Song Qingcheng had just entered the private room when the door shut silently behind her. In this room where the fragrance of tea lingered, a middle-aged woman sat there making tea. Her hair was tied up in an elegant bun, and she had the aura of someone from a prestigious family. She was the 'Madam Gu' that the young man mentioned… and also Gu Qingwei's mother.
Gu Jinyun was the third child of the Gu family and the eldest daughter of Gu Shouye. Her style of doing things showed that she was an iron-fisted lady. Otherwise, the two children would not have taken her surname.
When she heard the girl enter, Gu Jinyun looked up. "You're here."
Her gaze was very calm as if the people standing before her were mere ants. Compared to the attitude of harsh contempt carried by Ge Wenjuan, the difference between them was indeed lethally stark.
Song Qingcheng understood the purpose of this invitation so she smiled appropriately. "After such a long time, this room hasn't changed at all."
Gu Jinyun placed the teapot on the table lightly and said in a still voice, "I didn't expect to meet Miss Song for the third time either."
Song Qingcheng only smiled and kept silent.
"If it weren't for having to settle some matters within the singing and dancing troupe, I would have come to you two days ago." Gu Jinyun did not beat around the bush. Either that or one could interpret it as a mere Song Qingcheng was not worth the effort for her to feign civility. "Weiwei said that you went to my father's birthday party. Hengyang and his fiancée were in Malaysia during that time and did not manage to make it back." Gu Jinyun's gaze shifted back to Song Qingcheng as she said this. "I still remember what you said in this room. Miss Song is so young; you should have a better memory than an old woman like me."
The girl nodded and replied, "I also remember what you said… that you'd only be wasting your time discussing with me, a parentless child, what family education means."
Gu Jinyun's expression changed slightly, but she maintained her genteel disposition. "Since you haven't forgotten, I don't wish for you to repeat it. Don't look for Hengyang anymore. He's already engaged with a girl that he met while studying in Malaysia. If all goes as planned, he'll be married by the end of the year. Miss Song should understand what I mean."
"Instead of worrying that I will cause such an unfortunate situation, you might as well watch over your own son." Song Qingcheng smiled lightly as she continued, "I've said this before. Since you've forgotten, I have no choice but to repeat it."
"…" Gu Jinyun knitted her brows, a manifestation of her bad mood.
"A year and a half ago, you told your son that I took two hundred thousand. This time, I'll name the price. One million. And don't come looking for me again."
With that, Song Qingcheng ignored Gu Jinyun's stormy expression and turned around to open the door.
Just as she was walking out of the private room, Gu Hengyang—who had rushed over—put himself in her path.
The 24-year-old Gu Hengyang had almost shed all hints of his adolescence. He stared fixedly at the elegant and beautiful girl in front of him. His Adam's apple moved slightly, and after a long while, he finally said, "Qingcheng."
He wanted to say 'it has been a long time', but he felt himself choking on those words so much that there was only silence.
In the private room, Gu Jinyun had spotted her son and was already getting onto her feet. She was no longer as calm as before. "Why are you here instead of accompanying Xiu Xiu?"
At this moment, Gu Hengyang only had eyes for Song Qingcheng and ignored his mother's chiding.
Song Qingcheng suddenly smiled and moved closer to Gu Hengyang. Right in front of Gu Jinyun, she raised her fair and slender hand to brush away the leaves on Gu Hengyang's shoulder. Then, she slid her fingers up his crumpled shirt collar and straightened it. Having done that, she lifted her gaze slightly and met the young man's eyes. A smile hung on her lips as she said to him, "Gu Hengyang, I wish you a happy marriage in advance."
"Qingcheng—" Gu Hengyang held her tender hand tightly as she was retracting it.
Gu Jinyun cried out in exasperation. "Are you possessed?"
Song Qingcheng forcefully withdrew her hand and walked past Gu Hengyang without hesitating. However, when she saw the few people a short distance ahead, she paused… especially when she met Yu Tingchuan's deep gaze.
His gaze was as calm as still water, but it was sharp as a sword, piercing right through one's heart and making one unable to maintain composure.
She felt as though she was caught red-handed after pulling a prank.
Song Qingcheng subconsciously clenched her fists. She had wanted to show her charming yet innocent side to the man, but in the end, all he saw was her scheming. She felt a sense of powerlessness as if she had failed at the last step. It was beyond her to care about the situation now. She turned around and walked towards the fire exit.
…
At the elevator landing…
"She sure made a quick escape." Gu Zhengshen chuckled as he watched on.
Yu Tingchuan withdrew his left hand from his pocket and pressed the down button on the elevator panel. He turned around and said to his secretary, "You're in charge of following up with CEO Zhang. If there are issues you can't resolve, get Xu Dong to coordinate."
This morning, Yu Tingchuan had arranged with a few CEOs to go fishing at Yuanquan Villa. Although they said that it was meant to cultivate one's taste, it was actually just a different way of doing business. Hengyuan would be launching a few important projects in the second half of the year so they definitely needed to pull in some investors. The Gu Corporation was also involved in these projects so Gu Zhengshen came over to help pull strings.
Su Ying, who was also dressed casually, nodded. "Don't worry, Director Yu. It's just that the seasonal workers might…"
Although she did not finish his sentence, it was clear she was feeling troubled.
Yu Tingchuan said, "If he has any other thoughts about the project, get him to come to me personally."
As they spoke, they entered the elevator.
Before the elevator doors closed, Yu Tingchuan looked towards Gu Zhengshen—who had followed them in—asking, "Aren't you going to greet them?
Gu Zhengshen shook his head. "A mother would want to chide her child in private. This is especially so for a strong-willed woman like my cousin. She wouldn't want to be made a laughingstock." He chuckled. "The young lady's scheming enough to have effortlessly sown discord between them. I'm afraid that this nephew of mine will never be able to forget the girl."
Yu Tingchuan listened in silence.
The elevator arrived at the underground garage.
The men had arrived in four cars between them, but now, one of Hengyuan's cars had an engine problem.
It was the hottest part of the day right now. Yu Tingchuan lent Su Ying and Xu Dong his own car while he got into Gu Zhengshen's vehicle.
Five minutes later, the Bentley was slowly making its way out of the garage.
Yuanquan Villa was surrounded by water on three sides and was located halfway up the mountain. They would need to take the next roundabout route back to the city.
The car had just turned a corner when a beautiful figure appeared in his line of sight. There was no bus stop at Yuanquan Villa so one had to take a forty-minute walk to a small town at the foot of the mountain. Song Qingcheng, in her blue and white school uniform and her hair tied up in a ponytail, was walking along the road under the scorching sun.
On a whim, Gu Zhengshen asked the driver to stop the car beside her. He rolled down the window and said, "The sun is high overhead. We'll drive you down the mountain."
Song Qingcheng turned around. She had seen Gu Zhengshen at the Gu family's birthday banquet, and they had met at the villa earlier.
Seeing that she did not respond, Gu Zhengshen smiled. "Are you worried that I'm a baddie?"