Just as Wen Ran had anticipated, after leaving Si Yan’s office, Ruan Tang remained clinging to Si Huaiyu as if her entire body were attached to him.
“Secretary Ruan,” Si Huaiyu asked, “can you stand properly now? Do you need me to arrange for someone to take you to the hospital?”
He observed that Ruan Tang seemed utterly boneless. If she were truly overwhelmed with grief to the point of physical distress, she ought to see a doctor.
Ruan Tang was still immersed in her sorrow, only now realizing that her behavior might have been inappropriate.
“I’m sorry, President Si,” Ruan Tang straightened up, finally willing to leave Si Huaiyu’s embrace.
She noticed a white stain on the man’s chest, likely from her foundation rubbing off.
Si Huaiyu frowned upon seeing it. He always maintained a impeccable appearance in public—his suit not only free of dirt but even wrinkles.
Ruan Tang assumed her makeup must have smeared from crying too hard. She offered, “President Si, let me wash it clean for you.”
Si Huaiyu retorted, “And what would I wear while you wash it?”
“My place is close to the company, and I have a dryer at home,” Ruan Tang suggested. “If you come back with me, we can have it cleaned quickly.”
Si Huaiyu was about to agree but suddenly felt something was off. The conventional approach would be to discard the garment and have a new one delivered. Why would he need to go home with this woman? What might happen if he did?
He narrowed his eyes, studying Ruan Tang. What was it about this woman that kept disrupting his thoughts? For now, he couldn’t pinpoint it.
But any sensible woman wouldn’t invite a stranger to her home. To any man, such words carried clear implications.
Noticing Si Huaiyu’s intense gaze, Ruan Tang covered her face shyly. “President Si, why are you staring at me?”
Si Huaiyu said, “That apartment was bought by Si Yan, wasn’t it?”
Ruan Tang froze, unprepared for his direct question. As she tried to explain, he cut her off: “You should move your things out as soon as possible. My sister-in-law is a woman of swift action.”
Si Huaiyu offered a friendly reminder: “If you delay, your belongings might already be tossed out by the time you return.”
He unbuttoned his suit jacket and took it off. “I don’t want this anymore. Don’t appear before me again.”
He needed to avoid further encounters, lest he keep questioning whether something was wrong with him—why would he react to a woman like this?
Si Huaiyu could accept his own flaws, but he wouldn’t be attracted to someone even more flawed.
After several interactions, he found the relationship between those two utterly fake. Ruan Tang claimed to love Si Yan and was willing to bear the stigma of being the other woman, yet privately, she bit at the slightest hook he offered. It was all so dull.
The thought amused him—what genuine feelings could exist between two people who were merely bedmates?
…
Since the previous incident, Si Yan had indeed behaved for a while. Wen Ran accompanied him daily—at the company during the day and back to the Si residence at night, always together.
Si’s mother, observing this, believed their relationship might be mending. She immediately urged Si Yan to take a break and bring Wen Ran out, hoping to deepen their bond.
Wen Ran saw no issue with it. Although her relationship with Si Yan had improved over these days, his Affection points showed little significant change.She also needed other ways to stir Si Yan’s emotions. For someone like him, an overly bland life was like stagnant water.
However, instead of choosing an overseas vacation, she selected the place where the original host and Si Yan had their first date when they first met.
About a hundred kilometers outside the imperial capital, there was an outdoor adventure base nestled in the rural mountains. Si Yan was the major investor here, and it offered numerous activities like target shooting, mountain biking, extreme skydiving, and wilderness survival—all outdoor adventure sports.
Si Yan had always been passionate about extreme sports, but wealthy families had many Family Rules. Si’s mother had never allowed him to engage in such dangerous activities.
Yet, the young master had his ways. With ample resources, Si Yan secretly established this place without his mother’s knowledge.
“Be careful,” Si Yan said, using his hand to push aside the branches along the narrow path, afraid they might scratch Wen Ran.
“Why did you think of coming here to play?” He was curious, as Wen Ran had never shown interest in these things.
“Because you like it,” Wen Ran replied, holding Si Yan’s hand and walking behind him. “After marriage, you’ve always been busy with work and hardly ever came here. Now that we have the chance, of course, we should enjoy it properly.”
Her words moved Si Yan. Since their marriage, he had been preoccupied with various projects at the company, not only abandoning his former hobbies but also paying less and less attention to Wen Ran. Yet, she always kept him in her thoughts.
Sometimes, Si Yan felt that Wen Ran loved him more than his own mother did. She always prioritized his feelings and supported everything he enjoyed.
He glanced at Wen Ran’s casual sportswear and remembered how disheveled she had looked the first time he brought her here.
Back then, for her first date with Si Yan, the original host had taken it very seriously. She dressed meticulously in a custom-made little dress and a pair of elegant high heels. Si Yan hadn’t told her the venue in advance, and upon arrival, she realized her attire was entirely inappropriate.
She had to tread through the muddy ground, her beautiful dress stained with dirt, and she stumbled several times due to the rough path. Despite the poor dating experience, she had remained happy.
What she didn’t know was that Si Yan had intentionally let her embarrass herself. He disliked the arranged marriage forced by his family but didn’t dare to rebel outright. He had hoped she would back off upon facing difficulties, but her gentle temperament made him think marrying her wouldn’t be so bad.
Now, recalling it, Si Yan felt like a scoundrel. His wife was a good woman.
Pulling Wen Ran closer into his embrace, Si Yan said, “Next time we have a date, we’ll go wherever you want to play.”
Wen Ran tilted her head to look at him. Was this man finally willing to consider her feelings for once?
She smiled sweetly and said, “Any place with you is where I want to be.”
“Ding, Si Yan’s favorability +3.”
The feeling that her preferences aligned entirely with his and her loves mirrored his own gave him an absolute sense of supremacy.
Si Yan even felt he was the sole existence in her small world. With Wen Ran, he experienced complete comfort—a feeling he had never had with Ruan Tang.
Unfortunately, men are often shallow creatures. The original host’s sincerity had been trampled into the mud by him, while Wen Ran’s feigned words of devotion were mistaken by Si Yan as expressions of love.
“Boss, you’re here,” a middle-aged man in camouflage attire approached as soon as they reached the base entrance.He saw Wen Ran standing beside Si Yan and said, “Miss Wen, you’re here too?”
Although he had only met her once, he had a deep impression of this girl. After all, Wen Ran was the only woman he had ever seen wearing a dress and high heels to a wilderness adventure activity.
Wen Ran said playfully, “Wu Ge, I’m the boss’s wife now. You should address me differently.”