Chapter 736   - You Don’t Have to Sell Yourself Short (1)

Finally, after weeks of struggling to finish the dress for the competition, Li Meili watched as Zhi Ruo, led the team she brought with her to pack the dress properly before they shipped it to Beijing where Elaine Wu was waiting.

Over half a year of her stay in Beijing, Elaine Wu finally got enough experience to manage The Black Nightingale's store on her own, barely relying on Li Meili and Zhi Ruo's help at all. Since she was in Beijing, Elaine Wu also represented Li Meili at the business meetings the latter couldn't attend herself.

"Alright. Everything is packed up. We will be waiting for you in Beijing in three months then," Zhi Ruo announced once she was satisfied that everything went according to their plan. She then glanced at Li Meili who was standing near the glass wall, wearing a loose dress that couldn't hide her pregnancy.

"I heard from Miss Moyu that you fainted last week. Are you feeling better now?" she asked her boss.

Li Meili hummed and checked the blank canvas in her workroom, intending to paint something now that she finished the dress.

"I'm fine now," she replied absentmindedly, rubbing her baby bump. "I didn't know you were keeping track of me using Moyu."

"That's because you never answer your phone." Zhi Ruo gave her a pointed look.

Li Meili pursed her lips and looked away, feeling guilty. The reason she rarely answered any phone calls these days was because she kept on forgetting where she put her damn phone. There were even times Zhang Jiren would return coming from the washroom with her phone in his hand.

"I was probably sleeping when you called. You could have just left a message if it was important," she said in defense.

Zhi Ruo shook her head and left, knowing that Li Meili wouldn't bother to tell her the truth. She met Zhang Jiren who just came home from work at the hallway.

"Meili is still in her work room. I better get going then." Zhi Ruo wasn't sure how Li Meili could marry Zhang Jiren a few weeks after Tang Beixuan's death as she was aware of their relationship. However, she didn't dare to question Li Meili.

Perhaps their marriage was one of convenience or arranged by Li Meili's parents.

Zhang Jiren only gave her a curt nod and went straight to his wife's workroom only to find her holding a black canvass.

"Hey! No lifting heavy things, remember?"

Li Meili looked over her shoulder and found him at the doorway, still dressed in his business suit. It was gorgeously tailored to his broad shoulders and strong lines. Her breath caught as her body shivered when he strode towards her, his body heat touching hers.

"It's not heavy…" She managed to clear her throat and say in her normal voice.

"Still." Zhang Jiren took the canvas on her hands and set it himself on the easel. "Don't forget you are pregnant. What if you lose your balance and you fall?"

Li Meili pinched the bridge of her nose and muttered to herself.

"Yes, in case all of you are forgetting, I'm pregnant, not sick."

"I didn't know you also painted," she heard Zhang Jiren say. "So aside from having street fights and brawls with Tang Moyu, you also have another hobby?"

Li Meili's face flushed from his teasing tone before she took a seat in front of her blank canvas while Zhang Jiren removed the obstructing chair near him.

"I used to paint whenever I have some spare time, but I'm not that good," she replied.

There was a long silence between them as Li Meili started her painting while Zhang Jiren never made a sound, not wanting to break her concentration. After half an hour, Li Meili drew back to study the colors she left on her canvass.

"Do you mind if you paint one for me?" Zhang Jiren asked, standing behind her as he watched her hand once again do its magic on the canvas. As he studied her work, his eyes were bright with a slight smile gracing his lips.

"It's good," he told her.

"You think so?" Li Meili turned to face him.

"Yeah. The colors are oddly suiting. I didn't think bright colors such as orange would complement well with blue."

Li Meili turned her attention back to her painting. Was it really that good? She wondered. Whenever she worked on her paintings, she was usually calm and collected with her mind free from any disturbance. She didn't even remember that her husband was standing next to her when she worked earlier.

"If you don't mind, I want this painting in my office," Zhang Jiren said. "I think my colleagues as well as my business partners would find it tasteful."

"W-what?" Li Meili stared at him in shock. She was just painting casually to relieve her stress. What had made him want to hang it in his office?

"I-it's not that great."

"You don't have to sell yourself short, Meili. You are a good artist." Zhang Jiren frowned.

"But in your office? Really?" she asked in surprise. Not even her parents wanted a piece of her work so why would he?

"Why not? I want everyone to see how amazing an artist my wife is? Is that wrong?"

'Yes, it's wrong since you are just a substitute husband,' his inner thoughts mocked him but Zhang Jiren pushed the thought away.

"Don't you trust my taste? I think it's really good. You don't have to worry about others' opinions."

Li Meili's heart raced oddly and gave him a shy smile. She couldn't even believe she was having this kind of conversation with him.

"If you say so…"

"Then that's settled. I'll ask someone to bring it to my office one of these days."