After the birthday surprise, the relationship between Wei Yumeng and Zhan Mohan returned to normal, and their affection even deepened.
It is unclear which media outlet managed to secretly photograph the two embracing outside a hotel and even posted it online. The photo was titled: "A Unique Surprise."
Some people saw it and thought it was a gimmick intentionally created by the wealthy.
However, more people envied the way Wei Yumeng and Zhan Mohan interacted. Wei Yumeng even accepted an interview about how to maintain a marital relationship.
For a time, Wei Yumeng became a model wife.
Wei Yumeng sighed. She really hadn't expected things to turn out this way.
Mu Linjing, who was beside her, was overjoyed: "Yumeng, I'm becoming more and more envious of you. Look at the trending topics online lately, it's all about you or your couple. You're truly envied by everyone."
"But I never thought of using such an opportunity to become popular. I just want to be an affectionate couple with Mohan," Wei Yumeng said, a slight smile on her lips, looking happy.
"Seeing you like this puts my mind at ease. I actually think the reason you can be so happy now is because you've been through enough already. How do they say it? At the end of hardship lies infinite beauty." Mu Linjing was genuinely happy for Wei Yumeng.
As they were talking, the door opened, and it was Zhan Mohan, who had just returned from work.
"Brother," Seeing Zhan Mohan, Mu Linjing immediately stood up. "It's already this late. I still need to go back and cook for Yichen, so I'll be leaving now."
Saying this, she walked to the door and didn't forget to give Wei Yumeng a playful wink.
Zhan Mohan seemed confused: "Is she avoiding me?"
Wei Yumeng replied helplessly, "No, don't overthink it. She probably just wants to give us more private time together."
Zhan Mohan walked over and held Wei Yumeng tightly in his arms.
"What's wrong? Are you tired?" Wei Yumeng also reached out to hug Zhan Mohan.
"The photographer Xiang Liang approached me today and said he hoped to collaborate with us on a project."
Wei Yumeng was surprised: "You mean the photographer who won the World Photography Competition for five consecutive years?"
Zhan Mohan nodded, though from Wei Yumeng's perspective, she only felt his chin brush against her.
"Yes, him. But I refused," Zhan Mohan said lightly. "He asked us to be the subjects of his photos. I know you don't like such things, so I refused."
But Wei Yumeng thought for a moment and had a different idea.
"Mohan, I think maybe we could try. Opportunities to be photographed by such a photographer are rare."
Zhan Mohan finally let go of Wei Yumeng and looked into her eyes.
Wei Yumeng added, "Of course, if you don't want to do it, it's okay. If it weren't with you, I wouldn't feel it's necessary to participate either."
Zhan Mohan chuckled softly, "Okay, since you've said so, what else can I object to?"
Wei Yumeng looked at Zhan Mohan with a hint of dissatisfaction. His words made it sound as if she had made the decision unilaterally, even though she had respected Zhan Mohan's choice.
On the day of the shoot, besides Xiang Liang and some staff, Wei Yumeng didn't expect there to be so many reporters.
"Miss Wei, could you tell us more about your story with President Zhan?"
"Miss Wei, it's said that the theme of this shoot is love. Is that why you agreed?"
"Miss Wei..."
Wei Yumeng felt a bit awkward. She hadn't known about any theme for the shoot from the beginning.
Furthermore, she hadn't expected that after Zhan Mohan told her he had refused Xiang Liang, he would arrange everything with a single phone call after she agreed to participate.
She even suspected that Zhan Mohan had deliberately told her he refused when in fact he hadn't, and it was all just a way to preempt her refusal.
However, even with this thought, she had no proof.
"Indeed, the two of you standing together is enough to embody this theme." Xiang Liang clapped his hands and walked over.
Wei Yumeng exchanged a knowing smile with Zhan Mohan. She did like hearing such words.
However, even though they had found the right models, the shooting process was not as smooth as imagined.
"Mrs. Wei, you don't need to be so nervous. We want to capture the most natural moments of you two together."
Xiang Liang explained helplessly. In the few photos already taken, Wei Yumeng was too concerned about her posture and appeared stiff and unnatural.
But Wei Yumeng couldn't relax. The thought that these photos would be submitted for the photographer's competition this year made her unable to control her emotions.
"Yumeng, look at me," Zhan Mohan suddenly said to Wei Yumeng.
Wei Yumeng didn't know what Zhan Mohan meant, but she still looked into his eyes.
They gazed at each other for a moment before Zhan Mohan continued, "From now on, there is no one else in your eyes but me, who is here with you."
Perhaps it was Zhan Mohan's deep eyes, but Wei Yumeng unconsciously nodded.
Zhan Mohan's magnetic voice seemed to have a hypnotic effect, making Wei Yumeng relax considerably.
Now, her world revolved only around Zhan Mohan, and her world only contained Zhan Mohan. So, what else could she possibly worry about?
"Yes, just like that! Perfect!" Xiang Liang pressed the shutter, capturing their moment of eye contact.
In the photo, Wei Yumeng still looked a little dazed, while Zhan Mohan's gaze towards her was full of affection.
After that, Wei Yumeng was led by Zhan Mohan, their eyes focused solely on each other in every scene.
"Oh my goodness! They look so beautiful!"
When they returned home that day, they found the house unusually lively.
Both Zhan Yangyi and Zhan Yichen's families were there, and even the children were present.
"Mom and Dad look so handsome," Zhan Shiqing said with pride.
"Yichen, when can we take such photos too?" Mu Linjing said, shaking Zhan Yichen's arm.
But Zhan Yichen teased, "We can, but I think ours would definitely not be as good as brother and sister-in-law's."
Chen Yutong then suggested, "Instead of each family taking separate photos, how about we all take a big group photo sometime?"
This suggestion was immediately met with everyone's support.
Zhan Mohan also considered it and said, "I think we could still ask photographer Xiang Liang for help. After the last shoot, he mentioned he'd be happy to work with us again."
For a moment, the entire room was filled with warmth and joy, as if all the previous troubles had never happened.