Chapter 527: Li Beijue's Past

Hearing this name suddenly, Jiang Baobao was caught off guard for a moment.

She blinked her eyes, then asked in return, "She... wants to meet with you tomorrow?"

"Mm."

Li Beijue nodded, then hurriedly explained, "But I didn't agree. Although she and I are just friends, I don't want you to misunderstand anything, nor do I want to make you unhappy, so I didn't agree; I wanted to explain it to you first."

Jiang Baobao paused upon hearing this, slightly lowering her eyes as she pondered something in her mind.

She had previously always thought that Li Beijue and Liu Rumeng had some sort of special relationship.

Later, after so many things happened, she had lost hope in Li Beijue, so she stopped caring and stopped asking.

Now that Li Beijue said they were just friends, she naturally believed him.

But that person, Liu Rumeng...

Jiang Baobao frowned slightly, suddenly thinking back to a few years ago, not long after she had first married Li Beijue.

Liu Rumeng had specifically chosen a day when he wasn't home to come to the Li Mansion.

Between the lines, she had been implying that she was different to Li Beijue, that Jiang Baobao could never compare to her, and that she was the most important person in Li Beijue's heart.

It was precisely because of this that she had felt a great sense of crisis during that time, treating Liu Rumeng as a romantic rival.

Now that she had suddenly contacted Li Beijue...

"Baobao? What are you thinking about?"

Li Beijue suddenly interrupted Jiang Baobao's train of thought.

Jiang Baobao snapped back to reality and hurriedly shook her head: "Nothing, I was just a little curious..."

She paused for a moment before continuing to ask: "Just curious, how did you two become friends?"

"This..."

Li Beijue hesitated for two seconds upon hearing this.

Jiang Baobao immediately changed her tune: "If it's difficult to say, you don't have to; I was just asking casually."

Li Beijue looked at her with amusement, raising his eyebrows: "Are you jealous already?"

"No." Jiang Baobao denied it quickly, forcibly ignoring the slight sour feeling in her heart, and said with a straight face: "I'm not an eighteen-year-old girl. Since I've chosen to be with you, of course I should trust you more. So if you don't want to say it, you don't have to, and I won't be angry."

"There's nothing I can't say."

Li Beijue pinched her cheek amusedly, his expression suddenly becoming somewhat subtle: "It's just... even if I told you, I'm afraid you wouldn't believe it."

Jiang Baobao looked at him, waiting expectantly.

Li Beijue then slowly began to speak: "When I was in university, Grandfather brought me back from abroad, wanting me to familiarize myself with the domestic environment. The classmates in my class were all young masters and misses from the social circles, but I didn't want to make friends at that time, and they were also a bit afraid of my status, so they didn't hold back in speaking ill of me."

"Ah? There were people who dared to speak ill of you?"

Jiang Baobao's expression turned somewhat surprised.

Li Beijue instantly wore an expression that said, "I knew you wouldn't believe it."

"Cough... you continue." Jiang Baobao gave a slightly embarrassed cough, signaling him to go on.

Li Beijue smiled and continued: "Of course they wouldn't be stupid enough to say it to my face; they would only gossip about me behind my back. You know a bit about my family affairs... they would just say things like my father drove my mother to her death, and say that I was just like my father, gold on the outside but rotten on the inside, only knowing how to mess around with women all day, and that my mother was a lunatic, and so on..."

"Li Beijue..."

Jiang Baobao felt a pang of heartache and took his hand; she hadn't expected that someone as arrogant as him would have encountered such things.

Li Beijue patted the back of her hand and shook his head lightly: "The fact that I can say it so calmly means I no longer care about these things. Later, there was another time when they were gossiping about me behind my back, and I happened to hear it. I didn't want to pay any attention to it, but Liu Rumeng suddenly rushed out from somewhere and gave those people who were talking about me a harsh lesson. Later, she took the initiative to talk to me and told me not to take those words to heart. That's why she became the only friend I had throughout my entire university years."

After Li Beijue finished speaking, he couldn't help but frown: "She probably shouldn't even count as a friend. I don't have many friends; Gu Ruohan, whom you've met, is one of them. That's because our families have ties, we went to school together for a period of time, and our personalities get along quite well. Liu Rumeng... she's just someone I can say a few more words to than others. After graduation, she became a pianist, and whenever she returned, she would always bring me some small gifts, we'd have a meal together, and chat. This kind of relationship has been maintained until now. If we were good friends, it should be better than this, right? Like you and Cai Xiaotang."

"So that's how it is..."

Jiang Baobao nodded in sudden realization, instantly understanding where Liu Rumeng's confidence came from.

Li Beijue had never had a female friend by his side.

And the fact that she could meet him for meals was enough to show that there was a certain level of uniqueness to it.

It was precisely this uniqueness that made Liu Rumeng feel that she had a chance to walk into Li Beijue's heart, which was why she had dared to come directly to the door back then...

"Then... what do you plan to do later?"

Jiang Baobao didn't want to interfere with his friendships, but she couldn't help feeling a bit sour inside, so she asked Li Beijue on purpose.

Li Beijue answered without a moment's hesitation: "Of course, I'll listen to you. I will keep a certain distance from her because I don't want to make you unhappy."

An expected answer.

Yet Jiang Baobao still felt a sweetness in her heart, as if someone had poured a spoonful of honey over her.

"You can make your own decisions about this matter. Since I understand the cause and effect, I won't say anything more, and besides..."

Jiang Baobao blinked her eyes, suddenly leaning into Li Beijue's ear and whispering playfully: "Besides, I trust you."

Li Beijue's ear went numb, a dark glint flashed in his eyes, and in the next second, he lowered his head without hesitation to steal the sweet breath of the person before him.

"Mm...!"

Jiang Baobao was startled, but she still complied obediently, wrapping her arms around his shoulders.

Outside the window, it was silent.

The room was equally quiet, with only the warm light casting upon them, and the occasional sound of clothes rubbing against each other.

I don't know how much time passed before Li Beijue finally let go of the person in his arms, looking satisfied.

His lips, however, remained pressed against hers as he asked softly: "What kind of wedding do you want? I'll have people start preparing in the next two days..."

"A wedding..."

Jiang Baobao was still slightly breathless, her mind a bit blank.

Seeing this, Li Beijue couldn't help but tease: "What? Have I kissed you to the point where you can't think?"

"What nonsense are you talking about!"

Jiang Baobao, both shy and annoyed, reached out and punched his shoulder. In the next second, her breath was stolen away once more, and her body went limp uncontrollably.

Li Beijue slowly deepened the kiss, the smile in his eyes nearly overflowing.

They still had a very long time.

As for the wedding, she could think about it slowly.