You're my wife, don't doubt it!

Shen Jie: "...?"

"Shen Jie, I'm sorry!" Yu Luying seemed to have finally made up her mind, and said these five words, then bowed to her at a 90-degree angle.

"?" This sudden action startled Shen Jie, and then a strange, absurd, and unfounded panic surged into her heart.

Dear readers, imagine this: one day you're at work and suddenly the HR person asks you to come see her. When you arrive at the HR person's office, she's unusually polite and cautious, beating around the bush and making small talk. You'd inevitably start to get nervous, worried that you're about to be in big trouble.

Shen Jie was just as nervous. She suddenly thought that Xiao Yao had decided to marry Yu Luying in the future, and the two of them were plotting to dump her. That's why they called her over to confront him now.

Ever since Xiao Yao moved to Meiyu's house with her, he has started avoiding any intimate contact with her, and even actively rejected her... Could the root of the problem actually be this? Was this an early sign?

So that's why there was that deep 90-degree bow and "I'm sorry" at the beginning?

The thought only flashed through her mind for two seconds, no, one second, before being quickly rejected and even mocked by her reason.

However, the unease caused by this lack of self-confidence lingered in the girl's heart.

Before today, Shen Jie had never thought about this possibility, not even hypothetically—because she would never even consider that direction.

"What's wrong with me today?" Shen Jie wondered.

She tried her best to compose herself and said calmly to Yu Luying, "What's wrong, Yu Luying?"

Chapter 289 The First Kiss of Three People

2023-08-09

Shen Jie tried her best to compose herself and asked Yu Luying in a calm tone, "What's wrong, Yu Luying?"

Yu Luying moved her lips twice more, making a silent murmur.

Shen Jie: "?"

She glanced at Yu Luying, then at Xiao Yao, and made up her mind that if she heard the word "separation" or "divorce" from this kid today, she would pack up these two scoundrels and sink them into the sea.

Let them see what "Bloody Mary" really is.

But thinking about it carefully, with Xiao Yao's current martial arts skills... plus his absolute advantage in height and weight, it's no wonder he can't win.

Just as Shen Jie was lost in thought, Xiao Yao pinched his waist again, and Yu Luying reacted like a spring: "That's right, about what happened last time, I'm sorry, I made a mistake, let's make up."

Shen Jie: "...?"

Then, Yu Luying lowered her head and whispered, "...Is that okay?"

Throughout the entire process, Xiao Yao observed Shen Jie's reactions.

When Yu Luying first said "I'm sorry" (at the end of the previous chapter), Shen Jie's expression was first one of astonishment, then... Xiao Yao wasn't quite sure, but it looked like she was nervous and scared, followed by a flash of anger on her face.

Then, she started glancing at Xiao Yao for a while, and then at Yu Luying.

After Yu Luying said "Let's make up," Shen Jie was first surprised again, then let out a long sigh of relief, her shoulders and demeanor relaxing—in short, she seemed to have breathed a sigh of relief.

After letting out a sigh of relief, she twitched her small nostrils in confusion, and then started looking at Xiao Yao and Yu Luying again.

Xiao Yao & Yu Luying: "?"

The anger from before returned to the girl's pretty face. She raised her eyebrows again, her face full of disbelief.

"What have you apologized for?" Shen Jie finally spoke, giving her answer.

Xiao Yao gasped.

In his expectation or imagination, after Yu Luying took the initiative to lower her head, Shen Jie, even if she didn't immediately and gently greet Yu Luying, would apologize to Yu Luying and say that she was also wrong—at least she wouldn't have such an arrogant, condescending, and domineering attitude and tone.

Like a mother to her son, or a domineering girlfriend to her boyfriend, the question, "What have you wronged me with?"... This kind of response, this style of interrogating a criminal, is really not in line with Shen Jie's usual persona.

"Shen Jie." Xiao Yao tried to use these two words to persuade Shen Jie not to be so aggressive, but it obviously didn't work.

He glanced at Yu Luying, whose expression remained largely unchanged. Yu Luying said, "After coming to the hotel where you two were staying that day, I shouldn't have kept deliberately provoking and angering you."

"I thought you regretted giving up halfway."

“And also,” Yu Luying ignored her sarcastic words, “I shouldn’t have deliberately forced Xiao Yao to come home with me for dinner that day when I knew you were choosing a house, and deliberately kept him there until very late. I just wanted to…”

"I told you so," Shen Jie said coldly, "overtime today?"

Xiao Yao inwardly groaned. This wasn't an apology or admission of wrongdoing; it was more like a direct provocation.

“I’m sorry, you misunderstood.” There was a hint of sadness in Yu Luying’s voice: “I was being stubborn that day—at least he is still my lover now. I don’t want him to always put you at the center of his life, always prioritize you. Even if out of ten things, nine are for you and one is for me, I would be satisfied.”

Shen Jie was slightly taken aback.

“So I did that on purpose that day, hoping to prove that he could give me priority too,” Yu Luying said. “I’m sorry.”

Shen Jie: "..."

Xiao Yao roared inwardly: You're selling me out too!

“I should respect you, Shen Jie,” Yu Luying said, more as an attempt to convince herself than to address Shen Jie: “You are older than me, you once risked your life to save me, and you allowed Xiao Yao to be with me out of kindness and generosity… A person like you deserves my respect.”

Xiao Yao felt water running down his cheek and wanted to hand Yu Luying a tissue, but he didn't have any.

"Alright," Shen Jie said weakly, holding her forehead, "Don't say anymore. About what happened last time... I forced you back then... I wanted you to understand, I didn't really mean it..."

“Okay,” Yu Luying said, “I understand.”

“I’m sorry, I know that was an insult…” Shen Jie said.

"Please stop talking...!" Yu Luying started twirling her fingers with the ends of her hair again.

What's going on? Has the situation finally entered the expected positive track of mutual apologies and self-reflection? But something doesn't seem quite right...

"Okay, okay," Xiao Yao clapped his hands and said, "Let's shake hands, give each other a hug, and we'll still be good friends. Let's just let this little friction pass."

Neither of the two girls moved.

Xiao Yao stepped forward, grabbed one person's hand with each hand, slapped them together, and shook them up and down.

Neither of the girls smiled.

"I also want to apologize to both of you," Xiao Yao said, slightly incoherently. "Actually, I feel guilty towards both of you. Although coexistence wasn't really my fault, it's because of me that you two could have become good friends. It's because of me, this flawed and imperfect guy, that things have gotten so tense. If I could have been better, if I could have done a little better, maybe you wouldn't have had this conflict..."

"You still know that?" Shen Jie said.

Xiao Yao hooked one person's neck with each hand and forcibly pulled the three heads together, pressing them against each other.

“I give you a new commandment… Love one another…” Xiao Yao’s head rested against Shen Jie’s head on the left and Yu Luying’s head on the right, gently swaying and rubbing the two girls’ heads as he sang a song he had learned from Yu Bo’s catechism class: “Love one another, that the world may know that you are my disciples. Disciples.”

The three of them exhaled together, and Xiao Yao thought it smelled wonderful.

"Shen Jie," Yu Luying whispered, "let's treat each other as equals, shall we?"

Yu Luying put forward her core demands.

“Of course,” Shen Jie replied gently, deflecting the question with a few words: “Before God, each of us is equal in dignity.”

Yu Luying gave a wry smile and remained silent.

……

The clear and seemingly close "false starry sky curtain" still hung in front of them. The three people sat on the beach, leaning against each other, and no one spoke.

The so-called "leaning on each other" actually means that Xiao Yao sits in the middle, with his left arm around Yu Luying's left shoulder and his right arm around Shen Jie's right shoulder, with his arms passing behind the two girls so that they can both lean on his shoulders.

He was well aware that the problem was somewhere between "not completely solved" and "not completely solved".

Just as it is written in political textbooks, some contradictions are irreconcilable and can only be mitigated.

Today, both of them are still willing to give face and superficially restore harmony among the three of them.

This shows that there is at least still a chance to believe in the wisdom of future generations.

Even though he is still the same person in later generations.

Xiao Yao believes that this reconciliation needs a solemn ceremony.

The boy lowered his head to the right, and Shen Jie did not react. So he used his right hand to lift the girl's chin.

Even though Yu Luying was right next to him, Shen Jie let him have his way.

Half a minute later, he released Shen Jie and lowered his head to the left.

Yu Luying hesitated for a few seconds before responding rather passively.

Then, he patted Xiao Yao on the shoulder and pointed at Shen Jie.

Xiao Yao understood immediately and lowered his head to the right again.

"Hey, what are you doing!" Shen Jie instinctively tried to push him away this time, but failed.

……

"How are you feeling?" Xiao Yao stared at the pitch blackness in front of him.

“…It’s still too strange,” Yu Luying said.

"Yeah, I'm not used to it either," Xiao Yao said.

After all, this was the first time they had openly done something so strange.

"Shen Jie?"

"...Ah." Shen Jie seemed to just come to her senses: "What are you doing?"

“Let’s play Truth or Dare,” Xiao Yao laughed. “Last time, some people couldn’t keep up, so let’s make up for it today.”