Kong Lingru got out of the car and started directing people to bring in the gift boxes.
Every time she came to the Kong residence, Hai Ming found himself in a tough spot. He knew full well that Kong Wenyu would blow up if she walked in, but at the end of the day, she was still a Kong—technically coming back to her own home.
“Hai Ming,” Kong Lingru called out bluntly, “come help carry these.”
Hai Ming clenched his jaw but went over to start unloading the gift boxes from the trunk.
A few people carried everything inside. Man Mingzhi was still sitting on the couch, sipping her coffee. Kong Wenyu was nowhere to be seen.
“Sister-in-law,” Kong Lingru greeted her as she walked in, then asked with a hint of surprise, “You’re not at the sanatorium?”
As the others placed down the gifts one by one, Man Mingzhi gave her a sidelong glance but didn’t answer the question.
“It’s barely morning. What are you doing here?”
“I saw Xiaoyu wasn’t doing too well yesterday,” Kong Lingru replied, glancing around the room. “Thought I’d bring some nutritional supplements, help him recover faster. Where is he?”
“He’s resting,” Man Mingzhi said. “Just leave the stuff and go.”
“I actually wanted to talk more about the business partnership we discussed yesterday,” Kong Lingru said. “I’ll wait here until he wakes up.”
She sat down beside Man Mingzhi as she spoke.
Man Mingzhi looked her over like she had something to say but chose not to. Instead, she gave a faint smile.
“If you want to wait, then wait.”
She then turned to give instructions:
“Hai Ming, go upstairs and check if Kong Wenyu’s awake. If he is, tell him to come down. If he’s still sleeping, don’t wake him. Just wait.”
Hai Ming nodded and gave Nie Jun a quick glance at the door. Nie Jun nodded back and headed upstairs to check on Kong Wenyu.
The layout on the second floor hadn’t changed much, but the lighting was noticeably brighter.
Kong Wenyu preferred soft, ambient light, usually with several corner lamps turned on. But today, the entire hallway was lit up—probably something Man Mingzhi had ordered.
Nie Jun turned off the lights as he passed, then paused at the door. He couldn’t hear anything inside, so he knocked lightly.
It was barely louder than a mosquito’s wingbeat. No response came from inside, so Kong Wenyu was likely still asleep.
Nie Jun stood silently by the door, waiting.
After a while, Shola poked his head out from around the corner. When the dog spotted Nie Jun standing at the door, its eyes lit up and it bounded over excitedly, circling him in delight.
Nie Jun pulled him gently away from the door and dug into his jacket pocket, pulling out a biscuit. He unwrapped it and fed it to Shola.
The dog wagged his tail and begged for more, but Nie Jun waved his hand and whispered,
“Just one. I’ll bring you more next time.”
Whether Shola understood or not was unclear. He grabbed Nie Jun’s pant leg in his mouth and began tugging him toward the stairs.
“Can’t go down now,” Nie Jun said as he gently stroked the top of Shola’s head to calm him down. “We’re waiting for someone.”
Shola tilted his head and looked up at him. Nie Jun pointed at the closed bedroom door.
Shola took off running again. Nie Jun quickly followed, catching him just in time before the dog could barge into the bedroom.
Shola seemed to understand his meaning and didn’t run around or make more noise. Instead, he went back to nibbling at Nie Jun’s pant leg.
Nie Jun let the dog lead him. Shola would walk a few steps and then turn back to check if he was still following. They passed the wardrobe room and ended up in the dog’s own space.
Nie Jun followed Shola into the pet room, watching as the dog nudged aside its fluffy, oversized bed to reveal a small arched doorway behind it.
Shola trotted through the archway, then turned back and peeked his head through, as if urging Nie Jun to follow.
Nie Jun crouched down and laughed.
“I’m human, buddy—I can’t fit through your little tunnel.”
Shola tilted his head, eyes full of innocent curiosity.
After a moment of not being followed, Shola gave up and padded over to the water dispenser to get a drink.
That’s when Nie Jun noticed—the little dog tunnel actually connected to Kong Wenyu’s walk-in closet.
Peering deeper, he saw another identical arched opening at the far end of the closet, this one covered with a thin curtain. That one led straight into Kong Wenyu’s bedroom.
After drinking, Shola crawled back through the dog door. Nie Jun sighed quietly.
Seeing that Nie Jun still wasn’t following, Shola gave up and trotted ahead, pushing his way through the curtain into the closet.
“Come back here,” Nie Jun called softly, worried the dog might wake Kong Wenyu.
Shola stared at him for a few seconds, then turned and bolted.
Before long, muffled sounds came from inside the room—Kong Wenyu’s voice, groggy and irritated from being woken up:
“Shola, get out.”
Nie Jun looked through the little dog tunnel, but couldn’t see anything. He sighed and backed out of the pet room, returning to stand by the bedroom door.
This time, before he could knock, a voice came from inside:
“Come in.”
Nie Jun pushed the door open. Shola was circling excitedly by the doorway and barked twice when he saw him.
“Dumb dog,” Kong Wenyu muttered, propping himself up against the headboard. “Next time, just come straight in.”
Nie Jun wasn’t sure if that was directed at him or the dog, so he stayed quiet.
“What is it?” Kong Wenyu asked.
That one was definitely meant for him. Nie Jun replied,
“Your second aunt came to check in on you. She’s downstairs with your mom, waiting for you to wake up.”
“I’m not awake yet,” Kong Wenyu said, beckoning with his hand. Nie Jun was about to go over, but Shola beat him to it.
Kong Wenyu rubbed the dog’s head. “Go play outside.”
Shola bounced a few times in place and then ran back through the dog tunnel. Soon, it was quiet again.
Nie Jun commented,
“I hadn’t noticed that tunnel before.”
“Hm?” Kong Wenyu glanced in that direction, uninterested. “Come lie down with me for a bit.”
Nie Jun hesitated.
“If you’re worried, lock the door,” Kong Wenyu said.
Nie Jun went to lock the door, then came back to the bed. Kong Wenyu’s gaze flicked to his pants.
“Don’t get on the bed in your outside clothes.”
Nie Jun shrugged off his jacket, then took off his pants.
Only then did Kong Wenyu look satisfied. He lifted the blanket halfway to let him in.
As soon as Nie Jun got under the covers, Kong Wenyu slid down beside him, draping an arm across his waist and closing his eyes.
“Smells like soap,” Kong Wenyu mumbled, breathing him in, clearly enjoying it. He pressed a kiss to the side of his waist.
The warmth of his breath swept across a wide patch of skin, and within a couple minutes, Nie Jun’s entire thigh was numb.
They hadn’t done anything the past few days—Kong Wenyu seemed sleep-deprived and could now fall into deep sleep even on Nie Jun’s firm mattress.
A phone buzzed from the floor. Kong Wenyu was already sound asleep, his breathing long and steady.
Back when he lived in the old residential complex, he slept deeply too—but never quite this deeply. If someone spoke nearby in the morning, he’d always wake up.
Maybe he was just a light sleeper who didn’t sleep well in unfamiliar places.
The phone buzzed again, louder and more urgent this time.
Nie Jun reached down, grabbed his pants, and fished the phone out of the pocket. Unsurprisingly, it was a message from Hai Ming:
“Why aren’t you downstairs yet?”
Nie Jun glanced at Kong Wenyu and typed back:
“Still sleeping.”
Hai Ming replied quickly:
“Wait a bit longer. If he’s still not up, wake him. If it drags on, Second Aunt’s going to stay for lunch.”
Even grabbing a late-night snack could make Kong Wenyu flip out—having to sit through a full lunch would be a nightmare.
Nie Jun kept checking the time. After about ten more minutes, he gently pressed two fingers to Kong Wenyu’s forehead.
“It’s time to go down for lunch.”
Kong Wenyu stirred slightly, then buried his face deeper into the shadows and stopped moving.
Nie Jun watched him for a few seconds, then grabbed the phone charger cable from the nightstand, stuck it through the little archway, and gave it a shake.
A moment later, Shola came trotting through, just as expected.
Nie Jun reeled the cable back in, patted Shola’s head, and motioned toward the bed.
Shola tilted his head, glanced at the sleeping Kong Wenyu, and after a few seconds, made a sudden leap. Nie Jun reached out just in time to stop him from landing on Kong Wenyu’s face.
“Shola,” Kong Wenyu groaned, grabbing the dog by the ear and dragging him off the bed,
“I swear I’ll lock you up and cut off your treats for two days.”
Shola had no idea what was going on. With her big round eyes, she bounced around happily in front of Kong Wenyu.
Kong Wenyu was now fully awake. Sitting up, he cursed again:
“You stupid dog.”
After getting dressed, he went downstairs. The pre-meal appetizers had already been served in the dining room.
Kong Wenyu, visibly annoyed from being woken up, slumped into his chair and reached for a glass of water.
Kong Lingru sat next to him and smiled politely.
“Surely you won’t be upset just because I stayed for one meal, Xiaoyu?”
“Isn’t it obvious he’s upset?” Man Mingzhi responded coolly from the other side, not even looking up.
“You didn’t make a reservation with him before deciding to stay for lunch. If the younger generation still shows you respect as their aunt, and I keep silent, it’ll lead to misunderstandings.”
Kong Lingru sat upright, her jaw clenched tight.
“The old man split the family property between you and your brother when he was still alive,” Man Mingzhi said bluntly, “The family house belongs to your brother. Even after his passing, it’s his son who inherits it. I’m his mother, and even I’m staying here in Wenyu’s home. You’ve got plenty of properties under your name—stop coming back and acting like you’re the head of the house.”
Kong Lingru’s hands curled into fists. She took a deep breath and said,
“You’re right, sister-in-law. I’ve never tried to act like I own the place.”
“And another thing,” Man Mingzhi continued, ignoring her attempted de-escalation.
“Other people scheming for your brother’s shares in the company is one thing. But how come you, someone from the family, are always trying to get a piece too?”
Kong Lingru opened her mouth and forced a smile.
“That’s absolutely not true…”
“Then why hasn’t Kong Wenyu been able to attend the shareholders’ meetings to this day?” Man Mingzhi cut her off. “Where exactly in the process is it getting held up?”
“Sister-in-law, I swear I haven’t delayed anything. The company has procedures—”
“Who said you were the one delaying it?” Man Mingzhi snapped. “It’s not just that you can’t be the holdup—you need to be the one pushing it forward. If this matter doesn’t get resolved, you’re the first person I’ll hold accountable.”
Kong Wenyu wasn’t one for smoothing things over. He was just quietly sipping his soup, already served, happy not to be dragged in.
Man Mingzhi glanced over and gave a cold laugh.
“Useless as ever. Did you get the hotel schedule like I asked?”
Kong Wenyu shot a glance toward Nie Jun by the door, then set his bowl down.
“I did.”
“No way,” Kong Lingru said. “Yunjian Hotel gave me a firm answer last night—they said there are no available ballrooms.”
Man Mingzhi turned to look at Kong Wenyu. He had already opened his mouth, so he could only walk it back halfway:
“Originally, there weren’t any, but Fu Xi said he’d see if anything could be rescheduled. I’ll follow up with him again.”
Rescheduled? That kind of thing just didn’t happen. Wedding receptions and baby banquets were booked far in advance, invites already sent. Barring the end of the world, no one would change the date and risk making a fool of themselves.
Kong Lingru knew this perfectly well, and her expression visibly relaxed.
Man Mingzhi stared at Kong Wenyu for a few seconds.
“Here’s the deal,” she said, turning to Kong Lingru.
“If he manages to book the ballroom, you and Kong Wenyu can get engaged on the same day.”
Kong Lingru replied,
“And if he doesn’t, then Xiaoyu will go personally to apologize to the Ao family and publicly announce a wedding date with Qingqing. And the partnership will revert to Ao Yongwang.”
Kong Wenyu leaned back lazily in his chair.
“Second Aunt, I’ll make a compromise too. You pick one: either I marry Ao Qingqing, or I switch the partnership back.”
Both mother and son stared straight at Kong Lingru, forcing her to make a decision on the spot.
By the door stood Nie Jun. The quiet courtyard, the clear blue sky above—it all seemed to hold its breath, listening.
Marriages in wealthy families were bargaining chips. Nie Jun was reminded of that once again.
Marriage didn’t matter. And yet, it mattered so much.
“You’re right, Sister-in-law,” Kong Lingru finally said after a pause.
“If Yunjian Hotel truly has no availability, then Xiaoyu can hold his engagement with Ao Qingqing alone that day. I’ll send my congratulations. And the public announcement will name Ao Yongwang as the continuing business partner.”
Man Mingzhi showed no surprise at her answer.
“Fine. If he can book the ballroom, then both of you can get engaged that day, each free to choose your own partners—no interference from either side. As for the business partner…”
She paused deliberately, then continued,
“You can choose whoever you want.”
“Agreed.” Kong Lingru also took a step back.
“No matter the outcome, I’ll personally make sure Xiaoyu is brought into the shareholders’ meeting.”
“Hai Ming,” Man Mingzhi suddenly called out.
Hai Ming was stunned for a moment but quickly stepped forward.
Man Mingzhi instructed, “Call the lawyer.”
Kong Lingru looked up at her. Mingzhi gave a slight smile. “It’s easy to forget what’s said out loud. Better to have it in black and white—with names and seals. That way, everyone’s on the same page.”
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