Chapter 20: The Birthday Meal

After speaking, Shen Jinglan left with her wife, leaving Jiang Wenting and Yi Lan alone in the ward.
Jiang Wenting’s thoughts lingered on what Shen Jinglan had just said.
Logically, she should accept this script without hesitation, but…

She looked at Yi Lan, unable to resist reaching out to caress her head: “Yi Lan, get well soon, okay!”

The other party’s expression remained indifferent.

Jiang Wenting smiled, briefly setting aside her inner turmoil.
Her lips curved slightly, and she spoke in a playfully coaxing tone: “Why are you so quiet?Will you talk to me, please?”

“Jiang Wenting,” Yi Lan called her name softly, and after several seconds, asked, “What should I say?”

Jiang Wenting gazed at her, smiling with crescent-shaped eyes: “Just say anything, like what we’ll eat later…”

After speaking, she glanced at the weather outside: “Hey, the sunset is beautiful!How about we go out to eat later?We can take a walk nearby afterward, then come back.Do you feel like moving now, Yi Lan?”

Yi Lan said nothing, but her body was already preparing to move.

Jiang Wenting hastily pressed her down: “Wait a moment, Yi Lan.I’ll call Xiao Ru and ask when she’ll be finished with the director.”

Yi Lan, who had already begun to sit up, stiffened.
The imperceptible glimmer of light in her eyes immediately vanished.

Jiang Wenting called Xiao Ru.
The latter was still coordinating some upcoming work arrangements for The Hundred Flowers Chronicle with the director, saying she would finish later and that Jiang Wenting should eat dinner first and not wait for her.

Jiang Wenting had no agent or management company.
Over the years, all the big and small matters were handled by her assistant.

“Alright then, Yi Lan and I will go out to eat first!”

Xiao Ru was usually hardworking and compliant, but hearing Jiang Wenting was taking Yi Lan out to eat instantly made her temper flare.
However, since she had told them to eat first, she couldn’t snap at Jiang Wenting now.
She held back her anger, hummed in acknowledgment, and abruptly hung up the phone.

She even forgot to remind Jiang Wenting that there was a special birthday gift she had prepared for her in the innermost layer of her bag.

Jiang Wenting was long used to the other party’s bad temper.
She turned to Yi Lan and said: “Xiao Ru is still busy, so shall we two go?”

Yi Lan’s wrinkled heart relaxed slightly, but her face remained impassive.
She didn’t even offer a simple response.

Surprisingly, Jiang Wenting immediately sensed the other party’s desire to go out.
She smiled faintly and told her: “Wait for me, I’ll get fully dressed.”

“Fully dressed?” The statue-like person suddenly spoke up.

“Yes,” Jiang Wenting explained while putting on her jacket, “I have to cover up tightly these past two days, otherwise I might get mobbed by fans.”

Yi Lan didn’t quite understand, but from her observations these past few days, Jiang Wenting would always wear a hat and something called sunglasses whenever she went out, disguising herself like a spy.
No, it should be said that she was already a spy, but in this world, the Southern Border Army and the Beilin Army were no longer.
She didn’t know what Jiang Wenting’s mission was every time she went out.

Jiang Wenting quickly got ready.
The sun-protective hood on her black sun-protective jacket was pulled up, leaving only a pair of eyes and half a mole at the corner of her eye visible.
She pulled out sunglasses from her bag, put them on, and finally even those eyes became dark.

Yi Lan: …

Jiang Wenting took out her phone, used the screen to check her fully-dressed appearance, then changed Yi Lan into a new set of clothes too, pulling her in for a complete, all-angles appreciation: “Perfect!
We can go out now!”

She was very satisfied with her masterpiece.
Her peach blossom eyes, concealed behind sunglasses, curved slightly.
Her slender hand held Yi Lan’s shoulder, instructing: “Yi Lan, I’m going to borrow a wheelchair.Wait for me here, don’t wander off, okay?I’ll be very quick!”

Yi Lan didn’t respond, so she didn’t dare to leave, her sunglasses fixed on her until the other party nodded.

Jiang Wenting received the reply and pinched her cheek as a reward.

She went out, and a few minutes later, pushed a wheelchair in.
Seeing the person on the hospital bed sitting obediently, her tone became even more cheerful: “I’m here!We’re going out for something delicious!”

Jiang Wenting walked over and skillfully lifted Yi Lan onto the wheelchair.
She then took out her phone to search for nearby food: “There’s a highly-rated local restaurant within 1.3 kilometers.They should have private rooms with good concealment.Yi Lan, shall we go there to eat?”

Yi Lan raised her gaze: “Whatever you wish.”

Jiang Wenting settled on the location, called the restaurant to reserve a table, and then pushed Yi Lan out.
There were many pedestrians on the road, but because the two were well-covered, they weren’t suspected by anyone.

They soon arrived at the restaurant.
Jiang Wenting confirmed the reservation details with the staff, who then led them to a private room on the second floor.

The private room overlooked the river, a secluded and nice room.
The setting sun’s afterglow slanted in, bathing the room in a faint golden hue, making it exceptionally beautiful.

The waiter refilled their tea: “Ladies, please scan the QR code with your phone to order.
The top-ranked dishes are all our house specialties.”

Jiang Wenting picked up her phone, held it out, and leaned towards Yi Lan: “Take a look, is there anything you’d like to eat?”

She was somewhat surprised by the dishes that came.
She instinctively pointed to a picture with pig trotters and chicken feet on it.
Not long ago, she had given this food to Xiao Ru, saying she bought it from their usual shop, and she also wanted to try pork trotters and chicken.

“You like it too?I’ll add it to the cart,” Jiang Wenting said.
“Anything else?”

Yi Lan…

Jiang Wenting: “Pick some more.
It’s your birthday today, we can order a little extra.”

Yi Lan pursed her lips, her long lashes slightly lowered, as if contemplating.
After a few seconds, she said faintly: “Longevity noodles.”

Jiang Wenting was taken aback.
The waiter reacted before her: “Is it your birthday today, madam?Then you don’t need to order it, our restaurant will specially gift you a serving of longevity noodles at the end.”

“Thank you, thank you!” Jiang Wenting thanked her, then smiled at Yi Lan: “Did you hear that?The young lady said they’ll give us a serving.So, Yi Lan, is there anything else you’d like to eat?”

The person being questioned lightly slid her finger, pulling down the phone screen.
It showed a variety of dishes, some she had seen, some she hadn’t.
She selected a few based on memory, all of which the former Jiang Wenting had loved to eat.
But the other party seemed to have no reaction, even smiling as if discovering some secret: “So, Yi Lan prefers slightly more northern flavors.”

Yi Lan raised her gaze, her cold eyes sweeping over her, saying nothing.

Jiang Wenting placed the order, and the waiter quickly printed out the receipt: “Please have a seat, ladies, and enjoy some snacks.
Your dishes will be served right away!”

“Okay, thank you!”

Jiang Wenting politely acknowledged, then opened a bag of dog-tooth guoba (fried rice crusts) for Yi Lan: “Try this!”

Yi Lan took a piece and chewed it.
Jiang Wenting also took a piece for herself.
Soon, the waiter brought up the cold dishes: “Ladies, would you like the rice now, or with the hot dishes?”

Jiang Wenting said: “Together, please!”

After the waiter left, Jiang Wenting picked up her phone and snapped a few pictures of the dishes that had already been served.
Then she showed the photos to Yi Lan: “Not bad, huh?
I wonder what Beiye and the others are eating.
Xiao Ru will probably just have a bento box, anyway.”

Yi Lan didn’t speak, her long lashes trembled slightly, and her unhappy emotions were concealed by indifference.

Jiang Wenting picked up her phone again, opened the front camera, and took a picture of herself and Yi Lan’s faces.
The photo showed the two squeezed together, Yi Lan’s expression serious.

“Oh, smile!” Jiang Wenting was unsatisfied, and raised the camera again: “Come on, look at the camera!
Smile, cheese!”

Yi Lan instinctively turned her head.
Jiang Wenting lightly tapped the screen, and the frame froze at the moment their faces met.
Yi Lan’s expression remained stiff.

Jiang Wenting was still dissatisfied: “Too serious, Yi Lan.
You’re so pretty, you should smile more, you know?
One more picture!”

As she spoke, she raised the camera again: “I’ll count to three and you smile, okay!”

“One, two, three… Yay!”

Jiang Wenting counted while poking her face with her fingertip.
Yi Lan turned to dodge.
She pressed the shutter, and the image only left a blur.
At this moment, the waiter entered with plates: “Ladies, your pork trotters and chicken feet stew and hand-grabbed lamb are ready.
The last dish, hot and sour shredded potatoes, is being made.”

“Okay, thank you!
Please bring us the rice!”

Jiang Wenting put away her phone and didn’t take any more pictures.
Soon, the waiter brought the last dish and a small pot of rice: “All your dishes are here!
Do you need me to help you serve the rice?”

Yi Lan scanned the table but didn’t see the longevity noodles.
She looked up at the waiter: “Where are the longevity noodles?”

The waiter froze for a moment at the question: “Oh, do you need the longevity noodles served to you now, ladies?”

Jiang Wenting saw the persistence on Yi Lan’s face and smiled dotingly.
She said to the waiter: “Then please bring them up for us first.
We want to take a picture and post it on our Moments.”

The waiter understood instantly: “Okay, okay!”

Five minutes later, the longevity noodles Yi Lan had been longing for finally appeared on the table, but their appearance was unlike the bowl Jiang Wenting had cooked for her on her birthday years ago.

That bowl of noodles was chewy and springy, with two sliced eggs, various toppings, and in the center, four characters carved from carrots: “Happy Birthday,” and a small heart.

To this day, she still clearly remembered the taste of those noodles, and the sight of that slender figure rolling out noodles for her, her nostrils covered in flour.

Jiang Wenting took out her phone one last time and took a picture of the “Manchu Han Imperial Feast” before them.
Then she divided half of the longevity noodles in front of her to Yi Lan: “Our longevity noodles are here, eat up, baby!”

She turned her head and found that the other person’s long eyelashes were slightly moist.

“What’s wrong?” Jiang Wenting paused, leaning closer, and asked with concern: “Did Yi Lan remember something unpleasant?”

She closed her eyes, then opened them, hiding her emotions in the darkness: “No.”

Jiang Wenting opened her arms and gently hugged the person in front of her: “Don’t be sad, don’t be sad, Jiang Jiang will always be with Yi Lan!”

She didn’t release her embrace quickly.
Yi Lan felt the other party’s warm heartbeat and slowly recovered from the discomfort in her heart.
After a long while, she finally spoke softly, in a very low tone: “Jiang Wenting, happy birthday.”