The store was as busy as a beehive, and Xu Niannian joined in the hustle the day after Jin Yu returned, eager to earn some extra money.
There were plenty of people helping out in the store, so there was no need for Jin Yu to lend a hand. He just stood by the counter, watching the constant stream of people.
A single sentence from Xu Niannian had delighted him beyond measure, his good mood continuing up to now.
Therefore, customers passing through the store found there was a stunningly handsome man by the counter, wearing a goofy smile all day long.
One customer who had not seen Jin Yu before commented to a friend after leaving the store,
"Hey, did you see that man by the counter? Ah... He’s so handsome it’s a shame he’s a fool."
Naturally, Jin Yu was unaware of this comment. Even if he knew, he wouldn’t have minded—he was happy to play the fool.
However, what he hadn’t anticipated was the quick arrival of his love rival.
Liu Wendong came knocking.
After hesitating at the entrance of Xu Niannian’s store, he finally decided to go in to talk to her.
When he saw the tattoo on her arm, learned of her fiancé, he felt disheartened, saddened.
In the end, he told himself that she was doing well and he had no reason to interfere, to avoid causing unnecessary trouble.
He thought it was all just his own unrequited love.
Until the day he saw the word etched into her skin.
It turned out, he wasn’t the only one with feelings.
During the days at home, he had been hesitating, unsure whether he should seek her out.
After all, she already had a fiancé.
But in the end, he couldn’t resist his infatuation.
After so many days of thought, he still came.
He wanted to ask Xu Niannian for an answer, to find out if she still had a place for him in her heart. Regardless of any stigmas, he wanted to be with her.
With this in mind, Liu Wendong stepped into the store.
Xu Zhiqiang saw Liu Wendong enter and instinctively glanced at Jin Yu, who didn’t show much of a reaction, so Xu Zhiqiang didn’t say anything.
Seeing Jin Yu standing at the entrance, Liu Wendong was momentarily stunned.
The smile on Jin Yu’s face vanished instantly, his dark eyes narrowing slightly. Without doing anything, just standing there with his grin gone, a chill immediately radiated from him.
This was a man not to be messed with.
Caught under his sharp gaze, Liu Wendong felt as if he had wandered into the hunting grounds of a highly dangerous creature, his scalp tingling with unease,
He could feel the hostility emanating from this man toward him.
Liu Wendong knew what he was doing wasn’t right, but there were some things for which, without answers, he would regret for the rest of his life.
And such regret would linger forever.
Gathering his courage, he approached Jin Yu and asked bluntly, "Can I talk to Niannian alone?"
Jin Yu gave him a look, straightened his body which was leaning on the counter, and suddenly stood a good half head taller than Liu Wendong.
The sheer difference in height, compounded by Jin Yu’s imposing presence, made Liu Wendong take a step back instinctively.
Jin Yu did nothing but look at him and asked in a deliberately slow manner, "You want to chat with my fiancée?" ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ NoveI-Fire.ɴet
His words were calm, his tone showed no anomaly.
Yet to Liu Wendong, it felt as though his spine had grown even colder.
He forced himself not to be scared and insisted, "I’d like to talk to her."
"Heh..." Jin Yu chuckled lowly and called out to the kitchen, "Niannian, someone’s looking for you."
The tone was affectionate.
However, Xu Niannian in the kitchen detected a grinding of teeth beneath it.
Xu Niannian wondered, what was with this silly man again?
He had been cheerfully loitering around like a door god all morning.
"Who’s looking for me?" Xu Niannian asked as she cooked in the kitchen.
"Your classmate," Jin Yu said.
Xu Niannian paused in her cooking—could it be Liu Wendong?
It must be him; otherwise, why would Jin Yu speak through gritted teeth?
Just finishing the last dish, Xu Niannian had already added the seasoning, so she left Chen Xiaorou to take over, removing her homemade apron before coming out.
She spotted Liu Wendong as soon as she lifted the door curtain.
He and Jin Yu are standing opposite each other, both looking toward her.
Knowing Jin Yu’s jealousy, Xu Niannian subconsciously stood on Jin Yu’s side as she walked over.
"What do you need?" Xu Niannian asked.
Delighted by her instinctive move to stand by his side, Jin Yu felt a satisfying ease in both body and spirit. If it weren’t for the presence of a love rival, he would have laughed like a fool.
Seeing Xu Niannian, as lovely as ever, appear before him, Liu Wendong felt a little tense, looking at her with eyes full of affection, "Can I talk to you alone for a moment?"
Xu Niannian pursed her lips, Jin Yu watching her, waiting for her to refuse.
"Sure, let’s talk outside," Xu Niannian said.
At those words, Liu Wendong’s eyes lit up, brimming with fervor.
Jin Yu’s face darkened in disbelief as he looked at Xu Niannian.
Xu Niannian patted Jin Yu’s hand in a comforting gesture, "I’ll be right back."
Then Xu Niannian walked out with Liu Wendong, one following the other.
Jin Yu looked flabbergasted, then his expression turned as dark as thunder, yet he had to hold it in.
Xu Niannian agreed to come out with Liu Wendong because she saw he had something to say, and she roughly guessed what it might be.
Because of the original host’s affection for him, Xu Niannian thought it was only right to extinguish these feelings that didn’t belong to her.
"What do you want to say? Just say it," Xu Niannian said.
Liu Wendong looked at her nervously, suddenly stepped forward, attempting to take hold of Xu Niannian’s hand.