Chapter 27 Easing the Situation: "Do you love me?"

Jazz music filled the car, elegant and lingering.

Fu Huaizhi held Song Luoyun's hand, a rare moment of tenderness, but both of them were absent-minded.

"What would you like to eat?" he asked.

"Anything is fine," Song Luoyun replied instinctively, then paused and added, "I want something sweet."

"Mmm." Fu Huaizhi satisfied her, and the car turned onto another road, stopping in front of the dessert shop.

Cake, sweet soup, milk tea—they ordered one of everything they could see. Fu Huaizhi sat opposite them, legs crossed, sitting upright, watching them gulp down their food.

“When I was little, the Fu family had very strict rules. We had to report our daily food intake in advance. Sometimes, if we didn’t behave well, we would be denied our meals for the day and go hungry.” Perhaps feeling that the atmosphere was too quiet, Fu Huaizhi spoke up.

Song Luoyun looked up at him.

“Back then, all I longed for was the candy or snacks that other people had.” Fu Huaizhi looked at her. “I would stand in front of the window in the main hall and watch them. Some people would pass by and, seeing how pitiful I was, would throw me a bag of cookies.”

Sweets are like a bridge connecting their childhood memories.

Song Luoyun said, "If you had met me back then, I might have given it to you too. When my dad was still alive, he would buy me cotton candy every day after get off work. He said that eating candy would help me feel better when I was in a bad mood. I didn't believe it. After he passed away, someone found a big bag of chocolates in his bag. That was for me."

Even after so much time has passed, mentioning these things still brings tears to my eyes. Song Luoyun pushed the cake in front of him, then held a spoonful of shaved ice in her mouth, using the cold drink to stop the tears from falling.

"That's a pity, we didn't know each other before." Fu Huaizhi didn't eat anything, still looking at her. "You've been living alone ever since?"

“Yes, there is an activity center in the village that cooks for the elderly left behind. They would give me a meal if they saw that I was alone. Later, when I went to high school, I lived and ate at the school.” Song Luoyun slowly opened up. “When my mother left, she left tens of thousands of yuan, which was just enough for my living expenses for three years of high school. I didn’t have to take care of all my expenses until college.”

"Why didn't she want you to study later?" Fu Huaizhi asked her.

Song Luoyun: "Because she has changed. She has done everything for her current husband and doesn't want me to ruin the life she has."

Fu Huaizhi looked at her for a long, long time.

Song Luoyun lowered her head, but she could feel his gaze, which was no longer aggressive, but warm and gentle.

This made her feel embarrassed.

She quickly finished the sweet soup in front of her, trying to hide her awkwardness: "Since you like it too, then eat it quickly, I want to go back."

Fu Huaizhi agreed, scraped a little cream with a small spoon, put it in his mouth, and let it spread.

He was actually lying to her; he didn't like sweets at all.

He couldn't stand anyone who enjoyed happiness. He liked to play the victim to gain sympathy from others, then let the head of the family discover their overstepping of boundaries and let them experience the taste of family discipline.

Yes, he was despicable and shameless, like someone soaked in an ink vat.

Unable to enjoy the sweetness of snacks.

...

After opening up to each other, the two grew a little closer.

After each encounter, Fu Huaizhi liked to interrogate her about her past. Her childhood was bright and sunny, completely different from his dark and chaotic past.

Song Luoyun was completely open with him, but she wouldn't pry into his affairs. Sometimes she would wonder, given the vast difference between them, why was he interested in her? Was it just a single incident that made him fixated on her?

If that's all there is to it, then he'll eventually get tired.

But if she means something else to him, he might not let go so easily.

Song Luoyun glanced at the face beside her and quickly dismissed the idea.

He was so conspicuous in the crowd that she probably wouldn't forget him if they had met before.

His feelings for her might just be a passing fancy.

At the end of June, Song Luoyun received two university admission letters from the UK.

They received them almost simultaneously, and she was required to respond within two days.

While excited, she quickly fell into a dilemma. On one hand, she wanted to study abroad, but on the other hand, she was also keenly aware that she was relying on Fu Huaizhi. If they were to separate one day, she would lose the means to live abroad.

After thinking it over, she wanted to stay in China, but there was still no news from Fu Huaizhi, so she was unsure.

During her lunch break, she went to the 25th floor. The office was empty, and she didn't get a reply to her text messages, so she leaned back on the sofa to rest.

She woke up again to her usual work alarm. She sat up straight and bumped into Fu Huaizhi, who was standing right next to her.

"...How did you get here?" she said as she turned off the alarm.

"This is my office, what do you say?"

Only then did I realize where I was.

With only ten minutes left until the afternoon check-in time, she quickly seized the opportunity to get down to business: "Fu Huaizhi, you said last time that you could get me into Peking University's graduate program, do you still stand by that promise?"

Fu Huaizhi replied with a trivial statement: "You only come up when you need something from me. Otherwise, you won't answer even if I call you."

"..."

Song Luoyun said, "I need to decide which school to attend as soon as possible, the deadline is approaching."

Fu Huaizhi: "Zhang Ming has been dismissed. He will probably give you an offer within a week. I never break my promises."

"Really?" Song Luoyun breathed a sigh of relief.

Kyoto University is her first choice; whether or not she attends other schools is not important.

Fu Huaizhi said, "Have you decided not to go to England?"

"Perhaps." Song Luoyun lowered her head.

Perhaps Fu Huaizhi keenly noticed her hesitant attitude, and he chuckled softly, "Pay the deposit to the school over there first, and you can make a decision after Peking University's results are released."

He asked her to send him the link, which she did without hesitation, paying the £3,000 reservation fee without a second thought, and receiving a confirmation email at the same time.

Actually, she had already given up on studying abroad; she just hadn't told Fu Huaizhi, wanting to leave herself a way out.

In the afternoon, the professional group was discussing Zhang Ming's matter.

It is said that he was publicly criticized by the industry, his teacher's certificate was revoked, and even his immigration eligibility was cancelled.

Fu Huaizhi always handles things cleanly and efficiently. No one knows who caused the current situation; they just say she was lucky to have the opportunity to pursue graduate studies.

She looked up and bumped into Fu Yuxuan, who had just entered the office. He raised an eyebrow at her and gave her a bright smile, which she withdrew without expression. A word flashed through her mind: enchantress.

A colleague next to her pushed a chair closer and whispered in her ear, "The boss seems to be treating you a little differently."

"Maybe it's because I helped him last time." For example, I helped him waive three months' rent.

But her colleague's gossipy nature remained: "Could he be interested in you?"

“No, he has a girlfriend,” Song Luoyun said.

She learned about this from Fu Yuxuan's WeChat Moments. Once, when she needed to send him a work document, he kept referring to her as "sister-in-law," as if he was eager to emphasize their relationship and worried that someone might misunderstand.

Recently, Fu Yuxuan has been forwarding many articles on his WeChat Moments, such as "How to make a woman devoted to you", "One hundred ways to make a woman fall in love with you", and "Why are women's minds so wild".

Song Luoyun thus deduced two key points: he has a girlfriend, and she doesn't love him.

We had just been discussing this person's relationship when we met him.

It was after get off work when she pushed open the door and bumped into a face, smiling and saying, "Hi."

Fu Huaizhi was equally surprised and frowned: "What are you doing in my house?"

"What are you saying? It's not like it's my first time here. Why do you seem unwelcoming this time?" Fu Yuxuan had changed his clothes at some point. He was wearing a sequined top that shimmered under the lights, looking incredibly flashy.

He said, "My house is being renovated, and I've made plans with Qi Qiao tonight. I'll be staying here for the day."

Fu Huaizhi: "Do you need me to book a hotel for you?"

Fu Yuxuan: "She doesn't like staying in hotels. Your place has good soundproofing and plenty of empty rooms, so it definitely won't affect you."

Before Song Luoyun appeared, Fu Yuxuan treated this place as his own home. He had the key to this place, but after Song Luoyun moved in, he consciously disappeared.

He was very sensible, leaving the main hall for them and using the side hall and the last room for himself.

From the main hall, you can see several rows of wine glasses, each filled with a different colored liquor.

"You've never played this before, have you? It's a game where the witch's poison can make couples confess their feelings to each other," Fu Yuxuan explained enthusiastically. "I'll introduce you to it sometime."

"No need." Song Luoyun shook her head and turned to go to the kitchen to prepare dinner.

After a while, the doorbell rang. Song Luoyun went to open the door and was met by a woman with exquisite makeup, wearing a strapless vest and shorts.

Perhaps not expecting that the person who opened the door would be a complete stranger, she paused, "Who are you?"

Song Luoyun was about to answer.

Fu Yuxuan's voice came from behind: "You're here pretty early. Did you miss me?"

The woman stepped past her and said, "The appearance of a woman here made me think it was another trick you used to provoke me."

Fu Yuxuan: "Are you jealous?"

"You know, I don't like men who aren't in a good state."

"Don't worry, it's more than enough to satisfy you, just like you."

"..."

It seemed she had become part of their play. Song Luoyun said nothing and went to find Fu Huaizhi.

The voices behind me continued.

"Are there other people in your family? Your older brother?"

"This is his house, honey, are you nervous?"

"Its body is tougher than yours."

"He's not someone you'd be interested in, give up on him."

"Yeah, that girl just now was obviously not the type to be interested in you."

Song Luoyun asked Fu Huaizhi, "Have they been together for a long time?"

“Yes, it’s always been this kind of relationship,” Fu Huaizhi said.

What kind of relationship?

"Bed partner".

"..."

Fu Huaizhi had one arm around her waist while using the other to stir-fry the vegetables in the wok. He was a good cook, but the dishes he made were all simple ones.

Song Luoyun couldn't offer much help, so she just watched from the sidelines, playing the role of being touched or rubbed by him from time to time.

Soon, she heard the voices of the two people on the other end again.

"Stop talking nonsense and get to it."

"Do you think I only want to have sex with you? I want you to be honest with me."

"Honey, but I want it now."

Completely disregarding those around them.

When Song Luoyun looked over there from the living room again, there was no one in the side hall, and even the wine on the table hadn't been touched.

The last room was tightly closed, and just as Fu Yuxuan had said, it was soundproofed so well that not a single sound could be heard.

There was also a package lying on the ground; it was a condom.

Song Luoyun picked it up and stuffed it into her pocket.

Hearing footsteps behind her, she turned around instinctively, only to have her wrist grabbed and pulled into a side hall.

Looking at the various drinks on the table, Fu Huaizhi said, "Want to play for a while?"

Remembering what Fu Yuxuan had said, she shook her head. Unfortunately, before she could refuse, Fu Huaizhi had already picked up the first glass of wine and downed it in one gulp.

"The first question."

He picked up the note that was under the cup and unfolded it.

"—Do you love me?"

-----------------------

Author's note: Luo Yun: Don't you know whether you love me or not?

I'm updating early today; let's see if I can get back to updating at midnight for the next chapter~

I feel so grateful for everyone's votes and nutrition tickets!