Sweet Gardenia - Chapter 16.2

Lu Zhi bought a drink and sipped it as she walked. Ahead, a parade of floats was passing by, and many girls who had just gotten off rides were jogging over to take photos.

Fu Yanshang followed her gaze. “The ticket should include a good spot for the parade. Aren’t you going to take pictures?”

She strolled leisurely. “I’m not particularly into these cartoon characters. There’s none I really love. ”

Halfway through her sentence, she suddenly spotted a randomly appearing red-brown fox plush not far away. She turned and shoved her phone into Fu Yanshang’s hands. “Nick Wilde! Over there! Take a photo with me!”

Fu Yanshang: ?

Taking photos with Disney characters required waiting obediently in line. The queue was estimated to be over two hours long. Lu Zhi wasn’t particularly fond of waiting in lines, but she could endure it for a photo. The poor guy behind her, however, had probably never experienced the “joy” of queuing. After waiting for over ten minutes, she glanced back at Fu Yanshang and said, “It’s going to take a while. Why don’t you go sit somewhere nearby?”

He glanced at his watch. “I see other boyfriends waiting in line with their girlfriends.”

“I’m afraid you’ll get bored.”

“Alright,” he said, “then chat with me for a while. It might make me feel less bored.”

“About what?” Lu Zhi turned her head, keeping an eye on the progress of the queue. “Is there anything you want to ask?”

Perhaps her topic came out of nowhere. He thought for a moment, but not for too long. Lu Zhi felt that some people were naturally like this, even if the question wasn’t part of his plan, he could quickly come up with a response.

He said, “So far, have I been doing well enough to satisfy you?”

She froze, completely caught off guard by his question. After a pause, she felt that this opening didn’t bode well and tentatively asked, “Are you trying to negotiate some terms with me?”

He was straightforward: “I’m not like you.”

Lu Zhi, who was quite adept at offering a little sweetness before asking for a reward, fell silent.

He said, “Just asking.”

People on the street kept glancing back, though it was unclear whether they were looking at him or at her. Lu Zhi sank into the question, scenes flashing through her mind as she pondered the answer.

Was she satisfied?

At that moment, he continued, “According to probability, a person spends about a quarter of their life with their parents, and the remaining three-quarters belong to their partner. Marriage plays a relatively important role in a person’s life. That’s the education I received growing up, and the environment I was immersed in.”

“This circle is chaotic.  There are plenty of smooth talkers and those who just go through the motions. Nurturing a marriage is like tending to a flower. Some people don’t care how it grows; even if it withers, it doesn’t matter. But for me, I hope every relationship in my life is healthy. No matter what kind of seed it is, if it has the chance to bloom, I’ll cultivate it with care.”

Lu Zhi felt a resonance in her soul: “Is it because you got straight A+ in every subject when you were in school?”

“Did Jing Chi tell you that? It’s not related, or maybe it is?” He went on, “I hope I can make you feel satisfied, because to a large extent, that determines the quality of my marriage.”

She nodded, as if she understood but not quite: “But why are you saying such serious things while we’re waiting in line?”

He said, “Because we rarely get the chance to talk like this normally.”

That was true. Lu Zhi nodded again, then suddenly added, “Are you implying that I just collapse into bed as soon as I get home every day?”

“I was just thinking that even if Boss Fu hadn’t brought us out, we should still make time to take a walk or have a heart-to-heart,” he said. “I’ve been too busy with work too.”

It surprised her that he would reflect on their marriage, not for any other reason, but she hadn’t expected him to take it more seriously than she had imagined.

In a business alliance marriage, for most parties involved, as long as the family business benefits, the actual state of the relationship doesn’t really matter.

Lu Zhi looked up and saw that his gaze hadn’t shifted. She said, “But the way you are right now reminds me of a homeroom teacher asking why I was late in the morning.”

The tension in his brow eased. Lu Zhi didn’t know what she had said that he found amusing. He leaned down to her eye level and asked, “Does it still feel like that now?”

Aside from kissing, they had never been this close for no reason. His eyelashes were long and light brown.

He reminded her, “You still haven’t answered me.”

“Generally… I’m satisfied. It seems you’ve made some changes to the issues we discussed before,” she averted her gaze uncomfortably. “You’re not as fierce as before.”

“I was never fierce to begin with.”

“…”

After a moment of silence, she turned around to drink some water, chewing the straw flat. Her thoughts raced, countless ideas flashing through her mind in just a minute. She wondered what Fu Yanshang was doing behind her.  This didn’t seem like a suitable environment for him to work in.

They walked in silence for another five minutes. Just as she was about to turn around to check on him, she was interrupted by a voice.

“Hello,” a short-haired female photographer greeted as she approached, smiling. “I’m a self-media photographer. You’re really beautiful.  Would you mind if I take some photos of you?”

She was about to decline when the photographer quickly pulled up her social media account for reference. The account had a large following and good engagement, but that wasn’t what caught her attention. Instead, it was the unique photography style, rarely seen film photography with excellent texture.

She had never encountered a photographer who used film cameras so skillfully. Pointing ahead, she asked, “Could you take a few photos of me and Nick later too?”

“Of course,” the photographer replied amiably. “Our assistant can help you wait in line here while you come with me for the photoshoot. By the time we finish, the line should have moved up. Not only will you avoid waiting, but you’ll also get a set of photos. Isn’t that convenient?”

The offer was indeed tempting. She exchanged a glance with Fu Yanshang, signaling that he could go rest at the café.

The photoshoot atmosphere was pleasant. The photographer was professional in selecting locations, and there was even an assistant who held an umbrella for her during breaks. Lu Zhi shook her head, declining the offer, but the umbrella remained raised.

While the photographer was changing the film roll across from her, she lowered her head to check her phone. The boy holding the umbrella coughed several times, and she wondered if he had a cold, hoping she wouldn’t catch it.

Finally, the boy spoke up, “Are you here traveling?”

“Yeah,” she replied, typing a message to Fu Yanshang to ask where he was. She then asked a follow-up question, “Has the line moved to me yet?”

“Not yet, but don’t worry. I’ll let you know when it does.”

She nodded in agreement.

An hour later, the outdoor photoshoot concluded. The photographer opened WeChat to add her. “I’ll send the photos to you through here. My name is the same as my WeChat ID, Ailu. You can call me whatever you like.”

They briefly discussed the desired vibe for the group photos, and Ailu even showed her some reference images.

Her WeChat profile picture was newly changed, a photo of a red panda licking its paw, taken last night. As soon as they connected, she noticed that Ailu’s profile picture and background were almost identical to hers. It turned out they were staying next door to each other, the only two red panda-themed rooms in the hotel.

Ailu’s photo album was filled with pictures. “I’m staying in the peacock-themed room tonight. If it’s fun, I’ll share it with you.”

Soon, it was her turn in line. Unfortunately, the plush toy didn’t look as handsome as it did in the movie. Suddenly, Fu Yanshang’s face flashed through her mind. She hadn’t realized when it started, but she found herself unconsciously comparing many people to him.

After the photoshoot, she turned around and unexpectedly spotted Fu Yanshang in the crowd again.

She had no idea where he had been earlier, but now he appeared perfectly at the exit, holding her aurora-patterned bag in one hand, tilting his head as if checking the photo album.

She hadn’t expected him to remember to take photos.

The crowd was bustling, and it took her quite a while to catch up with him. Just as she was about to ask how the photos turned out, her grandfather called, urging them to come over for dinner.

After walking for over ten minutes, they finally sat down. Fu Yanshang handed her the menu, and she focused intently on selecting dishes. Suddenly, her phone screen lit up with a notification, a new WeChat friend request.

Fu Yanshang picked up his cup, his tone unreadable: “Why is someone adding you all of a sudden?”

“Probably the photographer’s assistant, the one who held the umbrella for me?” She paused, realizing he might not know who that was, and added, “They mentioned it earlier.  It’s the person in charge of editing. They’ll send me the video of my shoot for confirmation before it’s released.”

After ordering a few dishes, she handed the menu back and unlocked her phone. Coincidentally, Ailu had also sent over some unedited behind-the-scenes photos. Even without retouching, they already had a great vibe.  It was her first time seeing such atmospheric photos taken at Disney.

Fu Yanshang pointed to a dark figure in the corner of one photo: “This?”

She hadn’t noticed it until he pointed it out. Flipping through the photos, she saw the assistant, almost like a character in a paper-cut drama, first wearing a mask and hat, then taking them off, and later even styling his hair with gel.

Lu Zhi was puzzled but figured the assistant might be taking over the photography later, so she didn’t pay much attention.

“I don’t know what he’s doing.”

“You can’t tell?” He leaned back lazily in his chair and said, “A peacock spreading its feathers.”

After a moment, he asked, “Didn’t you mention you’re not single?”

Lu Zhi was watching a video Ailu had sent and didn’t catch what he said at first. After a moment, she responded, confused, “No, why would I need to mention that?”

Why would she bring that up with Ailu out of the blue? Should she add it as a note in the video? Most viewers would probably be girls.  It would make her seem too full of herself.

He hummed in response, fingers tracing the rim of his teacup, and said nothing more.

After finishing with the photos, Lu Zhi quietly waited for the food. Fu Yanshang seemed tired from accompanying her all afternoon and remained silent throughout the meal, leaving only her and her grandfather to chat. By the time they returned to their room, the little panda had just finished its shift.

Fu Yanshang went to take a shower first, while she sat on the sofa checking the progress of recent game developments with Li Siyi. Suddenly, she heard some noises, and what sounded like voices, but the shower was still running, making it hard to hear clearly. She wasn’t sure if she’d imagined it.

A moment later, the bathroom door abruptly opened. Fu Yanshang, clearly not finished with his shower, pushed the door open, his hair still damp.

“Why didn’t you call me to get it?” she asked, tilting her head. “Who was it?”

After a brief silence at the door, he said, “The peacock.”

The peacock?

Her mind flashed to the peacock room Ailu had mentioned. Had it just gotten off work and wandered up to their floor?

She dashed to the door in a few quick steps, eager to witness the spectacle, so fast it felt like a single breath. But when she rushed out, the hallway was empty, with no sign of any animal.

Only a figure stood by the doorway. She glanced briefly without paying much attention and turned back to ask Fu Yanshang:

“Where’s the peacock?”

Author’s Note:

Peacock: Screw you.

Actually, I really like that part in the middle where Fu Yanshang talks about marriage, his character is so well-rounded.