Blossom through the Cloud - Chapter 75

Chapter 75

Though the chaos had subsided only by the middle of the night, leaving her utterly drained and her eyelids feeling as heavy as lead, Ruan Suxian still had no desire to sleep.

The blackout curtains were impeccably thick, keeping the room pitch black despite the neon lights flashing in the outside world.

Curled up under the covers, Ruan Suxian rambled on about this and that, eventually drifting off to sleep without even realizing it. The next morning, it was Fu Mingyu who woke her up.

Once aboard the plane, Ruan Suxian donned an eye mask to catch up on some sleep, but to her dismay, a child seated nearby cried throughout the entire flight. No amount of singing, pacing, or comforting by the parents made any difference.

Consequently, upon landing, Ruan Suxian opened her eyes and sat motionless against her seat for a long while, her expression carrying a hint of world-weary exhaustion. The young girl in the neighboring seat who had borrowed her charger earlier didn't even dare to say much, hurriedly uttering a quick "thank you" before fleeing the aircraft.

The plane had not parked at a jet bridge, so the first-class passengers boarded the tarmac shuttle bus first.

Ruan Suxian boarded last, resting her head against the bus window with her eyes half-closed, looking as though she might fall asleep the very next second.

As the shuttle bus slowly approached the terminal, a sudden brake sent her forehead colliding straight against the window, instantly banishing all traces of sleepiness.

Rubbing her eyes, she looked out the window and spotted two young men hauling some equipment across the tarmac, moving at a brisk pace.

Finding the two young men inexplicably familiar, she lingered on them for a few extra moments. Following the line of their destination, she first spotted a light reflector, then a tripod, and standing right beside them was... Zheng You'an?

"What are you doing here?"

Dragging her flight case, Ruan Suxian ambled over to the tarmac, only asking the question after noticing an elderly man still sitting in a chair nearby. Recalling the photo on Fu Mingyu's phone, the corners of her mouth twitched. "Is President Yan here too?"

Yan An, who had been leisurely crossing his legs while checking his phone, heard Ruan Suxian's voice, lifted his gaze, and caught her expression, which inexplicably gave him goosebumps.

Yet Yan An had a clear conscience.

He put away his phone, picked up a cup of nearby coffee, and took two composed sips. "What?"

"Nothing." Ruan Suxian leaned against her luggage case, scanned her surroundings, and said with a smile, "I just wanted to ask when you plan to go to the movies next time so I can steer clear."

"You—"

Yan An felt a slight surge of irritation, but thought better of it.

He wouldn't argue with a woman.

However, he had kindly gone out of his way to tip off Fu Mingyu, only for that ungrateful man to not appreciate his good intentions and bite the hand that fed him.

Turning around and noticing Zheng You'an sizing him up, he stood up and straightened his collar. "Ask Zheng You'an that. Whenever she feels like going to the movies bright and early in the morning, that's when I'll go."

With that, he carried his coffee cup over to Zheng You'an's side, tapped her shoulder, and said, "I'm going to the restroom."

In the fading sunlight, Zheng You'an kept her eyes fixed on the camera viewfinder without missing a beat. "Oh."

Yan An wanted to say more, but seeing Zheng You'an's attitude, he simply shut his mouth.

As he passed by Ruan Suxian and saw that she didn't look displeased in the least, he realized that whatever had happened the other day was likely just some messy misunderstanding, so he didn't bother inquiring further.

The shooting session behind them was also drawing to a close. When Ruan Suxian turned back, she saw several pilots sweating profusely from their foreheads, looking at the photographer before them with a mixture of resentment and helplessness.

Meanwhile, Zheng You'an flipped through the photos on the display screen and frowned. "What do you think?"

Are you talking to me?

Ruan Suxian leaned in halfway to take a look and nodded. "Not bad."

"Not bad?!" Zheng You'an turned off the camera and rested her hands on the tripod. "Not bad means it's no good. You and your boyfriend have the exact same aesthetic standards."

Ruan Suxian: "......?"

Nothing in this world is eternal, but Zheng You'an certainly is.

Still, with the sky growing dark, even if Zheng You'an wanted to continue torturing people, she would have to reschedule.

She raised a hand to signal her assistant to pack up the equipment, granting a temporary reprieve to those pitiful, non-professional models.

Now, without needing Zheng You'an to answer, Ruan Suxian already knew why she was here.

"Are you shooting this year's promotional photos for the air show for Beihang this time?"

"That's right."

Zheng You'an nodded, accepted the bottle of water handed over by her assistant, took a couple of sips, and darted her eyes around. "Yesterday morning..."

"Classmate, accidental encounter, not acquainted."

"Oh......"

Ruan Suxian raised a hand to block the glare of the sun, pulled her flight case forward to leave, but then heard Zheng You'an ask, "You didn't just fly back from Singapore, did you? Did you run all the way over there yourself to clear your name?"

"What else? I certainly owe it all to your kindness."

Ruan Suxian looked back and asked, "Speaking of which, I'm curious too. Were you and Yan An seriously so short on a warm bed that you had to go to the movies at the crack of dawn?"

"Don't talk nonsense, we didn't sleep together."

"......"

Was that really the main point here?

Wait.

Ruan Suxian tilted her head, deeply puzzled. "What do you mean? Are you and Yan An dating?"

"Pretty much."

Pretty much?

You can just "pretty much" your way into a relationship?

Ruan Suxian found herself a bit out of her depth when it came to the world of the wealthy, while Zheng You'an stirred her straw with a look of utter indifference.

"We're getting engaged."

"Huh?"

No matter how shocked Ruan Suxian was, the engagement between Zheng You'an and Yan An was a done deal.

Two months later, both she and Fu Mingyu received wedding invitations for an engagement banquet held at the Warner Manor on the eve of the August Valentine's Day.

Fu Mingyu had been invited by the Yan family, whereas Ruan Suxian received a personal invitation sent directly by Zheng You'an.

In fact, throughout those two months, Ruan Suxian had heard Fu Mingyu mention this matter piecemeal.

It wasn't exactly sudden; the two families had been discussing it for a long time.

"So, is this a business marriage of convenience?"

Ruan Suxian asked.

On the other end of the video call, Fu Mingyu reclined against the headboard, lazily flipping through a book in his hands. "A marriage of convenience requires both families to be on equal footing. Their situation doesn't count."

"Then what do you call it?"

Fu Mingyu raised his eyes to look into the camera. "Given the current state of the Zheng family, they need someone to pull them out of the mire."

"Is their situation really that dire......" Ruan Suxian muttered. "Just last month, I saw them throw a pretty lavish anniversary celebration."

The wedding anniversary she referred to was naturally Dong Xian and Zheng Taichu's.

"Precisely because of that, outward appearances of prosperity are things they can least afford to lack," Fu Mingyu said. "Two years ago, the Zheng family's capital flow and operational status already collapsed. They—"

Fu Mingyu paused for a moment and left the thought unfinished.

"When is your plateau route examination?"

"Next month."

Ruan Suxian steered the conversation back, seeming quite intrigued by the topic. "That doesn't sound right, though. What kind of person is President Yan? Would he genuinely be willing to bail out the Zheng family just like that, giving up his vast forest of other options?"

"Do you take the Yan family for a charity?"

Fu Mingyu said, "Even though the Zheng family is tottering on the brink, their decades-old foundation in the hotel industry is still there. The financial and material resources the Yan family spends to pull them up will yield absolute returns that are well worth it. In a few years' time, the actual profits of the Zheng family's hotels will start flowing directly into the Yan family's pockets."

He didn't voice the rest of the implications, but Ruan Suxian understood completely.

Making this decision meant nothing less than willingly becoming a subject.

Though losing sovereignty, it at least shielded them from carrying crushing debts.

As for this marriage, it was merely a ruler placed by the Zheng family inside the Yan family's domain, defining the bottom line of how the Yan family would act.

Ruan Suxian propped her chin in her hand, appearing somewhat lost in thought.

Fu Mingyu stood up, leaving only his lower body visible within the frame.

He took a couple of steps back, pulled off his shirt, tossed it onto the bed, and without putting on anything else, picked up an iPad to browse through something.

Ruan Suxian let her gaze wander twice over the V-shaped line of his lower abdomen, scratched her ear, and asked with feigned nonchalance, "Did they ever try to target you before?"

After all, if a "marriage of convenience" was on the table, Ruan Suxian felt Fu Mingyu looked far more suitable than Yan An by any measure.

"Yes."

Fu Mingyu answered so matter-of-factly that Ruan Suxian suddenly didn't know what to say.

A sudden wave of lingering fright washed over her.

Though this "fright" was completely redundant at this point in time.

"Ah......" Ruan Suxian felt her heart skip a beat, and she said in a very quiet voice, "That was close."

Yet Fu Mingyu still heard it. He looked back at the camera. "Close in what way? I rejected them back then."

"When?"

"The first time you hit on me."

Ruan Suxian's pupils dilated in shock, finding this man utterly eccentric.

"So you turned them down because of me?"

Fu Mingyu walked up to the camera. The dim, warm light washed over his features, softening his contours and making him look as though he were right within arm's reach.

"That's right. Flattered?"

Ruan Suxian stared at him for a long moment, utterly staggered by his self-assurance. "You are so arrogant. Nothing was even settled yet, and you dared to make a gamble like that?"

What if he hadn't managed to win her over? Wouldn't he have taken a massive loss?

"But history proved," Fu Mingyu looked at her quietly, "that I was right."

Outside the window, the cicadas of summer chirped incessantly, pulling memories back to that exact time last year.

It felt as if it had happened only yesterday, yet simultaneously as though a long time had passed.

Faint, twinkling points of light danced within Ruan Suxian's eyes as she gazed at Fu Mingyu through the tiny screen.

She could feel it—that sensation of being resolutely chosen, leaving all hesitation and bargaining chips behind.

There were many things she wanted to say, but when they reached the tip of her tongue, they dissolved into a single, simple sentence.

"Hurry up and come back."

By August, Fu Mingyu had already concluded his work in Singapore, but instead of returning immediately, he was touring various overseas branches with his team to conduct spot-checks. Bouncing around like a game of Chinese checkers, he was in Australia today, the Americas the day after tomorrow, and Europe two days after that.

The engagement banquet for Zheng You'an and Yan An was also scheduled for this month, and Ruan Suxian received a call a week in advance asking her to come in for dress fittings.

There was a bespoke gown atelier in Jiangcheng whose proprietor was one of the rare domestic designers holding membership in the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode in Paris. They specialized in semi-custom gowns modified strictly from established base patterns. The turnaround time was short, making the atelier immensely sought-after in Jiangcheng.

Ruan Suxian hadn't even wanted a semi-custom gown and would have preferred to simply buy something ready-made for convenience, but Helan Xiang had strongly recommended this place, and feeling it rude to refuse, she carved out some time to pick a style. Today, the finished product was ready for her to try on.

Since it was someone else's engagement banquet, guests knew better than to upstage the hosts. Ruan Suxian had settled on a pearl-white spaghetti-strap mermaid gown.

The style was simple and clung neatly to her figure, which suited her minimalist requirements.

She snapped a photo of herself in the mirror and sent it to Fu Mingyu.

"Does this look good?"

After waiting two minutes without a reply from Fu Mingyu, Ruan Suxian let it go.

When she spoke to him on the phone yesterday morning, he was still in Dubai. Having stayed up late through the night, he was probably catching up on sleep right now.

While waiting in the boutique for her items to be packaged, an attendant offered to show Ruan Suxian some other styles.

With time to spare, Ruan Suxian followed her up to the second floor to browse the new arrivals on display in the glass cabinets.

Just as she reached the top of the stairs, however, she caught several familiar voices.

Once her view opened up, she saw that the people standing before a massive mirror were indeed Zheng You'an and Dong Xian.

Zheng You'an was wearing a pale gold long gown inlaid with countless micro-diamonds along the hem, which caught the light and shimmered brilliantly with every step she took.

Dong Xian was fluttering around her busily, alternately complaining that the waist needed to be taken in further or fretting that the off-the-shoulder neckline was too tight.

She even found fault with the matching lace gloves.

"Whatever," Zheng You'an said. "Just go through the motions and that's enough."

"That won't do." Dong Xian called someone over to retake the measurements. "An engagement only happens once in a lifetime, how can we just brush it off?"

Zheng You'an looked down to adjust her gloves and muttered under her breath, "Who knows if it'll be the only one."

Dong Xian's expression shifted. The words stuck in her throat, her voice changing pitch.

"An-an, your father and I... we've really failed you."

Unaware that anyone was standing behind them, they hadn't lowered their voices, and Ruan Suxian heard every single word crystal clear.

She frowned.

It wasn't just Zheng You'an whom she had failed.

"There's no need to talk about failing anyone." Feeling tired of standing, Zheng You'an gathered her skirt, sat down on the sofa, and patted the seat beside her. "I always have to sacrifice something for this family, and besides, Brother Yan An isn't bad. The family has money, he's handsome, and he's still young. Look around the pool of eligible choices, and he's practically the best option, right?"

Seeing that Dong Xian remained standing, Zheng You'an lowered her gaze to smooth out her skirt and continued on her own: "If we end up getting divorced later, I'll still walk away with a massive payout. By that time, our family's business should have recovered anyway, so I can just go marry some pretty boy. He doesn't even need to be rich, as long as he just listens to me."

Dong Xian drew a sharp breath, pulled Zheng You'an into an embrace, and rested her head against her waist.

"It's alright, dear. If he ever treats you poorly, you can always come back home."

Ruan Suxian watched from behind for a moment, finding the scene rather bleak and hollow.

The display felt heartbreakingly alien to her, as though stepping into it would only make her an outsider intruding upon a scene of familial harmony.

Before she could even turn around to leave, however, Zheng You'an spotted her reflection in the mirror.

"You're here too?"

At Zheng You'an's words, Dong Xian turned around as well.

"Yeah." Ruan Suxian was forced to walk forward. "I came to pick up my clothes."

Zheng You'an turned back to size up Dong Xian and Ruan Suxian, then suddenly lifted her skirt and said, "This thing is too exhausting to wear, I'm going to go change out of it."

She retreated into the fitting room, leaving Dong Xian staring straight at Ruan Suxian.

Ever since their encounter at home, with winter turning to summer, the two of them hadn't seen each other for well over half a year.

An attendant brought over a cup of hot tea for Ruan Suxian and placed it on the table.

Wisps of white steam curled upward, drifting between their lines of sight.

Under normal circumstances, Ruan Suxian would have already walked away.

But today was different.

After a prolonged silence, she suddenly spoke up: "Today is Dad's birthday."

Dong Xian froze, evidently having forgotten entirely.

This was the exact reaction Ruan Suxian had anticipated.

She let out a soft sigh. "Never mind, I'll be going."

"Wait a moment." Dong Xian stopped her. "Ruanruan, are you still holding a grudge against me over what happened between your father and me?"

Ruan Suxian felt utterly helpless, a sharp prick of pain stabbing at her heart, yet she had no idea how to articulate it.

Saying too much felt like making a mountain out of a molehill, while saying nothing left Dong Xian free to bring it up again.

Before Ruan Suxian could reply, Dong Xian spoke up on her own.

"There are some things I didn't explain before because you were still too young to understand."

She paused. "Later—"

"Just say it straight," Ruan Suxian interrupted. "You can skip all the beating around the bush."

Dong Xian appeared to be gathering her thoughts, holding back for a brief moment before saying, "As a mother, I failed you. But as a wife, I did everything I possibly could."

And she truly had.

Ruan Suxian thought back to the laundry, the cooking, the care given to her husband—she had indeed performed those duties impeccably.

"As for why I asked for a divorce, I admit I was selfish."

She continued, "When Director Guo found me, I was thirty-seven years old."

She bit down hard on those words. "I was thirty-seven years old. If I had let that slip past, I would never have had another chance in this lifetime."

Ruan Suxian understood what she meant, but she still couldn't bring herself to accept it.

"Does one preclude the other?"

"At first, I thought they didn't conflict either." Recalling the past, Dong Xian pressed her hand to her brow, her expression detached. "But reality wasn't as wonderful as I imagined. Nothing comes without a price in time and energy. If I wanted to sign a contract with Director Guo, I had to travel far and wide with him, go into seclusion for creative work, and produce new pieces, which meant I was inevitably destined to be unable to stay at home the way I used to."

Ruan Suxian remained silent, while Dong Xian's train of thought grew increasingly muddled as she muttered once more: "I was thirty-seven years old. Ever since I married your father at twenty-two, for fifteen years, I served my husband, raised the child, and respected the elders. I honestly thought my entire life would just end up like that. Then a patron appeared, and my very first reaction was to go talk to your father about it. But what about him?"

Ruan Suxian: "He......"

Dong Xian switched hands, lowered her eyes, and spoke to herself: "I will never forget what he said: 'You're a wife and a mother. If you go off chasing your dreams, what happens to the family?'."

The words she had originally intended to say suddenly caught in her throat. Ruan Suxian fell silent, listening to Dong Xian speak with a quiet stillness she had never offered before.

Yet Dong Xian didn't continue down that path, perhaps remembering the bitter quarrels sealed behind closed doors that still gave her a headache to this day.

"I was indeed selfish. Back then, after divorcing your father, I truly never considered taking you with me. I knew my life would lack a fixed home for the next few years, and it wouldn't be suitable for you to tag along. So I believed leaving you at home, letting you stay with your father to study and live your life, was the best option."

She raised her eyes to look at Ruan Suxian, the fine wrinkles at the corners of her eyes belying the efforts of cosmetics to conceal them.

"It's my fault. I didn't stay by your side as you grew up, and I failed to fulfill my responsibilities as a mother."

Zheng You'an lingered in the fitting room for a long while, her legs aching from standing. Peeking through the gap a few times, she finally waited until Ruan Suxian stood up to leave.

She took a breath, readied herself to step out, but then heard Dong Xian say: "Can't you give me a chance to make it up to you?"

Her hand paused on the doorknob.

Zheng You'an quietly retreated back inside.

"Forget it."

After remaining silent for a long time, Ruan Suxian only uttered those two words.

When the secrets belonging to one's parents were laid bare, she felt a trace of surprise, yet it wasn't entirely unacceptable either.

After all, she knew her father well enough to know he possessed a stubborn streak of old-school chauvinism.

She could even understand Dong Xian's choices now.

But so what?

The consequences of those choices were not meant to be borne by her.

"What is there to make up for?"

Ruan Suxian shrugged her shoulders. "When I was a teenager, what I lacked was a doll, a floral print dress, a pair of little leather shoes. Are you going to hand those over to me now? It's meaningless. I don't need them anymore."

Dong Xian closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "Ruanruan, we are mother and daughter by blood, after all."

"I know, I haven't denied that. You are still my mother, and that's something that can never change for the rest of my life. Furthermore, I understand your choice now. But affection requires companionship, and when I needed you most, you weren't by my side. Now that I've grown up, I can do everything and buy everything for myself. I even have a boyfriend now, and he is my greatest pillar of support."

Seeing that Dong Xian still looked somewhat uncomprehending, Ruan Suxian spelled it out word by word. "Put simply, any compensation you offer now is of little consequence to me, so it holds very little meaning. Relationships have varying degrees of closeness. You and I belong to the category of a rather cold and distant mother-daughter pair, but I will still call you mom. If you ever need me to—say, when I eventually get married and have children—your status will remain whatever it rightfully is; none of that will change."

"However, if you're trying to deliberately carve out and repair something that's gone, let's skip it. It's just too exhausting."

When she stepped outside, the driver was still waiting by the curb. He loaded her packages into the trunk and then held the door open for her.

Ruan Suxian stood by the roadside for a moment instead of immediately getting in.

She reflected on what she had just said to Dong Xian. It felt as though a thorn deeply embedded in her heart had finally been pulled out—there was a sense of release, though accompanied by a lingering ache.

Yet she hadn't expected that she would instinctively blurt out, "I even have a boyfriend now, and he is my greatest pillar of support."

The moment she thought about it, a profound longing for him welled up inside her.

Right on cue, her phone chimed with a notification message. Ruan Suxian pulled it out to check; hours had passed, and Fu Mingyu had finally replied with just two words.

"Looks good."

He sounded as cold and perfunctory as ever.

"That drives me crazy."

Ruan Suxian hadn't eaten anything all morning, leaving her stomach completely empty. With a gust of wind blowing past, she felt practically like a delicate heroine out of a classic tragedy.

She walked toward the car while dialing Fu Mingyu's number.

After two ringing tones, he answered promptly.

"When on earth are you coming back?!"

Ruan Suxian stepped into the car, complaining, "Your girlfriend is about to starve to death on the side of the road!"

"Missed me?"

"Yes." Ruan Suxian gripped the car door frame and retorted spiritedly, "I missed you, so hurry up and come back right now."

"Alright."

"Then you—" Ruan Suxian paused mid-sentence.

She had a sudden feeling that his voice wasn't just coming through the phone—it seemed uncomfortably close.

The breeze died down, but a familiar scent of balsam fir slowly drifted around her.

Standing right beside the car door, Ruan Suxian was suddenly pulled into an embrace from behind.

"Mhm, I'm back."

Hearing his voice, Ruan Suxian took a moment to register the reality of it. She didn't dare turn around, terrified that a single pivot might reveal this to be another hallucination.

Yet the warmth of his body pressed directly against her back, radiating absolute certainty.

Ultimately, she turned around, stared at him without blinking, and reached out to pinch her own thigh.

"Let's see if I'm dreaming." Ruan Suxian watched Fu Mingyu frown slightly as she muttered, "Oh, it hurts, not a dream."

Fu Mingyu's brow twitched. "Then why did you pinch my thigh?"

Ruan Suxian bypassed the question entirely. "When did you get back?"

"Just now."

"Oh......"

The car was still idling by the roadside, waiting with its door open.

"Get in the car first, stop standing out here."

Ruan Suxian obediently climbed into the vehicle, sliding over to the inner seat.

The moment Fu Mingyu got in beside her, she immediately burrowed straight into his arms.

Even after their prolonged separation, Fu Mingyu instantly sensed that her emotional state was off.

"What's wrong?"

Ruan Suxian mumbled against his chest, "I went to pick up my dress earlier and ran into Zheng You'an and my mom."

"What did they say?"

"Not much, really." Ruan Suxian let out a heavy sigh. "My mom said today she wanted to try and make it up to me, and I told her there was no need."

She rubbed her chin against Fu Mingyu's lapel. "It's too exhausting, not worth the trouble, and besides—"

She tilted her head up to look at Fu Mingyu's jawline, her nose stinging slightly. "I told her I have a boyfriend now, and my boyfriend is my greatest pillar of support."

Fu Mingyu lowered his head to gaze at the woman in his arms, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly.

A wave of quiet emotion surged deep within him.

Upon returning to the Mingchen apartment complex, Ruan Suxian instinctively reached to press the button for her own floor.

Fu Mingyu caught her hand and pressed a different floor instead.

"Upstairs."

"Mhm."

Perhaps due to their long absence, Ruan Suxian was unusually cooperative.

Bai Yang had already arranged for someone to move all of Fu Mingyu's luggage back, and numerous gift boxes were stacked neatly across the living room table.

Ruan Suxian cast a glance at the pile and asked, "Are these gifts you brought back?"

"Mhm."

Fu Mingyu acknowledged it and added, "For my mother."

"What about me?" Ruan Suxian rested her hand on her hip, strolling over leisurely. "Do I get a gift?"

"I do."

Ruan Suxian reached her hand out toward him. "Let me see."

Instead of handing her an object, he pulled her straight into his embrace.

After a lingering, tender kiss, Ruan Suxian's cheeks flushed red as she gently pushed him away.

"Who wants this as a gift? There's no originality to it at all."

Just as she finished speaking, Fu Mingyu turned around, retrieved a blue velvet box from the cabinet behind him, and opened it. Inside rested a brilliant diamond ring.

"Is—is this a gift for me?"

"No." Fu Mingyu took her hand and slipped the ring onto her finger. "The gift is me."

Ruan Suxian stared at him in blank astonishment.

"Will you accept a husband? Do you want me?"

Seeing her still looking at him with that same dazed, uncomprehending expression, Fu Mingyu kissed the back of her hand and phrased it another way.

"Will you marry me?"