Jian Yan said a word to her before leaving.

Qin Mu...

The next day, Jian Yan left Paris with Xiao Wei and the child, starting their new journey. After leaving, he had a short article published by a famous media in Paris and reposted it on Weibo.

Jian Yan was not someone who used Weibo, so he opened it for this post. In his lifetime, his updates consisted of only this one post.

Title: JY, M, My Beloved!

He didn’t reveal Qin Mu’s real name in the short article, only replaced it with an M. However, the entire article was a declaration of love, expressing his love for his studio and his M. At the end, he stated he would always be with JY and M, reassuring clients that even after his retirement, he would still care about the studio’s operation and Qin Mu.

In those two years, he took Qin Mu to countless places to help design fashion, so everyone in Paris knew of his deep affection for Qin Mu, enough to make them feel safe continuing their business with JY. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

Only then did the people in Rongcheng learn about Qin Mu’s journey to Paris, as did Mu Yichen, who also finally understood the reason Qin Mu went to Paris. Yet he never expected Qin Mu would agree to take over JY.

——

Zhang Hongyun was still habitually looking for Fan Qing, and this time even found their way to Fan Qing’s apartment. But only upon arrival did she hear that Fan Qing had moved out. Zhang Hongyun, having brought a bundle of gifts, immediately called Fan Qing.

Fan Qing was in the middle of cooking dinner and rushed out of the kitchen to answer the call. But upon seeing it was Zhang Hongyun, she hesitated for a moment and chose not to answer.

She truly didn’t know how to tell Zhang Hongyun that she was living with Tan Yiwen.

Unable to reach her by phone, Zhang Hongyun grew anxious and upset, parking the car by the roadside to send a WeChat message: "Dear, I’ve bought a pile of gifts to visit you, but your neighbor says you no longer live there. Where are you now? I want to send them to you!"

Holding the phone while cooking, Fan Qing, after seeing the message, didn’t want Zhang Hongyun to be searching all over the city for her and replied on WeChat: "I’m not in town right now. I’ll contact you when I return in a few days!"

Upon reading the WeChat response, Zhang Hongyun frowned even more, wondering if Fan Qing might be on a business trip.

Reflecting on those she truly considered genuine friends who wouldn’t harm her, only two people came to mind: Fan Qing and Tan Yiwen. With Qin Mu heading to Paris, it seemed like an occasion worth sharing, even if she couldn’t express her excitement point, sharing a drink together would be nice.

And also, Tan Yiwen wasn’t bad looking, with a good-sounding job. Considering this, she started the car again, heading toward Tan Yiwen’s apartment.

However, she couldn’t fathom how Qin Mu could be so fortunate that the big designer gave her the studio.

Lost in thought, Zhang Hongyun occasionally glanced sideways, spotting a familiar BMW passing by swiftly. She looked at the license plate — wasn’t that Tan Yiwen’s car?

Instantly perked up, figuring that finding Tan Yiwen was just as good as finding Fan Qing, knowing full well that Tan Yiwen could be easily coaxed; just a playful act would have him obediently accompanying her.

Thinking this way, Zhang Hongyun accelerated, following him all the way to his community.

At the community entrance, her car was stopped; she rolled down the window and looked at the security guard: "Brother, I’m Mr. Tan’s girlfriend from the front car, coming with him."

"Girlfriend? Are you kidding? We know Mr. Tan’s girlfriend, she finished work early and must be cooking for him now!"

The security guard, a man a few years her senior, looked at her, his eyes filled with disdain, as though suspecting her of being a stalker.

Upon hearing that Tan Yiwen had a girlfriend, Zhang Hongyun was stunned, then immediately fished out her phone from her bag, showing them the few photos from her space, and only then did they let her through.

Once allowed through, Zhang Hongyun immediately pursued Tan Yiwen’s car, eager to see what kind of girlfriend he had found, thinking he had come to this city for her.

Returning home, Tan Yiwen put his briefcase on the sofa, removed his coat, and headed to the kitchen. She was cooking, and the slight sound from inside echoed in his heart. Lately, he was quite accustomed to having dinner with Fan Qing, and, of course, not only for dinner.

Fan Qing had just turned off the soup’s fire, sensing someone enter, she turned around and saw him, instinctively smiling: "You’re back early today!"

"Yeah! What’s for dinner today?"

He asked casually, though sparks were in his eyes.

"I made carp tofu soup, and since there was extra tofu, I’ve cooked some Mapo tofu as well. No other dishes!"

She was very homely, not wasteful at all.

"Why the carp soup?" Out of the blue, he remembered someone saying it was for nursing mothers to help lactation, along with extra tofu.

"Just had a sudden craving, is that okay?"

Fan Qing could sense his curiosity but truly had no specific reason.

"Of course it’s okay!"

Tan Yiwen replied, his smile incredibly refined, gentle.

As Fan Qing was about to ask him to help bring the dishes to the table, the doorbell suddenly rang.

"You take the dishes to the table, and I’ll open the door to check!"

Feeling the pot too hot, she’d rather go to open the door.

Tan Yiwen didn’t stop her, simply followed her instructions. He thoroughly enjoyed this life she arranged for him, and also her stubbornness in cooking whatever she wanted, even if it meant making two dishes from the same ingredient.

She seemed to be taking a long time answering the door, so he set the dish and soup on the table, walked out, and saw a familiar yet bothersome woman in the doorway.

Zhang Hongyun stared incredulously at Fan Qing, while Fan Qing remained silent, not uttering a word.

Only when she saw Tan Yiwen coming over did Zhang Hongyun derisively exclaim: "You pair of scoundrels!"

Fan Qing snapped back to attention, disapprovingly staring at Zhang Hongyun.

"Watch your mouth. Whatever you came for, say it, and if there’s no other issue, kindly don’t disturb our dinner!"

Tan Yiwen said, grabbing Fan Qing’s hand, pulling her behind him, then using his tall frame to block Zhang Hongyun at the entrance.

"Watch my mouth? What right do you have to talk to me about clean? Didn’t you come to Rongcheng for me? What’s going on with this woman? Why is she living with you?"

Zhang Hongyun raised an accusatory finger at the woman behind him. Listening to this, Fan Qing suddenly found herself at a loss, having just told Zhang Hongyun she was out of town.

"And you, Fan Qing. Did you not say you weren’t in the city? Have you been with Tan Yiwen behind my back all along? Or did you forget you promised me you would never be with him?"

Zhang Hongyun recalled demanding a promise from Fan Qing.

"You may have asked me to swear, but I didn’t agree to it."

Fan Qing told her, feeling inexplicably anxious, her facial expression particularly unnatural.

Smugly, Zhang Hongyun sneered, "A scoundrel couple is what you are, still trying to argue with me."

"Argue? I’m single, she’s unmarried, we’re of similar age, understand each other well, so we’re together because we like each other. How does that make us scoundrels in your eyes?"

Being a lawyer, Tan Yiwen wouldn’t let a few crude remarks from Zhang Hongyun drive him irrational.

"I originally thought the most complex thing in the world was teacher-student affairs, and—Fan Qing, come out, if you leave with me tonight, I’ll forgive you and overlook all past issues!"

Not wishing to lose Fan Qing, Zhang Hongyun restrained herself from further berating, instead changing her stance towards Fan Qing.