Chapter 18 018 The last string snapped completely.
In the few minutes between finding the photo and Chen Sulin arriving at the office, Meng Ran was completely unable to think straight.
Impulse completely overwhelmed her mind, and she had only one thought left: she wanted Chen Sulin to tell her the whole truth.
Meng Ran stared at the man's expression, watching Chen Sulin's eyes deepen. He slowly took the photo from her hand, his gaze sweeping over the photograph and lingering there.
With each action he took, a fraction of her reason returned, followed by regret.
She shouldn't have confronted him so unprepared, knowing full well that he was hiding something from her.
Finally, Chen Sulin raised his eyes: "What do you want to know?"
Meng Ran: "..."
With that, she managed to muster her last breath and say, "When this photo was taken, there were feelings between us, weren't there? At least..."
At least at that time, she seemed to like him.
Meng Ran pursed her lips, swallowing back the sentence that sounded like a confession.
Chen Sulin was silent for a while before answering, "We are husband and wife, of course we have feelings for each other."
Meng Ran: "Then why—"
Why won't you tell me what happened during the time I lost my memory?
The words were on the tip of my tongue, but I just couldn't bring myself to ask them.
She had made similar questions before. When she was eight years old, she resentfully asked her biological father for the fatherly love she thought she deserved, but what was the result?
All she received were perfunctory replies and reprimands, being told she was not sensible enough and did not understand the difficulties faced by adults.
Just like now, Chen Sulin refused to tell her everything. Whatever the reason, it all boils down to one sentence: he neither liked her that much nor trusted her.
Meng Ran shook her head dejectedly: "Never mind..."
It's really nothing, isn't it?
Before seeing this photo, hadn't she already convinced herself to give up on getting information out of the man?
It's just that everything has returned to square one; she hasn't lost anything.
Suppressing her disappointment, Meng Ran took a deep breath and forced a smile: "Miaoying is still waiting for us outside, right? Where is she now? Is she with Assistant Zhou or—"
Before the last few words were finished, the man's presence suddenly drew near.
Meng Ran looked up in surprise and met a pair of dark eyes that were inches away from her.
Completely unprepared for his actions, she had no chance to dodge as Chen Sulin's lips landed on hers.
All sounds vanished in that instant. Meng Ran stared at him with her eyes wide open, forgetting to close them.
Until she heard a low sigh, Chen Sulin's lips parted slightly, his voice low and hoarse: "What are you looking at?"
Meng Ran: "I..."
I opened my mouth instinctively, but I had no idea what to say.
Chen Sulin didn't care about her answer. The next second after he asked, his lips covered hers again.
Her slightly parted lips gave him the perfect opportunity, and the man's tongue slipped inside.
My brain exploded with a buzz, and the last thread of my being snapped.
Meng Ran closed her eyes as he wished.
The excessively handsome face before her vanished, but Chen Sulin's unique aura enveloped her even more tightly, leaving no room for escape.
He held her waist firmly with his palm, the scalding heat almost burning through her clothes and seeping into her skin, making her heart tremble.
Her legs were so weak they were practically trembling. The resistance she had been deliberately maintaining for the past few days vanished in an instant. She was practically pressed against him, unable to muster even the slightest strength to push him away.
Just as she was about to become completely immersed in it, the man suddenly stepped back.
Meng Ran suddenly lost her support and swayed unsteadily before being caught by Chen Sulin.
I instinctively wanted to ask him why he stopped, but then I heard Chen Miaoying's angry voice coming from behind the door.
"Uncle Zhou, I already told you I'm fine, why are you making such a fuss!"
"Miss, let me take a look at you, otherwise your parents will be very worried."
"No way! Mom and Dad know I'm very brave! What's a little fall? It doesn't hurt at all!"
Meng Ran and Chen Sulin exchanged a glance.
Chen Sulin: "I'll go take a look."
Meng Ran: "...Okay."
She calmed her breathing and watched Chen Sulin walk to the office door.
As soon as the door opened, Chen Miaoying's surprised voice came from the hallway: "Dad, weren't you with Mom? Why did you come out?"
Then came Assistant Zhou's slightly flustered explanation: "Mr. Chen, just now Miss was trying to tiptoe to reach the leaves of the green plant by the window, but she accidentally tripped over the base of the flowerpot."
Finally, Chen Sulin's steady voice asked, "Where did you fall?"
Meng Ran quickly went out as well.
As I walked, I couldn't help but touch my lips with my hand.
It shouldn't be too obvious, right?
Worried that outsiders would notice something was amiss, but thinking about her daughter's fall, she simply couldn't stay alone in the office with a clear conscience.
As Meng Ran went outside, she saw Chen Sulin kneeling on one knee, checking Chen Miaoying's knee.
Chen Miaoying saw Meng Ran coming out from afar: "Mom!"
Judging from his movements, he seemed to want to run over to her immediately, but Chen Sulin held his shoulder down.
Chen Miaoying pouted: "Dad, I already told you I'm fine."
Chen Sulin checked Chen Miaoying's knees before pulling down her trouser legs and standing up.
He made a gesture to Assistant Zhou, who immediately understood his boss's meaning and quietly left.
Chen Sulin looked at his daughter, his tone gentle yet serious: "Dad has told you, what should you do if you want to reach something high up but can't reach it?"
Chen Miaoying looked a little dejected, but still obediently answered, "I need to ask my mom and dad, or other adults for help. I can't try to be strong on my own."
Chen Sulin: "Remember that in the future, okay?"
Chen Miaoying: "Okay, Dad!"
After saying that, Chen Miaoying couldn't wait to run to Meng Ran and look up at her mother: "Mom, are you feeling better? Are you still unhappy?"
As soon as her father arrived, she told him that her mother was in a bad mood and asked him to comfort her.
I wonder if Dad did a good job on his task.
Meng Ran: "Thank you, baby, Mommy is all better now."
Chen Miaoying said "Oh": It seems that Dad is still very capable, he coaxed Mom so quickly.
But after looking closely at her mother's face, Chen Miaoying opened her eyes wide in surprise: "Mom, why is your face so red?"
And the lips are also very red.
Meng Ran was taken aback.
Chen Miaoying was extremely worried: "Mom, are you sick?"
When she came back from getting water, her mother looked unwell, and now her face is all red; she must be sick!
When she used to have a cold and fever, her face would turn bright red, and she would feel so uncomfortable that she didn't want to talk.
Chen Miaoying was sure she had guessed right: "Mom, are you sick? If you're sick, you need to see a doctor. Dad and I will go with you!"
Meng Ran was speechless for a moment.
How could she explain it? She couldn't very well tell her daughter that she blushed because she had just kissed her father in the office, could she?
She was relieved that Assistant Zhou had left quietly, otherwise the situation would have been even more awkward.
Chen Sulin stepped forward and patted Chen Miaoying's head: "Mom blushed because she rushed out to see you when she heard you fall."
Meng Ran looked at Chen Sulin gratefully: As expected of someone who has been a parent for five more years, he is much more experienced than her.
“Yes,” Meng Ran agreed. “Mom is just a little anxious. If you don’t believe me, wait a moment, and Mom’s face will stop turning red.”
Chen Miaoying thought for a few seconds, and seemed to be convinced.
She patted Meng Ran's hand and said earnestly, "Mom, don't worry, I just took a little fall, it doesn't hurt!"
Meng Ran was amused by her tone and expression, wondering who she had learned it from. "Okay, Mom understands, but you have to be careful in the future and don't fall down again."
Chan Miu-ying: "I know!"
Then she turned to look at her father and said, "Dad, I'm a little hungry. Let's go home and eat!"
...
After leaving the company, Chen Sulin told the driver to go back first, and he drove another car to take them back to the villa.
Meng Ran sat in the back seat with Chen Miaoying.
She seemed a little distracted.
Meng Ran couldn't control herself; every time she caught a glimpse of Chen Sulin out of the corner of her eye, she would unconsciously recall the scene that had just unfolded in the office—
Even now, she still can't figure out which word touched a nerve with the man, causing him to suddenly kiss her.
Is it to prove that "we are husband and wife, of course we have feelings for each other"?
Or was there something else she didn't know that upset him?
Meng Ran recalled the question Chen Sulin asked her when he first entered the office: "Did you see anyone?"
Who did he think she had met?
My thoughts were a jumbled mess, and my brain felt like it was filled with fog.
A sound came through the fog.
"Mom, Mom?" Chen Miaoying shook her arm. "What are you thinking about?"
Meng Ran snapped back to reality and smiled, "Mom is wondering what delicious food Auntie made tonight."
She used all her strength to banish the burning kiss from her mind and forced herself to respond to Chen Miaoying.
Thanks to Chen Miaoying, the two chatted all the way home, and Meng Ran almost forgot about the kiss.
Just almost.
After the three of them finished dinner at the restaurant, Chen Miaoying was taken to class by her teacher, while Meng Ran returned to her bedroom alone.
The memories could no longer be contained and surged forth like a flood.
Unconsciously, her fingertips touched her lips, where the warmth of Chen Sulin still lingered.
Meng Ran told herself: The kiss came too suddenly, it's normal that she didn't dodge it at first.
She had never experienced anything like this before, so it's understandable that she was stunned and didn't know how to react after being kissed.
But... what happens next?
When he kissed her again, his breath filling her entire mouth, she had countless opportunities to push him away.
She didn't.
When the kiss was interrupted by the sound from outside the door, her first reaction was: How could he end it so suddenly?
Meng Ran stared blankly at the ceiling.
Chen Sulin didn't tell her anything, nor did he offer any explanation for the photo. He simply dismissed her with a random kiss.
That's not the most infuriating part. What's even more infuriating is that she completely missed all the reasonable opportunities to get angry.
She didn't question him right after the kiss ended, nor did she question him in the car. If all of this is understandable because of Chen Miaoying's presence—
But why did she go straight upstairs right after finishing her meal?
Thinking of this, Meng Ran scratched her hair in despair.
If we go to Chen Sulin now to demand an explanation, won't it be too late?
As the old saying goes: "One should strike while the iron is hot, but the momentum will wane on the second attempt and be exhausted on the third."
The urge to get all the truth out of Chen Sulin when I first got the photos has now been completely exhausted.
But reason told her that she shouldn't just accept the status quo so blindly.
Meng Ran closed her eyes and exhaled, then opened them again, finally making up her mind:
Before today is completely over, she should at least try one more time.
After checking herself from head to toe in the mirror, Meng Ran left the bedroom.
The light in Chen Sulin's study on the opposite side was on.
Meng Ran walked over, stood at the door of the study, and stopped.
Her heart was pounding; she couldn't help but feel nervous even before she saw anyone.
"Chen Sulin, I think we should talk about everything that happened today."
After mentally rehearsing her opening remarks several times, Meng Ran raised her arm to knock on the door.
Suddenly, a "click" sound came from behind.
Meng Ran turned around in surprise and found Chen Sulin standing behind her.
He looked like he had just taken a shower, his wet hair hanging down slightly, but he wasn't wearing a bathrobe; instead, he was wearing a light-colored shirt.
"You..." Meng Ran's words caught in her throat, her previously mustered confidence dissipating. "What are you doing here?"
Chen Sulin raised his eyebrows slightly, as if asking: Why can't I be in my own bedroom?
Meng Ran was a little embarrassed: "I saw the study light was on, so I thought you were in there."
Chen Sulin: "You need something from me?"
Meng Ran pursed her lips.
Momentum is a strange thing. Her prepared opening remarks were abruptly interrupted by this unexpected event, giving her an unsettling feeling:
It seemed as if fate was telling her that today was not a good time for her to continue questioning Chen Sulin.
Meng Ran loosened her clenched fingers, which she had been holding tightly due to nervousness, and finally decided to give up for the time being.
The words "It's alright" were already on his lips when Chen Sulin walked over and placed his hand on the doorknob.
The distance between them suddenly closed because of his movement. The man's refreshing and cool aura after his shower enveloped her, and from behind, it almost looked like he was holding her in his arms.
Meng Ran's heart skipped a beat as he approached.
Chen Sulin opened the door to the study.
"Should we come in?" he suggested.
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