The antique girlfriend of a chaebol heir

Jiang Duo raised an eyebrow, genuinely surprised.

He knew this girl too well.

No matter how much one tries to hide it, the subtle distance and timidity in one's eyes can never be concealed.

And for some reason, she was a little afraid of him—

It wasn't disgust or aversion, but a more complex, indescribable sense of timidity.

She would still agree to go to some public places if I asked her.

But if it were in other places...

Ever since that night when he lost control and bullied her pitifully at the kitchen island in the living room, she has refused to step into that house again.

He thought this time would be the same.

He even prepared his threatening lines.

But she agreed immediately.

She looked up at him and said earnestly that she was going to prepare an important gift for him.

A part of Jiang Duo's heart suddenly collapsed, becoming utterly soft.

He could actually guess that the gift she was talking about was probably the pair of mandarin duck sachets he had asked for many times.

"You've been very busy lately," he said, reaching out and running his fingertips through her hair, gently rubbing it. His fingertips brushed against her burning earlobe, the touch as delicate as fine mutton fat jade.

His voice was low and husky, with a hint of barely perceptible restraint, "The rest is unimportant."

He paused, then leaned down slightly, his gaze fixed intently on her, as if trying to imprint her entire being into his eyes:

"To me, you are the most important gift."

The words were almost a confession, so frank that there was no turning back.

Shen Ci opened his mouth.

In the end, she simply hummed in agreement, lowered her eyes, and avoided his overly intense gaze.

The "hmm" was so soft it sounded like a sigh, but to Jiang Duo it sounded like a shy acquiescence.

He looked at her silent profile, her eyelashes casting a small shadow under her eyes, her lips slightly swollen and red, and she looked like a startled rabbit pretending to be calm.

He chuckled softly, his chest heaving, and felt a strange sense of joy as he gripped the steering wheel again.

With the engine roaring, the car merged back into the main traffic flow.

He didn't see that Shen Ci's hand, hidden at her side, was gripping the hem of her clothes tightly, her knuckles turning white...

Huihe Hot Pot Restaurant is quite well-known in Beijing, and by evening, the restaurant was much busier than at noon.

As Shen Ci pushed open the door, a wave of heat, a mixture of the aroma of butter and the spiciness of Sichuan peppercorns, hit her.

"Welcome in. How many of you are in your party?"

A young waiter approached with a well-trained smile on his face.

Shen Ci shook her head, her gaze sweeping over him and across the lobby on the first floor.

The booths were almost full, and through the rising steam from the hot pot, she spotted the manager from lunchtime—a man in his forties—standing next to the cashier, pointing something out.

The man noticed her and recognized her at a glance.

Hundreds of people come and go in the hot pot restaurant every day; he shouldn't remember anyone.

But the young couple who booked a private room at noon—the man was aloof and dignified, the woman was stunningly beautiful—stood there like they were from an idol drama, and he couldn't forget them even if he wanted to.

What's more, when the girl almost fell, the man next to her looked at her with a gaze so cold it could kill.

Such a pretty girl, could she be back to cause trouble?

He quickly came over, a smile plastered on his face: "Miss, I remember you came here at noon. Is there something you need? Was it because you almost fell...?"

"no."

Shen Ci interrupted him.

"The waitress you scolded today is my friend, Su Zijing. It's not convenient during the day, but I'd like to have a few words with her alone right now. Thank you for your help."

The man's eyes flickered as he quickly made a decision in his mind.

Who is this girl?

The man from lunchtime didn't look like an ordinary person, and now she's come to my door alone again...

But Su Zijing is just a poor student who works temporary jobs on weekends. What kind of high position could she possibly be climbing?

"Miss," he said with a forced smile, his expression showing reluctance.

"It's not that I don't want to help you, but as you can see, it's lunchtime now, and there are a lot of customers. She has her own things to do. Why don't you wait until she gets off work tonight?"

Shen Ci remained silent.

She lowered her eyes, took out a few red bills from her handbag, and rolled them into a small roll with her fingertips.

"Could you please make an exception?"

The original owner did not have Su Zijin's contact information, and Su Zijin mostly did temporary work on weekends, so she might be moving to a different place next time.

She didn't want to wait, and she couldn't afford to wait.

The man paused for a moment, then subconsciously looked around.

The lobby was bustling with noise, but no one was looking this way.

He quickly reached out and clenched the small roll of paper in his palm. As his fingertips touched the thickness of the banknote, the smile on his face became more genuine.

"You're too kind," he said in a low voice. "She's cleaning up in the kitchen; I'll call her right away."

"Could you please have her come to the ice cream shop next door to find me?"

Ten minutes later.

Shen Ci sat by the window in the cold drink shop.

The wind chimes on the door jingled once.

She looked up.

Su Zijin walked in from outside, wearing a dark red apron.

She had clearly rushed over; her bangs were a little messy, and her cheeks were flushed from the heat of the kitchen.

The two girls' eyes met in mid-air.

……

Jiang Duo's birthday happened to fall on a Sunday.

It was a rare sight to see a light snowfall in Beijing. The fine snowflakes fell like grains of salt, covering the green belts of the residential area with a thin layer of white.

At 9:45, Shen Ci had just walked downstairs when she spotted the tall and elegant figure next to the car.

They agreed to meet at 10 o'clock. Shen Ci went downstairs early to wait for him at the entrance of the community, but she didn't expect him to arrive so early.

Jiang Duo was wearing a black cashmere coat, with some unmelted snowflakes on his shoulders and in his hair.

Upon seeing her come out, he immediately went up to her and handed her a cup of still-steaming coffee.

"Warm your hands."

Twenty minutes later, the car came to a stop in front of the apartment building where Jiang Duo usually lived.

The elevator goes up and the entrance door opens.

Jiang Duo entered the foyer first, bent down to take out the pair of pink slippers from the shoe cabinet and placed them beside her feet. After she changed, he naturally took the thin down jacket she had taken off and hung it on the hanger next to her.

"Come here." He took her hand, led her to the living room, and pressed her into the soft sofa. "I'll have the family chef come over tonight. I'll cook steaks for lunch. There's some washed fruit here, have some first."

After saying that, Jiang Duo turned around and went into the open kitchen, taking out a steak from the refrigerator.

He stood tall and straight, his shirt sleeves rolled up to his elbows, revealing his well-defined forearms, as he busied himself at the kitchen counter.

The butter in the pan gradually melted, emitting an enticing aroma.

Shen Ci sat on the sofa, with fresh fruit sliced ​​in the fruit bowl in front of her, but she didn't touch it.

Just then, my phone vibrated slightly.

A message pops up on the screen:

"Senior Shen, I'm downstairs."

Shen Ci looked up and gazed at the kitchen.

Jiang Duo had his back to her, and the sizzling sound of the steak hitting the pan filled the air with its aroma.

He seemed focused on controlling the heat and didn't look this way.

Shen Ci got up, went to the entrance, changed her shoes, and picked up her coat from the hanger.

When her fingers touched the doorknob, she paused for a second and glanced back—Jiang Duo was still in the kitchen, his back view focused and gentle.

She opened the door and went out.