Song family mansion…

The heating was warm. Qiao Aiyun had been on tenterhooks all along the way and almost lost half her life. She had been afraid that her brother would handle the matter inappropriately and really kill Song Jingren. But someone was actually eating away with a clear conscience?

She looked around. “Where is he?”

“I kicked him out. This isn’t his house. What right does he have to live here?” Qiao Wangbei lowered his head to eat. His tone sounded like he was chatting about domestic trivia.

“If you don’t make him get lost, are you going to let this kind of bastard stay for the new year?

“Don’t stare at me like that. If I didn’t take his life, it means I was very restrained. I’ve really curbed my temper down a lot over the years.”

Qiao Aiyun nodded. Her brother never lied to her.

“Uncle.” Song Fengwan followed her into the house, rushed to his side, and hugged him.

“*Ahem—*I’m eating. Are you trying to choke me to death?” Qiao Wangbei frowned, put down his chopsticks, and patted the back of her hand.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were coming?” Song Fengwan pulled a chair over and sat beside him.

“I came in a hurry. Didn’t you have an exam today? How did it go?” Qiao Wangbei doted on Song Fengwan.

He had always thought that ‘sons should be raised in frugality and daughters in abundance'1. He didn’t have a daughter either, so he greatly doted on this niece of his.

Qiao Xiyan glanced at his father out of the corner of his eye.

Just moments ago, he was still fierce and threatening, wanting to raise his knife and kill someone. Now, he was so happy that he was grinning from ear to ear.

“Not bad.”

“I will give you a gift later.”

“What are you giving me? I don’t want stones.” If Qiao Wangbei wanted to give something, no one was allowed to reject him. Song Fengwan was close to him, so she spoke casually.

“Stones aren’t good enough? You have high standards.”

Qiao Wangbei looked around at the few people who had entered the house. When he saw Yan Wangchuan, his eyes flickered. “Senior Brother.”

“Mhm,” Yan Wangchuan replied, his expression as cold as ever.

But as their gazes met, sparks flew in all directions. There were clearly undercurrents surging.

“…” Qiao Wangbei’s gaze landed on Fu Chen. He narrowed his eyes and seemed to be searching for information. After a few seconds, he finally said, “Third Son of the Fu family?”

“Hello, Master Qiao.”

He and Fu Chen were of the same generation. Logically speaking, it wouldn’t be too much to call him big brother. However, he didn’t want to increase the seniority between himself and Song Fengwan, so he called him Master Qiao instead.

He was a craftsman, and he felt comfortable when others called him this.

“The last time I saw you, you were only a teenager, weren’t you?”

“Yeah.”

“Thank you for taking care of Wanwan these days.” Qiao Wangbei was very polite to him. He was of the same generation as him, so he couldn’t speak to him with the same tone as he would to a junior. “This time, you specially came over…”

“My father was worried and asked me to come over to take a look.” Keeping cool, Fu Chen used his father’s name to deceive them.

“I must thank Old Master Fu for his concern. Please thank him for me when you return.”

The two families’ elders had a good relationship, but after Old Master Qiao passed away, the Qiao family appeared to have declined. The Fu family had three sons and one daughter, and they were all dragons and phoenixes among men2. Old Master Fu was still in a high position back then, so the Qiao family was naturally incomparable.

If they got too close, people would inevitably say that they were trying to suck up to the Fu family. Qiao Wangbei was lofty, proud, and arrogant. He decided to nest in a small area and focus on carving.

“Father said to get you to visit him more often when you have time. He misses you a lot, but his health isn’t good, so it’s not convenient for him to go down south. Otherwise, he would have gone to Suzhou a long time ago.” Fu Chen spoke to him quite politely.

“Thank the old master for me. I will go when I have time.” Qiao Wangbei knew that the two Fu elders cared about him.

He truly hadn’t been around much in recent years, but the Fu family would always call to greet him during holidays. Qiao Wangbei also felt sorry for inconveniencing them.

“Then you guys go ahead and chat. I’ll leave first.” Fu Chen didn’t stay long. It was getting late too. Their family definitely had some things to say. At the moment, he was still an outsider, so it was really inconvenient for him to stay here.

“Xiyan, send him to the door…” Just as Qiao Wangbei opened his mouth, Song Fengwan stood up.

“Uncle, let me send off Third Master.”

“Well, that’s fine too.” Qiao Wangbei lowered his head to eat. He thought that Song Fengwan had stayed at Fu Chen’s place for a few days, so it was normal for them to become closer, and he didn’t think much about it.

***

Song Fengwan sent Fu Chen to the door. The street lights shone down and elongated their figures.

At the door, they looked at each other in silence. Song Fengwan occasionally peeked up at him. “That…”

“It’s cold outside. Let’s go sit in the car for a while.” Fu Chen pointed at the car parked not far away.

“But…” Song Fengwan turned to look at the house, feeling guilty and uneasy. This feeling of having a secret romance made her heart beat uncontrollably.

“Let’s just talk for a while, okay?” Fu Chen lowered his head and leaned over to look at her. He started to coax her in a low voice again, “I just want to be alone with you for a while. At your house, the elders are all here. I won’t do anything to you.”

Song Fengwan hesitated but still followed him into the car with small steps.

After they got into the car, both of them sat at the back. Shi Fang turned on the car heater and even turned off the lights inside before leaving and standing quietly nearby.

The car was small and cramped. Song Feng was sitting quietly and rubbing her fingers together, feeling inexplicably nervous.

There were also some indescribable feelings in her heart. She looked outside from time to time, afraid that someone would come out.

“The car window film is very dark. No one can see inside from the outside,” Fu Chen said while taking off his jacket.

“You… Why are you undressing?” Song Fengwan frowned, her voice trembling a little.

“It’s hot.” Fu Chen raised his eyebrows. The car wasn’t big, so the warm air soon filled it, and the temperature gradually rose. “Aren’t you hot?”

“Not at all.” Song Fengwan tightened her grip on her clothes nervously.

Fu Chen smiled. “Why are you so nervous? What else can I do to you in the car?”

Then he moved an inch closer to her.

He looked straight at her. His nose was straight, and his eyelashes were long and thin. The light refracting from the car windows made his face look demonic and moody. There was an indescribable beauty about him.

Song Fengwan subconsciously leaned back.

“Why are you avoiding me?”

“I… Ah—” As soon as Song Fengwan opened her mouth, Fu Chen’s hand suddenly circled behind her, hooked around her waist, and pulled her toward him.

Her nose bumped into his face. It felt warm.

“Five whole days.” His breath was hot and blew on her face, over and over again.

“Huh?”

“Every day feels like a year when I can’t see you.” Fu Chen tilted his head slightly, and the corner of his mouth almost pressed against her ear as he breathed out hot air. Her body shrank and trembled slightly. A strange feeling spread from the bottom of her feet, and her body felt so soft and weak that it didn’t seem to belong to her.

His lips pecked her repeatedly, starting from her fair face and rubbing against her bit by bit…

“Why do you think that is?”

“Third…” Song Fengwan felt that she should push him away, but her body was so limp that she had no strength. “Third Brother.”

“Why do I like you so much?” Fu Chen chuckled. “Wanwan, tell me why…”

His voice hoarse, he hung his head.

“Don’t be like this. You’re pressing against me and making me a little uncomfortable.” The car was too small. Song Fengwan felt like she was about to suffocate.

Fu Chen didn’t move. “Did you miss me?”

“No.” Song Fengwan struggled, and her whole body felt like it was burning up.

“You heartless girl.” Fu Chen smiled.

“I’m not.” Song Fengwan harrumphed.

“To think I missed you so much in vain, yet you didn’t miss me at all? I need to punish you!” He grasped her chin with one hand as if he wanted to kiss her.

“Yes, I did. I did.” Song Fengwan hurriedly changed her words.

“Good—” Fu Chen leaned his forehead against hers as his fingers caressed her delicate chin.

“Your reward.” As he spoke, he tilted his head and lightly touched the side of her face.

It was too dark in the car, and his lips seemed to be on fire. They were so hot that they seemed as though they were going to melt her face. Landing gently on her face, they lingered for a long time as the heat slowly seeped into her heart…

The fire raged and burned all the way to the bottom of her heart.

Song Fengwan finally understood. As long as he wished, he had thousands of reasons to take advantage of her.

“Wanwan…”

“Mmm.”

“Don’t be afraid no matter what happens. Third Brother will protect you, okay?” Fu Chen reached out and gently pulled her into his arms. “No matter when.”

Song Fengwan’s heart skipped a beat. She rested her forehead on his chest and nodded with tears glistening in her eyes. “Thank you…”

After hugging her for a long time, Fu Chen patted her back. “Alright, go back. It’s late. Sleep early today.”

“Mhm.”

Fu Chen lowered his head and kissed the top of her head.

Song Fengwan’s face was slightly burning. She pushed the door open and quickly ran out of the car. When she reached the entrance of the house, she almost bumped into Geng Ying, who was about to leave.

Geng Ying had been telling the Qiao father and son about the current divorce case, and it had taken some time. Otherwise, they would have gone back at about the same time as Fu Chen.

“Girl, why are you so reckless?” Qiao Aiyun happened to be sending Geng Ying out.

“Auntie, I’m sorry.” Song Fengwan felt guilty, so her voice sounded slightly panicked. “It’s too cold outside.”

“Hurry and enter the house. Look at your face. It’s so red from the cold,” Qiao Aiyun urged.

Song Fengwan blushed even harder.

Shi Fang got into the car and drove away.

The two of them haven’t even started dating yet. Why is the air full of the sour fumes of love?

What did they do in the car?

But seeing that Third Master is in a good mood, he probably took advantage of her quite a bit.

Fu Chen had already told his parents about the situation, so there was naturally no need for him to call them again. He made a call to Yunjin Prime Manor, and Uncle Nian answered.

“Third Master…”

“Uncle Nian, is Huai Sheng asleep?” This child was staying at his house, so he was still worried about leaving at this time.

“At around eight o’clock, Old Madam came over personally and picked him up.”

“How about a change of clothes?”

“She brought everything. Don’t worry…”

After learning that his mother had taken Huai Sheng away, Fu Chen felt relieved…

Shi Fang waited for him to finish his call before saying, “Third Master, are you going to the hotel? I’ve already booked a room.”

“What hotel? Let’s go to Second Brother’s house.” Fu Chen held the prayer beads in his hand and rubbed them with his fingertips.

“Second Master isn’t home. Do you need to call Second Madam in advance?”

“Second Sister-in-law probably went to play mahjong. Let’s go over directly.”

Sun Qionghua didn’t have many hobbies. She liked to play a bit of mahjong, but she didn’t bet a lot of money. She only played to kill time. Usually, she would play until 11 or 12 at night.

***

Yuncheng, Fu family residence…

Fu Yuxiu naturally knew that something had happened to the Song family. After what had happened at the filiation banquet, Sun Qionghua had become very strict with him and forbade him from contacting Jiang Fengya. However, they were still studying in the same school, so they would always meet secretly.

They had never stopped contacting each other in private.

Tonight’s incident shouldn’t have involved Jiang Fengya, so he had already gone to bed. Then he received a call from Jiang Fengya, saying that she had been chased out and didn’t have any money. She didn’t even bring her ID and wanted his help.

He thought that since his mother would come back very late tonight, and he was only going to be out for an hour or so, there would be no problem. He dressed quickly, grabbed his car key, and dashed out.

Before he even got into his car, he saw a car speeding toward him. The glaring headlights made him dizzy for a moment. He squinted, and in a flash, the car had already stopped in front of the lawn of his house.

When he saw the overbearing Beijing license plate, he trembled in fear.

Fu Chen pushed the door open and got out of the car. He glanced at him. “Where are you going in the middle of the night?”

Shi Fang suppressed his laughter. I knew it! Why did Third Master suddenly want to go to Second Master’s house? It was all part of his plan!

Fu Yuxiu shuddered in fear. If he had already gone out and his third uncle didn’t see him when he came over, he would be dead if he reported it to his mother.

“Uh… I’m a little hungry. I want to go out for a late night snack.”

“Is that so?” Fu Chen narrowed his eyes and looked at him coldly.

“I’m not hungry anymore. Third Uncle, please come in.” Fu Yuxiu gripped his car key tightly. Crap. Why did he have to come at this hour?

It’s worse than running into a ghost in the middle of the night.

Actually, when Song Jingren and Jiang Fengya were chased out, Secretary Zhang had long run away from fear. Jiang Fengya had helped Song Jingren out of the villa district and took a taxi to a nearby hospital.

Fortunately, she had her phone in her pajama pocket. Otherwise, she wouldn’t even have money to take a taxi to the hospital.

She was only 18, and there were many things she couldn’t handle, so she could only call for help.

It was a pity that Fu Yuxiu didn’t appear even after she waited all night in the hospital corridor.

***

Song family mansion…

Qiao Aiyun and Song Fengwan went upstairs to tidy up the rooms. Ever since Song Fengwan went to Beijing, it was the first time she returned to her own room. It was obvious that someone had already taken up residence, and even the wallpaper looked brand new.

Downstairs, the Qiao father and son and Yan Wangchuan looked at each other silently.

After eating, Qiao Wangbei slowly put down his chopsticks. “Xiyan, go upstairs and help your aunt.”

Knowing that the two of them had something to say to each other, Qiao Xiyan packed the takeaway boxes away and headed upstairs.

Qiao Wangbei narrowed his eyes and looked at the person in front of him gravely. “Senior Brother, let’s talk.”

1 A proverb that came from the belief that a son will grow into a responsible man while a daughter will become an elegant lady in this way.

2 This phrase implies that these people are the cream of the crop among an already superior group.