Delicate Beauty in the Palm : Chapter 63 - A Man's Dignity is not to be Questioned
Chapter 63: A Man's Dignity is not to be Questioned
Chen Die helped the old master Chen lie back down on the hospital bed, and suddenly didn’t know how to start speaking.
“You don't have to do this,” Chen Die said softly after a moment of consideration. “Among all the people in the Chen family, you were the only one who ever really considered me. I don’t blame you.”
There was once a time when Old Master Chen came to her school, intending to take her back home.
At that time, Chen Die refused, saying she wasn’t the Chen family’s granddaughter.
She also knew very well that back then, Old Master Chen could have easily ignored her wishes and taken her back by force. At that time, Wenyuan was still in Wen Huaiyuan’s hands, and even if Wen Liang had disagreed, he wouldn't have been able to change anything.
But Old Master Chen respected her decision and let her stay. Chen Die wasn’t sure which of her words made him change his mind, but at least he had listened. He only left her his contact information, telling her she could find him anytime if she needed help.
“Also, there’s something else I should tell you ahead of time.”
“In the matter regarding Chen Shuyuan, I won’t forgive her. I also won’t write any letter of forgiveness that could help reduce her sentence. Whatever the verdict is, that's what it should be,” Chen Die said after a brief silence. “I’m the victim in this situation.”
Old Master Chen nodded repeatedly, patting the back of her hand: “Of course, of course. We wouldn’t expect you to do anything like that. It’s her fault entirely. If…”
Old Master Chen paused, but didn’t say the words ‘your mother’ aloud: “If Lin Quan comes to find you about this, just tell Grandpa.”
Chen Die nodded.
“Then we’ll get going,” she said, getting up.
Old Master Chen called out to her again, looking like he wanted to say more but hesitated. He spoke quietly: “I don’t expect you to forgive, but if you can let it go, if you have the time, you can come back and visit. We can have a meal together.”
Chen Die smiled: “I'll come back to visit you when I have time. Please take care of yourself.”
Wen Liang hadn't said a single word during the whole time. When Chen Die spoke, he simply leaned against the wall near the door. Once she finished, he quietly followed her out.
Chen Die put her mask and hat back on and glanced sideways at him: “You really don’t like Old Master Chen, huh?”
“I don’t like any of them,” Wen Liang said with a trace of cold mockery.
By the time they walked out of the hospital, it was already dark. Chen Die bought a bottle of water at a convenience store. After they got into the car and she shut the door, her phone immediately started ringing.
Wen Liang had tossed Chen Die’s bag onto the backseat earlier. He undid his seatbelt, leaned over to grab it, opened the bag, and pulled out the phone. Glancing down at the screen, he sneered.
Chen Die instantly guessed who was calling.
Wen Liang, looking annoyed, tossed the phone onto her lap. Chen Die picked it up and checked—sure enough, it was Chen Shao.
These two, honestly...
“Where are you?” Chen Shao asked as soon as he answered.
“At the hospital.”
He paused for a second, then laughed: “Soft-hearted, huh, little sister?”
Chen Die rolled her eyes: “What do you want?”
“Come eat with us. I’ll send you the address. Ye Chuqing is here too.”
Chen Die raised an eyebrow teasingly: “You two are eating together—why should I crash your party?”
“Why do you talk so much? I told you to come, so come,” Chen Shao said.
“Can I bring someone along?” Chen Die asked tactfully.
Chen Shao, speechless: “...Whatever.”
Meanwhile, Ye Chuqing and Chen Shao were standing behind a screen near the restaurant bathroom, both looking helpless.
“Will she come?” Ye Chuqing asked.
“She’s coming,” Chen Shao said, looking down at her. “Why are you here?”
“My aunt has been nagging me nonstop about introducing me to a man. I was so annoyed, I agreed just to shut her up. Who knew it’d be you?” Ye Chuqing shot him a glare. “And you? I didn’t think you were the type to go on blind dates.”
Chen Shao gave a cold laugh: “Your aunt tricked me into coming. Who said anything about a blind date?”
“......” Ye Chuqing glanced through the screen at her aunt sitting at the table like a guardian deity and sighed: “So what do we do now?”
“I'll just tell her you’re not my type. That should end it,” Chen Shao said.
“?”
Ye Chuqing gave him a look like he was crazy and laughed out of sheer exasperation: “If anyone should say that, it’s me. Do you think you’re my type?!”
Chen Shao waved dismissively: “Whatever. Same difference.”
They returned to the table. Ye Chuqing was about to sit down next to her aunt, but her aunt waved her away: “You young people should sit together. Why sit here with me?”
“......”
Ye Chuqing cursed internally but sat down next to Chen Shao anyway: “Aunt, Chen Shao and I have known each other for a long time. Honestly, we have zero interest in each other. Even being friends is a stretch. You don’t need to worry about us.”
Her aunt waved her hand: “You can’t jump to conclusions so quickly. You have to spend time together to really know.”
Then she turned to Chen Shao and asked: “What do you think of my niece?”
Chen Shao: “......”
She asked directly, “Pretty, right?”
Chen Shao turned his head to glance at Ye Chuqing. He had to admit, no matter who she was compared to, Ye Chuqing could definitely be called a beauty. If you didn’t know her personality, she even looked like a gentle, traditional Eastern beauty—long, wavy hair down to her waist, bright eyes, perfect teeth.
Chen Shao nodded, “Pretty.”
Aunt looked very pleased, nodding enthusiastically, “She also has great grades! And an excellent job!”
Chen Shao nodded politely for once, saying, “I know. We've worked together before.”
Ye Chuqing: “...”
“You've worked together before?! That’s fate! Then you two should have a good chat, and this time you don’t need to talk about work. After that, you can go upstairs and catch a movie. I’ll head out now.”
Ye Chuqing: “...”
Chen Shao: “...”
Came in a rush, left in a rush.
Fortunately, not long after, Chen Die and Wen Liang arrived, walking into the private room, which helped ease the awkwardness.
Chen Die hung her coat and hat on the rack and sat down next to Wen Liang, across from them.
“Why’d you call us over all of a sudden?” Chen Die asked.
“You’re sitting in my aunt’s seat right now,” Ye Chuqing said, looking exhausted as she briefly recapped what had just happened.
Chen Die couldn’t help but laugh, giving the two of them a teasing glance. “Looks like we’re interrupting something.”
Ye Chuqing rolled her eyes: “Would you shut up already.”
For some reason, Chen Shao and Wen Liang seemed to have become mortal enemies. They had still managed to exchange a few words at the police station last time, but now, they didn’t even bother acknowledging each other.
Most of the conversation at the table was between Chen Die and Ye Chuqing. After Chen Shao asked about her hospital visit, he went quiet too.
Wen Liang, being a man of few words and disliking such social settings, barely touched his food. Halfway through the meal, he even stepped out to take a call.
As soon as he left, Ye Chuqing asked, “What’s wrong with him?”
“Huh?” Chen Die didn’t catch her meaning at first.
“Bad mood?” Ye Chuqing frowned. “What, does he think I’m so ugly he lost his appetite?”
Chen Die laughed: “No, that’s just his personality. He doesn’t have anything in common to talk about with us ‘old folks,’ so he clams up.”
Ye Chuqing clicked her tongue: “You know what he reminds me of now?”
“What?”
“Someone who’s not even interested in dinner but insists on sticking close to you—like a total introvert.”
“......”
Ye Chuqing muttered, “When I first met him, he was so arrogant. I never thought he’d turn out like this.”
Thanks to Ye Chuqing’s comment, when Wen Liang came back after his call, Chen Die even asked with concern, “Whose call was it? Everything okay?”
“Zhu Qicong’s. It’s nothing, just a small company matter,” Wen Liang said as he casually picked up Chen Die’s left hand and placed it on his leg.
Chen Die nodded, grabbed a shrimp with her chopsticks, and asked, “Do you want some shrimp?”
Wen Liang looked down, his eyelids drooping a little, clearly uninterested: “Don't want to peel it.”
“......”
Alright then.
Chen Die rolled up her sleeves and started peeling shrimp for him.
Across the table, Chen Shao was completely dumbfounded. What the hell is this? He had thought that after luring his little sister home at sixteen, this bastard must’ve been spoiling her like a princess all these years. And now she was peeling shrimp for him??
With lightning speed, as soon as Chen Die was about to put the peeled shrimp into Wen Liang’s bowl, Chen Shao snatched it with his chopsticks and dropped it into Ye Chuqing’s bowl instead.
Ye Chuqing, still stunned from seeing Chen Die peel shrimp for Wen Liang, went along immediately and ate it.
Chen Shao laughed out of sheer anger: “Seriously, have your genders swapped or something?”
Then he pointed at Chen Die with a ‘you’re hopeless’ expression: “What’s wrong with you? Have a little dignity, will you? He didn’t even ask you to peel it, why are you just doing it? Does he not have hands to peel his own shrimp? Are you peeling shrimp for him at home too?!”
Chen Die: “......”
Well, not really.
Wen Liang straightened his back, leaned against the chair, raised his chin slightly, and the open collar of his shirt revealed a hint of his collarbone. Without any expression, he looked at Chen Shao.
There was clearly fire in that look.
Wen Liang was annoyed with Chen Shao. Always acting like Chen Die’s big protective brother—taking her rings off one minute, stealing his shrimp the next.
Chen Die looked at Wen Liang, then at Chen Shao.
She just felt exhausted.
These two giant babies...
“Enough, enough,” Chen Die called a truce. She grabbed Wen Liang’s hand to soothe him and placed a piece of meat into Chen Shao’s bowl: “You eat too!”
Chen Shao immediately tossed the meat back into the bone dish: “I don’t fucking eat mutton!”
Wen Liang pulled Chen Die back by the shoulder and gave a soft laugh: “Why should she remember what you like to eat?”
Chen Die: “...”
Ye Chuqing: “...”
This meal was practically eaten in fear and trembling. They had to constantly be on guard to make sure the two big babies didn't start a fight, and the moment any sparks appeared, they had to quickly jump in and put them out.
By the time they finally finished eating, Chen Die was completely exhausted.
Ye Chuqing went to the restroom. When she came back, she looked nervous, quickly slipping into the room and shutting the door.
Chen Die looked up: “What's wrong?”
“A whole group of students outside—it feels like the whole class is here. They're all standing at the door,” Ye Chuqing said. “If you go out like this, you’ll probably get recognized.”
Chen Die glanced at Wen Liang.
She could already imagine the storm it would cause if she and Wen Liang were photographed eating together.
Just as she was hesitating, Ye Chuqing offered a plan: “Here’s what we do—you two go out first,” she pointed at Wen Liang and Chen Shao, “if no one notices you, then we’ll follow after.”
Chen Die looked at the two of them.
Wen Liang and Chen Shao didn’t object. They picked up their jackets and got up.
Chen Die tugged Wen Liang’s hand, whispering, “Don’t start a fight, okay?”
Wen Liang gave her a slow glance: “Relax.”
“......”
Relax? Given how he acted just now, did he look like someone who could be trusted to behave?
Wen Liang and Chen Shao left one after the other. They got a few extra glances because of their looks, but fortunately, no one recognized them.
They reached the parking garage and sent a message to the two still inside.
Wen Liang put his phone away and leaned against the car door. Chen Shao’s car was parked right next to his.
Neither of them had anything to say. They stood there quietly.
Chen Shao pulled out a cigarette. When he went to light it, he realized he had left his lighter in the private room. Cursing under his breath, he was about to put the cigarette back when Wen Liang tossed his lighter over.
Chen Shao caught it.
They each lit a cigarette, the pale blue smoke curling together.
After a moment, Chen Shao flicked his ashes and suddenly asked, “Do you really like Chen Die?”
Wen Liang wasn’t the kind of man who would chat about feelings with another guy. He lazily lifted his eyes: “Your company even manages this now?”
“Do you have to be such an ass?” Chen Shao was too annoyed to even get mad. “Chen Shuyuan’s never coming back. Everyone out there knows Chen Die’s actually the real heiress of the Chen family. Who knows how many idiots are going to show up proposing marriage? You think she only has you to pick from?”
Wen Liang narrowed his eyes arrogantly: “Besides me, let's see if she’d even want anyone else.”
“The ones who end up hurt the worst are always the ones who are way too overconfident,” Chen Shao said.
Wen Liang couldn't be bothered to argue with him.
When Chen Die and Ye Chuqing finally came out, they were recognized by the group of students at the door. After taking several noisy group photos and signing some autographs, they finally managed to escape.
Thank goodness they hadn't walked out with Wen Liang.
From a distance, Chen Shao saw the two of them turning the corner. He tossed the last of his cigarette away, shoved his hands in his pockets, and said flatly, “Take good care of her.”
Wen Liang turned his head to look at Chen Die: “I know.”
Chen Die, avoiding the students, said goodbye to Ye Chuqing, then got straight into the car. She let out a heavy sigh: “That was terrifying. I thought for sure I’d get exposed.”
“What happened?” Wen Liang asked.
Chen Die told him about being recognized at the door, then asked, “What were you and Chen Shao talking about just now?”
Wen Liang: “Nothing”
Chen Die stared at him suspiciously: “You didn’t fight with him again, did you?”
“Why would I fight with him?”
“...With that attitude, you sound like you’re five years old.”
Wen Liang gave her a sidelong glance: “He told me to treat you well.”
Chen Die froze, clearly not expecting Chen Shao to say something like that. After a moment’s daze, she couldn’t help but laugh: “Yeah, you really should treat me well.”
The next morning—
Chen Die officially returned to set to resume filming.
At first, Wen Liang even wanted to accompany her. Last time’s incident had left a huge impact on him, and he just couldn’t feel at ease letting Chen Die stay at the set alone.
After a lot of persuasion, Chen Die finally convinced him not to stay at the filming location with her—although he still insisted on having bodyguards nearby.
Ever since Chen Die became famous, the company only arranged bodyguards when she traveled through crowded places like airports. This was the first time she’d seen bodyguards posted around a filming set.
Fortunately, they only stayed discreetly near the set.
However, dressed all in black—black clothes, black pants, black sunglasses—there was absolutely nothing ‘low-key’ about it.
The moment Xue Mu walked into the set that morning, he shouted, “Holy crap, what’s with all those men in black outside!? Scared the hell out of me! Who hired bodyguards?”
Chen Die was sitting there getting her makeup done, and she awkwardly raised her hand very slowly, struggling to say, “Mine.”
“......” Xue Mu, being quite understanding, didn’t even ask why. Instead, he immediately supplied a reason himself: “Sister Chen Die, do you have those crazy obsessive sasaeng fans? The kind that follow your schedule every day?”
Chen Die couldn’t think of any better excuse either, so she just nodded along: “...Yeah.”
Xue Mu nodded in understanding and sat down next to her, full of sympathy: “I’ve got a friend with fans like that, too. Super scary—chasing cars, stalking... Definitely need bodyguards.”
“......”
Because she had taken time off before, Huang Sheng had shot a few scenes that didn’t involve Chen Die. Now, all her remaining scenes were crammed together into a tight schedule with heavy filming every day, often shooting late into the night.
Wen Liang would work overtime at his company in the evenings and only head over to wait near the set when he estimated she would be finishing up.
Even though it was just a short walk from the set to the hotel.
Chen Die thought it was making a big deal out of nothing, worried it would tire him out, and she also had to be careful sneaking around so the crew wouldn’t see him. But after trying to persuade him a few times with no success, she just let him be.
That night, filming wrapped up at 11 PM. The early summer night was pleasantly cool, and the stars were faint.
Chen Die, still in a fitted qipao and with her long hair down after a whole day of shooting, felt sticky with sweat and just wanted to rush back to the hotel to take a shower.
After spending so much time together on set, she no longer felt so restrained. She quickly changed into an oversized T-shirt that covered most of her figure, instantly transforming from a graceful beauty into a casual college student.
She peeled off a pair of fake eyelashes, tossed them into a box, said goodbye to the crew, and headed out.
Just as she reached the door, Xue Mu called out, “Sister Chen Die!”
Chen Die stopped: “What is it?”
“Wait for me! I’ll walk back to the hotel with you!”
Chen Die blinked: “Huh?”
“Didn’t you say you’ve had stalker fans following you lately? It’s too dangerous to walk back alone. I’ll go with you!”
“It’s okay, don’t trouble yourself. There are bodyguards outside.”
Xue Mu, full of energy and enthusiasm, said, “It’s no trouble! I’ll just change clothes real quick!” And he dashed into the dressing room.
College kids these days...
Chen Die watched the dressing room door swinging open and closed, dazed for a moment, then pulled out her phone to text Wen Liang and ask where he was.
Just as she took out her phone, a familiar scent of tobacco drifted past her nose.
Another name for it: the smell of danger.
Just as she turned her head, an arm reached from behind and looped around her neck, pulling her into an embrace.
She stumbled backward a step, the back of her head bumping into someone's chest—and immediately caught the scent that belonged to Wen Liang.
“How much longer are you planning to stare at him?” His voice sounded very unhappy.
“I wasn’t staring at anyone,” Chen Die pried his arm off and turned to face him.
The man furrowed his brows slightly, sleeves rolled up to his forearms, eyes lowered, looking at her with a faint, indifferent gaze.
Chen Die glanced around. Everyone else was still tidying up and getting ready to return to the hotel, and anyone could walk out at any moment. She quickly grabbed Wen Liang and dragged him to a hidden stairwell.
It was dark around them, with a dusty smell lingering in the air.
Chen Die sniffed and said, “If we go out now, he’ll definitely spot you. Let’s just stay here for a bit.”
Wen Liang lifted her chin with a finger, lowering his voice in a threatening tone: “Afraid of being seen? You even took off the ring.”
“...!” Chen Die tilted her head up and said earnestly, “Who wears rings while filming, seriously?”
The words had barely left her mouth when Xue Mu finished changing and rushed out, running around outside the door and not spotting her. He circled back inside, muttering, “Weird, where did she go?”
Chen Die peeked her head out, then shrank back into the shadows, pulling Wen Liang closer.
He was tall enough to completely block her from view, casting an even deeper shadow over them.
“Chen Die!” Xue Mu called.
Chen Die: “......”
She debated whether to just text him, saying she had something to do and had already left.
Just as she took out her phone again, Wen Liang stepped forward, pressing his chest firmly against hers, cupping her face, lifting it up—and leaned down to kiss her.
Chen Die let out a muffled ‘mmph,’ instinctively trying to back away, but he grabbed her around the waist and pulled her right back.
She struggled a few times, but he caught her wrists and pinned her.
Meanwhile, Zeng Liya also came out. Hearing Xue Mu’s shout, she asked, “What’s wrong? I saw her leave a while ago.”
Xue Mu scratched his head: “I told her to wait for me... I just looked outside too, but no one’s there. Did she leave that fast? Could something have happened?”
“What could happen? She’s an adult,” Zeng Liya said while flipping her hair. Then she casually slung an arm around Xue Mu’s shoulders and teased, “Why, do you have a crush on Sister Die?"”
Xue Mu stiffened: “Don't say stuff like that!”
Wen Liang bit down hard on Chen Die’s lips. Chen Die winced from the pain but couldn’t escape, so she lifted her foot and stomped on him.
She clearly used a lot of force, but Wen Liang didn’t seem to feel it at all. Instead, he chuckled against her lips, their hot breaths mingling.
Worried that his voice would alert the people outside, Chen Die pinched him hard at the waist.
The two of them were squeezed together in the dark corner beneath the stairs, kissing and fighting at the same time.
Outside, Zeng Liya and Xue Mu’s voices drifted in clearly.
“Didn’t Sister Die have a rumored boyfriend?” Zeng Liya said. “Wasn’t it that Mr. Wen who invested in the variety show she filmed before, ‘Three Meals a Day’?”
Xue Mu sounded skeptical: “I think that news was fake. Neither of them ever said anything about it. Probably just some random gossip article.”
As soon as those words fell, Wen Liang bit Chen Die’s lips again.
Chen Die: “...”
Holy—
Zeng Liya continued, “Did you ever ask Sister Die about it?”
“No,” Xue Mu replied. “Why would I ask her that?”
“You like her, don’t you want to know your competition?” Zeng Liya patted him on the shoulder. “Do you even know how to chase a girl?”
Xue Mu’s face turned red, looking completely overwhelmed: “You’re so nosy. I just wanted to walk her back to the hotel, that’s all!”
Thanks to Zeng Liya’s interruption, Xue Mu finally gave up looking for Chen Die, and the two of them walked away chatting.
Only after making sure everyone had left did Chen Die and Wen Liang crawl out of the pitch-black stairwell. Her lipstick was long gone.
Later that night at the hotel, Xue Mu even sent Chen Die a message asking if she had made it back safely. Chen Die found an excuse to explain and apologized to him again.
Xue Mu replied, but before she could even check the message, Wen Liang had already half-dragged her onto the bed.
Pinning her down, he opened the nightstand drawer, took out the little square packets one by one, hooked one with his finger, tossed it back down, and lazily asked, “After filming for so long, there’s still this many left. Don’t you feel the least bit embarrassed?”
Chen Die was completely confused and blurted out, “Shouldn’t you be the one feeling embarrassed? What’s that got to do with me?”
The moment the words left her mouth, she knew she was doomed.
A man’s pride is not to be questioned.
She had touched a nerve.
Sure enough, Wen Liang narrowed his eyes and let out a cold laugh: “Fine. We’ll use them all up tonight.”
“......”
Bro, please calm down.
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