Chapter 086: Melodrama

After everything was settled, Jin Youqian instructed the driver to leave as soon as possible.

"Wait a moment!"

Song Wan tugged at Jin Youqian's sleeve. When he looked over, she leaned forward to glance at Shi Yi. "Is your place far from the Grand Theater? Why don't we drop you off first?"

Shi Yi was about to agree, but then Jin Youqian cast him a deep, silent look. Without a word, that gaze alone made Shi Yi's back break out in a cold sweat.

He quickly shook his head. "No need, my place is just nearby—ten minutes by car at most. Otherwise, I wouldn't have made it here so quickly."

He had only received the message at half-past nine. If he didn't live close by, he really might have missed it tonight.

Besides, even if his home was far, even if he lived in the suburbs, how could he dare let the driver take him home and then play the third wheel for a couple of hours when faced with President Jin's predatory eyes?

Song Wan seemed a bit disappointed, but after saying goodbye, she retreated back to her seat.

Jin Youqian lowered his eyes, his expression unreadable.

But Song Wan just knew—he was angry.

After a moment's thought, Song Wan reached over and hooked Jin Youqian's ring finger, teasing him, "President Jin, we're already married. Shouldn't there at least be some sign of it?"

Jin Youqian's fingers twitched. He turned his head to look at Song Wan.

His gaze was direct, making her scalp tingle inexplicably. Song Wan had always trusted her instincts. She tried to pull her hand back, but Jin Youqian caught it in one swift motion.

His long, powerful fingers curled, locking Song Wan's hand in place. "Isn't this a sign?"

Song Wan was stunned, staring at her right ring finger, trapped by his. A tingling warmth filled her chest.

She looked up, her gaze flickering as she met Jin Youqian's eyes—

Had she just been… flirted with?

Normally, Song Wan would never back down, she'd flirt right back. Wasn't "locked in" just a start? She had countless playful lines at the ready—"can't stop looking," "for a lifetime"—even a pair of custom-made wedding rings in her bag, waiting for him.

She'd only picked them up on her way to Jin Youqian's company, planning to give them to him tonight.

Yet now, she simply turned her head aside, a blush slowly spreading across her cheeks.

For a moment, all Song Wan could hear was the thumping of her own heart—steady, powerful, as if smashing through her defenses.

When she finally came to her senses, she looked at Jin Youqian with complicated emotions. Even after so many years in her previous life, no one had ever spoken words like these to her—words that felt like a promise.

Thinking of the rings in her bag, she didn't know whether to take them out or not.

Though the rings were valuable, they'd been chosen with careful consideration rather than pure joy or happiness. Even as she picked the style, she was thinking about the price and how much was too much...

Suddenly, it all seemed unworthy. She wanted to give Jin Youqian something better—the very best ring.

She pursed her lips, then gave her most genuine and relieved smile since her rebirth. "Since I'm already locked in, don't lose me. If you do, you may never find me again."

She glanced down at their joined ring fingers, then looked up into Jin Youqian's eyes with earnest sincerity.

Jin Youqian's heart tightened. He realized this was both Song Wan's warning and her promise—

Months after they obtained their marriage certificate, Song Wan was finally opening her heart to him, treating him as her husband, not just as the entertainment industry's all-too-common "patron."

Jin Youqian looked at Song Wan and nodded with utmost solemnity, "Locked in. I won't lose you."

Song Wan reached out with her left hand to cover Jin Youqian's eyes and leaned in to kiss him.

"Driver, take us straight to the villa."

—

Knock, knock, knock—

Suddenly, the bedroom door was rapped upon, disturbing the world of dreams.

Jin Youqian sat bolt upright in bed. The white quilt slipped down, revealing mottled red marks on his skin, and if one looked closely, one would see scratches down the side of his neck and his back—marks that had bled but were now scabbed over.

He seemed not fully awake and shouted irritably, "Uncle Feng, stop bothering me, I'm still sleeping!"

The knocking abruptly ceased, replaced by the jangle of keys against the heavy door. Before Jin Youqian could stop him, there was a click—the door was unlocked from the outside.

"I can't believe you can still sleep when Miss Song has run off early in the morning! Aren't you worried she might leave with a baby in tow?" Feng Yu exclaimed, exasperated. "You don't know how quickly she ran off—I couldn't stop her! She must regret having anything to do with you. Aren't you going to chase after her?"

Jin Youqian: "...Leave with a baby? What nonsense is this?"

"She might be pregnant with your child!" Feng Yu grabbed Jin Youqian's shoulders and shook him. "Wake up, Jin! If Miss Song runs abroad, you might not find her for four or five years!"

Jin Youqian was dumbfounded. He shoved Feng Yu's hands away, bewildered. "What are you talking about? Why does this all sound so familiar?"

"Of course it does!" Feng Yu's eyes widened. "Isn't that exactly the plot of 'The CEO's Too Wicked: The Gorgeous Star Runs with the Baby' that just aired? Haven't you noticed how the male lead looks just like you? Miss Song is a star too! If you don't chase after her, what if she really ends up like the heroine—finds out she's pregnant, worries you'll force her to abort, and flees the country..."

"Oh, my young master, what about your little son and daughter then?" Feng Yu grew more and more frantic, nearly wishing he could chase after Song Wan himself.

After a while, seeing Jin Youqian still unmoving in bed, he nearly exploded, pointing a finger at Jin's nose, "You scumbag!"

Jin Youqian: ...wtf?

"Uncle Feng, haven't I told you not to watch those ridiculous melodramas anymore? Why don't you ever listen?"

A few days ago, if Feng Yu had been caught watching such trashy shows, he would have run for his life, ignoring everything else.

But the allure of a little son and daughter was truly irresistible—

Even faced with Jin Youqian's imminent eruption, Feng Yu remained calm and added, "Jin, your little ones are about to run off. We might miss out on three, maybe five years of their lives. That's terrifying!"

Jin Youqian: ...

His life was already hard enough—why did he have to deal with a butler as unreliable as his mother?

Running off with a baby, little son and daughter, gone for five years...

He made it sound so real!

Jin Youqian pressed a hand to his forehead and, after a long pause, managed to grind out through clenched teeth, "Uncle Feng, the one who ran off with a baby was my mother. What does that have to do with Song Wan?"

This was exactly why he couldn't just dismiss melodramas as pure fiction—his own parents' story was straight out of those over-the-top CEO dramas.

And he was the baby who got carried away...

Heaven help him—what kind of bizarre family was he born into?

But Feng Yu wouldn't listen, full of regret. "I used to think those tacky plots were laughable, but in the end, I missed five years of your childhood. Now look at you, all stoic and numb from life's hardships."

Jin Youqian: "...Numb from hardships?"

He almost had to laugh. "Uncle Feng, relax. I'm not a domineering CEO, nor am I a heartbreaker—"

"Who knows? These days, the trend is less about domineering CEOs and more about closet scoundrels in suits," Feng Yu said, his gaze full of melancholy, as if looking at someone whose true colors were about to be exposed.

Jin Youqian: "...Song Wan and I are already married."

"Hmm?" Feng Yu's expression turned serious, his eyes sparkling.

"And Song Wan didn't leave this morning to run away," Jin Youqian took a deep breath, barely restraining the urge to strangle Uncle Feng, "She's filming Director Zhao Qing's new movie. She only asked for leave last night to attend the Golden Dog TV Festival and spend the evening with me."

"Madam is filming?" Feng Yu leaped up. "But she already has a baby—what if she miscarries?"

Seeing Feng Yu about to rush out, Jin Youqian nearly lost it. "Uncle Feng! She's not pregnant!"

Feng Yu halted and looked back at Jin Youqian in confusion.

Jin Youqian, thinking he would ask for an explanation, immediately said, "We took all necessary precautions last night." Not wanting Feng Yu to meddle further, he added, "Song Wan is only twenty. Her career is most important right now—don't disturb her."

Whether Feng Yu believed him or not, he just nodded, then gave Jin a look so strange it made his scalp prickle.

Jin Youqian narrowed his eyes. "Uncle Feng, any other questions?"

"Since you asked, I won't worry about hurting your male pride."

Male pride? What is he talking about?

"Are you sure it's not because you're infertile, and that's why you claim to have used protection?"

Jin Youqian: ...

His expression nearly crumbled. "Uncle Feng, how could I be infertile?"

"That's how it goes in the dramas. The scoundrel is infertile, but blames the heroine, making her endure unfair treatment from his family..."

Jin Youqian: ...

He swore—today he'd have his staff come and dismantle every TV in the villa! All of them!

...

After finally seeing Uncle Feng out, Jin Youqian nearly collapsed onto the bed. Talking to a melodrama addict was exhausting... From now on, he would never, ever allow his artists to act in such brain-rotting shows!

The damage was as bad as a nuclear bomb!

Turning his head, Jin Youqian noticed a neatly folded set of loungewear on the bedside table.

His bad mood vanished instantly, a smile slowly curving his lips as he picked up the clothes to put them on.

Ding—

Something rolled onto the floor.

Jin Youqian stared, then quickly got up and searched around, finally finding an unusually designed ring inside his slippers.

He paused, then noticed something off in his shirt pocket—a slip of paper.

He recognized the torn page at once—it was from his notebook.

"The ring may be simple, but it's the best I can offer right now. When I earn more money, I'll commission the best designer to create a new pair for us."

Jin Youqian stared at it for a while, then took a ring box from the bedside table—the one he'd had designed by an internationally renowned jeweler.

He stood there thinking, then put the box back in the drawer.

Deeming it too easily found, he pushed it further in and covered it with a book.

Having finished, he picked up a pen and added a line beneath Song Wan's words—

I'll be waiting.

Jin Youqian looked at the note and, all at once, began to laugh.