Young Brother-in-law Is Now My Husband

Jiang Yuyan continued looking at him, trying to figure out what must go in his mind. He looked so different and mysterious.

Just then Lu Lijun, who didn't know Jiang Yuyan was on the lawn and was looking at him, happened to turn his head and saw her standing there as his lips were open to let out cigarette smoke.

Under the starry sky, while hair moved along the pleasant breeze, she looked dreamy to him. For a moment he thought it was his imagination but immediately moved his head back to look ahead toward the water bed and mountain which he was doing a while ago and continued smoking.

Jiang Yuyan left and went back inside her room. Through the corner of his eyes, he noticed it and stayed in his place as if nothing mattered to him.

After some time, he heard someone coughing.

Cough! Cough!

Lu Lijun turned to look at the one who was coughing. Jiang Yuyan came to the gallery but started coughing from the smoke.

Lu Lijun put off the cigarette in his hand and said, "Go inside and close the door. I will be there."

Jiang Yuyan did so. She went back inside the room and closed that slider glass door. Lu Lijun stayed in the gallery for a while shaking his T-shirt a little with his hands so he could get rid of at least somewhat cigarette scent so when he goes inside the room, Jiang Yuyan won't smell it.

He knew she was sensitive to cigarette smoke and wished her to stay away from it. He smelled his T-shirt a few times to make sure it didn't smell of smoke and went back to his room where Jiang Yuyan was waiting for him.

Just as he stepped inside, he closed the slider door behind him and asked, "Is there anything?" the voice was firm and he looked like he didn't know why she was there.

"Today I saw so many cigarette buds in your office trash bin. Since when have you started smoking and that too much?" she asked, holding her usual authority over him.

"It's nothing. Don't worry about it," he replied and went to the wardrobe and pulled out another T-shirt to change into.

She turned to look at him as his ignored behaviour annoyed her, "Lu Lijun, what are you doing huh? Why are you doing this to yourself? You have affected your health. Look at yourself, you look weak and you have got your stomach bad. Now, do you want to ruin your lungs? You have just returned home from the hospital and started smoking already. Don't you care about yourself at all? Why are you doing this?"

Lu Lijun closed the wardrobe and turned to look at her as he walked to stand facing her. He stared into those angry eyes, "And why are you doing this?"

"What do you mean?" she asked as she didn't get what he meant.

"Why do you care for me so much? I am not a kid now. Why do you always want to look after me," he asked.

This change in a silent man, left her a little startled, "I…"

"Don't do this," he said, which interrupted her.

"Lu Lijun…"

"Once again, I might misunderstand your intentions and go back to where I already stopped," he said, his gaze cold and full of warning.

Jiang Yuyan could say nothing.

"You should go to your room and rest," Lu Lijun instructed.

Not saying a word, she left his room. Just as she stepped out of his room, she came across Noah who also stepped out of his room.

He bowed to Jiang Yuyan, "President Lu..."

"Can I have a talk with you," she said.

Noah nodded and followed her downstairs where no one was there.

"Since when did he start smoking?" she asked.

"After coming here from China," he replied.

"I saw so many cigarette buds in his office and even in his gallery. Not like they have accumulated slowly because both places get cleaned every day. That means he smokes a lot at a time," she said. "Why didn't you stop him?"

"I did?"

"Then?"

"It's fine, at least he didn't try to drink again," Noah said.

"This doesn't justify…."

"President Lu," Noah interrupted her, "I would like to talk as his friend."

"Go ahead."

Noah continued, "President Lu, though he shows he is tough, he is not. He is lonely and it's eating him every single moment. He is like he has nothing left in life and only has work left to do. He keeps himself busy with work the entire day and even after being tired when he can't sleep, he smokes for how long he himself doesn't know. He is not that Lijun he used to be and there is no way I can stop him from doing anything," Noah's gaze turned into a meaningful one, "Now he troubles no one so everyone should be happy about it." There was bitterness and little resentment in his words towards Jiang Yuyan.

Jiang Yuyan could say nothing once again. That was the caring friend who was worried about Lu Lijun.

Noah didn't apologize for his last rude words to her and left after bowing to her.

She sat on the sofa in the living room. 'Am I responsible for it once again? I thought he would be fine here. Didn't he say he needs time and he will be fine? Did he come here to get himself into worse condition? What should I do with him now?'

Xiao Min who heard it all came to Jiang Yuyan.

She looked at him and he said, "Don't worry about them."

"Whatever I try, I can't stop worrying for him," she said in low voice and lowered her head.

"because it has become your habit for so many years which won't go away so soon or might never go away," Xiao Min said. He didn't sound like her assistant but rather a friend who shared her burden.

"Seems like it," she agreed.