Growing Fond of You, Mr Nian

Under her gaze, Jiang Yuning felt a little uneasy. Since last night she had become distant and aloof. He sensed she was backing away.

What should he say to her? He had no idea because he’d never experienced something like this before.

After spending a while struggling, he said quietly, “Xi, are you so unhappy because you don’t like me spending time with Xinxin?”

“Xinxin? Xinxin!” Nian Xi couldn’t help interrupting him. “You two seem so chummy. You even ate the food she put in your bowl. You have so much to talk about. You’re a perfect match! What am I? I’m someone who stole you away from her!”

Aargh! Back in the lab, she was trying her best to restrain her anger. She didn’t want to yell at him in front of He Xin.

She admitted she was possessive. She couldn’t allow any impurity in her relationship. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have broken up with Feng Ji Chuan.

Jiang Yuning froze.

He blinked, not knowing what to do next. After taking a deep breath, he stammered, “We are not close… I-I call her that since I was little. My mom told me to.”

Nian Xi was so angry she almost burst into tears. She looked away so she wouldn’t see him. Looking at him made her feel even sadder.

“Xi, please don’t be mad at me. I won’t call her that anymore if you don’t like it.” Jiang Yuning teasingly pulled her sleeve. “I didn’t eat the food she put in my bowl.”

“I saw it with my own eyes!” Nian Xi said. “Don’t you have any feeling that she likes you? I only spent a few minutes in that lab, and it’s obvious to me that she does. I could feel it.”

Confused, Jiang Yuning shook his head and said, “I can’t tell if she likes me or not. But I can tell that you don’t like her.”

Nian Xi didn’t even want to say another word.

But she responded to him with, “No, I don’t like your childhood sweetheart. Do you have a problem with that? Go and be with her if you do.”

“No, no. I have no problem with it.” Jiang Yuning shook his head quickly. “You don’t need to like anyone but me. I’ll tell her to go home. I’ll never use anything from her again.”

On hearing that, Nian Xi felt slightly better. It turned out Jiang Yuning was not beyond redemption.

“But… I might still need to talk about work with her at times.” Jiang Yuning continued, “That’s inevitable. It’s the same with you. You have male friends and colleagues. You said so yourself. I didn’t forbid you from spending time with them.”

“That’s different,” Nian Xi said. “Most of my male colleagues are married. Fang Qi is single, but he’s not fond of me. We’re like brother and sister.”

“What about… Feng Ji Chuan?” Jiang Yuning mumbled. “He brought materials to your office all the time, and you went to your nephew’s party with him.”

“That was because I wanted to solve my case as soon as possible. As for the party, I had no choice. Our families used to be friends. He and I have a lot of mutual acquaintances. I might inevitably run into him at some parties.”

“It’s the same for me,” Jiang Yuning nodded. “She and I have to attend some training together, the domestic ones, the international ones.”

Uh-huh. Nian Xi didn’t know what else to say.

Unexpectedly, Jiang Yuning had learned to use her words against her. Clever boy.

“Xi, I think you need to trust me,” said Jiang Yuning seriously. “I only like you. In my eyes, you and my mother are the only two women in the world. You said that He Xin likes me. I don’t know about that, because it’s none of my business. I don’t care if she likes me or not. Not in the past, not now, not ever.”