Chapter 43: Driving to the Film Set

Sunday.

On the film set.

Yan Man had just finished filming her last scene for the day when she saw Shen Jie approaching with her phone.

She took it and saw the call was from Fang Hexun.

“Where are you?” the person on the other end asked as soon as the call connected.

“Just wrapped up. I’m heading to the airport now,” Yan Man replied as she walked toward the dressing room.

“Alright, be safe. My parents and I will pick you up.”

There was a bit of noise on the other end of the call, like the phone was snatched away. Then a cute, childish voice came through: “Auntie, I missed you!”

Yan Man chuckled, “Auntie missed little Yueyue too.”

Fang Hexun came back on the line, “You’ll see her soon.”

“Yay! Auntie, come back quickly!”

“I’m heading to the airport now,” Yan Man said warmly.

She hadn’t been home in almost a year, and now she couldn’t wait to return.

When she studied in France for a few years, she hadn’t felt as homesick—probably because Tang Qingshuo was with her then.

Director Hu knew she had a flight this afternoon and gave her the day off. Noticing Yan Man felt a bit guilty, he reassured her that they’d just film the supporting cast scenes today, so it wouldn’t affect the schedule. That made her feel better.

But… how would she explain this to Tan Qishen?

When they met last Sunday, she’d been so caught up in their time in bed that she didn’t get a chance to tell him.

The trees blurred past the car windows. Yan Man was already en route to the airport.

Leaning against the seat, her eyes were half closed, a trace of anxiety on her elegant face. Her hand clutched her phone, the chat with Tan Qishen open for over thirty minutes—yet she hadn’t typed a word.

Half an hour later, with the flight about to depart, she knew she couldn’t delay any longer.

Yan Man had played out countless scenarios in her head during the drive. The most likely outcome? Tan Qishen would be angry again. They’d agreed she’d spend the day with him, and now she was backing out last minute.

If the roles were reversed, she knew she’d be upset too.

But she didn’t have a choice.

She couldn’t say she was going home. What if Tan Qishen pressed for details or investigated further? That would be even worse.

Her fingers danced quickly across the screen. After a deep breath to steel herself, she hit send.

[Yan Man]: Baby, the crew’s working super late today, I can’t be with you 😢

[Yan Man]: I’ll make it up to you early next week, okay? 😘

She didn’t dare check his reply. Just then, a flight attendant reminded her to turn off her phone.

With a clear conscience (or at least pretending to have one), Yan Man powered down her phone.

—

“Mr. Tan, your afternoon meeting has been rescheduled for tomorrow morning. The dinner with CEO Nian of Yixin has also been moved to next Monday night, and the Huayi Group’s cocktail party at 8 p.m. has been postponed after we informed them you wouldn’t be attending. But CEO Chen adjusted the cocktail party to next Wednesday to accommodate you—he wants to know if you’ll be available?”

Following Tan Qishen’s instructions, Wen Bo had canceled or delayed all his work commitments for that afternoon and evening.

Tan Qishen lounged on the sofa, long legs crossed. He took a sip of coffee and replied calmly, “No.”

Wen Bo wasn’t surprised. “Understood, I’ll politely decline for you.”

Just then, the phone on the table buzzed. The screen lit up. Tan Qishen glanced at it, at first planning to ignore it—until he saw it was a message from Yan Man.

His gaze narrowed. Picking up the phone, he assumed she was finished with filming and coming over.

But the second he read her message, his expression changed dramatically.

He set down his coffee cup with more force than intended—or perhaps he just didn’t care. The bottom of the cup cracked, and coffee spilled everywhere.

His eyes darkened like a stormy sky. Veins bulged on the back of his hand as he gripped the phone tightly.

He stared at the two messages Yan Man had sent.

What did she mean the crew was busy, and she couldn’t come?

Who isn’t busy?

Even with his packed schedule, he had made time.

Every minute of his day was meticulously planned. Just for this evening with her, he’d cleared his entire afternoon and evening.

He had been looking forward to Sunday all week—he’d never anticipated anything this much.

Make it up to him next week?

They hadn’t seen each other in a week. If he waited another week, it would be half a month.

He couldn’t wait.

“Mr. Tan, is everything alright?” Wen Bo noticed something was off—coffee was everywhere, and the table was a mess. He stepped forward, concerned.

“Drive. To the film set,” Tan Qishen said, his voice low and cold, barely containing his anger.

If she wasn’t coming to him, then he’d go to her.

One way or another, they were seeing each other today.

—

An hour later.

Yan Man turned on her phone right after landing, surprised to see that Tan Qishen hadn’t replied.

She was a little shocked—she’d expected an interrogation.

Was he too busy to see her message?

She didn’t have time to think about it. A soft little figure rushed over and wrapped itself around her leg.

The sweet voice chirped, “Auntie, Yueyue’s been waiting so long. I finally get to see you!”

Yan Man looked down. The little girl was only as tall as her knees, hugging her tightly and staring up with big round eyes.

Her heart melted. She scooped up the child, forgetting all about Tan Qishen.

“Thank you, Yueyue.”

Fang Hexun’s daughter was only a year and a half old. Yan Man had only seen her about five times, usually via video calls. She hadn’t expected the girl to remember her face—or to have grown so big already.

“Mom and Dad are at home with Uncle Tang and Aunt Tang, so they didn’t come to pick you up,” Fang Hexun said as he walked over with his wife.

“Got it.”

His wife, Qi Sitong, brushed his hand off, threw the child into his arms, and hugged Yan Man. “Baby, I missed you like crazy! Didn’t you miss us? It’s been forever since you came home.”

“Of course I missed you, Tongtong.”

Yan Man and Sitong had been best friends for 20 years—and somehow that best friend had ended up becoming her sister-in-law.

Fang Hexun flicked Yan Man’s forehead with his knuckle. “No respect for your elders.”

Before Yan Man could retort, Sitong scowled at her husband, “Why’d you hit her? I like when she calls me that.”

Fang Hexun was powerless against his wife and quickly tried to smooth things over. “Alright, alright. My bad. I shouldn’t have done that.”

“Busybody,” Yan Man muttered, shooting him a glare before walking off with Sitong, hand in hand.

“…” Fang Hexun was left standing there helplessly, one arm holding a toddler and the other dragging Yan Man’s luggage, trailing behind them.

Yan Man’s hometown was in the southern part of Anhui Province—a classic water-town region of Jiangnan.

The architecture there mostly followed the Hui style, nestled between mountains and rivers.

It only took twenty minutes from the airport to reach her home.

A grand, elegant wooden plaque hung above the large front gate, carved in Song-style script with two characters:

Fang Garden.