Knowing he wouldn't get an answer, Fu Xuanliao asked the question casually, thinking it wouldn't be bad to make Shi Meng unhappy for a while.
The two were used to competing with each other and always wanted to prove themselves superior. Whoever could stir the other's emotions and make the other lose their composure would be the winner.
Therefore, Fu Xuanliao took the lead today and, when he put Shi Meng back on the bed, he pinched the back of his legs and pressed his whole body into the bed. He then patted Shi Meng's face with one hand and coaxed him in a flirtatious tone, "I have important business to do today. Baby, you can come to me another day."
Coming to the Shi family's house today was completely unplanned. I just happened to pass by the second floor and pushed open the door to take a look. Being hugged by Shi Meng was even more unexpected.
However, with a contract in place, letting the client waive some interest is just for your own convenience.
Straightening up, Fu Xuanliao kicked the slippers that had fallen on the balcony to the bedside. He walked to the door, then turned back, belatedly asking, "You've quit smoking?"
Shi Meng stayed where he lay down, turned over, and ignored him.
Thanks to his good fitness habits, Fu Xuanliao rarely even catches a cold throughout the year, and the only lingering ailment is his respiratory system.
During a previous seasonal change, Fu Xuanliao experienced nasal allergies. Once, when he entered the house, Meng Zheng was standing on the balcony with a cigarette in his mouth. A gust of wind blew in, and the smell of smoke rushed into his nostrils, causing Fu Xuanliao to sneeze and cough, almost coughing up his heart, liver, spleen, lungs, and kidneys.
So when Shi Meng stopped smelling of cigarettes, Fu Xuanliao quickly noticed. However, given their relationship was only bound by a contract, and the fact that they only spent one night a week together, he wouldn't presume to associate Shi Meng's decision to quit smoking with himself.
As he went downstairs into the living room, the air was filled with the rich aroma of citrus, so sweet that Fu Xuanliao almost sneezed again.
"Xiao Fu is here, please make yourself at home."
The lady of the Shi family was already waiting there, and the aroma of tea wafted from the table, creating an atmosphere conducive to conversation.
Fu Xuanliao took his seat, exchanged pleasantries, and did not rush to get to the point. He picked up a teacup and played with it in his hand.
In the afternoon, Fu Xuanliao went to the newly opened golf course with Gao Lecheng. When he ran into Shi Huaiyi's wife, Li Bihan, there, he sensed something was amiss. Later, Li Bihan invited him to her home for a small gathering, and since Shi Huaiyi was not home that day, it confirmed his suspicions.
"Yesterday, Lao Shi was so busy talking to you about business that I didn't get a chance to say a word." Li Bihan sat on the sofa, smiling gently. "I heard that your mother went abroad to recuperate. I was too busy to see her off. When she comes back, please bring her home for a visit. I'll make soup for her myself."
Fu Xuanliao readily agreed.
Li Bihan and my mother Jiang Rong are about the same age and graduated from the same teachers' college. After they got married, they often visited each other as wives in the same social circle and can be considered close friends.
Therefore, the two families had verbally agreed to a marriage alliance, hoping to match Fu Xuanliao with Shi Sihui. However, the deal fell through, and after several twists and turns, Fu Xuanliao ended up in the Shi family, which was a good thing.
Speaking of the past, Li Bihan was quite emotional: "When we were little, the three of you played together like family. We felt it was a rare and precious bond. Later, Shi Meng joined us..."
Upon hearing this name, Li Bihan's eyes darkened slightly.
“This child has been wild and unruly since he was little. He’s been with me for so long, but he hasn’t changed much.” She sighed. “It’s just that you’ve been wronged. You’re at the prime of your life, full of potential, but you’re stuck in our Shi family and have to come here so often.”
This statement was half true and half false. At least Fu Xuanliao remembered that when Shi Meng first came to the Shi family at the age of eight, he was quite well-behaved, so well-behaved that he would hide in a corner all day long and you could never see his shadow.
However, this was their family matter and had nothing to do with Fu Xuanliao. He smiled and said, "You're too kind. I also have to rely on my uncle's guidance to come and listen to his teachings every week. I'm the one who benefits."
The topic she had painstakingly started was politely deflected, and Li Bihan looked slightly displeased, though she didn't show it much. When she picked up the tea, she smiled again.
This time, it was a poignant sense of helplessness after experiencing countless vicissitudes. Li Bihan looked at a painting hanging on the wall in the center of the hall, depicting a scene of misty winds and verdant mountains.
"If Mu Mu were still here, how happy she would be to see us sitting together so happily like this."
For the past four years, Fu Xuanliao rarely thought about Shi Mu intentionally. But lately, the frequent mentions of her by those around him have made him feel like he has nowhere to escape.
Passing by the school, I remembered the two of us walking arm in arm through the school gate; passing by the exhibition hall, I remembered filling in as the photographer to capture the moment when Shi Mu received the award; driving past an inconspicuous street corner, I could recall what I had said to Shi Mu there.
“My dad wants me to study business, but I only want to draw.” The boy turned around, dappled sunlight falling into his eyes. “You don’t want to take over the family business either, do you? How about I hire you as my personal photographer?”
As dusk settled over the street corner, Shi Mu's smile was forever frozen in that moment.
We arrived at Heting just after 10 a.m.
Gao Lecheng personally came downstairs to meet him, and in the elevator he clicked his tongue in amazement: "Yesterday he complained that this place was smoky and messy, but today he came here on his own."
Fu Xuanliao corrected, "It was the day before yesterday."
We went to the quietest private room on the top floor.
Last time, when discussing a collaboration with another company here, as is customary, several waiters were invited to accompany him. Fu Xuanliao was forced to accept having someone sit next to him, his face so sour it looked like he was about to overturn the table and leave at any moment. This time, Gao Lecheng learned his lesson and didn't ask for anyone, making the head waiter on duty extremely nervous, thinking that his poor service last time had angered President Fu.
Fu Xuanliao's response was: "It's noisy, and the people involved are dishonest."
"Unclean" refers to the new boy who tried to curry favor with him by taking every opportunity to rub against him. Gao Lecheng chuckled upon hearing this and waved for the supervisor to leave: "Our boss Fu isn't in the mood today. Next time he is, remember to find someone clean-cut and not clingy."
When asked where he was from, Fu Xuanliao said Shijia. Gao Lecheng's eyes lit up: "Going to see your Ice Beauty again? Didn't you just see her on Saturday?"
"No." Fu Xuanliao was under a lot of pressure from the new project, and he rubbed his brows with a dark look between his eyes. "Madam Shi invited me to sit down."
Gao Lecheng wasn't stupid; after a moment's thought, he realized what was going on: "No wonder at the basketball court this afternoon... so it was another attempt to win you over under the guise of catching up." He stroked his chin and teased, "Could it be that you're thinking of marrying your daughter to me?"
Fu Xuanliao chuckled: "Are you out of your mind? Knowing I like men, why would you push your daughter into a fire pit?"
Outsiders only know that the Fu family and the Shi family are on good terms, so good that they don't mind arranging a marriage between their two sons. However, few people know that back then, when the young master of the Fu family was extremely resistant to the young lady of the Shi family, but instead had a special affection for her only son, the Shi family lady went from being furious to vehemently opposing the marriage, and almost broke ties with the Fu family.
This is why Li Bihan said those words.
Gao Lecheng laughed: "That's true, back then your affair with Shi Mu caused quite a stir in the industry."
Perhaps he was truly exhausted, Fu Xuanliao leaned back and sank into the sofa, his long legs casually propped up on the ground, his eyes half-closed and expressionless.
After observing Fu Xuanliao's expression, Gao Lecheng couldn't help but ask curiously, "So what do you think? Will you agree or not? I think the Shi family patriarch is quite biased towards this adopted son; he gives him whatever he wants..."
He almost stepped on a landmine again, but luckily Gao Lecheng reacted quickly and steered the conversation back to the main topic: "Anyway, there are only two camps in front of you, it's up to you to choose."
What an observer can understand, Fu Xuanliao can naturally also perceive.
Although Li Bihan only touched upon the purpose of the conversation briefly, she simply wanted to secure the greatest possible benefit for herself. Her son was gone, but she still had her daughter. In short, she couldn't let this vast family fortune fall into the hands of "outsiders."
It's just that the old man of the Shi family has traditional ideas. He can give more than 10% of the shares to the children he picked up, and he's not afraid that they'll get burned by the money.
“A common man is innocent, but he is guilty of possessing a treasure.” Fu Xuanliao raised his hand to support his forehead. “Besides, he has made many mistakes and committed numerous crimes. No matter whether I choose him or not, or which side I choose, someone will deal with him.”
These words were so cold-blooded that Gao Lecheng felt a chill run down his spine. He poured a glass of wine and handed it to him, saying in a flippant tone, "Such a beautiful woman, how could you bear to part with her?"
Fu Xuanliao's mind was unexpectedly filled with the image of Shi Meng jumping up from her seat and running towards him barefoot just a few hours earlier—her eyes shining, her hair flying with each step, the setting sun behind her, as beautiful as a painting.
Unfortunately, the brief warmth could not withstand the long-term scheming and confinement. With a slight movement of the arm, the fresh wound on the wrist bone connected to the metacarpal bone inevitably triggered a sharp pain in the nerves.
None of these were what he wanted; they were all forcibly stuffed into his hands.
Thinking this, Fu Xuanliao's face grew increasingly gloomy. He took the wine glass, tilted his head back, and drank it all in one gulp.
"It's just a charade, what's there to be reluctant about?"
The night passed silently, and the Shi family mansion was completely quiet.
This house is an old building from the Republican era. It has been repaired and patched up for many years, but it is still not as solid and stable as a new building. Every autumn and winter, the north wind will seep into the house through the cracks in the walls.
The attic, which had not been repaired for a long time, was even worse. Fearing that the imbalance of humidity in the room would affect the paper and colors, the heating was often not turned on. I would stand in front of the easel until late at night, and only stop when my hands were so stiff that I could no longer hold the brush.
This painting depicts a winter scene: a landscape covered in snow, desolate and barren, with a lone figure walking amidst it all, sunlight shifting silently through the bare branches of the mountains. As the lights are turned off and the figure descends the stairs, the sound of footsteps is clearly audible, and Shi Meng can almost feel the chill of the person in the painting.
Walking through the second-floor corridor, Shi Meng glanced down at the crack in the door of the room at the end. There was light inside, indicating that the person inside was still awake.
Only two cars were parked downstairs; Shi Huaiyi hadn't come home today. Back in her room, Shi Meng stared at the soup bowl on the table for a long time.
When he first saw soup served in such an exquisite bowl, he didn't dare to reach out and take it, for fear of dirtying the bowl.
Later, when he grew up, he understood that the purpose of that bowl of soup wasn't to keep him warm, but rather a symbolic gesture. The beautiful woman named Li Bihan's smile at him wasn't out of affection. After all, no one's affection is two-sided; a gentle smile in front of others, yet icy in private.
Shi Meng couldn't explain why he still remembered these things. Perhaps it was as unreasonable as Teacher Sun's cat liking to be near him. Before going to bed, he still drank the bowl of soup that was freezing cold.
I was startled awake in the middle of the night. I pricked up my ears alertly and could only hear the sound of the north wind hitting the window.
With a dull ache in his stomach, he got out of bed and went to the walk-in closet, where he pulled out a sweater from the innermost drawer that didn't look like his size.
Clutching the sweater, Shi Meng lay back on the bed, sniffing the almost undetectable scent, but still couldn't fall asleep.
He thought, "Maybe I'm craving a cigarette."
When desires are not satisfied, all the senses that are usually ignored pop up to assert their presence, reminding Shi Meng of some unpleasant things.
For example, when I was a child, I learned to draw with those two people, but I never received praise from the teacher.
For example, even though they were born on the same day and in the same hospital, they would still call that person "brother".
For example, Fu Xuanliao came to his house today, and they hugged and kissed, but Fu Xuanliao didn't come to say goodbye when he left.
Why don't you come?
Shi Meng sat up abruptly in bed, opened the bedside drawer with the combination lock, took out a document, and then pulled out a stack of papers, flipping through them by the light from the courtyard lamp outside the window.
One cigarette after another, but that wasn't enough to suppress his irritability. Shi Meng had no choice but to take out a cigarette and hold it in his hand. Since he couldn't smoke it, he twisted the filter and let the dried tobacco fall into his palm, releasing a fragrance that could relax his mind and body.
He scrutinized every word, criticizing it neurotically. When the smell of tobacco filled his nostrils, he suddenly remembered Fu Xuanliao's reaction to the smell of tobacco last time.
—Fu Xuanliao doesn't like it, so he can't smell it anymore.
Upon receiving the instruction, Shi Meng got out of bed again, quickly went to the balcony, and opened all the windows.
The next second, the wind that rushed into the room blew up the papers spread out on the bed, and the curtains fluttered, casting haphazard reflections on the white wall, jagged and intertwined, like ghostly shadows.
The scene was chaotic for a moment. Shi Meng jumped up to reach it, crawled on the floor to search, and even crawled under the bed to rummage through the documents. It was only with great difficulty that he managed to put the contract back in its place.
After doing all this, he was drenched in sweat, his forehead hair damp. Shi Meng knelt down beside the bed while trying to catch his breath, the backs of his feet flat on the floor, his blue veins soaked with frost, the last bit of warmth on his skin swallowed up.
The noise subsided, the moon hung high in the treetops outside the window, and the people inside were too tired to move.
She reached out and touched the sweater on the bed, grabbed it, and hugged it to her chest along with the promise she cherished. Shi Meng hunched over, letting her cheeks press against the sweater, and closed her eyes to fall into a deep sleep.
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