Chapter 5: Overestimating One’s Abilities

Under the guidance of the waiter, Fan Xia quickly arrived at a private room. Rong Xiu was lying on the sofa, reeking of alcohol, his face flushed from intoxication. His rimless glasses sat askew on his high nose bridge, his tie was loosened, exposing the skin at his collar. His eyes were tightly closed, the slightly upturned narrow eyes were tinged with a faint blush from the alcohol.

“Are you Miss Fan Xia? You’re finally here. Mr. Rong has been here for quite a while, and we’ve been taking care of him. Please take him back quickly,” Chen Yu Ze said with relief, pretending to be an ordinary waiter.

When he saw Fan Xia’s appearance clearly, his eyes flashed with undisguised amazement, finally understanding why Rong Xiu was deeply trapped and unable to extricate himself.

“Thank you, I’ll take the president away now.” After expressing her gratitude, Fan Xia supported the already unconscious Rong Xiu and left.

Fan Xia hooked one of his arms over her shoulder and supported his waist with the other hand, assisting him in leaving the club.

Due to his drunkenness, his body was soft like a pool of warm water, obediently leaning against her. His heavy breath, mixed with a hint of sweet alcohol, sprayed on her earlobe like fire, stimulating her sensitive skin and causing a slight shiver.

Fan Xia lowered her head, her long hair cascading down, covering the expression in her eyes.

Outside the club, the rain gradually intensified, and a damp mist slowly enveloped the night.

Fortunately, she had parked right at the entrance, only a dozen or so steps away. If she walked quickly, she wouldn’t get too wet.

However, she underestimated the difficulty of controlling a drunk person. Rong Xiu’s steps were unsteady, and after a few steps, he lacked strength and was about to fall. Fan Xia had no choice but to tighten her arm around his slim and strong waist, slowing down her pace.

The lingering silk rain soaked Fan Xia’s long hair. Rong Xiu was in an even worse state, his hair hanging wet on his forehead and brow bone. Countless small water droplets condensed on his rimless glasses. In the hazy rain and mist, his white shirt was soaked, vaguely revealing the firm lines of his waist.

Fan Xia averted her gaze and managed to get him into the car with great difficulty.

Watching the rain dripping from his exquisitely contoured chin, his porcelain-like delicate skin was translucent and bright in the steaming moisture. His soaked white shirt outlined his figure, half-hidden and half-exposed, as if shyly covering yet revealing.

Fan Xia quickly looked away and took her coat from the back seat, covering his body with it.

She removed his rain-obscured rimless glasses, revealing the seductive wine-red beauty mark at the corner of his left eye, softening his aloof and unapproachable aura.

“President, President?” Fan Xia called out softly.

Rong Xiu didn’t respond. Fan Xia whispered an apology and gently patted his face with her palm. Her fingertips touched the small beauty mark at the corner of his left eye, feeling cool and smooth, like holding white jade.

Rong Xiu’s tightly closed thick lashes trembled slightly, brushing against her fingertips like small silk tree flower fans.

“President?” she called again.

Rong Xiu slowly opened his eyes. Without his glasses, his gaze was initially somewhat dazed, then he stared directly at her, clearly still not fully sober.

Fan Xia asked softly, “President, where is your home? I’ll take you back.”

Rong Xiu remained silent for a long time, his eyes still dazed, as if not understanding what she meant.

Fan Xia coaxed and asked several times before he finally gave the address.

Yunshui Bay, the top luxury residential area in the capital, nestled in the mountains by the water, where every villa enjoyed a private ocean view.

Fan Xia supported the half-awake, half-drunk Rong Xiu into the villa. The decor was as cold and restrained as his temperament. There were few objects in the house and not a single person, making it feel cold and desolate, more like an icy cave than a home.

It seemed this was not the main Rong family residence, but a private property Rong Xiu had purchased separately.

But thinking about it, it made sense. Rong Xiu was such a domineering person, able to casually say things like “it’s better if father doesn’t acknowledge me, kick him out of the board of directors too,” which would be considered unfilial by ordinary people. His relationship with his family was probably not very good.

“The president is home.” Fan Xia helped Rong Xiu upstairs to the bedroom, but his drunken, dazed hands suddenly wrapped around her neck. His slightly heaving chest pressed tightly against hers, his head buried in the crook of her neck, affectionately nuzzling like a kitten.

Outside the window, the pitter-patter of rain acted like a special catalyst, creating an ambiguous atmosphere.

Fan Xia tightly gripped the stair railing, took a deep breath, and helped Rong Xiu into the bedroom before leaving without looking back.

Hearing Fan Xia’s hurried footsteps leaving, the drunken haze in Rong Xiu’s eyes slowly receded, replaced by his usual cold, rational clarity. He stood alone and desolate by the floor-to-ceiling window, skillfully taking out a pack of cigarettes. A pale blue flame flickered, igniting the cigarette with a crimson glow, smoke drifting around his indifferent brows and eyes.

Watching Fan Xia drive away as if fleeing a monster, Rong Xiu’s eyes stung as he took two fierce drags of the cigarette. The cigarette burned rapidly until it was extinguished, the ashen remains falling to the ground. The last bit of light was snuffed out, and Rong Xiu’s thin figure was swallowed by darkness.

*

“President, this is the report sent from Xianyang District Hospital. I’ve checked it over and there are no issues. Please review it.” The next day, Fan Xia came to work as usual, bringing the documents submitted by her subordinates for Rong Xiu to review.

“Okay.” Rong Xiu opened the report to examine it, but his hands, clutching the fragile thin paper, were incredibly tense, stiff as if frozen. He asked nervously yet expectantly, “I got drunk last night. Thank you for bringing me back… I didn’t do anything excessive, did I?”

Fan Xia’s eyes flickered slightly, her smile pure and gentle. “No, you were very well-behaved when drunk.”

“Really?” Rong Xiu raised his head to ask, but the moment he saw her neck, his hand tightly gripping the document nearly crumpled the paper. “Really nothing at all?”

Fan Xia nodded. “Really, you were very docile. I got you home quickly.”

“…That’s good then.” Rong Xiu lowered his head. At an angle Fan Xia couldn’t see, the corners of his thin lips curved into a self-mocking smile, laughing at himself for overestimating his abilities, vainly hoping to use that ambiguous night to shake her feelings for Wen Lan Sheng, trying to divert some of Wen Lan Sheng’s boundless doting affection to himself.

Yet when faced with his seduction, she remained unmoved. Wen Lan Sheng could do as he pleased with her, but she didn’t even want to touch him.

Last night’s passion seemed to instantly turn into cold, sharp thorns piercing his heart, mocking his foolish delusions and overestimation of his own abilities.

“I’ve looked over the report, there are no issues. Take it back.” Rong Xiu’s thin lips were pale, his voice suppressed and trembling slightly.

Fan Xia nodded.

As soon as she stepped out the door, Zhuang Nian approached her and said, “Chief Assistant Fan, the president has a meeting at two o’clock this afternoon. Remember to take meeting minutes… Oh~~~” Zhuang Nian narrowed his eyes, his gaze nearly falling onto Fan Xia’s body.

Fan Xia uncomfortably took a step back and smiled. “What is it?”

Zhuang Nian chuckled and pointed at Fan Xia’s neck, using a suggestive tone as if ‘those who know, know.’ “Chief Assistant Fan, last night was quite intense, huh?”

Upon hearing this, Fan Xia covered her neck, recalling how after she took Rong Xiu home last night, Wen Lan Sheng pulled her close, insistently claiming she had Rong Xiu’s perfume scent on her and started throwing a tantrum. With no other choice, she could only coax him and spend a passionate night together.

She didn’t expect Wen Lan Sheng to be so daring, actually leaving hickeys on her neck in a place her collar couldn’t cover. Even Zhuang Nian saw it, so when she was in Rong Xiu’s office just now…

Fan Xia subconsciously glanced into the office, but only saw the tightly closed door.

She took out her phone, intending to message Wen Lan Sheng about the hickey incident, but Wen Lan Sheng beat her to it.

“Xia Xia, today is Friday. You shouldn’t have to work overtime after getting off work, right?”

Fan Xia thought about Rong Xiu’s schedule for the day and replied, “I shouldn’t have to.”

“Great, then let’s have a barbecue at home tonight. I’ll go prepare the ingredients in a bit. There’s a really good movie that recently came out, but I haven’t watched it because you didn’t have time. You must accompany me tonight,” Wen Lan Sheng said, his cheerful tone palpable even through the screen.

Fan Xia sighed softly, “Okay. But don’t pull any tricks on me next time. It doesn’t look good at the company.”

“Alright, alright, I know I was wrong. It won’t happen again,” Wen Lan Sheng admitted his mistake quickly, but there was no hint of apology in his eyes. He coldly muttered, “It’s not like Rong Xiu doesn’t have male secretaries. When he’s drunk, he doesn’t let a male secretary take him back, but instead has a woman do it. He’s indiscreet and has ulterior motives. Does he really think I’m a fool? He’s supposed to be some wealthy young master and company president? What a joke! I purposely left those marks for him to see, the little slut!”

“Lan Sheng, what are you mumbling about?” Father Xie Cen sat up from the nursing bed and asked.

Wen Lan Sheng put his phone in his pocket and casually fiddled with the buttons on his shirt, the diamond on his ring finger glittering brilliantly. “It’s nothing, just chatting with Xia Xia.”

“Oh my!” Xie Cen covered his mouth in surprise and exclaimed, “Is this the custom-made wedding ring you two got? It’s so big and sparkly!”

Wen Lan Sheng showed off with a hint of pride, “Of course, Xia Xia and I picked it out together. A wedding ring is something you wear for a lifetime, so we had to choose a good one.”

Xie Cen’s exclamation also attracted Wen Ming Yue’s attention. She didn’t care about the size or sparkle of the ring, only caring about one thing: “How much did this ring cost?”

“Including the design fee, around a hundred thousand,” Wen Lan Sheng said.

“A hundred thousand!” Xie Cen cried out in shock, exchanging a glance with Wen Ming Yue before excitedly saying, “A ring doesn’t need to be that expensive. When your mother and I got married, a gold ring was enough. A hundred thousand yuan, that’s more than your bride price!”

Wen Ming Yue’s expression was also thought-provoking. “When you insisted on marrying Fan Xia, I said not to ask for too much, a hundred thousand bride price. You said Fan Xia had just started working and didn’t have that much money. I then said sixty thousand would be fine, but you still didn’t agree. In the end, it was reduced to eighteen thousand. Hmph, it’s really a joke if word gets out! It turns out you didn’t have a hundred thousand for the bride price, but you can spend over a hundred thousand on a ring.”

Xie Cen sat on the side, his tone also carrying a hint of reproach. “We’ve nearly emptied our family savings to support your sister’s study abroad. Wouldn’t it be great if you used this money to fund your sister’s education instead?”

Wen Lan Sheng lowered his head, caressing the ring, his fingertips tracing the iris pattern. Every detail on it was proof of Fan Xia’s love for him, giving him the confidence to ignore his parents’ complaints.

“You’re marrying off your son, not selling him. Why are you so focused on the bride price? This money just didn’t end up in your hands, but Xia Xia truly spent it for me. As long as I feel happy, that’s all that matters.”

“Besides, Wen Jing is your daughter, not mine. Why should I, as her brother, help pay for her tuition? If she had gotten into a foreign university based on her own abilities, would she have drained you dry?”

“Oh, you really…” Xie Cen slapped the table and stood up. “You’ve completely changed. I just said a couple of words to you, and you have ten thousand sentences to retort, right? What, now that you think Fan Xia is successful, you don’t need to be filial to your parents anymore?”

“Okay, okay, don’t argue.” Seeing that the father and son were about to start quarreling, Wen Ming Yue began to mediate. “Lan Sheng, your father is just saying it, but in his heart, he still dotes on you. I think this ring is quite nice. Although it’s a bit expensive, our circumstances are different now. We have money, so we should buy more expensive things. I’m even happier than you that Fan Xia is successful. With her success, your life will be better in the future.”

Wen Lan Sheng looked at his mother who was speaking to him, and the imbalance in his heart finally dissipated.

Under Wen Ming Yue’s meaningful gaze, Xie Cen also apologized to Wen Lan Sheng. After all, they were father and son, and they quickly reconciled.

Looking at the dazzling ring on Wen Lan Sheng’s hand, Wen Ming Yue thought that now that Fan Xia had climbed to a high position, having her as a daughter-in-law was all advantages and no drawbacks. There was no need to disrupt family harmony over something that had already been settled. In the future, when Wen Jing returned from studying abroad, she would still need to rely on Fan Xia’s connections to enter a large company.