However, Qi Youxuan did not seem to mind, instead, he was very happy throughout the journey, as long as he could stay with Ruan Danchen, he was content.

Ruan Danchen looked at Qi Youxuan’s joyful attitude, she didn’t feel upset, she always felt like she owed the boy too much, her hand was held firmly by him.

She paused and looked at Qi Chenglin, and saw that his expression was warm and gentle, and he slowly looked at her.

He whispered softly, “didn’t you want to help him design his new room? When the time comes just do a good job, and make him happy.”

Ruan Danchen felt warm in her heart, she didn’t know how this man could always see through her, always knew what her heart wanted, and even though there were rarely any sweet words, she always felt very affectionate.

Ruan Danchen blushed, and could not help but to come closer to him, lightly clinging onto his arm. Her hand had also turned, interlocking her fingers with his.

Qi Chenglin looked down at her, eyebrows raised, and could not help but smile.

After they paid, they returned to the store and let the staff package the goods to be loaded into the car. Qi Chenglin loaded it all into the car’s boot.

When they returned home, Ruan Danchen changed into her house clothes and went to the kitchen to prepare lunch, Qi Chenglin had rolled his sleeves up to his elbows, and sat crossed-legged on the floor, and started to assemble the wardrobe.

The assembly of the wardrobe was simple, just a few metal struts and boards, a heavy curtain, and a few smaller parts.

Ruan Danchen had finished making lunch and walked out to see father and son sitting on the floor, Qi Chenglin was setting the final few corners, while Qi Youxuan held the small parts, studying them intently, imitating his father.

Qi Chenglin reached out his hand to Qi Youxuan, without saying anything, and the little boy placed the necessary parts in his palm.

This scene was really heartwarming, and Ruan Danchen could not tear her eyes away. Thinking about family life, this would be it.

Qi Youxuan, with nothing to do, could no longer sit still and stood up, turned and saw Ruan Danchen looking at them.

“Aunty Ruan, what’s wrong?” Qi Youxuan ran over to her, seeing Ruan Danchen looking as though she might cry.

“It’s nothing. Lunch is ready. Go wash your hands, and come eat.” Ruan Danchen said, smiling smally, gently rubbing Qi Youxuan’s chubby face.

Qi Youxuan immediately ran over to the bathroom, and Ruan Danchen walked over to Qi Chenglin’s side, “finish it after you eat.”

“It’s just about done.” Qi Chenglin screwed on the last screw, and slapped the sides, it looked fairly sturdy.

He then pulled the wardrobe up, and placed it next to the TV cabinet.

Qi Chenglin looked at Ruan Danchen, knowing what was wrong, and firmly took her by the arms and pulled her into his embrace, “feels good, right? If you move in with us, it would be like this.”

“Okay.” Ruan Danchen said softly, the scene just now moving her so much she was about to cry.

She realized, ever since Qi Chenglin and Qi Youxuan had walked into her life, she could not bear to live alone again.

Every time Qi Chenglin took Qi Youxuan and left, leaving her alone at home, it was unbearably lonely. She had spent so many years living like this, and she had never felt lonely, but now it was so pervasive.

Qi Chenglin thought he misheard her, and paused, “what did you say?”

“I said okay. When the house is ready, I’ll move in with you.” Ruan Danchen said as she looked up, her soft whisper full of determination.

Qi Chenglin’s arms wrapped around her tightly, lowered his head and kissed her.

Ruan Danchen, in a daze, could only think of one thing, in a moment Qi Youxuan will see them.

Qi Youxuan had taken the opportunity to relieve himself in the bathroom, and had just stepped out, and turned to see Qi Chenglin kissing Ruan Danchen, his little hands immediately covered his eyes, and walked towards them even as he could not see, and banged his head on the dining table. It was a good thing that the table was curved, or it might have cut the skin.

In the stupor, Ruan Danchen could still hear a ‘bang’ and the little boy’s cry of “aiya!”.

Ruan Danchen snapped out of it, and urgently struggled her way out of Qi Chenglin’s embrace, making him release his grasp. She turned to see Qi Chenglin covering his head, on the floor.

“Youxuan, what’s wrong?” Ruan Danchen rushed over and helped him up, pulling his hand away. She saw a red lump on the little boy’s fair forehead, and her heart ached upon seeing it.

Qi Chenglin also walked over, his mood sour, this brat always kept saying how he wanted to help, but it would always turn out that he’d do just the opposite, is this the rhythm that would impede for a 100 years?

“I hit the dining table.” Qi Youxuan was in so much pain his eyes, so large you could see the whites and blacks, was misty with a layer of tears. His fluttering eyelashes were also laced with tears, that pitiful expression made Ruan Danchen’s heartache so much she thought she would die.

“Why didn’t you look where you were going?” Qi Chenglin asked unhappily, the good mood that was going on had been ruined by his own son.

The young lad Qi Youxuan was also upset, and fiercely looked up and glared at Qi Chenglin. “It’s all your fault, kissing indiscreetly, usually on the TV when people kiss, grandma would cover my eyes! Seeing you two kiss, how could I not cover my eyes!”

Qi Chenglin was speechless.

Ruan Danchen’s face turned crimson, they really had been seen by the child, and he only hit his head because he was trying to avoid it. She felt so bad inside.

Ruan Danchen was very embarrassed but didn’t know what to say. Her heart ached as she saw the growing red lump on his forehead. She touched it gently to test it, “does it hurt?”

The little boy was exceptionally upset, he had knocked his head hard, and his dad didn’t know how to comfort him, so he could only whine to Ruan Danchen, “it hurts.”

“Keep acting.” Qi Chenglin said, his face dark.

“Qi Chenglin, he’s already in so much pain, can your attitude be a little bit better?” Before Qi Youxuan could reply, Ruan Danchen had made her displeasure known.

Qi Chenglin pursed his lips sternly, he suddenly felt very depressed. Things were great just now, Ruan Danchen was reacting well to him, not to mention clingy, and now, almost in an instant, she was upset with him because of the boy.

He honestly felt that in Ruan Danchen’s heart, he was far below Qi Youxuan.

“I’m sorry, it’s our fault.” Ruan Danchen said, her heart still aching for the boy as she carried him, gently rubbing his back to comfort him.

Who knew, Qi Youxuan suddenly wailed with a “Wah”, burying his face in Ruan Danchen’s shoulder, a pair of chubby arms wrapping around her neck tightly. He was beside himself, crying.

“What’s wrong? Does it hurt that much?” Ruan Danchen was panicked by his crying, and comforted him endlessly, “it’s okay, I’ll make an ice pack for your forehead, it won’t hurt anymore, don’t cry.”

Who knew, Qi Youxuan’s head, which was still pressed against her shoulder, was shaking. “No… it’s not because it hurts… ooh…”

“Then what’s the matter?” Ruan Danchen asked worriedly, “if it doesn’t hurt why are you crying? Or does some other part of your body hurt?”

“Ooh…” the little boy’s arms hugged her tighter, his crying broke Ruan Danchen’s heart, “so this is what it’s like to have a mommy, to have mommy’s comfort when you’re hurt, ooh… Aunty Ruan you’re so kind, will you be my mommy?”

Ruan Danchen was stunned, she never thought that Qi Youxuan would be crying because of this. Hearing his words, her eyes stung with tears too.

“Ooh… when I’m with daddy at home, and I make him mad, only Nanny Zheng will secretly comfort me, I don’t have a mommy to defend me, since I was small until now, I’ve never had a mommy to fight with daddy because of me. The feeling of having a mommy to love me and take care of me is so good, ooh… Aunty Ruan, don’t leave daddy. Aunty Ruan, I like you a lot, I want you to be my mommy, I want a mommy that loves me, ooh… I want a mommy to tell me stories, tuck me in, I want a mommy to cook for me, send me to kindergarten, I want a mommy to kiss me and hug me, ooh… I want a mommy, ooh…”

Ruan Danchen’s heart was already breaking from the boy’s crying, and she broke down and cried too. This little boy never had a mother. When other children were with their mothers and fathers, he could only look on, never knowing what it would be like to have a mother of his own.

Qi Chenglin loved his son, but he was a man, and he could not easily show his emotions. Qi Youxuan needed a mother who would love and spoil him, whose heart would ache when he had accidents, and would hug and comfort him when he was at his weakest and on his knees.

A mother’s love would eternally be different from a father’s.

He could have a grandmother and a great-grandmother who loved him, but it would never substitute a mother’s love.

The little boy was so young and was always optimistic, and while he was always asking for a mother, he never made known his sadness about not having a mother. How could a six-year-old boy endure this much?

When he was alone at night, how much pain he was in, she didn’t dare imagine.

This little child, since he was aware of things, how did he endure it all this while?

Ruan Danchen carried the little boy with more energy, burying her own face into his shoulder, crying uncontrollably, really wanting to apologize to him that he had to suffer for so many years.

Even Qi Chenglin could tell, this time the little boy wasn’t putting on a show, he didn’t know what vigor had filled his heart to move his emotions that he had kept suppressed in that little heart of his, that was now being poured out.

Watching him cry until he was trembling, his body heaving and hiccuping, Qi Chenglin’s heart ached as well.

Watching Ruan Danchen holding Qi Youxuan, mother and son sobbing uncontrollably, Qi Chenglin sighed, and stepped forward two paces, coming in front of them.

An elegant hand reached out, and almost completely covered Qi Youxuan’s little head.

His hand pressed against Qi Youxuan’s head, rubbing it gently, and he spoke gently, “don’t cry, you’ve already made Aunty Ruan cry”

“Ooh…” the little boy kept crying, but upon hearing Qi Chenglin’s voice, he lifted his head, tears streaming down his face, seeing Ruan Danchen was also crying.

“Aunty Ruan, why are you crying too, don’t cry.” He lifted his hand and began to wildly wipe the tears from his face, and then reached out his wet hand to wipe Ruan Danchen’s tears too.

Ruan Danchen shook her head, seeing the little boy bean-sized tears were still falling, like pearls falling off a broken string. His tears were so clear and clean, it felt as though nothing in this world was cleaner than this boy’s tears.

“Youxuan, do you blame your mommy for never being there?” Ruan Danchen asked, crying, wiping his tears, they felt like fire, burning her skin, hurting her.

Qi Youxuan shook his head, blowing his nose, and hiccuped, “I don’t know, Nanny Zheng said… it’s not that mommy didn’t want me, she just couldn’t find me. But it’s been so many years, the Qi family is so famous, why can’t she find me? I don’t know…”

Ruan Danchen breathed deeply, her nose was blocked, at this moment every mouth sighed, chests aching.

In front of her eyes, a box of tissues suddenly appeared, it was held by a beautiful hand whose finger bones were clear and beautiful, Ruan Danchen looked up at Qi Chenglin, and took a tissue to wipe Qi Youxuan’s tears, only wiping her own after she had wiped his face clean.

Because she was crying, Qi Youxuan had calmed down somewhat and was no longer crying, but now it wasn’t just the lump on his forehead, his luminous eyes were also puffed red, making him look like a peach.

“Aunty Ruan, I’m not crying anymore, so don’t be sad.” Qi Youxuan used his pale hands to wipe her tears, his voice still trembling slightly.

“I’m not crying anymore.” Ruan Danchen forced a smile, but looking at Qin Youxuan’s puffy red eyes, her heart still bled.

She held Qi Youxuan’s face in both her hands, and breathing in hard from her nose, she spoke, “Youxuan, no matter what happens between me and your daddy, I will always love you like a mommy.”

Qi Youxuan did not speak, as Ruan Danchen wiped his tears, and sat him on a chair nearby, then got up and went to the kitchen. She took the ice tray out of the freezer, knocked out all the ice cubes, and wrapped them in a cloth, making an ice pack, before returning.

Sitting next to Qi Youxuan, Ruan Danchen placed the ice pack on his face. “How does that feel?”

The coolness neutralized the burning heat from his forehead, and Qi Youxuan nodded, “better.”

The child felt bad for letting her hand keep it up for so long, and so took the ice pack from her hands, holding it against his head by himself. Ruan Danchen helped him pick food, and put it on his plate, and with an ice pack in one hand, a pair of chopsticks in the other, he ate.

Ruan Danchen was worried that he’d get tired from holding the ice pack up by himself, and so she rushed through her meal, before returning to help him hold the ice pack.

After a while, Qi Youxuan’s mood improved considerably, and though his eyes were still red, his expressions were a lot more relaxed and ate with increasing gusto.

“Aunty Ruan, I feel a lot better now, you don’t need to hold it anymore.” Qi Youxuan said, while gnawing on a rib.

Ruan Danchen removed the ice pack, and looked at the redness of Qi Youxuan’s forehead. She couldn’t tell if it was red from the impact, or from the ice.

…

…

After lunch, Ruan Danchen cleared the table, Qi Youxuan sat for a moment, before he went to have his nap. After about 3 hours, he was woken by the sound of the doorbell.

Opening the door revealed that Qi Youxuan’s little bed and screen had arrived. With the two pieces of furniture placed, her small living room looked cramped, and with Qi Chenglin’s lanky body standing in the house, it felt like there wasn’t even space to move.

The child was so happy he immediately lay on his bed, rolling around in excitement. He rolled up, then down, then left, then right, until he was breathless, and lay spread-eagled on the bed.

“Aunty Ruan, before I sleep tonight, will you read me a story?” Qi Youxuan suddenly asked, lifting his head.

“Of course.” Ruan Danchen sat at the side of the bed, running her hand over his hair very affectionately, “will you be okay sleeping alone?”

While the living room was fairly cosy, it wasn’t as big as his room in the mansion. Furthermore, this wasn’t a place he was familiar with, and it was dark at night, connecting directly with the corridor and the main door, Ruan Danchen was worried he might get scared.

But Qi Youxuan wasn’t afraid, he blinked his eyes, thinking of making Ruan Danchen keep him company, but he was immediately seen through by Qi Chenglin, who suddenly coughed.

Qi Youxuan suddenly thought, at this time he needed to support daddy as much as he could to marry Aunty Ruan. After they were married, and she was his mommy, there would be all the opportunity to let her keep him company.

Thinking for a moment, he shook his head, “I’ll be okay.”

Ruan Danchen looked at Qi Chenglin with suspicion but saw him smiling approvingly at his son. Those attractive lips were curved attractively, warm and enticing.

Looking back at Qi Youxuan, he seemed proud that he had his father’s approval.

Ruan Danchen was speechless.

Qi Youxuan was finished rolling around, and climbed out of his bed, wiggling his little bum as he walked into Ruan Danchen’s bedroom. Then, she saw him run out of her room with his clothes, breathing hard.

The rotund body, and chubby limbs being so lively was so adorable, making Ruan Danchen imagine a chubby corgi.

Qi Youxuan put his clothes in the wardrobe, Ruan Danchen wanted to help him put his undergarments in the drawer, and the child blushed.

“Aunty Ruan, my underwear is still inside, I’d be embarrassed if you looked.” He said, his face red, head lowered, twisting his no so obvious hips.

Ruan Danchen felt like saying there was nothing to be ashamed about, but looking at Qi Youxuan, she let it go and allowed him to do it himself.

After a while, she realized that Qi Chenglin was missing, and she didn’t know where he was. She heard Qi Youxuan say, “I saw daddy walk into your room just now.”

‘…’ Ruan Danchen’s heart was beating erratically, gave the child a glance, who was concentrating on folding his clothes. While he was slow, it was very neat work. She went to her own room.

At the door, she saw the Qi Chenglin had already placed his luggage on the floor and opened it, putting all of his clothes on the bed. He was now placing them one by one into her own wardrobe.

Ruan Danchen blushed and saw that all her clothes were hung together, the wardrobe had been divided into two parts, one for him, and one for her.

Looking at their clothes being hung in the same wardrobe, a sense of unspoken intimacy permeated the atmosphere.

“Come and help me?” Qi Chenglin asked as he looked at her, a half-smile on his face.

Ruan Danchen looked at him, invading her home, previously with Qi Youxuan it didn’t feel that way, but now it was just her and Qi Chenglin, and the intimacy was too much.

She didn’t speak, her scalp itched as she took a hanger and hung his clothes in the wardrobe.

As Qi Chenglin saw that she was helping out, he turned to do something else, and pulled open the drawer where Ruan Danchen kept her inner-wear. Inside, he could see her bras and panties all arranged neatly, with enough space for his own.

Ruan Danchen turned, to see Qi Chenglin’s clean and long fingers holding her panties.

—

Mini scene:

One day, Wei Ziqi and Wei Ran brought Little Muran and Little Muche to Qi Chengzhi’s home to play. Qi Chenglin had also brought Ruan Danchen and Qi Youxuan along.

Qi Youxuan had pulled Little Muran to one side to chat, “do you know why I don’t let Aunty Ruan see my underwear?”

Wei Muran: “No.”

Qi Youxuan: “Because I’m saving it for you.”

Wei Ziqi: “Get lost.”

- - -

Ruan Danchen’s panties appeared particularly small and thin between Qi Chenglin’s fingernails. The scene of him holding panties in his hand was unbearable to watch.

“What are you doing?” Ruan Danchen’s face went as red as a beetroot and snatched her panties off Qi Chenglin’s hand.

“Tidying up the wardrobe so that I can put mine in. Where else do you have in mind?” There was a faint curve to Qi Chenglin’s lips when he asked.

Not only Ruan Danchen’s cheeks, but her whole face extending to the neck turned red. She lowered her head to avoid his gaze and hurried past him. When she stood in front of the wardrobe, pondering ways to reorganize the closet, she noticed Qi Chenglin continued to stare at it.

“Don’t look,” Ruan Danchen’s attempt to obstruct Qi Chenglin’s view on the wardrobe was to no avail as he was much taller than her. He could still take a look at the wardrobe by simply abducting his neck.

“You’re going to stay with me for the rest of your life and I’ll have to see it sooner or later, so why are you blocking?” Qi Chenglin raised his eyebrows in curiosity and his gaze shifted back to her hand which was holding her panties.

Ruan Danchen turned around swiftly and gathered all her undergarments, emptying a drawer. She then stuffed all the underclothes into another drawer and quickly closed it before saying, “This empty drawer is for you.”

However, Ruan Danchen did not expect to fall into Qi Chenglin’s embosom the moment she turned around. She had no clue since when Qi Chenglin creeped up behind her.

Qi Chenglin wrapped his arms around her waist and leaned forward, resting his forehead on hers, the way his lips lifted upwards appeared exceptionally seductive. With a croaky voice, he said, “Do we look like we’re having a married life?”

Ruan Danchen kept quiet and lowered her head, avoiding direct eye contact with Qi Chenglin due to embarrassment. Her cheeks were kissed pink like a spring rose, the blooming color so cute against her fair skin. Qi Chenglin’s muscular arms around her waist squeezed a fraction tighter. He could not hold himself further and began nuzzling her ear with delicate kisses.

Qi Chenglin felt Ruan Danchen’s tremble in his embosom and heard her whisper. “Youxuan is outside now,”

Qi Chenglin covered her mouth with his in a hungry kiss and said, “I’m just kissing you, not going to do anything else.”

“…” Ruan Danchen was at a loss of words.

Kissing was considered not going to do anything else?

…

…

Qi Chenglin wanted to bring the kid for bathe at night, but there was no bathtub in Ruan Danchen’s house and the kid had never showered using a shower faucet before.

Upon hearing Qi Chenglin’s words, Qi Youxuan hurried behind Ruan Danchen and hugged her thighs, protesting. “Two men having a shower together? Then you’ll see me naked, this is outrageous! Aunt Ruan, I’m taking a shower with you.”

“…” Qi Chenglin was left speechless and lifted him up, away from Ruan Danchen. “Do you think it is more reasonable for her to see you naked than me? I had seen everything since you were born.”

The kid was mortified and quickly covered his private part. “I only planned to let Mumu see!”

“…” Ruan Danchen and Qi Chenglin was dumbfounded.

Qi Chenglin’s mouth twitched a little and said, “Don’t ever let Wei Ziqi hear this, otherwise you won’t be meeting his precious daughter for the rest of your life.”

He carried Qi Youxuan to the bathroom as he spoke.

Now that Ruan Danchen’s house had liven up with addition of a man and a son, this experience brought a smile on her face.

She then proceeded to make Qi Youxuan’s bed. Approximately forty minutes later, she heard Qi Youxuan’s yell across the bathroom. “Aunt Ruan, I forgot to take my pajamas.”

Ruan Danchen searched for Qi Youxuan’s pajamas in the cabinet then hurried to the bathroom after she found it. The door was closed and she could still hear the splashing sound from the shower faucet.

She knocked on the door and it opened momentarily. There Qi Chenglin was, standing at the doorstep naked. The water dripped down his hair softly and the drops slowly made their way to his body and the perfect abs he had.

Ruan Danchen was shocked, amazed, flabbergasted, mesmerized by this scenery. Her mouth was frozen wide open in an expression of stunned surprise like her brain cogs could not turn fast enough to take in the information from her wide eyes. Her gaze unconsciously shifted downwards as her mind went blank.

Qi Chenglin did not bother to cover himself and just stood there calmly.

His physique appeared more mature and well-toned after seven years. His abdominals were sculptured to perfection as his six-packs popped but they did not exert pressure on Ruan Danchen.

The Apollo’s belt on his body was drool-worthy.

Ruan Danchen’s blush seared through her cheeks and for a minute she thought her face was on fire and about to explode when her gaze shifted further downwards.

“Care to join me?” Qi Chenglin mocked with a croaky voice.

Ruan Danchen stared into his gaze which had a tinge of happiness in it.

“Disgusting,” She uttered softly in embarrassment.

Then she put Qi Youxuan’s pajamas into Qi Chenglin’s wet arms and hurried off to her bedroom.

Ruan Danchen could feel her pounding tachycardia almost bursting through her chest upon shutting the door.

Every detail of that scene etched into her brain. She could not wave those images away and they became clearer instead in her memory lane.

She could not help but recalled the moment she accidentally witnessed Qi Chenglin passing urine in men’s washroom during Song Yu’s wedding party. He acted the same way too, standing there calmly and did not bother to cover his private part. She felt like he was showing it to her on purpose at that time.

What an indecent bastard!

A moment later, there was a knock on the door. “Aunt Ruan, are you there?”

Ruan Danchen took a deep breath and looked at herself in the mirror. She had calmed down from the embarrassment just now but her face remained red as a rose.

She opened the door to Qi Youxuan who was wearing pajamas with teddy bear, checkered pattern. His skin appeared pinkish and his hair that had been coiffured and held with hair gel initially was now hung limp after a hot shower. Qi Chenglin probably dried Qi Youxuan’s hair as it was not wet at the moment.

“We’re done with the shower,” Qi Youxuan said.

Qi Chenglin was already in the living room watching Qi Youxuan’s favorite cartoon series when Ruan Danchen came out. One would not believe that he was actually watching ‘Pleasant Goat and Big Big Wolf’ with the serious expression on his face.

Qi Chenglin suddenly turned his head towards Ruan Danchen. His eyes seemed to gleam with baleful fire as he locked his gaze onto her.

Ruan Danchen’s lower limbs almost sank under her and she quickly avoided direct eye contact. She hurried back to her bedroom, retrieved her pajamas and rushed into the bathroom.

Qi Youxuan shifted his gaze from Qi Chenglin to Ruan Danchen, wondering about the weirdness of adults’ actions. Knowing that he would not be able to understand at this age, he gave up and continued watching his cartoon show. Even though he felt this show was childish, this was the only available cartoon show on screen, at least it was better than nothing.

However, who would have thought Qi Chenglin would suddenly turned off the television.

“Dad, what are you doing? I’m still watching the show,” Qi Youxuan felt annoyed and wanted to grab the remote control, but Qi Chenglin quickly kept it away.

“You will sleep earlier tonight,” Qi Chenglin carried Qi Youxuan up easily like he was picking up a doll.

Qi Youxuan could not do anything but to let Qi Chenglin put him down on the new bed that they just bought for him.

“Are you insane? It’s eight o’clock right now and I usually sleep at nine o’clock during the holidays,” The kid complained and resisted.

“…” Qi Chenglin stared at him, his voice deep and calm. “You’re going to bed early tonight and go to your grandmother’s house tomorrow. I have told her to allow you to have chocolate as snacks.”

Qi Youxuan stopped resisting upon hearing this and gazed upon him. “Dad, can you stop dismissing me like I was just a three years old kid?”

“What do you want?” Qi Chenglin felt slightly annoyed.

“I want a whole set of Gundam figures,” Qi Youxuan blurted out as if he had thought this through.

“Don’t be greedy,” Qi Chenglin smirked – just a small pouting of the lips and narrowing of the eyes.

“If you don’t promise me this, then I’ll ask Aunt Ruan to tell me bedtime stories until midnight and even ask her to hug me until I sleep. Aunt Ruan likes me so she won’t reject my pleads. Do you think I don’t know why you want me to sleep earlier? You just want to hug Aunt Ruan and sleep,” Qi Youxuan sat on the bed with his chubby legs crossed and head tilted upwards.

“Where did you learn all these nonsense?” Qi Chenglin felt speechless and asked.

“Usually the drama series have this kind of stuff. There was one scene where an uncle went above an aunt in bed and started kissing in a romance drama last night. I know you wanted to do the same to Aunt Ruan too. Didn’t you guys just kissed this afternoon?” Qi Youxuan said.

“…” Qi Chenglin was dumbfounded and decided to limit Qi Youxuan’s time on television, but he let this matter go at the moment and said, “You will sleep at eight o’clock sharp every night when you’re here and you’re not allowed to ask Aunt Ruan to tell you bedtime stories for too long.”

“She will tell you bedtime stories for only half an hour max, no more than that, and don’t even think about asking her to accompany you to sleep. I will buy it for you if you comply,” Qi Chenglin took a glance at his watch and said.

“A whole set of Gundam series?” Qi Youxuan asked for confirmation.

“One whole set,” Qi Chenglin twitched his lips in annoyance and made a promise.

Qi Youxuan trusted what his father said as he was a man of his words.

Qi Chenglin promised to take Aunt Ruan back to Prestige Residences permanently and looked at him now, seeking shelter in her house in order to achieve his goal.

Thus Qi Youxuan nodded lightly and said, “You’re also going to allow Grandma to give me a packet of chocolate as a snack tomorrow.”

“Only for tomorrow,” Qi Chenglin bargained.

“Deal,” Qi Youxuan hissed through gritted teeth and appeared frustrated as if Qi Chenglin was desperately bargaining for best possible price on his goods.

Qi Youxuan noticed his father remained still on the bedside. He quickly buried himself under the blanket and closed his eyes. “Alright, I’m sleeping now.”

Qi Chenglin felt funny looking at his son’s action but he contained his laughter. He suddenly recalled another issue while leaving and said, “You’re forbidden to watch those nonsense on the television. I’ll inform Aunt Zheng later to supervise you on that.”

Qi Youxuan let out a heavy sigh, feeling as if he had just shot himself in the foot.

…

…

Ruan Danchen was done with shower and changed into a set of dull cotton pajamas. She found herself submerged in a world of darkness after exiting the bathroom. She slowly creeped towards where the kid’s bed was supposed to be and noticed that the kid was sleeping rather unsightly.

One of the blanket’s corners was resting on his belly and his lower limbs were exposed. The pants were pulled upwards, revealing two fair-skinned legs.

Ruan Danchen sat quietly on his bed in fear of waking the kid up. After her eyes were acclimatized to the darkness, she could visualize the cute face of the sleeping child.

Ruan Danchen’s expression softened unconsciously at the sight of the kid. She did not even realize that her lips curled into a gentle smile at that moment.

She could not contain her urge to stroke the kid’s soft hair and caressed his face gently. She then leaned forward and kissed him on the forehead.

She stood up, preparing to leave even though she was unwilling to do so and wanted to stare at this cute scenery forever.

“Aunt Ruan, I wasn’t asleep yet,” The kid voiced out suddenly.

Ruan Danchen turned around in astonishment and noticed his big, round eyes appearing particularly sparkling amongst the darkness.

“I thought you said you wanted to tell me a bedtime story? I will sleep after you did so,” Qi Youxuan cleared out some space and gestured Ruan Danchen to sit.

Ruan Danchen grinned and sat down, wrapping her arm around his shoulder and told him a bedtime story softly.

Qi Youxuan started to doze off under Ruan Danchen’s soft and gentle voice. He was already asleep within half an hour of storytelling.

It was satisfying that she could put Qi Youxuan to bed. She kissed him on the forehead again before leaving him.

However, she halted right before her bedroom. The peace and calmness just a moment ago was now replaced with anxiety.

She knew that Qi Chenglin was waiting eagerly inside for her. He mentioned there was no place to sleep in during his house refurbishment, but that was just an excuse for him to stay here and have copulation with her.

Qi Chenglin’s gaze was burning hot as if wanted to swallow her whole when she was about to go for a shower. He would have barged into the bathroom if Qi Youxuan was not here.

Ruan Danchen knew she could not escape her fate and it was just a matter of time. However her hands trembled under anxiety and stress as she did not know how to deal with him after she entered the room.

She experienced tachypnea and was aware of the sound of her heart throbbing against the cage of her chest. She held the doorknob, summoning up the courage to twist and open it, but then the door opened itself.

There Qi Chenglin stood, leaning against the wall while emitting scents from her shower gel. Both of them used the same shower gel but the scent he emitted was mixed with the aroma of masculinity, radiating a smell that only belonged to him.

Ruan Danchen was frozen to the spot, feeling breathless as his eyes studied her with silent intensity. Soon after, his voice mixed with slight contempt was heard above her head. “What are you doing outside?”

Ruan Danchen mustered up her courage and looked at him in the eye. She could feel the heat growing in her cheeks, by now they must be beyond an attractive rosiness. Qi Chenglin’s heart immediately softened upon witnessing the cute, red face on Ruan Danchen.

Ruan Danchen was expecting Qi Chenglin to pull her into the bedroom and do whatever he wanted, but to her surprise, he backed off a little to clear out some space for her to enter the room as she pleased.

He did not want to demand anything as it would be meaningless to coerce Ruan Danchen into performing actions she did not wish for.

With her hands clasped tightly in front of her stomach, she constantly fiddled with her knuckles, weaving her fingers in and out of each other. Somehow, she knew Qi Chenglin’s intention, but she took a deep breath and stepped into the room nonetheless.

Ruan Danchen liked Qi Chenglin, so she did not want to reject him.

She also felt extremely difficult to reject an awesome man like Qi Chenglin.

He was usually calm and mature but at times, he acted indecently. Whichever identity he used, it would induce anxiety and palpitations in Ruan Danchen.

Ruan Danchen adored his calmness and steadiness. His maturity was right on point for a man aged thirty-three years old. She fell deeply in love whenever she witnessed his confidence and elegance.

However, she would get butterflies in her stomach whenever Qi Chenglin disregarded his pride and clinged onto her. She did not expect that a man as calm and restrained as him had another secret identity of indecency. She was always taken by surprise whenever he shifted identity and acted accordingly.

Ruan Danchen just took the first step before she was yanked into Qi Chenglin’s embosom with the door slowly closing behind them. She was turned around and felt the world was spinning around her before ending up in bed with Qi Chenglin on top of her.

Qi Chenglin was extremely gentle with his kiss, much to Ruan Danchen’s surprise. His lips were firm against hers, but the kiss remained soft, gentle and slow, which was in contrast from the burning intensity his eyes radiated.

“Qi Chenglin…” Her voice trembled. “After that night, I didn’t…”

“I know, I’m your first love,” Qi Chenglin felt his heart throbbed when he said this.

Qi Chenglin was Ruan Danchen’s first love and he took her virginity. This was the most exciting and unforgettable experience for a man. This memory had embedded in his mind and he was grateful for it.

“I know what we’re going to do later will be similar to what had happened on that night. I couldn’t control myself and wasn’t gentle enough seven years ago, but that will change tonight. Besides, you’re not the only one alone after seven years. I never had any woman too since then,” Qi Chenglin brushed his lips on hers while saying with a husky voice.

“Perhaps I would disappoint you tonight,” He smiled, lacking in confidence.

Ruan Danchen was astonished at his statement. His sexual desire was so strong, how could he possibly had not touched any woman for seven years? He would always tried to have a sexual relationship with her just moments after re-acquainted. How could he possibly contain his impulses if he was alone all these years?

However she did not have time to think this through as Qi Chenglin slammed his lips onto hers, and the lips moved together like two dancers sashaying through a melody. His body, lips and hands were pressed against her. His fingers gently ran up and down her body, coaxing shivers out of her. She had no idea when her pajamas was removed and Qi Chenglin savoured every inch of her body.

Ruan Danchen contracted her lower abdomen. Warmth radiated from the spot where his lips touched and slowly spreading through the rest of her, sending wild tremors along her nerves. Her arms reached up and tangled on his shoulders, waiting for the moment he pressed in.

Qi Chenglin tightened his embosom and rained down gentle kisses on her from eyebrows to the tips of the nose, finally ending up on her plump, velvety lips. His body began to tremble uncontrollably with excitement when his body was perfectly compatible with hers.

He felt incredibly touched when he finally regained his masculinity and able to release his sexual impulses after seven years.

Ruan Danchen was the only one who could make him aroused and awakened his body that was in sexually vegetative state. He loved it when a gentle flush of pink had arisen in her cheeks that made her look vulnerable.

Ruan Danchen felt herself hugged tightly by him and at the same time, her tightness enveloped him. She felt like crying for some reason and pressed her head against his sculpted chest, hugging him back firmly.

…

…

Ruan Danchen was resting peacefully under his embosom. Her eyes were misty and she was exhausted after what he had done to her.

The two of them were closely bonded, their bodies united as one. Ruan Danchen felt anxious and her heart was racing at an incredible speed.

Qi Chenglin gazed upon the delicacy under him. He was unsure whether the experience was the same as seven years ago, but right now he felt extremely satisfied. Looking at Ruan Danchen’s eyes which were lustrous, coquettish and mixed with a little embarrassment, his mood lightened up. In just a few moments, the flaccid became big and woody hard again.

“Are you getting used to me now?” Qi Chenglin pressed his lips on her lustrous eyelids out of excitement.

“Qi Chenglin!” Ruan Danchen exclaimed. Who would have thought he would act like this.

“Sh. Be a good girl. My craving wasn’t satisfied enough because I feared I may accidentally hurt you. This time I’ll unleash my full potential,” Qi Chenglin caressed her soft skin as he comforted her softly.

“…” Ruan Danchen could not help but pondered, if he did not unleash his full potential just now, what could he possibly do later?

Qi Chenglin put his weight on top of her again before she could protest. Soon his scent wrapped around her body as he planted his mark into her.

…

…

Qi Chenglin did not rest for the whole night and Ruan Danchen had no idea how he regained his energy in such a short time. He would always reasoned that he had not unleashed his full potential or his cravings were not satisfied yet every single time. Some research had found out that men had limited energy for this sort of action. It would be impossible for men to copulate for multiple times in a day, and even once per day would be considered inhuman.

The Japanese pornographic actors could not perform for multiple times in a day and each video required days to complete.

However, this did not apply to this man!

Ruan Danchen only let out soft moans because the kid was just outside of their room, but in the end, she did not have the strength to moan anymore. She just laid flat on bed rather lazily and let Qi Chenglin did whatever he wanted on her.

She was getting annoyed at him now. What kind of man was this who did not even allow her time to rest!

It was late at night when Qi Chenglin came pressing on her again. Ruan Danchen could not contain her annoyance any longer and kicked him on his calf with all her might. “Qi Chenglin, what happened to you? Are you done yet?”

“…” Qi Chenglin was taken aback. He realized that she was really annoyed right now and his actions tonight were too much for her to handle.

However, he could not help it. After all, he had erectile dysfunction for the past seven years and now he felt himself resurrected back to life. This experience was too addicting and he wanted to relive this addiction over and over again, so inevitably his action became beyond measure.

His spear was getting blunt over the years, and now he wanted to sharpen it again.

Ruan Danchen quickly rolled over to the edge of the bed. She would have run out of the room if her lower limbs and abdomen were not sore after all the actions.

Qi Chenglin closed in on her despite the awkwardness.

“Get lost!” Ruan Danchen was getting angry now. She mustered up all her strength and kicked him on the calf again.

How could she go to work if he was being insistent?

Ruan Danchen raised her arm, trying to find her phone on the bedside table, but her arm gave way as the muscles were sore and fatigued out.

Ruan Danchen’s feet were soft thus the kicks she sent did not induce pain on Qi Chenglin. In fact, he was being masochistic as her kicks made him comfortable.

“Cut it out. I won’t ask for more, alright? I just want to hug you and sleep,” Qi Chenglin closed in on her again shamelessly and his arms tangled around her paper-thin waist from behind.

“Get lost, you’re not allowed to hug me! Give you an inch and you’ll take a mile. I’m angry at you!” Ruan Danchen grabbed his thick, muscular arms around her waist and tried to pull them off. “You came here shamelessly and insisted to… I accepted my fate. We will come to this stage sooner or later since we’re in a relationship now, but this was only the first night and you were already asking for this much. How do you expect us to live for the rest of our lives?”

Qi Chenglin was surprised at her reaction. Judging from her voice, it was not just a simple annoyance. He did not expect just a few rounds of coitus would enraged her.

Naturally, Qi Chenglin did not release her and instead, his grip on her waist tightened. Qi Chenglin blamed himself for his lack of self-control and consideration for Ruan Danchen after listening to her upset voice.

“It’s my fault for my lack of self-control. I promise this won’t repeat again,” Qi Chenglin hugged her delicate softness tightly, savoring the satisfaction after their bonding actions. He was in a really good mood and would not mind her attitude right now.

“Don’t be angry, I won’t ask for more. That’s all for tonight,” Qi Chenglin began nuzzling her shoulder with delicate kisses, working his way to the nape of her neck. This back and forth lips caressing made Ruan Danchen felt itchy.

Ruan Danchen remained silent as she was dispirited right now.

“Turn around and let me hug you,” Qi Chenglin whispered against her earlobe.

Ruan Danchen remained still for a while.

“Are you still mad at me? Turn around, I want to take a look at your face,” Qi Chenglin said.

Qi Chenglin was usually strict and firm towards Qi Youxuan, but now he was well-tempered and comforting her gently. Ruan Danchen felt there was a huge contrast in his attitudes.

She tried to move, then she said, “Can’t move, my muscles are sore right now.”

“…” Qi Chenglin regretted his inconsiderate actions. Her body ached in just one night, what would happen tomorrow night? What if she rejected him due to intense body ache? He could not force her into coitus.

From now on, he decided to learn from this mistake for the better future.

Qi Chenglin flipped her around to face him and stared at her red face and the teardrops on her eyelashes. It was obvious that she was sexually tormented by him.

Qi Chenglin let out a heavy sigh. He leaned forward and kissed her on the eyelids, sucking the teardrops off her eyelashes. Then he comforted her with a soft voice. “Sorry.”

The sight of Qi Chenglin trying desperately to comfort her was enough to release the breath Ruan Danchen did not know she was holding. She would appear unreasonable if she did not forgive him after all his effort in comforting her. With the sigh, her arms encircled his well-defined waist. Just when she closed her eyes and was about to sleep peacefully, she was poked by him.

“Qi Chenglin!” Ruan Danchen hissed through gritted teeth as the inside of her thighs was swollen and painful after all the actions.

“…” Qi Chenglin felt wronged, his usual matured look now replaced with innocence. “I didn’t do it on purpose.”

Since Qi Chenglin did not get angry with Ruan Danchen kicking him for multiple times, her courage was boosted, so she kicked him again.

Qi Chenglin was helpless so he got off the bed and put on his shorts. He went to the washroom without tightening his shorts.

Ruan Danchen was alone in bed now but for some reason, she could not sleep. Somehow her brain was haywired as all of a sudden she felt pity for that man whom she just dismissed.

She buried herself under a blanket, feeling troubled and uneasy. She gazed upon the ceiling which was now etched in charcoal, feeling the warmth on her cheeks. She would believe all of these were just a dream if her muscles were not sore right now.

Qi Chenglin returned momentarily. His unzipped pants hung loosely around his hips, revealing the well sculpted six-packs and the sexy Apollo’s belt.

He pushed his pants off on his way towards the bed, which ended up falling on the floor. He walked over his pants towards the other side of the bed and did not even bother to cover his private part.

Ruan Danchen was not as indecent as Qi Chenglin and she shut her eyes in embarrassment.

Qi Chenglin got into the bed and laughed when he saw Ruan Danchen shut her eyes out of anxiety. He reached out to her and pulled her back into his embosom. He would not be able to sleep alone after getting used to hugging her and sleep.

“Let’s sleep,” Qi Chenglin leaned forward and planted a kiss on her forehead, then he wrapped his arms around her before falling asleep.

…

…

It was half past six o’clock in the morning when Ruan Danchen’s preset alarm clock rang.

Ruan Danchen was reluctant in moving her arm as she felt fatigued after one whole night of exercising.

She unconsciously turned her back towards Qi Chenglin after submerged herself in deep sleep, and he continued hugging her from behind throughout the night.

Ruan Danchen was physically exhausted right now. Her eyelids felt heavy and she fumbled around the bedside table to turn off the alarm amidst the mental cloudiness. She knew it was time to get up but at the moment, her body gave way to gravity, shaky and weak.

While her mentality was trapped in blurriness and her eyes remained shut in half-awaken state, she felt movements behind her. Her lips was genty pecked before she heard a husky voice of a man who just woke up but not fully awakened yet. “Sleep in, I’m going to get us some breakfast.”

Ruan Danchen did not recognize the owner of the voice amidst the blurriness but she felt peaceful and secured after hearing it. She replied with a soft “Hum” before passing out in a leaden, death-like slumber.

Qi Chenglin took a glance at Ruan Danchen after he carefully got off the bed. Serenity was plastered across her face as she slept and it made him feel happy and blessed.

He opened the cabinet and noticed his clothes were arranged tidily right next to Ruan Danchen’s. This lightened up his mood and put a smile on his face.

He took out a formal shirt and a set of suit from the cabinet, then he went to the washroom after exiting the bedroom.

He was surprised to see Qi Youxuan wide awake, brushing his teeth with his ultrasonic toothbrush when he opened the washroom’s door.

“Up so early?” Qi Chenglin walked towards the toilet basin and grabbed Ruan Danchen’s toothpaste, squeezing it on his own toothbrush.

“I went to bed earlier last night so I got up earlier too,” Qi Youxuan mumbled with the toothbrush in his mouth.

“Early to bed and early to rise makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise. Apply this method from now on,” Qi Chenglin was pleased with this result and said.

“…” Qi Youxuan was at a loss of words.

Qi Chenglin was done tidying up himself and changed into his suit, then he took his wallet, preparing to leave the house. Qi Youxuan noticed that his father was going out alone, so he asked out of curiosity, “Dad, where are you going?”

“I’m going out to buy breakfast. Your Aunt Ruan was exhausted, let her sleep a while more,” Qi Chenglin explained.

“I’m going with you,” Qi Youxuan said quickly. He missed the Tianjin-style Jianbing sold at the morning stall outside.

In the end, the duo went out together and bought three Tianjin-style Jianbing. There was no chopped green onions in the breakfast as they feared the strong scent of it may linger in their mouths.

It was nearly half past seven o’clock when they came back due to a long queue at the morning stall.

Qi Chenglin poured soy milk into a cup and let Youxuan have his breakfast first before waking Ruan Danchen up in her bedroom.

Ruan Danchen was well rested after she slept for another hour. Her eyelashes were full of crusted rheum that accumulated throughout the night, and her eyelids snapped open when Qi Chenglin called out to her.

Her mind was still hazy after she woke up, who would have thought the first thing she saw was Qi Chenglin’s handsome face.

Now the walls between them broke down and they were more closely bonded after the actions last night, but her current image was not appealing at all, especially after she just woke up. She quickly buried herself in a blanket and rubbed the crusted rheum off her eyes before emerging from the blanket again.

Qi Chenglin felt funny looking at Ruan Danchen. “Wake up, it’s time for breakfast. It’s half past seven now and your work starts at nine o’clock. We have to send Youxuan to my parents in between, so we should go out at eight o’clock based on my calculations.”

“Go out and let me get dressed,” Ruan Danchen mumbled through the blanket.

Qi Chenglin’s lips curled upwards, his gaze locked on Ruan Danchen induced anxiety and stress on her. All of a sudden, his hand slipped into her blanket and onto the perfect softness she possessed.

“Qi Chenglin!” Ruan Danchen cried out. Her body trembled uncontrollably as energy left her gradually.

“I haven’t had my breakfast yet, consider this an appetizer,” Qi Chenglin leaned closer to her and whispered.

Ruan Danchen’s face went as red as a ripe strawberry. His action was contradictory to the high quality suit and appearance.

Qi Chenglin stopped teasing her and smiled before leaving the room.

Ruan Danchen winced in pain as she got off the bed, quickly got dressed despite every movement caused some muscles or bones to ache. When she exited her bedroom towards the washroom, she saw Qi Chenglin and Qi Youxuan sitting at the dining table, munching on the Tianjin-style Jianbing in unison.

Ruan Danchen felt weird looking at Qi Chenglin crunching on the Tianjin-style Jianbing in a well-tailored, expensive suit.

She hurried to the washroom to brush her teeth and applied simple makeup in a flash.

It was eight o’clock when she was fully prepared and there was not enough time for breakfast.

“Have your breakfast in the car,” Qi Chenglin said. He had poured the remaining soy milk into a Thermos cup just now.

Qi Chenglin carried the Thermos cup while Ruan Danchen held the Tianjin-style Jianbing, and the duo brought Qi Youxuan out together.

It was a hectic morning, but Ruan Danchen felt happy that she was able to experience the married life she longed for.

…

…

Qi Chenglin drove to Jade Field Park to drop off Qi Youxuan to his grandparents.

Aunt Chen was waiting at the villa when Qi Chenglin and Ruan Danchen exited the car together. She was there when Guan Liya, Qi Zhongxun and Qi Chengyue were celebrating Qi Chenglin’s engagement in a relationship, so inevitably she knew Ruan Danchen’s identity. She greeted happily to Ruan Danchen while Qi Chenglin introduced them to each other.

Aunt Chen just fetched Qi Youxuan over when Guan Liya trotted towards them.

Guan Liya stood near the window sill waiting eagerly for her grandson after her breakfast, and she rushed out of the house when she saw Ruan Danchen came too.

“Hi, what a coincidence, you came too?” Guan Liya asked with excitement. She gazed upon Ruan Danchen like she was looking at her daughter-in-law.

“We came out from Aunt Ruan’s house just now,” Qi Youxuan said.

“Fetching Danchen to work early in the morning?” Guan Liya was happy that the duo had strong affection for each other.

“No, we stayed at Aunt Ruan’s house since last night,” Qi Youxuan blurted out.

Guan Liya was taken by surprise at Qi Youxuan’s statement. Qi Chenglin had no choice but to explain to her. “My house was in refurbishment and now full of awful smell, so we’re now staying at her house for the time being.”

“…” Guan Liya was dumbfounded. The duo insisted to stay at Ruan Danchen’s house despite the fact that there were so many empty rooms in the villa.

“Is there enough space in Danchen’s house?” Even though Guan Liya had never been to Ruan Danchen’s house, she figured that Ruan Danchen fell in the lower-middle economic class as she worked alone without any support. Furthermore, she was an unmarried woman, she could not possibly live in a huge mansion.

“More than enough! Dad and Aunt Ruan slept in the same room and they bought a new mattress and cabinet for me!” Qi Youxuan nodded quickly.

Qi Youxuan’s train of thought was simple. His grandmother would insist them to stay at the villa if any one of them said there was not enough room in Ruan Danchen’s house, then he would have lost the opportunity to live with Ruan Danchen.

It was obvious to Guan Liya that Qi Chenglin basically used any possible excuses just to stay over at Ruan Danchen’s house to live with her.

Guan Liya felt embarrassed to admit that Qi Chenglin was her son based on his shameless attitude.

However, it was a rare sight that Qi Chenglin would take the initiative and courted a woman. When he was introduced to many women, and some even appear appealing to him, he would still appeared calm as if these were not important at all. All the previous dates were perfunctory, a duty done, a ritual performed. There was no initiative involved in any dates he went to.

Guan Liya felt pleased at that time because at least Qi Chenglin would give it a try.

However, when Qi Chenglin tried every possible method, throwing away his dignity and pride in order to start a relationship with Ruan Danchen, Guan Liya then realized, previously he did not go for a date, he merely went for a meal with a stranger.

Ruan Danchen felt especially embarrassed now and did not have the courage to face Guan Liya. She feared Guan Liya would think that she was an indecent woman who let Qi Chenglin stayed over after a few days of being in a relationship.

Qi Chenglin grabbed her hand at this very moment. She gazed upon her hand buried under his clean, elegant hand, feeling the firm grip that squeezed her hand, it made her feel deeply secured.

“Danchen will be late if we don’t leave now. We’ll return tonight to fetch Youxuan,” Qi Chenglin reverted back to his usual calmness and said with a mellow voice.

“Since you’re coming back tonight, let’s have dinner together. I’ll ask Chengyue and Dongge to come and join us. If Chengzhi and Song Yu are free tonight then ask them to join us too,” Guan Liya said.

“Alright,” Qi Chenglin promised. Ruan Danchen bid them farewell before entering the car with Qi Chenglin.

…

…

Chengshi was just around the corner when Ruan Danchen said, “Can you please park your car at the corner there?”

“Am I unpresentable?” Qi Chenglin gave her a cold stare.

“No. I’ll explain to you once you parked your car,” Ruan Danchen said with a serious face.

Qi Chenglin’s complexion paled with anger but he obeyed her command and parked his car.

He turned towards her and said after turning off the engine, “Explain yourself.”

Ruan Danchen bit her lip and grabbed his hand. Qi Chenglin’s stern expression softened up and raised his eyebrows in response to her trying to apple-polish him.

“I don’t want to let any commotion going on in the company. I don’t want to get comments like how I social climbed on you and let them poisoned the public against me. Plus, I don’t want Director Zhao acting solicitous towards me or taking advantage of me for his own benefits. It’s unwise to mix business with pleasure. I don’t want you to get yourself into trouble by giving special privileges to Chengshi just because of me,” Ruan Danchen said.

“The business that I will give Chengshi are negligible and won’t even influence the outcome, so why should I care? Besides, if these can let my woman feel less stressed at work, then what’s wrong with it? Why shouldn’t I do it if I have the ability to do so?” Qi Chenglin raised his eyebrows and said naturally.

Ruan Danchen could not help but let out a smile after listening to his statement which radiated dominance and power.

“You mentioned that the influence on the outcome is negligible, but still there’s a slight influence, right? I don’t want you to make yourself difficult at work. Our relationship was personal, I don’t want to drag official work in too. There’s one more important point, my mom came looking for me the other day. Coincidentally, you went to work overtime and it was Xiao Yang and Youxuan who fetched me. She saw me getting into this car and even asked me who am I with.”

Ruan Danchen let out a heavy sigh and continued. “She wanted to prove herself so much in the Shen family, but she didn’t even get a proper identity after all these years. This became her obsession. I feared what the Shen family would do if she knew about this. I don’t really care, to be honest, but I don’t want Youxuan to get involved with this.”

“Do you wish to keep this a secret forever? Do you not want to marry me?” Qi Chenglin asked.

Ruan Danchen was taken aback by his question. She was Youxuan’s biological mother but to be frank, she had never given much thought about this and did not ponder the possibility of marrying to Qi Chenglin.

Ruan Danchen’s mind went blank as she stared at Qi Chenglin’s hand. If Qi Chenglin was planning on marriage, sooner or later this secret would be uncovered.

Then, Qi Chenglin’s firm and strong voice traveled to her ears. “We had just started a relationship, I forgive you for your lack of confidence and not recognizing my true power. I will cooperate with you for the time being if you wish to keep this a secret, but the cooperation will be short-lived. You will learn to depend on your man and you will know that I will be there no matter what happens. I will give benefits to Chengshi if that makes your life in the company better. You fear the Shen family, then I will let you know, I’m more powerful than them.”

Ruan Danchen felt like her heart was trembling. She took a deep breath and stared at Qi Chenglin. She suddenly realized that she had fallen in love with this man.

She realized that she did not merely like him anymore. She loved all his qualities—his gentleness, his rascal-like behavior, his responsibility, and the way he tried to protect her.

“Not getting out of the car?” said Qi Chenglin stared at her with the corner of his mouth curling upward while she was lost in thought.

Ruan Danchen collected her thoughts and pinched his hand yearningly. Suddenly, she did not feel like going to work, she just wished she could stay by his side now.

This was the first time she experienced the feeling of loving someone, and she truly wished she could look at him all the time.

“Drive safely,” said Ruan Danchen softly.

Suddenly, Qi Chenglin unbuckled his seatbelt and leaned toward her. He placed his blazing hot palms on her waist, and his sexy and tender lips almost touched her lips.

She heard him saying with his husky and attractive voice, “I’ll come and fetch you at noon, then we can have lunch together.”

“Mhm,” replied Ruan Danchen softly.

He rubbed his lips against hers, and asked her gently, “I haven’t asked you about it, are you still aching this morning?”

“I’m feeling slightly better,” said Ruan Danchen quietly. Her lips were trembling.

“So can we do it again tonight?” Qi Chenglin’s ebony eyes glowed immediately, he was looking forward to it.

“Qi Chenglin.” Ruan Danchen was annoyed, why did he keep on thinking about that?

Qi Chenglin smiled at her gently with his ebony eyes and pinched her waist. “You should leave now.”

He let go of his hand, but Run Danchen was not in a hurry to get out of the car. She gazed at Qi Chenglin’s handsome face. She could feel that her feelings for him were getting more powerful ever since she realized she had fallen in love with him.

She put her hand on the car door. She did not know how she was able to summon the courage to tell him about her feelings, but she felt a strong urge to say it, and she said it from the bottom of her heart involuntarily, “Qi Chenglin, I think thatI have fallen in love with you.”

After saying that, she dared not look at his reaction. She did not even wait for his reply. She blushed furiously and opened the car door and got out of the car at the speed of light.

Qi Chenglin was stunned, she confessed her love to him so boldly without any hints before that. He did not stop her from running away immediately after confessing because he was astonished.

After he collected his thoughts, Ruan Danchen was already out of his sight after she dashed into another street.

Qi Chenglin could not help but smile, the happiness he felt now was indescribable. He was feeling euphoric.

His heart was beating happily, and he could feel his heartbeat in the throat. He was thrilled and touched, it felt like he was a youngster who had just listened to a confession of a girl who he liked, and the happiness that he felt was beyond words.

Qi Chenglin started his car, then he found out that his hands were trembling because he was too excited. He lowered his head and laughed softly, his voice was extremely attractive and husky. If Ruan Danchen was by his side now, she would probably have a chance to experience orgasm just by hearing his voice.

Not long after Qi Chenglin made a turn, he saw Ruan Danchen was running like a madwoman. The way she ran actually looked quite foolish, but in Qi Chenglin’s eyes it was extremely adorable. The only thing he was thinking now was to get out of his car and dragged her into his car, then brought her home and threw her onto his bed.

Qi Chenglin found a space to park his car in front of the entrance of Chengshi, then he took out his cell phone and called Ruan Danchen. At that time, Ruan Danchen happened to reach the doorway of her company’s building. She slowed down her footsteps as she was gasping for breath, then she took out her phone from her bag.

Her face looked extremely gorgeous now because she was blushing, but she was unsure whether the blush was due to the intense running just now or due to her confession.

Qi Chenglin saw Ruan Danchen used the back of her hand to wipe away the sweat on her forehead and lowered her head to look at her phone. She paused for a while, then she hung up.

“…” Qi Chenglin.

How could she refuse to answer his call after confessing to him! How could she be so irresponsible!

After that, he saw Ruan Danchen put her phone back into her bag and walked into the office building.

…

…

Ruan Danchen’s face was still burning due to the blush. She did not know how she summoned the courage to confess her love to him, she just blurted out the words. She dared not even answer Qi Chenglin’s call just now. She was still at a loss when he called her, so she straight away hung up without thinking it through.

She was quite afraid to hear his overly proud voice.

After Ruan Danchen entered the elevator, she touched her face and sighed.

Qi Chenglin did not call her anymore after she walked out of the elevator. Ruan Danchen could not tell whether she was relieved or very disappointed.

After she entered her office, she noticed Yang Yunshu was sitting in her old seat before she was transferred to another department. There was a lot of stuff on her desk and the computer was on.

Yang Yunshu was arranging his personal belongings on the desk when she saw Ruan Danchen walked in. She stared at her proudly and snorted.

Ruan Danchen curiously glanced at her. Then, she sat down and switched on her computer. After a while, she received an email from the human resources department which stated that Yang Yunshu was transferred back to the design department because they were understaffed.

Ruan Danchen shook her head, she finally found out the reason she was so pleased with herself.

However, she hoped that Yang Yunshu would not find fault with her after she achieved her goal. She was stressed every day during work because she had to face clients from all walks of life. Therefore, she did not want to be further annoyed by Yang Yunshu.

She started to work after she had settled down. Suddenly, she heard Yang Yunshu’s voice when she was lowering her head to study something. “Director Zhao, Mr Mu.”

Ruan Danchen raised her head in astonishment, then she saw Director Zhao was walking into the office with Mu Huaisheng.

Director Zhao’s wife had told Director Zhao about the transfer of Yang Yunshu. Director Zhao was not against it because Song Yu was on vacation leave and they need more manpower, but the most important reason may be that he was always intimidated by his wife.

Director Zhao smiled and said, “The thing is, Mr. Mu wants to renovate two of his residences, one of them is a condominium and the other one is a villa. If anyone of you are interested, you all can propose your idea to Mr. Mu and we’ll see Mr. Mu likes whose idea the most.”

Although Director Zhao told the staff that, Mu Huaisheng fixed his stare at Ruan Danchen.

Director Zhao turned his head and stared at her too, Ruan Danchen could only say, “I still have some work that needs to be completed as soon as possible. Yang Yunshu was just transferred here, she should have time for it.”

Yang Yunshu did not understand why Ruan Danchen did not seize such a good opportunity.

Opportunities like this were hard to come by, it would be beneficial for the career prospect and private relationships of the person who accepted the assignment because that person would have an extra assignment to work on and have the chance to get close to Mu Huaisheng.

Mu Huaisheng looked away from Ruan Danchen and nodded, then he said in an indifferent tone, “Then I shall offer the assignment to Miss Yang, please contact my assistant if you have any questions.”

Director Zhao knew that Mu Huaisheng had set his mind to offering Ruan Danchen his assignment. He did not understand why Ruan Danchen was messing around now, she did not have any important projects now, yet she refused to grab such a great chance. What if Mu Huaisheng thought that she was behaving insolently and unhappily left the office straight away?

The profit from this assignment was not very high, but it was a good chance to build rapport with him, and it would matter more than earning profit from the project.

Humph! If it were not for her close relationship with Song Yu and he was afraid to make Song Yu unhappy, he would have asked Ruan Danchen to leave the company in the beginning.

Director Zhao glanced at Ruan Dachen unhappily again, then he saw Mu Huaisheng off.

“Humph, stop acting so smugly, you even rejected an assignment offered to you in person.” Yang Yunshu rolled her eyes at Ruan Danchen.

Ruan Danchen took a deep breath and suppressed her anger. She said coldly, “Yang Yunshu, just accept the assignment that was offered to you, why are you blabbering so much? How about I call Mu Huaisheng now and say that I want to accept that assignment now? If so, would you still keep on blabbering?”

“Don’t talk like you’re doing something charitable by letting me do it!” Yang Yunshu blushed angrily because she felt like she was living off Ruan Danchen. “Who do you think you are to make Mu Huaisheng do what is told by you? Do you really think he’ll do everything that you ask him to do?”

Ruan Danchen did not want to argue with her, her cell phone rang just in time, but unexpectedly, it was Mu Huaisheng who called her.

She sighed heavily and walked out of the office without looking at Yang Yunshu.

Yang Yunshu was fuming, she snorted angrily as she stared at Ruan Danchen’s back.

Ruan Danchen walked to the stairwell and closed the two doors of the emergency exits, then only she answered the call. She said with a polite tone, and tried to sound slightly unfriendly, “Mr. Mu.”

“Miss Ruan, I call you not because I have any other intentions. I just wanted to tell you that I would not force you if you don’t have feelings for me. However, I hope that would not affect your work and causes you to purposely refuse to accept my assignments just because of me.” She could hear Mu Huaisheng talking with his elegant voice on the phone.

His voice was very attractive like those famous commentators on the internet. His pronunciation was very clear, and he was able to articulate his idea well. When she heard his voice, she would involuntarily think of his graceful demeanor.

Ruan Danchen remained silent so Mu Huaisheng continued to say, “I know that you don’t like me, but I hope at least you see me as your friend. I’m such a man, even if you don’t reciprocate my feelings for you, I still hope that I can be your friend because you’re the woman I like. I hope that I can help you if I’m able to. To be honest, I’m quite hurt when you reject my good intentions.”

Ruan Danchen was quite astonished because Mu Huaisheng did not question her about what happened between Qi Chenglin and her.

Mu Huaisheng’s way of thinking was simple, he did not want to lose his poise. Ruan Danchen told her in the beginning that she was reluctant to start a new relationship, but not long after that, she started dating Qi Chenglin. Therefore, it was apparent that she was just finding an excuse to reject him at that time so he should not ask questions that would make her feel that he was graceless and annoying.

“I merely wanted to avoid making Qi Chenglin angry because he is not so tolerant of this kind of matter,” explained Ruan Danchen indifferently.

Qi Chenglin could still remember that Mu Huaisheng held her arm before. If she accepted Mu Huaisheng’s assignment and contacted him frequently or went to his house, she could not imagine how furious that man would be.

Mu Huaisheng did not know whether Ruan Danchen realized that she would unconsciously spoke very gently and sweetly when she spoke of Qi Chenglin or not.

“Are you planning to exclude yourself from all future assignments that are related to me?” asked Mu Huaisheng involuntarily.

Ruan Danchen had to admit that she did not think about the long-term consequences when she rejected his offer today because the first thing that she thought of was to avoid making Qi Chenglin angry. She did not realize that if she rejected his offer, it may affect her career prospects at Chengshi.

When Mu Huaisheng asked her about it now, Ruan Danchen considered it seriously for a while, then she said, “I’ll avoid involving myself in your assignments as much as possible.”

Mu Huaisheng was startled for a while. After a moment, he laughed softly as he shook his head. He said helplessly, “That being the case, I shall not force you.”

After she hung up, Ruan Danchen returned to her office and ignored Yang Yunshu.

…

…

When it was almost lunchtime just before noon, Ruan Danchen received Qi Chenglin’s call. He told her that he was waiting on the roadside opposite her company’s building.

Since she was in the office, Ruan Danchen only dared to reply to him by saying “Mhm”.

“Such a simple way to reply to me by just saying ‘Mhm’ and nothing else?” said Qi Chenglin unhappily as he pouted.

Ruan Danchen looked around and hurriedly walked out of the office while holding her phone.

After she reached the stairwell, she finally dared to reply, “What do you want me to say some more?”

Qi Chenglin could feel that she had changed her tone as she was talking in a gentler tone. His lips curled into an attractive grin.

He was sitting in the car and looking at the office building opposite the road. He raised his hand and looked at his watch, “It’s about time, you can come out now.”

After she hung up, Ruan Danchen checked the time and found out it was already noon. She returned to her office to take her bag and leave, but she saw Director Zhao’s wife was standing in front of her desk.

“Xiao Ruan, why aren’t you always sitting at your desk?” asked Director Zhao’s wife unhappily.

“I was answering a call from a client just now.” Ruan Danchen simply found an excuse.

“Why couldn’t you talk to the client at your desk? Please take note of this. What if your clients come to meet with you when you’re not around?” When she heard her excuse, Director Zhao’s wife immediately thought of what Yang Yunshu told her when she snitched on Ruan Danchen.

Could it be that Ruan Danchen was flirting with the client? Maybe that was the reason she deemed it inappropriate to talk in the office?

“I’ll take note of that.” Ruan Danchen could only reply to her like that.

Director Zhao’s wife stared at her sternly, then she left.

Ruan Danchen heaved a sigh of relief, then she heard someone snorted when she was tidying up her desk. She did not raise her head, but she saw Yang Yunshu passed by her from the corner of her eyes and she was the person who snorted just now.

Ruan Danchen shook her head and kept her things, but she waited until almost everybody had left before she walked out of the office.

…

…

After she walked out of her office building, she saw Qi Chenglin’s car on the opposite roadside. She remembered that she confessed to him in the morning, but he did not mention it at all on the phone just now.

She regretted confessing to him impulsively in the morning. Although she was embarrassed now, she could only bite the bullet and walked toward his car.

After she got into the car, she saw Qi Chenglin’s suit was thrown on the passenger and he had removed his necktie as well. The air conditioner was on because of the hot weather. He rolled up the sleeves of his shirt till below elbows and revealed his muscular arms.

His black hair covered his arms, the layer of was neither too dense nor too sparse. Ruan Danchen felt that the density of his hair was just fine, and it made him looked extremely sexy.

The way he dressed did not make people feel that he was unkempt, but it gave him a carefree appearance. His muscular physique also fitted well with his shirt, he truly looked good in anything he wore.

“Are you gaping at me again?” Qi Chenglin was staring at her with a teasing smile.

Ruan Danchen was indeed staring at him in awe, she could not believe that this was her man the longer she looked at him.

She could not stop herself from feeling a little proud.

Suddenly, he leaned toward her and pushed her back toward him so that she would lean tightly against his body. Then, he started to kiss her aggressively.

Ruan Danchen was blushing furiously. They were still in the car and there were so many people passing by. She was sure someone would have seen them making out.

Her body was pushed backward by him until her back touched the car door, then he leaned forward and sucked her lips recklessly.

After quite some time, Ruan Danchen’s lips became numb and swollen. She was almost unable to talk anymore. Finally, he let go of her, but he was still gently rubbing his lips against hers and said with a deep and husky voice, “Do you miss me now?”

Ruan Danchen’s heart was beating extremely fast. She felt like she had exhausted her courage when she confessed to him this morning. She could not even tell him that she missed him now.

However, she held his face with her hands and stared at his graceful face. She was fascinated and aroused by his face, and she suddenly leaned forward and pecked his lips.

It was a very quick peck, she retreated right after she pecked his lips. She was blushing furiously.

Qi Chenglin could not help but laugh softly. His ebony eyes were filled with his affection for her. His lips curled into a sexy and attractive curve, and he kissed her again.

He stuck his lips on hers and breathed into her mouth. “I missed you the whole morning. You said that you love me in the morning, but I didn’t react to you in time. So, I wish to tell you now—I love you too.”

Ruan Danchen took a deep breath in astonishment, she was truly not mentally prepared to hear that. She felt a little disappointed since morning, but she felt like there was a blasting sound in her heart after hearing his words.

Qi Chenglin smiled after he saw her reaction, then he kissed her again. After that, he retreated quietly and started the car.

Ruan Danchen was still stunned like she was just struck by lightning. She was dumbfounded until he stopped his car in front of Dynasty.

Qi Chenglin got out of the car and dragged her out. He let the worker of Dynasty drove his car away and he dragged Ruan Danchen into Dynasty by clutching her hands.

Ruan Danchen was still bewildered. When she was in the elevator, she noticed that Qi Chenglin was not bringing her to have lunch in a private dining room. She saw the elevator’s button showing the number “12” was lighted.

Qi Chenglin kept quiet and held her hand as they walked out of the elevator and entered a room. Ruan Danchen felt uncomfortable abruptly.

“We’re not having lunch?” It was a suite, and Ruan Danchen followed Qi Chenglin to the living room. Her heart was beating wildly as she was very nervous.

“It’s more peaceful to have our lunch here, no one will disturb us,” answered Qi Chenglin calmly.

“…” Ruan Danchen was speechless, nobody would disturb them even if they had lunch in his private room. Did they need to come here?

There was only one reason he brought her here straight away, and Ruan Danchen knew surely what the reason was.

However, that guy had just fooled around with her for the whole night yesterday, couldn’t he just rest now!

Ruan Danchen did not ask him about it because she was afraid that she would be embarrassed. He would surely tease her by saying that she got carried away.

After a while, a waiter came in and he was holding a menu. Ruan Danchen was a little embarrassed by herself as it seemed like Qi Chenglin truly came here to have lunch. Could it be that she really got carried away?

Since when her mind became so abnormal and kept on thinking about sex?

Ruan Danchen was quite embarrassed by herself at that time, she felt that her thoughts were too dirty.

Qi Chenglin looked away from the menu and stared at Ruan Danchen. “Why are your face so red?”

“Is it? Maybe the weather is too hot.” Ruan Danchen felt embarrassed to look at him. She averted his gaze and looked around while using her hand to fan her cheeks.

“I turned on the air conditioner of the car all the way here, and we just walked for a short distance before we entered the hotel, and the hotel is air-conditioned as well. Why would you feel hot?” Qi Chenglin raised his eyebrows.

Ruan Danchen glared at him. He should not embarrass her in front of others. Why must he make her say her thoughts out loud?

Qi Chenglin’s lips curled upward slightly, and he stared at her mockingly. “If you’re feeling hot, please bear with it.”

Ruan Danchen was unsure whether she misunderstood his words, but she felt like his words had hidden meaning.

She glimpsed the waiter and found out that he was blushing slightly. Ruan Danchen immediately blushed furiously, and she felt so embarrassed to talk even after quite some time.

Qi Chenglin looked away from her and started to order food. Ruan Danchen heard him ordered spicy dishes only, and she remembered Aunt Zheng’s words, so she said, “Why are you ordering spicy dishes only?”

“Don’t you like to eat spicy food?” asked Qi Chenglin in an aloof manner, offering her a mere mild reaction.

“The weather is hot now, and we’ll feel hotter if we eat a lot of spicy food. You should just order food which tastes mild.” Ruan Danchen straight away took the menu from him and said to the waiter, “Please cancel all the dishes that we ordered just now.”

Previously, Ruan Danchen asked Aunt Zheng about Qi Chenglin’s favorite food in detail as they prepared lunch together at Prestige Residences.

After she looked through the menu, she ordered some of the dishes to test whether he liked them or not. She planned to observe Qi Chenglin’s reaction when he ate the food later.

Last time when they had a meal together, Qi Chenglin only ate a small portion of the spicy food he ordered.

Qi Chenglin raised his eyebrows and sneered as he listened to her ordering dishes. Two of the dishes she ordered were indeed his favorite dishes.

Ruan Danchen felt that she had ordered enough food. Although the portion of Dynasty’s dishes was not large, only two of them were eating and they did not eat like horses.

After the waiter left, she said, “Why did you order so many spicy dishes even though you can’t tolerate spicy food?”

“Don’t you like to eat spicy food?” said Qi Chenglin with a faint smile. He did not ask her about how she found out he could not tolerate spicy food.

“You’d have an upset stomach if you eat spicy food. You don’t need to cater to my wants in the future,” said Ruan Danchen quietly. “I’m not that kind of person who must eat spicy food in every meal.”

Qi Chenglin turned his head around and stare at Ruan Danchen in utmost concentration. He carried her body and put her on his thighs; he really liked to caress her. His fondling caused Ruan Danchen’s whole body to turn red and she felt like her bones had mellowed.

“What are you doing? We’re waiting for our lunch.” Ruan Danchen’s face felt numb by his touch.

“The dishes aren’t served yet. Do you want to go and have a look at the bedroom?” Qi Chenglin’s ebony eyes were glowing longingly.

“…” Ruan Danchen already knew he had shady intentions when he brought her here for lunch!

When she thought of his passion last night, her legs felt like jelly.

“No,” said Ruan Danchen with a trembling voice before she leaned her forehead against his firm shoulder.

Qi Chenglin lowered his head and stared at her reddened face. He rubbed her hot and thin lips gently against her delicate skin, then he slowly moved his lips to her lips and kissed them.

He was unable to stop kissing her at all because of her soft and tender lips. He said with his attractive and husky voice, “Then we’ll do it after lunch.”

“…” Ruan Danchen felt that she would not be able to avoid fooling around with him this afternoon. She did not know why this man was so energetic. “What if I’m late for work?”

“Can’t you tell them you’ll be meeting with a client?” Qi Chenglin was not worried at all. If Director Zhao dared to find fault with her, he would cover her.

Ruan Danchen remembered Yang Yunshu’s accusations about her when she heard Qi Chenglin’s words. She smiled involuntarily. “If you’re a client, then Yang Yunshu really did say the right thing.”

“Aren’t you designing my bedroom? I should be considered as your private client,” mumbled Qi Chenglin with his deep and husky voice, a smile etched on his face. His voice was extremely attractive and it made her skin felt numb and itchy.

Ruan Danchen’s face turned completely red because of his kisses. “Let me go first, the waiter’s coming in a minute.”

“I’m not letting you go.” Qi Chenglin was still embracing her tightly and immodestly. He felt so comfortable with her soft body in his arms and he was reluctant to let go of her. He kissed her incessantly and it felt like his lips were always in contact with her face. “After we have lunch, I’ll become your client and I want to force you to do something bad.”

Ruan Danchen found it both amusing and annoying that he was actually role-playing now.

At that time, the waiter knocked on the door. He arrived to serve the dishes to them.

“Put me down,” said Ruan Danchen hurriedly.

“Listen to me, you’re my girlfriend. What’s wrong with me hugging you?” Qi Chenglin did not want to let go of her. She refused to let others know about their relationship whether in Chengshi or other places. On the contrary, he would love to let the world know about their relationship.

The waiter entered the suite after knocking a few times. He was startled for a short while when he saw Qi Chenglin hugging Ruan Danchen, unwilling to let go of her. The waiter felt a little awkward.

He also saw Ruan Danchen’s face which had turned completely red and he thought that Young Master Lin was truly lustful.

After the waiter left, Qi Chenglin reluctantly placed Ruan Danchen back on the sofa so that they could have lunch. Still, he sat close to her. One of his hands was holding a pair of chopsticks while the other circled her waist. He refused to withdraw his hand and stopped touching her body no matter what.

Ruan Danchen had no idea what was wrong with him and why was he so thirsty like a hungry wolf.

Qi Chenglin ate hastily, gobbling the food in the speed of light. After that, he stared at Ruan Danchen continuously and caused her to lose her appetite.

“Don’t stare at me like this.” Ruan Danchen was flustered by his stare.

“Eat slowly, don’t need to hurry,” said Qi Chenglin gently with a soft voice. However, his stare was filled with eagerness.

“…” Ruan Danchen was dumbfounded.

Did he really mean what he just said?

In the end, Ruan Danchen was unable to continue eating anymore due to his stare. Moreover, she already started to feel full. She placed her chopsticks down and used a piece of tissue to wipe her mouth. Then, she heard Qi Chenglin asking, “Are you full now?”

Ruan Danchen was speechless after she saw his eager expression. He carried her and darted toward the bedroom before she could answer his question.

“Qi Chenglin!” Ruan Danchen felt so embarrassed when she saw him behaving so impatiently. She yelled at him annoyedly as he pressed his body against her on the bed.

Qi Chenglin immediately pressed his lips against hers and started kissing her. He was already making out with her before Ruan Danchen could undress completely.

…

…

Ruan Danchen did not know how he carried her into the car because she was still stupefied. Qi Chenglin even helped her to fasten her seatbelt.

Qi Chenglin felt content and aroused when he saw her beautiful and charming face. The experience in the room from before still lingered. He felt somewhat sorry for her because he was too eager, and everything happened too hastily.

Qi Chenglin pecked her lips lovingly and caressed her body around the waist as he was reluctant to part with her. After quite some time, he started the car.

He stopped his car in front of Chengshi. Ruan Danchen did not expect this man to be so thirsty. After fooling around with him in the afternoon, she felt like she might not be able to work properly.

“I’ll come and fetch you in the afternoon and bring you to my parent’s place,” said Qi Chenglin before Ruan Danchen got out of the car.

“Mhm,” replied Ruan Danchen. He extended his arm and held her hand, using his thumb to massage the back of her hand. “Are you okay with what I did?”

Ruan Danchen blushed as she knew what he meant. She said with a slightly displeased tone, “If I wasn’t okay with it, would you restrain yourself from doing it?”

Qi Chenglin was happy to see her talking frankly to him and acting a little like a spoiled child; he would not like her treating him like an outsider.

His lips curled into a sexy curve and stared at her with his glowing eyes. He said with a hoarse voice, “I can’t restrain myself if it’s you.”

Ruan Danchen’s heart was beating wildly due to his stare. She felt like she had difficulty breathing and she gulped her saliva forcibly. She said quietly with a meek voice, “I’m leaving now.”

Qi Chenglin withdrew his hands. All of a sudden, she leaned forward quickly and pecked his lips softly, and Qi Chenglin felt like someone just stroked his lips with a feather. Immediately after pecking him, she blushed and got out of the car in a hurry.

Qi Chenglin could not help but smile; she always kissed him without warning. Was she going to land a bomb on his lips every time she left him?

He used his attractive and delicate fingers to trace his lips gently and he could feel his lips were still a little hot. He felt like the fragrance of her lips were still on his lips, and it made him wish he could kiss her now. His body felt hot.

He stared at Ruan Danchen passionately as she crossed the road and walked into the office building. He started his car and left after she was out of sight.

…

…

When Ruan Danchen walked out of the elevator on the floor where Chengshi was located, he saw Director Zhao and his wife walked out of another elevator beside her.

She greeted them, but when Director Zhao’s wife saw her, her expression became quite stern inexplicably.

Ruan Danchen did not know the reasons she did that, but she did not think too much about it.

Qi Chenglin brought her to the Jade Field Park at night, with Qi Chengyue and Cheng Dongge already there. Even Qi Chengzhi and Song Yu were there.

When Aunt Chen was preparing dinner, Qi Chenglin sneaked into the kitchen after he made sure no one was looking at him. He opened the refrigerator and started to search for something.

Aunt Chen was cutting the vegetables beside the refrigerator. Confused, she asked, “What are you looking for, Young Master?”

“Nothing, I’m just having a look.” Qi Chenglin closed the refrigerator and glanced at the chopping board. “What are we having tonight?”

Aunt Chen felt that Qi Chenglin was behaving more and more peculiar; he had never felt curious about this kind of matter before. She told him what she was preparing for dinner.

Aunt Chen knew that Qi Chenglin could not tolerate spicy food, so she would only use a few chilis even if she cooked spicy dishes when Qi Chenglin was here for dinner.

“Do you have any more chilis?” asked Qi Chenglin indifferently. He was acting like he asked the question spontaneously.

“Yes.” Aunt Chen nodded.

“Then please cook a few spicy dishes. Danchen likes to eat spicy food, so just cook the ones you’re good at,” said Qi Chenglin snobbishly. He tried to maintain a poker-face, but when he turned around and walked out of the kitchen, Aunt Chen noticed that he was walking stiffly. He even nearly knocked his head at the door frame.

Aunt Chen was speechless for quite a while. She then figured that perhaps Qi Chenglin felt shy as that was his first time pampering his future wife and he was not used to it.

“Aha!” Aunt Chen smiled and she took a handful of dried chilis from the drawer of the kitchen cabinet.

After a while, Guan Liya came into the kitchen with Qi Youxuan to find chocolate because Qi Chenglin promised him that he could eat more today.

When Guan Liya took out the chocolate from the top cabinet, she saw many chilis on the plate, and she said, “Chenglin couldn’t tolerate spicy food, and Song Yu has to eat less spicy food too. Why’d you take out so many chilis?”

Aunt Chen grinned and glanced at Qi Youxuan. Then, she said softly, “Young Master was the one who asked me to take out the chilies because Miss Ruan likes spicy food. He asked me to cook a few spicy dishes for Miss Ruan. Hehe… Young Master really loves her dearly; he felt shy to tell me about it directly when he came in here just now.”

“Really?” Guan Liya was grinning as while. She felt like she could start preparing for their wedding soon.

When they were having dinner, Qi Chengyue noticed that there were more spicy dishes on the dinner table than usual, and they were placed just in front of Ruan Danchen.

“Wow, Brother, you were so nasty toward her previously. Your attitude changes so fast after you started dating her.” Qi Chengyue raised her eyebrows and poked fun at Qi Chenglin. Previously, there would not be any spicy dishes on the dinner table if Qi Chenglin came back for dinner.

Qi Chenglin stared at her scornfully and pouted. “You talked like you treated Dongge very kindly in the beginning,” he sassed in return.

Qi Chengyue could not bite back after Qi Chenglin said that. Cheng Dongge comforted her immediately with a smile and helped her to peel the prawns.

After dinner, Qi Chenglin and Ruan Danchen left with Qi Youxuan.

Guan Liya stood at the doorway of the courtyard and saw them off. She felt like they were a family of three going back home together. The scene truly warmed her heart.

…

…

For the following days, Qi Chenglin would send Qi Youxuan to his parents’ place before work and would bring him to Ruan Danchen’s place after work.

It was September. Qi Youxuan was going to attend elementary school as school would start soon.

This morning, Qi Youxuan was extremely nervous. He was attending a new school and had to adapt to a new environment. Fortunately, many of his friends at kindergarten also enrolled in Jixia Elementary School. However, they were not in the same class; even Zhang Mingming was put in a different class.

Qi Youxuan could be viewed as the crown prince of Jixia Elementary School.

In the morning, Qi Youxuan woke up very early because he was very nervous and excited. He got out of bed at six o’clock. Ruan Danchen was preparing breakfast for him in the kitchen. Although she was exhausted after fooling around with Qi Chenglin last night, she remembered that today was a very important day for Qi Youxuan so she dared not slept in.

Qi Chenglin was still sleeping when she got up, hugging her around her waist. He noticed she was awake the moment she moved his body.

His eyes remained shut. “Don’t move,” he mumbled, “sleep for a while more.”

He turned her body to face him before he continued hugging her.

He hugged Ruan Danchen tightly, her delicate skin in contact with his firm and smooth chest. She raised her head and saw his eyes were still closed as he continued to sleep.

She could see stubble that grew overnight at his chin. His thick black eyelashes were covering his eyes, and he seemed to be sleeping in peace.

Ruan Danchen felt that this man’s facial features were so refined and attractive no matter how she looked at them.

Suddenly, he lowered his head to cover her face and kissed her lips.

Ruan Danchen blushed as she felt embarrassed. She wished she could push him away but she was not strong enough to do that. Then, she felt he inserted his tongue recklessly into her mouth and moved it wildly.

After quite a while, he eventually let go of her. Ruan Danchen covered her mouth with her hands bashfully. Then she said unhappily, “Your mouth was closed for the whole night and you’re having bad breath now. Don’t kiss me.”

“I don’t think so.” Qi Chenglin pushed her hand away and kissed her lips again. “Do you hate my smell?”

Ruan Danchen blushed as she shook her head. Qi Chenglin felt that she looked extremely adorable when she shook her head while blushing. He was completely awake now, and he rubbed his hot and thin lips against her delicate cheeks.

“You were staring at me when my eyes were closed just now. Why do you stop staring at me after I open my eyes?” Qi Chenglin felt that is was not so pleasurable hugging her like that, so he turned his body over and pressed it against her.

Her body was so soft, it was truly comfortable lying on her body.

“…” Ruan Danchen looked at her embarrassedly, how did he know she was staring at him just now with his eyes closed?

She pushed him away and said, “You can continue sleeping. I’m getting up now. Today is Youxuan’s first day of school. I’m preparing breakfast for him.”

“Just sleep for a while more, let him eat in the car.” Qi Chenglin could not help but kiss her cheeks and slowly moved his lips downward. “If you couldn’t get back to sleep, then you can do some morning exercise with me.”

“You’re so shameless, what morning exercise are you talking about?” Ruan Danchen blushed. “Stop fooling around, today is a very important day for Youxuan, how could we let him have his breakfast in the car? A healthy breakfast will ensure he’s in a good mood for the rest of the day.”

Qi Chenglin hugged her tightly and pinched her softly. “Then what about me?”

“…” Ruan Danchen blushed and said quietly, “You’re alright living on your own previously, so you should have no problem now.”

Qi Chenglin buried his face into the pit of her neck and sucked her skin forcibly. Then, he said with an attractive and husky voice, “You’re typical of that kind of woman who’s not interested in men anymore once you have a son.”

Ruan Danchen’s neck felt numb and slightly painful after his strong suck. She held Qi Chenglin’s face and pecked his lips. “I’m still interested in you, aren’t I going to prepare breakfast for you too?”

“Are you acting stupid in front of me?” Qi Chenglin stared at her and smiled mockingly.

“…” Ruan Danchen simply rested her forehead on her chest. After quite some time, she raised her head and kissed his lips. Then she said with great difficulty, “I love you.”

Qi Chenglin was startled for a while. Suddenly, he did not know how he should respond when he saw her reddened face with a gorgeous smile.

He chuckled and turned his body over to lie beside her, then he patted her bottom. “Just go ahead.”

Ruan Danchen felt like she had found an effective way to deal with this guy. She kissed him again when she was getting up, then she hurriedly got out of bed and changed her clothes.

She was frying eggs and ham steaks with a frying pan. The sound of the boiling oil was very appetizing.

The door of the kitchen opened, but Ruan Danchen did not hear the door opening because it was covered by the noise of the boiling oil and exhaust hood. She turned her head when she heard someone gently called her. “Aunt Ruan.”

She saw the kitchen’s door was slightly opened and Qi Youxuan’s extended his head through the opening. He was still wearing his teddy bear pajamas.

Ruan Danchen felt that he was too cute when she saw him. She walked toward him and said, “Why do you wake up so early?”

Qi Youxuan simply walked into the kitchen and closed the door. His little belly was bulging under his pajamas, he was grabbing the edge of his pajamas with his chubby little hands and said bashfully, “Today is the first day of school, I couldn’t sleep.”

Ruan Danchen knew that the little boy was feeling nervous and looking forward to it at the same time.

“Go and wash your face and rinse your mouth first. Breakfast will be ready in a minute, I’ll help you dress up properly later.”

Qi Youxuan was reassured when he heard her words, so he left the kitchen immediately.

After a while when Qi Youxuan had washed his face and rinsed his mouth, Ruan Danchen already put the sandwiches that she made on the table. She added a piece of cheese between the hot egg and ham, and it melted instantly. The melted cheese adhered to the egg and ham and it made the sandwich smelled extremely appetizing.

When Qi Youxuan almost finished his breakfast, Qi Chenglin came out of the room already dressed. Ruan Danchen was afraid that he would say something petty like she was not interested in men anymore since she had a son, so she hurriedly served him his breakfast.

After Qi Youxuan finished eating, Ruan Danchen brought him to change into his uniform. The boys’ uniform of Jixia Elementary School was a Zhongshan suit 1 . The suit was made according to Qi Youxuan’s body size and it was tiny. Qi Youxuan looked all too adorable in it.

After changing, she brought him to the washroom and helped him styled his hair. His new hairstyle looked a little curly and messy.

When they returned to the dining hall, Qi Chenglin had also finished his breakfast.

Qi Youxuan was very nervous because this was his first day of school and he did not want to be late. He also planned to go earlier so that he could get acquainted with more classmates. Qi Chenglin and Qi Youxuan had their breakfast but Ruan Danchen had not eaten anything yet; she was busy preparing breakfast and after preparing breakfast, even helping Qi Youxuan to put on his clothes. In the end, she could only take her breakfast with her to eat in the car.

After they took their things, they went downstairs and Qi Chenglin got in the car. After Ruan Danchen and Qi Youxuan got in the car, Qi Chenglin did not start his car immediately. He rummaged through his car like he was finding something.

“What’s the matter?” Ruan Danchen paused as she was about to have breakfast.

“I think I left my driver’s license in the house.” Qi Chenglin frowned with a puzzled expression. “I’ll go back and take it.”

“Let me go,” said Ruan Danchen. She did not want him to rush back to the house again, so she passed her breakfast container to Qi Youxuan and went back to the house.

After she was at the doorway, she saw something on the dining table which looked like his driver’s license. Ruan Danchen felt puzzled because she did not see it on the table when she was leaving the house just now.

After she removed her shoes and walked to the dining table, Ruan Danchen took the tiny folder and opened it. Qi Chenglin’s driver’s license was indeed in the folder. She looked at his license as she walked out of the apartment, and she felt that Qi Chenglin looked very handsome in his license picture.

Although his look in the picture was slightly different and less handsome than the actual person, it was much more good-looking than others’ ID photos.

She looked at the information printed below the photo and she saw Qi Chenglin’s birthday—May 22. Unexpectedly, that man’s horoscope was Libra. No wonder he behaved so peculiarly sometimes.

She found out that this month was his birth month, and she had to figure how to celebrate it as soon as possible.

Ruan Danchen walked out of the door with Qi Chenglin’s license and entered the elevator. She continued looking at his license since she had nothing else to do. Suddenly, she felt that it was unusual for him to leave his license on the dining table. He would often keep his license in his car, so why would it appear on the dining table this morning?

“…” Realization struck Ruan Danchen that he did not forget to take his license. Instead, he left his license on the dining table on purpose so that she would find out about his birthday.

Seriously! He could have told her directly if he wanted a birthday celebration.

Ruan Danchen got back in the car and gave him the license. Qi Chenglin took it with a cool expression without a word spoken. However, Ruan Danchen felt like his movements were quite pitiable as he kept away his license.

Nevertheless, she would still celebrate his birthday with him no matter what, so Ruan Danchen said, “Is this month your birth month?”

With raised eyebrows, Qi Chenglin turned his head and asked in astonishment, “How did you know?”

Still acting!

Ruan Danchen was speechless for a while before she said, “It’s stated on your driver’s license, I saw it just now.”

“Mhm,” replied Qi Chenglin before he turned his head and continued driving. She was unsure whether she saw it wrong, but she thought that she saw his lips curled slightly upward. Although he still maintained a cool expression, she felt like he was delighted.

Ruan Danchen took the sandwiches from the little boy. She ate the sandwich while taking out her phone to look at the calendar. “May 22 happens to be a Sunday. Since there’s no gathering at the old mansion, let’s celebrate your birthday at home.”

“Mhm.” She heard Qi Chenglin replied to her faintly.

…

…

Most of the students of Jixia School were from wealthy families and were sent to school by cars. The management of Jixia School considered that during the establishment of the school, hence a parking lot was built by utilizing a piece of land beside the school.

Qi Chenglin parked his car in the parking lot before he got out of the car and brought Qi Youxuan to the school’s entrance with Ruan Danchen. Parents were not permitted to enter the school compound unless activities were held in the school or during Open Day.

When they were walking toward the entrance, they saw many children who were also new students. The boys were wearing Zhongshan suit whereas the girls were wearing blue blouses and black skirts similar to the girls’ school uniforms during the early years of the Republic of China.

They stopped at the entrance. Qi Youxuan took out his Totoro kid’s phone and used his chubby little hands to hold it. He was using the phone’s screen as a mirror under the sunlight. After checking his appearance for a while, he raised his head and said, “Dad, Aunt Ruan, is my appearance okay?”

Qi Chenglin did not feel like responding to him—his narcissistic behavior bored him.

Ruan Danchen smiled at him and reassured him, “You look wonderful. I think you’re the most handsome boy among all the boys we met during the walk here.”

“I think so too.” Qi Youxuan grinned so happily that the corner of his mouth almost touched his ears.

“You should get moving. Aren’t you planning to make new friends?” urged Qi Chenglin.

Qi Youxuan hurriedly looked at the clock and waved his adorable hand at them. “Bye, Dad. Bye, Aunt Ruan.”

Ruan Danchen waved at him too. When Qi Youxuan turned his body around and walked toward the entrance, he bumped into Dai Zhiyao who was attending Ji Xia School too.

They stared at each other angrily because they were rivals in love. Qi Youxuan snorted rudely at him and looked away from him straight away. It was obvious that Qi Youxuan was ignoring him.

“…” Dai Zhiyao was speechless for quite some time before he turned his head and politely greeted Qi Chenglin and Ruan Danchen. He called them Uncle and Aunt.

Ruan Danchen had met him before when she fetched Qi Youxuan at the kindergarten previously, so she was familiar with him.

She then saw the little boy waving at them again from far away. He met a few old classmates from kindergarten and they were chatting happily as they walked together.

Ruan Danchen felt quite sad and tears welled up in her eyes when she saw Qi Youxuan’s figure became smaller as he walked further away from her.

Noticing that her mood had dropped all of a sudden, Qi Chenglin held her hand and lowered his head to ask, “What happened to you? You were alright just a moment ago.”

Ruan Danchen sniffed and held back her tears. She sobbed, “I feel that he’s growing up very quickly. Just now when I saw him walking toward the school, I feel that he’ll be a grown-up soon and will be an independent man. He’ll never depend on me and be so clingy like he is anymore. I truly hope that he’d never grow up and could stay by my side forever. I’m really afraid that after he grows up, we won’t be so intimate anymore.”

“Don’t think too much.” Qi Chenglin clutched her hands tightly. Qi Youxuan was already out of sight so he brought Ruan Danchen back to the car.

He took out some tissues from the glove compartment and gave them to Ruan Danchen to wipe her tears. Then, he said, “Why are you thinking so much now? Even if he grows up, has his own life and stops relying on us like he does now, that will only happen after many years. He’s only a six-year-old kid now, he’ll still be clingy and needs you to look after him. He still wants you to hug him while he’s asleep and tell him bedtime stories. We still have to wait for at least seven to eight years before he reaches a rebellious age.”

Qi Chenglin saw Ruan Danchen’s gloomy face and sighed. He carried her to his seat and kissed the corner of her eyes, then he teased her with his deep and husky voice, “Maybe we can give birth to another child if Youxuan stops being clingy in the future so that you still have his sisters and brothers to look after. The thing you regretted the most is that you missed the first six years of his life. You didn’t have the chance to see him when he was still a baby. During that time, he had the cutest appearance throughout his life. We can give birth to another child and let you have the chance to witness it.”

“That child will be different from Youxuan,” said Ruan Danchen quietly, no longer saddened. She raised her head to look at Qi Chenglin, never anticipating that he had thought about having another child.

Qi Chenglin was staring at her seriously with glowing eyes. “I’m serious,” he assured with his deep and mellow voice.

Ruan Danchen’s ears turned red and numb. She buried her face into the pit of his neck like an ostrich hiding from its predator.

Qi Chenglin smiled and hugged her for a while more. Then, he looked at the clock and said, “Do you want to leave now? You’re going to be late for work.”

After he said that, Ruan Danchen hurriedly checked the time and asked Qi Chenglin to let go of her.

Qi Chenglin pinched her softly and pecked her lips before letting go of her. He then started the car and drove to Chengshi.

When Ruan Danchen entered her office, she was almost late.

…

…

On May 22, it just so happened that Qi Chenglin had to work overtime at his company because some clients from S City came for a meeting. When he was leaving for work, he was very unhappy because he planned to stay at home and see how Ruan Danchen prepared for his birthday celebration.

“Just go quickly, the meeting will finish earlier if you go earlier. If you can’t make it at noon, then we can celebrate at night,” said Ruan Danchen at the doorway.

Qi Chenglin and Qi Youxuan had stayed in her small apartment for such a long time. As a result, they were used to it and had stopped feeling that her apartment was too cramped.

Qi Chenglin glanced at her unhappily and suddenly said, “I heard someone said that you were the one who gave Song Yu suggestions on how to celebrate Valentine’s Day and the celebration made my brother very happy?”

He did not know how exactly they celebrated it because Qi Chengzhi would never tell Qi Chenglin such intimate things, even though they were brothers.

However, when he met Qi Chengzhi on the next day after Valentine’s Day, Qi Chengzhi was rejuvenated, refreshed, and in a buoyant mood.

Qi Chenglin did not think too much about it at that time, merely asking a little curiously when they were chatting, “Did you enjoyed your Valentine’s Day celebration yesterday?”

Qi Chengzhi’s ebony eyes were filled with happiness. He glanced at Qi Chenglin delightedly and said proudly, “Mhm, Song Yu put a lot of effort into it.”

He found out it was Ruan Danchen’s idea when Song Yu unintentionally told others about it.

Ruan Danchen felt embarrassed when she recalled her idea.

In fact, she gave Song Yu very bold suggestions because Song Yu was the one who would carry out her plan, so she had no pressure at all.

When Qi Chenglin mentioned it, Ruan Danchen knew that she would not dare to carry out her own plans.

She heard Qi Chenglin asking again, “What did you suggest Song Yu do actually?”

“Nothing special, stop asking. Anyway, I already have some ideas for your birthday.” Ruan Danchen blushed and pushed him away. She then pulled his body toward her and stood on tiptoes to kiss him. As she could not reach his lips, she kissed his chin instead. “Drive safe.”

Qi Chenglin stared at her quietly and lowered his head to whisper beside her ears with his deep and hoarse voice, “I want a big present at night anyway.”

Ruan Danchen blushed immediately as Qi Chenglin turned around his body and left.

…

…

Since Qi Chenglin’s birthday fell on a school holiday, Qi Youxuan slept in. He woke up at around ten o’clock. Ruan Danchen prepared breakfast for her. After having breakfast, she told him that she was going to the supermarket to buy things for Qi Chenglin’s birthday celebration. Qi Youxuan immediately said he wanted to follow her.

He was more interested in supermarkets than in the playground now. There was so much delicious food sold there and he could shop the whole day. It was difficult to make him leave after he entered a supermarket.

Qi Youxuan intended to ask Ruan Danchen to buy him more tasty food when Qi Chenglin was not around as she would not have the heart to refuse.

Ruan Danchen agreed to bring him to the supermarket. When they were at the courtyard, they met Aunt Wu there who just came back from a grocery store and was dragging a small trolley filled with groceries. They greeted her.

Aunt Wu was startled for a while when she saw Ruan Danchen and Qi Youxuan holding hands.

Ruan Danchen’s neighbors had found out that Qi Chenglin and Qi Youxuan were staying at Ruan Danchen’s place, but Aunt Wu was curious why they were staying in Ruan Danchen’s cramped apartment like some poor guys if the Qi family truly owned Qilin as Qi Youxuan claimed in front of her.

Although she saw Qi Chenglin drove his Benz every day, maybe he was just living beyond his means.

She greeted Ruan Danchen and left without saying anything further.

Ruan Danchen brought Qi Youxuan to a supermarket and bought the ingredients needed to cook a meal for Qi Chenglin. She also bought some junk food for Qi Youxuan. Of course, Ruan Danchen did not pamper him by purchasing everything that he asked for. She stopped buying things for him when she thought she had bought enough.

Qi Youxuan was still in first grade now and the school had just started, so he did not have a great deal of homework. He was just idling at home today.

After they came back home, he saw Ruan Danchen took out the ingredients that she bought online for making a cake from a cabinet. He put down his toy and ran toward her and stared at her curiously.

Ruan Danchen explained, “I’m going to make a cake for your dad.”

“I’ll help you with it,” said Qi Youxuan. His eyes were still staring at the heap of fresh fruits and canned fruits continuously.

Ruan Danchen could not help but smile. She took a bowl and put all the fresh fruits and canned fruits into the bowl together and gave it to Qi Youxuan. Then, she let him taste one spoon of the cake that she was baking. “Here you go.”

The cake was being baked in the oven. Ruan Danchen was stirring the butter with an electronic egg beater, Qi Youxuan observing her actions by her side. After she finished stirring the butter, he could not help but extend his little arm to take some of the butter with his fingertips and put it into his mouth now and then. He narrowed his eyes delightedly due to the fragrant, sweet taste and the smooth texture of the butter.

After the cake was baked and cooled, she started decorating it with Qi Youxuan.

After thinking for a while, Qi Youxuan used a pastry bag filled with chocolate paste to draw three tiny people on the cake. It looked like a piece of abstract art as he only drew a few simple lines. Ruan Danchen could barely discern the appearance of three people from his drawing. One of the people had two straight lines at each side of the person’s somewhat elongated head, so Ruan Danchen guessed that person was a woman.

Then, he drew three chocolate dots on the face which represented the person’s eyes and mouth.

“…” Ruan Danchen felt that Qi Youxuan had many excellent qualities, but he was certainly not artistically talented.

Ruan Danchen could guess that he was drawing Qi Chenglin and her without needing him to tell her. The four crooked lines which were joined together represented them holding his tiny hands.

Ruan Danchen was touched and she stroked his tiny head. She could claim that Qi Youxuan also helped with baking the cake because she let Qi Youxuan complete the decoration of the cake even if it might not look all too charming in the end.

…

…

Qi Chenglin had lunch with his clients at noon. After they left Shengyue, his clients wanted to go to another place for some drinks, so Qi Chenglin asked Jiang Yuan to keep them company.

“Director Qi, let’s go together,” said one of his clients with a grin.

“I’m very sorry, today’s a special day because it’s my birthday. My family is waiting for me at home,” said Qi Chenglin nonchalantly.

“Really? Happy birthday, Director Qi. We don’t know about it, we won’t ask you to accompany us. Do return now,” said the client hurriedly.

Qi Chenglin nodded and asked Jiang Yuan to accompany them. He drove back to Prestige Residences.

He did not drink any alcohol at noon because his clients dared not force him to drink.

…

…

It was already three o’clock when he reached Prestige Residences. Ruan Danchen kept his cake in the refrigerator.

Qi Chenglin felt genuinely at peace as he entered the house. He was used to staying here so he did not feel that the house was small anymore. He thought that it was heart-warming for them to live in a cramped house as a family.

Ruan Danchen was taking an afternoon nap with Qi Youxuan. She woke up when she heard Qi Chenglin opened the door.

She glanced at Qi Youxuan, the little boy still sleeping soundly. The skin of his little face was rosy and his eyelashes looked so long when he closed his eyes.

She got out of bed quietly. She saw Qi Chenglin changing his shoes the moment she walked out of her room.

Qi Chenglin saw her half-awake face with a pair of drowsy eyes. After Qi Chenglin changed into a pair of slippers, he extended his arms to embrace her and kissed her especially soft lips because she just woke up.

“You were sleeping?” asked Qi Chenglin.

“I’m taking an afternoon nap with Youxuan.” Ruan Danchen blushed. She noticed that he did not smell of alcohol. “You didn’t drink any alcohol?”

“Aren’t you all going to celebrate my birthday?” Qi Chenglin still remembered. “I don’t want my body to smell like alcohol.”

“Go and get some rest first, I’ll cook dinner in a while,” said Run Danchen.

“What did you prepare?” Qi Chenglin raised his eyebrows. He could not stop wondering about it throughout the day.

“I’ll tell you at night,” said Ruan Danchen but Qi Chenglin already dragged her into the bedroom.

The moment he closed the door, he pressed his body against her until her back touched the door. His usual honorable face was now smiling wickedly as he pressed his body against her forcibly. “At night?”

His lips curled into a sexy curve and he kissed her lips. “What surprises are you giving me at night?”

“Please talk properly, it’s not what you think it is.” Ruan Danchen was blushing.

“What did I say? I was just asking how you will celebrate my birthday at night?” said Qi Chenglin as he resisted the temptation to smile.

Ruan Danchen did not believe that Qi Chenglin was thinking that only, glaring at him unhappily. Suddenly, someone knocked on the door.

Then, they heard Qi Youxuan talking outside. “Aunt Ruan, what are you doing? I saw an extra pair of shoes at the doorway, is Dad home?”

Ruan Danchen hurriedly tried to push him away but Qi Chenglin refused to let go of her, even kissing her lips straight away.

Ruan Danchen turned her head sideways so that she could talk, but Qi Chenglin conveniently started to kiss her neck as she turned her head after he rubbed his blisteringly hot and tender lips against her lips.

Ruan Danchen trembled as her skin was feeling extremely numb after being kissed by him.

She saw that Qi Chenglin did not intend to reply to Qi Youxuan, so she could only try hard to maintain a steady voice and said, “Mhm, he just came back. He’s changing his clothes now.”

As she was talking, Qi Chenglin suddenly retreated and stopped kissing her.

“Oh,” replied Qi Youxuan and he walked away to do something else.

Ruan Danchen heaved a sigh of relief. When she looked at Qi Chenglin, she found out that he had removed his shirt in such a short while. His muscular upper body was revealed and he was taking off his pants.

“What are you doing?!” asked Ruan Danchen with a reddened face as she opened her eyes wide.

“I’m changing clothes, isn’t that what you told him?” Qi Chenglin’s pants dropped to the floor as he talked.

He was just wearing a pair of underpants now. He had broad shoulders and slim bottoms, his six-pack very distinct and firm. He had a pair of long legs that looked straight and powerful. His sexy physique was extremely masculine.

Ruan Danchen felt that even male underwear models were not as attractive as him. She could see his underpants were filled with something eye-catching.

She blushed furiously and her heart was beating rapidly. She really wanted to throw herself at him and tear off that last piece of cloth!

Ruan Danchen dared not stay in the room any longer because this guy was exceptional in seducing her. She turned around and opened the door and ran out of the room.

Qi Chenglin did not stop her. He smiled involuntarily and changed into leisurewear.

After she ran out of the bedroom, Ruan Danchen went into the washroom and used her hands to fan her face as she looked in the mirror. She was very embarrassed when she recalled that she almost failed to get out of the room. If she stayed for a while more, she would throw herself at Qi Chenglin even if he did not take the initiative.

She looked in the mirror and stuck out her tongue in disdain. “So horny!”

After she calmed down a little, she went to the kitchen and drank a large glass of cool water. Then, she started to prepare dinner.

The sky had turned dark by the time she finished cooking dinner.

Ruan Danchen asked Qi Youxuan to ask Qi Chenglin to come to the dining hall, who then came and sat at the dining table. It felt inharmonious as he sat in her cramped dining hall with his proud expression.

Qi Youxuan sat opposite Qi Chenglin, and the duo stared at each other at the dining table.

Ruan Danchen turned off the lights in the living room, the room swallowed by the encroaching darkness. She returned to the kitchen and lit the candles on the birthday cake before serving it to Qi Chenglin.

“Youxuan and I made this together. I baked the cake and Youxuan decorated it with creamy designs and fruits,” Ruan Danchen explained and sat beside Qi Youxuan. The duo stared at Qi Chenglin with anticipation and anxiety.

Qi Chenglin took a glance at the two of them, admiring the similarity in their facial features. The candlelight accentuated the innocence and honesty in Qi Youxuan’s big, round eyes, all too identical to Ruan Danchen’s.

Warmth coursed through his heart. He closed his eyes as though making a wish and blew out the candlelights.

Ruan Danchen then turned on the lights and served the dishes. Sitting back down, she spoke sheepishly, “It may not be a grand celebration with no special surprises, but this is the first time I’m celebrating birthdays with you and Youxuan. I want us to celebrate birthdays at home, it’s cozy and warm that way.”

“This is good enough. To be honest, it’s been a long time since I last celebrated birthdays. I don’t need any surprises, this is good enough for me.” Qi Chenglin’s gaze on Ruan Danchen was soft and gentle.

Guan Liya probably felt unnecessary to celebrate Qi Chenglin’s birthday as he became more mature. Moreover, he really did not bother about birthdays.

He only wished that Ruan Danchen would remember every occasion related to him as they now shared a special relationship. He did not need a grand or special celebration—it was more than enough if she could just remember his own birthday.

He truly felt that the three of them celebrating birthdays cozily at home was better than the most grand celebration in the world.

Being the birthday boy, Qi Chenglin made the first cut on the cake before cutting out a small piece to Qi Youxuan.

Surprisingly, Qi Youxuan did not gobbled down the piece of cake even though he appeared gluttonous at that moment.

Qi Chenglin served another piece of cake to Ruan Danchen before cutting a small piece for himself. Eyes filled with anticipation and nervousness, Qi Youxuan stared at him. “Dad, have a taste.”

Even though Qi Youxuan merely placed all the ingredients and decorative items pre-prepared by Ruan Danchen on the cake, he felt that at least he had his fair share as if he baked the cake himself.

Qi Chenglin nodded after tasting the cake. “Delicious.”

Qi Youxuan let out a sigh of relief. He relaxed and started munching on the food.

Qi Chenglin felt Qi Youxuan was not his usual self after staying with Ruan Danchen.

Even though he was cheerful all these while, his attitude seemed to have changed for the better.

…

…

The designing and refurbishment of Qi Chenglin and Qi Youxuan’s bedrooms along with the kid’s toy room in Prestige Residences took approximately two months time. The entire process finished in October, and what was left now was the elimination of paint smell. The best guess was that they could move back in during November.

Song Yu reported back to work at Chengshi after her maternity leave in October. Surprisingly, Yang Yunshu did not cause troubles to Ruan Danchen this month, probably due to Song Yu’s presence.

They would just ignore each other’s presence, not greeting despite passing by each other. However, Ruan Danchen did not bother about this—at least she felt happy to be able to chat with Song Yu during work.

Qi Chenglin and Qi Youxuan would accompany her when she returned home after work. If Qi Chenglin’s identity was disregarded, this was the life Ruan Danchen desired the most.

However, Song Yu quit her job after one month and stayed at home, waiting for the birth of her baby.

Qi Chenglin came to fetch Ruan Danchen back to Chengshi after her lunch with Song Yu.

Ruan Danchen returned to her office and took a peek at the table beside hers unconsciously. Song Yu packed up all her personal belongings so the table was empty, and the desktop was turned off too.

Yang Yunshu just came out of the resting area. This time she was unsure to whom she gossiped with again.

She took a glance at Song Yu’s now-empty workplace and smiled coldly. “Are you feeling upset now since you lost all possible support in the company after Song Yu quit her job?”

Ruan Danchen did not feel like arguing with her, so she inhaled deeply and replied with a flat tone, “Find someone else to play with if you’re bored. I don’t have spare time for you.”

Ruan Danchen then sat down and started working on her desktop, ignoring Yang Yunshu.

Yang Yunshu mocked and her lips curled into a cold smile. Surprisingly, she did not argue with Ruan Danchen and went back to her seat, continuing her work.

…

…

The first week was uneventful, peaceful and quiet. On the second week, Ruan Danchen had an appointment with Xu Haode, a financial manager from Huanghua Property.

Huanghua Property was bidding on a land for the establishment of commercial housings. The land itself was decently sized, thus the scale of the compound would be limited—around ten high-rise residential buildings in total. Even though the bidding result was not announced yet, there had been rumors that Huanghua Property was quite certain that this land would be theirs. They were just standing on ceremony with the bidding process since they were using a closed bidding system this time.

Thus, Huanghua Property seized every minute and made every minute count. They started discussing with every possible design company instead of waiting patiently for the bidding result. They would choose the company which provided the best design and refurbishment proposal.

Naturally, Ruan Danchen participated in the competition to try and seize the opportunity. Even though the compound was not huge, it was still a business opportunity. Back in the day, she would have passed on this kind of small-scale projects without hesitation.

She had an appointment with Xu Haode at Shengyue. Whenever she had a business discussion with a male client, she would always book a place at the dining hall to avert any calamity. She could not be too careful even when the other person involved was only planning for a simple business discussion—that way she could avoid any potential rumors from spreading.

However, Xu Haode insisted for the discussion to be held in a private dining room with the reason of noisy environment in the dining hall. Ruan Danchen tried to reject his suggestion indirectly but this induced annoyance in Xu Haode. He reasoned that it would be fine if she gave up on this job opportunity as it was a simple job discussion, but if she insisted on causing trouble, did she mean that she did not trust his personality?

If this issue was made public and Xu Haode lost his reputation, how was he going to continue on his work?

Ruan Danchen could not disagree with his suggestion as she really wanted to seize this job opportunity. After all, Huanghua Property was one of the few companies who was willing to give her a chance to prove herself.

The waiter led Ruan Danchen to the private dining room when she arrived at Shengyue and waited patiently for Xu Haode who would be reaching shortly after her.

The door to the private dining room opened a quarter-hour later. A man in his forties with an average build and well-shaped facial features stood at the doorstep. Overall, there was nothing special about this man who just walked into the room.

Ruan Danchen stood up and greeted politely, “Manager Xu.”

“Ha ha. Let’s not stand on ceremony here, Miss Ruan. Come, let’s have a seat,” Xu Haode walked over with a smile. There was a big, round table in the center of the private dining room, and he chose to sit beside Ruan Danchen.

“Manager Xu, I had collaboration with your company before, I—” Xu Haode then interrupted Ruan Danchen’s statement.

“Miss Ruan, let’s order for food first before continuing our talk in business,” Xu Haode interjected with a smile. He ordered quite a number of dishes and wanted to order alcoholic beverage too. “Miss Ruan, which kind of alcohol do you prefer? I suggest wine for ladies, will that be alright for you?”

Ruan Danchen’s lips curled into a polite smile and said, “I have to get back to work in the evening. I don’t think my boss will be pleased if I went back to work reeking of alcohol.”

Xu Haode ignored Ruan Danchen and waved to the waiter. “I’ll get a wine please, the one which costs one thousand four hundred and eighty Yuan.”

Then he turned towards Ruan Danchen with a smile, drawing near to her as he spoke. “This meal is on me. It’d be a shame if I ask a young lady like you to pay for this.”

Ruan Danchen became stiff and she could hardly maintain the smile any longer as the situation became increasingly uncomfortable. She tried to move further from Xu Haode without making it too obvious in the waiter’s presence.

However, Xu Haode wrapped his arm around Ruan Danchen’s shoulder unexpectedly and leaned himself forward, his face almost resting on her shoulder right after the waiter left the room. The tobacco stench in his mouth assaulted her nostrils during his speech.

“Don’t you worry, Miss Ruan. Ask your boss to call me if he scolds you, I’ll tell him it’s my request. We should drink some wine since we’re out now. It’s happier that way.” Xu Haode’s hand that was initially on her shoulder slipped downwards gradually during his speech. He rested his hand on her waist, attempting to go further downwards.

Ruan Danchen was shocked and she stood up immediately. She then distanced herself from Xu Haode by shifting to the empty seat next to her.

Ruan Danchen got away just in time as Xu Haode lunged at where she originally sat.

“Manager Xu, I’m here to discuss about the proposal, so it’s unwise to have alcoholic beverage now,” reminded Ruan Danchen with hardened expression.

Xu Haode sat up straight. He was smiling a little, a smile with a twist to it—the smile one wore in annoyance. “Miss Ruan, don’t disappoint me, we should have fun when we’re having meals outside. There were rumors saying that you were good at drinking. Since you can drink with others, why can’t you do it with me now?”

Ruan Danchen kept her back straight, getting prepared to run out of the room. “Manager Xu, I hope you’re viewing me in a professional manner. With all due respect, my sole purpose of coming here was to discuss regarding the project—”

“Am I not doing this? We will discuss about the project later. Miss Ruan, I’ve heard about your ‘professionalism’ during work discussion, I hope you’ll treat me with the same ‘professionalism’ too.” Xu Haode smirked. He sat closer to Ruan Danchen and held her hand.

Ruan Danchen felt that there was a hidden message behind his statement. Xu Haode massaged her hands and gave up hiding the creepy, pervert look in his eyes. “Miss Ruan, come to think of it, you were so beautiful and appeared especially cute since I first saw you. You made my heart itch, touch it if you don’t believe me.”

Xu Haode put Ruan Danchen’s hand on his precordium without asking for her permission.

His action disgusted Ruan Danchen and nearly made her vomited. She knew only too well that she would not be able to get this job opportunity, so she stood up abruptly and pulled her hand back with all her might.

“Manager Xu, please behave yourself. I believe this business opportunity with Huanghua is considered a failure. I don’t care what you’re trying to imply but sorry, I don’t use whatever method you have in your mind for business discussion. All the work I’ve done were all based on my skills and potentials. If the client chose not to use my proposal, then it’d be due to my lack of skill, and I won’t win over any projects using disgraceful methods,” Ruan Danchen’s tone was cold and flat. Her face reddened after his insult and she tried desperately to contain her tears.

Xu Haode stood up, his face appeared ferocious and hideous. “You’re willing to do so with others, but why not with me? Why are you pretending to be chaste? God knows how many times you’ve had sex with them for your previous projects!”

Xu Haode knocked the chair and charged towards Ruan Danchen. “Miss Ruan, I’ve known you all too well, so why are you even trying to pretend? Let’s be honest here. If you make me happy, then this project is yours. Didn’t you do the same for all other projects too?”

“Sorry, I think this was a misunderstanding. I’ve never done such actions before.” Ruan Danchen held on to the slight calmness inside her and said before opening the door.

Just when her hand was about to reach the doorknob, Xu Haode grabbed her arm from behind and pulled her back. His face was wild like a barbarian when he exclaimed. “Ruan Danchen, I gave you a chance so stop making yourself an embarrassment, or else don’t even think about getting projects from Huanghua ever again! If you served me well this afternoon, not only that this project will be yours, I’ll give you every project available in Huanghua. Since you can provide special privilege to others, you can provide the same to me too, so don’t even try to pretend that you’re chaste unless…you’re actually despising me? Do you think my position was unworthy of your special privilege?”

He tried to pull Ruan Danchen into his embosom as he spoke.

Ruan Danchen was exasperated and yelled, “Xu Haode, are you out of your mind? Let go of me! I don’t care where you heard all these nonsense, but I never provide such special privilege! I don’t want any projects from Huanghua anymore!”

Xu Haode confirmed his suspicion that Ruan Danchen looked down on him as she did not want to give him the special treatment.

Burning rage hissed through Ruan Danchen’s body, screeching a demanded release in the form of unwanted violence. She lashed out at his face without hesitation when she was about to fall into his embrace, which accidentally caught his eye in the process.

Xu Haode released his grip due to the intense pain in his eyes which were now teary after the assault.

He cried out in pain and grimaced, pressing on the eye that was injured. His menacing eyes were a blazing red as his hand cracked across Ruan Danchen’s cheek. Then, with an aggressive tone, he roared, “B*tch! All the staff in your company knew you had sex with your clients in exchange for projects, stop pretending now!”

Ruan Danchen’s head was snapped backward with the force of his blow and the pain she felt had an unpleasant warmth to it.

Her eyes glowed red as she stared at him and hissed through gritted teeth. “Who fed these nonsense to you? Is it Yang Yunshu? Xu Haode, just wait for your complaint letter. If your company found out regarding your attempt in demanding sex in return for giving me business project and physically violated me when your attempt had failed, let’s see how you’ll survive then.”

Xu Haode was stunned upon hearing her statement.

He did not expect such strong resistance from Ruan Danchen.

Ruan Danchen quickly escaped the room when Xu Haode’s mind went blank. Her nervous system was fired up when she faced Xu Haode in fear that he might force her into copulation.

Ruan Danchen let out a sigh of relief after her escape, but soon the relief was followed by a great sense of mortification. Tears started welling up in her red-rimmed eyes, and they burst forth like water from a dam, spilling down her face.

Ruan Danchen trembled with wrath. She did not want to cry in public but she just could not hold it.

Yang Yunshu went a bit too far in her bullying!

Ruan Danchen had heard rumors spreading in the company. One would know who started and spread the rumors by thinking with the foot, since this was not the first time Yang Yunshu accused her in her presence.

Still, she did not expect that she would go this far and affected her job.

Ruan Danchen rushed off with her head lowered, and accidentally ran into someone else.

“Sorry,” she mumbled without lifting her head, attempting to run away again.

The floodgate was failing as she struggled to contain her tears, and she could not even make a statement clearly. The apology she just uttered was mixed with a sobbing tone.

However, the other person she ran into did not plan to let her go. Suddenly, her shoulders were held firmly and a familiar voice traveled to her ears. “Miss Ruan?”

Petrified on the spot, Ruan Danchen did not lift her gaze as her look was not appealing due to tears.

Xu Haode reached the door with an obvious palm mark on his face. He was stunned upon noticing Mu Huaisheng and slammed the door in their faces, returning to the private dining room.

Mu Huaisheng frowned and lifted Ruan Danchen’s face up with a stony expression. He noticed the tears made wet tracks down her face and dripped from her chin, and one side of her face was red and swollen from the slap.

“What happened?” Mu Huaisheng questioned monotonically.

Ruan Danchen’s hair was messy after the commotion. There was an obvious palm mark on her cheek and her eyes were red from the constant crying.

Ruan Danchen quickly shook his hand off and took two steps back before noticing that Mu Huaisheng did not come alone.

“I’m here for business discussion,” Mu Huaisheng explained.

Ruan Danchen nodded and was about to leave when Mu Huaisheng stopped her in her path. “Hold on, I can’t let you leave alone in this condition. I’ll ask someone to send you back.”

Mu Huaisheng turned towards his assistant, Chen Zhengming and said, “Send Miss Ruan to wherever she wants.”

“Thank you.” Ruan Danchen did not reject his offer as it was difficult to hail a taxi at this hour. Moreover, it was inappropriate to wait at the roadside for a taxi with her current appearance.

Mu Huaisheng gave her a nod before Cheng Zhengming led Ruan Danchen to the car.

Mu Huaisheng then apologized to his client. “Sorry, she’s a friend.”

“It’s okay, I can understand.” His client nodded. Both of them noticed Xu Haode returned to his room after coming out, and they figured Ruan Danchen got the short end of the stick from Xu Haode just now.

They understood what she just went through.

…

…

Chen Zhengming and Ruan Danchen met a woman on their way down the staircase leading out of Shengyue.

Shen Zhijing.

Ruan Danchen recognized her even though it had been seven years since she last saw Shen Zhijing.

Ruan Danchen knew Shen Zhijing worked as a general manager in a property company under the Shen family. Shen Zhijing turned thirty-one years old this year, currently unmarried and not engaged as well. She knew this when she last called Liu Ronghua.

The effect of dissolving an engagement by the Qi family remained after all these years. Shen Zhijing’s pregnancy was a fraud and she disappeared into thin air after the commotion, which brought a disastrous effect on her reputation. No family dared to let Shen Zhijing be their daughter-in-law.

The Qi family disallowed any form of contact with the Shen family after the incident. Even though the Qi family did not confront the Shen family directly, they refused all possible business cooperation with the Shen family. The Qi family would not invite the Shen family for any of their banquets, and if other families invited the Shen family for their respective banquet, the Qi family refused to attend no matter how reputed the organizer was.

Thus, none would offend the Qi family for the Shen family, and eventually none would invite the Shen family to any banquet that the Qi family would attend. The problem was that the Qi family was invited to nearly all the banquets. Thus, the consequence was that the Shen family was almost kicked out of this social circle.

However, there was no permanent friend or foe in the business field. Business would go on as usual despite the damaged reputation.

Now, Shen Zhijing was accompanied by a client whom Ruan Danchen recognized as the person in charge of the land bidding in Chengxi. She knew the person in charge as he once had a business discussion with Song Yu last time.

Shen Zhijing was stunned when she saw Ruan Danchen. She squinted and stared coldly at Ruan Danchen, never expecting to meet Ruan Danchen again in B City after seven years.

Shen Zhijing was expecting Ruan Danchen had already run off and hid in some deserted place.

Shen Zhijing shifted her gaze to Chen Zhengming. She was familiar with Mu Huaisheng and his assistant, Chen Zhengming since MU had quite a good reputation in B City.

Chen Zhengming nodded slightly and greeted, “Miss Shen.”

Shen Zhijing returned the nod and asked, “Came for business discussion?”

Chen Zhengming remained silent and gave a slight nod in response to her question. He was smart enough to avoid causing trouble to any matters related to Mu Huaisheng.

Shen Zhijing glanced at Ruan Danchen coldly and with her chin lifted high, she entered the restaurant.

…

…

Chen Zhengming fetched Ruan Danchen to Chengshi as she requested.

Anger and rage from the humiliation were burning intensely inside her, and she held her tears back when she reached Chengshi.

She held her head down along the way and suddenly, a pack of tissues appeared before her eyes. Ruan Danchen thanked Chen Zhengming before accepting the tissue and wiped the tears off her cheek.

She muttered her gratitude to Chen Zhengming again before getting out of the car.

Chen Zhengming called Mu Huaisheng stating that Ruan Danchen had reached her destination after she entered the office building.

Ruan Danchen rushed into the design department with reddened eyes. She even ignored Wu Min’s greeting when she hurried toward Yang Yunshu’s desk.

It was still lunch hour when Yang Yunshu surfed the internet to shop for new clothes. She lifted her head slowly when she noticed that someone was approaching her.

She smirked upon realizing that someone was Ruan Danchen. Ruan Danchen clenched her teeth and grabbed onto Yang Yunshu’s hair suddenly, yanking it backward.

“Ouch! Ruan Danchen, what are you doing?” A sudden gush of pain jolted through Yang Yunshu’s scalp as Ruan Danchen pulled her hair with all her might. “Ruan Danchen, are you out of your mind? Let me go!”

Yang Yunshu held onto her hair to protect her scalp and tried to release them from Ruan Danchen’s grip.

To be honest, Ruan Danchen did not have the strength of an ox and she could not have possibly pulled her away. When Yang Yunshu fell out of her seat, Ruan Danchen released her grip and connected her hand with Yang Yunshu’s cheek.

Ruan Danchen was exasperated at Yang Yunshu, so she did not hold her strength back and slapped Yang Yunshu with all her might. Her palm felt painful and itchy after the strike.

Yang Yunshu was unstable in her gait when Ruan Danchen yanked her out of her seat, and she wore high heels to work, so inevitably she stumbled and dropped to the ground after getting slapped on the face.

“Ruan Danchen, you want a fight? You got it now!” Yang Yunshu’s raw voice was brutal against Ruan Danchen’s ears. She looked like a psychopath who just came out of a mental hospital with her messy hair. Yang Yunshu got up from the floor and pounced at Ruan Danchen.

Yang Yunshu wanted to grab Ruan Danchen’s hair but her movement was far too slow. Ruan Danchen parried her arm and responded with another slap on Yang Yunshu’s face.

“Ruan Danchen, you lunatic!” Yang Yunshu was in wrath as her hair was pulled and she just got slapped twice.

The colleagues around them were unable to withstand the situation and broke up the fight between the duo.

“Stop fighting. Can you guys just calm down and have a peaceful discussion?” Senior Juan yelled in annoyance. All of them were colleagues but now they were wreaking havoc in the office. This was outrageous!

“Don’t tell me this, tell Ruan Danchen! She came here striking me without warnings. Maniac! Ruan Danchen, did I provoke you before? Can you be reasonable?” Yang Yunshu exclaimed as her face reddened with anger and veins popped out of her neck.

Ruan Danchen’s eyes glimmered with watery tears of rage as she was pulled backward by her colleagues. “You don’t know what you just did? Since I don’t have any projects now, you spread rumors about me having sex with clients to get their projects. Do you really think I don’t know who started this rumor?”

Ruan Danchen stared at her colleagues. “Don’t you guys know? Even so, you guys helped spread it and talked behind my back.”

All her colleagues, including Senior Juan, felt embarrassed and awkward.

“I tolerated your nonsense and avoided any form of arguments with you in the office. I’ve never done such disgraceful matters before so I can face you with a clear conscience. I did my job honestly with a low profile, and I won’t entrap others for my own benefits even if I don’t have much achievement. It was bad enough that this salacious gossip got passed around with indecent efficiency in the company, but you have to spread it out to the community. You tried to bring harm to my reputation without doing yourself any good. Do you feel disgusted at your actions?”

“Which eyes of yours saw me creating rumors about you? You’re the one who tried to blame me at the current moment. Do you realize this is defamation if you don’t have any evidence to prove your statement? Do you think you’re being reasonable to harm me physically without any warning? You dared to perform such actions and you think it was unreasonable for us to comment on it?” Yang Yunshu refused to admit to Ruan Danchen’s complaint.

“What’s all this bickering about?” Manager Xu came out after being awakened from his sweet nap in his office.

Wu Min announced at this moment. “Director Zhao and Madam Zhao are here.”

Director Zhao and Madam Zhao arrived shortly after the announcement.

Madam Zhao’s stare was lethal and piercing on the fighting duo, then her gaze fixated on Yang Yunshu. “What happened?”

“Ruan Danchen was being unreasonable. She came here and hit me without saying anything,” Yang Yunshu covered her face and sobbed.

Madam Zhao frowned and pursed her lips in anger. She took a glance at Ruan Danchen and said, “Ruan Danchen, come to my office.”

Ruan Danchen remained silent, but the sight of Yang Yunshu burying her face between her hands in pain brought a cold smile on her face. She contained all her wrath and followed Director Zhao and Madam Zhao back to their office.

…

…

“Just now Manager Xu from Huanghua called us to file a complaint. He mentioned about you trying to get projects in an unscrupulous way, that you’re willing to let him do whatever he wants on you if he gives you the project?” Madam Zhao asked in disbelief and glared at Ruan Danchen.

Ruan Danchen’s eyes widened in response to the question as she did not expect Xu Haode to frame her on this. However, she understood his intention—the guilty party filed the suit. Since she mentioned on her intention to file a complaint on Xu Haode’s behavior before she left Shengyue, Xu Haode probably got scared of the consequences and wanted to launch a counterattack.

Ruan Danchen clenched her fists tightly. Regret washed over her as she realized her action was a little too impetuous and gave Xu Haode a chance to frame her in advance.

“I didn’t, Xu Haode’s lying! It was him who overheard from someone else saying that I’d sell my body off for work. He touched me during work and even told me that the project is mine in exchange for my body. Naturally, I refused him but I was being too impulsive at that time. I told him regarding my intention to complain about his behavior and gave him a chance to file a complaint against me in advance,” Ruan Danchen said angrily.

Madam Zhao pursed her lips and let out a heavy sigh. “Xu Haode had a good reputation and he had been cooperating with Chengshi for a long time. It was uneventful since then, but why all of a sudden this issue arises in your presence? Nonetheless, there are rumors spreading in the company regarding your unscrupulous act to gain projects since your cases are reducing.”

Ruan Danchen took a deep breath before replying in a flat tone. “Madam, are you accusing me? I can’t say that my designs were outstanding since I started working in Chengshi, but at least I followed strictly on the rules and regulations of the company and didn’t use any dishonest methods to ask for projects. I’m well aware of the rumors spreading in the company and I know who was the culprit starting it. I was framed, and I hope Director Zhao and Madam Zhao could investigate further before deciding on the final judgment.”

Madam Zhao squinted and relaxed her pursing lips. “Judging from the situation just now, you meant Yang Yunshu, right? Ruan Danchen, you said Yang Yunshu framed you, and now you’re going to blame on Xu Haode too?”

“Are you implying that everything’s my fault?” Ruan Danchen tried desperately to stabilize her trembling voice.

“Naturally, we’d think this way since all the evidence points to you,” Madam Zhao answered calmly.

“Director Zhao, you understood the company’s situation, and you’re well aware of the reason why Yang Yunshu was transferred initially. Do you believe her moral quality?” Ruan Danchen asked in rage.

Director Zhao sighed before answering her question. “Xiao Ruan, Yang Yunshu isn’t a good person but she isn’t too bad either. On the other hand, it’s a fact that you’re lacking in cases and projects now.”

“Is this the reason why you think I’d have sex with my clients in exchange for cases?” Ruan Danchen asked in disbelief. She did not know what was the most appropriate response for their assumptions amid her exasperation.

Ruan Danchen had sealed her emotions within a wall but brick by brick, her wall came tumbling down as tears started welling up in her eyes.

Madam Zhao took a glance at Director Zhao before shifting her cold gaze back to Ruan Danchen. “I don’t care what the truth is, but we have to deal with the complaint Xu Haode filed.”

“What do you mean?” a disheartened Ruan Danchen asked.

“How about this; I’m going to give you a few days of unpaid leaves and you’ll return to work afterward. This punishment is the least severe for you,” Director Zhao answered helplessly after pretending to give this some thought.

“I don’t care if you have suggested the exchange to Xu Haode or not, or if you performed such unscrupulous act before. My only advice was for you to introspect at home these few days. We’ll let the past stay in the past after you returned to work, but I hope that you’ll continue your job with absolute honesty. I don’t want to hear any rumors about you again,” Madam Zhao said coldly.

Director Zhao and Madam Zhao were playing good cop and bad cop with Ruan Danchen at that moment.

“You meant to say I actually did those disgraceful things before? When I said I didn’t do it, it means I didn’t do it at all. This was a disgrace to my reputation and I won’t sell my body for a mere project. You blamed me for everything but you didn’t deal with the real problem. You didn’t take any action when Yang Yunshu spread nonsense about me and made the whole company gloomy, and now you put all those on me?” Ruan Danchen questioned out of rage.

Director Zhao’s face paled with annoyance but he contained his rage as Ruan Danchen was Song Yu’s friend. “Xiao Ruan, we’ve decided on your punishment. If you’re genuinely innocent, then none of the rumors will actually spread. Yang Yunshu doesn’t have any power to let this gossip spread inside the company. You choose not to introspect yourself and insist on blaming others now that the rumors are flying thick in the company. Why did Yang Yunshu blame you and not others? Shouldn’t you introspect yourself?”

Director Zhao sighed before continuing, “You must understand that we have to deal with this matter officially since a client just filed a complaint against you directly. It doesn’t help that you don’t have much work to do, since your cases are so less. To be honest, this is unacceptable in any company, but I chose to turn a blind eye on this for a couple of months now and even let you stay in this company. I only gave you unpaid leaves in response to the complaint against you now. Xiao Ruan, please realize that I’m being kind to you now.”

“In any case, I hope you can behave and won’t let us down. We would’ve fired him if it was someone else,” said Madam Zhao.

“You want me to resign, right? Even if I want to resign, I’ll resign when the truth is revealed. I was framed, I can’t resign as a scapegoat! I’ll only resign when the time comes. I won’t occupy any space inside the company and continue to be an encumbrance to the company,” Ruan Danchen ignored them and rushed out of the office after finishing her sentence.

She returned to the design department and started packing her belongings.

Yang Yunshu went to the washroom just now to tidy up herself and made herself presentable in public. She applied foundation to try and cover the swelling on her cheek due to Ruan Danchen’s slaps. However, the swelling on her cheek appeared slightly asymmetrical on her face.

She walked over when she noticed Ruan Danchen was packing up her belongings. “Hey, what’s wrong, are you quitting your job?”

Ruan Danchen lifted her cold gaze to meet Yang Yunshu’s and said, “I won’t bow down easily to a vile person like you. My resignation will just greatly satisfy you, right? Why should I let you work with comfort while I suffer? You think I’m a nuisance and want me gone, right? I rather stay and suffer, at least you’ll continue to feel disgusted that way.”

Ruan Danchen finished packing up her belongings after finishing her statement. She took her bag and walked past Yang Yunshu, ignoring her completely.

Ruan Danchen’s eyes started to burn once she exited the design department. She wiped her cheek and noticed small crystal beads resting on her palm.

She wiped the tears off her face and entered the elevator. Even though the elevator was empty, she tried to hold the tears that threatened to leave her eyes in case someone wanted to enter the elevator at any floor level.

She attempted to hide her grief but it was overcome by the wave of her emotions. The muffled sobs wracked against her chest and she quickly covered her mouth. A lone tear traced down her cheek, and just like that, the floodgates opened.

Ruan Danchen stood at the front door of Chengshi. She then headed toward the subway as she was in no mood to hail a taxi.

Battered, Ruan Danchen wiped her tears off as she walked when her phone rang.

She took out her cell phone. It was Song Yu who called her, so Ruan Danchen accepted the call. “Song Yu.”

Song Yu noticed Ruan Danchen’s unusual tone immediately and asked, “What happened to you? Your voice doesn’t sound right, are you crying?”

Ruan Danchen took a deep breath and buried her sob forcibly before whispering, “No, what’s up?”

“Nothing, I just wanted to tell you that you should bring Youxuan along to our house and have meals together since Chenglin isn’t here,” said Song Yu.

The paint odors in Prestige Residences were almost fully eliminated. They could move back to Prestige Residences together but unfortunately, Qi Chenglin went on a business trip.

Even though they reached a consensus that Ruan Danchen would move to Prestige Residences with Qi Chenglin and Qi Youxuan once the refurbishment had been completed, it would be impolite to move in alone since Qi Chenglin was not around at the current moment. Thus, she left this aside and planned on waiting for Qi Chenglin’s arrival.

“Alright, I’ll fetch him and visit your house later once he’s done with school,” replied Ruan Danchen as she wiped the tears that rolled down her cheeks.

“Danchen, are you sure you’re alright?” Song Yu asked again as she felt Ruan Danchen was not in a good mood.

“I’m fine, really,” insisted Ruan Danchen.

Song Yu did not question Ruan Danchen further and hung up the call.

…

…

Ruan Danchen threw her bag on the couch after returned home and went to the washroom. She looked battered as the reflection in the mirror showed a swollen cheek and red-rimmed eyes.

Did Director Zhao and Madam Zhao really think Ruan Danchen could seduce Xu Haode in this condition?

She washed her face in the washroom before wrapping the ice she took from the kitchen with gauze and applied it on her swollen cheek. She did not want to let Qi Youxuan worry when he saw her swollen face after coming back from school later.

The ice pack was applied right on her burning, swollen, reddish cheek. She went back to her bedroom and sprawled herself across her bed, feeling disgusted as she recalled Xu Haode’s behavior this afternoon.

Why did she need to endure this sort of injustice when she had never provoked anyone before?

Ruan Danchen buried herself in a blanket and started to wail, wishing that Qi Chenglin would be there with her at that moment.

The doorbell rang after some time.

Pushing herself off the bed, Ruan Danchen wiped her tears and glanced at her reflection in the mirror. The eyes remained red but the swelling on her cheek had at least subsided.

She let out a sigh of relief before answering the door and was surprised when she saw Song Yu bearing a huge abdomen at her doorstep.

“Song Yu, why are you here?” Ruan Danchen asked in surprise.

“Why are you crying? Your voice sounded unusual over the phone so I went to Chengshi in search of you, but I was told by the people in the design department that you weren’t in and nobody told me where you went. I met Director Zhao after I came out of the department and he appeared strange when I said I’m looking for you. Did Director Zhao cause troubles to you again?” said Song Yu as she entered the house.

Song Yu felt fatigued easily while walking around with a huge abdomen, so she went to have a sit on the couch.

Ruan Danchen took a deep breath and sat down with her. “It’s my fault for crying for something minor.”

“What happened actually?” Song Yu stared at Ruan Danchen, not believing it was just a minor event.

Ruan Danchen was usually well-mannered and staunch. She had a positive attitude toward everything and normally would not act unreasonably.

Ruan Danchen poured a glass of water for Song Yu and told her the truth. She did not bother to hide any details as it would be easy to get the whole story with a simple inquiry.

“They’re fools! You don’t need to be mad about this. It’s not like you need Chengshi to survive,” Song Yu said angrily.

“I know. I don’t mind resigning but I don’t want Yang Yunshu to be the reason for my resignation. I don’t want to be a scapegoat when I resign and let others think that I really sold my body in exchange for projects,” Ruan Danchen swallowed a few large gulps of water to calm the raging fire that burned inside her.

“Moreover, even though I’m in a relationship with Qi Chenglin, I don’t want to be overdependent on him. I prefer to separate business with pleasure so best not to let him worry about my work too.” Ruan Danchen placed down the glass with a heavy sigh.

Song Yu suggested that Ruan Danchen return to Viewpark Residence together and have dinner later in fear that she would overthink as though having a bee in her bonnet.

Ruan Danchen felt extremely stressed and impossible to relax when she recalled Qi Chengzhi’s usual expression. She rejected Song Yu’s offer, claiming that she wanted to rest at home. Since Song Yu now understood her current situation, she did not insist on her offer.

Just when Song Yu was about to leave, Ruan Danchen hesitated for a moment before deciding to break the news. “Song Yu, I have something… that I wanted to tell you.”

Song Yu was curious and lowered her gaze to Ruan Danchen who was sitting on the couch, hesitating. She sat back down before asking, “Yes?”

Ruan Danchen inhaled deeply and looked at Song Yu. “To be honest… Youxuan… is my son.”

Song Yu blinked, unable to digest the news that she just heard. Ruan Danchen continued, “Biological son.”

“What… What do you mean?” Song Yu’s face was washed blank with confusion as she stared at Ruan Danchen with wide eyes.

Ruan Danchen told Song Yu everything that happened seven years ago. “I’m lucky to be able to reunite with Qi Chenglin and blessed that he’s willing to accept me instead of blaming me and let me reunite with Youxuan again. Since I’m in a relationship with Qi Chenglin now, I don’t want to keep this a secret from you.”

“Are you planning to let Youxuan know about this?” Song Yu’s brain cogs could not turn fast enough to take in the information she just received. If she was reacting this way, who would predict how Qi Youxuan would react.

“I don’t know, perhaps let nature takes its course. If he can’t accept it, I’ll keep this from him forever for his own good. If I can take care of him and watch him grow up, then I’m satisfied,” Ruan Danchen answered softly.

Song Yu held Ruan Danchen’s hand before saying, “My mouth is sealed.”

Ruan Danchen nodded. “I know, and I’m telling you this because you’re my best friend.”

Song Yu chatted with Ruan Danchen regarding this issue for a while before leaving.

…

…

Xiaoyang drove Ruan Danchen to school at approximately four o’clock in the evening to wait for Qi Youxuan’s class to end.

Qi Youxuan was strolling when he saw Ruan Danchen standing at the school gate. Joy and happiness were written all over his face as he trotted toward Ruan Danchen with excitement. “Aunt Ruan, why are you here today? I thought you were supposed to be at work?”

“I’m taking a few days of rest.” Ruan Danchen hid her emotions from Qi Youxuan and acted calmly. Moreover, the sight of him made all her gloomy feelings disappear into thin air.

“Really? That’s good! Then can you come and fetch me every day?” Qi Youxuan asked happily.

“Alright,” Ruan Danchen nodded and bent down in an attempt to lift Qi Youxuan up.

She could not contain her urge to hug him when she saw his chubby appearance.

“Hold on, we’re at the school gate now. Aunt Ruan, please don’t destroy my image here.” Qi Youxuan’s face was flushed pink in embarrassment.

Ruan Danchen was stunned at his reaction. She gave him a smile and stroke his hair.

All of a sudden, they heard a childish voice. “Qi Youxuan.”

Ruan Danchen and Qi Youxuan shifted their gaze toward the voice. A girl with two ponytails carrying a wheeled bag, followed by a man who appeared to be her chauffeur, walked toward them.

The girl stared at Qi Youxuan, then shifted her gaze to Ruan Danchen in confusion and greeted politely. “Good evening, Auntie.”

Ruan Danchen smiled and nodded in response, then she heard the girl asked, “Qi Youxuan, is this your mom?”

It was unprecedented that Qi Youxuan did not answer that question immediately.

He puffed out his cheeks in hesitation. He fought the urge to say ‘yes’ in fear that Ruan Danchen would be unhappy about it.

Ruan Danchen held Qi Youxuan’s hand, squeezing it gently. “Yes.”

However, she blushed after answering the question. Luckily, Qi Chenglin was not around to know about this, or else he would be mocking her right now.

Qi Youxuan was gleeful after hearing Ruan Danchen’s answer. Joy and exultance were written all over his face as he could finally show off that he had a mother.

“Shen Manman, why are you looking for me?” Qi Youxuan asked. However, he sounded rather impolite as if impatient at the sight of her.

Ruan Danchen glanced at Qi Youxuan in curiosity as this was not his usual attitude.

“I wanted to ask you; is it okay with you if we form a two-man team for tomorrow’s group activity?” Shen Manman asked with two small dimples appeared alongside her sweet smile.

“Not okay,” Qi Youxuan blurted out.

Shen Manman was taken aback as she did not expect a rejection as straightforward as he did. “Why?”

“I’m not forming a team with a girl, it’ll be disastrous if Mumu knows about this,” Qi Youxuan explained.

Ruan Danchen did not expect Qi Youxuan would be so loyal to a girl.

“Who’s Mumu?” Shen Manman’s expression darkened with a tinge of finicky on her face.

“Obviously she’s a girl that I like, so stop bothering me from now on,” Qi Youxuan answered impatiently.

Ruan Danchen felt Qi Youxuan was not being narcissistic as Shen Manman’s face went red and appeared unhappy as though her heart just took a beating.

“Humph, what makes you think I care?” Shen Manman asked. With her cheeks puffed in anger, she pulled her bag and walked away.

Ruan Danchen then held Qi Youxuan’s hand and entered the car. She did not expect him to be so popular among girls in the first few days of school.

“Aunt Ruan, don’t tell Mumu about what happened just now. I feared that she may misunderstand me,” Qi Youxuan said seriously.

“…” Ruan Danchen kept quiet as she felt Little Muran might not care about this.

“Who was the little girl just now?” Ruan Danchen asked out of curiosity.

“She’s a nuisance, kept bothering me since the first day of school. I made myself very clear and hope she won’t bother me anymore,” Qi Youxuan said coolly.

Ruan Danchen felt that Qi Youxuan’s attitude toward females was the same as Qi Chengzhi and Qi Chenglin. None of them would bat an eye toward women who they dislike.

“Aunt Ruan, why are you taking a few days rest?” Qi Youxuan took out his bottle from the side pocket of the bag and started drinking with the straw.

“The company gave me a few days of holiday, so I can make use of this opportunity to accompany you,” Ruan Danchen explained with a smile on her face.

The car was parked at Ruan Danchen’s house and she got down from the car first, but after waiting for some time, Qi Youxuan still had not exited the car.

She peeked into the car out of curiosity and saw Qi Youxuan with a reddened face remained seated with his seatbelt on. He clutched onto the seatbelt with his chubby hand and whispered with embarrassment. “Aunt Ruan, you wanted to pick me up and hug me just now, right?”

Ruan Danchen laughed. Qi Youxuan wanted to protect his reputation and dignity at school so he disallowed her to carry and hug him. Now that they were alone, his desire grew stronger.

Ruan Danchen leaned into the car and unbuckled his seatbelt, then she gestured him to sit near to the door before picking him up.

Qi Youxuan was a little overweight for his age so Ruan Danchen felt strenuous lifting his weight. However, it would be impossible for her to lift him up as he grew older, so Ruan Danchen appreciated this moment and carried him despite the tiredness.

Ruan Danchen went to prepare dinner in the kitchen once they returned home. Qi Youxuan took out his kid’s Totoro cell phone from his bag and looked around vigilantly. When he saw Ruan Danchen remained in the kitchen and preparing dinner attentively, he hurried to the washroom.

His hands expertly dialed Qi Chenglin’s phone number.

“Dad, it’s me.”

“…”

“Yes, we’re fine today. Aunt Ruan is on holiday now and she said she’ll accompany me at home.”

“…”

“How many days of holiday? I don’t know, I forgot to ask.”

“…”

“I don’t know why she’s on holiday. Aunt Ruan didn’t mention anything other than she’s on a holiday now.”

“…”

“Dad, I’m only six years old right now. You’re asking too much out of me.”

“…”

“Return home early if you’re worried. You kept asking me questions but you’re not satisfied when I can’t answer them. Why are you so stubborn?”

“…”

“No, I didn’t notice any emotional changes in Aunt Ruan.”

“…”

“Aunt Ruan went to school and fetched me today. There was a girl in my class asking if she was my mother and Aunt Ruan said yes. Aunt Ruan is a nice woman.”

“…”

“Oh Dad, when are you coming back?”

“…”

“Alright.”

Qi Youxuan heard Ruan Danchen’s voice traveled from the kitchen when he hung up the call. “Youxuan, it’s time for dinner.”

Qi Youxuan placed his phone back into his pocket quickly and washed his hands before exiting the washroom.

…

…

Qi Youxuan had a lot of arts and crafting works to complete instead of homework at the current moment. Ruan Danchen tutored him on his homework and put him to bed at half-past eight at night.

She went back to her bedroom once Qi Youxuan fell asleep. Sitting alone in the room, all the upsetting moments started to overwhelm her like a great rush of water.

Her eyes started to water and her chest started to ache as she went down the memory lane.

Then, the phone rang. It was Qi Chenglin.

Ruan Danchen quickly wiped the tears off and took a few deep breaths before answering the call.

“Are you asleep?” Qi Chenglin asked after the call was answered.

“Not yet,” Ruan Danchen lowered her voice and answered. She relaxed when the voice produced did not convey unusual emotions in fear that he might get worried during his outstation. “I’m lying on the bed now with nothing to do.”

“I’m not at home, is that why you have nothing to do in bed?” Qi Chenglin’s sexy voice traveled from across the phone. Ruan Danchen could imagine the flirty curl to his lips by just hearing his voice.

“Indecent bastard,” Ruan Danchen turned over and covered herself with a blanket to the chin level. She felt incredibly uncomfortable lying alone in bed without Qi Chenglin at her side.

The bed was the same as before, but now with the addition of the lonesome feeling.

She curled herself into a tight ball. Qi Chenglin’s voice caressed her delicate skin and right now she wished that he was just beside her, hugging her to sleep.

“How are you at home?” Qi Chenglin asked softly.

“I’m good, I got Youxuan to accompany me,” Ruan Danchen answered. She slowly regained calmness as she listened to his mellow voice.

“Youxuan said you’re on holiday right now?” A faint smile appeared on Qi Chenglin’s face.

“Yes.” Ruan Danchen had no idea when Qi Youxuan called Qi Chenglin.

“Why are you on holiday all of a sudden?” Qi Chenglin asked out of confusion.

“Nothing, just wanted to take some rest for the moment. I can use the time to accompany Youxuan too,” Ruan Danchen answered, skipping most of the details as she did not want to lie to him.

There was a moment of silence from the other end of the phone, or at least Ruan Danchen felt that that period of silence was particularly long.

“When are you coming back?” Ruan Danchen asked with a guilty conscience in fear that he might detect some abnormalities, plus she really missed him right now.

“Miss me?” Qi Chenglin’s mellow voice mixed with a tinge of happiness.

“Yes,” she whispered with a snotty tone as Ruan Danchen’s eyes felt sore all of a sudden.

She missed him initially, and now the feeling grew stronger as she listened to his voice. Her nose became red and wished he could be beside her now.

“Miss me until you cry?” Qi Chenglin’s voice was deep and husky over the phone.

It felt like Qi Chenglin was whispering against her ears when she held her phone close to her ears, and the voice caressed her skin, coaxing shivers out of her.

“No,” Ruan Danchen denied.

“I’m going back soon,” Qi Chenglin said softly.

“How are you? Are you eating regularly?” She remembered Qi Chenglin’s gastric problem.

“I’m taking note of my eating habits. Do you want me to report every meal to you when I go outstation next time?” Qi Chenglin replied as warmth spread throughout his entire body. He liked it when Ruan Danchen was concerned about him.

“Then will others mock you if you do this?” Ruan Danchen broke into laughter. Tears started to break free and rolled down her cheeks, which she wiped off immediately.

“They’ll only feel envious because I have a wife who cares about me,” Qi Chenglin said softly with his head and gaze lowered.

“Who’s your wife now?” Ruan Danchen blushed, realizing that they had not discussed their future plans yet.

To be honest, she did not dare to start the discussion. She did not want to fantasize about it either as she had no idea what kind of planning Qi Chenglin had for them.

Qi Chenglin smiled and asked her to rest early and not overthinking before hanging up the call.

Ruan Danchen yearned for Qi Chenglin after the phone call. She glanced through the call history in her phone and felt particularly sweet and warm when she stared at the word ‘Qi Chenglin’ on her phone. For some reason, her dependence on Qi Chenglin grew stronger.

She did not expect her relationship would come to this, that it would be getting out of hand.

She was used to loneliness after living her life alone for the past twenty-six years. She could only depend solely on herself whenever she hit rock-bottom. Qi Chenglin became someone who she could depend on, and she could finally relax and did not have the need to remain strong again. Now, she wanted to depend on him so badly.

To be honest, this was what she had been trying hard to avoid but it seemed like the attempt was an utter failure.

She put her phone down and closed her eyes, rolling on the bed for quite some time before finally able to fall asleep late at night.

However, she was not sleeping well, and she woke up semi-consciously upon hearing a noise in the bedroom. She thought it was Qi Youxuan who wanted to sleep with her since Qi Chenglin went outstation, but her eyes opened to a humongous and tall figure standing among the darkness.

Ruan Danchen was shocked. She jolted awake and quickly sat up, then she heard a soft voice, “Sh, it’s me.”

Ruan Danchen was stunned as she could not believe her ears. The voice sounded exactly like Qi Chenglin.

She turned on the table lamp on the bedside table, and true enough, it really was Qi Chenglin standing right in front of her.

—

Extra Mini-Scene:

“Little Young Master, are you really that popular in class?” asked Jiang Yuan.

“Of course,” replied Qi Youxuan, “it’s rare to see a boy as handsome as I am.”

Jiang Yuan failed to muster a reply.

“Please be humble,” said Qi Chenglin.

“My teacher taught us to be honest since young, so I can’t lie with a guilty conscience,” Qi Youxuan bit back.

Ruan Danchen was at a loss of words.

- - -

Dust from the environment had settled on Qi Chenglin’s outfit, and the night’s coolness and scent still lingered on him. The collar of his shirt and tie were loosened and his coat was resting on his forearm. He looked tired, with beard stubble emerging from his face.

Ruan Danchen was frozen to the spot. She had a phone call with him just a few hours ago and now he was standing right in front of her.

Her throat felt slightly sore and aching. She quickly got off her bed and pounced into his embosom.

Ruan Danchen buried her face in Qi Chenglin’s chest. Qi Chenglin lowered his head, his soft and gentle gaze rested on her head. She looked like a grief-stricken child who was treated unfairly. Qi Chenglin carried her in his embosom, his hug tightened, and sat on the bed.

“Why didn’t you tell me that you’re coming back during the call just now?” Ruan Danchen inhaled deeply and fought the urge to shed tears.

“I’m worried about you being alone here.” Qi Chenglin put her on his thighs, leaned forward and kissed her on the forehead.

Ruan Danchen smiled coquettishly. For some reason, her mind was at peace when Qi Chenglin returned home.

“Nothing happened these past few days?” Qi Chenglin asked, his voice low and croaky possibly due to tiredness. His lips were burning hot when it brushed on her forehead, coaxing chills down her spine.

Ruan Danchen shook her head as she could not speak at the moment.

Then, she heard him asking further, “Don’t you want to tell me the truth about why you’re on leave?”

Ruan Danchen lifted her head slowly and stared at him with surprise.

Though his face appeared weather-beaten and tired, he remained handsome and mature.

He let out a sigh before explaining, “Youxuan called me today saying that you’re on a holiday. I felt that something was wrong so I called you at night, which confirmed my suspicions after hearing your voice. You didn’t want to tell me so I have no choice but to ask Song Yu. She told me everything.”

“I don’t want you to worry about me,” Ruan Danchen said softly.

“I’m more worried if you don’t tell me anything. You rather tell Song Yu and keep this a secret from me—are you saying she’s more intimate to you than I am?” Qi Chenglin tightened his hug around her waist. He moved his lips away from her and she could notice the stern expression on his face.

Ruan Danchen stared at his expression which appeared slightly upset.

“I just don’t feel like involving you in any matters relating to my job. I normally settle matters myself whenever I hit the rocks in my work before I started a relationship with you. I don’t want to start depending on you now that I have you in my life—I’d feel useless that way,” Ruan Danchen conceded melancholically, her head lowered as she spoke.

To be honest, she did not want to depend solely on a man as how Liu Ronghua did. No man would be able to tolerate such attitude as it would induce a tremendous pressure on him.

“You could only stay strong since I wasn’t there before, but now you don’t need to since I’m here. You can always tell me whenever you feel unhappy or wronged—there’s no need to carry the burden all by yourself since I can usually settle it effortlessly. I won’t feel that you’re useless or over-dependent on me, and I certainly won’t feel annoyed at you. It’s my responsibility to take care of and protect you since you’re my woman now, and I’ll give you justice if you’re wronged. My shoulders are prepared especially for you to rest on, and I want you to depend on me. Now I feel sad and upset when you chose not to tell me when you’re treated unfairly,” Qi Chenglin said softly, his gaze gentle and loving.

“Sorry.” Ruan Danchen snuggled in and her arms squeezed a fraction tighter around him.

“There’s no need to apologize to me. You just need to depend on me from now on, and you don’t need to settle matters all by yourself anymore. If you’re wronged again, just tell me no matter the severity. Don’t let me ask around only to realize that my woman had received unjust treatment. You needn’t distinguish a lot of matters that clearly with me.” Qi Chenglin leaned forward and kissed on her forehead.

He held Ruan Danchen’s shoulders firmly so that she could look into his deep and gentle eyes. “You’re not like your mother—she couldn’t even be independent at all. That sort of dependency annoys men, but men choose to leave her because of the lack of affection too. You’re different—you’re independent and I need to beg you to depend on me. I won’t feel annoyed at you even if you don’t know anything and depend solely on me. I like the feeling when you depend on me and tell me everything, and I love solving all your problems. I hope you can complain to me immediately whenever you’re wronged. Whoever bullied you or made you unhappy, tell me and I’ll bring justice to you.”

“I don’t want you to sort things out very clearly with me. You prefer not to mix business with pleasure, but if I can help you in any way in business, I’ll lessen your burden and make your work simpler. I’ll do anything that makes you happy and decrease your stress level. If I can make your life at work easier than before, then why shouldn’t I do it?”

Ruan Danchen’s eyes began to water when she gazed upon his handsome face. It was no surprise that women would fall for him and went hell-bent on him.

She was fortunate to have given birth to a son for a man as good as him.

“I think…the most correct decision my mom did on her entire life was to let me replace Shen Zhijing on that night.” Ruan Danchen grinned in embarrassment as she was not used to taking the initiative on the confession.

Qi Chenglin’s lips curled up in a sexually attractive way and said in a low and croaky voice, “I think so too.”

Qi Chenglin hugged her and stroke her hair gently.

Ruan Danchen could not fall asleep now that Qi Chenglin returned, and the unjust treatment she received today did not feel unjust at all. His presence could magically make all injustice and unhappiness disappear into thin air.

She did not expect a man nearly as ill-mannered and sarcastic toward her initially would act excessively gentle towards her now.

Qi Chenglin considered Ruan Danchen his aegis and responsibility. The way he took over her burden on his shoulder and shielded her from harm appeared particularly charming to her.

“You must inform me first if there’s any trouble, alright?” Qi Chenglin said softly while stroking her hair gently.

“Alright.” Ruan Danchen nodded in his embosom, her cheek rubbing on his shirt.

Qi Chenglin smiled, his gaze and curling of lips remained soft and tender.

“You rushed back home after work because of this?” Ruan Danchen lifted her head and asked.

“I’ll get worried if I let you stay alone at home with no one to whine with when you’re wronged,” said Qi Chenglin while caressing her hair.

He leaned in softly and wet kisses on her head’s temporal region and the corner of her eyes.

Ruan Danchen could not express her gratitude and affection enough for this man. He was willing to put all his matters aside just to return home for her straight after work at night.

In contrast, Ruan Danchen felt that the unjust treatment she received was so minor that it was unworthy of him to rush around just for her.

There was a faint curve to Qi Chenglin’s lips and he brushed her lips with his lovingly, as though he knew what went through her mind.

His heart ached at the thought of her staying alone at home, suffering the unjust treatment she received. A body as thin and fragile as hers would not be able to endure this much pressure.

“You must be tired, get some rest soon. Are you done with your work there?” Ruan Danchen said quickly due to guilt.

“Not yet, there’s still a little bit of work left to do. I’ll take the earliest flight back there tomorrow and should be able to return home the day after tomorrow.” Qi Chenglin took off his shirt. Surprisingly, Ruan Danchen did not look away and her gaze fixated on him affectionately.

“Don’t rush around like this next time. I’ll get worried if you exhaust yourself,” said Ruan Danchen as she did not want him tuckered out by taking care of her.

“If you don’t want me to feel exhausted, then let me know immediately if you face any problems. I rushed back here because I was worried about you since you didn’t want to tell me anything,” replied Qi Chenglin as he took off his pants, his underwear the only remaining article on him. He stared at Ruan Danchen intensely in an almost naked state and this scenery appeared strange in her eyes.

“Alright, it won’t happen again next time,” said Ruan Danchen, like a child admitting her mistake and apologizing.

Qi Chenglin broke into laughter when he saw Ruan Danchen’s obedient attitude. He walked toward her, leaned down and pecked her on the lips before rushing to the bathroom for a quick five-minutes shower.

Ruan Danchen had buried herself in a blanket when Qi Chenglin went back to the bedroom. He noticed the softened expression on her face which signified that she was no longer affected by the incident this afternoon.

Ruan Danchen stared at Qi Chenglin with her big, round eyes. Even though her gaze was clear and without any dirty thoughts, Qi Chenglin was stimulated and aroused nonetheless.

Qi Chenglin buried himself into the heap of covers. Ruan Danchen took the initiative and squeezed into his embosom without him needing to reach for her. Her soft and slim arms encircled and tightened around him. Her fair, delicate and innocent face rested firmly against his chest. She moved around to find the most comfortable position before closing her eyes.

Ruan Dachen felt his long, slender fingers pinching the corner of her pajamas after a while.

“I didn’t mean it…” Ruan Danchen whispered and her body felt hot amid the embarrassment.

“I want. I went outstation for a couple of days now and I want it so badly. It was torture,” Qi Chenglin spoke softly and pecked her lips continuously.

“I thought you wanted to catch the earliest flight in the morning?” Her body trembled but she did not stop him.

“It’s okay, I don’t think I can sleep if I endure it any longer,” Qi Chenglin’s voice was extremely husky and deep. There was a charm to his voice which made him especially attractive.

Ruan Danchen’s face reddened like a strawberry in embarrassment and remained silent. She took the initiative and lifted her head to kiss him on the lips.

Ruan Danchen missed him a little too much, especially when he magically appeared right in front of her after she wished that he was here to accompany her today.

She felt extremely touched when Qi Chenglin rushed back home after knowing that she received unjust treatment. Although her heart wrenched at the sight of him rushing around for her, she felt warm and happy when he valued her and treated her well.

She felt at ease because of him and she knew he would always have her in his mind no matter where he went. If she encountered a problem, no matter the severity, he would always return to her in a flash.

Tears started to well up in her eyes. She had not figured it out until now why such a good man existed in this world, and why she was able to be loved and cared for by such a good man.

Ruan Danchen squeezed into his embosom and her arms encircled him tightly. She pressed her lips on his muscular shoulder and whispered, “I love you…”

Her confession exploded in the calm lake within him. Waves came rushing toward him and carried him away, and he embraced her into his lake of exploding excitement.

…

…

Ruan Danchen was lying on the bed in a leaden, death-like slumber the next day. She knew it was time to wake up but her body did not heed her command and her eyes just would not open.

Qi Chenglin was ferocious in satisfying his craving last night. He had a few rounds last night to make up for the few days of abstinence during his outstation.

Ruan Danchen reached out to her cell phone that was resting on the bedside table, but her arms were extremely sore and fatigued. The lactic acid buildup started this morning due to prolonged muscle contractions when she clutched onto her pillow during the wild copulation last night.

It was ten in the morning when he unlocked her screen and opened her eyes amidst the semi-consciousness, then she saw a message notification. She rubbed her eyes and clicked on the message, which turned out to be from Qi Chenglin.

[I’m leaving now. I didn’t wake you up because you’re sleeping soundly. I’ll get off the plane at approximately half-past ten o’clock in the morning later.]

Ruan Danchen jolted awake after she finished reading the message. She fell into a deep sleep and did not wake up at his departure. She felt guilty and extremely terrible that there was no attempt to wake up and send him off even though he informed her he would catch the earliest flight back to work.

He even rushed around from dawn to dusk just for her.

The muscles on her abdomen and lower limbs screamed in agony due to soreness and she did not dare to move them, though she eventually did manage to lift herself after some time. She felt that it was all a mere dream when she turned her head to gaze upon the space beside her.

Qi Chenglin’s warmth and scent still lingered on her body. Ruan Danchen clutched onto the blanket tightly and inhaling his fragrance that remained.

She closed her eyes for a while before opening them again and get off the bed.

She felt happy when he came back to her last night, but now that he was gone, the initial joy had been replaced with a terrible feeling. She missed him so much right now.

Ruan Danchen endured the muscle aches and hurried to the washroom to tidy herself. Upon exiting her bedroom, she saw Qi Youxuan holding a toast he took from the refrigerator in one hand and a bottle of milk in another. He was munching on the toast while watching Kung Fu Panda on a cartoon channel. There was half a packet of toast initially, but Qi Youxuan had immersed himself in the movie with great interest, leaving only two pieces of toast without him realizing.

“Aunt Ruan, you’re awake,” Qi Youxuan was munching on the toast when he turned toward Ruan Danchen, speaking energetically.

Ruan Danchen felt guilty as she felt that she did not take good care of him. “What time did you wake up? Why didn’t you wake me up too?”

“Dad said you’re exhausted. He asked me not to wake you up and let you sleep in.” Qi Youxuan finished the last toast in the packet though only realizing it when his chubby hand reached inside and found nothing. He puckered his lips as if his craving was not yet satisfied.

He crumpled the packet and threw it into the dustbin, then he held the milk with his chubby hands and started drinking.

“You saw him?” Ruan Danchen asked in surprise.

Qi Chenglin would have left at around four in the morning based on the time his plane landed on the destination.

“Coincidentally, I saw Dad coming out of your room when I woke up to pass urine.” Qi Youxuan finished his milk too. The straw created a vacuum against the empty container, creating a gush of noise that traveled to their ears.

Qi Youxuan threw the empty milk container into the dustbin before realizing it. “Aunt Ruan, I’ve finished all the toast.”

Ruan Danchen smiled. “It’s okay, I can have something else to eat.”

She went to brush her teeth and readied herself before cooking a bowl of instant noodles for herself.

Instant noodles had a strong fragrance and the kid started to starve after inhaling the scent. He stood aside staring at the instant noodles and swallowing the saliva intensely, feeling gluttonous as his stomach started to growl.

There was nothing Ruan Danchen could do but to serve a very small portion in a bowl to him. “You can only eat this much because instant noodles aren’t nutritious, and it’s not good for your health.”

Qi Youxuan agreed and started chewing on the little instant noodles in the bowl.

Qi Youxuan ate half a packet of toast and drank two hundred milliliters of milk initially, thus he felt extremely bloated and uncomfortable after consuming that small portion of instant noodles. He laid down flat on the couch, feeling his distended abdomen, and let out a long and loud burp. “I’m so full right now.”

“Rest for a while before you start doing your homework, and once you’re done, we’ll go to the old mansion in the evening. I’ll bring you out to play tomorrow.” Ruan Danchen grinned.

“Where are we going tomorrow?” Qi Youxuan sat up immediately and his big, round eyes were alight and filled with anticipation.

“Where do you want to go? How about the amusement park?” Ruan Danchen asked.

“Really? That’s great!” Qi Youxuan fought the urge to dance and jump with delight.

Qi Chenglin was usually busy at work and always worked overtime, hence he would not have the time to go to the amusement park with him.

It was impossible for Qi Youxuan’s grandparents to bring him to the amusement park either due to their advancing ages, and there was absolutely no need to count on Qi Chengzhi at all. His uncle who was Qi Chenglin’s fourth younger brother, on the other hand, pampered him a lot, but he only had one day of free time per week to attend the family gathering. His uncle would not have the free time to bring him to the amusement park too.

There was one time when Qi Chengyue and Cheng Dongge were in a relationship, they brought Qi Youxuan to the amusement park and he was exultant at that time.

“Then finish your homework quickly.” Ruan Danchen smiled.

At least there were some benefits on Ruan Danchen’s forced leaves. Now she got more time to accompany Qi Youxuan at home.

…

…

Qi Youxuan was leaning over the coffee table to do his homework in the living room while Ruan Danchen kept glancing at the clock. When it reached half-past ten in the morning, she took her cell phone and went into the kitchen.

Qi Youxuan shifted his gaze from his homework to Ruan Danchen. He covered his mouth which broke into a smile as if understood the situation before continuing his homework.

Ruan Danchen closed the door to the kitchen and called Qi Chenglin.

Qi Chenglin just stepped out of the cabin door to the plane which opened a few seconds before when he received Ruan Danchen’s phone call. His lips curled to a gentle smile as he answered the call. “Calling me right on the time of my arrival?”

“Yes,” Ruan Danchen’s face radiated heat as she agreed softly. “Why didn’t you wake me up in the morning?”

“I felt reluctant to wake you up since you were sleeping soundly, and besides, you were too tired last night,” Qi Chenglin said as he walked. His voice would become soft and gentle, and a little bit croaky too, whenever he talked to Ruan Danchen.

“I wanted to send you off, but you were already gone when I woke up. I didn’t even get to see you in the morning.” Ruan Danchen lowered her head and her fingers were rubbing in circles against the dressing table.

“Miss me after you opened your eyes when you woke up?” Qi Chenglin was in a good mood right now as he knew Ruan Danchen cared for him.

—

Extra Mini-Scene:

Qi Chenglin instructed Jiang Yuan to book the earliest flight back to B City after ending a phone call with Song Yu.

Jiang Yuan: “General manager, what’s so urgent in B City?”

Qi Chenglin: “My love at home received an unjust treatment and I’m going back to comfort her. I’ll be back tomorrow morning.”

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