Becoming the Runaway Little Wife of the Domineering CEO - Chapter 18

While Yin Shuang claimed she was “treating” her boss, it was Fu Mang who ended up footing the bill. They spent the entire day at Happy Valley, returning only after the city had been swallowed by night.

The drive back from the outskirts took nearly an hour, and Fu Mang was bone-tired. Reaching her suite, she took a quick, steaming shower and prepared to collapse into bed. Suddenly, there was a knock on the connecting door.

The knocks were soft and rhythmic—exactly three times. Fu Mang, her hair still damp and draped over her shoulders, walked toward the door. Just as she reached for the handle, Jin Xiaoyu’s voice drifted through the wood.

“I’m going to sleep now.”

Fu Mang paused, her hand hovering. She’s actually reporting her bedtime to me?

She suppressed a smirk, her fingers curling around the knob. But before she could turn it, the girl spoke again.

“Goodnight.”

Then came the faint rustle of footsteps, the familiar friction of sheets being pulled back, and finally, a heavy, peaceful silence.

Fu Mang stood there, hand still on the door handle, for a full minute before slowly letting go. She walked back to her own bed. She hadn’t offered a response, but the slight, persistent curve of her lips betrayed her.

*****

The following days settled into a predictable rhythm: the house, the car, the office. The only variable was Jin Xiaoyu.

Fu Mang couldn’t fathom what had gotten into the girl. Every morning and every night, without fail, Xiaoyu would pop in to say “Good morning” or “Goodnight,” then vanish before Fu Mang could even open her mouth. It was as if she were checking off boxes on a list. Beyond that, she had started acting like some sort of “big sister” counselor, constantly trying to initiate deep, soul-searching heart-to-hearts.

Fu Mang was not a woman who wore her heart on her sleeve. The outburst at the amusement park had been a fluke—a cocktail of stress and a tragic movie. Normally, she loathed emotional vulnerability. After being stone-walled four times, Yin Shuang finally backed off.

But the behavior was too erratic to ignore. Sitting behind her desk, Fu Mang pulled up the security feed for the secretarial pool. There was Jin Xiaoyu, head down at her desk, poring over a stack of documents with the intensity of a scholar.

That was the strangest part of all. Jin Xiaoyu wasn’t a real assistant; she had no actual work to do. What could she possibly be reading?

Driven by a restless curiosity, Fu Mang waited until Xiaoyu left her desk before stepping out of her office. She strolled over with practiced nonchalance, eyes darting toward the desk as she passed.

Empty. Not a single sheet of paper in sight.

Fu Mang frowned. She bent down and systematically went through the drawers until she hit the bottom one. There they were. She pulled the documents out and stood up, only to find two secretaries staring at her in mute shock.

A brief, awkward silence followed.

“I asked her to find a file for me,” Fu Mang said, her voice a masterpiece of cool professionalism. “She hasn’t delivered it yet, so I’m looking for it myself.”

The secretaries exchanged a look. We didn’t say anything, Boss. Why the defensive explanation?

Realizing they were still staring, Fu Mang snapped into “CEO mode.” “Is your work finished for the day? Because if you have time to stare, I have plenty of tasks I could delegate.”

They shook their heads like bobblehead dolls and scrambled away.

Finally alone with the “files,” Fu Mang looked down. It wasn’t a corporate document at all. It looked like an e-book that had been printed out. On the cover, in bold, black lettering, were the words: How to Quickly Win the Girl of Your Dreams (Part 1).

Fu Mang: “…???”

Her eyes nearly popped out of her head. She shot a panicked look over her shoulder to make sure Xiaoyu wasn’t returning, then scribbled down the author’s name and the publisher. She shoved the papers back into the drawer and retreated to her office. After slamming the door and closing the security feed, she opened her browser and searched for the title.

She spent a few yuan to buy the digital copy. The more she read, the more her stomach did a slow, dizzying flip.

A girl’s heart is fragile. If the girl you like is in a bad mood, take her to an amusement park. No expensive gift can replace the sincerity of your presence.

“Good morning” and “Goodnight” are mandatory. Their power is second only to “I love you.”

Play to your strengths. Make sure she feels your value at every moment. Remember: the most successful romance isn’t about becoming “family,” but becoming an irreplaceable soulmate.

Fu Mang… Fu Mang was speechless.

Shao Yang knocked twice and poked his head in. “President Fu, about that meeting with CEO Li—”

He stopped mid-sentence, his jaw dropping as he rushed to her side. “What happened?! What’s wrong?!”

To see Fu Mang looking that shell-shocked… he assumed the stock market had collapsed. “Tell me! Talk to me!”

“…Shao Yang.”

“Yeah?”

Fu Mang closed her eyes, forcing her breathing to steady. She turned her head and looked him dead in the eye. “Could you ever fall in love with me?”

Shao Yang: “…………”

What did I do to deserve a death sentence today?

He weighed the value of his life against his honesty. Honesty won. “N-No.”

It wasn’t that he didn’t find her attractive; it was that Fu Mang was simply… untouchable. You could look at her and think she was beautiful, but the idea of actually dating her felt like trying to pet a lightning bolt. It was a one-way ticket to a very painful end.

Shao Yang waited, trembling, expecting an outburst. But Fu Mang just gave a limp wave of her hand, dismissing him. He bolted out of the room before she could change her mind.

Fu Mang sat alone, the question repeating in her head.

If even Shao Yang wouldn’t fall for her, how could Jin Xiaoyu… a girl… be in love with her?!

When Yin Shuang returned from the restroom and sat down, her eyes narrowed.

Someone touched my things.

She didn’t move her body, but her eyes scanned the desk like a hawk until they landed on the bottom drawer. She pulled it open. The stack of A4 paper had shifted exactly one millimeter. She frowned.

The rest of the afternoon passed in a blur of tension. Fu Mang didn’t emerge from her office until long after everyone else had gone home and the moon was high. The secretarial office was still lit. Jin Xiaoyu was slumped over her desk, her small face buried in the crook of her arm, fast asleep.

Fu Mang watched her, her mind still reeling. She’s a woman! How could she love another woman?!

Even in sleep, Yin Shuang’s instincts were sharp. She blinked her eyes open and saw Fu Mang standing there. Stretching like a tired cat, she said naturally, “You finished so late today. Let’s go home. I told Chef Li to make you something extra nutritious.”

Yin Shuang walked over to her side. As their eyes met, Fu Mang’s gaze was uncharacteristically complex. Yin Shuang tilted her head, confused by the intensity. She had assumed it was a curious secretary who had snooped through her drawers.

Confronted with that clear, innocent gaze, Fu Mang finally looked away. “…Let’s go.”

******

The next day, sitting in a quiet, upscale cafe, He Yuxuan raised an eyebrow. “Alright, you dragged me out here. What’s the emergency?”

“It’s nothing, really. It’s just…” Fu Mang’s voice trailed off.

Before she could continue, Yuxuan remembered something. “By the way, how is that new bodyguard? Qin Ke said she was the one who introduced her. Why didn’t she come with you today?”

Fu Mang opened her mouth, then muttered, “…I gave her the afternoon off.”

Yin Shuang had been thrilled to get a surprise holiday. After wandering around and realizing she was both lost and broke, she ended up at Qin Ke’s apartment.

Qin Ke was working. When she opened the door and saw the sword spirit, she looked surprised. “Did you screw up again?”

“I have never screwed up!” Yin Shuang huffed, stepping inside. Qin Ke handed her a drink, and Yin Shuang’s temper vanished instantly. They exchanged progress reports—both were moving at a snail’s pace.

After a long silence, Yin Shuang broke the ice. “I’ve been wanting to ask… why did you say that necklace was the most important thing in the world to you?”

Qin Ke knew this was coming. This sword spirit had the curiosity of a kitten. “It’s a Spirit Butterfly. The Empress gave it to me. Once I complete enough missions, it will be activated.”

Yin Shuang gasped. “A Spirit Butterfly? Those are incredibly rare!”

It wasn’t a real butterfly, but a stone that, when activated, would transform into a white butterfly. Its only purpose was to follow its master’s heart and find a specific soul, no matter where it had reincarnated or what world it was in.

Yin Shuang’s eyes welled with romantic sentiment. “You’re doing all these missions just to find your lost love? That’s so beautiful… so tragic…”

Qin Ke watched her get swept away in her own drama for a moment, then let out a dry laugh. “I am using it to find someone. But not a lover.”

“Then who?”

“My enemy,” Qin Ke answered, her voice as flat as a blade. She offered a mysterious, sharp smile. “Do you know what I was before I became a Rakshasa?”

“What?”

“A Gui Rakshasa,” Qin Ke smiled. “After I died, I became a vengeful spirit. My resentment was so heavy that the reapers had to personally drag me to the underworld. But I refused to stay dead. I crawled back out of the abyss, fueled by pure spite. To find the one who killed me, I commanded the ghosts of ten directions. Everywhere I went, there were only screams. That’s how I got my name.”

Qin Ke looked down at her palm. Her voice was soft, but the aura of bloodlust around her began to thicken, heavy and suffocating.

“And even then, I never found her. Then I became a goddess, and I still didn’t find her. But… soon. The butterfly is almost ready to hatch.” She looked up, her eyes locking onto Yin Shuang’s. “I will find her very soon.”

If the Star Chart hadn’t sealed her powers, Yin Shuang would have rocketed through the ceiling and flown straight back to the Heavenly Realm.

She was trembling, frozen on the sofa. “And… and what happens when you find her?”

Qin Ke paused, her face breaking into a smile of genuine, terrifying joy. “I’m going to turn her bones to ash. And then, I’m going to tear her soul apart with my own hands.”

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