"How did you find out?"
Jiang Wei pushed open the door, and Xiao Shi, hearing the sound, came running from the depths of the room, jumping up and down towards Jiang Wei, "asking for a hug".
Jiang Wei bent down slightly, hugging Xiao Shi in her arms, nuzzling her nose in the soft fur on its head...
"I was there at the scene..."
Yi Ming had a nonchalant look on his face.
"What did you say?!"
Jiang Wei suddenly looked up, her abruptly raised tone startling Xiao Shi too. Xiao Shi struggled for a few moments before jumping straight out of Jiang Wei's arms.
Seeing Jiang Wei's look of surprise, Yi Ming couldn't help but laugh lightly, "Hey, hey, hey, Jiang Wei, don't look at me with that 'oh no, I've been caught red-handed' expression, okay? Otherwise I feel like my hair color is turning a little green..."
"Yi Ming, stop messing around..."
Jiang Wei slightly frowned, asking, "When did you go, and why didn't I see you?"
"I went a long time ago. I came back early from the teacher's place. I heard that the evening party had dispersed, so I bought some milk tea and waited for you outside the auditorium."
"Then why didn't you call me? Why didn't you come in to find me?"
Jiang Wei was puzzled.
"I did go in..." Yi Ming leaned back lazily on the sofa, his two arms draped leisurely on either side of the backrest, smiling faintly, "But then I saw a certain someone being passionately confessed to by Senior Shen, so I felt it wasn't appropriate for me to interrupt, so I just stood aside and didn't move."
"Why wasn't it appropriate for you to be there?"
Hearing this, Jiang Wei felt a tinge of discomfort in her heart.
At that time, her nervousness and fear must have been obvious to him. Why didn't he show up in time to help her out of that predicament, but instead stood by and quietly watched her struggle?
"Do you think it would have been appropriate for me to be there?" Yi Ming sat up straight, gazing at her with a wry smile.
"Of course it was appropriate."
"What capacity would it have been appropriate in?"
Yi Ming pressed further.
"You are my..." Jiang Wei blurted out, but suddenly stopped, her earlobes turning red. After stammering for a while, she fell silent.
"See, you can't even say why it would have been appropriate for me to intervene, so why would I go and cause a disturbance?"
Yi Ming seemed a little disappointed as he lay back down on the sofa, his gaze dropping.
"You are my family." Jiang Wei's face flushed red as she spoke softly.
"Even family can't stop you from finding happiness. What if... Shen Yuzhe was someone you liked?"
Yi Ming smiled faintly. Suddenly, he stood up and gently patted Jiang Wei's shoulder. "Your 'family member' is going to take a shower now. You go out for a walk with Xiao Shi first, I'll be back soon..."
Yi Ming went into the bathroom, while Jiang Wei squatted down silently to attach the leash to Xiao Shi.
Yi Ming seemed a little strange today, which made her feel uneasy, her heart almost in a tangled mess...
And the one in the bathroom, of course, wasn't faring much better either.
He took off his shirt, his eyes half-closed, standing motionless under the steaming shower, listening to the sound of the water in deep silence.
When Shen Yuzhe confessed to Jiang Wei, he had repeatedly felt the urge to rush over, pull Jiang Wei behind him, and then tell him domineeringly: "Jiang Wei is mine, we've been childhood friends for over a decade, no one can lay a finger on her."
But he thought about it over and over again, and still managed to hold himself back.
All these years, he seemed to have always taken it for granted that she should be by his side, believing this without a shred of doubt for so many years, never once questioning it.
But now, he suddenly realized that perhaps he had been interfering too much in her life, causing her confusion and distress...
Thinking of this, Yi Ming's heart suddenly felt heavy. He took three deep breaths in a row, and then told himself:
"Yi Ming, you stay right here and behave yourself, you hear? This time, let Jiang Wei make her own choice... Of course, if that guy dares to touch her, I support you resolving it with force..."