Chapter 16 Exclusive Release, Chapter 16 Kiss
“My God…” A reporter in the industry tilted his champagne glass slightly. “That’s De Beers’ high-end jewelry collection this year. I saw a preview in the magazine and heard that they’re only accepting pre-orders from VIC. I didn’t expect someone to have already gotten one.”
Cameras are already pointed at Yuan Ning, and given her appearance, she is very likely to appear in some unknown fashion daily tomorrow.
Fortunately, Elias wouldn't read newspapers like that, so Yuan Ning wasn't worried that he would see photos of her wearing jewelry.
Emily was wearing a Givenchy suit, clearly there for work. When she saw Yuan Ning arrive with that piece of jewelry around her neck, she went up to her and took her arm affectionately: "Wynne, I knew it! How could you possibly go bankrupt? Those Latino girls are so boring."
As she spoke, Emily carefully examined the diamond.
Parsons School of Design offers a jewelry appreciation course, so Emily wouldn't be unable to tell the difference between real and fake jewelry. This piece is undoubtedly genuine.
Wynne wouldn't be foolish enough to wear a fake one in such an occasion; that would make it impossible for her to stay in the fashion industry.
Yuan Ning raised her chin, taking in Emily's reaction: "Alright, alright, Emily, I told you not to believe them. Starting tomorrow, someone will debunk the rumors for me."
"Of course."
In the following time, Yuan Ning chatted with the public relations representatives of various brands, learned about the latest brand trends, and even talked with a collector from France about old-century decorative arts. She had just appreciated a lot of it at the Van der Berg mansion, so she could show off her knowledge at this time.
The light on her chest shimmered with her movements, but the brilliance of the diamonds couldn't overshadow her eloquence; she always captivated attention with her smile and eyes.
Emily watched her from afar and sighed softly, "What a pity, no matter what Wynne is like, she would never be the kind of person who would rob discounted food at a discount supermarket."
Wynne spent the entire evening socializing with Marjorie Winters, editor-in-chief of V magazine.
After scrutinizing her rigorously and critically, Marjorie smiled slightly: "You're very smart. The PR teams for PRADA and MB will love you. You paired their dresses and heels with a piece of top-tier jewelry and looked stunning. I dare say, no one on stage tonight was more eye-catching than you. I think after tonight, many brands will be willing to lend you clothes, even haute couture."
Marjorie's voice was deep and magnetic, carrying the certainty of an industry authority: "Get ready for more work ahead, Ms. Wynne."
Yuan Ning's face broke into a bright smile, her dark eyes sparkling with confidence under the dazzling lights: "I'm really looking forward to it."
Several cameras were pointed at her, but Yuan Ning didn't pose for the photos. Instead, she continued to talk quietly with Marjorie naturally. The diamond brooch below her collarbone rose and fell slightly with her breath, and with each change of angle, it reflected different levels of dazzling light.
Emily stood not far away, her initial resentment and jealousy towards Wynne gradually replaced by a complex mix of emotions. She had initially thought that a yellow-skinned girl from the East shouldn't be the center of attention at Parsons, let alone the most popular member of their group of four.
But no one has the same brilliance as Wynne.
After all, Emily's family wasn't wealthy enough to buy such a piece of jewelry for her daughter who was still in college.
Yuan Ning felt the gazes converging from all directions, like warm tides lifting her up.
She silently repeated to herself: That's it. Remember this feeling. All the suffering you've endured is for this moment, Wynne. This is the world you deserve, and you don't have to rely on anyone but yourself.
Just as everything was reaching its climax, she glanced at the clock on the wall. The hands pointed to 8:30. Elias would finish his trip and get home at 9:00, and she had to return the brooch before then.
When the clock struck 8:40, she didn't exchange pleasantries with anyone and headed straight for the exit.
She was unaware that Elias had previously praised her for her impeccable risk management skills behind her back, and if he were looking at her now, he would undoubtedly make the same comment again.
She knew that every second she stayed here meant another second of exposure on her face. The fashion industry was a place where fame mattered a lot, and with the party in full swing, Yuan Ning was naturally reluctant to leave.
But her reputation in the Van der Berg family was equally important, perhaps even more so.
Stepping out of the revolving glass door in her high heels, the winter night air was instantly splashed onto her bare skin like ice water, making her shiver.
She put on her coat, took off the brooch and put it in her pocket. A black taxi happened to stop at the door. She hesitated for only five seconds: she couldn't take the subway at this time, she still had some money left from the Meng family, and she would receive a large sum of salary in two days. She opened the car door and quickly gave the address of No. 1 Willow Street.
"Please hurry, thank you."
She glanced at her phone and saw that there wasn't much time left; her heart began to race.
As the taxi merged into the traffic of New York City at night, Yuan Ning leaned back in the seat and let out a long, silent sigh.
Just borrowing that brooch for two hours had already brought her immense benefits that evening. Resources, connections, and fame would all increase as a result.
Even though this was against her upbringing, she still did not regret it.
Wynne, in these extraordinary times, we must be ruthless. Look, isn't the road ahead much easier?
She lay down completely relaxed in the back seat of the taxi, the neon lights outside the window shifting and changing, casting flickering shadows in her eyes.
She looked down and took out the brooch from her pocket. In the relatively dim carriage, it emitted a cold and noble luster.
She smiled slightly, content with having it for a short time.
"Go back to your master's embrace. Thank you for today," she said softly and gently.
As the taxi drove across the East River, the steel cables of the Brooklyn Bridge resembled the skeleton of a giant beast in the night.
On the opposite bank, the lights of the highlands appeared serene and distant in the thin mist of the winter night, like another world.
At 8:50, Yuan Ning lifted her skirt and got out of the taxi.
She pressed the doorbell of the mansion, and the butler asked her why she had come through the intercom.
"I still have some details to take care of regarding Mr. Elias's outfit for tomorrow. I apologize for visiting so late at night."
“It’s alright, Miss Wynne. Mr. Elias hasn’t returned yet. Please come in.”
Then, the black oak gate slowly opened, revealing the mansion to be quiet and majestic, like a dark, gaping net spreading out towards her.
Yuan Ning hurried towards Elias's dressing room. She learned from the butler that Elias had not yet returned. That was wonderful; everything tonight was perfect.
She moved quickly through the foyer and corridors, her high heels clicking on the thick French carpet.
The door to the walk-in closet was right in front of her. She took a deep breath, pushed the door open, and the overhead light, sensing someone's presence, automatically turned on, instantly filling the entire space with bright white light that illuminated every piece of clothing and every accessory with exquisite detail.
The imposing, museum-like arrangement and the inviolable sense of order made Yuan Ning's heart pound in her chest.
She walked quickly to the walnut glass cabinet against the wall, opened the door, and carefully placed the brooch back into its original velvet recess.
The moment the diamond setting touched the black velvet, it made an extremely slight "tap" sound. Just like that, it was like a boulder falling to the ground, and Yuan Ning breathed a huge sigh of relief.
Everything was completed as if it had never happened.
“Miss Wynne.”
Yuan Ning's back trembled violently. She didn't know when Elias had appeared behind her or how much of her movements he had seen.
He called her name, his tone still beautiful, yet with a cold quality.
Elias van der Berg stood at the door of the dressing room. Yuan Ning slowly moved her gaze and met his pupils on the glass cabinet.
Tap. Tap. Tap.
He walked toward her, and Yuan Ning felt as if all the blood in her body had stopped flowing.
"Miss Wynne, have you worn this brooch?"
He stopped behind her, without raising his voice, and his tone was even polite.
He had clearly just returned, still carrying the crisp chill of the outside air. His icy blue eyes, like a frozen lake, calmly reflected off her face through the glass, yet seemed to penetrate her skin, finally settling on the brooch.
Time seemed to stretch out infinitely. The silence here was terrifying. Yuan Ning couldn't help but turn around. She opened her mouth, but found that she couldn't lie.
Since Elias had already asked the question, he must have confirmed her actions. Any further rebuttal from her would only make her seem more shameful.
If she is still rational, admitting her mistake would be a good choice.
“Ms. Wynne, as a dress consultant I have paid a salary to hire, I can consider your behavior offensive.”
He kept looking down at her from behind, his tone devoid of anger, only condescending.
Yuan Ning felt as if something was tightly blocking her throat. Yes, she knew she was wrong. She knew that as a fashion consultant, stealing her employer's belongings was an extremely unethical thing to do, even though she had never thought of actually taking her employer's property.
She could easily imagine that Mr. Elias would likely fire her, and more seriously, the Van der Berg family would tell everyone in their circle that she would no longer be employed by any family.
Being bold and responsible is also one of Yuan Ning's admirable qualities; she intends to accept whatever the outcome may be.
But clearly, she wasn't thinking rationally today.
He took another step forward, and with just one step, the invisible pressure pressed down on her back like a lowered ceiling.
His aloof demeanor overwhelmed her.
She recalled that he hadn't seen her at the Van der Berg mansion all week, and their last conversation had been about their differing opinions.
Before that, Yuan Ning had been utterly captivated by Elias's appearance and demeanor. He was the kind of man she would fantasize about late at night. Given her social class and age, he was the highest quality man she had ever met, which was not surprising.
But after learning of his ancient ideas, she lowered her head slightly, and in her mind, that handsome face even transformed into the image of a mummy.
The champagne gradually took effect, like a thin veil of ambiguity, blinding her. The glitz and glamour of Manhattan soaked her nerve endings in a kind of illusory excitement, and Elias's questioning slipped out again.
“Miss Wynne, I think you need to give me an explanation, otherwise I will reconsider hiring you.”
Yuan Ning slowly turned around, raised her head, and her dark eyes, glistening with desire, met his icy blue eyes.
I made a mistake, Mr. Elias. Please don't scold me anymore. It's normal for little girls to make mistakes. You should forgive me and teach me gently.
“Mr. Elias, it’s a secret. Come closer and I’ll tell you why.”
She even took a small step forward, the lingering scent of a high-end fragrance clinging to her body. The straps of her shimmering dress seemed about to fall, and even her slightly exposed breasts swayed gently. It was a style of dressing that Elias could not accept.
He wanted to warn her that she should at least maintain formal attire in the workplace, and if she showed up in front of him like that again, he would not hesitate to throw her out.
Unfortunately, before he could even speak, the girl's lips were already on his.
"Hmm~" came a muffled,憨憨的 groan.
The moment he pressed down, Yuan Ning, emboldened by the alcohol, sighed contentedly, thinking, "What a man I can only dream of."
His lips were softer than she had imagined; she had thought they would be as firm as his upbringing.
A faint scent of cigar and whiskey lingered in the air. Her eyes were closed, her long eyelashes trembling violently, revealing her own limited experience.
Elias's body stiffened instantly, and his breathing stopped abruptly.
Just as Yuan Ning's heart was pounding wildly, and she was about to try to stick her tongue out, Elias pushed her away.
She was an arm's length away from him. She opened her hazy eyes, looked at him, and gasped for breath.
Elias didn't move at first, his appearance still maintaining a cold profile. His upper and lower lips were slightly misaligned, perhaps due to the impact, and had not yet recovered.
His blue eyes were lowered, and his sharper scrutiny fell on her eyes. He couldn't tell what kind of desire was contained in them, but he was very angry, extremely angry.
The kiss lasted about three seconds.
The last trace of stunned stiffness in Elias's eyes vanished completely, replaced by something terrifying—anger born of being offended and having one's boundaries violated.
Wynne was still panting, still savoring the soft touch of her lips.
If the outcome is dismissal, her goal is to first taint this rigid gentleman.
She watched him raise his hand; the movement was slow, even elegant.
But the hand wasn't aimed at her wrist, nor at her shoulder.
It was her neck.
Long, cold fingers with blue veins, like the precise fit of some kind of fine machinery, closed up slowly and precisely.
Her neck unconsciously lifted up to fit his palm.
Then, the force suddenly tightened.
"Well……"
A choking sound came from the girl's throat, and her breathing was suddenly cut off.
She suddenly opened her eyes wide and stared at the man in front of her in disbelief.
In her countless imaginings, he would never have appeared in such a dangerous guise.
But she clearly underestimated how dangerous he was.
His icy blue eyes were devoid of any emotion, only a pure, cold stillness. It was as if he wasn't choking a living, breathing girl, but rather dealing with a malfunctioning piece of equipment that needed to be forcibly shut down.
“Elijas…no, no…you can’t just choke me for this…hah…hah…hah…”
The feeling of oxygen deprivation quickly overwhelmed her, her lungs began to burn, and black spots appeared before her eyes. She tried in vain to pry his fingers open with both hands, and she finally realized he wasn't joking.
Tears of reason welled up in her eyes as she looked at him pitifully and helplessly.
Fear, real, death-defying fear.
Her fingernails left several red marks on the back of his snow-white hand. As she looked at his expressionless face so close to hers, her consciousness began to blur, and the strength of her struggle gradually weakened.
Just when she thought she was really going to die there, the force gripping her throat suddenly loosened.
"Cough! Cough cough cough—"
A large amount of air rushed into her lungs, causing her to cough violently and tears to well up uncontrollably.
Elias looked down at her as if she were a god looking down on an ant.
"Elijas, you almost killed me!"
Yuan Ning quickly recovered; it seemed she was still a long way from death, and she was still alive and vibrant.
The girl's violent coughing and tearful accusations finally shattered the icy calm on his face.
He slowly withdrew his hand, the hand that had just gripped her neck. Several red marks, clearly imprinted on her pale skin by her fingernails, intertwined with the pale blue veins on the back of his hand.
He refocused his gaze on Yuan Ning's face. She was clutching her neck and panting heavily. His finger marks remained faintly red on her porcelain-white skin. Tears mixed with her smudged eye makeup, and her eyelashes were smudged, making her look disheveled and vulnerable.
A faint hint of surprise and self-examination flashed across his eyes.
What did he just do to a lady?
"boundary."
This word holds a supreme position in the principles he has adhered to for twenty-six years.
His world is made up of countless clear, insurmountable boundaries, which are the foundation for him to maintain order, dignity, and a sense of control, and are the absolute limits of his behavior, words, and even emotions.
The girl kissed him, kissed him so casually!
This is the most direct and blatant invasion of his personal sphere!
In his eyes, her offensive and provocative behavior was tantamount to rape.
That's why his reaction at that moment was so intense, so... out of control.
That was an instinctive reaction; now, reason has returned.
“Elijas, it was just a brooch, a kiss, and whatever the reason, you can’t strangle me.”
Elias looked at her calmly, realizing that his behavior had gone beyond the bounds of discipline and that he had violated his gentlemanly conduct.
“I’m sorry, Wynne, I didn’t expect to do this. But you have indeed crossed my boundaries, and that is something I cannot tolerate.”
Yuan Ning still glared at him, clutching her neck, clearly indignant. He had almost killed her! A simple apology wasn't enough.
His gaze fell on the faint red finger marks on her neck, and his voice was slightly hoarse: "As compensation, how about I give you that brooch? You look beautiful wearing it."
His voice softened, his tone became elegant, as if the conflict had never happened.
Yuan Ning unconsciously loosened her grip on her neck, and her dark eyes, still brimming with tears, widened in disbelief as she stared intently at Elias.
Anger, resentment... all the intense emotions seemed to recede at once because of his words.
What...what did he say?
Give it to her?
That brooch was worth a million dollars. Not to mention her in the past, even her father would never have spent a million dollars to buy it.
That jewel, like Elias himself, was something she could never reach, no matter how high she stood.
On the same day, she not only acquired the jewelry but also kissed Elias on the lips.
In that instant, the extreme humiliation of being choked was overwhelmed by an indescribable excitement, crashing over her nerves like a tsunami.
She was certain that the effects of the alcohol had completely worn off, leaving only a cold clarity and a chaotic throbbing.
Her self-esteem was doubled, but compared to that, kissing Elias brought her an even greater level of pleasure.
Judging from his expression, it seemed that he was more humiliated.
“Boss, you’re so generous.” Without much thought, she smiled and returned to the glass case, her eyes fixed intently on the brooch.
"By the way," she turned around, "would you still be willing to be my boss?"
Her voice still sounded like she was crying, but her expression had already brightened.
Elias struggled to describe his current feelings towards the girl, but compared to her stealing the brooch and forcibly kissing him, his actions were clearly more wrong, and he needed to make amends.
“If you would like, Miss Wynne, you can continue to be my style consultant.”
“That’s great!” Yuan Ning replied excitedly, her eyes fixed on the brooch. “Then, boss, could you take it out for me and put it on me yourself? Otherwise, I can’t take it away so easily.”
"certainly."
It was just an ordinary request. Elias stepped forward, past Yuan Ning, and reopened the glass cabinet door.
The light from the overhead lamp fell on his golden hair and broad shoulders, and her gaze followed it meaningfully. His movements carried an elegance etched into his very bones, as if the conflict had never occurred.
With slender fingers avoiding the facets of the diamond, she supported the metal base and removed it from the velvet groove.
The jewelry on his fingertips seemed to display another kind of life, cold and dazzling.
He turned around and faced Yuan Ning.
Yuan Ning's heart began to race involuntarily. She tilted her head back slightly, exposing her delicate neck to him once again, where the shape of his finger marks still remained, like a silent accusation, or a secret invitation.
But raising her neck was merely her arrogance; she demanded that the other person put it on for her personally.
She could even feel her arteries throbbing rapidly under her skin.
He raised his hand and brought the brooch close to her chest. The cool platinum base gently pressed against the skin below her collarbone, causing her skin to tremble slightly.
He moved slowly because her low-cut halter dress would slip down if she wasn't careful.
With a "click," he pinned the brooch to the center of her dress neckline, the diamond's fire gleaming between her exposed breasts, heavy and radiant.
He finished putting it on, while Yuan Ning was admiring herself in the mirror.
This is what she deserves. Today, Elias's mistakes outweigh hers, and she feels arrogant about it, as if she has some leverage over him.
She was truly a born adventurer; she had forgotten all the pain and suffocation she had just experienced, and all she could see was her own beauty.
She admired the cluster of light on her chest, which shone infinitely on her heaving bosom.
“It suits you perfectly, Miss Wynne.”
He took a half step back, his voice regaining its composure, and offered a gentlemanly compliment.
Wynne's heart raced at his compliment.
"Thank you, boss." Her voice was slightly shy. "I will cherish it. So, shall we call it even for today?"
Elias looked at her calmly, his gaze sweeping over the red marks on her neck.
"Thank you for your understanding, Miss Wynne, but my compensation does not mean that I condone your unauthorized use of my personal belongings."
Yuan Ning blinked at her reflection in the mirror and slowly nodded: "Oh."
“Furthermore,” he said clearly, as if he were suppressing her transgression, “your serious overstepping of boundaries means I could even sue you for indecent assault.”
“Oh~” Yuan Ning reached up and touched her neck. “And you, Mr. Elias, how do you explain your violent behavior?”
Elias clenched his fists, experiencing for the first time the helplessness that comes from being in the wrong.
"So, okay, let's call it even this time, and pretend nothing ever happened."
Yuan Ning's lips curved into a very faint, triumphant smile. She suddenly felt that Elias was more innocent and adorable than she had imagined.
"You can leave now." Elias stepped aside to make way.
She turned around to face him, and as she passed him, a hint of mockery even lingered in her dark eyes: "Thank you for your tolerance, and thank you for having such an old-fashioned way of thinking, that you didn't ask me to repay you with my body. Tsk, boss, but you're not clean anymore~"
Elias narrowed his icy blue eyes slightly as Wynne passed by him.
She picked up her coat from the sofa, put it on, and grabbed her handbag: "Bye~"
Wynne walked out of here as a victor, and the red marks on her neck were long gone.
She thought to herself that Elias, raised in such an era, had developed such habits; he must have some kind of mental illness.
She could no longer trust him like that. She would be spending a lot more time in the same room with him in the future, and she couldn't entrust her life to someone like that. But she also couldn't give up her job for it. As the saying goes, fortune favors the bold. She decided that she would go back and prepare a mini stun gun so that the next time Elias had an attack, she could strike him shortly after he started.
Elias stood in front of the arched window, watching the other person leave the street.
As a capitalist, he could clearly calculate what that bra meant to that girl.
That's enough for her to buy a two-bedroom high-rise apartment in Manhattan.
He didn't know, nor was he curious, why she had ended up like this, but in any case, her situation would definitely change from today onwards.
Elias van der Berg, who had spent many years on Wall Street, had seen too many people go bankrupt and jump off buildings overnight. In his mind, the compensation he gave her far exceeded what she deserved, and he felt no remorse whatsoever.
Even when faced with the choice between a human life and a million dollars, countless people on Wall Street would choose the million dollars, especially since he hadn't actually hurt her.
Elias would never have lost control like this if she hadn't kissed him, just because of a brooch.
Look how happily that girl left here; there seems to be a lingering sweet fragrance in the air, which is quite discordant.
He frowned, as if disgusted by the feeling of this order being disrupted.
He slowly raised the hand she had scratched with red marks. Compared to her neck, the back of his hand was even broken and scabbed over. The wound looked particularly ugly on his pale skin.
He simply observed with extreme calm. His body, against his will, reacted violently, which displeased him more than the kiss.
He turned away from the bedside, his leather shoes clicking on the thick Persian carpet.
However, when he returned to the study, it was not empty.
The fireplace burned quietly; Viscount Arthur van der Berg had returned from Europe sometime earlier.
“Father.” Elias stopped at the door.
The Viscount looked up from the newspaper. He had dark brown eyes and his gaze swept over Elias's hand before looking away without asking any questions.
“Elijas, Percival Capital’s performance last quarter was outstanding.”
“It’s just following market rules, Father.” Elias walked to the liquor cabinet, poured himself a glass of water, and didn’t touch the alcohol.
The Viscount leaned back slightly in his chair, placing his hands clasped on his knees—a posture in preparation for a deeper conversation.
“I know those patterns, orders, and data are very simple for you, and mastering them is a piece of cake for you. Is that still the case now?”
Elias tightened his grip on the water glass; he knew his father was implying something.
"Do you remember when you were thirteen, at the villa in Geneva?"
Elias raised his eyes.
“Your Pointer, ‘Apollo,’” the Viscount said slowly. “You loved it dearly, trained it well, and it was incredibly loyal to you.”
Elias remembered Apollo, a beautiful and agile hound.
"Until three times in a row, during the hunting season, it suddenly went out of control, broke free of its ropes, not only scaring away our target, but also biting your hand when we tried to subdue it." The Viscount's tone was flat, simply stating a fact. "Do you remember how you handled it?"
Young Elias stood on the grass, watching Apollo, still whimpering excitedly even after being subdued, and his own bleeding arm. His face showed no fear or anger expected of a child. He calmly walked forward, soothed the frightened hound, and while his wound was treated, he…
He looked at his father.
The viscount looked him in the eye: "You gave the order yourself. The next day, Apollo was sent away."
The study fell silent, save for the sound of burning wood in the fireplace.
“You did the right thing, Elias,” the Viscount said approvingly. “Loyalty that goes out of control is no longer loyalty, but a dangerous threat. Emotions are like undulating tides, while reason and order are the eternal foundation.”
"Are you saddened by it? Perhaps a little. But you didn't let that emotion cloud your judgment. You eliminated the threat and maintained order. That's what Van der Berg should have done."
The Viscount stood up, walked over to Elias, and patted him on the shoulder. The gesture wasn't intimate; it was more like a bestowal of responsibility.
"Whatever might cause a surge, anticipate the risks and control the situation. If you cannot control it, you must know how to deal with it promptly."
“We possess more than just wealth and titles, Elias. We possess order. Maintaining order is our responsibility, and it is also our innate talent.”
"Without order, how are we any different from the masses outside driven by desire?"
My father's hand, heavy and cold, pressed on my shoulder, leaving a mark.
“Remember this feeling, Elias.”
“Take care of it.”
The father left his study after saying those words.
He walked to his desk, turned on his computer, and the scars on the back of his hand were particularly glaring.
He hadn't lost control like this in a long time. He pulled up Wynne's resume—perfect grades, perfect resume. He chose her because, as a person, she met the criteria for investors. But now, too many things about her were out of control. Even though her risk management skills were almost perfect, she still lost control in front of him.
She can navigate high society with lies, but she'll only be exposed in front of him.
On Monday, Yuan Ning received her salaries from both the Van der Berg family and V magazine, and she didn't even have to sell her brooches, a stark contrast to her previous life.
She appeared on campus wearing a new coat and dress borrowed from a magazine, and no one doubted that she was bankrupt. The rumors were dispelled, and a fashion tabloid published her photo, looking radiant.
But she received a call from her father that morning. She answered it almost impatiently, imagining that her father still had some feelings for her and perhaps missed her.
She was still a twenty-year-old girl who would forgive her father if he said a few kind words.
When Yuan Ning heard her father's long-lost and familiar voice through the receiver, she almost burst into tears, her heart aching and throbbing.
"Nini, are you doing well in New York?"
Yuan Ning's throat tightened slightly, almost greedily trying to capture every trace of warmth in that voice: "...Dad."
"Dad has something to tell you. Your sister, Meng Qingyuan, will also be reporting to Parsons next Wednesday."
"younger sister?"
With a "buzz," Yuan Ning felt all the blood rush to her head. She had only known that she had a half-brother and a half-sister before, but this was the first time she had ever known that she also had a younger sister.
The younger sister represents a different role than her older brother and sister. This signifies that after her father left his original family and started a new one, he remained entangled with both sides, and his infidelity can no longer be explained by "love." There is no love, only the blatant display of male greed.
This is absolutely absurd.
"This is her first time traveling far from home, and she's unfamiliar with the place. As her older sister, you should take good care of her."
Yuan Ning gripped the phone so tightly her fingers turned white, almost tearing the back of the phone apart.
Meng Qianyue seemed to notice her silence, but didn't seem to care: "You are sisters after all, connected by blood. With her looking after me over there, Dad can rest assured. Nini, you will always be Dad's daughter, a daughter of the Meng family."
“Dad…” Yuan Ning wiped away her tears, “This is the first time you’ve called me in so long.”
She took a deep breath, and the winter chill of New York City seemed to freeze her lungs all the way up her trachea.
She heard a woman's voice on the other end: "Give me the phone, I'll talk to her."
"Hello, Meng Yuanning."
Yuan Ning remembered that it was that woman's voice.
“If I weren’t really worried about Qingyuan’s situation over there, I wouldn’t have asked your father to make this call. Don’t worry, starting next week, I will transfer an extra five hundred US dollars to you every month, so you will have a thousand US dollars for living expenses every month. You should know that this is the annual expenses of an average family in China. If you hadn’t insisted on staying in New York to complete your studies, we would not have been obligated to give you such a high living allowance.”
The woman's voice carried a condescending sense of superiority, and Yuan Ning could even imagine the expression on her face as an elder who thought she was being lectured.
Yuan Ning thought back to when she was sent to the United States during her middle school years. No matter how much she resisted, it was no use. Her father only said it was for her own good. She was so young when she came to New York City alone, and there was no one to take care of her.
After the extreme sadness and anger, Yuan Ning calmed down.
“Auntie, since you say that as the older sister I should take care of my younger sister, then after my younger sister comes, I want to receive the same amount of living expenses, and have the same clothes and accessories as her.”
The other party laughed twice as if he had heard a joke: "I think you're mistaken. You are your father's daughter, but not my daughter, so naturally you can't be treated the same as my daughter. Besides, I'm negotiating a deal with you, Ms. Meng Yuanning. Money or no money, it's your choice."
Yuan Ning chuckled softly, feeling grateful for her relentless efforts over the past few days, and thanking Elias for the brooch; she really didn't care about the five hundred dollars anymore.
She was able to stand tall and reply with disdain: "Auntie, you're mistaken. Over the years, I've built up a lot of connections, both in New York City and Parsons. I won't go into other places, but the girls' group at Parsons, especially the Chinese girls, really revolves around me. You want me to take care of her? Ha! Five hundred dollars isn't even enough for me to take her to lunch. Do you know how many girls want to have lunch with me? Do you know how many Chinese girls come here only to be bullied? After all, she's a stranger to me. I don't have the kindness to take care of her."
Yuan Ning finished speaking in one breath. Fortunately, Meng Qianyue had sent her to New York City a long time ago. When she first arrived, she was bullied by the white girls. However, she was naturally combative and held grudges, so she quickly became a role model for the girls' group and learned all the mean girls' ways.
Aside from skin and hair color, she was indistinguishable from white girls. This included their accents, mannerisms, and eating habits.
"Please listen carefully, as do my biological father. From now on, I have no connection with the Meng family whatsoever. How your daughter adapts to life here is none of my concern. If she unfortunately offends my territory, I might, out of consideration for... the disgusting bloodline in her body, buy her a plane ticket and send her back to your side."
"You—!" came your daughter's furious voice from the other end of the phone, as if she wanted to say something more.
Did that person still think that Yuan Ning would fawn over them in exchange for some living expenses?
As the first wife, she naturally had the right to always be superior to Yuan Ning. Unfortunately, Yuan Ning refused to give her that opportunity.
She decisively pressed the hang-up button, completely cutting herself off from all the noise, accusations, and the inescapable rotten blood ties.
She felt only a numb, icy coldness inside her, and her whole body trembled uncontrollably.
The sun was still shining brightly on her, and her Maxmara cashmere coat, soft to the touch, was draped over her shoulders.
If Meng Qingyuan comes, then the fact that she is an illegitimate child and has already been dealt with by the original wife will definitely be exposed.
Yuan Ning clutched the diamond brooch in her pocket; the cool touch temporarily calmed her sadness and anger.
She needs to quickly establish a new title, a title that belongs exclusively to her and that no one can take away.
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