Fell Deeply In Love With My Ex-Husband's Fiancé - Chapter 73

Chapter 73: Auction – The size is just right. It’s about the same as your waist circumference.

The board meeting was abruptly moved up, and the result was extremely surprising; even those who were clearly against Lu Feiran previously voted for him.

The meeting ended. Lu Feiran signed his name and returned to his office, where he saw Lance.

“I don’t need your help,” Lu Feiran said. “I could have won the votes.”

“I know, but I didn’t want this to drag on too long.” Lance was sitting in Lu Feiran’s office chair, beckoning to him.

Lu Feiran was wearing a well-tailored three-piece suit. The dark pleats accentuated his waist, making him look exceptionally tall and slender, exuding an elite aura.

He walked over, slightly frowning, dissatisfied with Lance’s actions, but unable to say much, as he was the ultimate beneficiary.

“Just give me six more months, and I can handle everything,” Lu Feiran said. “I don’t like it when I’m working hard on something, and you suddenly step in halfway, allowing me to succeed easily. It makes my effort seem pointless.”

“You have your methods, and I have mine,” Lu Feiran stressed.

He stopped, standing one step away from Lance, just out of reach.

Lance’s smile faded, his eyes dimming by three points. He lowered the hand suspended in mid-air to his knee, looked at Lu Feiran’s slightly displeased expression, and swallowed everything he wanted to say.

“Okay, I understand,” Lance said. “I just didn’t want you to work too hard, but you don’t like it, so I won’t do it again. I apologize.”

Lu Feiran’s frown relaxed. The shift from anticipation to frustration on the man’s face was too obvious. Even after repeatedly telling himself that Lance was faking it, it was hard to truly ignore Lance’s disappointment.

“Mhm,” Lu Feiran nodded, signaling that the matter was over.

Lance stood up and walked toward him, cupping his face in his hands, the warmth of his palms meeting Lu Feiran’s cheeks. Lance lowered his head, watching his own face magnify in Lu Feiran’s clear pupils, and lightly kissed his nose.

“Come with me to an auction tonight. I’m getting you a gift.”

“What gift? A gift for becoming chairman?”

“It’s your birthday soon,” Lance whispered. “Will you let only me accompany you this time? Just me?”

Lu Feiran paused. His heart inexplicably beat faster. He said, “Yes, but I don’t really care about material things. Can you… can you make me a birthday cake? I want one that has the frosting just finished one second, and the candles lit the next.”

When he was nervous, he couldn’t help but make superfluous movements. He grabbed Lance’s lapel and pulled out the midnight-blue tie before realizing he was being inappropriate.

Lance straightened his tie while looking at Lu Feiran, as if silently asking him why he did that.

Lu Feiran’s Adam’s apple bobbed. He pretended not to notice, quietly waiting for the answer to his question.

“Are you nervous, Ranran?”

The magnetic voice held a questioning tone. Lu Feiran’s fingers curled up. He wanted to speak but found his throat was dry.

He casually walked to the desk, picked up his insulated water bottle, and took a sip of warm water to moisten his throat, hiding his easily exposed emotions.

“I asked you a question. Don’t talk about anything else.”

Lance answered readily: “Yes, I’ll make it. But you still have to accept the gift. I want to give it to you.”

He smiled, walked toward the door, stopped, and suddenly said, “Ranran, do you know why I know you’re nervous?”

Lu Feiran put down the cup, turned to look, and tilted his head slightly.

“Because I am always watching you. I know the meaning of every subtle expression you make,” Lance calmly revealed the truth.

It felt like a jolt of electricity shot up his spine to the back of his head. Lu Feiran’s scalp tingled as if it were exploding.

He picked up the cup and drank another mouthful of water, using it to mask the stiffness of his body language.

Lance smiled again, his expression serene and carefree: “Don’t be nervous. Being chairman is not difficult. I will help you. Come to the auction with me this afternoon. You go back to work now.”

Lu Feiran reluctantly put down the cup, realizing the water inside was already finished. He poured water again, absent-mindedly, nearly scalding the back of his hand with the hot water.

Was he overthinking it?

He shook his head. No, Lance was absolutely threatening him.

Those green eyes were the best monitor. Within Lance’s line of sight, every smile and frown of Lu Feiran was under surveillance. No secret could hide.

Lance might not have discovered anything specific, but he definitely sensed something was amiss.

Lu Feiran sat down, pressed his temples with both hands, and closed his eyes for a moment before opening them.

Lunatic, he is truly a lunatic.

He loosened his tie a bit, sighed, and opened his phone to re-confirm his flight information.

December 31st, 2:00 PM, direct flight to Paris.

…

In the evening, Lu Feiran felt he had gone slightly mad himself. He stood in the walk-in closet while Lance dressed him for an hour. When he stepped out, he even felt like a peacock.

While he used to be quite flamboyant, being dressed up by someone else was a different matter.

The black suit he wore during the day was replaced. The peacock blue color made Lu Feiran’s face exceptionally fair and bright, enhancing the intricate allure of his classic features.

He was led by Lance into the auction hall. He couldn’t break free, so he could only barely maintain a polite, faint smile while enduring everyone’s gaze.

It felt like a spotlight was locked on him, forcing him to stand center stage, unable to hide.

He simply resigned himself, standing silently beside Lance.

At least Lance didn’t go crazy this time, introducing him everywhere as his “wife.”

But even without asking, the joined hands were enough to prove the depth of their relationship.

Before they took their seats, a familiar middle-aged man approached them cheerfully.

Lu Feiran looked at him, tried hard to recall, and suddenly remembered: he had seen this man at the Deville family banquet.

At the banquet, the wealthy businessman surnamed Li and Lance had exchanged verses, the story of the deeply loving husband and the unfeeling wife moving everyone…

Lu Feiran was instantly annoyed by him. This busybody surnamed Li had embarrassed him.

“Mr. Lance, what a coincidence!” The wealthy businessman Li approached with a beaming smile, extending his hand to Lance. “Last time, I told your wife your story, and she has kept it in her heart, especially hoping your wife would change her mind…”

Lance’s hand was holding Lu Feiran’s, so it was impossible to shake hands with the businessman.

The businessman Li’s eyes lowered, suddenly freezing. He looked wide-eyed at Lu Feiran, who was glaring coldly.

“Th-this is…”

Lu Feiran felt the grip on his left hand tighten. He lifted his eyes impatiently and saw Lance looking down at him and smiling. He thought to himself, This is not good.

“This is my… wife.”

Lance’s voice was not loud, but every word clearly reached the businessman Li’s ears.

Lance didn’t have the inclination or habit of socializing with others, but he was occasionally childish.

The businessman Li was someone who knew the story of him and his wife. Lance felt an uncontrollable urge to tell people that his wife had returned.

Even if he was met with cold glances, he had to say it.

Unlike the veiled references last time, the title of “wife” was directly stamped onto Lu Feiran’s person, causing his face to immediately flush red.

Lu Feiran glared at Lance, then glanced at the businessman Li. His expression was far from pleasant.

The businessman Li stammered, “Ah… this, this is the wife! Last time, last time…”

Last time, didn’t you introduce him as the chairman of Tuowei? And ask him for advice on getting your wife back? So he was the “wife” himself?

The businessman Li didn’t know whether to be surprised that the “wife” was a man or that he had inadvertently witnessed a couple’s journey from cold war to reconciliation.

But he didn’t want to bring bad luck here. He quickly mumbled a few words and left.

“What is wrong with you?” Lu Feiran slapped Lance’s hand. “Stop introducing me like that in front of others. Since you’re so capable, why don’t you introduce yourself as my ‘friend-with-benefits’?”

Lance pulled him to their seats. A server brought them tea and left.

As soon as they sat down, Lu Feiran tried desperately to shake off Lance’s hand. Lance loosened his grip, and Lu Feiran rubbed his hand, which was red from being held, and blew on it.

“‘Friend-with-benefits’ is simply too improper a term,” Lance said. He tried to rub Lu Feiran’s hand but was evaded. He didn’t insist, instead picking up the cup to offer Lu Feiran water. After watching him drink, he said, “Besides, it’s bound to happen eventually. There’s nothing to be ashamed of. Don’t be embarrassed.”

Lu Feiran paused his motion of rubbing his hand and said faintly, “Don’t do that. I don’t like it.”

Lance stopped arguing and nodded: “OK.”

Lu Feiran’s thoughts churned. He didn’t want such an absurd title to spread. If he later decided not to be with Lance, it would inevitably be humiliating.

He also didn’t like people referring to him as “Lance’s whatever” but by his own name: Lu Feiran.

But it doesn’t matter. His name will become more and more renowned in the future.

Not the controversial son of the Lu family, nor anyone’s wife, but simply Lu Feiran.

During their conversation, the auction officially began. Lu Feiran sat up straight, eating fruit, and casually flipped through the catalog of the evening’s items.

They were all rare gems, any one of which could buy a building.

“Which ones do you like?” Lance was smoothing Lu Feiran’s hair near his temples.

Lu Feiran wasn’t very interested in any of them. Beautiful as they were, he wasn’t a jewelry collector, nor did he need to spend money to gild himself, so he shook his head and put the catalog aside.

He recalled the reason Zhai Qiance was caught and casually said, “I don’t like any. Maybe you shouldn’t buy anything. Who knows, someone might be using these jewels for illicit benefits transfers…”

He suddenly stopped because he saw an elegant blonde woman on the stage: Lance’s sister.

Lance leaned in, his warm fingertip touching Lu Feiran’s hand, sliding down. His bony hand covered Lu Feiran’s, their fingers intertwining.

“If it is an illicit benefit transfer, I’m giving you a gift. Can I exchange it for sleeping with you tonight?” Lance said.

Lu Feiran thought: As if there’s been a night you haven’t slept in my bed.

“That’s not what I meant. I didn’t know your family was hosting the auction. I apologize.”

Lance shook his head: “My sister is indeed in charge of the auction side. I can’t guarantee there aren’t any illicit benefit transfers, can I? Maybe you guessed correctly, Ranran.”

Lu Feiran looked at him suspiciously.

Lance smiled: “If I buy everything, they can’t transfer any benefits, right? Pick a few you like to keep. The others you don’t like, you can give to friends, or even discard them. They can also be used as decoration at home.”

The auction’s opening remarks concluded. Ms. Deville stepped off the stage. Lu Feiran suddenly had a bad feeling. He pressed his other hand onto Lance’s and said, “Don’t do anything attention-grabbing!”

At this moment, a middle-aged man in a black suit came over, bent down, and whispered something to Lance before quickly leaving.

“Alright,” Lance readily agreed, handing the paddle to Lu Feiran, letting him bid. “You play, don’t worry about the price. If you like it, bid on it. My father is here. I need to go see him.”

As soon as Lance left, Lu Feiran felt much more relaxed. He played with his phone for a bit, then realized someone had sat down on his right.

It was actually Zhai Mingchen.

Lu Feiran put away his phone, scoffed, and turned his attention back to the auction stage, trying to focus on the commentary.

“Don’t be so cold, Xiao Lu. I’m here to thank you,” Zhai Mingchen said.

Although he didn’t know what Zhai Mingchen was thanking him for, Lu Feiran still said, “Bid on this necklace for me and show your sincerity.”

Zhai Mingchen smiled awkwardly: “I could bid, but I dare not. I can’t accept favors from Lance and then do something he dislikes.”

Lu Feiran’s heart skipped a beat. He tried to elicit information: “You could have taken down Zhai Qiance yourself. The opportunity was handed to you, but now you insist on owing someone else a favor.”

“Taking down Zhai Qiance was indeed my obsession, but it’s only a small part,” Zhai Mingchen said. “Lance is very generous. As long as I tell him everything I know that happened between you and Zhai Qiance, he’ll help my company expand into a new market. A win-win situation, isn’t it? Why wouldn’t I take it?”

“Why didn’t you answer my calls? You betrayed the deal between us. Don’t think about any future business collaborations with me. I don’t deal with people who break their word,” Lu Feiran said, lifting his chin.

“Hey, hey. Do you know your current boyfriend is a huge jealousy freak? He’d try to kill me just for having coffee with you,” Zhai Mingchen shook his head, not elaborating on the story.

Lu Feiran secretly observed Zhai Mingchen, seeing helplessness and a faint sense of relief on his face, and generally understood what happened.

“Alright, stop sitting here. He’s coming back,” Lu Feiran ate a piece of fruit. “Hurry up and leave, or don’t blame me if he threatens you again.”

“Fine,” Zhai Mingchen stood up and straightened his cuff. “I still have to thank you for having such a good boyfriend. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have benefited. I’m leaving now.”

Lu Feiran picked up another strawberry with a fork. Sweet juice filled his mouth, yet it inexplicably tasted sour, hard to swallow.

On the stage, a pigeon’s blood necklace was being auctioned. The deep red gem was richer in color than blood.

Lu Feiran was suddenly drawn to it. After the bidding started, he added three million, but someone else kept bidding, raising the price by twenty or thirty million each time.

Lu Feiran didn’t have much spare money to buy decorative items, so he put down his paddle.

Just before the final hammer fell, he looked up at the stage with some regret.

Suddenly, a hand took the paddle, and a resonant, gentle voice came from behind Lu Feiran: “Add one million.”

Lance made the bid right at the last second. He didn’t offer a price so astronomical that everyone would be deterred, nor did he make a more extravagant show.

But just one million was enough—no one competed with him anymore.

The buyer was quickly confirmed. Lance sat beside Lu Feiran, smiling, looking as if he expected praise: “It wasn’t attention-grabbing, but you liked it, so I had to make sure you got it.”

“I was just raising the paddle randomly out of boredom,” Lu Feiran said, lowering his head so his expression couldn’t be clearly seen. “This kind of necklace is useless to me. I can’t wear it out.”

Lance’s smiling eyes were still on him: “It’s fine. The size is just right. It’s about the same as your waist circumference.”

Splat. A fresh strawberry dropped to the floor.

Lu Feiran looked down and asked, “What did your father call you for?”

“It’s Christmas, and he regretted not having dinner with us. He asked me to bring you home on the 31st,” Lance said. “I refused. I have to celebrate your birthday. That day is our time together.”

“…Mhm,” Lu Feiran replied absent-mindedly, completely losing his appetite for strawberries.