ask—what is your name and contact information?” He feels himself flush a little at the question, so he quickly clarifies, “I need to add it to your file for Mr Shi.”
The stranger’s smile beams as he replies, “My name is Lan Huan,” and he passes Jiang Cheng his card. “Call me any time.”
“Thank you very much, Mr Lan,” says Jiang Cheng, accepting the card. “We will be in touch with you soon.”
Lan—that’s the surname of Wei Ying’s husband, though his personal name is Zhan and not Huan. Maybe they’re related? Lan Huan does look quite a bit like Lan Zhan, now that Jiang Cheng is looking for it and not simply dazzled by his smile. They could be brothers, maybe.
But if that’s the case, Jiang Cheng reflects, then it’s even more unbelievably rude that Wei Ying and Lan Zhan eloped last year. After all, they were married at the end of August as well, which must have been within weeks or even days of Lan Huan’s own wedding.
Not that Jiang Cheng would put it past them, given that they were so rude as to not invite him, Jiang Cheng, to their elopement.
Mr Shi returns not long later, and Jiang Cheng passes the information about their newest client on to him.
“Oh, how lovely!” says Mr Shi. “Yes, I know the Lans—I’m not at all surprised that they’ve decided to hold an anniversary celebration after last year’s—well.”
So Lan Huan is related to Lan Zhan, and the elopement did interfere with his own nuptials! Jiang Cheng feels his heart, already lost to the man, fall a little further. It must have been so hard for Lan Huan, so embarrassing. He’ll have to remember to give Wei Ying a little punch the next time he sees him.
“But I’m sure you know all about that,” adds Mr Shi delicately. “Do you already know Lan Huan, Jiang Cheng?”
“No, I’ve never met any of Lan Zhan’s family before,” Jiang Cheng admits, watching Mr Shi’s face closely for a last piece of evidence to support his suspicions.
Mr Shi nods, unsurprised. “Yes, they’re not a local family,” he says. Jiang Cheng is relieved to hear that, but then Mr Shi adds, “Though perhaps they will be soon.” He refuses to elaborate, and instead asks Jiang Cheng what he thought of Lan Huan.
Jiang Cheng hesitates. He could tell Mr Shi the truth, of course—he already knows everything else. But Mr Shi was so kind in the face of Jiang Cheng’s summer employment dilemma, though everyone else he knows will mock him furiously for it when they find out, and Mr Shi was so sincere in his desire to help him. Jiang Cheng doesn’t want to tell him that this was the summer job that will be his undoing after all.
So Jiang Cheng only says, “He seems nice.”
Mr Shi hums thoughtfully, but he’s distracted by the paperwork, and Jiang Cheng leaves for a late lunch break to cry quietly into an extra-thick chocolate milkshake. That is the only reprieve he allows himself—he will not be the villain of this story, he promises. No one, especially Lan Huan and his no doubt perfect spouse, will ever find out about Jiang Cheng’s unfortunate fall to love at first sight.
Next Chapter