WDYS Chapter 25

Extra 4 – The Ring

When they got married, Fu Mingchuan ordered a new ring—a simple, elegant design. A few times, You Wen forgot to wear it, and Fu Mingchuan made his displeasure known.

You Wen didn’t like being lectured, so he tried to argue. But after observing for a while, he noticed Fu Mingchuan never missed wearing his own ring, so You Wen dropped his complaints.

One day, their dog, Tiao Tiao, dragged out a ring from who-knows-where and started playing with it. Thinking it was his wedding ring, You Wen rushed to grab it, only to find out it wasn’t his. After searching in Fu Mingchuan’s study, he realized that Tiao Tiao had somehow figured out how to open drawers; the ring had come from one of them.

It took You Wen half an hour to find the ring box, which had ended up under the bookshelf, and he put the ring back in the drawer, scolding Tiao Tiao along the way.

Fu Mingchuan noticed the ring had been touched three days later. He returned to the bedroom and asked if You Wen had been going through his things. You Wen initially denied it, but under Fu Mingchuan’s intense gaze, he sheepishly admitted, “I had no choice.”

Holding the ring, Fu Mingchuan frowned, a look that made You Wen nervous. But Fu Mingchuan wasn’t upset about the ring itself. “If you don’t like it, you could just say so. I’d keep it somewhere else. But you didn’t have to use your teeth, did you?”

He tilted You Wen’s chin up to check his teeth, genuinely concerned if they’d been damaged.

You Wen lightly bit his hand and said, “I didn’t bite it, okay? Don’t accuse me! Tiao Tiao bit it.”

Fu Mingchuan hadn’t considered Tiao Tiao at all and simply humored You Wen, “Right, the puppy bit it.”

Fu Mingchuan liked to call You Wen his “little puppy.” Though he wasn’t fond of dogs, he found the term affectionate, adding a layer of intimacy between them.

“You really don’t get it—it was Tiao Tiao who bit it!” You Wen protested loudly.

Fu Mingchuan’s expression shifted subtly. He said nothing at the time, but later, You Wen realized that he’d instructed the housekeeper to keep Tiao Tiao out of the study. He could be so petty.

A few days later, while lying in bed, You Wen finally broke his silence. Curled up on Fu Mingchuan’s shoulder, he asked, “So, why was that ring in your drawer?”

He tilted his head up playfully, looking adorable.

Fu Mingchuan glanced from his tablet to You Wen’s feet, which he was wiggling as he read meeting notes, and replied, “Just amuse yourself for a bit. I’m busy.”

But You Wen was persistent, nestling into his arms to demand an answer.

Fu Mingchuan gently pressed You Wen’s waist, making him straddle him. You Wen gave him a quick kiss.

Raising an eyebrow, Fu Mingchuan put his tablet aside. “Kiss me again, and I’ll tell you.”

You Wen realized he’d fallen into a trap. Just as he moved, Fu Mingchuan said, “I saw you left it in your old rented place and didn’t take it with you, so I brought it back.”

You Wen kissed him again and coaxed, “When did you do that?”

“That same night.” Fu Mingchuan’s gaze softened, as if reluctant to speak more. Had You Wen not stumbled upon it, he would have never mentioned it again.

Perhaps he was the only one who’d seen the depth of You Wen’s understanding of human nature and decisiveness. You Wen could let go of things—even if it meant severing emotional ties—with a ruthlessness that surpassed his own.

You Wen didn’t feel sorry for Fu Mingchuan. If he did, it would feel unfair to his past self.

Holding up his ring, You Wen made a promise: “As long as you love me, I’ll never throw this away. Deal, Ge?”

At hearing him call him “Ge,” Fu Mingchuan couldn’t stay annoyed. He grabbed You Wen’s waist, making him say it again, pulling him closer in an embrace that lasted all night.

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Extra 5 – Deliberate Provocation

Love and trust often go hand in hand, producing tolerance, acceptance, and ease.

But You Wen didn’t see it that way. The longer he was with Fu Mingchuan, the more he loved him, and the more Fu Mingchuan tried to control him, wanting to see him all the time.

If it weren’t for the fact that You Wen owned a kindergarten, he’d probably be working under Fu Mingchuan’s watchful eye by now.

One time, a student invited him every day for a week to their birthday party. Not wanting to let the child down, You Wen used his personal time to attend. He didn’t expect to run into Ruan Jing, who was also there.

You Wen didn’t put on an air of superiority, but he didn’t want to befriend Ruan Jing either; he thought Ruan Jing’s behavior was unbecoming.

He slipped out to the terrace for some fresh air, not expecting Ruan Jing to follow him.

Ruan Jing, still exuding his usual confident and seemingly polite manner, greeted You Wen, “Fu Mingchuan’s kept you well-guarded. It’s hard to even see you.”

You Wen never felt that Ruan Jing had openly provoked him, but he didn’t like Ruan Jing’s tone when mentioning Fu Mingchuan. “Is there something you need?”

“Look at you, so oblivious.” Ruan Jing chuckled. “Do you think I’ve been doing well these past few years, living under Hua Ding’s umbrella?”

While You Wen wasn’t heavily involved in Fu Mingchuan’s business affairs, he’d heard of the cooperation between Hua Ding and Fengcheng.

Still, he never quite understood why Fu Mingchuan refused to work with Han Ji but treated Ruan Jing differently.

But at that moment, You Wen understood everything.

Ruan Jing looked at You Wen’s innocent expression and merely laughed, watching like he was observing a show. “That’s right. After all these projects with Huading, Fengcheng hasn’t made a single cent. Would you say Fu Mingchuan is ruthless or not?”

In fact, Fu Mingchuan had long known that Ruan Jing had nothing to do with the car accident back then. You Wen had clearly told Fu Mingchuan that he had never misunderstood him or Ruan Jing, but it seemed Fu Mingchuan still held a grudge against Ruan Jing.

Fu Mingchuan was always quick to blame unrelated people on You Wen’s behalf, as though You Wen could never be at fault.

You Wen gave a noncommittal hum. “I don’t bother myself with these things.”

The two stood quietly for a while, then Ruan Jing took out a cigarette and asked if You Wen minded. You Wen shook his head but looked ready to leave. Ruan Jing then asked, “You don’t smoke, right? Still a little kid?”

Feeling the familiarity unwarranted, You Wen replied, “What exactly are you trying to say?”

“Why don’t you have a word with Fu Mingchuan? Tell him to stop giving me a hard time—I’m barely hanging on here.” Ruan Jing joked.

You Wen gave him an odd look. “Are you sure you want me to say that?”

Without waiting for Ruan Jing to reply, he continued, “If Fu Mingchuan finds out you came to me, he’ll be mad.”

Ruan Jing laughed and, in a long, drawn-out tone, replied, “You’ve always understood him better than anyone else.”

Only then did You Wen realize Ruan Jing had been joking with him. Not wanting to talk further, he said, “I should go.” Fu Mingchuan was coming to pick him up.

Ruan Jing waved him off, recalling that day on the mountain road, when Fu Mingchuan had driven him there and then told him to get out at the foot of the mountain. Back then, Ruan Jing had seen a hint of fear on Fu Mingchuan’s face.

After all this time, it seemed Fu Mingchuan was even more afraid of You Wen, as if he needed to keep an eye on him just to get through a meal together.

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Extra 6 – The Car

On a whim, You Wen organized a group outing and specifically invited Zhou Hui and his friends. They all met at the highway entrance, and as soon as they parked, You Wen called out Zhou Hui’s name through the window.

Zhou Hui got out of his car and came over to chat with You Wen. He still avoided direct interaction with Fu Mingchuan, instead passing that responsibility to his brother, Zhou Huai.

While chatting with Zhou Huai, Fu Mingchuan’s gaze lingered on the car they’d arrived in, an older model from several years ago.

Zhou Huai explained, “Recently, Zhou Hui got on our dad’s bad side again. My dad confiscated his car, so he had no choice but to drive this one.”

Fu Mingchuan nodded and asked Zhou Huai when the car was bought. Zhou Huai thought for a moment before giving an approximate date, and Fu Mingchuan nodded again, quickly shifting the topic.

When they reached the campsite, Fu Mingchuan set up a tent and had You Wen sit inside to stay cool while he busied himself with preparing food outside.

When he brought You Wen some grilled meat, Fu Mingchuan casually asked, “Naonao, do you remember that time you went to the bank to do a debt transfer? I saw you from upstairs. Was it Zhou Hui who picked you up back then?”

You Wen certainly remembered that encounter. He asked in return, “Who else would it have been?”

With a slight smile, Fu Mingchuan ruffled You Wen’s hair and praised him, “Such a good boy.”

It was only much later that You Wen realized, almost by accident, that all these years, Fu Mingchuan had believed the person who picked him up that day was Han Ji. No wonder he used to keep glancing at Han Ji’s car when they were at the hospital back then.

What You Wen couldn’t understand, however, was how Fu Mingchuan had managed to hold back from asking him about it all this time.

Later, they had a long, in-depth conversation, during which You Wen tried to assure Fu Mingchuan that he could ask anything. Finally, Fu Mingchuan responded with two points.

“I didn’t want to make you remember things that would make you sad, and I didn’t want you to think I was some kind of obsessive creep.”

The second point was especially important.

After all, in You Wen’s mind, only a creep would silently hold onto all these little details for so many years.

And though You Wen did think that Fu Mingchuan was a bit obsessive in certain ways, Fu Mingchuan felt that this tendency was something You Wen had allowed. When he had repeatedly needed to check on You Wen’s whereabouts, it was You Wen who had enabled location sharing. When he had wanted to stay in touch with You Wen’s daily life, it was You Wen who had set up a private social media account just for him.

You Wen was willing to let him know everything.

And so, he couldn’t bear to make You Wen unhappy.

You Wen kissed Fu Mingchuan lightly on the lips. “I’m not sad. I just worry about you being sad. So if something’s on your mind, ask me from now on, okay, gege¹Brother/big brother.?”

“Alright.”

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  Brother/big brother.