Chapter Fifty-Six: Because I Get Jealous!

Just moments before, upon seeing the look on Ruan Mianmian’s face, Jiang Ce had dashed into the stairwell without a second thought, running all the way down from the twelfth floor in one breath, barely managing to catch up with her. Meanwhile, Jian Yanzhi, after waiting quite some time for the elevator, arrived downstairs to find that Ruan Mianmian’s car was already gone.

Jiang Ce fastened his seatbelt in silence, started the engine, and drove out of the neighborhood. The atmosphere inside the car was oppressively quiet, interrupted only by Ruan Mianmian’s phone ringing incessantly with an almost irritating persistence.

It was Jian Yanzhi calling.

But Ruan Mianmian acted as though she hadn’t heard it at all; she neither answered nor declined the call, simply letting the phone ring on.

“Turn it off,” Jiang Ce’s voice was cold and heavy.

Ruan Mianmian glanced at him, then obediently powered off her phone.

The car fell into complete silence, save for the wind whistling past the windows, as sharp and biting as Jiang Ce’s mood. He drove swiftly—at this hour, there were few cars on the road, but Ruan Mianmian couldn’t help feeling anxious. Yet, catching sight of Jiang Ce’s tense, restrained profile, she closed her mouth and did not utter a word.

When they returned to Starfish Bay, Jiang Ce couldn’t even be bothered to pull into the garage; he stopped the car right in front of the house. Without a word, he opened the passenger door, bent down, and scooped Ruan Mianmian into his arms, carrying her silently upstairs.

Everyone they passed dared not make a sound; anyone could see that Jiang Ce was on the verge of an emotional outburst.

Ruan Mianmian let him carry her into his room on the second floor.

The door closed with a thud, plunging the room into darkness. Pressed against the door, Ruan Mianmian felt his hot breath closing in on her the next second.

“Mmm…”

Once again, without so much as a word, he kissed her fiercely and unreasonably.

Her wrists were gripped so tightly that it hurt—she couldn’t move at all. Her muffled whimpers were swallowed by his overbearing lips.

Pinned between him and the door, Ruan Mianmian was rendered utterly helpless, unable to struggle in the slightest.

But in an instant, his lips released her, and even the large hand at her wrist fell away.

Jiang Ce’s lips brushed her chin, drawing away bit by bit, and then he collapsed backward onto the floor.

“Ah!”

Clutching his head in agony, Jiang Ce curled up on the ground. Ruan Mianmian panicked at once.

“Jiang Ce? Jiang Ce, what’s wrong?”

This familiar scene immediately reminded her: Jiang Ce’s nyctophobia had struck again!

She fumbled to her feet, desperately searching for the light switch. The room was instantly flooded with brightness.

Jiang Ce lay curled up, gasping for air. In just those few moments, cold sweat had broken out across his face, and he looked terrified.

Seeing his expression ease a little, Ruan Mianmian finally breathed a sigh of relief. She rummaged through a drawer for the medicine bottle she remembered, handing it to Jiang Ce.

His gaze cleared somewhat, but he didn’t take the medicine from her.

“Next time,” he panted, his eyes grave, “could you not be so impulsive? At least give me a chance to be by your side.”

That was his stance—his plea.

Ruan Mianmian’s emotions had surged as well just now, but she did not regret any of it. Everything she’d done today had brought her a kind of joy, body and soul.

“Shen Ting is your person, isn’t she?” Ruan Mianmian asked softly.

Jiang Ce closed his eyes. “She isn’t mine, and I didn’t tell her to do those things.”

“But you tacitly allowed it all, didn’t you?” Ruan Mianmian’s tone was calm. “What difference does it make whether you ordered her or not?”

His face darkened. “Are you upset? Because she went to Hanhai Group to ask around?”

No, that wasn’t it. This had nothing to do with Jian Yanzhi, either.

What mattered to her was this: to Jiang Ce, did Shen Ting count as someone special?

Ruan Mianmian lowered her head and sighed, “Forget it. You’re not feeling well—rest for now. We’ll talk about this later.”

Jiang Ce, however, was relentless. He grabbed her, refusing to let the matter drop.

“No, let’s make it clear right now! Tell me—do you still care about him? Hm?”

Perhaps he didn’t even realize it himself, but when he asked, his eyes were filled with vulnerability and fear.

Right now, he simply could not bear the thought of Ruan Mianmian leaving him.

“No.”

She denied it flatly, unwilling to say more.

She slowly stood, looking at Jiang Ce sitting on the floor. Seeing that his complexion had yet to fully recover, she couldn’t help but soften.

“Get up.”

But Jiang Ce didn’t answer. He simply stared at her face, as though trying to catch every subtle expression.

When it came to Ruan Mianmian, he was endlessly persistent and patient.

“If you keep this up,” Ruan Mianmian asked, “should I call Li Zheng for you?”

Jiang Ce gave a derisive snort, then slowly rose to his feet. He stepped closer, forcing her to tilt her head up to look at him.

“The only one who can save me,” he said quietly, “has always been you.”

You are my salvation—the only light in my heart.

Ruan Mianmian lowered her gaze, pretending not to understand, and turned to leave.

But Jiang Ce pulled her back into his arms, his lips pressing against the tip of her ear.

“Mianmian, don’t ever show me that look again. Even the slightest trace of rejection or disappointment is a fatal blow to me. You know—I have only you in my heart. Always have.”

“You have no idea how much courage it took to come running down that dark stairwell after you, not a single moment’s hesitation. So believe me—come to me with all your heart!”

His sudden, heartfelt confession caught Ruan Mianmian completely off guard.

In truth, that look had only surfaced because she’d remembered a scene from the novel—something between Jiang Ce and Shen Ting—a reflex she hadn’t even noticed herself.

Who could have guessed that a single glance would matter so much to Jiang Ce?

Her eyes grew warm. Truthfully, she wasn’t certain whether she and Jiang Ce could ever have a complete future together.

Her initial reason for approaching him had simply been to survive.

And all of it depended on Jiang Ce loving her.

That was why, for every sweet word she’d spoken, there were several more than his own. Those had been her strategies, nothing more.

But now, sincerity suddenly bloomed within her.

All those feelings she’d fought to suppress—joy, delight, the racing of her heart—seemed to burst forth in an instant.

Because Jiang Ce was worth it.

He deserved a Ruan Mianmian who loved him as wholeheartedly as he loved her.

Ruan Mianmian spun around and embraced him at last.

His unique scent filled her senses, intoxicating and addictive.

Yet Jiang Ce, waiting anxiously for her answer, was uncertain what her hug meant—acceptance, or… something else?

“Don’t you think you owe me a reply?” he asked, patience straining in his voice.

Ruan Mianmian blinked innocently, then murmured softly, “Don’t let her get close to you—because I’ll get jealous.”