Chapter 56
Qiao Yu was surprised that Song Wanzi's fans knew her preferences so well, and her liking for these cute girls instantly increased. She immediately liked the post by the blogger who edited the photo. At the same time, she didn't forget to comment, "Your photo editing skills are great, do you want to work at my parents' company?"
The chat in the live stream fell eerily silent.
It wasn't until the blogger who was being commented on slowly spoke up, "For a moment, I couldn't tell if she was praising me or mocking me."
The comments section instantly buzzed again: "Who cares? Since Qiao Yu has already made her promise, then sister, you should go to Qiao's and give it a try. If she goes back on her word and doesn't accept you, we'll pool our money to get her trending on social media and let her see her ugly face."
"Yes, if my sister knew what kind of person she was in private, she definitely wouldn't be infatuated with her anymore."
After getting breakfast, Qiao Yu went upstairs and didn't realize she was the protagonist of this live stream until she returned to her ward. Opening the boxes one by one, Qiao Yu cleared her throat and said softly, "Sister, time to eat."
Song Wanzi put down her script and came out. The girl wasn't dressed up much; her clothes and hairstyle were very casual. However, compared to her usual carefully styled appearance, her slightly messy and somewhat lazy black hair made her seem more real, as if she could be reached out and pulled into someone's arms.
The breakfast on the table was exquisite and varied, with glistening and plump shrimp dumplings, delicately shaped egg yolk buns, fragrant and fluffy black rice cakes, glutinous rice chicken with a rich lotus leaf aroma, beauty-enhancing red date cakes, as well as two servings of fish porridge and beef porridge with poached egg, etc., all laid out on the table.
After arranging the food on the plate, the girl turned around shyly, her almond-shaped eyes showing a hint of embarrassment. "I didn't know what you liked to eat, so I just bought some random things."
Qiao Yu solicitously pulled out a chair for Song Wanzi. After the other woman sat down, Qiao Yu looked at Song Wanzi's right hand, which was still wrapped in thick bandages and unable to move, and felt a little troubled. She didn't know how Song Wanzi usually ate, but judging from her current condition, it was clear that she was unable to feed herself.
Song Wanzi paused slightly as she was about to pick up her chopsticks, but upon seeing Qiao Yu's expression, she suddenly changed her mind.
She naturally picked up the chopsticks and reached for the shrimp dumplings, but after trying for a long time with her left hand, she still couldn't manage it. Qiao Yu was getting impatient and couldn't help but take the chopsticks from her hand, "Sister Song, let me do it."
Seeing how confident and calm the other person was, Qiao Yu thought she was a pro, but it turned out she was just a beginner.
Holding the shrimp dumpling between her fingers, Qiao Yu pulled up her chair, sitting closer to Song Wanzi. Then, as if coaxing a child, she gently opened her mouth and made an "ah" sound, gesturing for Song Wanzi to repeat after her. Song Wanzi paused, her gaze somewhat unfocused.
The woman didn't move for a long time. Qiao Yu blinked and said in surprise, "Sister, you've acted in so many similar TV drama scenes, are you still embarrassed?"
Bringing her back to reality by Qiao Yu's voice, Song Wanzi chuckled softly, "What do you think?"
Concealing the emotions in her eyes, she obediently opened her mouth and bit off half a shrimp dumpling, chewing slowly and gracefully, her movements languid yet elegant, as if she were watching a pampered young lady eat on television. The taste of food fed to her by others was indeed different from what she ate herself; it was sweet and intoxicating.
The shrimp dumplings were distinctly light and refreshing, with no hint of alcohol. Song Wanzi narrowed her alluring eyes, yet felt slightly tipsy.
How long has it been since she was taken care of like this? It seems that ever since she could remember, she has been sternly educated by her parents because of her identity as the heir and the future top alpha. They wished that she could become an outstanding person on the spot and replace Lu Shangyi as the role model for children.
"I don't think so either." Qiao Yu chuckled as she fed the remaining half of the shrimp dumpling to Song Wanzi's mouth. "Sister, you've seen it all, how could you be shy?"
Song Wanzi stared at her with a half-smile, without refuting her.
Qiao Yu fed Song Wanzi a bite and then ate a bite herself. Just as they were finishing, an uninvited guest suddenly barged into the ward. Lu Shangyi stared expressionlessly at the hands Qiao Yu had placed near Song Wanzi's mouth, his eyes inexplicably revealing a desire to twist them off.
She shuddered on the spot, thinking: This must be my imagination.
Lu Shangyi's long legs swiftly led her to Song Wanzi. The woman's expression was cold, and even her voice carried a hint of hostility. "Unnecessary hands can be donated to others."
A woman's temper is so strong so early in the morning; anyone with eyes can see who it's because of.
Song Wanzi narrowed her eyes, not flustered at all. She even leaned back in her chair with a leisurely air, her eyes narrowed like a satiated cheetah. She spoke slowly and deliberately, "That won't do." She stared at Lu Shangyi with a smile, "My hands are insured."
While surfing the internet, Qiao Yu saw that Song Wanzi's fans had mentioned it once, and upon seeing this, she couldn't help but ask curiously, "How much does it cost?"
Since the child was so curious, Song Wanzi naturally answered gently and considerately: "Eighty million."
Qiao Yu nodded thoughtfully. "System, do you think I should also get some insurance for myself?"
The system asked in confusion, "Where did you submit your application?"
“My whole body.” Qiao Yu tilted her head. “I threw it everywhere I could, not even a single hair.” She’s still young and doesn’t have hair loss problems now, but what if she does when she gets older?
System: "..." Please, please leave the insurance company alone.
Qiao Yu casually scooped a spoonful of porridge to feed Song Wanzi, but before she could even extend her hand, Lu Shangyi's sharp gaze swept over her. Qiao Yu's hand trembled, and she froze in mid-air, unsure whether to feed her or not, extremely conflicted.
Lu Shangyi watched her quietly until the little girl's expression became somewhat uncomfortable. Only then did she mercifully reach out and take the spoon from Qiao Yu's hand, saying, "You eat, I'll feed her."
Song Wanzi raised an eyebrow in surprise. Was Lu Shangyi really that kind?
The next second, she knew the answer. The woman's actions were downright rude, completely disregarding her image and feelings, as if she wanted to shove the spoon down her throat and make her eat the porridge with the spoon. After choking twice, Song Wanzi glared at her, "Don't you know how to serve people?"
"Then you eat it yourself." As if she had been waiting for her to say this, the woman immediately threw the spoon in her hand into the porridge bowl, and said with a cold smile, "You can't take the vegetables, but you can at least drink the porridge yourself."
She glanced at Song Wanzi's intact left hand and immediately shut down all of the other's options with one sentence: "If your right hand doesn't work, your left hand will, right?"
"..."
Qiao Yu took a breath and was about to speak when Lu Shangyi glanced at her casually. She immediately wilted, quietly exhaled the breath she had just taken in, and obediently lowered her head to concentrate on eating.
She was just a child; the affairs of adults were none of her business.
Both of them ate extremely slowly. Lu Shangyi's brows furrowed more and more. When Qiao Yu finally put down her chopsticks, the woman immediately spoke impatiently, "You go home first. I have something to talk to her about."
As if worried that Qiao Yu might disobey, the woman deliberately emphasized her words, "Family matters are not convenient for others to know."
Qiao Yu immediately dismissed the idea, but after looking at Song Wanzi's hand, she still said, "I'll wait outside until you're done talking before I come in."
Lu Shangyi narrowed her eyes slightly, and Song Wanzi laughed without giving her any face, saying in a coquettish voice, "Okay."
Qiao Yu got up and left. After she left, Song Wanzi was about to pick up her spoon and eat a few more bites when Lu Shangyi stared at her quietly, "Is eating more important than your family matters?"
Song Wanzi: "..." You can't just ignore the lives of others just because the people you care about are well-fed and watered.
"How cold-blooded," Song Wanzi remarked.
Lu Shangyi ignored her and simply slammed a stack of file folders in front of Song Wanzi, saying, "Take a look for yourself."
Song Wanzi looked up at her, and Lu Shangyi's lips curled into a smile, as if she were laughing, "It's not too late to talk to me after you've finished reading."
Song Wanzi didn't want to be led by the nose by a woman, but considering the other party's relentless attitude, she had no choice but to temporarily put aside her unfinished breakfast and take out the contents of the file bag.
Qiao Yu found a quiet place to continue surfing the internet. After browsing for a while, she suddenly remembered that she hadn't replied to the female lead's message. Her heart skipped a beat, and even her scalp tingled. She quickly switched back to WeChat and tentatively said, "How about I send you another one?"
She coaxed, "It's unique, unlike any of them."
The note immediately changed to "The other party is typing," but after a full half minute, the other party simply sent back a "okay," which was taken as an agreement.
Jiang Mei didn't care what style of scarf it was; she just wanted to confirm whether she held the same importance in Qiao Yu's heart as everyone else. What she cared about was whether Qiao Yu cared about her too.
With a delighted smile, Jiang Mei slowly typed, "I've also prepared a New Year's gift for you."
"Let's have a meal together in a couple of days if we have time." She thought for a moment, "Before New Year's Eve. On New Year's Eve, I'm going back to the old house with my father and aunt."
Qiao Yu readily agreed, "Okay, we'll exchange gifts then."
Although she had only promised to give a gift to the female lead, Meng'e couldn't forget Tang Yu as well. Because of Meng'e, she had somehow come to like Tang Yu. After placing her orders on the website, Qiao Yu felt that since her friends had all received gifts, it would be unreasonable not to buy one for her parents.
So she opened the app again and spent half an hour browsing. After she finished, she suddenly thought that if Aunt Ye and Aunt Bai were to give her red envelopes this year, it wouldn't be right not to give them gifts. And then there were her relatives and younger siblings…
An hour passed, and Qiao Yu looked at the number of items awaiting shipment on the app and the balance in her bank card, "..."
Fainting.jpg
Lu Shangyi and Song Wanzi chatted for a full two hours. When Lu Shangyi finally came out, she was clearly in a good mood, and even her gaze towards Song Wanzi had become kind and friendly. However, this gentle older sister was only a fleeting illusion. In the blink of an eye, she reverted to her indifferent expression. "Not leaving?"
Qiao Yu wanted to stay a little longer, but she thought that Song Wanzi must be very busy with reading scripts and dealing with family matters. If she stayed here shamelessly, she would not be well received, so she nodded and said, "Let's go."
"I'll go in first and tell Sister Song."
Song Wanzi was indeed very busy. Although she wanted Qiao Yu to stay with her a little longer, she knew that Lu Shangyi would definitely not agree, and she also had other important matters to attend to. So she said, "Be careful on your way back."
Qiao Yu nodded obediently, "I'll come see you again next time, sister."
Lu Shangyi waited outside, and when she saw her come out, her expression showed no sign of softening. Qiao Yu hesitated for a moment, thinking of what happened yesterday, wondering whether to go over, but the woman's soft palm had already grabbed her wrist. After pulling it but failing to budge, Lu Shangyi lowered her eyes indifferently, "What, you can't bear to part with me?"
"Of course not." Qiao Yu quickly denied it and followed her, smiling obsequiously.
As the saying goes, you can't hit a smiling face. She smiled as brightly as a flower, but Lu Shangyi was not swayed at all. She even asked her coldly, "Don't you need to study when you're out playing every day?" She emphasized each word, "Huh? Qiao Yu."
Lu Shangyi rarely called her by her full name, and when she did, it meant something big was about to happen.
Qiao Yu immediately tried to run away, but the woman's soft hand suddenly tightened, like handcuffs, trapping her and preventing her from going anywhere. Qiao Yu turned back pitifully and hurriedly promised, "I'll go back to study right now."
"Now?" Lu Shangyi chuckled softly. "Too late."
Before she could understand what he meant by "it's too late," Lu Shangyi had already pulled her down from the hospital parking lot and shoved her into the passenger seat. "I don't need the lounge in my office. You can study there."
The woman turned her head and smiled slightly, "You don't need to prepare any documents. I have everything you can buy on the market."
Qiao Yu: "?"
"Isn't this a bit much?" She was still unwilling to give up and tried one last time. "How can I take over your lounge and make you spend money on me?"
“It’s alright.” Lu Shangyi’s eyes were full of smiles, and her gaze softened. “Consider it your…” She paused, and just as Qiao Yu’s heart was involuntarily in her throat, she finally announced the verdict, “A New Year’s gift.”
"..."
Qiao Yu refused from the bottom of her heart, but Lu Shangyi simply drove her to the company. Under the surprised and astonished gazes of Lu's employees, Qiao Yu had no choice but to bite the bullet and let Lu Shangyi pull her into the private elevator for the upper floors. As if afraid that she would run away, Lu Shangyi did not let go of her for a moment the whole way.
Qiao Yu watched Lu Shangyi holding her finger, feeling a little complicated. This scene looked so much like... walking a dog.
Lu Shangyi and Lu Shenghui's offices weren't far apart. As soon as the elevator doors opened, they bumped into a tall man holding a contract. Lu Shenghui's gaze subtly swept over their clasped hands, and he raised an eyebrow, his expression somewhat surprised.
However, after a moment, his expression returned to normal, and he looked at Qiao Yu's face with a hint of satisfaction.
The previous investment didn't result in a loss after all.
Once Qiao Yu has lured his sister to the Qiao family, Lu Shangyi will no longer be a threat. However, Lu Shenghui paused for a moment. Recently, the Qiao couple had become quite ruthless. What if, after Lu Shangyi marries into the family, the couple decides to support her and oppose him?
This is not a good move.
Qiao Yu didn't care what the crazy man was thinking. Seeing him staring at her with satisfaction, she didn't know what got into her, but she suddenly shouted in a grand and majestic voice, "Brother-in-law!"
The surrounding employees all stopped and turned to look at them in surprise.
Lu Shenghui's facial expression twitched visibly, clearly quite frightened by the title.
With a slightly dark expression, Lu Shenghui stared at the seemingly obedient girl, a forced smile tugging at his facial muscles. For a moment, he didn't know whether to nod or do something else. The two gazed at each other affectionately for a moment, the atmosphere becoming a little awkward. Qiao Yu quickly looked at Lu Shangyi.
Lu Shangyi was equally taken aback, but quickly regained her composure. "Her mother asked me to tutor her."
When women lie, they truly don't blush or pant, not even blinking. If Qiao Yu hadn't been the one involved, she almost would have believed the woman's lies. Lu Shenghui glanced at Lu Shangyi, then at Qiao Yu, nodded, and walked past them into the elevator, not intending to bother with such a trivial matter.
Staring at the man in the suit and tie in the elevator, Qiao Yu suddenly felt a little sorry for him. This man had probably been deceived by Lu Shangyi countless times since he was a child.
She let out a soft sigh, and suddenly a possibility occurred to her.
"System, do you think Sister Lu hasn't told a single word of truth so far?"
However, when she met the other person's innocent and harmless eyes, Qiao Yu suddenly felt a little uncertain. Maybe this was just the unique way the brother and sister got along.
Besides, people always need to explain their background.
Although she lied, she didn't lie completely. Although her mother didn't ask her to, it's true that she needed tutoring, so it can't be considered a lie.
After thinking it over and over, Qiao Yu didn't even realize when she had been pulled into the small room. It wasn't until she bumped into the other person's thin but not weak back that Qiao Yu suddenly came to her senses and quickly raised her hand to rub her forehead. "Sister Lu, why didn't you tell me when you suddenly stopped?"
This is pure fabrication, a case of the guilty party accusing the innocent first and making a fuss over nothing. Lu Shangyi wanted to laugh, but after pursing her lips, she didn't say anything. "Hurry up and review."
After saying that, he locked her in the room and wouldn't let her out.
Lu Shangyi's lounge was large, with a bed, two bedside tables, and a large bookcase covering an entire wall. Qiao Yu went over to take a look; it was full of books she couldn't understand, and in the far corner was an obscure book on criminal law.
After crouching down and taking a closer look, Qiao Yu discovered that in addition to the criminal law, there were several other law-related books, such as the latest version of the EGA protection law.
She opened her eyes wide in surprise, "Sister Lu studies these things?"
The system interjected at the opportune moment, "If you don't start studying soon, Sister Lu will be tempted to push the boundaries of the law."
Qiao Yu looked up in confusion, and the system said again, "Then, host, do you think it's illegal for EGA to fight EGA?"
"..." I was careless.
She obediently sat down at the desk, where a pile of brand-new review materials had already been laid out. After flipping through them for a while, Qiao Yu suddenly realized, "Wait a minute, judging from this preparation, Sister Lu planned this all along!"
The system thought to itself, "You've finally figured it out."
"You really shouldn't mess with women, or you might find yourself locked in a room and forced to study without even realizing it." Qiao Yu picked up her pen, but after a while she got bored and started flipping through other study materials. Little did she know that while flipping through them, she would find a sexy foreign magazine in the corner.
Qiao Yu's eyes lit up, and she looked at it with great interest.
To be fair, Lu Shangyi's taste is quite mainstream; just like men, she likes sexy women with big breasts, slim waists, perky butts, and long legs. Even she felt her heart pounding and couldn't quite control herself when she saw that figure.
She was so engrossed in watching that she didn't even notice when the door opened.
Jiang Mei was overjoyed to hear that Qiao Yu had been brought back to the company by Lu Shangyi. Now that Lu Shenghui wasn't around, she quickly ran over to see Qiao Yu. Since Qiao Yu was with Lu Shangyi, she naturally had to ask for his permission to see her. Lu Shangyi was just about to check her homework, so he followed Jiang Mei to the lounge.
But when the door was opened, what they saw was not the image of a girl diligently studying, writing and forgetting to eat or sleep.
Qiao Yu suddenly felt a chill as she looked around. She glanced blankly towards the window, but it was tightly shut, and there was no way a breeze could get in. Her eyes inadvertently drifted towards the doorway, and just as she was about to look away, she finally realized that the two people at the door had been staring at her for who knows how long.
She instantly threw the magazine in her hand away and shook her hand rapidly, "I didn't do it, I didn't!"
"I picked it up from the ground!"
Jiang Mei looked at Lu Shangyi, her feelings a mix of emotions. Lu Shangyi lowered her eyes slightly and said, "I've never bought anything like this before."
As soon as she finished speaking, Qiao Yu noticed the female lead's slightly dangerous gaze instantly shooting over: lying was one thing, but using her aunt as a shield was another. If she didn't know her aunt wasn't that kind of person, she would have misunderstood her aunt's private hobbies.
Qiao Yu, who received the message from the female lead's eyes: "..."
Oh my, she really picked this up from the ground!
Jiang Mei looked at her and gradually calmed down. "I didn't expect you to like watching these things."
The former Qiao Yu was positive, ambitious, and loved learning. She always had books like A Brief History of Time, Jane Eyre, or La Dame aux Camélias and Ordinary World in her hands. She had almost never seen Qiao Yu read this kind of book... Jiang Mei hesitated for a moment. It couldn't be called vulgar, but it couldn't be called non-vulgar either.
Qiao Yu instinctively felt that the image she had painstakingly cultivated in the female lead's mind over the past two years seemed to be crumbling. She quickly stood up and said in a desperate manner, "Actually, it was because there was an article in it about financial management that I took a second look."
"Apart from that, I didn't even glance at him."
Jiang Mei pursed her lips, unsure whether she believed her or not. "I'll come see you again later."
She left without hesitation, without even a moment's pause.
Qiao Yu subconsciously reached out Er Kang's hand, but he had already walked away, leaving Lu Shangyi alone, arms crossed, staring at her with a half-smile.
For some reason, she felt her face burning under Lu Shangyi's gaze. Shifting her body, Qiao Yu looked around, trying to ease the awkwardness, when the woman closed the door and strode over, cornering her in front of the bookshelf in the blink of an eye. "Talking about finance?"
Bending down to pick up the magazine and handing it to the girl, Lu Shangyi said slowly, "Can you look for it for me?" She said softly, "I'll take a look too."
"What kind of financial articles can make people blush, have their heart race, and breathe so fast?"
Author's Note: Though late, it's here.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
