SY - 74

Jiang Yanzhou arrived at 1 AM.

Song Zhi was so sleepy her eyes could barely stay open.

She was usually quite capable of staying up late, often working until 3 or 4 AM. Perhaps it was the recent multitude of tasks that had exhausted her.

She was a light sleeper, and even soft sounds would startle her awake.

She rubbed her eyes, leaning up from the back of the seat, her gaze fixed on the constantly receding scenery outside the car window.

Her brain hadn’t fully shaken off the drowsiness. “Why are we driving? Aren’t we waiting anymore?”

The person driving in front replied with a soft hum, “Not waiting.”

Song Zhi rested her head against the car window, muttering softly, “No sense of occasion at all.”

She was still half-asleep, her mind not entirely clear.

She didn’t recognize the driver’s familiar voice.

Song Zhi rolled down the window. The cold wind brushed against her face, but it still didn’t lessen her sleepiness much.

The car stopped by the roadside, and the wind ceased.

A man opened the car door and got in. Before Song Zhi could react, she was pulled into a warm embrace.

A familiar, pleasant faint scent lingered in her nostrils. She struggled to lift her gaze. “Jiang Yanzhou?”

The man hummed softly, rubbing his chin against her soft hair a few times. “Hmm.”

“When did you arrive?”

“While you were sleeping.”

She leaned into his embrace, whining softly, “Zhouzhou, I’m so sleepy.”

“If you’re sleepy, just sleep for a bit. We’ll be there soon.”

Zhang Yi got out of the front car, opened the door, and got into the driver’s seat.

The night wind was bone-chilling. Jiang Yanzhou held Song Zhi, reached out, closed the car window, and raised the partition inside the car.

Completely separating them from the front seat.

He was warm, and Song Zhi slept soundly.

She didn’t know how long she had slept. She yawned and rubbed her eyes. When she looked up, her gaze met his deep eyes, which reflected her image.

He smiled gently, “Awake?”

She nodded, sat up straight, wrapped her arms around his neck, and buried her face in the crook of his neck, greedily inhaling his faint scent. “Are we almost there?”

“Hmm, almost.”

Outside, it was still dark. Song Zhi glanced at the time on her wristwatch: 3:30 AM.

It was still very early.

After arriving in North City, she would still have to prepare her makeup and hair and change into her wedding dress.

Tang Xiaoyan had told her that the wedding day itself was the most tiring.

She asked Jiang Yanzhou, “Can I still back out now?”

He just smiled. “No, it’s too late.”

Long ago, Jiang Yanzhou had imagined many possible endings for him and Song Zhi.

They might marry, or they might separate.

He had never had much confidence in this relationship, feeling that he had snatched her from someone else’s hands.

He was merely her second choice.

If he had ever been chosen firmly by someone, perhaps he wouldn’t be so hesitant and fearful about matters of the heart.

His mother hated him, and his father only saw him as an heir to fight over property.

He originally thought that his life would be like this. No different from the past twenty-odd years.

But he had grown used to it.

Loneliness was nothing to be afraid of, he told himself.

However, during the days and nights they were separated, he suffered from insomnia night after night, staring blankly in her room.

Fortunately, she came back.

Jiang Yanzhou held the person in his arms even tighter. “Anyway, you’ll never leave me in this lifetime.”

Song Zhi nodded obediently and meekly. “I won’t leave.”

“Zhizhi.”

He called her name, his voice so gentle that her heart trembled.

“It’s so good. You’ll finally belong only to me.”