A Western restaurant in the East District. In the center of the dining room, an intricate, glittering chandelier bathed the entire space in a warm glow. Fu Xingchen and Lin Xiran sat opposite each other at a square table as a waiter uncorked a bottle of Bordeaux and poured it into a decanter. The ruby-red liquid caught the light, casting a beam that illuminated the lean profile of Fu Xingchen’s face. His chiseled features held a look of ease, and his narrowed gaze drifted to the piano in the distance. “That’s strange. No one’s playing the piano tonight.” Lin Xiran, dressed in a mustard-yellow dress with her long, wavy hair cascading over her shoulders, looked decidedly more feminine than she did in her usual business attire. Fu Xingchen raised an eyebrow. “No idea.” *Being put on display like that, with everyone staring? The ever-pampered Jiang Lili would never stand for it.* He even wondered if she had already gone home. Jiang Lili always knew her place; she wouldn’t disturb him when he was working. That was why she had discreetly left that morning, knowing he was busy. “Here’s a dish for the happy couple. I think you’ll find it… appropriate!” The brazen voice of Su Yunyou cut through the air. She slammed a steaming plate onto the table, her eyes sizing up Lin Xiran. “Is this… *Fuqi Feipian*?” Lin Xiran asked, astonished. What was a Sichuan dish doing in a Western restaurant? “Oh, *Fuqi Feipian* is for actual human beings,” Su Yunyou said with a dazzling smile, her gaze retracting. “This is a special recipe. I call it ‘Two of a Kind’—a wolf and a snake, plotting together!” In an instant, the temperature around the table seemed to drop to freezing. Su Yunyou considered herself fearless, but for some reason, her skin always crawled whenever she provoked Fu Xingchen. Perhaps it was because she was only acting on Jiang Lili’s behalf, without any concrete evidence to back her up? A dead silence fell. Her throat tightened, as if an invisible hand were squeezing it. She turned on her heel and fled. Lin Xiran feigned confusion. “Xingchen, do you know her?” “Not well.” Fu Xingchen’s gaze fell on the dish, a thoughtful expression on his face. A few seconds later, his phone, sitting on the corner of the table, buzzed to life. He had never saved Jiang Lili’s number. But for two years, she had texted him at noon every day to remind him to eat lunch. Every evening, she would call to ask if he was coming home. He recognized the number in a single glance. A mocking smile twisted Fu Xingchen’s lips as he rejected the call without a second thought. “Why didn’t you answer?” Lin Xiran asked, rising to refill his glass. Her eyes flicked to the screen, noting the unfamiliar number, and a small smile touched her lips. “We’re at dinner, not in a meeting. It’s not like I’m forbidding you from taking calls.” “It’s no one important.” Fu Xingchen took the bottle from her, leaning forward to pour wine for her as well. “You’ve worked hard lately.” Lin Xiran settled back into her seat, her smile blooming. “Trying to get rid of me with just a glass of wine?” “Here’s my secondary card. Buy yourself whatever you want.” Fu Xingchen produced a black credit card and slid it across the table toward her. “Professionally, the wine is a thank you. Personally, the gift is your reward.” The man’s hand, with its well-defined wrist bones, looked striking against the burgundy tablecloth. As Lin Xiran reached for the card, her fingertips brushed lightly against the back of his hand. The pressure was just right, and she let her pinky finger subtly hook around his. Her almond eyes, full of mirth, watched his face for any reaction. Fu Xingchen’s thin lips tightened, but he withdrew his hand as if he’d felt nothing, leaning back in his chair with an air of casual indifference. He acted as if nothing had happened. Lin Xiran slipped the card into her purse without ceremony and glanced again toward the piano. So, Jiang Lili hadn’t shown up today. A calculating look flickered in her eyes. Soon, the waiter arrived with their food, and Fu Xingchen began to eat with unhurried elegance. When she thought he wasn’t looking, Lin Xiran took out her phone and aimed it at their reflection in the glass window. Unexpectedly, the flash went off. Fu Xingchen’s eyelids lifted, his gaze sharp and questioning. A flicker of unease crossed Lin Xiran’s face. Under the pressure of his stare, she handed him the phone. “Xiyue asked me to report my whereabouts and make sure I’m eating on time. See?” The screen showed a WeChat conversation. Besides the photo she had just sent, there was a long history of other pictures—some of Lin Xiran alone in the office, and others of her with Fu Xingchen. Fu Xingchen’s intense gaze softened slightly. He didn't stop cutting his steak. “Tell her she doesn’t need to worry when you’re with me.” “I’ve already told her you’d take good care of me, but that girl…” Lin Xiran’s tone was a mix of exasperation and affection. On the edge of the table, Fu Xingchen’s phone rang again, cutting her off. It was Sun Ting. He answered, and Sun Ting’s panicked voice crackled through the speaker. “Mr. Fu, your wife just called me! She said the old residence is on fire and that your grandmother has been burned! She said you need to get over there right away!” *Screech—* Fu Xingchen shot to his feet, the chair scraping harshly against the floor. “I’m on my way.” He hung up, tossed a quick “Something’s come up, I have to go” at Lin Xiran, and strode out, grabbing his jacket on the way. The Maybach sped down the highway, weaving through traffic and overtaking car after car. — The Fu family’s old residence was situated halfway up a mountain, where the streetlights were just beginning to flicker on. Jiang Lili had taken a taxi. When the car pulled up to the estate, the entire villa was ablaze with light, not with the inferno she had been expecting. She breathed a sigh of relief. But as she stepped out of the car, the acrid smell of smoke stung her nostrils, and she quickened her pace into the house. She didn't even stop to change her shoes, heading straight for the living room. On the sofa, Old Mrs. Fu sat ramrod straight, her hair a shock of white. Nearing eighty, she was full of vigor, cracking sunflower seeds between her teeth as she watched television through her reading glasses, completely engrossed. “Lili, you’re back!” Seeing Jiang Lili, she set down the seeds and waved her over. “Come, come sit with Grandma!” Jiang Lili was out of breath, a thin layer of sweat dotting her forehead. She walked over to her grandmother’s side. “Grandma, they said… there was a fire?” “Oh, there was,” Old Mrs. Fu said, pointing to a pile of extinguished ashes in the backyard. “It’s out now.” Jiang Lili froze. She tried to recall exactly what the servant had said on the phone. They hadn’t explicitly said her grandmother was burned. But—the frantic tone, the hesitant words… hadn’t they implied she was in danger? “Why are you alone?” Old Mrs. Fu peered behind her. “Where’s my grandson?” Jiang Lili pressed her lips together, trying to keep her expression neutral. “He’s busy with work. Probably in a meeting. He didn’t pick up when I called.” Old Mrs. Fu’s eyes glinted shrewdly. “He didn’t answer your call? Are you angry with him?” “No,” Jiang Lili denied it instantly. The moment he’d rejected her call, she had been more worried than angry. She was terrified that something had happened to Old Mrs. Fu and that Fu Xingchen wouldn’t be there. So she had immediately called Sun Ting. The moment he told her that Fu Xingchen was on his way, the weight in her chest lifted. Only now, thinking back, did it sink in: Fu Xingchen had hung up on her. On purpose. A chill spread through her, tightening her chest until she could barely breathe. Seeing her distressed expression, Old Mrs. Fu assumed she was angry at her grandson and declared, “Don’t you worry. I’ll make sure he comes home to you tonight.” Jiang Lili felt a pang of confusion. Her mind was a mess, and she couldn’t quite grasp what her grandmother was saying. How had this become about getting Fu Xingchen to come home *for her*? Wasn’t the whole point of the fire charade to get both of them to come back? As confusion swirled within her, she felt a sudden, intense gaze lock onto her. She looked up instinctively just as Fu Xingchen strode into the room. His deep eyes were sharp and cold, but beneath the surface lay the faint, fading traces of worry.