Pampered by Short-Lived Bigshot

Chapter 326: 218 Wuye: Wanwan, wait for me to marry you

Beijing to Pingjiang, the drive itself is not short. After a lunch at the rest stop, Tang Wan leaned against the car and fell asleep, not waking up until reaching the Pingjiang toll station, her eyes still bleary.

Even under the warm winter sun, the twilight over Pingjiang City, though lacking its usual misty rainfall, was still clear and warmly inviting. A light snow had fallen before the New Year and had not yet fully melted away.

This was a plain, without the splendid scene of snow-clad mountains found in the north, yet the sporadic remnants of snow were a sight of their own kind.

When they arrived at the Tang Family’s old house, they could see Shen Family’s elder and Nanny Huang standing at the door from quite a distance.

"Grandpa," Tang Wan was the first to push the door open and get out of the car.

"You’re back..." Shen Elder held her hand, "You’ve worked hard these past days. How come you seem thinner? Don’t you get used to eating out?"

Tang Wan laughed wryly. She had been staying at the Jiang Family, and just over the New Year holiday, she had gained three pounds. Where had she lost weight?

During the New Year, she was in Beijing with no relatives to visit. All her days were spent eating and drinking; how could she not gain weight?

"Dad," Tang Yunxian got out of the car to greet him.

Shen Elder just snorted, "I told you a thousand times, if your father is hospitalized, you must inform me, and you..."

"Grandpa, how is Grandma?" Tang Wan, holding onto his arm, swiftly changed the subject to help Tang Yunxian out.

"She’s inside cooking for you. No matter how I tell her not to cook, she won’t listen. She says you love her Osmanthus Fish the most, so she went out early in the morning to buy fresh fish." While Shen Elder was talking, Tang Yunxian and Shen Shuci were already assisting the Tang Family’s elder out of the car. Old friends meeting naturally led to another round of cordial greetings.

"I thought after your surgery, you’d be quite leaner, so I even stewed chicken soup to nourish you. I didn’t expect you to gain some weight."

Elder Tang smiled, "That’s all thanks to the care of the Jiang Family, with all kinds of delicious food and drink every day. I just sit and don’t move; how could I not gain weight?"

"So, that’s why you’ve betrothed your granddaughter to their family?" The Shen Family elder always had reservations about the engagement. He wasn’t very familiar with Jiang Jinsang, and it all seemed so sudden when he came back and mentioned the engagement.

He had met Jiang Jinsang before and thought the young man was decent enough. He wanted to observe him over time, but just after a few months away and with Elder Tang’s surgery concluded, his granddaughter’s marriage was settled. Things moved too quickly.

"I-..." Elder Tang was about to praise Jiang Jinsang, but Shen Elder cut him off.

"The surgery and illness were a serious matter, and we are grateful for the Jiang Family’s assistance. A drop of water should be reciprocated with a gushing spring, not to mention life-saving grace. In the old days, there was even the phrase ’pledging oneself in marriage’ in return for saving one’s life, but to betroth your granddaughter as repayment? What kind of reasoning is that?"

"Old Shen, listen to yourself. The most important thing is that Wanwan likes him. Otherwise, I couldn’t have made this decision. You know very well what kind of person she is!" Elder Tang pulled at Shen Elder’s arm, "Let’s go inside to talk about it."

"Wanwan, do you like that Jiang boy?" Shen Elder turned to look at Tang Wan, who was retrieving luggage from the trunk.

Tang Wan’s face flushed slightly, and she remained silent.

As soon as the group entered the house, they were greeted by an elderly lady with severe rheumatism, which caused her legs to bend at the knees somewhat deformedly. Her skin was loosened, yet her inherent grace and composure could not be concealed. When she smiled, it was warm and serene.

"Grandma—" Tang Wan was the first through the door and took her hand, "Why did you have to cook yourself?"

"Don’t you love it? I don’t cook for you every day. You must have had a hard time recently, looking at how thin you are..." The elderly lady held her hand, squinted her eyes, examined her repeatedly, and then started nagging Tang Yunxian for not taking better care of her child.

Tang Wan was caught between laughter and tears. Why did all the elders love to say such things? She clearly had gained weight.

"I’ll first put my stuff back in my room, then change clothes before I come to help you." Coming back to the long-missed home felt different.

"Don’t come help me. Your auntie is helping out, and that’s enough. Go rest, and later come out for dinner." Favortism across generations was epitomized in the Shen Family’s behavior, especially given Tang Wan’s mother’s early passing, the elders could almost be described as doting on this granddaughter.

Most elders are the same, insisting on doing things themselves as long as they still can, not wanting the children to lift a finger.

"Auntie?" When Tang Wan saw that Shen Shuci had already taken off her coat, ready to enter the kitchen, she couldn’t help but frown deeply. noveldrama

"What’s wrong?" Shen Shuci had already taken off her coat and looked at Tang Wan, "What’s with that expression?"

"It’s nothing." Tang Wan coughed, pulling her luggage toward the East Courtyard.

Cooking, after all, is something that anyone can learn if they put their heart into it, but it also depends on one’s talent. Some people, no matter how hard they try, can only come up with disastrous ’dark cuisine.’

For instance...

Shen Shuci!

That time, when the two of them had agreed to go out and play, she, being perhaps poorer in health compared to Shen Shuci, caught a cold and fever, and Shen Shuci volunteered to cook porridge for her.

Tang Wan saw her cooking for the first time. Shen Shuci rolled up her sleeves, took off her coat, put on an apron, and laid out all the ingredients. Honestly, her actions were crisp and smooth, even the way she chopped vegetables was so clean and precise.

Skilled hands moved with a grace that captured both strength and beauty with each sweep of the knife.

Tang Wan thought then, cooking porridge this handsomely?

But the outcome...

The porridge burnt, and the flavor, well, to put it in a word: indescribable.

She had added every seasoning precisely, but the taste was simply unflattering. So, when it came to cooking, Tang Wan was good for little more than assisting. If she put her hands to work properly, it spelled disaster.

And the worst part, she herself thought the taste wasn’t too bad—that was a fatal miscalculation.

When Tang Wan entered the East Courtyard, her garden was modest. It had seemed lively enough when just he lived there, and she didn’t feel its emptiness. Now, returning alone, especially gazing upon the garden’s green plants covered with lingering snow, she felt an added sense of solitude.

Approaching the greenery in the garden, she knocked the heavy snow from the branches and leaves, and suddenly, she was reminded of sunny days when Jiang Jinsang would be here, holding things to water or prune the plant stems.

Clad in white, his smile warm and soothing, he cleared the three feet of snow from his body—this world...

Probably no one could surpass a man in white.

It’s always like this with people. They aren’t accustomed to strangers entering their lives, but once they grow used to someone, their absence causes a foundational loss.

Filling her garden, but then the person leaves...

At that moment, her phone vibrated, "Hello—Fifth Brother."

"Are you home now?" Jiang Jinsang was currently sitting at his study desk, toying with the Lord Wansui, feeding it dried shrimp, as his hand teased the turtle.

Turtles, by nature, are slow-moving creatures, agitated and flustered by his teasing.

Lord Wansui eyed the dried shrimp: I want to eat!

But, with an eager heart mismatched by its body’s speed, it could only fret.

Jiang Jinsang, with nothing better to do since Hua Mei was taken away, amused himself by playing with the turtle. What else could he do, poke at birds?

Hua Mei: ...

"Mhm, just arrived."

"The temperature in Pingjiang City isn’t low, but there’s no heating over there. You should wear more clothes..."

"It’s been a long journey. After you eat something, rest early today." With Tang Wan gone, the entire third floor quieted completely, leaving him feeling quite discontented, "I spoke with the family today. After preparing a bit, I’ll head over to Pingjiang in a few days..."

"Wanwan, wait for me."

Wait for me...

To marry you.

Tang Wan softly nodded, but his words made her heart tremble slightly. After speaking a little while longer, Jiang Jinsang finally laughed, "Alright, let’s stop here. You go spend time with your family. Talk to me when you’re free."

Jiang Jinsang indeed wished he could accompany her to Pingjiang immediately, but circumstances didn’t allow it. After waiting a while, he noticed Tang Wan hadn’t ended the call yet.

"Wanwan?"

After a few seconds, a soft whisper came from the other end: "...I miss you."

Her voice was gentle and a bit shy to be confessing such feelings for the first time. Jiang Jinsang’s heart felt soothingly warm. Yet, as he was about to say more, the call had already been disconnected.

By then, Lord Wansui had moved and bitten the dried shrimp.

Then he suddenly heard laughter above.

Startled, the turtle loosened its mouth...

"Eat up, have plenty." Jiang Jinsang was in good spirits and decided to give it several pieces of shrimp to feast on.

Lord Wansui, however, no longer dared to move, its appetite vanished instantly. It stayed dejected, and with sudden laughter and incessant feeding, it worried whether its master was fattening it for soup.