Chapter 28: A God of Fortune Enters the Entertainment Industry (28)

She left with a carefree flourish, almost falling into the water by accident. The night passed in silence, and Fang Jinnian did not return home. Jiang Nianian made several phone calls; the prolonged, slow ringing filled her eyes with tears. He had promised her, after all...

As for the illustrious President Fang, he spent the whole night laboring over his bindings and finally managed to free himself before sunrise. There was no time to check the phone that had been vibrating all night; he hurried back to his private residence, looking both wretched and pitiable.

He had barely finished pulling himself together, not yet ready to trouble Jiang Youyou, when a call came from the old family house. On the line, his mother was quietly sobbing. After listening, Fang Jinnian immediately set out for the old residence.

“Brother.” Fang Ci greeted him politely, his face bruised and battered yet wearing a gentle smile. His fair, delicate features and graceful demeanor made him seem harmless and easy to get along with.

Fang Jinnian ignored the young man before him, turning instead to the man seated in the main chair, his tone edged with accusation. “What is the meaning of this?”

“Jinnian, this is your younger brother. His mother passed away, and he truly had no other recourse but to come to me,” their father replied with a look of helplessness. “Don’t worry, your little brother is a well-behaved child. He would never harbor any ulterior motives.”

“Is that so?” Fang Jinnian’s sharp gaze fell upon the delicate youth. His father, though unfaithful, had never once brought any outside affairs into the family—he at least had that sense of propriety. This was the first time such a circumstance had appeared in the Fang household.

“Cough, cough! Please don’t worry, brother. If I hadn’t been ill and truly had nowhere else to turn, I would never have disturbed father’s life,” Jiang Ci said softly, coughing weakly. With his thin frame, he truly looked the part of a frail, sickly youth.

If he could remain well-behaved, so be it—the Fang family could well afford another mouth to feed. But if he proved otherwise, seeking to claim what was not his, then Fang Jinnian would show no mercy.

“I don’t want word of this to get out,” Fang Jinnian said, turning to leave, but was stopped by his father.

“Jinnian, what happened to your face?”

A shadow crossed Fang Jinnian’s eyes as he answered stiffly, “Just took a fall.”

Once again, the memory of that woman’s arrogant smile floated before him, the veins at his temple throbbing.

A week slipped by in the blink of an eye. Unexpectedly, Fang Ci kept to himself, spending his days quietly accompanying their father and the rest of his time in his own room. To outsiders, he appeared every bit the obedient, sickly, and easily bullied youth.

Fang Jinnian, already vexed by the troubles with Nan Yan and the Jiang family, saw that Fang Ci was behaving and simply set someone to keep an eye on him, devoting himself to work.

But he was only human; he could not possibly attend to everything. Preoccupied with business, he neglected Jiang Nianian, who began to suspect that he no longer loved her—that his passion had merely been a fleeting spark. And so, the tempestuous pair found themselves in another cold war.

“What do you want from me?” Fang Jinnian’s gaze was cold and vicious; if it hadn’t been broad daylight, he might have strangled the woman before him. She was brazen, and every attempt to kidnap her or orchestrate an ‘accident’ had ended in failure.

“Oh, it’s nothing important. I just wanted to see if your wounds have healed, President Fang,” Jiang Nianian said with a bold, dazzling smile. Her vibrant beauty was even more striking in a fiery red qipao that suited her flamboyant character.

Fang Jinnian only felt a pang of regret, all the amazement he once felt for Jiang Youyou now vanished.

In his eyes, this woman was utterly uncouth and unrefined—a merciless, unfeeling demon. After all, how many women would come at someone with an iron rod in hand?

“No need for your concern,” Fang Jinnian sneered. “You’d better hope you never fall into my hands.”

Jiang Youyou’s eyes shifted slyly as she caught a faint sound. Leaning forward on the table, her red lips brushed close to Fang Jinnian’s ear, her warm breath tickling him, sending a shiver down his spine. “Those little lackeys of yours are no match for me!”