He's Xiangzi's husband... no, her ex-husband! (Banami!)
This realization struck Su Shi like a thunderbolt. She stared intently at the man before her; she would recognize his face even if he were ashes!
After all, Xiangzi used to love posting photos of the two of them together on his WeChat Moments, which made her so angry that she secretly printed out his photo, nailed it to a straw doll, and drew circles to curse him.
A strong sense of being deceived surged into her heart instantly. Su Shi suddenly raised her phone, clicked on the "cute and innocent" profile picture on the website, and questioned Banami, "Is this you?!"
The boy on the phone screen had gentle features and a slender figure, clearly a soft and cuddly puppy, completely different from the tall man in front of him!
Banami's cheeks flushed slightly as she said somewhat awkwardly, "Back then, I was still very thin."
Su Shi almost couldn't catch her breath, and her vision blurred.
She rented a fake boyfriend, and ended up renting Xiangzi's ex-husband? Even more outrageous, she actually thought that Banami in the photo was kind of cute?
Anger and a sense of absurdity intertwined, almost causing her to explode on the spot. But she forced herself to clench her fists, suppressing her anger, and calmly confirmed, "My name is Nagasaki Motoyo."
"Then shall I call you Su Shi?" Banami asked in a flat tone, as if confirming a conventional form of address.
"Huh? You dare?!" Su Shi instantly bristled, her voice rising several decibels.
Only Xiangzi can call me Su Shi! Who do you think you are, to call me that?
She cursed inwardly.
Banai looked somewhat surprised and puzzled: "But aren't we supposed to be pretending to be a couple?"
Su Shi was speechless, her cheeks flushed red, wishing she could throw this man under the carousel at the amusement park right then and there. But she also knew that now was not the time to throw a tantrum, so she could only suppress her anger and change the subject: "You... haven't you ever heard of my name?"
Banami was even more puzzled: "The rental company hides the client's private information and only provides the necessary information. All I see is your surname and age."
"I wasn't..." Su Shi stopped mid-sentence.
In other words, Xiangzi never mentioned her to her husband at all?
This realization instantly filled Su Shi with mixed feelings. On one hand, she felt inexplicably relieved, at least the other person didn't know she was Xiangzi's best friend.
On the other hand, a faint, indescribable sense of loss welled up inside her. She cared so much about Xiangzi, yet Xiangzi had never mentioned her to anyone close to him?
Shaking her head to clear her mind of these jumbled thoughts, Su Shi said coldly, "Just call me... Nagasaki-kun."
She could tolerate any other form of address, but the words "Su Shi" were absolutely forbidden from coming out of this man's mouth.
Banami didn't ask any more questions and nodded gently: "Okay, my name is Banami Yuu, you can call me whatever you like."
Su Shi thought to herself, "So his name is Xi. Xiangzi always called her Banaijian, which made me not even notice."
He paused, then took the initiative to explain the rules: "My fee is 3,000 yen per hour. If you want to pretend to be a couple in front of others, it will cost an extra 500 yen."
Today, Nagasaki-kun has specified that the place is an amusement park, and there will be no extra charge; if you want to go to other places, please let us know in advance..."
He paused deliberately at this point: "I don't go to places like hotels."
Su Shi instantly understood his unspoken meaning, and her anger surged again. Who the hell would invite you to a hotel! Who do you think you are? How could Xiangzi possibly be interested in such a frivolous and irresponsible man?
She looked Banami up and down, her tone laced with sarcasm: "You seem quite skilled at this."
Sure enough, he had been having affairs with other women before divorcing Xiangzi, had he? He probably did a lot of outrageous things behind Xiangzi's back, so the divorce was his fault!
Banami simply shook her head slightly and explained calmly, "Actually, Nagasaki-san is my first client. I need money urgently because I'm moving recently, so I'm working part-time at the rental company."
Su Shi instinctively disbelieved that a man like that could possibly tell the truth.
Suddenly, Su Shi remembered a small incident from the night before when she was helping Xiangzi pack his luggage.
She found 300,000 yen in cash and two bankbooks in the drawer.
At the time, she thought to herself that Xiangzi had been living with Banami for the past few years and didn't seem as poor as she had imagined.
Could it be... that this man left all his money to Xiangzi? But he clearly knew that Xiangzi would soon return to the Toyokawa family and become one of the richest people in Japan.
The thought had barely crossed her mind when Su Shi forcefully suppressed it. Impossible, she must be overthinking it. How could this man be so kind? Maybe it was money Xiangzi had saved himself.
"So, Nagasaki-san, do you need a 'boyfriend'?" Hanami asked again, noticing her fluctuating expression.
Su Shi had already considered refusing. His identity was too special; he was her "number one enemy," and pretending to be his lover would be torture. But just as she was about to speak, a voice, trembling with doubt, suddenly came from behind her:
"Soyorin, is this... your boyfriend?"
Su Shi's body froze instantly, as if she had been frozen in place. She slowly turned around and saw a girl with long pink hair standing not far away, her smile looking somewhat stiff.
Oops.
This was the first thought that flashed through Su Shi's mind. She took a deep breath, clenched her fist, forced herself to give a fairly natural smile, and walked towards Aine: "Aine, you're here. Yes, he is... my boyfriend, Yana Miyu."
When Su Shi said the words "boyfriend," she felt like she was going to grind her teeth to dust.
The person named, Yana, simply glanced at Aine calmly and nodded in response, as if to say hello.
Chapter Nine: First Encounter ○, Marriage Unresolved
But now it's too late to find another rented boyfriend. If she gets caught, it will only make Aine more persistent.
Su Shi had no choice but to bite the bullet and take the initiative to put her arm around the boy's arm and say, "Yes, he is my boyfriend, Yana Miyu."
The moment her fingertips touched Banami's skin, Suze instinctively flinched. The man's warm body temperature seeped through her clothes, giving her a strange feeling—this was Xiangzi's ex-husband, and she was actually playing the role of a couple with the person she hated most.
A strange sense of guilt welled up inside her; what if Xiangzi found out...?
The thought had barely crossed her mind when Su Shi forcefully suppressed it. No, Xiangzi had just returned to the Fengchuan family; he must be very busy, and she would absolutely not let him know any of this.
Banami nodded to Aine without any extra expression on her face.
They walked up to the ticket window, and without thinking, Su Shi said to the ticket seller, "Two couple tickets and one single ticket."
Ai Yin caught up, and upon hearing these words, her steps faltered slightly, and her eyes dimmed even more.
After buying their tickets, the three entered the amusement park. A colorful Ferris wheel slowly turned in the distance, the air was filled with the sweet aroma of popcorn and cotton candy, and the laughter of children filled the air. However, this lively atmosphere could not dispel the awkwardness between the three of them.
"What would you like to do first, Xi-kun?" Su Shi feigned sweetness, looked up at Banami, and handed the choice over to him.
Aine followed behind the two, watching as Suze took the initiative to link arms with Banami and asked for his opinion with a look of dependence. Her heart ached as if it were being pricked by needles.
In the past, when they came to the amusement park together, Su Shi always made the decisions and never paid attention to Aine's thoughts, and Aine had gotten used to it.
But now, Su Shi has given all her tenderness and accommodation to this man she has only known for a short time.
Banami glanced around at the surrounding amusement park rides and said with a hint of nostalgia, "Let's go ride the roller coaster then, it doesn't look too crowded."
Ai Yin immediately said, "Su Shi is afraid of roller coasters; she never rides such thrilling rides."
She instinctively wanted to refuse on Su Shi's behalf, and sure enough, this boy didn't understand Su Shi as well as she did.
But the next moment, Ai-yin's expression froze, and Su-shi smiled casually: "It's okay, as long as Xi-jun is by my side, I'm not afraid. I can play with you whatever you like."
Upon hearing this, Aine's nose instantly stung, her eyes turned red, and she clenched her fists tightly, trying her best to hold back her tears.
Is this what they mean by "first meeting, then marriage"?
Banami seemed oblivious to the undercurrent of emotions between the two and nodded, "Then let's go."
Su Shi could clearly feel the disappointed look in Ai Yin's eyes behind her, and a wave of guilt washed over her. But since things had come to this, she could only go down this dark path.
After queuing and having their tickets checked, the three of them quickly boarded the roller coaster.
Suze was pulled to sit in the middle by Banami, while Aine quietly sat down behind them.
Su Shi's hands trembled slightly as she fastened her seatbelt, her fear growing stronger.
Noticing her nervousness, Banami turned her head and said in a voice only the two of them could hear, "If you're scared, you can hold my hand."
Su Shi initially wanted to refuse, but seeing the other couples around her holding hands tightly, and remembering Aine behind her, she hesitated for a moment, then reached out and gently took Banami's hand.
The man's palm was large and warm, and Su Shi's heart beat faster, partly out of fear and partly out of the sudden intimacy.
The roller coaster slowly started moving and gradually rose higher.
Aine sat in the back, her eyes fixed on the backs of Suze and Banami holding hands in front of her.
As the roller coaster plunged downwards, screams erupted from all sides.
Su Shi was so frightened that she closed her eyes tightly and instinctively gripped Banami's hand so tightly that her nails almost dug into his flesh.
For Aine, the thrill of the roller coaster was nothing compared to the intimacy between the two people in front of her.
Seeing Su Shi leaning on Banami's shoulder, she couldn't help but shout out like the others, but her tears weren't just from fear, but something else entirely.
A few minutes later, the roller coaster slowly came to a stop. Su Shi was pale and weak all over, and she was almost helped off the ride by Banami.
Ai Yin followed behind, and seeing Su Shi in this state, she couldn't help but feel sorry for her.
"I'll go buy you a bottle of water. Wait here for me."
After Ai Yin finished speaking, without waiting for Su Shi's response, she turned around and ran towards the convenience store not far away, her steps somewhat hurried.
Banami helped Suze walk to the nearby open-air cafe and sat down.
Su Shi tried to break free from his support, but she was too weak to stand and could only let him hold her. After sitting down, she leaned back in the chair, closed her eyes, and tried to calm her churning stomach.
"That girl just now, she really cares about you." Banami's voice rang out again, her tone still calm, but with a hint of emotion that was hard to detect.
Hearing this, Su Shi suddenly opened her eyes, a mix of guilt and frustration instantly welling up inside her. She glared fiercely at Ba Naijian: "Ha, you certainly have the leisure to observe others. Your wife cared about you a lot, but you still divorced her, didn't you?"
She deliberately brought up Xiangzi, her tone laced with sarcasm.
Upon hearing the word "wife," Banami's eyes widened slightly, and she looked at Suze with some surprise: "How...did you know I was divorced?"
Su Shi sneered and pointed to the corner of the handkerchief peeking out of his pocket: "The handkerchief you used to wipe my sweat just now, was it sewn by your ex-wife? It has the name 'Hanami Shoko' embroidered on it."
Seeing that Banai's eyes instantly dimmed, he pursed his lips and remained silent.
Seeing his appearance, Su Shi's curiosity suddenly overcame her disgust, and she couldn't help but ask, "Why did you divorce your ex-wife?"
After a moment of silence, Banami said softly, "Just like you, wanting to get rid of that Chihaya-san."
Su Shi was slightly taken aback, and her expression froze instantly. She hadn't expected that Banami could see through her thoughts.
“Some people are nice, but they’re not right for each other,” Banami continued.
Su Shi's heart skipped a beat. Yes, Chihaya Aine was really good, but none of that could compare to that stunning glance she caught when she first met Shoko, which completely captivated her thoughts.
Four years of companionship could never compare to that one moment of excitement.
At this moment, Su Shi felt a strange sense of identification with Banami.
The thought had barely surfaced when Su Shi forcibly extinguished it—this man was her “enemy,” how could she possibly agree with him?
Just then, Aine ran back with two bottles of water, slightly out of breath: "Hey, Hanami-kun, Suze, look over there! It looks like there's a couples taking photos together."
Su Shi looked in the direction she pointed and saw a pink photo booth set up in the square not far away.
At that moment, a couple was kissing in the photo studio, with many people watching around them.
Su Shi's expression changed slightly; she instantly understood Ai Yin's thoughts.
Aine still didn't believe her and wanted to witness her kissing her "boyfriend" with her own eyes. Only then would she completely admit that Suze had truly fallen in love with someone else.
"Let's not go, there are too many people." Su Shi instinctively wanted to refuse.
She couldn't accept being asked to kiss Hanami, even if it was just for show.
Cute Voice looked at her seriously, with a hint of stubbornness in her eyes: "Go ahead, just take one picture, maybe you'll win a prize. Besides, isn't it normal for couples to take pictures together?"
Seeing Ai Yin's expectant yet slightly probing gaze, Su Shi understood that if she didn't meet Ai Yin's demands today, Ai Yin would definitely continue to doubt and pester her.
"Okay, let's go take a look." In the end, Su Shi gave in.
She took a deep breath, stood up, and walked towards the photo studio. Banami followed, her face still expressionless.
When we arrived at the photo studio, the couple who had just taken their photos had already finished. The staff smiled and said to them, "The next couple can come in now."
Su Shi, steeling her resolve, walked into the photo studio with Banami. The studio was decorated romantically, filled with pink balloons and ribbons. A staff member, holding a camera, smiled and said, "You two should get closer, and it would be best if you could have a close gesture, like a kiss, that would make it easier to win an award!"
Su Shi's body stiffened instantly. She could feel Aine's gaze fixed on her from outside the shed, and she could also feel Banami's presence beside her. Kissing Shoko's ex-husband—this was far too crazy for the young girl.
Hanami seemed to sense her predicament, closed her eyes, and handed over the choice entirely to her, the "client".
Suze looked at Banami's profile with her eyes closed, and after a few seconds, she seemed to have made a final decision.
She tiptoed and quickly gave Banami a light kiss on the cheek, like a dragonfly skimming the water.
With a "click," the camera precisely captured the moment.
By the time the two came to their senses, Aine had already disappeared.
Su Shi felt a little sad. She had finally gotten the result she wanted and made Ai Yin give up completely, but at this moment, she felt no joy, but rather a sense of loss.
It's as if something important in my heart disappeared along with Aine's departure.
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