Yu Wanwan was as sharp as ice and snow.
The so-called female lead role was merely a matter of Xie Tingnan’s word.
Yet he had only assigned her the role of a favored concubine. This was clearly meant to discipline her, to make her recognize her place.
Non-lead roles didn’t carry much weight; she didn’t need to stay on set and could be summoned by him at any time, ready to accompany him whenever he wished.
He could do as he pleased because he was the one in control.
That day, after signing the contract, Yu Wanwan was directly driven back to Yi Garden by Secretary Wang.
Over the next few days, Yu Wanwan diligently studied the script, carefully analyzing the character’s psychology.
She also began drafting her undergraduate thesis ahead of time.
As for continuing her postgraduate studies, she hadn’t yet had the chance to bring it up with Xie Tingnan.
With plenty of time on her hands, the young girl, whenever she wasn’t busy, would buy various fresh flowers and use the vases available at home to create beautiful floral arrangements tailored to the different styles of the rooms.
On the day Xie Tingnan returned, she had just purchased a new batch of flowers.
She placed sunflowers and lilies in her own bedroom, while in Xie Tingnan’s master bedroom, she arranged elegant and noble kaffir lilies.
Xie Tingnan returned after a week-long business trip.
As the plane landed at the international airport, he looked out the window, and suddenly, the graceful figure in a long halter dress by the lotus pond in the pavilion flashed through his mind.
His heart stirred restlessly.
A week had passed. He had thought of her but never contacted her.
And she, that silly girl, didn’t even know his phone number. He had been silent for a whole week, yet she hadn’t asked.
Was this how someone meant to serve should behave?
The man’s lips curled slightly without him noticing.
After disembarking and getting into the car, as soon as he turned off airplane mode, he received a call from his mother, Jiang Xin.
Jiang Xin was in her early sixties that year, having retired from a certain bureau with a rank equivalent to a deputy ministerial level.
With retirement, her schedule suddenly became much freer. She often organized various high-end leisure activities with old friends and took a greater interest in her children’s lives.
“Tingnan, come directly back to Purple Bamboo Garden after landing. Old Master Wen and his family are coming over tonight. Your father will also be back. We’re welcoming you home and celebrating your new investment project on Hong Kong Island.
An’an has returned to the country and secured a job at Peking Union Medical College Hospital. Our Xie family must show our appreciation.”
The Xie and Wen families were old friends.
With his father, Xie Guanli, and Old Master Wen both attending, as a junior, he had no reason to refuse.
So, Xie Tingnan replied, “Alright, I’ll be home soon.”
After hanging up, Xie Tingnan felt somewhat indifferent.
When Yin Ren asked about their destination, he casually toyed with an exquisite jewelry box in his hand, his gaze cool. “Back to Purple Bamboo Garden.”
By the time Xie Tingnan arrived at the Xie family’s ancestral home, Purple Bamboo Garden, everyone had already gathered.
He greeted the elders politely yet with a touch of wit.
To Wen An’an, who proactively approached him calling him “Brother Tingnan,” he merely offered a faint smile:
“Congratulations, An’an, on landing a job at the hospital you desired.”
The woman beamed brightly. “I’m finally back in Beijing, closer to Brother Tingnan. Everyone knows Brother Tingnan is the king of Beijing—I’ll have to rely on you to look out for me from now on.”
Wen An’an’s words carried a hint of coquettishness as she gazed intently at the man before her.
This man was truly beyond compare.
Though he carried the dignified elegance of a scion from a prestigious family, he always blended it with a mature man’s tenderness and wildness.
The robust and rugged lines of his forearm were enough to imagine the muscular, sensual physique supported by his 188 cm height.
Being deeply entangled with such a man would undoubtedly be an unforgettable, soul-stirring experience.
Wen An’an’s eyes glistened with moisture, brimming with amorous glances.
The man’s smile was faint as his gaze turned toward the two influential figures, Xie and Wen, who were chatting and laughing among the guests:
“An’an, the people who can protect you are all sitting right here. Uncle Wen could shield you from wind and rain with just a finger—it’s not my place.”
The compliment was skillfully delivered. While Xie Guanli and Wen Yan were smiling, Wen An’an’s expression froze for a moment.
This man simply wasn’t taking her bait.
She was two years younger than Xie Tingnan and had spent five years studying at Harvard Medical School.
People are pragmatic.
Back then, at 25, Xie Tingnan returned to Beijing with dual master’s degrees in finance and law from Oxford, ready to take over Antai.
At 23, Wen An’an, worried that Xie Tingnan might find another woman during her five-year absence at Harvard, stubbornly refused to study abroad.
From the moment her youthful heart first stirred, she had set her sights on Xie Tingnan.
Given their families’ long-standing friendship, she naturally assumed that when the time was right, the two of them, perfectly matched in status, would simply walk into marriage.
Her self-persuasion was quite impressive.
Later, even while studying abroad, Wen An’an had her socialite friends back home keep an eye on Xie Tingnan.
Thus, one year, when one of Xie Tingnan’s female companions was suddenly assaulted on her way home, it was rumored to be connected to Wen An’an.
(Here’s another heads-up: Xie Tingnan has never had a girlfriend, but he has had one or two female companions, unrelated to love. Readers who dislike this can choose not to continue, but please don’t criticize the male lead for this.
In reality, top-tier men who remain celibate until their thirties are exceedingly rare and often viewed as odd or problematic.)
He wasn’t a man overly indulgent in women, focusing more on his career and various aristocratic pursuits, such as horse racing.
Moreover, his standards for women were absurdly high. His companions were never chosen merely for their looks.
If they weren’t pure, lacked education, had poor manners, or lacked grace, he wouldn’t spare them a second glance, even if they were descended from angels.
It was simply that during private gatherings with friends, not having a woman by his side didn’t quite fit the expectations of their social circle.
However, Xie Tingnan had always disliked forcing himself into anything.
After a period of playing along, finding it utterly uninteresting, he provided the woman with substantial material compensation and never saw her again.
As mentioned earlier, years ago, shortly after Xie Tingnan returned to China, someone had already handed him a photo of Yu Wanwan. (This is merely a long-planned foreshadowing, nothing more—it will gradually unfold later.)
At that time, the young woman hadn’t fully matured, yet she still managed to astonish Xie Tingnan.
However, back then, he was fiercely ambitious, wholly dedicated to his career. Though briefly captivated, he would never touch someone as young as Yu Wanwan.
Thus, the photo was tossed into the shredder along with other documents.
It wasn’t until years later, driven by Yu Guanzhong’s selfish desires to offer his adopted daughter—whom he had raised—to him, that Xie Tingnan agreed without hesitation upon seeing the photo of the now 20-year-old Yu Wanwan.
As for what exactly motivated him, he preferred not to dwell on it.
After all, with a family background like the Xie family, he knew from the moment he nodded that Yu Wanwan could never step into it—she could only appear in such a role.
Thus, Xie Tingnan’s initial attraction to Yu Wanwan was purely superficial; talk of love was too distant and unrealistic.
Love gradually accumulates through shared experiences.
Throughout the evening gathering, Xie Tingnan remained by the side of the influential figures, serving tea and toasting drinks, his etiquette at the banquet table impeccable.
Wen An’an tried several times to interject into the conversation, but Xie Tingnan subtly avoided her each time.
Later, the third young lady, Xie Nannan, simply clung to Wen An’an, asking her to share interesting stories from her time studying abroad.
Wen An’an responded half-heartedly until the banquet finally came to an end…