The Domineering CEO's Vain Trophy Husband 10

Ming Yao noticed his own loss of composure and turned away with a slight frown.

It was probably the recent heat that had gotten to him, making him feel restless.

Before long, Ming Yao's car departed from outside the courtyard.

With no one watching, Guan Yi felt a wave of relief and joked with Lin Zhi: "That friend of yours really has quite the presence."

"Doesn't he?"

Lin Zhi chuckled lightly, arranged a training schedule with Guan Yi, and then carried Nuonuo out to see him off.

"Ma'am…… Mr. Lin, dinner is ready."

The maid caught herself mid-sentence and quickly corrected her words, fidgeting with the hem of her clothes in some distress.

Lin Zhi remembered her — she was the maid who had painted his nails on the day he first arrived in this body, a timid little thing.

"Understood."

Because an outsider had come to visit, Lin Zhi had instructed the servants to change how they addressed him.

This form of address was actually a return to how things had been at the very beginning, since when the original owner first moved in, the villa's servants had all called him 'Mr. Lin.'

But because the original owner had been somewhat afraid of Ming Yao, there were times when a servant would call out 'Sir,' or because of pronunciation, his surname would come out softly, and the original owner would think Ming Yao had arrived and give a startled jump.

On top of that, the original owner had only just entered high-society and envied those young masters and their wives. Since he himself also liked men, he had simply asked the villa's servants to call him 'ma'am,' letting himself indulge in a small vanity — after all, it made him sound more like the true mistress of the house.

This was a world where same-sex marriage was legal, so a man being addressed as 'ma'am,' was nothing unusual.

Ming Yao couldn't be bothered with such things, and so the form of address had simply taken hold throughout the villa.

After dinner, Lin Zhi went out into the courtyard to play with the little dog.

He had wrapped some dried meat treats in a silk scarf and lay it flat in his palm, rewarding the dog with one treat each time it obeyed a command.

The silk scarf swayed lightly against the dog's moist little nose, carrying the faint scent of mint.

During a thunderstorm some time ago, Lin Zhi had gone into Ming Yao's room and remembered the scent that clung to him on his bed.

Afterward, he had also obliquely inquired of the housekeeper in charge of shopping about the brand of Ming Yao's bath products, bought the same kind, smelled it to confirm the scent matched, and then set it aside — waiting for exactly this moment.

He had soaked the silk scarf in it for a while, intending to train the dog to associate this scent with rewards, and thereby grow fond of it.

"You'd better not let me down."

Lin Zhi gently stroked Nuonuo's head, and the little angel dog contentedly nuzzled against his palm.

System No. 01 watched from within its space and couldn't help but purse its lips. If it could take on a physical form right now, it could also have the Host hold it and pet it — it was far more useful than this little dog.

Wait…… System No. 01 paused. Could it take on a physical form?

Had the System Manual said so? Had it not? Why did it seem to remember that it could?

System No. 01 scratched its head with a vague sense of unease, then deflated in disappointment.

Lin Zhi had no idea what the little system was fretting over. He went back inside, washed and dried the silk scarf, and folded it away neatly.

The days passed in an orderly rhythm. A few days later, when Lin Zhi went to visit Old Master Ming, he heard the old man bring up the matter of work.

"Being that boy's assistant will broaden your horizons and let you get a feel for how things work. Once you've had enough time there, I'll have him arrange a transfer for you. You're an ambitious child — you need room to spread your wings."

The Old Master spoke while sipping his tea. The heat had killed his appetite, but he drank his hot tea with leisurely contentment.

"Ming Yao likely has the same idea. I've already learned a great deal from being around him these past few days."

Although he was nominally an assistant, what Lin Zhi actually did was quite different from the other assistants.

He didn't pour tea, take meeting minutes, or manage schedules. It was more like the role of a specially engaged consultant — occasionally accompanying Ming Yao to social engagements and certain important occasions.

As for the proposals and documents that came across his desk, some of the projects had already happened or even completed, while others had yet to unfold. Ming Yao simply wanted to see how Lin Zhi would approach them — even stacking them rapidly one after another to assess his decision-making process and ability to handle pressure. This method of evaluation was identical to Old Master Ming's own style, only more direct. No wonder they were grandfather and grandson.

Old Master Ming looked at the lovely and charming young man seated beside him, smiled, blew gently on his tea, and said: "Stay for dinner tonight. I'll have Ming Yao come too."

Lin Zhi looked faintly surprised, but nodded and said nothing.

The Old Master spoke with earnest feeling: "Ming Yao may seem cold and unfeeling on the surface, but he's actually a deeply loyal person. Sometimes it's precisely because he cares too much that he goes and ties himself in knots…… Zhizhi, since the two of you are already married, talk more, spend more time together. Don't take his cold face too much to heart."

The Old Master seemed to be recalling something from the past, gazing into the distance with a slightly faraway look.

Lin Zhi smiled in response: "I have a big heart — things never really get to me."

His words seemed to be an agreement, yet also seemed to deliberately sidestep the point. The Old Master couldn't quite read his intentions, so he said no more.

With the affairs of the younger generation, all he could do was watch from the sidelines. After all, it was he who had pushed them into this marriage — if he now stirred up Lin Zhi's feelings and Ming Yao still refused to budge, that would be a real sin.

Lin Zhi turned the conversation with the Old Master to other matters, smoothly steering past the earlier topic.

He had naturally sensed the Old Master's matchmaking intent, but this wasn't the moment to show his hand too clearly — keeping things ambiguous was what left room to maneuver.

More than that, what Lin Zhi was really thinking about was the first half of what the Old Master had said.

"Caring too deeply to the point of tying himself in knots" — this was clearly connected to whatever knot Ming Yao had in his heart. What exactly had he gotten so tangled up in that he refused to stand again?

Three misfortunes had struck the Ming family: Ming Yao's car accident, Mother Ming's death, and Father Ming's disappearance.

Grandmother Ming's passing didn't count among these upheavals, since she had died of illness in old age, and by the time she passed, Ming Yao had already been in a wheelchair for several years.

This was all history from ten years ago. From what Lin Zhi had quietly gathered, the car accident at the time had resulted in Mother Ming's death and injuries to Ming Yao's legs. Father Ming had not yet disappeared at that point.

Lin Zhi couldn't find out the exact timeline of Father Ming's disappearance. After Mother Ming's death, Father Ming had frequently left home to clear his head, and people had rarely seen him during that period. The time at which he faded from everyone's sight was therefore difficult to pinpoint, and only the Ming Family members themselves knew the full story.

If the car accident had caused Mother Ming's death, leading Ming Yao to feel so guilty that he refused to stand again — that wasn't impossible. But Lin Zhi always felt that, given Ming Yao's personality, even someone as deeply loyal as he was, wouldn't have refused to walk simply out of self-reproach.

After all, a mother who had died because of him would surely have wanted him to live healthily and happily. Though one couldn't rule out the possibility that their mother-son relationship might not have been good.

In any case, there were too many possibilities to weigh. Lin Zhi still needed to gather more information before he could make a judgment.

This was clearly a forbidden zone within Ming Yao's heart. The moment he truly set foot in that territory would be the moment his mission was nearly complete.

Lin Zhi had once asked System No. 01 what would happen after the mission succeeded, but System No. 01 hadn't said — only replied that he would know when the time came.

Lin Zhi suspected this was simply how its programming worked, and didn't press further.

When dinnertime came that evening, it was only Lin Zhi and the Old Master.

Ming Yao sent word that he had a dinner engagement and couldn't make it, so the Old Master could only let it go.

Lin Zhi had a bowl of cold chicken noodles and went home. While in the shower, he heard System No. 01 report indignantly:

[Host! The Mission Target didn't go to any dinner engagement at all — his coordinates haven't moved from the office this whole time! He's on his way back now!]

Lin Zhi knew System No. 01 had a privacy protection system, and responded between washing: [Noted.]

System No. 01: [Is he trying to avoid us?]

Ever since Ming Yao and Lin Zhi had made their deal over the dog, System No. 01 had sensed that he seemed to be pulling away — though it wasn't as though he'd ever truly drawn close.

Lin Zhi: [Yes and no.]

System No. 01: [Human feelings are so complicated.]

[Human beings are inherently incredibly complex creatures.]

Lin Zhi wiped the drops of water from his skin, murmuring softly, as if to himself:

“It's time to put in some overtime."

Lin Zhi walked past the mirror. Its slightly blurred surface reflected the line of his profile.

He glanced at the weather forecast on his phone, and a faint smile played at the corners of his lips.

The following morning the sky was brilliantly clear. Lin Zhi stepped out and complimented the fine weather.

The secretarial staff were surprised to find that the beautiful one, who always left on time, was still at his desk today with no sign of leaving.

System No. 01 couldn't help but ask: [Host, the Mission Target isn't here — why are we still working overtime? There's no free ride to catch here.]

Ming Yao had business negotiations today and was currently not in the office.

Lin Zhi: [Wouldn't it be better to have him come pick us up, whether it's on his way or not?]

Using the same excuse too many times would make it lose its effect. If the goal remained the same while the reason changed, the situation would play out differently.

Lin Zhi even considered whether to twist his ankle — an old trick, but one with a remarkably high success rate. He thought about it, then dismissed the idea. Ming Yao wasn't at the stage yet where he'd rub medicated ointment on him.

The phone lying beside Lin Zhi buzzed with a notification. It was a message from Hu Tong.

[Hu Tong]: Haven't gotten together in ages. Free tonight? I want to introduce you to a new friend — you two will definitely have things in common.

This somewhat disrupted Lin Zhi's plans, but after thinking it over, he decided to go. Maintaining connections was important, and Hu Tong had done him no small number of favors.

Thinking about tonight's weather, Lin Zhi felt that going out was actually a good idea. It was simply a matter of adjusting his plans.

Since Hu Tong said he'd send someone to pick him up, Lin Zhi sent over the address.

[Hu Tong]: ???

[Hu Tong]: At this hour — what are you doing there? Since when did you get involved with the Ming family?

Hu Tong was something of a wealthy second-generation artistic type and literary youth, but he still recognized the names that mattered.

[Lin Zhi]: Working for them.

[Hu Tong]: Impressive. Unlike me — I've always had no talent for business, so I simply never tried to fit into that world.

[Hu Tong]: I'll have a friend come pick you up. See you later.

Lin Zhi saved everything on his computer and waited for Hu Tong's friend to arrive before heading downstairs.

Just as he was riding the elevator down, System No. 01 reported that Ming Yao's coordinates were moving in the direction of the office:

[What terrible timing.]

That was what Lin Zhi said — and yet, after stepping out of the elevator, he slowed his pace. Since the situation had changed, he might as well let the coincidence arrange itself.

Ming Yao's car was stopped outside the building, waiting for his special assistant to go back up and retrieve a document.

It was not yet rush hour, and so the young man who walked out of the building was all the easier to see clearly.

<Why was Lin Zhi only just leaving work?>

The thought flickered through Ming Yao's mind and vanished at once. Then he hesitated over what he would do if, in a little while, Lin Zhi came over wanting a ride — should he refuse?

It was nothing more than a lift, and besides, it was about to rain.

Though the rain had not yet fallen, the air had grown damp, and Ming Yao's legs had begun to ache dully.

As Ming Yao had anticipated, the sky gradually began to release its rain.

Lin Zhi shielded himself with one hand and quickened his steps.

Ming Yao rolled down the car window — but then saw a man climb out of the driver's seat of the car parked ahead, striding quickly forward to hold an umbrella over Lin Zhi.

Even at some distance, Ming Yao could make out his face clearly. It was not the same person he had seen at the house the other time.

Lin Zhi seemed to be smiling and thanking the man, and the two of them walked toward the car together under the umbrella.

The pain in his legs seemed to flare suddenly more intense, making even breathing feel slightly labored.

What a detestable rainy day. Ming Yao raised the car window, his expression grim.

Someone already had a car. What need was there to hitch a ride with him?