Chapter 10
Because the protagonist gong had inexplicably decided not to divorce him after all, Jian Anmian returned to Yan Zhimo’s villa.
Yan Zhimo was normally busy with work. He worked from nine to five, routinely stayed late at night, and traveled on business during weekends. Meanwhile, Jian Anmian slept from morning until evening, then from evening until morning. Altogether, he probably didn’t spend even two hours awake each day.
The two of them rarely even saw each other, which suited Jian Anmian perfectly. He was happy to enjoy the peace and freedom.
Who knew whether the protagonist gong might suddenly succumb to his animal instincts one day and decide to do that with him?
Male leads these days were intensely competitive. Seven times a night was only the starting point, and every round lasted at least two hours.
Not only would Jian Anmian’s sleeping time be severely reduced, but this wretched little body couldn’t possibly endure it. During one of their sessions, he might start hyperventilating in bed and suddenly drop dead.
While the protagonist gong still had no such intentions, Jian Anmian would sleep as much as possible.
They peacefully continued like this for some time. Then one day, Auntie Wang suddenly came upstairs and woke Jian Anmian, telling him that his mother had come to visit.
When Jian Anmian first heard this, he didn’t even react. Living in the protagonist gong’s house was so comfortable that he had nearly forgotten he still had a mother.
“All right. Thank you, Auntie Wang. I’ll come downstairs now. Please entertain her for me first.”
Jian Anmian didn’t want to see her at all. However, since she had already come to the house, it would be impolite not to go downstairs.
He put on his jacket and pulled the zipper all the way up to his chin. Then he put on his mask and fully armed himself. Only two small sections of his pale, slender fingertips and his smooth, fair forehead remained exposed. Finally, he took a deep breath and went downstairs to meet the original Jian Anmian’s mother.
The moment Xu Peiying saw Jian Anmian, she immediately stood with tears in her eyes and opened her arms, intending to embrace him. Her affected tone gave him goose bumps. “I finally get to see you, Mianmian! Mommy missed you so much. Come here and let Mommy take a good look at you! Have you been living well here? Did you miss Mommy?”
Jian Anmian sucked in a horrified breath and backed away. He only narrowly avoided Xu Peiying’s touch.
Was there… something wrong with this mother? She had clearly scolded him for being inconsiderate the first time they met!
Xu Peiying awkwardly withdrew her arms. After sitting down, she patted the seat beside her and smiled with motherly affection. “Look at me. I forgot that you don’t like being touched. Come sit here, Mianmian, and have a proper conversation with Mommy. Mommy won’t touch you, all right?”
Jian Anmian looked uncomfortably at the seat beside Xu Peiying. Without saying a word, he sat on the sofa farthest away from her.
This distance was much more comfortable.
Xu Peiying nearly lost control of her expression. Inwardly, she cursed Jian Anmian as everything from an ungrateful wretch to an unfilial son. Yet she maintained her artificial smile. “Mianmian, your university admission letter arrived. You previously entered our home address, so it was delivered directly there. I specially brought it over this time and came to see you while I was here.”
Smiling, Xu Peiying took a package from a document bag and placed it on the coffee table between them. “This is your admission letter from Jing University. I haven’t opened the package because I was waiting for you to open it personally. Congratulations on being admitted to your first-choice university.”
Jian Anmian froze. In the next second, he suffered a complete mental breakdown.
What had he just heard?
His admission letter had arrived?
He had to… attend university?????
Xu Peiying paused before continuing gently, “Mianmian, actually, there’s another important reason Mommy came today. I need your help with something. I heard the Yan family is currently looking for a business partner. Since you’ve married into the Yan family, that makes us all one family. Do you think you could speak to President Yan and ask him to give us this opportunity? It would be more reassuring to have family handling family business, wouldn’t it? As the saying goes, valuable opportunities should remain within the family. We would benefit each other, making it a win-win opportunity. I know Mianmian has always been the most sensible. You’ll surely complete the task Mommy gives you properly, won’t you?”
Jian Anmian was immersed in the terrible news that he had to attend university. It took him a long time to return to his senses. When he turned his head and saw the urgency and implicit pressure in Xu Peiying’s expression, he finally understood.
No wonder his cheap mother’s attitude had suddenly become so pleasant. She needed something from him.
“All right.” Jian Anmian nodded without hesitation.
Xu Peiying remained stunned for several seconds before realizing that Jian Anmian had agreed. She immediately smiled with unrestrained delight.
She hadn’t expected Jian Anmian to agree so quickly. She had prepared an entire speech, but now she didn’t need any of it.
It was best that Jian Anmian remained obedient. At least she hadn’t raised him for nothing.
Xu Peiying stood with a beaming smile and tried to stroke Jian Anmian’s head, but naturally, he avoided her. She didn’t mind. The tenderness in her eyes was so exaggeratedly false that it was almost absurd. “Thank you, Mianmian. I knew you still cared about our family. We’ll always be your closest relatives. Mommy will head home now and visit you again after some time.”
However, the moment Xu Peiying left, Jian Anmian immediately sent Yan Zhimo a message explaining what had just happened.
The protagonist gong could deal with all these troublesome matters. Jian Anmian was merely a salted fish. He couldn’t be bothered to handle them.
As for the promise he had made to his mother, he had only agreed so she would leave sooner. He hadn’t wanted to continue speaking to her.
The next second, Yan Zhimo called him.
Jian Anmian nearly rejected the call again out of reflex. Fortunately, his fear and respect for the man stopped him in time. After silently encouraging himself, he answered.
Yan Zhimo’s deep voice slowly came through the phone, carrying a hint of laughter and a distinctively metallic resonance that was extremely pleasant to hear.
“Not bad. You finally managed not to hang up on me this time.”
“Mr. Yan…!”
He had claimed he wasn’t petty, yet he still remembered it now!
Yan Zhimo again questioned him in the tone of a superior addressing a subordinate. “What do you think about what your mother said?”
“Mr. Yan can decide.”
It would be best if Yan Zhimo simply ignored them, Jian Anmian thought somewhat maliciously. They had treated the original Jian Anmian so poorly, after all.
As though capable of reading his mind, Yan Zhimo immediately asked, “Is that what you truly think?”
“…”
Yan Zhimo’s voice suddenly deepened, and he distinctly pronounced Jian Anmian’s name. “Jian Anmian, what did I tell you last time?”
Jian Anmian wiped the sweat from his palm. “I’m… not allowed to lie again.”
The sound of fingertips tapping against a desk came from the other end. Yan Zhimo’s voice was steady, magnetic, and unhurried. Accompanied by that rhythmic tapping, he slowly coaxed Jian Anmian one word at a time. “Then what do you want? Jian Anmian, tell me.”
Jian Anmian’s heartbeat abruptly accelerated. His fingers clenched and relaxed as he nervously licked his lips. In a quiet voice, he said, “Actually… it would be fine if you ignored them.”
Yan Zhimo’s deep laughter came through the phone, instantly turning Jian Anmian’s ears red. “All right. I understand. As a reward for being a good child, I’ll grant your wish.”
After ending the call, Yan Zhimo recalled their conversation, the remnants of a smile still lingering at the corners of his lips.
He had thought Jian Anmian was an innocent little baby who knew nothing of the world. Unexpectedly, beneath that soft exterior was black-sesame filling.
When they signed the marriage contract, Yan Zhimo had already given the Qin family numerous benefits. He hadn’t expected them to be so greedy that they would even target the little fellow.
Yan Zhimo had never intended to agree. Now that the little fellow stood on the same side as him, he had even less reason to show them courtesy. The Qin family had never treated Jian Anmian like their biological child anyway.
The thought that, according to the novel’s setting, Xu Peiying’s failure to care for her child properly had caused Jian Anmian to develop so many illnesses filled Yan Zhimo with uncontrollable fury.
He suddenly regretted promising the Qin family so many benefits. Jian Anmian was the one who had married him. What did the Qin family have to do with it? Had he known, he wouldn’t have given them a single cent.
Unfortunately, the contracts had already been signed, and he couldn’t break them. He hadn’t awakened at the time, so how could he have predicted the future? The moment those agreements expired, he would terminate them. He would never allow the Qin family to receive another benefit from the Yan family!
Yan Zhimo silently made his plans. Lowering his head, he looked at the stiff, formal name “Jian Anmian” displayed on the call screen and frowned in dissatisfaction.
After some consideration, he changed Jian Anmian’s contact name to “Good Child.” He stared at it for several seconds before finally smiling in satisfaction.
…
Elsewhere,
Jian Anmian had opened the package. An ornate, exquisitely designed admission letter from Jing University now lay before him.
For other people, this might be the university of their dreams, something they could strive toward for eighteen years and still fail to obtain.
But Jian Anmian… only wanted to cry.
Because of his poor health in his previous life, he had lived in the hospital from birth and studied with private tutors. He had never attended school in his entire life, nor had he ever envied the children who could.
He had suffered from social anxiety since childhood and disliked speaking to people. At one point, his family had believed he was autistic, but it was later confirmed that this was merely his personality.
Keeping him confined at home without letting him go outside only made him happier.
After transmigrating into the book, he had originally believed he could spend the rest of his life inside the protagonist gong’s house without ever leaving. He could be a salted fish who lay flat and gave up on everything. Yet now he had suddenly been told that despite never attending school before, he would have to start!
Going to university meant meeting countless people and speaking to countless people. He would also have to live on campus, spend long periods in the same room as countless unfamiliar strangers, and be forcibly befriended by countless people he didn’t know…
How could something as terrifying as attending university exist in this world?!
Whoever wanted to attend could go in his place!
He certainly didn’t want to!
Bursting into tears!
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