Rose Manor: Tycoon's Relentless Chase
Chapter 35 - 32: Who Is Ah Che?

Chapter 35: Chapter 32: Who Is Ah Che?

Shen Jianian was no match for Fu Jichen’s strength. No matter how much she struggled, it was futile; she ended up being carried into his bedroom.

The master bedroom on the third floor was at least three times the size of the guest room, with complete amenities, showcasing luxury and class everywhere, even featuring a wine cabinet and bar.

The air was lightly scented with a woody aroma mixed with a hint of tea. Fu Jichen loved drinking wine and also enjoyed tea tasting.

As they entered the inner room, Shen Jianian looked at the large bed, noticing a few creases on the midnight blue sheets. Uncontrollably, a scene of Fu Jichen and Zhu Yilan entangled on it flashed in her mind, and a wave of nausea swept over her again.

Is this man a beast?

Did Zhu Yilan not satisfy him just now?

Shen Jianian thought angrily, and the next second, Fu Jichen placed her on the bed. She found it dirty and jumped off immediately. Her slippers had fallen off in the process of being carried, leaving her standing barefoot on the carpet, her face clearly showing resistance: "I don’t want to sleep here."

Fu Jichen’s expression was indifferent: "Give me a reason."

Shen Jianian couldn’t help but speak her mind: "Your sheets are dirty, I won’t sleep."

What a joke, his sheets are dirty? Fu Jichen looked at her with a faint smile: "I would like to ask this lady where she got her conclusion from?"

He was a clean freak and always meticulous about the things touching him. The place he slept had to be spotless as a basic requirement. She actually used such a poor excuse to reject him.

Shen Jianian felt awkward, not sure how to start, as if she needed to say she couldn’t accept the place where he slept with another woman.

Watching her changing expression, Fu Jichen gradually realized and raised an eyebrow with a hint of deep meaning: "Are you trying to say two nights ago we... Rest assured, it’s been changed."

Shen Jianian was speechless; he seemed to have misunderstood.

Seeing her silence, Fu Jichen thought he’d guessed her thoughts correctly and gave a small smile: "It’s late, time to sleep."

Shen Jianian stood still, clearly unable to get past her inner hurdle.

Lying on the same bed with an unfamiliar opposite sex, doing things only lovers should do, enduring moral condemnation, bearing the chaotic relationships around him, it’s pure torture.

But she chose this path herself; once on it, there’s no turning back. No matter how bitter or difficult, she had to grit her teeth and push forward, right?

As Shen Jianian considered compromise, Fu Jichen had already picked her up and tossed her onto the bed like a sack. The mattress was thick and soft, with no obvious pain upon landing.

The space beside her sank slightly; Fu Jichen had laid down, the room plunged into darkness, the curtains drawn, blocking out the streetlight from outside.

Shen Jianian lay straightly, her body stiff as wood, bracing for the impending storm.

However, after waiting for a long time, Fu Jichen did nothing, merely lay quietly beside her, with a distance of a fist between them, just like he said earlier—it’s late, time to sleep.

Even just sharing a blanket to sleep, Shen Jianian couldn’t fall asleep peacefully; his presence was too strong, hard to ignore. She felt like she was sleeping next to a lion, afraid that any random move might anger him.

Shen Jianian thought a lot, not noticing her breathing had become erratic, when Fu Jichen’s voice suddenly resonated beside her, gentle like a whisper: "Can’t sleep?"

Shen Jianian’s breath tightened, instinctively replying: "No."

She turned her back on him, closed her eyes pretending to sleep, truly sleepless, she finally voiced the question buried deep in her heart: "With your status, you can have any kind of woman, why specifically have trouble with me."

After waiting for a moment, the person behind her didn’t speak.

Just as Shen Jianian thought he wouldn’t answer, he coldly sneered: "Huh, you think I’m having trouble with you?"

Shen Jianian pursed her lips, choosing not to continue, knowing there was no normal communication possible with him.

*

After sleeping on and off during the day, Shen Jianian indeed had no sleepiness, especially in an unfamiliar environment, with someone lying next to her.

She kept her eyes wide open in the dark night, time slipping away slowly. She didn’t know how much time had passed until she heard Fu Jichen’s even breathing, seemingly asleep.

Near dawn, Shen Jianian finally couldn’t hold on and drifted off to sleep. Probably because her mind was heavy a few hours before sleep, her rest was uneasy, filled with dreams.

Since the incident at home, whenever she slept, she often dreamt of the past, when her parents were alive, lavishing her with care and love, Pei Che by her side, catering to her every whim. She was the carefree Little Nian, carrying a cello to the classroom for practice, spending leisure time in pretty clothes, shopping with friends, having afternoon tea, borrowing a ray of sunlight streaming through the window for photos, so wonderful.

This time, she dreamed of Pei Che again, yet it wasn’t wonderful.

He searched the world for her trace, eventually arriving at a cliff edge, inadvertently slipped and fell. Below was an endless ocean, deep and bottomless, capable of devouring everything. He fell into the sea, continually sinking, surrounded by suffocating deep blue, oxygen dwindling, dwindling.

Shen Jianian witnessed from an observer’s perspective above him, screamed frantically, yet her outstretched hand couldn’t reach him, unable to save him.

"Ah Che." Shen Jianian tightly shut her eyes, called out his name in her sleep filled with fear and worry, her brows unconsciously knitting, "Ah Che, Ah Che, give me your hand..."

At her first cry, Fu Jichen awoke, leaning closer just to hear more clearly.

Ah Che? Or Ah Che? Or another homophone?

He wasn’t sure exactly which character, only knowing it sounded like a man’s name.

He had only investigated her identity and the cause of the Shen Family’s downfall, paying no heed to her relationship status; did she have a man in her heart?

Fu Jichen turned on a wall lamp, squinting slightly, Shen Jianian trapped in a nightmare, drenched in sweat, continually calling that name, filled with such sorrowful pain, unknown what she dreamt.

"Wake up." Fu Jichen gently slapped her face, called her name, "Shen Jianian."

Shen Jianian grabbed his hand, startled awake: "Ah Che!"

Fu Jichen’s face darkened instantly, akin to the unlit sky outside, gloomy, somber, cold: "See clearly who I am."

He had said the same words once before. That time Shen Jianian was injured, with a fever in the middle of the night muddling her head, mistook him for someone else, not only cursing him as a beast but also slapping him. Considering her illness, he didn’t argue with her; now she was completely clear, mistaking him again simply couldn’t pass.

The newly awakened Shen Jianian’s eyes were empty, her mind still entwined in the dream, unable to connect with reality for a long time.

She seemed to see Pei Che falling off the cliff, drowning below the sea, suffocated to death.

"What did you dream about, how come you’re crying?" Seeing her tears fall, Fu Jichen sighed once, reserved his expression, his tone not so cold.

Shen Jianian stared at him dazedly, yet it was as if she was not looking at him.

Did she cry?

She raised her hand to touch her face, feeling the slick and chilly surface, she indeed cried.

After a moment of losing herself, Shen Jianian’s mind gradually returned, telling herself it was just a dream. Wiping away her tears, her vision gradually cleared, revealing the unfamiliar room and the person beside her—Fu Jichen.

"Who is Ah Che?" Fu Jichen asked directly.

Shen Jianian turned away in evasion, not responding for a long time.

Fu Jichen also said nothing, his gaze glued to her face, containing expectation. Shen Jianian knew Fu Jichen was waiting for her to speak, thus she eluded: "No one."

"Do you think I’m easily fooled?" Fu Jichen held her face in his hand, made her turn to meet his eyes, "Your boyfriend, or someone dear to your heart?"

Shen Jianian denied sharply: "Neither."

"Since neither—" Fu Jichen paused his tone, leaned down and pressed his lips to hers, his voice low and indistinguishable in emotion, "Then there’s nothing worth yearning for."

Shen Jianian felt a sting at the corner of her mouth, frowned and pushed him. Fu Jichen was like a mountain, unmoved, and her lips were sealed, futilely emitting "mmm" protests.