Chapter 87 Someone Has Come to Take Me

"Do whatever you want. I can't be bothered to lecture you," Ruan Mianmian rolled her eyes, then turned and walked toward the villa's front gate.

Jian Yanzhi took two quick steps to catch up, walking side by side with her.

"Grandfather is very fond of you," he said.

"I'm not blind, I can see that. After all, I'm good-looking and have a great personality. Girls like me are hard not to like, aren't they?" Ruan Mianmian circled back to this topic on purpose, making sure her presence was felt.

A dense, misty amusement filled Jian Yanzhi's eyes, and his smile deepened.

He asked, "How come I never noticed you were this narcissistic before?"

Ruan Mianmian was impatient. "Don't talk to me about before. Back then, your eyes had room for no one but Song Chenxi, isn't that right?"

Jian Yanzhi fell silent immediately.

The two walked quietly through the night, patches of starlight and gentle streetlamps stretching and shrinking their shadows along the road. Jian Yanzhi was suddenly seized by a feeling of tranquil contentment.

Once outside the Mountain Villa's gates, Jian Yanzhi made as if to call a taxi.

Ruan Mianmian stopped him, saying directly, "I've already told you, there's no need for you to see me off. Go back."

"Hmm? Aren't you going to take a taxi yourself? It's late—let me take you," Jian Yanzhi insisted firmly.

Ruan Mianmian had no choice but to play her trump card. "Someone is coming to pick me up."

"Pick you up? Who?" Jian Yanzhi was puzzled—Ruan Mianmian had no friends here, let alone family. Who would come just to fetch her? Could it be the driver she’d previously hired?

He suddenly remembered that man, whose face was familiar. He’d met him before.

"You called that driver to pick you up? You really don't want me to take you, do you?" Jian Yanzhi was clearly teasing her, and Ruan Mianmian instantly realized he'd misunderstood.

"Not A-Kuan," she clarified. "It's not a driver. It's my... boyfriend."

At those words, Jian Yanzhi's face went rigid, as if he'd just heard something unbelievable.

"What?" he blurted out in astonishment.

"You've already met him, haven't you? Last time at the Western restaurant," Ruan Mianmian reminded him.

Jian Yanzhi's gaze cooled, the memory of that man surfacing instantly. In fact, he'd seen him not just at the restaurant, but also once at the apartment—though Ruan Mianmian didn't know.

"You're really together?" Jian Yanzhi asked, looking at her with utmost seriousness.

After seeing that man at the apartment, he'd been furious, deliberately ignoring Ruan Mianmian for a while. Later, he’d even had someone investigate, but almost nothing turned up—the man was a complete nobody.

Jian Yanzhi had never taken him seriously. With his own charm, surely he could win Ruan Mianmian back. Hadn’t he even given up on Song Chenxi for her? Wasn’t that enough?

His expression grew cold and somber. He stared at Ruan Mianmian, repeating, "Tell me—are you really with him? Do you truly like him?"

"Yes." Ruan Mianmian didn't hesitate for a second.

Jian Yanzhi suddenly seemed on the verge of losing control. He paced in agitation, his mood clearly frayed.

"Mianmian, can you stop making a scene? I already told you, I broke up with Song Chenxi. What more do you want?"

What? Ruan Mianmian looked at him in disbelief. Did Jian Yanzhi really think she'd made all this up just to get back at him? And what was with his tone? As if breaking up with Song Chenxi was some kind of favor to her? As if he were tossing her leftovers?

Ruan Mianmian's face turned cold in an instant. "Jian Yanzhi, could you stop imagining things that don't exist? Let me say this one more time—I'm over you. The person I like now isn't you. Please get that straight—this isn't a joke!"

Without waiting for his reaction, she turned and started walking away.

Jian Yanzhi pursued her. "Why don't you like me anymore? There has to be a reason, right?"

"A reason? Don't you know yourself?" Ruan Mianmian's voice was icy. "Have you forgotten all the things you did?"

Jian Yanzhi was silent, then asked, "You're still blaming me for not saving you, aren't you? Mianmian, I really regret it! I've blamed myself for so long. If I had another chance, I would—"

"Don't talk to me about another chance! Ten more chances wouldn't make a difference! It wasn't just that one thing. There was never a place for me in your heart."

Ruan Mianmian continued, "You think you're interested in me now, but it's only because my attitude has changed. You can't get used to it—that's not love. That's just your pride, unable to accept that someone isn't revolving around you anymore."

"Is that really how you see me?" Jian Yanzhi was furious.

Ruan Mianmian scoffed. "It doesn’t matter how I see you—this is who you are. Jian Yanzhi, enough is enough."

"What gives you the right to judge me so easily?" Perhaps due to the alcohol, Jian Yanzhi's obsessions were getting the better of him. He grabbed Ruan Mianmian's arm, desperate.

"How could you know what I'm thinking at all times? How can you be sure I don't really like you? We've known each other since we were kids—how can you just dismiss me like this?"

Ruan Mianmian fell silent, looking at Jian Yanzhi as if he were utterly unreasonable.

"Don't you get it yet? No matter what kind of person you are, I don't like you anymore. Could you stop this? You look just like a neighbor's dog that lost its favorite lamppost, with nowhere to vent your frustration."

Ruan Mianmian was so angry, she pointed at her own nose and said coldly, "I'm not a lamppost, and I won't just stand here waiting forever. Do you think you can turn around and always find me? Sorry, but I'm moving on!"

With that, she shoved Jian Yanzhi aside and strode forward without another word.

Jian Yanzhi's blood boiled with anger and frustration. He caught his breath and hurried after Ruan Mianmian.

Just as he was about to reach for her again, a strong arm encircled her shoulders before he could.

The gesture was utterly domineering and rude.

"You—!"

Jian Yanzhi's mouth hung open in shock.

Ruan Mianmian startled at the sudden touch, whipping her head around in panic.

Jiang Ce shifted his arm around her waist, his voice gentle, "It's me, don't be scared."

The tension in Ruan Mianmian's chest instantly melted away.

"How did you get here so quickly?" She remembered only messaging Jiang Ce as she left the house—she hadn't expected him to arrive already.

Jiang Ce nodded, saying nothing more. Then he looked past her, meeting Jian Yanzhi's furious gaze.

"Young Master Jian, you aren't thinking of laying hands on another man's fiancée, are you?"