Chapter 24

After hearing no movement in the master bedroom, Ji Qingyu quietly opened her eyes a crack. She turned over and buried her face in the pillow. She was afraid she might unconsciously make some noise if she didn’t. In fact, she had already woken up when Feng Chengze picked her up, but when she leaned against his shoulder, inhaling the crisp scent of aftershave and hearing the rhythmic and strong heartbeat from his chest, she inexplicably didn’t open her eyes immediately. Missing the first moment of surprise, she had already missed the opportunity. She wasn’t a film academy student and had no talent for acting, so she didn’t know if her eyes, expression, and tone would seem too fake or awkward when she “woke up.”

So, the best way was to pretend to be asleep. She tried to calm her breathing on the bed, hoping that when Feng Chengze came in, her body wouldn’t be too stiff. However, as she waited and waited, her eyelids grew heavier, and she still hadn’t seen his figure. Half-dazed, she fell asleep. Just then, it felt like she was covered with a thick blanket again, very warm and somewhat heavy, and she vaguely felt the hot breath on her neck.

A hand, with control, gently stroked her face. After a few tentative touches, it became bolder, repeatedly caressing, but it stopped at her lips, not going further.

The next day, Ji Qingyu was woken up by wet kisses and hands playing on her face. She suddenly startled, opened her eyes, and a chubby little round face magnified in front of her, kissing her cheek and forehead with a sweet, grape-flavored kiss.

“Good morning, Mommy!!”

Feng Jiayuan was like a little animal; one kiss wasn’t enough, so she gave several more. “Mom, let me tell you, I had a dream last night!”

Ji Qingyu smiled gently, “What dream?”

She told herself, “She’s my own child; don’t get angry. Life is just a journey of cultivation, and having and raising children is just a trial. How could one succeed on the path to immortality without effort? Keep a Zen heart. My Buddha is compassionate. Namo Amitabha.”

“I dreamed that Dad was being shy and hugging Mom.” The first person Feng Jiayuan wanted to share this with was her most, most, most beloved mommy. She had been holding it in since she woke up, worried she might forget it later, so she hurried to the master bedroom to whisper to her mom.

Ji Qingyu hesitated for two seconds, “…Oh.”

The answer was a bit insincere.

“Where’s your dad?” She quickly changed the subject, hoping Yuan Bao could forget that “dream” soon.

Feng Jiayuan held her face and pinched it, “Dad… is taking a shower.”

“Bathing?” Ji Qingyu broke free from the little devil’s grasp and glanced at the bathroom.

“Outside,” Feng Jiayuan pointed outside with her short fingers and wrinkled her nose. “Daddy said he didn’t want to wake Mommy.”

Daddy also told her not to come in and disturb Mommy. But she didn’t want to listen!

Ji Qingyu was still a bit puzzled about why he was taking a bath so early in the morning. Thanks to Mao Feifei and various bedtime stories, she only wondered for two seconds. Who could understand the girl’s embarrassment at this moment?

She pursed her lips, sat straight, hugged her daughter, and asked, “Baby, have you had breakfast?”

“Nope. Mommy, did you forget you promised to take me to school yesterday?”

Ji Qingyu lied with open eyes, “I didn’t forget!”

The mother and daughter giggled as they got out of bed. After showering and changing into a shirt and trousers, Feng Chengze came in from outside, looked at Ji Qingyu, and said calmly, “Help me choose a tie.”

“I will!!” Feng Jiayuan raised her hand high. It was clear that she was also an active responder at school.

Feng Chengze: “…”

…Alright then.

The father and daughter went into the dressing room while Ji Qingyu washed up in the bathroom. She could still hear their conversation—

“Daddy, this one looks nice!”

“Not suitable.”

“Daddy, all your ties are so dark and boring. Why don’t you buy purple ones? Or red and green? Don’t you have any with sparkles on them?”

“…”

“I’ve got it! This year, for your birthday, I’ll give you a nice tie, okay?”

“…Okay.”

During breakfast, Ji Qingyu finally asked Feng Chengze when he had come to bed the previous night. He elegantly took a sip of coffee and looked up, “Two-thirty.”

The castle was almost done. It wasn’t exactly pretty, but it was passable. It would be finished tonight. Ji Qingyu smoothed her hair and softly defended herself, “I didn’t mean to fall asleep. I was exhausted; my back was killing me.”

She wanted to ask him if his back was sore, too. Feng Chengze raised an eyebrow but didn’t expose her lie.

“I’ll give Mommy a massage tonight!” Feng Jiayuan finished her milk with a loud gulp, leaving a milk ring around her lips.

“Thank you.” Ji Qingyu took the opportunity to negotiate, “Baby, can you save your good mornings for the evening instead?”

Feng Jiayuan looked at her strangely, “Evenings are for saying goodnight.” Then she smiled slyly, “Unless I don’t have to go to school tomorrow.”

Feng Chengze also took the matter seriously. “Do you think it’s right to wake someone up?”

“I didn’t wake anyone up.” Feng Jiayuan, able to argue with both of them, emphasized seriously, “You two aren’t ‘someone else.’ You’re Daddy and Mommy.”

Ji Qingyu reassured Feng Chengze, signaling him to stay calm. She gently reasoned, “Baby, would you be happy if Daddy and I woke you up?”

Feng Jiayuan thought for a moment and shook her head, “No.”

Ji Qingyu: “…”

Feng Jiayuan grabbed a blueberry from her plate and popped it into her mouth. “Besides, I wake up earlier than you and Daddy every day. Can you wake me up tomorrow? I’d be very happy!”

Feng Chengze: “…”

This brief negotiation ended in failure. Feng Chengze had to work, and Feng Jiayuan had to attend school. The family of three parted ways in the garage. Ji Qingyu took the opportunity to inform him of her plans for the day, “I have dinner plans with friends tonight.”

“Okay.” Feng Chengze’s mood lightened. “I have plans, too.”

Feng Jiayuan, carrying her backpack, mimicked their tone, “I might have plans too.”

Ji Qingyu looked down at her and teased, “Who do you have plans with?”

“Peppa.”

Feng Chengze was also amused. It was hard to believe he had watched a few episodes of that pig’s story with her.

Ji Qingyu didn’t have a moment’s rest all day. She went to Mao Feifei’s offline store. Thanks to the booming business, Mao Feifei, who had become a boss during her freshman year, had achieved a small degree of financial freedom, bought a house, and even had a car.

The two of them gathered in the store, and naturally, their conversation wasn’t very serious.

Mao Feifei, holding a tablet, glanced at her sideways. “I forgot to ask you, do you find that thing useful?”

Ji Qingyu was about to ask what “that thing” was when she caught a glimpse of the image on the tablet from the corner of her eye and opened her mouth in surprise. This is the foreplay tool she found under her pillow when she woke up on the plane. Is she really chatting with Mao Feifei so openly now? They were pretty good roommates during college but have some distance from being best friends who share everything.

She never expected that they would be this close five years later and share this kind of experience.

“Is it easy to use?” Mao Feifei urged.

Ji Qingyu was silent for a moment and honestly replied, “I haven’t used it. I don’t know.”

A meaningful smile appeared on Mao Feifei’s face. “Indeed, this thing is of no use to you.” One is made of iron, and the other is made of water, ha ha ha ha.

Ji Qingyu covered her face and said weakly, “Let’s talk about serious matters.” She started to miss the Mao Feifei from five years ago…

“How is this not serious business?” Mao Feifei gently nudged her with her elbow, “Come on, girl, why are you being shy in front of me? I’m not your Feng family.”

When necessary, one can only use their cash ability.

Rich woman Ji Qingyu asked with a serious expression, “Shopping? The kind where I pay the bill.”

Mao Feifei put away her tablet, “Eight male models hugging me. I have to go!”

Shopping was something that should be done with good friends. Yesterday, Ji Qingyu was holding back, but today, she was arm-in-arm with Mao Feifei, battling it out in the mall. She was so happy that she had forgotten she had a husband and children. In the afternoon, Chu Ning arrived late, and Ji Qingyu quickly became familiar with her. After finishing their meal, they eagerly started the second half. The three of them rushed into the bar, not even glancing at the prices on the back of the drink menu, and promptly placed their orders.

Ji Qingyu covered her chest; the life of a rich woman is indeed delightful, thanks to Mr. Feng! The three of them had a great relationship and could talk about anything. Chu Ning pressed her forehead and said, “Feifei, do you know any university students with excellent grades?”

“Top student style?” Mao Feifei pondered, “Are you into younger guys again?”

“Men’s Big & Tall is quite good, the cost-performance ratio is very high.”

Chu Ning was speechless: “I’m hiring a tutor for my son!”

Mao Feifei covered her ears and sternly warned them, “Don’t mention your sons and daughters in front of me. I don’t want to hear it. Don’t talk about your mom’s group in the bar.”

Ji Qingyu deeply agreed, but she couldn’t nod. Deep down, she’s still a freshly graduated baby. She hasn’t even wanted to check the messages in the parent group chat these past few days.

Chu Ning: “Okay, I’ll message you when I get home.”

The three of them are laughing and joking around. When Ji Qingyu went to the bathroom, he unexpectedly ran into the treasure boy, Assistant Zhang. Assistant Zhang shyly explained, “My girlfriend is in a bad mood, so I came to accompany her for a walk.”

“How about sharing a table?” Ji Qingyu asked.

Assistant Zhang hadn’t nodded yet, but his girlfriend hurriedly replied, “Sure, sure, sure!”

She subtly told Ji Qingyu that she originally wanted to come alone, but Zhang Xujie was worried and followed her like a shadow, which was annoying. It was more interesting with more people, but Assistant Zhang was a bit reserved. As they chatted, they became more familiar with each other. Mao Feifei smiled and asked, “Assistant Zhang, have you been working with Mr. Feng for a long time?”

Assistant Zhang chuckled, “Five or six years.”

Mao Feifei was surprised, “Did you start after Qingyu and Mr. Feng got married?”

“No,” Assistant Zhang shook his head, “before that.”

Ji Qingyu was still not used to drinking too much in bars, so she only took a small sip. Hearing this, she turned her head to look at Assistant Zhang and smiled, “I can’t even remember when I first met you.”

Assistant Zhang’s girlfriend remembered something and laughed, “He probably remembers it well.”

Everyone in the booth looked at Assistant Zhang.

Assistant Zhang said helplessly, “At that time, I posted something on my social media, and my wife was in the picture. She saw it and misunderstood.”

He briefly explained the situation. They were college classmates but had never clarified their relationship. One stayed in Jing City, and the other went abroad for further studies, remaining just friends. She saw his social media post—every woman is a Sherlock Holmes—so she was devastated when she saw the reflection of a woman with long hair in the spoon in one of his breakfast photos. This misunderstanding was only cleared up six months later.

“Did you delete it?” Mao Feifei asked with interest.

Assistant Zhang replied, “No, she said if I deleted it, it would mean I felt guilty…”

Assistant Zhang’s girlfriend laughed, “I was a bit neurotic at that time.”

“Can we see it?”

A few minutes later, Assistant Zhang’s girlfriend found the post, “This is it. I cried for several nights over this—”

Ji Qingyu also leaned over to look.

Mao Feifei gave a thumbs up, “Wow, you’re like Antonie van Leeuwenhoek!”

Could an average person notice such a detail? Probably not.

Ji Qingyu subtly frowned. The post was dated July 10th, five years ago. Feng Yu introduced her to his parents on July 2nd- only eight days apart.

“But where was this?” Mao Feifei asked.

Assistant Zhang recalled for a few seconds, “In the southern part of the city. Mr. Feng was on a business trip at that time.”

Mao Feifei teased, “If Mr. Feng had been in the picture too, there wouldn’t have been so much trouble.”

“I ran into Young Madam by chance at a shared table,” Assistant Zhang said. “It was quite interesting. We didn’t know each other when we took that photo, but I met her again that evening.”

“What a coincidence?” Ji Qingyu also looked at him in surprise.

Assistant Zhang still had to drive later; he just took a sip of mineral water, his face showing an awkward smile. He felt a bit regretful, thinking he shouldn’t have come over to share a table and he shouldn’t have spoken so freely. Look, Young Madam must have remembered that day, too; otherwise, she wouldn’t be silent. Knowing too much about the boss’s private matters is not beneficial. This was the most valuable experience in his career, and he generously passed it on to Assistant Li.

Five years ago, on the way back to the hotel, he was still taking notes on the meeting content in the passenger seat when he suddenly heard Mr. Feng coldly instruct the driver to stop and lower the window to call someone. Then, a beautiful woman waiting for a ride on the street reluctantly got into the car. He recognized her, but before he could be surprised, the phone in her hand kept vibrating incessantly, like a life-or-death call.

“Talk to A Yu properly; he’s been looking for you day and night,” Mr. Feng advised in a distant tone.

“So, Mr. Feng, you still have to tell him where I am?” Her voice was very cold. She gripped her phone tightly, with an impulse to crush it.

The next moment.

Perhaps not wanting anyone to pry into his family matters, Mr. Feng lowered the partition, seemingly dividing the driver’s seat from the back seat into two worlds.

After driving for about ten minutes, the car stopped in front of the hotel porch. He didn’t know whether to get out or stay put. Soon, the back seat door was pushed open, and a young woman got out. Her lipstick was smudged, and despite her flustered face, she forced a calm demeanor: “This way, you won’t tell him, right?”

After saying that, she staggered through the revolving door into the hotel.

He was dumbfounded, constantly feeling like he had stumbled upon his boss’s incredible private affairs. About ten minutes later, when Mr. Feng got out of the car, his tie was all wrinkled, his brows were filled with coldness, and there was a trace of red on his tightly pressed thin lips.

It was a lipstick mark.