Su Hao had not expected him to pull a stunt like this.

 

She reflexively stepped back, almost dropping the phone in her hand that still carried his body heat.
“You… what are you doing?”

 

Zhou Yang glanced at his own legs. He really had knelt down without any warning. He took the cigarette out of his mouth, looked up at her, and said,

 

“I never planned to hide it from you.”

 

Su Hao remembered the messages he had sent on WeChat while pretending to be Zhang Xinhua — those confessions.

 

Every single line struck straight into her heart.

 

I fell in love with a girl who came back to Jiang City.

 

Her face flushed. Just as she was about to speak—

 

At that moment, a group of people who had clearly been waiting for a long time rushed over, holding roses and balloons. The moment they saw Zhou Yang kneeling, they all froze.

 

Li Yi, who was leading the filming, clicked his tongue twice and hurried over, shoving the camera straight at Zhou Yang’s face.

 

Su Hao was stunned. She subconsciously punched Zhou Yang on the shoulder.

 

“Get up!”

 

She was a little anxious and even kicked him lightly. So many people were holding up their phones and cameras, and there were crowds everywhere.

 

Only then did she realize—they were still on the street.

 

With her head lowered, she kept hitting him. Zhou Yang grabbed both of her hands and pulled her into his arms, pressing her head against his chest. Then he stood up, turned smoothly, and pinned her against the car door.

 

Cameras.

 

People.

 

Roses.

 

Su Hao lowered her head desperately.

 

Zhou Yang pinched a strand of her hair, slid his fingers down her cheek, then lifted her chin and forced her face up.

 

She struggled in panic, her eyes flustered and glistening.

 

In a low voice, he said,
“You should be my girlfriend now, right? Hmm?”

 

As soon as the words fell, he lowered his head and sealed her lips, his tongue slipping inside.

 

Su Hao instinctively leaned backward, her back pressed tightly against the car door. His hand moved from her chin to cradle half of her face, the other hand braced beside her cheek. He tilted his head and kissed her deeply.

 

The mint flavor on his tongue was strong. She tried to dodge a few times, but he coaxed her back in.

 

The scene was captured by the camera.

 

Her softness and his dominance were painfully obvious.

 

He did not only kiss her. He caressed her as well—his hand sliding along her arm, downwards, gently pulling the hand that was gripping the hem of her dress and holding it tightly.

 

At the same time, her phone slipped from her hand and fell to the ground.

 

The screen was still lit.

 

By coincidence, it was paused on that very sentence:

 

“Actually, I fell in love with a girl who returned to Jiang City.”

 

Su Hao could not even remember how she got home.

 

She carried a huge bouquet of roses in her arms. After entering, she set the flowers down on the sofa and went straight into the bathroom.

 

Cheng Ling was watching TV. When she saw this, she froze, then immediately looked delighted. The roses were gorgeous, symbolic of love.

 

“Su Hao, who sent these?” Cheng Ling put down the remote and walked over.

 

The bathroom door rang twice.

 

Su Hao looked at herself in the mirror—her face flushed red from the kisses. She finally came back to her senses.

 

“A friend sent them,” she said.

 

She had not figured out how to tell her mother yet.

 

“A friend? What kind of friend? The flowers are so pretty. I’ll find a vase for them.”

 

Smiling happily, Cheng Ling went to the balcony to get a vase.

 

As she opened the wrapping, three brocade boxes fell out and rolled onto the coffee table.

 

She froze and called out,
“Su Hao, there’s something inside the flowers.”

 

Su Hao splashed water on her face. When the towel brushed the corner of her lips, it stung slightly.

 

She leaned closer to the mirror.

 

She had been bitten and the skin was broken.

 

That man really was like a dog.

 

She wiped her neck, hung up the towel, and walked out.

 

On the coffee table were three small boxes.

 

“They were stuffed inside the flowers,” Cheng Ling said.

 

“You didn’t notice? They almost fell to the floor.”

 

“No.” Su Hao walked over.

 

She had rushed upstairs earlier. Her face and neck were still red. Under all that teasing and cheering, she had wanted to disappear on the spot.

 

Zhou Yang had carried the flowers upstairs and shoved them into her hands at the door. He had even tried to kiss her again, but she dodged and pushed him away.

 

She picked up the first box and opened it.

 

A black card fell out.

 

The second box contained a necklace.

 

The third, a bracelet.

 

Cheng Ling stared.
“A card? What kind of card is that?”

 

Su Hao used to handle finances at Fei Festival. She recognized Zhou Yang’s black card. The money inside was directly linked to his account—meaning she could use his money freely, with no limit.

 

She closed the box and said softly,
“It’s just a normal card.”

 

“A bank card?” Cheng Ling asked.

 

Su Hao wanted to say it was a shopping card, but she was afraid her mother would really go use it.

 

So she said,
“No. It’s a membership card for some place. You wouldn’t be able to use it anyway, Mom.”

 

“Oh. I thought it looked like a credit card. Who gives someone a credit card when they’re courting them?”

 

Cheng Ling relaxed and pushed the jewelry boxes toward her.

 

“They’re pretty, but they look expensive. Are you going to accept them?”

 

Su Hao coughed lightly, closed the boxes, and said,
“I’ll think about it. Mom, I’m going back to my room.”

 

She took the three boxes and went inside.

 

Cheng Ling replied cheerfully,
“Alright, I’ll arrange the flowers.”

 

For a long time after coming to Li City, Su Hao’s love life had been completely blank.

 

Before moving here, every time the topic came up in Jiang City, Cheng Ling would get nervous and worried.

 

But now, seeing this, she realized Su Hao was still loved by someone.

 

She felt relieved.

 

Back in her room, Su Hao put the boxes on the desk and picked up her phone.

 

Zhou Yang had sent several messages.

 

But more than that—

 

Videos of him kneeling were all over her WeChat Moments.

 

Li Yi: The kneel may be late, but it never fails to show up.
Video.

 

Xu Dian: Hahahaha, he was scared into kneeling!
Video.

 

Lu Qi: May I secretly laugh?
Video.

 

Yun Lü: Hahahahahaha, let me laugh for a moment.
Video.

 

Jiang Yu: Who was it that swore he would never kneel?
Video.

 

Zeng Xiao: Let me repost too. Men’s knees are priceless, but in front of your wife, your life matters more.
Video.

 

Liu Yan: Zhou Yang, you got slapped in the face.
Video.

 

As if planned, her entire feed was filled with that video.

 

Because she had kept her head down, they had not filmed her face. Only Zhou Yang holding her slender, fair hand was visible. Even just her hand was enough to make people imagine how beautiful she must be.

 

She opened the chat.

 

Zhou Yang: What time are you sleeping?

 

Zhou Yang: Hmm?

 

Zhou Yang: Wife.

 

Su Hao: Why is your video everywhere in my feed?

 

Zhou Yang: Tsk. A bunch of people watching the show.

 

Su Hao: Aren’t you embarrassed?

 

Zhou Yang: For you? What’s there to be embarrassed about? Xu Dian was way more miserable when he knelt. Mine was nothing.

 

Su Hao: …Weren’t you scared into kneeling?

 

Zhou Yang: ……

 

She stared at the six dots. He was actually proud.

 

Zhou Yang: Working tomorrow?

 

Su Hao: Yeah.

 

Zhou Yang: Dinner tonight.

 

Su Hao: Okay.

 

Zhou Yang: Wife, I can’t sleep.

 

Su Hao: I can.

 

Zhou Yang: ……

 

Su Hao: Why did you give me that card? I don’t want it.

 

Zhou Yang: Just keep it. Even if you don’t use it. You manage the money at home.

 

Su Hao: ……

 

After those days of chatting nonstop, talking like this on WeChat now felt natural.

 

Life still had to go on. Work still had to continue.

 

But lying in bed, Su Hao felt something extra in her heart—something like attachment, and something like peace.

 

She hugged the quilt, turned over, and fell asleep.

 

The next morning, she heard Cheng Ling humming in the bathroom.

 

She paused, then kept brushing her teeth. The more she brushed, the gentler her expression became.

 

After breakfast, she went to work.

 

At the office, Qiqi stood at the door waving her phone.

 

“Look!”

 

The video played.

 

Red everywhere. A long line of luxury cars covered in balloons and roses. Every car had the name “Su Hao” written on it. The drivers were all handsome men, like a wedding convoy.

 

Then the camera zoomed in on a towering Hummer.

 

A tall man was kneeling in front of Su Hao.

 

“Is he proposing?” Qiqi asked enviously.

 

“No.”

 

“What? This is just him pursuing you?! Damn…”

 

“How did he suddenly kneel when you opened the car door?”

 

Su Hao remembered his expression and smiled.

 

Qiqi laughed loudly.
“Men are all the same. When they panic, they kneel to survive!”

 

At six in the evening, Zhou Yang called.

 

“I’m at your office gate.”

 

“Okay.”

 

He laughed softly. “Busy?”

 

“Yeah. You’re not throwing money around today, are you?”

 

“…I can’t beat you. I won’t.”

 

She felt a strange sense of achievement.

 

After work, she walked out and saw him leaning against a Bentley, tall and elegant.

 

He took her hand and led her into the passenger seat.

 

Before driving off, he leaned over and kissed the corner of her lips.

 

“It’s not a dream.”

 

Later, at the restaurant on the 53rd floor, she asked nervously,

 

“You… wouldn’t know my…?”

 

He leaned closer and smiled lazily.

 

“B, right?”

 

Her face instantly burned.

 

When the phone rang during dessert, she answered.

 

It was Tang Rui’s father.

 

“Good girl… could you come see Tang Rui? He’s sick and in the hospital.”

 

Su Hao paused, then replied softly,

 

“Okay, Uncle Tang.”

 

Zhou Yang clenched his jaw and looked at her.