I Want You - Chapter 8

Chapter 8

The nanny van was spacious and bright. To prevent passersby or fans from peeking in, the windows were made of special glass; from the outside, they appeared black, but inside, the light was more than sufficient.

Shang Congzhi’s red lips were pressed tight. She could clearly see the man’s clean, fair fingertips resting on the bruise on her knee. It felt as if he would ruthlessly press down if she dared to say another reckless word.

After a long silence, she squeezed out a friendly and polite smile toward Mu Xinglan: “I was saying—thank you, President Mu, for applying the medicine for me.”

Mu Xinglan composedly used a cotton swab to apply the ointment to her injury. His movements were gentle, and a slight curve lingered on his thin lips as he spoke: “What did you call me?”

Seeing that he was touching the most severe part of her wound—and knowing that with just a little force, she would feel like she was dying of pain—Shang Congzhi took a deep breath and called out with a sense of enduring humiliation for a greater cause: “Bro-ther!”

“Is that enough!”

Mu Xinglan’s tone was, as always, mild yet brooks no argument: “Call me that from now on.”

Shang Congzhi: “…”

She wanted to curse. But she was afraid of his threats!

Once the medicine was applied, Mu Xinglan put away the cotton swabs. His long fingers cradled the back of her knee as his eyes lowered to stare at the knee covered in green ointment. The wound covered a large area, accompanied by swelling and bruising; with the ointment on, it looked even more severe against her thin, white skin.

He looked like he was contemplating an important document.

Shang Congzhi ran out of patience and lifted her leg irritably: “What are you looking at? Is there a flower on the wound?”

“Do you want me to blow on it for you?” Mu Xinglan looked up at her and suddenly asked. His tone was as calm as if he were asking a perfectly normal question.

“???”

Shang Congzhi’s dark pupils shrank as she stared at him in bewilderment. Was she a three-year-old? Did she still need “huff-huffs”?

Mu Xinglan’s voice was very soft as he said slowly: “You are most afraid of pain. When you were little, even a tiny injury required me to blow on it. After blowing, you’d act spoiled and make me…”

“Please shut up!”

Shang Congzhi couldn’t listen anymore. She lunged forward, trying to cover his mouth. Anything he said next would definitely be from her “dark history” files. It was too humiliating!

Seeing that time was almost up, Su Lian opened the car door: “Zhizhi, it’s time to start work.”

Holy crap?

Su Lian suspected his young eyes had gone blurry with age. He originally thought President Mu was here to deliver medicine from a thousand miles away, but he never expected… that the real scene was a thousand-mile delivery of—action?

And President Mu was the one on the bottom?

From Su Lian’s perspective, on the creamy-white car seat, Shang Congzhi’s slender body had the young, handsome man pinned beneath her. The hem of her white dress, embroidered with matching patterns, was spread out like a blooming flower across the man’s waist and upper black suit trousers. The contrasting black and white was both taboo and seductive.

Su Lian’s first reaction was to close his eyes.

Was this brat Shang Congzhi trying to ascend to the heavens!!! She actually pressed the legendary “business world’s most woman-shunning noble son” beneath her!

Wait, no. This was inside a nanny van! There were people walking around outside; how could she be so bold? It was only a few steps to the hotel—could this little brat, who never cares about consequences, really not wait?

Su Lian quickly shut the door: “Sorry for the interruption!”

Luckily, the driver wasn’t in the car.

Shang Congzhi’s soft, white hand was still covering Mu Xinglan’s thin lips. Hearing the commotion, her slender body suddenly froze.

That brain-filling maniac Su Lian—he didn’t misunderstand something, did he!

Shang Congzhi’s legs didn’t hurt and her waist wasn’t sore anymore. She grabbed her skirt and hurriedly opened the door: “Su Lian, you freaking misunderstood!”

In the next second, Mu Xinglan grabbed her wrist from behind: “What’s the rush? You’re going down like this?”

Seeing her turn around, Mu Xinglan rose from the seat. “Your hair is a mess.”

He raised his hand to smooth her fluffy, scattered long hair, trying his best to ignore the sensation of her smooth palms touching his lips earlier—it felt like soft tofu.

Three minutes later, Mu Xinglan got out of the car, and Su Lian took his place.

Su Lian looked at Shang Congzhi, who was sitting upright and had regained her posture as a glamorous star: “Sweetheart, I didn’t know you and President Mu liked this kind of position in private.”

Shang Congzhi gave him a cold look: “Watch your wording. Careful I don’t sue you for slandering my innocence.”

Seeing her so righteous and full of life, she definitely didn’t look like someone who had just done something bad. Su Lian let out a long sigh of relief. Facing President Mu just now, he felt his little heart was about to jump out. It wasn’t that he hadn’t seen the world, but President Mu’s aura was too powerful; though he was gentle and upright, he made people afraid to look him in the eye.

Su Lian looked at Shang Congzhi with a gaze bordering on worship. She truly was a bold little troublemaker; she could even pin President Mu down. It seemed he had previously underestimated just how “badass” this young lady was.

“Did he leave?” Shang Congzhi suddenly asked as the van headed toward the set.

Su Lian naturally knew who “he” referred to: “He’s gone. Can’t bear to let go?”

Shang Congzhi rolled her eyes: “Which eye of yours sees me not wanting to let go?”

Unwilling to bring up the topic that had just cost her a lot of face, she righteously changed the subject: “Did you negotiate the contract I asked for?”

As she spoke, Shang Congzhi’s peripheral vision glanced at her knee where Mu Xinglan had applied the ointment. The cream was applied very neatly, not even a bit spilling over the edges. Her gaze paused for two seconds before she casually withdrew her thoughts.

At the mention of serious business, Su Lian finally wiped the teasing expression off his face. “It’s just waiting for you to sign the contract in person.”

Shang Congzhi’s knee injury didn’t hinder the film crew’s progress. The playground scenes scheduled for the morning allowed for white knee-high socks; her injury was on the lower half of the knee, so it could be covered. Moreover, Shang Congzhi’s legs were long and thin, perfectly suited for the campus style of long socks and white shoes—they were literal “manga legs.” The stylist was already rubbing their hands in anticipation.

Around 9:00 AM, Shang Congzhi’s playground scene hadn’t started yet, and she was waiting in the wings. Coincidentally, the crew from the neighboring production was also at the playground filming site.

Shang Congzhi inadvertently saw a producer from the neighboring crew leading a familiar, handsome young man toward the set, followed by a group of elites in suits. In the middle of the sweltering heat, the group stood out sharply against the crew members wearing shorts and tank tops.

She sat on a rest chair with the printed script spread over her knees, showing the professional quality of a serious actor. Across a distance of over ten meters, Shang Congzhi noticed Mu Xinglan looking in her direction.

She leaned back in her chair. She threw the script over her face, pretending not to see him. Naturally, she didn’t notice the fleeting smile in the man’s eyes.

And she says she isn’t a child. Is throwing a tantrum like this something an adult would do?

Seeing the man, whose expression had been mild and formal the whole way, suddenly chuckle while looking into the distance, the producer instinctively looked in that direction. Aside from a jumble of rest chairs, there was nothing. What was President Mu laughing at? The producer felt uneasy.

Seeing that the actors’ rest area only had crude sheds for shade, Mu Xinglan’s smile vanished, and his voice turned cool: “What’s going on with the environment in the actors’ rest area? In such hot weather, you just let the staff bake in the sun?”

The producer followed his gaze, his expression complex: “…”

“Pre-President Mu, that’s not our actors’ area. Our filming spot is over there. The playground scenes aren’t many; we’ll be done in two days.” He pointed in the opposite direction.

However, Mu Xinglan didn’t even look.

Secretary Qin stood up and said steadily: “You’ve misunderstood. President Mu has always been charitable and kind; it isn’t just restricted to projects he has invested in.”

The meaning was clear: President Mu was in the mood to be a Good Samaritan and build a new waiting area for the neighboring crew as well.

The producer wiped his sweat: “But our two productions are competitors…” Both were youth films filming at the same time; naturally, their release dates wouldn’t be far apart.

Qin You naturally knew why the boss was here to visit the set. He wasn’t really here to see the progress of the invested film, but for that injured “Little Ancestor” in the neighboring crew. Seeing the Little Ancestor being mistreated—how could he hold back?

“Producer Xu, be more open-minded,” Secretary Qin comforted. “After all, all this investment was given to you by President Mu.”

Producer Xu: “…” So Secretary Qin meant he should take the investment Mu Xinglan gave him to help improve the lives of the rivals next door?

Mu Xinglan saw Shang Congzhi’s calves wrapped in white knee-high socks, his gaze finally landing on her covered knees. His brows furrowed slightly. In such hot weather, he wondered if the injury would get inflamed.

“President Mu, this way please. Let’s not stay in the sun.” The producer decided to try harder to persuade Mu Xinglan. Why go to the neighbors to provide poverty relief? Wouldn’t it be better to use that money on their own crew?

There was a large sycamore tree beside the playground. With lush branches and leaves, it was a great place to rest. Furthermore, the location was excellent, offering a view of the entire playground.

Just then, Producer Xu saw a graceful woman approaching from the distance, a smile on her face: “President Mu, let me introduce you. This is our female lead, Song Yan. She has starred in many high-grossing films, has an excellent reputation, and is one of the top-tier A-list actresses in the circle.”

Song Yan? Hearing this name, Mu Xinglan’s mild brows finally showed some emotion.

Song Yan had been in the industry for years, so she was naturally very sensitive to everyone’s emotions. She was focused on Mu Xinglan and wouldn’t miss a single detail of his change in expression. She felt that Mu Xinglan should be somewhat interested in her.

She covered her lips and smiled teasingly: “You flatter me too much. Praising me like this in front of President Mu makes me quite embarrassed.”

Producer Xu thought highly of Song Yan and was happy to give her face: “It turns out Teacher Song knows President Mu? Then I can skip the introduction phase.”

Song Yan looked at Mu Xinglan and then gave a restrained smile: “Who doesn’t know President Mu?”

Mu Xinglan felt the name Song Yan sounded familiar. He glanced sideways at Qin You. Secretary Qin understood and whispered in Mu Xinglan’s ear: “Miss Shang has been at odds with her recently.”

Song Yan smiled charmingly at Mu Xinglan. She wasn’t overly intimate, nor was she deliberately flattering. If it were anyone else, they would likely have a good impression of such a well-mannered woman.

However—Mu Xinglan had already decided: this was the person who bullied his family’s little kid.

After Shang Congzhi finished filming, Su Lian leaned in and whispered to her: “Zhizhi, you snatched Song Yan’s resources, and now Song Yan is trying to snatch your man. I didn’t expect her to take such an alternative route to win a round back.”

“Snatch what?” Shang Congzhi held a small fan to her face. With her high ponytail, she looked beautiful and somehow ethereal. She had a true goddess vibe. “Are you sure she’s not snatching resources?”

Shang Congzhi thought it was a slip of the tongue. Since she had snatched her resources, Song Yan should be trying to snatch them back. That was logical. But what the hell was “snatching a man”?

“See for yourself.” Su Lian grabbed Shang Congzhi’s shoulders and turned her around.

Right toward the sycamore tree.

Shang Congzhi’s hand holding the fan paused. Song Yan and Mu Xinglan?

Likely sensing their gaze, Song Yan actually smiled at her.

“What does her smile mean?” Shang Congzhi tapped Su Lian with her fan.

Su Lian crossed his arms: “What else could it mean? The smile of a victor. Hey, where are you going?”

Su Lian saw Shang Congzhi slowly walking toward the sycamore tree and hurriedly followed.

“What else? To enjoy the shade, of course.” Shang Congzhi raised her eyelids. “Or did you think I was going there to fight?”

Su Lian saw her exquisite brows raised with a natural air of arrogance and felt his heart skip a beat with worry. A fight—it wasn’t like she didn’t have a record!

“The neighboring crew has already occupied the spot. Let’s go cool off in the lounge. You have an hour until your next scene anyway.”

Seeing her slender figure stepping through the sunlight toward them, Su Lian began to regret his big mouth. He never expected Shang Congzhi would openly walk over there.

Xiao Tang quickly pushed Su Lian aside and held up a sun umbrella for Shang Congzhi. Under the umbrella, Shang Congzhi’s white fingers held her pink fan, her posture leisurely, her voice lazy and a bit loose: “Did the neighbors pee there to mark their territory? It’s a public area—why can’t I go?”

Su Lian: “…” As expected, you’re going there to find trouble!!!

Approaching the destination, Shang Congzhi used her index finger to lift the sun umbrella that was blocking her view, revealing half of her fair, beautiful face. Likely because the weather was too hot, she seemed a bit disinterested, her red lips pressed into a line, exuding an unconscious sense of cold glamour.

The moment she looked up, her eyes finally flickered. Under the sycamore tree, Mu Xinglan wore only a shirt and trousers. Even sitting on a rest chair, he remained upright and tall, his long fingers resting on the armrest, his expression warm yet noble. Sunlight pierced through the layers of leaves, scattering spots of light at the base of his eyelashes and casting shallow shadows at the corners of his eyes, making his expression hard to read.

He seemed to be listening intently to Song Yan speaking opposite him.