Chapter 79

**Chapter 79: No Escape**

He Lingji spent the entire night fanning her.
He instantly became one of the internet’s newly voted top “immortal husbands.”

The director declared: The first episode of the variety show was a huge success.
The one guest they had the least hope for—President He—ended up giving them the biggest surprise.

Other guests’ livestreams showed them truly sleeping, completely exhausted after a long day.
Only President He—
Stayed up all night to fan his wife.

What kind of heavenly romance was this?
It perfectly matched the theme of the show!

Qin Mang only found out after filming ended.
No wonder she felt so comfortable after the initial heat when she had just fallen asleep—the cool breeze had lulled her into deep sleep.
She had assumed it was just good nighttime weather in the town.
Who would’ve thought someone had stayed up all night to fan her?

**On the way back.**
Qin Mang was rewatching the overnight livestream. It was a full five hours long, and even though she usually didn’t have much patience, she had already watched over two.

It was just repetitive fanning during the night.
But the man showed no impatience—his expression calm and gentle, not even his eyes flickered.

The more she watched, the more she felt her husband was the most handsome man in the universe!

Until—

“Why are you watching a video when the person is right here?”
He Lingji, who had been resting with his eyes closed, cracked one open to glance at her.

“He looks even better in the video,” Qin Mang said, though she locked her phone and reached out to hold his hand.

Her delicate fingertips touched his sculpted wrist bones like a precious artifact, careful not to hurt him. “Does it hurt?”

“It tickles.”
He half-closed his eyes and gently wrapped her wandering fingers in his, “Will you come to the office with me tonight?”

He had squeezed time out of his schedule for the show. Now that it was over, he had to return to the office to handle pending work.

Qin Mang’s face fell, “You still have to go to work?”
“Can’t you take a night off?”

“There’s an important contract to sign tonight,” he said with a calm voice. “I can buy you lots of gems.”

Qin Mang leaned against his arm.
She slowly slid her fingers between his, tightening their grip slightly. She muttered, “I don’t need gems.”
She just wanted him to rest.

He Lingji lowered his lashes.
What he saw was the small, beautiful red mole on the tip of her pale, delicate nose. His Adam’s apple shifted slightly as he said softly, “But I want to buy them for you.”

His little sunshine deserved the finest, most dazzling gems in the world.

—

The reality show recorded one or two episodes a week.

During this period—
The fantasy movie Qin Mang had previously filmed was released worldwide and received explosive praise.

Thanks to the director’s pursuit of perfection, from filming to post-production, everything was exquisitely done.
Among a cast of A-list actors, Qin Mang’s role as the little butterfly stood out. She was not overshadowed at all.

The director even thanked her at the end—
Qin Mang had provided the filming location.

Netizens were shocked when they looked into it.
The blue butterfly orchid field they assumed was CGI turned out to be real—and it was Qin Mang’s home in Ducheng!

Some architecture buffs recognized it.
That house was clearly over a hundred years old—not something one could simply buy. It had to be a family heirloom.

It reshaped everyone’s understanding of what a true wealthy family was.
Most flashy rich kids online were nouveau riche. Their heritage couldn’t compare to this, not even one ten-thousandth.

Now, people were more curious than ever about Qin Mang’s background.
After all, she had married He Lingji *before* entering the entertainment industry. And she had been collecting gemstones as a childhood hobby.
That’s not something a regular family could afford.

But her background remained a mystery.
No one could dig up even a sliver of information.

**At the premiere after-party.**
Qin Mang saw Qi Rong, who had been invited. She had lost a lot of weight since they last met.
Her face, already small, had grown even more delicate. But she still smiled as brightly as always when she saw Qin Mang.

They sat in a corner on a sofa.
Qin Mang handed her a plate of desserts, “What happened to you?”

Qi Rong smiled as she popped a bite into her mouth. “Nothing much.”
“Just a breakup.”

A breakup?
Qin Mang’s eyes flickered. “Weren’t you planning to get married?”
What happened?

“We broke up.”
“He’s probably getting engaged soon—with someone of his status, a proper socialite.”
Qi Rong smiled. “We were never from the same world anyway. It was just a fling. Only a fool would take it seriously.”

Qin Mang’s brows furrowed.
No wonder Wu Yuxi said her house had been a mess lately. It must have been related to Wu Yuan’s engagement.

But it was strange that no one had received any news about it.

Seeing her frown, Qi Rong just smiled wider, “Seriously, I’m fine. Breakups are great. I haven’t had a new boy toy in ages.”
“Wu Yuan may be perfect on paper, but he got boring after a while.”
“Even if we had married, we’d have had conflicts sooner or later.”

Because of the class difference, she would always be at a disadvantage. Better to cut it off early.

Qin Mang knew Qi Rong was right.
The Cinderella marrying into a wealthy family and living happily ever after—it was just a fairy tale.

In reality, daily life eventually wears down even the strongest passion.
It’s better to part ways while still loving each other.

Qi Rong seemed like a mess, but in truth, she was the most clear-headed person of all.
No wonder Wu Yuan had fallen for her so hard.

**Back at home.**
Qin Mang talked to He Lingji about Wu Yuan and Qi Rong.

She lay in his arms and looked into his eyes. “If it hadn’t been for me back then, would you have married into the Qin family?”
“Would your wife have been someone else?”

He Lingji held her with one arm, used to this position by now, resting against a cushion while reading.

But hearing such insecure words, he set the book down and pulled her closer.
His gray-blue eyes glinted coldly under the lamp light. His expression calm and natural.

“If it wasn’t you, it wouldn’t have been anyone.”

Qin Mang met his gaze, and it felt like vines were tightly wrapping around her heart.

She bit her lip and whispered in his ear, “Call me *my sweet little darling,* and I’ll believe you.”

He Lingji’s fingers slowly glided over her waist. “What about you? If it hadn’t been me, would you have married someone else?”

Caught off guard, Qin Mang’s mind blanked—
She had completely set herself up.

Why did He Lingji never play by the rules?!
Shouldn’t a man just obediently say sweet words at times like this?

Still, Qin Mang seriously considered the question.
A few seconds later, she lifted her delicate chin.

“Of course not! None of them are as handsome as you.”
She was a hopeless appearance snob.

He Lingji drawled out an “Oh?”
“If someone were more handsome than me, would you?”

“Oh, come on. You’re the one sleeping with a soft, pretty fairy like me. As a man, don’t be so petty.”

Realizing she said something wrong, Qin Mang buried her head in his neck and nuzzled against him, trying to act cute and weasel out of it.

He Lingji nodded approvingly, then leaned close to her ear and said in a low voice,
“Then call me *my sweet little darling,* and I won’t be petty.”

When those four words came out of his cool, clear voice, they inexplicably carried an intoxicating, seductive undertone.
Enough to make anyone’s heart flutter.

Qin Mang froze for a second and instinctively rubbed her ears.
Aaaaah!
How could someone like He Lingji exist—so petty, yet so dangerously charming?!

And yet—
She really liked him.
She wanted to tell him.

Her heart pounded wildly.
Especially in the quiet of night, the urge became overwhelming.

**The next day.**
Wu Yuxi, being the best friend, stepped in.

“Whatever you do, don’t confess first!”
“Your position in the household hierarchy will be at risk!”

“Think about it—if years later your kid asks who confessed first…”

Qin Mang instantly sobered.
Oh right!
This was a matter of household dominance!

The prideful little lioness was persuaded.

Seeing her give up, Wu Yuxi let out a long sigh of relief—
Then promptly called He Lingji and bluntly asked, “President He, when are you going to confess to Little Lion?”

Wu Yuxi had recognized He Lingji in their CP fan group’s secret discussions.

Others couldn’t tell, but she had noticed the images posted by ‘乱码君’ (RandomCode)—from vases and spider lilies to cages made of red string—it all screamed insider knowledge.

At first, she thought it was Qin Mang’s alt account.
After all, Qin Mang used to take art lessons with her before switching to dance.

She messaged RandomCode—
And discovered it was actually He Lingji!
*He Lingji!*
*He Lingji!!!*

He had actually been secretly contributing fan content to his own CP tag!

So when he said he wanted to surprise Qin Mang and asked her to keep it a secret, Wu Yuxi immediately agreed.

But she’d been holding it in for too long.
She was *this close* to spilling everything to the girls always tagging RandomCode.

**In He Corporation’s office—**
He Lingji hung up the phone and stood at his black desk.
But instead of documents, what lay under his palm was a finely made album—

It was a collection of various gemstones he had sourced over time.

Here’s the English translation of your text:

—

In He Lingji’s mind, she recalled the time she accidentally overheard Qin Mang saying—planes, yachts, castles, and a mountain of jewels big enough to bury her—that would be the only way to make her lose her mind.

Under the cold, sleek lines of the office lighting, the man’s side profile was as beautiful as a painting, his knuckles tapping lightly on the table.

Planes, yachts, and castles were easy. But a mountain of gems that could bury her—each one had to be handpicked and of the highest grade.

That was the hard part.

And he was only halfway there.

Anything related to Qin Mang, He Lingji refused to be perfunctory. He wanted to give her the best.

*

Qin Mang didn’t have time to think about love confessions for long.

Because thanks to the fantasy movie *Adventure Game*, she won Best Supporting Actress at an international film festival—an award as prestigious as the Jinjue Best Actress Award.

From that point on,

Qin Mang’s talent was finally acknowledged by both audiences and professionals. Good scripts started coming in. Recently, Fu Yuan personally filtered through the offers and had Meng Ting hand them to Qin Mang.

Both film and TV dramas were included. All were big-budget productions she once never dreamed of landing.

In the lakeside manor, Qin Mang looked at the stack of scripts but didn’t touch them. She lazily sprawled on the sofa. “I’m not taking on any new roles this year.”

“What will you do if you’re not filming?”

There were still six months until Lunar New Year.

Qin Mang replied righteously, “I need to reflect and settle myself.”

“Such as?”

“Such as experiencing the life of a ‘virtuous wife.’” She glanced at the grand antique clock in the living room—it was nearly 11 a.m. She suddenly stood up. “I’m going to deliver lunch to my husband, made with my own hands!”

“Made with your own hands?”

Meng Ting thought he misheard and repeated it in disbelief.

He’d known Qin Mang for so long—this heiress was the very definition of pampered. Not only had she never cooked, she probably didn’t even know how to boil water.

Then—

He saw it with his own eyes—

The young lady stormed around the kitchen like a whirlwind. Then, gracefully, she stepped into a luxury car carrying lunch made by the house chef.

Wait, no.

She wasn’t carrying it.

The bodyguard was.

The lunch wasn’t made by her.

And she wasn’t even the one holding it.

Being a “virtuous wife” was this easy now? Meng Ting was deeply skeptical. But he didn’t forget to remind her, “Don’t forget, you’re filming the second episode tomorrow!”

“Got it—” Qin Mang drew out her tone, waved dismissively, and walked off.

Learning from last time, Qin Mang truly remembered this time. That night, she decisively refused any intimate moments, afraid of being too exhausted to get up and making a fool of herself again.

This episode started the same way—each couple filmed separately. Later, they’d go to a meaningful location and compete in games. So today’s focus was on recording daily married life.

Normally, Qin Mang either shopped, lounged at home, or visited spas… The life of a rich heiress was just that dull.

So—

The director chose to send them to a boxing gym.

Viewers were curious about He Lingji boxing.

Qin Mang refused.

“My husband’s body is for my eyes only!”

Coincidentally, this was said during a livestream, and the comment section went wild—

**“Come on, we’re all family here. Just looking, not touching.”
“Don’t be stingy, Qin goddess. Want me to show you my husband too?”
“Hahahaha the audience today is so generous.”
“I’ll show you mine too, Qin goddess!”**

The production team knew Qin Mang’s temper by now and made sure she wouldn’t see those comments. A staff member gently tried to coax her: “It’s just for the show. It’s okay even if Mr. He doesn’t actually box.”

Faced with everyone’s expectant eyes, Qin Mang reluctantly agreed.

The staff finally breathed easy.

No one had expected Qin Mang’s possessiveness over He Lingji to be this intense. No wonder whenever a candid photo of him appeared online, it disappeared shortly after.

So that’s why.

Everyone looked at Qin Mang’s beautiful face and suddenly understood.

Since they started filming the show, He Lingji spent all his free time working overtime. He hadn’t been to the boxing gym in a while.

But his movements weren’t rusty at all.

Dressed in a black silk shirt, broad shoulders and narrow waist, he exuded a casual yet seductive aura. As he put on boxing gloves, his cold and restrained features added to the allure—but the moment he entered the ring, his eyes changed. Like a wild beast usually dormant and lazy, finally revealing its claws.

His vigorous, wild muscles seemed to stretch against the refined fabric—such stark contrast made him dangerously charming, like a refined rogue.

**“Ahhh! Mr. He is so hot!”
“He looks even more tempting with clothes on—makes you want to rip them off!”
“But only Qin Mang is allowed to!”
“I don’t want to rip them—I just want to watch Qin Mang rip them!”
“Me too!”**

Most of the crew were young, including a few girls. Their chatter grew louder, and even Qin Mang overheard them.

Rip?

Clothes?

She wanted to rip someone apart now.

So disloyal!

It wasn’t just the crew gossiping—the director also launched a half-hour livestream to show Mr. He boxing. The stream’s traffic was so high it crashed the platform.

However—

Halfway through his session, He Lingji finished up and noticed the burning glare from Qin Mang.

He casually wiped his sweat.

Qin Mang stood below the ring, looking up at him. “Wearing that is worse than not wearing anything. Come down.”

Obediently, He Lingji jumped off the boxing ring.

At that moment, the livestream resumed.

Comments flooded in.

They missed his boxing performance. But as the camera flashed, it caught a brief glimpse of his pale ankle as he jumped down.

Someone screenshotted it and posted on Weibo—

**“Is that a tattoo?”
“No, it’s a burn scar. Look at this photo.”**

It was from when he carried Qin Mang out of the fire. His ankle was visibly burning. The scar clearly came from that incident.

**“I never truly felt the weight of him risking his life until now, seeing that scar…”
“Crying. He really loves her.”
“Now I understand Qin Mang’s pinned post: ‘To others, he’s a frozen glacier—eternal and unyielding; to me, he’s the blazing bloom of summer, never fading.’ He really *is* her eternal bloom, blossoming only for her.”**

**“Wait… what are those red lines above the scar? A tattoo?”
“To cover the scar maybe? But it’s really faint.”
“Ahhhh, I want to see a clear, full image! Director, please film it!”**

Some netizens zoomed in.

But the image was too blurry.

Then someone pulled footage from the first episode. In Qin Mang’s first appearance, three red lines were faintly visible around her delicate white ankle.

**“Case closed—it’s a tattoo. A couple tattoo.”
“A couple tattoo! This is too sweet!”**

**“Wait—what’s the meaning of the three red lines?”**

No one had noticed Qin Mang’s new tattoo before. She usually covered it up on camera.

But now, upon closer inspection, many candid shots revealed the three red lines on her ankle. Faint, like an anklet.

**“Guys, look what I found!!!”**

A netizen dug up a foreign tattoo artist’s Instagram. They’d shared the story behind He Lingji’s tattoo, along with a high-resolution image.

In the photo—

A burning flame-like brand intertwined with icy bones, encircled by three red lines, tightly wound and inseparable.

It matched the livestream screenshot exactly.

The tattoo artist didn’t fully understand the meaning, so they asked their Chinese followers:
**“The client said: ‘This is the cage.’ I don’t fully get it—can someone explain?”**

This artist was famous overseas, so many Chinese fans commented. But none knew it belonged to He Lingji!

**“The cage?”**

Netizens pondered. Someone dug up fan theories and imagery involving red threads and cages.

Everything matched!!!

The internet exploded.

**#MeaningOfTheCage
#QinMangHeLingjiCoupleTattoo**

The hashtags dominated the trending charts.

Meanwhile, still at the boxing gym, the director looked stunned. So close!

If only this had been discovered during the actual broadcast! Now—bam. He missed his chance to ride the trend.

His assistant whispered, “Director… what if Mr. He didn’t *want* this to be public? Won’t this cause problems…?”

Would this hurt the show?

After all, Mr. He’s usual demeanor was nothing like how he treated Qin Mang.

The director snapped to attention.

Right!

“Go tell Mr. He immediately and ask how to handle this!”

But the show staff didn’t need to step in—Meng Ting and Secretary Cong already paused the filming.

In the gym’s large conference room, silence reigned.

Qin Mang took the tablet from Meng Ting. She didn’t look at anything else—just stared at the foreign artist’s post:
**“This is the cage.”**

“This is the cage.”

She murmured the words softly.

He Lingji heard it clearly.

Under the cold lights, his profile sharp and perfect, he added in a cool, clear voice:

**“To imprison you and me—forever.”**

Qin Mang suddenly looked up and met He Lingji’s deep gaze—eyes so dark, yet transparent to her.

To her, it was a red thread of fate tying them forever. To him, it was a cage—one neither of them could escape.

That afternoon—

Speculation over the couple tattoo went wild. Every kind of theory surfaced.

Until—

**He Lingji V:** “This is the cage. To imprison you and me. @QinMang”

It was He Lingji’s first time publicly tagging Qin Mang.

Fans screamed “husband!” in the comments—only to get blocked as usual.

Except for Qin Mang, who commented right below, claiming her territory:

**Qin Mang V:** “No one is allowed to even think about my husband.”
**//He Lingji V:** “This is the cage. To imprison you and me.”

Top comment:

**“The Stargazer yacht, the Little White Lion yacht, the claw machine, the personal award presentation, the sea of roses and fire, the burn scars, the three red lines, the night of the fan—all of it is a god’s love for his little sun…”**

Second top comment:

**“No one is allowed to comment ‘husband’ on God He’s posts anymore.”**