Xin Qing never thought she would run into Lyle here and instantly felt a pang of guilt. She stole a glance at Ying Qingcang.
"Xin Qing!" Lyle greeted with enthusiasm, seemingly unconcerned about Xin Qing's ongoing dilemma.
Young Master Shen looked at Ying Qingcang briefly. After that, he gestured for Lyle to take a seat. "How did you know my Xiao Qingqing?"
"Your? Wait, you mean you're Ah Sha's father?" Lyle said in shock. "When did this man even get married..." he thought.
Tang Shuang cut in all of a sudden. "Oh, no. I'm afraid you've misunderstood, mister. My husband is Ah Sha's father and also Xin Qing's ex-husband," she said mirthfully. "And your current relationship with Xin Qing would be....?"
That remark had cemented Zhang Mi's belief that Tang Shuang had an IQ of some negative integer. Well, to be fair, Zhang Mi did not think that highly of her own intelligence either. In fact, Zhang Mi thought of herself as pretty dumb; she often said things without proper regard for the time and place. But apparently, Tang Shuang was a far bigger imbecile than Zhang Mi ever was. Despite the fact that Lyle was clearly part of Young Master Shen and Ying Qingcang's party, Tang Shuang had still asked her question so unscrupulously and without considering for propriety.
Lyle frowned, clearly unhappy with Tang Shuang's attitude. He was still hung up on something Tang Shuang had said just now: Ying Qingcang was Xin Qing's ex-husband! The gears in his mind turned quickly and he smiled at Xin Qing. "Oh, no. There's nothing between me and her right now. But I am trying to pursue her!"
Young Master Shen inwardly mourned for Lyle. "Say, are you trying to kiss your collaboration with Ying Enterprises goodbye?" he thought.
Xin Qing glared at Lyle, clearly not expecting the man to be so upfront about his pursuits. For a moment, she was thrown into a panic. She stole another glance at Ying Qingcang and stammered, "D- D- Don't talk nonsense!"
"It's not nonsense. I've already made myself clear that day that I'm serious about you!" Lyle said with emphasis. Then he turned and gave Ying Qingcang an apologetic look. "President Ying, you don't mind, I hope!"
None of them knew that underneath the table, Ying Qingcang was trapping Xin Qing's legs harshly between his own. He felt like twisting her leg right off her body if he could. Above the table, he was quiet. Tang Shuang once again jumped in to answer the question on Ying Qingcang's behalf. "Of course he won't mind. Otherwise, he wouldn't have divorced her and then married me!"
"I suppose it's all good, then! Well, to borrow a saying from the Chinese people, a lady who is beautiful inside and out is always a good match for a kind and virtuous man! Isn't that right, Xin Qing?" Lyle said in a serious tone as he lifted his glass. "Give me a chance!"
Xin Qing felt as though she was sitting on a bunch of needles right then. Beneath, Ying Qingcang's legs were trapping her own with increasing force, so much so that the initial discomfort had turned into pain. She shook her head and pushed aside Lyle's offered glass. "Sorry, but I feel nothing for you."
"Fine, then!" Lyle said, seemingly unperturbed. "I'll work harder to make you feel something for me."
Tang Shuang cut in again before Xin Qing could answer. "Aww, how could you feel nothing for such a nice man? Don't tell me you're still hung up on things that you can't have."
Zhang Mi, who had been munching on lobsters throughout the entire exchange, finally had enough. She tossed a lobster shell onto the table. "Wow, I guess bumpkins who come from the mountains really are uncultivated and unrefined. Ying Qingcang, I suggest you drag her home and give her proper training before you take her out in public! Otherwise, you're the one who's going to end up being embarrassed."
Tang Shuang's clothes were now covered in lobster gravy. Hearing Zhang Mi's mocking words, she panicked and began to cry. She gave Ying Qingcang a pitiable look.
Ying Qingcang stood up and gave Xin Qing a dark look. "Whether she's refined or not is none of your concern," he said. "I suggest you take good care of yourself. You seem to be doing rather well in the romance department. But you better watch yourself, lest you get into trouble." After that, he dragged Tang Shuang to her feet and left.
"Crazy psycho. I was the one who said it, why are you taking it out at Xin Qing?" Zhang Mi mumbled to herself.
Xin Qing sighed. This stupid meal was seriously starting to hurt her stomach. Seeing that the gathering had come to an end, Lyle quickly offered to take Xin Qing home. In the end, it was Young Master Shen who had stepped in and dissuaded Lyle from his intention. Young Master Shen sent Lyle off with the excuse that it would be too troublesome for Lyle to drop Xin Qing off he and Xin Qing were heading in different directions. On the way home, Xin Qing caved and asked Young Master Shen about their connection with Lyle.
"We're business allies. Ying Enterprises purchased a few cruise ships and Lyle's company is handling the logistics."
At the explanation, Lyle instantly scored more points with Zhang Mi. "He must be quite capable if he can enter into a collaboration with Ying Enterprises. Xin Qing, shouldn't you consider him?"
"If you like him so much, you have him then," Xin Qing said, her lips twisting in disdain. She then recalled the scowl Ying Qingcang had given at her just now and starting cursing at him inwardly. "How dare you raise your voice at me. Hmmph! Just you wait!"
Young Master Shen released two mocking laughs. "Her? Please. Nobody would want her even if she's a filthy rich woman offering herself to be someone's sugar mama."
"Stop judging me with that bestial perspective of yours," Zhang Mi fired back. "If you line up all the guys at the academy who're interested in me, the queue would go from here all the way to China!"
Young Master Shen cast a doubtful look at Zhang Mi, though he was not in the mood to bicker with her. He turned to Xin Qing. "Don't tell me you're really interested in him?" he asked. If that was the case, then Ying Qingcang might just end up hiring a bunch of assassins next.
"Of course I'm not," Xin Qing said, shaking her head. "Ah Sha is still young. I won't be considering these things for the time being."
"Phew. Everything's good, then," Young Master Shen thought in relief.
Meanwhile, the air between Ying Qingcang and Tang Shuang was as awkward as ever. Tang Shuang had spent their entire return journey trying to initiate a conversation with him, though all her attempts were met with half-hearted responses. When they arrived at their hotel, Ying Qingcang went straight into the bathroom to take a shower. Tang Shuang felt a mix of negative emotions in her heart, and thought it was mostly jealousy. For all she knew, Ying Qingcang could be pissed off because another man was trying to pursue Xin Qing. At the thought, she suddenly became restless. She got up and tried to sneak into the bathroom. But she was surprised to find that Ying Qingcang had locked the door.
She sat down on the couch to wait for him. After a while, fell asleep without knowing it. She was woken up by the chilly air sometime around midnight. There was a blanket beside her, and yet Ying Qingcang had never bothered to drape it over her. "Is he still bathing?" she thought.
She walked into the bedroom and found Ying Qingcang already in bed. Anger rose inside her and she yelled, "You really haven't gotten over her! You don't love me at all, do you? What do you think you're doing?"
At her voice, Ying Qingcang turned over on the bed and sat up. He gave her a cold smirk. "You already know that I feel nothing for you before you even married me. You want to make me like you? Then start acting like how a proper Mrs. Ying is supposed to act instead of running around like a country bumpkin who's trying to show off her status to others. Also, stop speaking rubbish without considering the proper time and place."
"You..." Tang Shuang was struck dumb by Ying Qingcang's words. "I was never exposed to these things," Tang Shuang yelled in between sobs. "How was I supposed to know these requirements of yours? For as long as I've lived, I've always spoken my mind. None of the elders back in the village had criticized me for anything I said. Why am I wrong all the time when I'm here?"
The look on Ying Qingcang's face darkened even further. "This is the outside world, not in your village. And you're now Mrs. Ying, the mistress of Ying Enterprises, not the little girl who was pampered by your fellow villagers. Get that into your skull. If you think that being the daughter-in-law of the Ying family is too hard for you, then you should've made that clear ages ago. I assure you that there are a lot of other women out there who are jumping at the opportunity to take your place." After that, Ying Qingcang covered his head with the blanket, shut off the light and then went to sleep.
Tang Shuang ended up spending the night on the couch in the living room, crying herself to sleep. The next morning, she regained her spirits. How could she let Xin Qing defeat her like that? She wanted to become a woman whom Ying Qingcang loved. She wanted to become the rightful mistress of Ying Enterprises!
From then on, Tang Shuang sat quietly beside Ying Qingcang during all his business dealings. On several occasions when people actually asked her questions, she would answer them politely. After noticing the change in Tang Shuang behavior, Young Master Shen asked Ying Qingcang about it in private.
"You've dealt with her?"
"I'm still trying very hard to stop myself from strangling her to death." The scowl returned to Ying Qingcang's face at the mention of Tang Shuang.
Young Master Shen patted Ying Qingcang's shoulders. "Don't overdo it, though. What if you're too hard on her and she ends up ignoring you? We still haven't found a cure for Xiao Qingqing's headaches!"
"Still no news from Boss Wan?" Ying Qingcang rubbed his forehead. He could never stop worrying as long as there was a day where Xin Qing was not cured. Tang Shuang's words could not be fully trusted. What if Xin Qing did not heal after a year? What would he do then?
Young Master Shen shrugged. "No news yet. Oh, yeah, by the way, when he called last time, he did ask us to give Xin Qing a heads up. His son will look for Ah Sha."
"You tell her, then." Ying Qingcang sighed. "I'm returning to China tomorrow."
Finding out about Ying Qingcang's departure brought a pang of sadness to Xin Qing's heart; she was in a low mood for a few days straight. Christmas was around the corner, and so was her birthday. "Looks like I'll be spending them alone again this year," she thought. December arrived in a blink of an eye. Winter in France was dry and frigid. Xin Qing met Boss Wan's son during a day where it was snowing heavily.
She was on the way to pick up Ah Sha that day, and a small boy, about eight or nine years of age, stood in front of the kindergarten's entrance, blocking her way.
"Boss Wan sent me," the boy said. The boy's tone startled Xin Qing. His speech pattern and the way he spoke was exceptional.
"You... Are you his son?"
"If you're asking whether he's the sperm donor, then I have no choice but to nod my head begrudgingly."
"... Is this really something a child would say?" Xin Qing thought. Admittedly, her head was in the clouds at the moment as she found the boy's behavior to be surreal.
"I have an IQ as high as 180. You don't have to give me that look. I'm just a bit smarter than a normal person, that's all," said the boy with his eyes fixed upon her. "Now, allow me to introduce myself." The boy bowed.
"I'm Wan Laoda. My English name is Ken. My mommy has the habit of calling me Xunxun, but I prefer to go by Hunter."
Xin Qing still found it impossible for her to have a conversation with this boy. Ah Sha, on the other hand, began clapping her hands happily. "I'm Ah Sha!"
"No English name?" the boy frowned. "I'm sorry. I didn't give her one," Xin Qing said contritely.
The boy waved her apology away. "Nah, it's okay. I'll give her one later."
"Then I shall call you like your mother does, Xunxun!" Xin Qing said. "Which year are you in?"
"I'm in third grade."
"Oh!" That did not make sense to Xin Qing at all. "How old are you?"
"Ten. I skipped a few grades," Xunxun said nonchalantly.
For the first time in her life, Xin Qing was entertaining thoughts about her own daughter being vastly inferior to other kids...
After the two kids had introduced themselves to each other, Xin Qing brought Xunxun to see Ah Sha's teacher. Well, that was actually the main reason why Xunxun had come today. He said that otherwise, the teacher would not allow him to enter the next time he came to visit Ah Sha.
The first thing Xin Qing did when she got back home was calling Young Master Shen.
"Have you met Boss Wan's son?"
Young Master Shen, who had been wondering about the reason Xin Qing was calling him, suddenly had his words stuck in his throat when he heard her. "Uh, no! Why?"
"Can you ask around for me. I want to know what's the deal with his son."
"If you don't like him, I'll just tell him not to let his son approach Ah Sha anymore," Young Master Shen said, thinking that Xin Qing disliked Boss Wan's son.
"No, don't!" Xin Qing yelled quickly. She still wanted to know the parenting secrets to produce geniuses!
"Just ask him how he brought up his son to be this smart!"
Only now did Young Master Shen understand. It was not that Xin Qing disliked the kid, but that she liked him very much.
"Okay. I'll ask him later!"
After hanging up, Xin Qing saw Ah Sha chuckling at something shown on the TV: It was a scene showing a flock of sheep beating up a wolf. Xin Qing frowned. "How can she grow up to be smart if she keeps watching stuff like this?" she thought. She stood up, wanting to turn off the TV. It was then that she heard the doorbell ringing.
Xin Qing went to the door and answered it. When she opened the door, she saw Zhang Mi waving back at her while clinging on to a stranger's arm. "Hi! Xin Qing, I'm back."