After Secretly Marrying the Top Celebrity, I Fell in Love - Chapter 16

The surroundings were silent, so silent that Bo Yiyan could hear her own heart pounding like a drum.

“Xiao Bai, you’ve arrived.” After a brief moment of absent-mindedness, Ye Manqing’s lips curved into a small smile. Her voice was slightly languid due to having just woken up.

“Teacher Ye, did I disturb your rest?” Bo Yiyan lightly bit her lip, and the fingers gripping her bag unconsciously tightened.

“No disturbance.” Ye Manqing walked towards Bo Yiyan with unhurried steps. “I asked you to come over, did you forget?”

“No!” Bo Yiyan shook her head.

When the two were only a step apart, Ye Manqing suddenly stopped. The woman gazed quietly at Bo Yiyan’s brown pupils, her thin lips parting, “You’re very nervous.”

It wasn’t a question, but an affirmative statement.

Bo Yiyan nodded.

Ye Manqing smiled gently and said, “Don’t be nervous, I’m not going to eat you.”

“…” Bo Yiyan blinked her clear, translucent eyes and didn’t speak.

Ye Manqing twisted her brows slightly and said, “However, I haven’t eaten all day, so I’m really hungry.”

“Xiao Bai, please sit anywhere. I’ll ask the restaurant to send up some food.” As she spoke, Ye Manqing looked at Bo Yiyan openly and her tone was gentle.

“Have you eaten yet?”

Bo Yiyan’s nervous tension eased somewhat, and she replied, “I have.”

Ye Manqing: “That’s good.”

With that, Ye Manqing turned around and walked straight towards the landline phone in the corner, leaving Bo Yiyan with a graceful and alluring back view.

Upon reaching it, Ye Manqing picked up the receiver with one hand, placing it next to her ear, and with the other, pressed the number “1” on the phone.

A moment later, a waiter wheeled a dining cart and knocked on the door of the presidential suite.

Ye Manqing ordered a steak for herself and a bottle of red wine to go with it. In addition, she ordered a serving of the hotel’s signature dessert—steamed sweet fermented milk—for Bo Yiyan.

Ye Manqing walked to the sofa and looked at Bo Yiyan, who was sitting primly on it, and invited her, “Xiao Bai, would you like to join me for dinner?”

Bo Yiyan’s train of thought was interrupted by Ye Manqing’s words. She looked up and softly “Mhm” to Ye Manqing.

The dining room was adjacent to the living room, also featuring a massive floor-to-ceiling window design.

Looking out from the window, one could clearly see a winding river, with the dazzling starlight reflected on the water, creating rippling waves.

In the center of the dining table stood a slender emerald green vase, with a half-opened red rose diagonally placed inside. Red wine was poured into a transparent glass decanter, emitting bursts of rich aroma.

The two sat facing each other, with a hazy, amber glow falling from above the dining table.

Ye Manqing placed the bowl of snowy-white steamed sweet fermented milk in front of Bo Yiyan and said, “Xiao Bai, this bowl of steamed sweet fermented milk is for you.”

“If you like the taste, eat more; if you don’t like it, then don’t eat it.”

Bo Yiyan: “Okay.”

Ye Manqing attended a charity event for a major jewelry brand today, and the gown was too tight; eating would make her tummy show slightly. Thus, Ye Manqing hadn’t eaten much all day, only drinking a few sips of water.

She was truly hungry now.

At the white dining table, Ye Manqing ate with elegant posture; the dining etiquette she had cultivated since childhood was deeply ingrained.

Across the table, Bo Yiyan was also quietly eating the steamed sweet fermented milk in her bowl.

The fermented milk melted in her mouth, with a tender and smooth texture, like eating tofu, accompanied by a subtle, mellow milk aroma and moderate sweetness.

Ye Manqing: “Is the fermented milk delicious?”

Bo Yiyan: “Mhm, very delicious.”

The medium-rare steak was exactly to Ye Manqing’s liking. It was A5-grade Wagyu beef from Japan, with tender and juicy meat.

Ye Manqing elegantly cut the steak with her knife and fork, put a small piece of beef into her mouth, and chewed slowly.

After chewing and swallowing, the woman put down her knife and fork, picked up the decanter, and poured herself a glass of red wine. Just as she gently placed the stemmed glass on the table, Bo Yiyan’s voice came from across the table.

Bo Yiyan: “Teacher Ye, could you pour me a glass too?”

Ye Manqing looked up, confirming with her eyes, “Wine?”

Bo Yiyan nodded: “Mhm.”

Ye Manqing: “Alright.”

This was the first time Bo Yiyan had proactively had wine outside. They say wine gives you courage, so Bo Yiyan wanted to use it to bolster her own courage. As for why she needed to bolster her courage, Bo Yiyan wasn’t entirely sure.

Ye Manqing poured a glass of red wine for Bo Yiyan and then handed it to her. Immediately, Ye Manqing raised the glass in front of herself toward Bo Yiyan.

“Xiao Bai, congratulations! Congratulations on successfully passing the re-audition and getting the role of the female second lead as you wished.”

“…” Bo Yiyan’s expression slightly froze. She quickly raised her glass as well.

“Thank you.”

The two stemmed glasses filled with red wine gently clinked above the dining table, making a crisp sound.

…

When the steak was nearly finished, Ye Manqing was full. At the same time, the red wine in her stemmed glass was almost gone.

Ye Manqing put down her delicate and sharp knife and fork, wiped her mouth with a napkin, and then picked up her red wine glass.

The woman lightly propped her fair cheek with one hand, holding the stemmed glass with the other, gently swirling the dark red liquid in the glass, and took a small sip of red wine.

“Xiao Bai, I’m not a talkative person, and our meals will always be like this in the future.” Ye Manqing thought of a word and added, “It will be very boring.”

Bo Yiyan took a large gulp of red wine on her own, saying, “No.”

Ye Manqing raised an eyebrow: “Hmm?”

Bo Yiyan sincerely said, “It won’t be boring.”

Ye Manqing chuckled softly, preparing to broach the main topic for the day, and gazed at Bo Yiyan with gentle eyes.

“Xiao Bai, I asked you to come over so late because I wanted to talk to you about the marriage.”

Bo Yiyan nodded, indicating she understood.

Ye Manqing: “Then let me first tell you about my family. Both my parents are Beijingers. My father and grandfather were in politics, and my mother is a physics professor at Peking University. My maternal grandfather was a businessman. Both my maternal grandparents passed away early. Before my maternal grandfather passed away, he left me an inheritance, including thirty properties and two chain five-star hotels, as well as ten restaurants.”

“I’ve earned a lot of money from acting over the years, plus some funds left to me by my maternal grandfather. My total savings amount to about ten billion.” Ye Manqing spoke with an air of understatement; “ten billion” was just a number coming from her mouth.

“Oh, and I think I have about ten cars under my name, or something, I can’t quite remember.”

“…!” Bo Yiyan’s pupils widened, her eyelashes gently fluttering, clearly startled.

Bo Yiyan knew Ye Manqing was wealthy, but she hadn’t expected her to be this wealthy!

Ye Manqing’s expression was calm as she continued, “My father died of cancer three years ago, and my mother couldn’t cope with the shock.” As she spoke, Ye Manqing gently tapped her head with her finger.

“Something went wrong here.”

As Ye Manqing expected, Bo Yiyan looked stunned, but still remained silent.

Ye Manqing: “She stayed in a psychiatric hospital for two years. After her condition stabilized, I brought her home. She is now living alone in Beijing, with a private doctor and two nannies taking turns to care for her twenty-four hours a day. Her condition has remained quite stable.”

“That’s pretty much all I have to say.”

Bo Yiyan organized her thoughts, paused, and then spoke with equal candor: “I am an orphan, having grown up in a welfare home, without parents.”

The fingers gently holding Ye Manqing’s stemmed glass paused, her expression slightly frozen, looking at Bo Yiyan with a touch of pity.

Bo Yiyan continued, “I… I don’t have money.”

“I don’t have a car or a house under my name, and no savings in my card.”

After saying that, Bo Yiyan quietly lowered her gaze, staring at the half-bowl of fermented milk left in her bowl.

Ye Manqing: “That’s alright.”

“By the way, Xiao Bai, regarding the details of the marriage, do you have any requests?”

Bo Yiyan immediately shook her head. She paused, and a crease appeared on her otherwise smooth brow, looking like she wanted to speak but hesitated.

Ye Manqing saw the subtle change in her expression and said softly, “Feel free to say it.”

Bo Yiyan mustered her courage and stated directly, “I only have one request.”

Before coming, Bo Yiyan had already thought it through. She had no objections regarding the discussions about the marriage. However, she had one request, and only this one.

Ye Manqing gracefully held her stemmed glass, slowly savoring the red wine. She slightly raised her eyes, looking at Bo Yiyan with a curious expression.

“I agree.”

Bo Yiyan was slightly taken aback and reminded her, “You… don’t know what my request is yet.”

Ye Manqing smiled indifferently and said, “Whatever the request is, I agree to it.”

Bo Yiyan’s throat tightened. She looked at Ye Manqing earnestly and said, “Let’s sign a prenuptial agreement.”

Ye Manqing’s eyes flickered, and then she nodded: “Alright, how do you want to sign it?”

Bo Yiyan spoke concisely: “All your assets will have nothing to do with me, whether before or after the marriage. If… we divorce later, I won’t take a single penny from you.”

Ye Manqing looked at Bo Yiyan suspiciously, hooking her lips in a half-smile, and asked, “Leaving with nothing?”

Bo Yiyan nodded: “Yes.”

The atmosphere became somewhat subtle, falling into a brief silence.

Ye Manqing propped her head with one hand, her smooth long hair cascading down one side. The woman slightly narrowed her eyes, looking at Bo Yiyan. Her lips, touched with the aroma of wine, moved slightly.

“Good.”

Ye Manqing was a little confused about the young person in front of her. Does someone truly not care about money?

Across the dining table, Bo Yiyan smiled in relief. She reached for the stemmed glass nearby, lowered her eyes, and took a large gulp of the red wine in the glass.

During their conversation, the glass of red wine was unknowingly emptied by Bo Yiyan. A delicate flush gradually appeared on Bo Yiyan’s cheeks, looking enchanting and tempting.

Ye Manqing glanced at the night view outside the window, then turned her head to look at Bo Yiyan, and said softly, “It’s getting late.”

“…” Bo Yiyan’s two glossy red lips moved, but no sound came out.

Ye Manqing’s cold and deep eyes gazed at Bo Yiyan’s, and she gently extended an invitation.

“Xiao Bai, will you stay?”

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