50 ☪ Hot Romance 50
◎Does Chanchan like being on top?◎
When she met his eager gaze, his hand had already climbed onto her ankle, gripping it tightly in his palm and kneading it with restless, not-too-light pressure.
A tingling numbness spread from her ankle, crawling tinglingly up her entire body.
Song Chan felt that she hadn’t been wrong at all just now.
He really was a dog! A real dog!
Su Yicen arched his brow slightly, his gaze locked on her as he spoke in a tone laced with reminder.
“Teacher Song, how do you plan to deal with me?”
The hand at her ankle had already begun sliding upward.
Early in the morning, he started this teasing provocation, so Song Chan didn’t even have to worry about jet lag wrecking her body when she got to Paris.
At this rate, she wouldn’t even make it to Paris before her body gave out.
Song Chan reached the end of her patience and kicked lightly at his body, breaking free from the hand gripping her ankle.
“Su Yicen, if I don’t move, you stay still too.”
“I have things to do, don’t…”
As she spoke, she turned her back to him, intending to get up and work on her PPT.
Before she finished, the man stuck to her again, pulling her into his arms.
The air conditioning blanket draped lightly over them, and between their closely pressed bodies, the even thinner sleepwear became as good as nothing amid their mingling body heat.
Su Yicen drew in a breath, and the warm exhale brushed ambiguously over Song Chan’s ear, stirring an itch through her hair.
The arm confining her didn’t loosen its grip in the slightest.
With half-closed eyes, his sleepy, lazy voice slowly spoke.
“Then let’s just cuddle.”
Her arms were pinned by his strong hold, leaving Song Chan unable to move.
“Loosen up a bit. I’m not going to run.”
He nuzzled lightly into her neck, his chin resting on the soft flesh of her shoulder.
“Alright then, you won’t run.”
“You won’t… leave me…”
With no other choice, Song Chan sensed that Su Yicen was especially clingy today, like a little beast licking its wounds, looking all pitiful.
She agreed, following his words. “Okay, I won’t leave you.”
The embrace around her body fell silent for a long while before finally easing its grip slightly.
Song Chan asked him, “Su Yicen, do you have something on your mind today?”
In response to her question, he unusually didn’t answer right away.
After a moment of silence, listening to the man’s steady breathing behind her, Song Chan even wondered if he had fallen asleep.
He finally spoke softly, uttering just two faint words, brushing it off lightly.
“It’s nothing…”
His words dropped like a stone into the deep sea, not loud, yet they stirred waves in Song Chan’s heart.
She had never seen Su Yicen like this, and an inexplicable pang of heartache welled up in her.
“If something’s wrong, you can tell me…”
“Really, it’s nothing.”
As expected of the double-award Film Emperor, Su Yicen switched emotions in a flash. He spoke in a light, upbeat tone, his gaze falling on her phone screen.
This was the first time he had been the one to change the subject.
“Your colleague is urging you.”
The reminder made Song Chan remember Qian Ya, whom she had shoved to the back of her mind.
She had a half-finished PPT for the Pure White Series right on her computer; a few tweaks and it would be ready.
Her fingers flew across the screen, and in no time, Song Chan whipped up a decent PPT and sent it to Qian Ya.
In response to Qian Ya’s screen full of thanks, Song Chan replied with a winking kitten emoji.
She had just exited the chat when the man behind her asked.
“Chanchan, when are you going to change my contact name?”
Contact name? Song Chan’s gaze fell on her phone screen. In her pinned messages, ‘Next-Door Neighbor’ did stand out glaringly.
At some point, Su Yicen had picked up the habit of peeking at other people’s phones.
Trapped in his embrace, she couldn’t break free, so she just flipped the phone face-down on the bed.
She replied firmly, “Not changing it!”
“Not changing?”
Su Yicen seized Song Chan’s wrist, his grip firm enough to hold her but not hurt her.
He spoke playfully, his warm breaths teasing the nape of her neck.
“Given our relationship…”
“Are you insisting on sleeping with me before you’ll change it?”
His hawk-like eyes lifted at the corners, the deep pupils shimmering darkly. The gaze he fixed on her seemed to see right through her.
Song Chan had ultimately underestimated the thickness of his skin.
She twisted her wrist to break free, but with a slight tightening from him, she couldn’t budge, her fair skin reddening under his grasp.
Helpless, Song Chan gave up struggling and tried to reason with words.
“Su Yicen, stop flaunting your looks. Can’t you be a little reserved?”
The one being scolded didn’t ease his grip and countered instead.
“Does Chanchan like being on top?”
Whoosh—
Instant understanding hit like a bomb exploding in Song Chan’s head.
What bold words! And he tossed them out so casually.
Su Yicen’s tone wasn’t threatening; it softened.
“If Teacher Song won’t change it, shall we give it a try?”
Seeing his seductive display, the worry from earlier instantly vanished from Song Chan’s mind.
Unable to provoke him, she gave in. “Fine, I’ll change it! I’ll change it!”
Vicious dog, pervert, beast, hypocrite…
She thought of many fitting descriptors, but worried others might see, Song Chan finally changed ‘Next-Door Neighbor’ to ‘Peacock in Full Display’.
Handsome, sassy, and not quite human!
It perfectly matched Su Yicen’s image in front of her—spot on.
She changed it on the sly and didn’t let him see.
Su Yicen asked, “What did you change it to?”
Still covering the phone, Song Chan cleverly replied.
“Something that suits you perfectly and expresses your place in my heart.”
He planted a gentle, lingering kiss behind her ear.
The action didn’t go further; with restrained forbearance, he simply held her quietly, inhaling her scent as he drifted off to sleep.
The exhaustion from last night seeped into her body, and listening to the man’s steady breathing behind her, Song Chan unknowingly took a nap.
She slept soundly, the fatigue and soreness mostly chased away.
Until the phone ring jolted her awake.
Song Chan rubbed her eyes and reached for the buzzing phone on the bedside table.
The screen’s glare made her squint.
But when she saw the caller ID, Song Chan wondered if she was dreaming.
【Grandpa Su】
Besides Su Dingran, who else could Grandpa Su be?
Her foggy brain cleared instantly. She usually visited the old Su Family estate with Su Yicen driving her there.
Though she had his number for a while, this was one of the rare times Su Dingran called her directly.
Wondering what it was about, she glanced over and saw Su Yicen was no longer beside her.
Song Chan patted her cheeks lightly to force herself more awake before answering.
As always when they met, she greeted Su Dingran sweetly.
“Grandpa, is something wrong?”
“Yes, there is.”
Su Dingran’s voice was steady and deep, different from his usual tone—clearly more serious.
He asked, “Is Yicen not with you?”
Hearing his serious question, Song Chan didn’t dare be careless. Facing this titan who had dominated the business world for years made her a bit tense.
She replied cautiously, “Grandpa, Yicen isn’t here. Are you looking for him…?”
Before she finished, Su Dingran cut her off.
“I’m not looking for him. Grandpa’s looking for you.”
“For me?” Song Chan was puzzled.
The old man on the other end seemed unable to hold back his emotions, sighing as his tone grew noticeably more aged.
He probed, “Chanchan, did Yicen tell you what today is?”
Song Chan’s mind raced, her voice hesitant.
“Today… Grandpa, I don’t know…”
The elder sighed again, his tone full of difficulty.
“It seems… that boy doesn’t want to tell you…”
“Grandpa, what’s today?” Song Chan asked, confused.
Suddenly, something occurred to her, though she wasn’t sure.
It seemed around this time of year that Su Yicen’s parents had died in a plane crash.
After hesitating, Su Dingran on the other end decided to tell her.
“Today is the death anniversary of Yicen’s parents…”
Who would have thought this legendary elder, who built a business empire in Hangbei, would struggle so much to speak to a young girl.
“If possible…”
“Grandpa hopes you can keep him company.”
Only in front of Song Chan could Su Dingran drop his facade.
He said, “Yicen seems cold and unapproachable, but his heart is more delicate than anyone’s—like his mother’s…”
It was the first time she heard Su Dingran praise Su Yicen so much.
Unfortunately, given what she knew of the grandfather and grandson, such words would probably never reach each other’s ears directly.
‘No wonder he acted so strangely this morning.’
Song Chan murmured inwardly, understanding Su Yicen’s off mood today.
Knowing Su Dingran’s intentions, she agreed without hesitation.
“Don’t worry, Grandpa. I’ll keep him company.”
After hanging up, Song Chan searched the house but didn’t find him.
Guessing Su Yicen was probably already on the way, she called him—for Grandpa’s sake, and because she didn’t want him alone.
He always picked up quickly; the line connected after not even two rings.
Song Chan asked, “Su Yicen, where are you?”
He replied in a low voice, “Something came up.”
No beating around the bush, she said bluntly, “I know everything.”
“Mm.”
Su Yicen’s response was an emotionless hum.
She pressed, “Where are you? I’ll come find you.”
“No need.”
Su Yicen’s words were casual and light.
“You’re not afraid, are you? I’ve been fine alone all these years—I’m used to it.”
Song Chan knew the “you’re afraid” he meant was probably something she had said as a child.
She knew he had been absent from her growth for too long, so he remembered especially clearly the things between them from those meetings.
Even if she had long forgotten them, those bits and pieces stayed etched in his heart.
“Su Yicen, I’m grown up now—an adult…”
“Besides, you’re not alone anymore, are you?”
With those simple words, Song Chan made her stance clear.
She added, “Come pick me up then.”
“I want to go with you to visit Uncle and Aunt.”
This time, Su Yicen didn’t refuse. After a long silence,
He replied, “Okay.”
Hangbei Cemetery sat on the hillside at the border between Hangbei Suburban District and neighboring Hangnan City.
It was far from Hermitage Splendor Residence, even farther from the Su Family’s suburban estate—like opposite ends of the city.
So far that Song Chan only passed by during business trips, never imagining she’d one day enter to pay respects to the departed.
She knew little about Su Yicen’s parents.
Though she had met them a few times as a child, the impressions had faded from her memory.
Song Chan vaguely recalled his mother as a gentle aunt with very fair skin, shoulder-length hair, and smiling eyes curved just so—a face even kids would like.
Unlike other adults who ruffled her hair casually, she would squat down to Song Chan’s level, cupping her face gently with soft, pale hands and praising how pretty she was.
In Song Chan’s hazy memory, she had liked that aunt.
But she never imagined one day developing this kind of relationship with her son.
Along the way, the car drove steadily, and Su Yicen was unusually quiet even in her company.
His hand rested on the steering wheel, eyes fixed straight ahead on the road, his dark gaze indifferent.
Song Chan finally understood why, with filming in Paris imminent, Su Yicen—a man who never knew fatigue—insisted on taking two days off first.
After passing the last elevated city road through the commercial district, the remaining drive slowed, with red lights every few steps.
With the driver silent, Song Chan turned her attention to the street scenes around them.
Song Chan had been busy with work for the past two years and hadn’t had a proper rest in ages. She hadn’t enjoyed such leisurely time as during this period in who knew how long.
She usually didn’t even have time to notice the streetscapes along the roadsides while on the move.
Today, Song Chan discovered that Hangbei had changed so much in the past two years. It looked completely different from the environment she remembered seeing from the back seat of Song Qiwen’s car on her way to school.
The scattered tall buildings that could once be seen end to end at a glance now stood everywhere in Hangbei, springing up like bamboo shoots after rain and blanketing the entire city.
Even outside the business district, Hangbei City’s prosperity was still enough to make countless other cities envious.
At the intersection ahead, another red light came on. Su Yicen eased on the brake, and the car came to a steady stop.
Song Chan’s gaze along the roadside paused at the entrance of a flower shop.
At first glance, the shop’s pastoral-style decor looked very appealing.
At second glance, she was drawn to the shop’s name: Selling Memories.
Realizing she was arriving empty-handed, Song Chan broke the silence in the car.
“Su Yicen, pull over up ahead. I want to get out and buy a bouquet.”
After speaking, Song Chan paused in slight daze. She didn’t know when it had started, but her way of addressing him was no longer as formal as before.
“Okay.” He nodded in agreement.
The shop brimmed with a dazzling array of flowers, leaving Song Chan spoiled for choice.
But for a cemetery visit, white chrysanthemums were undoubtedly the most suitable.
Song Chan asked the clerk, “Do you have white chrysanthemums? Please wrap up a bunch for me.”
The man behind her—who remained bundled up tightly even during the hottest days of summer—spoke up to stop her.
“Buy the ones you like. My mom didn’t like chrysanthemums.”
He gave a bitter smile, his voice carrying a sense of release.
“She found chrysanthemums inauspicious, so she didn’t like them. A bit of old superstition.”
The word “mom” sounded somewhat unfamiliar coming from Su Yicen’s mouth.
Though he also called Lady Xu “mom,” they both knew it was just for show. To her face, he still addressed her as auntie.
Song Chan nodded and selected a bunch of gardenia flowers based on her vague memories to take along.
Pure white, gentle, with a literary air—just like Su He in her recollection.
The car passed through the bustling downtown and headed toward the suburbs, where traffic thinned out. It grew even sparser after turning onto the mountain road to Hangbei Cemetery. On the wide path, scarcely any vehicles headed in the same direction came into view.
Su Yicen had walked this road alone countless times—he’d lost track of how many.
Song Chan followed behind him, her hand gripped tightly in his.
Passing through the stone gate into the cemetery grounds revealed terraced gravesites. Flanking each black tombstone were two modest tower pines.
Beneath every small tombstone resided vibrant souls.
Song Chan had thought she would feel afraid, but upon arrival—whether due to Su Yicen’s presence beside her or the fine sunlight that day—she felt no fear at all.
Su Yicen’s steps halted before a tombstone inscribed with the names of Su He and Zheng Ziruo.
The photo on the tombstone showed them both smiling, youthful and appearing not much older than the pair of them.
The hazy figure from Song Chan’s memories now stood clear before her eyes. Su He’s looks matched her recollection almost perfectly—still strikingly beautiful.
Traces of them lingered in Su Yicen; he resembled Zheng Ziruo more, but echoed Su He as well.
The flowers cradled in his arms were placed respectfully before the tombstone.
Song Chan’s eyes, however, caught on a photo wedged into a crevice at the stone base, faded and weathered from years of sun and rain.
The image felt familiar. When she reached for it, she realized it was the photo of her and Su Yicen from their “marriage certificate.”
Seeing it discovered, he replied as if it were the most natural thing.
“A marriage is a major event. I had to let my parents know.”
With that, he let out a sigh, as though shedding a long-held burden, then turned and sat on the steps before the tombstone.
“Every year on this day, I come here and sit for half the day—no words, no offerings. I just want to see them, to keep them company.”
He gave another bitter smile, sourness lacing his voice.
“This is the first time anyone’s come with me…”
He asked her, “Chanchan, would you like to hear my parents’ story?”
Song Chan hadn’t expected Su Yicen to open up like this. She nodded and sat beside him, listening quietly.
“My parents met when Dad was an unknown extra actor—not even 18th-tier. Mom was the daughter of the Su Corporation, a genuine rich heiress. Grandpa opposed their relationship, but Mom was pregnant then, so he had no choice but to relent…”
“Grandpa always believed Dad was after the Su Corporation’s wealth.”
“But I know he was a witty man who truly loved Mom and gave her all the ceremony she valued…”
Song Chan sensed Su Yicen’s joy; he had likely never bared his heart to anyone this way. His eyes shone brightly as he spoke of his parents.
It was the first time Su Yicen had shared so much of his parents’ story with her.
That intimacy felt heart-to-heart, drawing Song Chan and him even closer.
“What about Grandpa? Has he still not forgiven Uncle and Auntie?”
Song Chan felt puzzled; Su Dingran didn’t seem hard to get along with.
“Grandpa…” Su Yicen murmured, his dark eyes fixed on the horizon.
“Grandpa made peace with it long ago. He’s a proud man. He just can’t face coming here after Mom’s passing.”
He told her, “Back at the old house, Mom’s room sits empty. He’s too old for suburban living now, but he won’t move—wanting to stay near the place where she once lived…”
Song Chan understood. His earlier words made it clear.
Su He cherished freedom and unbound living; she hated being cooped up at home.
Su Dingran was likely deluding himself: as long as he avoided this place and that small tombstone, his daughter lived on—the same willful child who fretted him by staying away.
Su Yicen grew sentimental despite himself that day. He tried not to show it before Song Chan, but couldn’t hold back.
“Song Chan, can you hug me?”
Song Chan made no reply. She turned and pulled him into a tight embrace.
An aching tenderness, mingled with bitterness, welled up in her.
Song Chan could scarcely imagine the grief Su Yicen had shouldered all those years. Without that plane crash, they would likely be a happy family of three right now.
But the world offered no such ifs.
The topic hung too heavy, stifling like labored breath.
After a long silence, Song Chan asked him.
“So, did you enter the Entertainment Circle because of Uncle?”
Su Yicen paused in thought. “Only half the reason.”
The answer surprised her, prompting her to press.
“Then the other half?”
Su Yicen held her gaze without replying at first.
Only after a moment did he say.
“Because there was once a little girl who told me…”