Secretly, Secretly; But Unable to Hide it (偷偷藏不住) by Zhu Yi (竹已)~ Chapter 40

“……..”

Sang Zhi stops moving, she lifts her head to look at him. Her mind goes blank, she feels she might have an illusion because of being drunk last night.

The car is peaceful, there’s only a smooth music.

After a while, Sang Zhi just regains herself and responds: “Ah?”

Duan Jia Xu looks in front, Sang Zhi could only his side-face. He smiles and says casually: “What is it?”

Sang Zhi asks lowly: “What did you want to say?”

Duan Jia Xu doesn’t understand: “Em?”

Sang Zhi: “Ah?”

“Ah what?” Duan Jia Xu’s expression doesn’t change, he looks refined and calm and laughs. “Did I say anything?”

“……” Sang Zhi says hesitatingly: “Nothing?”

Duan Jia Xu is still smiling and says nothing.

Sang Zhi notices that his eyes are looks strange. She withdraws her gaze and just be puzzled. She lowers her head and takes out a thermos mug out of her bag. She suddenly pours it out.

Duan Jia Xu notices her movement and gazes at her. “What are you doing?”

Sang Zhi frowns and continues to pour the water: “to sober up.”

“….”

Duan Jia Xu’s eyebrows raise up and says gently: “Em, drink more.”

—–

Yesterday indeed that drink is too alcoholic, now she feels a bit sick. Her head feels heavy, she has no appetite to eat. She just wants to eat a bit of fruits or perhaps drinks a bowl of warm soup.

Duan Jia Xu considers this and looks for a nearby Guangdong style restaurant.

The time the car passes a fruit store, Duan Jia Xu gets in and buys two boxes of strawberries. When Sang Zhi is ordering, he stands up and goes to the restroom to wash clean two boxes of strawberries.

Sang Zhi looks over it for quiet a long time, at last she choose a bowl of preserved egg and lean meat porridge.

Looking that Duan Jia Xu is back, Sang Zhi passes the menu to his front. “I’m done. Ge Ge, take a look what do you want to eat.”

Duan Jia Xu puts the strawberries on the side and takes tissue to wipe his hand. Then he takes the menu. He glances at her and says: “Is it enough for you to just order a bowl of porridge?”

“I don’t want to eat this.” Sang Zhi points: “I want to eat strawberries.”

“Eat a bit of it first then you could eat this.” Duan Jia Xu takes the pen and orders several food that suits Sang Zhi’s taste: “Drink the tea first. Later on I have things to ask you.”

“…….”

His tone sounds like he wants to square accounts after the autumn harvest.

Sang Zhi pauses and thinks about what happened last night when she was drunk. She explains: “Last night we went to the bar near the University. Most of the guests there are students. The students of our university frequently comes there.”

Duan Jia Xu passes the menu to the waiter and lifts up his eyes.

“Then for the drink I just ordered it randomly.” Sang Zhi says honestly: “I also never drank that. I didn’t know that’s too alcoholic. I feel that I am quite good at drinking. I also didn’t want to waste it….”

“Who did you go with?”

“My roommates.”

“Really?” Duan Jia Xu props his face on one of his hand. He looks at her: “Then how could I hear a man’s voice?”

Sang Zhi recalls what happened. “He is my roommates’ friend.”

“Then why do I feel that his voice is familiar?”Duan Jia Xu asks lazily: “Sang Zhi, are you free?–“

“…….” Sang Zhi is startled, “What?”

Duan Jia Xu: “Is it that man?”

Sang Zhi hasn’t responded: “What that man—“

She hasn’t finished her words and suddenly her mind replays what did happened the first day Duan Jia Xu was hospitalized. He listened to Jiang Ming’s voice note. That time Jiang Ming seemed to say those words.

“…….”

This old man, why didn’t he go to be a police?

He could remember it.

Sang Zi feels a bit oppressed: “Why? I just know several friends. He is not a bad guy. I also didn’t do anything wrong.”

“That man’s nickname is Nan Hu Li Jing (Foxy man- seductive man)?” Duan Jia Xu doesn’t listen to it. He just takes a tea pot and pours it to her glass. “Is he Zhong Yang Kong Tiao?”

“…..”

Sang Zhi immediately feels diffident, his anger just disappears. She doesn’t dare to look at him. She pretends to drink her water and says: “No.”

Duan Jia Xu smiles: “Then tell Ge Ge about it?”

He starts to do a formulaic language.

This person loves to gossip.

Sang Zhi just says firmly: “No, I don’t want.”

It’s a silence.

Sang Zhi looks at him and notices that he isn’t looking at her. He just looks at what’s on the table like he is thinking about something. The time Sang Zhi thinks that he has given up, she prepares to change the topic of the conversation.

Duan Jia Xu suddenly repeats. He seems lost in thought: “Nan, Hu, Li, Jing.”

“………”

Duan Jia Xu turns his head and asks: “Is he look like a young girl?”

Sang Zhi at first didn’t want to mind him, but hearing this, she couldn’t help but to look at him. She looks at him for two seconds and refutes. “No, it’s like……”

Talking about this, she suddenly stops. She tries hard to think of an exact description. Then she says: “A very man Nan Hu Li Jing……”

“………”

Duan Jia Xu is almost choked, he says absurdly: “What?”

The person she describing it is in front of her, but this man doesn’t know about the fact. After all, it seems that he feels that her description is too unthinkable. It’s basically nonexistent.

Sang Zhi feels that this matter is too subtle. She mumbles: “Anyway my description isn’t wrong, anyway it’s like that.”

Just in time Sang Zhi’s order has served out.

She doesn’t want to continue talking about this, she is afraid the more he asks, she will really be exposed. Sang Zhi uses her spoon and scoops half bowl of the porridge. She asks: “Ge Ge, do you want to eat porridge?”

Duan Jia Xu moves her big bowl of porridge closer to her. “You could drink it.”

Sang Zhi nods and pretends to be eating seriously. She doesn’t say anything else.

Duan Jia Xu seems not finish in talking about that topic. Very quickly, Sang Zhi hears Duan Jia Xu asks: “Xiao Sang Zhi likes a muscly man?”

“…..” Sang Zhi doesn’t want to answer him, she is unhappy. “Could you not be that gossipy?”

“Is this being gossipy?” Duan Jia Xu laughs and smiles: “Ge Ge just never sees someone like what you said, please satisfy my curious thought.”

Sang Zhi forces herself to not say “Please take a look at yourself in the mirror okay.” She restrains herself and finds fault with him. “You are just being gossipy, you are the most gossipy man I ever see.”

“…….” Duan Jia Xu raises his eyebrows, “Most?”

Sang Zhi doesn’t even blink: “Right.”

Duan Jia Xu: “Is it that serious?”

“Em.”

“Okay.” Duan Jia Xu knocks on the table with his finger, “Hearing your words, Ge Ge feels a bit heartbroken.”

Sang Zhi looks over at her and moves her lips, she wants to say something.

The next moment, Duan Jia Xu lifts up his eyes. “But indeed Ge Ge very gossipy.”

“………”

“So Xiao Sang Zhi tells Ge Ge about it?”

“…….”

——

She knows that this person is shameless, Sang Zhi doesn’t mind him anymore. For his questions, she doesn’t answer all of it. She chooses questions that she wants to hear.

After the meal, they sit down there for a while and when it’s almost time, they start to move to depart to the airport.

Sang Zhi sits on the front passenger seat, she takes out her box of strawberries and eats it. Because of the hot food she ate before, her whole body turns comfortable. Her head isn’t that heavy anymore.

Duan Jia Xu: “It takes around an hour to the airport, do you want to sleep?’

“I don’t want to sleep.” Sang Zhi shakes her head. “I’ll sleep on the plane.”

She lowers her head and takes off the remaining leaves on the strawberries. Just in time the traffic light turns red, Sang Zhi asks casually: “Ge Ge, do you want to eat strawberries?”

Duan Jia Xu looks at her and then strawberry for two seconds. He smiles and says “Em.” Then his head approaches her closer. He doesn’t move his hand, he just opens his mouth.

It’s a clear signal.

Sang Zhi is stupefied. “You want me to feed you?”

Duan Jia Xu: “Em.”

“Why are you asking me to feed you?” Sang Zhi asks, she immediately passes the box to her.”I already take off all of the leaves, you eat by yourself.”

“I am holding the steering wheel.” Duan Jia Xu says. “My hands are not clean.”

“……….”

After several seconds.

Sang Zhi takes a breath and thinks that in the past she used to feed Sang Yan candies too, she doesn’t think it’s inappropriate so she doesn’t respond too intense. She just takes a strawberry and passes to his mouth.

Duan Jia Xu bites it. Her fingers accidentally touches his lips, it feels like her fingers accidentally touches something hot. Sang Zhi responds by withdrawing her hand quickly.

She naturally uses her clothes to rub her fingers.

Duan Jia Xu also notices this. He bits the strawberry. The sweet and sour taste of the strawberry covers her tongue. He licks his lips. His lips turns a bit red because of the juice. His face turns even evil and suddenly calls afte her. “Xiao Sang Zhi.”

Sang Zhi forces herself to say: “What are you doing?”

“Pay attention a bit.” Duan Jia Xu’s smile rascally and he seems to look in a good mood. “Don’t take advantage of Ge Ge.”

“…..”

Sang Zhi almost loses her taste.

Could! He! Not! Be! That! Shameless!

—–

After sending her inside the to the security check, Duan Jia Xu exits the airport and returns to his car. He looks at his phone and notices a missed call on his phone. It’s a call from Qian Fei. He calls him back.

Qian Fei answers it in several seconds. “Lao Xu.”

Duan Jia Xu: “Em?”

Qian Fei says deeply. “I will not asking you to be my best man for my wedding.’

“Why?” Duan Jia Xu finds this is funny. “You have any objection toward me?”

“Toward both you and Sang Yan, of course I have.” Qian Fei says. “If you both stand beside me, you guys would like you are coming and wanting to rob my wife.”

“What are you talking?” Duan Jia Xu says: “Just because of that?”

“Wait, there’s more there’s more.” Qian Fei laughs and says: “Let’s talk about the little girl that you said to me. It’s the first time you are interested in a woman.”

Duan Jia Xu; “Bye.”

“Wait!” Qian Fei says, “Ay, it’s been a long time since we met, now you don’t think of me as your brother again! If not, how could you not tell me about this.”

“Just for this matter you keep on calling me for several time.” Duan Jia Xu is happy.”

“But you keep on being silent to me? I’m just curious!” Qian Fei says, “Don’t tell me that you have a guilty because that girl is too young so you don’t want to chase after her.”

Duan Jia Xu strokes his forehead. “Why are you talking so much?”

Qian Fei: “How do you know her? At your office/”

“No.”

“I also never hear from you that you go anywhere else.” Qian Fei says. “Be honest, have you start to chase after her? You will not lose your courage to pursue her just because her young age?”

Duan Jia Xu is silent and suddenly smiles: “I’ll take it slow.”

That girl is regarding him as her own biological Ge.”

If it’s too much, it seems to not working.

Thinking about what he did today, he clears his throat. “I haven’t done that kind of thing, but I don’t know why it feels a bit……”

“……..”

“Handy.”

Hearing the answer he wants, Qian Fei feels a bit startled. “You just mentioned about this two days ago? You said that she is young, and you asked me to not mention this. What happened to you?”

“…….”

“You lose your guilty feeling?”

“I am old.” Duan Jia Xu laughs lightly: “What should I do if I have it?”

“…..” Sang Zhi: “Brute!”

It’s a silence for several seconds.

Duan Jia Xu looks at the front passenger seat.

He suddenly remembers that the first morning he woke up when he was hospitalized. That young girl is curled up and slept on the carer chair.

He remembers the day she was drunk and yet she still remembered that the matters needing attention after his operation.

He recalls the image of her sitting down on the front passenger seat of his car. She was eating strawberries and stuffing her cheeks until she looked like a pufferfish.

He recalls her smile, her dimple that shows up when she is smiling.

He even thinks her appearance when she was crying for someone else.

Duan Jia Xu lowers his head and smiles. He says: “It’s a good feeling.”

Qian Fei: “What?”

“I also almost thirty years old, I haven’t done anything that I want to do, so I want to try it out.” Duan Jia Xu says lowly: “But if I scare her, just forget it.”

“………..”

“But I feel, “Duan Jia Xu rubs his lips, he remembers Sang Zhi’s response and laughs dispiritedly. “My action is quite okay right?”