One Pet Gets Married - Chapter 79

Hearing Song Xici’s words, Tang You’an couldn’t help but laugh. “I didn’t…”

“Really, just because someone invites me doesn’t mean I have to accept,” Song Xici said, sitting down next to Tang You’an and peering into her lunchbox. “What are you eating?”

“Stir-fried carrot strips with wood ear mushrooms and some meat,” Tang You’an replied, her gaze fixed on Song Xici.

Song Xici was dressed in a fresh, youthful style today. She wore a blue and white checkered off-shoulder crop top with ruffles and a white skirt. Her hair was parted and braided into two loose plaits, topped with a cream-colored straw hat. She exuded a strong girlish charm.

“It doesn’t look very appetizing…” Song Xici said, lightly pressing a finger to her lips. She then picked up a bag she had set aside earlier, opened it, and took out a large box. “Ta-da! I brought you some braised beef! Come on, try it…”

People walked back and forth around them, occasionally shaking their heads in resignation. The rumors were true—any set with these two always seemed to have a layer of something in the air that gave people goosebumps.

“Have you eaten?” Tang You’an asked, looking at her.

“I have. I was starving by the time I got here, so I took care of that before coming over.”

“Then, won’t that girl be upset that she couldn’t meet up with you?” Tang You’an asked after taking a bite of the braised beef.

“Why would she be upset? Don’t people have the right to refuse?” Song Xici said, helping herself to a slice of beef and washing it down with some mineral water.

“It’s just that she seemed to be quite close to you,” Tang You’an said.

“We’re just friends. When I told her I was coming here to see you, she even teased me about forgetting my friends for love,” Song Xici said, then put her hand on Tang You’an’s shoulder. “Babe, what’s this? Are you jealous?”

“Jealous? Impossible,” Tang You’an said, startled, waving her hand.

“Tch…” Song Xici lowered her hand and took another slice of beef, chewing it.

Tang You’an looked at her, smiling as she watched Song Xici nod while chewing. She then lowered her head and continued eating her rice.

“You’an!” A soft voice suddenly called from a distance.

Tang You’an and Song Xici both turned their heads.

They saw a woman with long, smooth black hair wearing a beige spaghetti strap top walking towards them.

“Oh, Sister Xici is here too?” The woman stopped beside them upon seeing Song Xici, gently tucking a strand of hair behind her ear.

“Hello,” Song Xici said, eyeing her up and down with a hint of wariness in her gaze.

“Hello,” Mo Yu nodded to Song Xici before walking to Tang You’an’s side.

“Weren’t you off this afternoon? Why did you come?” Tang You’an asked, looking at her.

“I thought you might not be used to the boxed meals provided by the crew…” Mo Yu glanced at Tang You’an. “So, since I had time off, I borrowed a friend’s kitchen and made some food for you. I brought it over.”

“Oh, I’m sorry, I’m already full,” Tang You’an said, closing her lunchbox.

“I see…” Mo Yu could only tuck her hair behind her ear again. “Well, I won’t disturb you then. I’ll… I’ll head back now.”

“Mm,” Tang You’an nodded.

“I feel like there’s something off about her,” Song Xici said, turning to Tang You’an with furrowed brows after Mo Yu left.

“I don’t know either…” Tang You’an shook her head.

“Alright,” Song Xici still felt the woman was a bit strange. After all, who would give up their rest time to cook and deliver food for someone who wasn’t a lover or a mother? To go to such lengths was quite intense.

But seeing Tang You’an’s indifference towards her, Song Xici didn’t think much more of it.

That evening, when Tang You’an finished work and changed clothes, it wasn’t actually late, just after 8 PM. After thanking the staff for their hard work, Tang You’an turned and saw Song Xici already dozing off in a chair some distance away, hugging a bag of freeze-dried sweet potato chips.

Her head kept drooping to the side, but each time it dropped to a certain angle, she would suddenly wake up, look at the ground and her surroundings, then reach into the snack bag and crunch on a sweet potato chip. Like a little mouse.

When her gaze found Tang You’an, Song Xici smiled and waved at her.

Walking over, Tang You’an crouched beside her. After quietly watching her for a moment, she reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind Song Xici’s ear.

“Sleepy?” Tang You’an asked.

Song Xici looked at her quietly and nodded. “A little. Are you done filming?”

“Mm, all done,” Tang You’an said, glancing at the staff cleaning up the set.

“Can we go back to the hotel then?” Song Xici asked.

“Mm!” Song Xici nodded, her eyes crinkling into little crescents as she smiled.

Then Song Xici stood up with her things, and they walked together towards the car.

As they walked, Song Xici took Tang You’an’s hand, interlacing their fingers and swinging their arms back and forth. The moon was bright and the stars were sparse. A gentle breeze with a hint of coolness blew against their faces, kissing their skin. It felt quite pleasant.

“On such a beautiful night, it seems perfect for…” Song Xici suddenly stopped walking, leaving her sentence unfinished.

“Hmm?” Hearing this, Tang You’an also stopped, turning to look at her.

“Come here…” Song Xici beckoned to her with a finger.

“Perfect for what?” Tang You’an stood in front of her, eyeing her lips with a slightly raised eyebrow.

“For filming a ghost movie, of course! You’an, You’an~” Suddenly, Song Xici started acting bizarrely, clawing her hands in the air and pretending to be a female ghost in front of Tang You’an.

Tang You’an was stunned for a moment, then couldn’t help but put a hand to her forehead. She took two steps back, then continued walking forward, torn between laughter and exasperation.

“You’an~ You’an~”

From behind, Song Xici’s ghost imitation continued. To be honest, it was a bit spine-chilling.

“Hey, how come you’re not scared at all!” Finally, Song Xici ran up and slapped Tang You’an’s shoulder.

Tang You’an shook her head, simply grasping Song Xici’s hand in hers as they walked slowly forward. “Even if you were really a ghost, I wouldn’t be afraid. Because it’s you.”

Song Xici laughed, covering her mouth. At that moment, she only wished they could go on like this forever.

Back at the hotel, after checking in, Tang You’an and Song Xici dragged their suitcases upstairs to their room.

The room wasn’t large, but it was clean and had a simple, elegant layout.

After entering and turning on the central air conditioning, Song Xici tossed her suitcase aside and opened it, taking out several items.

“This jam is really tasty. You can have your assistant make you a drink with it every day. It’s sweet and sour, perfect for summer. These meat sauces were made by my mom and sent to me. They’re homemade, so they’re hygienic. If you don’t like the boxed meals, you can mix these in. Ta-da! And this is… a massager. It helps relieve fatigue. I’ll show you how to use it later. And then there’s…”

Song Xici kept talking as she placed the items on the table. In fact, she didn’t have many things for herself; two-thirds of her suitcase was filled with things she had brought for Tang You’an.

“Alright, I’m going to take a shower first!” Finally, Song Xici picked up some things and headed towards the bathroom.

Tang You’an stood up and walked to the small table, arranging the items neatly before taking a photo with her phone. Then she held a jar of meat sauce next to her cheek and took a selfie. After all this, Tang You’an posted the photos to her social media: “My wife brought all these to see me. I feel so happy.”

As soon as she posted, she received several comments.

Meimei: “I advise you to act like a human being. [Smile]”

Teacher Han Yan: “Already blocked.”

……

Tang You’an let out a breath, put down her phone, then opened the jam jar. She sniffed it, closed it again, and picked up each of the various items on the small table to examine them.

Just then, the bathroom door made a sound, and Song Xici emerged wearing a white nightgown.

“You should go take a shower too!” Song Xici said as she sat on the bed, patting her face that still held traces of essence.

“Okay,” Tang You’an nodded and walked towards the bathroom.

After a while, Tang You’an came out from her shower and was about to open a new bottle of skincare product when the screen of her phone on the bedside table lit up.

Reflexively, Song Xici put down the book in her hand and looked over. “Someone sent you a message.”

“Let me see,” Tang You’an said, quickly walking over to pick up her phone. She sat down, unlocked it, and saw that Mo Yu had sent her several messages. The message box still showed “typing…”

“What’s wrong?” Seeing Tang You’an’s slightly furrowed brow, Song Xici moved closer and rested her head on Tang You’an’s arm.

At this moment, Tang You’an tilted the phone away slightly.

This action, while seemingly insignificant, can easily lead to strange speculations when occurring between two people in a romantic relationship or marriage.

“I’m not allowed to look?” Song Xici was taken aback. She brushed her hair back and stared at Tang You’an.

“Well…” Tang You’an’s expression was complicated.

She didn’t know how to explain to Song Xici.

“Did something serious happen?” Song Xici’s delicate eyebrows knitted together.

“No…” Tang You’an gripped her phone, glancing up at Song Xici before looking away again.

“Weird expression, avoiding eye contact… Well, well, you’ve got a little secret, huh?” Song Xici said, crossing her arms.

“It’s not like that…” Tang You’an shook her head, then looked up at the ceiling, letting out a sigh.

“Then what is it?” Song Xici looked at her, seeing her troubled expression, then turned away. “Fine, I won’t force you to tell me. If you don’t want to say, then forget it.”

“I don’t want to show you because… I just…”

“Let’s go to sleep,” Song Xici said, smoothing her hair before lying down.

“Xici?” Tang You’an reached out to pat her shoulder.

“I couldn’t understand before. You used to discuss strategies with me even for life-threatening situations, but now… I just can’t understand what kind of message you can’t let me see,” Song Xici said with her eyes closed.

“Then get up, I’ll show you,” Tang You’an finally sighed and handed the phone to Song Xici, mentally preparing how to explain.

Song Xici was stunned for a moment, then took the phone and sat up.

As it turned out, ignorance was bliss. Song Xici was shocked to see several messages from a woman named Mo Yu.

The first was a picture of a woman with a golden retriever. The woman had long, smooth black hair and a voluptuous figure, accentuated by her beige fitted camisole. It was the same woman Song Xici had encountered on set earlier that day.

“This dog looks a bit like you.”

“What are you doing? Can you chat with me for a while? I won’t be at the set this afternoon, did anything interesting happen on set?”

“Don’t ignore me, okay?”

“Anyway, I still miss you. What should I do? I like you.”

……

Seeing this, Song Xici’s face turned green.

“Mo Yu, she…” Tang You’an rubbed her chin.

“What the hell is this?” Song Xici looked at Tang You’an after reading the messages. “Tang You’an, what have you been doing when I’m not around? Explain yourself. Why is she sending you these things? And with such an ambiguous tone. What have you two been up to behind my back?”

The woman in the phone was Mo Yu, the new actress playing Tang You’an’s sister in the drama. However, Song Xici wasn’t very familiar with this lesser-known junior, to the point where she wouldn’t even know her name if Tang You’an hadn’t been filming this drama with her. Apparently, she had been cast in this drama due to a sponsor’s influence.

Tang You’an suddenly choked up. Although she hadn’t done anything wrong and had a clear conscience, being questioned like this by Song Xici made her heart race uncontrollably: “I knew you’d be upset, that’s why I didn’t tell you, but it’s really not what you think…”

“Then what’s going on? No wonder when you heard about a girl inviting me to the music festival, you immediately said ‘go ahead’…” Song Xici’s mind suddenly made a connection between the two events.

Ah, that woman had even brought food over earlier today. Thinking about it this way, Song Xici became even more convinced that something fishy was going on between them.

“Can you not jump to conclusions?!” Tang You’an looked up at her.

“Why are you raising your voice?!” Song Xici threw the phone onto the bed.

A tense atmosphere suddenly filled the air between them.

Finally, Tang You’an lowered her head. “I’m sorry.”

“The truth is, I think about you every day. Whenever I have a moment, I check if you’ve sent me a message. As soon as you reply, I respond immediately. Everyone in the crew calls me ‘Tang the Fool’. Last night, I even dreamed about us running away from the set together for our honeymoon to eat fried snacks. But when I knew you had free time, I still chose to tell you to go play with that girl because I thought you must be tired from filming and needed to relax properly. Plus, you should have your own social circle. I can’t monopolize all your time, otherwise why would I tell you to go?” Tang You’an said all this in one breath.

Song Xici was stunned by this outburst, and the air seemed to fall silent for a moment.

After a while, Song Xici picked up the phone again and muttered while fiddling with it: “No ambition. Such an important trip as a honeymoon, and all you can think about is fried snacks.”

“Fried snacks are delicious,” Tang You’an replied, a bit angrily.

“Delicious my foot. It’s junk food,” Song Xici retorted.

Tang You’an didn’t say anything, just played with her fingers and looked down at the bedsheet, no longer speaking. Her pouty expression made her look like a wronged child.

“Well then, explain what’s going on with this woman,” Song Xici said, waving the phone next to her. “Why is she sending you these outrageously flirty messages?”

“I don’t know… That woman keeps sending me food and drinks out of nowhere and insists on inviting me to go shopping. I’ve said no, but she still keeps pestering me, saying she likes me and knows I have a wife, but she doesn’t want a title, just to be by my side. I don’t know if there’s something wrong with her brain,” Tang You’an turned her head away.

Hearing this, Song Xici slowly brought the phone back. “Is that so…”

“You can look through the chat history. I haven’t done anything to betray you,” Tang You’an continued.

“No need,” Song Xici handed the phone back to her.

“You should take a look,” Tang You’an insisted.

Since Tang You’an was so insistent, Song Xici curiously scrolled through the earlier messages.

She discovered that for the most part, it was just that woman talking to herself, with Tang You’an either not responding or replying in ways that were both funny and exasperating.

Mo: Good morning, I’m about to leave for the set. See you soon.

Mo: I’m in the car now.

Mo: Hey—— did you block me?

That day, Tang You’an had ignored her completely…

Mo: Are you there? I bought a dress that I was planning to wear to a friend’s birthday party next month, but it might be too sheer. Can you help me check if it’s too transparent… [Picture: So sheer you can almost see everything]

Mo: Hello? Anyone there?

Tang: Where did you buy it? How could the seller cut corners like this? Ugly.

Mo: …[Smile]

After that, Mo Yu didn’t send any messages for the next two days…

Mo: Can you tell me what your first impression of me was? I’m a bit curious.

Mo: Hi?

Tang: Quite elegant, except for the chive leaf stuck on your front tooth.

Mo: …

Mo: You’an, you’re so observant. [Smile]

After that, Tang You’an went into radio silence again.

Mo: Tang You’an, everything I told you today is true. I like you, I’m not joking. I want to pursue you.

Tang: I don’t need that.

Mo: Don’t you know how low I’ve stooped? Even when you said I had chives on my teeth, I didn’t say anything. If anyone else talked to me like that, they’d have gotten several slaps by now.

Tang: In the time it takes you to slap me once, I could slap you a hundred times.

Mo: ???

Tang: It means you can’t beat me.

Mo: What the…

Author’s Note: Sigh, I’m feeling down. Fewer and fewer people are commenting.

But I will finish writing this, with a serious face.jpg