## Chapter 10 ##
After leaving Qin Wanshu's house, Zuo Qinghuan closed her car window and took out another phone to make a call.
"Darling, when are you coming back?" Zuo Qinghuan's tone was clearly playful, but through the rearview mirror, her expression was blank, even somewhat indifferent. Zuo Qinghuan felt she was either losing her mind or her acting skills were getting better and better.
"I'll be back in two weeks. What gift do you want?" Han Shibin felt a little better upon receiving Zuo Qinghuan's call. He finally understood what Qin Wanshu had been missing; he had been away on business for two weeks, and Qin Wanshu had never asked when he would return.
"As long as you come back, that's enough for me," Zuo Qinghuan said with a seemingly heartfelt expression. Zuo Qinghuan was always good at putting on a show. Heaven knows she cared more about the luxury gifts Han Shibin would bring back from Europe. Fortunately, Han Shibin had great taste, so the gifts he brought were usually hard to critique. Zuo Qinghuan didn't know what Han Shibin would give to Qin Wanshu, but all the gifts he gave her were luxury items, perhaps because he regarded her as a materialistic woman at heart. But that didn't matter; as long as it was something valuable, Zuo Qinghuan liked it. She still enjoyed dressing herself up extravagantly, even though she felt she was more of a facade than anything genuine inside.
As long as her benefactor wasn't going to hang up, Zuo Qinghuan definitely wouldn't. She was just going through the motions, appearing indifferent while looking at herself in the car mirror as if she were a stranger. Clad in international luxury brands, everything she wore had its price tag. Zuo Qinghuan thought of herself as quite the expensive little "bitch" and couldn't help but smirk in sarcasm. Deep down, she felt like she housed two people: one was extremely selfish and narcissistic, while the other harbored deep self-loathing. Truly, she thought, what a case of split personality she had.
After finishing the call, Zuo Qinghuan finally rolled down the window, glanced at the room with the large floor-to-ceiling windows, and then slowly drove away.
"What are you daydreaming about?" Li Xin nudged Zuo Qinghuan, who was lost in thought.
"I was thinking about Qin Wanshu," Zuo Qinghuan replied honestly.
"You're not actually interested in her, are you?" Li Xin asked in surprise.
"I can't believe there's a woman as perfect as Qin Wanshu. Even after a few encounters, I can't pick out any flaws." Zuo Qinghuan felt very complicated when thinking about Qin Wanshu. Such a legitimate wife made it hard for the likes of them, the mistresses, to compete!
"Tsk, tsk, look at you getting jealous. I remember someone once said that jealousy arises from being unable to match up to that person and is an acknowledgment of one's weakness and inferiority!" Li Xin unceremoniously quoted what a carefree person had said long ago.
"There are indeed people who serve as a mirror, reflecting one's shortcomings," Zuo Qinghuan admitted. She acknowledged feeling inferior when facing Qin Wanshu.
"Hey, you finally admit you're a 'monster' and not a 'fairy.' That's a first!" Li Xin joyfully teased. She just couldn't stand Zuo Qinghuan's pretentious demeanor. Qin Wanshu was impressive enough to make that enigmatic 'monster' reveal her true form.
"How do women and women..." Zuo Qinghuan suddenly asked, her questions often jumping from one topic to another. Although Li Xin was always around, extremely eager and knowledgeable about women, Zuo Qinghuan hadn't really paid attention. According to Li Xin, women enjoyed their encounters with each other more thoroughly, but she didn't know if that was true.
Li Xin almost spat out her drink. When did Zuo Qinghuan become so interested in matters of women?
"Why not bring a woman back to try it out tonight? Or, I could sacrifice a bit…" Li Xin excitedly suggested. Zuo Qinghuan's sudden curiosity about exploring women intrigued Li Xin. In the three years she had known Zuo Qinghuan, she had tried to seduce her countless times, only to fail every time. She had attempted to entice Zuo Qinghuan down the wrong path with various types of women, but this woman simply wouldn't budge. Li Xin had thought Zuo Qinghuan was a natural heterosexual, but now it seemed like something was changing.
"Forget it. Watching you with those women just kills my appetite," Zuo Qinghuan said, shaking her head. Zuo Qinghuan wasn't the kind of woman who adhered to strict moral codes. When Han Shibin wasn't around, Li Xin, the seductive vixen, always pushed her to cheat, but Zuo Qinghuan avoided men, fearing complications. She had little interest in women, yet now, there was a woman who intrigued her but was off-limits. The more off-limits she was, the more Zuo Qinghuan wanted to pursue her.
The more Qin Wanshu presented herself as reserved and conservative, the more it piqued Zuo Qinghuan's interest.
After Zuo Qinghuan left, Qin Wanshu received a call from the Qin family, inviting her to come home for dinner. She then entered her dressing room to change into another outfit before heading downstairs to drive back to the Qin family home.
"Miss is back," the guard at the gate said respectfully to Qin Wanshu.
Qin Wanshu smiled politely at the guards, who were quite taken aback. The Qin family had more than one young lady, but Miss Qin was different from the others. She didn't look down on the Qin family's servants like the other girls; she treated everyone with great courtesy and elegance, almost like a goddess in their eyes.
"Grandpa, I'm so hungry! Do we have to wait for Miss to come back?" Qin Shaoshan pouted and asked Qin Zheng. Qin Shaoshan felt very upset. The presence of Qin Wanshu made the other three women in the Qin family feel overshadowed. She couldn't compare to Qin Wanshu but didn't want to call her 'sister,' so they referred to her as 'Miss.' Initially, it was just jealousy, but over the years, she had resigned herself to it. However, the title 'Miss' had stuck.
Qin Shaoshan was Qin Wanshu's cousin and the youngest daughter of the Qin family. She was also quite spoiled, looking like a princess with a somewhat willful personality. In Qin Zheng's eyes, this granddaughter was like a Persian cat—he would occasionally indulge and spoil her. However, Qin Wanshu was the most legitimate granddaughter of the Qin family, the best lineage, and was the granddaughter he genuinely cherished.
Qin Zheng was quite stubborn and conservative at heart, much like an ancient person, favoring legitimate sons and grandsons. With numerous descendants, his two favorite were the legitimate granddaughter Qin Wanshu and the legitimate grandson Qin Yu, who was set to inherit the family business. Qin Wanshu was even more favored by Qin Zheng than Qin Yu. These two children were the most outstanding among the many grandchildren, so naturally, Qin Zheng doted on them.
"Without rules, she is your eldest sister; you are not a servant of the Qin family, so why call her 'miss'?" Qin Zheng reprimanded.
"In your eyes, we're just the difference between a lady and a servant…" Qin Shaoshan said discontentedly, feeling underestimated. Whenever she wasn't home, they never waited for her to start eating.
The other two young women present also agreed with Qin Shaoshan's statement, but they only dared to think it in their hearts. They were the most unfortunate ones, as they weren't as outstanding as the eldest sister, nor as bold and reckless as Shaoshan. They were not male grandchildren, so in the Qin family, they were the two who were most neglected.
Qin Zheng had very good hearing, and he naturally heard Qin Shaoshan's complaints. He knew her heart was biased, but he couldn't blame himself. With so many grandsons, there were five grandsons alone, and four granddaughters; how could he spoil each one equally? Naturally, he favored the two most outstanding ones.
All four of Qin Zheng's sons were also quite capable; the eldest was just a bit lacking, being the father of Qin Wanshu and Qin Yu. He looked very honest and simple, yet had three children, each more outstanding than the last, which made Qin Zheng feel regretful about his eldest son's shortcomings but also comforted him.
The grandson Qin Zheng disliked the most was the youngest, Qin Teng, who was frivolous, unruly, and detrimental to the family's reputation. Although he was smart, he was the most disobedient of them all. Qin Zheng couldn't understand how his honest eldest son could give birth to such a disappointing child; he could only say that the eldest son's genes were indeed unstable. While he produced such excellent children as Qin Yu and Wanshu, Qin Teng turned out to be such a failure.
"The spoiled little lady is quite jealous of my sister, isn't she? Of course, my sister's excellence makes you, the busty but brainless vase, feel ashamed…" Qin Teng rarely appeared at family dinners. He was the kind who wouldn't listen to anyone, but he had only ever respected one person since childhood, and that was his elder sister, Qin Wanshu, whom he protected fiercely.
"Qin Teng, who's busty but brainless? Who's a vase?" Qin Shaoshan exclaimed angrily. She usually disliked Qin Wanshu the most, but there was someone even more detestable than her—Qin Teng, whose mouth was always so sharp.
"Qin Teng, you should say less," Qin Yu, true to form as the eldest brother, stepped in and scolded Qin Teng, stopping the immature banter between his younger brother and cousin.
Qin Teng curled his lips, disdainfully playing with the lighter in his hand. If it weren't for the fact that his sister would be back later, he wouldn't bother staying for dinner.
"Sorry to keep everyone waiting; please go ahead and eat," Qin Wanshu said, seeing the large table of people waiting for her and feeling a bit apologetic.
"There's no way around it; no one's face is as big as the eldest miss's!" Qin Shaoshan said sourly.
Qin Wanshu smiled faintly and then found a seat to sit down, already used to her cousin's attitude.
Qin Shaoshan was upset. Throughout her life, she had provoked Qin Wanshu many times, but Qin Wanshu always seemed indifferent, which was infuriating. Did that woman really think she was a saint? The more the enemy ignores you, the more you feel looked down upon by them, so Qin Shaoshan was grinding her teeth in anger at Qin Wanshu.
"Hey, sis, since Han Shibin isn't home, why don't you stay here?" Qin Teng thought anyone was unworthy of his sister.
"He's your brother-in-law; don't just call him by his name," Qin Wanshu said seriously, looking at her handsome yet frivolous younger brother.
"When is Shibin coming back?" Qin Zheng asked with concern.
Since Qin Wanshu was the most favored in the Qin family, the dinner table conversations often revolved around her, so everyone was used to it.
"Probably in a week or two," Qin Wanshu replied, not knowing when it started that the table talk was always about her.
"Hey sis, you should keep an eye on Han Shibin. Just because he acts like a puppy around you, remember that men are inherently unreliable, always chasing after other women…" Qin Teng said solemnly, scolding not only himself but all the men at the table, making the other men quite displeased.
"Do you think everyone is like you? So cheap!" Qin Shaoshan retorted rudely.
Qin Wanshu couldn't deny it and smiled lightly, feeling an inexplicable discomfort. She suddenly thought of Zuo Qinghuan and Han Shibin.
"Xia, you're graduating this summer, right? Do you have any plans?" Qin Wanshu quickly changed the subject, kindly asking her quiet cousin at the table.
Qin Wanxia was taken aback. The eldest miss—no, the eldest cousin—actually remembered that she was graduating this year. She thought she was invisible, not smart enough and not good-looking; in the Qin family, which was full of high-IQ handsome men and beautiful women, she felt like a tragic existence.
"I haven't thought about it yet," Qin Wanxia said shyly, feeling a bit touched. Only this eldest cousin remembered her birthday this year.
Compared to the aggressive Qin Shaoshan, Qin Wanshu preferred Qin Wanxia a bit more. She was as shy as a little mouse, obviously a miss of the Qin family, yet for some reason, she was often overlooked by others.
"What's there to think about? Just go work at the company; any position will do," said Qin Wanshu's third aunt, lamenting that other families had such outstanding daughters, while her own daughter lacked beauty and smarts.
"With several brothers at the company, let the girls do whatever they like," Qin Wanshu's voice was still gentle, but to Qin Wanxia's ears, it was like an angel's voice.
"True, it's not like I can help," Qin San'aun thought for a moment and nodded.
After the meal, Qin Wanshu took Qin Teng's words to heart and decided to investigate Zuo Qinghuan's background.