Chapter 90

In her rage, Wen Wanyuan lost all reason and blurted out the truth. Her chest heaved dramatically as surging emotions twisted the softest part of her heart.

“Because of me?” Su Jinglan’s lips curved slightly in a light laugh. She hadn’t expected that provoking Wen Wanyuan would reveal why Ning Jiuwei saw a psychologist. “Miss Wen, I just want to know about Jiuwei’s past.”

Seeing Su Jinglan’s incredulous look, Wen Wanyuan’s emotions surged even more wildly. She clenched her fists tight. “Don’t think you can keep hurting her just because Ah Mu likes you.”

Suppressing the murderous impulse surging through her, Wen Wanyuan glared viciously at Su Jinglan on the sofa. That strikingly beautiful face wore an air of unshakable poise and superiority, as if everything remained firmly under her control.

Someone like Su Jinglan—outstanding in looks, figure, talent, and intellect—was simply too captivating.

She absolutely could not let Ah Mu fall into her clutches again. With that thought, Wen Wanyuan forced herself to calm down.

“You want to know why she went to see a psychologist? Fine, I’ll tell you.” Wen Wanyuan glanced around the room. The TV droned in the living room while Ning Jiuwei remained in the kitchen, preparing dinner.

She reined in the ferocity in her eyes and sat down beside the small round tea table. “Back in high school, Ah Mu fell for someone twenty years her senior. How could a minor stand against an adult’s schemes? Ah Mu poured her whole heart into it, only to end up scarred inside and out.”

The smile slowly faded from Su Jinglan’s face. Shrouded in the night’s shadows, Wen Wanyuan stared straight into her eyes. “Does President Su still want to hear the rest?”

“Continue.” Su Jinglan dug her nails into her palm, letting the physical sting dull the agony in her heart.

Wen Wanyuan continued evenly. “That woman manipulated Ah Mu’s emotions, claimed her body, and tormented her mind. Ah Mu struggled to balance school and this romance. She seemed fine in public, but inwardly she teetered on the brink of collapse. That summer after the Gaokao, Ah Mu fell completely. She spent every waking hour with that woman. I’m sure President Su can guess what they got up to.”

Su Jinglan’s brow furrowed, distress and heartache plain on her face.

Without waiting for a response, Wen Wanyuan went on. “Eventually, Ah Mu came home covered in wounds—whip marks and rope burns across her back and arms. Her mom stumbled on them by chance and secretly followed her, only to discover she was dating a forty-year-old woman. They kissed openly in the mall. I tried to convince Ah Mu to end it, but her obsession had turned pathological. She even savored the abuse and refused to listen.”

Su Jinglan’s heart twisted like a knife. If only she had pursued Ah Mu sooner, none of this would have happened.

The pain stole her breath, leaving her on the verge of suffocation.

“That woman made Ah Mu do anything she demanded—even watch her with other women—until Ah Mu’s heart lay in shattered pieces. Ah Mu loved her so desperately that she obeyed every twisted order just to keep her. In the end, she broke completely. Auntie dragged her to a psychologist by force. Su Jinglan, that’s the truth you wanted. Can you accept Ah Mu’s past?”

Su Jinglan’s mind reeled, vivid images flooding her thoughts with every word from Wen Wanyuan. Her throat tightened, leaving her speechless.

Wen Wanyuan sneered. “It seems President Su can’t handle that Ah Mu once loved someone that deeply. While your feelings are still shallow, break things off with her now—before her old problems resurface. Her issues are severe. When she snaps, she could hurt you.”

Something didn’t add up. Su Jinglan’s memory was flawless; she could recite Wen Wanyuan’s every word verbatim after a single hearing. She replayed it all meticulously—even the comment from before they stepped onto the balcony—until she pinpointed the inconsistency.

“Who was that woman?” Su Jinglan asked.

“Go ask Ah Mu yourself. That’s all I’ll say.”

Silence settled over the balcony. Wen Wanyuan smiled, relishing Su Jinglan’s inner turmoil. Su Jinglan could never bring herself to ask Ning Jiuwei about it, but the burning curiosity would gnaw at her relentlessly until she abandoned the relationship.

“You’re lying.” Su Jinglan raised her eyes from her furrowed brow and stated with conviction. “There’s no one twenty years older than Ning Jiuwei. Everything Miss Wen just said—you made it all up.”

Wen Wanyuan leaned back lazily against the sofa, arms crossed. “Why would I make it up? You’re something else, President Su. You hounded me to tell you when I didn’t want to, and now that I have, you call it a fabrication. So what do you think broke Ah Mu psychologically—badly enough for lifelong meds and regular therapy?”

Nothing shatters a person like love, and the story Wen Wanyuan spun would certainly explain Ning Jiuwei’s deep-seated trauma.

Su Jinglan composed her expression, betraying no hint of emotion. She replied to Wen Wanyuan with cool composure. “Jiuwei’s reactions are so naive and awkward. They’re not the reactions of someone with experience.”

Wen Wanyuan froze for a moment, then shot to her feet. “You and Ah Mu… you two…”

She couldn’t get the words out. Su Jinglan curved her lips into a smile and said simply, “Yes.” She confirmed the very words Wen Wanyuan couldn’t bring herself to utter.

Wen Wanyuan felt like Su Jinglan was going to be the death of her. She pressed a hand to her chest and gulped for air before speaking in an abruptly gentle and polite tone. “President Su, please have a seat for a moment. I’ll be right back.”

She flung open the balcony door and stormed inside, making a beeline for the kitchen.

Su Jinglan’s smile vanished. Her brows knitted into a tight furrow.

She had confidently dismissed everything Wen Wanyuan said as a fabrication, but the emotional blow still shook her to the core. She couldn’t help but waver. What if it was true? What if Ning Jiuwei really did have a painful past romance she couldn’t bear to remember?

“What are you doing with a knife?” Ning Jiuwei was tending to a pot of soup when Wen Wanyuan burst into the kitchen and yanked a knife from the rack.

That blade was too short, so Wen Wanyuan grabbed another one. Now with a knife in each hand, she flashed a gentle smile. “I’m going to cut some fruit for President Su.”

That stance didn’t look like fruit-cutting at all. It looked more like she planned to carve up Su Jinglan herself. Ning Jiuwei reacted swiftly and hurried after her.

Su Jinglan wasn’t waiting in the living room. Ning Jiuwei glanced around before spotting her on the balcony. Their eyes met, and Su Jinglan stepped back inside.

“Wanyuan, don’t do anything crazy.” Ning Jiuwei wasn’t worried about Wen Wanyuan hurting her—even with those two knives in hand, she boldly grabbed her arm. Wen Wanyuan thrust the blades toward Su Jinglan with fierce menace. “Su Jinglan, you’re not stepping out that door today.”

Ning Jiuwei: “…”

What on earth had happened to rile Wen Wanyuan up like this?

She gripped Wen Wanyuan’s arm tightly and shot Su Jinglan a puzzled look. “What did you two talk about?”

“Miss Wen told me that back in high school, you dated a forty-year-old woman, and she dumped you later.” Su Jinglan’s expression remained unchanged. “I didn’t buy it, so I raised a few doubts.”

Ning Jiuwei’s mind raced, and she quickly pieced together why Wen Wanyuan had told Su Jinglan all that. She neither confirmed nor denied it. Instead, she said sternly to Wen Wanyuan, “Go put those knives away, then come with me to the study.”

With that, she released her hold.

Wen Wanyuan’s hands trembled with rage, but as she watched Ning Jiuwei head to the study, she meekly returned the knives to the kitchen rack and followed.

The sight of her obedience caught Su Jinglan’s eye, prompting her to reflect on the depth of Wen Wanyuan’s feelings for Ning Jiuwei.

She must really like Ning Jiuwei to follow her orders so readily.

“What did you tell Su Jinglan? Repeat it for me.” Ning Jiuwei’s voice was sharp and unyielding. Wen Wanyuan wilted like a pitiful little quail. She clung to Ning Jiuwei’s arm, head bowed as she murmured up at her, eyes glistening with unshed tears. “Su Jinglan wanted to know why you see a psychologist, so I made up a whole story about a relationship for you.”

Ning Jiuwei nearly choked on her own breath. “I was just a teenager in high school, and you invented a woman over twenty years my senior—about the same age as Mom back then—dating me? Come on, then. Tell me all about it. How exactly did I end up in a romance with someone that much older?”

Wen Wanyuan shook her head after mentally replaying her own words. No way was she repeating them.

“Two options. Either you tell me yourself, or once you’re gone, I’ll ask Su Jinglan and let her fill me in.”

She wouldn’t dare repeat her own nonsense, but she had no qualms relaying Su Jinglan’s words. Wen Wanyuan shook Ning Jiuwei’s arm. “Sister Ning, Su Jinglan isn’t sincere about you. She admitted it herself—she’s just toying with your feelings.”

Ning Jiuwei peered into Wen Wanyuan’s eyes. Guilt was written all over them.

“When did you start stirring up trouble like this? I’ll judge Su Jinglan’s feelings for myself.” Ning Jiuwei’s face grew as cold as the icy waters of early spring. She put Wen Wanyuan through a relentless interrogation. “What exactly did you say?”

Wen Wanyuan wouldn’t dream of lying to Ning Jiuwei. She repeated her words honestly, from start to finish.

Ning Jiuwei’s expression darkened with every word. She listened in heavy silence, then rubbed her forehead with a sigh. “Thanks ever so much for saddling me with such a repulsive fake backstory.”

The two emerged from the study to find the living room empty. Wen Wanyuan craned her neck cautiously and asked Ning Jiuwei, “Ah Mu, did Su Jinglan leave?”

“She didn’t.” Su Jinglan emerged from the kitchen, where she had been watching the soup pot. “It looked like it had been boiling for a while, so I turned off the heat.”

The sight of Su Jinglan reminded Ning Jiuwei of Wen Wanyuan’s tall tale. If the roles were reversed—if she’d heard that Su Jinglan had such a twisted past relationship—she’d probably fall apart.

“Yeah, it just needs to boil for a bit.” Ning Jiuwei fought back the urge to explain herself, heading into the kitchen to plate the dishes. “We’ll make do with these three tonight. I hope you two don’t mind.”

Wen Wanyuan was the picture of obedience. “Any few dishes will do. I’m not picky—whatever Sister Ning makes, I’ll eat.”

Su Jinglan sat down beside Ning Jiuwei, maintaining the refined elegance of silence at meals and in bed as she ate slowly and deliberately.

The silence from the dining table carried over into the living room. Ning Jiuwei glanced at Wen Wanyuan, who was sipping her tea, and issued a polite dismissal. “Wanyuan, drive carefully on your way home. Text me when you get there.”

Wen Wanyuan, who hadn’t been told to leave: “…”

She shot a sidelong glance at Su Jinglan, steady as a mountain, then grabbed her bag. “You should rest early too, Ah Mu.”

Wen Wanyuan left, and the house fell quiet once more. Su Jinglan scooted over to sit beside Ning Jiuwei, her gaze turning toward her with a gentleness like calm waters. “Do you still need to work on those design drawings tonight?”

Her tender care was like a warm spring breeze and gentle sunlight, slowly chasing away the shadows clouding Ning Jiuwei’s heart. Ning Jiuwei couldn’t help but smile. “Aren’t you curious about me and that forty-year-old woman—probably in her fifties now? Don’t you want to know what we had between us?”

Su Jinglan’s breath caught, a sharp pain blanking her mind in an instant. “You really… had something with her?”

Her question came out hesitant, but Ning Jiuwei’s answer was swift. “No. Wanyuan made all that up.”

Su Jinglan exhaled in relief—until Ning Jiuwei’s next words hooked her right back in. “One part was true, though. After the Gaokao, I went to see a psychologist. Doctor Shi Wanxu. Because of you.”

Those same three words felt utterly different coming from someone else. Su Jinglan’s heart pounded faster, her throat tightening.

“Want to know, Su Jinglan?” Ning Jiuwei’s smile brimmed with warmth as she lifted a hand to hook around Su Jinglan’s neck, drawing her close. “Are you ready to face the feelings I once had for you?”

Ning Jiuwei’s words set Su Jinglan’s heart racing, her blood surging hot.

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