Chapter 122

Back home, Tang Huaijin changed into his loungewear, cooked while calling his sister.

“Sis, when will you be home?”

“Mm, I’m working overtime, probably another half hour before I get off.”

“Alright, then I’ll have dinner ready and wait for you at home.”

“Okay, Jin is the best.” Tang Yaoyao had already forgotten about last night. After a busy day at work, her brother’s voice was like a shot of adrenaline, making her smile with satisfaction.

After hanging up, Tang Yaoyao felt invigorated. Work that would have taken half an hour was finished in just over ten minutes. She stood up, ready to pack up and leave, when Han Yaoyao handed her a cup of coffee, smiling as she said, “No idea which café is running a promotion, but everyone in our company got a cup. Here, this one’s for you.”

Tang Yaoyao took it. The coffee was in a paper cup with a plastic lid, easy to carry, so she planned to drink it in the car. She nodded and smiled, “I’m heading out then, Han Yaoyao, take your time writing.”

Han Yaoyao rolled her eyes and said grumpily, “Damn Yaoyao, you heartless thing, drive safe on the road.”

“Got it.” Tang Yaoyao slung her bag over her shoulder, took a sip of coffee, waved, and left the company.

She was walking toward her car when someone suddenly approached from the opposite direction. Like most people, after putting down her work, whether or not there was a new notification, she instinctively checked her phone. Tang Yaoyao was no exception. By the time she noticed the person in her peripheral vision, it was too late to dodge, and she bumped right into them.

Normally, a bump wouldn’t be a big deal, but she was holding coffee. When she came to her senses, she saw the entire cup had spilled onto the woman’s sable coat. Tang Yaoyao froze.

The woman was clearly startled too. After a brief reaction, she didn’t even have time to speak to Tang Yaoyao, instead patting the stains on her fur coat with a pained expression, her brows deeply furrowed.

Tang Yaoyao looked embarrassed, quickly pulled out a tissue from her bag, handed it to the woman, and apologized, “I’m really sorry… I wasn’t paying attention and bumped into you.”

Luckily, the woman wasn’t unreasonable. She took the tissue and carefully wiped a few times, then looked up at Tang Yaoyao and smiled, “It’s okay…” She glanced at her fur coat with some distress and said, “It’s just a pity about this coat. I only bought it a few days ago.”

“How about I compensate you…” Tang Yaoyao hadn’t noticed the woman’s clothes before, but now that she looked closely, she got a headache. Sable coats aren’t cheap-she’d seen a black sable coat at the counter before that cost tens of thousands, and this one was even more expensive.

Sensing Tang Yaoyao’s embarrassment, the woman smiled and said, “It’s fine, you don’t have to pay. I was lost in thought too and didn’t dodge.”

“I’m really sorry…” Tang Yaoyao’s apology was sincere. She and Tang Huaijin were alike in this way-if she did something wrong and got scolded, it was fine, but when the other person was so understanding, she felt even more guilty. She offered, “How about we find a professional cleaning shop together?”

The woman chuckled, waved her hand, and said, “I told you, no need to compensate. If you really feel bad, just buy me a cup of coffee?”

She didn’t have anything urgent now. Though her brother was waiting at home, a cup of coffee wouldn’t take long. Tang Yaoyao smiled, “Of course, let’s go then.”

At the café, the woman took a sip of coffee and smiled, “Just got off work?”

“Yeah, was about to go home for dinner.” Tang Yaoyao pursed her lips slightly, thinking of her brother waiting at home, a touch of tenderness in her eyes.

“Someone’s waiting at home? Your husband cooked and is waiting for you?” The woman smiled playfully.

H-husband? Tang Yaoyao’s face flushed, and she quickly denied, “No, it’s my brother.”

Afraid the woman would press further, she changed the subject, “By the way, have we met before? You look familiar… kind of like… my brother’s girlfriend?”

“Really?” The woman’s expression didn’t change at all. She laughed and said, “That’s the first time anyone’s told me that. Now I’m curious, what’s your brother’s girlfriend’s name?”

“Her surname is Bai.” Tang Yaoyao thought she was overthinking, and smiled, “Just the lips and nose look a bit similar.”

“Oh, then it must be a coincidence. My surname isn’t Bai.” The woman reached out to shake hands with Tang Yaoyao and said softly, “I’m Jiang Ruyue.”

“I’m Tang Yaoyao, nice to meet you.” Tang Yaoyao’s eyes lit up with surprise and she smiled, “Hey? You have the same surname as my mother.”

Her mother was also surnamed Jiang, which was rare, so Tang Yaoyao felt even more fond of her.

“Really? Where’s your mother from?”

“She’s from Jizhou City…”

“So am I. Maybe a hundred years ago, we were family, haha…”

…

Over a cup of coffee, the two quickly became familiar, exchanged contact info, and Tang Yaoyao found herself liking Jiang Ruyue a lot. She was surprised to find that their interests and values were similar, and Jiang Ruyue was very emotionally intelligent, never leaving you at a loss for words. Being with her was very comfortable.

After leaving the café and saying goodbye to Jiang Ruyue, Tang Yaoyao drove home.

Tang Huaijin had already finished cooking and was waiting on the sofa. When he saw her come in, he helped her with her bag, poured her a glass of water, and smiled, “Hard day, sis. Why are you home so late?”

Tang Yaoyao hummed twice, looking in a good mood, and said sweetly, “Sis was careless and spilled coffee on someone’s fur coat.”

Tang Huaijin looked at his sister in confusion and asked, “And then? Sis, you don’t look upset at all.”

“But she didn’t blame me, and we even became friends.” Tang Yaoyao grinned, “That lady didn’t look very old, but her EQ is so high. Chatting with her was really pleasant.”

Tang Huaijin smiled too. He was happy his sister was making friends, but he deliberately put on a stern face and asked, “So you forgot about your brother while chatting? I’ve been waiting at home for ages, you know.”

Tang Yaoyao stuck out her tongue, wrapped her arms around Tang Huaijin’s neck, and cooed, “Aiya, sis is back now, right? To make it up to her, I bought her a coffee.”

As she spoke, she gave her brother a light kiss on the cheek and said coyly, “How about sis does the dishes tonight? Let’s eat.”

“Okay~” Tang Huaijin replied with a smile, and while he was at it, he copped a feel or two before humming a tune and heading to the kitchen to serve the dishes.

During dinner, Tang Huaijin brought up the trip to Jingdu.

Tang Yaoyao was quite at ease with this best friend and said softly, “Leaving Wednesday afternoon? Then invite your Teacher Shen over for lunch at home, and I’ll take you both to the high-speed rail station.”

“You’ll be gone for three or four days, so you better get everything ready.” Tang Yaoyao was a bit worried about her brother and said gently, “After dinner, sis will help you pack your suitcase, okay?”

“Alright, got it.” Seeing his sister’s worried look, Tang Huaijin couldn’t help but laugh and said, “Sis, can you stop treating me like a kid?”

Tang Yaoyao pouted at him and muttered, “No matter how old you are, you’re still my brother. In my eyes, you’re just a little rascal.”

Tang Huaijin shook his head helplessly and teased, “Little rascal? Sis, did you forget about last night?”

“We’re eating, aren’t you annoying?” Tang Yaoyao saw the mischievous smile on his face, blushed, and complained shyly, “It was just that one time, I’m never doing that for you again, it’s gross.”

“Alright, alright, I won’t say any more. Let’s eat.” Tang Huaijin didn’t mind. With things like this, once is never enough. He wore a contented smile as he ate dinner with his sister.