Tang Jingchen furrowed his eyebrows tightly as he caressed Tang Xiaoxiao's small head with a familiar sense of affection and heartache. He said with slight emotion, "Xiaoxiao ah, Brother really can't read you anymore. If it was in the past, you would definitely run home straight and complain to Father and me if you suffered just a little bit. You've changed a lot after that car accident."
Those words made Tang Xiaoxiao raise her guards up as she looked up and stared at Tang Jingchen. Suddenly, she smiled brightly with confidence, "Brother, one has to change, right? I don't want to continue being so willful. I want them to know that firstly, I am Tang Xiaoxiao before I am a daughter of the Tang family. I want to create the real Tang Xiaoxiao, that's all."
"Brother understands," Tang Jingchen smiled in understanding, "I'm just a little emotional that our Xiaoxiao has really grown up. You know what you want now and know how to fight and work hard for it."
Mu Li, the little cute boy who had been standing behind them, hummed softly as he pouted coldly.
"Xiaoxiao." Cheng Mu's voice rang from a distance away as he walked over with quick steps. He seemed to be in a hurry as he even ignored Tang Jingchen and Mu Li beside them. "Can you help me check if I have a schedule between 2.30pm and 4pm today?"
Tang Xiaoxiao froze for a second. She had memorized all of Cheng Mu's schedule for the month, so the information came easy to her. "Yes, you're supposed to go visit the orphans at Lucky Star Orphanage from 2.30pm to 4pm this afternoon. This is something we've arranged since the start of last month."
Difficulty appeared on Cheng Mu's face. "Oh, it's like that… Xiaoxiao, can you see if you can postpone this visit? It should be fine if they wait a little longer, right?"
Tang Xiaoxiao furrowed her eyebrows. "Cheng Mu, give me a reason."
"It's like this, Assistant CEO Wang from the company called, saying that he hoped for me to go make an appearance for a junior during this period. The company has just debuted a new junior and she's having a promotional event at Donghai City's Duolun Trade Center. They've already found a celebrity to make an appearance for her, but something cropped up last minute for this person. The company can't find anyone else and I just happened to be in Donghai City too…"
"No!" Tang Xiaoxiao interrupted Cheng Mu's words without any fear. Her expression darkened a little as she said, displeased, "Cheng Mu, I understand your company's situation, and I understand your good intentions in helping a newbie, but have you ever thought if your conscience could settle if you missed your appointment with the orphanage's children?"
"This…" Cheng Mu felt a little awkward, "Xiaoxiao, you will understand if you've spent enough time in this industry. I've actually done enough now. Even if I missed my appointment and didn't go today, no one will scold me or point at me. It's rare for someone to be so compassionate about community service and I've already done very well amongst the celebrities. It's definitely fine if I do this once in a while. Besides, that junior is really close to me and the higher management of the company even called me personally. If I don't give them any face and choose not to go, it'll really be hard to explain my situation."
"Cheng Mu!" Tang Xiaoxiao's voice sounded a little fierce now as she looked up high. Her beautiful starry eyes were exuding an aggressive glare, as endless dominance seemed to ooze from her black orbs. And just like that, she stared at Cheng Mu, with the aura and fierceness of a queen!
Staring at Tang Xiaoxiao, who had suddenly toughened up, Cheng Mu seemed to freeze.
"You're too complacent!" Tang Xiaoxiao's simple words exploded in Cheng Mu's mind, like an earth-shattering event.
"I…"
"Did you think that after 'On the Bank of Qing River' became a hit, you have risen up to China's A-list young actors and your words have some say in the company, so you have to care about a lot of things?" Tang Xiaoxiao glared at Cheng Mu. "The company's directors called you personally and made you feel overwhelmed by the unexpected favor. Did you think that the higher management of the company cannot be offended and you have to take care of your junior, so you don't have to care about such small things anymore?"
Tang Xiaoxiao's strict and vigorous questioning made Cheng Mu feel a little guilty unconsciously. He fell silent and even his assistant, Ruan Jin, who was beside him, couldn't help but shrink on his spot from the dominance and intense atmosphere. Only Tang Jingchen and Mu Li, who were standing behind them, were staring at Tang Xiaoxiao with shock and surprise.
Tang Jingchen had never seen such an unfamiliar sight of her. She was full of confidence and domineering, yet rational and also made one look up to her like she was a queen!
The her from the past was willful, soft and overbearing. She was jealous of Tang Zheng's favoring Tang Rou and it seemed that being jealous of Tang Rou and pursuing Tang Zheng were the only two things left in her life. In order to defeat Tang Rou, she would use any despicable means. In order to curry Tang Zheng's favor, she would do anything even if it harmed her. It seemed… there were only these two matters in her life.
At that time, she was living so pitifully that she lost herself.
However, he never thought that after that life-and-death incident, she had actually become so confident, domineering and radiant!
She no longer had any one-sided feelings for Tang Zheng. When she looked at Tang Zheng again, her expression was filled with pity and ridicule and she never allowed Tang Zheng to look down on her again. Today's Tang Zheng was only a play toy her father had adopted and was her older brother in name. To Tang Rou, her attitude was filled with more hatred and scorn than before.
Perhaps, she should have realized that Tang Rou and Cao Shuting's arrival was only due to their greed for the Tang family's wealth and status. They were her enemy. To Tang Yuanfeng, she was better at getting Father's favors now. She knew how to use her identity as his daughter to stop him from smoking and would think for the Tang Dynasty Corporation. With her status, she would think for the Tang family in the long run and would take the initiative to learn about the rules amongst the elite families. She did her best to become the real Tang family's Eldest Young Miss. That was her only kin, her father. The naivety and softness on her had faded, and the her today was the real Tang Eldest Miss. She only existed to create a unique Tang Xiaoxiao.
She said before that she wanted to become like a queen and control everything. Perhaps, there flowed a core that desired to control others in the Tang family's blood. That was the blood that belonged only to a king.
However, this type of ambition was what he hated.
"You'd better remember that as a celebrity, you can lose your friends, you can give up on your company, but you can never ruin your reputation! You can never throw away your humility!" Tang Xiaoxiao didn't care if her brother, Tang Jingchen, and Mu Li's mouths were already wide open in shock as she continued to reprimand Cheng Mu strictly. "Think about it yourself, what is the base of your reputation? What is the reason why so many directors like you? It isn't because of your company's support for you, not because of your junior's liking for you, but because of the support your fans gave you! Never forget that everything you have done so far is because you have been building a good reputation and name for yourself in the industry with your blood, sweat and tears!
"If you insist on continuing on this path, you're trying to ruin yourself in the long run!"
Cheng Mu's expression changed from a flushed red to a pale color, before he finally sighed softly. He bowed his head down in slight discomfort. "Although I feel a little tight being reprimanded by a little girl like you… I have to admit that your words have woken me up. I know my mistake now, let me apologize to you first."
Finally, Tang Xiaoxiao's expression eased as she hummed in satisfaction. "I guess I must really reprimand you. Your airs are so much bigger now than they were before."