Forbidden To Be Tempted

A pretty box covered in thick, soft cloth on the outside, beautifully designed and high-quality, with no logo, but you can feel the valuable things inside.

But now, Cheng Suran didn't have the time to pay attention to these things, she looked at Jiang Yu in astonishment: "How do you know Ruoxian's birthday?"

"Is it November 1st?" Jiang Yu asked without answering.

Her smile became more and more gentle, but Cheng Suran vaguely felt that there was so much sourness and bitterness under such gentleness, it was so full that it was almost overflowing, she lifted her self-deceiving eyes, silently questioning her—

Have you forgotten what day was the day before?

Cheng Suran's heart beat violently, and she was a little flustered, but her professional habits over the years prevented her from showing it. She avoided Jiang Yu's gaze by looking at the gift, pretended to be calm, and said, "Yes, the 1st."

After speaking, she shook her head again.

"Miss Jiang, you're too kind, but... I can't accept gifts for Ruoxian without her permission." She reverts to her polite and distant manner.

The smile on Jiang Yu's face froze slightly, and she looked at Cheng Suran without saying a word.

The eyes are the windows to the soul.

Her lips moved and then pursed as if struggling fiercely. Torn between piercing the window paper or continuing to play along with Cheng Suran's feigned innocence, struggling to speak.

Cheng Suran didn't speak.

Just when she was thinking about finding an excuse to leave, Jiang Yu withdrew her hand, smiled apologetically, and said, "I was the one who was impulsive, Miss Wen's birthday has already passed, and giving a belated gift might not seem sincere. So... let's wait until next year, I hope I can celebrate birthdays for all of you next year."

No one is obligated to celebrate her birthday, especially considering she had deeply hurt the person before.

Looking at Cheng Suran's reaction, she could somewhat guess what was on her mind, probably that post was not meant for her to read, maybe there was some mistake, but she didn't want to point it out today, so why should she persist to the end and embarrass others.

"Definitely." Cheng Suran walked down the steps, she just wanted to go now.

"If there's nothing else, I'll take my leave first."

After speaking, she turned and left.

Jiang Yu still wanted to say something, but her mouth couldn't catch up with her feet, so she had to swallow all the words in her stomach. She was about to put things back but when she turned to the side, she caught sight of a small gift box left on the seat where Cheng Suran had been sitting. It was a souvenir for each guest.

She picked up the box and called out toward Cheng Suran's departing figure, "Ranran—"

The figure paused and quickened her pace.

"Cheng Suran!"

Jiang Yu hurriedly caught up.

Behind her, the middle-aged woman surnamed Su suddenly lifted her head, as if frozen in place, and stared in the direction Jiang Yu was walking, unmoving, as though under a spell.

Cheng Suran, who had been called out, finally stopped.

"You forgot something." Jiang Yu caught up with her and handed over the gift box.

"Thanks."

Cheng Suran smiled.

....

The underground parking lot is huge, and Cheng Suran found her car after searching around. The small metal box was like a haven. She leaned back against the seat, her lips slightly parted, like a fish out of water after being away for too long.

There was no private information about Ruoxian online, and Jiang Yu wasn't familiar with Ruoxian either. If she had known Ruoxian's birthday early on and intended to give a gift, she wouldn't have waited until after the birthday to make up for it.

Jiang Yu must have seen the greetings she posted.

Why give the belated gift to her? Why not give it directly to Ruoxian? Could it be a hint that she saw the post? Someone who usually sleeps early and wakes up early being online at midnight, was it a coincidence, or…was she waiting for something?

The light outside shone in like a sword pointing straight at her heart, coldly questioning her.

—Have you forgotten?

Faced with this intangible question, chaos erupted within her. Suddenly, she sat upright, gripping the steering wheel tightly with both hands. As she raised her head, she saw her tear-stained reflection in the rearview mirror.

Cheng Suran was stunned.

She hadn't forgotten, not at all. So why does she feel guilty, why is she blaming herself, why is she anxious…

The harsh light was blocked out.

Cheng Suran lowered her head slightly, but no tears came out. Jiang Yu's eyes, Jiang Yu's expression, Jiang Yu's tone, one frame after another flashed like a movie, she suddenly felt a bit of revenge-like pleasure. She wanted this brief burst of emotion to engulf her, washing away any unnecessary softness.

Jiang Yu deserved it.

....

On Friday afternoon, Cheng Suran flew to her hometown in Lingzhou ahead of schedule. She took two male and two female bodyguards and found a hotel in the urban area to stay. The next day, instead of going to her aunt's house in the old city, she informed her on the phone and took a taxi directly to the old house in the countryside.

Returning here after many years, Cheng Suran felt nothing in her heart. The village has not changed much, most of the people living here are old people and children, and there were hardly any young faces.

The ancestral home had been renovated, appearing completely refreshed. It now belonged to her aunt.

Cheng Suran came early, having no keys, she could only stand outside the door and wait. She and the four bodyguards looked out of place there, attracting nearby neighbors to watch.

About half an hour later, her aunt's family arrived.

"Ranran..."

A black car pulled up, and a middle-aged woman in the passenger seat was the first to step out. She warmly and affectionately called out to Cheng Suran but then noticed the unfamiliar faces beside her. "Who are they?"

Cheng Suran looked at her calmly, and said indifferently: "My bodyguards."

"Oh..." Cheng Xiufang frowned, the wrinkles on her face were squeezed together, and she retracted her hand that was about to reach out, "Ranran, are you treating us like thieves? Bringing bodyguards, are we a threat to you? We're family, this hurts too much…"

They haven't seen each other for many years, the woman has aged a lot, with a few strands of silver on her temples. In her early fifties, she appeared to be in her sixties, her face growing more gaunt and sallow.

Her uncle behind her, on the other hand, had a round face and a spirited appearance. He looked like a typical middle-aged man who had gained some weight.

Her cousin didn't come.

"When will the ceremony start?" Cheng Suran didn't bother to talk to her and went straight to the point.

Cheng Xiufang's face was full of resentment but she didn't want to say anything more, while looking at her quickly, she answered distractedly: "At noon. We'll head to the village head's house for lunch later."

Cheng Suran nodded and said nothing.

There are many rules for relocating graves in rural areas. This time, the ancestral graves of the whole village had to be moved. The amount of work involved was enormous, and each household had to take turns. In the past two days, it was Cheng Suran's father's and her grandmother's turn. According to the rules, if each grave owner has descendants, the descendants will preside over the supervision, first, the direct descendants and then extended family members.

Cheng Suran stayed there for one night. She came to the village during the day and returned to the hotel in the city at night. She didn't talk to her aunt unless necessary.

But her aunt wanted to talk to her very much.

Wen Ruoxian sent a message every hour to confirm her safety. To reassure her good sister, Cheng Suran took a lot of photos and short videos and sent them over. In the evening, the two of them started a video chat for a while.

"It's quite warm here in the winter. Next time you have time, I'll bring you to visit."

"Okay."

When she was about to sleep, Jiang Yu suddenly sent a message: [Ranran, do you know someone named Su Wenjing?]

Mm?

Cheng Suran: [No. What's the matter?]

After waiting for a while, Jiang Yu sent a voice message, saying, "We have a VIP client here who saw you at the trade fair the other day. She thought you looked a lot like a friend of hers from the past, and your names are also the same. She asked me to contact you and see if you'd be willing to meet her. So... I wanted to ask for your opinion first."

"I don't recall knowing anyone named Su Wenjing. But the name... feels like I've heard it somewhere," Cheng Suran said, carefully recollecting. She searched through her memories of all her classmates, friends from elementary school, middle school, high school, and college, and even her childhood playmates from the village.

Memories are like a tightly wrapped silkworm chrysalis, with a faint light leaking in, and only a vague outline can be seen clearly.

The sound of this name is easy to pronounce, and the image of a gentle and elegant woman naturally emerges in her mind. She likes the character "Su" and there is "Su" in her own name. Maybe she hasn't heard it anywhere, but she just thinks it sounds nice.

Jiang Yu: "Then do you want to meet her?"

Cheng Suran: "Do you have any photos? What does she look like?"

Two or three minutes later, Jiang Yu sent a photo.

The woman looked to be in her early forties, with light makeup and elegant clothes, with a gentle and noble temperament between her eyebrows and eyes, she was smiling slightly, and the dimples on her cheeks were faintly visible.

It was the "Su" lady who was sitting next to her at the trade fair. She looked very kind.

Cheng Suran was shocked.

Looking at the photo, she increasingly felt a sense of familiarity with the woman's face, as if they had known each other a long time ago. Especially with the dimples on her cheeks, just like hers.

"She's in the medical equipment business and has a daughter. She became our VIP four years ago, spending over a million annually. I don't have much more personal information, should I help you gather more details? After you know everything, you can decide whether you want to meet her or not." Jiang Yu sent another message, her concern was evident in her tone.

Cheng Suran thought for a while and said, "No, it's just a meeting. I'm free next Wednesday. Where can I meet her?"

[I'll tell you after she chooses the address.]

[OK.]

The top of the chat box still displayed "typing", but there was no message sent again until Cheng Suran turned off the light and was about to lie down, the screen turned on again.

Jiang Yu: [Good night.]

She didn't reply again.

....

Source: https://www.jjwxc.net/onebook.php?novelid=4738582

This translation is originally posted on

love4baihe.blogspot.com

please read it there. and check out other stories too

The next day at noon, after relocating her father and grandmother's graves, Cheng Suran booked an afternoon flight and was planning to return to her hotel after taking a shower. However, before she could leave the ancestral home, her aunt stopped her.

"Ranran, Auntie wants to treat you to a meal. Can you spare a little time?"

"I have something to do."

"Just a little time? Hey, Ranran, you've grown up now, so successful. You've suddenly forgotten about our family. You don't even want the people who raised you anymore..." Cheng Xiufang lowered her face, wiped the corner of her eye with the back of her hand, and said nothing more.

Hearing the last sentence, Cheng Suran frowned, and a slight crack appeared on her calm face. She corrected softly: "Auntie, it was money that raised me, not you. The money was compensation from my dad, not your money."

She enunciated each word calmly, her tone chilly, exerting an invisible but chilling pressure.

Cheng Xiufang was a little scared for some reason.

In the past few years, it seemed Cheng Suran's wings had grown tougher...

"If my father hadn't died, I wouldn't have been a burden to you, and you wouldn't have to compromise yourself for a measly hundred thousand yuan and an old house, right?" Cheng Suran looked at her with a cold smile.

Being told her thoughts, Cheng Xiufang's face turned blue and white, and her smile froze at the corner of her mouth, "You...do you think your short-lived father was some kind of a saint? He was a good-for-nothing drunkard on the streets. He would beat his wife if he didn't live a decent life. He even wanted to sell you off as a child bride to another family! Have you forgotten, huh? He tricked you into saying you wanted to play outside just to sell you!"

Hearing "Beat his wife", Cheng Suran's heart trembled and she felt something vaguely bursting out of the ground, but before she could catch it, her aunt's words came like a thunderbolt, which forcibly fell from the top of her head.

"Sell me?"

"That's right," Cheng Xiufang nodded angrily, "You were only six years old at that time, a little bit older, and you were here on my lap. Your short-lived father wanted to sell you to another village because he doesn't have the money for a second wife. He lied to you, saying you were going on a train ride to have fun. You happily went with him. Later, two policemen brought you back. They said you were almost sold. It was thanks to a little girl who saved you and even brought your short-lived dad back. Everyone in the village knows about this..."

She spoke rapidly and gestured intensely, her face turning red with excitement.

In Cheng Suran's mind, a blurry memory flickered.

Six years old, on a train.The image of a green train from her memory.

It wasn't a dream.

"2005?"

"Yeah, the Year of the Rooster."

"Who saved me?" Cheng Suran lunged forward, grabbing the woman's shoulders tightly.

Cheng Xiufang was startled, struggled twice, and said in a panic: "How would I know, the police just said it was a girl..."

"At which station was I rescued? Huh?"

"Li... Licang, I think that's what it's called. It's quite far. You had to take the old train for seven or eight stops."

A familiar name.

[Do you remember riding a train when you were a child, around five or six years old?]

[I vaguely remember riding it when I was very young, but I don't remember exactly how old I was…]

[When I was eighteen, I took a train to Jiangcheng. I saw a little girl crying on the platform, so I gave her this bunny.]

In 2005, she was six years old and Jiang Yu was eighteen years old.

Licang County is Jiang Yu's hometown in the encyclopedia information.

A green leather train, a little girl.

Could it be...

The fuzzy memory fragments seem to be strung together, but she still can't put together a complete picture. The fog surrounding her eyes is getting thinner and thinner, and an answer is looming to come out.

Cheng Suran's face gradually turned pale.

"Ran, Auntie won't lie to you. Just look at what kind of person your short-lived father was. He drove away his wife and wanted to sell his daughter. If he were still alive, you probably wouldn't have had a good life. Who knows where you'll be serving as a slave in some village now... Cheng Xiufang no longer held back, and she blurted out all the unspeakable things from the past. She wanted Cheng Suran to feel closer to her, hoping that her niece's success would bring prosperity to their family. Her hopes were pinned on Cheng Suran.

Before she could finish, Cheng Suran had already stopped listening. She pushed past her and hurried away.

The four bodyguards quickly followed.

"Hey–"

"Ranran!"

Her aunt shouted from behind.

Cheng Suran walked faster and faster...