Chapter 84: Chapter 84

"Sleeping at home?" Fu Jichen lifted a hand resting on the sofa arm to support his chin, seemingly nonchalant but exuding a sense of pressure, "I didn’t know you were so skilled at lying."

A pang hit Shen Jianian’s heart, as if struck heavily by a drumstick.

She took a step forward and saw the phone screen lighting up on the coffee table, displaying a photo of her and Pei Che, taken this morning at the hospital ward.

At the time, Pei Che had fallen off the bed to stop her from leaving, curling in agony on the floor. Terrified, she crouched to help him up, only to be held tightly by him.

How did someone happen to take a photo at that exact moment?

Shen Jianian recalled the orientation of the ward. It must have been shot from the opposite window, impossible from the hallway side. Who was so intentional, purposefully waiting there to take pictures? She wasn’t a celebrity.

Could it be because of Pei Che?

Since returning to China, Mr. Pei had attracted significant media attention. She hadn’t paid much attention but heard from colleagues in the secretary office that he often appeared on the Weibo hot search.

"Nothing to say?" Fu Jichen picked up the cigarette box and lighter from the coffee table, lighting another cigarette, his gaze sweeping over her, "Or are you thinking of what excuse to fool me?"

Shen Jianian was wearing a Klein blue shirt today, a color that made her fair skin look even whiter, like frost and snow. She wore a light gray knitted vest, matched with a stiffly cut skirt. With the cold weather, she would wear a coat when going out. The overall style was career casual, balancing her inherent allure with a more cool and sharp demeanor.

Dressed exactly as she was in the photo, he desperately hoped the picture wasn’t taken today, but the reality was undeniable, allowing no self-deception.

He wanted to hear how she would explain.

Shen Jianian’s mind was in turmoil. Lying to deceive him was infuriating for anyone; she had nothing to say.

"Admitted?" Fu Jichen shot her a disappointed glance, tapped the ash from his cigarette into the ashtray, "Last night you told me never to mention that person again, yet you rushed to meet him, and it even made the news. Truly impressive."

His words were sarcastic, filled with a heavy sense of hostility.

"I wasn’t intentionally trying to lie." Shen Jianian met his gaze. Initially, she couldn’t understand why she lied the instant she received his call; now she understood, "I was afraid you’d be angry."

Fu Jichen was so furious he couldn’t help but laugh: "So I should be thanking you? Shen Jianian, you seem unaware of the gravity of the situation. You’re in the news, your past relationship with Pei Che is known to everyone. If rumors about you and me surface again, do you think any slight disturbance at the Pei Family won’t be connected to me? Do you still want to reclaim Ling Yue? If you don’t, let me know early, so I won’t waste my efforts!"

As he spoke, his volume unconsciously increased.

Shen Jianian looked at him in astonishment; could it be that the Pei Family’s loss of several billion was his doing?

"Just realizing now?" Fu Jichen sneered, seeing through her.

"I’m sorry." Shen Jianian lowered her gaze and paused before explaining why she was at the hospital, "Someone called me, saying Pei Che was injured, insisting I go over, so I..."

Fu Jichen coldly interrupted her: "So you softened? Shen Jianian, let me tell you, you initiated this deal, but you don’t get to decide when it ends."

He wanted to hear her explanation, but once she explained, he didn’t want to hear a word.

Knowing he was furious, Shen Jianian said nothing, letting him vent his anger.

"Didn’t hear what I said?" Fu Jichen stared at her, beyond annoyed; her pathetic demeanor was for whom to see? Did she genuinely believe he’d relent every time?

Shen Jianian looked up at him: "Understood."

Fu Jichen sneered coldly, finding it hard to trust this liar; few words from her were truthful. "Understood" was merely "understood," with no binding effect.

Worried, Shen Jianian asked: "Then... what about the news online?"

"Worried now?" Fu Jichen laughed sarcastically, "Not my problem. The Pei Family is guilty, and naturally doesn’t want Pei Che involved with anyone or anything related to the Shen Family."

His words were blunt, but Shen Jianian knew he spoke the truth.

The Pei Family had set up the Shen Family, leaving no traces afterward; Pei Fengnan certainly wouldn’t wait for netizens to dig deeper into her and Pei Che’s matter.

Suddenly, the phone rang in the quiet office.

Fu Jichen leaned over, picked up the phone from the coffee table, and pressed the answer key, placing it by his ear.

Lu Yanzhi called mainly out of concern: "Fu Da, are you okay?"

Fu Jichen thought he had something urgent; hearing his teasing tone, he immediately vented his unspent anger on him: "Get lost."

It was the first time Shen Jianian heard him speak so crudely, clearly indicating his anger; not knowing what Lu Yanzhi said, Fu Jichen cursed and hung up the phone, taking a harsh drag of his cigarette.

"Then I’ll go out first." Shen Jianian felt that he might not want to see her face for now, as seeing it might make him even angrier.

"Did I let you leave? Come here."

Fu Jichen extinguished the cigarette, the smoke exhaled dispersing, masking the gloom between his brows and eyes.

Shen Jianian didn’t dare provoke him, obediently went over, and was pulled into his arms. In a flash, she was turned around, her back against the sofa armrest, while he loomed over her, kissing her fiercely.

Fu Jichen slightly backed off, waiting for her to catch her breath, then kissed her again, dominantly, like a hurricane passing through, expressing his dissatisfaction in this manner.

Some things, once tasted, easily linger in one’s mind.

Fu Jichen was never the type to wrong himself, hesitating for a moment between resolving things here and going to the rest room inside, he chose the latter, carrying Shen Jianian in his arms towards the rest room.

"I still need to go back to work..." Shen Jianian’s lips were numb, her words weak.

"I advise you better keep quiet." Fu Jichen let go of his hand, tossing her onto the big bed in the rest room, leaning down to press against her, "Nothing you say is pleasant to hear."

At three in the afternoon, Shen Jianian returned to the secretary’s office.

Colleagues were busy at their respective workstations, and when Shen Jianian sat down, they coincidentally glanced over at her, noticing her knitted vest was gone, her neatly pressed shirt now had many suspicious creases, and her half-tied long hair had come loose.

Others couldn’t see it, but the colleague sitting next to Shen Jianian could see clearly; her lipstick, originally a cool-toned smoky pink, was smudged, replaced by a bright rose color.

Wait, it didn’t seem like she just changed lipstick, more like... a result of excessive kissing.

Yao Qi quickly pulled up a small group chat, excluding Shen Jianian from it.

"Seems like the battle was intense."

"What did I say! Mr. Chen definitely has possessiveness!"

"Looks like the saying is true, childhood friends can’t compete with sudden affection."

"New discovery, everyone! All online news about Jianian and Mr. Pei are gone, do you think it’s Mr. Chen’s doing? If it really is, then he super loves Jianian!"

Shen Jianian sat down for a long time, still somewhat dazed, her body lingering with the sensation of being swept away like a storm, dizzying and out of control, like her heart was clenched tight, with its speed and rhythm entirely dictated by that person.

Fortunately, there weren’t any important tasks this afternoon, so it didn’t affect her work.

Before leaving work, Shen Jianian glanced at her phone, Bai Changxia had sent her several messages, asking if she’d met with Pei Che, worried she might be upset, writing many comforting words.

Shen Jianian felt touched, typing back: "I’m fine."

Bai Changxia: "Pei Che returned to Beicheng, I saw him at the station, followed by several bodyguards."

Shen Jianian paused for a moment, then thought it must be the Pei Family picking him up to return to Yicheng. Being able to travel normally meant his head injury was not very serious.

Shen Jianian didn’t reply to the content about Pei Che, instead asking Bai Changxia: "What were you doing at the station?"

Bai Changxia: "Accompanying the ensemble for an out-of-town performance."

Shen Jianian stared blankly at this line of text, recalling the cello she’d set aside, which had been reduced to a tool occasionally used to dispel melancholy and frustration.

In the moving black business car, the scenery outside the window grew increasingly familiar, indicating the proximity to home, and Pei Che wearily closed his eyes.

He was almost dragged back to Beicheng by the bodyguards sent by his father.

Four men in suits rushed into the hospital room and helped him complete the discharge procedures. Because his head stitches prohibited him from flying, they chose the high-speed rail. Surrounding him through check-in, check-out, and the ride home.

He was like a prisoner guilty of a severe crime, being escorted back to his own cell.

The car stopped under the porch, the driver got out to open the back door: "Mr. Pei, please, Chairman Pei is waiting inside."

Resigned, Pei Che got out of the car, walking step by step into the home he wished to escape.

Pei Fengnan had been sitting in the living room waiting for a long while, the ashtray on the coffee table filled with cigarette butts. Upon seeing his disappointing son, he couldn’t suppress the anger in his chest, raised his hand, and slapped him.