WRA CH36

Chapter 36: Prelude to Losing His Cover

[Dou Manning: I have something to tell you. I have a husband. You’ve seen him—the worker who buys coffee at the construction site.]

[Xiang Zhen: Congratulations! With a husband, you don’t have to be afraid of thunder anymore.]

Xiang Zhen felt genuinely happy for Dou Manning. Now both of them had husbands, decent jobs, and their little shop was steadily growing. Life was getting better and better.

[Xiang Zhen: During the Dragon Boat Festival, I’m going to tell Auntie Guihua.]

[Dou Manning: I’ll tell her too.]

This would be double happiness arriving at Auntie Guihua’s door.

However, there was one minor issue. Although he and Dou Manning weren’t the same species, they were both registered under Auntie Guihua’s household, making them brothers in name.

This was likely the reason Yao rarely returned to the Yao Spirit Village after leaving; if they bumped into each other, it would be impossible to explain.

They would have to stagger their visits back home.

“Capitalists are truly extravagant! The money spent maintaining these sunflowers for a year could save so many lives!” An elderly man, tired of waiting in line with his wife, casually grumbled.

The auntie rolled her eyes: “Listen to you. Why don’t you go yell at the city’s greenbelts?”

The uncle: “I curse the greenbelts too!”

Xiang Zhen silently moved a bit further away from the uncle, afraid of catching strays.

Spotting Xiang Zhen, the auntie asked amiably, “Young man, how do you take care of your suit? My son comes back from running sales every day and his suit is always terribly wrinkled, and I don’t know how to wash it.”

Despite the sweltering heat, Xiang Zhen’s suit still gave off a crisp, clean, and refreshing vibe.

Xiang Zhen: “I don’t know, my hubby washes it all.”

Aside from the one time Zhou Sicheng had deliberately teased him, Xiang Zhen hadn’t washed clothes in a very long time. His underwear was hand-washed by Zhou Sicheng, and the rest of his clothes were taken to Zhou Sicheng’s company every morning to be washed for free—saving water and electricity by exploiting the capitalist’s perks.

The word “hubby” still delivered quite a shock to the elderly couple; the two of them stared at Xiang Zhen and fell silent.

The hair at the nape of Xiang Zhen’s neck brushed against his collar. It had grown a bit long and felt stuffy in the heat. Every morning before leaving, Zhou Sicheng would tie it up into a little bun for him, but because his hair was so silky smooth, it wouldn’t hold, automatically unraveling by noon.

It was so hot; he should cut his hair a little shorter tonight.

He turned his head to look at the Zhoufu Headquarters building. It was even more magnificent than the bank. Which floor did Zhou Sicheng work on? Could he go inside to cool off for a bit?

Xiang Zhen directly asked the security guard: “Can I go inside the building for a tour?”

Security Guard: “No. It’s not open to the public.”

So strict.

Xiang Zhen didn’t dare say his husband worked inside. If a wife suddenly showed up for a tour in the middle of a workday, Zhou Sicheng’s boss would think his wife was extremely weird, and his colleagues might misunderstand and think he was there to catch him cheating.

In short, it would affect his husband’s chances of promotion.

Braving the scorching sun, Xiang Zhen continued waiting in line. He guessed Zhou Sicheng should be eating in the cafeteria right now and might have time to chat, so he opened their chat window.

[Xiang Zhen: Manning found a husband too!]

[Zhou Sicheng: That’s a good thing.]

[Xiao Kui: @Zhou Sicheng, your reaction is too plain! You don’t seem very happy!]

Zhou Sicheng was speechless. Why should he be overjoyed about someone else’s business?

He was currently on a call with overseas executives; was he supposed to hang up and call Dou Manning to say congratulations?

Besides, he had anticipated this matter long ago.

Yesterday, he had met with Shen Ku.

Shen Ku’s opening line had been: “Your wife is a very pure person. He can endure hardship, and he’s easily satisfied just earning a few dozen yuan a day.”

Zhou Sicheng’s expression immediately turned icy. So he hadn’t come to report on the engineering project; he had come to flaunt his superiority.

Xiang Zhen could endure hardship, so what? Was he trying to say Zhou Sicheng’s wealth was useless? Was he warning him to treat Xiang Zhen better? Heh.

Zhou Sicheng was somewhat curious about how Xiang Zhen had met him, but he absolutely refused to ask Shen Ku.

Rather than listening to a self-aggrandizing, romanticized version from Shen Ku, he’d just go home and ask his wife.

The conversation between the two instantly froze; with nothing in common, even half a sentence felt like a waste of breath.

After finishing the coffee, Zhou Sicheng prepared to see his guest out.

Right before leaving, Shen Ku dropped another line: “Take good care of Manning.”

It turned out he thought Zhou Sicheng had poached Dou Manning.

Well, the Moments post was indeed a bit ambiguous.

After Zhou Sicheng cleared the air, Shen Ku was clearly preparing to take action—this interception had been a misunderstanding, but what about next time? That milk-laced coffee was too bitter; he had no desire to taste it again.

Zhou Sicheng’s overseas call dragged on for two hours until 1:00 PM. Since he was too lazy to go on a business trip, this was the only alternative.

Turning off the screen, he lifted his eyes and glanced outside. His office faced the ocean view, not the Sunflower Plaza out front.

The sky was so blue; today was the kind of nice weather Xiang Zhen loved.

Zhou Sicheng withdrew his gaze and let it fall on the calendar on his desk.

June 15th. The first day of the fifth lunar month.

The fifth lunar month was also known as the Poison Month—the beginning of humid heat and the breeding season for mosquitoes and insects. Excluding the days he had been on business trips, as of today, he and Xiang Zhen had spent a full month together in that rental apartment.

There was nothing wrong with the mundane trivialities of daily domestic life, especially when it involved intimate affection.

But he could no longer let Xiang Zhen live in a room without window screens to keep out the mosquitoes.

Zhou Sicheng planned to lay his cards on the table.

First, he needed to decorate their home.

Zhou Sicheng stood up and headed toward the cafeteria, dialing his butler along the way: “Redecorate my bedroom.”

“What style?” The butler asked.

Zhou Sicheng thought for a moment: “Put double happiness paper cutouts on the doors and windows. I’ll send you some photos; have them printed and framed. I want a couple’s photo hung above the headboard.”

The butler was slightly startled. How far had Young Master Zhou’s aesthetic tastes regressed?

The more Zhou Sicheng thought about it, the better the idea seemed. He pulled out his wallet to take a look. The day after receiving his wife’s gift, he had dragged Xiang Zhen to a photo studio to take a red-background portrait. They both wore white dress shirts buttoned all the way to the top—the standard format required for a marriage certificate.

His wife had looked so well-behaved taking that photo.

Zhou Sicheng admired it for a moment before slipping the wallet back into his pocket. Prior to this, it had been a very long time since he last used a wallet.

Now, he wished he could pay in cash every time he bought something, just so he could pull out his wallet and casually display it.

Butler: “Is there anything else?”

Zhou Sicheng: “Madam likes desserts. Hire a pastry chef.”

Butler: “Understood.”

Zhou Sicheng: “Have Uncle Zhang tidy up the sunflowers in the garden. Over thirty pots of sunflowers will be moved there later.”

Butler: “Okay.”

Zhou Sicheng: “Clear out the smallest guest room on the third floor and punch an exhaust vent for a range hood.”

He was going to uninstall and bring the range hood his wife had bought him.

Not just the range hood—Zhou Sicheng planned to recreate an exact replica of the rental apartment so they could occasionally experience it again.

Zhou Sicheng sent a 360-degree panoramic video of the rental apartment to the butler: “Restore it exactly like this.”

The style must be identical, but the materials could not be the same.

This was the first time the butler realized Zhou Sicheng had been living in such an apartment outside. He remained speechless for a long time.

Zhou Sicheng had numerous demands and even began questioning the butler’s competence. This was his first time bringing his wife home, and he was terrified Xiang Zhen would be dissatisfied with something. “Start on it first. I’ll make time to come back and arrange the rest.”

Butler: “I’ll get to it immediately.”

Suppressing an uncharacteristic wave of nervousness, Zhou Sicheng walked to the cafeteria and chose a seat by the window.

This spot perfectly overlooked the sunflowers in the plaza.

At that moment, the sunflowers were tilting their brilliant golden heads, uniformly tracking the sun’s position.

Zhou Sicheng remembered the patch of sunflowers at home; their petals had also bloomed one after another.

The sunflower was a flower that embodied the fierce, beautiful vitality of life, eternally chasing hope.

Never before in the years since he turned twelve had Zhou Sicheng’s life been so vivid, thrilling, and overflowing with radiance.

When the sunflowers bloomed their fiercest, he would welcome his wife home.

…

As Zhou Sicheng watched, his brows suddenly furrowed.

Xiang Zhen was right down there.

He could never mistake that head of golden hair.

Here he was, enjoying the air conditioning, while his wife was outside enduring the scorching sun and standing in a long line.

The temperature outside was pushing 35°C, and Xiang Zhen was waiting in line just to check in at the sunflowers.

He appeared a bit dizzy from the heat, constantly rubbing his forehead and occasionally raising a hand to shield his eyes.

Xiang Zhen wasn’t usually afraid of the heat, but right now he looked on the verge of heatstroke. Zhou Sicheng couldn’t see his face clearly from up high, but he guessed his lips were probably white.

An agonizing, piercing wave of remorse and anxiety surged instantly in Zhou Sicheng’s chest. His wife’s constitution wasn’t suited for waiting in lines… he couldn’t even clearly explain what his wife’s physical condition was, but regardless, it wasn’t suitable.

If he had confessed earlier, he could have cleared the grounds today, letting the entire field of sunflowers bloom solely for his wife.

Zhou Sicheng immediately called Xiang Zhen, telling him to come inside to escape the heat. Then he called the security office, granting entry to the blond young man. Rushing to the elevator in two strides, he ran into Secretary Gao, who was delivering documents.

Forcing himself to calm down, he said, “Gao Ou, go down and fetch Xiang Zhen. I’ll wait here.”

Gao Ou: “Understood.”

Like an absolute tyrant, Zhou Sicheng ordered, “The weather is too hot. Clear the area downstairs immediately.”

He offered a high-sounding excuse, but in reality, he just wanted to let Xiang Zhen take a photo once everyone else was gone.

Gao Ou said tactfully, “The PR department was actually planning to issue a statement tonight, stating that the large crowds are disrupting corporate operations, and the thermal radiation from the glass curtain wall is severe in this intense heat. To prevent visitor discomfort, it will no longer be open to the public starting tomorrow.”

The plaza was a private landscape; no major corporate headquarters had crowds swarming its entrance like a supermarket. If a stampede or accident occurred, they would be held liable.

It was just that suddenly driving people away wouldn’t look very good.

“After all, it concerns the public image of Xiao Kui Bao.”

Zhou Sicheng, however, was dead set on his decision. How could a son’s image be more important than a wife? I’m not dead yet; why should my wife have to wait in line?

Zhou Sicheng: “Didn’t the warehouse move a batch of Dragon Boat Festival gift boxes over? Take them out and distribute them. For every person you persuade to leave, give them one.”

Gao Ou: “Yes, sir.”

If there were generous gifts involved and the weather was used as a pretext to persuade them to leave, Zhoufu would be seen as a humane and compassionate corporation.

Gao Ou broke into a jog and greeted Xiang Zhen at the main entrance: “Mr. Xiang, what a coincidence.”

“Mr. Gao, so you work here!”

“Yes, I’m colleagues with Mr. Zhou. Are you looking for him?”

Following Gao Ou into the elevator, Xiang Zhen looked up, only to see Zhou Sicheng standing inside.

“Hubby.”

Zhou Sicheng pulled him into an embrace, letting him lean against his chest: “You must be tired.”

Xiang Zhen’s throat felt a bit dry: “Hubby, I want some water.”

His heart aching terribly, Zhou Sicheng pressed the button for the cafeteria floor: “I’ll take you to the cafeteria to eat.”

When the elevator arrived, Secretary Gao stepped out first to lead the way.

Zhou Sicheng crouched down and hoisted his wilted wife onto his back.

Along the way to the private dining room in the cafeteria, with Secretary Gao clearing the path ahead, they didn’t run into a single person.

After resting on his husband’s back for a while, Xiang Zhen recovered and was back to being lively and energetic. “Hubby, your company is even more magnificent than mine.”

Zhou Sicheng: “Mn, they’re both our companies.”

Arriving at the private room, Zhou Sicheng twisted open several bottles of room-temperature beverages: “Drink slowly.”

President Zhou’s lunch had just been prepared, and Secretary Gao personally delivered it: “Just brought this in for you since I was on my way.”

Xiang Zhen’s eyes curved in a smile: “Thank you on behalf of my hubby.”

“Hubby, you haven’t eaten yet?” Looking down with concern, Xiang Zhen was shocked to see that Zhou Sicheng’s lunch included baked lobster. He swallowed hard. “Hubby, do you always eat this well for lunch?”

Zhou Sicheng: “…” Damn him. He was eating the good stuff all by himself.

Zhou Sicheng: “Because I registered that my wife is visiting for the first time. This is a family perk provided by the company cafeteria.”

Xiang Zhen was astounded: “Does every employee get this?”

Zhou Sicheng: “Yes.”

Xiang Zhen let his imagination run wild: “Your company has such great benefits. Do they allocate housing after you work here for a long time too?”

Zhou Sicheng: “Yes.”

Secretary Gao: ?

Yes to what? With Haicheng housing prices this high, the employee housing allocation perk was abolished twenty years ago! Otherwise, I’d have a house by now!

President Zhou must have meant ‘Yes’ as in ‘whatever Madam says will be fulfilled.’

Xiang Zhen: “Mr. Gao, have you had lunch? Sit down and eat with us.”

Secretary Gao said, “I just ate. I’ll get back to work now.”

Zhou Sicheng shelled the lobster, dipped it in a little vinegar sauce, and fed it to Xiang Zhen.

Xiang Zhen opened his mouth and took a huge bite, his cheeks puffing out.

Watching his wife eat, Zhou Sicheng felt that this was the life he had always dreamed of. He had to lay his cards on the table; he had to bring his wife here to work.

“Once I get promoted, I’ll give you an internal referral so you can come work here.”

Xiang Zhen nodded: “Sure.”

Zhou Sicheng’s hand tightened into a fist. Xiang Zhen was always too accommodating, too sweet-tempered; without realizing it, Zhou Sicheng had been indulged into developing boundless possessiveness and control.

Xiang Zhen: “Hubby, can I see your office?”

Zhou Sicheng stayed silent for two seconds, debating between confessing right then and there or waiting for a better opportunity.

Right at that moment, Fan Hao called: “Xiang Zhen, where did you wander off to now?”

Xiang Zhen: “I’m eating at my hubby’s company.”

“Zhoufu Building?” Fan Hao repeated carefully. “Has he stopped pretending?”

Xiang Zhen: “Pretending what?”

Fan Hao pulled back from the brink: “Nothing. He just loves to show off.”

Xiang Zhen pouted. His husband didn’t love showing off at all; he was clearly very low-profile. “Do you know what university my hubby went to?”

Fan Hao played dumb: “Never heard.”

Xiang Zhen: “Top 2. He never brags about it.”

Fan Hao laughed. With a wife like this who won’t allow anyone to say a single bad word about you, Zhou Sicheng, you better not mess this up.

Fan Hao: “Did you tour his office? Might be a surprise in there.”

Xiang Zhen could hear the passive-aggressiveness in Fan Hao’s tone. Why had Fan Hao turned out just as bad as Yueyue? He had scrolled past TV drama clips of office affairs—was Fan Hao trying to hint that his husband had a mistress in the office?

Xiang Zhen: “Hubby, no matter what anyone else says, I only believe you.”

Zhou Sicheng: “…”

He suddenly found himself riding a tiger with no way to dismount. In the very moment Xiang Zhen trusted him the most, he couldn’t bring himself to tell him that everything was a woven lie.

Left with no choice, Zhou Sicheng brought Xiang Zhen to Secretary Gao’s office instead.

Sitting behind the desk, he didn’t even know the computer password. Spotting a pair of blue-light-blocking glasses on the desk, he put them on and pretended to be very busy.

Secretary Gao’s office was adjacent to the CEO’s, and the view outside the window was equally stunning.

This was the first time Xiang Zhen had ever seen Zhou Sicheng framed by a high-end office and the azure sea.

The Zhou Sicheng in his memory was mostly the Zhou Sicheng wrapped in the domestic warmth of the rental apartment, the Zhou Sicheng driving the BYD, the Zhou Sicheng sleeping on thirty-yuan cotton sheets.

Placed in a corporate setting, Zhou Sicheng felt entirely unfamiliar.

Wearing gold-rimmed glasses, Zhou Sicheng radiated a natural, unapproachable authority.

Sure enough, suits required the right setting. Appearing in a rental apartment versus an office building gave off a completely different aura.

So handsome!

Xiang Zhen screamed internally.

Handsome to the point of being oppressive, intimidating, and scorching.

So handsome he almost didn’t dare look directly at him, feeling as though simply looking would scorch his flower head.

Xiang Zhen shifted his gaze away evasively: “Hubby, I need to go back to work.”

Zhou Sicheng: “The area downstairs is clear now, you can go take photos. Gao Ou happens to be heading to the bank for an errand, he’ll drop you off.”

Xiang Zhen felt that Zhou Sicheng’s words sounded different from before too.

There was an added flavor of giving orders.

That night, when Xiang Zhen and Zhou Sicheng engaged in their nocturnal activities, he also felt a faint, burning sensation in his lower abdomen.

Without thinking, while straddling Zhou Sicheng, he lifted the hem of his bathrobe and draped it over Zhou Sicheng’s face.

Not seeing Zhou Sicheng’s slightly sweat-slicked, sexy face made it a bit better.

Zhou Sicheng was stunned. Was he inviting him to eat something?

…

That action left Xiang Zhen waking up the next day with sore legs and a bloated abdomen.

The next day.

Xiang Zhen still kept his habit of wandering around during his lunch break. While strolling down the street, he suddenly spotted a familiar back in a wholesale store.

Uncle Zhang?!

Xiang Zhen’s eyes lit up. He wanted to ask Uncle Zhang exactly how he managed to sell sunflowers for such high prices.

Uncle Zhang was there to buy large celadon vats for the sunflowers. He had bought forty of them, loaded them onto a cart, and had just left.

Xiang Zhen jogged a few steps forward and tapped Uncle Zhang on the shoulder, but right at that moment, a truck blared its horn loudly. Not noticing him, Uncle Zhang drove off on his electric scooter.

Feeling a bit regretful, Xiang Zhen squeezed his fingers together. Sensing something, he opened his hand and saw a microscopic, tiny speck of yellow sunflower pollen.

He would never forget the scent of sunflower pollen from the hazelnut grove.

Xiang Zhen froze. Looking around, he was absolutely certain—this single speck of pollen was something he had just brushed off Uncle Zhang’s clothes.

This was the descendant of his brothers and sisters.

Someone had once taken a sunflower seed from the hazelnut grove and passed it down generation after generation until today, without crossbreeding it with other paternal lines, preserving the original, truest sunflower traits. Just like him!

His family was right there in Uncle Zhang’s house, the one who grew sunflowers!

Tears welled up in Xiang Zhen’s eyes. After finding a husband, and thanks to an accidental misdirection from that same husband, he had found his family too!

They were waiting right there for him to reunite with them! From this day forward, he would be a Yao with both a lover and a family!

Xiang Zhen took off sprinting, chasing after Uncle Zhang’s cart.

He ran incredibly fast, like a gust of wind. The heat steamed against his cheeks, and tears of excitement evaporated straight from the corners of his eyes, but he paid it no mind, chasing the cart block after block.

Finally, following that cart, he arrived at a villa district called Jiang Pavilion.

He leaped onto the perimeter wall, vaulted over, and disappeared into the woods.

Behind him, panting heavily, Ye Yun and Shi Ting: “…”

Madam has incredible agility!

Wait… isn’t President Zhou inside there right now?