So, even though Jing Mian was still in the car, his heart was already quietly looking forward to going home.
Before the marriage alliance with the Ren family, Jing Mian had been warned by his father that the Jing family was already a high climb, and since he was young, even with a nanny, he should not be lazy after marriage. To satisfy Mr. Ren, cooking was the most basic quality.
But he never expected that after they started living together, the heavy responsibility of cooking would fall on Mr. Ren.
It was one thing to know how to cook.
… The names of the dishes sounded so tempting.
The senior in the driver’s seat was driving with one hand while asking Jing Mian where his school was, planning to drop him off directly. Since it was getting late, he suggested not to go to the club.
Jing Mian was taken aback and leaned slightly over: “No need, brother, I’m not going back to school today.”
The senior smiled and said generously, “So you’re going home? Just give me the address, and I’ll drop you off.”
Chen Xi swallowed hard, remaining silent.
Seeing that he couldn’t refuse, Jing Mian pondered for a moment and reported the address: “Maple Forest Community.”
After he finished, the car suddenly fell silent.
The senior in the passenger seat turned his head and repeated, “Maple Forest Community?”
Jing Mian nodded.
The driver asked, “Maple Forest Community… is that the Maple Forest Villas on the southwest street?”
Jing Mian felt a bit embarrassed and nodded again.
In fact, the original name was Maple Forest Villas; he just changed it to community to make it sound less upscale and luxurious.
A teammate beside Jing Mian exclaimed, “Isn’t that a well-known high-end community? I heard a male celebrity lives there… what was his name again?”
Before Jing Mian could feel nervous, Chen Xi became anxious first.
She quickly changed the subject: “Brother Lin, can you drop me off too? Do you remember my address?”
The driver nodded: “Of course, you’re on the way, I won’t need to take a detour.”
Chen Xi said, “That’s good, just drop Mian Mian off first, I’m not in a hurry.”
The car moved smoothly, and according to the navigation, it soon stopped at the entrance of Maple Leaf Community.
Jing Mian got out and bid farewell to the seniors.
As he passed the security booth, the guard looked friendly and immediately recognized Jing Mian, smiling, “You’re the resident who was with Mr. Ren yesterday.”
Jing Mian smiled back, “Hello.”
“The access card has been prepared.” The guard handed Jing Mian a card through the window, “It corresponds to the entrance of the community and the resident’s private courtyard. If you accidentally lose it, the courtyard door will need to be rekeyed and have facial recognition and fingerprint installation; the property management can send someone to install it.”
Jing Mian took it and thanked him, “I will keep it safe.”
The guard flipped open a registration book and asked, “What is your relationship with the homeowner?”
Jing Mian paused for a moment, exhaling a puff of mist.
He pressed his lips together and replied, “He is my husband.”
The guard understood.
“No wonder, actually Mr. Ren didn’t stay here often before, he would hardly show up for months? Now he suddenly comes back frequently, I was a bit surprised.”
The guard looked up and smiled, “So it’s because Mr. Jing is coming to live together.”
Jing Mian was surprised and asked, “Is that so?”
“Yes, he didn’t even join the owner’s group before, but in this past month, not only has he been coming here frequently, but he also joined the group and even the fresh supermarket group.” The guard seemed quite young, in his thirties, and was very friendly, adding, “It seems Mr. Ren has always been very busy, not much time to manage a family.”
The guard scratched his head and laughed, “Looks like you still need to meet the right person.”
Jing Mian was momentarily speechless.
His face felt inexplicably warm.
Joining a supermarket group seemed ordinary, but placed on Mr. Ren… it felt oddly surprising and out of place.
Jing Mian thought to himself, as another homeowner, should he go to a nearby supermarket or market tomorrow since it was Sunday?
He wasn’t skilled in cooking, but at least he could stock the fridge.
The two chatted back and forth.
“Mr. Jing, do you want to join the homeowner’s group? I can add you.”
Jing Mian replied, “Sure.”
He took out his phone, “Can I join the supermarket group too?”
The guard opened WeChat, “Of course, let’s add each other first, and I’ll add you.”
Jing Mian nodded, “Thank you.”
He asked, “Are there any other groups?”
The guard flipped through the list, “There’s also a seafood market, a few restaurant delivery groups near the community, oh right, there’s a beautiful park across from Maple Leaf, the night view is particularly nice, and there’s a square dance group there.”
Jing Mian: “…”
He thought for a moment, “Besides the square dance, please add me to all the others.”
The guard replied, “Sure thing, Mr. Jing.”
Suddenly, a series of group chat boxes appeared in the list, and Jing Mian selected a few too active ones and set them to mute.
When Jing Mian got home, as soon as he entered the foyer, he smelled the aroma of dishes wafting from afar.
His stomach, quite uncooperative, let out a growl.
Mr. Ren was cooking himself, waiting for him to come back together. The scrambled eggs with shrimp on the table were steaming, tantalizing his taste buds.
Jing Mian took the rice that Mr. Ren handed him; as the chopsticks touched his tongue, warmth filled his belly, and he suddenly felt a sense of warmth akin to having a wife and children by a heated kang.
Even though there were no kids, of course.
Jing Mian picked up a small rib and quietly ate; the outside was crispy while the inside was tender, the sauce complemented the meat’s rich flavor.
The cooking was excellent.
Jing Mian marveled inwardly, vaguely recalling that in his childhood, his brother didn’t seem to know how to cook, but he often dragged him over to his house for dinner.
More than ten years had passed, and not only had he changed, but the boy he remembered had also transformed so much.
Once a neighbor’s older brother,
Now, he was his legal partner, Mr. Ren.
At night.
Ren Xingwan was very busy.
The desktop computer was in the study, and as Jing Mian passed by, he heard the man seemingly in a video conference, the atmosphere was serious and clear, with the man occasionally speaking, mostly giving opinions or making decisions.
Jing Mian didn’t stop his footsteps and quietly brought his notebook out from the master bedroom.
Jing Mian thought, it seemed his partner was not just a big star, but more like… a domineering CEO.
Or rather, to the extent of a business tycoon.
This didn’t seem surprising; given the Ren family’s background, the entertainment industry was at most a side job for networking and fame. Ren Xingwan didn’t need to rush to announcements and filming every day, nor did he participate in variety shows to make money, yet he still had access to the top resources at any time.
Not to mention Mr. Ren’s superior looks and solid acting skills.
Such a Ren Xingwan, with acting skills, shrewdness, and culinary talent, had a temperament and character that showed no arrogance and was very respectful.
It was a bit… too perfect.
As a partner, aside from not loving him, he seemed to have no flaws at all.
Jing Mian, gnawing on a chicken wing with egg yolk, felt a wave of inferiority.
This family marriage was arranged a few years ago.
At that time, the Ren family was in turmoil, fighting for inheritance rights and family businesses, and it was rumored that there was even bloodshed, though that was just hearsay. Although the foundation was not as large and stable as it is now, their strength and status were absolutely far superior to the current Jing family, almost unattainable.
So… why was the marriage alliance decided?
Was it merely out of goodwill from their previous neighborly relationship?
Jing Mian felt it was more than that.
Perhaps, when he becomes a bit more familiar with Mr. Ren in the future, he wouldn’t be able to help but ask.
Jing Mian returned to the first floor, nestled on the sofa, and picked up his notebook to complete a few online assignments for school, then submitted them.
He then glanced at the time.
Noticing it was still early, he entered the live streaming platform, found his headset and portable camera, and prepared for today’s live stream on the sofa.
The bullet comments were still enthusiastic:
【Ah, what did I just catch!】
【I can’t believe it’s so early today】
【Mian Mian, mommy misses you so much!!】
【Hmm? Did Mian Mian change places? This doesn’t look like the dorm or home.】
Jing Mian’s eyelashes fluttered slightly as he replied, “Yes, I’m at my brother’s house today.”
As he said this,
Jing Mian happened to hear the sound of the man coming downstairs.
Immediately, the other’s footsteps seemed to pause for a moment.
Jing Mian couldn’t tell if it was his illusion, but it seemed Mr. Ren’s gaze was fixed on him from afar.
Jing Mian’s throat moved slightly as he adjusted his headset.
Inside the headset, the sound effect of entering the game “Glorious” rang out, crisp and grand, very lively.
Outside the headset, however, it was silent.
At this moment, Jing Mian was clearly more sensitive to the world outside the headset.
When he said “brother,” did Mr. Ren hear it?
Jing Mian swallowed hard.
He wasn’t sure if Ren Xingwan minded.
Or rather, in this situation, did the man prefer him to call him “Mr.” or “brother”?
The bullet comments were evidently buzzing:
【So it’s brother!】
【I didn’t know Mian Mian had a brother? I’ve been following the live stream for two years, never missed a single one.】
【Can brother show his face? I’m so curious!】
【No way, Mian Mian never shows his face.】
【No need to think, Sheep is so good-looking, brother must be too.】
Jing Mian felt embarrassed, so he spoke through the microphone of the headset:
“Sorry, he can’t show his face.”
【No problem.】
【Are we playing the girls’ high school map today? I’m ready to take notes.】
【Typing day thousand part-time job, interested V me 7643891】
【Mian Mian, can you call brother one more time?】
……
Jing Mian inadvertently glanced at the last bullet comment on the page.
He was slightly taken aback, somewhat confused.
【!!!!!!!】
【Wuwuwu, found the organization】
【Who understands, that one call of brother just now made my heart explode.】
【Upstairs, are you referring to your heart or somewhere else?】
……
Jing Mian: “?”
The evening live stream went smoothly.
Mr. Ren seemed to have just come downstairs and then returned to the study.
Jing Mian thought that Ren Xingwan might just be getting water to drink and hadn’t noticed what was happening on his side.
At night.
Jing Mian lay in bed, drowsily about to fall asleep, when suddenly his phone, charging on the bedside table, rang.
Jing Mian forced himself to suppress his drowsiness and reached out to grab the phone.
The sudden bright light made Jing Mian squint his eyes.
He opened the phone and found the sound was from a WeChat notification.
It turned out to be Mobo, who had left his contact information at the headquarters of “Glorious” game company this morning, sending him a message.
【Sheep, are you asleep?】
【Sorry to contact you so late.】
Jing Mian blinked, suppressing his drowsiness as he silently typed: [No problem.]
[Is there something you need, senior?]
The other party seemed surprised that Jing Mian replied so quickly, so he paused for a few seconds before continuing:
【I suddenly remembered something. We met in a hurry today and didn’t have time to tell you.】
【It’s about Ash.】
Jing Mian was taken aback.
His drowsiness faded significantly.
He turned over and typed a bit slowly: [What?]
【It’s just that I mentioned I have an old acquaintance with Ash.】
【I heard he’s coming to the company tomorrow.】
【If you’re interested, I can arrange for you two to meet.】
Jing Mian sat up straight.
He was completely awake.