Chapter 11 For the stars is a bit...

Wen Mu opened his eyes slightly.

"You're going on a date with me?"

Song Xingran leaned back in his chair, the candlelight dancing in his eyes: "Hmm."

"Why?"

"My parents urged me to do it. They said I wasn't proactive and didn't act like a husband at all." He shrugged, his Adam's apple faintly visible at his collar.

Wen Mu raised his eyebrows: "I didn't ask you to take the initiative."

"Hey," Song Xingran suddenly leaned forward and tapped the table with his fingertips, "You're already here, are you still thinking of running away?"

Wen Mu took a sip of champagne, and the bubbles exploded on the tip of his tongue: "Why are you running?"

She put down her wine glass, a sly look flashing in her eyes behind her glasses. "I finally managed to snatch a high-quality stock like Third Young Master Song. Shouldn't I seize it well?"

The man's eyelashes trembled imperceptibly, and then he resumed his mischievous smile: "Teacher Wen finally got it."

The waiter brought the dishes at the right time - Matsutake chicken soup, steamed sea bass, and stir-fried seasonal vegetables with lilies, all of which are light dishes that nourish the stomach.

Outside the glass fence surrounding the terrace, the night view of Ningchuan City is like a galaxy of stars, and the lights of cruise ships on the river in the distance are like flowing diamonds.

The candlelight flickered between the two of them, casting soft shadows on Wen Mu's fair face.

The two of them didn't talk much during the whole meal.

Wen Mu ate in small bites, occasionally looking up at the lights in the distance. Song Xingran noticed that her cheeks puffed slightly when she chewed, like a squirrel hoarding food, a stark contrast to her usual calm and cool image.

After the plates were cleared away, Song Xingran asked, "Do you want some ice cream?"

Wen Mu was stunned for a moment. She had a bad stomach and rarely ate raw or cold food, but at this moment she was inexplicably craving it.

She nodded slightly.

The waiter quickly brought a small dark blue velvet box.

Song Xingran took it and pushed it in front of Wen Mu: "Open it and take a look."

That's strange, is there any ice cream in a box like this?

The moment the velvet box lid was opened, Wen Mu's breathing stopped slightly.

On the black satin lining in the box, a pair of rings shone like stars in the candlelight.

The women's ring is crafted from 18K rose gold in an elegant star-shaped ring, centered with a rare orange diamond and surrounded by seven gradient sapphires, creating a cloud-like pattern. The men's ring is a platinum satellite-shaped ring, with a gray moonstone facet that shimmers with light, each facet shimmering with tiny glints.

Wen Mu's fingertips hovered above the ring, and the candle flame flickered slightly in her pupils. She stared for a long time before looking up and meeting Song Xingran's smiling eyes.

"Does it look good?"

The corners of his lips raised in their usual arc, but his knuckles tapped unconsciously on the table.

Wen Mu didn't answer, but just asked him: "Why are you preparing this?"

Her voice was softer than expected.

The man raised an eyebrow: "What couple doesn't wear rings when getting married?"

His tone was still nonchalant, but he suddenly lowered his voice.

"Well, I'll be leaving in about two months, so it's too rushed to have a wedding."

He paused, his Adam's apple rolling, "When I come back from winter break, we'll do it. By then, I will make you the happiest bride in all of Ningchuan."

The last half of the sentence could almost be described as gentle.

Wen Mu looked into the man's eyes reflected in the candlelight, and a strange warmth rose in his chest.

She thought Song Xingran had forgotten about the wedding, but it turned out that he hadn't, and had even planned it long ago.

"Do you like it?" he asked her again.

Wen Mu nodded, his hair falling on his shoulders.

"Then let me help you put it on?" He asked for her opinion.

She lowered her eyes and agreed with her eyes.

When Song Xingran stood up, he brought with him a gust of wind that smelled of cedar.

He wore perfume.

Mint and cedar, that's all.

He knelt on one knee before her, and for the first time, Wen Mu could look down at him. The candlelight outlined the bridge of his high nose, and his eyelashes cast fan-shaped shadows under his eyes.

The man took out the star-like women's ring, and the small ring was held in his broad palm, as if he was holding fragile starlight.

"Hands," he whispered.

Wen Mu stretched out her left hand, her ring finger trembling slightly. The man's movements were extremely cautious, and his fingertips occasionally brushed against her fingertips, causing a small shudder.

When the cold metal touched his fingertips, his other hand clenched the velvet cloth on the edge of the chair, and his heartbeat was so loud that it seemed to burst through his chest.

The moment the ring was pushed to the bottom, a cruise ship whistled in the distance on the river, and the sound shattered the silence in the room.

"It's your turn." Song Xingran stood up and handed over his ring.

Wen Mu took the man's ring and held out his left hand. The man's fingers were long and strong, with calluses on the joints from years of gripping the steering wheel.

She lowered her head and slowly pushed the ring in, her concentration like adjusting the crosshairs of an astronomical instrument. The platinum arc finally stopped at the base of his ring finger, the moonstone reflecting off his cold white skin, like the night sky falling to the earth.

Wen Mu looked up and met the man's eyes.

Maybe it was because of the ring, or maybe it was because of the atmosphere, she suddenly wanted to say something.

“For the stars.”

The voice was soft, but loud enough for him to hear.

Song Xingran leaned over, supported the back of her chair, brushed his nose against her earlobe, and stroked the ring she had just put on with his thumb covered with thin calluses.

“No.”

“For us.”

The night breeze blew across the terrace, causing the candle flames to flicker.

As their breaths mingled, rose petals floated down from the edge of the table and landed silently at Wen Mu's feet.

The cell phone rang, breaking the silence at this moment.

Song Xingran picked up the phone and pinched the bridge of his nose helplessly: "Mom."

"I gave it to her, she said she liked it. I'm not that bad, am I?"

"I know. I've said it so many times that my ears are callused."

Wen Mu looked down at the ring on his hand, the starlight and candlelight shining on the diamond.

She heard Song Xingran say, "No more talk, Mom. I'll take her home."

After hanging up the phone, the man walked up to her and asked, "Go back?"

"Um."

In the car on the way back, Wen Mu kept looking out the window, unconsciously turning the new ring on his fingers.

The car stopped at the door of the villa. Just as she was about to get out, her wrist was suddenly grabbed.

Song Xingran's palms were burning, but his eyes were extremely serious: "When are we going to move out?"

Wen Mu lowered his eyes: "I can do anything."

"This weekend then," he said firmly.

"So soon?"

The man raised his lips and said, "They all say that it's fun for a married couple to live together after marriage."

He leaned closer, his breath fanning her ear, "I'm a person who loves to 'play' the most."

Wen Mu cursed in French: "Espèce d'idiot." (You idiot)

Unexpectedly, Song Xingran chuckled and responded fluently in French: "Mais je suis ton idiot." (But I am your idiot)

Wen Mu turned around and saw the man smiling triumphantly, his fangs faintly visible in the night.

She glared at him coldly, pushed the door and got out of the car.

Actually, it's kind of cute.

Crazy, he must be crazy.

Song Xingran looked at Wen Mu's departing back, lowered his head and rubbed the ring on his ring finger.

This was the style he decided on overnight after his last visit to the Wen family.

It was already early morning when he left the Wen family's house. He directly dialed the private number of Cartier's Asia-Pacific director.

Half an hour later, three black Mercedes-Benzes stopped in front of his villa, and six sleepy-eyed staff members carried three safes in one after another.

"Third Master," the director wiped the sweat from his forehead and spread a thick illustrated book on the coffee table, "These are new models that haven't been released to the public yet."

Song Xingran walked barefoot on the cashmere carpet, the collar of his bathrobe was wide open, and his wet hair was still dripping.

He flipped through a few pages, his brow furrowed tighter and tighter: "That's all?"

"Or you could take a look at our collection." The director gestured, and his assistant immediately brought over a velvet tray with three antique rings on it. "These were custom-made for the Austrian royal family in the 19th century..."

"Too old-fashioned." The man pushed the tray away, water droplets splashing on the diamonds. "She should wear modern clothes."

The director exchanged glances with his assistant, and suddenly his eyes lit up: "Perhaps, the 'Star Tracks' series?"

He took out two design drawings from the bottom of the password box. "This is the main product for next season. Samples are still being made in the Swiss workshop."

On the drawing, a pair of rings sparkled in the light.

"The design of this ring is inspired by Jupiter. The women's ring represents the planet, and the men's ring represents the satellite," the director explained carefully. "We named it 'Jupiter's Gravity' to symbolize the satellites' eternal orbit around the planet."

His fingertips paused on the drawing.

He recalled the moonlight in the Wen family's backyard tonight, Wen Mu's profile as she looked up at the starry sky. The way her eyes sparkled when she talked about astronomy was brighter than any diamond.

Song Xingran: "The main diamond and an orange sapphire, the inside of the ring is engraved with WM&SXR, and the date is left blank."

The director wiped his sweat and said, "Third Master, this needs to be redesigned, at least two weeks."

"I want to see the 3D model before noon tomorrow." Song Xingran closed the atlas decisively. "Money is not a problem."

When the director and his team hurried away, the sky in the east was already turning pale.

The man stood in front of the French window, holding the copy of the design in his hand.

Jupiter's gravity.

He chuckled and stuffed the blueprint into the bottom of the drawer.

The ring under his fingertip felt slightly hot. The man rubbed his temples and stepped on the accelerator.

The black Lamborghini glided silently into the night, like a satellite captured by gravity, heading towards its planet.

*

When Wen Mu pushed open the door, the two figures in the living room quickly retracted their heads that were leaning towards the door.

Qin Yi suddenly grabbed the remote control and pressed a few buttons on the TV. The voice of the shopping channel host on the screen suddenly became higher; Wen Zhiyuan quickly spread out the newspaper and held it high, almost covering his entire face.

"Dad, Mom, I'm back." Wen Mu bent down to change his shoes, with the corners of his mouth slightly raised.

"My dear daughter is back." Wen Zhiyuan's voice came from behind the newspaper, obviously eight octaves higher.

"Have you eaten yet? Where did you eat tonight?"

Wen Mu walked to the sofa and looked at his parents, one of whom was sitting upright like a primary school student listening to a class, while the other was pinching the edge of the newspaper to make wrinkles.

She reached out and pressed down the newspaper: "Dad, you held the newspaper upside down."

The air froze for a second.

Wen Zhiyuan cleared his throat and solemnly folded the newspaper in half and placed it on the coffee table: "Well, I'm old and didn't see it clearly."

Qin Yi was trying so hard to hold back his laughter that his shoulders were shaking.

Wen Mu sat down between his parents and stretched out his left hand in front of them: "Hey, look, look, look."

There was a rare hint of coquettishness in her tone.

The light from the blue and white porcelain chandelier flows on the ring like water, and the light reflected by the central diamond flows among the seven sapphires, as if a miniature planetary system is running between her fingers.

Qin Yi immediately took his daughter's hand, his eyes shining as if he had discovered a new planet: "Oh my, it's so beautiful! Ah Ran's taste is much better than your father's."

"That's natural," Wen Zhiyuan said, touching his nose with a smile. "I can't compare with young people."

Wen Mu withdrew his hand, and the ring flashed one last time in the light: "Okay, I've seen the person and the ring. Can I go up and rest now?"

"Go, go," Qin Yi patted the back of his daughter's hand, "Sleep well."

In the bedroom on the second floor, Wen Mu threw herself onto the soft bed. The starry sky lights on the ceiling were installed when she was a child. They were no longer suitable for use, but she had never been willing to remove them.

She raised her left hand, and the cluster of stars on her ring finger twinkled in the simulated starlight, vaguely reminding her of the Andromeda Nebula she had observed before.

*

The old house of the Song family.

The living room was bustling with activity. Chen Sui's voice was filled with unconcealable joy, and calls came in one after another.

Her adopted son was finally reliable for once. At first, she was worried that Song Xingran was a rough guy who didn't understand girls' thoughts and what to do if the ring he chose didn't suit the girl's taste.

But after hearing his son's description, Wen Mu seemed to like it.

On the third floor, Song Xingran walked into the bedroom while wiping himself, and the water droplets slid down the man's abdominal muscles into the waistband of his gray sweatpants.

He casually draped the towel over his shoulders and picked up the vibrating phone on the bedside table.

"Jupiter @ you."

The author has something to say:

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

Master Song: It’s urgent, my wife can’t run away [Let me check] [Let me check]

The update has been changed to 9pm! Will it be more convenient for everyone to read?