Cheng Ruan stepped out of the car and saw a supercar parked in the adjacent spot, causing his eyebrows to twitch.
Walking into the office, sure enough, he saw Wu Zhou sitting slouched on the sofa, gossiping with someone yet again.
“What are you doing here?” Cheng Ruan signaled for his special assistant to step out first and sat down across from Wu Zhou. “Let’s get one thing straight: I don’t have time to chat with you right now.”
“How can you call this chatting?” Wu Zhou patted the folder resting on the sofa with disapproval. “I’m here to talk business!”
Cheng Ruan looked skeptical. “Did your workaholic parents decide to retire? Or did your overachieving older sister decide to throw in the towel?”
“Hey, why can’t it be that I’m standing on my own two feet?” Wu Zhou grew anxious and pulled a document out of the folder to prove his point. “I’m really here to talk business!”
“Fine.” Cheng Ruan leaned back against the sofa. “I’ll listen to President Wu’s intentions for the time being.”
Wu Zhou put the document down and cleared his throat. “Full disclosure: I’m only here at my sister’s request to go through the motions and fulfill my mission. You don’t necessarily have to agree, okay?”
He took a sip of tea and said solemnly, “Speaking of last time, when you showed me at the apartment—”
“Stop right there.” Cheng Ruan made a ‘time-out’ gesture. “Weren’t we talking business?”
“Are you sure you don’t want the backstory?” Wu Zhou scratched his nose. “Alright, I’ll summarize it in one sentence then.”
Wu Zhou still couldn’t help but ramble for a bit: “You know Shen Yuwei, right? The one who… um, had dinner with Luo Mingzhi last time.”
“Him.” Cheng Ruan nodded. “He’s a newly signed artist under Luo’s Film Holdings. He should be the spokesperson for the Muyao Town cultural tourism project later on.”
“Exactly,” Wu Zhou continued. “I was wondering why he looked so familiar; turns out he’s a top-tier idol.”
“I only just found out myself that Shen Yuwei was invited to record a hit variety show under my family’s film company. It just so happens there’s a joint promotional shoot with a sponsor recently…”
Cheng Ruan waited for Wu Zhou to get to the point.
Wu Zhou said, “Shen Yuwei expressed a desire to shoot at Fuchue Villa. Our director and the sponsors… they’re interested in that as well.”
Seeing Cheng Ruan remain silent, Wu Zhou added, “Don’t feel pressured, Xiao Ruan. Don’t look at me as Wu Zhou—just treat me like a regular client. If you want to refuse, just refuse. Don’t force yourself!”
“Why would I be forcing myself?” To Wu Zhou’s surprise, Cheng Ruan interrupted him and said strangely, “Why would I turn down a chance to earn a venue fee?”
Wu Zhou began to doubt his ears. “But…”
“Does President Wu not want to do business anymore?” Cheng Ruan smiled as he pulled the contract from the folder. “This shoot looks quite interesting. Fuchue Villa is usually empty anyway; it wouldn’t hurt to have some more life in the place.”
Wu Zhou asked uneasily, “Xiao Ruan, have you really thought this through?”
Cheng Ruan glanced at him. “The sponsor you mentioned… is it Gu Lin?”
Wu Zhou’s eyes shifted guiltily. “How did you know?”
Cheng Ruan set the contract down. “You aren’t usually this enthusiastic about the family business. But since you’ve come here personally, I can’t let you go back empty-handed.”
“Besides, even if you hadn’t come to me, I expect someone from the Luo corporation would have. Shen Yuwei is their star artist now; they naturally wouldn’t mistreat him.”
“But…” Wu Zhou voiced his extra concern. “What exactly went on between Shen Yuwei and Luo Mingzhi before…”
Cheng Ruan shook his head indifferently. “I don’t interfere in Luo Mingzhi’s business.”
“However… since the Old Master made such a grand show of secretly photographing people a few days ago, I can’t keep taking advantage of the situation forever, can I?”
Cheng Ruan had indeed only learned the night before that it was the Old Master who had authorized the media reports.
Before that, he had even suspected Luo Mingzhi of pulling the strings. After three seconds of self-loathing for that thought, Cheng Ruan walked into the old family residence.
Seeing Cheng Ruan’s return, the Old Master calmly signaled the butler to put away the medicine on the table. He folded his handkerchief and asked, “How do you have time to come back today?”
Cheng Ruan walked over, feigning dissatisfaction. “It seems like you don’t want me back?”
The Old Master smiled. “I want you to come back every day, but are you willing to?”
“Didn’t you make me live with Luo Mingzhi? And now you’re blaming me for not coming back.” Cheng Ruan’s tone shifted as he asked, “Grandpa… you haven’t done anything recently to set me up, have you?”
The Old Master immediately frowned. “You kid, what are you saying? Why would I set—”
Meeting Cheng Ruan’s gaze, he paused for a moment and then said frankly, “Fine. The photos of you and Luo Mingzhi were indeed released on my orders.”
A triumphant smile appeared in Cheng Ruan’s eyes.
The Old Master sighed helplessly. “You really have become sharper since being with Luo Mingzhi.”
Cheng Ruan denied it. “That’s because I was always smart!”
“Luo Mingzhi also came to see me a few days ago,” the Old Master revealed everything. “He knew it was my doing before you did.”
Cheng Ruan was somewhat surprised. “He never told me…”
Thinking back, the Old Master still felt a bit surprised and looked at Cheng Ruan meaningfully. “He didn’t come to negotiate with me. Instead, he asked if I had consulted your opinion. He suggested that if you didn’t agree, all the reports should be retracted first.”
“He seems very concerned about your feelings.”
Cheng Ruan’s ears suddenly felt a bit hot. He tried to change the subject as if nothing was wrong. “This is the first I’ve heard of it. Grandpa, what are you having for dinner? I just remembered I have some things to do, so I’ll be…”
“Xiao Ruan.” The Old Master saw through his avoidance and said gently, “Life is like two sides of a coin; the other side of misfortune is often fortune.”
“Though this marriage was a series of accidents, it may not necessarily be a lack of happiness for you.”
“A good partner is hard to find. Do not miss your chance.”
Two days later, the shoot took place at Fuchue Villa.
Cheng Ruan happened to have no schedule that day. While the filming was going on, Wu Zhou dragged him around to explore, covering almost the entire villa grounds.
Pointing at the helipad not far away, Wu Zhou couldn’t help but laugh. “Xiao Ruan, do you remember when you flew a helicopter in the middle of the night to pick me up?”
“Back then, my sister was having surgery, and my parents were fighting over the divorce and assets. The house was a mess. I was locked upstairs and not allowed out. I told you through tears that I wanted beef noodles from the next city over, and without a word, you flew a helicopter and landed on my roof. The commotion was so big my parents stopped fighting just to come up and see what was happening.”
Cheng Ruan nodded in resignation. “And as a result, I made the headlines of the Jincheng gossip columns the next day, saying I couldn’t wait to show off my flashy new ride on the night I became an adult.”
“Thinking back on it now, it’s still deathly embarrassing.”
Wu Zhou laughed until he almost cried. “How could you be so stupid?”
“Knock it off, I was being smart.” Cheng Ruan watched the busy staff moving back and forth. “Shen Yuwei certainly has sharp eyes. His boss has so many luxury properties to use, yet he set his sights on my villa.”
Wu Zhou felt something was off. “I heard from Gu Lin that he had been trying to get on Luo Mingzhi’s good side before, trying all sorts of ways to meet, but he was ignored or rejected by Luo Mingzhi every time.”
“Do you think… he came here for you this time?”
“Who knows?” Cheng Ruan stared at the beaming Shen Yuwei in the distance. “If he dares to mess with me—”
“Then he’s picked the right person.”
Wu Zhou: “Wow, is this the dominance of the legal spouse?”
Cheng Ruan denied it. “No, this is the indifference of a bystander.”
Wu Zhou was called away by his sister shortly after. Cheng Ruan was about to put on his headphones to listen to music when someone suddenly stepped forward to stop him.
“Mr. Cheng?”
Cheng Ruan turned around. The person calling him was a man wearing black-rimmed glasses with a staff ID around his neck, looking like one of the crew.
The man explained his intent: “Hello, Mr. Cheng. I am Shen Yuwei’s manager. Mr. Shen has something he would like to consult you about. Would it be convenient for you to come over for a moment?”
Cheng Ruan smiled. “I don’t think I have anything Mr. Shen would need to consult me on.”
The manager said, “Yuwei said it was Mr. Luo’s instruction.”
Luo Mingzhi?
Since he had nothing better to do anyway, Cheng Ruan took off his headphones and looked at the manager. “Lead the way.”
Before them was a wide shooting range. Shen Yuwei was standing not far away. Cheng Ruan raised an eyebrow. “This is it?”
Cheng Ruan saw the expression on Shen Yuwei’s face and understood immediately. “What does Mr. Shen want to consult me about?”
He added helpfully, “If it’s about the endorsement for the Muyao Town project, you should ask the person directly in charge. If it’s about Luo Mingzhi, you should ask him yourself…”
Shen Yuwei silently put on shooting gloves, chambered a round, and pulled the trigger at the target in the distance.
Cheng Ruan instinctively covered his ears.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The gunshots rang out, and the bullet holes pierced the target near the center. Shen Yuwei lowered the gun and took off his goggles. “Would Mr. Cheng like to give it a try?”
“So Mr. Shen wants to be my private instructor?” Cheng Ruan ignored the protective gear the assistant offered and looked at Shen Yuwei with a smile. “Unfortunately, I’m not interested in these things, so I won’t try.”
He crossed his arms. “What did Luo Mingzhi instruct you to do?”
“He didn’t tell you?” Shen Yuwei seemed to catch onto something, his tone laced with a strange hint of hostility.
Having observed people for over a decade, Cheng Ruan couldn’t miss Shen Yuwei’s mindset. His suppressed competitive streak suddenly flared up, and he looked at Shen Yuwei meaningfully. “You seem very concerned about the family affairs between him and me.”
Shen Yuwei curled his lip mockingly. “I do care about Mr. Luo. Mr. Luo is a gentleman and thorough; there is no one gentler than him.”
Cheng Ruan rolled his eyes internally. “And?”
“And so, I won’t give up on him.” Shen Yuwei stepped closer to Cheng Ruan. “You merely used a business partnership to force Mr. Luo into a marriage. Such despicable methods are beneath Mr. Luo’s notice.”
“…” Cheng Ruan looked at him coldly. “So your ‘consultation’ was actually a provocation?”
“Think what you like.” Shen Yuwei looked toward the horizon. “A vulgar person like you, who stops at nothing to achieve their goals, doesn’t deserve Mr. Luo’s attention at all.”
“Do you know what tomorrow is?”
Click. The sound of a bullet being chambered rang out.
Shen Yuwei turned in surprise to see Cheng Ruan putting on goggles. With his index finger resting lightly on the trigger, he squinted his left eye to aim and fired several shots in quick succession, every single one hitting the bullseye.
Cheng Ruan said slowly, “I only know that today is the day you went looking for trouble.”
Bang— The final bullet passed through the very center of the target. Cheng Ruan pulled back his hand and tossed the gun to the assistant.
“My family’s shooting range still feels the best.”
“With your skills, Mr. Shen, you should practice more; they aren’t even worth looking at.” Cheng Ruan smiled and took off his goggles, his peach-blossom eyes shimmering. “As for Luo Mingzhi…”
He stopped in his tracks and looked back at Shen Yuwei. “You’re right, he and I are indeed in an arranged marriage.”
“But on his household registration… only my name can be written.”
Cheng Ruan looked with satisfaction at the stung expression on Shen Yuwei’s face and turned away gracefully, only to realize that Luo Mingzhi and Gu Lin had been standing behind them for who knew how long.
Suddenly, he didn’t feel so graceful anymore.
Gu Lin looked as if this was exactly what he expected and intentionally said to Luo Mingzhi, “This husband of yours is quite dominant.”
Luo Mingzhi ignored him completely and walked straight toward Cheng Ruan.
Seeing Luo Mingzhi approach, Cheng Ruan’s arrogant flame was instantly cut in half. Conversely, Shen Yuwei looked as if he had finally seen the object of his longing and took an excited step forward.
“Mr. Luo! You’re here!”
Luo Mingzhi stood beside Cheng Ruan, his attitude cold as he addressed Shen Yuwei. “Shen Yuwei, three strikes and you’re out.”
“If you have any more out-of-line behavior, the Luo Corporation will terminate all contracts with you.”
“Mr. Luo!” Shen Yuwei bit his lip defiantly. “But he doesn’t love you at all! He’s only using you for profit and status, using you for hype and publicity. He doesn’t even know what tomorrow is…”
Luo Mingzhi looked up. “Zhang Li.”
“Wait!” Fearing that Luo Mingzhi would actually terminate the contract with Shen Yuwei, Cheng Ruan reached out, grabbed his sleeve, and pulled him away from the shooting range. “We still need him to endorse the Muyao Town project. Calm down, calm down.”
Luo Mingzhi stopped and stared at Cheng Ruan’s somewhat flustered hand. “In what capacity are you advising me?”
Cheng Ruan stood awkwardly to the side and whispered, “…Business partner?”
Luo Mingzhi acknowledged this, looked away, and turned to leave.
“Hey, don’t walk so fast!” Cheng Ruan hurried after him, out of breath as he blocked Luo Mingzhi from entering the car.
Luo Mingzhi raised an eyebrow, waiting for his answer.
Cheng Ruan glanced around and whispered with a red face, “Is… the capacity of your husband okay?”
The emotion in Luo Mingzhi’s eyes seemed ready to overflow. “I see.”
He still got into the car, but very quickly, the window rolled down.
Luo Mingzhi looked at the dejected Cheng Ruan, who was hanging his head. “Then we shall do as my husband says.”