My Possessive Boss Is Unexpectedly Needy - Chapter 34

Chapter 34

Someone chimed in at that moment: “Exactly! Always preaching about integrity, and yet look at what you people are doing.”

He Yilun smiled triumphantly, but to his surprise, Ou Yucheng—who was standing beside him—had his brows furrowed in a deep frown. Ou Yucheng glared at He Yilun and barked: “Sit down!”

He Yilun looked at Ou Yucheng in astonishment. Seeing Ou Yucheng’s dark face and sullen silence, he realized this was completely unlike his usual demeanor.

Lu Yeyan raised an eyebrow and looked down at Ou Yucheng from the stage. “Whether this piece is the ‘White Lover’ or not, I believe Chairman Ou is the one who knows best.”

At this point, Mrs. Zhu, who was sitting on the other side, stood up and said, “This is not the ‘White Lover.’ The ‘White Lover’ was bought by Chairman Ou twenty years ago as a gift for his late wife.”

The mention of it seemed to stir up painful memories for Ou Yucheng. He stood up tremulously and said, “Yes, this indeed is not the ‘White Lover.’ When my wife passed away, the ‘White Lover’ was buried with her!”

As soon as he spoke, the audience gasped in amazement. The elders in attendance were well aware of this history; since then, no one had ever brought up the “White Lover” again.

One of the judges asked in confusion, “If this isn’t the ‘White Lover,’ then what is it?”

The corner of Lu Yeyan’s mouth twitched into a smirk. “It is merely a dress with similar craftsmanship. The original design of this gown was simply inspired by the ‘White Lover.'”

“No wonder…”

Once the explanation was clear, the venue naturally quieted down. Meanwhile, Li Ruixi, standing below the stage, looked grim. Even she had been deceived by the resemblance.

She refused to believe this was a coincidence. It felt as though Lu Yeyan had known all along that his original design would be destroyed and had prepared this gown intentionally.

But what was Lu Yeyan’s motive?

At that moment, a judge spoke up: “While art is universal, some elements of this garment do indeed overlap with the ‘White Lover.’ I am withdrawing my previous high score and can only give it a reasonable one.”

No one spoke; all eyes were fixed on Lu Yeyan’s face. Lu Yeyan’s expression remained unchanged. He took Yu Zining’s hand and smiled faintly: “As it should be…”

With that, he led Yu Zining off the stage.

They took their seats in the audience. Even though the score had been lowered, it wasn’t by much, as the judges could still see the designer’s bold vision. Ultimately, the Ou Group got what they wanted—taking first place and signing the commercial contract.

Li Ruixi walked up to Lu Yeyan and whispered, “Yeyan, come with me for a moment.”

Lu Yeyan lowered his eyes and gently patted Yu Zining’s hand. “I’ll be right back.”

He then followed Li Ruixi backstage.

Ou Yucheng watched Lu Yeyan leave. Since He Yilun was currently on stage accepting the award, he seized the opportunity to sit next to Yu Zining. He studied Yu Zining closely, finding the young man’s face suddenly very familiar.

“You… what is your name?”

Yu Zining was startled. Looking at Ou Yucheng’s graying hair, he felt a sudden, inexplicable pang of sympathy.

Yu Zining pulled out his phone and typed three characters: Yu Zining.

Ou Yucheng smiled. “Yu Zining… may I ask where you got this bracelet?”

Yu Zining froze. Just as he was about to respond, Ou Yucheng’s wife, Zheng Xiuying, returned. Seeing the scene, her face darkened for a second before she called out to her husband: “Yucheng!”

She then said with a smile, “Don’t scare Mrs. Lu.”

Ou Yucheng’s expression turned somewhat sour. “Oh, my apologies. I was being rude.”

It was common knowledge that this “Mrs. Lu” had no background, yet was pampered to the extreme by Lu Yeyan. The only pity was that he was a mute.

A flash of pity appeared in Ou Yucheng’s eyes; what a shame that such a person couldn’t speak.

…

Backstage, Li Ruixi’s expression was quite poor.

“Why did you do it?” she asked directly, cutting to the chase.

Lu Yeyan’s eyes darkened, but he remained silent.

Li Ruixi continued, “Yeyan, you know how important this competition is. Why would you take such a risk? What exactly are you plotting?”

Lu Yeyan raised an eyebrow. “Ruixi, sometimes being too smart isn’t a good thing.”

Li Ruixi was stunned. Looking into Lu Yeyan’s eyes—which felt like a dark abyss—she realized she couldn’t see through him. It turned out she had never truly understood the man standing before her.

Suddenly, Li Ruixi threw her arms around Lu Yeyan and said affectionately, “I don’t care what you’re doing. Just remember that I am always by your side. If you just ask, I will help you. So please, give me a place in your life, okay?”

At that exact moment, Yu Zining appeared before them. The event had mostly wrapped up, so he had come backstage to find Lu Yeyan, only to find the two of them in such an intimate position.

Lu Yeyan’s eyes met Yu Zining’s complicated gaze, and he abruptly pushed Li Ruixi away. But Yu Zining had already turned and walked away.

“A-Ning!”

Lu Yeyan chased after him, leaving Li Ruixi standing there with a bitter smile.

“Oh, Madam, why are you out here alone?”

Yu Zining bumped into Shen Ziqi. Shen Ziqi looked at him in surprise, noticing his slightly reddened eyes. “What’s wrong?”

Yu Zining didn’t say a word and got straight into the car. Moments later, a breathless Lu Yeyan rushed out. He glanced at Shen Ziqi and said, “Send Designer Li back.”

Then, he got into the car.

When Li Ruixi finally came out, she only saw the car driving away, her expression turning incredibly grim.

…

Inside the car…

There was an endless silence. Even the driver felt the chilling atmosphere.

Lu Yeyan spoke slowly, “Li Ruixi and I…”

“You don’t need to explain.”

Yu Zining cut him off. He turned his head to lean against the window, signaling he didn’t want to talk.

Lu Yeyan’s brow tightened. He shouted to the front: “Stop the car!”

The startled driver had no choice but to pull over. Lu Yeyan kicked the driver out and took the wheel himself. He accelerated violently, the sudden jerk causing Yu Zining’s head to hit the seat in front of him.

Lu Yeyan drove like a madman, practically drag racing. Yu Zining gripped the handle tightly.

“Lu Yeyan, have you lost your mind?”

Lu Yeyan pressed the accelerator even harder. “I am mad! When it comes to you, I’m always at a complete loss!”

“Where are you going? Can you please calm down?”

Lu Yeyan slammed on the brakes. Due to the momentum, Yu Zining was thrown against the passenger seat again.

Lu Yeyan threw open the door and stepped out. Yu Zining looked around; they were in the outskirts of the city, in a deserted area.

A second later, Lu Yeyan sat down beside Yu Zining again. He stared at him intensely, with an expression Yu Zining couldn’t quite describe.

Lu Yeyan’s brow furrowed. “I can’t calm down. A-Ning, do you remember what I told you in the dressing room?”