Chapter 246: Do You Know What Her Dream Is
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Xia Ling did not make a sound.
He was right. He could do many things for her such as rent his house to her, give her high-end dresses, and save her when she was being held hostage. However, there were even more things that he could not do. He did not allow her to move out, did not allow her to wear other types of pendants, and even forced her to have sex with him against her will.
How was he qualified to say “As long as it’s something I can do, I will do it for you”?
Thinking about it, Xia Ling realized that it made no sense to continue arguing with him.
Xia Ling rolled to her side on the bed with her back facing Li Lei. “I’m tired.”
Li Lei’s expression became slightly tense. He looked at her thin back for a long time, then turned around and left the room.
A woman’s thoughts were very hard to decipher. Li Lei used to be a master at gaining the favor of women, but he suffered repeated defeats when dealing with Xia Ling. Ever since he had fired Su Tang, he had no other female counterpart that he shared a deep friendship with. However, he had some problems that he could discuss with outsiders. After thinking for a while, he decided to look for Tan Ying and ask him how he chased after his wife in the past.
Tan Ying had been married for about seven years and had been living happily with his family.
On this day, he had just sent his wife and child for tuition classes. Once he reached home, he saw Big Boss Li pacing outside his door and became rather shocked. “What brings you here? Please come in and take a seat.”
Li Lei quietly entered his house. Tan Ying’s house was filled with the vandalism of his children, wooden blocks, and remote-controlled trains. The clothes retrieved from the clothes rack had not been folded and were stacked on the sofa. There was a half-sewn pillowcase belonging to his wife. She had also just bought shampoo that the family used and received supermarket discount flyers which were piling up in the house.
“The house is messy, so you must be amused.” Tan Ying was a little embarrassed.
He and his wife were ordinary citizens and relied on their hard work to achieve their status in society today. However, they were not used to a luxurious lifestyle and maintained their traditional, ordinary life.
Li Lei glanced at the messy house which was full of life and felt envious.
The husband and wife were living in the same room and had a healthy and active child. No wonder Tan Ying had to withdraw from the triad organization and resolutely return to China to join a legitimate business. It turns out that once he had a family to protect, everything was different.
He was even more envious that the woman he loved was willing to rely on him and be protected by him.
Unconsciously, Li Lei started to think of Xiao Ling. He imagined her sitting in front of a sofa in a house full of homeliness carefully sewing a pillowcase… Suddenly, he felt that it was ridiculous and unrealistic. His Xiao Ling would probably spend her life doing more complicated things.
However, he could not help but imagine. If Xiao Ling had a child with him, how would he or she look like?
If it were a boy, it would definitely be more mischievous than Tan Ying’s son, and he would probably have to prepare a large playroom for him.
What if it were a girl? She would definitely resemble her. His daughter would definitely be delicate and pretty without being overly flamboyant. However, she would have a lingering charm. The longer someone stared at her, the more they could not look away…
“Boss, boss?”
Li Lei was so engrossed in his thoughts that Tan Ying had to call him a few times before he heard him.
He returned to reality and secretly laughed at his own ignorance. Looking at the situation now, Xiao Ling would probably never agree to have a child with him. He would thank the heavens if she could even remain safely by his side.
Tan Ying led him to his study room and handed him a cup of tea. “Hongshan recently learned how to make plum tea. Try it. My relatives said it tastes good.” Hongshan was his wife’s name.
Li Lei took the cup and tasted it. It was sour and sweet.
He did not really like the mix of flavors, but he remembered that Xiao Ling especially liked to try out new snacks, cakes, and drinks. Thus, he asked Tan Ying for some of the tea to bring back home for Xia Ling.
She was in a bad mood these few days. Perhaps drinking some plum tea would cheer her up.
The fact that Tan Ying could rise to this position meant that he was good at reading people. After hearing what Li Lei said, he immediately knew his purpose for taking the plum tea home. He did not directly expose him, but quietly got up and gave him half of the plum tea that he had at home. “This tea detoxifies, clears the lungs, and reduces internal heat. If you like it, I can ask Hongshan for the recipe so you can make it yourself.”
That was also Li Lei’s intention. If Xiao Ling became used to his tea-making skills, would she remain by his side?
He looked at the light green tea and remembered the reason why he came today. “Time really flies… I still remember when you and Hongshan met for the first time. It was in a restaurant in Chinatown in the USA, right? At that time, she was studying and working part-time as a waiter in the restaurant. You were drunk and vomited on her…”
“I can’t believe you still remember such an embarrassing thing.” Tan Ying laughed shyly, but there was pure joy in his eyes. “Thankfully I was drunk and vomited on her that day. Otherwise, I would have missed out on such a good wife.”
“So, how did you chase her that year?” Big Boss Li finally asked his main question.
That year, after Tan Ying vomited on her, Hongshan was as furious as a fire-breathing dragon. Coupled with a few twists and turns, Hongshan’s impression of Tan Ying became worse, and they became something akin to sworn enemies. Sometimes, people wondered if she wanted to kill Tan Ying with a knife.
Thinking about the past, Tan Ying also sighed.
“Hongshan… has a sharp tongue but is a softie inside.” After saying that, he suddenly paused. Did Boss suddenly visit him just to ask about that? “You came all this way to ask me about this?”
“What’s wrong with that?” Big Boss Li was expressionless.
“Did you quarrel with Ye Xingling again?” Tan Ying guessed.
Li Lei was quiet. The plum tea in his hands had cooled down. As he held the cup, his expression darkened.
Tan Ying could not bear to see him like that. “There are thousands of good girls in the world. Why do you have to be adamant about being with Ye Xingling? I have already said that she is not suitable for you. Her background is very suspicious, her life and emotions are very chaotic, she is hostile to you, thoughtless…” Seeing that Big Boss Li was offended, he quickly stopped talking about her. “Alright, I won’t say anything more… However, Boss, if it weren’t for you always protecting her, who knows how early she would have died in the past! This sort of woman is troublesome. Why do you want her?!”
“At the start, what did other people say about Hongshan?” Big Boss Li asked.
His special assistant, Tan Ying, choked.
In the past, Hongshan was also headstrong. She was physically weak but did not concede to triad organizations. Many people advised Tan Ying to give up, saying that that sort of girl was a burden. However, he insisted on marrying her and ended up extremely happy.
“Ye Xingling is different…” Tan Ying thought for a moment before giving him an explanation. “From a young age, Hongshan’s dream was to marry someone, have children, and become a housewife. Hongshan was forced to be headstrong in the past due to her life circumstances, not due to her natural personality. As such, she was able to settle down with me. But, what about Ye Xingling? Boss, do you know what her dream is?”
This question really caused Li Lei to be at a loss for words.