"You won't be able to keep him safe. Please hand him over to me."
Those words echoed in Xin Qing's mind hundreds and thousands of times, stopping only when Song Chunli spoke again, "Miss Xin, I'm not saying that I'll take Xiao Rui from you right away. In fact, he's safer with you right now."
Xin Qing heaved a sigh of relief. "So she was just bluffing," she thought.
"I know everything. He'd been experimented on in the past," Xin Qing said, sitting back down. Since Song Chunli also knew about Xiao Rui's circumstances, Xin Qing thought it was better for her to test the waters first. What did the Jiang family really want: Their lost grandson, or their science experiment?
All of a sudden, Song Chunli burst into tears. "Oh, my poor child!"
It turned out that when Xiao Rui's mother was pregnant with him, someone set her up and she ended up having an experimental drug injected into her body. The Jiang family had been enraged when they found out about the incident and had ordered a complete reshuffle in the military ranks.
Despite not being a close follower of politics, Xin Qing did watch the news that year. At the time, a large batch of high-ranking military officials had stepped down from their positions. Following that, the country had forcefully reorganized its central military power. Now, in hindsight, she finally understood the truth behind the reshuffle; it was because of this incident involving the Jiang family.
"We were deeply troubled back then. We didn't know if Xiao Rui could even live through his prenatal stage. After that, he did survive and we discovered that his genes had been slighty altered. At the time, the only thing we wanted for the kid was for him to live a healthy live." Song Chunli wiped her tears before she continued.
"When he was two years old, his family went for a vacation. But in the end, we got word that all three of them had gone missing during the journey. We sent out a search party, but all we found were the dead bodies of my son and his wife..." All of a sudden, Song Chunli began sobbing harshly into her hand. The state of her son and daughter-in-law's bodies when they were found that year became her unforgettable nightmare and would haunt her for the rest of her life.
Xin Qing's eyes turned red as she fought back her own tears. She understood what Song Chunli was feeling. "Aunt Song, it's all in the past. Please do not torment yourself like this."
"We didn't dare look for Xiao Rui openly. Because all signs pointed to the fact that he was the real target of the attack. Obviously, my son and daughter-in-law had kept the child hidden away before they died."
Song Chunli calmed herself down and stared at Xin Qing. "Miss Xin, now do you know how dangerous this is? If those people found out about Xiao Rui, I fear that you would be dragged into this mess too, considering their cruel tactics..."
"Aunt Song," Xin Qing said, cutting her off. "From the moment I adopted him, he is my son. For a mother to protect her own children is a principle that will never change."
Song Chunli nodded her head. "You're a good and kind person, Miss Xin. My son's got good tastes in women!"
"Qianren and I are just friends!" Xin Qing quickly amended.
"Oh, I know!" Song Chunli smiled wanly. "Let's just say that fate isn't on his side. Now, let's talk about this issue regarding Xiao Rui, shall we?"
In the end, Xin Qing and Song Chunli had reached an agreement: Xiao Rui would continue to remain by Xin Qing's side and Song Chunli was allowed to visit him as Xin Qing's senior acquaintance. Before the kid was old enough to fend for himself, this was the best way to keep him safe.
Also, to play it safe, Song Chunli would tell Jiang Qianren about this. That way, the public would not read too much into it when she came to visit Xin Qing and the child in the future. The only catch was that it would make the scandal surrounding Xin Qing and Jiang Qianren even worse.
After that, Xin Qing had recounted the story of how she first met Xiao Rui to Song Chunli. She even told Song Chunli about Xiao Rui's special abilities. The latter had listened to her account carefully. From that alone, Xin Qing could tell that the woman was sincere about reconnecting with her lost grandson. When they parted ways, Song Chunli even told Xin Qing Xiao Rui's real name: Jiang Moyun.
It was unsafe to use that name for the time being. To the outside world, Xiao Rui's surname was Ying. At Caesar Academy, he was registered as Ying Rui.
After parting ways with Song Chunli, Xin Qing was flooded with a sense of ambivalence; the world was such a huge place, and yet at the same time, it felt like such a small place. She had assumed that Xiao Rui would be her son for the rest of their lives, but in the end, the boy's family just popped out from under her nose.
Then again, none of this would affect her relationship with with Xiao Rui in any way. It was just like she said, from the day she adopted Xiao Rui, he was her and Ying Qingcang's son. That would never change regardless of whether Xiao Rui decided to return to the Jiang family in the future.
The only thing that was giving Xin Qing a headache was that because of this incident, she could now forget about steering clear of Jiang Qianren. Jiang Qianren himself had acted in good time as well; he came to see her only a few days later.
"The kid... Is he well?" Jiang Qianren had met Xiao Rui once, though he had no idea what his older brother had looked like as a child. That was why he never really paid attention to Xiao Rui during the time he met him. Now that he had learned about the truth, he was still a bit unaccustomed to the notion that he had a nephew.
Then again, he now had a legitimate excuse to come see Xin Qing!
Xin Qing stared at him. "What kind of uncle are you anyway? You can't even recognize your own family?" She said in a disapproving tone.
"Come on, there's a 10-year age gap between me and my brother. It's not like I knew how my brother looked like as a kid," Jiang Qianren said in a troubled tone. "But if Xiao Rui looks like my brother when he grows up, I'll definitely be able to recognize him!"
"When the summer holidays end and he comes home, I'll set up a meeting between him and Aunt Song." Xin Qing looked him in the eye and gave him a warning. "You know as well that he's a bit different from the average person. You guys shouldn't be too obvious around him. He's very clever."
Jiang Qianren acknowledged her warning with a nod. Before he came here, his mother had told him that Xin Qing was calling the shots from now on. His mother told him to do whatever Xin Qing told him to do. She even told him that, based on his current status, Xin Qing was his sister-in-law and that he should just forget about the idea of dating her!
That was one thing that made Jiang Qianren feel beyond frustrated. Then again, after spending a while processing everything, he felt he no longer cared; as long as they could keep seeing each other, he figured he still had a chance!
"What kind of special abilities does Xiao Rui have?" Jiang Qianren was very curious. This was something that he was very much interested in.
Xin Qing thought for a moment. "Let's just say that he's a human radar."
"And what the heck is that, exactly?" Jiang Qianren thought, puzzled. Then, it was Xin Qing's turn to ask him a question. "After so many years, you guys never found the people who murdered your brother and sister-in-law?"
Xin Qing felt a powerful shift in the man's aura the exact moment she asked the question. In an instant, she found herself engulfed in a murderous aura.
"I was on duty when it happened. I made it back just in time for the cremation." Jiang Qianren's eyes now held a cold, steely glint, making him look like a wolf. There was a deep, faraway look in his eyes. "The skin on my brother's body was peeled off. And according to the coroner, he had been alive when it happened. My brother was literally skinned alive."
Xin Qing shuddered. "What kind of monster is capable of something that cruel..."
"And my sister-in-law..." Jiang Qianren balled his fists. "She was tortured to death. By men."
Bang! Jiang Qianren's fist connected with the tabletop. "I took all kinds of missions after that, no matter how risky and dangerous they are. I needed the merits so that I can rise up higher in the military ranks. Not once did I slack off all these years. I need to climb the military ranks, the higher the better. That's the only way I can re-open the case involving my brother's death. One of these days, I'll tear those bastards into a million pieces!"
Xin Qing rubbed her eyes and then patted his hand. "You will!"
No wonder Song Chunli was so emotional when the topic of Xiao Rui's parents was brought up. Xin Qing could not begin to imagine how the woman had been able to get through the ordeal of seeing the devastated state of her son and daughter-in-law's corpses that year. No wonder the Jiang family cared so much about Xiao Rui; the kid's parents had given up their lives to ensure his survival!
Having thought things through, Xin Qing smiled and said, "Qianren! I will find an opportunity to tell Xiao Rui the truth. I'll ask him to return to his family!"
Jiang Qianren had already calmed down from his earlier outburst. He raised his glass and emptied its contents in a single gulp, "I thank you on behalf of the Jiang family!"
The two of them had arranged to meet at a membership-based restaurant. At first, they thought that it was safe for them to meet there without their privacy being violated. Neither of them had expected that they would end up having their pictures taken by the papparazzi. Those pictures appeared on the newspapers the next day.
"You know it's not right for you to be two-timing!" A loud rustle sounded as Monica shook the newspaper in her hand.
"What two-timing?" Zhang Mi said in a tone of disapproval. "Xin Qing is single right now. She has the right to be with whomever she wants. I don't think Jiang Qianren is that bad at all!"
"It was just a meal, for God's sake. Aren't you guys overreacting?" Xin Qing said as she continued to pore over files and documents. "If you two have time to engage in idle gossip like this, why don't you go check if the project plan for the underground hot springs is ready? The place will be officially open for business on the National Day."
Xin Qing had yet to tell them about Xiao Rui and the Jiang family. She wanted to ask Ying Qingcang's opinion first, although she did not have the chance to see him lately. "Then again..." Xin Qing thought, smiling inwardly. The news about her and Jiang Qianren in the gossip columns should be enough to spur a certain somebody into action!
Indeed, said somebody was, in the meantime, tossing the newspaper into the trash can. After that, he stomped into the meeting room and sat down with a scowl. The poor managers in the meeting room found themselves walking on eggshells; they had no idea what kind burr was up the boss' ass again this time. Well, to be fair, the boss usually had a glower on his face too, but today, aside from all the glowering, there was also some kind of cold aura radiating from the man.
When the meeting finally ended, nobody lingered in the room for even a moment longer. Only Ying Qingcang's poor secretary was left following behind Ying Qingcang with an anguished look on his face.
"Boss, Miss Rong called just now. She said she won't be coming home tonight. Poker night."
Ying Qingcang's steps halted briefly. A cryptic smile tugged at the corner of his lips. "Understood."
Meanwhile, Rong Siman was lying naked on the bed inside a hotel room, listening to the sounds of running water coming from the bathroom. She had met this man two days ago at a bar. He was a male model who had just made his debut.
"What are you thinking about?" Somehow, the man had already joined her on the bed. His hands had already begun tracing along the curves of her body.
Rong Siman was momentarily distracted. The man had perfectly handsome features and exuded an air of aloofness from head to toe. Then again, that was precisely the thing that had drawn her towards him in the first place; because he looked very much like Ying Qingcang when he was 20!
"You really want to come with me to the island?" Rong Siman gasped and moaned, wrapping her arms around the man's neck. The man rolled over. "Why, you don't want me to go with you?"
Rong Siman allowed the man to have his way with her body. Closing her eyes, she said, "Of course I want you to! We'll go tomorrow!"
When Ying Qingcang came home that night, she saw Rong Siman packing her bags.
Rong Siman stopped packing the moment she saw Ying Qingcang's return. "Ah Cang! A few madams invited me for a vacation trip at the Great Barrier Reef. Do you want to come with me?" There was a split second just now when she had regarded the man she had sex with this afternoon and Ying Qingcang as the same person.
Too bad he was not. Ying Qingcang would never sleep with her. He would never love her passionately, never call her baby...
Having a substitute would not be so bad. It was precisely that thought that had made Rong Siman agree to join that man for a vacation.
"Vacation?" Ying Qingcang stared at her. "Out of the blue?"
"Oh, come on. We decided on a whim while playing poker!" Rong Siman swayed his arms. "I won't go if you don't want me to go!"
Ying Qingcang laughed. "Just go ahead. I'm so busy these days, and since it's so rare for you to have someone accompany you to outings, you might as well take advantage of it. Go enjoy yourself!"
"Then I'll go alone?"
Ying Qingcang nodded. "Stay for a few more days if you like."
Rong Siman packed her bags and left. Ying Qingcang stood in front of the French windows for a long time, stroking a ring that had somehow made its way to his finger. The ring looked exactly like the one Xin Qing was wearing on her finger.
An image of Boss Wan's head appeared in mid-air. Ying Qingcang nodded at him. The two men smiled at each before cutting off the feed.