It was rare to have a meal with her best friend, and Jiang Wanyin was in a good mood. Later, she received a message from Lin Wenhao.
He said that many companies had passed the preliminary screening, and he had booked tickets to go for interviews.
Jiang Wanyin immediately called him over voice. Lin Wenhao, who had lost quite a bit of weight, was beaming with a ruddy complexion, full of vigor and high spirits.
He kept talking about their future and sent her many photos.
He said he had looked at several apartments, and after working for a few months, he would have enough for a down payment.
“Let’s buy a small one first. Once I get promoted, we’ll trade up for a bigger one.”
Jiang Wanyin thought to herself that if Lin Wenhao followed the usual pace, it would still take several years to achieve that.
With a new job, his horizons would also be different. A considerate girlfriend wouldn’t dampen her boyfriend’s spirits at a time like this.
“Okay, I’ll wait for you!”
Jiang Wanyin smiled sweetly at Lin Wenhao.
No matter what, at least the bitter days were over, and they would soon be reunited.
She would no longer have to drift alone in this big city.
But Jiang Wanyin didn’t get to enjoy it for long. The next evening, an unfamiliar number sent her a thunderbolt.
[Senior Sister Jiang, I… my name is Lin Ru. Sorry to bother you, but I… I’m pregnant with Wenhao’s child. Could you let him go to me? I don’t want an abortion, and I don’t want my child to grow up without a father. Please, I beg you!]
What is this? Fake, right? A prank?
Who is Lin Ru?
Jiang Wanyin’s heart pounded wildly. She stared blankly at the message on her phone, unable to comprehend how something like this could suddenly happen.
Just last night, Lin Wenhao was still planning their future with her—
Tears gushed out uncontrollably. In the cramped rental room, the sound of heart-wrenching sobs echoed.
Jiang Wanyin didn’t want to cry. She was an adult; the world wouldn’t stop spinning without anyone.
But her heart felt as if something had seized it fiercely, aching unbearably.
They were about to be reunited—
Ding-dong, a text message: [Image]
The other party had sent a pregnancy test report, silently pressing the attack.
Jiang Wanyin clutched her phone tightly, her heart desolate, her whole body hunched as she sat on the floor.
In this silent night, adrift like her, her mind was in chaos, not knowing how to handle this matter.
She didn’t want to engage, didn’t want to fight with anyone.
After who knows how long, her phone vibrated again, and a special ringtone sounded in the room.
[You raise me up… so I can stand… on mountains,
You raise me up… to walk on… stormy seas…]
(PS: Quoting two lines from Secret Garden’s song “You Raise Me Up”)
This was a dedicated ringtone Jiang Wanyin had set for several clients, afraid she might miss important information.
She swiped to answer with trembling hands: “President Shen.”
“Lisa, didn’t you say you’d be here in half an hour? Are you stuck in traffic or…”
“Traffic jam. I’ll be there soon.”
Only then did Jiang Wanyin remember that Shen Ci had said he found some foreign furniture and asked her to come discuss it. She grabbed her car keys and rushed out.
…
Fifteen minutes later, in the largest private room at Red Sun Club.
Jiang Wanyin pushed open the door of the private room, panting heavily. She had just taken a step inside when she realized she had come wearing slippers and pajamas?
Her brain was really fried!
Fortunately, the pajamas weren’t the kind that looked obviously like pajamas—otherwise, she might not have gotten past the door.
Jiang Wanyin was currently wearing a white cotton-linen lace dress.
It was a matching bestie outfit that Xu Tiantian had bought—one for each of them.
The fabric was breathable, but Jiang Wanyin found the neckline too wide and too low. Following her principle of not wasting things, she’d been using it as pajamas.
“President Shen, Mr. Chen, President Pei.”
Jiang Wanyin greeted each of them in turn, her toes wiggling nervously.
Only a few ambient lights were on in the private room—surely no one would notice she was wearing slippers.
Shen Ci felt as though a piece of lustrous white jade had drifted into his sight. His handsome eyes narrowed slightly. “Lisa.”
He felt the woman looked somehow different tonight.
A thought flashed through Shen Ci’s mind, but the alcohol left him no energy to dwell on it.
Jiang Wanyin sat down and noticed the other two men looked completely drained. “Did they drink too much?”
Shen Ci turned off the music. “Yeah. Someone at the earlier gathering brought a lot of people—it got pretty rowdy.”
“Maybe we should send them home first.”
Jiang Wanyin could see that Shen Ci’s eyes weren’t entirely clear either; this didn’t seem like the right time to discuss business.
Shen Ci nodded and nudged Pei Zhou. “Pei Zhou, let’s head back.”
Pei Zhou mumbled, “Don’t wanna move…”
On the other side, Chen Li, who had been reclining with his eyes closed, rubbed his eyes and staggered to his feet. “Zhouzi, you’ll sleep better back home.”
Shen Ci stood up to help Pei Zhou, and Jiang Wanyin also walked over, bending down to grab his arm and assist.
Ring ring ring! A phone rang, amplified by the quiet room into something almost piercing.
It was Jiang Wanyin’s phone.
She’d rushed out in a hurry without her bag, so her phone and keys had nowhere to go—she had to hold them in her hands. And now she was helping Pei Zhou.
The deafening ring exploded right next to Pei Zhou’s ear.
“What the hell is that? So loud!”
The noise startled Pei Zhou, sobering him up a bit. Jiang Wanyin fumbled to turn it off, but her hand slipped and the phone dropped onto Pei Zhou’s lap.
“Annoying!”
Half-awake, Pei Zhou grabbed the earthquake-inducing thing and pressed buttons randomly, trying to hang up—but instead, he hit the answer key.
“Hello? Senior Sister Jiang?”
“Senior Sister Jiang, please, let Wenhao go! The baby can’t wait any longer!”
“Wuwuwu—”
A delicate, tearful female voice echoed through the private room.
Jiang Wanyin was still bent over in the same position.
Pei Zhou’s peach-blossom eyes were no longer dazed. “What the hell? Who’s Lin Wenhao?”
“Jiang… Senior Sister? This late… how… you…”
“Lin Wenhao is my boyfriend.”
Jiang Wanyin forced herself to stay calm as she answered Pei Zhou. “Junior sister, I’m at work right now. Let’s talk about this tomorrow.”
She reached out to take her phone back, but Pei Zhou raised his hand and dodged, refusing to give it to her.
“You’re way too meek. Someone’s bullying you right to your face and you’re still speaking nicely!”
As the crown prince of the entertainment industry, Pei Zhou had seen every trick in the book.
This whole “pregnant mistress forces out the official girlfriend” routine might be simple, but it was also the most effective against the woman in the main seat.
He brought the phone to his mouth and spoke in a hostile tone: “Hey, tell that scumbag he’s dumped. If he doesn’t want to die, he’d better not come bothering our Yinyin again!”
Smack—Pei Zhou hung up, looking annoyed, and casually tossed the phone back to Jiang Wanyin.
Having these men overhear such… unspeakable private matters.
Jiang Wanyin stood frozen in place, dying of embarrassment.
Seeing this, Chen Li scooted over with a grin. “Zhouzi, why are you running your mouth like that?”
Pei Zhou let out a light snort through his nose. “What did I say wrong? Keeping a scumbag like that around even one second longer is disgusting.”
Chen Li said, “Aren’t you just as much of a player? You’ve charmed so many women’s hearts without even sleeping with them.”
“Ah… I almost forgot, with looks like yours, who knows who’d be sleeping with whom?”
Chen Li, as if feeling the fire wasn’t hot enough, reached out and fiddled with Pei Zhou’s face, muttering, “You’re not into something different, are you? If you need something, just tell your big bro!”
“Damn it, there’s nothing wrong with me. You’re the bigger player—four or five female assistants…” Pei Zhou’s forehead veins bulged as he shoved Chen Li down onto the sofa.
…
Watching the two men expose each other’s dirty secrets like schoolboys brawling, Jiang Wanyin momentarily forgot her embarrassment, her ears perking up on their own to eavesdrop on the “inside secrets of the wealthy.”
The entertainment industry’s crown prince, seemingly flirtatious and fickle, was actually a virgin?
The mining tycoon, looking upright and righteous, actually had a thing for sleeping with his female assistants?
She wondered what secrets President Shen had.
“Are you alright?”
A warm hand rested on Jiang Wanyin’s back, guiding her away from the “war zone.”
It was Shen Ci.
“Do you need help?”
The gentle, warm male voice instantly pierced through Jiang Wanyin’s heart.
Her eyes welled up again: “President Shen…”
Shen Ci gently pressed her forehead against his chest: “Don’t be afraid. If you want to cry, cry. There’s no rush to go back.”
He reached out and lightly patted Jiang Wanyin’s back, though the two weren’t embracing.
Listening to the comfort that seemed laced with a hint of affection and pity, her tense body gradually relaxed.
The golden-haired gentleman truly put her at ease.