1 Year Of Beginning

As Zhang Liang drove back home, he noticed Feng Mian was looking in his direction a few times. It seemed she wanted to say something yet at the same time, hesitant whether to say it or not.

"What is it, Feng Mian?"

"President, do we also need to act during the time we're alone?"

Somehow, Feng Mian recalled the day Zhang Liang acted a bit different. It was a bit overwhelming for her. Even though she decided to play along, she still felt uncomfortable with his actions.

Zhang Liang steered the wheel. "Do you want to or not?"

"I… prefer not."

"Then you don't need to act. It's fine to be yourself, Feng Mian."

His words were said in a flat tone, but Feng Mian felt as if he was saying it softer than usual. She pushed her thoughts to the back of her mind as she looked at Zhang Liang.

"That's… impossible, President Zhang. We lived in a different life, and I can't afford to offend you. You're someone high above, a person someone like me normally can't reach." Feng Mian smiled. "I need to keep my distance because if I cross the line and you get angry, I know that I won't be able to bear the consequences."

She was not some kind of female lead in a novel with many cheats on her hand. They could afford to offend powerful people without the need to worry because they were protected by the plot armor that the author created. But she was different. She was just an ordinary designer who was at the lowest bottom of position in the company.

Even though she was in a contract with Zhang Liang, it was just one year. After the year was over, they would return back to their ordinary lives without bothering with each other anymore.

They lived in a completely different world.

Zhang Liang didn't reply. He turned to look at Feng Mian and saw her clear eyes were staring back at him. Based on what he had seen so far; he knew that she was not the type that would easily back away. If she was in the right and had equal standing, she dared to stand at the front and confronted her opponent.

But the gap between him and her was simply too big.

Real life and fairytales were different. In fairy tales, it gave a very imaginative and also beautiful ending for the poor woman. But in real life, no one would be an idiot and chase after a girl they have just met once. Not knowing anything other than the other party's face.

Maybe there were some, but most of them would not be that rash.

They would decide their partner carefully.

This was why Feng Mian could only back away when she had to face him. It was simply because she knew that she could not afford to offend him. There were many people who had power will take offense even for a slight mistake. It was common knowledge.

Zhang Liang opened his mouth. "I'll never do anything to you and your family that would harm you."

Feng Mian smiled at his answer. That was what he said now, but could he remember this promise when she accidentally made a mistake a few months in the future?

She was not sure.

Her face told him that she didn't fully believe him, but Zhang Liang didn't say anything anymore. Words just couldn't convince her. It was so easy to spout lies and then pretend as if it was never said before. After all, many people were irresponsible.

The only thing he could do was to prove himself to her.

That he would keep his words.

'Weird… why do I want to prove myself to her? There shouldn't be any need to act that far, right?'

Zhang Liang furrowed his brows. He felt that he was getting weirder the more time he spent seeing Feng Mian and interacted with her. It felt as if she had some kind of influence on him, the kind that pushed him to change.

While Zhang Liang was contemplating, Feng Mian raised her head to look outside the window. A small smile formed on her lips.

'You can't let yourself get too comfortable, Feng Mian. This is only temporary. Even if he gave his promise, you should keep your composure.'

She should just treat this one year just like work, where she only needed to do the necessary. The rest should be thrown to the back of her mind and completely forgotten without any chance to mention.

As she was watching the light on the street start to turn on, Feng Mian closed her eyes and fell into a deep slumber.

Zhang Liang stopped when the light turned red. He turned his head to look at Feng Mian. His brows arched when he saw that Feng Mian had fallen asleep again. She seemed to put on a lot of trust that he would not do anything to her.

Well, he did mention that the very first time they met.

Turning his head back to the road, Zhang Liang began to think about the work he needed to finish when he reached home.