Chapter 10

Jin Zijin walked in.

Her high heels clicked crisply against the tile floor.

She nodded first at Wen Xinjian and greeted him politely. “Dad.” Then she walked over to Wen Yan as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Wen Xinjian nodded awkwardly. “Ah… ah…”

The distance between them was very small.

Close enough that Wen Yan could smell the familiar scent on her: cool cedar mixed with citrus, with the faint chill of the winter night air.

Jin Zijin lowered her gaze to the vegetables on the counter, then looked back at Wen Yan.

Her eyes lingered on Wen Yan’s face for a few seconds, as if silently studying her.

Hidden from everyone else’s view, Jin Zijin lightly touched the back of Wen Yan’s hand.

Just a brief touch.

Her fingertips were cool; they brushed over Wen Yan’s skin, and Wen Yan’s heart gave a small jolt.

Wen Yan lowered her eyes and gave the slightest nod.

Jin Zijin withdrew her hand and turned to Wen Xinjian, her tone composed. “Dad, do you need any help? I’m not very good at it, but I can help out.”

Wen Xinjian waved both hands repeatedly. “No, no need! You two go out and sit; it’ll be ready soon!”

Jin Zijin smiled and didn’t insist.

She looked back at Wen Yan and tilted her head slightly, signaling with her eyes: Out there?

Wen Yan put down what she was holding and wiped her hands with a sheet of kitchen paper. “Dad, we’ll head out first.”

“Okay, okay.”

As they came out of the kitchen, Jin Zijin naturally walked beside Wen Yan.

Her arm brushed lightly against Wen Yan’s through the fabric, the warmth slipping through in a way that felt almost teasing.

Wen Yan shot her a helpless look and reached out to take her hand.

Jin Zijin didn’t resist; she naturally laced their fingers together.

Hand in hand, the two of them walked into the living room.

Wang Jinyu and Wang Chenyu were already standing there, their faces full of eager smiles. “President Jin, you’re here. Come, sit, sit.”

“Zijin, sit here.” Wang Manyu stood up first, her smile overflowing. “You must be tired, right? Have some tea first. This is your dad’s treasured premium Jin Junmei; he specially brewed it for you.”

Jin Zijin didn’t go sit in the seat of honor. Still holding Wen Yan’s hand, she sat down at the edge of the long sofa.

Seeing the two of them sitting so close together, Wang Manyu’s smile deepened. “Come, have some tea, have some tea.”

She handed over a teacup; Jin Zijin took it and thanked her, but didn’t drink, only setting it on the coffee table in front of her.

“Zijin,” Wang Manyu said, sitting back down and leaning forward slightly, pointing across the way. “This is Yan Yan’s uncle, Wang Jinyu. He does business in building materials; all the materials for those big developments in the south of the city are supplied by his company.”

She paused, her tone carrying a trace of ingratiation that was hard to detect. “He was also at the wedding banquet. You should… have some impression of him, right?”

Jin Zijin nodded. “I know.”

“Last year, for the Chengdong ‘Jiangfeng Garden’ project, your uncle also took part in the bidding; the proposal he put together was quite good…”

Wang Jinyu immediately straightened with obvious pride. “Not at all, not at all. The standards of the Jin family are well known in the industry; we should all learn more from you.”

Wang Manyu seized the opening and pointed to the other side. “This is Chenyu, Yan Yan’s cousin. She’s a vice president at Morgan HuaXin, young and promising.”

Her tone was full of unmistakable pride, as if she were presenting a carefully polished work of art. “Chenyu has been the most outstanding child among the younger generation since she was little; good at studying, capable, and very perceptive when it comes to people. Not like our Yan Yan…”

As she spoke, she abruptly changed direction and came back to Wen Yan, her tone tinged with helplessness. “This child has always been dull since she was little; you couldn’t get a peep out of her with three sticks.”

“Other girls her age are all dressed beautifully, sweet-talking and good at handling things. She only knows how to bury herself in her books; she’s read herself stupid.”

When Jin Zijin heard that, her brows drew together; she instinctively looked at Wen Yan.

Wen Yan showed no expression, her face still faintly cool, as if she were already used to it.

Across from her, Wang Chenyu appropriately pursed her lips and smiled, setting down her teacup with elegant poise. Her voice was soft and gentle. “Auntie, don’t say that about Yan Yan. Yan Yan has her own strengths. She’s professionally capable, quiet, and steady.”

She lifted her eyes toward Jin Zijin, smiling with proper courtesy. “Someone like President Jin, who’s used to seeing all kinds of storms, might actually appreciate Yan Yan’s calm personality even more.”

It sounded like she was smoothing things over, but in fact she was still putting Wen Yan in the position of someone to be judged.

If she couldn’t, Wen Yan really would have rolled her eyes at her.

Jin Zijin didn’t miss the flash of irritation in Wen Yan’s eyes, and immediately understood what kind of situation this was.

It looked like Wen Yan didn’t like these two relatives.

Just as she was thinking it over, Wang Jinyu took up the conversation again with a chuckle. “That’s right. Yan Yan’s a good child, honest and proper. She’s just too quiet, too reserved.”

He looked at Jin Zijin, his tone feigning concern. “Zijin, when you’re with her, you’ll need to be a little more tolerant.”

“If it feels too dull, take her out more often and let her learn from Chenyu. Chenyu’s the best at livening up the atmosphere.”

Wang Manyu hurried to echo him. “Yes, yes, let Chenyu take Yan Yan around more.”

“Now that she’s married, she’ll have to accompany Zijin to some events in the future, right? She can’t just keep staying this quiet and not saying anything; that would be so rude…”

The air was thick with a sticky kind of “for your own good.” Every sentence was wrapped in sugar, but inside was hard judgment and an unshakable set of instructions for how to change.

They were like a group of skilled craftsmen, gathered around Wen Yan as though she were raw material, discussing what needed to be shaved down and what needed to be polished so she would better match the “owner” beside her.

Wen Yan felt her throat tighten.

Those words rose like fine threads, wrapping around her layer by layer; they didn’t hurt, but they suffocated.

When she was little, it had always been like this.

At family gatherings, she was forever the one used for comparison, the “reference point.”

“Look how outgoing Chenyu and Chenchen are.”

“Look how well Chenyu and Chenchen can talk.”

“It’d be great if you could be even half as good as Chenyu and Chenchen.”

She had thought that once she grew up and left, all of this would end.

But growing up had only changed the stage and the audience; the script never changed.

So annoying. Couldn’t her dad just cook faster? Hurry up and eat, then go home.

Wen Yan was getting irritated.

Her eyes lowered, her expression turning a little listless.

Then, all of a sudden, her hand was taken.

Wen Yan looked up.

Jin Zijin sat upright beside her, her profile calm and unreadable under the light.

She wasn’t looking at Wen Yan; instead, her gaze was fixed on Wang Jinyu, who was talking nonstop across from them.

But beneath the coffee table, out of everyone’s sight, she was holding Wen Yan’s hand tightly; her fingertips even brushed lightly over the tiger’s mouth of Wen Yan’s palm.

After a moment, Jin Zijin spoke.

Her voice wasn’t loud; in fact, it was gentler than usual, but it somehow cut cleanly through the words Wang Jinyu hadn’t finished yet.

“Really?” She tilted her head slightly, as if genuinely considering it. “But I think…”

She paused, then finally turned to look at Wen Yan.

Those usually distant, cool eyes were now clearly reflecting Wen Yan’s figure, with a faint smile rippling in them.

“I think Wen Yan is very good.”

She said it.

Her tone was so natural, so certain, as if she were stating a truth as unquestionable as the sun rising in the east and setting in the west.

The living room fell silent in an instant.

Wang Manyu had her mouth slightly open; Wang Jinyu’s smile froze on his face; even Wang Chenyu, who had been maintaining a proper smile all along, had a flicker of surprise in her eyes.

But Jin Zijin seemed not to notice the sudden silence at all. Still holding Wen Yan’s hand, she turned her head to look at her, her gaze earnest. “Wen Yan, number one in the whole world.”

She lifted her chin slightly, sweeping her eyes over the three people across from them, her expression serious and sincere. “I think she’s very good, and only she can be my wife.”

“So please, from now on, don’t say bad things about my wife anymore. I don’t like hearing it.”

As soon as the words fell, it felt as if the whole world had been muted.

Wen Yan couldn’t hear her mother’s sharp intake of breath, couldn’t hear her uncle’s awkward cough, couldn’t even hear the soft clink of her cousin’s teacup against its saucer.

She could only hear her own heartbeat.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

One beat after another, heavy and scorching, striking against her chest.