Chapter Sixty-Three Fu Yixing Appears

Shen Huaiqing lounged carelessly across from Fu Chen, twirling a strand of hair around her finger. Her eyes, shimmering with light, seemed as deep and unfathomable as a tranquil lake.
“Who?”
Fu Chen’s gaze darkened instantly, his lips pressed into a cold, indifferent line. “Shen Huaiqing, must you really play dumb with me?”
With a loud bang, Shen Huaiqing abruptly shot up from her seat, the legs of her chair colliding with the table and making a jarring noise that shattered the room’s silence.
“Fu Chen! I didn’t have a phone, didn’t know where the guesthouse was, didn’t know a single person! Do you have any idea how much effort it took me to find my way back?”
“And here you are, sitting like a lord, spouting all this nonsense. I think there’s something wrong with you!”
Her eyes blazed with anger, as if they might burst from their sockets.
Fu Chen watched her coolly, a flash of hostility passing through his eyes. He swirled the cup in his hand and said indifferently, “There’s no need for you to hide anything. I don’t care what he told you; after all, the choice is yours.”
A trace of the fury in her gaze faded. Clearly, Fu Chen already knew where she’d been. This man was far too suspicious—she was no match for him at all.
“I don’t want to talk to you anymore. I’m tired.” Without another glance at Fu Chen, Shen Huaiqing hurried upstairs.
Uncle Liu, who had witnessed everything from the side, approached Fu Chen with concern. “Young Master, what if the Young Madam ends up on the other side from us?”
Under the cold white glare of the chandelier, Fu Chen’s thin lips pressed into a line of icy indifference.
“Just like the others.”

———

Early the next morning, Fu Chen and Shen Huaiqing left Yun Gui Town. As the car pulled away from the little town, Shen Huaiqing couldn’t help but look back again and again, reluctant to leave.
In just two days, she had basked in all of Fu Chen’s gentleness and lived the happiest days she could remember. It was a pity the camera she’d brought never saw any use—before she could pose for a single photo, everything had taken a turn.
After Fu Chen dropped her off at home, he didn’t even have time to change out of his casual clothes before heading straight to the office. No doubt, a mountain of affairs awaited him after two days away.
Shen Huaiqing quickly called Yu Yunxi.
“Yunxi, did the article about Wen Manchu get published?” she asked, lying on her bed and swinging her legs idly.

On the other end, Yu Yunxi’s voice was brimming with excitement. “It’s out! The response has been huge—our Weibo account gained over a hundred thousand new followers.”
“Did Mengze Entertainment take a hit?” Shen Huaiqing pressed.
“They did! Quite a few people were influenced by our story. Lin Yu even called me himself,” Yu Yunxi replied, her tone calm.
At the mention of Lin Yu’s name, Shen Huaiqing sat up abruptly, her voice grave. “Did Lin Yu give you a hard time? Don’t underestimate him—he might seem careless, but he’s actually very calculating.”
Yu Yunxi stammered a bit. “He didn’t say much, actually. He just treated me to a meal and never even brought up Wen Manchu.”
“What!” Shen Huaiqing’s voice shot up several notches in surprise.
“He didn’t ask anything about me, did he?” She found herself on high alert; after all, she couldn’t fully trust Fu Yixing’s warnings, but she couldn’t dismiss them, either.
Yu Yunxi was quick to reassure her, “No, nothing, you can relax.”
Shen Huaiqing let out a long breath and sprawled back on the bed. Suddenly, she remembered Yu Yunxi’s first encounter with Lin Yu and couldn’t help teasing, “Yunxi, don’t tell me you’ve got a thing for Lin Yu.”
The flustered clatter on the other end betrayed Yu Yunxi’s panic. “Absolutely not! After everything with Wen Manchu, I can’t stand him. There’s no way I’d fall for someone like that.”
“Well, he’s still one of the most eligible bachelors in Nancheng—looks and family background both first-rate. If he invites you to dinner, it’s hard to refuse.”
Shen Huaiqing stretched out the syllables, teasing her further.
“Oh, stop it! How was your romantic getaway with President Fu?” Yu Yunxi hurriedly changed the subject.
Staring at the ceiling, Shen Huaiqing’s mind conjured up Fu Chen’s face and those brooding eyes.
“All in all, it was… not bad,” she replied.
After discussing a few work matters, they hung up. Suddenly, Shen Huaiqing found herself craving a cigarette. But she didn’t feel safe smoking out on the balcony—she was, after all, pregnant now.
She had no choice but to sneak into the bathroom.
Shen Huaiqing wasn’t a regular smoker, but whenever her mind was a tangled mess, she couldn’t resist the urge. Narrowing her star-lit eyes, her slender, pale fingers held the cigarette as she took a deep drag. The curling smoke rose like wild roses blooming, her coldly alluring face half-shrouded in its haze.
Her thoughts drifted back to yesterday, to the man who bore a striking resemblance to Fu Chen—the eldest brother. She hadn’t expected Fu Yixing to be disabled, which explained how Fu Chen, the illegitimate son, had managed to seize power.

Fu Yixing was a man ten times more dangerous than Fu Chen. Though a smile always played on his lips, his eyes could bore two holes right through her.
And what he said had sent chills down her spine—Fu Yixing seemed to know everything.
What truly unsettled her was the fact that Fu Yixing knew the real Shen Huaiqing. If that woman returned to the country, her own act would be over.
At least Fu Yixing had been right about one thing: would Fu Chen still stand by her when that time came? She would have lost all her value to him.
Fu Yixing wanted to join forces, to bring Fu Chen down before her true identity was exposed. As the person closest to Fu Chen, anything she could gather would be both credible and useful.
But Fu Yixing had given her only three days to decide.
In the past, Shen Huaiqing would have cast Fu Chen aside without hesitation. But now, she couldn’t make up her mind—she didn’t want to believe Fu Chen would abandon her so easily.
A sudden knock at the door startled her, and she hurriedly stubbed out her cigarette.
“Young Madam, Madam is here.”
Her head throbbed—troubles piling up one after another. Wearily, she replied, “Aunt Feng, my stomach’s not feeling well. Please ask Madam to wait a moment.”
Aunt Feng’s worried voice came from outside the door. “Are you all right? It’s not the baby, is it?”
Shen Huaiqing quickly clarified, “The baby’s fine. Please go look after Mother.”
Aunt Feng cast a worried glance at the door before heading downstairs to attend to Ke Jing.
“Madam, Young Madam is in the bathroom. She’ll be down in a moment,” Aunt Feng said with a smile as she served tea.
Ke Jing’s face was full of concern, though her movements were relaxed as she sipped her tea. “Is she all right? I blame Chen—why take a trip at a time like this? Now that she’s expecting, she ought to rest at home.”
Aunt Feng agreed, “Young Master just wanted to help Young Madam relax.”
“Let’s hope the baby doesn’t get lost because of carelessness,” a cold glint flashing in Ke Jing’s eyes.