CEG Chapter 11

The debate venue was noisy, and many people passed by Cheng Yan. Jiang Muping’s voice was drowned out by the noise and became muffled.

When Cheng Yan later recalled the situation, he thought he had misheard or that his memory was wonky.

Jiang Muping was called away by his teaching assistant, and they didn’t get to continue their conversation.

“I’ll contact you in a while” Jiang Muping said to Cheng Yan.

Cheng Yan nodded, looking bewildered.

However, Jiang Muping did not contact Cheng Yan after that day, and Cheng Yan did not know when “in a while” meant.

Jiang Muping’s proposal to get married had such a huge impact on Cheng Yan that he was distracted all day and eventually turned down all his work and went home early.

Cheng Yan rarely went to bed early, and even then, his sleep was restless. He woke up in the middle of the night, poured himself a small glass of red wine, and glanced at his phone—it was 11:30. Jiang Muping hadn’t called or texted him.

Cheng Yan sat down on the sofa with a wine glass in his hand, feeling inexplicably anxious.

If he hadn’t received a message from Jiang Muping today, he probably wouldn’t have been able to sleep all night.

Unable to contain himself, Cheng Yan still made a phone call to Jiang Muping.

The phone rang for two seconds before Cheng Yan hung up. He downed the wine in his glass in one gulp, thought for a moment, and decided to contact Jiang Muping again tomorrow, not wanting to disturb his rest.

Cheng Yan got up to go to the kitchen to wash the wine glasses when his phone suddenly rang. He looked down and saw that it was Jiang Muping calling.

Cheng Yan placed the wine glass on the coffee table and answered the phone.

Jiang Muping’s voice was low and he sounded tired, “Cheng Yan, what’s wrong?”

“Did I wake you up?”

“No, I’m not asleep yet.” Jiang Muping closed his laptop, took off his glasses, and rubbed his temples.

“I thought you were asleep…”

“There are still some things I haven’t finished writing.”

Perhaps it was the alcohol, but Cheng Yan felt a surge of heat rising up his body. He turned the air conditioner down a few degrees and poured some more wine into his glass.

“Professor Jiang, there are some things I’d like to confirm with you.”

“Go ahead.”

“You brought up marriage today, didn’t you?”

A soft laugh came from the other end of the phone, “Yes. Didn’t you agree? Are you having second thoughts now?”

“I’m afraid you’ll regret it.”

Cheng Yan didn’t know why Jiang Muping suddenly proposed marriage, nor did he understand why he agreed without thinking.

“Professor Jiang, you don’t know me,” Cheng Yan said.

Jiang Muping said, ” I can know now.”

Cheng Yan thought they could talk in person another day, but then he thought that his resume and background were as unremarkable as a poor student’s draft paper, so he decided to try to get closer to Jiang Muping on this sleepless night.

“My parents passed away a long time ago. I only have a younger brother who doesn’t share my surname. I didn’t graduate from high school, I never went to university, and I’m not very educated,” Cheng Yan paused, then mentioned what he considered the most important point, “and… I smoke.”

Cheng Yan concluded that Jiang Muping definitely didn’t smoke. He knew smoking was bad, but quitting was too difficult for him.

Jiang Muping remained silent for a few seconds, and Cheng Yan guessed that his rationality had returned.

“Regarding marriage,” Cheng Yan said, “you can reconsider.”

“I already thought about it at the debate venue today.” Jiang Muping put his glasses back on, walked out of the study, and said, “Let me have a smoke—”

“I can’t quit,” Cheng Yan said first. “I’ve tried to quit many times, but I haven’t been able to.”

Teacher Jiang Muping said, “That’s because you’re not strict enough with yourself.”

Cheng Yan now strongly suspects that Jiang Muping might give up on the engagement because of his smoking habit.

However, Jiang Muping was very tolerant, “I know you smoke, and after we get married I will supervise you to gradually change this habit.”

Cheng Yan was surprised that Jiang Muping was already considering plans after marriage. His anxiety subsided, and a sense of peace gradually filled his heart.

Cheng Yan finished the last bit of wine and said in a hoarse voice, “Professor Jiang, I’m not very educated. We might not have anything in common in the future, and all sorts of conflicts might arise.”

Jiang Muping said, “By then, I hope you will be willing to accommodate me.”

Cheng Yan paused for a moment, his throat feeling a little dry.

“…Why do you want to marry me?” Cheng Yan asked the question again, though he could probably guess a little.

Jiang Muping is the typical person who is cold on the outside but warm on the inside. He is aloof and composed, has high standards for himself, but is easily moved to pity by others, possessing a compassionate quality. Cheng Yan doesn’t dislike this compassionate quality, and even finds it charming. But Jiang Muping isn’t someone to sacrifice his marriage out of pity. Jiang Muping’s compassion is principled, he seeks shared joy.

“Then why did you agree to marry me?” Jiang Muping was very good at taking control of the conversation, easily turning the tables on the other person.

“I don’t know,” Cheng Yan answered truthfully.

Jiang Muping said, “You’ll find out eventually.”

Jiang Muping also talked about his situation. He told Cheng Yan that his mother was an architect, his father was the director of a hospital, and he would retire in three years.

The two also exchanged information about their respective financial situations. Overall, Cheng Yan was a bit richer than Jiang Muping. Jiang Muping had a respectable job within the system, but he couldn’t make a lot of money.

There were still some minor issues that the two decided to discuss later. Right now, the most important thing was that they hadn’t discussed the marriage with Jiang Muping’s parents yet.

“Shouldn’t we discuss this with your parents?”

“I’ll talk to them.” Jiang Muping took off his watch, saw that it was getting late, and said, “It’s very late, shouldn’t you go to sleep?”

Cheng Yan mumbled a vague “um”.

Jiang Muping had already noticed that his tone was sticky and his speech was a bit slow, so he asked, “Have you been drinking?”

“I drank a little.” Cheng Yan rubbed his slightly sore eyes. “I can’t sleep.”

“Why can’t you sleep?”

“Because you said you wanted to marry me.”

Cheng Yan gradually felt sleepy and said lazily, “Professor Jiang, I’m a little sleepy.”

“Go to sleep.”

Cheng Yan wasn’t drunk, but the alcohol always made him say things without thinking: “Will you still marry me after I wake up?”

“Yes, I will.” Jiang Muping’s voice held a faint smile.

Cheng Yan washed the wine glass, turned it upside down in the cupboard, and walked towards the bedroom, muttering to himself, “What if your parents don’t agree…”

Cheng Yan felt that his feelings for Jiang Muping might be far more “genuine” than he thought, otherwise why would he unintentionally act as if he really wanted to marry Jiang Muping?

When Jiang Muping said, “I will talk to them properly,” Cheng Yan lay on the bed holding his phone, recalling Jiang Muping’s face.

He sketched out Jiang Muping’s facial features in his mind little by little, and couldn’t help but marvel at how handsome Jiang Muping really was.

Jiang Muping had a face that could charm any young girl back in high school, but now he’s here to torment an old man like him….

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1. So so sorry everyone for the delay of chapter updates! I have been sick and have been having exams constantly, but I swear I’ll be updating chapters regularly! Thank you all who are still reading this, your support means a lot to me!