A marriage proposal? Fang Zeyu's heart pounded at the suggestion.
They'd been together for over half a year, and had already established a physical relationship. Their two children got along very well. Of course, he hoped to hold Shuyan in his arms every night, enjoying a warm bed with his wife and children. However, Shuyan's situation was different from others. She had experienced a failed marriage, and entering into another marriage wouldn't be easy. He feared that instead of a pleasant surprise, she might be met with a shock.
Fang Zeyu considered it for a long time and then gave up on the suggestion, instead focusing on preparing a proper birthday surprise for Shu Yan.
It wasn't really a big surprise—a cake, flowers, and a table full of dishes he prepared himself. It was simple, but very thoughtful.
The cake was Shu Yan's favorite flavor, the flowers were champagne roses, which Shu Yan loved, and all the dishes were Shu Yan's favorite foods. How could anyone know these things if they didn't observe carefully?
"Thank you!" Shu Yan smiled happily when she saw the table full of dishes.
Fang Zeyu also smiled happily, "I'll light the candles."
He and the children surrounded Shu Yan and sang "Happy Birthday." Shu Yan glanced at them, put her hands together, closed her eyes, and made a wish.
My first wish is for her parents and younger brother to be safe and healthy. My second wish is for her and Fang Zeyu to be happy and long-lasting. "Now I want to say my third wish: I hope that all of us can have a smooth and safe year, and that Jingjing and Tianbao can grow up happily."
She blew out all the candles in one breath, and the two children clapped enthusiastically. Tianbao handed the knife to Shuyan, saying, "Mom, cut the cake quickly."
"You can only eat a little bit, otherwise you won't be able to eat your meal." Shu Yan cut a small piece for each person, as it's not good to eat too many sweets at night.
Fang Zeyu even made a bowl of longevity noodles for Shu Yan. It looked quite presentable. Shu Yan smiled at him, picked it up, and ate it in one go.
"Delicious." It really is delicious.
After dinner, the two children went to take a bath first, while she and Fang Zeyu cleaned up the dishes. In the kitchen, Fang Zeyu was in charge of washing the dishes, and Shu Yan was in charge of drying them and arranging them neatly, creating a scene reminiscent of an idol drama.
"I am very happy today."
Fang Zeyu paused in washing the dishes, then smiled faintly and said, "I'm just worried... I'm not good with words, and I'm not good at handling things." Mao Weiping had said more than once that he was a blockhead, and didn't even know how to be romantic.
"It's because I like you." Shu Yan sighed deliberately.
Fang Zeyu, standing to the side, couldn't help but smile, his lips curving into a wide grin.
After washing the dishes, Shu Yan poured two glasses of red wine and went to the balcony, handing one to Fang Zeyu. The area was still somewhat desolate, with no lights in sight, but the sky was full of stars—something that would never be seen in Nancheng decades later.
Under the starry sky, the two chatted about simple everyday things. Shu Yan's cheeks were flushed, and she was already a little tipsy.
Fang Zeyu could easily drink two jin of baijiu, but now it wasn't the alcohol that made him drunk, but his own state of mind. Looking at Shu Yan, he took out a jewelry box from his right pocket.
"Happy birthday."
"Didn't I already receive a birthday present?" She thought the flowers, cake, and the dinner that Fang Zeyu had prepared were her birthday presents.
"Of course not. Open it and see if you like it?" Fang Zeyu took a sip of his drink, a little nervous.
Taking the jewelry box, Shu Yan's heart pounded. Could it be a ring? They had only known each other for half a year. If Fang Zeyu proposed now, would it be too fast for her to say yes? Would the two children agree? With a little expectation, she opened the jewelry box. Inside was a very beautiful diamond necklace. Shu Yan couldn't quite describe her feelings. Perhaps she felt a little disappointed.
"I'll put it on you."
Shu Yan had already drunk two glasses of red wine and was about to drink her third when Fang Zeyu stopped her.
"If I drink any more, I'll really get drunk, and I'll have a headache tomorrow."
Looking at Fang Zeyu, Shu Yan gently touched the pendant and chuckled, "Just now... I thought there was a ring inside, and that when I opened it, you would kneel down on one knee and propose to me."
Hearing Shu Yan's words, Fang Zeyu felt it was necessary to explain.
"I'm clumsy and don't know how to come up with surprises. I even asked a friend what to do when I found out it was your birthday today. He told me to fill the area in front of the company building with flowers and then propose to you. To be honest, I was really tempted. But I was afraid it would be too abrupt and scare you. Yan Yan, I like you a lot, I like you a lot, a lot, a lot. I desperately want you to be my wife, but I don't want to put any pressure on you."
Shu Yan looked at her, her eyes flickering slightly, "Since you like me so much and want me to be your wife, why don't you kneel down and propose?"
Fang Zeyu looked at Shu Yan with delight, knelt down on one knee, and took out another jewelry box from his right pocket. Inside, he found a ring that matched her necklace.
"Didn't you say you weren't planning to propose? Where did the ring come from?" Shu Yan felt like she'd been tricked, and her slightly tipsy head cleared up a bit.
“I told you I was really tempted by his suggestion. When buying a birthday present, I… I couldn’t resist buying this ring. I thought I might not need it today, but I’d need it someday.” Fang Zeyu knelt on one knee, looking at her sincerely. “Yan Yan, I’m not good with words. I, Fang Zeyu, solemnly promise here that I will only be good to you, Shu Yan, for the rest of my life, and I will treat our two children as my own. Will you marry me?”
Shu Yan chuckled and extended her hand, "Then I'll reluctantly marry you."
Fang Zeyu, trembling, put the ring on Shu Yan's finger.
When they woke up the next day, they were both a little dazed. Shu Yan hadn't expected to say those words, and Fang Zeyu hadn't expected to actually propose, and in the end, Shu Yan had said yes.
The two exchanged a glance, and Shu Yan pulled the blanket over her head. Drinking has led to trouble! Just a few sips of red wine and she's already like that.
"What, you want to back out?" Fang Zeyu pulled back her blanket and asked nervously.
He rolled his eyes at him and said, "Get up and wash up quickly. Aren't we going to Grandma's house today?"
I've already agreed, so what's there to regret? At most... I'll just feel annoyed.
Besides, marriage is inherently an impulsive act; if one were always rational, they would never get married in this lifetime.
Fang Zeyu's mouth gaped open, looking completely foolish.
The two had had a physical relationship quite a few times, but this was the first time Fang Zeyu had stayed overnight at Shu Yan's house. The two children sat at the dining table, their big, dark eyes wide with curiosity as they watched them come out one after the other.
Feeling stared at by the two children, Shu Yan blushed and glared at Fang Zeyu, "Have you eaten yet?"
"We're done eating, we have to go to school soon." Jingjing looked Fang Zeyu and Shu Yan up and down. "Tianbao and I are leaving first, you and Fang's dad should eat quickly."
After the two children left and they heard the door close, Shu Yan and Fang Zeyu came to their senses and looked at each other in bewilderment.
"Just now, did Jingjing call you Father Fang?" Tianbao had been calling Fang Zeyu Father for a long time, but Jingjing always called him Uncle Fang. Shuyan had never interfered with her way of addressing him. It might just be a title in the eyes of adults, but in the eyes of children, this title represents a very important meaning.
Fang Zeyu's heart pounded. "Yes, Jingjing calls me Dad Fang."
Shu Yan smiled. It seemed that the child had truly accepted Fang Zeyu, which was undoubtedly the best birthday gift for Shu Yan.
The two happily ate breakfast, and then Fang Zeyu drove Shu Yan to her company.
Hu Ruixue, with her sharp eyes, immediately noticed the ring on Shu Yan's finger and teased, "Fang Zeyu has finally figured it out; he knows to prepare a surprise gift for your birthday."
"Open my ass." Shu Yan couldn't help but swear when she said this. "At first, she hid it and didn't take it out until I hinted at it." Then she told Hu Ruixue what had happened.
"That's good." Hu Ruixue really thought Fang Ze was good too, not reckless and not arrogant.
"Hmm. To be honest, if he had really planned to propose to me yesterday by covering the front of the company building with flowers, I would probably have been more shocked than surprised."
Her situation is different from other women. She's divorced and has two children. If Fang Zeyou suddenly proposed to her in front of so many people, it would feel like he was putting her in a difficult position, making Shu Yan feel that he didn't care about her or respect her. Fang Zeyu's actions yesterday may have lacked the impulsiveness and passion of youth, but they showed the maturity and composure expected of someone his age.
"Have you decided when to hold the wedding banquet?" Hu Ruixue asked with a smile.
"Not yet, how can it be so fast?" Shu Yan smiled happily. "Do you know what? Today, Jingjing called Fang Zeyu 'Dad Fang'."
“Director Jingjing, she actually understands everything.”
“I never intended for her to call me Dad. She just suddenly started calling me that, so… Fang Zeyu and I were happy all morning.”
"It shows that Fang Zeyu treats her well; even a sensitive child like Jingjing can change her tune," Hu Ruixue analyzed.
Fang Zeyu's successful marriage proposal has changed the way the two get along. If they were still somewhat restrained before, they now completely disregard the opinions of others. They go in and out together, and Fang Zeyu often stays overnight. If it weren't for his grandmother, he would have moved into Shu Yan's house long ago.
"How about I move to the old house?" Shu Yan asked tentatively.
When they came back today, they heard people in the neighborhood saying that Fang Zeyu was smart, deliberately choosing a rich woman like her who had a child and even owned a house. They said he was a gigolo, willing to raise other people's children, and other such nasty things.
"No need. It's a bit damp over there now, and the kids probably won't be used to it. We'll move there in the summer." Fang Zeyu chuckled as he thought of what those people had said. "Don't bother with them. We don't know them anyway."
But those words kept echoing in Shu Yan's mind, making it impossible for her to completely ignore them. Then she thought, if she couldn't even stand these words, how much more difficult must it have been for Fang Zeyu when he was so wronged and subjected to all sorts of verbal abuse?
"I just feel sorry for you. The truth just came out, and now you're being misunderstood like this again. We have to think of a way to deal with this. Those people are the worst." Luckily, the child doesn't go to school here anymore.
Fang Zeyu looked at Shu Yan thoughtfully.
The next day, Fang Zeyu had his car driven into the residential area. His assistant got out and addressed Fang Zeyu as "President Fang" in front of everyone.
"How did Fang Zeyu become a boss?" someone asked from the side.
"Didn't they say that woman owns a company? Will they just put him in the company as the CEO? Tsk tsk, he's really good at scheming. He got a wife and money at the same time. He's a good father."
As they were talking, several security guards who came on patrol saw Fang Zeyu, stood at attention, saluted him, and shouted in unison, "President Fang."
"Hmm. How's it working here?" He asked with the air of a boss.
"The brothers are all doing well here, thank you for your concern, Mr. Fang."
"That's good. You can continue your patrol. Be sure to patrol carefully and protect the safety of the people in the community." Fang Zeyu nodded and waved for them to leave.
"Yes," the group replied firmly.
Shu Yan came downstairs carrying her things, and asked loudly with a smile, "The security guards in our community are also from your company. How come I didn't know that before?"
"Didn't I say that?" Fang Zeyu asked with a puzzled expression. He only spoke after seeing Shu Yan shake her head. "The more upscale properties in Nancheng all have security guards from our company, and their security guards are all sent to our company for unified training."
Grandma Zhang was quite familiar with Shu Yan, and upon hearing Shu Yan's words, she couldn't help but ask, "Does Xiao Fang own a security company?"
Shu Yan chuckled softly; this was a perfect assist.
"Yes, he lost his job because of that incident, right? After he got out, he started his own security company, which is full of his comrades. It's quite a coincidence that his company and my company are in the same office building, so it's convenient for them to commute to get off work."
"Oh my, Xiao Fang is really low-key. We wouldn't have known if he hadn't told us," Grandma Zhang said, pointing to the gossiping people.
The group chuckled awkwardly. They never expected that Fang Zeyu had quietly built such a large business. He even had security guards in upscale places. How big must his company be? He must make a lot of money every year, right?
Watching the car slowly drive away, the woman who had previously called Fang Zeyu a pretty boy said again, "I knew that woman's business was so big, she must be very capable. How could someone like that be fooled by a man's sweet talk?"
The people around him chimed in.
“You’ve put on such a show, now everyone around here knows you’re a big boss. What about your father and stepmother…” Shu Yan was afraid that if she tried to calm things down, another one would start.
Fang Zeyu sneered, "They'd better not be so ungrateful as to come over."
Although he was inside at the time, if his father had been willing to apply and plead for leniency when his grandparents were dying, he might have been able to see them one last time.
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