Chapter 13

A flare of annoyance washed over Su Hang as he grumbled, “I was complimenting Ran’s boyfriend! Why is everyone ganging up on me? It’s not like Feng Bai is Miao Miao’s official boyfriend!”

He puffed out his chest, brimming with righteous confidence.

After all, as of this very moment, Feng Bai and Miao Miao hadn’t officially labeled their relationship.

Beside him, Wen Jiu cast a sly, knowing smile in her husband’s direction. In her eyes, Su Hang was proving to be a top-tier wingman. A few more blunt pushes like that, and Feng Bai just might make things official with their daughter tonight!

Feng Bai remained silent, his dark eyes quietly shifting toward Su Miao.

Su Miao shot her father a look of pure, utter helplessness.

My own flesh and blood!

Did he really have to embarrass me like this?

Did he seriously need to bring that up right now?

Feeling the heavy silence settling over the room, Su Hang suddenly realized his outburst might have been a bit out of line. He quietly lowered his head, using his chopsticks to awkwardly push a few grains of rice around his bowl… If I apologize to my daughter later, will it still save me?

Later that evening, inside the master bedroom, Su Hang looked at his wife with a pitiful, conflicted expression. “Can I please not sleep in the study tonight?”

He knew he had spoken out of turn at dinner.

But hadn’t it just been a slip of the tongue? Once the mood got tense, it was easy for a man to blurt things out!

Wen Jiu raised an eyebrow, eyeing him coolly. “Fine.”

Before Su Hang could even celebrate, Wen Jiu added smoothly, “The sofa in the living room is quite spacious. It suits you perfectly.”

Su Hang’s face went instantly rigid.

He cleared his throat with sudden dignity. “On second thought, the study is wonderful. I’ll head over right now.”

He turned on his heel and made a swift exit toward the study. If he actually slept on the living room couch, wouldn’t the entire household know he had been kicked out of his own bedroom?

A man had to protect his pride!

Returning to the study was simply a selfless sacrifice, all for the sake of the company, his work, and putting food on the family table.

Meanwhile, Su Miao paced back and forth in her bedroom, a knot of restless anxiety tight in her chest. She couldn’t help but wonder what Feng Bai was doing right now, and whether he had taken her father’s careless words to heart.

After tossing and turning over the thought, she decided to slip downstairs to see if he was still awake.

Stepping quietly down the hallway, she reached the door of the guest room. Just as her hand hovered in the air to knock, her fair wrist froze mid-motion.

Once he opens the door, what am I actually going to say?

A wave of hesitation washed over her. She really ought to think this through. It was better to get her thoughts straight before confronting him face-to-face.

She pivoted to retreat back upstairs, but the moment her foot lifted, the door behind her clicked open.

The sound froze Su Miao dead in her tracks. “…”

She turned her head with excruciating slowness, meeting Feng Bai’s impossibly calm, dark gaze.

“Come in,” he murmured softly.

Her mind went completely blank, and her feet moved on pure instinct as she meekly followed him inside.

It wasn’t until she heard the soft click of the door closing behind her that her senses finally snapped back to reality.

Wait a minute… why on earth did I just walk in here?!

Su Miao kept her head lowered, staring intently at the tips of her own slippers, utterly speechbound.

After a long beat of silence, she caught the faint sound of a quiet sigh from above her head.

A second later, Feng Bai’s low, raspy voice echoed gently through the room. “Do you have something you want to say to me?”

Su Miao maintained her resolute silence.

Feng Bai offered a soft curve of his lips. “If I guess correctly, you can just nod or shake your head.”

Su Miao gave a tiny, subtle nod, accepting the terms.

“You came down because you wanted to talk to me, but you couldn’t figure out how to start the conversation?”

She nodded again.

Watching her sweet, obedient demeanor, a warm smile broke across Feng Bai’s face. “Your father is a straightforward man. I understand how he is. You don’t need to feel anxious or flustered about what he said.”

This time, Su Miao shook her head vigorously.

He didn’t understand at all.

She wanted him to be her boyfriend!

Her mind raced as a sudden, wild thought crossed her mind, if she just confessed her feelings to him right here, right now, there was no way he’d reject her, right?

She lifted her head, her eyes locking onto his.

“Feng Bai, I…”

Feng Bai smiled, reaching out to gently ruffle her soft hair. The movement was so blindingly tender that Su Miao’s mind went entirely blank, her remaining words catching dead in her throat.

Before she even realized what was happening, she found herself floating daze-like back out the door and into her own room.

Only then did she truly comprehend the dangerous power of male beauty. That mesmerizing, gentle look in his eyes had coaxed her into obediently returning to her room to rest, completely derailing her train of thought.

And she had actually followed orders like a hypnotized puppy.

Su Miao: “…”

She tilted her head in self-reflection. Well, it hadn’t been a complete waste of time! At the very least, she now possessed a crystal-clear understanding of her own helplessness. More than that, she realized that confessing her love required far more courage than she had anticipated.

The following morning.

Su Hang wrapped up his business calls early and settled into the main living room, waiting. Today was the day Su Ran’s boyfriend was paying a visit.

Watching her father sit there with such a bright, welcoming expression, Su Miao felt an overwhelming wave of complex emotions. She couldn’t help but wonder how he would react in the future when he finally discovered that Su Ran and Fu Xizhou had conspired together to tear their family apart…

A heavy sigh escaped her lips.

Sitting on the opposite sofa, Su Ran was equally fidgety and restless. Suddenly remembering something, she turned her eyes toward Su Miao. “Miao Miao, where’s Feng Bai?”

Meeting Su Ran’s gaze, Su Miao offered a flat, cool response. “He had some business to attend to and left early this morning.”

Ever since discovering that Su Ran had once confessed her feelings to Feng Bai, Su Miao had slapped a new, permanent label onto her cousin: Love Rival!

Well, okay, not technically.

Su Ran was with Fu Xizhou now.

Still, a girl could never be too careful.

With Feng Bai currently living under the Su family roof, if Su Ran ever tried to rekindle old flames, it would turn into a massive headache.

And in truth, Su Ran’s obsession with Feng Bai was far from dead. Her eyes flickered with unspoken longing.

Feng Bai had indeed threatened her, forcing her to abandon any lingering ideas. But how could a man with such a terrifyingly dark, lethal aura reserve such gentle warmth exclusively for Su Miao?

The more Su Ran dwelled on it, the harder it became to purge Feng Bai from her mind. Even with Fu Xizhou by her side, Fu Xizhou and Feng Bai were two entirely different breeds of men…

Midway through her thoughts, Su Ran’s phone chimed. Glancing at the screen, a radiant, delighted smile instantly lit up her face as she looked up at Su Hang.

“Uncle, Xizhou is here! I’m going out to bring him in.”

Su Hang nodded pleasantly. “Go ahead.”

As the family elder, it was naturally inappropriate for Su Hang to greet a member of the younger generation at the door.

Su Miao maintained a completely impassive expression, leaning back into the sofa with zero intention of offering Fu Xizhou a warm welcome.

Moments later, Su Ran led Fu Xizhou into the grand living room.

Su Miao stole a sharp, evaluating glance at the newcomer.

He moved with an air of refined, gentlemanly elegance, looking for all the world like a polished noble, yet beneath that pristine exterior lay a heart of pure pitch-black poison. A person should truly never be judged by their cover.

Fu Xizhou and Su Ran took their seats opposite Su Hang. After a brief round of introductions, Wen Jiu gracefully descended the stairs, taking her seat beside her husband as her sharp eyes quietly assessed Fu Xizhou. Following a exchange of polite pleasantries…

Fu Xizhou and Su Hang dove into easy conversation.

Fu Xizhou certainly possessed a knack for pleasing people, navigating the social dynamics with practiced, calculated charm.

Finding the entire scene utterly insufferable, Su Miao pulled out her phone to scroll through her apps, before unconsciously firing off a text message to Feng Bai.

At that very moment.

Inside a high-end private dining room across town.

Feng Bai was in the middle of a business meeting when his phone vibrated against the table. Pausing mid-sentence, he picked it up to reply to the message. The young man seated across from him stared in sheer disbelief.

“Who on earth are you texting back so fast? Don’t tell me it’s Su Miao?”

Without lifting his eyes from the screen, Feng Bai offered a single, quiet: “Mmh.”

“Tsk, tsk! You are unbelievable! Shoving romantic couple PDA straight down my single throat in the middle of a meeting?”

Finishing his reply, Feng Bai raised his dark gaze, landing his eyes on the young man sitting across the table, Fu Chengyu. “Whether you’re single or not is irrelevant. Aside from business, there is another matter I need to discuss with you.”

Fu Chengyu paused, noticing the sudden, grave seriousness in Feng Bai’s eyes. Straightening his posture, he wiped the playful grin from his face. “What is it?”

Ever since Feng Bai’s car accident, he felt like an entirely transformed human being. In the past, he had always approached work with rigorous dedication, but now, that intensity had multiplied tenfold. The lingering restlessness of youth had vanished completely, replaced by a deep, immovable maturity that far exceeded his years—and an overwhelming, quiet authority that made people bow to his lead without even realizing it…