Su Huaiming pondered for a few seconds, then decided it wasn't best not to be so direct, and casually asked Fu Jingfan, "How did you know it was me?"
Fu Jingfan didn't open his eyes to look at Su Huaiming, nor did he answer the question directly. Instead, he asked, "Was today's filming successful?"
Su Huaiming nodded. "It went very smoothly."
At this point, the image of Fu Jingfan's life-size standee suddenly appeared before his eyes, and he choked up involuntarily.
Fu Jingfan seemed to notice Su Huaiming's unusual behavior and looked up at him.
Afraid of giving himself away, Su Huaiming coughed twice and then awkwardly changed the subject, "Did you... did you have a late-night snack tonight?"
Fu Jingfan said quite naturally, "With you gone, no one brings me late-night snacks."
Fu Jingfan spoke in a very soft tone. If it were someone else speaking in such a tone, it would definitely reveal a hint of grievance, but Fu Jingfan did not at all.
Su Huaiming wasn't buying it and said, "Aren't you hungry?"
Fu Jingfan was silent for a few seconds, then a barely perceptible smile appeared on his lips. "I'm really not hungry."
"..."
The conversation stalled there. Su Huaiming was preoccupied with something else and couldn't help but drift off into thought. Fu Jingfan didn't say anything more either, and the atmosphere remained quiet.
The two sat in a dimly lit room, very close together, in complete silence outside, their presence amplified to each other.
Su Huaiming's gaze involuntarily fell on the gift boxes behind him. After pondering for a few seconds, he tentatively looked at Fu Jingfan, "I've noticed that you're very diligent and serious when you work. Do you never take a break, even on special occasions?"
Fu Jingfan successfully grasped the key point, bypassing Su Huaiming's initial polite words, and asked in return, "A special day?"
Su Huaiming nodded, his voice inexplicably dry, "For example, on some holidays, or..."
Su Huaiming paused, his gaze fixed intently on Fu Jingfan, awaiting his answer, "Your birthday."
Fu Jingfan did not answer. He straightened up slightly, his dark eyes fixed on Su Huaiming, his eyes filled with emotions that Su Huaiming could not understand.
In the dead of night, with no one around, being stared at like that, Su Huaiming felt like a small, vulnerable animal, instinctively wary of danger. His body involuntarily tensed, and he bit his lower lip slightly, his expression revealing a hint of vigilance.
Fu Jingfan's gaze traced Su Huaiming's features inch by inch, not missing a single emotion. As if pleased, Fu Jingfan slowly lowered his eyes, leaning lazily against the sofa, like a satiated beast that temporarily suppressed its aggression.
Su Huaiming subconsciously took a deep breath and stopped looking at Fu Jingfan.
Fu Jingfan's gaze remained fixed on Su Huaiming as he said meaningfully, "If the work isn't finished, I won't rest, even on my birthday."
Su Huaiming didn't glean any information from those words, so he could only say dryly, "That's great. Having a dedicated boss like you is a blessing for employees."
--Yeah, right.
Fu Jingfan didn't mind Su Huaiming's tone and raised an eyebrow in confusion. "I remember you go to bed early, why are you staying up so late today? Aren't you going to sleep?"
Su Huaiming mumbled, "I just got back."
Fu Jingfan didn't let him off the hook, asking in a more detailed way, "Aren't you sleepy? Why didn't you go to sleep after coming back, but instead chose to come to my study?"
Fu Jingfan leaned forward slightly, propped his knees on his elbows, and turned to look at Su Huaiming, asking relentlessly, "What are you doing in my study?"
Pressed relentlessly, Su Huaiming couldn't spare any attention to think, so he decided to go all out and pointed directly at the red gift box, saying expressionlessly, "Is today your birthday?"
This time, it was Fu Jingfan's turn to be stunned.
He hadn't expected Su Huaiming to react this way, catching him off guard. After a few seconds of silence, he regained his composure and passed the buck back to Su Huaiming, "What do you think?"
After asking the question, Su Huaiming relaxed considerably and, without so many reservations, said directly, "I'm here to wish you a happy birthday."
Fu Jingfan paused, his expression slightly frozen, a change in which Su Huaiming couldn't decipher. "How did you know it was my birthday today?"
Su Huaiming, recalling his public persona, said in a matter-of-fact tone, "Of course I know it's your birthday today."
Fu Jingfan didn't let him off the hook, and continued to ask, "Then how did you know?"
Su Huaiming didn't understand why Fu Jingfan was so concerned about this issue, and sensed something strange, but couldn't quite put his finger on it. He could only honestly reply, "The butler told me."
"The housekeeper said today is my birthday?" Fu Jingfan's tone rose slightly, his eyes growing even deeper.
Even the most oblivious person would realize something was wrong. Su Huaiming sensed Fu Jingfan's sudden change in demeanor and asked, puzzled, "Is there a problem? Isn't today your birthday?"
Fu Jingfan stared intently at Su Huaiming, his gaze sharp yet penetrating to see into Su Huaiming's heart.
If the butler really knew it was his birthday, he wouldn't have been completely unprepared all day; there must have been a communication problem between him and Su Huaiming.
Fu Jingfan paused, then suddenly seemed to remember something. The frost in his eyes faded, and he returned to his usual languid demeanor.
"Yes, today is my birthday."
Fu Jingfan's attitude changed so drastically and so quickly that Su Huaiming was completely baffled.
Fu Jingfan Mingming saw Su Huaiming's helplessness and confusion, but he didn't explain. Instead, he looked at Su Huaiming calmly and said, "Today is my birthday. Are you just going to say 'Happy Birthday' verbally?"
Su Huaiming was stunned for a moment, his expression inexplicably somewhat dumbfounded.
Fu Jingfan drawled out, his tone suggestive, "Aren't you going to give me a birthday present?"
This was the first time Su Huaiming had ever met someone so directly asking for a gift, and he didn't know how to respond for a moment.
Fu Jingfan, however, seemed to have already made up his mind. He stood up, walked towards the gift on the table, and easily untied the bow with his slender fingers through the red ribbon.
Fu Jingfan's fingers were long and slender with distinct knuckles. His skin was pale and cool, and the veins on the back of his hands were slightly bulging, exuding a sense of power.
A red ribbon twirled around his wrist and hooked at his fingertips. The stark contrast in color made Fu Jingfan's hand look like a work of art, drawing all eyes to it.
Fu Jingfan walked up to Su Huaiming, draped the red ribbon down to Su Huaiming's cheek, and gently brushed it against his skin, causing a tingling, itchy sensation.
Under Su Huaiming's questioning gaze, Fu Jingfan raised an eyebrow with amusement and unfurled the red ribbon.
Su Huaiming was still sitting on the sofa. The height difference between the two was too great, and Fu Jingfan felt uncomfortable in the position. He leaned forward slightly, with one long leg braced against the soft sofa, and placed both arms in front of Su Huaiming, trapping Su Huaiming in front of him.
Su Huaiming's eyes widened slightly as he clearly sensed the deep yet cool aura emanating from Fu Jingfan, and he instinctively backed away.
Fu Jingfan's expression remained unchanged; his fingertips lightly brushed against the ends of Su Huaiming's exposed skin.
The skin on the back of his neck felt a gentle touch; the red ribbon wrapped around Su Huaiming's slender neck, making his skin appear even more radiant and fair.
Fu Jingfan's fingers pinched the two ends of the red ribbon, nimbly tying a bow that fit perfectly against Su Huaiming's slightly protruding Adam's apple, without feeling tight.
He looked down at his work, quite satisfied with it.
Su Huaiming then came to his senses, reached out and touched the red ribbon around his neck, looking quite puzzled.
Why did Fu Jingfan tie a bow around his neck? What was he trying to do?
Su Huaiming didn't need to look in a mirror to feel that he looked very strange.
Seeing Su Huaiming trying to untie the bow, Fu Jingfan said, "Don't move."
Su Huaiming, mindful that Fu Jingfan's inexplicable behavior, tapping his neck to signal Fu Jingfan to explain quickly.
"Today is my birthday, you should give me a gift." Fu Jingfan used a declarative sentence tone.
Su Huaiming raised an eyebrow, his eyes asking, "And then?"
"But since you didn't give me a gift, I have to choose one myself," Fu Jingfan said calmly.
Upon hearing this, Su Huaiming couldn't help but picture the gift box, then thought of the bow around his neck, and his surprised voice rose considerably, "So I'm that gift?!"
Under Su Huaiming's surprised gaze, Fu Jingfan nodded quite naturally.
Su Huaiming was speechless, unsure where to begin his rant.
As if guessing Su Huaiming's thoughts, Fu Jingfan preemptively said, "You can also give me a different gift."
Su Huaiming subconsciously reached into his pocket, his fingertips brushing against the red velvet box.
These are the wedding rings the brand gave him.
If it were Fu Jingfan's birthday, the meaning behind giving Fu Jingfan a pair of rings would be self-evident.
Although he nominally loved Fu Jingfan deeply, he wouldn't go to such lengths, and if he did, it would probably create a very awkward situation.
But apart from that, he had nothing else to give away.
Su Huaiming hesitated for a full half minute before finally giving up and acquiescing to Fu Jingfan's statement.
"Alright, then I'll consider myself your gift." Su Huaiming glanced at the time and said, "Your birthday is almost over, so I can be your gift for ten minutes."
Fu Jingfan raised an eyebrow. "Isn't that a bit too heartless?"
Su Huaiming countered, "Then what do you want?"
"Tomorrow," Fu Jingfan looked down at Su Huaiming, "You'll be my gift for one day."
Treating Su Huaiming as a gift and tying a red ribbon on him was all a spur-of-the-moment idea of Fu Jingfan.
He didn't care about his birthday and never thought about celebrating it, but Su Huaiming accidentally found out the exact date of his birthday and took the initiative to come over and say that he wanted to celebrate his birthday.
This piqued Fu Jingfan's interest, and he suddenly felt that having Su Huaiming as a gift to accompany him on his birthday wouldn't be bad.
For him, Su Huaiming was a variable outside his well-ordered life.
Fu Jingfan liked to be in control of everything, and everything had to be carried out according to his plan, but he was surprisingly able to tolerate Su Huaiming's existence, and even showed a slight interest in him.
This was not beyond his control, so Fu Jingfan indulged his whimsical interest.
Su Huaiming, however, could not misunderstand Fu Jingfan's thoughts. He frowned slightly, pondering the matter.
Fu Jingfan is too mysterious and powerful; it's hard to argue with what he decides.
Most importantly, he is currently under the influence of the "deep love for Fu Jingfan" buff, and if he shows too much resistance, it may arouse Fu Jingfan's suspicion.
However, he couldn't let Fu Jingfan manipulate him, so Su Huaiming decided to switch to Fu Jingfan's mindset and try to make a three-point agreement with him.
"I can be your gift for a day, but..." Su Huaiming said seriously, "You don't own me."
Fu Jingfan: "..."
Su Huaiming's every reaction and every word surprised him, but Fu Jingfan found it amusing and simply went along with it, saying, "Then what do I possess of you?"
Su Huaiming thought for a moment and said, "The right to view."
Fu Jingfan countered, "If it's just the right to watch, what's the difference from usual?"
"..." Su Huaiming pondered for a few seconds, realizing that his request was indeed a bit excessive, so he compromised, "Then I'll give you the right to use it."
The words "right of use" lingered on Fu Jingfan's lips. He paused, emphasizing each word. "Use?"
Su Huaiming didn't perceive any other implication and continued, "Yes, but there are some things you need to promise me beforehand."
"Speak." Fu Jingfan crossed his arms and looked at Su Huaiming with a leisurely air.
Su Huaiming pondered for a few seconds, then said meticulously, "First, we live in a society governed by the rule of law. You can't ask me to do anything illegal or criminal, or to harm the interests of others."