Chapter 169: Fondness

Wen Wan looked at the girl beside her and smiled sincerely, "Thank you for chatting with me for so long today. I hope you didn't find me annoying."

She rarely met someone she clicked with at first meeting, and spending time with An Tong was a very comfortable experience.

An Tong wasn't the talkative type, nor was she one to pry into others' affairs.

Yet whenever she spoke, she always hit the nail on the head, her words meaningful and precise.

An Tong and Wen Wan parted ways by the roadside. Instead of heading straight home, she strolled leisurely along the pedestrian crossing.

She was debating whether she should go upstairs to find Rong Shen and try to appease him a little.

However, since he hadn't shown any sign of displeasure at noon, would taking the initiative to butter him up and act spoiled make her look too guilty of a troubled conscience?

With this hesitant mindset, An Tong prepared to hail a cab back to Yuefu to sort through her thoughts.

Right on cue, her phone rang.

Ling Qi's brisk voice came through the receiver, "Madam, I'm wandering around the vicinity of Zanzhou Building and I drove here. When are you heading home? I can give you a ride back."

An Tong quietly lowered her arm, which had been raised to hail a taxi, gave her location, and waited for Ling Qi to pick her up.

Perhaps because she had a lot on her mind, she didn't question why Ling Qi happened to be near Zanzhou Building by such coincidence.

Upon returning to Yuefu, An Tong absentmindedly walked into the study. She remembered seeing a psychology book on maintaining romantic relationships on the bookshelf earlier.

Reading it might perhaps be of some help.

...

After half-past six, a commercial vehicle stopped in front of Yuefu's garage.

Hearing the sound, An Tong immediately straightened her posture, assuming a composed and unflustered demeanor, though her peripheral vision constantly monitored the movement outside the floor-to-ceiling windows.

Unsure whether Rong Shen was actually upset about her complimenting Rong Yan, An Tong decided to test the waters indirectly.

She had also considered asking him directly and openly, but what if the Ninth Master hadn't taken it to heart at all? Wouldn't that mean she was confessing unprompted?

Thus, the moment the man stepped in through the foyer, he acutely caught the scent of tea lingering in the air.

He bypassed the entryway and walked to the entrance of the living room, where a brief glance caught sight of An Tong sitting straight-backed before the tea table... brewing tea.

That was a novelty.

A smile lurked in the depths of the man's eyes. Remembering the "story" Cheng Feng had told him on the return trip about a hypothetical girlfriend, the curve of his thin lips deepened significantly.

Hearing footsteps behind her, An Tong put on a smile, turned her head, and asked, "Ninth Master, would you like some tea?"

Rong Shen walked over with steady strides, his gaze falling upon her delicate face, easily capturing the flattering, ingratiating look concealed beneath her facade of calm.

Otherwise, the young girl rarely took the initiative to call him 'Ninth Master'.

"Aren't you starting school tomorrow? How do you have the leisure to sit here and brew tea?"

The man walked up to her side, curled his index finger to stroke her cheek, but did not sit down.

The crystal chandelier overhead cast a bright, glaring light.

Looking up at Rong Shen, An Tong was momentarily dazed, unable to read his expression against the light. "I've packed everything, I can just take it with me tomorrow morning. Do you want some tea?"

She pressed further. Bending down, the man picked up the celadon cup beside her hand, brought it to his nose to sniff, took a small sip, and seemed to savor the lingering fragrance of the tea.

Just as An Tong waited for his critique, Rong Shen put the teacup back down, patted her head, and said, "Don't drink too much, we'll be having dinner soon."

An Tong's mouth remained half-open as she watched the man's retreating figure heading toward the stairs, her heart fluttering anxiously.

Whenever he drank her tea in the past, he would always offer pointers on things like controlling the water temperature or the tea-rinsing procedure.

Tonight... he said nothing at all.

An Tong scratched her head, then tugged at her collar several times. With quite a few fidgety gestures, she looked completely at a loss.

Therefore, she missed the sight of the man on the stairs glancing back slightly at her, nor did she notice the meaningful, amused smile playing on his handsome, leisurely face.

An Tong was depressed.

That kind of frustration born purely from not knowing what was going on.

She didn't know whether she was just overthinking or something else, but she genuinely felt that Rong Shen had been acting abnormally tonight.

During dinner, everything was as usual.

They exchanged a few remarks occasionally, but spent most of the time eating in silence.

Clearly, it was no different from any other day, yet the atmosphere was inexplicably stifling.

Until eight o'clock in the evening, when the man walked into the study and closed the door.

An Tong finally caught on and arrived at a conclusion:

—The Ninth Master was blowing hot and cold with her.

An Tong had little idea how to handle relationship troubles.

Nor did she have anyone around who could act as a strategist.

The only person she had considered, Eldest Sister Rong Xian, currently... still hadn't unblocked her phone number.

Feeling out of her depth, An Tong paced back and forth outside the study door a few times before pattering her way downstairs.

Inside the study, separated by a single door, the man sat leisurely in his executive chair, holding a cigarette between his fingers and exhaling smoke at a leisurely pace.

He looked like a hunter who had secured victory, laying out an inescapable net and waiting solely for the little white rabbit to walk right into it.

Sure enough, five minutes later, the door was softly rapped.

Hearing the man tell her to enter, An Tong turned the doorknob, poked her head inside, and peered in. "Are you busy?"

Rong Shen appeared to be looking at his computer, and a faint scent of smoke lingered in the room.

Hearing her voice, he leaned back against the chair, raising his dark eyebrows slightly as he asked her, "Not particularly. Looking for me?"

An Tong pressed her lips together. In the past, he would have said... not busy.

Thinking this, she pushed the door open and walked in, holding a steaming cup of black tea in her left hand. "No special reason. I just brewed some black tea, so I brought you a cup."

The corners of the man's mouth curved up imperceptibly. He took the cup, acknowledged it with a hum, and shifted his gaze back to the computer screen.

An Tong: "..."

She felt like she had been left out in the cold.

In truth, bringing him tea was just an excuse. Not long ago, when they had first gotten together, the memory of how he would pull her onto his lap and hold her even while conducting video conferences was still vivid in her mind.

She had come over with the tea harboring that exact expectation.

Yet Rong Shen seemed to have no such intention.

Realizing this, An Tong's mood instantly plummeted to the bottom.

Swallowing hard, she turned around, and a despondent voice slowly sounded, "Then I'm going to bed. If you're too busy tomorrow, you don't have to drive me to school. I can go by mys—"

Before she could finish, her wrist felt warm, and she was instantly yanked to his side by the man's formidable strength.

By the time she regained her senses, Rong Shen had wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her onto his lap.

A myriad of emotions washed over An Tong. Having finally secured her desired spot in the man's arms, her agitation instantly settled quite a bit.

After all, he had given her the 'cold shoulder' all evening.

With his left hand circling the girl's slender waist, Rong Shen gazed down with deep, profound eyes at her crestfallen face. Sensing the timing was right, he coaxed her in a low, gentle voice, "Being busy won't stop me from taking you to school."

An Tong glanced at him and cut straight to the point, "I thought you were upset, and didn't want to take me anymore."

The man's palm caressed the side of her waist as he asked with guided enticement, "Upset about what?"

"I said Rong Yan looked good..."

Rong Shen nodded smoothly and naturally, "Mhm, number six is indeed the best-looking man of this generation in the Rong family."

An Tong was grateful she wasn't a fool; she naturally heard the sarcasm in those words.

Combining this with the perspective-shifting exercise she had put herself through earlier, she took the initiative to wrap her arms around the man's neck and offered a sweet remark, "No matter how good-looking he is, it has nothing to do with me. I only like you."