Wife Takes the Reins: The Calm CEO

Chapter 47: Li’s Plea

After hearing Feng Lingzheng’s words, Li Xiaowan actually calmed down considerably. That’s right—from start to finish, nothing beyond the contract would ever develop between them. In a year’s time, they’d go their separate ways. Why should she torment herself now? “I’m hungry. I want something to eat. You wouldn’t be so heartless as to refuse to buy me a meal, would you?” Li Xiaowan said, looking at the icy Feng Lingzheng. “I wouldn’t do that.” Feng Lingzheng stood up and walked out of the hospital room. About half an hour later, he returned, carrying a red insulated lunch box. Who would have thought that the grand CEO of Fengyi Group would be carrying an insulated lunch box—and a red one at that? If anyone saw him, it would surely be another sensational news story. Of course, Li Xiaowan had never even considered that possibility. Feng Lingzheng tossed the thermos box into Li Xiaowan’s arms. “Here you go! Eat it while it’s hot.” And with that, he was gone. “Thanks…” I’ll pass on that. If it weren’t for him, I wouldn’t be lying here in a hospital bed. Hmph! Li Xiaowan was completely drained of energy right now; she could only force herself to sit up. Without a tray table, how was she supposed to eat? One hand was still hooked up to an IV, and she couldn’t very well ask this arrogant, self-important person in front of her for help. Maybe she should call a nurse instead. Since she was in a VIP ward, she might as well enjoy the treatment a VIP patient was entitled to. Just as Li Xiaowan was about to press the call button, “Are you mute? Can’t you even make a peep?” Feng Lingzheng’s expression was extremely sour, but despite his words, he still took a small tray out of the storage cabinet and placed it in front of Li Xiaowan. “Eat up!” “Thanks,” Li Xiaowan managed to squeeze out the two words through gritted teeth. “I might as well not say anything.” Feng Lingzheng looked at Li Xiaowan’s face, which was twisted into a knot, and felt like her head was about to explode. “Whether I say it or not is my business; whether you accept it or not is yours.” Only after she’d spoken did Li Xiaowan realize she’d once again walked right into the line of fire—as if her life wasn’t hard enough already. She shot Feng Lingzheng a glance; thankfully, he didn’t seem to mind. Never mind—her stomach was growling with hunger. When Li Xiaowan unscrewed the lid of the thermos, a wave of aroma hit her nose. What on earth was it? It smelled so good. Li Xiaowan took a closer look. Wow! It was her favorite dish—beef rice noodles. Wait a minute—how did he know? It must have been a coincidence. She couldn’t wait to pick up her chopsticks and started eating without a second thought. Feng Lingzheng stood by, utterly speechless: “What a mess—she’s not eating with any grace at all. She doesn’t act like a lady at all.” But how could he possibly understand the mind of a foodie? When faced with a dish she loves, a foodie doesn’t care about her image at all—as long as she’s happy and satisfied, that’s all that matters. Sure enough, after Li Xiaowan finished all the rice noodles, she even drank every last drop of the broth. “Burp…” Li Xiaowan rubbed her belly, which was now round and full. Those rice noodles were truly delicious—she had no idea where he’d bought them. Maybe she should ask; once she was discharged from the hospital, she definitely had to go back and eat her fill. “Um… Feng Dong, I was wondering where you bought the rice noodles?” Li Xiaowan mustered her courage to ask. Since it had already happened, there was no point in dwelling on it—it was better to face it head-on. “Nanfeng Restaurant,” Feng Lingzheng replied without hesitation. Perhaps he felt guilty about last night’s incident, which was why he wasn’t as confrontational as usual today. Still, sometimes people who are too kind are more easily deceived by false appearances. “When can I leave the hospital?” Li Xiaowan asked cautiously once more. She was genuinely afraid of Feng Lingzheng’s unpredictable mood swings; the moment his expression changed, she’d be the one to suffer. “Once the IV is finished,” Feng Lingzheng replied without even glancing at Li Xiaowan. “All right!” Li Xiaowan turned her head to glance at the IV, which was nearly finished. Even in a VIP room, lying there was extremely uncomfortable, and the thought of being released soon filled her with joy. “Feng Dong, may I discuss something with you?” Li Xiaowan asked tentatively. “Go ahead!” Feng Lingzheng still didn’t look at Li Xiaowan. “Although we’ve signed a contract, I’d like to clarify that my personal freedom isn’t restricted, is it?” Li Xiaowan felt a bit anxious. “It depends on your behavior.” Feng Lingzheng finally turned her head to glance at Li Xiaowan. “What do you mean, ‘it depends on my behavior’? It would be more accurate to say it depends on your mood.” Li Xiaowan sensed the underlying meaning in Feng Lingzheng’s words. “Looks like you’re not too stupid after all.” Since she understood what he meant, why ask such a pointless question? Li Xiaowan’s thoughts were far too straightforward; virtually all her emotions were written all over her face. Even if she didn’t say it outright, Feng Lingzheng could see right through her—he just wasn’t willing to grant her freedom. Just when she thought she’d glimpsed a glimmer of hope, she was instantly brought back down to earth. Li Xiaowan slumped against the bedframe behind her like a deflated balloon, completely dejected. “But as long as you cooperate and play your part at the engagement banquet, I’ll grant you three days off.” Feng Lingzheng’s voice remained icy, yet to Li Xiaowan’s ears, it sounded like music to her ears. “You said it yourself—you absolutely can’t go back on your word.” Having learned a series of hard lessons, Li Xiaowan wouldn’t dare to trust Feng Lingzheng so easily again. “Whether you believe me or not, I’ve given you hope—and that’s better than having no hope at all!” Feng Lingzheng engaged Li Xiaowan in a game of semantic analysis. It sounded quite reasonable, and Li Xiaowan couldn’t think of a rebuttal on the spot. “I suppose so.” “Miss Xiaowan, are you feeling better? The IV is finished; I’ll remove the needle for you.” After knocking on the door, Li walked straight into the ward and approached Li Xiaowan’s bedside without waiting for Feng Lingzheng or Li Xiaowan’s permission. Isn’t this the beautiful woman who was standing side by side with Feng Lingzheng just a moment ago? An inexplicable feeling welled up inside Li Xiaowan again. “I’m feeling much better, thank you.” She had to maintain the proper courtesy. “Li, thank you for your trouble. Isn’t the hospital busy today?” After Li entered, the expression on Feng Lingzheng’s face softened considerably. “Oh, come on! It’s never not busy here. I just happened to be passing by, so I thought I’d pop in to see your fiancée. From a distance, I couldn’t really make out her features, but now that I’ve come in closer, I can see she’s not only fair-skinned and beautiful, but she also has the natural aura of a woman who brings good fortune to her husband. Lingzheng, you’ve really hit the jackpot!” After Li finished removing the IV needle from Li Xiaowan, she turned and walked toward Feng Lingzheng with a light, graceful stride. With her delicate, petite face, tall and slender figure, and a voice as sweet as a nightingale’s song, why was it that Feng Lingzheng was always surrounded by either handsome men or stunning women? “Li, you just went to South America, didn’t you? How come even your sense of aesthetics has changed?” Feng Lingzheng’s meaning was clear. “Zheng, it’s fine if you hurt my feelings, but please don’t hurt this young lady’s.” The person in question was right there—you should at least spare her some dignity! Li was essentially trying to smooth things over for Feng Lingzheng. “Li, am I not right? Let’s not mention her anymore—it’s bad luck.” She didn’t care at all about Li Xiaowan’s feelings; she sounded even more cold and heartless. “Zheng, you’ve changed a lot since that incident happened. Do you know that? Every time we see you looking inexplicably unhappy, it breaks our hearts. But we also understand your temperament—we can only watch helplessly from the sidelines, hoping you’ll gradually emerge from the shadows. Little did we know that before you’d even come out of it, you’d already rushed to find a substitute.” ” Li didn’t approve of the contractual marriage between Feng Lingzheng and Li Xiaowan. She’d been somewhat hesitant just a moment ago, but the moment she realized Feng Lingzheng was once again plunging herself into an endless abyss, she began to speak her mind without restraint. She wasn’t afraid that Li Xiaowan might overhear—In other words, it would be better if she did hear it. If Li Xiaowan were a girl with any self-awareness, she would understand the reality of the situation and step back in time. Li’s main concern was that Feng Lingzheng wouldn’t get hurt again. “You don’t need to worry about me—I know what I’m doing. But as for you and Xi, just think about it: you’ve been together for six years now. It’s about time you tied the knot.” When it came to Li and Xi’s future together, Feng Lingzheng was more anxious than anyone else. “Zheng, why are you two even more anxious than we are? Do you know what Xi and I have been saying about you two behind your backs?” Li could sense everyone’s concern for her and Xi, but it was solely due to her own personal reasons that she had yet to accept Xi’s proposal. “It certainly wasn’t anything nice.” She knew her friend well. “Haha! You guessed right. Xi and I have both said behind your backs that you’re like Tang Seng from *Journey to the West*—except he’s just one person, while you’re a whole crowd. You’ve been nagging us so much our ears are practically calloused.” Being nagged by a whole group of people all day long is actually an incredibly happy thing. “Since you don’t want us to nag you, just go ahead and make everyone happy.” Feng Lingzheng didn’t want Li and Xi to end up like her—with everything coming to nothing in the end. “We’re already discussing how, as soon as you’re done with your business, we’ll start making preparations, aren’t we?” A blush spread across Li’s cheeks. “Your little brain’s finally caught on!” Feng Lingzheng pretended to tap Li on the head. “Zheng, you’re the one smiling. Sure, you’re the matchmaker, but don’t count on us giving you a huge red envelope. On the contrary, you’ll have to prepare two big red envelopes for each of us.” Li put on a show of being stubborn. “You two won’t be left out. It’s getting late, and I still need to go talk things over with Lan. On the day of the engagement party, you must remember—not a single one of you can show up. Ying just sent word this morning that the other side has already sent people to secretly infiltrate China.” ” Feng Lingzheng emphasized this for two reasons: first, for everyone’s safety; second, because she didn’t really think it was necessary. After all, holding this so-called engagement banquet was purely to mislead the enemy—a show put on for certain people to make them think he’d once again fallen into a life of luxury. Finding someone who looked similar would make it even more convincing. So, the earlier excuse about doing it to placate his sick grandmother and other family members was just a secondary consideration. “We all understand your good intentions, but for the safety of everyone present, we’ll definitely disguise ourselves as all sorts of characters and blend into the crowd on the periphery. You wouldn’t refuse even this small gesture of goodwill from us, would you?” Li wasn’t entirely sure Feng Lingzheng would agree. “At a critical moment like this, do you really think I’m the type to act on impulse?” Feng Lingzheng had guessed what Li was thinking. “Since you’ve agreed, we’ll gather all our allies in City A tonight and draw up a detailed plan. All right, let’s leave it at that. I should go make my rounds now; otherwise, people will get suspicious.” Li gave Feng Lingzheng a subtle nod and left the hospital room. Li Xiaowan lay in her hospital bed, watching Feng Lingzheng and Li go from completely ignoring her presence at the start to whispering to each other now. She was increasingly overcome by a strong premonition that The Feng Family must be hiding many unknown secrets. Who knows—maybe, just like in cop movies,like a major drug lord or something. If that were true, then she’d have fallen right into a trap the hunters had set long ago. Once the truth came out, what if they made her the scapegoat? She wouldn’t even have a chance to defend herself—she’d be deemed an accomplice. At best, she’d face prison; at worst, she could be sentenced to death! Li Xiaowan shook her head vigorously, trying hard to tell herself to stop overthinking. There couldn’t possibly be that many coincidences in the world.