Mr. Liang, you mustn't covet other people's fiancées!

When Wen Li walked into the office the next day with huge dark circles under her eyes, Tian Miao was eating a steamed bun at her desk. When she saw her, she almost spat out the bun: "Youyou, what were you doing last night? Did someone punch you twice?"

Wen Li put her bag on the table and sank into her chair: "Don't ask anymore, I'm so sleepy, I definitely need to take a nap at noon."

Tian Miao leaned closer to look at her face: "You wouldn't... be having trouble sleeping because you're thinking about President Liang, would you?"

Wen Li raised her hand and patted her: "Eat your bun."

As the two were chatting, the HR department delivered a document: "Team Leader Wen, starting tomorrow, you will be the department manager of the Investment Department."

Wen Li took the document, paused for a moment, flipped through two pages to confirm that everything was correct, and then signed it.

She thought to herself: Sure enough, when love is not going well, career goes well.

Tian Miao clapped beside her: "Youyou, you got promoted! Treat us to lunch!"

Wen Li closed the folder: "Okay, I'll treat you to lunch."

The two went to lunch. When the elevator arrived at the first floor, the door had just opened and Wen Li was about to step out when someone coming in bumped hard on her shoulder, causing her to take a half step back.

She looked up and saw a man in a dark gray suit standing at the elevator entrance. He glanced at her, raised an eyebrow, but showed no sign of apology. Instead, he walked straight past her and into the elevator.

Tian Miao immediately turned her head and glared at the retreating figure: "Who is this? How can they be so rude!"

Wen Li rubbed her sore shoulder and pulled her along, saying, "Forget it, let's go. I'm starving."

Tian Miao turned around and glared at him again before following Wen Li away.

The elevator doors slowly closed, and Lu Heng stood inside. He glanced at Wen Li's back through the crack in the door and said to his assistant beside him.

"I didn't expect Shengjiang to have such a beautiful employee. I'll find out who she is and, if possible, poach her from Lu's Group to be my secretary."

The assistant nodded in agreement: "Yes, Young Master Lu."

When she was leaving get off work in the afternoon, Liang Chaoxu called to say he would pick her up, but Wen Li declined, saying, "No need, I'm working overtime today."

Liang Chaoxu paused for a moment: "Then I'll go back and cook for you."

Wen Li: "No need, I've already made plans to eat out with Tian Miao."

There was a few seconds of silence on the other end of the phone, then Liang Chaoxu didn't insist: "Okay, then go back after you finish breakfast, and let me know when you get there."

Wen Li hummed in agreement and hung up the phone.

She didn't actually make an appointment with Tian Miao; she just sat at her workstation staring blankly at the computer for half an hour before turning it off, packing her things, and taking a taxi home.

After washing up, she nestled on the sofa and randomly picked a movie. After watching for twenty minutes, she couldn't get into it at all, so she simply turned off the TV and went back to her bedroom to lie down.

Meanwhile, when Liang Chaoxu returned to Yuhe Mansion, Aunt Wang was tidying up the entrance hall. As she took his coat from him, she casually asked him a question.

"Sir, there's lipstick smudged on the collar of the shirt you wore yesterday. It's hard to remove. Would you like to take it to the dry cleaners?"

Liang Chaoxu paused in his shoe-changing motion, his mind suddenly flashing back to Wen Li's reaction on the phone earlier that day, and the video call he had last night.

A moment later, he took the coat back: "Aunt Wang, I'm going out for a bit."

It was almost eight o'clock when the car arrived at Guanghuali.

Liang Chaoxu went upstairs and knocked on the door. Wen Lilai opened the door and was clearly taken aback when she saw him standing there: "Why are you here?"

Liang Chaoxu walked in and, without beating around the bush, stood directly in the entryway and said, "I'm here to explain the lipstick mark from last night."

Wen Li leaned against the wall and watched him without saying a word.

Liang Chaoxu finished speaking in one breath: "Last night, Gu Zhihuai called and said he had drunk too much and asked me to pick him up. When I got there, I found out that Meng Shu was also there, and she had drunk just as much as Gu Zhihuai. So I gave her a ride home. When we got to her building, she almost fell when she got out of the car, and I helped her up. I think that's when she brushed against me."

After Liang Chaoxu finished speaking, he looked at her and said, "I didn't know until Aunt Wang told me."

After listening, Wen Li lowered her head and remained silent for a while before asking, "So you took her straight home yesterday?"

Liang Chaoxu shook his head: "Downstairs in the building. She said thank you, and then asked if I wanted to come up for a glass of water."

Wen Li raised an eyebrow and looked at him.

Liang Chaoxu hurriedly continued, "I didn't go, I turned around and left. Then when I went to pick you up for the video call, I was driving and had no idea there was something on my collar."

Wen Li straightened up and asked seriously, "Liang Chaoxu, can I really trust you?"

Liang Chaoxu looked directly at her, his gaze firm: "Okay."

Wen Li didn't say anything more, turned around and walked back to the living room to sit down. Liang Chaoxu followed and sat down next to her, and then said, "I really only took her downstairs. When she was about to fall, I supported her by the arm, not by putting my arm around her like in the TV dramas."

Wen Li turned her head to look at him: "You rushed over today because you thought I'd overthink it?"

"Yes." Liang Chaoxu did not deny it. "Your tone was a bit off when you hung up the phone last night and today, so I felt like you hadn't finished saying what you wanted to say. After Aunt Wang reminded me just now, I realized that you must have seen what was on your collar."

"If you have any questions, just ask. If you don't want to ask, I can explain them to you. But I don't want you to keep thinking about it to yourself."

Wen Li looked at him, slowly leaned back on the sofa, and remained silent for a while before speaking: "I did think a lot last night. I even wondered if I was holding you back if Meng Shu and you still have feelings for each other."

As she spoke, she rubbed her temples: "I've been thinking about this all day at work. I even got distracted during a meeting and was called out by President Jiang."

Liang Chaoxu asked in disbelief, "Is there still affection between Meng Shu and me? Who told you that?"

Wen Li was slightly taken aback, blinking her eyes: "Weren't you two...ex-lovers with a love-hate relationship?"

"Huh?" Liang Chaoxu was surprised. He raised his hand and gently massaged her temples, patiently explaining, "She and I are just friends, not the 'ex-girlfriend you described.'"

Wen Li frowned: "But Director Meng told me that you have always taken good care of her, and that you always brought her meals when she was in college, and sometimes even fruit."

As she spoke, Wen Li lowered her eyes: "Besides, I saw you two arguing the day after my college entrance exam. You even learned how to make bento boxes..."

Liang Chaoxu looked at her long, drooping eyelashes, smiled helplessly, lowered his arms, cupped her face in his hands, and said with a smile in his eyes, "If I had known you would think this way, I would have told you directly when I did those things."

Wen Li looked at him, her eyes full of confusion: "What do you mean?"

Liang Chaoxu sighed softly, leaned over and kissed Wen Li: "I learned to make bento boxes not to take care of her, but to take care of you."

"Huh?" Wen Li was even more confused. "But back then, you and I..."

Liang Chaoxu kissed her again: "Didn't you always go to Yuhe Mansion to wait for Song Yu to go to school together? The lunch boxes and fruits that Song Yu always packed for you in your schoolbag were all prepared in advance by me."

"As for Meng Shu's claim that I always brought her food, that's not true. She only ate the food and fruit I brought her once, and only that one time."

"Besides, because you suddenly didn't go to Yuhe Mansion that time, I brought the bento box I made and the fruit I prepared to school. I originally intended it for Gu Zhihuai, but Meng Shu said she wanted some, so Gu Zhihuai gave it to her instead."

Wen Li nodded blankly, overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information; she couldn't process it all at once.

Liang Chaoxu was charmed by her dazed expression and continued to kiss her, tilting his head: "We argued in front of the wonton shop because... I rejected her twice, and she was in a bad mood, which is why we argued."

"So, my dear Miss Wen, there isn't that much love-hate entanglement between Meng Shu and me, do you understand?"

Wen Li recoiled repeatedly from his kiss, saying, "I understand."

Liang Chaoxu smiled, reached out and pulled her into his arms, cupped her chin and kissed her: "I don't have an ex either."

"I went to university at seventeen. Before I met you, my daily routine consisted of attending classes, exercising, and doing experiments."

Wen Li felt increasingly uneasy as she listened. She raised her hand and pushed him away, her breath slightly ragged: "You mean, you... you mean to me..."

"That's right." Liang Chaoxu's eyes were red at the corners, his nose touched hers, and his eyes were deep as he slowly took her lips into his mouth. "I fell in love with you at first sight."

Wen Li only wanted to get to the bottom of things, letting him kiss her: "But back then, Song Yu and I were engaged, weren't you... harboring... improper intentions?"

"At first, I only treated you as a junior." Liang Chaoxu said as he pulled Wen Li onto his lap, put his arm around her waist, and held the back of her head, their lips entwined in a tender kiss.

"My original plan was that if you and Song Yu had a good relationship, I would wish you happiness."

"But I later found out that Song Yu, that bastard, treated you badly, so I seized the opportunity to rise to power."

Wen Li, feeling dizzy and disoriented from Liang Chaoxu's kisses, unconsciously leaned into his arms: "So, when did your feelings for me change from what they were at the beginning?"

Liang Chaoxu stopped what he was doing, panting, and asked, "Do you really want to know?"

Wen Li nodded.

Liang Chaoxu supported Wen Li's waist and hips, picked her up, and carried her towards the bedroom.

"The day after I brought you back to Yuhe Mansion from the Wen family, you were taking a nap on the swing in the back garden, and I watched you from the third-floor terrace. You were so well-behaved."

As he spoke, Liang Chaoxu placed Wen Li on the bed, pressed himself close to her, and began foreplay: "That was the first time I had the thought of wanting to possess you."

Wen Li shrank back, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck, her voice trembling: "So you are... the Big Bad Wolf."

"Yes, that's me." Liang Chaoxu's laughter came from his neck, muffled: "So, Little Red Riding Hood, are you ready to be eaten by the Big Bad Wolf?"

…………

The night outside the window was already deep. The main lights in the room were not on, only the warm yellow light of the floor lamp next to the bed illuminated the overlapping silhouettes of the two people, as if all the words that had not yet been spoken were placed under this lamp.