Indulgence - Chapter 70
Chapter 70
Jiang Nian spent over three consecutive hours tattooing that evening, not even stopping for dinner. After finishing with the last client, she came out of the restroom, washed her hands, and let down her tied-up hair, running her fingers through it casually as she walked toward her office.
"Jiang Nian."
Hearing Qiu Lan call her from behind, Jiang Nian stopped and asked, "What is it?" without turning around, then listlessly turned to face her.
As she turned, she froze on the spot. Her heart, usually as calm as still water, suddenly quickened. Yao Ran had been dragged upstairs by Yao Qi, and they had just reached the second floor, running right into Jiang Nian in the hallway.
It was an unguarded encounter. Standing two or three meters apart, their eyes fell upon each other.
They hadn't seen each other in nearly a month. For two people who had once been inseparable, a month apart felt like a very long time. At least, that's how Jiang Nian felt; she didn't know if the feeling was one-sided. The moment she turned and saw Yao Ran, her gaze softened instantly.
Their eyes met after a long separation. Yao Ran was as composed as ever, but her heart was in slight disarray.
Jiang Nian remained silent for a long while. Her gaze shifted from Yao Ran's face to the girl beside her, noticing how closely the girl stood, her posture exceedingly intimate…
The atmosphere was a little awkward. Qiu Lan could probably tell that Yao Ran had been brought here by her sister. She gave Jiang Nian a look and braced herself. "Are you done? You have a visitor."
Jiang Nian snapped back to her senses. "Yeah."
"I'll get back to work," Qiu Lan said, heading downstairs. Client consultations required appointments with the tattoo artists in advance, so this was a special case. She was giving them a little push, guessing that Jiang Nian must be desperate to see Yao Ran, even though she had been putting on a brave and nonchalant front all this time.
"I'd like to learn more," Yao Qi said to Jiang Nian in a business-like tone. Seeing the beautiful woman put her in a great mood, and she smiled sweetly.
Jiang Nian looked at her and replied softly, her mind elsewhere, "Of course."
Just then, Yao Ran whispered to Yao Qi, "I'll wait for you outside."
Jiang Nian pressed her lips together, a sudden sourness welling up in her heart. Yao Ran's whisper was so gentle, but it wasn't meant for her.
"Come with me, Sister," Yao Qi pleaded, tugging on Yao Ran's arm.
Yao Ran was helpless.
Jiang Nian's expression shifted slightly. She knew Yao Ran had a younger sister and had already suspected it. After all, someone so reserved would be hard to pursue; it was unlikely she'd have an intimate, ambiguous partner so soon. Besides, Yao Ran wouldn't go for someone so young…
She looked at Yao Ran and asked in a low voice, "Your sister?"
Yao Qi heard her. "You two know each other?"
Jiang Nian didn't answer, because Yao Ran remained quiet. Perhaps Yao Ran didn't want to bring it up, preferring to pretend they were strangers. Jiang Nian paused, then smiled at Yao Qi. "Let's go to my office."
She steered the conversation away.
This office was a place Yao Ran couldn't be more familiar with; she had been here countless times. She saw many sketches laid out on the desk, looking slightly messy.
Jiang Nian lowered her head and began to tidy the desk, a simple action that stirred memories for both of them.
That night, Yao Ran had returned early from a business trip and come straight to the studio to wait for her. Perhaps because they hadn't seen each other for days, they had given in to their passion right there in the office, sending sketches scattering all over the floor.
The atmosphere then, entangled on the desk, had been as passionate and fiery as it was now cold and distant. They were like strangers.
Jiang Nian could tell that Yao Ran had been dragged here by her sister, full of awkwardness and resignation. Another wave of disappointment washed over her.
Following her work procedure, Jiang Nian asked Yao Qi in a professional tone, "How large of a piece?"
Yao Qi: "I haven't decided yet."
Jiang Nian asked again, "What kind of style are you looking for?"
Yao Qi said, "I don't know much about it. Could you explain it to me?"
"Sure, I'll show you some designs." Normally, Jiang Nian would find such novice clients a headache, but tonight she was unhurried and quite patient. She picked up her iPad, opened her gallery for Yao Qi, and gave a simple introduction, though her mind wasn't fully on it, her peripheral vision glancing to the side from time to time.
"Wow, these designs are so beautiful. Are they all your work?" Yao Qi exclaimed with delight. She had only intended to browse, but now she was tempted to get one herself.
Jiang Nian: "Yes. See which style you like."
Yao Qi looked up and said unexpectedly, "You're very beautiful too."
Yao Ran sat silently to the side the entire time.
Jiang Nian was taken aback for a moment. Yao Qi's personality was completely different from Yao Ran's. Perhaps because the older sister was so mature and sensible, the younger one could afford to be willful.
As a photographer, Yao Qi observed beautiful women more closely than the average person. "I've seen your photos online. You don't look quite the same as in your pictures, but you're beautiful in both."
Jiang Nian replied distractedly, "I don't?"
Yao Qi continued to study her. "Your aura is different. You look more mature in the photos."
Yao Ran had sensed the difference the moment she saw her. She was thinner, and quieter. They had once shared the most intimate relationship, yet seeing Jiang Nian today, she felt a sense of unfamiliarity—no makeup, dressed in comfortable, casual clothes, her long hair not meticulously styled. Without the pretense of maturity, Jiang Nian had a completely different air about her.
Jiang Nian had indeed deliberately presented a mature image to Yao Ran before, both in her makeup and her clothing, which was why Yao Ran had never doubted her age. Back then, she hadn't thought about anything else, nor did she think a small lie mattered. She just wanted to use any means necessary to win over the person she liked… She now understood why Yao Ran was angry. She had thought about it a lot during this time. She deserved to be angry.
While talking with Yao Qi, Jiang Nian couldn't help but glance at Yao Ran again. Her eyes just wouldn't obey her.
Yao Ran's gaze had unknowingly lingered on Jiang Nian for a long time. When Jiang Nian looked over, she didn't have time to look away.
Their eyes met in unspoken agreement.
They hadn't seen each other in so long. Jiang Nian simply stared at Yao Ran's face, reluctant to shift her gaze. The longer she looked, the more a stinging sensation filled her eyes. She knew what she had done wrong, but Yao Ran was no longer willing to trust her…
Yao Ran lowered her head at the right moment.
Jiang Nian lowered her head too, unable to suppress the ache in her heart. She wouldn't even give her a second glance. She wanted to pretend they were strangers even when they met.
"Wow, I love this! This would look amazing on my back." Yao Qi was completely captivated, murmuring to herself as she browsed, oblivious to the excessive quiet in the room, where she was the only one speaking.
Just then, there were two knocks on the door.
The door opened. Yao Ran looked up at the sound and saw Yu Zhao enter.
"Jiang Nian, come down and get something to eat. Don't ruin your stomach. There are pan-fried buns you like…" Yu Zhao said as she pushed the door open, only then noticing there were clients in the office. She glanced over, paused when she saw Yao Ran, and then offered a faint smile.
Yao Ran collected herself and returned a polite smile.
Jiang Nian was so hungry her stomach felt like it was touching her back, yet she still said to Yu Zhao at the door, "I'm not hungry. You guys go ahead."
Not eating on time again. Yao Ran glanced over. She was already so thin, and now she's lost even more weight.
Learning that Jiang Nian hadn't eaten yet, Yao Qi felt bad, thinking it was because of her. She didn't want to dawdle any longer. She immediately smiled and said, "Let's add each other on WeChat. I still need to think about it."
"Okay," Jiang Nian said, opening her phone. As she handed it over, she added, "It's fine, take your time."
Yao Qi added her on WeChat. "I'd feel too bad. You should go eat first. We can talk online." She had her own little plan. Now that she had her contact information, it would be easy to ask her out for a photoshoot or something in the future.
Jiang Nian was about to say it was no problem when she saw Yao Ran stand up. She pouted, aggrieved. Can't you stay even a little longer?
After leaving the studio.
Yao Qi winked at Yao Ran. "Wasn't that tattoo artist super pretty?"
Yao Ran glanced at her without replying.
"She's cool and beautiful. I kind of want her to give me a tattoo now," Yao Qi chattered on enthusiastically the whole way. "Hey, Sister, did you see? Her figure is amazing too. Slim waist and big boobs."
Yao Ran: "…"
She knew better than anyone.
Yao Qi sighed again. "She's so alluring. No wonder she has so many female fans on Weibo. I heard she's gay. I'm almost tempted to be."
Yao Ran turned to stare at her again, willing her to be quiet.
"What? I'm just kidding. Why are you so serious, like some old-fashioned official?" Yao Qi grumbled with a frown. After walking a bit further, she started again, "Sister…"
Yao Qi was especially talkative after drinking.
Yao Ran: "Now what?"
"I think that lady has a thing for you, didn't you notice? She was staring at you the whole time in the office, she could barely focus on talking to me." Yao Qi raised her eyebrows, speaking as if it were a matter of fact. "Want to consider it? I have her WeChat now, anyway. Should I send it to you? She's so pretty…"
They had reached the car. Yao Ran cut her off coolly, "Get in."
Yao Qi, having been rebuffed, shut her mouth. Although the two of them looked good together, her sister's ascetic and proper demeanor probably wouldn't be able to handle someone like that.
After dropping Yao Qi off at her apartment, Yao Ran finally had some peace and quiet. She sat alone in her car, lost in thought for a while, before dragging her weary body upstairs.
A few bouts of rain brought a cliff-like drop in temperature. The sudden shift between hot and cold was the easiest time to catch a cold, and Jiang Nian successfully caught the flu.
Jiang Nian had spent the day in a daze. To make matters worse, when she came out of the art room that evening, she heard arguing downstairs.
A fat, bald man was yelling at the top of his lungs, "Is this a rip-off joint?! My tattoo isn't even that big, how can you charge so much?"
"Sir, we told you before we started that we charge by the hour. All our prices are clearly listed. How is this a rip-off?" Qiu Lan reasoned with him.
"You charge by the hour just so you can deliberately drag it out and charge more," the bald man said aggressively. "For a tattoo like this, I could get it done at the place next door for half the price!"
Qiu Lan was good-natured, but she wouldn't be polite to someone unreasonable. Seeing that he wouldn't listen to reason, she retorted, "Then why didn't you go to the place next door? Look at what you had done before, your skin is ruined. You can't just go for the cheapest option, man."
"I came here because your work looks good, but who knew you were robbers? You can rip off other people who are easy to bully, but I'm not one of them. I'm only paying half today. If you don't like it, then you can forget about doing business!" the bald man shouted, standing in the doorway. "It's clearly a rip-off, and you won't even let people say it. A shop like yours will go out of business sooner or later."
The argument continued endlessly. Potential customers who had wanted to come in were scared away. With such a commotion, it was impossible to do business. Qiu Lan's head was throbbing.
"This is our price. If you think it's expensive, don't come," Jiang Nian said as she walked down the stairs. She had been in a bad mood lately, and now her face was cold and her tone sharp.
You meet all sorts of people when you run a shop, and this wasn't the first time she'd encountered a troublemaker. Standing in front of the man, Jiang Nian's presence was imposing. "If you think our pricing is unreasonable, go ahead and report us."
"What kind of attitude is that?" the bald man fumed. "Get your boss over here."
Jiang Nian's face remained cold. "I am the boss."
Seeing that the boss was young and the studio was full of girls, the bald man's arrogance swelled. He adopted the shameless attitude of someone with nothing to lose. He picked up a nearby glass and smashed it violently on the floor, his fleshy face contorted with menace. "I'm not paying today, what are you gonna do about it?!"
The glass shattered into pieces with a startling crash.
"Fine, you want to cause trouble, right? Don't you go anywhere." Jiang Nian rolled her eyes nonchalantly and picked up her phone to call the police.
"Go ahead, call the police! You think I'm scared? Let's see if the police are reasonable or not."
The matter escalated to involving the police. A police car pulled up conspicuously at the entrance, making business even more impossible.
The bald man was a bully who preyed on the weak and feared the strong. Seeing that he couldn't win the argument, he put on a sycophantic smile and told the police he was in a bad mood and had lost control for a moment. In the end, he obediently paid the bill. Jiang Nian even charged him twenty yuan for the broken glass, not yielding an inch.
After the evening's drama, no one was in the mood to work. They decided to close up early, and Jiang Nian told the others to go home and rest.
"Do you want me to stay with you?" Qiu Lan asked, seeing Jiang Nian wasn't in a good state.
"No, I'm going home too. I'm exhausted."
Her mood was a mess. After everyone else had left one by one, Jiang Nian sat outside to get some air. Si Mao dutifully followed her out and nuzzled his head against her, as if trying to cheer her up…
Jiang Nian smiled as she stroked Si Mao's head. But as she smiled, tears welled up in her eyes, and her nose stung. It wasn't because of the man who had bullied her, but because she suddenly remembered the time she had been wronged before, and how Yao Ran had held her and comforted her.
"Jiang Nian…"
Jiang Nian looked up, her voice choked with sobs. "You haven't left yet."
"No," Yu Zhao said, sitting down beside her. "Were you scared tonight?"
Jiang Nian shook her head, but the tears kept flowing, an emotion she couldn't control.
"Here." Yu Zhao took out a tissue. Seeing Jiang Nian crying so heartbrokenly, she asked softly, "Do you want me to hug you?"
Yao Ran had been parked by the roadside for a long time. When she passed by after work, she would still habitually glance at the studio. Tonight, she saw the police car and knew something must have happened.
She saw Jiang Nian sitting there alone, crying hard. Then she saw Yu Zhao go over, seemingly to comfort her. She held the steering wheel and watched silently for a long time. When she saw the two of them getting closer, she thought to herself that perhaps she should leave…
But she didn't drive away. She saw Jiang Nian resist Yu Zhao's approach. They said something to each other, and then Yu Zhao left. After Yu Zhao was gone, Jiang Nian sat there alone again, crying pitifully.
Yao Ran's gaze remained fixed on her, a heart-wrenching feeling twisting inside her, as it always did whenever she saw Jiang Nian cry.
Jiang Nian had refused Yu Zhao's concern. She wanted to be held, wanted someone to wipe away her tears, but she only wanted that person to be Yao Ran. She looked down at her phone, hesitating for a few minutes. Unable to bear it any longer, she dialed a familiar number.
Inside the car, Yao Ran quickly saw her phone screen light up. Jiang Nian was calling her…
Comments
Post a Comment