“That night, Jiang Nian confessed her feelings to me. But I turned her down flat out.”

“I made it crystal clear to her… that the only person I liked was Su Niannian.”

“Naturally, she burst into tears. She cried for a long time, cried so hard I honestly thought I’d triggered a national disaster.”

“After that, she finally agreed to go into the prom with me. By the time we walked in, you and Xiaoxiao were already on the dance floor.”

“She practically begged me for just one dance, saying it would be her last, that once the song was over, she’d give up on me and quietly head abroad to pursue art.”

I crossed my arms and raised an eyebrow. “So just because she begged, you said yes?”

“If she’d begged you to marry her that night… would you have nodded along to that, too?”

Li Huaijing: “…”

He drew in a sharp breath and began to explain with utmost gravity, “Jiang Nian’s father used to be my family’s personal driver.”

“Years ago, my dad was targeted in a business retaliation hit. Her father took the knife meant for my dad… and passed away.”

“My parents always told me to look out for her, to treat her like a younger sister.”

I froze in my tracks.

“That night was the very first time she’d ever asked me for anything.”

“I thought it was just a harmless dance, so I agreed.”

“If I had known it would make you hold a grudge against me for years… I would’ve rather stood there and watched the DJ dance solo.”

“Pfft.“

Lúcxiaoxiao burst out into uncontrollable laughter.

I immediately launched a counterattack: “If you knew she had feelings for you, why on earth did you keep her around as your special assistant? Ever heard of keeping a respectable distance?!”

“I am innocent here, I swear!”

“I turned her down in the beginning, but she went around me, she begged my parents.”

“They arranged for her to join the company.”

“She even swore up and down that she didn’t like me anymore, claiming she already had a boyfriend.”

“I believed her… because I was an idiot back then.”

Me: “Yep, no argument there.”

“Who knew she was pulling dirty tricks like this behind my back?”

“I’m firing her tonight.”

No sooner said than done.

Li Huaijing pulled out his phone, opened the executive management group chat, and typed: “Effective immediately, Jiang Nian is terminated for fabricating rumors and attempting to sabotage my marriage. She is permanently blacklisted from rehire.”

The second the message sent, he kicked her right out of the group chat.

Efficiency: 10/10.

Decisiveness: Terrifying.

He turned back to face me. “Alright. Now it’s my turn to ask the questions.”

“Ask away.”

“Back in college, I heard you and Xiaoxiao call each other your ‘true love’ with my own ears.”

Xiaoxiao and I chorused in unison: “We were joking!!!”

“And what about your prenatal checkups?”

“I offered to go with you every single time, but you turned me down, saying you had Xiaoxiao. Then you went around telling people ‘our baby is born.’ You even said our son looked like Xiaoxiao???”

As he finished his sentence, he actually pouted.

Yup. A brooding CEO pouting. One for the history books.

I cleared my throat awkwardly. “I was just… messing around.”

“I didn’t let you come along because you were always so busy. I thought you preferred the quiet, independent, non-clingy type of girl who wouldn’t trouble you.”

“…Who on earth told you that?” He looked genuinely bewildered.

“Your friends. You even nodded when they said it!”

“I nodded just to get them off my back!”

“The only girl I like is Su Niannian. Every single version of you.”

He gently cupped my chin, speaking each word with deliberate slowness: “Even when you’re mad at me, even when you hit me… I still love you. I love you so much it’s beyond saving.”

Me: “…”

“But you were always so cold to me!”

“Because you said you liked the cold, quiet, stoic type.”

“I literally counted my words every time I talked to you.”

Me: “??? When did I ever say that?!”

“In your freshman self-introduction sheet.”

“…”

“I made that up! I was reading way too many billionaire romance novels back then!”

Xiaoxiao stood up and clapped her hands together lightly. “Alright, I’ve had my fill of drama for the night. I’m going to sleep.”

“Remember to lock the door behind you.”

She flashed a sly smirk and made a swift exit.

The moment the door clicked shut, Li Huaijing leaned in and captured my lips in a deep, fierce kiss.

The kiss was so overwhelming and breathless that I almost forgot I was pregnant. My mind went completely blank.

Suddenly, the living room camera speaker squawked to life: “LI HUAIJING! REIN IT IN! NIANNIAN IS PREGNANT!”

…Xiaoxiao.

He reluctantly pulled back, gently caressing my stomach. “Better listen to the doctor.”

Then he wrapped his arms around me, whispering softly in my ear, “When did you start liking me?”

“When I was sixteen. You walked into my birthday party, and I thought… you were the handsomest guy in the entire room.”

He let out a low chuckle. “Same here.”

“I spotted you the second I walked into that crowd.”

“And I remembered your name right away, Su Niannian.”

“Then why didn’t you say anything back then?!”

“Because I thought you and Xiaoxiao were a couple!”

Me: “???!!!”

“When I caught rides in your car, I held that economics book, but not a single word registered in my brain.”

“All I wanted was to talk to you… but I didn’t dare.”

I blushed, laughing softly. “Me too. I stayed late in class just to keep an eye on you and Jiang Nian.”

“Silly girl.”

He pulled me closer, burying his face in my hair, his voice dropping into a raspy whisper: “Su Niannian… you’re the only one I love.”

“Four years ago, I didn’t need a commercial marriage.”

“I just needed you.”

He leaned down, his lips brushing against mine: “Won’t you call me ‘husband’ just once?”

I murmured softly, “Husband…”

The result?

A certain grown man looked like he had just won the multi-million-dollar lottery.

That very night, he officially switched into “24/7 ‘Wife’ Soundboard Mode.”

The next morning.

Our son scrambled onto the bed, wriggling his way right between the two of us. “Daddy, aren’t you going to praise me?”

“Huh?” I blinked, completely clueless.

Li Huaijing laughed softly. “I was planning on sleeping in his room last night.”

“He looked at me and said, ‘Daddy, you’re so heartless. How can you sleep when Mommy hasn’t come home yet?!'”

“So he kicked me out to come find you.”

I pinched my son’s chubby cheek. His emotional intelligence is already miles ahead of his father’s.

From that day forward, Li Huaijing underwent a complete transformation.

No more cold shoulder.

No more keeping quiet.

He became a clingy husband, an overly affectionate father, and an absolute chatterbox. He accompanied me to every single prenatal checkup, never missing a single one.

Eight months later, I gave birth to a healthy baby girl. We named her Xiaoxiao.

At her one-month celebration party, a man walked up to us with a long, heavy sigh: “If I hadn’t been so arrogant back then… I’d be the one with a son and a daughter right now.”

Me: “Excuse me?”

He continued, “I was your original blind date candidate.”

“The night before we were supposed to meet, Li Huaijing and I went out drinking.”

“When I woke up the next morning… I was locked inside my own room.”

“By the time I finally got out… he had already registered his marriage with you.”

The entire room erupted into laughter.

Our son clapped his little hands together. “Good thing my Daddy is smart!”

I leaned my head against Li Huaijing’s shoulder, smiling softly. Hand in hand, fingers intertwined.

This time, we were never letting go.

Over in the corner of the room.

Xiaoxiao leaned into Li Huainian’s ear and whispered, “Still haven’t gotten over Niannian?”

He raised an eyebrow.

She offered a gentle smile. “That night by the river, I wasn’t actually drunk. I heard every single word you said.”

He fell silent for a beat, then let out a soft, self-deprecating chuckle. “Holding on when she’s happy… wouldn’t be very gentlemanly of me, would it?”

Xiaoxiao shot him a playful wink. “Well, why don’t you try looking at me instead? I’m gorgeous, kind-hearted, and incredibly persistent.”

The two of them looked at each other, and shared a quiet smile.