It was in such a manner that Jiang Xiaobai had almost moved everything out of her own house within a week’s time. She was packing her clothes when Fang Tangtang paid her a visit, and the latter was stunned by the sight of her almost empty room. “Am I at the wrong place?”
Jiang Xiaobai looked back at Fang Tangtang. “Haven’t you visited my house many a time? How could you not know what my house looks like?”
Fang Tangtang was dumbfounded while scanning the room. She did a double take and stood by her opinion that it didn’t look like Jiang Xiaobai’s house at all. “Are you sure this is your house?” Fang Tangtang was in disbelief.
“Of course, it is.”
Fang Tangtang asked with difficulty, “Was your house robbed? Or was it thievery? Have you called the police? Or are you perhaps f*cking bankrupt?”
Jiang Xiaobai stared at Fang Tangtang as if she was an idiot before retorting in disdain, “Do you have amnesia? Weren’t you the one who suggested that I move everything to Xiao Su’s house? I am now his personal cook, so I would of course need to move my stuff over there. My room would of course be empty after everything was moved, so why would you think it weird?”
“Do you not find it weird?”
“Why should I?”
“Why not?”
Jiang Xiaobai was confused as to why it would seem weird. “Is this weird?” she mumbled to herself.
Fang Tangtang was baffled as she spoke up, “Why wouldn’t it be weird? You’re merely his cook, which was the reason I suggested that you move your own utensils to his house instead of buying new ones, but I don’t remember ever telling you to move everything! Look at you, your house is practically empty! To be frank, it felt as if you were robbed a hundred times over, which is scary.”
Robbed a hundred times over? It was a weird way to describe the situation, but Jiang Xiaobai had to concede that perhaps the situation was rather abnormal. However, she was able to quickly clarify, “It’s not totally out of the ordinary to do so. While I’m his cook, I also have a full-time job, and it’s tiring to have me travel between places all the time, so I would of course have to move my stuff into his house. I have to set the place up as per my preferences so as to give myself a nice environment to work in, and I don’t see a problem in that.”
However, Fang Tangtang only stared at her in silence after her explanation.
“Why are you looking at me like that? It’s creepy.”
“I was wondering if you’re going to move into his house after moving all your belongings there.”
Fang Tangtang’s assumption stunned Jiang Xiaobai, and it took her a moment to pull herself together before chiding Fang Tangtang, “Are you nuts? We’re only pretending to be a couple, so I will never move into his house!”
Xiao Su had always been reminding Jiang Xiaobai that they were merely pretending to be a couple, which made it seem like she was the one bugging him, while she wouldn’t actually have done what she did if it wasn’t for her mother. Life is hard!
“I beg to differ.” Fang Tangtang approached her with a stern expression. “You might actually end up together.”
“That’s impossible,” Jiang Xiaobai denied instantly.
“Do you have no confidence in yourself at all? Or do you perhaps hold no feelings toward him?”
Jiang Xiaobai said nonchalantly, “He already has someone he likes. Plus, I’m fine on my own, so why should I tie myself down to another man? I can always go on a blind date instead of getting together with him. That way, I could at least find someone who loves me truly. So, why would I trouble myself?”
Jiang Xiaobai spoke in a rapidfire manner as if to clarify or prove something. However, Fang Tangtang could detect something else, thus made fun of her with a gleeful expression, “Alright, I’ll be watching when your statement backfires on you since you’re so adamant about denying it.”
Jiang Xiaobai had always shied away from boys throughout the years she knew her. As with most cases, feelings between a couple were cultivated through them spending time with each other. Jiang Xiaobai would be spending the majority of her days with Xiao Su, and Fang Tangtang would wager that Jiang Xiaobai would end up developing feelings for him.
“So what will you be taking with you today?”
“My casual clothes, so that I can wear them while watching dramas on the sofa. He isn’t poor, but he has absolutely nothing in his house, and I’m baffled by how barren his house is,” Jiang Xiaobai replied. Xiao Su wasn’t at home yet, so Jiang Xiaobai brought Fang Tangtang to his house and showed her around.
Fang Tangtang had to agree that Xiao Su’s house was as barren as Jiang Xiaobai stated it to be, and all the stuff she saw belonged to Jiang Xiaobai. The house was full of vitality, which was a stark contrast to Xiaobai’s empty one.
Fang Tangtang picked up a call after the tour and left in a hurry. Jiang Xiaobai began cooking when she noticed it was about time. There wasn’t much to do at work, so she didn’t turn her computer on, instead turned on the TV to watch some drama.
Xiao Su had arrived at the ground floor after getting off work when one of the office’s female staff approached him with a flustered expression. “A-Assistant Xiao, are you getting off work?”
He cast her a glance and recognized her as one of the female staff, thus nodded in response. “Is something the matter?”
She seemed almost shy about it while looking downward and asking with a low voice, “I-It’s just that… I know of a new restaurant around here which serves decent food, so I’d like to know if you’re interested in joining me for a meal over there…”
Xiao Su caught on to what the woman was attempting to do despite his initial puzzlement. She was asking him out on a date. She went on, as she was afraid that Xiao Su might turn her down, “We can have Chinese food if you dislike western ones…”
“I’m sorry, someone had prepared dinner for me at home.”
“What?” The woman seemed surprised. “Are you married?”
Married? Why would that be her first impression of me? How did she even jump that far ahead? he thought.
Xiao Su was about to deny her claim before the woman lowered her head sadly. “It’s alright, I won’t be bothering you again, goodbye.” She then fled the scene, leaving Xiao Su to ponder on the question alone, Does cooking at home connotes the idea of me being married?
Xiao Su arrived home to be greeted with the familiar scent of cooked rice as soon as he opened the door, while the house seemed both strange yet familiar. It was his house, but it felt different.
He used to come home to a cold space without furnishings, with him as the sole occupant. Although he bought a TV, he never used it. However, the house seemed livelier and more vibrant than ever since Jiang Xiaobai’s arrival. The TV was always turned on and showing dramas when he arrived at home.
