Su Yicen understood that Song Chan did not want to put him in a difficult position.
But she did not know that no matter what he had going on, as long as it conflicted with something involving her, none of it seemed all that important.
Song Chan’s temperament and personality had long been figured out by Su Yicen, and he knew exactly how to handle her rejections.
Since she liked to talk about rules, he would bring up the contract stipulations.
They had made the secret marriage agreement back then precisely to deal with their families pressuring them to get married, so putting on an affectionate show in front of their families was a clause that had to be followed.
Sure enough, as soon as he mentioned the contract, she went quiet.
Song Chan held Su Yicen’s phone cradled in her palms, the device still retaining the warmth from his body. On the pristine screen, devoid of fingerprints, her delicate and fair little face was reflected.
No matter what, a phone was a very private item. Su Yicen had suddenly shoved his phone into her hands, leaving Song Chan somewhat at a loss.
She secretly glanced over. Su Yicen, who was driving, was fully focused on the traffic and road conditions ahead and did not notice her peeking.
It was already a small request to ask him for a favor and have him post a message on her behalf. If she refused again, it would really be too rude.
Song Chan blinked her eyes, shifting her gaze back to the phone screen. It looked like she would have to send the message to Feng Zheng herself.
Her finger pressed the power button, and she input the lock screen password.
【0622】
Once the blurred lock screen unlocked, everything on Su Yicen’s phone was fully exposed to her eyes.
To Su Yicen, the phone was just a communication tool. Default wallpaper, default icons, default font—everything remained exactly as it had come from the factory.
There were not many apps on his phone, all neatly arranged on the home screen and even categorized by function and color scheme.
Compared to her own phone with its cute icons and flashy customized wallpapers, Su Yicen’s home screen was so clean and orderly that it seemed almost obsessive-compulsive.
Song Chan still felt a bit embarrassed. Her fingertip hovered in front of the screen, hesitating to tap into WeChat.
She always felt that tapping in would be prying into Su Yicen’s privacy.
The man’s clear, cold voice came out a little husky as he softly asked her,
“Can’t find WeChat?”
“It’s not that.”
With his question, Song Chan’s hand hovering over the WeChat icon finally tapped down.
Su Yicen’s WeChat chat list was just as clean as his phone’s home screen. There were not many contacts in total, all remarked with name plus occupation—Feng Zheng was easy to find.
But Song Chan’s gaze was drawn to the only pinned chat box at the top, captivated by its remark.
【Chanchan (Heart)】
He had saved her with her little nickname, followed by a prominent big red heart.
That heart-adorned nickname remark stood out awkwardly among all the business-like ones.
Song Chan stared in a daze because the remark was so eye-catching that it was impossible to ignore.
They hit a red light, and he brought the car to a steady stop. Su Yicen turned sideways, his gaze landing on her.
He asked her again, “Don’t know what to say?”
Song Chan did not answer. She truly did not know how to broach it.
Seeing her expression, Su Yicen understood. “I’ll teach you.”
Su Yicen spoke slowly, accommodating her typing speed.
When he first spoke, Song Chan was still lost in that heart icon and had not snapped out of it. Once she reacted, she began typing into the input box.
It was a simple sentence, not many words, but sent in his tone.
The feeling was truly a bit wondrous.
After sending the message to Feng Zheng, Song Chan exited the chat interface. Seeing the heart on the remark again, she could not resist tapping in.
More attention-grabbing than the remark was the background image hidden in the chat interface.
Su Yicen had specially set the chat background to the photo Feng Zheng had taken of them during that live stream.
Song Chan still remembered that day when she had wanted to look at that photo, only for Su Yicen to snatch her phone away and delete it.
And now, she finally got to see that photo—in the chat interface between him and her.
It was not until she saw the photo that Song Chan finally understood why Feng Zheng had said their poses looked just like a deep, affectionate gaze from an idol drama.
She had been looking up at him while he looked down at her, the moment frozen by the photo—it really did invite all sorts of romantic imaginings.
Song Chan asked him, “You didn’t delete this photo?”
Su Yicen showed no panic at having his thoughts discovered and simply nodded lightly.
“It’s perfect as a chat background.”
His perfectly justified answer irked Song Chan, and she inexplicably blurted out,
“Then why don’t you set one for Feng Zheng?”
Su Yicen curved his lips and turned his head toward her, countering with a question.
“Miss Song, what do you think?”
Her heart pounded fiercely. That hazy veil in her heart seemed to grow clearer and clearer, fully exposing his feelings right in front of her.
She still could not hold back from asking.
“Su Yicen, do you like me?”
Su Yicen chuckled helplessly. He had been so obvious, yet she still had not realized it.
“Chanchan, you’re really… so dense…”
He did not give a direct answer, but the impact of that tacit admission was more intense than any explicit response.
Sure enough, she had not guessed wrong.
Her heart skipped a beat with a thud, though what followed was even more panic.
Song Chan had received countless confessions growing up. She had been moved before and liked others before, but she had rejected far more.
Yet in all those choices and decisions, she had never once linked herself with Su Yicen.
Song Chan was never one to force herself, especially when it came to feelings. And right now, she was still unclear on just what her emotions toward Su Yicen were.
That layer of window paper, now pierced, seemed to let in a draft, making her heart tremble.
Song Chan felt troubled and did not know how to speak up.
“But I…”
Su Yicen turned back to look at her. His cold eyes softened completely whenever they met hers. The hand gripping the steering wheel slowly tightened, the bulging veins a testament to his determination.
This time, Su Yicen spoke with particular seriousness—a promise to Song Chan.
“You don’t need to be nervous or rush. I never force you.”
“So, don’t be afraid.”
“We’ll just get along as normal.”
Song Chan only felt her head still dizzy, yet something in her heart seemed to take root and sprout.
They remained silent the entire way until they got home.
After showering, Song Chan sat cross-legged on the bed and wrapped herself entirely in the blanket, only her head poking out.
Perhaps it was because Zhou Qining had brought up their childhood today, or perhaps because that person’s feelings had been thoroughly seen through by her.
She kept recalling the scenes of her past encounters with Su Yicen, though the images in her memories had grown somewhat blurry.
Before getting their marriage certificate, Song Chan recalled seeing Su Yicen only three times, with the deepest impression from their first meeting.
That had been nearly twenty years ago. She was seven, and Su Yicen was eight.
Song Chan still remembered how Xu Wan had told her that day that she was taking her to meet a brother who shared her birthday.
Having reached seven without ever meeting someone who shared her birthday, Song Chan was full of curiosity about this mysterious brother. With eager anticipation, she dressed up carefully to go see him.
That day, she wore her favorite princess dress, her hair tied into little buns like flower buds, bouncing along behind Xu Wan.
Su Yicen’s mother, Su He, was a pure and beautiful woman, soft-spoken and gentle. Her soft hand lightly touched Song Chan’s face, her fondness fully evident in her eyes.
As they spoke, she pulled out a little fatty from behind her. He was quite tall, a whole head taller than Song Chan.
His school uniform was worn neatly, covering his round belly. A red scarf was tied around his neck, and there were three bars on his sleeve denoting his position.
Xu Wan called out to her, “Chanchan, greet him. This is Cen Cen Brother—he shares your birthday.”
Hearing that, Song Chan’s joy was fully displayed on her face. She blinked her sparkling eyes and approached the little fatty Su Yicen, boldly extending her hand and saying generously,
“Cen Cen Brother, hi!”
“I’m Chanchan. My mom says Chan is Greedy Mouth’s Greedy. It’s a bit hard to write, but if you don’t know how, I can teach you…”
The little fatty had a stern face, already carrying the unsmiling demeanor of an old cadre at such a young age.
His voice was a bit cold as he answered seriously and methodically, though he seemed reluctant to say even that much.
“I’m Su Yicen.”
Before her eyes was the little fatty with his icy expression, and in her ears were the two mothers constantly talking about ‘fate.’
Song Chan was still young back then and did not understand what the adults meant by ‘fate.’
Her gaze stayed fixed on Su Yicen’s face as she curiously observed him, staring so intently that she could hardly look away, tilting her head up at his chubby little face.
Song Chan took the initiative. “Cen Cen Brother, did you know? We share the same birthday. It’s my first time meeting someone I can celebrate with on the same day.”
What responded to her was only silence.
Song Chan did not understand why this little fatty, clearly just a child, always had such a stern face, looking like a boring adult.
After a long quiet moment, seeing him still holding a textbook and reading, the little girl finally could not hold back. Her tender little finger poked the little fatty’s chubby cheek as she asked seriously,
“Cen Cen Brother, aren’t you a kid?”
“Why do you have such a cold face like an adult? You really look just like my grandpa!”
“My grandpa is a university professor just like my dad. Whenever he puts on a cold face, all the big brothers and sisters get scared and sit up straight…”
The little girl chattered on endlessly at his side while the little fatty sat quietly beside her, reading his book.
A bright smile bloomed on her face. The little girl was very talkative and could go on from one topic to another, while the little fatty slowly set down the textbook in his hands. His dark, bright eyes looked only at her.
From birth, the little fatty had been saddled with his grandfather’s high expectations. As the future heir to the Su Corporation, he had been raised to be far more mature than his peers, handling everything rigidly and methodically, with no childishness left.
What the little girl did not know was that she was the first to tell the little fatty that he was a child and that he should smile and be happy.
In the end, Song Chan’s endless chatter was interrupted by Su Yicen. It was the first time he had called someone by a nickname, and though he felt a bit nervous, he still spoke bluntly without reading the room.
“Chanchan…”
“You’re a bit noisy. You’re disturbing my studying.”
Su Yicen watched as the smile on Song Chan’s face gradually faded. She pouted and burst into loud tears.
“Mommy, Cen Cen Brother is bullying me…”
That day, when he made her cry, Su Yicen clearly panicked. At a loss, he followed the adults in coaxing her, steadying his voice to apologize to her softly and gently.
Her first impression of Su Yicen was that he was a boring little fatty who did not know how to smile, forever rigid and mature like an adult.
But by the time they parted that day, Su Yicen had finally opened up. He softly called her ‘Chanchan’ and even accompanied her in playing rock climbing—a game he was not good at—carefully and cautiously following behind her to protect her.
Recalling up to this point, Song Chan could not help but laugh, a sudden warmth blooming in her heart.
It was a warm feeling brought to her by that little fatty from many years ago, now gradually faded into the depths of her memories.
A steady knock sounded, lightly rapping on Song Chan’s door.
She responded from the bed, and Su Yicen pushed the door open, leaning his body against the doorframe.
He had just showered, and his hair was still undried, messy strands clinging to his head with water droplets occasionally dripping down.
His expression carried the laziness of someone fresh out of the shower, a white bathrobe tied at his waist—purely at-home attire.
The little girl back then probably never imagined that the boring little fatty who did not know how to smile would one day shed his youthful shell to become the top idol leading the entertainment circle. Nor would she have imagined that she would become his legal partner.
Song Chan looked up at Su Yicen, her eyes lingering on him as she unconsciously zoned out.
Unknowingly, their relationship had become this intimate. The taboos from the beginning were long gone, replaced by complete openness of body and soul.
Her body was wrapped in the blanket with only her head poking out, and the hand clutching the edge of the blanket was slick with a layer of fine, dense sweat.
She had just been about to ask what he was here for when she heard him speak softly from the doorway, asking her,
“Tomorrow, we’re going to Auntie’s house.”
“What time should we leave home?”