Blossom through the Cloud - Chapter 27

Chapter 27

To be honest, the word order, vocabulary, and logic of that sentence far exceeded Fu Mingyu's daily reading range.

So when he finally figured out what Ruan Xian meant, a stifled surge of frustration bounced around inside his chest, and the veins at his temples throbbed faintly.

Meanwhile, the person standing right in front of him didn't even bother to glance at his expression, simply walking right past him and making her way to the door while steadying herself against the wall.

The door was secured with a digital fingerprint lock. For some unknown reason tonight, Ruan Xian pressed her thumb against it twice, but it failed to unlock.

She rubbed her thumb against her clothes and pressed it down again, only to be met with the exact same repetitive error beeps.

Fretfully, she gave the door a kick with the tip of her toe, muttering incoherently under her breath—though it was impossible to make out what she was saying.

Furthermore, she seemed completely oblivious to the fact that she was using the wrong hand.

Watching her drunken state, Fu Mingyu let out a deep sigh, took a step forward, wrapped an arm around her, took hold of her right hand, and firmly pressed her thumb against the scanner.

At the same time, he murmured right beside her ear, "With a mouth as stubborn as yours, I'll pry it open sooner or later."

Right on cue, the door clicked open.

Startled by the sound of the unlocking mechanism, Ruan Xian blinked, turned her head, and asked, "What did you say?"

Fu Mingyu remained silent, simply gazing down at her.

The overhead light cast illumination onto his face, but his eyes were partially shadowed by his prominent brow ridge.

In his gaze, Ruan Xian caught a faint trace of helplessness and compromise.

"......"

After a brief moment of eye contact, Ruan Xian was certain she hadn't misheard him just now.

How could he say something like that!

How on earth did he have the nerve!

"I'll pry your brain open sooner or later to see what's stuffed inside it!"

With that, she yanked the door open and prepared to storm inside, but Fu Mingyu grabbed her arm.

"Ruan Xian!"

"Oh, just let go of me!" Jerking her arm away in a couple of swift tugs, Ruan Xian kicked off her shoes, padded barefoot over to the refrigerator, and pulled out a bottle of mineral water.

Fu Mingyu stood right behind her.

The apartment was dead silent, save for the sound of Ruan Xian throwing her head back to swallow the water.

Seeing her flushed cheeks and bare feet, all the accumulated helplessness in his chest could only churn back and forth without any outlet for release.

"Are you still upset?"

She walked over to the sofa, sat down, grabbed a throw pillow, curled her legs up, and tilted her head against it. A hazy mist of drunkenness flickered in her eyes. When she looked back at Fu Mingyu, the corners of her mouth turned down into a pout.

"I am upset, but it has nothing to do with you, understand? Nothing to do with you, so don't you dare go overthinking things."

"Is that so? Then why did you drink yourself into a state like this today?"

"My mouth is attached to my body, am I not allowed to drink? Besides, why would I be upset because of you? Who even are you to me? Are you my boyfriend or my husband? You're so bizarre."

Fu Mingyu's gaze slowly darkened.

The surroundings suddenly felt stiflingly hot. He turned his head away and reached up to loosen his tie.

Just as he was about to speak, Ruan Xian clutched the pillow, rolled over to face the corner of the sofa, buried her face in the cushion, and presented her back to Fu Mingyu.

"I'm just so envious of Zheng You'an." Her voice muffled out through the gaps in the pillow. "I'm so envious of her..."

Her voice was low and raspy, tinged with intoxication, carrying an unprecedented vulnerability.

A sudden softening tugged at Fu Mingyu's heart.

Walking over to the sofa, he bent down, his broad frame casting a shadow over Ruan Xian.

"Envious of what?"

After muffling into the pillow for a long while, her voice finally drifted out: "Even though they aren't related by blood, they get to be together every single day..."

"What are you talking about?"

"I'm her biological child, yet she didn't want me anymore."

Failing to make sense of her words, Fu Mingyu reached out to brush a stray lock of hair away from Ruan Xian's cheek, asking gently, "Who didn't want you?"

"My mom..."

Fu Mingyu had no idea how her topic had suddenly veered toward her mother, but hearing the hint of a sob in her voice sent a wave of unbidden tightness squeezing his chest.

"You..."

Before Fu Mingyu could finish, Ruan Xian suddenly rolled back over and opened her eyes to stare right at him.

Their faces were less than half a meter apart. Ruan Xian tilted her head back while Fu Mingyu leaned down. Locked in mutual gaze, an instant of silence settled between them.

People in a half-drunk, half-sober state tended to have the strongest urge to unburden themselves. Plenty of tipsy folks would grab the nearest stranger and ramble on about anything from their first love to their buddy's girlfriend.

Yet Ruan Xian couldn't fathom why she was spilling all of this to Fu Mingyu, especially since she hadn't even uttered a single word of it to Si Xiaozhen earlier.

"Why are you still in my apartment?"

Seeing the look in Ruan Xian's eyes, Fu Mingyu knew it—she was at it again.

The hedgehog was retreating back into its shell.

"You didn't lock the door."

"You walked right in just because it wasn't locked? Banks don't lock their doors during the day either, why don't you go rob one?"

Fu Mingyu closed his eyes, let out a sigh, and said, "Ruan Xian, can you talk to me like a normal person?"

"Are you leaving or not?"

"And if I don't leave?"

Gripping the pillow tighter, Ruan Xian hoisted her chin toward the window and declared with fierce menace, "I'll subject you to a nice little free-fall physics experiment right out that window, save you the trouble of taking the elevator."

"..."

Fu Mingyu had no choice but to stand up.

Yet as he reached the doorway and glanced back, he saw Ruan Xian curled up on the sofa, clutching her pillow, and drifting soundly off to sleep just like that.

A helpless smile tugged at the corner of Fu Mingyu's lips.

She truly had zero self-defense instincts.

Abruptly pivoting on his heel, he strode back to the sofa.

The familiar fragrance of Fu Mingyu's cool pine scent drifted into her nose once more, and before Ruan Xian even had a chance to pry her eyes open and see what he was up to, she was swept up off her feet into a bridal carry.

"What do you think you're doing?!?!"

Ruan Xian kicked her legs wildly in protest, but Fu Mingyu's grip was immensely strong, locking her securely against him. Not only did he refuse to let go despite her thrashing, but he even chuckled. "You're getting a bit heavy, you know."

"What do you mean, heavy?! I barely weigh over a hundred pounds!"

"Is a hundred-plus pounds supposed to be light?"

"I'm one hundred and seventy-two centimeters tall!"

"And I'm one hundred and eighty-seven."

"They're both just over a meter, what are you flexing about? Put me down! Or I'm calling the police!"

Mid-banter, Fu Mingyu had already carried her into her bedroom, deposited her onto the mattress, and leaned over, bracing his arms on either side of her head.

"If you're going to sleep, sleep in the bed. Don't cram yourself onto that tiny little sofa."

Hearing those words, Ruan Xian lay flat on her back, her hair a complete mess, blinking in a dazed stupor as she stared up at Fu Mingyu hovering right above her.

Yet the very next second, she heard him add, "If you break your neck falling off that thing, it wouldn't even cover the double annual salary I'm paying you."

You stingy, conniving bastard!

"You sting over every tiny cent, calling you a miser is an insult to misers! At least a miser's iron gets a bit of rust on it, but you're so cheap you pinch pennies even over the rust!"

"..."

To be able to maintain such razor-sharp precision and logic while completely hammered—she really made him wonder where that weak, pitiful persona from moments ago had vanished to.

Taking his third deep breath of the day, Fu Mingyu pulled the duvet up and tucked it over her.

"Go to sleep."

Ruan Xian glared at him without uttering another word.

A moment later, she wrapped herself tightly in the blanket, rolled over to face away from him, and tossed out a parting shot: "Remember to close the door on your way out."

Half a minute later, the lights throughout the apartment clicked off, followed softly by the click of the front door latch.

By the time Fu Mingyu descended to the ground floor, Boyang was waiting in the car and hurriedly stepped out.

"President Fu, it's almost eleven. Are you heading back to Huguang Mansions?"

"Yeah."

Before heading out this morning, Helan Xiang had explicitly reminded him to return tonight, as they were scheduled to visit an elderly family member at the hospital together early the next morning.

However, just as Boyang pulled open the car door, Fu Mingyu remained standing still.

Fumbling through his pockets, he found them empty, so he asked the driver for a cigarette.

Standing beneath the streetlamp, he tilted his head to light the cigarette, casting an elongated shadow on the pavement.

Fu Mingyu took a deep drag, exhaling a slow plume of white smoke that hung suspended in the air before him.

It wasn't until the cigarette burned down to the filter that Fu Mingyu muttered under his breath, "Too hard to handle."

Boyang waited quietly, not daring to ask a single question.

Ever since he learned that Fu Mingyu had left the office specifically to visit Ruan Xian at Minchen Mansions tonight, he had resolved to remain entirely mute.

Neither of these two ticking time bombs was someone he could afford to set off.

Extinguishing the cigarette butt, Fu Mingyu turned and climbed into the car.

In the distance, neon lights bled together into a blurred haze, casting a mottled, shifting glow across Fu Mingyu's face.

With his eyes closed, a faint trace of exhaustion lingered between his brows.

The car drove smoothly, yet he felt entirely devoid of sleep.

Now that the surroundings had grown quiet, he finally had the mental bandwidth to dissect everything Ruan Xian had said.

Just as they were nearing his destination, Fu Mingyu abruptly instructed Boyang, "Look into Zheng You'an... and also investigate Mrs. Zheng."

It was a sudden and seemingly out-of-context directive, but Boyang didn't dare question it, simply nodding in assent.

Upon arriving at Huguang Mansions, the moment Fu Mingyu stepped through the front door, he could sense that the atmosphere in the house was off.

Stripping off his outer jacket, he handed it to Aunt Luo nearby and asked, "What's wrong?"

Aunt Luo knitted her brows slightly and lowered her voice. "She's upset again."

Walking toward the living room, Fu Mingyu saw Helan Xiang sitting on the sofa with her back held rigidly straight, radiating an unmistakable aura of I am in a foul mood, do not provoke me.

Naturally choosing not to poke the bear, Fu Mingyu bypassed the living room entirely and headed straight for the stairs.

But some disasters couldn't be avoided; what had to come would come sooner or later.

Helan Xiang's chilly voice drifted over: "Well, look at that. You come home and can't even bother to say hello? Am I just a decorative statue to you?"

Stopping in his tracks with a suppressed sigh, Fu Mingyu turned around. "What is it?"

Helan Xiang took a slow, measured sip from the bowl of bird's nest in front of her, dabbed the corner of her mouth with a napkin, and spoke up, "Tell me, how can someone be so shameless?"

"Who?"

"Tonight's private auction, right? Everyone knew I was eyeing Master Yue Sanlin's painting. I had the funds ready and everything, but when I got there, lo and behold, the master's painting wasn't even listed among the auction lots. Guess what happened?"

Loosening his tie and unbuttoning his collar, Fu Mingyu offered a weary, perfunctory response. "What happened?"

"Dong Xian went behind everyone's backs and bought the painting privately in advance!"

Lacking the energy to keep listening, Fu Mingyu turned to resume his ascent up the stairs. "You could have done the same."

"What is that supposed to mean?"

Helan Xiang chased after him, making it impossible for Fu Mingyu to walk away.

Sighing, he said, "This isn't the first time something like this has happened. Since it was a private auction, she didn't technically violate any rules—at worst, she just acted a bit quicker on her feet."

"Oh, so it's still my fault? Blame me for not thinking of it ahead of time?"

Fu Mingyu's lips parted as if to say something, but he thought better of it and kept quiet.

"The other attendees didn't throw a fit, did they? Do you see anyone else acting as furious as you?"

Seeing his attitude, Helan Xiang's irritation flared even higher. "What kind of tone is that? Anyone else? What do you mean by anyone else? Are you just like your father, thinking every other woman out there is sweet and sensible while only I'm unreasonable and making a fuss over nothing?"

"I didn't say that."

Helan Xiang let out a sharp "hmph," intending to let him off the hook.

However, whether triggered by a sudden train of thought or sheer stubbornness, Fu Mingyu muttered under his breath, "They're all cut from the same cloth."

"......?"

It took Helan Xiang a few seconds to process what Fu Mingyu meant, after which she directed her anger at his retreating back as he climbed the stairs: "Fu Mingyu, you unfilial brat!"

Closing the door to his study, Fu Mingyu sat down at his desk, tilted his head back, and closed his eyes to rest.

His phone buzzed softly—Boyang was calling back.

Digging into the Zheng family background really didn't require all that much effort.

It was simply that FuMingyu never paid attention to other people's domestic affairs, which was why he had remained entirely in the dark.

Answering the call, Fu Mingyu listened as Boyang methodically laid out the information he had gathered.

"Chairman Zheng and the current Mrs. Zheng are in a remarriage."

"Chairman Zheng's first wife passed away from illness not long after giving birth to Ms. Zheng."

"The current Mrs. Zheng also had a previous husband, though he passed away a long time ago."

Pausing for a beat, Boyang delivered the most crucial piece of intelligence he had uncovered: "Before that marriage, Mrs. Zheng had a daughter. Her name is Ruan Xian."

"......"

A sharp jolt pierced through Fu Mingyu's heart.

Following a long, heavy silence, Fu Mingyu hung up the phone.

Closing his eyes once more, he pieced together all the events of the past few days.

It all made sense now.

Once he understood the connection between Ruan Xian and Zheng You'an, everything fell perfectly into place.

So she hadn't been stubborn for no reason.

So her erratic moods over the past few days genuinely had zero to do with him.

While the initial wave of awkwardness vanished instantly, it was replaced by an inexplicable wave of agitation and a hollow, lingering emptiness.

He couldn't quite put his finger on why, but the feeling remained stubbornly lodged in his chest.