Ning Yuan blinked her big eyes, then remembered—oh right, Rong Zhaonan was the one in charge of receiving Young Master Ning.
Given his personality, how could he not have investigated the Ning family's situation?
She leaned forward and gave him a generous, soft kiss on his beautifully shaped, thin lips.
After thinking for a moment, she simply gave him a quick kiss on both sides of his handsome face, including his forehead: "Hey, double the reward."
Rong Meiren is a pretty boy who could become a top star in the entertainment industry decades later. If she kisses him, she's the one who benefits, isn't she?
After the kiss, she watched as Rong Zhaonan was a little dazed by the kiss, standing there for a while, and then his ears actually turned red.
Ning Yuan: "..."
Hey handsome, you carried me to the bathroom to watch you take a shower naked. When you were pulling down my pants, you didn't even blush. You were so unrestrained and slutty.
I'll kiss you twice, why are you blushing?
Are you perhaps the type who's secretly passionate, able to take the initiative to flirt and dominate others, but unable to resist being flirted with by others?
Young Master Rong indeed turned his face away, looking as if to say, "Oh dear, she actually kissed me!"
He maintained his calm and aloof demeanor, and coughed lightly: "The Ning family has two branches. Before Old Master Ning became paralyzed, he was the head of the Ning family and had two sons, who are now the two branches of the Ning family."
"The eldest son, Ning Zhengkun, is now the actual head of the Ning family. He has one son and two daughters. The second son, Ning Zhengting, is the president of the University of Hong Kong and has five sons."
He paused for a moment: "But Ning Zhengkun's only son, Ning Bingfeng, was not chosen by him as the next successor of the Ning family. Instead, he chose his younger brother Ning Zhengting's eldest son, Ning Bingyu, to be cultivated as the next successor."
This is why Ning Bingyu came to Shanghai.
Ning Yuan frowned as she listened: "This... just hearing this makes me feel that the Ning family is very complicated, and I'm afraid there might be a dispute over the inheritance."
Instead of grooming his own son, he grooms his younger brother's son as his successor. Who would be so selfless as to do that?
Rong Zhaonan nodded and said calmly, "The Ning family has had business overseas since before the liberation, and now their businesses are spread all over the world."
"North American docks, Middle Eastern oil fields, Hong Kong government real estate... With such enormous profits at stake, it's normal for even fathers and sons to turn against each other, let alone brothers."
Ning Yuan felt both happy and worried.
She had been rambling on about novel plots with him earlier because she was actually quite unsure of herself and her emotions were a bit chaotic.
She'd waited two lifetimes, even died once, and now she might find her biological parents soon, yet she couldn't help but think—
Why did they abandon themselves? Was it because they didn't want girls?
Or was it for some other reason, out of necessity? Would they really like her, a daughter who didn't grow up by their side?
Ning Yuan's feelings were complicated, and Rong Zhaonan could see both her joy and sorrow.
He gently patted her back: "The situation among those so-called Hong Kong tycoons is complicated. I will help you find out more about whether there are any conflicts or troubles within the Ning family."
Ning Bingyu is already in Shanghai, so there's no rush.
Even if Ning Bingyu returns to the Hong Kong government, I will still have frequent dealings with the Ning family in the future, so the initiative is in my and Ning Yuan's hands.
The advantage is on our side; we will not fight a battle unprepared!
Ning Yuan's mood improved considerably, and she nodded: "Mm!"
After Rong Zhaonan finished eating the brown sugar and egg soup, he took Ning Yuan back to her dormitory.
Ning Yuan stood downstairs at her dormitory building, looking at Rong Zhaonan with her big, smiling eyes: "My grandpa, grandma, and I are opening our shop the day after tomorrow. Are you coming?"
A gentle glint flashed in Rong Zhaonan's cool eyes: "If I'm not busy, I'll go."
He will not only come, but also plans to give her a surprise, though he will keep it a secret for now.
...
The next day, Ning Yuan made time to visit Uncle Fang's tailor shop again.
She had actually been keeping in touch with Uncle Fang by phone—there was a public phone booth right outside Uncle Fang's house.
When Ning Yuan made calls from the school's public phones, his people always answered.
This time, Uncle Fang finally sent two men to carry bags of things and take Ning Yuan back to school on a tricycle.
The agarwood antique bracelet remained in Uncle Fang's possession.
In a way, everyone was happy.
On the eve of the new store's opening, everything was ready except for the final push.
Ning Yuan stood in front of a mirror against the wall by the door, turning her round face left and right.
Then, she began to try applying the lipstick that Chu Hongyu had given her to her lips—
"Yangyang, do you think if I wear heavier makeup, I can look as mature and beautiful as Sister Hongyu?"
Tomorrow is the opening day of her store, and she's trying to make herself look more mature.
Yan Yangyang was memorizing English when he glanced at her and shook his head: "No, you'll only look uglier if you do that."
Ning Yuan: "...Sister Yan, you always have to speak such blunt truths, is that alright?"
As she spoke, she turned around, intending to ask Chu Hongyu's opinion.
Just then, Chu Hongyu was holding her clothes and about to change in front of the mirror when Ning Yuan turned around, and the two bumped into each other.
The sight of her slender waist and full breasts startled Ning Yuan, almost causing her nose to bleed. Even as a woman, she couldn't resist the temptation!
As Chu Hongyu changed into her shirt, she glanced at the petite girl staring intently at her chest and smiled lazily, "What are you looking at?"
Ning Yuan said with genuine envy, "Sister Chu Yu, you have such a great figure, with such a voluptuous bust."
Unlike her, who, even with a pair of Aces, could barely manage a pair of Bs when playing cards.
Chu Hongyu looked at her as she applied bright red lipstick, raising a delicate crescent-shaped eyebrow: "Each of us young ladies has our own unique style, you know?"
She casually grabbed a handkerchief and wiped away the excess lipstick from Ning Yuan's lips.
"You're petite and cute, so it's not appropriate for you to wear such heavy makeup. In a few years, you'll realize that men prefer innocent and youthful looks."
Ning Yuan curled her lips: "I don't care what men like, but I like people like you and Sister Yang who are beautiful and look tough."
The three words men like—petite, youthful, and innocent—can be translated into one sentence:
Brothers, this woman looks gullible, inexperienced, easy to manipulate, bully, and control. Whoever gets her is making a fortune!
For example, why would Yu Qiang and his mother choose to target her?
They had also seen beautiful women with different styles, such as Chu Hongyu and Yan Yangyang, who often accompanied her to and from the Tang family home.
Logically speaking, Yu Qiang and his mother had always preferred local Shanghai girls, and were convinced that the female college student had been raped but dared not speak out.
Without knowing Chu Hongyu's powerful background, this Shanghai girl was the one they should have chosen.
Yu Qiang and his mother instinctively ruled out Chu Hongyu, a local, and went straight for themselves.
It's nothing more than Chu Hongyu having a pointed chin and a charming, beautiful face that's not to be trifled with.
Even hyenas know how to discern who to prey on!
Chu Hongyu was taken aback, then began to gently rub Ning Yuan's round face with both hands—
“Ningning is quite clear-headed, but the words ‘simple, cute,’ and ‘naive’ can be very useful in certain situations, such as when you are pretending to be weak to take advantage of others.”
Ning Yuan's little face was pinched into a bun shape: "Oh! That's right!"
It was Chu Hongyu who reminded her of something—being innocent, harmless, and naive could be her cover!
Didn't she use this to fool Uncle Liu back in the county?
Playing dumb to outsmart others is the best way to do business. As long as you're not a pig, but a hunter, you'll be fine!
Chu Hongyu let go of Ning Yuan's hand and used cosmetics to help her apply makeup: "Different kinds of beauty have different effects. You should make good use of your strengths."
Before long, Ning Yuan looked at herself in the mirror and saw that her round face was fair and delicate, her eyebrows and eyes were exquisite, her big eyes and red lips were red, and her long curly hair was loose. She even had a bit of the style of a Hong Kong beauty like Chingmy Yau.
She couldn't help but look at herself in the mirror from side to side and exclaimed, "Sister Hongyu's skills are really good. I'll wear this makeup and this look when I open for business tomorrow!"
Aside from applying lipstick, she never knew how to do makeup in either of her two lives.
Chu Hongyu held out her hand to show Ning Yuan the exquisite iron plate with English printing on it—
"I'll lend you this tomorrow. It's called a powder compact. It's an export product. It's better than the boxed duck egg powder from Yangzhou State-owned Factory No. 2. This powder is pressed firmly into a small iron tray so it won't fall out."
As they were talking, Ding Lan came in carrying dry clothes.
Her eyes lit up, and she reached out to take the box from Chu Hongyu's hand: "Sister Hongyu, what's this good stuff? Can I try it?"
She opened the box with practiced ease, took out the powder puff, and started applying powder in front of the mirror, exclaiming in amazement—
"I've never seen powder like this before, it's so light and thin. Sister Hongyu, you're rich, you've given Ningyuan hair clips and dresses, can you give me this used face powder?"
Then, Ding Lan looked expectantly at Ning Yuan: "Ning Yuan, you said Sister Hongyu is very generous, right?"
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