Chapter 19

When Jian Anmian woke up and went downstairs for breakfast the next morning, the man had already gone to work as usual.

As Auntie Wang arranged the dishes, she smiled and said, “Someone delivered a painting this morning. Mr. Yan specifically told me it was a gift for you, Mr. Jian. He asked me to wait until you woke up and ask where you’d like to put it.”

Jian Anmian paused, knowing it was the painting of peonies from yesterday’s auction. “Put it in my room.”

Auntie Wang happily agreed. “All right. Once you’ve finished eating, I’ll bring the painting upstairs, and you can decide where you’d like to hang it.”

Jian Anmian picked up an egg tart and took a bite. The flavor suddenly seemed familiar, and he looked at Auntie Wang in confusion.

Auntie Wang smiled with pursed lips. “Oh, did you recognize it, Mr. Jian? The secret recipe came from the kitchen of the hotel you visited yesterday. Mr. Yan said you liked them, so he specially bought the recipe and asked me to make them for you from now on. Before leaving this morning, Mr. Yan made a point of telling me that I must prepare a batch as soon as you woke up. So? Does it taste the same as the hotel’s? Auntie Wang’s cooking is pretty good, isn’t it? I’m not bragging, but my cooking definitely isn’t any worse than that five-star hotel’s! You can’t eat too many, though. Mr. Yan said you’re lactose intolerant, so your daily dessert intake has to be strictly controlled.”

Jian Anmian took another bite. Whatever had occurred to him made his face secretly turn red.

He licked the lychee jam from his lips, his eyelashes trembling gently as he murmured, “Mm… it’s delicious.”

Just like yesterday’s—sweet and delicious.

…

Half an hour later, Jian Anmian lay lazily on his stomach across the bed, staring blankly at the painting of peonies hanging beside his desk.

The moment he saw the painting, Jian Anmian couldn’t help recalling what had happened at the banquet last night.

Although the bloody, violent scene had genuinely terrified him at first, the man had immediately coaxed him so gently and patiently afterward and even given him sweet egg tarts to eat. Jian Anmian was no longer afraid that the man would hit him. After all, a domestic abuser could never become the protagonist gong. And in the novel, the protagonist gong had indeed never struck the protagonist shou—he merely made up for it in bed.

The man’s behavior last night had only strengthened Jian Anmian’s resolve never to fall in love with the protagonist gong.

The protagonist gong didn’t truly want to treat the protagonist shou well until after the protagonist shou had died, and by then, the story had already reached its ending.

Before that, the protagonist gong’s love was exactly as he had displayed it last night—authoritarian, overbearing, brutal, and cold.

As Jian Anmian silently pondered this, he casually checked his phone. Yet the moment he opened Weibo, he discovered that one of the trending topics was about yesterday’s charity auction.

Jian Anmian froze and hurriedly tapped on it.

Sure enough, just as the man had promised, there were no reports containing Jian Anmian’s personal information.

Although one of the accompanying pictures showed him with the man, it barely revealed more than their backs.

There were also comments beneath the picture, all speculating about the identity of the mysterious wife from a wealthy family.

【Which family’s young master just graduated this year? Since he could marry President Yan, his family background must be impressive too.】

【Holy shit, eighteen years old? Doesn’t that mean he only graduated this year? Is it possible he’ll become my schoolmate?!】

【They look so perfect together even from behind, ahhh! He’s so tiny, and President Yan is holding his hand in his palm. Sob, sob, he’s so cute and adorable! I’m absolutely obsessed with their size difference! Screaming!】

【As expected of a wealthy family, tsk, tsk. The old man’s wife is an innocent male high school graduate. [Dog Head]】

【??? President Yan is young too, all right? He’s only thirty, handsome, rich, and extremely capable. Plenty of people his age haven’t even finished their doctorates yet. How is he an old man?】

These netizens really were… What kind of nonsense were they saying?!

Too embarrassed to read carefully, Jian Anmian skimmed a few comments and exited Weibo. After thinking for a moment, he curiously searched Yan Zhimo’s name on Baidu.

On Baidu Baike, he could find photographs of the man appearing in various financial magazines and recordings of his financial interviews. But the spouse section only listed “Mr. Jian” without revealing Jian Anmian’s full name. Yan Zhimo had indeed protected him extremely well.

It was the meticulous care and protection of a mature man.

Jian Anmian suddenly fell into a daze. Only after a long while did his fingers twitch around his phone. Finally returning to his senses, he silently put the phone down, crawled back beneath the covers, and continued sleeping.

No matter what, as long as he still wanted to remain a salted fish who lay flat and gave up on trying, sleeping for hours and hours every day before quietly dying in the end, he had to guard his heart carefully.

…

Jian Anmian didn’t know how Yan Zhimo ultimately dealt with the Rong family. All he knew was that a domineering CEO would always carry out his threats.

Besides, the Rong family had already gotten involved with that scumbag father and was stupid enough to resort to drugging Yan Zhimo. Who knew how badly they might sabotage him in the future?

The Rong family definitely couldn’t be allowed to remain.

However, the Rong family controlled such a large company that even if it genuinely went bankrupt, it couldn’t possibly happen so quickly.

Some time later, Jian Anmian happened to glimpse news of internal turmoil within the Rong Corporation while browsing Weibo and knew that Yan Zhimo had begun making his move.

Of course, none of this had anything to do with Jian Anmian. He returned to his salted-fish existence of doing nothing but eating and sleeping every day, while his relationship with Yan Zhimo returned to its original state, where they could go several days without seeing each other.

In the blink of an eye, the long summer vacation ended, and the time finally came for Jian Anmian to start school.

Registration was held on Saturday and Sunday, with classes beginning on Monday.

For once, Yan Zhimo didn’t work overtime. He deliberately stayed home to help Jian Anmian pack and personally take him to school.

Jian Anmian sat on the edge of the bed, watching helplessly as the tall man rolled up his sleeves and crouched awkwardly before the wardrobe, personally taking out his clothes one by one and placing them into the suitcase.

“Mr. Yan, you don’t need to do this. I… I can handle it myself.”

Yan Zhimo opened a storage box and saw the neatly arranged pieces of pure white fabric inside. The corner Read on BaiLianTalesof his mouth lifted. With his well-defined fingers, he casually hooked one out and held it up, turning to grin wickedly at Jian Anmian. “Look. What’s this?”

“Mr. Yan?!” Jian Anmian’s face instantly turned scarlet. He lunged forward and snatched back his underwear, glaring at Yan Zhimo with large, watery eyes. Too angry to speak freely yet too afraid to protest, he weakly complained, “Please… please don’t do that!”

Yan Zhimo turned a deaf ear. Pointing at the pile before him, he said with laughter in his deep voice, “So small and cute—just like you.”

“Mr. Yan!!” Jian Anmian was about to explode!

Protagonist gong! You filthy hooligan!!

“Are you secretly cursing me in your head? Hmm?” Yan Zhimo leaned closer and pinched Jian Anmian’s puffed-up cheek, excitement shining in his eyes. “Be good. Curse me out loud and let Mr. Yan hear it.”

Jian Anmian’s eyes widened in disbelief, his lips trembling as he opened them. “M-Mr. Yan, you’re such a pervert…”

He actually wanted Jian Anmian to curse him. He really was a pervert!

Yan Zhimo was determined to carry his perversity through to the very end. “Good boy. That sweet little mouth of yours is as though it’s been coated in honey. So adorable.”

Jian Anmian: “…”

Help!!

Once Yan Zhimo had teased him enough, he amusedly rubbed Jian Anmian’s soft earlobe and said, “Go sit obediently on the bed and wait for me. I’ll call you when I’m finished packing.”

Still looking utterly stunned, Jian Anmian floated back to the bed, pulled back the covers, and curled his legs beneath him as he sat down.

The sheets and duvet cover were brand-new, in a warm orange shade that looked cozy at first glance. The bed frame had been changed from a dull, monotonous reddish-brown wood to an intricately carved cream-white one. Beside the pillow was a floppy puppy plush sleeping with its eyes closed. Jian Anmian hugged it to sleep every night—it was genuinely soft and comfortable.

For some reason, the wardrobe, sofa, carpet, curtains, and many other furnishings had also been replaced one after another recently.

The dreary, cold palette of black, white, and gray had been transformed into warm, adorable shades of yellow, green, and white. The entire room seemed bathed in the gentle sunlight of late autumn or early winter. The warm orange hues were cozy and inviting, while the starry chandelier overhead resembled the afterglow of sunset. One glance was enough to make anyone want to sleep in the room.

Compared with when he had first moved in, the room now looked completely different—and Jian Anmian truly loved it.

Jian Anmian hadn’t even sat on the bed for two minutes before his eyes began drifting half-closed and his head started nodding. He looked ready to collapse and fall asleep at any moment.

It was only seven in the morning. Since transmigrating into the novel, he had never woken up this early before!

Although he had still fallen asleep before eight last night, he was so sleepy… zZZ

“Mianmian, come here,” the man suddenly called.

“Oh… okay!” Jian Anmian instantly jolted awake, hurriedly climbed off the bed, and trotted over to the man.

“Wear this outfit for registration today.” Yan Zhimo handed Jian Anmian the clothes he had carefully selected.

“All right.” Jian Anmian glanced at Yan Zhimo, his fingers tightening around the clothes as he murmured, “Mr. Yan, could you wait outside for a moment?”

Seeing the boy’s wary expression as though he were guarding against a pervert, Yan Zhimo couldn’t help laughing. “Fine. I’ll go outside.”

He pinched Jian Anmian’s cheek but didn’t make things difficult for him this time. “Call me when you’re changed.”

He then pushed open the door and left. The very next second, however, he heard the door being locked from the inside.

Yan Zhimo froze before laughing in exasperation.

Was Jian Anmian really guarding against him like some kind of pervert? Did he think Yan Zhimo might launch a surprise attack?

Then again… that did sound like something he might do. Tsk.

…

Five minutes later.

Jian Anmian slowly opened the door a crack and poked out his fluffy, disheveled head. In a soft voice, he said, “Mr. Yan, I’m finished changing…”

Yan Zhimo immediately pushed the door open without hesitation.

Jian Anmian nervously retreated two steps and stood in the room, his slender white fingers anxiously twisting the hem of his shirt while his lowered lashes fluttered like a butterfly’s wings.

He wore a cream-colored long-sleeved linen shirt with a wide collar resembling that of a Japanese sailor uniform. A finely striped blue-and-white tie decorated his chest.

On the bottom, he wore pale yellow cotton drawstring trousers, paired with ​Read on BaiLianTales​lightweight, dainty white canvas shoes. Their bright blue laces perfectly complemented the tie at his chest.

The overall style was fresh and crisp, like a cool breeze sweeping in on a summer night, instantly catching the eye.

“Mr. Yan?” After receiving no response from the man for a long time, Jian Anmian looked up at him in confusion.

Yan Zhimo merely gazed at him silently with his dark eyes. Then he walked over, took Jian Anmian’s hand, and led him before the full-length mirror.

In the mirror, Yan Zhimo was still dressed in an elegant, refined black shirt despite being at home.

The lightweight black fabric, rich in texture, wrapped around his firm, solid muscles. His figure was tall and powerful, the perfect example of someone who looked slim in clothes. He had rolled his sleeves high to make moving easier, exposing arms whose smooth, sensual lines were marked with clearly visible veins.

He wore black casual suit trousers below, secured around his waist with a metal-buckled belt. His long legs were straight and powerful.

With one hand casually tucked into his trouser pocket, Yan Zhimo intimately yet domineeringly wrapped the other around Jian Anmian’s slender waist. He lowered his head slightly and leaned close to Jian Anmian’s trembling ear. Gazing at the innocent, bashful teenager in the mirror, he curved his lips and praised him in a low, suggestive voice, “What a beautiful little boy.”

Jian Anmian quickly glanced at the mirror, then lowered his head again with a blush.

An indescribable sense of embarrassment suddenly washed over him.

Compared with such a mature, imposing man, he truly looked childish—like a little boy.

“Mr. Yan just… has good taste.”

“No. It’s because our little boy is so beautiful that he makes these clothes look this good,” Yan Zhimo said softly.

Unfortunately, the boy’s skin was sensitive, so his arms and legs couldn’t be exposed. Otherwise, he would undoubtedly look even better in short sleeves and shorts.

But then again…

Yan Zhimo lowered his gaze to Jian Anmian’s slender, snow-white neck. Its curve was as graceful as a swan’s, and even the fine down upon it was visible.

Yan Zhimo’s eyes darkened slightly as he thought that perhaps it was better not to expose it after all.

Flustered by the praise, Jian Anmian said with faintly flushed cheeks, “Thank you for the compliment, Mr. Yan.”

Yan Zhimo nearly died from how adorable he was. How could such an obedient little boy exist in this world? He couldn’t even withstand a few words of praise, growing bashful like a little sweet cake—and a sea-salt-flavored one at that.

Yan Zhimo glanced at his phone, stroked Jian Anmian’s hair, then smilingly took his hand. “Let’s go. It’s almost time to take my young wife to school.”