Chapter Forty-Five
In the final days leading up to the competition, Mo Wansheng spent almost all her time with He Zihang at the dessert shop.
The worktable was filled with experimental products, ranging from classic French to innovative flavors.
They repeatedly tweaked each one until it was perfect.
Except for the first day after he arrived, Huo Yuzheng was constantly jealous.
In the days that followed, he didn't say much and stopped bothering them.
He arrived in Paris ahead of schedule this time because he hadn't actually finished his work.
After finishing all the domestic matters, I brought forward some international affairs in Paris.
The schedule was packed full, and video conferences often lasted from the early morning to the afternoon in Paris.
The documents he needed to sign piled up like a small mountain on his desk, and he occasionally had to personally travel to the business district in La Défense for negotiations.
The two were each busy with their own things.
But Huo Yuzheng would still pick up Mo Wansheng from the dessert shop right on time and they would go back to the hotel together.
He never went in to disturb them, but simply stood quietly under the streetlights, occasionally strolling leisurely through the streets.
He would show his brightest smile of the day only when Mo Wansheng rushed out of the dessert shop.
Back in the hotel room, Mo Wansheng would chatter away, sharing the day's events with him.
Which recipe finally reached its ideal state? Which decorating technique achieved a new breakthrough?
Huo Yuzheng always listened patiently, offering her a glass of warm water or massaging her sore shoulders when the time was right.
After shamelessly staying in Mo Wansheng's suite on the first day, Huo Yuzheng tacitly admitted that he had not booked a hotel room.
The luggage was retrieved from the next room the next day and placed in Mo Wansheng's room.
Huo Yuzheng hung the suits and shirts into her closet one by one, and placed the razor and toiletries on the bathroom sink naturally.
Immediately afterwards, he cancelled his reservation for the suite next door.
When Mo Wansheng returned home that evening, she noticed these extra items.
She asked in confusion, "Where did you put these things before?"
Huo Yuzheng was leaning against the headboard reading documents. Hearing this, he didn't even look up. "Next door."
"Next door?" Mo Wansheng was taken aback. "When did you book the room next door?"
"Didn't you say yesterday that you hadn't booked a room?"
Huo Yuzheng turned a page of the document and said in a natural tone, "Well, after thinking about it, I decided to return it. After all, I want to save Mrs. Huo money to buy macarons."
Mo Wansheng then realized that he had already booked two rooms.
I deliberately made an excuse to stay last night.
"Huo Yuzheng!" She grabbed a pillow and threw it at him. "How dare you play me like that!"
He easily caught the pillow, put down the documents, and his eyes were full of triumphant smiles. "Mrs. Huo, how can you say it's a joke?"
Huo Yuzheng stood up and walked towards her, teasingly saying, "I'm just being careful with our future. Just in case we really go bankrupt one day..."
Mo Wansheng grabbed another pillow, but he pulled her and the pillow into his arms.
"Let me go!" she cried, her cheeks flushed with anger. "You big liar!"
"What did I lie to you about?" He lowered his head and nuzzled her nose. "Did I lie to you about sharing a bed with me? Did I lie to you about letting me hang my clothes in your closet?"
His voice lowered, "Mrs. Huo, you are my wife, and I want to live with you. Is that really not allowed?"
Huo Yuzheng gently led her to the dressing room, pointing to the clothes hanging side by side, "Look, isn't this nice?"
His suit jacket sat beside her long dress, her scarf nestled against his tie, a harmonious arrangement that seemed perfectly natural.
Mo Wansheng turned her face away, her protest gradually subsiding. "That's just sophistry."
Huo Yuzheng took the opportunity to lightly peck her lips, "Just take it as sophistry."
His fingers naturally intertwined with hers. "Anyway, the room has already been checked out. Mrs. Huo, you can't expect me to sleep on the street, can you?"
Looking at the pitiful Huo Yuzheng in front of her, Mo Wansheng suddenly felt deflated.
He had lowered his stance so much that she couldn't bear to pursue the matter further.
Knowing full well that he was a powerful figure in the business world, she was acting like a large, loyal, homeless dog.
Mo Wansheng glared at him fiercely, feigning a fierce expression. "Don't do it again."
She then added, "You can't lie to people either, I don't like being lied to."
"Okay, I won't make excuses next time."
"Next time, just move in directly."
"Huo Yuzheng!"
Mo Wansheng reached out to punch him, but he hugged her even tighter.
Huo Yuzheng: "What, Mrs. Huo, are you going to back out again?"
His hand gently stroked her back, as if soothing a cat with its fur standing on end.
"That's what someone just said: if you want to stay, just say so."
Mo Wansheng was speechless at his words, realizing that she was indeed in the wrong first.
But seeing his smug look, I couldn't help but slap him on the shoulder, "You're twisting the facts!"
"Let me put it another way, Mrs. Huo, I want to stay by your side. So, I want to live with you."
Hearing his earnest and straightforward confession, Mo Wansheng's cheeks flushed.
She turned her face away, no longer looking at Huo Yuzheng.
"Huo Yuzheng." Her voice was soft as she called his name.
Huo Yuzheng leaned closer to her, "Mrs. Huo, what's wrong?"
“I always felt that you were like a different person ever since that incident at the airport.”
After that incident, Mo Wansheng felt that Huo Yuzheng was fine the way he was now, and didn't ask too many questions about the reasons.
She sometimes wondered why a single misunderstanding could change his attitude towards things so much.
"Actually, Mrs. Huo, I haven't changed, I've just figured out something."
Mo Wansheng asked softly, "What have you figured out?"
"I'll tell you slowly later." His voice was gentle, yet carried an undeniable firmness.
Mo Wansheng wanted to ask more questions, but he silenced her with a light kiss.
"Now," he said, his forehead pressed against hers, "you just need to know that I will always be by your side like this."
...
On the eve of the West Point competition, Mo Wansheng woke up in the early morning due to nervousness and found that there was no one beside her.
A sliver of light shone through the crack in the study door. She pushed the door open and saw Huo Yuzheng still holding a trans-Pacific video conference.
The screen was filled with complex financial statements.
Huo Yuzheng said "Wait a moment" into the microphone, then turned to look at her.
He mouthed the question silently: "What's wrong?"
"I can't sleep."
Huo Yuzheng immediately said to the screen, "The meeting is suspended for ten minutes."
He then got up, walked over, and led her to the French windows.
The Parisian night view unfolded beneath their feet as he wrapped his arms around her from behind, his chin gently resting on the top of her head.
"Because of nervousness?"
"Um."
Huo Yuzheng chuckled softly, his warm breath brushing against her earlobe. "Then you should think more about how we'll spend the New Year together after the competition ends."
"Or, if you really can't sleep, play your favorite game. Haven't played games in a while, have you?"
Huo Yuzheng led her to the living room and took a game console out of his suitcase.
Mo Wansheng was somewhat surprised as she took the game console.
"Why did you bring a game console with you?"
"I thought you might want to play, so I brought it along. I'll wrap up the meeting and then come join you later."
Mo Wansheng nodded, grabbed the game console, and returned to the bedroom.
She sat cross-legged on the bed, carefully examining the device.
This is probably his own game console; there are a few minor scratches on the body, and the cap is somewhat faded.
It does look like it's been used for a while.
She pressed the power button, and the familiar system interface lit up.
Driven by her curiosity, she looked into his gaming interests.
The main interface features several common AAA titles, as well as some rather niche games.
"Blueberry Cake" seemed to enjoy playing those games back then and recommended them to her many times.
What a coincidence!
She continued to manipulate the buttons, changing the screen.
There were also a few otome games at the end of the game console, which were included in the files she had sent to Huo Yuzheng.
She recommended that he study hard.
At first, she thought he was just fooling her, saying he had slept with everything.
In retrospect, he did indeed complete all of them.
Mo Wansheng's attention was focused on an adventure game.
That was a new game that was started before she came to prepare for the competition.
Huo Yuzheng doesn't seem to have any play history, and his save file is empty.
Just as she was staring at the screen in a daze, Huo Yuzheng walked in carrying two cups of hot milk.
"The meeting is over."
He handed her one of the glasses and sat down beside her. "What do you want to play?"
Mo Wansheng pointed at the dragon icon, "You're planning to play this?"
“I saw Mrs. Huo playing this game a while ago, and I’m thinking of giving it a try.”
A hint of suspicion appeared on Mo Wansheng's face. How did he know what game she had been playing lately?
How did you know I was playing this?
Huo Yuzheng suddenly remembered something and cleared his throat, "I saw your game log when we played duos together last time, and I thought it was quite interesting."
The explanation sounded reasonable, but Mo Wansheng felt that something was not quite right.
She didn't delve any deeper into it; she just wanted to play for a while, then go to sleep so she could have a good match tomorrow.
“Okay.” Mo Wansheng took the game console and started a new save file. “Let’s play for a while.”
While the game was loading, Huo Yuzheng adjusted the position of the cushions to make her more comfortable.
As the familiar background music played, Mo Wansheng looked delighted.
Sure enough, playing video games is the most relaxing thing for her.
Sleepiness quickly crept in.
After playing for less than half an hour, she started making frequent mistakes, and her eyelids became increasingly heavy.
Huo Yuzheng: "Tired?"
Mo Wansheng rubbed her eyes. "Yeah, I have to get up early tomorrow."
Huo Yuzheng took the game console from her hand. "Then go to sleep."
Mo Wansheng crawled back into bed, while Huo Yuzheng leaned against the headboard and typed the last few words of his reply email on his computer.
She drifted into a daze, her eyes already closed.
Huo Yuzheng quietly turned off the light, closed his laptop, lay down beside her, and pulled her into his arms as usual.
"Goodnight," he whispered in her ear. "I'll be there to watch your game tomorrow."
This sentence is like the best tranquilizer.
Mo Wansheng finally relaxed and fell into a deep sleep.
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