Wife Takes the Reins: The Calm CEO

Chapter 34: You Are My Wife

“Yes, from now on you’ll be living here. So, what do you think? Do you like it? This is another villa owned by The Feng Family—it’s been vacant all this time. But don’t worry, the security here is airtight, and the neighbors are all people you can trust. If you run into any trouble, just reach out to them and they’ll help you sort it out. Plus, there’s a butler and staff inside, so you’ll hardly have to lift a finger,” Xiao Tong said, tilting his head. “I don’t like it one bit. And where are you taking Xiaowan? I’m not getting out of the car—I’m staying with her.” Qi Xin'er clutched Li Xiaowan’s hand tightly; her premonition was growing stronger by the moment. “That’s not entirely up to me. But I’d like to give you two sisters a friendly reminder: you’d better do as Ling Zheng Ge says first. That way, we’ll have room to negotiate later,” Xiao Tong said, her words carrying a hidden meaning. Li Xiaowan and Qi Xin'er exchanged a glance and immediately realized that what Xiao Tong said made perfect sense. “Xin'er, be very careful. We’ll keep in touch by phone,” Li Xiaowan urged. “Xiaowan, you too—give me the exact address once you get there,” Qi Xin'er said reluctantly, feeling deeply uneasy. “Xin'er, don’t worry about me. Go inside. Since they’ve made these arrangements, you might as well stay. Just relax here and wait for me to come find you, okay?” Li Xiaowan was afraid that Qi Xin'er might act impulsively and cause trouble. “Xiaowan, don’t worry. I know my limits,” Qi Xin'er said, her eyes brimming with tears. Li Xiaowan felt the same way; they both shared the same sense that this parting might mean it would be a long time before they saw each other again. “Xin'er, I have a feeling—I just can’t shake the thought that once we part, it’ll be years before we see each other again. Xin'er, I don’t want to be apart from you.” As soon as Li Xiaowan finished speaking, tears instantly welled up in her eyes. “Xiaowan, don’t cry... Don’t cry. Don’t worry—your premonitions always turn out to be the opposite of what you expect, right? Don’t you remember that time you were sure we wouldn’t be able to buy train tickets for the trip home? But just when we were feeling utterly hopeless, didn’t a kind stranger rush into the ticket hall, walk straight up to us, and say that he had to delay his trip for two days but couldn’t get a refund, and ask if we wanted his tickets? Even more amazing was that it happened to be the very train taking us home. There have been several other times like that—have you forgotten them all, Li Xiaowan?” Qi Xin'er pulled out a tissue to wipe Li Xiaowan’s tears, unaware that her own tears had long since been flowing like a burst dam. In truth, sometimes she was more like an older sister protecting Li Xiaowan. “Xin'er...” Li Xiaowan was now sobbing uncontrollably; all she could do was cling tightly to Qi Xin'er’s hand, unwilling to let go. Although Xiao Tong was sitting in the train car, he could sense the deep sisterly bond between the two from their expressions and gestures. He was actually very reluctant to do something so cruel, but this was Ling Zheng Ge’s order, and he believed Ling Zheng Ge had his reasons for arranging it this way. So he opened the door and got out of the car, then ruthlessly dragged Li Xiaowan back inside. Seeing this, Xin'er did not chase after them; she feared that if she handled the situation poorly, it would give Feng Lingzheng even more excuses to torment Li Xiaowan. “Xin'er… Xin'er… you must… take good care of yourself. Please… take care of yourself,” Li Xiaowan cried hoarsely. No matter how much she struggled, she couldn’t break free from Xiao Tong’s grip. At the same time, seeing that Xin'er hadn’t come after them, she realized that Xin'er must be thinking of her best interests. “Xiaowan, you must take care of yourself too… take care!” Qi Xin'er watched the car grow increasingly distant, while Li Xiaowan watched Qi Xin'er’s figure grow increasingly blurry; both felt a pain in their hearts as if they were being cut by a knife. “Excuse me, are you Miss Qi Xin'er?” a middle-aged woman in her fifties approached and asked. Qi Xin'er was too overcome with grief to even think about responding to her. “It seems you must be Miss Qi. I’ve been sent by Young Master Lingzheng to pick you up. Please follow me!” The middle-aged woman took the luggage bag from beside Qi Xin'er and said respectfully. Meanwhile, inside the car, “Sister Xiaowan, I can’t stand seeing girls cry. Don’t be sad—I’ll go buy you a lollipop later,” Xiao Tong said anxiously, glancing at Li Xiaowan through the rearview mirror as he drove. But Li Xiaowan remained lost in her own sorrow and didn’t hear what Xiao Tong said, nor did Xiao Tong take it to heart. No one could have foreseen that from the moment the two turned away from each other, their respective fates would begin to undergo earth-shattering changes. Youth is meant for both pain and nostalgia. The car slowly pulled into the Feng Family Estate. Unlike last time, this time they parked directly in the estate’s underground garage. “So it turns out they were just teasing me and Xin'er on purpose last time,” Li Xiaowan thought to herself, her emotions having calmed slightly. “Sister Xiaowan, come on. Last time you arrived in such a rush and left just as quickly—I completely forgot to tell you that this villa actually belongs to Ling Zheng Ge. Everything here belongs to him, including those scattered villas next door. It’s just that, aside from this one and the other four, all the rest have been sold to others.” ” Xiao Tong used both hands and feet to carry Li Xiaowan’s carry-on luggage up to her room on the second floor of the villa in the blink of an eye. Seeing that Li Xiaowan hadn’t said a word, Xiao Tong continued, “Sister Xiaowan, this is your room. What do you think? Does it give you that ‘facing the sea, with spring blossoms in bloom’ feeling? Ling Zheng Ge specifically instructed me to make sure I brought you to this room.” However, there was one crucial detail Xiao Tong hadn’t mentioned: this was the master bedroom—in other words, it actually belonged to Feng Lingzheng. If Li Xiaowan had paid even a little attention and taken a look around at the decor, she would have realized this, but she hadn’t fully recovered from the extreme low she’d been in just moments ago. “Xiao Tong, could you let me be alone for a while?” Li Xiaowan said without looking up. Ever since parting ways with Qi Xin'er, she’d been walking like a mindless puppet; even after getting out of the car, she’d merely followed stiffly behind Xiao Tong. “Sure, Sister Xiaowan. Take your time here. I’ll be going now. See you later.” Xiao Tong glanced at the lifeless Li Xiaowan, shook her head helplessly, then gently closed the door before heading down to the underground garage, starting the car, and driving away. “Ling Zheng Ge, I’ve taken care of what you asked me to do, but she seems really upset,” Xiao Tong said after a moment’s thought, unable to hold back any longer. “Xiao Tong, just do what you were told. I’ll handle the rest.” Feng Lingzheng said expressionlessly. The more heartbroken she was, the happier he was—wasn’t that right? As Li Xiaowan sat there, she began to feel drowsy, so she simply pulled back the comforter on the bed, crawled under the covers, pulled them over her head, and fell asleep. She didn’t know how long she’d slept before slowly waking from a haze. She faintly heard what sounded like a door opening downstairs, and Li Xiaowan instantly became wide awake. At first, she hadn’t paid it much mind, but now she recalled what Xiao Tong had said earlier—that this was Feng Lingzheng’s private villa. Didn’t that mean she was essentially a lamb walking into the lion’s den? Had she lost her mind, or did she simply stop thinking clearly whenever she encountered Feng Lingzheng? As soon as this thought crossed her mind, Li Xiaowan sat up in bed, quickly slipped on her shoes, ran over to lock the door from the inside, and held her breath. In fact, this scene hadn’t escaped Feng Lingzheng’s notice. Before deciding to bring Li Xiaowan here, he had already installed a hidden camera in the room—one so discreetly placed that Li Xiaowan hadn’t noticed it at all. “I don’t know whether to call you stupid or just too naive,” Feng Lingzheng said with a cold laugh as he stared at his phone screen. He had no intention of entering the room just yet. Instead, he leisurely ground out a cup of coffee for himself, then settled lazily onto the leather sofa to watch the news broadcast on TV. “Rising all the way—not bad.” Feng Lingzheng casually watched the stock market trends flashing across the large screen, taking a small sip of coffee and letting its unique, rich aroma spread freely across his lips and teeth. He never liked adding sugar to his coffee; he preferred the bitter taste to the cloying sweetness. Didn’t I just hear a noise? Why has it gone quiet all of a sudden? Li Xiaowan gently opened the door a crack, then peered nervously through the gap. Apart from the dazzlingly bright crystal chandelier and some lifeless furniture, she couldn’t see anything else that showed any sign of life. Perhaps she’d misheard it, Li Xiaowan thought, patting her chest a few times. She decided to go back to sleep; she hadn’t felt hungry at all tonight and had no appetite anyway. Just as she was about to close the door, a pair of men’s cotton slippers suddenly slipped inside, causing Li Xiaowan to let out a startled cry. “I’m not a ghost—is it really necessary to be so scared?” Feng Lingzheng said leisurely, looking at Li Xiaowan. “In my eyes, you’re more terrifying than any demon or ghost in this world.” Li Xiaowan composed herself and realized it was Feng Lingzheng, but she didn’t feel any relief; instead, she stared at him warily. “What’s with that look? Are you afraid I’m going to eat you?” Feng Lingzheng said with a hint of amusement. “Get out… get out…” Being in the same room with someone like this felt as if she were being stalked by a vicious wolf—it was extremely dangerous. Li Xiaowan’s fear grew more intense, and she tried to force Feng Lingzheng out the door. “Have you forgotten what Xiao Tong told you? This is my room. What’s wrong with me being in my own room?” Although Feng Lingzheng’s eyes were slightly narrowed, to Li Xiaowan, he looked even more terrifying than when his eyes were wide open. “Fine, I’ll leave. That should be good enough, right?” After saying this, Li Xiaowan started to walk toward the door. “Stop right there. You’re my wife; you’re supposed to share a room with me,” Feng Lingzheng said with a cold expression. Li Xiaowan could tell he was simply toying with her. “I’m sorry, but even if we have a contract between us, there’s still plenty of time before the one-month mark. Besides, the agreement clearly states that ours is purely a contractual marriage.” Li Xiaowan hoped this would scare Feng Lingzheng, naively believing he would care about the promises in the contract.