Sweet Gardenia - Chapter 28
The phone fell onto the carpet, Lu Zhi’s face flushed from the steam rising from the bathtub.
She mumbled, “What are you talking about…?”
“Just telling the truth.” His hands were still wet, droplets pattering softly onto the fluffy foam with a muffled sound. Fu Yanshang raised his hand and leaned in closer. “Bite me again.”
“…”
Lu Zhi: “Pervert.”
She shifted backward along the edge of the bathtub, but suddenly felt the water surge as she was lifted into the air and placed onto his lap.
Her heart raced in panic. “What are you doing?”
He replied politely, “I’m a little cold. Cover me up.”
Lu Zhi: ?
The speakers were playing “Serenade at Midnight,” the cello melody lingering gracefully in the air. His wrist rested on the edge of the bathtub, and he seemed to be humming along softly.
Lu Zhi was astonished. “You can sing this?”
He leaned back, looking at her with leisurely composure. “In your eyes, am I some unevolved caveman?”
“…”
“You always think I don’t know this or that,” he pinched her earlobe, and she heard him say, “So you always brush me off.”
Lu Zhi felt wronged. “When have I ever brushed you off?”
“All the time.”
“…”
The way he said it gave her the impression that he had noticed every time she’d talked nonsense, but never called her out on it.
Yet, in the misty haze of the bathroom, she couldn’t quite recall what nonsense she had spouted to him.
The sound of him drinking water echoed vividly in her ears. Only after setting the cup down did he speak, his tone casual. “Why are you squirming?”
“I’m not squirming,” she muttered. “I’m uncomfortable…”
“Where are you uncomfortable?”
…
Realizing he had misunderstood, she opened her mouth to explain, but suddenly saw his fingers sink beneath the water, disappearing instantly. “Here? Or here?”
“…”
She couldn’t help but shrink back, but her knee brushed against a piece of fabric. After a long pause, she finally spoke. “Are you… wearing pants?”
“Mm, so you won’t be scared.”
He bent his knee slightly. “Don’t rush. We’ll take it step by step.”
She slid back into her original position, bracing her hands against his chest to keep their bodies from pressing too closely together. “I’m not rushing.”
And besides, your idea of “step by step” seems pretty fast.
He said, “I’m wearing pants. What are you afraid of?”
“But I’m not wearing anything.”
“I know.”
Lu Zhi: ?
Finally unable to hold herself up any longer, her wrists gave way. As their bodies pressed together, she heard him let out a muffled groan. Lu Zhi felt his fingertips, and she nearly sat right onto him.
She braced herself against the edge of the bathtub, trying to push herself up, but in the next moment, his hand lifted to support her.
“Don’t be afraid. Trust me,” he said. “Sit down.”
…
In the airtight space, warm steam swirled around them. She tilted her head back, her brow slightly furrowed, her fingers gripping the edge of the bathtub tightly. A few drops of water dripped from the loosely closed faucet, splashing softly onto the counter. Amid the faint, ethereal strains of the pure instrumental music, she could just barely make out his amused remark: “So good, you can take this much, can’t you?”
It was unclear whether it was praise or teasing.
His other hand pressed against the butterfly bones on her back, as if holding a butterfly poised to take flight.
…………
They had entered the bathroom a little after six. By the time they emerged, it was almost nine.
Lu Zhi felt as though she had been starved into a state of enlightenment.
She was wrapped in a dry bath towel, the ends of her hair damp, and she rolled onto the bed like a snow bun, complaining, “It’s all your fault.”
He pulled out a tissue and gathered her damp hair. “Mm, let me hear what you’re blaming me for this time.”
“…I’m so hungry.”
“I’ll cook in a bit.”
“It’s all because you haven’t called them back yet. Otherwise, we could’ve finished and eaten by now.”
“Finished what?”
“…”
“T-taking a bath,” she said.
And he hadn’t stopped after just once. He had to go for a second round.
Fu Yanshang glanced at her. “Your face is red again.”
Lu Zhi turned her back to him. “Go cook, quick!”
He didn’t press further, withdrawing his hand and asking, “What do you want to eat?”
“Something fast…” She remembered something and sent him the entire list from her saved collection. “I want to eat all of these. Pick one to make.”
“…”
Ever since discovering he could cook, she couldn’t resist saving every food video she came across, and she was becoming increasingly adept at bossing him around.
Once he entered the kitchen, it wasn’t long before she followed. Lu Zhi had slipped on a long white T-shirt and sat on the countertop, snacking while supervising his work.
Too lazy to put on sleep pants, her legs dangled down, looking even paler against the black marble counter. The soft, warm lighting illuminated the delicate texture of her skin, like fine mutton-fat jade displayed in an exhibition, warm, soft, and smooth.
His thoughts drifted back to earlier, the sensation lingering in his palm, even softer than the skin on her legs.
Lu Zhi noticed the pot had been quiet for a while. She nibbled on a potato chip and asked, “Are you even paying attention to the heat?”
He answered honestly, “No.”
“…”
–
After finishing dinner as quickly as possible, Lu Zhi dove into the selection process with Li Siyi.
The game was about to launch officially, and all kinds of promotions needed to be arranged. Aside from the online push resources provided by Huaya, or rather, her husband, offline events also had to be rolled out to build the game’s visibility.
She currently had plans for collaborations with a bubble tea shop and a dessert brand called Fangtang. Additionally, she intended to host an offline meet-and-greet, hiring some cosplayers to interact with female players in the name of the male leads.
Selecting the right people became the top priority.
While out for a walk with Fu Yanshang, Li Siyi called. Lu Zhi gestured for him to take the inner path and answered the phone while lightly kicking at pebbles.
Li Siyi: “I’m screening some profiles now. Any specific requirements? Like height… should they be at least 180 cm?”
Lu Zhi thought about the character settings. “180 cm isn’t enough. They need to be at least 185 cm.”
Fu Yanshang glanced at her.
Li Siyi’s voice was very soft on the other end. Lu Zhi pressed the phone tightly to her ear to barely make out the words.
Li Siyi: “Do they need to be handsome?”
Lu Zhi found the question odd. “Of course they need to be handsome. Who wants to look at unattractive people? But they’ll be wearing masks, so the eyes and brow bones are especially important. Still, if someone is exceptionally good-looking overall, that should take priority.”
“Okay, got it. I think I understand now.”
Lu Zhi: “We’ll divide them into groups later, one for each male lead. Each character has a different style, so we’ll need to consider suits, trench coats, and the like. Their physique matters too.”
“Mm, you decide for now. We’ll make the final selections together later.”
“OK.”
Another gust of wind rustled through the phone, and Lu Zhi only vaguely caught words like “butt” and “perky.”
She didn’t catch it clearly: “What butt?”
Fu Yanshang: “You guys even look at butts?”
“No,” she waved her hand, then heard Li Siyi speak again from the other end and focused intently to listen.
Li Siyi: “It’s just that the players complained that the male lead’s butt in the Christmas card art wasn’t drawn plump enough, so they want us to make it perkier. Should we change it?”
“Oh, I see. Then it’s definitely important. Alright, go ahead and arrange it.”
Fu Yanshang: “…”
After hanging up, there was still a long way to go. She had a feeling there was something she hadn’t finished saying to him, but just as she was trying hard to recall, her attention was caught by a Samoyed approaching from the opposite direction.
The owner was very friendly, and the puppy wagged its tail. She happily bent down to pet it and quickly forgot what she had been about to say.
By the time they got home, it was already very late. She went to bed quickly, while he, as usual, worked beside her. The CEO always had endless documents to sign. As he browsed through them, his pen rested between his index and middle fingers, making his hands appear even more slender. Occasionally, he twirled the pen. Those hands weren’t only agile when typing or signing documents.
Her thoughts began to drift into the bathtub.
Fu Yanshang glanced at her, as if hinting: “Do you have something to say to me?”
She had completely forgotten about the incident during their walk. Quickly pulling the covers over her head, she turned away and replied promptly: “No, let’s just go to sleep.”
“…”
–
Since they had to select people, sifting through the vast pool of candidates inevitably meant working overtime.
Uncle Zong received her message in the afternoon, saying not to wait for her for dinner or to pick her up. But at six o’clock, the Maybach still parked precisely outside the office building.
Uncle Zong: “How long will we have to wait? Madam might not come out until nine.”
Fu Yanshang closed his laptop: “I don’t mind. I’d just be looking at the computer back home anyway.”
“If you can’t wait,” he tilted his head, “I’ll give you the night off. Go back and spend time with your kid?”
…
As they spoke, the automatic door opened, and a line of 185+ cm tall sports students walked out, chatting and laughing, making them quite conspicuous.
Uncle Zong instinctively remarked: “I’ve never seen so many guys around here before. Did some company just hire them?”
Fu Yanshang: “My wife’s company.”
“…”
“All… all of them?”
“They’ll probably select a few,” he tapped lightly on the silver-gray casing, “or maybe they’ll hire more. Who knows?”
Not long after the first group left, a second wave of young male university students dressed in pilot uniforms emerged. Then, within five minutes, actors in suits continued to stream out from behind the door.
“You should head back first,” Fu Yanshang glanced at his watch. “I’ll go take a look.”
…
Lu Zhi had been interviewing all afternoon, her notebook filled with dense records.
Today, they could only roughly assign each male lead to a group, with about five or six people per group. They would later select one from each group.
Li Siyi: “As per your request, I picked out various candidates who meet the requirements from modeling agencies, drama schools, and sports universities. Some couldn’t make it today and will come the day after tomorrow.”
Lu Zhi nodded approvingly: “I trust you to handle things.”
A new wave of interviewees came in. Lu Zhi looked them over one by one. When she reached the last one, before she even looked up, Cheng Shenshen from the front desk leaned over and whispered in her ear: “This one is really handsome!”
The moment she saw the suit, she felt something was off.
The fabric of this suit was distinctly different from any she had seen before, clearly showing traces of exquisite handcrafting. It fit so perfectly it seemed like haute couture, even down to the Adam’s apple…
She looked up: “This…”
Cheng Xinxin: “Right? Isn’t he handsome?”
Lu Zhi: “He’s my husband.”
Cheng Xinxin: ???
Lu Zhi asked: “Why are you standing over there?”
He replied casually: “The receptionist brought me here.”
Cheng Xinxin immediately stood up, instantly flustered: “S-sorry! I saw you in a suit and you didn’t say who you were looking for, so I thought you were… were…”
“It’s fine,” Lu Zhi patted her hand reassuringly, then patted the seat beside her and said to him, “Come sit here.”
Li Siyi, as usual, began asking questions, so she turned and whispered to him: “Is something the matter?”
“Nothing,” he said. “I was just curious about your work process.”
She mulled over his words for a moment but couldn’t decipher their deeper meaning, so she decided to let it go and continued assessing how well each person matched their character design.
Halfway through, she heard him remark nonchalantly beside her: “Good-looking?”
“Not bad.”
After answering instinctively, she paused for a couple of seconds, finding a way out amidst the lurking dangers: “Not as good-looking as you.”
She said seriously: “This is work. Don’t look at me through tinted glasses.”
He replied indifferently, completely unfazed: “I didn’t say anything.”
“…”
After she finished reviewing the attendees for the day, she went out for French food with Fu Yanshang, and the two drove home.
She was a bit tired and fell asleep shortly after getting in the car. She only woke up when a familiar voice called her.
Lowering the car window, Jing Chi waved to greet her.
Fu Yanshang: “What brings you here?”
“Your wife invited me to discuss a collaboration, okay?” Jing Chi leaned in cheekily. “I’m not here for you.”
“…”
In the living room, illustrations and headshot photos of each male lead were spread across the table, complete with corresponding profile cards, favorite foods, and signature elements.
What they needed to discuss was how to design the cake for each male lead, which elements to include and which merchandise to pair with it.
Once the overall framework was set, the rest would be left to the cake designer.
Lu Zhi went into the room to take a call, while Jing Chi stayed outside catching up with Fu Yanshang.
“With so many 2D characters, don’t you feel your status is threatened?”
Fu Yanshang played with a small card in his hand, expressionless, and said lightly: “You’re overthinking it.”
At the same time, Lu Zhi inside the room opened her laptop and asked Li Siyi: “By the way, about that card illustration the players mentioned yesterday, did the artist make the butt perkier?”
…
Jing Chi craned his neck to listen: “Why do I hear them saying inside…”
Fu Yanshang pushed him back: “She has her own work to do. Giving her space is a form of respect.”
After a pause, he drawled: “But someone like you, who’s been sleeping in the study for seven days, probably wouldn’t understand.”
Jing Chi flared up in anger but only managed to fume: “Fine, you’re magnanimous. You don’t care if your wife looks at guys with perky butts.”
“…”
Lu Zhi was busy for three straight days.
It wasn’t until the third day that she finalized the groups, though the selection process became much easier afterward.
Finally free, she remembered that Fu Yanshang had been waiting for her all this time. Feeling unusually charitable, she decided to pick him up for once. It was already past eight, the neon lights reflecting the city that never slept. She sat in the car for ten minutes but still didn’t see him come downstairs.
When Lu Zhi called, the first thing she heard was heavy panting.
She had to admit her mind wandered for a moment before she hesitantly asked, “…Are you still in the office?”
“Yeah,” he replied, still breathing heavily. “Are you here?”
“Yeah…”
She didn’t know what to say next. She wanted to ask something but wasn’t sure how to phrase it.
After a brief pause, his voice came through: “Come up. I’ll be done soon.”
The memory of being carried around and kissed in his office last time was still vivid in her mind. This time, she was more cautious and asked warily, “So what are you… doing right now?”
“Glute workouts.”
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