Chapter 22

The scene was very still for a moment, and everyone looked at the two of them with natural smiles on their faces.
Only Guan Tang couldn't smile, and all his facial muscles were stiff.
"We..."
Mo Chengchuan only said two words, and Guan Tang quickly interrupted him loudly: "Ah ha! I've seen you before at school...It's been so many years, I almost didn't recognize you."
陆止鸣歪了歪头，一脸迷惑。
Even though he just returned to the country, he knew that Mo Chengchuan is quite popular on the internet right now. Older generations may not use the internet much, so it's understandable if they don't know, but it's unlikely that Guan Tang wouldn't recognize him. Guan Tang is a shut-in who spends all his time at home writing articles, and in reality, he's almost become transparent. All of his entertainment depends on the internet, so it doesn't make sense for him to not know Mo Chengchuan.
Mu Chengchuan did not speak, just smiled in cooperation.
Guang Tang patted his shoulder with a guilty conscience, and when her hand stopped on his shoulder, she deliberately used her fingertips to pinch him, only pinching a little bit of skin, which could easily be very painful, as a warning. This method of pinching was learned from a child with a strange temper when she went to teach in the countryside many years ago. It was silent, but very painful. Mu Chengchuan's cooperating smile really revealed a hint of amusement, and he said, "Yes, that's right, Uncle Guan, I haven't seen Guang Tang for a few years."
Luzhiming tilted his head again.
Guan Tang said that she had met him at school before, but it had been many years since they last met. However, when she came to Mo Chengchuan, she only said "it had been a few years", which seemed to have a similar meaning, but the weight implied was completely different.
But everyone seems to have not noticed so much, and continued to laugh.
Guanshaoyang said, "Well, that's great. You are both a schoolmate of Guantang and a leader of Zhiming. You have a deep relationship. Stay and have a meal. It's time for dinner." He looked at Guantang.
Guan Tang knew he should say a few polite words at this moment, but he couldn't speak. Instead, Mo Chengchuan made a soft "hiss" sound, and Guan Tang immediately withdrew his hand.
Mo Chengchuan glanced at his hand as he followed his movements, Guan Tang felt awkward, like a scolded elementary school student, quietly hiding his hand behind him. After feeling guilty, he still glared at him: be more sensible, quickly refuse.
莫呈川不说话，又微笑起来。关棠不得不开口，慢慢拖着腔说：“你要是没事……”越拖眼睛瞪得越大。
“不了。”莫呈川终于开了口，然后端起茶杯，象征性抿了一口，说：“茶喝了，就不打扰了。下次有机会，我请您吃饭。”
If you're asking me out to dinner, it's because of Guan Shaoyang," Guan Shaoyang responded with a few "ah ah" sounds and said, "You're too kind." Seeing that the others were getting up, he looked at Guan Tang and said, "Escort them out."
Yang aunt also said to Lu Zhiming: "Yes, go and see him off, he drove all the way to send you back." I didn't even think about how to take someone along the way and also deliver them to the doorstep.
Luzhiming was not very willing to move and stood up reluctantly. Mo Chengchuan reached out to stop him, saying it was unnecessary, and gave a glance at Guan Tang.
Guan Tang had just glared at someone, but since they cooperated and didn't give him a hard time, he could only return the favor and said, "I'll send it over, you guys go ahead and book the restaurant, and make a reservation in advance."
After saying that, he followed Mo Chengchuan out.
Aunt Yang saw the two of them leave and then asked, "Where is he going to send him to?"
Dad Lu guessed, "He must be sending him to the elevator entrance."
Aunt Yang: "Oh, people in big cities are so polite. We just stand at the door to say goodbye, while they insist on walking us to the elevator."
Guan Tang and Mo Chengchuan stood in front of the elevator waiting for it. Neither of them spoke. It wasn't until the elevator doors opened that Mo Chengchuan finally broke the silence. He said, "Did my clothes get wrinkled by you?"
Guang Tang: "..."
He went up to see in silence, and he really wrinkled it. Then he asked, "Are you still going out?"
Mo Chengchuan said, "I'm going out now, aren't I?" He frowned and turned his head to look at the wrinkles on his clothes.
"Are you going to ask me to compensate you for clothes again?" Guan Tang sneered at him.
"I never asked you to compensate me for clothes."
"Just last time—"
Before he could finish his sentence, Mo Chengchuan interrupted, "I asked you to do laundry for me."
Guantang was stunned, indeed, there was nothing to say for a moment. After a while, he reacted and said, "You're still talking about me. Your clothes can't be machine washed, can't be hand washed, can't be dry cleaned. What's the use of saying that? You tell me how to wash them?" At this point, he suddenly became talkative, the more guilty he felt, the more he talked, he couldn't stop for a moment, and he panicked when he stopped.
"So, why do you still live here?"
Guantang suddenly stopped and the momentum died down. He snorted, "Can't I live here? I'll live wherever I want to live and with whoever I want to live with."
The elevator "dinged" and reached the ground floor, with two doors slowly opening.
Without hesitation, Mo Chengchuan took a step closer to Guan Tang, but still maintained a certain distance, and asked, "Which way do you live? Do you live together in the same room, or do you live in two separate rooms?"
Guantang didn't back off, but instead approached a step closer: "None of your business, right?"
Both of them took a step closer, and by now they were already very close. Mo Chengchuan was slightly taller than Guantang, and he looked at him with slightly lowered eyes, speaking in a calm tone: "First time we met, at the hotel entrance, you said that person was your partner."
Guang Tang: "..."
"In a few days, you will have a date with another man at the restaurant."
Guan Tang: "…………"
"When you were sick, you had a very intimate conversation with someone over the phone."
Guan Tang: "............"
At the airport, when you make a call for someone to pick you up, it should be the person you're calling. But this person is neither your significant other, nor your date.
Even the silence tactic was almost overwhelmed, Guan Tang moved back a little bit, and then a little bit more.
"But you were living together." Mo Chengchuan lowered his head slightly and stared at Guan Tang, asking, "Has your life been this rich since we broke up?"
No one went out, and the elevator door slowly closed, sealing the elevator into a closed space again.
Guan Tang stubbornly said, "It's none of your business."
"It's not my business? Then why do you always lie to me?"
"Why didn't you dare to let me know that you live here?"
"Why are you avoiding me?"
Mociengchuan's voice has always been calm, but each question pressed down on Guan Tang, almost suffocating her.
“I got drunk,” he muttered, “I got drunk and accidentally posted your photo on Weibo. I'm sorry.”
This explanation had been pondered over for a long time, trying to make it sound natural. At this moment, he was speechless, with only this sentence left in his mind. But once he opened his mouth, the words flowed more easily: “You are the most sought-after man, and I am still single. You have a group of followers calling you 'Mr. Mo' wherever you go, while I can't even read a map. Do you just want me to analyze myself for you? My life and thoughts are different from yours. I am just an ordinary person who can't help but try to save face in front of my ex. So what? So what if it's a failed attempt?!”
Mo Chengchuan frowned and thought that Guan Tang was completely making trouble without reason.
But Guan Tang got hooked and asked, "What about you? Why do you always appear in front of me, run to the place where I have a date, run to my book signing event, run to my hotel, and now even run to my house? If you didn't show up, who would bother to chase after you for no reason?"
Mo Chengchuan didn't explain, but asked, "What do you think?"
Guan Tang suddenly fell silent, and even trembled slightly, turning her face away and said, "I don't know."
Mo Chengchuan repeated, "Don't you know?"
Guan Tang turned her face back, staring at him, "Why should I know."