Qin Moling flipped through a few pages of the book but didn’t read it seriously.

The phone placed on the armrest of the sofa vibrated only once—no other messages came in.

Qin Moling picked up the phone. No matter what she said, he still had to respond.

Jian Hang has only referred to him as ‘husband’ one time; that was when she was on the phone with Lawyer Xing. She has never called him that directly.

He wasn’t sure how much sincerity there was in Jian Hang calling him ‘Husband’ now.

… …

Jian Hang was actually driving, with her phone on the passenger seat, so she couldn’t reply in time.

After leaving the company, she drove straight to her grandparents’ liangpi shop. She had called her grandfather earlier and asked him to pack a portion of liangpi noodles for her to take home.

Qin Moling had eaten all kinds of delicacies from land and sea, and she couldn’t think of anything that would be delicious to him. The only thing he didn’t eat often was liangpi noodles.

When grandpa heard that it was for Qin Moling, he added a little more to the usual portion.

The relationship between their granddaughter and her husband seemed to be getting better and better. They saw it and were very happy. They didn’t ask too many questions, but just reminded Jian Hang to take care of her health and not to stay up late often.

… …

Jian Hang was in her grandfather’s shop for more than ten minutes, and then she hurried home carrying the packed liangpi.

It was almost nine o’clock when Jian Hang returned to the villa. Qin Moling was reading a book in the living room. The light from the floor lamp shone on his profile, highlighting his features.

Qin Moling heard her footsteps when she arrived but didn’t look up.

He had waited for the dinner she promised him for two and a half hours.

“Come and eat,” Jian Hang called him.

Qin Moling raised his eyes and looked at the take-away box in her hand. He thought she would come back in the evening to cook a home-cooked meal for him.

“What did you bring?”

“Liangpi.”

“……” He has never seen anyone as fraudulent as she was.

Qin Moling didn’t like to eat liangpi. The last time he ate it was more than ten years ago. His mother was eating it at the time; he took a bite to taste and never ate it again.

The noodles and seasoning were packed separately. Jian Hang took out the seasoning packet and shook it at him, “Grandpa’s liangpi. I mixed this seasoning myself. Come and try it.”

When Qin Moling heard that it was her who prepared the seasoning, he put down the book in his hand, stood up, and went to wash his hands.

Jian Hang went to the kitchen to find a plate. She didn’t ask Aunt Geng for help and mixed the liangpi  herself.

Qin Moling washed his hands, rolled up his sleeves, and brought the fruit from the center island to the dining table.

Jian Hang mixed the liangpi for him; he prepared fruit for Jian Hang. 

… …

Aunt Geng did not disturb them and quietly returned to her room. 

Qin Moling had come home unusually early today, and then he maintained a gloomy face afterwards—he did not allow her to cook.

She thought the two had had a quarrel, but now it didn’t seem like that at all.

… … translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com

When Jian Hang came out of the kitchen, Qin Moling had already sat down at the dining table. The chair next to him was pulled out, and there was a plate of fruit on the table.

She put the liangpi in front of him and handed him the chopsticks.

Tonight, he took the initiative to pull out the chair next to him for her, and she sat down next to him.

Jian Hang and Qin Moling sat side by side, and they ate in silence.

She forked a small piece of peach and put it in her mouth, looking at Qin Moling from time to time. He ate the liangpi slowly and one could hardly hear anything from his mouth. He was still a little emotional, she could tell.

“How does it taste?” she asked.

“Not bad.” He tilted his head and asked her, “Do you want to try it?”

Jian Hang didn’t want to get a new plate again, so she pushed her plate of fruit towards him and said, “Give me a little.”

Qin Moling didn’t put any on her plate. Instead, he pushed the entire plate of liangpi in front of her and let her eat first.

Jian Hang only took a bite; it was her standard seasoning.

Qin Moling’s hands rested on the edge of the table, slender and strong.

Sometimes she wondered what would happen if she took the initiative to take his hand.

She thought about it.

She said she would pursue him, so he was waiting for her to take the initiative—except in the bedroom.

Qin Moling suddenly half stood up and reached for a piece of paper next to the laptop.

“Take a look,” he handed the paper to Jian Hang.

“What is it?”

“Exercise schedule.”

He said, “You officially start exercising once you leave your job.”

Jian Hang was not at all nearsighted, but she still pulled the paper closer to her eyes, staring at words like ‘5-kilometer long-distance run’ and ‘2-hour tennis play’.

Running five kilometers at a time was more difficult than not being able to play online games!

But for the sake of being able to play her game, she would grit her teeth and run ten kilometers, let alone a mere five.

Qin Moling didn’t hear any response from her. He looked at her from the side. She had almost put her face directly on the schedule. He pulled her hand away. “Are you nearsighted?” 

“…No, just looking at the numbers carefully.”

Qin Moling put the schedule back on the table, thinking she was going to back out. It wasn’t a surprise—any girl who didn’t like to exercise would instantly lose heart when confronted with a five-kilometer run.

“I’ll run with you.”

Afraid that she would not be willing, he encouraged her in advance, “It will be tiring at first, but if you persist for a week, you won’t be as tired later. My cousin-sister used to have difficulty running 800 meters, but now she can run 5 kilometers without any problem.”

Jian Hang asked, “Is it to your brother-in-law’s credit?”

“Almost. My brother-in-law takes her out for a run every day.” Regardless of winter or summer.

Jian Hang took another piece of fruit and ate it. It would be nice to have Qin Moling running with her.

Seeing that she was distracted, Qin Moling changed the subject and asked, “When will your work be handed over?”

“Two or three weeks at most. I have to go to Suzhou again, and when I come back it will be mostly done by then.”

“When are you going to Suzhou?”

“It’s not decided yet. It depends on Tan Feng’s schedule.” Jian Hang asked, “Is there anything going on?”

She put away her thoughts and focused on talking to him, “Has the date for the wedding been set?”

“Not yet. Our parents are discussing it.” Qin Moling said, “Qin Xing’s birthday is coming soon, so let’s have a birthday party in advance next Saturday night.”

Jian Hang remembered Qin Xing’s birthday. In previous years, she always sent game gifts online to Qin Xing on his birthday.

“I’ll definitely come.” Even if she had to go on a business trip to Suzhou, she would just rush back.

=================

T/N: Qin Molin refers to this cousin as ‘sister’, just like he calls Qin Xing ‘brother’. Naturally, he also calls her husband ‘brother-in-law’. I think they are the leads in another book by the same author.

Marriage First, Love Later translated by Maela @ whitemoonlighttranslations.com

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Chapter 42.2 — I Chase You
Chapter 42.3 — I Chase You
Chapter 43.1 — A Thousand Twists and Turns
Chapter 43.2 — A Thousand Twists and Turns