Yang Feng guided Zhao Lifei towards the black Maybach, using his body to shield her from any prying eyes. She paused by the door, "I didn't get to say goodbye to my grandfather as well as yours."
Yang Feng grunted, "You don't need to." He tried to push her into the car, but she stopped him and was preparing to walk back into the banquet when he grabbed her, "Many people are leaving the banquet as we speak. The Elders will be busy seeing people off."
"Then, at the very least, did you bid him goodbye?"
"Of course." It was the first thing Yang Feng did when dessert was being served and he noticed her absence. He was never one to enjoy sweet food, so the Elder easily pardoned him.
"Now, let's go home." He did not want to remain at this place any longer. He helped her into the car before getting in himself. Hu Wei closed the door and started the car.
After such an exhausting day, Zhao Lifei did not have the energy to fight off his hands. "I'm tired." She mumbled when she saw the fire ignite in his eyes only to die out at her words. His face softened as he guided her body towards him so that she would be leaning in his embrace. Her eyes closed shut and it did not take long for her to fall asleep from exhaustion.
Yang Feng kept one arm around her shoulder and pressed a kiss to the crown of her head, a worried look buried within the abyss of his eyes.
- - - - -
In a tea room, there was a faint scent of herbal medicine.
To preserve their tradition, the Su Family Mansion was built in a similar structure as the buildings from the Qing Dynasty. It spread out into a decent plot of land in an open concept that easily allowed the wind to pass through. There were wooden sliding doors, brackets of intertwining wood to create the frames and borders, and tiled roofs.
Su Meixiu was anxiously waiting for her father to say something. She found it strange that his face was as pale as a ghost and that his eyes were disorientated. She thought he might've had too much to drink, but that would have been impossible as he was always good at holding his liquor.
"What happened, father?" She made sure to keep her tone respectful. She felt like she was speaking to a businessman and not her father. She envied her younger siblings who could talk freely around him.
Su Boyuan's fingers dug into his palms as he ground his teeth. His jaw tightened and a vein popped out on his forehead. Yang Feng actually dared to threaten him!
"You were right, Meixiu. That vixen pillow-talked him and clouded his brain!"
CRASH!
In one fell swoop, Su Boyuan had swept everything off the table. Teacups tumbled onto the floor and a century-old ink slab broke into four fragments causing the bamboo floor to be ruined by black stains.
Su Meixiu flinched, her eyes lowering onto the floor. She could feel her hands shake when the memories of her father's brutal beatings flashed through her mind. The dreadful tone he was using now was the same one from her childhood.
"He actually had the guts to threaten me." Su Boyuan let out mocking laughter before sitting down on his chair, a calculative look in his eyes. "That wench has wormed her way into his heart like the annoying pest that she is."
Su Meixiu was tongue-tied. She agreed with her father but feared if she opened her mouth, she would suffer his wrath.
"You stayed by his side for nine years, wasting the precious years of your adulthood on him and what does he do? Demote you for the smallest mistake!" Su Boyuan heard the full story from his daughter. Zhao Lifei was the president of Feili, a rising investment firm. It was a very valuable piece of information that he could use to his advantage. He was simply waiting for the right time to reveal it and planned on doing so when the company suffer a fall.
"Do you know what he said to me tonight, Meixiu, when I simply wanted to chat with his temptress?" Su Boyuan flicked his wrist as a maid dressed in a hanfu attire walked forward, her hands shaking when she passed him the cup of tea. In her careless mistake, a tiny droplet landed on the floor and that alone was enough for him to take the teacup and toss the scalding drink on her.
She shrieked in pain and bit down on her lips, bowing low, "I-I-I a-apologize M-master Su." Her entire body was trembling now, bracing her body as a sharp kick was sent her way. She was blown back and felt as if her body was shattered by the force. Even so, she crawled to her feet and kowtowed.
"T-this servant deserves to be punished." She said, her forehead touching the floor.
"Get another cup, you worthless minx!" Su Boyuan snarled, sending the woman scurrying out the door and, in less than one minute, returned with a fresh cup of tea. This time, she was meticulous enough to keep her tremors at bay.
Su Boyuan calmed down with the familiar taste of chestnut from the Tieguanyin tea. His shoulders relaxing a bit.
Su Meixiu felt her heart beating one hundred miles per second, her clenched hands shaking. Seeing her father's treatment towards the maid reminded her of his treatment towards her the day she told her father she was demoted.
"The Sus have served the Yangs for eight generations now." Su Boyuan began, "We have always been loyal to them. Never once have we thought about overthrowing them!"
His face became red. "And what does Yang Feng do?!" He slammed his teacup onto the wooden table, "He threatened to perform an eight generation extermination upon us! He was willing to ruin us all because of a single girl!"
Su Boyuan would never forget what happened today. He would never forget the menacing and deadly expression on Yang Feng's face. Knowing the brute's temper, Su Boyuan knew that such a ruthless devil never made threats; he made promises.
Su Boyuan gritted his teeth so hard, it was a miracle the pearly whites did not crack. He stood up and began to pace back and forth, arms tucked behind him.
"T-then what shall we do, father?"
Su Boyuan looked at his daughter for the briefest moment. If it was not for the fact that she was able to stay by Yang Feng's side for nine years, he would've beaten her for speaking out of turn at that moment, but he could not do that. He needed her face to remain that pretty, the same one as her mother, his current mistress.
"Stay quiet for now. Do not make any sudden movements until I give you orders." Su Boyuan would consult the Elders tomorrow morning.
In the eight generations that the Sus have stayed by the Yangs side, none of them ever fathomed the idea of joining the two families together until Su Meixiu was born.
They gave birth to warriors, not princesses. None of the daughters born in the family were as beautiful as Su Meixiu. They usually had angular features, too sharp and rough. Their bodies were strong and burly, perfectly shaped for fighting, but Su Meixiu was different.
On the day of her birth, her cries didn't cause one's ears to bleed; they were softer, quieter, more demure. She had the most innocuous pair of eyes, reflecting the sky, and as she grew older, her face bloomed into that of an angel.
The Elders seized the rare opportunity. They kept her hidden for the majority of her life, secretly training her in martial arts and homeschooling her. In order to keep her further hidden, she could not go to a prestigious college and was made to attend a normal one.
The Su family did not want her to meet Yang Feng so quickly. They planned for her to be a wild card and when she miraculously passed the selection process at Yang Enterprise, they thought her future was bright. The idea was supported by Yang Feng's favorable behavior towards her. Who would've thought that all of their hard work would come tumbling down because of a single woman?
Su Boyuan would not accept defeat so quickly. Even if Zhao Lifei was a formidable enemy, whose family name and backing was too superior for her to be considered a mistress, Su Boyuan still viewed her as one.
Though Yang Feng and Su Meixiu were not officially a couple nor did they have any hidden marriage contract, Su Boyuan believed in her. If the rumors rang true and Elder Yang truly considered Su Meixiu as a marriage candidate, it meant, at the very least, Su Meixiu and Yang Feng had a relationship that could point to a promising future.