Volume One, Chapter Five: May I Hold You While We Sleep?

“I’m not hungry.”

Hearing this, Lu Chaoxi immediately pouted in defiance, “Then I’m not hungry either.”

She knew he would soften.

Wan Yan sneered coldly, unbuttoning his shirt as he prepared to return to the bedroom for a shower. “Then starve to death.”

Lu Chaoxi watched his decisive footsteps and, sulking, turned her head away, tears welling in her eyes.

The porridge the servant had prepared sat on the table, gradually losing its warmth.

Stubbornly, Lu Chaoxi remained seated in the dining room, staring blankly at the cooling porridge.

Suddenly, she heard the bedroom door slam open with force. Seconds later, an angry Wan Yan appeared before her eyes.

He was still wearing the same clothes as before, clearly having not showered.

Lu Chaoxi smiled happily at him, but he didn’t glance her way, roughly dragged out a chair, sat down, and gulped down the porridge. Then he returned to the bedroom.

The whole process took less than two minutes, yet Lu Chaoxi felt joy. She picked up the spoon and finished the cold porridge bite by bite.

She felt the porridge wasn’t cold at all; instead, her stomach, her heart, her entire being gradually warmed.

After finishing, Lu Chaoxi knocked on Wan Yan’s bedroom door. “Wan Yan, may I hold you while I sleep?”

There was no sound from inside. Summoning her courage, she opened the door, only to find it locked from within. Disappointed, she returned to her room.

Since Lu Chaoxi returned from the hospital, Wan Yan had lifted the semi-confinement restrictions he had imposed on her, returning her phone and other electronic devices.

After all, his purpose in all this was to torment her with Lu Xianqing’s funeral. Now that his goal was achieved, there was no need to waste energy on her.

Even Luo Ci, who had once been heavily guarded against, finally had a chance to see Lu Chaoxi. As soon as the servant cracked the door open, she hurriedly squeezed inside, restless.

She originally thought Lu Chaoxi would come cheerfully to open the door for her but was told that Lu Chaoxi was busy in the kitchen making a cake and couldn’t come.

Luo Ci was furious. All these days she had tried in vain to confirm whether Lu Chaoxi was alive or dead, only to realize it was wishful thinking.

Lu Chaoxi was happily with Wan Yan.

Luo Ci threw down her bag and stormed into the kitchen, cursing loudly, “Lu Chaoxi, have you no humanity? I’ve been worrying all day that Wan Yan would ruin you, and here you are, leisurely baking a cake!”

Startled as she focused on the cake batter, Lu Chaoxi trembled. “Luo Ge, I’m still recuperating. I can’t handle being scared.”

Luo Ci scoffed disdainfully, poking her face. “Look at you, covered in flour—are you trying to play ghost?”

Lu Chaoxi didn’t retort. Normally, she would have snapped back, and they’d argue endlessly.

“Today’s Wan Yan’s birthday. He said he can’t come back from work, so I want to make a cake to take to the company. At least I want to blow out the candles.”

She spoke with a face full of happiness.

Luo Ci felt a pang of heartache. She should have known: besides Wan Yan, who else could coax this sheltered heiress, who never touched a kitchen utensil, into baking a cake?

But that man was truly not worth it.

Luo Ci snatched the tools from her hand, questioning, “Have you forgotten about the woman who appeared at the wedding? She’s pregnant!”

Of course Lu Chaoxi had forgotten; she had erased the memories of the past two years.

She didn’t know what happened on the wedding day but still chose to stand by her husband without hesitation.

“I believe Wan Yan. If he really got someone pregnant, he wouldn’t have married me even under threat of a gun.”

Luo Ci was so angry she felt like having a heart attack. She reasoned earnestly, “Marrying you means owning the entire Lu Corporation. Wan Yan isn’t at odds with money. Of course, he’d choose to marry you and use your money to support his true love!”

Besides, Wan Yan came from poverty, and desperate people never let go when opportunity strikes—especially when the chance is handed to them willingly.

Lu Chaoxi silently lowered her head to continue baking. After a while, she said, her tone heavy, “Luo Ge, please don’t speak ill of Wan Yan or keep reminding me he doesn’t love me. It hurts.”

Luo Ci was at a loss for words for a long while before sighing, “So you understand all this, then why do you still insist on Wan Yan?”

Why was she not obsessed with Wan Yan? Why did Lu Chaoxi seem cursed to want only him?

Lu Chaoxi didn’t answer directly but quoted a line from Girod:

“Even in a sea of people, you find yourself longing for the one person outside the crowd. Wan Yan is that person for me.”

Luo Ci pitied her. “But every time he gets mad for no reason, whether it’s your fault or not, you’re always the one apologizing. You don’t owe him anything!”

Lu Chaoxi looked up and grinned. “Maybe it’s karma from a past life. It’s okay; if it keeps him from being angry, apologizing is worth it.”

Luo Ci deflated, cupping her face and speaking slowly, “But Chaoxi, if he truly loved you, your happiness would matter more than right or wrong.”

Then, waving her hand helplessly, she said, “Fine, I won’t argue with you anymore. You haven’t listened to me for years anyway.”

Lu Chaoxi teasingly leaned closer, giggling, “Then come with me to the company to deliver the cake later!”

“I’m not going!” Luo Ci rolled her eyes repeatedly. “I don’t want to wish him a happy birthday.”

Though she protested with words, her actions betrayed her; in the end, Luo Ci couldn’t resist Lu Chaoxi’s coaxing and accompanied her.

As acting chairman, Wan Yan’s office had replaced Lu’s late father’s former office. In just two short years, he had ascended to the highest position in the building, holding the fate of the entire company in his hands.

Standing before his desk was Liang Zhijin, the one Wan Yan had instructed to sabotage the wedding.

Liang Zhijin was also highly educated. After graduating from high school, she studied abroad, receiving a job offer from a major corporation upon graduation. Yet upon receiving Wan Yan’s call, she didn’t hesitate to return home, even breaking up with her boyfriend of four years overseas.

She laid out the shareholder list of the Lu Corporation she had recently investigated before Wan Yan. “It’s strange. Lu Xianqing’s 48% shares were all transferred out a month ago, but I can’t find any information about the transferee. As for Lu Chaoxi, she only holds 5%.”

Wan Yan didn’t look at the list but pondered, “Even if I acquire all the remaining shares, they still don’t surpass those held by Lu Xianqing and Lu Chaoxi.”

Unless he could obtain Lu Chaoxi’s 5%, he had no chance of winning.

It seemed he needed to treat Lu Chaoxi better lately.

Wan Yan narrowed his eyes, already formulating a plan.

Seeing his expression, Liang Zhijin felt a bad premonition and cautiously asked, “A Yan, you’re not planning to keep Lu Chaoxi, are you?”

Wan Yan smiled lightly, meeting her gaze. “She’s my wife. Would I kill her?”

His smile made Liang Zhijin uneasy. “You said you’d lock her up in a mental hospital and promised to give me and the child a status. It’s been so many days since the wedding—shouldn’t you be acting by now?”

“Zhijin,” Wan Yan said, sitting down and calling her name, “why did you come back so readily after just one call? Because you placed a bet on me, betting that I would make you a superior?”