C13 Chapter 13

No matter what Hee Zheng and Zhuh Qingwen thought, and no matter how much the Hee family’s other two daughters seethed with envy, jealousy, and resentment, once Yan Jin announced the engagement, he pushed his way out of the press conference under the tight, overexcited swarm of reporters.

He’d dealt with Old Man Zhang in the morning, and by afternoon he’d already taken care of her worries for good. Hee Yu genuinely admired how fast and decisive Yan Jin was. From now on, even if the Hee family wanted to stir up trouble, they probably wouldn’t dare cross her again.

“Dinner’s on me tonight.” No need for a big speech—Hee Yu knew how to appreciate a favor, and when someone treated her well, she paid it back in full.

It was just that right now, she didn’t have much. The one thing she could rely on was the cooking skills she’d been drilled in for years.

Yan Jin raised an eyebrow. Once he realized Hee Yu meant she’d be cooking herself, he was suddenly a lot more interested. He casually tossed her a key to his private villa. “You’ll live here from now on. Lao Gao knows the address. Buy what you need and have him take it straight over.”

Even though he’d had his assistant rush the urgent documents to the hotel suite first thing that morning, he’d still been away from the office all day, and a thick stack of paperwork was waiting for his signature.

Yan Jin had the driver take him back to the office first, then told him to drive Hee Yu to the grocery store.

His schedule originally had a two-hour overseas video meeting set for five o’clock. But with Hee Yu’s dinner on his mind, Yan Jin told his assistant to reschedule it. At exactly five—while his staff were still grinding through overtime—he walked out the front doors of Yan’s Group.

Director Yan leaving work on the dot was enough to make everyone’s jaws hit the floor.

When Yan Jin stepped into his place like he’d done a thousand times before, a strange new feeling rose up in him.

Before, this had only ever been somewhere to sleep.

He had a cleaning lady come by every day while he was out, so the rest of the time, it was just him.

But when a rich, savory aroma hit him the moment he walked in, Yan Jin couldn’t shake the sense that something had changed. The place felt different—warmer, more lived-in.

Most of all, he realized he didn’t dislike it—he actually liked it.

Having quietly decided that Hee Yu would be the one cooking dinner from now on, Yan Jin seemed to forget that their engagement had an expiration date.

Once he found a woman truly worthy of being the Yan family’s future Mrs., Hee Yu would have to leave.

“You’re back?!” With the weight that had been pressing on her finally gone, Hee Yu was in an unusually good mood. “My timing was pretty spot-on. I figured you wouldn’t be home until five if you got off work on time.”

“I didn’t know what you like, so I made a few things—shrimp with celery, fish head chowder, sweet-and-sour ribs. There’s shrimp, fish, and meat, so just pick whatever you feel like.” Seeing Yan Jin’s gaze land on the shrimp with celery, she quickly added, “Don’t worry. I bought live shrimp and peeled them myself—cleaned them and took out the veins.”

She smiled softly, a little chatty, looking every bit like a home cook.

Yan Jin offered a lukewarm compliment. “Looks good. No idea how it tastes, though.”

Hee Yu hurried to hand him a pair of chopsticks, grinning. “Try it. If it’s bad, I’ll eat the bowl too.”

Yan Jin gave a faint smile and reached for the shrimp.

But just as he was about to put it in his mouth, his phone rang.

“Mr. Yan, this is Miss Shi’s manager. There was an accident on set today, and Miss Shi is in surgery at the hospital right now. Since you specifically asked to be notified, I—”

“Okay, I understand,” Yan Jin cut in. “Text me the hospital address. Take good care of Miss Shi. I’m on my way.” He hung up and, of course, noticed the smile fading from Hee Yu’s face. “Something came up. Go ahead and eat.”

With that, Yan Jin grabbed the car keys off the coffee table and walked out without a hint of hesitation.

The dining area felt suddenly hollow. The carefully prepared dishes still gave off steam, and the piece of shrimp he’d picked up earlier seemed to wait for someone to come back for it. But the one left behind—Hee Yu—had already lost her appetite.

Hee Yu was holding her bowl, about to ladle herself some fish soup to warm up, when a wallet suddenly caught her eye.

Before Yan Jin left, there hadn’t been anything on the table. This was a private villa, so it could only be his.

From what he’d said, it sounded like a friend had run into trouble and ended up in the hospital, which was why he’d rushed out.

What if it was serious and he needed to grease the wheels? What if he needed to buy a get-well gift?

A dozen thoughts spun through her head. Hee Yu grabbed the wallet and ran out the door.

But of course, Yan Jin’s car tore past right in front of her. She didn’t even get the chance to call out.

“Move, keep up. This could be a big one—don’t lose him.”

Cameras and long lenses again. She had no idea how they’d gotten into a private area like this, but it was obvious they were tailing Yan Jin. Either way, she needed to warn him.

Hee Yu turned back inside, snatched the car keys Yan Jin had left behind, started the other car parked in the courtyard, and took off after him.

It was rush hour, and traffic was a total nightmare. Even if Yan Jin had the skills of a stunt driver, there was nowhere to use them. Fuming with impatience, he naturally failed to notice the paparazzi right behind him—or Hee Yu a few car lengths back.

She hurried as fast as she could and pulled into an open spot at the hospital, but Yan Jin and the paparazzi were already gone.

Hee Yu sprinted straight to the nurses’ station. “Hi, sorry—could I ask if a Miss Shi was brought in today and scheduled for surgery?”