Chapter 4: Self-Deprecation

Countless grievances surged up to his nose. This meal was what he got up at 5 am to make, spending nearly two hours, but she threw it in the trash like garbage. Wen Lan Sheng suddenly felt an indescribable discomfort.

He returned to the bedroom. The light and soft white gauze curtains swayed slightly with the cool night breeze, and the drizzling rain drifted in through the open window.

Wen Lan Sheng sat on the edge of the bed, raised his fair hand, and gently stroked Fan Xia’s exquisite sleeping face with his fingertips. The subtle movement seemed to disturb her in her deep sleep. She moved slightly, and the neckline of her nightgown was pulled open, revealing her jade-like smooth skin.

Wen Lan Sheng pursed his lips and bit Fan Xia’s shoulder lightly in grievance.

“Hiss—” Fan Xia frowned and woke up in a daze. The bitten shoulder wasn’t painful, but it made Fan Xia feel a little strange. Seeing the fluffy little head nestled on her shoulder, Fan Xia’s voice was slightly hoarse, “You’re back. What’s wrong?”

Wen Lan Sheng raised his head, his eyes full of both grievance and anger, “You’re still asking what’s wrong? Why didn’t you eat the lunch I prepared for you and even threw it away? Do you dislike the food I made?”

“It’s not what you think. I’ve been eating the food you make for so many years, how could I dislike it? I was originally going to eat it, but I had to go out for something urgent and forgot to put it back in the fridge. By the time I remembered, it had already spoiled a bit.”

Fan Xia smiled and pinched Wen Lan Sheng’s pouting face, coaxing in a gentle voice, “Don’t be angry, okay?”

Wen Lan Sheng hooked his arms around Fan Xia’s neck, and his anger dissipated a bit after hearing her explanation.

“By the way, when I got off work, Ms. Shen, the designer, told me that the diamond ring was ready, so I picked it up on the way.” Fan Xia changed the subject and took out the ring box from the bedside table drawer.

Wen Lan Sheng’s favorite iris design was exquisite and lively, surrounded by countless small diamonds that crowded around the perfectly cut diamond in the center like stars surrounding the moon.

Wen Lan Sheng’s eyes brightened, and he quickly forgot about his earlier unhappiness, his heart filled with only the sparkling iris ring. This was the wedding ring that he and Fan Xia would wear for a lifetime, a proof of their intimate identity.

“Do you like it?” Fan Xia turned on the ceiling light, and the diamond sparkled with an even more abundant brilliance under the sufficient light.

“I love it.” Wen Lan Sheng nodded excitedly and stretched out his hand towards Fan Xia with great expectation, “Xia Xia, can you put it on for me?”

Fan Xia laughed indulgently, “Okay.”

The diamond ring, specially customized for Wen Lan Sheng, fit his hand type perfectly. The beautiful but not ostentatious iris seemed to bloom from his finger bones. Wen Lan Sheng couldn’t help himself and sat on Fan Xia’s lap, his arms around her neck, completely disregarding his restraint and kissing her frantically like a puppy, “Xia Xia, I really want to marry you soon. Every day, I stare at the calendar, complaining that time passes too slowly.”

Fan Xia was kissed into laughter, “It’ll be soon, don’t be in a hurry.”

Wen Lan Sheng nestled on her shoulder, looking at the wedding ring on his hand with a face full of happiness. Suddenly, he put the women’s wedding ring on Fan Xia’s hand, interlocked their fingers, took out his phone, took a photo, and posted it on WeChat Moments.

At 11 pm, it wasn’t considered late for the people of the imperial capital who were used to nightlife. Wen Lan Sheng’s WeChat Moments quickly received quite a few likes, all voices of blessing.

Wen Lan Sheng hugged Fan Xia’s arm and pleaded, “Xia Xia, can you also post on WeChat Moments?”

“……”

Wen Lan Sheng clung and acted coquettishly, “Please, I want everyone to know that we’re getting married soon and how beautiful our wedding rings are.”

Immersed in happiness, Wen Lan Sheng was eager to share his joy with the whole world.

“…… Alright.” Fan Xia sighed lightly, unable to resist Wen Lan Sheng’s insistence, and also posted a WeChat Moment with the same photo, with the same text as Wen Lan Sheng, ‘Only one person in a lifetime’.

“Is this okay?” Fan Xia smiled helplessly and indulgently.

“It’s okay, it’s okay.” Wen Lan Sheng said happily, his fingertips gently stroking the place he had just lightly bitten, lowering his lips to kiss it, his legs also restlessly hooking around her waist.

The night rain was drizzling, lingering and nourishing.

*

“What would you like to drink? Still whiskey?”

At Lan Club, Chen Yu Ze lazily leaned on the bar and asked. This private club was opened by him. As the son of a powerful and wealthy family, doing business was just a small game. Even if he lost money, it didn’t matter, so this private club only entertained males from their circle.

Rong Xiu shook his head slightly, his voice light, “No need.”

Chen Yu Ze was stunned for a moment, then laughed loudly, “How rare. You actually have times when you don’t drink? What, is your Rong family going bankrupt?”

“I promised someone to try not to drink.” Rong Xiu’s slender fingertips played and swayed in the empty wine glass. The transparent glass rotated under his long finger bones, and a smile that outsiders had never seen before swayed in his narrow, cold eyes.

Chen Yu Ze narrowed his eyes. With his many years of friendship with Rong Xiu, he discovered that the matter wasn’t simple, “Oh oh oh, with President Rong’s status, you still need to quit drinking for someone? I seem to smell the sour stench of love.” Rong Xiu’s face changed slightly, his eyes filled with a lonely cold color. He explained, “It’s not what you think.”

“Don’t give me that!” Chen Yu Ze teased, “Look at you, just now when you mentioned that person, you couldn’t even hide the smile on your face. Who are you trying to fool?”

Rong Xiu lowered his head, his brows and eyes powerless and dejected, “She’s getting married soon.”

“……” Chen Yu Ze was silent for three seconds, then blurted out, “Fuck—, Rong Xiu, you actually fell in love with a married woman!”

The sensitive word “married woman” inexplicably aroused a strong and crazy emotion in Rong Xiu’s heart. Just imagining the image of Fan Xia standing shoulder to shoulder with that little scumbag Wen Lan Sheng, he couldn’t bear it.

“Not married yet, doesn’t count as a married woman.” Rong Xiu forcibly said with a breath of restraint, his hand tightly gripping the wine glass, his long and elegant fingers distorting and deforming.

Chen Yu Ze was extremely surprised in his heart. He had never seen him lose his composure like this before.

The Rong family’s upbringing naturally wouldn’t teach a young master to take pleasure in being a mistress and destroying other people’s families, but he clearly saw deep unwillingness and jealousy in Rong Xiu’s eyes.

This made Chen Yu Ze intensely curious. Just who was this divine being that could make the aloof flower Rong Xiu become so resentful and husband-like?

“Do you have a photo of her? Let me see.” Chen Yu Ze asked.

Rong Xiu’s voice was hoarse and dejected, “I only have a group photo of her with others from many years ago.”

Chen Yu Ze almost couldn’t believe it. There was too much information.

Many years ago, it meant that they had known each other for a long time, but there wasn’t a single photo of just the two of them.

What did this mean? Clearly unrequited love.

Chen Yu Ze thought of many possibilities that could bring this lofty flower down from the altar.

An equally outstanding young lady from a wealthy family, an older woman who could pamper him and had the means to shelter him, a politician… But he never thought that there would be a day when Rong Xiu would take the initiative to admire and secretly love someone.

Moreover, he had secretly loved for so many years and was unwilling to give up even when the other party was about to get married, deluding himself.

Chen Yu Ze rubbed his fists, damn, he was even more curious.

“If there’s no photo, you must have WeChat, right? Let me see!” Chen Yu Ze said.

Rong Xiu’s phone hadn’t gone to sleep and had always stayed on a fixed WeChat page. His eyes would glance at it from time to time, as if waiting for a sudden message from the other party.

Chen Yu Ze keenly noticed that the remark on it was “Fan Xia,” and at a glance, he knew it was a woman’s name.

“Is it her?” Chen Yu Ze casually poked at the page and accidentally clicked on her avatar, entering her profile.

Fan Xia rarely posted on WeChat Moments, so in the WeChat Moments column, a photo was vivid and abrupt, attracting attention.

Chen Yu Ze glanced at the content of the image, his heart thumped, and he quickly looked away, lowering his head to wipe the wine glass.

It was precisely the photo of Fan Xia and Wen Lan Sheng holding hands tightly. The iris ring emitted a dazzling brilliance like colored glaze. Those rays of light were like a blade carving into Rong Xiu’s eyes. Even the bone-deep, piercing pain couldn’t alleviate the jealousy that was about to devour him at this moment. His reason was like a shattered mountain and river, collapsing in disarray.

He picked up his phone, about to call Fan Xia.

“Rong Xiu, what are you doing?” Chen Yu Ze grabbed his wrist, “Calling Fan Xia, and then what? What do you want to say to her?”

Rong Xiu’s eyes froze. Yes, what should he say?

Say that he’s jealous of Wen Lan Sheng? Hates Wen Lan Sheng? But what right does he have to be jealous? Clearly, they are the ones who are a couple.

*

The drizzle was damp, and the night was getting darker. Wen Lan Sheng lay on Fan Xia’s shoulder, his arms tightly hugging her waist, his eyes hazy, constantly craving and seeking.

Ding-a-ling—

The phone suddenly rang. Fan Xia stopped and glanced at her phone.

Wen Lan Sheng bit his lip, unable to bear it, “Xia Xia, don’t stop at this moment, I—”

Seeing the caller ID, Fan Xia’s eyes were calm and untainted by lust. She pressed her finger against Wen Lan Sheng’s lips, “Be good, it’s the boss’s call. Don’t make a sound for now.”

Wen Lan Sheng squirmed uncomfortably, leaning into her embrace, dissatisfaction in his eyes.

“Is this Miss Fan Xia?”

When Fan Xia answered the phone, she heard a strange man’s voice.

“Yes, how did you get this number?”

The man on the other end of the phone said, “It’s like this. Mr. Rong had a drinking party at our club tonight. The other guests have all left, but Mr. Rong got drunk. We don’t know where his home is and can’t get in touch with anyone else. Can you come pick him up?”

“Alright, please tell me the address. I’ll be right there.” Fan Xia said.

Wen Lan Sheng raised his head, shaking it anxiously.

“Okay, the address is 1388 Jingyang Road.” After saying that, the other party hung up the phone.

“Xia Xia, don’t go.” Wen Lan Sheng hugged her, unwilling to let go.

“The president needs me to go pick him up. Can you wait for me to come back?” Fan Xia said as she got out of bed.

Wen Lan Sheng clenched his hands, unwilling to let go, sad and resentful, “I heard everything. Does it have to be at this time? Doesn’t Senior Rong Xiu know that you’re already off work? Why does he still have to disturb you? Can’t he call a designated driver?”

“Being on 24-hour standby is common for an assistant. My senior sister, who is a year older than me, still has to tutor her boss’s children part-time. With such a high salary, I have to do something.” Fan Xia said while getting dressed.

“Then you—” Wen Lan Sheng’s face flushed red, shamefully covering his body with the quilt, “What about me?”

Fan Xia sat on the edge of the bed, kissing the corner of his mouth apologetically, “Wait for me to come back.”

The door slammed shut. Wen Lan Sheng clenched his teeth, grabbed a pillow, and threw it against the wall, venting his dissatisfaction.

*

“Alright, she’ll be here in a bit.” After hanging up the phone, Chen Yu Ze returned the phone to Rong Xiu.

Rong Xiu silently downed two glasses of strong, spicy whiskey, the fiery sensation burning his throat and empty stomach.

Chen Yu Ze saw it. Although they were old friends, he still wanted to advise Rong Xiu not to fall in head first.

Seeing Rong Xiu still continuing to drink to maintain the lie, even though the strong liquor made him uncomfortable, he still kept forcing himself to drink it. Chen Yu Ze pressed his hand.

“Rong Xiu, she’s getting married. Don’t degrade yourself.”