That Period of Happy Time (Diamond Sponsorship by sandyzhang2009)

"I carry the blood of the Bai family, and this is a responsibility I must bear."

Bai Yuchen buried his head deep, speaking with painful difficulty.

As those words fell upon Ye Shenghan's ears, the man gave a bitter smile, patted Bai Yuchen’s shoulders thoughtfully, feeling a bitterness that seemed longer than the darkest night.

Even the darkest night would eventually welcome the dawn, yet he already felt his entire world was so plunged in gloom that not a ray of light could enter. He continued to laugh voicelessly. Yuchen was leaving, but what about Linglan? He could no longer reach her, and deep down, he could already sense something slipping away and dissolving bit by bit.

Bai Yuchen could feel his body trembling from forced restraint. He slowly raised his gaze, looking at the smile at the corner of Ye Shenghan's mouth. "Go ahead, Yuchen. If I were in your position, I would do the exact same thing without a second thought. You said this is your responsibility, just as I must desperately fight to reclaim something for my own family's enterprise without hesitation." He sighed, his wry smile laced with endless agony, "I even went so far as to push away the woman I love most."

"Shenghan... I..." Bai Yuchen was left speechless. Ye Shenghan's expression dimmed entirely. "I've lost, Yuchen. I was too eager for quick success and instant gain. I admit I've lost—utterly and completely defeated."

"Shenghan, don't be like this. You aren't a man who can't afford to lose. Pull yourself together, do you hear me?" He quickly steadied Ye Shenghan's shoulders and sought to comfort him. "I'm only returning to the Bai Corporation to take over the business..."

Yet Bai Yuchen dared not tell the whole truth. He was a coward, for he could vaguely sense that Mo Zhicheng's spear was now pointed directly at the Bai family. This crisis facing the Bai Corporation followed the exact same script as the desperate plight the Ye family had fallen into years ago. The old master was right: that man was exacting revenge. After cutting down the Ye family, he had aimed his gun at the Bai family. This was precisely because the old master had once covered up the crime committed by Uncle Ye. Back when the Mo family was at the peak of its prosperity, it had subtly threatened the Ye family's position as the undisputed leader of Nanjiang.

Those struggles in the business world, those plots hatched in the shadows—they might have appeared endlessly glorious on the surface, but underneath that veneer, things were too dark to see, rotting into a foul stench. Mo Zhicheng's father had burst onto the scene in Nanjiang like a comet, a rare and peerless business genius whose enterprise flourished with blazing momentum. In that fierce contest, Uncle Ye was like Zhou Yu meeting Zhuge Liang: *Since Yu was born, why must Liang be born as well?!*

Outwardly, Uncle Ye continued to throw himself fervently into charitable causes, transforming from a mere businessman into a philanthropist. The media lavished him with praise, adding even more splendor to the Ye family. It was a way to accumulate hidden merits for oneself. Yet, on the other hand, fearing that the Mo family's brilliance would eclipse his own and leave him in a precarious state, Uncle Ye had secretly resorted to underhanded methods. If Uncle Ye was the mastermind, then Bai Yuchen's own grandfather was the accomplice. Back then, money was used to leak information to underworld elements willing to take desperate risks for a price. With Uncle Ye operating behind the scenes, this conspiracy fell immediately into place and was quietly set into motion.

Thus, Mo Zhicheng's father was drugged while out entertaining clients. To destroy a man, one must first destroy his will and his soul, leaving his physical shell nothing more than a walking corpse. Uncle Ye's plot was vicious indeed, but there are no walls that can completely block the wind. He never imagined that a dozen or so years later, Mo Zhicheng would sweep back in and begin executing a methodical plan for revenge. At the time, knowing Mo Zhicheng had returned to the country, the old master had tried to protect himself, safeguard the Bai family's status, and prevent Yuchen from associating with Ye Shenghan.

"Shenghan..." Bai Yuchen could not bear to tell him these cruel facts. He had to guard this secret, while Mo Zhicheng pressed forward step by step, clearing the board with an unstoppable momentum.

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England, London!

Ye Linglan headed to the KM Corporation for her final round of negotiations. As she left, she bid farewell to Mo Zhicheng, only to find him dressed impeccably in a sharp suit. With a hint of puzzlement, she asked, "Are you going out?"

"Mmm!" He nodded in response, holding his tie as he cast a meaningful glance in her direction and simply commanded, "Come here!"

Linglan knew what he meant. For the past month, every single tie he wore had been knotted by her own hands. She walked from the entryway into the living room, picked up his exquisitely textured tie, and stood slightly on tiptoe to knot it for him. It was then that she suddenly thought of the custom-made suit she had ordered for him on Savile Row, the fabric and style chosen with the utmost care. At the thought, a soft curve tugged at the corners of her lips, a smile that fell right into the man's eyes. His fingertips grazed her faint smile, and he asked playfully, "What are you smiling about so happily? Hm?"

Linglan raised her eyes, intending to bring it up to him, but then thought that since she had already secretly ordered it, she might as well give him a genuine surprise! She bit her lower lip slightly, smiling with a knowing look, but kept her answer to herself. That custom suit had completely exhausted all her savings over the years, so she deliberately asked, "Then you tell me first—since you're in such a rush to go out today and dressed so formally, where are you going?" Her hands continued their task. Mo Zhicheng studied her closely; she was so familiar with the motion, tying a knot that was delicate and beautiful, and her movements were so gentle. This woman was quite literally made of water. "Today is the final decision on this case, so I'm going with you."

Her words were met with a look of utter astonishment. Linglan knew the exhibition project was only a tiny fraction of Tiancheng's operations. What did it mean for him to show up in person?

———————————

With Mo Zhicheng presiding over the final negotiations with KM, Ye Linglan felt an unprecedented surge of confidence. Mo Zhicheng sat in the seat of honor, and she was seated right beside him. That very night, he had spoken at length with her about negotiation techniques and classic business case studies in the corporate world. One had to admit, this man was naturally endowed with an overwhelmingly powerful aura. His steadfastness and scholarly elegance, meticulous mindset, eloquent speech, and rigorous reasoning ran through the entire process.

Just as the opposing representative was speaking passionately in response, Linglan listened intently, only to suddenly have her left hand beneath the table enveloped by a warm, broad palm. Her thoughts snapped back to reality. Stealing a quiet glance, she discovered that while the man maintained a completely serious expression on his face, his arm hung naturally at his side, holding her palm while his thumb gently caressed the back of her hand. From an outsider's perspective, everything looked perfectly proper, with no hint of impropriety—little did they know what was happening beneath the conference table...

Linglan secretly turned her head to look at him sideways. Despite his utterly solemn demeanor, whenever the other party raised an objection, he would respond naturally and fluently.

She tried to pull her hand back, but he only gripped it tighter, the pressure increasing as if punishing her resistance. The warmth from his palm seeped bit by bit into her skin. Linglan bit her lower lip. She did not possess his level of composure; this sort of flirtation already made her skin crawl with restlessness. Lifting her gaze slightly, she caught the row of sharp, piercing eyes across the table and felt a jolt of panic in her chest. The man, however, remained entirely nonchalant.

Shifting from merely holding her hand, he began using his index finger to trace words stroke by stroke across the back of her hand. The gentle sensation sent tiny electric shocks coursing through her entire body as she vaguely made out the words he was writing: *I—want—to—kiss—you*. A wave of crimson instantly bloomed across her cheeks.

Mo Zhicheng glanced at her out of the corner of his eye. Seeing her reaction, a faint, playful smile played at the corners of his lips. He finally released her hand, stopping the teasing, and refocused entirely on controlling and steering the atmosphere of the negotiation, harmonizing mutual goals and interests to reach a consensus.

When the meeting concluded on a perfect note, both sides shook hands: "Hope for a pleasant cooperation!"

The head of KM Corporation originally invited them to celebrate together with a luncheon to fulfill the duties of a local host. Mo Zhicheng declined with a candid smile, secretly catching Linglan's hand once more. She started in surprise, watching out of the corner of her eye as he held her hand, then opened his palm to interlace his fingers with hers. Linglan lowered her gaze in embarrassment. Unexpectedly, the man raised their entwined hands and simply announced, "Give us some time for a private date, hm?!"

His words were met with light chuckles and notes of praise: "Miss Ye is exceptionally talented..."

Linglan nodded in polite acknowledgment, while Mo Zhicheng showed no hesitation whatsoever, smiling openly, "My woman is naturally exceptional."

Linglan was left dumbfounded...

————————

Leaving the KM Corporation, this trip to London could finally be considered brought to a close.

As the car drove down the road, he lowered his head to flip through a tourist guidebook. Back in the KM conference room, he had dropped that profoundly meaningful remark:

*—Give us some time for a private date!*

Linglan watched him from the side, feeling as though they had returned to the past. Yet, with her state of mind entirely changed, looking at him now evoked a completely different set of emotions. Finally unable to contain her lingering doubts, she parted her lips and asked, "Zhicheng,"

"Mmm!" he acknowledged casually without raising his head, his gaze still fixed on the documents.

"Did you come with me to help me out?"

Hearing this, Mo Zhicheng chuckled softly, continued browsing, and simply countered with a question of his own, "What do you think?"

"But during the break in the first negotiation, when you called President Leng, you were trying to help her too..." Before she could finish, he had undoubtedly caught the underlying implication. Sure enough, Mo Zhicheng burst into laughter, set the document aside, turned his head to give her a meaningful, sideways glance, and murmured in a deep voice, "I seem to smell... vinegar. Are you jealous of me?"

Linglan didn't utter a sound. She withdrew her gaze, looking out the car window with a contemplative expression at the magnificent scenery passing by. Mo Zhicheng reached out, pulled her directly into his embrace, and murmured in a voice meant only for the two of them, "You were ignoring me back then; of course you wouldn't accept my calls. So I had no choice but to take a roundabout approach and gather some information from Leng Tingyu."

Sudden realization dawned upon her. Lifting her head from his embrace to look at him, she pressed on, "What about the night of the banquet... when you were holding her..."

He fixed his gaze on the suspicion in her eyes and said every word with deliberate clarity, "Darling, from beginning to end, my eyes have only ever had room for one woman—you. I have a very strong ego, and you walked away from me in that manner..."

"So..." Linglan murmured, "Sending me to England was also an intentional arrangement, wasn't it?"

"..." Unexpectedly, he fell silent.

His silence felt like a tacit admission.

"So... everything was under your control, right?" Linglan's brow furrowed, and she let out a slightly helpless laugh. "Deliberately ignoring me, deliberately sending me to England, and deliberately making me jealous—all just to force out my true feelings and make me bow my head to you first, right?"

Mo Zhicheng did not speak, merely gazing at her intensely. She was the one in the wrong first, but... upon learning that he had orchestrated all of this, a trace of displeasure lingered in her heart. Yet, knowing how deeply unfathomable he was—something she had known from the very beginning—she let out a soft sigh. Mo Zhicheng pulled her tightly into his arms once more. "Lan'er, don't blame me. I told you, don't try to resist me, or I won't know what methods I might use to win you!" he murmured in a low voice. "Call me ruthless if you like, but now that you're back by my side, I will never let you run away again..."

Linglan sighed with a helpless smile. Outside the window, a drizzle of rain tapped against the glass pane. Across the darkened windowpane, streaks of clear water slid downward.

"Everything has been settled now. We..." She didn't continue. She hated farewells; London held both her heartbreak and her joy, all five flavors of life mixed and tangled together.

Mo Zhicheng knew what she wanted to say. He picked up the promotional brochure and held her close as they browsed through it together. "Where do you want to go?"

"The London Eye," Linglan smiled.

"Doesn't our hotel room offer a view of it every single night? It's just a Ferris wheel; why are you so keen on seeing it?"

Pointing at the color-printed image of the 'London Eye' in the brochure, she murmured with a show of earnestness, "Our time is limited; when would I ever have the leisure to explore everywhere? But think about it—standing at the very highest point, you can take in the entire magnificent scenery of London all at once. That counts as feasting your eyes and taking in the whole of London in one go, doesn't it?"

Mo Zhicheng shook his head helplessly, though his lips remained curved in a smile. "You've always got a thousand twisted justifications, just like when I first met you." He reached out to flick the tip of her nose, remarking, "Such a sharp tongue!"

Yet his finger slid all the way down to her rosy lips. Having attended a formal event today, she was wearing light makeup, especially on her lips, which were coated with a sheer layer of reddish lip gloss that still retained a brilliant sheen. His gaze locked onto them firmly. Linglan felt the scorching intensity of his stare, and the next moment, she heard him ask softly, "During the negotiation meeting, do you remember... the words I wrote on your hand?"

Her breathing grew increasingly rapid, and she knew instantly what he intended to do. But Mo Zhicheng saved that deep, lingering kiss for the 'London Eye,' right at its highest peak.

She thought that she would never forget that day. The days of continuous, lingering rain in London failed to penetrate her heart; with him by her side, her entire world was flooded with sunlight.

Riding the London Eye, they ascended to the highest point. Someone once gave the Ferris wheel a deeper meaning—that the turning of life's wheel symbolizes every single minute and second guarded by the goddess of time. Leaning softly against his chest, she looked out over the entire city, where modern art and ancient European architecture shone in mutual brilliance. The mist on the glass pane slowly cleared away; the scattered drizzle finally ceased, and the sky revealed pure, pristine clouds. After the rain came clear skies, and a faint slanting sunset pierced through the chest of the sky, staining it with a thin layer of blood-red hue.

He turned her body around and lowered his head to gaze deeply into her eyes. Linglan raised her arms, looping them around his neck, and over his broad shoulders, she caught sight of a hazy, ethereal rainbow faintly revealing itself at the edge of the sky. Mo Zhicheng closed his eyes and leaned in slowly until his thin lips pressed against hers. Feeling the heat of his breath, Linglan instinctively and quietly closed her eyes in a daze.

Their lips met in a kiss of ultimate romance. He sucked gently, stretching his clever tip into her mouth to explore her warm cavity, constantly demanding and pressing deeper within that sweet fragrance. She instinctively stretched out the tip of her tongue, unable to help herself as she intertwined and lingered with him in a passionate dance.

The post-rain sunlight resembled a sheer veil, fluttering down to rest beside them. Time stood still, forever engraving this deeply romantic scene.

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"Director Leng, Mr. Mo has a flight tonight at ten o'clock." Lin Jia handed Mo Zhicheng's rescheduled flight itinerary to Leng Tingyu.

Tingyu took it, leaning listlessly against her revolving chair with a vacant gaze, and simply asked, "To what extent has the case over there progressed?"

Ye Linglan reported the project's progress to Lin Jia at regular intervals every single day, a fact Lin Jia was crystal clear about. "The contract with KM Corporation has already been signed."

"Is that so?" Leng Tingyu let out a dry laugh. Glancing at Mo Zhicheng's rescheduled itinerary, she tossed it aside, buried her face, and rested her forehead in one hand. "You may leave..."

Lin Jia wisely backed out of the room. The moment Leng Tingyu thought of how she had received the news of Mo Zhicheng's injury, she had thrown away her pride, rushed back from Nanjiang to London without stopping for breath, and hurriedly processed his hospital admission. Yet he had not accepted her goodwill; it seemed she really had acted impulsively after getting drunk that night.

And yet...

She knew all the better about the revenge plan Mo Zhicheng was executing in Nanjiang. Leng Tingyu kept telling herself that at this critical juncture, she must not disrupt his vengeance.

She couldn't...

She mustn't...

Calculating the time of Mo Zhicheng's return to the country, Leng Tingyu had initially wanted to pick him up at the airport herself. But... she hesitated. Love was fundamentally like a game of chess; pressing forward too aggressively would only yield the opposite of the desired result. Stepping back in turn, she needed to maintain an appropriate distance for the time being.

Throughout the return journey, Linglan remained silent. Before heading back to Nanjiang, Mo Zhicheng had mentioned that upon their return, she should move in with him. She had hesitated. By the time they arrived in Nanjiang, Mo Zhicheng wanted her to stay, but Linglan simply touched his cheek and smiled: "We've just gotten back, and we're both tired. Let's go home and get some rest, and we'll see each other tomorrow at Tiancheng."

Seeing things had reached this point, Mo Zhicheng did not press her further; he wanted to give her time to think it over properly. Before parting, however, he gave her a meaningful look and warned: "Don't make me wait too long, because when it comes to you, I don't have all that much patience."