First, settle into the hotel, then head out to have lunch with the business partner.
Zhou Dang was squeezing in time to video chat with Xuan Yang.
He regretted going to her last night.
The indulgence before departure made him think of her every second while he was awake.
Xuan Yang continued typing, casually humming in acknowledgment, as if she had no desire to talk to him.
If anyone else had been so cold, Zhou Dang would have hung up long ago.
But on the other end of the video was Xuan Yang, the wife he had worked so hard to marry. Of course, he had to be extremely patient.
Zhou Dang: "It must be dinner time back home now. Shouldn't you be off work and heading home?"
Zhou Dang added: "I found a housekeeper from the old mansion to come to Shangtian Mansion and take care of your daily needs."
"Wife, even though I'm not there, I still hope you'll eat well and live healthily." Zhou Dang urged earnestly: "Health is the capital of revolution. You need to develop good habits, which will boost your immunity."
"That way, you won't get sick so easily in the future."
Xuan Yang listened to his nagging over the video, and even her train of thought for the case was getting disrupted. She felt a bit troubled.
But she still patiently listened to all of Zhou Dang's instructions.
After all, he might be the only person in the world, besides Xie Xinglan, who would care about her like a child.
"You should take care of yourself too, President Zhou." Just before hanging up, Xuan Yang said this awkwardly.
On the other end of the phone, Zhou Dang was stunned. It took him a few seconds to react, and then he smiled deeply: "So this is what it feels like to have a wife's concern."
Xuan Yang picked up her phone and finally showed her face.
Looking at Zhou Dang's serious expression in the video, she uncontrollably thought back to last night.
She thought of his dense, falling kisses.
She thought of his long, slender fingers.
She thought of his breath buried in her neck, surging like a hot wave.
...
Gradually, Xuan Yang blushed.
She decisively slapped the phone face-down on the table.
Zhou Dang's puzzled voice came from the phone: "Wife, why did the screen go black?"
Xuan Yang held her forehead, calmed her mind a little, and replied, "Hang up. I need to get back to work."
Zhou Dang didn't understand the reason, but he knew he had already disturbed Xuan Yang for too long. He couldn't keep pestering her.
He obediently agreed: "Then remember to go home early. Have the driver pick you up."
Xuan Yang thought, it was just a short distance, why bother the driver?
But when the words were on the tip of her tongue, they turned into a simple "Okay."
She didn't want Zhou Dang to worry.
-
Before Zhou Dang left for his business trip to Switzerland, he selected a considerate and sensible housekeeper from the old mansion to come to Shangtian Mansion.
Although Zhou Dang wasn't there, Xuan Yang lived in Shangtian Mansion, so breakfast and dinner were taken care of.
The housekeeper's cooking was much better than Zhou Dang's, and Xuan Yang really liked it.
Most importantly, the housekeeper Zhou Dang found knew her boundaries.
She only prepared breakfast and dinner for Xuan Yang, cleaned the house, and did daily tidying.
When cleaning, she wouldn't move Xuan Yang's work-related items. Usually, as long as Xuan Yang didn't initiate a conversation, the housekeeper wouldn't disturb her.
This kind of housekeeper, who maintained a sense of boundaries, suited Xuan Yang's taste.
She even felt that even after Zhou Dang returned from his trip, the housekeeper could continue to stay here.
Of course, having the housekeeper live in also brought one change:
Xuan Yang moved to the master bedroom, and the housekeeper stayed in the guest room.
The other guest room had been converted by Zhou Dang into Xuan Yang's dedicated study, where she could handle work.
Each of them had their own study, so they wouldn't disturb each other.
Xuan Yang lived peacefully like this for a few days.
During this time, she had dinner with Xie Xinglan twice and heard about the latest gossip in their social circle.
For example, news that Xuan Yao and Zhou Lin had been seen together at the cinema and amusement park.
Xie Xinglan boldly guessed that Xuan Yao and Zhou Lin were together.
Then she complained about how cruel the Xuan family had been to Xuan Yang. "Why can Xuan Yao marry into the Zhou family, but you can't?"
"They had to make you divorce, or else they would cut ties with you."
"Tell me, which adoptive parents can be as heartless as them?"
Whenever Xuan Yang's expulsion from the Xuan family came up, Xie Xinglan would get furious.
What made her angriest was that at the time, Xuan Yang had borne it all alone without even calling her.
After all, she was the eldest daughter of the Xie family. Even if she couldn't support Xuan Yang fully, she could at least drive over to the Xuan family and pick her up in style.
"But I have to give your husband credit on this one. Handing over all his assets after marriage really is a huge plus." Xie Xinglan smiled, increasingly satisfied with the marriage between Zhou Dang and Xuan Yang.
Xuan Yang didn't deny it, but she was also troubled: "He's very good to me, and that puts a lot of pressure on me."
Xie Xinglan: "You've always been like this. If someone treats you three parts well, you want to repay them ten parts."
Xie Xinglan sighed, "Yangyang, sometimes you really should be more relaxed."
"You are such a good person, so of course you deserve to be treated well by those around you."
"Don't always think about how much you can repay. Don't put too much psychological burden on yourself."
Xuan Yang half-understood, wondering if her accommodation of Zhou Dang that night was partly due to this mindset.
But Xie Xinglan changed the subject, leaning in and asking mysteriously, "By the way, since you and Zhou Dang are living together, have you two...?"
Xuan Yang didn't want to catch on so quickly, so she tactically lowered her head to drink some juice.
Xie Xinglan caught her evasion, the curve of her mouth deepening, and she smiled mischievously: "I knew it. Facing a handsome man like Zhou Dang, how could you possibly remain indifferent?"
Xuan Yang: "..."
Xie Xinglan: "As far as I know, my cheap cousin has never been in a relationship."
"There aren't even any scandals about him in the circle. He seems to be a virgin."
"What's your take?" Xie Xinglan asked, clearly very curious about this matter. "Baby, you should be the only one who's used him so far. You must know."
Xuan Yang choked on her juice. She turned aside and coughed, unable to help glaring at Xie Xinglan.
Used?
Virgin?
What kind of wolfish and tigerish words were these?!