Quietly

"I'll reply to your messages promptly from now on," Pei Yang said. "I promise."

Feng Chuxun squealed excitedly for a while, then asked, "Then, Mommy, who's your mean boss? Tell me, and I'll get Feng Wanting to teach him a lesson!"

His boss? His boss was your dad. Pei Yang smiled and changed the subject. "Are you free this weekend?"

"Yes! Are you coming to see me?" Feng Chuxun was bursting with excitement. "I can be free right now!"

"It's too late now." Pei Yang thought it over. His face hadn't recovered yet, and he might scare the child. "Can you sneak out without your dad knowing on Sunday afternoon? I'll take you out to have some fun."

"Huh... without Daddy knowing?" Feng Chuxun asked in confusion. "Why? Can't Daddy come with us?"

"Well..." Pei Yang struggled to come up with an explanation. When the silence stretched too long, Feng Chuxun grew afraid he would change his mind and hurriedly said, "Then we won't bring him! Daddy must have made you angry. I'll teach him a lesson!"

"He didn't..." Before Pei Yang could finish, a faint voice came through the phone. "Xile, where are you?"

Pei Yang's heart rate shot up, and his finger instinctively moved to the end-call button.

Feng Chuxun said indignantly, "Feng Wanting's back! Don't be angry, Mommy. I'll knock him over with the taekwondo they taught us at kindergarten!"

"Don't..." Before he could stop him, the call had already ended.

Pei Yang: "..."

Hopefully, Feng Wanting wouldn't be beaten to death by Feng Chuxun's tiny fists.

Exhausted after a long day, Feng Wanting headed upstairs, calling for Xile, only to see Feng Chuxun charging toward him with his short, thick eyebrows furrowed and his fists clenched.

"Xile." Drained in body and mind, Feng Wanting desperately needed a hug from Feng Chuxun to recharge. He had barely opened his arms when Feng Chuxun cried, "Hi-yah!" and started pummeling him. "Feng Wanting! That's for bullying Mommy! That's for bullying Mommy-"

"Me? Bullying who?" Feng Wanting held Feng Chuxun back by his forehead. "Are you possessed?"

"Hmph! Don't try to deny it! You must have bullied Mommy. That's why he doesn't want to go out with you."

Feng Wanting realized who this "Mommy" was. "Pei Yang called you?"

"That's none of your business," Feng Chuxun said smugly. "Mommy said he's taking me out on Sunday."

The outer corners of Feng Wanting's eyes drooped slightly. "Did he tell you I bullied him?"

"Mommy would never be a tattletale. I figured it out myself."

"Then you figured wrong." Feng Wanting snorted. "He's the one bullying me."

"No way! Mommy's so gentle. He'd never bully you." Feng Chuxun firmly defended Pei Yang.

Gentle? What a waste of the word, using it to describe Pei Yang.

"Do you have a conscience?" Feng Wanting asked. "Have I raised an ungrateful little brat? I'm the one who brought you up. He's only been your mommy for a few days, and you're already completely on his side?"

Feng Chuxun briefly reflected on his behavior, then pouted. "Then tell me why Mommy doesn't want to take you along."

"Because..." Feng Wanting sighed and bent down to pick him up. "He only wants to be your 'mommy.' He doesn't want to be my 'wife.'"

The next day, Feng Wanting and Pei Yang entered the company lobby one after the other. Pei Yang spotted Feng Wanting first, and his heartbeat quickened without him realizing it.

...What was going on? Yesterday, he'd heard Feng Wanting's voice. Today, he'd seen him in person. Anything to do with Feng Wanting made his heart behave strangely.

He really shouldn't have slept with someone for no good reason. This was karma.

Pei Yang deliberately avoided Feng Wanting, afraid their eyes would meet. He walked on with his head down, but just before reaching the elevator, he couldn't help turning to glance in Feng Wanting's direction.

As it turned out, Pei Yang had been worrying for nothing. Feng Wanting entered the Executive Elevator with Wu Rui without so much as looking his way. He'd been worried about making eye contact, when Feng Wanting probably hadn't even noticed him.

...Talk about flattering himself.

The light in Pei Yang's eyes dimmed little by little.

When he reached the office area, Pei Yang spotted an elegantly wrapped box on his desk from a distance. He walked over, picked it up, and examined it for a couple of seconds before asking Gu Xin, who was playing a match-three game on her work computer, "Who left this here?"

"No idea." Gu Xin looked up. "I only got here a minute before you. It was already there when I arrived."

"Then I'll leave it at reception." Pei Yang turned around.

"Hey, hey!" Gu Xin hurried to stop him. "Don't! Why do you think it's on your desk? Someone obviously got it for you."

"For me?"

"Go on, open it," Gu Xin urged.

Pei Yang dubiously tore open the wrapping, and a little slip of paper fell out.

"What does it say?" Gu Xin craned her neck to look.

Pei Yang slowly unrolled the note. Reading from the bottom up, he saw the signature: Feng Wanting.

Feng Wanting? This was from Feng Wanting?! Pei Yang jolted and reflexively pressed the note against his chest.

"What's wrong? What does it say? Did someone write you a mushy love poem? Is that why I can't see it?" Gu Xin teased.

"No, it's not." Pei Yang hid the note even more securely. "I just remembered. I bought this. It's a delivery."

Gu Xin gave a knowing "Oh." "Got it. I'll give you some privacy."

She returned to her seat and resumed her match-three game while their supervisor was still absent.

Pei Yang furtively glanced around. Once he was sure no one was watching, he unfolded the note like a thief.

The note was small, with only enough room for a few words: "You needn't hurt yourself again just to get rid of me. I'll do as you asked, stranger. -Feng Wanting"

The handwriting flowed effortlessly, its strokes conveying an air of calm composure.

Feeling a little awkward, Pei Yang folded the note and unpacked the contents of the box.

A jar of allergy Repair Ointment sat in a velvet-lined recess.

"..."

Pei Yang took a photo and searched for it online. This little twenty-gram jar of Repair Ointment actually cost 1,682.3 yuan.

Pei Yang froze, a sweet, aching tenderness welling up in his chest.

...Had he been a little too harsh with Feng Wanting yesterday?

Hesitantly, he opened his phone and found his chat with Feng Wanting. His fingers tapped away: "Thank you for the Repair Ointment." Delete.

"I'm sorry about yesterday. I..." Delete.

"Should I transfer you the money for the Repair Ointment?" Delete.

Pei Yang spent ages typing, but every sentence felt wrong. Ten minutes passed, and he hadn't sent a single word.

"Because I think you're jealous." "And even now, your reaction still makes me think you're jealous." Suddenly, Pei Yang's temple throbbed three times. He didn't know why those words had come to mind just then.

So he quietly asked himself a question.

...Was he really jealous?