*** = Scene change***** = TimeskipARC 1 (THE CEO), PART 6
— "I"m sorry, I was wrong."
*****
An Qi gave birth to a pair of twins, so she was in the limelight for a while.
The full moon party1In China, a full moon celebration/party is held to celebrate a baby"s first month of birth. Relatives and friends gather to give their blessings and gifts to the new baby. wasn"t until a month later, but Feng Qi had already prepared the gifts. On the day of the celebration, he left work early with Chu Yang.
The car was silent until they reached the second intersection, when Feng Qi suddenly spoke up, "Go back and pick her up."
Chu Yang glanced at the rearview mirror, catching a glimpse of Feng Qi rubbing the tip of his nose and then turning to look out the window. The man was obviously suffering from a guilty conscience. Chu Yang thought it was funny and asked, "President Feng, are you feeling guilty of something?"
Feng Qi coughed. "No one will call you mute if you don"t talk."
"OK," Chu Yang surrendered.
Soon, they reached the entrance of the old Feng manor. Instead of getting off the car, Feng Qi stayed sitting and said weakly, "Err, you call and tell her to come out."
Chu Yang took out his phone but didn"t turn it on. "President Feng, will you please satisfy my curiosity? Otherwise, I won"t call," he drawled as he played with his phone.
Feng Qi leaned back and closed his eyes before reaching up to pull on his necktie. He responded, "We fought last night. She wanted to go back. I locked her in her room."
"…" President Feng, you win. Your subordinate lost.
Almost half a year had pa.s.sed since Qingruo moved into the old manor. Although he still called her "Miss Song," Chu Yang was convinced that he would have to change the address sooner or later. Therefore, he always treated her with plenty of respect and amity.
Qingruo was the same, but for the first time, she responded to his call with a taunt.
"Didn"t Feng Qi say that the one who gives in first is a dog?"
Chu Yang coughed and avoided the subject. "Miss Song, we"re waiting for you outside. Would you mind coming out?"
"Yes, I would."
And with that, she hung up.
Chu Yang kept the phone in his hand as he turned around and stared at Feng Qi in speechless dismay.
"Just how on earth did you manage to anger her to this degree?" Although Feng Qi"s expression had become frighteningly gloomy, Chu Yang didn"t feel a shred of sympathy for him. When it came to Feng Qi, Chu Yang had to admit that Qingruo was even more patient than An Qi had been, and she was so attentive that it was scary.
More importantly, Feng Qi was willing to let her manage him. Of all the money he had won in the clubhouse this year, the amount that was saved up was enough to purchase several villas.
Chu Yang really was curious about how a fight like this could break out between them.
Completely ignoring him, Feng Qi pulled open the door and slammed it shut before stalking toward the manor entrance.
The servants in the manor had been trembling with fear the entire day, and when they saw him enter with a sullen look on his face, they all broke out in a cold sweat.
"Where"s Qingruo?"
"M-Miss Song is inside."
Frowning, he landed a foot on the staircase and turned back around. "Skipped lunch?"
"Yes."
Feng Qi was about to erupt. "F*ck, I really spoiled her too much."
But when he kicked open the door and saw the number of packed suitcases and bags inside, his heart plummeted, and his anger instantly changed into unease. He stood dazedly at the doorway and asked blankly, "Why are you packing up?"
"To go home."
Her answer clawed at his heart. Of course. No matter how long she lived at the manor, it wasn"t her home.
Qingruo didn"t look up, keeping her head down as she squatted by the cabinets, clearing the shelves of her belongings. He stepped in and came to a stop beside her, clenching his hands in his pockets. "Accompany me to An Qi"s full moon party."
She gave a sardonic laugh and lifted her chin. Her gaze contained a legion of thorns. "Why should I?"
It was his first time seeing her like this. She had always been gentle and obedient, as though she would agree to everything he said. Although she did occasionally have her moments of pettiness, he found those moments cute.
Feng Qi couldn"t answer. She was right. Why should she?
Qingruo stood up to leave, but he reached out and caught her wrist. She looked at him with an icy gaze.
"Let go." Her voice dripped with calmness.
He shook his head.
She lightly furrowed her brows and threw a glance at the clock on the wall before saying, "It"s five o"clock. If you keep wasting your time here, you"ll be late to the party."
"Go with me," he insisted.
Qingruo let out a sigh and shrugged, gesturing to the sportswear on her body. "Give me twenty minutes."
He brightened. "Okay."
After she entered the dressing room, Feng Qi patiently took a seat on the sofa in the room and stared at the suitcases on the floor. The more he looked, the more they stung his eyes.
Less than twenty minutes later, Chu Yang called. From his tone, it was hard to tell if he was concerned or gloating.
"Boss, this month"s top supermodel is standing by the car, she said Miss Song called her over to accompany you to the full moon—"
Feng Qi"s phone slammed into the wall, and he choked back his anger as he knocked on the dressing room door.
"Open the door."
No response.
"Qingruo, open the door."
Still no response.
He really wanted to kick the door, but he stopped himself. A nearby maid spoke up nervously, "Sir, Mr. Chu asked—"
Feng Qi growled, "Tell him to scram, I"m not going anymore."
"Yes…"
Half an hour later, he was still standing in front of the dressing room. Chu Yang knocked and asked, "President Feng, how is it?"
By now, Feng Qi was relatively calm. Walking over, he opened the door and tried to keep his voice as steady as possible. "You take the gifts to the full moon, I"m not going."
Chu Yang didn"t try to look inside. Noticing that Feng Qi"s eyes were rimmed with red, he patted him on the shoulder. But he didn"t know what to say.
Chu Yang had never seen the man abstain from s.e.x for so long —a whole year— and especially not when he had a girl around.
After Chu Yang left, Feng Qi also left to get the key to the dressing room. However, just as he was about to use it, he changed his mind and knocked on the door again. "Qingruo, come out. Let"s talk."
He couldn"t deny that at this point, he saw her as something more than just a plaything; at least, he was absolutely certain that he didn"t want to lose her. So, in order to prevent the situation from worsening, he was willing to give in first.
Finally, Qingruo opened the door. When greeted by her red-rimmed eyes and still-cold glare, Feng Qi sighed and reached out to pull her into his arms. He closed his eyes and murmured, "I"m sorry, I was wrong."
Apologizing really wasn"t hard to do. He knew that.
Last night, there was a dinner party that he wanted to take her to. However, she had been feeling under the weather and didn"t want to go.
Because the dinner party was an important one, as it involved several of his business partners, Feng Qi had resorted to using a commanding tone on her.
And in response, she accused him of being disrespectful and said that he was always so headstrong and never listened to the opinions of others.
Eventually, it escalated into a fight, and since it was Feng Qi"s first time quarreling with a woman, he spoke harshly. They"d stood arguing in Qingruo"s room until she told him to get out, and he"d yelled that she was just a plaything anyway, so why would he need to treat her with respect?
That had caused Qingruo to lose her temper, and that was when she started to pack up her things.
At the time, his pride prevented him from giving in. Instead, he"d spat out another insult that naturally backfired on him. The quarrel had ended with him locking her inside her room.
As soon as he yielded, he felt her body relax in his embrace, but only by a little bit. For a moment, he wasn"t sure if he should sigh or be angry. He lifted a hand and rubbed her head. "You skipped breakfast and lunch, are you hungry?"
She turned her head away from his hand. "No."
Since he had already given in, the rest wasn"t hard to do. He wrapped his arms around her waist and placed his chin on her shoulder, rubbing it as he whined softly, "I"m hungry, can you make me something?"
The annoyance on Qingruo"s face was obvious. She narrowed her eyes at him, and he returned the gesture by pitifully blinking his peach blossom eyes.
When she started to squirm, he tightened his arms around her. "What"s wrong?"
"How am I supposed to go cook with you hugging me like this?"
Hiding a smile, Feng Qi stooped down and picked her up in a princess carry. "You can go down like this."
She wrapped her arms around his neck and gave a light "hmph."
The moment the servants saw him carrying her down the staircase, they breathed a sigh of relief and withdrew to give them some s.p.a.ce.
Qingruo searched around in the refrigerator and asked him grumpily, "What do you want to eat?"
He was standing behind her with his arms wrapped stubbornly around her waist, similar to a koala. He listed a few dishes, all of which were her favorites.
When she lowered her head to focus on chopping the vegetables, a few strands of her hair fell forward. He tucked them behind her ear for her and laid a kiss on her neck. Her skin tasted a bit salty, presumably because she had been working to pack up her things. He didn"t mind the saltiness.
"Qingruo, yesterday I was angry. I didn"t mean it. Don"t be mad anymore, okay?"
Qingruo ignored him. Feng Qi waited a moment before lowering his head to observe her expression. He continued, "I"ve never apologized to anyone else, not because I think I"m always right, but because I"m not used to it. I know what I said and did to you was wrong."
Finally, she responded with a softened tone. "Feng Qi, I know you didn"t mean it, but what you said really hurt."
"I know," he said immediately, pressing a kiss on her hair. His words were sincere. "I was wrong, I won"t do it again."
Qingruo shook her head. "I don"t need your promise."
Before he could respond, she lifted a hand and patted him. "Go wait outside, I"m going to start cooking now. It"ll be inconvenient if you keep standing here."
He obediently retreated to the kitchen doorway and continued to watch as she busied about. One of his favorite pastimes was watching her cook. Even if there was smoke everywhere, he would still a burst of warmth in his heart.
Whenever a dish was ready, he would go up and take it to the dining room. Finally, after everything was ready and he was going over to grab the chopsticks, he winked at her and said with a voice full of deliberate cuteness, "I"ll wash the dishes tonight."
With so many servants in the manor? What a rare occasion. Qingruo laughed and nodded.
***
Earlier in the year, Qingruo obtained a hosting certificate and had essentially shed her career as an actress in favor of being a host for a weekly television program.
The program was recorded once a week, and sometimes, she would finish up two weeks" worth of recording in one day.
When she returned to Feng manor one day, all of the servants were stationed at the living room. One of them took her bag for her, and two others brought her upstairs and pushed her into the bathroom. "Miss Song, why don"t you freshen up a bit?"
Black lines2 Like this, I guess. Couldn"t find any suitable pictures. fell from Qingruo"s forehead. Was that even a question? She nodded helplessly. "Mhm, alright."
The two happily left, but then they turned around at the doorway and added, "Miss Song, Master Feng is waiting for you in the dining room."
Qingruo changed into a long wine-red dress. Since a certain someone wanted to give her a surprise, she naturally had to cooperate. She slipped on some silver heels and descended the spiral staircase, holding her skirt.
Feng Qi was decked out in a suit and tie. He was standing in front of the dining table, lighting some candles.
When he heard her arrive, he looked up and stopped what he was doing. Then he took a few steps forward and grasped her hand.
"Baby, you"re so beautiful."
Qingruo laughed. "Thanks."
As he led her to her seat, he smiled gently and beautifully. "I skipped half a day of work, wanting to grill steak for us, but I almost blew up the kitchen."
Qingruo didn"t know whether to laugh or to cry. "You could have waited for me to come back first."
He knocked himself on the head. "Mhm, I wasn"t thinking."
When you said you were going home,
I was sad.
And very afraid.
—【Black Box】
VIN: Isn"t it nice that the fight was resolved so well? And so quickly?
RELEASE SCHEDULE: One arc every month.