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Chapter 40: I Want to Take You Home

Yan Man took the initiative to explain, “President Jiang is a friend of my boyfriend.”

“……”

Wen Moying suddenly felt that she and Yan Man were a bit over the top.

One found a stand-in, the other found a baby’s father — and the worst part was, those two men were friends.

Wen Moying didn’t know what to say. She just felt that these men were rather unlucky to have run into two troublesome women.

She invited Yan Man to sit down, then looked at Jiang Linjin and ordered sharply, “You go out first. Don’t interrupt our conversation.”

Jiang Linjin stood by the hospital bed, surprisingly obedient. He said gently, “Alright. Call me if you need anything.”

Yan Man was dumbfounded.

Jiang Linjin, the domineering CEO known for being decisive and sharp in the outside world, turned into a totally different person in front of Wen Moying.

She thought, If Tan Qishen could act like that one day, too… But she doubted she’d ever see the day.

When Jiang Linjin left, he even thoughtfully closed the door behind him.

Yan Man looked at Wen Moying’s now slightly protruding belly and asked with concern, “How are you? Is the baby okay?”

“Nothing serious. But I can’t move much for the next few days and have to stay in the hospital.”

It had been quite a coincidence today. She came to Beijing for business, and the person in charge invited her to a dinner gathering. When she arrived, she saw Jiang Linjin sitting at the head of the table.

She couldn’t even leave.

That man stared at her the entire time, making everyone at the table suspect something was going on between them.

Unable to stand his intense gaze, she excused herself to go to the restroom, only to find Jiang Linjin waiting at the door. He had gone completely crazy, insisting they do a paternity test.

They struggled for a bit, and Wen Moying’s emotions fluctuated too much. She began to feel physically unwell, so Jiang Linjin rushed her to the hospital.

“Did you do the paternity test?” Yan Man asked.

Wen Moying shook her head. “Of course not.”

“Then… why did President Jiang cry?”

Yan Man thought he had learned that Wen Moying was carrying his child and was moved to tears.

Wen Moying replied calmly, “He wanted to be my baby’s stepdad, but I wouldn’t let him.”

“……”

Yan Man was impressed. Jiang Linjin really knew how to adapt to any situation.

Wen Moying asked her, “How are things with your boyfriend?”

Yan Man sighed, her vibrant, alluring face tinged with sadness. “…We’re about to break up. I just haven’t thought of a reason yet.”

She had to do it before the eighth day of the lunar new year — meaning she had less than a month.

“Why?” Wen Moying remembered she had said she was reluctant last time.

Yan Man lowered her eyes. “I thought he was just playing around. It was a mutually beneficial arrangement. But a few days ago, he said he wanted to introduce me to his family.”

She wasn’t sure if Tan Qishen had genuinely fallen for her.

“You’ve played too deep,” Wen Moying sighed.

“Which is why I need to get out while I still can.”

Yan Man didn’t want to owe him too much.

Hopefully, Tan Qishen would never find out the truth.

“Oh right — next Sunday is Qing Shuo-ge’s memorial. When are you going home?”

“The production team’s busy lately. Probably the same day.”

Yan Man couldn’t take time off early. She was the female lead, and everyone’s scenes revolved around her. If she left, it would delay everything.

Director Hu was famously time-sensitive. She couldn’t cause trouble for him.

“But there shouldn’t be too many scenes on Sunday. I should be able to leave early.”

As she spoke, she suddenly realized something was wrong.

Sunday.

That was the day she promised Tan Qishen she’d be with him. The timing conflicted — but it wasn’t even a real dilemma. Of course, she’d attend Tang Qingshuo’s memorial.

As for Tan Qishen… there was always next Sunday.

—

Jiang Linjin didn’t dare go far. He waited right outside the hospital room.

He walked over to the smoking area, lit a cigarette, and exhaled a thin puff of smoke, looking a little melancholic.

Wen Moying hadn’t called for him, so he didn’t dare go in. He just waited outside for an hour.

Until he heard a familiar voice behind him.

“What are you doing here?”

Tan Qishen stopped two meters away, wearing a black suit with a perfectly tied tie — clearly rushing over from work.

Jiang Linjin turned around and answered without hesitation, “Accompanying my girlfriend.”

Tan Qishen stared at him with deep black eyes but didn’t bother exposing his lie. He walked straight toward the hospital room.

“Hey—wait.”

Jiang Linjin stopped him at the door and asked knowingly, “Are you here for Miss Yan?”

Tan Qishen nodded.

Someone had just informed Uncle Nan that Yan Man was at Senmu Hospital. Last time she came for an allergy treatment, many attending doctors and even the hospital director had met her.

Tan Qishen thought she might not be feeling well. Their chat earlier had been vague, which only confirmed his suspicion.

But once he arrived, the hospital director told him she was just visiting a patient.

Only then did Tan Qishen relax a bit. But since he was already here, he figured he’d go see her — and ran into Jiang Linjin instead.

“My girlfriend’s in there too,” Jiang Linjin said, still blocking the door, playing his role like a loyal gatekeeper.

Tan Qishen didn’t want to deal with him. He shot him a glance and said, “I’ll knock.”

With that, he knocked on the door.

Inside, Wen Moying thought Jiang Linjin couldn’t wait any longer. She shouted impatiently, “I told you not to come in!”

Both men heard it loud and clear.

Jiang Linjin shrugged at Tan Qishen.

See? Told you not to go in.

Tan Qishen knocked again. This time, he didn’t wait for a response and just pushed the door open.

He couldn’t wait any longer to see Yan Man.

Hearing the door open, Wen Moying and Yan Man both looked over.

The next moment, there was a distinct sound of gasping in the room.

Wen Moying stared at Tan Qishen in shock, her eyes wide, hand covering her mouth.

“Yingying, what’s wrong?” Jiang Linjin rushed over, afraid something had happened to her or the baby.

But Wen Moying ignored him. She just kept staring at Tan Qishen’s face.

She had known that Yan Man’s boyfriend looked like Tang Qingshuo… but she didn’t expect this much of a resemblance.

If she didn’t know that the Tang family only had one son and that the parents were deeply in love, she would’ve thought this man was an illegitimate child.

Yan Man was also surprised to see Tan Qishen. She walked over to him. “Qishen, why are you here?”

She hadn’t told him where she was, nor did she want him to meet her friends.

Tan Qishen held her hand and looked into her eyes. His voice was calm and steady. “I wanted to take you home.”

That sentence actually combined two thoughts:

— I missed you.
— I came to take you home.

He couldn’t bring himself to say something so cheesy, especially not in front of others. So in the end, he just said:

“I wanted to take you home.”

It had already been an hour and a half since Yan Man texted him. They only got one evening together each week. Every minute wasted was a minute less.

Wen Moying’s gaze dropped to their intertwined hands. She thought, This isn’t good.

As an outsider, she could tell — Yan Man’s boyfriend had already fallen for her. If she didn’t break up soon, this was going to end badly.

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