The moon was bright and the stars were sparse.
Meng Xianwen carried Ning Zhen on his back, walking steadily. He hitched her up a little higher, and the moonlight stretched their shadows long, making them look unbelievably intimate.
Ning Zhen rested her head on his shoulder.
His clean, crisp scent lingered around her nose, almost hypnotic. She felt herself growing drowsy, her eyes slowly closing, her voice soft like a murmur. "Meng Xianwen, after your project launches, are you really going to move out of my place?"
Even though she was asking him, knowing him as she did, he wouldn't have made up a lie to her parents that could be exposed at any moment.
To a certain extent, Meng Xianwen was a man of his word.
Soon enough, he would definitely move out.
Ning Zhen thought hazily that this was actually a good thing. He couldn't live in her house forever. All the things he'd done since losing his memory, frankly speaking, were to ensure that nothing would happen to affect Hengxing's future at such a critical juncture.
Great.
From now on, no one would be occupying two of her rooms!
She wouldn't have to be constrained by the presence of another person anymore. The day he moved out, she was going to play "Seeing Off the God of Plague" on repeat.
Then she started griping sourly to herself—any one of his properties had a bathroom bigger than her bedroom. He was about to go back to living the high life!
"The second bedroom is too small."
His mouth was as sharp as ever.
Ning Zhen heard those four words and immediately lost all sleepiness. She opened her eyes and stared at his profile, holding back her irritation before snapping, "Yes, yes, yes, you've suffered so much during this time, just bear with it a little longer, and you'll be moving back to your Yuyuan soon enough!"
She wanted to say "move back to your damn Yuyuan," but the situation right now was too sensitive. Weighing the pros and cons, she didn't want to provoke this man whose heart was smaller than a needle's eye. If he dropped her, she'd be the one getting hurt.
"It's not exactly suffering," he said with no emotion in his voice. "You seem very eager for me to move out?"
Ning Zhen gritted her teeth and forced a smile. "Why are you dragging me into this? I didn't kick you out—you're the one who said you wanted to move out, remember?"
"If you had come clean sooner..."
He paused briefly. "Things would have turned out much better than now."
"Ning Zhen thought back to tonight's events and felt a bit exasperated too. "How was I supposed to know my parents were coming over today?"
"The outcome isn't entirely bad," he said with a barely noticeable hint of sarcasm. "At least they didn't come while we were sleeping, right?"
Ning Zhen's cheeks burned.
What was wrong with this guy? They obviously didn't sleep in the same room—how did such a proper statement sound so inappropriate coming from his mouth? Total pervert!
She immediately raised her voice: "What do you mean by that? This apartment was bought for me by my parents. They can come over whenever they want. Do you have a problem with them?"
Meng Xianwen curled his lips slightly. She really knew how to turn things around on him.
Her voice was loud enough to burst his eardrums. He stopped walking and tilted his head slightly. "You're overthinking it."
He said calmly, "So, to avoid this kind of awful situation happening again, moving out is the only option."
Ning Zhen gave a light snort.
Just move out already!
The topic made the mood less relaxed than before, and Meng Xianwen couldn't be bothered to argue with her. In silence, he carried her out of the park. There were few pedestrians and even fewer cars on the road. After a short walk, they entered the residential area.
Ning Zhen sulked on his back for a while, but she didn't stay idle.
Given the limited circumstances, she had to hold her high heels in one hand and raise her phone with the other to take photos.
From this angle, no matter how she shot it, something was missing—a third-person perspective would have been perfect. But then again, knowing Meng Xianwen's personality, if there were anyone around who knew him, they'd have to hold a knife to his throat before he'd ever lower himself to carrying her on his back.
Ning Zhen flipped through the photos she'd taken and frowned.
Not a single one was satisfying. How was she supposed to post on Moments like this?
Soon, an idea struck her. She turned the camera on her phone toward the strappy heels in her hand, with the background being his perfectly pressed shirt under the dim yellow streetlight. No filter needed.
She edited the post with one hand and put it on Moments—
[Walking in high heels is seriously tiring, but lucky for me, I've got my very own private ride [moon]]
...
"We're here."
When they reached Building 18, Meng Xianwen's furrowed brows relaxed. She'd asked for a piggyback ride and had been wriggling around the whole way, not sitting still at all.
Impatiently, he patted her leg, signaling her to get off on her own.
"No." She'd put her phone away long ago and tightened her arms around his neck with enough force to strangle him, showing through action that she wasn't getting off. "Haven't you heard the saying: help all the way, deliver Zhenzhen home safe to stay."
Meng Xianwen had a headache.
He paused for a few seconds before sensibly deciding not to argue with her, walking straight into the building entrance.
The elevator lobby was quiet—no one else was there except them.
Ning Zhen's eyes wandered. She remembered the time she had pretended to be drunk and he carried her, and also her conversation with Guo Xia. Acting on a whim, she pointed at the stairwell not far away and teased him deliberately: "Can you carry me up twenty-one floors?"
The moment she said it.
She felt his hands loosen, and she started sliding down. She quickly hugged him tighter, scared half to death, and said breathlessly, "Hey, can't you even take a joke?!"
"You'd better just be joking."
"..."
Ning Zhen was furious but couldn't help laughing out loud.
What a rollercoaster of emotions this night had been. Still, all's well that ends well. Once they got home, she dove straight into the bathroom to wash off the bar smell, then emerged feeling refreshed.
Figuring that Meng Xianwen had behaved well tonight and deserved a little reward, she grabbed a bottle of sparkling water from the fridge and padded over to the study, her footsteps tapping lightly.
As expected, he was still busy, on a call with a subordinate.
He looked up at her, silently asking what she wanted.
Seeing how serious and straight-faced he was with his subordinate, she felt a teasing impulse rise.
The sparkling water was still cold from the fridge. Standing beside the desk, she leaned over and pressed the bottle against his cheek, watching him flinch from the chill and frown in surprise. She covered her mouth and giggled.
Seeing her prank had worked, she set the bottle down and dashed off.
Meng Xianwen's gaze followed her.
Only when he heard the door to the master bedroom close did he look back at the bottle of sparkling water on the desk and let out a very quiet laugh.
That laugh reached the subordinate on the other end of the call.
The previously smooth-flowing report came to an abrupt halt.
Meng Xianwen snapped back to himself, his tone returning to calm: "Go on."
Ning Zhen lay on the big bed, still savoring the look on his face just now. The more she thought about it, the funnier it was.
She was still thinking about tonight's Moments post, so she picked up her phone and opened it. Sure enough, she'd cracked the code for engagement—the likes and comments were incredible—
Chang Yi: [Can't bear to look]
Lu Yuan: [Can't bear to look]
Shu Wei: [Can't bear to look]
The comments lined up neatly, until Meng Jiaran broke the pattern: [My eyes!]
She was brimming with Schadenfreude.
Meng Xianwen had given her the embarrassing nickname "husband-controlled wife" that made her want to curl her toes in shame, so she couldn't afford to be too kind to him. Whatever public image he had was the PR team at Hengxing's problem. It wasn't like she was getting paid for it!
She was scrolling through the comments with great enthusiasm when she unexpectedly noticed that Song Yuqing had also given her post a like.
Over the past period of time, her relationship with Song Yuqing had grown by leaps and bounds, but perhaps out of a desire to avoid suspicion, Song Yuqing never liked her posts about showing off her romance. This was the first time.
Thinking back to a few days ago when Song Yuqing had taken her out to clear her mind and cheer her up, she pondered for a moment, then proactively messaged her privately: [Yuqing, are you guys still hanging out?]
Song Yuqing replied instantly: [Yeah, but I'm about to leave]
She lived with her parents in the old residence, and though there was no official curfew, if she still hadn't come home in the middle of the night, her parents would call to look for her.
Ning Zhen got to the point: [Do you have time tomorrow? If you're free, come over to my place to hang out]
After a moment's thought, she added: [That person won't be home tomorrow, he'll be at work]
That was beyond doubt.
The closer it got to an important date, the busier Meng Xianwen became. Weekends and such simply didn't exist for him. She didn't even need to think about it—he definitely wouldn't be home tomorrow.
Song Yuqing: [Okay, I still remember where your house is]
Ning Zhen curled her lips into a smile. Putting aside all the nonsense of the original novel, she really enjoyed spending time with Song Yuqing. Who wouldn't love a gentle, refined rich lady?
She replied excitedly: [Let me know when you're close, and I'll come downstairs to pick you up. Hug hug]
…
At the same time, in a lively bar, Song Yuqing sat in a corner booth on the second floor. She set down her glass and stood up to head downstairs, nearly colliding with Meng Jiaran, who was returning from the restroom. She stumbled, and it was Meng Jiaran who quickly reached out and steadied her by the waist.
Once she was steady, he yanked his hand back as if he'd been electrocuted.
A blush spread from his face all the way down to his neck. Fortunately, the dim lighting of the bar meant no one could clearly see his awkwardness.
"Jiaran, how about you keep having fun? I'll check which driver is closest and have someone come pick me up."
"No, no, no, I—I, I mean, I'll drive you!" He stumbled over his words. "I, didn't drink."
Song Yuqing chuckled softly: "I think you did."
Quite a lot, too—his tongue could barely straighten out.
"I didn't drink!" Meng Jiaran didn't know where he found the courage, but he suddenly stepped up one stair, closing the distance between them. "If you don't believe me, take a whiff."
Song Yuqing leaned back, unable to hold back a laugh. "I'm just kidding you."
The two of them walked downstairs together.
At this hour, everyone was partying wildly. Meng Jiaran reached out to shield Song Yuqing and carefully guided her out of the venue. Inside was all hustle and bustle; outside was utter silence.
"I'll be staying at home for the next couple of days too," Meng Jiaran mentioned casually after getting in the car. "Are you busy tomorrow? If not, I—"
Before he could finish his sentence, Song Yuqing in the passenger seat buckled her seatbelt and said with a smile, "Zhenzhen invited me over to her place tomorrow. Oh, Jiaran, what kind of gift do you think I should bring? What flowers does Zhenzhen like?"
Meng Jiaran was dazed for a few seconds.
Then he quickly said, "What a coincidence! I'm going to Zhenzhen's place tomorrow too, to drop off something for her. Let's go together!"
Song Yuqing was momentarily stunned, then smiled gracefully. "Sure."
There was no traffic congestion at night. Meng Jiaran drove Song Yuqing back to the Song residence and waited until she entered the main building before he left. Leaning lazily against the car, he sent Ning Zhen a message: [I'll deliver the safe to you tomorrow. If you want to thank me, buy me a meal]
Ning Zhen: [?]
Ning Zhen: [Some other day. I have things to do tomorrow and won't be home]
Meng Jiaran: [If you lie, you'll gain ten pounds and work overtime till dawn]
Ning Zhen: [Using a stinky sock as a mask—you've lost all shame.jpg]
The two of them traded banter through memes.
But no matter how much Ning Zhen jabbed at him, Meng Jiaran refused to change his mind. There was no way he was not coming tomorrow.
She was both annoyed and strangely wistful. She really didn't want to call that pest Meng Jiaran a "man." As far as she was concerned, he didn't count as a man, nor did he count as a woman. He was just a walking meme...
But was this what all men were like? When they faced someone they truly, truly liked, they became persistent, passionate, stubborn, and utterly shameless.
Late at night really did amplify all those overly sentimental feelings.
Ning Zhen mused quietly for a while, and before going to sleep, she grabbed her phone from the nightstand.
The younger brother's debt, the older brother pays—no problem!
Since Meng Jiaran had riled her up, the only way to ease her frustration was to mess with his older brother. She was about to post a disgustingly sweet and cheesy reply in the comment section, but when she opened her Moments, she saw that Meng Xianwen had liked her post.
Just one minute ago.
She stared at his profile picture for a moment, then irritably tossed the phone aside and went to sleep.
…
Sunday morning.
Ning Zhen's eight o'clock alarm went off on time. She lazed in bed for a bit. It was so nice not having to work. She scrolled through various platforms to see if there was any gossip.
It was a calm morning. She dallied until 8:30, then slowly threw off the covers, slipped on her slippers, and walked out of the bedroom yawning—only to lock eyes with Meng Xianwen, who was sitting on the sofa in a leisurely posture.
What was going on? Were her eyes playing tricks on her?
Her open mouth clamped shut, and her eyes went wide. "Why haven't you left yet? Aren't you supposed to be at work today?"
Meng Xianwen had a laptop on his lap. He glanced at her calmly, then lowered his eyes back to the screen. "Taking a day off."
He paused, without even lifting his eyelids. "If you want to go somewhere, I can keep you company."
Ning Zhen stared at him in surprise. Before she could even process what he meant by "keep you company," the words tumbled out of her: "I already made plans with someone else."
That statement made him look up sharply.
His voice was cool and deep: "With who?"
"Yuqing," Ning Zhen rolled her eyes dramatically. "And Jiaran is coming over to mooch off food too!"
Meng Xianwen leaned back again. Today he wasn't wearing formal attire—he was wearing that shirt she had bought for him—and he frowned. "Why are they coming over to the house on the weekend?"
"To hang out, to eat."
Ning Zhen saw him lower his eyes and return to his work. She went to the bathroom to wash up, still puzzled about how weird his wording sounded. As the electric toothbrush vibrated in her mouth, a lightbulb went off in her head, and she suddenly glanced toward the living room.
What did he mean by "coming over to the house"?
This was HER home. What right did he have to talk like he was the man of the house?!
