Chapter24

The partition went up, and the front and back seats finally had their own undisturbed spaces.

But Cen Zhen felt even more embarrassed.

Meng Fanchuan noticed her expression and gently lifted her chin. "What's wrong? Don't want people to know?"

A relationship that wasn’t built on love, not exactly something to be proud of, Cen Zhen certainly didn’t want anyone to know. But if she were to be with Meng Fanchuan later, there would inevitably be many moments like today. Chi Yu would always be around, and sooner or later, he would find out.

But how could someone in a superior position put themselves in such an awkward situation? The second young master of the Meng family was interested in a woman and had to hide it, where's the logic in that?

Cen Zhen paused for a moment, "I just filmed my first short film, and only today did the audience start to recognize me..."

Meng Fanchuan’s carefree attitude towards life also extended to his feelings. When he decided on something, he was clear about his intentions. He wanted everyone to know that Cen Zhen belonged to him and to nip any unnecessary thoughts in the bud.

But he also understood that her career had just begun, and perhaps she didn't want to be known as "Meng Fanchuan's girlfriend."

She was actress Cen Zhen, the one and only Cen Zhen in the world.

Meng Fanchuan didn’t say anything. He fell silent for a while before accepting the situation. However, the emotions he had suppressed still needed an outlet. He paused, then slid his hand from Cen Zhen’s cheek to her neck, pulling her closer and filling her mouth with his breath.

The kiss came without warning. Meng Fanchuan pressed his lips to hers, unreasonably prying her mouth open. His tongue tangled with hers, and the partition that Chen Xiang'an had raised gave him the freedom to act without restraint. He kissed her sideways, but that wasn’t enough. He easily lifted Cen Zhen onto his lap, tightening his grip on her waist, slowly claiming her.

Cen Zhen held onto his shoulder, trembling slightly, afraid that Chen Xiang'an and Chi Yu in the front would hear. She struggled to suppress any sounds, but the air was filled with the soft, intimate sounds of their kiss.

If it weren’t for the sudden sound of a WeChat notification, Cen Zhen felt that Meng Fanchuan wouldn’t have stopped this whole time.

Taking the opportunity, she turned her face away to breathe, but for some reason, the person in front of her started to tease her, rubbing her lips with his thumb, "Okay, you’re learning to open your mouth now."

Cen Zhen’s eyes widened in disbelief, and she protested as she got off his lap and sat back in her seat.

She opened her phone. There were many messages from people today. There were still plenty of unread messages, but the new one that had just come in—

It was from Xu Lewei.

When she had deleted Song Wang from her contacts, Cen Zhen had considered whether to delete Xu Lewei as well. However, they had only briefly met. She was just Song Wang’s assistant, so there was no need to make things complicated.

Now, the young girl had sent a message, probably just to congratulate her like everyone else.

It was a voice message. Cen Zhen didn’t suspect anything and opened it, only to hear a man’s voice:

"This is the resource you were talking about?"

The clear voice echoed in the otherwise silent back seat, almost amplified.

Cen Zhen’s mind went blank. Realizing it was Song Wang’s voice, she immediately tried to press pause, but the second message began to play automatically.

"Zhen Zhen, I miss you."

Cen Zhen: "…"

She could clearly feel the atmosphere in the backseat cooling down almost instantly.

Her heartbeat accelerated as she quickly turned off her phone. The person beside her didn’t speak, but after a moment, she mustered the courage to glance at him. Sure enough, she met his somewhat cold, probing gaze.

Even though Meng Fanchuan had shown her a great deal of indulgence and affection, Cen Zhen knew it didn’t mean much. He came from a prestigious family, and there was an unavoidable arrogance in his bones. His liking for Cen Zhen didn’t mean he would accept her casually discussing the exchange of resources with her ex-boyfriend and let the whole world know that Meng Fanchuan was merely a fool being targeted for his resources.

Song Wang’s first sentence was dangerous.

Cen Zhen nervously swallowed, unsure of how to explain herself, but Meng Fanchuan spoke first.

"You’re still in contact with him."

Cen Zhen froze.

It seemed like he wasn’t concerned about Song Wang’s first sentence.

Cen Zhen opened her lips. "No, he sent me the message using his assistant’s account. I didn’t know..."

Meng Fanchuan’s eyes suddenly dimmed, "So you kept his assistant's WeChat to hear him say 'I miss you'?"

Cen Zhen could hear the displeasure in his tone. She lowered her head, took out her phone, found Xu Lewei’s account, and though she felt guilty, she pressed delete.

"I’ve deleted it."

Cen Zhen was a little nervous. Whether Meng Fanchuan hadn’t heard the first sentence or his attention had been diverted by the "I miss you," she couldn’t tell. For now, she could only calm things down with this action.

Fortunately, her remedy seemed to work. Meng Fanchuan withdrew his gaze, and the tension in his mood lightened a little. After a while, he reached out and held Cen Zhen’s hand again. "Don’t drink too much later."Cen Zhen’s back was already sweating, and when she heard him change the topic, she finally began to relax a little. "Why? You're not going anymore?"

Meng Fanchuan had never planned to attend. The only reason he said they should go together was to find an excuse to get Cen Zhen into the car, to have a brief moment that was just for the two of them.

"I'm not going. I'm a bit tired." Since Zhuang Tai's unexpected accident, Meng Fanchuan hadn’t had a good night’s sleep. Now that his grandfather had been transferred to a regular ward and was improving day by day, he just wanted a good rest.

He spoke, then reminded Cen Zhen again, "Remember, drink less."

Cen Zhen nodded obediently. "I won’t drink. I can’t drink; I get drunk as soon as I drink."

Her simple words unexpectedly triggered Meng Fanchuan’s memories. He recalled how Cen Zhen had thrown up messily in front of the sink half a year ago and smiled. "Well, it's a good lesson."

Cen Zhen didn’t understand why he said that, but she didn’t think too much about it either. The car soon arrived at the celebration location. She and Chi Yu got out and watched the Bentley disappear from sight.

The cold wind blew sharply, and the atmosphere suddenly became a bit awkward.

Cen Zhen tried to act normal and said to Chi Yu, "Let’s go up first. I don’t know if they’ve arrived yet."

Chi Yu, who had been anxious all the way, saw that Cen Zhen was speaking normally, and it seemed like she hadn’t planned to immediately dismiss her, so she cautiously nodded. "...Okay."

Who knew how shocking the scene she had just witnessed was? But after the partition went up, she sat in the front seat, her mind in a whirl, and then realized that everything had already shown signs. It was just that her mind had been too naive to think in that direction.

Before Cen Zhen signed the contract, she had already come to the company to find Meng Fanchuan, which meant they had known each other before. And then—

Where does a boss let an artist stay in such a good place?

Where does a boss come to pick up an artist in the middle of the night just because the power went out so they can go sleep in air conditioning?

Where does a boss personally teach an artist how to ski?

You couldn’t find another one in the entire entertainment industry.

They had been together a long time ago!

Wen Hui had only refused to get in the car just now to give them some time alone, but here she was, acting like a fool by rushing up.

Thinking of the look Meng Fanchuan gave her at the end, Chi Yu was now sitting uneasily in the front seat.

Walking alongside Cen Zhen now, she suppressed her thoughts but couldn’t hold it in anymore and finally said, "Sorry, Zhen Zhen, I didn’t know you and Young Master Meng..."

Cen Zhen interrupted Chi Yu. "It’s fine as long as you know. I don’t want anyone else to know."

Hearing this, Chi Yu felt as if she hadn’t lost her job after all and immediately nodded in assurance, "Don’t worry, I’m very tight-lipped. Unless you two announce it yourselves, I won’t say a word, not even under threat."

Cen Zhen listened as she walked, her head down, thinking to herself.

"Announce it?"

Such a distant word, something far from them.

Cen Zhen had never thought such a day would come.

There was a huge gap between them, a distance that seemed insurmountable. It was hard to say when they would part ways, and Cen Zhen once thought she was clear-headed. But as time passed, she had unknowingly become a rare fool.

Maybe it would be easier if she didn’t think about the future.

Debuting under the label of "Director Xie’s Strict Selection," Cen Zhen’s short film was just four minutes long, but it showcased her martial arts and dance skills, and her acting was exceptional. In one night, she gained recognition, and work flooded in. She was finally tasting the sweetness of fame, taking the first successful step in her acting career.

After several busy days, Cen Zhen had a rare chance to sleep in. Wen Hui called her at noon, telling her to come to the company after waking up to pick out a few promotion collaborations.

Brands wouldn’t miss any opportunity to work with a rising star. Offers flooded in from all sides, and Wen Hui carefully filtered them, leaving a few options for Cen Zhen to discuss.

At 2 PM, just as Cen Zhen arrived at the company’s entrance, Chi Yu sent her a message, urging her to quickly come to the 37th floor.

The 37th floor was the office of Meng Fanchuan and Wen Hui. It was the only floor they used, but Meng Fanchuan rarely came, and when he did, he only stayed for a short while.

Cen Zhen was confused. She thought it was because she had kept Wen Hui waiting too long, so she quickly ran to the elevator. When she opened the door, she saw Chi Yu waiting at the elevator entrance.

"What are you doing here?"

As the only two people who knew about Cen Zhen and Meng Fanchuan’s relationship, Chi Yu hesitated for a few seconds before deciding to side with Cen Zhen and told her, "I was just delivering some documents to Aunt Hui and saw a beautiful woman come to see Young Master Meng."

Cen Zhen froze, her heart tightening slightly, but she tried to stay calm and said, "He’s the boss; of course, a lot of people come to see him every day."

Chi Yu pouted, clearly unhappy. "But she’s been in Young Master Meng’s office for a long time."

Cen Zhen glanced ahead and saw the door to Meng Fanchuan’s office closed. She took a steadying breath and comforted Chi Yu, "Don’t overthink it. Go wait downstairs. I’ll be down soon."

"Okay."

Chi Yu left, and Cen Zhen took a deep breath before walking towards Wen Hui’s office. As she passed Meng Fanchuan’s office, she didn’t know why, but her steps slowed, and her gaze involuntarily drifted toward the closed door.

—She had been inside for a long time.Cen Zhen’s thoughts were quietly disrupted for a few seconds by this remark, and some irrational thoughts rushed through her mind, making her feel restless.

She had told Chi Yu not to overthink, yet she felt like she was losing control over her own thoughts.

She closed her eyes, took a step forward, and was about to continue walking when she suddenly heard a slightly raised voice coming from inside: "Just let me stay, I promise I’ll listen to you."

Afterward, the room fell silent. A few brief seconds later, the door opened, and a young woman stormed out of the office, not even turning her head as she rushed down the elevator.

She didn’t see Cen Zhen, and Cen Zhen didn’t see her face, but judging by her back, she was at most in her early twenties.

It was clear they weren’t clients.

One wanted to stay, and the other wouldn’t allow it.

They… knew each other.

"Zhen Zhen?" Wen Hui, who was about to find Meng Fanchuan, saw Cen Zhen standing dumbfounded in the corridor and waved her hand. "What are you dazing for? Why didn’t you go in when you arrived?"

Cen Zhen snapped out of it. "Oh, I just got a phone call."

Wen Hui didn’t notice anything wrong and pointed toward Meng Fanchuan's office. "Come on, Fanchuan just arrived. We can discuss it together."

Cen Zhen didn’t know why she felt this brief emotional dip. She seemed a bit irritable, though she had always been the calmest and most composed person.

Taking a deep breath, Cen Zhen followed Wen Hui into the office.

Meng Fanchuan was casually leaning against his chair, showing no sign of working. Wen Hui still praised Cen Zhen, saying that at least he was willing to come to the office to check in.

"Did you look over the materials I gave you?" Wen Hui asked Meng Fanchuan after entering.

Meng Fanchuan turned to look and, seeing Cen Zhen following behind, naturally reached his hand out to her, as there was no need to hide anything in front of Wen Hui.

But Cen Zhen didn’t move.

The atmosphere became subtly awkward for a second.

Wen Hui noticed the tension between them, not sure what had happened, so she took the initiative to change the subject. "We’ve received eight promotion collaboration offers. After considering the brand background, market reputation over the past three years, and previous artist collaborations, we’ve narrowed it down to shampoo, snacks, and sports lingerie. Which one do you prefer, Zhen Zhen?"

Cen Zhen answered, "Sports lingerie."

She had debuted with a promotional video for a sports event, so it seemed most fitting to take on projects related to sports.

Meng Fanchuan glanced at the sample footage from the lingerie brand and casually commented, "Wouldn’t it be too revealing?"

"Sports lingerie is very healthy," Cen Zhen said, a bit irritated, her words carrying a sharp edge. "Of course, if Young Master Meng wants me to be obedient, I’ll do whatever you choose."

Wen Hui: "..."

Even if one didn’t have eyes, it was obvious something was off between them.

Wen Hui cleared her throat, put the materials down on the desk, and left. "I just remembered I still have a call to make. You two can talk first."

The door clicked shut, and the office became so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. Meng Fanchuan watched Cen Zhen for a moment before asking, "Why did you say that?"

Cen Zhen didn’t know how her emotions had spilled over. She silently lowered her head. "Sorry."

Meng Fanchuan continued to look at her, as though trying to find the reason for her sudden change of mood from her face. After a while, he smiled ambiguously and reached his hand out again.

This time, Cen Zhen didn’t "rebel." She obediently walked over, sat on his lap, and leaned into his embrace.

"Did you hear something outside just now?"

Cen Zhen lowered her gaze and shook her head. "No."

But Meng Fanchuan wasn’t letting up. "Are you jealous?"

"…"

Cen Zhen found him extremely annoying. She didn’t want to admit it, but the emotions of the past few minutes had proven—

She was indeed a little upset.

But how could she dare to be jealous? And why should she be jealous? She kept reminding herself to keep her place.

"I’m here to work, not to be jealous," Cen Zhen said coldly.

"Really?" Meng Fanchuan laughed, then paused. He lightly cupped her face, which had turned away, bringing it back to face him. "But it seems like our teacher Cen’s acting today isn’t quite on point."

"…"

The more he seemed in control, the more his own inner turmoil made him look like a fool. Cen Zhen’s face turned hot. Knowing she couldn’t win, she stood up. "Chi Yu is still downstairs waiting for me. You and Aunt Hui can decide on the promotion matters. I have no opinion."

She hurried to leave, but Meng Fanchuan leisurely grabbed her hand. "Let’s have dinner together tonight."

"Okay."Without turning back, Cen Zhen finally freed herself from the awkward atmosphere. Standing in the corridor of the 37th floor, she gazed at the scenery outside the window, her thoughts rising and falling, before eventually becoming calm and silent.

When did the bird in the cage start to think of possessing the owner's heart?

Cen Zhen closed her eyes and took a long time to calm herself before heading downstairs. When Chi Yu saw her, her expression seemed normal, and the words she wanted to ask got stuck in her throat.

Although the young girl was a bit careless, who didn’t know that wealthy families were often cold-hearted? Especially in the entertainment industry, the stories of young masters and female celebrities were numerous, but only a few could be considered a happy ending. Most of them were fleeting romances, nothing more.

Chi Yu liked Cen Zhen and wanted to see her succeed in her career, wanted to see her shine, not be dragged down by a relationship.

That person, even if he was the boss, was no exception.

"The work schedule has been pretty packed lately," Chi Yu said, explaining the upcoming plans. "There's an exclusive interview, and then we need to go to Mingzhou for an event. Also, Aunt Hui has arranged for Bella Wang to take photos of you. Her studio is in Shenzhen, so we might need to fly there. Director Xie's movie will start filming at the end of December."

Wen Hui personally took care of all of Cen Zhen's work, and thanks to her meticulous preparations, the team didn’t falter after the promotional video went viral. Everything proceeded in an orderly fashion.

Thinking of this, the earlier discomfort seemed less significant. Cen Zhen took a deep breath and nodded. "No problem."

After confirming the schedule in the office until 5 PM, Cen Zhen received a message from Meng Fanchuan. Three simple words: "Parking lot."

Cen Zhen turned off her phone, told Chi Yu she had something to take care of, and obediently walked to the parking lot, easily getting into Meng Fanchuan’s car.

She didn’t speak, letting him hold her hand, quietly playing the role of a canary who didn’t ask or try to take.

"Still upset?" Meng Fanchuan teased, squeezing her hand.

Cen Zhen controlled her emotions and smiled at him. "What am I upset about? What could I be upset about?"

She didn’t want to continue this conversation with him, so she asked, "Where are we going for dinner?"

Meng Fanchuan looked at her with a half-smile, then turned to answer her, "Home."

Home?

Which home?

Cen Zhen wasn’t sure what he was up to, but it was just a meal, so it didn’t really matter where they ate. She didn’t think too much about it, but as the car turned down familiar roads again and again, she gradually realized, "Are we going to your grandfather’s villa?"

Meng Fanchuan: "Mm."

The last time they went there was still fresh in her memory. She nervously bought condoms at a convenience store by the road and went to find him with the intention of "negotiating" that night. She boarded the yacht without hesitation.

But nothing happened.

Even to this day, nothing had happened.

Cen Zhen didn’t know what Meng Fanchuan was waiting for. Was he trying to create a memorable atmosphere, like their first kiss, waiting for her to lose herself, waiting for her to willingly fall for him?

But he really didn’t need to do that.

He used all his patience and charm, as if she was precious, held carefully in his hands. But when he turned around, he would be entangled with other women in the office, and those feelings seemed like fleeting bubbles, disappearing with a poke.

Cen Zhen closed her eyes, trying hard not to overthink. The mountain roads were clear, and in about twenty minutes, they arrived at the villa.

Uncle Wei, as he was last time, was dressed in a clean suit and smiled warmly at Cen Zhen. "Welcome, Miss Cen."

"Thank you, Uncle Wei."

Meng Fanchuan held Cen Zhen's hand and walked toward the house. As they walked, he asked, "Where is she?"

Uncle Wei looked up and gestured inside. "She’s sitting on the sofa, looks pretty upset. You can try to calm her down later."

Calm her down?

Cen Zhen immediately thought of the woman she had seen earlier at the company.

Did he bring that woman back?

Cen Zhen’s mind replayed all the dramatic plots she had seen in soap operas, but no matter how she thought about it, she couldn’t believe that Meng Fanchuan was the type of person who would behave so recklessly and unethically.

Meng Fanchuan noticed the hesitation in Cen Zhen’s steps and turned to look at her. "What’s on your mind?"

Cen Zhen should have kept quiet, but at this moment, her doubts had piled up to the point of explosion. She couldn’t hold it in anymore. "Who are you going to calm down?"

If he was going to comfort another woman, she wouldn’t absurdly step into this door.

Meng Fanchuan saw her serious face and suddenly smiled, tightening his grip on her hand. "Of course, I’m calming down Teacher Cen, who’s upset."

Cen Zhen: "…?"

She was led into the house, still confused. Sure enough, a girl was sitting on the sofa in the center of the living room. From her back and clothes, Cen Zhen recognized her—it was the same woman who had appeared at the company earlier.

"Meng Wenluo." The man beside her called out softly.

The girl on the sofa turned her head, saw it was Meng Fanchuan, snorted, and turned away. But in less than a second, she turned back, stood up in surprise, and walked toward Cen Zhen. "Ah? You... you’re the Cen Zhen from online who’s been trending these past few days?!"

Cen Zhen was caught off guard by the scene in front of her, but she clearly heard the name Meng Fanchuan had called out.The girl’s last name was also Meng.

"My younger sister, Meng Wenluo," Meng Fanchuan finally cleared up the mystery. "She’s always wanted to come to Hu City to find me, but I didn’t let her, so she came here on her own."

"…"

Distant memories resurfaced, and Cen Zhen suddenly recalled the first time she came to the villa, hearing Meng Fanchuan on the phone telling the person on the other end to stay in Beicheng and not come over.

At the time, she thought it was some old trouble from his past in Beicheng, but it turned out… it was his sister.

The plot twist came so quickly that Cen Zhen couldn’t even explain the sudden relief in her heart when the misunderstanding was cleared up. All she could do was nod at the girl, "…Hello, Miss Meng."

Meng Wenluo was very excited. "Hello, Teacher Cen! Ah! I need to get a notebook and pen to have Teacher Cen sign it, Uncle Wei—!"

The young girl excitedly ran off, leaving the two of them standing in the hall. Cen Zhen knew she had made a fool of herself, and she awkwardly looked around, until Meng Fanchuan’s light chuckle reached her ears. "Teacher Cen, why aren’t you saying anything?"

By this point, Cen Zhen had already figured out that Meng Fanchuan’s earlier remark was meant to comfort her. Her cheeks flushed pink, and she awkwardly asked, "What did you say?"

Meng Fanchuan looked at her with a half-smile, sighed, and the helpless sound drifted into her ears. "Am I clear now?"