Chapter 32: Can You Give Yaoyao Back to Me?

The night was deep.

On the windowsill, a small boy clasped his hands together. His palms were slightly damp from excitement.

He was holding a used cotton swab.

He was so short that, even standing on the balcony, his head barely reached above the railing.

But he still pressed his hands together, looking up at the bright moon with a solemn little face, full of devotion.

That wasn’t just a dream.

There really was a kind and beautiful fairy-like big sister who touched his head, held his hand as they ran through the villa, gently applied medicine to his wounds, and coaxed him back to sleep.

This was something little Pei Heng had never experienced before.

He had never gone to school and couldn’t find words to describe his complex feelings.

But he raised his hands high toward the moon, praying over and over:

He wanted to see that fairy-like sister again.

No matter what the cost.

Even if he was whipped, even if he was locked up.

As long as he could see her again.

He was willing to endure anything.

The villa’s front gate opened, and a pricey Lamborghini drove in.

The driver stopped the car, and two figures stepped out.

The child on the balcony pursed his lips and peeked down through the ornate railing. His clear, dark eyes flickered with fear.

Slowly, he sat down along the railing, gripping the cotton swab tightly, hiding himself in the shadows beneath the balcony.

Even though he knew those two people wouldn’t pay attention to him.

Still, just seeing them made the little boy instinctively afraid.

Before long, loud shouting erupted from the master bedroom downstairs.

Pei Heng perked up his ears and heard his father arguing with his stepmother.

“It’s always like this! Why can’t you keep track of your things?”

“I didn’t do it on purpose, darling…” The woman’s voice was so low that Pei Heng could barely hear her.

His father suppressed his anger but continued complaining.

“All these random lotions and essential oils—you see this bruise on my leg?”

A faint murmur followed.

His stepmother was indeed deeply favored by his father.

As long as she pouted and spoke sweetly, his father would forgive her for everything.

Pei Heng lowered his gaze.

He clenched the cotton swab in his palm. Just as he was about to get up and return to his room, a sudden shriek rang out:

“Pei Linhai! Explain this to me!”

“Tell me—where did this come from?!”

His father’s voice was rough with frustration, seemingly unable to give a clear answer.

“I told you, I don’t know!”

“How would I know where this came from?!”

A passing servant slowed their steps, glancing toward the shouting voices from the bedroom.

Pei Heng also perked up his ears, pressing his little hands against the railing, peering through the gaps.

“You don’t know? Who would believe that?!”

“There’s a lipstick stain on your shirt, and you’re still playing dumb?!”

“Pei Linhai, I’m pregnant, and you go behind my back and do this?! You’re just like a dog that can’t stop eating shit!”

Slap!

A sharp sound shattered the air, and the world fell silent.

The woman’s screams caught in her throat, then turned into heart-wrenching sobs.

Perhaps her pregnancy hormones were acting up—his stepmother had completely lost control of her emotions, a stark contrast to her usual calculated gentleness.

Even though Pei Heng couldn’t see her face, the sheer intensity of her cries painted a vivid picture in his mind.

He heard his father suppressing his anger, as if he was barely holding himself back.

“You say I’m a dog that can’t stop eating shit?”

“Wei Rou, think for a moment—how did you even marry into the Pei family?”

“I gave you my whole heart all these years, and this is how you see me?”

“I must have been blind!”

More sounds of things being smashed followed. The crash of porcelain, the heavy thuds of objects hitting the floor.

His stepmother’s voice was sharp and hysterical.

“So now you’re sick of me? You can’t stand looking at me anymore?”

“Did you find someone better? Someone younger?”

“You didn’t like that short-lived woman back then, either, did you?”

“Pei Linhai, you’re just a cheating bastard who can’t keep it in his pants! Stop pretending you’re some devoted lover!”

“Oh, oh—”

“I’m pretending to be devoted?!”

Pei Linhai’s voice rose.

Another wave of destruction followed.

The noise was so loud that even the servants sneaking glances outside flinched in shock.

Moments later, the woman’s shrill screams turned into anguished wails, and the man’s anger turned into alarm.

“Wei Rou, what’s wrong?! Wei Rou…”

A private doctor rushed into the master bedroom.

Shortly after, an ambulance from the private hospital arrived at the villa.

Pei Heng hid behind the railing, secretly watching.

Wei Rou lay on a stretcher, clutching her belly, her face pale.

Pei Linhai, limping slightly, followed her into the ambulance.

The moment the ambulance left the villa—

The small child hiding behind the railing let out a tiny breath of relief and finally poked his head out.

He was terrified of those two people.

But the fairy-like sister he met… she was amazing.

She said she would avenge him, and she really did.

Pei Heng made up his mind.

When he grew up, he wanted to be just as strong.

—

Jiang Yaoyao awoke from the long dream with mixed emotions.

The alarm clock rang, pulling her out of sleep at last.

But the dream had been too vivid. The emotions it stirred still churned in her heart. Even now, flashes of the little boy curled up in the corner, hugging his knees, kept appearing in her mind.

Jiang Yaoyao’s thick eyelashes trembled. Her gaze fell on the woven grasshopper she had left on the table.

The green grass had begun to wither, turning slightly yellow.

So… he had learned to make these while he was locked up?

Such a small child, trapped in a dark room, with nothing else to do—so he picked up whatever was on the ground to distract himself, to ward off his fear of the dark.

It could be a piece of string, a blade of grass, or even a candy wrapper…

Jiang Yaoyao furrowed her delicate brows, a dull ache settling in her heart.

She lifted her hand, gazing at the soft pads of her fingertips. She could still vaguely remember how these hands had once applied ointment to the uneven scars on Pei Heng’s back.

A child of four or five, already bearing old whip scars across his back.

Now, as an adult, Pei Heng held immense power, able to command the wind and rain as he pleased, yet he still couldn’t erase the scars on his back.

One after another—just how much pain had those scars caused him?

The color drained bit by bit from the little beauty’s face. Her snow-white complexion reflected an ache she herself hadn’t yet realized.

On the other side of town—

Deep within the estate’s villa complex, a handsome man lay on a dark-colored bed, his eyes half-lowered.

His long, well-defined arm hung in the air, fingers spread as if he were trying to feel something.

After a long moment, the man let out a soft chuckle.

It had been a long, long time since he had last dreamed of his younger self—and his little fairy.

Back then, he had been pure of heart, seeing her as a sacred and untouchable fairy-like older sister.

Later, when he grew older—

He began to defile his little fairy in his dreams.

Again and again, he dragged her down into the mortal world.

Locked her away in a grand, heavily secured villa, within a meticulously adorned room.

Golden chains bound her wrists.

His little fairy had nowhere to run—

All she could do was break down and cry, over and over again.

And time after time—

She would shrink into his embrace…

—

In the following days, Gu Jinling continued bringing a team from the production crew to that exorbitantly expensive estate to practice horseback riding.

After the events of that day, everyone now knew that the estate belonged to Pei Heng.

In the elite circles of the imperial capital, there wasn’t a single person who didn’t recognize the Pei family—the ultimate financial conglomerate. Nor was there anyone who didn’t understand what the name Pei Heng signified.

No one dared to fool around anymore. Everyone started taking their training seriously.

A few days of practice yielded some results.

But strangely, ever since then, Yan Leyao had disappeared.

While changing in the dressing room, Jiang Yaoyao overheard some crew members mentioning that Yan Leyao’s family wanted to call the police. However, her management company believed that a missing person case would damage her image as an innocent, virtuous actress.

Even if she were found, continuing the “pure and chaste” persona would be difficult.

Perhaps due to company pressure—or some undisclosed guarantee—the news of Yan Leyao’s disappearance never became public.

Only a few groups of people were searching for her.

And they were doing so in secret.

—

During this period, the crew often saw that ever-dominant figure from financial magazines, Mr. Pei, appearing at their horseback training grounds.

Whenever Jiang Yaoyao was present, he would always arrive right on time.

Clearly a man who stood at the pinnacle of power and looked down upon the world—yet he dutifully held onto Jiang Yaoyao’s safety rope without complaint.

Speculation grew in everyone’s hearts.

Whenever they encountered Jiang Yaoyao again, they became more enthusiastic, more flattering.

But today, even after Jiang Yaoyao had already ridden a few laps on her own, Mr. Pei had yet to appear.

Curious gazes lingered on the little beauty atop her horse.

Some busybody trotted over to ask, but their stunning female lead simply blinked her dewy eyes—just as clueless as they were.

—

Inside the study.

Pei Heng held a document handed to him by his assistant, his sharp phoenix eyes scanning its contents. His thick, sword-like brows furrowed deeper, his expression one of disbelief.

“This is what I asked you to find? Are you sure?”

The assistant nodded emphatically, his face serious.

“I’m sure!”

Pei Heng sat in his chair, clad in a crisp white shirt of impeccable quality. Black sleeve garters held his sleeves midway up his strong arms, revealing glimpses of lean, well-defined muscles.

One hand propped up the document, his long, slender fingers flipping through the pages. His profile was striking, exuding an effortless air of nobility—even in the simple act of reading.

But the more he read, the stranger his expression became.

—”You little minx, what am I supposed to do with you?”

—”Woman, don’t you dare test my limits so easily.”

—”You started this fire—now put it out yourself.”

Was this really something his Yaoyao would like?

His fingers turned another page, and the next line of text leaped out at him:

—”I’ve never experienced rejection before. Interesting. You’ve successfully caught my attention.”

The images from his dream resurfaced in his mind.

Pei Heng fell silent for a moment—then nodded in agreement.

His Yaoyao did seem to like this kind of thing.

Closing the file, he placed it on the desk.

His deep, narrow eyes gleamed with contemplation.

His assistant, unaware of what was going through his boss’s mind, cautiously asked:

“Mr. Pei, is this not suitable?”

“But this is exactly what you asked me to find—cool, domineering CEO lines. They all follow this pattern.”

“I scoured the internet for the most popular novels and compiled the top-ranked quotes.”

“You can rest assured—these are the lines that young women love the most nowadays…”

At that last remark, Pei Heng slowly lifted his gaze.

“Young women… all like this type?”

The assistant nodded furiously, brimming with confidence. “Of course!!”

Pei Heng remained silent for a few moments.

Then, he dismissed the assistant.

Once alone, he picked up the file again, his Montblanc pen underlining a few key lines as he committed them to memory.

These words were somewhat difficult to say.

But if they were what his Yaoyao liked—

He could give it a try.

—

“Director, want to race?”

Jiang Yaoyao’s voice was clear and bright. She sat atop a golden pony, her radiant face lifted in confidence, like a proud little princess.

Gu Jinling glanced around, confirming that his dear nephew was nowhere to be seen, and readily agreed.

“Race it is!”

Tossing aside whatever was in his hands, he mounted his horse.

Wei Changze approached on horseback, tightening his reins as he neared Gu Jinling. He lowered his voice.

“Director, she’s still not very experienced. Please go easy on her.”

Gu Jinling patted his chest, smiling meaningfully.

“Of course! Yaoyao is my junior—how could I not give her a little leeway?”

Not long after, Jiang Yaoyao and Gu Jinling spurred their horses forward, galloping into the distance in a fierce chase.

Wei Changze dismounted and took a sip of water.

Footsteps approached. He instinctively turned his head, lips pressing together reluctantly before finally greeting,

“…Uncle.”

That day, he had indeed been too impulsive.

And this was Pei Heng’s turf.

No matter how unwilling he was, he had to acknowledge Pei Heng as his uncle.

The strikingly handsome man gave him a slight nod before looking toward the distant race.

Wei Changze hesitated briefly before speaking first.

“She’s racing the director.”

The man’s brow arched slightly, a hint of anticipation in his gaze.

Wei Changze fell silent for a moment, then spoke again.

“Uncle, I was wrong before. I shouldn’t have used such underhanded means against you.”

Pei Heng seemed surprised that he would bring this up voluntarily. His deep, unreadable eyes turned toward Wei Changze.

“I apologize,” Wei Changze continued, pausing before adding,

“Because of you, Yaoyao and I have completely fallen out. She won’t even talk to me anymore.”

Taking a deep breath, he lowered his head and gritted his teeth.

“Uncle, for the sake of our relationship—”

“Can you give Yaoyao back to me?”