Three years ago, we’d taken ironclad precautions every single time we got intimate, there was strictly zero chance I could’ve gotten pregnant. So, I started making up a sob story on the spot:

“I met a total jerk… honestly, don’t even make me talk about it. It’s nothing but tears. But Andrew offered to step up and be a father to the child. He’s a doctor, and he’s so gentle…”

Lantu’s face darkened like a sky right before a violent storm. The next second, he leaned down and kissed me, so hard and fast I didn’t even have time to react. After years of separation, his familiar scent completely engulfed me, but the way he touched me this time was shockingly tender. I felt like an ice cream cone in the dead of summer, melting right in his hands.

“Ninh…” he coaxed softly against my lips. “I’ll be a much better father. Besides… Andrew is a foreigner.”

The logic made zero sense, but if I couldn’t resist Lantu when he was aggressive, I stood absolutely no chance against him when he was this gentle.

I nodded and agreed to get back together without a second thought. It was only afterward that I realized: Gentle? Thoughtful? It was all a trap! A shimmering bait dropped right before the demon devoured his prey. Maybe because he’d been starved for three long years, he completely lost his mind.

In the middle of a breathless haze, he pinned my waist, his eyes bloodshot, his voice raspy and thick:

“Darling… still thinking about running? Or should I just build you a golden cage instead?”

I surrendered through my tears. “Not running… I’m never running again…”

Seeing me break, he suddenly switched into a pitiful puppy mode, the corners of his eyes turning red.

“I genuinely thought you died that night. When the news reached me, it felt like my heart was being ripped to pieces. I couldn’t sleep. Every time I closed my eyes, all I saw was you… I didn’t see the text you sent until after the board meeting wrapped up. ‘Mr. Huo, do you think I look pretty?’ But by then, you were already lost at sea. I hated myself… I hated myself for not checking my phone sooner…”

Every word he spoke bled with raw agony. I reached up and ran my fingers through his silver hair, keeping silent. Deep down, I knew that this time, I was the one at fault.

It wasn’t until a few days later that I finally plucked up the courage to spill the truth. “Nuyen is actually Zhian and Lianzhou’s daughter. She’s our niece.”

A subtle flicker crossed Lantu’s eyes. Then, in the very next second, he dragged me into another round of “hands-on explanation,” using a thoroughly bulletproof excuse:

“Even Lianzhou has a kid now. As his uncle… how can I let myself fall behind?”

Meanwhile, over a video call, my sister was still spiraling over the whole childhood sweetheart situation with Shing Ha. She mentioned that Lianzhou claimed it was all a big misunderstanding, he’d just been too lazy to clarify, which let the rumors run wild. I decided to snuggle right into my husband’s chest to fish for some insider intel.

Fresh out of the shower, Lantu let out a low laugh when he saw me playing the sweet, attentive wife. The moment I brought up Lianzhou, however, he looked mildly annoyed.

“That idiot caused trouble, got his own wife to run away, and dragged my wife along for the ride. To be honest, Lianzhou’s true ‘white moonlight’… was your sister all along.”

And so, the juicy high-school melodrama finally unfolded.

Back in high school, Lianzhou had been a chubby, insecure kid who harbored a massive crush on Zhian but never dared to speak a word. It wasn’t until graduation day that he mustered every drop of courage to use the group photo session as an excuse to give her a quick hug.

I happened to be in the frame of that exact photo. It became Lianzhou’s prized treasure, locked away in secret. One day, Lantu accidentally stumbled upon it. But the girl who made his heart skip a beat wasn’t my sister, it was the bright, radiant girl laughing in the corner of the frame.

Me.

A single glance at an old photograph, and he was hooked for a lifetime.

Turns out, the uncle and nephew were absolute top-tier hopeless romantics. They’d been playing the long game all along, patiently waiting in the shadows for the perfect moment to propose. My greedy old dad thought he was pulling off the ultimate power move, completely unaware that my sister and I were the prize catches, and those two were the master anglers.

Enlightenment hit me like a lightning bolt.

“Wait… so when you kept dragging me to watch movies and play video games every day… you were just trying to cater to my hobbies?!”

Lantu chuckled softly, his deep voice dripping with pure indulgence. “Wife, you’ve finally updated your operating system. You were just so ridiculously cute, Ninh, I couldn’t help myself.”

After three years apart, this man’s flirting game had upgraded to a dangerous level. Defeated and utterly charmed, I willingly surrendered, happy to stay wrapped around his finger.

We took little Nuyen back to the Huo family estate. Contrary to our fears, the elders welcomed us back with gentle open arms: “It’s good to have you home.” With her angelic looks and sharp wit, Nuyen instantly became the undisputed darling of the entire clan.

At the grand banquet held to officially announce our return, Lianzhou held Zhian’s hand and proudly declared to the crowd that their daughter would take her mother’s surname.

Right in the middle of the celebratory atmosphere, Shing Ha crashed the party, carrying the bitter, petty energy of someone whose family had just gone bankrupt. She sneered at my sister, taunting that she was nothing more than a pretty face.

I stepped in instantly and shut her down on the spot. “What’s wrong? Bitter because you wanted a powerful shoulder to lean on, but nobody wanted you?”

That sharp push from Shing Ha ended up being the exact wake-up call Zhian needed. She turned to me, her eyes burning with fierce determination.

“Ninh… I don’t want to be a trophy wife anymore. Want to start a business with me?”

I didn’t hesitate for a single second. “If you’re doing it, I’m all in.”

Our luxury fashion brand blew up almost overnight. I spearheaded the designs while she ran the business operations. Armed with top-tier aesthetic taste and an elite network, which included our ex-boyfriends turned besties, James and Andrew, we rapidly expanded onto the international stage.

Of course, whenever we met up with our old friends, our two Huo husbands always made sure to show up no matter how busy they were. They’d stand there with stoic, icy faces, grinding their teeth in pure jealousy. But honestly, that petty, possessive green monster in them was just the sweet little spice in our happy marriage.

Three years later, Zhian had transformed into a cold, powerhouse female CEO, while I landed a spot on TIME magazine’s 100 Most Influential People.

Facing a barrage of flashing cameras, I smiled warmly into the mic. “There’s no secret recipe. My sister wanted to prove herself, so I walked alongside her. A woman dedicated to her grind is at her most beautiful.”

Down in the front row of the auditorium, Lantu was holding our son, both father and boy waving and beaming up at me with absolute pride.

Late that night, in the quiet intimacy of our bedroom, that wildly arrogant man knelt at my feet. Leaning down, he pressed a soft, reverent kiss to the top of my foot, like a devout believer worshiping his deity.

“When you shine up there…” he whispered, his voice dark and velvety, “you’re so breathtaking it makes me want to drop to my knees. I’ll happily be your devoted believer for the rest of my life.”