Chapter 1 Chapter 1 Returning Home

On Monday morning, Haicheng Group's headquarters was bustling with activity, contrary to its usual silence.

"Have you heard? President Xi is back."

Employees holding coffee were whispering in the elevator, and through the elevator glass they could see the shimmering river surface not far away.

Haicheng Group is located in W City, where every inch of land is valuable.

The elegant and simple modern decoration, super high salary and special care for female employees make it a place that thousands of job seekers flock to.

The industries it covers are extremely broad, yet not fragmented, and are known for being advanced and trendy.

It took only six years for such a huge group to rise.

"Isn't President Xi always in the company?"

A new employee was confused.

"You don't know this. This evening is not the same as that evening."

One of the older employees shook his head thoughtfully.

Just as he was passionately explaining the company's legendary story to his new colleagues, the elevator door opened and the red number "8" appeared on the screen.

Unlike traditional companies, the office of their top leader is not on the top floor, but on the eighth floor.

It is said that when Haicheng Group was still a small limited company, the company was located on the top floor of a community: the eighth floor.

The former founder of a company went bankrupt due to gambling and jumped from the eighth floor with his wife, leaving behind not only a pile of debts but also a daughter who had just started college.

Eleven years have passed since the suicide incident. The deceased couple in the story have long been forgotten in the changing times, but the fate of the poor daughter is somewhat different from what the world expected.

An ordinary college student became the founder of a nationally famous group eleven years later.

The outside world knows very little about this young founder. People generally call her "President Xi". Even the group's top management rarely sees the actual leader.

All they knew was that it was a relative on her father's side who was managing the group's affairs on behalf of President Xi.

Xitong didn't know how many times she had heard various "legendary stories" about her in the company - among them, the most popular one was that she slept with an old man worth billions and cheated him of all his inheritance.

If these bizarre rumors were collected together, they could be written into a novel of several million words.

But no one guessed the real reason why she has come to this day.

"Xi, hello, President Xi."

Someone in the noisy elevator suddenly shouted loudly, trembling, and everyone's eyes were cast on the woman at the elevator entrance.

Xitong was wearing a light yellow Chanel-style suit. The cut of the top perfectly outlined her slender waist, and the delicate pearl buttons at the neckline shone with a warm luster under the yellowish light.

The short skirt drags lightly, revealing her slender legs; her skin is fair, and the platinum necklace around her neck is faintly visible.

At this time, someone said, "Is this President Xi?" Are you sure he is not a celebrity who went to the Propaganda Department to participate in the photo shoot?

Besides, this is a bit too young.

"Um?"

Xitong had long been accustomed to these rumors and didn't pay much attention to them. Her mind was focused on the message Xihui sent last night. She just glanced at the crowded elevator employees who were rushing to punch in out of courtesy.

There was a sense of alienation in those clear eyes, but they did not make people feel indifferent. It was more like they were used to keeping just the right distance from the world.

It was clearly a harmless glance, but the atmosphere became inexplicably tense.

The employees, who finally felt the big boss's aura, just wanted the elevator door to close quickly.

This is not a little white rabbit, it is clearly a wolf in sheep's clothing.

[Cousin, Mr. Yu from Lihe Group said that since you've returned to China, he must see you.]

Followed by a helpless emoticon.

Over the years, Xitong has not been very interested in getting involved in the various tasks of the group. She spends most of her time doing her own things abroad, but her cousin Xihui will organize and inform her of all the projects and collaborations, big and small.

Xi Hui is also known as "President Xi" by the group's employees.

Xitong frowned slightly.

Those images that we thought were diluted by time have actually been hiding in the darkroom of memory, yellowed but clear like old photos, waiting for some unexpected moment to pull people back to the past they want to escape from.

The news about Yuhui continues.

He said, after all these years, maybe you'd be happy to catch up with your ex-boyfriend's cousin.

…

In a private room in a high-end Western restaurant, the waiter bowed slightly, indicating that all the dishes for tonight had been served.

The soothing and melodious piano music can make people unconsciously let down their guard, and the most beautiful night view of W City is brightly lit outside the floor-to-ceiling windows.

Xitong slowly shook the red wine glass in her right hand and had not looked at Yu Ziche since she sat down.

She is "old" and doesn't like to reminisce about her youthful years.

However, some relationships cannot be severed just by her saying so, no matter how much wealth she has.

Xitong sighed after a long time.

Maybe returning home is not the right choice.

Yu Ziche was not in a hurry to discuss cooperation with Xitong, as the strength of Lihe Group was not weaker than Haicheng.

To put it bluntly, Haicheng has only reached its current state thanks to its huge capital and luck, while Lihe is a big tree that has been around for a hundred years. Some positions cannot be climbed overnight.

He simply wanted to meet this legendary ex-girlfriend. What kind of person could dump his cousin, the dream lover that half of the socialites in Beijing wanted to marry?

The two of them had their own thoughts and didn't say much until the end of dinner. They just vaguely finalized the cooperation.

Xitong was extremely irritable tonight. All the things that she was about to forget were suddenly brought back to her mind because of the uninvited guest in front of her.

As she drank glass after glass of aged red wine, her delicate little face wrinkled tightly.

Xitong's appearance is somewhat inconsistent with her worried and independent personality. She looks young and simple.

Whether it's the employees or this curious cousin, people who see her for the first time are always shocked and suspicious.

At the age of 18, the death of her parents dealt a great blow to Xitong, but it also made her feel relieved.

One has to admit that her parents were indeed hopeless. They were addicted to gambling and the debts they owed made their grandparents, who should have been retired, work hard for it, and they died very early.

She considered herself to be just an ordinary person, and if her parents got into trouble again, she would not be able to help them like an elder.

During college, Xi Tong spent her time dating Yu Sixie and working to pay off her debts.

My parents' company also didn't know what to do with the debt.

Things took a turn for the better in the summer of her graduation year. She broke up with Yu Sixie because she found out she was pregnant. Right after the breakup, her life seemed to be on a roll and everything went smoothly for her.

At first, she received a large sum of money unexpectedly. She didn't know where it came from, but the money actually fell into her hands four years after her parents passed away.

This money can allow her to live a rich life for the rest of her life even if she lies at home and does nothing every day.

Later, she was so bored with life that she took out some of her money to start a business. Every business she started was successful, as if with divine help.

It can be said that Xitong lived a life that others dreamed of almost effortlessly.

The only worry in her life was that she was afraid that Yu Sixie would know about the existence of the child.

This traditional, pedantic, cold and tough man would definitely snatch the child from her... and take her life in bed, without regard for the woman's will.

The power of the Yu family and the Group is not something that the current Haicheng Group can resist.

Xitong's thoughts gradually returned to her senses. She swallowed the red wine in her mouth, and her gaze finally fell on the face of Yu Ziche, who looked 40% like Yu Sixie.

The young man has sharp eyebrows and bright eyes and is full of arrogance.

He looks very similar to Yu Sixie when he was young, but not even one tenth as good as him.

The reason why Xitong came here today was not only to discuss the contract but also for other purposes.

She had to carefully confirm again that Yu Sixie was not in W City.

This time when she returned to China, she brought her child back with her.

"Then we hope to have a happy cooperation in the future."

The goblets were filled again, and the two cups made a crisp clash sound in the gorgeous night scene, announcing the completion of a business deal worth hundreds of millions.

Xitong no longer feels much about money. People who have too much always don’t know how to cherish it, just like the hundreds of thousands of red wine she drank tonight.

Yu Ziche was captivated by the sudden smile that Xi Tong showed when she finished dinner. There were two beautiful dimples at the corners of her mouth, which attracted people deeply.

A faint fragrance lingered at the tip of Yu Ziche's nose, like white musk blooming in the morning mist, or like tuberose swaying in the moonlight, with a hint of cool mystery.

He couldn't look away.

It turns out that the cold-hearted cousin is just an ordinary man who likes beautiful women.

Xitong breathed a sigh of relief.

Yu Ziche said he was in Beijing.

…

"Why hasn't your mother come back yet?"

Su Luyao frowned as she looked at the clock. These past few days, she always felt that something was not right with Xi Tong.

Su Luyao and Xi Tong are roommates in college. They are completely crazy about the same channel. They stick together when studying and eating. Because they have similar family backgrounds, they appreciate each other.

Xitong has two gambling addict parents, while Su Luyao's mother has been divorced twice and raised a son and a daughter alone.

After graduating from university, Su Luyao was admitted back to her hometown, County A, to become a junior high school teacher. Xi Tong, who had inherited the inheritance and had no worries about money, simply followed her best friend who loved cleanliness and knew how to live to County A.

County A is located in the mountains and has a beautiful natural environment. In recent years, it has benefited from the tourism industry and has good infrastructure.

All in all, it's a good place to nurture a baby.

After moving there, Xi Tong simply gave Su Luyao's mother a large sum of money and stayed in her house waiting for the birth of the baby.

It was also at that time that she deeply realized that who says a man must be present to take care of a woman during pregnancy? Money is enough.

Later, after the child was born, Xitong, who was planning to start a new business, simply hired her best friend to help take care of the baby, and at the same time fulfilled her promise of "If you become rich, don't forget me."

…

At 11 o'clock in the evening, in the center of W City, only a few houses in Mulan Garden, an old community that has not yet been demolished, had lights on.

Most of the people living here are native to W City, including the elderly and children.

However, the community has an excellent geographical location, close to Baishuizhou, a 4A-level scenic spot in the city center. In addition to bars, commercial streets, libraries, supermarkets, gymnasiums, etc., it also has elementary, junior high and high schools.

The government has tried many times to demolish and renovate the land, but has been slow to act.

With the development of the economy, residents of the community have spontaneously begun to transform and renovate their own land, especially those living on the first floor.

Many families use the flower beds at their doorsteps for their own use, transforming them into small open-air gardens or vegetable plots.

"This is not any more comfortable than living in a villa in the suburbs!"

When she was little, Xitong, who lived with her grandmother in Mulan Garden, often said this.

When she grows up and has money, she also wants to buy a ground-floor house in Mulan Garden like her grandmother's family.

Transform it into a beautiful garden. If possible, buy the second floor as well and build a small staircase in the house, and it will really become a villa.

"grandmother……"

The drunk Xitong grabbed the silver handle and lay on the door.

He is completely different from his image in the company during the day and at the candlelight dinner.

This was the scene when Su Luyao opened the door. She took a deep breath and roared.

"Xi——Tong——"

In the spring, the cat in heat in the grass was frightened by the terrifying roar and stopped moving, losing all thoughts.

"I'm not your grandmother! Damn, how much have you drunk?"

Su Luyao grunted as she carried the man into the house and threw him into the bathroom. She cursed at him but her hands did not stop as she dealt with this big mess.

The drunk Xi Tong dazedly saw Su Luyao's face and muttered, "As expected of my beloved concubine, but she's just so honest~"

"Put your paws down—"

Su Luyao, who was in a rage, suddenly froze. Her right arm was resting on Xi Tong, whose face was flushed, and her left hand was clutching the tight white inner wear she had just taken off.

The clothes that covered her body were stripped off, and her white and tender body was completely exposed to the air.

Her fair chest and lower abdomen were covered with deep and shallow kiss marks, and there were purple bruises on her elbow joints.

All the nuclear energy scenes in the pornographic comics she had ever seen rushed through the mind of Su Luyao, who had been a single mother for 29 years.

To be honest, she still couldn't believe that her best friend already had a son in the first grade of elementary school, even though she had heard a lot of gossip about Yu Sixie and Xi Tong back then.

However, since the breakup, she has never seen Xitong fall in love again, let alone sleep with a man.

"Yo——Finally you know how to find a man, Yaoyao, you have to work hard too——"

A clear and childish boy's voice came from the bathroom door. In the dim light, a little boy wearing dark blue plaid pajamas could be vaguely seen outside the door. His slightly upturned eyes behind the black-framed glasses were full of a teasing look that was not suitable for his age.

Even though Xitong was extremely drunk, he was a little sober at this time.

It's all over now.