Chapter 21

Chapter 21

You Nan was trapped in Qi Yuwen's embrace, as if caught in a spider's web, rendering him immobile.

You Nan's hand was still pressed against the other's face. He frowned and turned his head away, unwilling to look at the man beside him.

Qi Yuwen seemed oblivious to You Nan's subtle resistance. He gazed affectionately at You Nan's face and said, "Xiao Nan, even if you file for divorce, it's futile. I will not sign the divorce agreement."

You Nan sat on the chair, his hands trembling.

Qi Yuwen took You Nan's hand, brought it to his lips, and kissed it. "What's wrong? Why are your hands shaking? And they're so cold."

"I'll go upstairs to get you a jacket."

Qi Yuwen stood up and leaned down to place a kiss on You Nan's hair, but You Nan recoiled.

You Nan closed his eyes. "I don't want to eat anymore."

As he spoke, two tears rolled down.

"Take it away."

You Nan forcefully broke free from Qi Yuwen's grip and stood up. 007 immediately followed him. They left, leaving Qi Yuwen alone in the empty living room.

007 went upstairs, jumped onto You Nan's bed, and nuzzled its furry body against You Nan's. After rubbing once, it turned around and rubbed a second time, only to find that a few strands of its fur had been left on You Nan's clothes.

007 glanced at You Nan's still-sad expression, quietly raised its paw to brush off those few strands of fur, then stuck them to its own belly, attempting to use static electricity to prevent further shedding.

007 jumped onto You Nan. "Don't be sad. Are you hungry? Let's order takeout."

You Nan nodded. "I'm hungry."

As he spoke, tears fell again. You Nan wiped them with a tissue, but he kept crying even as he wiped.

007 made a soft sound and patted the back of You Nan's hand with its cute little paw. "Don't worry too much! I'll be here with you!"

"You're already doing better than I imagined. I thought getting three hundred Energy Points in this world would be pretty good, but look—you've already got over four hundred! Almost five hundred!"

007's tail stood straight up proudly. "Since you don't want to, then let's not do the mission anymore."

007 said this, but it still wanted to try its "give birth" function.

It hadn't tried it yet and didn't know what the result would be.

But—

007 looked at You Nan's tear-stained face and the takeout app open in his hand. The first few items in You Nan's cart were all things it, 007, loved to eat.

007 thought, if we're not going to use it, then so be it.

Anyway, the mission can still be completed.

Master and pet both relaxed. You Nan waited for the takeout to arrive, then quietly went out to get it and brought it in. He closed the bedroom door and shared the takeout with 007.

Two days passed like this. You Nan's colleagues in the office noticed that he seemed to be getting worse—it was unclear whether his physical illness was affecting his mental state or his mental state was affecting his physical health.

Wang Yuanyuan found a quiet moment in the office to walk over to You Nan and ask softly, "Xiao Nan, are you feeling okay lately? You’re not still feeling unwell, are you?"

You Nan felt a bit guilty. He had been in a one-sided conflict with Qi Yuwen these past few days, refusing to eat the breakfast and dinner the other made, preferring to avoid his gaze, and would rather order takeout late at night to avoid him.

He stayed up late at night, had to go to work early in the morning, and had to see Qi Yuwen's annoying face all day. You Nan wasn't getting enough rest, and his mood wasn't good either.

But he couldn't say that.

You Nan smiled, his eyes curving, and met Wang Yuanyuan's concerned gaze. "I'm fine. I've been doing okay lately."

Wang Yuanyuan still wasn't reassured. "Just look at you lately. I'm worried about you."

Wang Yuanyuan took the mirror from her bag and held it in front of You Nan for him to see. You Nan glanced at it and fell silent.

He had dark circles under his eyes, and he looked haggard. Compared to the person he saw in the mirror not long ago, the change was shockingly drastic.

You Nan still politely declined Wang Yuanyuan's kindness. "Thank you, sis. I'll be fine. I just haven't been sleeping well lately. Maybe I'll feel better after the weekend."

Wang Yuanyuan saw that You Nan still didn't want to talk about it and had to stop pressing.

But she was still worried about You Nan and couldn't stop thinking about it even after work. Until on her way home, she saw someone familiar.

She had only seen Yao Xianqing once, but he made a lasting impression on her. She had never seen such a handsome man—with well-proportioned features and a classically dignified beauty about him.

The kind of person you'd never forget after seeing just once.

Wang Yuanyuan watched Yao Xianqing talking to another person and hesitated for quite a while before approaching.

She had seen him before, but he didn't know her. And she was only guessing that You Nan had a good relationship with him—what if they were just ordinary friends?

Wang Yuanyuan thought for a while longer before finally making up her mind.

Even if they were just ordinary friends, asking couldn't hurt. What if Yao Xianqing and You Nan were very close?

On the other side, Yao Xianqing was talking to someone.

The person in front of him was his childhood rival. Their families lived close by, they were the same age, and they had been in the same class since starting school. The two had always been competing—they were rivals.

But during high school, the other went abroad to study and only returned recently. Yao Xianqing had just run into him today.

"Are you going back abroad after this trip?" Perhaps because it had been a long time since they last met, Yao Xianqing's attitude toward the man was much better than before—at least no longer constantly at odds.

They were both adults now, not as impulsive as in their immature student days.

Zhao Jin was elegantly handsome, with a straight posture, broad shoulders, and a pair of frameless glasses perched on his nose, giving him an approachable look.

Zhao Jin's eyes, hidden behind his glasses, were particularly gentle—but only toward Yao Xianqing. "I won't be going abroad again for at least twenty years."

Yao Xianqing nodded, understanding.

Just as Zhao Jin was about to ask him something else, he saw an unfamiliar woman approaching them with a hesitant yet determined expression—more precisely, toward Yao Xianqing.

"Hello, I'm You Nan's colleague. I saw you at the entrance of our hotel before—that day you were talking to You Nan."

Wang Yuanyuan mustered her courage and started talking with Yao Xianqing.

Yao Xianqing didn't recognize her, but he remembered the incident Wang Yuanyuan mentioned clearly.

Yao Xianqing acknowledged her and waited to hear what she would say next.

Seeing that the other didn't dismiss her or find an excuse to leave, Wang Yuanyuan knew she had found the right person.

She quickly explained You Nan's recent situation to Yao Xianqing.

Zhao Jin, standing nearby, took note of what the woman said. He stood quietly to the side without interrupting.

He also made a mental note of the name "You Nan."

Zhao Jin scanned Yao Xianqing's expression and frowned slightly.

Having grown up together since childhood, Zhao Jin and Yao Xianqing knew each other's temperaments better than even their own family members.

Just by looking at Yao Xianqing's expression, Zhao Jin could tell that this "You Nan" could affect Yao Xianqing's mood.

Zhao Jin surreptitiously glanced at Wang Yuanyuan, who was still speaking, reached into his pocket, and took out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter. He flicked the lighter and lit a cigarette, taking a drag.

Yao Xianqing didn’t even spare him a glance out of the corner of his eye. His attention was entirely focused on Wang Yuanyuan's words.

Yao Xianqing, with a darkened expression, stated a date. Wang Yuanyuan thought carefully and quickly nodded, "Yes, yes. The day after that, You Nan took time off. She returned to work on the third day, and that’s when the changes started."

She kept her distance, stopped talking to others, declined company team-building events and social gatherings with friends, and followed a strict routine of going to and from work every day.

Both her physical and mental state were precarious, and no one knew what had happened to You Nan.

Yao Xianqing knew the reason.

The cause was Qi Yuwen, but the fundamental cause was himself.

Yao Xianqing was filled with guilt about You Nan’s situation, but lately, he hadn’t been able to get in touch with her.

You Nan was Qi Yuwen’s wife, and Qi Yuwen micromanaged nearly every part of You Nan’s life.

Yao Xianqing’s means of contact were almost completely blocked, making it impossible to reach You Nan. Qi Yuwen even drove her to and from work, afraid that past incidents might repeat.

Every single thing Qi Yuwen did was pushing Yao Xianqing’s buttons.

The way Qi Yuwen treated You Nan was no different from imprisoning her!

However, Yao Xianqing didn’t show any of this in front of Wang Yuanyuan.

Suppressing his inner agitation, he reassured the worried Wang Yuanyuan, "Alright, I understand. I’ll get in touch with You Nan."

Wang Yuanyuan nodded eagerly, "Thank you. You’re so kind."

Only after Wang Yuanyuan left did Zhao Jin speak up, "Their hotel has a partnership with my father’s company."

"We’re the client company."

Yao Xianqing immediately realized something and looked up at his archenemy.

Zhao Jin took the cigarette from his lips, his eyes smiling, and tapped the cigarette lightly, letting the burning ash fall bit by bit. "I can help you meet her."

Yao Xianqing’s mood visibly improved, "Thanks, brother."

Zhao Jin smiled at the address but didn’t respond, though his eyes told a different story.

.

The hotel often collaborated with various companies in the area, and the finance staff were frequently out making visits.

Normally, this task wouldn’t fall to You Nan. She was just a small accountant handling reservations and external relations, and there was no need for her to deliver account books to partner companies.

But today, everyone was busy, and the supervisor couldn’t find anyone else, so he called on You Nan.

You Nan had never been to a client company before. The whole way, she clutched the documents and account books, following behind her supervisor. She echoed the supervisor's greetings and otherwise acted like a silent, barely noticeable presence, her existence barely noticeable.

This company belonged to the Zhao family, as You Nan knew from the storyline.

She was aware that Zhao Jin, the future successor of the Zhao family, had a crush on Yao Xianqing since junior high when he first developed romantic feelings. His family discovered this, and at a time when attitudes were still conservative, they viewed homosexuality as an illness and sent him abroad for treatment.

However, after the storyline began, he returned from overseas, trying to win over Yao Xianqing and be with the childhood friend he had loved for years.

Zhao Jin followed a path of unrequited love. He would make efforts, but after Yao Xianqing learned of his feelings and rejected him, he began silently protecting Yao Xianqing from afar.

Thus, his romantic subplot was minimal, with more focus on his career.

The Zhao and Yao families had overlapping business interests, making Zhao Jin and Yao Xianqing genuine "rivals."

As You Nan pondered this, she followed her supervisor into the office. She handed the financial reports to the Zhao company staff. After speaking with the supervisor for a while, they invited him to a budget meeting.

You Nan wanted to join but was stopped, told her rank was too low to attend.

The supervisor instructed You Nan to wait there until he returned.

You Nan glanced at the woman who had received them, seeking confirmation. She noticed his look, smiled, and said nothing, which put You Nan at ease.

The office was spacious, well-suited for receiving guests, with high ceilings and a floor-to-ceiling window covering one wall.

You Nan was standing by the window, admiring the view outside, when the office door suddenly opened. Startled, she turned around and saw an unfamiliar, refined, and handsome man walk in.