Delicate Beauty in the Palm : Chapter 3 - Why Are You Pretending to be Good?

April 03, 2025 Oyen 0 Comments

Happy Reading~

Chapter 3: Why Are You Pretending to be Good?

 

The journey was quiet.

 

Since it had just rained, the air was filled with a damp scent.

 

The car slowly drove through the gates of the west suburban villa. The luxurious decor, the surrounding flowers and greenery, and even a decorative rockery and swing meant for her to admire.

 

It was the perfect embodiment of a ‘golden house’ to keep a beauty, lavish and spacious but utterly devoid of warmth.

 

Wen Liang got out of the car first, not waiting for her, and walked straight toward the house.

 

Chen Die had dozed off for a few minutes along the way, her legs slightly numb. She stood beside the car, taking a moment to regain feeling.

 

“Oh, right, Miss Chen.” Beside her, Zhu Qicong handed over a document. “Please pass this to President Wen.”

 

She acknowledged it casually and took a glance at it. There was even a ‘Confidential’ mark on the cover.

 

“What is it?”

 

“It contains evidence of Director Qu’s misconduct over the years, as well as the stock transfer contract,” Zhu Qicong answered truthfully.

 

Technically, the contents of this file shouldn’t be disclosed to anyone. But Chen Die was different.

 

Before Zhu Qicong started working for Wen Liang, Chen Die had already been by his side and was familiar with these matters.

 

Even if she was a kept canary, she was the most confident and willful one.

 

And this attitude was something President Wen had personally indulged into existence over time. Others feared him, but Chen Die didn’t.

 

And though Wen Liang wasn’t exactly meticulous in his care for her, he was undoubtedly biased toward her. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have let her live here.

 

Inside the villa, Wen Liang had already taken off his suit jacket and tossed it onto the sofa. He pulled open the fridge, grabbed a bottle of cold water, and tilted his head back to gulp down half of it.

 

Water droplets rolled down from the corner of his lips, tracing his Adam’s apple before disappearing beneath his collar.

 

He was indeed good-looking, but ‘good-looking’ didn’t quite capture it. His brow bone was sharp, his pupils pitch black, and the scar on his temple gave him an aura of raw intensity.

 

He didn’t resemble a young master or a CEO in the slightest—what kind of CEO drank water like that? He carried a wildness about him, reminiscent of a lone wolf standing tall on a mountaintop. Yet, at the same time, he exuded an innate nobility.

 

A collision of these two contrasting traits made his presence utterly unique.

 

Both ruthless and aristocratic.

 

Wen Liang finished the water in two gulps, crushed the bottle, and tossed it into the trash.

 

Chen Die threw the document onto the coffee table. “Zhu Qicong gave this to you.”

 

“What did that Ma guy say to you today?” Wen Liang asked as he walked over, flipping open the file.

 

Chen Die recalled that beer-bellied man’s last name seemed to be Ma. “Asked me to drink with him.”

 

Wen Liang turned his head to look at her.

 

Chen Die played innocent. “But before I could drink, you called him away.”

 

He let out a light snort and tapped the back of his hand against her forehead. “What are you pretending to be so obedient for?”

 

“…”

 

“You think I didn’t see you drinking with that other guy earlier?”

 

“…”

 

Expert-level trap setting.

 

He was just waiting for her to dig her own hole and jump in.

 

Chen Die rolled her eyes, wrapped her small blanket around her shoulders, and turned to head upstairs.

 

The villa was eerily empty. She had been abroad for half a month, and Wen Liang probably hadn’t stayed here during that time either. The housekeepers weren’t around, leaving only the sound of his fingers flipping through the pages of the document.

 

Steam filled the bathroom.

 

The past few days had been exhausting—constant filming, barely having time to sleep, let alone enjoy a proper bath.

 

Now, she lounged in the bubble-filled tub, completely relaxed, her fair skin glowing like cool silk.

 

Wen Liang finished reading the document and went upstairs. The moment he opened the bedroom door, he was met with the deafening sound of live music blasting from the bathroom, along with Chen Die’s singing. It was practically a one-person concert.

 

A faint smirk tugged at his lips as he pulled off his tie and undid two buttons on his shirt.

 

After half a month apart, he was indeed feeling a bit… restless.

 

Yet he waited and waited, but she still didn’t come out.

 

First, the music stopped, followed by the sound of water splashing as she got up from the tub. Then, another song started playing, and the sink’s faucet turned on.

 

Wen Liang grabbed a set of sleepwear and went to the guest room to take a shower. When he returned, he also brought his laptop from the study.

 

An hour and a half later, Chen Die finally emerged from the bathroom.

 

A white face towel was wrapped around her head, her black hair cascading down her back. With her bare forehead and makeup-free face, her delicate features stood out even more. Her long, exposed legs were smooth as carved jade.

 

Wen Liang glanced at her—and didn’t look away. He pulled her onto the bed.

 

The little wild cub he had raised was certainly pleasing to the eye, but she had too many sharp claws and wasn’t the most obedient.

 

“Can you be a little gentler?”

 

Chen Die frowned, rubbing her elbow that had knocked against something. She pulled the blanket up to her chest, glanced at his laptop screen, and considerately said, “Go ahead and work.”

 

With that, she grabbed her phone.

 

Wen Liang had just opened a newly received email. He let her be, while she started a game with Xia Ying.

 

So, as he skimmed through the all-English email, her voice continuously filled the room—

 

“Yingying, that house has already been looted.”

 

“This bastard looted so fast, didn’t leave a single thing for me.”

 

“Hmm? Hmm? Hmm? How did I get knocked down?!”

 

“Getting headshot from that far away? This has to be a cheater, right?”

 

……

The spacious bedroom was filled with nothing but Chen Die’s voice on the mic. It was obvious she wasn’t a great player, yet she was absurdly enthusiastic, making such a racket that Wen Liang started to get a headache.

 

Half an hour later, she finally quieted down.

 

Wen Liang glanced at her—she was typing on her phone, her brows slightly furrowed.

 

Xia Ying had sent her a link.

 

It was a post from their school’s forum.

 

Someone had posted pictures from earlier at the bar with the title: <Spotted the campus belly at a bar with her friends. Looks like she’s pretty wild—flirting with two guys in just an hour and a half?>

 

The main post included two photos—one of Chen Die drinking with the university student during truth or dare and another of the beer-bellied man standing in front of her with a glass in hand, seemingly persuading her to drink.

 

[Doesn’t the campus belle already have a boyfriend?]

 

[Has anyone ever seen what her boyfriend looks like? He must be really unpresentable— maybe she's actually being kept.]

 

[I thought so, too. The car that picks her up from school is a Bentley Continental GT, but I’ve never heard that her family is wealthy.]

 

[You upstairs are talking nonsense. Do you have any idea how many rich second-generation kids Chen Die has rejected?]

 

[I was part of the production crew and went to the celebration party. That college guy only approached her because he lost a game of truth or dare, and she just drank. As for that investor, she didn’t even look at him. There’s no way she’s the kind of person you’re making her out to be.]

 

[Of course, she has to keep up appearances in public. Who knows what she’s really like behind the scenes?]

 

……

Chen Die found it amusing. She didn’t even need to guess to know who had posted this.

 

Judging by the angle of the shots, it could only be Chen Shuyuan.

 

Apparently, an in-person warning wasn’t enough—she had to go post this nonsense anonymously.

 

Back in her freshman year, Chen Die went viral online because of a set of military training photos. The girl in the pictures was both innocent and bold, and people immediately labeled her as having a mix of purity, allure, and wildness.

 

Even though she rarely posted, her Weibo account quickly gained hundreds of thousands of followers.

 

That’s also how she was named the campus belle as soon as she entered university.

 

She’d seen plenty of rumors like this and had gotten used to them. But for Chen Shuyuan to post slander herself was a different matter entirely.

 

Xia Ying was already arguing with people in the thread.

 

Chen Die opened WeChat and found Chen Shuyuan’s contact. She hesitated for a moment, thinking of how to start.

 

Wen Liang glanced at her. “Who are you chatting with?”

 

“Chen Shuyuan.” She didn’t even look up. “She’s like a ghost that won’t go away.”

 

Wen Liang knew about their history. He closed his laptop and rested his arm over her smooth, fair shoulder without saying anything.

 

Chen Die’s fingers hovered over the screen for a few seconds before she exited the chat and pulled up Lu Chuan’s WeChat instead—

 

To deal with someone like Chen Shuyuan, she needed the right medicine for the illness.

 

[Senior, I need a favor. There’s a post on the school forum about our celebration today. It says some bad things about me. Can you help me…]

 

Before she could finish typing, her phone was snatched away.

 

“Hey—!”

 

Wen Liang tossed her phone onto the bedside table and turned off the light.

 

The bedroom was instantly dark. The curtains weren’t drawn, and it was pitch black.

 

“I haven’t finished my message!” Chen Die sat up in frustration.

 

But Wen Liang pushed her down onto the bed, her head almost sinking into the pillow. He looked down at her with cold eyes. “You’re chatting with another guy right in front of me?”

 

“…?”

 

Is he insane?

 

He patted her face lightly, his tone teasing. “Do you really think I spoil you too much?”

 

“I told you—it’s about Chen Shuyuan.”

 

As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, she could see Wen Liang looming over her. She was wearing a silver camisole nightdress, and her skin was so pale it almost glowed.

 

His gaze darkened. He leaned down, his warm breath brushing against her hair.

 

Chen Die instinctively shrank back a little.

 

Wen Liang’s presence was overwhelming. Even though they’d only been apart for half a month, she felt it pressing down on her.

 

She bit her lip and looked up at him. “What do you want?”

 

Wen Liang lowered his head, leaned close to her ear, and whispered two words.

 

His voice was low and husky, sending vibrations through his chest. Paired with the scar on his forehead, he looked every bit the rogue.

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