Wife Takes the Reins: The Calm CEO

Chapter 44: The Upcoming Engagement Banquet

“Xiaowan, thank you for your understanding. I have a meeting this afternoon that I need to attend in person, so I can’t stay with you any longer. Feel free to wander around the mansion for a bit; I’m sure Zheng won’t leave you to fend for yourself.” Having known his younger brother for nearly twenty years, she understood his approach to handling matters quite well—he wasn’t the type to give up halfway through anything. “Got it, Brother Tianyu. You should go take care of your important business!” The eldest son of the Feng Family was a man of great importance, and she felt a bit guilty for wasting his precious time. “All right, see you later!” Feng Tianyu gave Li Xiaowan a gentle smile before leaving. Just before stepping out the mansion’s front gate, however, he paused and, with his back to her, said, “Xiaowan, I feel like we really click. Especially when we talk—it’s so refreshing. I hope when we meet again, it’ll be just as wonderful as it was the first time.” Just as Li Xiaowan was about to say something, Feng Tianyu had already vanished from her sight. She stood there in a daze, savoring Feng Tianyu’s final words long after he’d left. How true that was for her as well! In her heart, Feng Tianyu was just like Yu Feilan—like an older brother to her. From them, she could feel a warmth as radiant as sunlight, unlike Feng Lingzheng, from whom she always sensed the bone-chilling cold of a thousand-year-old ice. Meanwhile, at the corner on the second floor, a cold gleam flashed briefly in Old Master Feng’s eyes. “So, it turns out a wolf can never be tamed!” “Ling Zheng Ge, why do Xiao Tong and I always lose whenever we race against you? Are you hiding some secret? Spill the beans!” A high-pitched male voice rang out from outside the mansion’s gates. “Exactly, Ling Zheng Ge. Back in the day, Xiao Tong and I even secretly hired a private coach just to beat you, but now it seems it was all for nothing—we still lose every single time,” Xiao Tong said resentfully. “Enough already. One of you is making wild accusations, and the other sounds like a nagging wife. Are you two even going to be able to race happily together anymore?” Feng Lingzheng silenced their incessant chatter with a single sentence. “We can. Shh!” Ye and Xiao Tong simultaneously raised their index fingers to their lips. “Just like brothers—you two really are in sync,” Feng Lingzheng said, glancing back at them. What a pair of clowns—compared to them, she and Lan were worlds apart. As soon as she stepped through the mansion’s main gate, she spotted Li Xiaowan standing not far from the entrance, looking as if she’d lost her mind. Feng Lingzheng’s expression instantly turned from sunny to gloomy. Ye and Xiao Tong, who had followed behind, also took in the scene. Ye gave Xiao Tong a subtle nod, and Xiao Tong immediately understood. He quietly moved behind Li Xiaowan, then grabbed her by both shoulders and gave her a firm shove forward—though he didn’t let go. “Ah!” Li Xiaowan was still shaken by the scare. When she finally regained her composure, she saw Ye and Xiao Tong staring intently at her, their eyes brimming with curiosity. Feng Lingzheng, however, was different—her eyes were filled with amusement. “Hey, Sister Xiaowan, what are you doing just standing there like a dummy in broad daylight? Even with the three of us—handsome-as-hell, top-notch guys—standing right in front of you, you didn’t even notice. You actually treated us like we were invisible.” Xiao Tong could be pretty funny when he spoke, especially with the original voice of Crayon Shin-chan he was using right then. Ye simply couldn’t hold it in and burst out laughing, doubled over. “Bro, how come your laugh threshold is so low? You’re nothing like me.” Xiao Tong said, looking at Ye while imitating the voice again. “Hahaha… Xiao Tong… hahaha, don’t… don’t say anymore. I… I’m about to laugh myself to death.” Ye felt like his stomach was about to ache from laughing so hard. “Look at you, such a wimp.” No sooner had Xiao Tong finished speaking than he noticed someone else was also laughing uncontrollably and without a care for her image—and that person was none other than Li Xiaowan. “Are you done laughing yet? If you’re done, get the hell back with me!” Feng Lingzheng was the ultimate mood killer; no matter how lively the scene, the moment he gave the order, it instantly fell silent—he was the very picture of a cold-blooded assassin. Sure enough, the three of them fell silent immediately. Li Xiaowan grudgingly followed behind Feng Lingzheng. “Don’t you understand what I’m saying? I told you to get the hell back there right now,” Feng Lingzheng roared again. “I… can’t find my way back, and I don’t have a car,” Li Xiaowan stammered, clearly terrified. Feng Lingzheng’s aura was so overwhelming that Li Xiaowan felt she was no better than a little chick—at least a chick would struggle a couple of times when faced with an eagle, but she didn’t even dare to move. “Is your head filled with nothing but tofu dregs? Can’t you figure this out on your own?” Feng Lingzheng glared intently at Li Xiaowan, sending a chill down her spine. It was Ye, standing nearby, who stepped in to smooth things over. “Ling Zheng Ge, since Xiao Tong and I don’t have anything planned this afternoon, let us two take her home!” “Whatever!” Feng Lingzheng thought for a moment, then changed his mind. “Never mind. I need to go back and grab something anyway. You two just wait for me at the mansion.” With that, he grabbed Li Xiaowan’s hand and strode out the mansion gates. “Why do you always have to drag me like this?” Li Xiaowan said. “Let go of me—I can walk on my own.” She tried to pry Feng Lingzheng’s hand off hers with her other hand. “Don’t take this for granted. There are so many people who’d love for me to hold their hands like this, but I’m not interested in any of them,” Feng Lingzheng said self-importantly—though he was actually telling the truth. “Let whoever wants it have it—I don’t care at all. Besides, are you really ‘holding’ my hand? You’re clearly just dragging me along.” Li Xiaowan was almost at a loss for words. If Spider-Man were to appear right now and rescue her from this misery, she wouldn’t mind spending her next life as a cow or a horse just to repay him. “Is that so? You’d better remember what you just said.” Feng Lingzheng felt a sudden stab of pain in his heart. “Don’t worry, I’ll always remember it. And please remember this too: once the one-year deadline is up, set me free.” Li Xiaowan was worried Feng Lingzheng wouldn’t keep his promise—not because she feared he’d force her to stay as some so-called “chief’s wife,” but because she feared he’d keep bossing her around every other day, just like he was doing now. If that were the case, she’d have a nervous breakdown sooner or later. “I don’t need you to remind me. Do you really think I want to spend every day with a hick like you?” After fastening his seatbelt and starting the engine, Feng Lingzheng spoke without giving his words a second thought—he was saying whatever would hurt her the most, a complete contrast to his usual self. “What’s wrong with being a hick? Don’t you guys eat rice and vegetables grown by hicks every day? If you’re so brave, just stop eating them!” Li Xiaowan fired back. “Haha! So you’ve learned to talk back now.” Feng Lingzheng didn’t say anything else. Looks like I stumped him—he’s got nothing to say now. Take that, you snob, for looking down on us country bumpkins, Li Xiaowan thought smugly to herself. As silence fell over the car, the atmosphere grew awkward. Li Xiaowan rolled down the window and watched as towering skyscrapers, tree-lined Furong Avenue, and rows of spotless street-side shops flashed by outside. The gloom in her heart instantly vanished, replaced by a clear blue sky and boundless daydreams. All along the way, the most common sight was billboards advertising the Fengyi Group. Just like their owners, they were eye-catching and flamboyant; whether you liked them or not, they stood tall and straight in the most prominent spots. It would be more accurate to say that The Feng Family shaped the prosperity of City A rather than the other way around. Li Xiaowan turned her gaze back and, for the first time, looked at the figure ahead of her—separated by the seat—with a sense of calm. Heaven had truly bestowed so many blessings upon him: a distinguished lineage, a warm family, inexhaustible wealth, wisdom that could never be stolen, and a face that captivated everyone. Then she looked at herself. “Comparing oneself to others is a sure way to drive oneself to despair—that saying is absolutely true,” Li Xiaowan said without a moment’s hesitation. “What kind of nonsense are you spouting?” Feng Lingzheng couldn’t shake the feeling of a chill running down her spine. She was certain some reckless woman had set her sights on her. If she had a knife in her hand right now, there was no telling if she might stab herself—when women turn ruthless, even men can’t hold a candle to them. With that lesson fresh in her mind, Feng Lingzheng couldn’t help but be on her guard. But as for her…... probably didn’t have the guts. Feng Lingzheng instinctively glanced at Li Xiaowan, who was talking to herself, through the rearview mirror. At the same time, Li Xiaowan also looked at Feng Lingzheng through the rearview mirror. When their eyes met, it was as if they’d both been zapped by electricity, and they both quickly averted their gazes. “You must have heard wrong. I wasn’t saying anything,” Li Xiaowan thought to herself: I won’t admit it—let’s see what you can do about it. Even the tiniest bit of scheming was hard to hide from Feng Lingzheng’s piercing gaze. “I know exactly what you’re thinking. But since I’m in a good mood right now, I won’t make a big deal out of it. Just a heads-up: next Tuesday at 10:00 a. m. , at the Nifusia Grand Hotel, the engagement party will start right on time.” “Engagement party? Whose engagement party?” Li Xiaowan’s heart skipped a beat; she had a bad feeling about this. “Whose do you think it is?” Feng Lingzheng didn’t answer Li Xiaowan’s question directly. “Could it be yours and mine?” Li Xiaowan silently prayed in her heart: “Oh God, please spare me. Please don’t let me hear the answer I don’t want to hear. I beg you!” “You know the answer, yet you ask anyway,” Feng Lingzheng said with a cool, flippant frown. “Oh my God, didn’t You hear my sincere plea? How am I supposed to go on like this?” Li Xiaowan had a sudden flash of inspiration. “The contract doesn’t specify anything about an engagement party.” “Contracts are rigid, but people are flexible. I really wonder what you were raised on,” Feng Lingzheng said with a smug air of righteousness. “Aren’t you just being a total jerk?” Li Xiaowan felt like crying but had no tears to shed. If she had a hammer handy, she would have smashed it into Feng Lingzheng’s self-important head without a second thought. “What you think is your business, but don’t hold me back from my important business. If you want to get out of this sooner, you’ll have to play along and act out this charade with me,” Feng Lingzheng said with righteous conviction.