At first, Xin Qing's heart had softened when she heard about his departure; however, the latter part of his statement had caused the flames of anger to return.
"How do you think I ended up owing him a favor? Isn't it all thanks to you?"
Ying Qingcang went silent for a very long time. After that, he stared deeply into her eyes and said, "I'm sorry." He went into his room.
Fuming, Xin Qing ran upstairs. "Why did that man have to remind me of my horrible experience that night?" She thought angrily. Monica was in the middle of packing her things when Xin Qing entered. Seeing the look on Xin Qing's face, she asked in a soft voice, "Got into another fight?"
"As if I have the energy to fight with him!" Xin Qing said. She shot a glare at Monica before she left to take a bath.
"Everytime those two get into a fight, the rest of us poor bystanders have to suffer..." Monica thought.
When Xin Qing woke up the next morning, Ying Qingcang had already left. Monica had left a card beside Xin Qing's bed. On the card, these words were written: The engagement is fake. In a fit of frustration, Xin Qing crumbled the card into a ball and tossed it into the trash can. After lunch, she decided to take Ah Sha out to buy a wooden pony. Xin Qing had avoided buying something like that because Ah Sha had refused to sit on the wooden pony at the playground. She would start crying whenever she was placed on top of that wooden pony. Now that Ah Sha was the owner of a pony, Xin Qing figured it was time to try again. She wanted to see if Ah Sha had grown to like wooden ponies.
Ah Che tagged along too, of course. The mall had three floors devoted to toys. Xin Qing had put Ah Sha down on the floor and allowed her to run on her own. Ah Sha was laughing merrily as she trotted around with her tiny strides. Ah Che trailed after Ah Sha while keeping a watchful eye on her. A few times, Ah Sha had wandered to the doll's section, and Xin Qing had to drag her away. Ah Sha ran on ahead without crying, most likely because she was seeing toys everywhere and had thought that they all belonged to her.
There were at least ten types of wooden ponies on display. Xin Qing was surprised to see one that had been designed to resemble a real pony. High quality flannel was used as the pony's surface, rendering it lifelike. It even came with a variety of colors. When Xin Qing placed Ah Sha on top of the white one, Ah Sha squealed happily.
"Ah... Bai!" Ah Sha looked at Xin Qing and pointed at the wooden pony she was sitting on. "Mommy... Baibai!"
Xin Qing nodded. "Yes, that's right. This is Xiao Bai. Let's buy it and take it home, shall we?"
Ah Sha seemed completely unaware of anything else other than her own joy. "Baibai! Baibai!" She screamed incessantly.
The wooden pony was too large in size, so Xin Qing gave their address to the mall's staff, who would then deliver it to their house. After that, Xin Qing resettled Ah Sha into her stroller and together, they went around to explore the mall. Someone called her when they were at the women's clothing section.
"Xin Qing!"
"Ailey?" Xin Qing had noticed Ailey waving at her the moment she turned her head around. Ailey ran towards them. "Long time no see!" She said boisterously.
"Yeah, Meyer told me you've been abroad," Xin Qing said and took a step back subconsciously.
Ailey noticed Ah Sha, who was sitting in the stroller. From inside her bag, Ailey took out a mickey-themed alice band. "I bought this in Disneyland. Can I give it to the baby?"
"Oh, no. Please, you don't have to!" Xin Qing wanted to refuse, but Ah Sha had already reached out to grab the Mickey ears.
Ailey smiled. "Look at that! The baby likes it too!"
"She's just grabbing whatever that she sets her eyes on," Xin Qing thought, feeling a little helpless now. Still, she said, "Thank you! Are you here alone?"
"Actually, I snuck out," Ailey said, glancing around. Then she grabbed Xin Qing and began pulling her forward. "Let's go talk at the rest area."
It turned out that Meyer's family had turned their sights on Ailey now that they were unable to find a suitable marriage partner for Meyer. Notwithstanding the fact that Ailey was still underage, her family had already begun arranging all kinds of social balls and events just so Ailey could have a chance to make a public appearance. If they managed to find a suitable family, they would arrange for an engagement first. The emotional bonding would only come after.
"Seriously, your family..." Xin Qing had listened to the end as Ailey got her up to speed on everything. As for the behavior shown by Ailey's family, Xin Qing was rendered too speechless to even come up with a judgement.
Ailey showed no compunction at all in her complaint. "You were about to say how shameless they are, right? Yeah. You don't have to hold back. They are indeed shameless. What right do they have to make me their sacrificial lamb? If they're so great, why don't they rely on themselves?" She said. Ailey finally had a chance to get someone to listen to all her grievances. Now that the floodgates were opened, she could not bring herself to stop complaining. "The family is already doing quite well right now. But they aren't satisfied with that, and are willing to sacrifice their children's happiness for more wealth. Aren't they afraid of karma? Who knows the family will end up with some kind of curse that'll prevent us from producing anymore offspring!"
"Ahem, ahem!" Xin Qing quickly put a stop to Ailey's rant. "You shouldn't say things like that so casually."
Ailey shot her a crestfallen look. "They never saw us as their children at all. In their eyes, we're just tools. Tools to be used to secure the family's interests," Ailey said, growing more agitated with each word. "I won't be like my brother. I'd be damned before I allow myself to be manipulated by them. I won't ever become their puppet!"
Xin Qing sighed. She had now decided to stay away from this girl at all costs. Who knew what atrocious things this girl would end up doing. Ah Che, who had been sitting at another table, immediately noticed the troubled look on Xin Qing's face. He decided that it was time for him to intervene and get her out of the situation.
"Young Miss, it's time for us to go back. Ah Sha is sleepy."
Xin Qing looked at Ah Che approvingly and quickly stood up. "Oh, yeah, that's right. It's her nap time already. Ailey, we have to go. Don't go running off on your own, okay? You'll get into trouble."
"Can I stay at your house for some time?" Ailey looked upon Xin Qing with a beseeching look.
Instantly, Xin Qing found herself in a confounding predicament. Good thing Ah Che had kept his wits about him when he said, "Excuse me, this young lady. Right now we have a nanny staying at the Young Miss' place. We don't have any rooms left."
"Ah... Really?"
"Yeah," Xin Qing said, nodding hurriedly. "Look, just go home. Even if you stay away from home, they'll find you eventually."
Only then did Ailey nod. Then she waved at them and left. Xin Qing released the breath that she had been holding. Ah Che stared after Ailey's departing form. "Young Miss, this woman reeks of trouble. It's best if we minimize our interactions with her in the future."
Xin Qing gave him a look which conveyed her acknowledgement. She knew better than anyone Ailey's potential of creating trouble. Heck, if it were not for Ailey, Mira would not even have hated her. On the way home, Xin Qing considered whether she should call Meyer to give him a heads up regarding Ailey's circumstances. But she soon brushed off the idea. After all, Meyer was enjoying his vacation. Besides, this was a private affair involving another family. It was best if she minded her own business.
Meanwhile, Ailey, the escapee, was subdued at the mall's entrance. A middle-aged man was looking upon her with an unkind expression. If Xin Qing were there, she would have immediately recognized that man as the same one who had threatened her on the streets last time when she had been walking home.
"Ailey, you're too immature!" The middle-aged man kept his eyes on her. "How dare you sneak away from the party."
"I don't want to go to any stupid parties! Don't even think for a second that you people can sell me off." Ailey struggled, wanting to run away. Too bad she had been rendered immobile by the hold of two bodyguards.
Ailey's defiance angered the middle-aged man further. "Take her back and lock her up. Release her only when she comes to her senses!"
"No! You can't lock me up. I still need to find a girlfriend for my brother! Let me go!" Ailey screamed her heart out, refusing to get into the car.
The middle-aged man turned around to face her. "Where do you think you can find a girlfriend for your brother?"
"Xin Qing, of course!" Ailey threw out. "I like her and I want her to be my sister-in-law!"
"Nonsense. She's already married."
Ailey blinked. "My brother told me she's divorced."
"Divorced?"
Ailey nodded. "Yeah. My brother told me."
The middle-aged man contemplated that information before he looked at Ailey again. "We'll talk about this once I dragged you back!"
Xin Qing was completely unaware of the fact that Ailey had sold her out. She was busy going through the scripts for the advertisement that William's men had sent over. The filming would commence in three days, and even though she did not have many lines, Xin Qing still felt the need to memorize all of them. It would be too mortifying if she were to forget her lines on set.
The advertisement's theme centered around the daily life of a mother and her baby. All Xin Qing and Ah Sha had to do was act naturally. The few lines they had to say during the filming would involve an introduction to the product's benefits. Xin Qing had rehearsed the script with Ah Sha several times, but Ah Sha's reaction was different each time. Xin Qing hoped that Ah Sha would be able to complete the filming in one fell swoop. That way, they could save themselves the labor of having to do retakes and whatnot.
On the day of the filming, they began with a scene in their home, where she was supposed to put on her lounge wear and play a game with Ah Sha. They breezed past this one without any retakes. Even the director had praised Ah Sha's acting talents, saying that Ah Sha had shown that she had a knack for the performing arts at such a young age. On the second day of the filming, they had to do an outdoor scene. This time, the set was at a playground. For some reason, Ah Sha had refused to obey the director's request to get on top of the slide at the playground. They had tried everything to coax her, but she just would not budge. In the end, Ah Sha slumped against Xin Qing's chest and was crying so hard that she could barely breathe properly. Xin Qing's heart broke at the sight.
"Director, can we stop the filming today. The baby seems rather unwell."
The director agreed instantly, having already been properly informed by those in charge on how to handle these types of situations. The filming crew wrapped things up and left the set. After everyone had left, Xin Qing carried Ah Sha and climbed up to the top of the slide. Ah Sha, who was probably exhausted from her prior crying, sat obediently and unmovingly in Xin Qing's arms. Ah Che brought over the baby bottle, which Xin Qing took. As she fed Ah Sha, Xin Qing said softly, "This is called a slide. Ah Sha, do you want to sit on it with mommy?"
"Ah... Wu..." Ah Sha hummed as she sucked on the bottle. After that, she sat up and glanced down. Feeling a bit scared again, Ah Sha buried her head against Xin Qing's chest.
Xin Qing tried again in a patient voice. "Mommy and Ah Sha will slide down together, okay? It's like flying up high."
"Daddy? Fly, fly..." Ah Sha's round orbs were focused on Xin Qing. Ying Qingcang had the habit of tossing Ah Sha into the air. Ah Sha enjoyed the game of being raised up high in the air very much.
Xin Qing paused for a brief moment. Then, she smiled and nodded. "Yep. Just like daddy raising you up high!"
"Fly! Fly!" Ah Sha had regained her jolly mood and was reaching downwards below the slide. Xin Qing hugged Ah Sha to her chest, and together, they slid down the slide. Ah Sha was reduced to claps and laughter.
"Haha. Looks like I was worried for nothing. Our little Ah Sha already knows how to play with slides!"
Xin Qing raised her head and saw William standing there, grinning at them. Ah Che, on the other hand, was practically squeezing his brows together as he glared at the other man.
"What are you doing here?" Xin Qing stood up. Apparently, Ah Sha had discovered the fun in slides. She hummed and tried to get Xin Qing to take her for another ride. Xin Qing handed her to Ah Che. "Why don't you accompany her for more rides!" Ah Che climbed on top of the slide begrudgingly.
William appraised Xin Qing. "Hm, you look quite well. I was really worried that you might start losing weight after all the exhaustion."
"Haha!" Xin Qing gave him a look. "Given such a comfortable filming conditions, I actually think I might get fat. Did the director complain about me to you?"
"The director barely had time to finish praising you!" William added quickly, "I just heard that Ah Sha had encountered a bit of a problem and got a little worried. So I decided to drop by and check on you guys."
Xin Qing grinned and nodded. "I know. I was just messing with you!"
"Well, since I'm already here, why don't I treat you both to a meal as a gesture of courtesy?" William held out his palm in a welcoming gesture. Xin Qing lowered her head ever so slightly and said, "Since you've shown so much sincerity, I am compelled to take you up on your offer!"
The two of them looked at each other for a moment before breaking out into a fit of laughter. Ah Che nearly cried with Ah Sha in his arms.
"Ah Sha, you're about to lose your daddy..."