Chapter 109 She Wants to Know His Past
Huo Yanzhi frowned subconsciously as he looked at the girl's flushed cheeks in his arms.
Through his miniature earpiece, Qin Feng's somewhat flustered voice came through: "Boss, this is a scene added by an extra without permission. Should we stop it immediately?"
Huo Yanzhi did not respond.
He knew all too well how much Ruan Yao in his past life resisted any overly intimate behavior with him in public.
Such jeering could very well embarrass her.
However, the next second, Huo Yanzhi was stunned.
Amidst the enthusiastic cheers and jeers, the girl next to me suddenly stood on tiptoe.
She stretched out her arms, climbed onto his neck, tilted her rosy cheeks up, and, under everyone's gaze, placed a soft and warm kiss on his lips.
Like a dragonfly skimming the water, they part ways in an instant.
Huo Yanzhi froze completely.
He lowered his head and met Ruan Yao's bright, slightly shy eyes.
She kissed him first.
In front of so many people.
The cheers and screams around them almost shook the entire beach, and Qin Feng, who was in front of the monitor, breathed a sigh of relief.
Ruan Yao's cheeks flushed red as if they were burning. She didn't dare to look into Huo Yanzhi's eyes, but quietly and tightly, she held his hand.
Huo Yanzhi slowly lowered his head, looking at the girl's blushing profile and her slightly trembling eyelashes.
After a few seconds, he closed his long, slender fingers one by one.
He tightly and completely enveloped her soft little hand in his palm.
*
As night falls, the open-air restaurant by the sea is illuminated by warm-colored string lights, with each table spaced at just the right distance, offering both sea views and sufficient privacy.
Ruan Yao and Huo Yanzhi walked into the restaurant hand in hand, and the waiter immediately came up to them with a professional and enthusiastic smile.
"Good evening, you are our ninety-ninth guests tonight," the waiter said with a slight bow. "As is our tradition, we will be giving you a complimentary serving of our signature dessert, 'Cupid's Kiss.' We wish you a pleasant meal."
Ruan Yao covered her mouth in surprise.
"We're so lucky!" she whispered in Huo Yanzhi's ear.
Huo Yanzhi smiled and pulled out a chair for her, letting her jump for joy like a child over this series of "lucky" events.
As soon as they sat down, the pianist in the corner of the restaurant changed the piece.
The melodious sound of the piano flowed out; it was Debussy's "Clair de Lune," Ruan Yao's favorite piece.
All of this happened so coincidentally, it was like a romantic scene from a movie.
Ruan Yao rested her chin on her hand, gazing out the window at the sea dyed golden red by the setting sun, feeling almost overwhelmed by happiness.
"Yanzhi, I feel like I've used up all the good luck I've ever had in my life today."
She swirled the lemonade in her glass, still reminiscing about her afternoon adventures on the beach: "I collected seashells, won prizes, and now even eating out is a lucky thing."
As she spoke, she couldn't help but laugh out loud.
"It's like... the whole world is blessing us."
Huo Yanzhi paused for a moment.
He looked up, his deep eyes appearing exceptionally gentle in the candlelight.
“It’s not just good luck.” He looked at her, his voice deep and convincing, “It’s because you’re here that everything becomes so wonderful.”
These words struck Ruan Yao's heart more deeply than any sweet nothings.
She felt as if her heart was being soaked in warm honey water, sweet and soft, and full to the brim.
The atmosphere at dinner was incredibly romantic.
After the meal, the "lucky" complimentary gift was served: a delicate strawberry mille-feuille.
Ruan Yao was pleasantly surprised to find that even the desserts were her favorite flavors.
She ate in small bites, her cheeks flushed with a lovely rosy hue from the white wine she had accompanied her meal, and her eyes became somewhat dreamy.
The high level of excitement from the daytime gradually faded, replaced by a feeling of comfort and dependence enveloped in love.
She looked at the man across from her, peeling shrimp for her with elegant and natural movements.
Looking at his perfect profile, and at everything he did for her.
All the mysteries about his past and the heart-wrenching speculations that had lingered in her heart became crystal clear at this moment.
She wanted to know.
She wanted to know everything about him.
It wasn't just the reassuring, powerful, and omnipotent side of him that he showed her.
She longed to enter his desolate and lonely inner world, a world he never opened to outsiders, to embrace the little boy who had struggled in the darkness, wounded and vulnerable.
Ruan Yao put down her fork and suddenly reached out and placed her hand on Huo Yanzhi's hand.
Huo Yanzhi stopped what he was doing and looked up at her.
The girl's eyes shone brightly in the night, filled with a hazy, intoxicating light and an unprecedented seriousness.
"Huo Yanzhi," she began softly, her voice gentle and light, "could you... tell me about your childhood?"
The music in the restaurant was still playing melodiously, and the sea breeze brought a salty, damp scent.
She held his hand, as if to give him courage.
"It's about... being kidnapped."
Huo Yanzhi stopped peeling shrimp for her, and the only sound in the air was the distant sound of waves crashing on the beach.
That silence tightened Ruan Yao's heart more than any violent reaction.
He didn't want to bring it up.
This realization made her feel a little heartbroken, but it also strengthened her resolve to face it together with him.
Just as Ruan Yao was about to say something to break the silence, Huo Yanzhi made a move.
He put down his silver cutlery, picked up a clean white napkin from the table, leaned over, and gently wiped away a tiny, almost invisible drop of sauce from the corner of her lips.
His fingertips, through the soft fabric, lightly touched her lips, carrying a comforting warmth.
"Why did you suddenly want to ask this?" he asked, his voice as gentle as ever, revealing nothing unusual.
However, Ruan Yao still keenly sensed that he was avoiding her question.
“Because I want to understand you better.” Ruan Yao did not back down. She met his deep gaze, frank and earnest.
"I want to know everything. The good, the bad, the happy, the sad... I want to share it with you."
Huo Yanzhi listened quietly, his long eyelashes drooping, casting a small shadow under his eyelids, obscuring all the emotions in his eyes.
After a long while, he chuckled softly, as if listening to something trivial.
“That’s all in the past.” He pulled his hand back and picked up the half-peeled shrimp again. “I was too young back then, and I can’t remember what happened.”
A sea breeze carrying a salty, damp scent blew by, ruffling a few stray strands of hair on Ruan Yao's forehead and brushing against her cheeks, causing a slight itch.
Huo Yanzhi naturally raised his other hand, his slender fingers running through her hair, carefully tucking a few unruly strands behind her ear.
His fingertips brushed against her warm earlobe, bringing a tingling, itchy sensation.
“Rather than those long-forgotten pasts,” he lowered his voice, his voice carrying a seductive magnetism, his warm breath brushing against her ear, “I’d rather discuss our future with you later in bed.”
Ruan Yao's heart skipped a beat.
“For example,” he looked at her, a familiar, slightly mischievous smile returning to his lips, “would you prefer an island or a castle for the wedding venue?”
Before Ruan Yao could answer, he slowly added another sentence.
"Or, the name of our future child."
The word "child" exploded in Ruan Yao's mind like a small bomb.
Her face flushed instantly, the heat spreading from her cheeks all the way to her ears.
The emotions that had just begun to build up were reduced to the word "child" frantically flashing through my mind.
Does Huo Yanzhi want a child?
She...her child with Huo Yanzhi.
What will it look like?
Does he resemble her more or less?
No, he meant later in bed...
"Who, who wants to discuss this with you!" She was both embarrassed and annoyed, and pushed him with a soft, gentle push, more like a coquettish gesture.
He casually brushed aside that originally heavy topic.
"Well, it's okay if we don't discuss it now." Huo Yanzhi took her hand that she was pushing towards him, kissed it lightly, and his smile deepened. "Then let's think about it first, should we call her Dad or Mom?"
Ruan Yao's mind completely went blank.
She was completely swept away by him, forgetting all the questions she originally wanted to ask. Her mind was filled with the soft, cuddly image of the baby and Huo Yanzhi as a father.
She couldn't help but mutter to herself, "If it's a daughter, she must look like me, with big eyes."
"Okay, just like you."
“If it’s a son, then… then he can’t be like you. You must have been very fierce when you were little.” She gave him a playful glare.
“He looks like you too.” Huo Yanzhi readily agreed, his voice full of affection. “As long as he’s our child, it doesn’t matter who he looks like.”
That's practically a foul.
Ruan Yao felt both embarrassed and amused by his serious discussion about the child's appearance, but her heart was bubbling with sweetness.
She was completely captivated by the sweet fantasy he had painted of the future.
Huo Yanzhi looked at her smiling eyes and the longing look on her face, and gently peeled the last shrimp from her plate and placed it on the plate in front of her.
He looked at her, his eyes filled with unfathomable tenderness and contentment.
He would never let her know.
He would never let her know that he was the one who once rolled in the mud in the mountain village of Nancheng, covered in filth, fighting for food like a dog, and filled with nothing but hatred in order to survive.
To appreciate his slender figure, all you need to do is see him at his most glamorous and powerful.
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