“A marriage certificate?”
“They really got the license?”
“Wow, they’re serious…”
“But honestly, this is the first time I’ve seen someone casually pull out a marriage certificate.”
“I feel like this Ms. Lan is so innocent.”
“Of course. She’s been in a coma since she was 9; how could she not be innocent? Her mindset is completely still that of an elementary school student.”
“No wonder a necklace had to be specially designed—with a backstory and connection like that, even movies wouldn’t dare to film it.”
“I’ve already thought of the headline for the draft—Waking Up to Find the Beautiful CEO is My Fiancée.”
The small red booklet caused a stir, which caught Lan Su completely off guard.
They all have two eyes and one mouth, so why are these reporters so talkative?
It wasn’t like her antiquities business, where if the relationship was good, she’d inspect the goods, and money and goods would exchange hands. If the relationship was bad, it was axes and machetes. A whole business deal wouldn’t involve more than ten sentences.
It’s been half an hour today, why hasn’t it ended yet?
Seeing the commotion, the host quickly took control:
“Please settle down, everyone. Our General Manager’s wife has already responded. They are now legitimate, legally married spouses. Does anyone have any other questions? We will only take three final questions.”
The rumors of their relationship had come to fruition, and the reporters had secured their news angle, so the subsequent questions returned to the necklace theme.
The inspiration, design concepts, and creative process were all handed over to the Design Director.
Huo Yan was bored, so she drank tea, cup after cup.
Perhaps she had eaten an extra shengjian bun this morning and was a little parched, or perhaps she was contemplating Lan Su’s background, thinking about the kind of environment one must grow up in to become so reserved and tranquil, yet harboring a fierce defiance capable of taking on the world.
She habitually drinks water when thinking.
Clink.
The teacup was placed back on the coaster for the fourth time, and the liquid level had dropped to below halfway.
Coincidentally, the kettle was next to Lan Su.
Coincidentally, she felt a little apologetic for the commotion she had just caused.
Coincidentally, the hand pouring the water for Huo Yan was her right hand. When exerting force, the wrist bone would stick out, making the angle of her wrist a little unnatural.
Coincidentally, after Lan Su poured the water, she habitually twisted her wrist, just like her old movements when spinning a knife.
Coincidentally, this scene, like a giant boulder, violently slammed into Huo Yan’s heart.
Boom—
As a huge roar exploded in her mind, the eyes behind the lenses narrowed, and the muscle of her lower eyelid twitched. She was utterly shattered by the sight of that protruding wrist bone.
Lan Su didn’t see this, otherwise, she would have been surprised that Huo Yan, who was usually impenetrable and excellent at concealing herself, would reveal such an expression—one so… sudden, exposing her inner world.
The camera is impartial.
It recorded the marriage certificate Lan Su took out, and it also recorded this expression on Huo Yan’s face. Furthermore, during the live broadcast across the entire network, it quickly sparked sensational discussion.
OMG! What kind of expression is this, shot by Cupid’s arrow! The key is, she’s HO YAN!
How should I put it? My impression of this sister has always been that of a high-and-mighty goddess. This gaze is like a deity falling from the clouds and descending into the mortal world.
Lan Su, do you know that your wife used to look at people as if they were trash? I order you to turn around in 1 second
The Grim Reaper, indifferent to the world, suddenly falls in love with a mortal. Who understands this sense of fate?
For a time, various descriptions emerged endlessly, and the most fitting one was pushed to the top of the hot comments, and it was also the caption of the viral post—
She seems to have realized that this person is the forgotten “white moonlight” of her life.
Because of a single look, the originally peaceful press conference was ignited.
People are always rebellious. They like to watch the indifferent act impulsively, the seekers of truth break their vows, and the proud fall.
To see the heartless moved by emotion.
Back in the office, Huo Yan’s expression had returned to normal. Xu Panpan brought two cups of cooling chrysanthemum tea, placing one on the desk and one on the coffee table in front of the sofa. She shot a look of impending doom at Jiang Feng, and then pulled her out.
Only Lan Su and Huo Yan remained.
“What are you doing? Being all mysterious.”
A confused Jiang Feng, having been dragged out, jerked her elbow, freed herself from Xu Panpan’s grip, and smoothed out the creases near her arm.
“Wow, you really have no fear of death!”
Xu Panpan put down the tray, pulled her to the most inconspicuous balcony, and spoke with such emotion that her eyes almost popped out.
“Can’t you tell that CEO Huo has something to say to Ms. Lan?”
Jiang Feng eyed her suspiciously, knitting her brows. “What did you figure out?”
Although Xu Panpan was like Tigger—lively but a bit unrestrained—she wouldn’t make things up.
Sure enough, Xu Panpan pulled out her phone. On the screen was a clip from the live stream that had gone viral.
In the image, Huo Yan was looking idly at Lan Su pouring water for her, then her eyes suddenly sharpened, as if countless memories were flooding into her mind. Although she quickly controlled her expression, mindful of the camera, that one second of exposure was enough to tell a long story.
“See? Didn’t I tell you something was up?” Xu Panpan concluded.
“Hiss…” Jiang Feng nodded. “I’ve been with CEO Huo for so long, and I’ve never seen her make that expression.”
“Right? If my detective skills hadn’t kicked in and pulled you out, you’d be in there staring blankly right now. So, how are you going to thank me?”
“Bubble tea?”
“With boba.”
“No problem.”
“Then what do you think that expression of CEO Huo’s meant?”
“…How should I know!”
At the same time, a silent play was unfolding in the General Manager’s office. The still air hung stagnant with the dust, sinking into a silence like that of a morgue.
Huo Yan sat at her desk, but the computer screen was dark. She looked past the monitor at Lan Su, who was perched rigidly on the sofa not far away.
Lan Su had both hands resting on her knees, her back ramrod straight, like a stiff, static mannequin at the entrance of a plaza, appearing indifferent to the constant flow of traffic.
In reality, it was not so. In a spot Huo Yan couldn’t see, Lan Su hid her thumbs in her palms, nervously picking at the fabric of her knees. Years of living on the edge of the blade had given her high alertness. Although she didn’t know the reason, nor had she seen the trending topic, she intuitively felt that Huo Yan seemed to have spotted a flaw in her carefully constructed disguise.
She didn’t dare to look at Huo Yan, even though she knew the person was staring at her. The area behind the desk was dark, as if the occupant wasn’t a person, but a famished beast.
Her fingernail dug hard into her palm, and Lan Su gathered the courage to speak:
“The driver seems to be arriving soon. I’ll go down and wait for him.”
Huo Yan remained motionless. “There are still 10 minutes. Wait for him to come up and get you.”
Lan Su pursed her lips, feeling a heavy, somewhat painful pressure in her chest, as if she had swallowed a gulp of air. Was this office too small? Staying in a closed space with Huo Yan for 10 minutes would probably break a Guinness World Record.
Thinking this, she wanted to take a sip of tea.
She picked up the glass teacup with her right hand. Her wrist bone protruded only slightly, not as noticeably as when she poured the water earlier, but now that Huo Yan knew of the bone’s irregularity, even a small amount was enough for her to catch it.
“Did this hand of yours break before?”
The question was completely out of the blue, yet so sharp.
Clang!
Lan Su was caught red-handed. She felt a shock run through her skull, as if a nail had been hammered into her head, splitting her cranium in two. The glass cup was suspended in her hand, neither raising it to drink nor setting it down, frozen in this awkward position.
She thought her identity was about to be exposed and brainstormed how to cover it up.
Yet, she didn’t know that this hand was a hidden flower in Huo Yan’s heart for many years—a deep, crimson rose blooming on a dark marsh.