The Overnight Chosen Wife: Darling, Kiss Me Deeper

"This is just my opinion, it's still up to you whether or not you think the same way." Cedric was careful not to pressure her into doing what he wanted. 

She ignored the strange feeling she had from his proximity and his voice beside her ear, and changed the character's dress into a long, burgundy one with tiny, clear diamonds embedded at the waistline and hem. The end result satisfied her as well and she couldn't help looking at him in awe. "As expected of the top artist!" 

He laughed lightly. "There's one more thing." 

She let go of the stylus, letting him make the adjustment he was talking about. He simply made some tiny changes to the diamonds and the character's eyes, but the end result was too shocking. The picture had gained more definition, making it look like the female lead could walk out of the screen the next second. Her eyes looked like they were alive as well. 

Her jaw dropped and she pulled him to sit beside her before questioning him like an interviewer. "How do you even do it? You don't need to use any effort to be the best." 

This time, he didn't accept the praise as arrogantly as he would always do when they were both students of Star Art International. He smiled mysteriously. "Whoever said I don't use effort?" 

"You do?" She was more shocked than she was when she first heard about him. 

"Naturally. Or I would never achieve such results. To be honest, I end up draining myself too much most of the time." 

Her eyes were on the verge of rolling out from how wide they were. She blinked in confusion. "Why would you do that to yourself?" 

Mental health was the most important thing for everyone. As artists, they had always been reminded to take care of themselves and not overwork their brains. For imaginative creators, overworking could lead one to lack motivation and make them quickly reach their bottleneck. There were many past stories about artists who went insane or fell into depression… 

Yet, not only did he drain himself, it was a regular thing as well? How outrageous! 

He maintained his smile, even chuckling a little. "Because I have to. I have to be the best no matter what." 

Although he was saying such determined words with a smile, she thought she could feel a hint of sadness in his voice. "You're crazy" lingered at the tip of her tongue but she could not say it out no matter how hard she tried. She continued looking at him in surprise as she chose the right words to ask her question. "Is there…a reason why you have to be the best, even if it means hurting yourself in the process?" 

He averted his gaze. 

"If it's personal, you don't have to…" 

"It's not." He interrupted before starting to explain. "In the past, it was because I wanted my dad to recognize my potential." 

He paused and decided to start narrating from where it all began. 

"You know about my sisters and how we don't have the same mothers, right?" 

She nodded. 

He continued, "My dad was already married to my mother and they had Xiaoli. It was a marriage of convenience between them, but they were peaceful. That was until my dad's first love reappeared, and it turned out that they had a daughter together. She was even older than Xiaoli." 

" Natalie?" She guessed. 

Cedric nodded. "Yes. The truth was revealed. It turns out that my grandparents forcefully set my dad up for a business marriage to save their company, so he could no longer be with his first love. When he understood the situation, he relented and agreed to the marriage but before that, he snuck away to bid his love farewell. Natalie was a result of that." 

Cheng Yu was flabbergasted. Who would have thought that the prominent Han family was so messy? 

"When my dad found out about Natalie, he struggled with himself for long until he finally found the courage to face my mother and ask for a divorce. He had already planned it out and decided that he would take Xiaoli with him and marry his first love. But just when he finally mustered the courage and brought it up, they realized that my mother was expecting me. So he could no longer have a divorce. 

My father hates me and my mother for being the hindrance for him and the love of his life. On the other hand, my mother despised me for being the reason why my father disliked her. She didn't bully me or hit me and neither did she deprive me of anything I needed. But every time something went against her will and she scolded me for being the harbinger of all her bad luck, my heart would be filled with despair. 

So I used up all my effort to try and be the son they can both be proud of." 

When he was done speaking, she felt her heart ache. She never would have guessed that while he seemed like a pampered young master all along, his life was multiple times more painful than one could imagine. She raised a hand to stroke his soft, brown hair before she could stop herself. "You are already amazing, Cedric. You don't need to prove yourself to anyone." 

He nodded, holding her wrist and cradling it delicately. "Actually, I have long stopped caring about their opinion of me." 

"But you still work so hard." She sounded sad. 

He nodded, not denying her claim. "I don't work as hard as I did in the past since I already acquired most of the skills I need…but I still work hard so you won't think of me as an incapable, lazy bum." 

"What?" Why was this suddenly about her?

She understood what he meant, so she quickly shifted from that topic. "Actually, you are already great even when you are not trying too hard." 

"That's because I have you as my major motivation." 

"Uh…" She was speechless. Since when did th is guy gain such a sweet tongue?