Chapter 41 teaches you "not to say one thing and mean another".
41
After returning to her apartment, Meng Yao quickly took a hot shower to wash away her disheveled state and heaviness, dried her hair, changed into a more elegant dress, and even sprayed some light perfume on herself in front of the mirror.
The girl in the mirror had delicate features, a natural blush on her face from just having showered, and bright, determined eyes that rekindled her fighting spirit.
Unexpectedly, just as I stepped out of the apartment, my phone rang urgently. The caller ID showed Chen Jie.
Meng Yao pursed her lips, answered the phone, and before she could speak, Chen Jie's anxious voice came from the other end: "President Meng... why did you go back by yourself and leave President Fang alone at the company?"
Meng Yao was immediately displeased upon hearing this, and her tone became sharper: "Assistant Chen, did you ask clearly? It was your General Manager Fang who insisted on sending me back, and even said that I was being unreasonable and told me to go home and rest. How could I possibly stay there any longer?"
"Oh dear, Mr. Meng, what are you saying..." Chen Jie was so anxious on the other end of the line that he kept stamping his feet: "Mr. Fang is so upset that he won't speak or take his medicine. Weren't you two just trying to make up? Why did you start arguing again? Why don't you come back for the sake of him being injured?"
Sad? Meng Yao's heart skipped a beat, but she still refused to admit defeat and deliberately teased, "Come on, what sad expression could he have? He's the kind of person whose smile only raises a few pixels. You must be mistaken. Besides, President Fang is always straightforward and honest. If he wants me to stay, he can just say so directly. Why beat around the bush? I'll just stay home and reflect on whether I've been too clingy."
"President Meng, please don't say such hurtful things. President Fang is just a bit clumsy and slow when it comes to relationships. He's been wanting to find a time to properly apologize to you..."
Chen Jie was practically going crazy, so he blurted out, "President Fang even deliberately caught a cold so he could have a chance to reconcile with you. Please take pity on him..."
"...What?" Meng Yao's expression froze instantly, thinking she had misheard.
"That's exactly what I meant," Chen Jie said, going all out: "Uncle Zhou told me that Mr. Fang has had this peculiar habit since he was a child. Because his parents always argued, he developed this habit after he discovered that whenever he was sick, they had no energy to argue and would even spend more time with him..."
His voice carried a hint of helplessness: "These past few days, while we were giving each other the cold shoulder, he was in a very bad state. I've been with him for over ten years. He's a very sensitive and delicate person, and he has a very low sense of 'compatibility' in relationships. You could tell he was in terrible pain, but he didn't know how to break the deadlock. For some reason, he suddenly started secretly taking cold showers and staying up all night... I went to ask Uncle Zhou what was going on, and found out that I couldn't persuade him at all. Rather than advising him to take care of his health, I'd rather let you know that he's sick sooner rather than later."
Meng Yao froze, holding her phone, her heart clenching with a bittersweet ache.
What had that person, who always seemed so composed and rational in front of her, gone through to choose such a naive and clumsy way to seek even a little reconciliation and attention?
A loving environment won't breed someone who lacks confidence in relationships. The only possibility is that his past might not have been as glamorous as she imagined, and this almost self-destructive behavior might be one of the few ways he's ever received care.
She was speechless for a moment, her heart filled with mixed emotions.
Hearing her long silence on the other end of the phone, Chen Jie assumed she was angry and quickly tried to smooth things over for Fang Huaixu: "President Meng, please don't be angry. President Fang is just not very good at expressing himself... He's really a very good person, whether it's towards you, me, or the people around him, actually..."
"What's so good about him! Is he out of his mind? How old is he, still playing these tricks?" Meng Yao interrupted, her voice clearly angry. "So delicate! He can't even speak properly. Who does he think he is? A princess waiting to be coaxed?"
She was yelling fiercely and urgently, making Chen Jie want to cry. He lowered his voice and said, "Please keep your voice down... Mr. Fang is next door to me, he might hear you..."
"That's good to hear! Does he think he's so wronged and great by belittling himself? Is it going to kill him to say a few nice words? Who wants such a sacrifice from him?"
Chen Jie wanted to say something, but he was completely stunned after hearing her trembling and choked voice at the end.
She heard footsteps and the sound of a car door closing over the phone. She urged the driver, "Sir... please drive faster, as fast as you can!"
Chen Jie then realized that she wasn't angry at all; she was clearly heartbroken.
Meng Yao could no longer maintain her composure; all she wanted to do was fly to that brain-damaged idiot's side immediately.
The car stopped at an astonishing speed in front of the Tianmu Group building, and Meng Yao practically rushed into the elevator and headed straight for the top floor.
Pushing open the door to the lounge, she found only a dim wall lamp on. Fang Huaixu was still lying on the bed as when she left, in almost the same position. The blanket covered his chin and lips, and all she could see was his closed eyes and slightly furrowed brows, making him look like he was asleep.
On the bedside table next to me were water and fever reducers, still in their packaging.
Meng Yao's heart clenched. She tiptoed over and reached out to touch his forehead: it was indeed burning hot.
Thinking that all of this was due to his ridiculous self-inflicted suffering, Meng Yao felt both heartache and anger. She reached out her finger and gently rubbed his brow with a hint of venting her frustration, continuing to scold him in a low voice: "Stubborn to the death, like a duck, you deserve to be upset. I shouldn't have left, I should have hidden behind the door and watched you cry your eyes out under the covers."
What was originally just a muttered remark to himself in anger unexpectedly revealed that the person on the bed slightly lifted their eyelashes, their eyes, misty with tears from the high fever, lowered, and their hoarse voice weakly clarified: "...I didn't cry, it's a lie."
"..."
Meng Yao remained silent, finding it both frustrating and amusing to watch him maintain his dignity despite his illness.
Now that she was awake, she put her emotions aside and prepared to get up to get the medicine and water from the bedside table: "Then let's..."
However, just as she turned around, a violent commotion suddenly came from behind her. Startled, she turned around and saw Fang Huaixu sitting up as if he had been stimulated by something. In fact, because he moved so quickly, half of his body was sticking out of the quilt.
Fang Huaixu looked at her nervously, and Meng Yao stared at him in astonishment. She had never seen Fang Huaixu so emotionally expressive before.
The air seemed to freeze. A few seconds later, Fang Huaixu's gaze fell on the box of cold medicine in her hand. A look of embarrassment and awkwardness flashed across his face. He finally realized that he had overreacted and lay back down as if he had been burned, only showing half of the back of his head to her, and tried to pretend that nothing had happened.
Meng Yao was so angry at this blatant attempt to cover up her misunderstanding that she laughed. She sighed and deliberately dragged out her words, asking teasingly, "Oh? Looks like you're alright again? You still have the energy to get up? Then I'll go back first."
Fang Huaixu stood with his back to her, his body stiff, remaining completely silent.
Meng Yao poked his back: "If you don't say anything, am I really leaving?"
He refused to show mercy, and remained only a cold, indifferent figure.
Meng Yao scoffed. Fang Huaixu's sulking was practically kindergarten-level in its destructive power. She decided to show him what real combat-level cruelty was. So she stood up and pretended to leave: "Fine, President Fang won't take his medicine and is happy to talk. There's no point in me staying here. I'll be going now."
As soon as she finished speaking, Fang Huaixu's back finally swayed slightly, and he responded with a complaint that was not very dramatic: "...You have no conscience."
Seeing his expression, Meng Yao's heart softened considerably, but she still maintained her indifference: "President Fang's way of trying to persuade me to stay is quite unique. Don't you have a better reason?"
Fang Huaixu remained silent for a long time, so long that Meng Yao thought he was going to cower again, before he finally spoke again with difficulty, his voice so low that it was almost inaudible: "...I can't do anything."
Meng Yao was both amused and exasperated. She sighed and sat down on the edge of the bed again, her tone softening slightly: "What can't you do? Didn't I just say that if you cry a little and act cute, maybe my heart will soften and I'll stay?"
After another long silence, Meng Yao didn't expect him to answer immediately. Just as she was thinking about when to give him the medicine, he unexpectedly gave an irrefutable reason: "I'm sick."
Meng Yao was taken aback, and he repeated, "I'm sick."
As if this reason wasn't convincing enough, he added, "...I was also injured for you."
His tone carried a sense of grievance that he himself was unaware of, truly using his illness as an excuse to be willful and unreasonable.
An indescribable flutter of emotion exploded in his heart. Over the years they had been together, Fang Huaixu had done countless things for her, but this was the first time he had ever taken credit for something in front of her, all for something as small as keeping her by his side.
Meng Yao could barely suppress the smile on her lips, and deliberately frowned: "But weren't you the one who wanted to kick me out just now? Why do you suddenly want me to stay?"
She was hoping Fang Huaixu would take things a step further, but a few seconds after she finished speaking, Fang Huaixu suddenly lowered his head: "...I'm sorry."
She was slightly taken aback: "What?"
Fang Huaixu's voice was low and hoarse: "I was originally going to apologize for my previous rudeness today, but I haven't properly addressed it with you yet..."
Meng Yao couldn't help but roll her eyes this time: "So you got Chen Jie to call me back just so I could apologize again?"
Fang Huaixu tacitly agreed, and added an explanation: "Because you just left without looking back and didn't want to listen to me continue, and you sounded very angry on the phone just now... I think you probably don't want to see me again in the future, so I might as well finish what I have to say today."
She rubbed her forehead, feeling a sudden headache. She could already imagine that if things continued like this, Fang Huaixu would start saying things like wishing her happiness.
"I wasn't really angry at first, but thanks to what you just said, I'm absolutely furious now," she finally gave in, shrugged, and was too lazy to say anything more: "It's up to me to decide how to apologize."
Before Fang Huaixu could react, she deftly lifted a corner of the blanket and slipped inside!
Realizing what she was doing, Fang Huaixu almost instantly turned over to stop her.
"Gotcha!" Meng Yao had just lain down when she quickly cupped that unhappy face in her hands and pinched it triumphantly: "Finally couldn't keep up the act, huh? I thought this face was something to be ashamed of."
"you!"
Even her voice changed tone, and the beautiful, burning face in her hand burned even more intensely. Fang Huaixu tried to distance himself in a panic, but Meng Yao pressed him back with undeniable force.
"Don't move, or I'll be the one who can't calm you down," her voice was close to his, her breath gently brushing his face, carrying a fresh fragrance and a reassuring calmness: "Fang Huaixu, I don't know why you're so conflicted about relationships, but since you don't know how to handle this relationship, I'll tell you what to do now."
"The first step to liking someone is to learn not to say one thing and mean another in front of the person you like, and not to test her feelings by pushing her away."
Author's Note: I've added a section to the ending, please remember to refresh the page [kissing emoji]
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