Did the Tsundere Miss Get Slapped in the Face Again Today? - Chapter 84

Chapter 84: “Is Jiang Yi Acting Cute? Not Sure, Let Me Listen Again.”

“Your wife might not actually be willing to take you in.” The corners of Lin Anran’s lips were practically reaching her hairline, but that didn’t stop her from being stubborn and saying the opposite of what she felt.

“My wife is so wonderful, she’ll definitely take me in. How could she have the heart to let me sleep on the streets? Right? She’s so kind, beautiful, and smart,” Jiang Zhi praised her with a perfectly straight face.

Anran scoffed. “Alright, that’s enough. It sounds fake.”

She picked up her chopsticks and placed a piece of poached chicken in Jiang Zhi’s bowl. “Eat.”

Jiang Zhi, sensing her advantage, teased, “Not making me eat the sweet dishes anymore?”

Anran shot her a sharp side-eye glare.

Jiang Zhi laughed, ate the chicken, and squinted her eyes contentedly. “The food my wife picks for me is the best.”

With “wife” this and “wife” that, Lin Anran had been hooked like a fish; the curve of her smile was impossible to suppress. Being in a great mood, she kept piling food into Jiang Zhi’s bowl.

Jiang Zhi kept her tongue sweet: “Thank you, wife.”

Lin Anran turned her head away, trying to hide a giggle, though it was blindingly obvious. Once she’d had enough of being happy, she didn’t forget to pull a stern face again. “Stop being so slick. It’s frivolous. Don’t call me that anymore, I don’t like it.”

Jiang Zhi: “Understood. I’ll listen to my wife.”

Anran hummed twice, feeling jubilant, and added another serving of food to her bowl. Throughout the meal, she kept feeding her until Jiang Zhi was stuffed to the brim.

“I’m going to the restroom,” Jiang Zhi said, rubbing her uncomfortable stomach.

Anran glanced at her and immediately stood up too.

Jiang Zhi was confused. “You need to go too?”

“Mm,” Anran grunted.

Jiang Zhi’s eyebrows quirked. She doesn’t need to go; she’s acting like a lookout because she’s afraid I’ll run away. She reached out to ruffle Anran’s hair and pressed on her shoulders to make her sit back down. “I’m really just going to the restroom. Don’t be so tense. Finish your rice.”

Anran swatted her hand away, buried her head in her food, and muttered, “Who’s tense? Just get back here. I’m giving you exactly one minute.”

Jiang Zhi: “One minute is a bit short, don’t you think?”

Anran: “Then two minutes. Go and come back fast.”

Jiang Zhi shook her head with a smile. After stepping out, she asked a waiter for the restroom’s location. Once she was finished, she headed to the front desk to settle the bill.

Glancing at the price, Jiang Zhi sucked in a breath of cold air. She knew it was expensive, but not this expensive. She gritted her teeth and paid, her heart aching for her wallet.

As she was about to head back to the private room, she overheard the waitstaff whispering nearby: “Someone was just kicking doors in the restroom! Goodness, it was terrifying. It sounded like they were trying to tear the place down, kicking every stall open as if they were searching for someone…”

Jiang Zhi’s eyelid flickered.

Sure enough, as soon as she looked up, she saw a dejected-looking Lin Anran emerging from the restroom area. Their eyes met.

Anran’s gaze froze for a split second, then her gloom vanished, replaced instantly by fury. She marched over aggressively. “Where did you go?! You said you were going to the restroom—are you using the one in the lobby? We agreed on two minutes, and it’s been nearly five!”

Anran’s loud voice attracted the attention of everyone in the dining hall. Jiang Zhi quickly grabbed her and pulled her aside. “Keep your voice down.”

“I thought you ran away again,” Anran pouted, her voice dropping.

Meeting her aggrieved and insecure eyes, Jiang Zhi felt a wave of guilt and heartache. She explained with gentle patience, “I went to pay the bill after the restroom. I wasn’t running. My wife is right here, where could I possibly go?”

Anran: “You’re a habitual runner. You have a criminal record. You have no credit left with me.”

“Um,” the restaurant manager stepped in, clearing his throat. “Two of the restroom stall doors were kicked loose by this lady…”

Jiang Zhi: “…”

As Jiang Zhi scanned the QR code to pay for the broken doors, she gave Anran a resentful look. Anran pretended not to see it.

Once the payment was settled, Anran hopped over to her side again. “Jiang Yi, you spent so much money on me today. Your heart must be bleeding, right? Do you want me to pay you back? Beg me. I’m telling you, if you don’t behave, I won’t pay you a cent.”

Jiang Zhi: “Let’s forget about the money for a second. Give me back the hand-cord first.”

Anran instinctively clutched her pocket. “What? I don’t know what you’re talking about. All I know is that I’m a bit short on cash right now. I’ll have to pay you back in installments—how about one dollar a day?”

Jiang Zhi was moved to laughter. This wasn’t about the money; Anran was clearly using the debt as a reason to keep her from leaving, just like the hand-cord threat.

As she laughed, Jiang Zhi looked at her with pity. How much did I push her for her to feel the need to use these little tricks just to feel secure? And until today, I was actually content to keep hiding.

I really am a piece of work, Jiang Zhi thought.

“Including the meal and the door repairs, it was 23,200. If you pay one dollar a day, that’s 23,200 days, which is roughly 63 years. Since the debtor is king, you’ll have to behave yourself for the next 63 years if you ever want to see this money again…”

Listening to her count on her fingers and ramble on, Jiang Zhi’s eyes filled with tenderness. She reached out and pulled the girl into a soft embrace. Anran’s rambling stopped abruptly.

Jiang Zhi brushed her cheek against Anran’s hair. “I’m sorry. Truly, I’m so sorry.”

Anran buried her face in the crook of Jiang Zhi’s neck. “I won’t forgive you.”

Jiang Zhi: “Then I’ll spend the rest of my life slowly earning your forgiveness. I’ll use time to prove it.”

Anran lightly nipped at her neck. It didn’t hurt, but it sent a tingle through Jiang Zhi. Her throat tightened, and her ears turned red. She pulled Anran back slightly. “What are you doing? We’re on the street.”

Anran bared her teeth at her. “What am I doing? Biting you to death!”

She turned and walked away, but checked back after two steps to see if Jiang Zhi was following. Jiang Zhi trotted up to walk side-by-side with her so she wouldn’t have to worry.

“Not going back to the office?”

“No. I’m tired. I’m going home to rest.”

They walked up to a white sedan. Anran patted the car. “I bought this with my own money.” Her chin was tilted high, her face screaming: Am I impressive or what?

Jiang Zhi: “Why didn’t you buy a pink one?”

Anran’s expression stiffened. She mumbled something, peeked at Jiang Zhi several times, and then said awkwardly, “The pink one… I’m waiting for you to buy it for me.”

Jiang Zhi was stunned, then smiled. “But the car I can afford… you’d find it embarrassing to drive.”

Anran’s lips turned down into a pout. “I want it. You buy it for me. I want the exact one you picked out two years ago!”

If she had known Jiang Zhi wanted to buy that car back then, Anran never would have called it embarrassing. That mistake had only fueled Jiang Zhi’s resolve to leave, and Anran regretted it deeply.

Jiang Zhi chuckled and patted her head. “Fine. I’ll buy it. I’ll buy it for you, okay?”

Anran: “Take off those last one word. I don’t like them.”

Jiang Zhi nodded and repeated it according to her wish: “Fine. I’ll buy it. I’ll buy it for you.”

Anran gave a cold snort, tossed her head, and got into the car. She buckled her seatbelt, rested one hand on the steering wheel, and shot a “cool” glance at Jiang Zhi in the passenger seat.

Then Jiang Zhi tapped her on the head. “What are you doing, trying to act cool? Driving with one hand? Who taught you that? Please tell me you didn’t learn that from that novel. If you did, throw it away immediately.”

Anran grumbled curses.

“Put your other hand on the wheel too,” Jiang Zhi said sternly.

Anran continued to grumble but obediently put both hands on the wheel.

Jiang Zhi kept her eyes glued to the road. To be honest, she didn’t trust Anran behind the wheel; she seemed unreliable. With that “acting cool” posture, Jiang Zhi feared she was a “road killer.” Fortunately, Anran was only unreliable for a moment; after that, she was quite normal—not exactly the smoothest driver, but at least she wasn’t speeding or running red lights.

As the car moved steadily, Jiang Zhi’s heart settled. She reached out to play with a small pink bear charm hanging from the rearview mirror. It was cute, so she unhooked it to take a closer look.

“This is pretty cute,” Jiang Zhi said, squeezing the bear.

“Even if it’s cute, I’m not giving it to you,” Anran said, likely still annoyed about the steering wheel lecture.

Jiang Zhi hadn’t intended to take it, but since she said that, she stuffed it into her pocket.

The car stopped at a red light. Anran turned her head and narrowed her eyes. “It’s not for you. Give it back.”

Jiang Zhi blinked. “You really can’t give it to me?”

“No!”

“Alright then.”

Jiang Zhi reached into her pocket as if to take it out, but halfway through the motion, she suddenly leaned in and gave Anran a light peck on the cheek.

Anran’s expression went blank.

Jiang Zhi breathed into her ear, her voice trailing off with a melodic lilt: “Wife… I just really like this little bear charm. Won’t you give it to me, please?”

Anran stared at her, dazed. Is Jiang Yi acting cute?

Yes!

Anran cleared her throat, trying to suppress her widening smile. “Fine. I’m tossing it to you as a scrap.”

Jiang Zhi clicked her tongue inwardly. A simple “I’ll give it to you” could have been so romantic, but she had to say “tossing it as a scrap.”

“Use that affected tone you just used… and say it again,” Anran said casually.

Jiang Zhi went silent.

“Say it! That affected, overly-sentimental tone.”

The light turned green. Anran made no move to drive. The cars behind them began to honk—Beep, beep!

Jiang Zhi: “Drive! They’re honking!”

Anran: “Not until you use that tone…”

The honking became louder and more frequent. Jiang Zhi sighed in defeat: “Can we please drive? The people behind us are rushing us~”

Anran gave a cold huff. “Truly affected. Don’t speak like that anymore. I don’t like it.”

Finally, she started the car. Jiang Zhi let out a breath. I was right, she’s really not suited for driving. She loves causing trouble on the road.

Five minutes later, Anran suddenly blurted out: “Use that affected tone to talk to me one more time. I want to hear exactly how ‘affected’ it is.”

Jiang Zhi: “…”

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