Chapter 273: A Shred of Feeling

When he woke up the next morning, Lin Yang's head felt heavy and muddled.

Upon discovering that head of beautiful, jet-black hair beside him, Lin Yang's brain buzzed; he carefully lifted a corner of the quilt and peeked inside.

He was completely paralyzed.

Immediately after, all his memories flooded back; afterward, facing Zheng Jiayue, who was covering her body with the quilt, Lin Yang could only stammer out apologies.

"Is there nothing else you want to say besides 'sorry'?" Zheng Jiayue asked in a voice as soft as a mosquito's.

Lin Yang said nothing.

Seeing this, Zheng Jiayue's previously flushed cheeks turned deathly pale in an instant; she sat there without a word, her head bowed, making it impossible to guess what she was thinking.

After a long while, she said in a muffled voice, "Forget it, it was my own choice last night."

She didn't cry or demand that Lin Yang take responsibility; after putting on her clothes, she ran out as if fleeing, without a moment's hesitation.

At this moment, Lin Yang felt a sense of loss; Zheng Jiayue's expression, shifting from extreme shyness to deathly pallor, left a deep mark in his heart as if carved by a knife.

It would be hard to erase ever again.

As if thinking of something, he lifted the quilt to look; only a stain remained.

So it was true...

Even though he was a novice on the battlefield, the other party was an experienced veteran; although as a man he didn't lose out, and even felt a lingering craving, he just felt uneasy inside.

Of course, Lin Yang couldn't possibly tell Shen Yan these details; he only said he had done something foolish while drunk.

Shen Yan rolled his eyes upon hearing this; when it came down to it, wasn't it just being blinded by lust?

If one doesn't lose control after drinking, it's only because lust hasn't taken hold.

He understood this point deeply.

Back then, it was because he hadn't held back that he formed an unbreakable bond with Wu Yueer; he asked Lin Yang, "Now that it's happened, how do you plan to handle it?"

Lin Yang said with a bitter face, "I don't know either, Old Shen, give me some advice."

Shen Yan felt there was nothing to agonize over: either have a proper relationship with her, or be a man, apologize sincerely, and then go separate ways.

"I..." Lin Yang was full of conflict.

"Actually... Zheng Jiayue is a pretty good person, it's just that her looks are average, and she's had a boyfriend before; I feel... I'm at too much of a disadvantage. Old Shen, you should understand this way of thinking of mine, right?"

As a man himself, Shen Yan certainly understood this line of thought; when it came down to it, it was just looking down on her, not wanting to take responsibility, yet wanting to find someone to vent to for resonance, so he could then put the matter behind him with a clear conscience.

As if it had never happened.

To escape the condemnation of his conscience.

He hadn't realized Lin Yang was so conservative and feudal; it was just one night of pleasure, yet he had been agonizing for three days and still hadn't let it go. Looking at society as a whole, such things were as common as cow hairs every day.

Perhaps...

Suddenly, a flash of inspiration struck Shen Yan, and he said bluntly, "You kid have been agonizing over this; could it be that you actually have a shred of feeling for Zheng Jiayue in your heart, and you think of her from time to time, but you're still bothered by her situation?"

As if his secret thoughts had been poked, Lin Yang stammered, "That night was my first time too; Old Shen, you should be able to understand that complicated feeling. She's actually quite good, but Yue'er's figure just won't leave my mind."

"Old Shen, do you think there's still hope for me and Yue'er?"

Shen Yan stated his opinion directly: "It's not like we haven't talked about this topic before; you, oh you, stop wasting your time on that and consider Zheng Jiayue's matter properly."

The conversation ended there.

After hanging up the phone, after agonizing for a long time, Lin Yang finally gathered the courage to send a message to Zheng Jiayue.

"Are you still at school?"

The other party replied instantly: "No!"

Lin Yang: "Then let's go out and meet; I'll come to your dormitory building to pick you up."

Zheng Jiayue: "Okay (smiley face)"

Seeing this smiley face, the corners of Lin Yang's mouth lifted slightly without him realizing it.

The rain continued to fall incessantly; the rainwater on the eaves kept rolling down like strings of pearls, the sound soft and pleasant, like a symphony of the natural world.

Inside the office.

After putting down his phone, Shen Yan grabbed a jade-like hand on his shoulder and kissed it, asking softly, "Your massage technique is good; did you practice it specially before?"

Fang Tian smiled brightly: "Not really, I just used to massage my mom, so I roughly know how to make it comfortable."

Shen Yan pulled her to sit on his lap, holding the warm, fragrant beauty in his arms, chatting about family matters and asking how Fang Tian was doing lately.

Speaking of this, Fang Tian couldn't contain her excitement, "Little Tian has a real talent for this; the buns he makes taste quite good. He's looking for a suitable storefront these past two days; I believe business will definitely be great once he opens."

She seemed to have already seen the scene of the shop being packed with customers after opening.

Her pretty face was full of joy.

Before her mother passed away, she had entrusted her younger brother to her; now that Fang Tian had Shen Yan as her support, she had no other desires, only hoping her brother could live a good life.

That way, when she went to offer incense and pay respects on Qingming, she would have an account to give her mother.

Shen Yan smiled with gratification and said, "I'm relatively free during this period; is there anywhere you want to go, or anything you want to do? I'll take you around."

Fang Tian was naturally overjoyed, burying her head in the crook of Shen Yan's neck, speaking in soft, bird-like tones; she longed to do things that ordinary couples would do with Shen Yan.

"Knock, knock, knock!"

Amidst their intimacy, the door was suddenly knocked.

"Who is it?"

"Boss, someone is here to inspect fire safety issues." A strange voice came from outside.

It must have been one of the workers in the factory.

Afterward, Shen Yan ran to the workshop to deal with the inspectors.

Running a physical business wasn't easy; on the surface, it looked glorious and profitable, but in reality, there were many twists and turns inside.

As the end of the year approached, various fire safety and environmental inspections followed one after another; Shen Yan was an honest and upright businessman, so he handled fire safety and quality inspections according to standards, and he didn't pay a cent less in income tax.

Every time he came to the factory, while inspecting the workshop, Shen Yan paid extra attention to safety issues, such as the random pulling of wires and sockets, the placement and status of fire extinguishers, and the safety exits...

If there were problems, they were corrected on the spot.

Plus, with the connections well-managed, there was no trouble from the relevant departments.

After dealing with the inspection issues, night quietly approached; Shen Yan took Fang Xiang to eat a meal at a roast duck restaurant, then went for a spin at the skating rink.

They went shopping for clothes.

They watched a movie at the cinema.

Throughout the entire evening, a flower-like, radiant smile remained on Fang Xiang's face.

In the following few days, Shen Yan either accompanied Wu Yueer to travel and stroll around, or was busy working at the garment factory, handling the tedious chores of the year-end.

Then he would spend time with Fang Xiang, that woman as gentle as water.

Life could not be called busy, but it was fulfilling and happy.