Chapter 84: After Marriage [He Has Changed]

Zhu Xingyao blushed, stirred by his rare flirtatious remark, and softly asked, “Really?”

Jiang Tu looked at her, his tone carrying a hint of threat, “Star, ask one more time.”

Zhu Xingyao: “...”

With him saying that, who would dare to ask? Asking meant waiting for him to prove it with action when he returned...

Zhu Xingyao was successfully brainwashed, blushing as she closed Xiao Jiang and slept soundly. She had forgotten to lock the door before going to bed last night. Tang Dou was now a cat that could open doors. In the morning, before she woke up, Tang Dou came into the room and jumped onto the bed to step on her chest and face.

“Tang Dou, you’re getting heavier...” She rubbed her face, sat up helplessly, and took Tang Dou to the living room to feed it some cat food, “Are you hungry?”

Tang Dou rubbed against her face, as if answering.

Zhu Xingyao took two photos with her phone and sent them to Jiang Tu.

Yao Yao Tian Shang Xing: “[Photo][Photo].”

Yao Yao Tian Shang Xing: “Good morning, husband. Remember to eat well.”

Mr. Jiang (her nickname for him): “Alright, you eat well too.”

Jiang Tu saved the photos to his phone. After being together for over a year, the number of photos in his phone had multiplied several times, almost all of them were of Zhu Xingyao. He walked into the elevator with a cup of coffee, and she sent another message.

Yao Yao Tian Shang Xing: “Husband, reciprocity. Send me a photo too.”

Jiang Tu: “...”

This meant he should take a selfie?

Jiang Tu had never taken a selfie before. He pressed his lips tightly, lowered his head to reply, “Star, don’t make things difficult for me. I don’t know how to take selfies.”

Yao Yao Tian Shang Xing: “Isn’t there a front camera on the phone? Just open it and take a picture!”

Jiang Tu: “...”

Asking a straight man who has never taken a selfie to do so was really challenging.

Mr. Jiang: “Star.”

There was a hint of pleading in his voice.

Zhu Xingyao stretched lazily on the balcony, took her phone to the bathroom, where their couple’s electric toothbrushes were placed on the sink. She picked up the pink one, then glanced down at her phone. Five minutes had already passed.

Jiang Tu still hadn’t sent the photo over. She couldn’t help but smile, just about to say forget it if he couldn’t.

She didn’t have the heart to make things difficult for him. The phrase “Then I won’t make it hard for you” wasn’t even sent when his video call invitation came through. Zhu Xingyao quickly answered. Jiang Tu was sitting on an office chair, “If you want to see me, we can have a video call.”

Zhu Xingyao: “...”

She couldn’t help but laugh out loud at the camera, “Is taking a selfie that hard?”

Jiang Tu: “It is.”

Zhu Xingyao switched the camera to her own view, smoothed her long hair in front of the lens, pouted, “Alright, I won’t make it hard for you. I’ll go back to Daddy and Mommy’s place this afternoon, and tomorrow I’ll come pick you up.”

To differentiate between both sets of parents, Zhu Xingyao referred to Zhu Yunping and Ding Yu as “Daddy and Mommy,” while “Mom” referred to Shu Xian.

Jiang Tu looked at the screen, took a screenshot, and then switched to another angle for another screenshot.

After the video call ended, Zhu Xingyao received two screenshots of the video call.

Yao Yao Tian Shang Xing: “...”

Mr. Jiang: “These should count as selfies, and also a couple’s photo.”

Zhu Xingyao reluctantly accepted these alternative selfies and couple photos.

The next afternoon at five o’clock, Old Liu drove Zhu Xingyao to the airport to pick up Jiang Tu, who had driven himself to the airport before his business trip.

Sitting in the passenger seat, Zhu Xingyao watched Old Liu’s car ahead and grumbled, “I’ll learn to drive again. Then I can come pick you up myself when you land.”

Her driver’s license was obtained in Germany, studied for together with Jiang Mi. After passing, she rarely drove. Since returning to China, with Old Liu chauffeuring her, she hardly drove at all.

Now thinking about it, she needed to start driving again.

Jiang Tu directly said, “No need. You only pick me up a few times a year. I’m not comfortable with you driving.”

Zhu Xingyao protested, “Do you know how hard it is to get a driver’s license in Germany? Besides regular road driving, there are also country roads, steep slopes, and night driving under special conditions. I passed all those, which means I can drive. Why aren’t you comfortable with it?”

“I know it’s difficult, but you haven’t driven in two years. No.”

This was Jiang Tu’s first time directly refusing Zhu Xingyao. Feeling unhappy, she said, “So I said I’d learn again.”

Jiang Tu still wasn’t reassured, “If it’s just to pick me up, there’s no need.”

Zhu Xingyao: “You don’t let me do anything for you, except use me when we’re intimate. What else do you want me to do?”

Jiang Tu: “….”

He frowned. What did she mean by… using her only during intimacy?

A moment of silence filled the car. Jiang Tu compromised, “Tonight I’ll take you to practice driving.”

Zhu Xingyao paused, then quickly cheered, “Okay!”

Jiang Tu: “Take back what you just said.”

Zhu Xingyao raised an eyebrow, pretending not to understand: “What did I say?”

Driving off the elevated bridge, Jiang Tu rested his hand on the steering wheel, calmly saying, “Besides using me during intimacy, that part.”

Zhu Xingyao: “….”

Now she understood—between two people, whoever speaks more freely wins.

That evening, they cooked dinner together. Jiang Tu thought about suitable places in Jiangcheng for practicing driving. Jiangcheng had changed a lot over the years. Even though he’d been back in the country for over a year, he hadn’t had time to wander around. He called Ding Xiang.

Ding Xiang quickly gave him a few suggestions.

There was a road under construction in the outskirts of Jiangcheng, with many roadblocks making it difficult to navigate. However, at night, there were fewer cars, perfect for beginners to practice driving.

When Zhu Xingyao was led into the safe zone by Jiang Tu, she emphasized, “I’m not a beginner.”

Over half an hour later, Jiang Tu parked the car by the roadside and turned to look at her, “Switch seats.”

Zhu Xingyao blinked, directly climbed over, sat facing him on his lap, leaned down to kiss him lightly, “Later I’ll take you for a ride!”

Jiang Tu held her waist, looking up at her, “Pass the test before hitting the road.”

Zhu Xingyao pouted, “You’re such a buzzkill! Can’t you encourage me? Or say something nice to praise me!”

Jiang Tu paused, “Don’t I often praise you?”

Zhu Xingyao thought for a moment, softly saying, “Yes, quite often. Especially in bed.”

Jiang Tu tilted his neck back against the seat, the line of his jaw and Adam’s apple taut and sexy. The dim light in the car made his skin appear cold and white, exuding an aura of abstinence and sexiness. His deep gaze was very enticing. Sitting on his lap, Zhu Xingyao suddenly felt a bit shy, slowly moving back, “You...you get out first, switch places.”

Jiang Tu laughed, straightened up to bite her lips, opened the car door to let her out, and stepped out.

Coach Jiang went online—

“Do you remember the clutch and accelerator?”

“...Yes!”

“Drive slowly, no rush.”

“Okay.”

Zhu Xingyao, having passed her driving test, had a good memory. Jiang Tu was overly worried. After familiarizing herself, she drove out, gradually accelerating and gaining speed. Proudly, she declared, “I told you I still remember!”

Actually, she had specially reviewed on Baidu beforehand.

Jiang Tu chuckled softly, “You’re very smart.”

Zhu Xingyao happily said, “Of course! If I hadn’t prepared to study abroad in high school and worked hard, who knows, maybe I could’ve beaten you in exams.”

“This... probably not.”

“…”

Jiang Tu calmly said, “If I couldn’t even surpass your exam scores, how could I like you?”

Zhu Xingyao’s eyes suddenly reddened. She couldn’t bear hearing him talk about high school. Every time she thought about his silent and repressed demeanor back then, her heart ached. The more she loved him, the more it hurt. Her vision blurred slightly, and she sniffled, “Don’t make me cry. I’m driving! What if my eyes blur and I can’t see clearly?”

“Stop the car.”

“…”

Zhu Xingyao pulled the car over. Jiang Tu hugged her shoulders, looking down at her, “Are you really crying?”

Zhu Xingyao rested her head on his shoulder, suppressing the wave of sadness, softly asking, “Tu Ge, if in high school, I wanted to be the top student, would you let me win?”

Jiang Tu pondered for a moment, seemingly chuckling, “If you coaxed me, I might let you.”

Zhu Xingyao thought about it, sighed, “Forget it. The top student gets a scholarship. Why would I compete with you?”

...As if she could actually win.

This road indeed had many obstacles and was not easy to navigate. Unknowingly, Zhu Xingyao drove out of the city roads, farther than expected. She started talking about her experience taking the driving test, “Actually, I failed once before passing... Getting a driver’s license in Germany is expensive; I spent quite a bit of money.”

The further she drove, the more desolate the surroundings became. Encountering a pothole on the road, the car suddenly stalled. She frowned, muttering, “This road is terrible…”

Restarting.

Stalled again.

Zhu Xingyao blamed the car, “Tu Ge, is the car broken?”

Jiang Tu said, “Switch places.”

Zhu Xingyao responded, “Okay,” just about to open the car door, she looked outside at the desolate darkness, the whistling wind, and suddenly didn’t dare to get out. She withdrew her hand, crawled onto Jiang Tu’s lap twice, whispering softly, “I think I accidentally drove too far…”

Jiang Tu glanced at the time; it was already ten o’clock. They had been out for nearly three hours.

He pressed her waist, softly saying, “Let me drive. We should head home. We’ll come again tomorrow night.”

“Okay…” Zhu Xingyao moved her legs aside, making space for him to get out, but Jiang Tu turned, knee pressing on the seat, leaning down to kiss her. Zhu Xingyao let out a soft sound, her heartbeat skipping a beat, pounding faster, raising her hand to embrace his neck.

While deeply kissing her, Jiang Tu pressed the seat adjustment button, lowering the seat slowly. Their breathing gradually drowned out the wind outside the window. Zhu Xingyao felt a chill on her waist, suddenly feeling restless. Being intimate in such an environment was thrilling. Under the thrill, she also became restless. After a while…

Hugging him, she softly asked, “Tu Ge, do you want to?”

Jiang Tu was fond, even obsessed, with the closeness of being with her, and infatuated with her scent. He nibbled on her lips for a moment, helplessly murmuring, “Don’t tempt me. There’s nothing in the car. You keep tempting me tonight.”

Zhu Xingyao’s safe period had passed. She didn’t dare to be reckless, softly defending herself, “I’m not.”

“You are.” He said.

“…” Alright, she was.

Jiang Tu opened the car door, cold wind rushing in, both gradually sobering up. He took the cigarette pack and lighter from the center console, got out, “I’ll smoke a cigarette and then leave.”

He closed the car door, standing by the car lighting a cigarette.

Zhu Xingyao sat in the car, rolled down the window, leaning her upper body out to look at his back, taking a photo with her phone.

She called out, “Husband.”

Jiang Tu turned around, snap, another photo. Zhu Xingyao happily looked at it, “This one looks cool.”

In fact, not only did her phone contain many photos, but she also took plenty of pictures for him since he disliked taking photos.

Jiang Tu smiled, the wind tousling his hair, giving him a somewhat unruly appearance.

He reached out to touch her face, his thumb brushing over her lips. Zhu Xingyao opened her mouth to bite him, looking up, seeing his dark eyes, suddenly realizing he was flirting with her. Her eyes shimmered looking at him.

Jiang Tu swallowed, retracting his hand to extinguish the cigarette, tossing it into the car’s trash bin.

After three consecutive nights of training, Zhu Xingyao basically got the hang of it. She calculated her vacation days, leaving only one day.

That morning, she struggled to get up, looking at Jiang Tu buttoning his shirt, “Husband, I’ll drop you off to work today.”

Jiang Tu turned to look at her, “No need. Continue sleeping. I’ll come back earlier tonight.”

Zhu Xingyao hugged the blanket, got out of bed, picked up the pajamas on the carpet, put them on under the covers, her voice muffled, “No, I insist on dropping you off and picking you up today. Otherwise, why am I learning to drive? This way, I won’t only drive a few times a year.”

Since she was so insistent, Jiang Tu complied with her wish.

Arriving at the company entrance, Zhu Xingyao raised an eyebrow, “I’ll pick you up at six.”

Jiang Tu’s heart warmed, smiling and nodding, “Alright.”

Old Yuan clearly felt that Jiang Tu was in a good mood today. He curiously asked, “Is there good news?”

Jiang Tu raised his eyes, “No.”

Old Yuan didn’t believe him, “Then why are you so happy?”

“Not bad.” Jiang Tu succinctly replied.

The company wasn’t particularly busy recently; generally, everyone could leave on time at six. At six-ten, Jiang Tu put on his coat, walked out of the office. Old Yuan and a few colleagues from the R&D department happened to be leaving as well, so a group of them went downstairs together.

Old Yuan said, “Boss, my car is being serviced. I’ll hitch a ride with you later.”

Jiang Tu paused, saying, “Alright.”

Walking to the entrance, Old Yuan instinctively headed towards the parking lot. Jiang Tu called him back, “No need to go to the parking lot. I didn’t drive today.”

Old Yuan: “…You didn’t drive? Then why did you just say you’d give me a ride?”

Jiang Tu calmly replied, “My wife is picking me up.”

The next second, several colleagues quickly turned their gazes towards him, their eyes filled with disbelief. Jiang Tu rarely mentioned Zhu Xingyao. Last year’s company dinner, he didn’t bring Zhu Xingyao. Privately, Old Yuan commented, “If you had such a beautiful wife, wouldn’t you flaunt her? But Jiang Tu is different; he wants to keep her hidden.”

A male colleague enviously said, “Sister-in-law is great.”

Someone chimed in, “How could she not be? Beautiful and talented.”

And newlyweds were naturally more affectionate.

Old Yuan coughed, “Then I won’t be a third wheel. I’ll grab a taxi.”

Jiang Tu said, “No problem.”

Old Yuan insisted, “I’ll take a taxi.”

Jiang Tu didn’t force him; they walked towards the intersection together. Zhu Xingyao was on the phone in the car, saw Jiang Tu and Old Yuan walking over, hung up the phone, got out to greet Old Yuan.

Old Yuan smiled, “Just now, boss said you’re picking him up. I’ll leave first.”

He waved to the side and got into a taxi.

Jiang Tu hooked Zhu Xingyao’s shoulders, opened the passenger door, “Traffic is heavy right now. I’ll drive.”

Zhu Xingyao was pressed into the passenger seat, turning her head to find several people at the intersection watching them—they were his colleagues and subordinates whom she had seen at the wedding. Zhu Xingyao asked, “What did you just say about me picking you up?” She was purely curious about how he referred to her in front of others.

Jiang Tu drove the car out, his lips curling upwards, “I said, my wife is picking me up.”

Zhu Xingyao imagined him saying that in front of his colleagues and subordinates, inexplicably feeling a sense of showing off their affection. Her mood brightened, she couldn’t help but laugh, lowering her head to send a message to the small group chat: “I’m telling you, after marriage, Jiang Tu has changed!”

Lin Jiayu: “Changed into what? How haven’t I noticed?”

Isn’t he still that cold? Especially after Waiting for Stars was exposed and during movie filming, every time Lin Jiayu saw Jiang Tu, she felt he was like an air conditioner.

Zhu Xingyao: “He started being improper! Threatening me, leading the rhythm, flirting, teasing, and showing off our relationship!”

Lin Jiayu: “[Shocked][Shocked][Shocked] Is Jiang Tu so interesting after marriage?”

Does this count as being interesting?

Zhu Xingyao paused, turning to look at Jiang Tu. His features were stern, his gaze calm, appearing to be someone difficult to get along with. Xiao Kui had a lively personality and usually didn’t dare to talk much with him. As for Xiao Tian, forget about it—he hardly dared to initiate conversation with him.

“Tu Ge, I feel like you’ve become more interesting now.”

She suddenly said.

At the red light, Jiang Tu braked, turned to look at her, “That’s a good thing. I always feared you’d find me too boring, and being together for a long time would become uninteresting.”