Chapter 33
“So beautiful.”
Leaving the indoor light of the hair salon, the soft chestnut color looked even gentler and more charming under the natural sunlight. Jiang Shangwan could hardly look away, and deep down she couldn’t help but imagine what it would be like to hold that head pressed beneath her…
Her cheeks flushed slightly, and Jiang Shangwan awkwardly patted her face.
Shi Yu suddenly stopped walking and asked her, “Want to come see my company?”
Thinking of the place named after her, a subtle feeling arose. She nodded lightly.
After several rounds of rising popularity, the company had long since moved from the small studio of just a few dozen square meters to a building in the CBD. It wasn’t far from the Jiang Corporation either. Jiang Shangwan followed his pace and walked in through the main entrance on the first floor.
“President Shi.”
“Hello, President Shi.”
—
Shi Yu nodded slightly to the passing subordinates who greeted him. He wanted to hold Jiang Shangwan’s hand, but she coldly refused, saying, “What would people think in a public workplace?”
“Looking all proper now,”
Jiang Shangwan looked around at the company’s neat and orderly layout, feeling a genuine sense of pride. She had witnessed Shi Yu’s journey from high school to a top university, then trying his hand at stock trading, film investment, and entrepreneurship. Step by step, this once awkward boy was rapidly growing into a responsible, upright man.
And he was only in his early twenties.
“This is the meeting room. Downstairs are the reception room and the archive.” His internship experience at Jiang Corporation quickly helped him form an initial idea of entrepreneurship. Although he didn’t learn specialized skills, it exposed him to the framework of a mature industry-leading company.
That period, which seemed merely like a calculated attempt to get close to Jiang Shangwan, actually brought Shi Yu a lot of help.
No journey was wasted. With a learning speed that seeped into the world around him, he transformed his surroundings and experiences into stepping stones for his growth.
Jiang Shangwan looked at the company’s structure, finding it increasingly familiar. The design here was very similar to that of the Jiang Group, only much smaller in scale, but more compact and concentrated—essentially taking the essence and discarding the dross.
Thinking that this company was even named after her, and that she had done nothing yet already became the largest shareholder of this promising emerging enterprise, a strong sense of belonging welled up inside her. This place felt like a certain bond between her and Shi Yu—more solid and real than vague emotions, a tie founded on shared tangible interests.
It could even be called a shared-interest partnership, unbreakable.
“This place is like a mini version of Jiang Group,” Jiang Shangwan said, feeling no fault with what Shi Yu had done. On the contrary, she felt even closer to it. “I really like it.”
“I was worried you’d be upset. I referred a lot to Jiang Group’s layout when expanding,” Shi Yu said sincerely. “So I’ve been wanting to bring you here to see it.”
“What’s there to be angry about?” Jiang Shangwan rubbed her forehead. “This is already our company together. Besides, it’s just learning some surface-level stuff, not stealing any trade secrets.”
The Jiang Group was like a giant dragon, with vast and almost countless industries under its wing. Its investment sector was the core.
Shi Yu’s tech company still fundamentally relied on his own team for continuous output, very different from the capital that handled huge financial flows like theirs. Jiang Group was a true wealthy family. Even Jiang Yingting, who barely touched the group’s business, owned dozens of golf courses and countless properties.
Crushing a newly growing tech company like Shi Yu’s would be as easy as crushing an ant. Without the backing of the Lin family, it would have long been swallowed up.
But Shi Yu had placed the company’s most important shares into Jiang Shangwan’s hands. This gesture carried a weight as heavy as a thousand pounds.
What was trivial to her was everything he fought desperately to give.
This was what moved Jiang Shangwan the most.
Pushing open the CEO’s office door, Shi Yu locked it behind him. He pushed Jiang Shangwan onto the sofa, pressing her down beneath him, his eyes deep and dark. “Why do you keep staring at me?”
“Because I like looking,” Jiang Shangwan said, reaching out to stroke his lowered eyes, carefully tracing his brows and lips, then touching his Adam’s apple. Suddenly, she grabbed his collar and kissed the slightly parted lips.
Tilting her head, her hands gripped his shirt tightly, her tongue hooked his, tangled firmly by him as he took control, swirling wildly in her soft, delicate tongue inside her moist mouth.
Feeling the person beneath her melt like a soft spring water in her arms, Shi Yu sensed another unfamiliar softness.
Jiang Shangwan was dressed lightly today. Her fitted top outlined her proud curves, especially obvious close to Shi Yu. When pressed and covered by him, a soft hiss escaped from her throat, a bit difficult to bear.
Shi Yu looked at her raised, fair neck, then buried his head to bite it gently, his large hand sliding to her waist, testing the waters.
“Is this okay?” he whispered.
A barely audible sound escaped Jiang Shangwan’s lips, followed by a storm of pleasure. She felt her soft body changing shape under his touch, each movement sending waves of shivers and tingling all over.
She grabbed the head buried in her chest, where the recently adjusted strands of her hair—the sacred angel in front of her—were doing the worst things, making her feel ecstatic and desperate.
“Such a beautiful color,” Shi Yu praised as he raised his head and met her sultry, affectionate eyes. “As beautiful as your lips.”
Near his mouth was still a trace of ambiguous wetness not yet wiped away. Jiang Shangwan pressed his head down again.
After a long time, until Jiang Shangwan’s whole body was coated with a delicate peachy glow of satisfaction, Shi Yu reluctantly lifted his head.
Her clothes were disheveled, one shoulder slipping out of her garment, and red marks spread across her neck. Shi Yu, however, was still neat and handsome, only a faint blush on his face revealing his different state.
She scolded, “Promiscuous by day, pretending to be proper, being naughty in the office…”
“You look at me like that, I can’t help it,” Shi Yu kissed the corner of her lips and lightly licked her lips and neck like a cat. “How is it that everywhere on you smells so good?”
Jiang Shangwan pushed him away. “You bad boy. My clothes are soaked, sticky and uncomfortable.” It was all his fault for being so intense earlier, making her completely lost in it.
Soon the delivery of women’s intimate clothes arrived. Shi Yu turned his back, listening to the rustling of her changing behind him.
“All done,” Jiang Shangwan said, putting the dirty tissues and stained clothes into a bag and throwing it in the trash. Her gaze casually glanced over and saw Shi Yu was still excited.
“What to do?” she said. “How can I go out wearing pants like this?”
“Wait a bit,” Shi Yu said helplessly. “It’ll fade in a little while.”
Jiang Shangwan touched his face, then stood up and walked over to the desk. There were many materials and documents on it. She picked them up and glanced through them briefly, a hint of surprise flashing across her brow. “You’re already preparing a new project so soon?”
“Yes.” To be precise, from the very first day ‘Wish Come True’ went live, he had already begun to envision the next step. “It’s still in the concept development stage, so I haven’t told you yet. I wanted to wait until it took more shape before sharing.”
Jiang Shangwan nodded approvingly. “Planning ahead, very good.”
‘Wish Come True’ was only the beginning. To maintain steady and long-term company growth, a diverse approach was necessary—exploring and expanding multiple channels on different levels. Jiang Shangwan glanced over a rough model, they were designing and developing a game.
“If you need any help, be sure to tell me, okay?” Jiang Shangwan said seriously as she cupped his face. “Right now, Ting Wan is ours together. Helping you is helping myself. You don’t have to feel burdened to ask me.”
“Shi Yu, I’m really happy to see Ting Wan come to life.” She softly called his name, her tone clear and sincere, every word like a precious gem. “I never imagined I’d fall in love with a boy more than ten years younger than me.”
Shi Yu covered the back of her hand. On her wrist was a metallic, spike-shaped bracelet—somewhat sharp—sliding across his cheek left a cool sensation.
“I know,” he whispered. “I just don’t want to always rely on your strength. I want you to see that I’m growing too, that I can handle things on my own. I don’t want to trouble you.”
“I can see that.”
“Then you have to remember what I said today, okay?”
Shi Yu’s fingers caught a strand of her hair and gently tucked it behind her ear. “I know.”
He would keep every word she said in his heart.
—
After entering his senior year, Shi Yu’s college days were nearing their end. The teachers regretted that he only planned to graduate with a bachelor’s degree and tried to persuade him to continue his studies.
“Shi Yu, your grades are really too good. Are you really going to graduate so soon with such excellent results?”
“We know you’re busy running your company, but you can definitely study while building your business. The teachers believe you have the ability.”
After all, he had once taken a full load of electives, proving through practice how energetic he was. But he still politely declined the teachers’ wishes and said sincerely, “My mind is no longer on academics. No matter how hard I study, it’s meaningless—at best, I’ll get a higher degree but won’t produce any scientific achievements. I appreciate the teachers’ advice and persuasion. I’ve thought it through carefully, this isn’t an impulsive decision.”
September marked the start of his senior year, and all the complicated coursework was almost finished. Compared to before, the classes were almost negligible. Classmates who needed to intern were interning, those securing guaranteed postgraduate spots had done so, some were praying to pass civil service or selection exams.
On one ordinary day, September 10, he celebrated his 21st birthday. What made it special was that this was the first birthday he spent with Jiang Shangwan.
There was no restaurant or hotel reservation, Jiang Shangwan once again took him to the apartment where she stayed most often in Jiangcheng.
— Taking him home.
Jiang Shangwan covered his eyes and led him into the spacious living room, whispering in his ear, “3, 2, 1.”
The soft palms released, and the endless darkness faded. Shi Yu saw the floor covered with gift boxes, wrapped in paper and ribbons, in all sizes—exactly 21 of them.
“Let’s open the blind boxes.”
“Happy birthday, my baby. May every day of your life be filled with unexpected surprises like today.”
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