[ABO] The Despised One Becomes an Internet Sensation After Marriage - Chapter 41

Chapter 41

That night, Fu Shiyan was in high spirits—at least that’s how it seemed to the domestic helper.

She was thirty minutes late and had expected him to lose his temper. To her surprise, Fu Shiyan merely nodded and even asked with concern, “Did something happen?”

It was completely out of character.

The two of them had joined a variety show right after getting married. After their last visit to the Fu family home, they had spent the following days at their overseas property, so Xu Zhimian wasn’t very familiar with this house yet.

Intending to go to the home theater on the basement level to watch the first episode of 21 Days, he accidentally wandered into a calligraphy room filled with hanging scrolls.

Presuming this was where Fu Shiyan practiced his brushwork, he grew curious and decided to take a look.

Hanging right in the center was a freehand landscape painting. As expected, it was by Fu Shuhan, but unlike the one he had seen at her house, this one had calligraphy written in the negative space.

The fusion of painting and word was breathtaking.

At first glance, Xu Zhimian thought Fu Shiyan had written it. Then he recalled Fu Shuhan telling Fu Shiyan, “Don’t forget what you promised me,” likely referring to him adding inscriptions to her paintings. However, upon checking the signature, he discovered the writing actually belonged to the Fu patriarch, Fu Zhengyu.

Their handwriting styles were similar, but the old master’s strokes were more grand and powerful.

Xu Zhimian gently flipped through Fu Shiyan’s work. He seemed to write one scroll a week, covering various topics, all organized chronologically.

Eventually, he found a separate box containing a carefully preserved, framed oil painting.

It depicted a vast, gradient blue-and-white sky with layers of China roses in a clash of red and yellow. Two figures stood in the sea of flowers: a tall, short-haired man in a white shirt and tie gazing at distant mountains, and a youth with his long hair tied back, standing two steps behind in a white T-shirt, looking down with a bouquet hidden behind his back.

The date at the bottom was April 13th, five years ago. The title: The Ornamented Zither. The artist: Ran.

Long hair… Ran… a name immediately sprang to Xu Zhimian’s mind—Qi Qingran?

His eyelid flickered. He picked up the painting. The profile of the short-haired man was perfect, with a high bridge to his nose and a gaze fixed on the mountains that was both firm and wise. Xu Zhimian traced it lightly; it was definitely Fu Shiyan.

“The Ornamented Zither…” Xu Zhimian chewed on the words. “This feeling might have become a favorite memory, but even then, it was already a sense of loss.”

A surge of inexplicable bitterness and frustration rose in his chest. What did this mean? A breakup gift?!

Fu Shiyan kept it in its own box, preserved so meticulously—was he really that unable to let go?

A knot of stifled anger formed in Xu Zhimian’s heart. He put the painting back, his eyes catching the date again. A flash of realization hit him as the words of Xu Jianan and Fu Shiyan converged into a single piece of information.

“Xu Zhimian, what’s the date today?” “September 7th is the anniversary of my mother’s death.” “Is your birthday April 13th?” “Then is it September 7th?” “Neither? Aren’t you curious?”

Xu Zhimian froze. So, 0413 was the date Qi Qingran gifted the painting—or rather, the date they broke up.

Setting the breakup date with an ex as a password… he must have been unable to forget Qi Qingran back then.

The Ornamented Zither. Perhaps Qi Qingran couldn’t forget Fu Shiyan either.

Xu Zhimian thought sourly: If they liked each other so much, why did they break up? And what was Qi Qingran thinking, becoming Gu Xingchen’s stepmother?

Preoccupied, he packed away the painting, no longer in the mood for the show.

Ding-dong.

His phone lit up.

[Fu Shiyan]: Come to the study.

He was used to this commanding tone, but right now, it made him incredibly annoyed.

“…” He turned off the screen, thinking sullenly: Would Fu Shiyan ever use this tone with Qi Qingran?!

Probably not, Xu Zhimian bit his lip. After all, Qi Qingran was his legitimate partner—his first love.

Meanwhile, Fu Shiyan only married him because of his coercion.

Fu Shiyan had stated clearly: their relationship was purely physical.

Right, purely physical, yet he calls me “wife.”

Xu Zhimian gritted his teeth.

…Scumbag Alpha.

[Xu Zhimian]: I’m tired, going to sleep.

“…” Fu Shiyan stared at the surveillance screen, watching Xu Zhimian run into the gaming room to play video games, his forehead twitching.

In the game, Xu Jianan’s position was exposed and he was instantly killed. He finally couldn’t help but ask, “Mianmian, are you in a bad mood today?”

Xu Zhimian was playing aggressively. Before even seeing the enemy, he’d unleash a wild spray of bullets. It didn’t look like he was playing a game; it looked like he was looking for an outlet for his rage.

Through the headset, Xu Zhimian gave a muffled “Mm.”

There were usually only two things that could affect Xu Zhimian’s mood: either that copycat Jiang Xiaocheng won another award, or he’d had a fight with Fu Shiyan.

Jiang Xiaocheng winning an award was unlikely; their lawsuit was currently trending fiercely. So, it had to be Fu Shiyan.

“What did President Fu do to you?”

“Nothing.” Xu Zhimian couldn’t bring himself to say he was jealous of Fu Shiyan’s past. It would make him seem too petty. Besides, Fu Shiyan was thirty; it was normal to have a history.

Xu Jianan: “…” I don’t believe you.

When the game ended, Xu Zhimian hesitantly asked, “Nannan… I have a friend. The person he likes has a ‘White Moonlight’ ex they can’t forget—someone excellent and beautiful. They broke up while they were still passionately in love. Right now, my friend and this person are just in a physical relationship. Do you think my friend can ever find a way into his heart?”

On the other end, Xu Jianan stiffened. For a moment, he thought Xu Zhimian was talking about him… “A friend”? Was that “friend” Xu Zhimian himself?

He was silent for a long time before his voice came through, sounding dark: “…Probably.”

Xu Zhimian thought Xu Jianan was acting strange, but a moment later, Xu Jianan returned to his usual heartless tone: “Wait, Mianmian, you made a new friend behind my back?? Which friend? Why haven’t you introduced us? We’ve grown distant, haven’t we? Hiding a huge thing like marriage from me… you’re definitely hiding more! I advise you to confess everything to your ‘Dad’ today.”

Xu Zhimian was indeed hiding things—he hadn’t mentioned the drowning or his heart condition. Xu Jianan was currently in Northern Europe acting as a substitute for Chen Basheng’s team. This was a chance he’d worked so hard for; Xu Zhimian was afraid he’d do something stupid like fly back immediately.

Feeling guilty, Xu Zhimian gasped, “Ah! It’s almost ten o’clock, my husband is going to confiscate my phone. I’m done playing, bye!”

“…But you’re playing an online game on a PC!”

Ignoring Xu Jianan’s roar, Xu Zhimian logged out.

As he turned around, he realized someone was standing behind him. He jumped, heart leaping into his throat, and took two steps back while clutching his chest. “…You scared me! Don’t you make any noise when you walk?”

Thinking about what he had just asked Xu Jianan, his heart hammered. “Wh-when did you get here?”

Fu Shiyan stood with his arms crossed, leaning casually against the ladder of the bunk bed. “I got here right when you said ‘my husband is going to confiscate my phone’.”

Oh, then it’s fine, Xu Zhimian thought, breathing a sigh of relief. But before he could fully relax, Fu Shiyan asked dryly, “…So this is ‘tired and going to sleep’?”

Xu Zhimian: “!!”

Fu Shiyan stepped forward, one hand in his pocket. “I’m confiscating your phone?”

Xu Zhimian retreated until his lower back hit the gaming desk. With nowhere to go, he swallowed hard. “I…”

Fu Shiyan’s face suddenly closed in. Xu Zhimian forgot to breathe as he stared blankly.

Fu Shiyan cocked an eyebrow and smiled wordlessly. “…Little liar.”

Supporting himself with his hands on either side of the desk, Fu Shiyan boxed him in. Enveloped by the Alpha’s scent, they were so close their breaths mingled.

Xu Zhimian’s heart skipped a beat.

It was too close—as if they were about to kiss.

The blue and green LED strips in the gaming room cast a dim, moody light over Fu Shiyan’s face. The posture was intimately entangled. Because Xu Zhimian had been fully marked by him, he felt his legs go weak and a tingle spread through his waist.

The scent of jasmine filled the air.

Xu Zhimian opened his mouth to offer some sort of defense.

Looking at those slightly parted, rosy lips, Fu Shiyan instinctively leaned in and kissed him.

The kiss threw Xu Zhimian into total disarray. In his panic, he gripped Fu Shiyan’s arms. The skin felt cool, the muscles firm and powerful—the texture was incredible.

Xu Zhimian’s eyes widened as his hands traveled up to those broad shoulders… Wait, is Fu Shiyan wearing a ‘grandpa’ undershirt?

He felt flushed and restless.

Fu Shiyan pulled back and bit his reddened earlobe, nibbling and licking, whispering playfully, “Little pervert.”

His sensitive spot hit, Xu Zhimian felt a stir of arousal. He stiffened and instinctively clamped his legs together.

Sensing the tension, Fu Shiyan’s hands slid toward Xu Zhimian’s waistband. This snapped him back to reality, and he pushed him away. “No, not here!”

Fu Shiyan looked at him teasingly for a moment before straightening up. “Then you tell me—where?”

Xu Zhimian’s gaze lingered on the firm lines of Fu Shiyan’s arms. He looked away with difficulty. “…I’m not doing it with you today.”

“Oh?” Fu Shiyan’s expression darkened slightly. After a moment’s thought, he readily agreed: “Fine.”

He added, “Until your surgery, we won’t do it at all.”

Hearing this, Xu Zhimian felt like a bucket of cold water had been dumped on him. His arousal vanished instantly. He whipped his head around. “Why!”

Fu Shiyan crossed his arms, looking down at him. “You tell me why.”

Wait, you didn’t care about my heart when you were tossing me around before! Xu Zhimian thought indignantly.

As if reading his mind, Fu Shiyan said calmly, “It’s a punishment for a little liar.”

Xu Zhimian was speechless.

He obediently followed Fu Shiyan back to the study.

Fu Shiyan handed him a litigation agreement—it was the case against Jiang Xiaocheng.

“You sued him before. Why did you drop the charges later?”

Xu Zhimian, who had been cursing Fu Shiyan in his head, was suddenly stunned.