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As dusk settled, Wen Di put away her tennis racket.
Her stamina was no match for Xiao Donghan’s; she had lost every set before, but in the last set, Xiao Donghan let her win.
Wen Di picked up her racket and walked towards the villa without greeting anyone.
In the past, even if Yan Heyu was sitting in the lounge area, she would still greet Guan Xiangmu. Now, there was no need; they clearly seemed to be in cahoots.
Guan Xiangmu coming to the court was likely at Yan Heyu’s behest.
Grandma was in the living room reading. Seeing sweat on her forehead, she urged, “Hurry and take a shower. Dinner will be ready in about half an hour. We can’t keep the guests waiting.”
Back in her room, Wen Di quickly took a hot shower, dried her long hair, meticulously styled it, and chose a suitable long dress to change into.
There wasn’t enough time for makeup, but luckily, her skin was good. If you didn’t look closely, there was basically no difference whether she wore foundation or not. She simply applied some lipstick and went downstairs.
As she came down the stairs, Wen Di encountered Xiao Donghan, who had just changed into a suit and shirt.
He was looking down, wiping his glasses, then slightly raised his head to glance at her, not speaking.
His eyes without glasses appeared even colder and sharper. If she hadn’t interacted with him, it would be hard to imagine he had a dry sense of humor too.
Wen Di walked with him to the dining room in the annex building. “You wear glasses every day. How come your eyes haven’t changed shape?”
“Not every day.”
He was too lazy to wear them when he didn’t need to see people clearly.
Xiao Donghan finished wiping his glasses, put them on his nose, and turned to say something to her. Seeing her makeup-free eyes, his expression paused slightly, then he averted his gaze and turned into the dining room.
When Wen Di wore no makeup, her slender eyelashes were soft and gentle, and her eyes and brows had less coldness and more softness, perfectly blending tenderness and sensuality.
One eye makeup look could switch her sophisticated coldness.
Yan Heyu had seen her bare face for three years, and was still attracted.
From the moment she stepped into the dining room until she sat down, his gaze never left her.
Wen Di had just sat down when her phone rang. It was her second aunt.
She went outside the dining room to answer, asking her aunt what was up.
Wen Qizhen had a dinner engagement tonight. She had called her mother earlier, saying she was meeting some elementary school classmates and might be back very late, telling her mother not to wait up for her and to go to bed early.
Her mother said: “We also have guests at home tonight, and it won’t end before eleven.”
Wen Qizhen casually asked what relatives were visiting.
Her mother told her that her second brother was bringing business friends over from Beijing.
Then the auntie called her mother for something, and her mother hung up the phone.
Wen Qizhen immediately thought of Yan Heyu; she knew that Jingyue Group had signed its entry into the Jiangcheng Industrial Park today.
Worried that her niece might be in a bad mood, she called to ask about the situation.
“Is Yan Heyu at our house?” Wen Qizhen asked bluntly.
Wen Di whispered, “Mm, and Xiao Donghan from Xiaoning.”
Wen Qizhen knew this person; she had heard many rumors about him.
“Just the two of them?”
“There are many more. More than ten people came, including Guan Xiangmu, who’s the head of the investment firm that funded my ‘Human World Is Not As Good As You’.”
“Who?”
“Guan Xiangmu.”
Wen Di asked, “Second Aunt, do you know CEO Guan?”
She told her aunt the name of Guan Xiangmu’s company.
“Hello? Auntie?”
There was no sound on the phone for a long time.
“Auntie?”
Wen Qizhen finally spoke, making up a random excuse: “The signal was bad just now, I was in the elevator. What did you just say?”
“I asked if you knew Guan Xiangmu.”
“Planning to get acquainted. Guan Xiangmu invested in your drama, right?”
“Mm. CEO Guan is also interested in the business warfare script I’m working on.”
Wen Qizhen told her niece, “Tell your dad I’m bringing a few people home to liven things up. Ask the chef to prepare food for four more people.”
Even if five more people came, there was still room at the dining table.
Wen Di told her aunt, “We’re starting in three to five minutes here, so try to come as soon as possible if you want to make it.”
“I’ll be there within ten minutes.”
Wen Qizhen hung up the phone.
Wen Di returned to the dining room and pulled her father aside, saying that her second aunt was bringing a few friends home and wanted to liven things up.
Wen Changyun: “No problem, tell her to drive slowly, no need to rush.”
Their card game moved from the second floor to the dining room. Fan Zhisen and a few others were hooked on playing and didn’t care about when dinner would start.
Today was also the most relaxed Wen Changyun had been in all his years of socializing.
In the past, when entertaining, people were seven or eight parts feigning cordiality and only two or three parts genuine.
Today, it was the opposite. Even Yan Heyu and Xiao Donghan, who were usually the most difficult to deal with, didn’t put on any airs.
Wen Changyun sought Yan Heyu’s opinion, “Mr. Yan, shall we start at seven o’clock?”
“I’m fine, any time is okay.” Yan Heyu glanced at Guan Xiangmu, who was playing cards, and said, “Mr. Guan doesn’t seem to have had enough fun yet. Let’s wait, no rush.”
Wen Changyun shared the same sentiment. It was rare for Guan Xiangmu to be in such good spirits.
The chefs prepared several kinds of pastries and arranged them on plates, also specially preparing milk for them to take before drinking.
Wen Di picked up a piece of pastry to eat, frowning slightly. The pastry looked exquisite, but the taste was a bit off from what she imagined.
Wen Di’s subtle frown was noticed by Yan Heyu.
The plate of pastries was next to her, and the dining table’s lazy Susan hadn’t started moving yet. He took this opportunity to go over.
“Mr. Yan, are the pastries good?” Guan Xiangmu asked, seeing Yan Heyu approaching the dessert platter for the second time.
Yan Heyu said, “The taste is refreshing. I’ll have some more before we start drinking.”
Fan Zhisen chimed in, “Mr. Yan’s stomach isn’t feeling well, so he should eat something beforehand.”
Yan Heyu asked, “Would you all like a piece?”
Guan Xiangmu said, “I was just about to try one.”
The others also expressed interest in trying the chef’s skills.
The auntie gave them two pieces each. Yan Heyu didn’t let the auntie help him; he helped himself.
With no one nearby, he picked up the piece of pastry Wen Di didn’t like from her plate and put it on his own. Then he picked up a piece of a different flavor for her, saying softly, “You should like this one.”
He had tasted it just now; it was a flavor she loved.
Yan Heyu returned to his seat and slowly ate the piece of pastry Wen Di didn’t like. Actually, he didn’t like that flavor either.
“What kind of hobby is this, Mr. Yan?” Xiao Donghan, sitting next to him, asked softly.
Yan Heyu glanced at him. “It’s not a hobby. Remove the last word and try to understand it.”
Removing the “hao” (good) from “aihao” (hobby) leaves only “ai” (love).
Xiao Donghan swirled his wine glass, taking a casual sip. “Mr. Yan, how much affection do you think Wen Di still has for you?”
Yan Heyu finished his pastry and delicately wiped his mouth with a napkin. “That’s not important.”
“It’s very important. It determines whether Wen Di is willing to turn back.”
The auntie came over and asked Xiao Donghan if he wanted some pastries.
Xiao Donghan: “I’ll have a piece, thank you.”
“What flavor do you want?”
“The same as Miss Wen’s.”
Xiao Donghan put down his wine glass, picked up the fork beside him, and continued the half-finished conversation, “I’ll only consider accepting her when she clearly decides not to look back. I don’t care what other women are after when they’re with me, but with her, it’s different.”
Xiao Donghan couldn’t have been clearer: the prerequisite for being with Wen Di was that Wen Di had to genuinely care about him.
Yan Heyu smiled faintly, “Mr. Xiao, that requirement is making things difficult for yourself.”
“Is that so?” Xiao Donghan said, “No rush, I have all the time in the world to wait for her to understand.”
After that, silence filled the air between the two of them.
Close to seven o’clock, Wen Changyun called everyone to their seats.
Old Master Wen called out to Wen Di, “Di Di, come sit by me.”
Wen Di took her water cup and went over. Grandpa was worried that if she sat alone, no one would serve her food, and she wouldn’t eat enough.
After changing seats, Yan Heyu and Xiao Donghan were diagonally opposite her.
She messaged her second aunt: [Auntie, where are you?]
No reply, but then the sound of a car in the yard.
Wen Changyun told them, “It’s my sister and a few of her friends. Hearing you were here, she canceled her dinner plans and came over.”
In the Jiangcheng business circle, this second princess of the Wen family was known to all.
During working hours, she quietly focused on R&D. Outside the laboratory, she was like a different person, eloquent and at ease in social settings.
Guan Xiangmu’s expression changed repeatedly as he looked at Yan Heyu.
Yan Heyu also didn’t know what was happening. He messaged Director Zhao, but there was no response from that side.
Within minutes, familiar voices could be heard from outside the door.
Wen Di waved hello to her second aunt and Director Zhao. There was an empty seat next to her, reserved for her second aunt.
On the other side, Wen Changyun was introducing them.
Three people arrived. Besides Director Zhao, there were two business friends. The business circle in Jiangcheng wasn’t that big; they mostly knew each other.
Wen Qizhen walked over and stroked her niece’s head.
Guan Xiangmu looked at Wen Qizhen. The last time he saw her was three years ago, a fleeting glimpse at the airport.
After Wen Qizhen sat down next to her niece, her cold gaze shot towards him.
Guan Xiangmu looked away, but couldn’t help himself and looked back again.
A dining table’s distance separated them after all these years, after her two marriages, and her two children.
It also separated him from his own marriage.
Meeting again was a bit dramatic, in her home, with her parents and family at the table.
Yet, he was an outsider, unrelated to her.
“See my fate?” Guan Xiangmu whispered, speaking to Yan Heyu beside him.
Yan Heyu didn’t hear clearly; his attention was on Director Zhao.
Director Zhao patted his pocket, hinting that his phone wasn’t on him; it had been confiscated by Wen Qizhen.
He had never been so discomfited, caught red-handed as a traitor.
Wen Qizhen had told him in the car that if he wanted to be forgiven, there was only one path: get Guan Xiangmu and Yan Heyu drunk tonight, otherwise, she wouldn’t make it easy for him.
The other two people he brought today were specifically for drinking. Their alcohol tolerance was over one and a half catties, which should be more than enough to deal with Guan Xiangmu and Yan Heyu.
After everyone was seated, Wen Qizhen said to her niece, “Why didn’t you tell me this afternoon? If I had known he was here, I would have come back earlier.”
Wen Di: “It’s nothing. I can handle it.”
Wen Qizhen opened her bag and asked someone to hand her phone to Director Zhao.
Wen Di didn’t know about Wen Qizhen’s relationship with Guan Xiangmu. After toasting everyone she needed to, she quietly ate her food, not participating in any conversations.
During this time, Yan Heyu looked at her many times, but she didn’t meet his gaze once.
“I heard CEO Guan invested in Di Di’s script.” It was Wen Qizhen speaking. She slightly curved her lips, seemingly smiling, but her eyes were chilling. “Thank you for your care, CEO Guan. I toast you.”
She raised not a wine glass, but a white liquor dispenser. “I’ll drink it all, you do as you please.”
Wen Qizhen downed the white liquor from the dispenser in one go, without tasting anything.
She drank three taels of white liquor without even blinking.
Even though she told Guan Xiangmu to do as he pleased, it was impossible for Guan Xiangmu to just drink from a small cup.
He had someone fill the dispenser and drank a glass with her.
The liquor burned all the way from his throat to his stomach.
The last time he drank like this was on her wedding day, but that time he drank alone.
“Welcome, Mr. Yan, to our home.” Wen Qizhen began to toast Yan Heyu.
Yan Heyu knew that Wen Qizhen was starting to settle scores with him and Guan Xiangmu. Even with his stomach upset, he still switched his small wine glass for a liquor dispenser.
To Yan Heyu, Wen Qizhen was an elder, so it was only proper for him to toast her.
After Wen Qizhen finished toasting them, Director Zhao began his toasts.
Who could endure such a drinking pace?
Xiao Donghan felt a little sympathy for Yan Heyu. He did a good deed, pouring Yan Heyu a cup of hot water, and said while handing him the cup, “You can’t get past any of her family members.”
Yan Heyu took a few sips of warm water, “Tonight’s your chance to enjoy the show. Watch closely.”
Across from them, Wen Qizhen messaged Director Zhao: [That Xiao Donghan, he should also be with Yan Heyu. Their two companies have a partnership, and now they came to sign together. Don’t let Xiao Donghan off the hook either.]
Two minutes later, when Xiao Donghan was toasted, he was a little bewildered.
He was born and raised abroad and usually only drank red wine, and he would sip it. This was his first time drinking so much at once from a liquor dispenser.
He had socialized before, but someone always took his drinks for him. Tonight, Secretary Lu wasn’t at this table, and he couldn’t very well ask Yan Heyu to take his drinks.
Wen Di didn’t care who was toasting whom at the table. She used the excuse of going to the restroom to ask the auntie for hangover medicine. Back at her seat, she quietly gave the medicine to her second aunt.
She made her take the medicine and forbade her from drinking any more.
Wen Qizhen promised her niece, “Don’t worry, I won’t drink anymore.”
With Director Zhao taking the lead, she didn’t need to toast anyone else.
Wen Qizhen’s phone vibrated. Her brother sent a message: [What’s wrong with you today? Are you here to support us or cause trouble? Everyone’s almost drunk. That’s enough.]
Wen Qizhen: [Guan Xiangmu is my first love, and that Yan Heyu next to him is your daughter’s boyfriend of three years. He traveled all the way to Jiangcheng, shouldn’t you entertain him well?]
Wen Changyun rubbed his temples, then read his sister’s message word by word again, and then motioned to Fan Zhisen, “Old Fan, I don’t think you’ve toasted CEO Guan and CEO Yan yet?”
So another round of toasts began.
Wen Di didn’t pay attention to whether Yan Heyu could drink or how much he had drunk.
She tried her best to block out the distracting signals, focusing on taking care of her second aunt and grandfather.
She received a call, Qin Xing’s number.
Wen Di picked up her water cup and went outside the restaurant, temporarily away from the noise.
After three rounds of drinks, everyone was half-drunk, and no one cared who was at the dinner table and who wasn’t.
She walked along the garden path towards the back.
Qin Xing asked if she was busy.
Wen Di said, “Not busy. We have guests at home, so I just came out to get some fresh air.”
She asked, “What’s up?”
Qin Xing talked about her latest business warfare script. Today, he and Tian Qinglu met at the club. Tian Qinglu brought up the recently popular “Human World Is Not As Good As You.” The investors made a fortune, and she asked him if Wen Di had any more scripts and wanted to buy the copyright.
Tian Qinglu’s willingness to let go of her past resentment was partly due to Ding Yi.
Love was gone, but money had to be made.
She owned a film and television company and wanted to buy Wen Di’s script.
Wen Di said without hesitation, “Not selling.”
She explained, “It’s not because the other party is Tian Qinglu that I’m not selling it. I wouldn’t sell it to anyone. Oh, and you don’t need to talk to Guan Xiangmu anymore either.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing. I suddenly decided I want to invest in it myself.” Wen Di sat down on a nearby long bench. “‘Behind Desire’ is very particular about actors and directors. If I sell it to someone else, I’ll have very little say.”
She provisionally named her current business drama “Behind Desire,” not having thought of a more suitable name yet.
Qin Xing was curious, “Why the sudden idea to invest yourself?”
“Maybe too much money.”
“...”
Wen Di laughed, “Just kidding.” As for why she suddenly wanted to invest herself, it was just a spur-of-the-moment decision. She felt she wasn’t busy enough and needed to find something to do.
It’s also possible that seeing Guan Xiangmu at home in Jiangcheng suddenly made her not want to sell the script to him. Who knew if the buyer of her script might be Yan Heyu.
Qin Xing pondered for a moment, “Alright, I’ll discuss it further with Sister Shen Tang.” Their film and television company had only been established a few months ago and had just completed its A round of financing, so it didn’t have much project experience, but everything has to have a beginning.
Let their first major production be “Behind Desire.”
Wen Di said, “I’ll personally be with the crew then.”
Qin Xing: “As for the director, Director Ruan isn’t suitable for this kind of material.”
“Director Ruan isn’t good at it. I recommend Director Zhou. He handles this kind of material very precisely and has his own interpretation.”
“Are you talking about Zhou Mingqian?”
“Mm.” Wen Di planned to talk to Zhou Mingqian after finishing the script to see if he was interested.
Qin Xing remembered that her drama still needed Xiao Donghan’s authorization for a character. “Did he give you the authorization?”
Wen Di joked, “Reluctantly agreed, and there are quite a few conditions.”
After chatting for a while with Qin Xing, Wen Di ended the call.
She leaned back in the chair, drinking water. The sounds from the living room were a bit distant; she couldn’t hear clearly and didn’t want to go over.
“Di Di, are you cold?” The auntie came over with her trench coat.
Wen Di came back to her senses, “I’m fine.”
“It’s windy outside. Wear it even if you’re not cold.” The auntie handed her the trench coat.
Wen Di asked, “They haven’t left yet?”
“Almost. When I came out, they said they couldn’t drink anymore.”
Wen Di told the auntie to go back to her duties and that she would sit for a little longer.
Footsteps approached again. She thought it was the auntie returning and turned to look, meeting Yan Heyu’s gaze.
From several meters away, she could smell the alcohol on him.
Yan Heyu didn’t sit down; he just came over to say goodbye. The dinner party had ended, and he couldn’t find her. He asked the auntie and learned she was out here.
The last time he drank this much was on his engagement day.
Perhaps it was the alcohol getting to his head, but he suddenly wanted to explain something to her: “I drank a lot on the engagement day, not because I was happy. It was because you were at home, and I was there.”
Wen Di didn’t respond, standing up to leave.
“Wen Di, can you find me a hangover pill?” He really couldn’t bear it; his stomach was hurting.
Wen Di nodded and went back to the villa to get the medicine.
Yan Heyu waited for her outside. She was only inside for a few minutes, but it felt as long as several years.
The dining room was empty; everyone was at the parking lot.
Wen Di brought him the medicine, a whole sheet of pills.
Yan Heyu said, “I don’t need that many.”
Wen Di still handed them to him, “Xiao Donghan also drank a lot. Give him a few pills too.”
Yan Heyu held the hangover medicine, looking straight at her. “Can’t you just not care about him?” He grew serious. “If he came to you asking for hangover medicine, would you ask him to take a few for me?”
Wen Di made him understand: “Mr. Yan, giving you hangover medicine isn’t about me caring about you. You’re our guest, and you got an upset stomach drinking at my house. Giving you medicine is the most basic hospitality. If Mr. Guan needs some, give him a few too.”
Yan Heyu seemed to feel a little more balanced now, because giving Xiao Donghan medicine didn’t mean she cared about Xiao Donghan either.
He motioned towards the osmanthus tree beneath the patio. “Last year, I didn’t get to celebrate with you.” This year counted as a celebration, though he regretted not being able to share a drink with her.
But at least at this moment, he was with her.
Wen Di had already walked away; he watched her back as she left.
A spasm twisted in his stomach, the pain causing cold sweat.
Yan Heyu plucked two pills and put them in his mouth.
Back in the car, Yan Heyu asked Kang Bo if he had any hangover medicine.
“Yes.” Kang Bo happened to take out medicine from his bag. He could tell his boss had drunk a lot tonight.
Yan Heyu said, “Give Xiao Donghan a few pills.” He handed the pills in his hand to Assistant Kang, “Wen Di gave me these. Keep them safe.”
Kang Bo understood what was going on after a moment’s thought. Wen Di had told his boss to give the medicine to Xiao Donghan, but his boss was reluctant and kept all of them for himself, giving Xiao Donghan his own medicine instead.
Several cars slowly drove away from the Wen family’s villa.
Yan Heyu leaned back in his seat, closing his eyes to rest.
The pain was agonizing, but he endured it. “Didn’t they say the Q3 profit figures would be out tonight? They’re still not out.”
Kang Bo worried, “Don’t you need some rest?”
“No need.” His mind wasn’t very clear at the moment, but the pain was unbearable, and he urgently needed to find something to distract himself. “Just tell me briefly now, we can analyze it in detail tomorrow.”
Kang Bo only highlighted the points his boss was most concerned about: Q3 revenue had increased by 11% year-on-year, but the growth in the North China region was only 5%.
Yan Heyu went straight to the point: “Reason.”
Kang Bo: “A subsidiary of Xiaoning Group is competing with us in the market.”
Yan Heyu thought it over in his mind. Kang Bo had just said the North China market. “Is Xiao Donghan seizing the market so quickly because of the Jiang family’s connections?”
Kang Bo nodded, “Yes.”
The alcohol slowly took effect, numbing Yan Heyu’s nerves bit by bit. He said, “Remember to talk to me about this tomorrow morning, and readjust our competitive strategy. I want to see how capable he is of stealing my market.”
There was a few seconds of silence.
Yan Heyu then said, “Ask Guan Xiangmu if he’s uncomfortable, if his stomach hurts.”
Kang Bo: “...Okay.”
After the message was sent, it was like a stone sinking into the sea; Guan Xiangmu never replied.
________________________________________
The next morning, Wen Di woke up early. She was starting her work at her father’s company today.
Her father had also stayed at Grandpa’s place last night, so she hitched a ride with him.
In the dining room, there were only her father and grandfather.
Wen Di greeted them and sat down at the dining table. “Where’s Second Aunt? Not up yet?”
Wen Changyun: “She’s already gone to the company.”
He mixed a vegetable salad for his daughter, apologizing, “You’ve been wronged, and you didn’t even tell me. I entertained them so warmly.”
Wen Di’s tone was light, “What’s there to be wronged about? Besides, even if you knew who he was, you’d still have to give face to Secretary Liang’s request, right?”
She took a few sips of juice, comforting her father, “In business, it’s all about business.”
Grandpa Wen put down his newspaper, washed his hands, and sat down to eat breakfast.
He only found out about his younger daughter’s relationship with Guan Xiangmu last night. His younger daughter had a stubborn personality, and both her marriages hadn’t been very happy. It turned out the root cause was Guan Xiangmu.
“Guan Xiangmu also plans to invest in Jiangcheng?”
“Yes, almost certainly.” Wen Changyun’s phone rang; Fan Zhisen was calling.
Fan Zhisen was dizzy and muddle-headed at the moment, having had a restless night. He was currently in the hospital.
Wen Changyun heard he was in the hospital and asked what was wrong.
Wen Di also looked at her father, worried if Uncle Fan was drunk.
Then she heard her father say, “You’ve worked hard. I’ll reimburse their medical expenses.”
After the call ended, Wen Di asked with concern, “What happened to Uncle Fan?”
“Not him.” Wen Changyun said, “Guan Xiangmu, Yan Heyu, and Xiao Donghan, the three of them went to the hospital together for IV drips in the middle of the night yesterday.”
Wen Di: “...”
Wen Changyun didn’t take it seriously. Who hadn’t gotten drunk and gone to the hospital during social events? He himself had gone several times in the past twenty years, not to mention Fan Zhisen, who would go to the emergency room for an IV drip right after a dinner party.
“They’re just having stomach aches, they’ll be fine after a drip today. But you and your aunt, you haven’t been well for so long.”
He finished mixing the vegetable salad and placed it in front of his daughter. “Forget it, let’s not talk about depressing things during dinner.”
Wen Di was surprised: “How did Second Aunt not even spare Xiao Donghan?”
Wen Changyun: “Xiao Donghan was watching Yan Heyu get drunk and enjoying the show, so he personally poured water for Yan Heyu. Your second aunt thought they were in cahoots and accidentally injured him.”
Wen Di: “...”
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