"You..." Tang Shuang could not believe that Monica was capable of such unkind words. Her tears stung her eyes instantly. Reaching out, she gave Monica a shove. Before she could even speak, she saw Monica's raised hand, which swept downwards and connected with her cheeks the next instant.
"Ah!" Tang Shuang released a shriek as she fell flat on her ass. Ah Nan, who was making his way out of Ying Qingcang's office at that time, jumped in shock at what he saw. At that moment, he did not know what to say or do.
Rubbing her hands together, Monica stared down at Tang Shuang haughtily. "Let me tell you something. Don't even think for a second that you can act impudently in the Ying family just because you married Ying Qingcang."
Tang Shuang felt a strong urge to pull out her needles and then use them to poke Monica to death. "How dare she hit me!" she thought.
In tears, Tang Shuang opened the door of Ying Qingcang's office. "Ah Cang..."
Seizing the opportunity, Ah Nan told Monica, "You're still hanging around?" After that, Monica blew a kiss at him and left.
"What's wrong with your face?" Ying Qingcang took in Tang Shuang's disheveled appearance and the sorry state of her face, which was now puffed up like a balloon. "I was on the phone just now so I didn't hear anything outside. What happened?" he asked in a puzzled tone.
Tang Shuang threw herself into his arms. "It was Monica," she got out in between sobs, "She hit me. How dare she hit me! For the first time in my life, I was slapped by someone. I don't feel like living anymore!"
"Why did she hit you out of the blue?" Ying Qingcang said, trying his best to suppress the feeling of disgust he felt due to Tang Shuang's closeness. He patted her back and said, "Get up first. I'll bring you a towel. Otherwise, your eyes will be swollen after all that crying."
Tang Shuang was unable to see the look of disgust on Ying Qingcang's face; she even snuggled herself against Ying Qingcang a few times before she got up. Ying Qingcang handed a towel to her. "Wipe your face!"
Tang Shuang took the proffered towel. "She just bullied me like that! What do you think I should do?" Tang Shuang asked with a look of pure hatred on her face.
Ying Qingcang coughed twice. "You must've suffered," Ying Qingcang said awkwardly. "How about I let you slap me?"
"What? That's absurd." Tang Shuang stared at him. "You weren't the one who hit me."
"Monica is someone I grew up together with. She's acting like this because of my failure in teaching her proper manners. I promised her father that I'd look after her, that's why you can't touch her. But it pains me to see you suffering like this, too. Argh... What a troublesome situation."
Tang Shuang saw the conflicted look on Ying Qingcang's face. She cleaned her face with the towel. After that, she said, "Forget it. I don't want you to feel bad about it. If worse comes to worst, I'll just avoid running into her!"
"How magnanimous of you. What a surprise to know that you have such a big heart. Looks like I still don't understand you well enough!" A look of satisfaction formed on Ying Qingcang's face.
Tang Shuang leaned herself against his shoulder. "It's not that I have a big heart. I just don't want you to feel bad. I guess that just proves how much I love you!"
"Thank you," Ying Qingcang said softly, though his eyes held not a single iota of warmth.
After that, Tang Shuang never came to the company again. When Monica returned home at night, Tang Shuang never came out of her room either. It vexed Monica to find Tang Shuang giving up so easily. "What a bore," Monica thought. The celebration of Ying Hao's sixtieth birthday arrived in the blink of an eye. Ying Qingcang brought Monica and Tang Shuang back to England.
As they were deplaning, Monica shot Tang Shuang a pointed look. "Enjoy this trip! Hehe."
They were received by Rong Siman at the entrance of the Ying family's mansion.
"So this is my new daughter-in-law! What a pretty girl."
It stumped Tang Shuang to see the presence of such a young and beautiful woman. As if by instinct, she stood closer to Ying Qingcang and tightened her hold on his arm.
"Ah Cang, this is..."
Monica came up from behind. "This is your stepmother. Hurry up and greet her!"
"Stepmother?" Tang Shuang gaped at Rong Siman, and then she turned back to look at Ying Qingcang.
Ying Qingcang glanced at them. "I'm going to look for the old man in the study. You should go put our suitcases away."
"I'm going to look for some food in the kitchen!" Monica ran off, leaving a panicking Tang Shuang behind with an incensed Rong Siman.
Rong Siman had thought that Xin Qing was the only woman whom Ying Qingcang would be with for the rest of his life, which was why the news of their divorce had caught her by surprise. Now, as she stared at the confused and innocent expression of Tang Shuang, she felt an urge to carve up Tang Shuang's face with a knife. "She isn't even as pretty as that bitch, Xin Qing," Rong Siman thought. "What right does she have to marry Ying Qingcang? Why is he capable of marrying another woman and yet he won't look at me even once?"
Tang Shuang had no idea about the things that were going on in Rong Siman's head at that moment, though she did notice the unhappy look on Rong Siman's face.
"Mother..." Tang Shuang called out tentatively.
Rong Siman twitched. "You don't have to call me that. Just use my name like the others. Come on. I'll take you to your room."
Nobody knew what Ying Qingcang had told Ying Hao. In any case, Ying Qingcang had emerged from the study with a casual expression while Ying Hao's thunderous roar sounded behind him, which lasted for a long, long time.
The doors of the mansion were opened the following day as they received a lot of guests. Ying Hao had invited a lot of his friends. Even Ying Qingcang's grandfather had come. The old man shot a quick glance at Tang Shuang before tossing out these words: "What lousy taste!" After that, he left without even presenting a wedding gift.
Young Master Shen arrived just before the evening party; he had taken a detour to France in order to deliver Xin Qing the pill.
The two men hid in the garden. "So? How's everything? Is she well?" Ying Qingcang asked softly.
"I was worried I'd upset you by saying this, but Xiao Qingqing is fine and dandy. It's like she never even knew you," Young Master Shen said a bit gloatingly.
Ying Qingcang's face fell when he heard his comment. He knew that Xin Qing was trying not to worry him. But still, it did not feel good at all, considering he had been thinking about her every day while the cruel little minx was over there enjoying life.
"Do you know that Ah Sha had been transferred to Caesar?" Young Master Shen asked.
Ying Qingcang nodded. "I know. She's getting used to the new environment, I hope?"
"Of course. Ah Sha hasn't run into any problems so far. Xin Qing, on the other hand, was having a few problems of her own," Young Master Shen said with a strange look on his face. "Xiao Qingqing ran into a parent one time when she was sending Ah Sha to the academy. After that, it seems like the guy is pursuing her..."
"Who?" Ying Qingcang said in a voice which caused a drop in the surrounding temperature.
"I haven't had time to look into it yet. But according to Zhang Mi, the guy's running a business in the marine industry. He's most likely quite well off. Otherwise, he wouldn't have had the privilege to send his kid to Caesar." Young Master Shen paused for a moment. Then, he asked, "Want me to look into it?"
"Look into it," Ying Qingcang growled out. "You're a fucking killjoy for bringing me such shitty news." After that, Ying Qingcang turned around and walked away.
Young Master Shen stood there on the same spot and glared at him. "Oh, yeah? How's that even my fault? What the hell? Fine, if you're so great, why don't you do it yourself then!"
"Do what?" Elder Li said, materializing out of nowhere. "I was looking everywhere for you two. Why are you guys hiding out here?"
Young Master Shen stared at Elder Li, unsure of whether the latter had overheard their conversation before. Elder Li nudged him. "Come on. Stop dawdling, and let's go."
Xin Qing was indeed being wooed by someone. The other guy's son was studying in Caesar's primary school. That day, Xin Qing had been driving downhill after dropping Ah Sha off at the academy. That was when she saw him and his malfunctioning car on the roadside. She gave him a ride back to the city. Before he left, he had asked for her phone number, claiming that he wanted to treat her to a meal the next day in order to thank her.
Xin Qing knew that foreigners took these things rather seriously, so she gave him her number. After that, they shared dinner. That was how the man started pursuing Xin Qing.
"I looked him up online, and let me tell you, the guy is pretty rich! He owns a few ships and two luxury cruises!" Zhang Mi said, pointing her finger at the photos on the computer screen. "Come have a look. Hey, why don't we join a cruise later?"
Xin Qing glanced at her. "Fine. Why don't you agree to his advances, then!"
"Hey, the guy's making the moves on you, not me!"
The following day was a weekend, and Aunt Tian brought Ah Sha to the park early that morning. When they both returned, someone else was with them.
"Hi! Xin Qing."
Xin Qing sighed. "Mr. Lyle, how early!" she said, inviting the man inside.
"You can drop the formality, you know. Just Lyle will do," Lyle said with a smile. Then, he waved the bottle of red wine he was carrying. "I came bearing a gift!"
Xin Qing took the bottle and gestured for him to take a seat. "Why didn't you bring your son with you?"
"He will be with his mother during weekends!" Lyle said as he checked out Xin Qing's house.
Lyle was a man in his early thirties and a divorcee who raised his son all on his own. He was also a typical Frenchman; he was huge, tall, and handsome. He was also a hopeless romantic: he could recite a love poem off the top of his head!
"My place is pretty far from here. So, would you like to have lunch with me later? Considering I've come all the way here and all," Lyle said, revealing the true purpose he had come today.
Xin Qing gave the suggestion a few moments of thought. "Why don't you have lunch here, then? Try out a few Chinese dishes," she said after a while.
"Wonderful!" Lyle exclaimed in joy. Then he asked, "Are you cooking?"
"Oh, no! I'm a terrible cook!" Xin Qing smiled at him. Only Ying Qingcang had the privilege to taste her cooking. Other people could go away.
After lunch, Xin Qing asked him to leave despite Lyle's pleading. Lyle had left his car near the park, so he requested Xin Qing to walk him there. Xin Qing thought it was the perfect opportunity for her to make things clear to Lyle once and for all, so she agreed to his request.
"Lyle, don't waste any more of your time on me. It's not possible between us." Xin Qing had decided to be frank; things like this would only bring more trouble down the road if dragged out.
Seemingly unperturbed, Lyle smiled. "I'm a patient man with a lot of time to move you. You can reject me now, but you can't stop me from pursuing you!" he said in a serious tone. "Please don't think that I'm being flippant or that this is just a game to me. I know that the easterners held more conservative views on romance. So I'm telling you now that I'm serious about you, and that I want you to become my wife."
Xin Qing was just about to answer when she was stunned by the person who was making their way towards them.
The other person had obviously noticed her too.
"Xin Qing!" An excited voice rang out. Meyer jogged over in a couple of steps, and then he stopped and appraised her. "How come you're back in France again? I'm so sorry about the trouble I've caused you last time-" That was when Meyer noticed the man standing beside Xin Qing, causing him to pause in his words. Xin Qing recovered and smiled at Lyle. "I'm sorry. I don't think I can send you off. I've run into a friend."
"It's okay. Until next time!" Lyle said. Then he left after giving Meyer a nod.
Xin Qing turned to Meyer. "Let's go. Want to come up to my house?"
"Sure! Sure!" Meyer followed her happily. He had been so afraid that Xin Qing would ignore him just moments ago. But now it seemed that Xin Qing had forgiven him already. The only thing he was unsure of right now was whether he would take a beating when he saw Ying Qingcang later.
He was surprised to find that Ying Qingcang was absent. Not only that, but Xin Qing had even told him that she was now divorced.
"You... Surely you're joking?"
"Do I look like I'm joking?" Xin Qing tilted her head to one side and smiled at him. "What about you? Are you returning to CK academy?"
Meyer shook his head. "Nah. I'm just retrieving some documents from the academy. I'm planning to start my own design firm!"