4 – Be My Boyfriend
Fu Yan raised an eyebrow slightly, looking at this girl with an indescribable expression. A girl, sure—but thin-skinned? He really couldn’t see it at all.
From the way she spoke to how she lied without so much as blinking, he hadn’t detected a shred of modesty in her. If anything, her skin was remarkably thick. She’d say anything to anyone, without even considering what kind of occasion this was.
Fu Yan checked the time.
He had absolutely no intention of dealing with Jiang Wanning.
Before long, the team members all returned.
Fu Yan scanned the group—one person was still missing. His voice was low and cold: ”Where’s Hai Zhou? Why hasn’t he come over? Assemble and report back in three minutes.”
Li Hang spoke up: ”Captain, he’s been held up by someone—a female reporter. The one who came to the station for an interview last time, Chen Xingxing.”
Chen Xingxing?
Fu Yan searched his memory for that name and recalled a few things. He looked in the direction Li Hang was pointing.
Sure enough, he spotted Hai Zhou.
The female reporter named Chen Xingxing said something, then turned her head and saw Fu Yan. Her eyes lit up with delight. She quickly headed straight toward Fu Yan, a cameraman trailing behind her.
“Captain Fu!”
Fu Yan’s face darkened.
He had never liked giving interviews to the media; he rejected virtually all media coverage. Just as Fu Yan was about to make his escape, Jiang Wanning grabbed hold of his clothes—she hadn’t finished what she wanted to say.
Still, under the circumstances, this kind of tussling wasn’t exactly appropriate. But letting him run off like that? Jiang Wanning refused to accept it.
She held out her hand. “Where’s your phone? Lend it to me.”
Fu Yan answered crisply: “Don’t have one.”
Jiang Wanning froze for a second, astonished. “You don’t have a phone? Who doesn’t have a phone these days? Fu Yan, stop lying!”
Fu Yan’s face was expressionless. “Miss Jiang, kindly take your hands off me. I’m here to work, not to go on a date. Have you ever seen a firefighter carry a phone into a burning building? I just came back from one not long ago.”
With that, he pulled his arm free.
Jiang Wanning, clinging like a piece of stubborn flypaper, grabbed his clothes again. She tilted her chin up, her pretty eyes blinking, wearing a puzzled look. “Firefighters don’t take phones into fires? I didn’t know that. But you’re not an ordinary firefighter—you’re the captain!”
Fu Yan was speechless.
He couldn’t be bothered to continue the conversation.
Fu Yan glanced at Jiang Wanning’s fair, slender arm. There was no emotion in his eyes. “Let go!”
As if she hadn’t heard him, the corners of her mouth curved upward slightly. “Captain Fu, if you don’t have a phone, that’s fine. Then just tell me your WeChat or your number. I have a good memory—say it, and I’ll remember it.”
Fu Yan opened his mouth to speak, his thin lips parting.
He gave her three digits.
“119.”
Jiang Wanning, utterly dumbfounded: “…”
She was so exasperated she almost laughed. With a scoff, she gripped Fu Yan’s fire uniform even harder. The uniform was black; the woman’s hands were white—black and white.
A stark, striking contrast.
As the two of them tussled, Chen Xingxing arrived.
Her gaze darted back and forth between Jiang Wanning and Fu Yan, then landed on Jiang Wanning’s hand gripping Fu Yan’s arm. The emotion in her eyes shifted subtly.
For some reason, as she looked at Jiang Wanning, a trace of curiosity—and hostility—crept into her eyes.
“Captain Fu…”
Chen Xingxing spoke with a smile. She wore light makeup, her shoulder-length hair smooth and sleek, the picture of poise and elegance.
Fu Yan gave a polite, indifferent nod.
He looked at Jiang Wanning and said in a low voice, “That’s enough. With so many people watching, it’s not appropriate for you to hang on me like this.”
The others pretended to be busy.
In reality, all eyes and ears were turned this way.
Fu Yan felt a headache coming on.
Jiang Wanning said, “Nothing inappropriate about it. Aren’t you done with work? You saved that person who wanted to jump off the building, didn’t you? You firefighters are all unsung heroes. Of course, if you think it’s inappropriate…”
She tilted her head, brushing back the long hair by her ear, her eyes carrying a teasing allure. She took a light step forward, leaned close to Fu Yan, who wasn’t exactly clean, and said, “Captain Fu, if you want me to stop pestering you, that can be arranged. But there’s a condition—you kissed me, so you have to take responsibility. Be my boyfriend.”
With that, Jiang Wanning rose up on her toes.
She gave Fu Yan a forceful tug, pulling his head down, and while he was completely caught off guard, she quickly leaned in and kissed him on the cheek.
Then she immediately stepped back.
“Captain Fu, I’m off!”
“You’re busy, so I won’t disturb you or waste your time. Remember to give me your answer!”
Jiang Wanning’s smile was beautiful. There was plenty of time ahead—she refused to believe that someone who so obviously wore his identity could get away.
He couldn’t escape.
Jiang Wanning turned to leave. As she passed the female reporter Chen Xingxing, a thick wave of jasmine fragrance flooded her nose. Jiang Wanning frowned slightly. Too much perfume.
Jiang Wanning was a perfumer.
A scent like jasmine was suited to being light and subtle, not heavy. Too much, and it had the opposite effect.
She hadn’t intended to meddle.
But out of woman’s intuition, the look Chen Xingxing had given Fu Yan just now gave Jiang Wanning the feeling that something of hers was being coveted.
It was deeply unpleasant.
Jiang Wanning stepped back and stopped beside Chen Xingxing. Her eyes were cool, her lips curving into a lovely smile. “Pretty reporter, a lighter touch of perfume would suit your elegance better. Just a heads-up—my Captain Fu is allergic to perfume, especially the scent of jasmine.”
With that, she was gone.
Chen Xingxing stood frozen in place, stunned.
Especially at what Jiang Wanning had just said—my Captain Fu. She was Fu Yan’s girlfriend?
But hadn’t Fu Yan always been single?
When did he get a girlfriend?
Chen Xingxing’s thoughts were in disarray, and she felt utterly awful. She liked Fu Yan—had liked him for a long time. She’d been secretly in love, just waiting for the right moment to confess.
And now, was it already too late?
…
On the way back, Li Hang watched Fu Yan sitting in his seat with his eyes closed, silent, his mind still stuck on the image of Jiang Wanning kissing Fu Yan’s cheek in front of everyone.
That was explosive!
So thrilling, so shocking!
He couldn’t help gossiping.
“Yan-ge, that Jiang Wanning—when did you meet her? No wonder you never had any spark with Chen Xingxing, that reporter. Turns out you’ve got an even more stunning beauty by your side!”
“Shut up!”
But Li Hang couldn’t shut up. If anything, he was even more excited. He grabbed Hai Zhou’s water bottle, took a swig, and said eagerly, “Yan-ge, that Reporter Chen has been chasing you. Every time she comes to the station and sees you, her eyes won’t move away. Don’t tell me you really don’t know how she feels? Reporter Chen, toward you…”
“Shut up!”
Li Hang paused for a moment. “Captain, stop telling me to shut up all the time. I think this Miss Jiang is pretty good—fair-skinned and absolutely gorgeous! You kissed her, and she kissed you back. You kissed in public. No, I mean, kissed on the cheek. You can’t be this much of a jerk and not take responsibility! You can’t just bully a girl and then run off…”
“Li Hang!”
Fu Yan opened his eyes, dark as ink. Unable to bear it any longer, he spat out three cold words.
“Shut up!”