Chapter 52: You’re Going Easy on Me

The breakfast prepared by the housekeeper auntie was quite a spread.

In addition to congee and milk, there was also corn, eggs, and Hong Kong-style sandwiches—too much for just two people.

While sipping her congee, Wen Yang said to Fu Xingzhou, “Isn’t this a bit too much? Did Auntie eat already?”

Fu Xingzhou set down his coffee cup and replied, “She did. You can take some to the studio.”

Wen Yang glanced at the corn and eggs and said, “Alright, I’ll bring some.”

Leaning on the table, she looked at Fu Xingzhou and said, “Next time, tell Auntie not to make so much.”

Fu Xingzhou put down his phone, looked at her, and his lips curled slightly. “Okay.”

Wen Yang smiled and took another spoonful of congee.

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Fu Bin said, “Nothing much. Is sister-in-law there?”

Fu Xingzhou glanced at Wen Yang. Their eyes met, and Wen Yang’s ears flushed red. Fu Xingzhou curled his lips and replied, “She’s here.”

Fu Bin immediately said, “Good morning, sister-in-law.”

Wen Yang gave a small cough and replied softly, “Good morning.”

Fu Bin continued, “Sister-in-law, have you had breakfast yet? Did my brother feed you something nice?”

Wen Yang’s face was still warm. She responded, “I ate. You?”

“I’m eating right now. Hong Kong’s siu mai is great. Next time you come to Hong Kong, I’ll have my brother take you to try some.”

Wen Yang smiled. “Sounds good.”

“Are you heading to work, sister-in-law?”

“I’m on the way.”

“Alright then, I won’t bother you two. Big bro, I’ll call you later.” He added something in Cantonese. Fu Xingzhou replied with an “Mm,” and they hung up.

Fu Xingzhou turned to glance at Wen Yang.

Wen Yang smiled at him. Fu Xingzhou reached over and held her hand across the center console, saying, “Next time, let’s try Hong Kong’s siu mai.”

Wen Yang intertwined her fingers with his and said, “Okay.”

A few seconds later—

The light turned green.

The black car started again and pulled up in front of her studio building.

Wen Yang unbuckled her seatbelt and said, “Drive safe, okay?”

Fu Xingzhou nodded and called out, “Wen Yang.”

She looked up. Fu Xingzhou leaned an arm on the console and bent down to kiss her lips. “Make sure to rest at noon.”

Wen Yang’s cheeks flushed as their lips grazed. “Alright,” she replied.

Face still warm, she got out of the car and walked toward the lobby.

Fu Xingzhou waited until she was gone before driving off. The black sedan arrived at the Qingzhou Group building, and he parked in the underground garage. He headed toward the elevator.

Qin Mu, holding her husband’s arm, had just exited another elevator nearby. They were about to get their car when she saw Fu Xingzhou driving himself to work. Surprised, she pulled out her phone and messaged Li Man.

Qin Mu: I just saw Fu Xingzhou driving himself to work.

Qin Mu: I’m shocked. Hasn’t he almost never driven himself in all these years?

He only drives when he has spare time. Normally, he’s working even in the car—who has time to drive themselves? And if she looked closely, it seemed like there was a bite mark on his Adam’s apple?

Qin Mu held her phone, waiting for Li Man’s reply.

What she didn’t know was that Fu Xingzhou was seeing Wen Yang—Cheng Yanyu’s ex-wife.

But Li Man knew. She had just finished washing up and, in her bathrobe, was sipping coffee at the kitchen island. When she saw the message, she set her phone down. Indeed, in the past three years, he had rarely driven himself.

Aside from Jiang Yue, Fu Xingzhou had two other drivers always on standby, both in Hong Kong and Nancheng. Now he was driving himself—the most likely reason? Wen Yang.

Just then—

Qin Mu, not getting a reply, sent another message.

Qin Mu: I just saw his Adam’s apple. It looked like someone bit him.

Thud.

Li Man flipped her phone over.

On the balcony, Cheng Yanyu was on the phone. His laptop on the table showed images from the comic con. Li Man walked over, wrapped her arms around his waist from behind. He paused and held her hands.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

Li Man said, “I want to walk around the comic con with you.”

Cheng Yanyu hung up and turned to look at her. “Don’t you not like that kind of thing?”

Li Man let go of him and raised an eyebrow. “Just want to clear my head a bit.”

Cheng Yanyu nodded after hearing that. “Alright, go change your clothes. We’ll leave in a bit.”

“Okay.”

Li Man turned into the master bedroom.

A moment later, she came out wearing a Chanel suit. Cheng Yanyu was a bit stunned when he saw her outfit and said, “Isn’t that a bit too formal?”

Li Man picked up her bag. “What’s formal? We’re just going to have a look.”

Cheng Yanyu paused and then nodded. “Alright then.”

He himself was just in a white T-shirt and jeans, dressed very casually. He grabbed his laptop and car keys, and headed out with Li Man. An ad for the game Cyberpunk Mobsters was on a billboard at the neighborhood entrance.

The female character holding a curved blade—Wen Yang had played her before—was right on that billboard.

---

Wen Yang walked into the studio carrying a thermal lunch box.

Yu Qing had just arrived and was yawning in her chair. When she turned her head and saw Wen Yang enter, she instantly sat up straight and clicked her tongue a few times. At that moment, the others in the studio hadn’t arrived yet. Wen Yang blushed under Yu Qing’s gaze. She sat down, opened the lunch box, and pushed it toward her. “I brought you some corn.”

Yu Qing scooted her chair over to Wen Yang’s and didn’t respond to that. Instead, she stared at her and asked, “Yangbao, tell me—did you spend the night?”

Wen Yang’s ears turned red. She shot a glance at Yu Qing and said, “What else? You think I slept under the overpass?”

“Click click, haha.” Yu Qing noticed her embarrassment and chuckled, taking a few bites of corn before turning to Wen Yang again. “So… how was it?”

Wen Yang glanced at her but didn’t answer.

Scenes from last night vaguely floated through her mind. She could barely hold herself together when she was on top… no way she could tell Yu Qing all that. So instead, she countered with, “Did you guys drink last night?”

Yu Qing’s corn chewing paused. She looked at Wen Yang and said, “He caught on to what I meant. Later, he said he’d think about it. Seems like he doesn’t really want to date anyone right now.”

Wen Yang paused.

She thought, “Xu Xu really is sharp. Maybe he picked up on it last time when Yu Qing made those slightly jealous comments.”

Wen Yang reached out and put an arm around Yu Qing’s shoulders. “How do you feel about it?”

Yu Qing munched on corn and said, “Honestly? I felt relieved. Maybe I’m just not ready to really like someone or be with someone—especially someone like him.”

She put the corn down and held it with her fingertips. “Actually, I know there are quite a few girls who like him. I just don’t have that kind of confidence. Maybe all the bickering and teasing was just me trying to get his attention.”

“But if we were really together, I’d feel anxious. So maybe it’s better to just keep things as they are for now.”

Wen Yang looked at Yu Qing. Her brows weren’t furrowed—she actually seemed a lot more open-minded than before. Wen Yang relaxed a bit and said, “Sounds like both of you just aren’t ready yet.”

Yu Qing nodded.

“Yeah. I’m not that confident.”

Wen Yang said, “But you’re really great. Don’t sell yourself short.”

Yu Qing looked at her and pinched her cheek. “I know. I’m confident in my abilities. Looks and stuff don’t matter to me. It’s just that I’m not ready emotionally.”

Wen Yang nodded. “Yeah, that makes sense.”

Yu Qing said, “So it’s fine. Let things take their course.”

Wen Yang hugged her.

“Who knows, maybe there’s a surprise waiting.”

Yu Qing laughed.

She pointed at the computer. “Did you see? Mobsters has a huge booth at this convention. That curved-blade lady you like—tons of people are cosplaying her.”

Wen Yang leaned over for a look. “Oh wow, really!”

---

Evening.

That particularly indecisive duplex client contacted Wen Yang again, changing his requirements. It was the first time Wen Yang had encountered such a difficult client. Even though Lu Zhan often had a lot of requests, at least his were always reasonable and well-explained. This guy, though—he was even more troublesome than that New Chinese Style client Yu Qing dealt with last time. Wen Yang had to text and call him over and over as he kept changing things.

In the end, Wen Yang called him and said, “This isn’t feasible.”

“If it’s not feasible, why did I even hire you?”

The client snapped at her right away. Wen Yang felt exhausted, but she still tried to communicate patiently. In the end, he just hung up on her. Wen Yang set her phone back down on the desk.

She looked up at the ceiling and sighed helplessly, slumping back in her chair without moving.

Beep beep.

Wen Yang’s phone buzzed.

Fu Xingzhou: At the studio?

Wen Yang picked it up and replied: Yeah.

Fu Xingzhou: I’ll come pick you up. I’ll be there in ten minutes.

Wen Yang replied: Okay.

After sending the message, she stood up and packed up her laptop. The client’s requirements weren’t even sorted yet, but she just hit save and closed it. Since no one else was in the office, she also tidied up the reception area a bit. After checking that the doors and windows were locked, she grabbed her laptop and bag and went out to wait for the elevator.

The elevator doors opened.

Fu Xingzhou stood inside, his brow slightly raised.

Wen Yang, for some reason, suddenly missed him a lot. She walked in quickly and looked up. “Why did you come up?”

Fu Xingzhou reached out, took her laptop, and held her hand. “Look what time it is.”

Wen Yang pulled out her phone to check.

“Oh—it’s 10:30 already.”

Fu Xingzhou looked down at her. “So you do know.”

Wen Yang looked like she was on the verge of tears. She looked up at him and said, “That client was so annoying. He kept changing his requirements, up until just now.”

Fu Xingzhou could tell.

That morning, her eyes were smiling. Now, her lips were slightly pouting.

Fu Xingzhou tapped the tip of her nose and asked, “How many versions did he go through?”

Wen Yang followed him out of the elevator. “Eight, I think.”

“Did he pay the deposit?”

Wen Yang nodded. “Yes, he did.”

Fu Xingzhou opened the car door. Wen Yang bent down and got in. Fu Xingzhou placed her laptop in the back seat, then walked around to the driver’s side and started the car. He said, “Refund the deposit. Tell him to come back when he’s made up his mind.”

Wen Yang turned to look at him, stunned. “Huh? Refund it?”

Fu Xingzhou glanced at her and gently ruffled her hair. “Time is money. You’ve already wasted so much time on him — that time could’ve been spent doing so many other things. If he can’t decide today, he won’t decide tomorrow or the day after either. Let him make his own decision. If he still wants to keep changing things now, then tell him to find someone else.”

Wen Yang thought for a moment.

“That actually makes sense.”

A client this troublesome… maybe it is okay to screen some of them out once in a while.

She said, “I’ll talk to Yu Qing about it tomorrow.”

Besides, she had originally planned to go to Washington Residence today to check the renovation progress — but that got delayed too.

---

The two of them arrived at the club.

By the time they washed up, it was already quite late. Fu Xingzhou brought her to the recreation room, wanting her to relax. Aside from a chess set, there was also a billiards table.

Wen Yang stopped beside the chessboard and looked at Fu Xingzhou. “Wanna play a round?”

Fu Xingzhou smiled and nodded. “Sure.”

They each took one side. Since Fu Xingzhou had taught her last time, Wen Yang had secretly practiced a bit. But now that they were playing again, not only did she feel clearly outmatched, she also realized he was going easy on her.

Wen Yang looked up and said, “You’re going easy on me, aren’t you?”

Fu Xingzhou was holding the black king. He raised an eyebrow and asked, “What makes you think that?”

Wen Yang walked over to him and pointed at the pieces on the board. “Look here. You had a chance to attack, but you didn’t take it. You let me charge in with my queen like that — and you’re saying you’re not going easy on me?”

Fu Xingzhou was surprised by how much she had improved. He chuckled and said, “You’re imagining things.”

Wen Yang looked up at him. “I’m not imagining things. You’re totally going easy on me.”

Fu Xingzhou lowered his gaze to hers. Their eyes locked.

“You’re still a beginner. If I didn’t go easy on you, you wouldn’t win, and without a sense of accomplishment, you wouldn’t want to keep playing.”

Wen Yang stared at him for a few seconds.

Then suddenly tiptoed and kissed him.

Fu Xingzhou lowered his gaze. The next second, he wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her back.

The billiards table wasn’t far away. He easily lifted her onto it. The strap of her dress slipped down her shoulder. Wen Yang trembled lightly and soon surrendered completely.

Fu Xingzhou leaned close to her lips, palm resting on her waist. He looked into her misty, glistening eyes, her whole body glowing pale like snow, and his voice turned hoarse: “I’m glad you didn’t wrap yourself in armor.”

Wen Yang’s heart pounded. Her gaze locked with his, and her voice was hoarse too. She knew what he meant. She whispered, “That’s because you created a brilliant firework show for me.”

Fu Xingzhou smiled and lowered his head to kiss her again.

The kisses trailed downward — slow, then deep.

Wen Yang clung to his arm, barely able to stay steady.

---

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