Chu Hengyuan: "???" Tang Xingwei's train of thought was truly as peculiar as he'd expected.
With a deadpan expression, he said, "These are all Amber's dried fish. She insisted on bringing the dried fish to the hospital. I have no idea why."
Hearing this, Tang Xingwei heaved a sigh of relief and patted his chest. "As long as you're not asking me to sell the dried fish. That's good." He was already in a tight spot and had no time to help his friend sell dried fish.
"Let me introduce you. This is my—" Chu Hengyuan stepped aside slightly, revealing the little girl behind him. "Lover, Rong Lan." He knew they must have met before and knew each other's names, but this was different. This was the first time he'd officially brought his wife in front of his friend.
After introducing Rong Lan to Tang Xingwei, Chu Hengyuan then introduced Tang Xingwei to his little girl. "He's a friend I've known for many years, Tang Xingwei."
Hearing the word "lover" from Chu Hengyuan, Tang Xingwei understood his meaning. He flashed a smile, his dimples showing. He reached out his hand to Rong Lan proactively. "Hello, sister-in-law. I'm Tang Xingwei, a friend who's known Hengyuan for many years and is barely recognized as one by him."
For people like them who might face arranged marriages in the future, the meanings of "lover" and "wife" were very different. Since Chu Hengyuan introduced Rong Lan as his "lover" in front of him, he understood that Rong Lan was very important to Chu Hengyuan. And since Chu Hengyuan was indeed a bit older than him, he should address Rong Lan as sister-in-law.
Rong Lan blinked and shook Tang Xingwei's hand with a smile. "Hello, I'm Rong Lan."
After the polite handshake, Tang Xingwei let go, afraid that if he held on a moment longer, he'd be stared down by Chu Hengyuan. "To be honest, I recognized sister-in-law the first time Xinxin brought her to the pet hospital. But I was afraid it would affect my image, so I didn't dare say I was Hengyuan's friend."
Affect his image? What did that have to do with his image?
Rong Lan was confused, and even Chu Hengyuan didn't understand the logic behind Tang Xingwei's excuse.
Since there were staff at the front desk and too many people passing by, Tang Xingwei didn't feel comfortable explaining here. It wasn't until he led Chu Hengyuan and Rong Lan to his office that he explained to the confused couple. "If I said I was Hengyuan's friend, sister-in-law might think that box of indecent adult toys as a wedding gift was from me. After all, Hengyuan doesn't have many friends, and that box of stuff clearly looks like the work of an unreliable friend. But I must say, that box of stuff has nothing to do with me!"
He'd long anticipated that one day his friend would bring Rong Lan in front of their friends. By then, they'd have to explain why they'd pretended not to know each other at first. He'd already thought of this excuse, just waiting for Chu Hengyuan to bring Rong Lan in front of him.
Hearing this excuse, Chu Hengyuan and Rong Lan fell silent.
Rong Lan's face flushed red instantly. If Tang Xingwei hadn't mentioned it, she'd have forgotten about that box of indecent stuff at home.
Chu Hengyuan cast a sidelong glance at his friend, his tone hinting at a bit of killing intent. "Your explanation makes you seem very guilty." Of course he knew that box of stuff had nothing to do with Tang Xingwei. Someone else had sent it. But it was really something for Tang Xingwei to use this as an excuse to explain why he'd pretended not to know his little girl at first.
This excuse sounded unreliable, but upon closer thought, it was quite reasonable. He was at a loss for words.
"Don't let me lose face in front of sister-in-law. That box of stuff really has nothing to do with me." Seeing that Chu Hengyuan was so speechless about his excuse that he seemed to want to make him take the blame, Tang Xingwei wasn't having it. He could admit that he'd participated in the discussion about the wedding gifts, but the gifts he'd given were normal. That box of stuff really had nothing to do with him. It was clearly the work of that guy who worked in the hospital.
"Meow~" The little ragdoll cat nestled in Rong Lan's arms meowed.
It seemed not to understand that since they'd already arrived at the pet hospital, why it still hadn't reached its stage.
The three people whose attention had been diverted by the cat's meow all looked at the little ragdoll cat.
"Lanlan, put Amber down and see if she'll give away the dried fish." Chu Hengyuan said.
After entering the room, he'd put the bag of dried fish on the ground beside the desk. He was very curious about who Amber wanted to give the dried fish to.
"Huh?" Tang Xingwei looked at the well - groomed little cat curiously. "Could it be that Amber brought all those dried fish here just to give them to me?" He started to get emotional in advance.
The dried fish that Chu Amber ate were all ordered by Chu Hengyuan from him. Every time, he ordered the most expensive brands. They were definitely delicious and popular among cats. If the little guy wanted to give her favorite dried fish to him, didn't it mean that he had an unshakable position in little Amber's heart?
Rong Lan was also curious about why little Amber insisted on bringing the dried fish to the hospital. She put little Amber on the ground as told. "Go on. Take the dried fish you've been looking at all the way and give it to the person you want to give it to."
Tang Xingwei stared at the little ragdoll cat expectantly. "In the whole hospital, the only people Amber probably knows are me and the staff who are responsible for cleaning the cat house and feeding the kittens there. I think Amber's dried fish are for me."
The little ragdoll cat that had successfully landed on the ground trotted straight towards the bag of dried fish.
It pawed the bag open with its front paws, picked up a dried fish in its mouth, and walked towards Tang Xingwei.
Seeing where little Amber was going, Rong Lan understood that her little Amber was a grateful little cat. Even with an abundance of dried fish, she hadn't forgotten the person who'd saved her back then.
Tang Xingwei's eyes lit up. He watched as the fluffy little ragdoll cat walked up to him with the dried fish in its mouth. The little ragdoll cat lowered its head to put down the dried fish and then stretched out its paw to hook his trouser leg, as if wanting him to see that this was the dried fish it was giving him.
Tang Xingwei bent down and reached out to stroke the cat's head, grinning from ear to ear. "I see. Thank you for the dried fish, Amber."
Chu Hengyuan raised his eyebrows. It seemed to him that Amber only wanted to give Tang Xingwei one dried fish. So who did Amber want to give the rest of the dried fish to?
"Meow~" After giving the dried fish, the little ragdoll cat turned around and walked back to the bag, picking up a second dried fish.
Tang Xingwei watched the little ragdoll cat longingly. He'd thought that this second dried fish was also for him. However, this time he was being self - indulgent. Little Amber trotted towards the office door with the dried fish in her mouth.
"Hmm?" Tang Xingwei was shocked. "It's not for me?"
The little ragdoll cat pushed the glass door of the office. Obviously, the glass door was too heavy for a little cat to push. After pushing it several times without success, it had to put down the dried fish first and then turned around to ask the adults for help. "Meow~"
Tang Xingwei picked up the dried fish on the ground and put it on the table. Then he stood up. "I'm going to see who else Amber can give the dried fish to."