Chapter 28: Did Shen Linyan come back in the evening

An Leng felt that Ms. Chen might have misunderstood something.

She chose her words carefully. "My husband... is very gentle. He doesn't resort to violence. Besides, ours is just a marriage of convenience; there aren't really any feelings involved, which is why I didn't mention it before."

Ms. Chen frowned, still looking skeptical. "Is that true?"

An Leng nodded repeatedly. "Really, really. My husband is a good person. Even if he knew, he wouldn't say much."

She pressed the gift into Ms. Chen's hands. "Please, just take it and put your mind at ease."

Ms. Chen sighed.

"I told you not to waste your money. You should have returned it and used the money to help out with your househo—"

The second half of the sentence caught in her throat the moment she caught sight of the logo on the box.

Her eyes widened in shock.

...Montblanc??

That incredibly expensive brand??

Did Ah Leng's husband buy a knockoff?

She took it out and opened the box. When she saw the style of the fountain pen inside, Ms. Chen was dumbfounded.

It was a Montblanc limited edition, one of only one hundred in the world—a luxury item that was virtually priceless on the market.

She studied it for a few moments and couldn't see a single sign of it being a fake. She looked up in bewilderment. "Your husband bought this?"

"Yes." An Leng blinked nervously. "Do you not like it?"

Was this a question of whether she liked it or not...

Ms. Chen’s heart was racing from the shock. Her stunned gaze slowly drifted over the woman in front of her.

She had been so happy to see her earlier that she hadn't noticed at all. The woman was dressed in designer labels from head to toe, wearing a Patek Philippe watch on her wrist, and the bag she had casually set on the table was Chanel.

Which family’s heiress had come out to play?

#The Poor Student Online is Actually a Wealthy Socialite Offline.#

It seemed the marriage of convenience was indeed a real one...

Ms. Chen swallowed the words she was about to say and silently tucked the pen back into the bag. "I like it very much..."

She then smoothly changed the subject. "So, will you still be using a pseudonym when you transition to executive producer?"

"No need."

An Leng had considered this before, but since she had decided to show her face, there was no point in hiding her name.

Even if it were out there, people wouldn't necessarily recognize her immediately, right?

What normal person spends their days memorizing the names of every wealthy heiress?

She smiled and pointed to herself. "Ms. Chen, my real name is An Leng. An as in 'peaceful,' and Leng is—"

Ms. Chen’s eyes flew open, and the words escaped her lips. "The heiress of the An family?"

"..."

Realizing she had lost her composure, Ms. Chen quickly covered her mouth. "Sorry, sorry. Because you mentioned a marriage of convenience and a high-status family background, it just clicked for me."

Despite her apology, her eyes were still filled with shock and amazement.

"So... that Mrs. Shen who has been all over the news lately, that's you?"

How could it be?! The Ah Leng she knew and the Mrs. Shen in the news didn't seem like the same person at all.

The woman laughed helplessly. "It's me. Those news stories online are all fake."

"You..." Ms. Chen hesitated. "Your identity is truly a surprise to me."

If she was An Leng, then her husband was Shen Linyan, the heir to the Shen family who was equally under the spotlight.

In that case, giving a pen like this wasn't strange at all.

Seeing Ms. Chen's complicated expression, An Leng quietly grabbed her arm and spoke in a soft, pleading voice. "Ms. Chen, you won't regret it and then dump me, will you? Please don't, ahhh~~"

The girl's beautiful face wore a pitiful expression, her clear eyes bright and clean, and soft strands of hair fell against her cheeks. Even her intentional playfulness was impossible to dislike.

Looking at that face, Ms. Chen's expression softened. "How could I regret it? I'm mentoring you for your talent, not your status."

She suddenly remembered something and asked, "But will you be okay?"

An Leng looked up blankly. "What do you mean?"

"I've been preparing a variety show recently, mainly filming the daily lives of celebrities."

This type of show focused on the off-camera lives of stars, and the results and reception were usually quite good.

An Leng was naturally aware of this and nodded. "That's no problem. I've worked on those types of shows before."

"No, that's not what I meant."

Ms. Chen took out her phone and opened a file. "I remember there's someone among the celebrities participating in this show that you should know. Is it really okay for you to run into her?"

Huh? Someone she knew?

With her face-blindness, how could she possibly know anyone in the entertainment industry?

Just as she was about to deny it, she heard Ms. Chen say, "Ah!"

"Found it. Her name is Shen Fuyuan! You should know her, right?"

"..."

An Leng's expression gradually froze.

"Did you say... Shen Fuyuan?"

Wait, what??

Shen Linyan's sister was a celebrity??

More importantly, why didn't she have any memory of this at all?!

After parting ways with Ms. Chen, An Leng still hadn't recovered from the shock.

She had just finished saying she didn't know anyone in the industry, and then this person pops up.

And it was her sister-in-law, someone she wasn't close to and didn't get along with.

An Leng sighed.

Whatever. As long as they didn't greet each other and acted like strangers, it would be fine.

She took out her phone to check the time and saw that Auntie Cheng had sent her a message.

[Madam, are you not coming back tonight?]

Her eyes went wide, and she slapped her forehead in regret.

"Damn, I forgot to tell Auntie Cheng."

She had originally only intended to keep it from Shen Linyan, but in the end, she had forgotten to tell Auntie Cheng as well.

While she was having dinner with Ms. Chen, she had kept her phone tucked away in her bag. By now, two hours had already slipped by.

She quickly sent an apology to Auntie Cheng: [I'm so sorry, Auntie Cheng! I forgot to tell you that I wouldn't be back for dinner tonight. I feel terrible making you cook for nothing.]

Auntie Cheng replied with a soothing little emoji: [It’s no trouble at all. Mr. Shen came back this evening, so the food didn't go to waste.]

Shen Linyan was home tonight?

An Leng’s movements faltered for a moment.

Before she could reply, another message from Auntie Cheng popped up.

[Mr. Shen did ask me if you were coming back, though. I told him I wasn't sure since you hadn't mentioned anything. I even joked with him, saying that you had asked the exact same question yesterday.]

An Leng’s gaze lingered on the screen for a moment. She blinked, her fingertips slowly tapping out a reply.

[What did he say after that?]

Auntie Cheng’s status remained as "typing" for a long while, as if she were composing a lengthy response.

The night breeze carried a hint of a chill. An Leng pulled her coat tighter around her and hurried toward her car.

It wasn't until she was settled in the driver's seat with her seatbelt fastened that a message finally came through.

When she saw the content, her casual expression suddenly froze.

There was no long paragraph; Auntie Cheng had sent only six simple words.

[He said he would apologize.]

Inside the quiet car, the only sound was the low hum of the heater. The harsh white light of the screen illuminated the girl's face.

An Leng blinked slowly, her chin resting on the steering wheel. Her beautiful almond-shaped eyes stared quietly at the screen. She slowly pursed her lips and murmured softly to herself:

"He really shouldn't apologize for this..."

An apology would be playing dirty.

She wouldn't be able to handle it.