Chapter 22: Embracing His Bride

Looking at all the empty cups, Cheng Fei thought to herself that this time things should finally be stable.

Even if she ran away in the future, the shop could still continue operating, and she could manage things secretly from behind the scenes.

But… the more she thought about it, the more nervous she became.

If she really ran away and ruined Gao Ming’s plans, he might become angry from embarrassment. Maybe he did not have enough power to directly take away her shop, but with his background in cybersecurity, he was basically the opposite side of a hacker. If he wanted to use technical tricks or spread damaging information online to ruin her business, he probably had the ability to do it. And honestly… the chance of that happening felt very high.

At that point, closing the shop would happen in minutes.

It was not that she purposely thought badly of people. She had simply seen too much after years of living in society. Once anger awakens the dark side of human nature, people can do almost anything.

Seeing Cheng Fei shaking her head and sighing again and again, not only was Miao Lei confused, but Liu Zhi also instantly lost confidence.

“What’s wrong?”

Cheng Fei jumped in surprise. After these past few days, this voice had already become like a warning signal.

“Why are you back again? Did you get off work early?” Cheng Fei asked instead.

Gao Ming smiled calmly and handed over a lunch box.

“You forgot to take your lunch earlier.”

“Hehe…”

Cheng Fei forced out an awkward laugh and exchanged glances with Miao Lei. Even the newly hired worker could already see what was going on.

“Feifei hasn’t been feeling well these past two days. She’s hardworking, but normally don’t let her do too much work. Let her rest more.”

“Okay!”

“Understood!”

Since he said it so directly, how could they dare refuse? The two employees nodded obediently toward this “boss’s man.”

After finishing his instructions, Gao Ming smiled again and lightly grabbed Cheng Fei’s hand.

“It’s rush hour now. There are many cars outside, so be careful on the road…”

With him already holding her hand so openly, Cheng Fei was not some clueless fool. She replied with a few words, and only then did Gao Ming leave happily.

Behind them, the two workers could barely hold back their laughter.

This public display of affection, they accepted it without hesitation!

A handsome gentleman in a neat suit carrying a lunch bag in his hand was not unusual inside Shuohua Company. But their boss, who always ordered food delivery from the same restaurant, had suddenly started bringing homemade lunch to work every day for three days straight.

That naturally caused a lot of gossip.

After all, delivery food was still fast food. How could it compare to homemade cooking?

Someone caring this much about the boss’s health, besides the mysterious boss’s wife, who else could it be?

Outside the deputy general manager’s office, Gao Ming noticed something strange while passing by. The office door, which was usually tightly closed, was open today.

The moment Gao Ming looked inside, Ye Dong stuck his head out.

The moment he saw Gao Ming’s face, his expression became full of irritation.

Gao Ming had expected that box of “super spicy hot pot” would make Ye Dong suffer, but he did not expect his cheeks to swell this badly.

“You okay?”

“What do you think?” Ye Dong replied unhappily.

Seeing how badly he had messed the man up, Gao Ming also felt he had gone a little too far. Smiling awkwardly, he lifted the lunch bag in his hand.

There was a saying, once bitten by a snake, you fear ropes for ten years.

And this lunch bag had turned him into a “hamster.”

Ye Dong immediately felt a chill run down his back and quickly stepped backward twice.

“Don’t worry, it’s not spicy. It’s stir-fried bitter melon, ginkgo nuts, and wild rice stem. It helps reduce internal heat and swelling. With your cheeks swollen like this, this is perfect for you.”

As Gao Ming spoke, he opened the lunch box.

Green, yellow, and white colors mixed together nicely. Even though the food had been packed for a while, thanks to the good insulation of the lunch box, the smell was almost the same as when it had just come out of the pan.

Ye Dong smelled it carefully and indeed found nothing suspicious.

Taking the lunch box from Gao Ming, Ye Dong understood that Gao Ming definitely wanted a favor today, so he got straight to the point.

“What do you need?”

Gao Ming pulled at the corner of his mouth.

“Tomorrow I’m going to take wedding photos…”

“So?” Ye Dong immediately became alert.

“I’ll probably be gone for around three days. After I leave, you’ll be the boss here.”

“......”

Ye Dong looked more troubled than ever. His thick eyebrows were almost twisted together like ropes.

This guy had always cared deeply about his image. Even the smallest flaw would stop him from leaving his office to meet employees. Now that he looked like a giant squirrel, he felt even more ashamed to see people.

And honestly, this was all Gao Ming’s fault.

With a serious face, Gao Ming said, “Later I’ll get you some medicine. Internal and external treatment. By this afternoon, you’ll recover. Then you can sit in my office.”

“You eat medicine at noon and recover by afternoon? What is this, magic medicine?!”

“If you believe it, then it works. If you don’t, then it doesn’t.”

After saying that, Gao Ming walked straight toward his own office.

Suddenly, hearing the sound of high heels behind him, Ye Dong reacted like a frightened deer and instantly rushed back into his office.

……………………

After resting for the night, Cheng Fei was taken to the suburbs early the next morning.

It was still the same two girls, warmly welcoming the important guests once again.

Dragging her suitcase behind her, Cheng Fei had heard the scenery here was beautiful, so she even brought sunglasses to enjoy the view properly. Anyone who did not know better would think she came here for vacation.

“We have seven photo sets in total this time. Which one would you like to start with?”

While leading Cheng Fei and Gao Ming toward a room on the second floor, the younger business manager asked for their opinion.

Cheng Fei did not really have any ideas. She only thought it would be better to return to the room first.

Otherwise, she might accidentally expose herself again.

At first, she thought there would only be three outfits and that everything could be finished in one day.

Who would have thought Gao Ming secretly added four more sets later?

The colors were all different, and the styles ranged from casual to formal. Basically everything was included.

Well then. No wonder Gao Ming insisted she bring luggage before leaving home.

At this rate, there was no way they would finish taking photos in less than three days.

“Any set… is fine.”

Before they had even started, Cheng Fei already showed a tired smile. Luckily, Gao Ming was beside her and wrapped an arm around her waist.

“I already told you to stay home and rest during your period, but you insisted on coming.”

She had agreed to come, but she never expected they would take this many photos.

“Everyone has it hard,” Cheng Fei replied with a stiff smile. Part of it was because she had been suddenly grabbed, and part of it was because the pain in her stomach felt like someone had thrown the blame onto her. “Besides, it’s not a big deal. Even the girls on the national volleyball team still train during this time, right? I’m just standing still and letting people take pictures.”

The business manager was still young and inexperienced. Hearing those words, she suddenly felt deeply touched.

One sentence said it all, understanding each other really was wonderful!

“Thank you so much!”

“Hehe.”

Cheng Fei took the room card, and the female manager quietly stepped away to give the couple some private space.

The moment the woman turned around, Cheng Fei’s smile disappeared. She narrowed her eyes and glared at Gao Ming before opening the door with the key card.

Open door. Pull hand away. Rush into the bathroom.

Gao Ming helplessly shrugged.

Actually, he did not want to take this many photo sets either. The original package really had too few options. Later, someone asked if he wanted to add more, and at that moment he was discussing a project with Ye Dong. His attention was too focused, so he forgot how many sets they already had and casually agreed.

And then…

Well, thinking about it now was pointless.

People always say running your own business gives you freedom and flexible work hours, but who really knew how much stress came with protecting both the company and all the employees? He had been busy all year long. In fact, he worked even more regularly than ordinary employees and rarely missed a day.

So this was actually a good chance to relax for a few days.

As an investor, Gao Ming only shared the profits. This was also his first time coming to the second floor.

The room had a very warm style. The moment someone stepped inside, it felt like coming home, instantly helping him relax.

After putting down his suitcase, Gao Ming walked to the balcony and opened the window.

The entire photography base could almost be seen from there.

The air was fresh and comfortable. Although the place was man-made, it still gave off a very natural feeling everywhere.

In the lake directly ahead, two couples sat in small boats, leaning sweetly against each other. Under the pine forest on the left and beside the artificial beach on the right, photographers and newlywed couples were busy everywhere.

Business here was doing very well.

Looks like this investment had truly been worth it.

While he was admiring the view, the phone beside the bed suddenly rang.

“Mm, okay. We’ll come down in a little while. Mm.”

“Are they rushing us again?” Cheng Fei asked after he hung up.

“They’re not rushing us. They’re inviting us,” Gao Ming corrected.

Fine, her wording was wrong.

After all, who was the investor here? The hidden boss. The financial backer.

Anyone daring to rush the god of wealth either had nerves of steel or had already given up on staying in this business.

Downstairs earlier, the two managers had practically begged the top photographer to hurry back, afraid of delaying their schedule. That was the attitude they showed toward honored guests.

Tsk tsk.

Could someone give her a bottle of alkaline water? She just wanted to balance out all this sour jealousy.

But the special treatment did not stop there.

While being helped into her wedding dress, Cheng Fei suddenly felt like an empress. She completely ignored the jealous looks from the women admiring her figure.

“Your body is amazing!”

“Your skin is so nice!”

What was there to be afraid of? Letting girls look at her was no big deal.

Of course, if they let her admire them in return, that would be even better.

“Hiss!”

When the wedding dress was brought over and they were helping Cheng Fei put on chest pads, a sudden sharp pain came from her chest.

The younger girl immediately panicked, thinking her fingernail had scratched Cheng Fei.

“Sorry! I didn’t mean to!”

Cheng Fei shook her head.

It was not her fault at all. She had only touched her lightly. Her finger was not some knife stabbing into her.

Just a few days ago, Cheng Fei had been secretly proud of herself. Some women had cold hands and feet, some suffered unbearable pain, but she herself seemed perfectly fine.

And now, chest pain had finally arrived too.

People really should stay humble.

Otherwise, the heavens always seemed to punish anyone showing off too proudly, reminding them to stay modest.

What looked like a simple wedding dress was actually very hard to put on.

Maybe because of the earlier accident, the two assistants became much slower and more careful. By the time they finally finished dressing her, Cheng Fei was almost falling asleep.

Once the veil was added, everything was complete.

Cheng Fei looked at herself.

Even though she had already become familiar with this face over the past few days, seeing herself wearing a wedding dress still left her stunned.

She really was beautiful.

No wonder so many girls dreamed of wearing this kind of dress.

If it were the old him seeing this scene for the first time, he probably would have frozen on the spot.

After admiring herself long enough and hearing the quiet whispers behind her, Cheng Fei finally snapped back to reality. Feeling a little embarrassed by her own narcissism, she lifted her foot and habitually tried walking out of the dressing room with large steps.

But the long dress was basically designed to stop rough behavior.

The moment someone moved too wildly…

Problems happened.

Unfortunately, Cheng Fei stepped directly on the hem of her wedding dress. Wearing high heels, she immediately lost balance and stumbled forward, pushing the door open.

She was just about to fall flat onto the ground, either crashing into the floor or performing a full-body bow to the people outside.

At the critical moment, her quick reaction saved her.

One hand grabbed the doorknob, and the other braced against the doorframe.

Like the other grooms waiting outside, Gao Ming had already changed into a simple formal suit and was sitting there bored.

After reading newspapers and magazines and scrolling through his phone to pass the time, his mind naturally wandered toward Cheng Fei.

Wine, beauty, money, and desire always seemed connected somehow.

She might not have seen much of the upper-class world before, but now she was suddenly surrounded by beautiful young women singing and laughing. It was hard for a man’s instincts not to react.

Cheng Fei herself during this period was proof enough.

A lustful person… well, maybe barely counted as one.

Left alone in a small room with two young and attractive women taking care of her, Gao Ming was honestly worried something embarrassing might happen and damage his reputation instead.

After feeling restless for a long time, Gao Ming could not sit still anymore and went to wait outside the door.

Before he could even lean closer, the door suddenly opened.

Cheng Fei appeared in a failed “hungry tiger pounce,” nearly shocking his eyes out.

Without thinking much, Gao Ming quickly reached out and caught her.

“You’re not feeling well right now. Maybe we should do this tomorrow instead.”

Of course Gao Ming knew exactly why she had fallen, but those reasons were impossible to explain in front of outsiders.

Right now, all he could do was help cover for her.

“It’s fine. I’m just a little dizzy because I didn’t sleep well yesterday. Sigh.”

Gao Ming shook his head and suddenly picked her up bridal-style.

“Rest a little. I’ll carry you to the studio.”

The moment Cheng Fei saw the warning look in his eyes, she immediately stopped struggling.

She obediently stayed still, like a cat grabbed by the back of its neck.