In the evening, Wen Liang bought the two earliest available flight tickets, packed their luggage at the hotel, and rushed straight to the airport.

Their originally planned five-day vacation had been forcibly compressed into exactly 24 hours, and now they were hurriedly returning to Yan City.

Usually, Wen Liang was always nonchalant, as if nothing could make him anxious, with everything seemingly under his control, but right now…

Chen Die felt somewhat desperate.

You don’t need to be in such a hurry!!!

You’re almost thirty, for matters like this, you really don’t need to act like some impetuous youngster!!!

They drove from Wuxi to the airport in the neighboring city, picked up their tickets, checked in their luggage, and then heard an announcement in the waiting hall that the flight was delayed.

Chen Die stood nearby, glancing at Wen Liang from under the brim of her hat, unable to hold back her laughter. She patted his shoulder and comforted him, “Don’t rush.”

Wen Liang looked up and saw her gleeful expression. He slightly narrowed his eyes, scanning her like the edge of a sharpened blade, “You’d better worry about yourself.”

“…”

Hehe.

Just earlier he had been begging her to return home, and now he was turning against her.

It was still early, and for lunch, they had just ordered something simple at the hotel. Chen Die had a small appetite and wasn’t hungry, but she still dragged Wen Liang to the KFC at the airport.

The KFC was crowded. As soon as she entered, she kept her head down and found a seat in a corner on the second floor. She ordered on her phone and asked Wen Liang to go downstairs to pick up the food.

Wen Liang came back shortly.

Chen Die had only ordered a sundae for herself; everything else was for Wen Liang.

After they finished eating, they waited a bit longer, and finally, the boarding announcement was made.

Chen Die thought for a moment, sent a message to Wang Mian saying she had left, and then turned off her phone.

After the plane took off, Chen Die’s schadenfreude gradually disappeared completely. She began to feel nervous. It had been too long since she and Wen Liang had done that thing; counting the time, it had been about half a year.

She now felt as nervous as she had that year when, at 18, she entered Wen Liang’s bedroom with nothing but blind courage.

Thinking again about that feeling of being like a sunken ship in the sea, powerless yet tingling all over, she began to have second thoughts.

Two hours later, the plane landed, arriving at Yan City Airport.

Wen Liang retrieved his car from the garage and drove out of the airport road.

Chen Die’s heart beat faster and faster. She felt this car was practically heading toward an indecent 18+ scene, and her face gradually grew hot.

She couldn’t help but roll down the window a bit. The cool evening breeze blew in, but the temperature on her face didn’t go down—it rose instead.

Soon, Chen Die noticed Wen Liang turning right onto another road. She asked puzzledly, “Aren’t we going home?”

Wen Liang stopped the car in front of a convenience store and glanced at her with a smile, “Don’t be impatient. I’m just going to buy some condoms. We’re out at home.”

Chen Die: “…”

Who the hell is impatient?!!

After a while, Wen Liang returned to the car with a bag and tossed it onto the back seat.

Yes, indeed, it was a bag.

Are you in the wholesale business??

Chen Die’s heart was beating so fast she could hardly breathe. She didn’t dare look at that bag again and turned to stare out the window without blinking.

The scenery outside the car window became increasingly familiar. For six years, Chen Die had passed these buildings and landscapes every time she returned home from school, before driving into the West Suburbs Villa.

With a “bang,” Wen Liang slammed the car door, got out, and picked up the bag from the back seat.

Only then did Chen Die slowly get out, running to Wen Liang’s side, making a last attempt to resist, “Would Zhang Sao be at home now?”

“Probably not.” Wen Liang swiped the fingerprint lock, pressing his index finger against it.

“But I’m a bit hungry and want something to eat.”

With a beep, the door opened. Wen Liang pulled Chen Die inside, and before they even had time to change their shoes, he turned around and pressed her back against the door.

Lowering his head, he said in a hoarse voice, “Hmm, I’ll feed you.”

Chen Die: “…?”

That’s not the kind of hunger I meant!!!

The entire West Suburbs Villa had no lights on, and it was completely dark. Chen Die’s night vision wasn’t good, and she couldn’t see anything for a moment. Wen Liang took complete control.

He bent down, dropping kisses one by one. His lips were slightly cool, but his kisses were scalding hot, mixed with burning breath.

“Wen… Wen Liang.”

Chen Die wanted to escape, but she was completely enveloped by his scent and couldn’t get away. She could only stammer, “Can we go to the bedroom?”

He chuckled softly, obediently bent down to lift her face-to-face, and went upstairs without turning on the lights.

He hooked his leg, slammed the door shut again, and then placed Chen Die down at the bedside.

She was at a loss, and as she was about to lie down on the bed, she felt it would seem too eager, so she stood stiffly in place. Her eyes gradually adjusted to the darkness of the unlit room, and she saw Wen Liang in front of her.

His eyebrows and eyes were downcast, and he had no expression, looking somewhat too serious. Chen Die became even more uncertain about what to do.

After a moment, he tossed the bag onto the bed, raised his hand to undo the button of Chen Die’s jeans, pulled them down, and coaxed her, “Come.”

It started raining outside.

The light in the bedroom had finally been turned on, and the sound of water from the bathroom mixed with the pitter-patter of rain outside.

A storm from late spring to early summer swept in. The window was left slightly ajar, and the wind made the curtains dance wildly. Rain slanted in, hitting the bedroom floor.

Wen Liang, wearing only pants with his upper body bare, came out to close the window and then returned to the bathroom.

Chen Die was soaking in the bathtub, without even the strength to lift a finger.

Wen Liang raised the room temperature, walked into the shower, took a quick rinse, put on a bathrobe, went to Chen Die, and asked, “Are you done bathing? Should I carry you out?”

Chen Die didn’t want to look at him at all and lowered her eyelids, “I want to go back to Li Fan New Garden.”

Wen Liang acted as if he hadn’t heard, reached out to test the water temperature, and pressed the button beside to reheat. He squatted down, “I’ll wash you.”

The chaotic images from earlier crowded into Chen Die’s mind, and in a daze, they overlapped with that time when she was 18. It was also like this—she had lifted a rock only to drop it on her foot. In the end, without strength, she was carried into the bathroom, with red and purple marks all over her body, as if she had been beaten.

The more Chen Die thought about it, the more irritated she became. She slapped the bathtub water, “I’m not staying here!”

The splashing water wet Wen Liang’s bathrobe, but he didn’t mind at all. He rolled up his sleeves, finished washing her, then wrapped her in a bath towel and put her back on the bed.

“You’re a pervert,” Chen Die cursed him weakly.

Wen Liang got into bed from the other side, embraced her, and as if he hadn’t heard her at all, simply responded with a perfunctory, “Mmm.”

“Pervert.”

“Mmm.”

“Hooligan.”

“Mmm.”

Chen Die didn’t even have the strength to roll over. With her eyes closed, she muttered drowsily, “Tell me, did you covet me six years ago already?”

He smiled and again replied, “Mmm.”

“…Beast.”

Wen Liang said calmly, “Do you still have energy?”

“…”

Chen Die shut up.

This was the first time in over half a year that she was lying in bed at the West Suburbs Villa again, the place where she had lived since she was 16. Chen Die had originally thought that when she moved back, she would feel a surge of emotions, but she hadn’t expected it to be like this—so tired she couldn’t even gather her thoughts.

The next morning, when Chen Die woke up, there was no one beside her.

She reached out to touch the sheet; it was still warm, so he must have just gotten up not long ago.

She was about to call him, but her throat felt dry, as if hoarse. Looking up, she saw a cup of warm water on the bedside table.

Chen Die drank half the cup, and her throat finally felt better.

But that place was still sore and uncomfortable.

Chen Die cursed Wen Liang again in her heart before slowly getting up. She caught sight of three condoms thrown in the trash bin, her face flushed, and she dared not look further.

When she left last summer, she had taken all her lotions and potions from the bathroom with her, and now there wasn’t even anything to cleanse her face with. The suitcase they had brought back last night was still downstairs, not yet brought up.

Chen Die had to go downstairs. After just a few steps down the stairs, she saw Wen Liang standing at the door.

He was already properly dressed and seemed to be talking to someone at the door.

Chen Die paused and called him, “Wen Liang.”

He turned around, took three steps up the stairs in two strides, took off his coat and draped it over her shoulders, then ruffled her hair, “Why did you come downstairs?”

Chen Die looked toward the door, “What are you doing?”

“I had someone go to Li Fan New Garden to bring all your things over.”

As he spoke, someone came in carrying a box, bending down to carefully place it on the ground.

“…” Chen Die looked at him helplessly, “Why are you in such a hurry?”

He smiled, “Just afraid you might change your mind again.”

Chen Die was wearing only a nightgown. Although she had Wen Liang’s suit draped over her shoulders, her chest still showed a large area of smooth, fair skin scattered with a few mottled red marks.

Wen Liang’s eyes darkened slightly. After looking for a while, he put his arm around her waist and said, “You go upstairs first. Moving your things will take a while.”

He didn’t want others to see Chen Die like this, though there was no need to worry—those people didn’t dare look at their boss being affectionate with someone, all with their heads lowered almost to the ground.

“My skincare products and clothes are in yesterday’s suitcase,” Chen Die said.

“Alright, I’ll bring it up for you.”

Chen Die returned to the upstairs bedroom. Shortly after, Wen Liang brought up her white suitcase, opened it for her, and took her makeup bag to the bathroom.

Wen Liang leaned against a wall and asked, “Are you still in pain?”

Chen Die’s hand, which was unzipping the makeup bag, paused, “…”

In broad daylight…

Shameless.

“…You’d better shut up.”

After thoroughly enjoying her, Wen Liang’s temper was now so good it was unlike him. He smiled and coaxed her with a few more words before going downstairs.

Chen Die had lived at Li Fan New Garden for quite a long time, and she had many miscellaneous things.

After washing up, and applying moisturizer and essence, she yawned, feeling her legs so sore she could barely stand. She didn’t put on makeup and fell back into bed for a nap.

When she woke up again, Wen Liang had returned, lying beside her, looking at emails on his tablet.

Chen Die was startled and asked confusedly, rubbing her eyes, “Don’t you need to go to work today?”

“No need. Originally, we should still be traveling now, and all work has been delegated.”

Chen Die nodded and leaned over to look at the emails on his tablet. They were all in English, which hurt her eyes. She sat up straight, and at that moment, her phone rang.

Wen Liang went to get the phone for her.

It was Fang Ruan calling. Chen Die answered, “Hello?”

“Are you still in Wuxi?” Fang Ruan asked.

“No, I just came back yesterday. I forgot to tell you. Is it about the crew?”

“No, no, for the crew, just join at the usual time, and there will be a script reading meeting the day before. I’m calling to tell you there’s an event the day after tomorrow, the Film and TV Night.”

Chen Die raised her eyebrows, having never heard of this event before, “Hmm? The evening after tomorrow?”

“Yes, the invited stars are selected through voting. The voting channel opened early, and your invitation was added after your movie came out. Your fans voted overnight to finally get you an invitation.”

Chen Die smiled, “Alright, got it.”

After hanging up, Chen Die told Wen Liang about this matter. He raised an eyebrow, seemingly indifferent, “Then I’ll go with you.”

“Huh?”

“I also have an invitation. Originally, I was going to have someone represent me.”

Wen Yuan had begun extending its reach into the entertainment sector, and as such a large enterprise, it naturally received invitations to such events.

Chen Die rested for a day at the West Suburbs Villa.

By noon, Zhang Sao was already preparing lunch and had helped her organize all those miscellaneous pieces of luggage. Seeing her come downstairs, Zhang Sao held her hand and chatted with her for quite a while.

The next day, Fang Ruan wanted to bring Chen Die an evening gown for the Film and TV Night event and learned that she was now living with Wen Liang.

She was angry but didn’t dare express it, fearing paparazzi would catch them and cause gossip. She told Chen Die several times, but Chen Die was stubborn and wouldn’t listen, only promising to be more careful.

Fang Ruan had no choice but to seek help from her boss, who was also Chen Die’s cousin.

In the evening, after Chen Die had just finished her shower and gotten into bed, Chen Shao called her.

Chen Die kicked off her slippers, got into bed, and swiped to answer, “What?”

“You’re living with Wen Liang?”

“…Ah.” She implicitly acknowledged.

“No.” Chen Shao laughed angrily, “Are you really stupid? How long have you two been together, and you’re already sleeping with him?”

“…”

Chen Die thought to herself that even before they were together, they had already slept together.

Besides, they’d been together for quite a while now, hadn’t they…

Seeing her silence, Chen Shao criticized her more vigorously, “You’re a young girl, how long has it been since you graduated, and you’re already living together? Move out immediately. Wen Liang is such a dog, not teaching you well, only leading you down a bad path.”

The more Chen Die listened, the more amused she felt. Chen Shao’s words didn’t sound like they were coming from a boss’s perspective, afraid of his client being photographed by paparazzi, but completely like a discipline teacher lecturing about propriety and shame.

“Aren’t you forgetting something?” Chen Die couldn’t help saying, “What do you mean by learning to live together? I lived here before, for six years.”

“You still have the nerve to say that! If you don’t move out, I’ll consider your contract violated!”

Chen Die had known Chen Shao for some time and had some understanding of his character.

He wasn’t a bad person, and unlike Wen Liang, he probably had never experienced any setbacks from childhood to adulthood. He was a bit mischievous, like playing pranks, but his heart was in the right place.

Chen Die wasn’t sure at which moment Chen Shao had truly started to show bias toward her, but the first time she felt his kindness was at the hospital when Wen Huaiyuan passed away.

And now.

Chen Die smiled, not afraid of him, and joked, “Well then, I’ll have Wen Liang pay a breach of contract fee, and I might as well sign with his company.”

At that moment, Wen Liang walked into the bedroom, heard the latter half of her sentence, raised an eyebrow, and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Chen Shao was so angry at her words that his liver hurt, and he berated her nonstop.

Chen Die’s ears were hurting from the noise, so she held the phone a bit farther away and mouthed to Wen Liang, saying it was Chen Shao.

“Alright, don’t worry, we won’t be caught by paparazzi. Wen Liang has already given a warning; even if they take photos, they wouldn’t dare publish them.”

As soon as Chen Die finished speaking, Wen Liang took her phone and put it to his ear, saying a brief “hello.”

Chen Die: “…”

She remembered how Ye Chuqing had once described these two—one mountain cannot accommodate two idiots.

Chen Die inexplicably sensed a murderous aura.

Wen Liang, however, was very relaxed. Chen Die sat on the bed, and he stood in front of her, head lowered, raising his hand to scratch under her chin as if teasing a small animal.

This scene would have been quite heartwarming if not for Chen Shao’s cursing coming from the phone.

After a while, Wen Liang finally spoke, “Done cursing?”

He sneered softly, “If Chen Die doesn’t live with me, she’ll live at your place? You think you’re her brother?”

Chen Die: “…”

That was perhaps a bit too harsh.

She tugged Wen Liang’s sleeve twice, took back her phone, and considered how to mend Chen Shao’s fragile heart, “Um…”

Chen Shao was furious, “Chen Die! If you continue to live with this savage, don’t call me brother anymore!!!”

She had always heard him jokingly call her “little sister,” but this seemed to be the first time she heard him seriously call her by name.

And…

She had never called him brother, had she?

But she didn’t dare say this out loud, fearing that she and Wen Liang together would make Chen Shao spit blood. She explained, “I’ve already moved all my things over…”

Wen Liang in front of her frowned, “How much longer are you going to chat with him?”

Chen Shao also heard his voice, “Look at this guy, even controlling your phone calls. He thinks too highly of himself. If you keep this up, you’ll be doomed sooner or later!!!”

Chen Die: “…”

She was just the poor “cicada” in the scenario of “a praying mantis catches a cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.”

“Both of you, calm down,” Chen Die said with difficulty.

She thought for a moment, appeasing Wen Liang with her actions, her finger curling around his pinky finger while saying to Chen Shao, “I’ll handle this matter myself, don’t worry. Besides, my fans don’t care about my dating. The reason we initially decided to keep it secret with Sister Fang Ruan was just hoping it would be better to go public after achieving some success. Moreover, Wen Liang is outside the circle, so the impact isn’t that big…”

Before she could finish, Wen Liang bent down and gently bit her ear, extending his tongue to lick her ear.

Chen Die’s throat tightened. This came without any warning, and she suddenly couldn’t speak.

Wen Liang pressed her wrist, his index finger pushing forward. She loosened her grip, and the phone fell onto the bed.

Taking advantage of the fact that the call was still connected and Chen Die couldn’t speak, Wen Liang directly lifted the hem of her nightgown, his palm sliding up her thigh.

Leisurely, he leaned against her ear and said softly, “Hang up the phone, okay?”

At this point, how could Chen Die refuse? She bit her lip and nodded desperately.

Wen Liang smiled, hung up the call with Chen Shao, set the phone to silent, and tossed it aside, then covered her with his body.

The consequence of indulging Wen Liang was that by the time she changed into the spaghetti strap evening gown for the Film and TV Night, the red marks on her collarbone and chest were impossible to hide.

There were dedicated makeup artists for the event. Chen Die only applied light makeup on herself, then sat at the makeup table, concentrating on applying concealer to her body.

Chen Die had hardly used this concealer since buying it. There wasn’t much on her face that needed concealing; she would only cover dark circles occasionally after staying up too late. She never expected to find the true use for this concealer now.

Wen Liang sat behind her, watching as she applied it bit by bit on her neck, covering all the marks he had left.

“Why are you applying so much?” he frowned.

Chen Die was speechless, “You have the nerve to ask.”

“Just change into another gown. You’re spending an hour applying this stuff on what’s a piece of rag.”

“…”

Chen Die looked at herself in the mirror.

She was very suitable for spaghetti strap gowns because her collarbone and shoulder lines were very beautiful. The front of this strap dress wasn’t a deep V, but the side had a slit, like a qipao, with her legs partially visible, wrapping her figure and showing off her curvy body.

Fang Ruan had a reason for preparing this evening gown for her—because the image in “Ah Xiao” was that of a qipao beauty, and they planned to use Chen Die’s image from this event for linked promotion.

Chen Die finally finished applying the concealer and checked that there was indeed no spot missed before getting up to turn in front of the mirror. Very satisfied, she glanced at Wen Liang, “It’s this kind of ‘rag’ that looks so good.”

“…”

In the evening, the Film and TV Night event was about to begin.

Fang Ruan had picked up Chen Die from the West Suburbs Villa early, and she was groomed by the invited makeup artist, with attention to every detail, which took more than an hour.

The Film and TV Night was a grand event.

Reporters had already filled both sides of the red carpet. Lights, live broadcast equipment, and hosts were all in place as the event officially began.

Although Chen Die hadn’t released new works since filming “Flower Hairpin,” she had never disappeared from the public eye thanks to the variety show “Three Meals a Day,” maintaining her discussion and topic popularity.

As soon as she walked onto the red carpet, reporters raised their cameras and began shooting.

She had done several magazine photoshoots later and could now handle such high-frequency flashlights with ease.

Chen Die waved to the cameras in greeting and walked to the signature board.

The host asked, “So what work will Chen Die bring to us next time?”

Chen Die took the microphone, “Next, I’m about to start filming ‘Ah Xiao.’ I hope everyone can support it.”

After a few more questions, Chen Die took the pen and signed her name on the signature board behind, waved to the cameras one last time, and then left the stage from one side to enter the main venue.

At the same time, Wen Liang entered from the other side through the non-celebrity VIP entrance, and the two met face to face.

Chen Die paused, maintaining her composure and pretending not to know him well, nodded to Wen Liang, and then walked straight past him into the venue.

Wen Liang watched her back and smiled slightly.

The live broadcast’s barrage of comments at this moment:

Ahhhhhhh!!! What did I just see!!! The CP I’ve been shipping finally appeared in the same frame!!!!!!

As expected, when the tortured love CP appears, it’s… that second just now felt like I consumed a hundred tons of angst _(:::з」∠)_

A real meeting equals a real knife to the heart.

Ah, my Die-mei was still a sweet girl when answering the host’s questions just now, but how come she doesn’t even smile when she sees Wen CEO!?

I want to ship these two so badly. Since it’s impossible in reality, are there any writers writing about them? Handing over a pen to the writers.

Sob, sob, Wen CEO’s smile at the end was truly melancholic.

…

Chen Die had no idea about the wild imaginations in the live broadcast room. After finding her seat, she sat down, and coincidentally, Qi Cheng was right beside her.

“Long time no see.” Qi Cheng greeted her first.

Chen Die smiled, “Mmm, what have you been busy with lately?”

“I’ve taken a TV drama script to play a pilot, and I’ll be going for training in a few days.”

“Learning to fly a plane?”

Qi Cheng smiled, “Yes.”

The two hadn’t seen each other since the end of the “Flower Hairpin” promotion. Qi Cheng was the first celebrity Chen Die had met in the industry, and they chatted on and off.

After everyone had entered and taken their seats, the evening event began.

The beginning was all pleasantries, and no one listened, all whispering to those beside them.

Chen Die took out her phone, wanting to see how her red carpet photos turned out.

This Film and TV Night was hosted by Weibo, and several hot searches were already up there, with “Film and TV Night” as the top search term. Below were hot searches for some popular stars attending the event, with Chen Die also among the top.

Suddenly, her gaze moved downward, and she saw one:

#WenDie Tortured Love#

“???”

This could trend?

They hadn’t even spoken to each other, had they??

Driven by curiosity, Chen Die half-covered her phone screen and carefully clicked on that hot search term.

The first entry was content from the WenDie CP super topic.

I’m crying, it’s heart-wrenching…

Below are two GIFs.

One showed the entire event hall, with Wen Liang sitting on the left, Chen Die on the right, and a sea of people in between. Wen Liang was turning his head, his gaze piercing through the crowd, falling on Chen Die. The stage lights shone down, reflecting in Wen Liang’s pupils, making him appear even more deeply affectionate.

The other was a close-up of Chen Die and Qi Cheng, both smiling and excitedly chatting.

And the top comment was a comparison GIF of Chen Die seeing Wen Liang earlier, giving only a faint nod.

I’m having shrimp-and-pork-heart feelings!!! This contrast is too tragic!!!

Maybe… I should go back to shipping the Flower Hairpin CP… it’s too painful here.

One second I was marveling at my Die-mei’s divine beauty, the next second the smile on her face instantly froze.

Wen CEO really… ah… I feel heartbroken for him.

Sob, sob, Die-mei, please look back, Wen CEO has been watching you all along T.T.

Chen Die: …