Chapter Seventy-Five: A Gentleman Must Always Help Others Achieve Their Good

Midway through, Nian Yuchen’s phone rang. The sobs that had been gradually fading from Mai Xijun suddenly spiked again, pulling her thoughts up sharply. She hurriedly wriggled out from his embrace, her slender fingers wiping away her tears. “I’m sorry. I lost control for a moment.”

After saying this, she pursed her lips, her small face barely the size of a palm. The embarrassing display of tears just moments ago—oh dear—was all clearly witnessed by Nian Yuchen.

She couldn’t help but think, why did she feel so unlucky lately? Every time she met someone, it was never under her best circumstances…

Nian Yuchen stood up to answer the call. Mai Xijun stole a few glances at him, noticing that her tears and snot had soaked his shoulder completely. How mortifying.

“Um… your clothes… maybe… you should take them off and let me wash them for you.”

After Nian Yuchen finished his call, Mai Xijun spoke first. It was a gesture of politeness, but more than that, a way to express her gratitude and apology.

Nian Yuchen tilted his head, looked at the damp patch on his shoulder, and smiled. “It’s alright.”

“Oh…” Mai Xijun bit her lower lip, as if pondering something, her mind whirring. “You should take it off and let me wash it for you. Otherwise, I’ll really feel too embarrassed.”

With pleading eyes, Mai Xijun stared at him, her big, innocent eyes shining dark and bright, earnestly gazing at the tall, sturdy man before her.

“Well, alright then.” Nian Yuchen finally agreed, somewhat reluctantly. After all, he was about to head somewhere else soon, and his clothes were already in this state. He’d have to change anyway. Since she insisted, he might as well let her have her way.

Isn’t it said that a gentleman always helps others achieve their wishes? Why not go along with it?

Yet, this was truly the first time—apart from his mother and the family servants—that a woman had ever offered to wash his clothes. The feeling was rather pleasant.

“I have some things to take care of soon, so I’ll have to leave first. Are you alright heading home by yourself?” Nian Yuchen took off his jacket and handed it to Mai Xijun, though he still seemed a bit uneasy. After all, she had just endured the pain of being rejected by someone who was her own mother—a mother who refused to acknowledge her…

How heartbroken must she be?

Nian Yuchen himself had grown up cherished, never experiencing the pain of family separation. For Mai Xijun, she was the first woman to cry so freely before him, to reveal her true feelings without restraint.

He used to think tears were unreal. Women flocked around him, some even crying and begging to marry him, only to leave with a privileged official’s son the next moment. He believed women’s tears were nothing but traps. As the Buddhists say, best not to fall in.

“Thank you so much for today. I’ll return your clothes once they’re clean. Let me hail a cab for you…”

Mai Xijun, without waiting for his answer, rose on her tiptoes, waving at the stream of passing cars. Her mood was visibly steadier now. After a good cry, she felt lighter, less suppressed. Though her spirits weren’t entirely restored, life would go on tomorrow. She needed a good mindset.

Watching Mai Xijun cheerfully waving at a taxi, Nian Yuchen suddenly wanted to etch this moment in his memory. It was the first time a woman dared to make decisions for him… She didn’t even know that, moments ago during the call, someone was on their way to pick him up…

Yet, he didn’t want to object to her arrangements, nor spoil her plans. Mai Xijun, as if nothing had happened, stepped forward and opened the car door, inviting him in with a gesture that said, “Please, young master, take your seat.”

Nian Yuchen didn’t refuse, following her lead and getting into the car.

If not for her eyes, still red like a rabbit’s, Nian Yuchen would have wondered if he was hallucinating. How could this woman be so interesting? Just moments ago she was crying her heart out, and now, she radiated sunshine like cherry blossoms in March.

So contradictory, so harmonious. Like wind, like rain, close yet distant, elusive and unfathomable.

Watching her smile and wave goodbye, Nian Yuchen’s lips involuntarily curved into a beautiful arc. But as soon as the car had traveled a safe distance, Nian Yuchen called for a stop and got out.

This woman was so kind, and yet never asked if he needed help.

Still… this was the first time he’d received such treatment.

Standing at the roadside, Nian Yuchen shuffled his feet gently, a shy smile on his face. Song Ci, intrigued, pulled up in front of him, quickly sizing him up and honking the horn.

“I just saw a woman,” Song Ci said, unable to resist a mischievous grin, his tone full of curiosity as he tried to probe Nian Yuchen’s thoughts.

“Really… your type? Well, if my sister approves, I wouldn’t mind,” Nian Yuchen replied leisurely, lifting his chin and gazing at his reflection in the rearview mirror, searching for a flaw in his handsome face.

“She’s not my type, but she seems like yours. Ha.” Song Ci circled around, deliberately teasing him.

Nian Yuchen paused. His type? He didn’t even know what his type was. Was Song Ci clairvoyant or just reading his mind?

“What kind of woman? I have no idea,” Nian Yuchen countered, but in his mind flashed the image of Mai Xijun waving him off, her retreating figure.

Song Ci chuckled, feigning ignorance.

Who didn’t know Nian Yuchen? Song Ci understood him well. That day at the detox center, he’d seen that woman, and later Nian Yuchen had asked for help to meet someone there. And now, he’d seen something else—yes, he’d seen that woman again, holding Nian Yuchen’s clothes.

Look at him—Nian Yuchen now in a black shirt, when he usually wore only silver-gray suits. Where had his jacket gone? Yes, somehow it had ended up in that woman’s hands, and Song Ci had just happened to witness it…

“What are you laughing at?” Nian Yuchen asked, feeling a chill, as if someone had peered into his heart.