Chapter 123 – Birthday Cake
Yan Shengping took a breath. If he didn’t say it, he wouldn’t be able to keep his wife.
“Because you’re exactly Li Yueshuo’s type. He even mentioned you to me!” Yan Shengping said this with a barely suppressed, teeth-grinding anger. His grip on Lin Ganzhi’s hand tightened, as if he were afraid Li Yueshuo would pop out and snatch Lin Ganzhi away.
Lin Ganzhi was completely petrified. He was the very definition of an innocent bystander! Besides knowing Li Yueshuo’s name was Li Yueshuo, he had never even exchanged a single word with the man.
Lin Ganzhi thought for a dazed moment, then grasped at a straw. “But… but didn’t he like your music teacher?”
“They broke up. In their third year of high school, the music teacher got his acceptance letter for graduate school. Li Yueshuo simply dropped everything in the country and transferred abroad. The atmosphere abroad is more liberal, and the teacher gained many admirers there. Although the teacher still liked Li Yueshuo, he couldn’t handle that lunatic’s suspicious nature. They broke up in their second year abroad.” Yan Shengping glanced at Lin Ganzhi beside him and instantly understood his confusion from his gaze. He added, “During my freshman year of college, that lunatic somehow got my contact information and sent me messages all night long. I’d delete him, and he’d just add me again. Even his friend requests were filled with stories about him and the teacher. He went through his entire list of suspects with me, until I went online and hacked his account.”
Yan Shengping had never thought he would use the skills he learned for such crooked purposes. Li Yueshuo was the first, and the last.
Li Yueshuo was never Yan Shengping’s White Moonlight; he was his lifelong nemesis. And now, this person was suspected of coveting his wife!
“And, he thinks our marriage was just forced by our families, that I don’t like you at all.” Yan Shengping figured he might as well spill everything. He really didn’t know how to explain things to that lunatic. Even though Lin Ganzhi had expressed his satisfaction with their marriage on both Weibo and the show, Li Yueshuo was convinced it was all an act, part of Lin Ganzhi’s plan to accommodate him. Yan Shengping didn’t even have the energy to explain.
He never expected Li Yueshuo to be so dramatic. Lin Ganzhi was momentarily speechless.
“And,” Yan Shengping glanced at Lin Ganzhi, his gaze filled with a hint of hesitation and dissatisfaction. His exceptionally beautiful eyes were tinged with emotion, but they were still quite a sight to behold.
“What is it?” Lin Ganzhi blinked innocently.
Yan Shengping frowned and moved closer, looking at Lin Ganzhi very seriously. “Is my face part of the reason you like me?”
Lin Ganzhi’s heart skipped a beat. He panicked. Who wouldn’t like a great beauty!
“I… I mainly value your character!” Lin Ganzhi firmly denied it!
Yan Shengping’s eyes narrowed slightly. With an expression like a lazy, noble Siamese cat, he scanned Lin Ganzhi from head to toe before finally saying, “Zhizhi, remember what you said today. If that lunatic ever accidentally pops up in front of you, and you hesitate for even a second…” Yan Shengping’s hand dangerously poked the back of Lin Ganzhi’s hand.
Lin Ganzhi swallowed hard. Like a hamster with its fur on end, he didn’t dare to make a sound, only nodding, feeling incredibly guilty.
After calming down for a while, he realized something was wrong. Wait a minute! Yan Shengping was here to apologize to him. Why was he the one being timid?
With that thought, Lin Ganzhi took advantage of Yan Shengping’s inattention, pushed him away, and hugged his knees, putting a safe distance between them. “I understand now. You should go back first. I’ll stay here for a few more days.”
“No.” Yan Shengping rejected the suggestion without a second thought. But seeing Lin Ganzhi’s expression, he compromised. “You can stay here, but I have to be here too.”
Then what kind of running away from home was this!
Lin Ganzhi gritted his teeth in frustration. “No way. What about your company? It just went public. Don’t you need to go back and handle things?”
“It’s fine. I can work from home,” Yan Shengping shamelessly refused.
Lin Ganzhi was utterly defeated by the man’s shamelessness. Staying here and dragging it out with him would just be embarrassing. He sighed and, under Yan Shengping’s somewhat expectant gaze, chose to go home for the time being. After all, Yan Shengping still had a major issue to resolve, and dragging it out here wasn’t a solution.
However, on the way home, Lin Ganzhi was still a bit quiet, mostly giving short answers to Yan Shengping’s questions. He felt a dull ache in his heart, and as they got closer to home, he grew more nervous. He subconsciously didn’t want to return to the house that had kept him in a slump for two weeks, waking up every day to a dim room, a pale ceiling, and endless emptiness and silence.
Yan Shengping didn’t understand why Lin Ganzhi had such a faintly fearful expression. He felt a strange sense of irritation and could only silently hold Lin Ganzhi’s cool hand. It wasn’t until they got home and Yan Shengping was closing the door behind them that he suddenly remembered something. He rushed inside, wanting to stop him, but Lin Ganzhi had just turned on the lights.
In the warm glow of the lights, a large blue box sat on the living room dining table. A champagne-colored ribbon was tied around it. One look at the box and it was obvious what was inside. Lin Ganzhi’s dejected heart suddenly began to warm up, and he even felt a little choked up.
“I just bought it yesterday. It’s probably gone sour,” Yan Shengping said, rushing forward to throw it away, but Lin Ganzhi’s eyes were sharp and his hands were fast, grabbing the ribbon.
“You gave this to me. Can’t I even take a look?” Lin Ganzhi clutched the box protectively.
An unnatural and slightly resistant expression flickered across Yan Shengping’s face, but in the end, he didn’t reach out to stop him.
Lin Ganzhi looked down at the large box, and his somewhat stiff heart finally softened. At least he hadn’t forgotten his birthday. He slowly untied the ribbon, and when he lifted the lid, he saw a cake that wasn’t perfectly shaped. It was studded with many of Lin Ganzhi’s favorite fruits, and in the middle were the words: Happy Birthday, Zhizhi.
“Did you make this yourself?” Lin Ganzhi asked with anticipation.
Yan Shengping grunted in affirmation, the tips of his ears turning red. He then added, “I just threw it together. If it’s spoiled, it’s spoiled. I prepared your birthday gift a long time ago. This is just a formality.”
Damn it! Can’t this hopeless tsundere say something nice?
Lin Ganzhi thought for a moment but silently gave up. He just asked, “Weren’t you guys out for a gathering that day? I even heard your subordinate say you were chatting with Li Yueshuo.” As Lin Ganzhi spoke, his face showed some unhappiness.
Yan Shengping frowned in confusion, completely unable to understand how things had been so twisted. “That night, I had a pastry chef come over. He just came up to tell me he had resigned from Zhong’s. I barely paid him any mind, and he left on his own!”
CEO Yan, making a cake for the first time in his life, had been thoroughly screwed over by his subordinate again. He had chosen the slightly more secluded second floor precisely because he didn’t want anyone to know he was making a cake, only to have such a huge accusation pinned on him. Yan Shengping’s face was a portrait of displeasure.
After finally clearing up the misunderstandings of the past few days, the knot in Lin Ganzhi’s heart gradually loosened. He lowered his gaze to the cream cake on the table, a thoughtful expression on his face. No wonder Yan Shengping was so anxious when he came back last night and couldn’t find him. It turned out he remembered his birthday and had even prepared a cake for him. If he had just confirmed one more time during that phone call, or if he had left a little later that night, would any of the subsequent events have happened?
As if reading Lin Ganzhi’s thoughts, Yan Shengping came closer and wrapped his arms around him. He had cared about everything, yet he had forced himself to keep it all bottled up inside. “Zhizhi, I really like your possessiveness towards me. So in the future, don’t keep anything bottled up inside. Before you, I had never liked anyone, and in the future, it will only be you. If you’re unhappy about anything from now on, don’t just internalize it. Just tell me. Don’t leave without a word, just a note. I found you this time, but I’m afraid that next time, you’ll hide somewhere I can never find you again. Zhizhi, I’ll go crazy.” Yan Shengping’s last sentence was incredibly serious. Lin Ganzhi was stunned for a moment, then dazedly hugged him back.
Perhaps he had underestimated how much Yan Shengping liked him, or perhaps it was his own lack of security that always pushed him to extremes. The questions that had puzzled him for so long seemed to clear up in an instant. A sense of security wasn’t something you begged for; it was something you earned. It wasn’t just him who needed security; Yan Shengping also needed to gain a sense of security from him. Only then would the two of them have a chance to keep walking on together.
“Okay, I won’t hide things anymore. I’ll tell you everything.” Lin Ganzhi’s soft promise finally allowed Yan Shengping’s suspended heart to settle. Then, Lin Ganzhi received his belated birthday gift: a property deed to a house with a large lawn and garden that he loved.
That night, the two of them did nothing but hold each other, fully awake for once, and then had a good night’s sleep. This time, both Lin Ganzhi and Yan Shengping were exhausted. They slept until noon the next day, only waking up when Uncle Yan came back and knocked on their door.
Uncle Yan seemed to have had a wonderful time on his trip, even bringing back a lot of fresh, local fish. When Lin Ganzhi woke up, he went to the kitchen, and the family rarely had the chance to enjoy a big meal together.
It was after the meal that Uncle Yan officially learned about Yan Shengping’s background. He was so stunned he couldn’t speak. Who in their circle didn’t know the Wenren name now? And the Mr. Yan he had watched grow up was actually the lost child of the Wenren family!
“So what is the Wenren family saying now? What’s their attitude? Are they giving you a hard time, sir?” Uncle Yan asked after a moment, still speaking from the perspective of Yan Shengping’s closest elder.
Yan Shengping was silent for a moment before saying, “Not for now, but I also don’t know how to deal with them.”
Sitting beside him, Lin Ganzhi listened, clearly sensing that Yan Shengping was not good at handling the current situation. In relation to the Wenren family, Yan Shengping was more at a loss. He was used to being alone, and now he could completely rely on himself to build his own career. He was calm and wise. This matter, to him, was more of a faint burden, which was why he used the word “deal with.”
“Then for now, just maintain your previous attitude. Don’t force yourself to be overly close. For the Wenren family, being able to find you is already their greatest fortune. They won’t force you to be overly enthusiastic, so you don’t need to feel awkward. Listen to me, I don’t know the others well, but for Wenren Yi, the fact that her little uncle can return to her side is a kind of salvation. Think about it, being able to find your family is also a very happy thing, so you don’t have to feel like it’s a burden,” Lin Ganzhi patiently advised.
Yan Shengping stared intently at Lin Ganzhi beside him, a look of deep emotion in his eyes. When Lin Ganzhi finished speaking, he leaned over, disregarding Uncle Yan’s presence, and placed a kiss on his forehead. He said, “Okay. But you and Uncle Yan will always be my family. That will never change.”
After the family of three finished their chat, they received a call from Wenren Qi. He first discreetly asked about Yan Shengping’s relationship status, and after getting an affirmative answer, he happily invited them to the main residence.