C233 Passive Appointment
C233 Passive Appointment
Since he couldn't go home for dinner, Yang Chen immediately thought of calling Lin Ruoxi and Nanny Wang at home. After all, he already promised Lin Ruoxi that he would tell her if he didn't go home in the future.
He dialed Lin Ruoxi's cell phone and was picked up a few seconds later.
"What's the matter?" Lin Ruoxi asked simply, as if she was busy.
"Report to my wife that I'm not going home to eat tonight. Someone is treating me to a meal." Yang Chen laughed.
Lin Ruoxi was silent for a moment before she asked, "It couldn't be Tang Wan, right?"
Yang Chen was stunned. How would she know? However, Lin Ruoxi had heard Tang Wan's words when she invited him to dinner. Afterwards, she even advised him not to have any interactions with Tang Wan and even let him touch other women. Don't touch Tang Wan.
Yang Chen didn't plan on hiding anything, so he smiled embarrassedly, "Yeah, since I agreed, I have to go."
Lin Ruoxi let out a long sigh. "In the end, you won't listen to me. Is that woman that attractive to you?"
"You can't put it like that. Actually, I'm just going to have a meal with her. I don't develop that fast, hehe …" Yang Chen felt a little guilty after speaking. Honestly speaking, whenever he thought about how he hooked up with Tang Wan at the riverside that night, Yang Chen still felt his blood boiling up to this day.
That day at school, Yang Chen found out that Tang Wan still had another child who was in high school, which made him feel a little regretful. Although he was interested in Tang Wan, it wasn't good to break up their family. However, from Tang Wan's performance later on, Yang Chen was almost certain that Tang Wan was a single mother.
As a result, when Tang Wan took the initiative to express her goodwill towards Yang Chen, Yang Chen began to miss her more and more. Yang Chen isn't a very conservative person. He was quite interested in a mature woman like her who was so mature. Thinking about it, a man who didn't have any feelings for Tang Wan would either have unique tastes or have no guts at all. Yang Chen was a normal man, and he also had this kind of courage. Thus, he did not intend to hide this matter.
Lin Ruoxi was silent for a while before she said, "I know, but don't tell me if you're not going home to eat."
"Why?" Yang Chen was puzzled.
"I will feel disgusted!"
After Lin Ruoxi finished speaking, she hung up the phone.
Yang Chen smacked his lips and smiled wryly. He wasn't a man who would abandon a forest for a tree. Although he wanted to make Lin Ruoxi look down on him, Yang Chen didn't care too much. In truth, his wife was quite a good one. If someone else's husband were to openly commit an affair, that woman would definitely cry. At the very least, the woman would have to argue about a divorce. At most, Lin Ruoxi would give you a cold shoulder and ignore you for a while.
It seemed like Lin Ruoxi's idea of him as her husband had yet to be completely accepted.
After work, Yang Chen drove to the street entrance that Tang Wan had arranged for him. When he stopped the car, Yang Chen realized that it was actually an old residential area in Zhong Hai. All kinds of classical structures, along with the stone buildings that gave off the scent of the thirties, made the whole block seem out of place in the prosperous world of Zhong Hai, as if it were another city in the middle of the city.
Yang Chen looked around and saw Tang Wan, who was already waiting for him.
She wore a black coat with a black collar, a white cotton sweater, a short gray skirt, and seductive black mesh stockings. She wore bright red crystal-colored high-heeled shoes. Her long hair fell down softly over her shoulders, and her smooth oval face was filled with the mature charm of an Oriental woman. Her skin was as white as a baby's.
The bright eyes of the woman suddenly merged with the street of ancient buildings behind them. She looked like an ancient beauty walking out of a scroll.
Seeing Yang Chen, Tang Wan smiled and waved at him.
Yang Chen swallowed his saliva. His heart actually started beating faster. Even when he first saw Lin Ruoxi, he wasn't this excited.
This kind of woman who had experienced many years of baptism and seen through the mundane world, the most beautiful thing was not her outer appearance, but her temperament. Especially for a young man like Yang Chen, who had seen too many of the tragedies in the mortal world, this kind of woman was poison!
A mature woman, a mature woman! You are the abyss of seductive crime... Yang Chen shouted in his heart.
"You're late, it's not the right thing for a gentleman to do," Tang Wan said with a smile.
"Do I look like a gentleman?" Yang Chen asked.
Tang Wan said thoughtfully, "I almost forgot. Your demeanor is not that great, but you may not be a gentleman, but you must be lustful."
Yang Chen knew that Tang Wan intended to refer to the things that happened the last few times they met and provoked her to bring other women in front of her eyes. It was obvious that in her eyes, he was definitely a playboy.
"Since you're so clear about it, how could you still have the guts to treat me to a meal?" Yang Chen asked with a wry smile.
Tang Wan shook her head slightly. "I've been thinking about this question. When I called you, I kept asking myself, why did you invite that lustful and unruly guy? Even if he saved your life, there's no need to risk your life." She continued, "But while I was thinking, I made a decision. I was a lady, so I came to keep my promise."
With that, Tang Wan pointed at the simple and unadorned street behind them, "Let's go. I'll treat you to some delicious food today."
Yang Chen felt a sense of freshness. Compared to the other women he had met, Tang Wan didn't put on airs or hide her true feelings. Yang Chen could feel Tang Wan's favorable impression towards him, and that struggling emotion, perhaps due to her age, Tang Wan no longer cared too much about women's shyness, she didn't care to directly express the thoughts in her heart.
He walked with Tang Wan into the streets lined with small shops and stalls. People on the streets would glance at them from time to time. Although the man looked average, the woman was exceptionally beautiful.
Tang Wan didn't talk about anything else with Yang Chen. She just kept on introducing the shops on both sides of the street. There were all kinds of historical news and some interesting stories about the shops. She even mentioned which family's elder had met with trouble and what their children were working at.
Yang Chen asked curiously, "You can't be a resident here, right?"
"I'm not, but my grandma lives here, and this is also my mother's hometown. When I was a kid, I loved to play here. This was the only old city street that had been preserved in Zhonghai because some of the stone buildings had become relics. "I'm glad that even though my grandparents are gone and my mother is gone, I can still come here and miss them a lot," Wu said.
Yang Chen couldn't help but say, "Your words don't sound like the words of a high school child's mother. It seems to be the thoughts of a young girl."
Tang Wan covered her mouth and chuckled. "My daughter doesn't like it here. She always thought it was lifeless here. I told her she was too young to feel the culture. "
Tang Wan didn't feel awkward talking about her daughter at all.
"Then, did you bring me here because you think I can feel it?" Yang Chen said with a smile, "I'm only in my twenties."
"You certainly can," Tang Wan said confidently.
"Why?"
"When you saved me in the bank that day, what I saw in your eyes was not the emotion a 20-year-old man should have. Although it was only temporary, I still felt safe …" Tang Wan's expression was a little unnatural as she said, "You are the first man I've ever met who gave me a sense of security. So you must be able to read this."
The first man who gave her a sense of security?
Yang Chen once again swallowed his saliva. Looking at Tang Wan who continued introducing him to the street, the corner of his mouth curled up. There seems to be hope for tonight …
It was already late at night after they had walked through the long, dark, time-like corridor. Yang Chen and Tang Wan arrived at the mouth of a slightly dilapidated corridor. There were only a few bright, 40-watt bulbs in the vicinity.
Tang Wan brought Yang Chen to a noodle stall. She shouted to an elderly man who was pulling noodles, "Uncle Qiao!"
The man who was addressed as Uncle Qiao raised his head and beamed as he said: "Little Wan, Uncle Qiao misses you. It's been a long time since he last came, right?"
"Yeah, I've been pretty busy lately. How are you, Uncle Qiao?" Tang Wan seemed to be very familiar with Uncle Qiao, so she came forward to greet him warmly.
Uncle Qiao and Tang Wan chatted for a while before looking at Yang Chen with a strange expression. "Little Wan, why don't you introduce him to Uncle Qiao?"
Tang Wan smiled magnanimously and said, "This is Yang Chen, my friend. Today I specially came to bring him to eat Uncle Qiao's ramen. As I said, this is the most delicious dish in Zhong Hai — Uncle Qiao wants to cook well."
"Little girl, you're not young anymore. Uncle Qiao's cooking isn't child's play, but this person isn't as simple as a friend, right? Other than that girl of yours, you've never brought anyone here to eat before!" Uncle Qiao said with a mischievous smile.
Tang Wan wasn't shy either. "Uncle Qiao, he's not my boyfriend. It's just that he helped me a lot last time, so I thought he wasn't that bad. So I invited him to a meal. Other restaurants are too vulgar, so we came here."
Uncle Qiao chuckled. "Not now, but maybe in the future." Then he winked at Yang Chen and said, "Young man, work harder, Wan is older than you, and some girls are prettier and kind. I, Old Qiao, have never seen them in my life, so don't miss Tang Wan."
Seeing Uncle Qiao so carefree in helping Tang Wanla, Yang Chen felt that this was too bold. Tang Wan just smiled and didn't seem to care at all.
Sitting at an old table with Tang Wan, Uncle Qiao began to pull noodles for the two. It was not yet midnight, and the stalls were cold and empty.
Yang Chen looked at Qiao Shu Rui's energetic back and smiled helplessly. "Why don't you explain yourself? Uncle Qiao definitely thinks that you and I are having an affair."
Tang Wan poured herself a cup of yellow green tea and said, "Isn't that what you've always wanted?"
Yang Chen was at a loss for words. He smiled wryly, "Tang Wan, you don't have to be so direct. Why do I feel like I'm the prey? You're the hunter."
"I'm already 38 years old this year." Tang Wan raised her teacup and took a sip gracefully. Her every move seemed to coordinate with the surrounding tattered scenery in an abrupt yet unconventional manner.
"What do you mean …" Yang Chen didn't understand why this woman suddenly mentioned her age. For most women, this was something they would hate their entire lives.
"I don't have much time left, I'm going to play with the hazy and ambiguous atmosphere." Tang Wan finished her tea and looked coldly at Yang Chen as she said, "Yang Chen, do you want to hear how I feel about you?"
Yang Chen knocked the knuckles on the table and nodded.
"The first time we met, it should be by the river. I was in a bad mood that day, and I met someone like you, who didn't even open his eyes, yet you wanted to have a one-night stand with me. I was very angry, and you wore a shirt with diamonds as a button and told me that you were selling mutton skewers. Though I think you're terrible. However, you are the most impressive man I've ever met who wanted to have a one-night stand with me. At the same time, you are also the only one who didn't get beaten up by me afterwards. " Tang Wan smiled playfully.
Yang Chen didn't say anything and continued to listen quietly.
"When we met later, it was in my daughter's school right? You were actually related to such a simple young female teacher, and that female teacher was even so mesmerized by you that she fainted. I think you are really bad." She continued, "Later on, in my entertainment center, I saw you with Mo Qianni, a smart and sensible woman, who was actually interested in you, until you finished playing a game of tennis, and I realized that you were a bad guy, but you were different, and I was a little curious about you …"
"It wasn't until you helped me block those robbers at the bank that I finally understood why both Professor Li and Mo Qianni chose you, the bad guy." Tang Wan tilted her head and looked at Yang Chen with a smile. She said, "Listen, I'm so direct because I have feelings for you, so I said it."
Yang Chen took a deep breath and said, "Is this considered showing love to me?"
I've already said that I don't have much time left, in two years, I will be forty years old, and my daughter can even legally get married. In another two years, maybe I will be a grandmother, a grandmother, no matter how I take care of my skin, I will still be an old woman. "Tang Wan's smile gradually turned gloomy," Unfortunately, the only man I want to have contact with in depth is actually a man younger than me by a decade, so I'm very anxious. "
Yang Chen didn't expect Tang Wan to say such words on her first formal meeting alone. Just as he was about to say something, Uncle Qiao, who was not far away, shouted, "Here's the noodles!" He walked over with two large bowls of steaming noodles.
"You're still saying it doesn't matter, but I saw that you guys were chatting quite energetically. What did you say? You're not allowed to speak ill of me behind my back." Uncle Qiao was in a very good mood.
Tang Wan took a whiff of the special smell of ramen noodles mixed with cilantro, "Uncle Qiao, Yang Chen told me that I was delusional to try to get into a relationship with him just by relying on a bowl of noodles!"
Yang Chen coughed up the instant he took a bite of the noodles. He didn't know whether to laugh or to cry, "Why are you slandering me? Since when are we together?"
Uncle Qiao laughed out loud. "This noodle really can't be used to flirt with girls. Back then, I relied on noodles to chase after Little Wan's mother, but in the end, her mother was still married to that rich man by Little Wan's grandmother. However, Little Wan really likes me more than her father, so it's a bit of compensation in my heart. "
Yang Chen was stunned. He didn't expect Uncle Qiao and Tang Wan's seniors to have such a past. But Tang Wan actually liked her father's rivals more than her father. Yang Chen felt it was strange.
After a few more guests arrived, Uncle Qiao continued to busy himself. Only then did Yang Chen and Tang Wan eat their noodles.
Very soon, Yang Chen ate a big bowl of noodles and even the soup into his stomach. He comfortably burped and saw that Tang Wan was still chewing on the noodles slowly. He sighed with emotion and said, "Tang Wan, have you investigated my background?"
Tang Wan took a sip of the soup and shook her head. "No. Although I'm interested in your past and background, I hope you can tell me yourself. I won't go investigate."
"Then say that you have a good impression of me. Aren't you afraid that I'll leave after taking advantage of you?" Yang Chen asked.
Tang Wan smiled sweetly. "Then let me ask you a few questions. Answer me now. You just need to answer honestly, 'yes' or 'no'. What do you think?"
Yang Chen touched his face, this date that originally revealed all kinds of ambiguous colors was now like a questionnaire. What made Yang Chen uncomfortable was that the woman was too proactive, she took the initiative, he was constantly being teased, and that woman, like a proud queen, was looking at him in ridicule.
"Alright, ask away!" Yang Chen said with a bitter smile.