Chapter 23 Uninvited Guests
Father Ling didn't care who that person was. He just wanted his son to let go of the shackles in his heart and enjoy his own life.
A family of three finished their meal chatting and laughing, but the arrival of an unexpected guest broke the peace and harmony.
"Mr. Jiang is here." The housekeeper stood in the living room and spoke respectfully to the family of three sitting on the sofa.
At the door, Jiang Qichen stood there, smiling broadly, carrying several gift boxes, as if certain he would see Ling Shen today. The exquisite gift boxes shone brightly under the light, but it couldn't dispel the air of familiarity he had deliberately cultivated.
Ling Shen's originally relaxed expression turned cold almost instantly, like a lake that had been frozen in an instant, without a single ripple.
Although Father Ling was somewhat disgusted by Jiang Qichen's uninvited behavior, after all, it was not advisable to hit a smiling person. Moreover, it was the first day of the new year, so he couldn't be rude on such a day.
"Please come in, Mr. Jiang." Father Ling picked up the teacup and instructed the housekeeper. The lid and the cup body lightly touched each other, making a crisp sound, as if breaking the sudden stagnation.
Jiang Qichen looked at the butler who had returned, lowered his head and quickly took a look at his clothes. His straight suit was without a single wrinkle. Then he carried his things and followed the butler into the Ling family's living room with a smile.
Every step seemed carefully calculated, neither too eager nor with just the right amount of enthusiasm.
The originally harmonious atmosphere in the living room had plummeted to a freezing point due to Jiang Qichen's arrival. The air seemed to have become thick, and every breath was filled with a sense of oppression.
Ling Shen leaned on the sofa, crossed his legs, his eyes blank. No one knew what he was thinking, but his slightly furrowed brows revealed his inner displeasure.
Jiang Qichen handed the gift box to the butler with a respectful and somewhat flattering gesture. Even though Father Ling was reluctant, he could only smile and ask Jiang Qichen to sit down, his smile polite yet distant.
The nanny brought a cup of hot tea at the right time, and the curling hot steam blurred the expression on Jiang Qichen's face.
Ling's mother had already quietly returned to her room when she heard Jiang Qichen coming. She didn't want to face this awkward situation. Although Ling's mother wanted to talk to Ling Shen about his recent situation, asking if his work was going well and if his life was comfortable, but thinking of Jiang Qichen, Ling's mother decided to wait until he left before discussing anything.
Jiang Qichen was well aware that his arrival was unwelcome, the low pressure in the living room almost swallowing him up. So he just smiled and drank his tea, his fingertips unconsciously caressing the warm cup wall, without mentioning the purpose of his visit. He acted as if he was just a visitor simply coming to pay New Year's greetings, as if the previous disputes between the Jiang and Ling families had never happened.
Ling Shen and his father would not bring it up. After all, ever since Ling Shen started targeting the Jiang family, their relationship had become extremely awkward. Every meeting was like a silent battle, with the air filled with invisible smoke.
Jiang Qichen was actually very anxious. After all, every minute of delay would put the Jiang family in a more dangerous situation. But looking at the silent father and son in front of him, Jiang Qichen gritted his teeth and could only put on an impeccable smile. Only he knew the anxiety and uneasiness hidden behind this smile.
"A Shen, has Xiao Yi contacted you recently?" When the cup of tea was finally finished, Jiang Qichen couldn't help it and broke the silence first.
He tried to lighten the atmosphere with this seemingly intimate address and light-hearted topic, his eyes fixed on Ling Shen with a barely perceptible expectation.
Upon hearing this, Ling's father couldn't help but want to laugh. Jiang Qichen really threw away his last bit of face in order to ask Ling Shen to let the Jiang family go.
But he couldn't really laugh out loud, so he could only pick up the teacup and pretend to drink tea to hide the upturned corners of his mouth, but his shoulders trembled slightly because of the forced smile.
Ling Shen glanced at his father helplessly, then slowly sat up straight. His voice wasn't as familiar as before, but rather distant. "I called once before, but we haven't been in touch since."
Jiang Qichen's hand, poised in mid-air to raise his glass, froze like a statue, the joints gleaming pale beneath his suit cuffs. The words he had prepared were now stuck in his throat, and he could only smile awkwardly.
Father Ling twirled the agarwood bracelet on his wrist, the sandalwood beads clattering against each other. He took a slow sip of tea, the harsh scrape of the lid against the rim of the cup carrying a sharp warning.
"Mr. Jiang, you're here today not just to wish us a happy new year, right? Just say whatever you want to say." The celadon cup slammed heavily against the sandalwood tea table, causing the tea in the cup holder to splash out in spots and leave a dark mark on the gilded tea mat.
Jiang Qichen let out a dry laugh, and looked at Ling's father who was looking at him leisurely, and Ling Shen who turned his head away and didn't even want to look at him, and sighed deeply.
"Hey, I know the Jiang family went too far. But I don't want to compete with the Ling family for anything. Isn't this all just a coincidence?" His tone was deliberately softened, mixed with a bit of unnatural tremor.
Father Ling felt uncomfortable when he heard Jiang Qichen still avoiding the important issues. However, seeing that his son obviously did not want to pay attention to him, he could only suppress his inner annoyance and continue to exchange witty remarks with Jiang Qichen.
"Mr. Jiang, you're joking. The coincidence you're talking about is that you're almost reaching into the pockets of my Ling family. If this isn't considered robbing, then I really don't know what robbing is. Don't you agree?" The teacup in Ling's father's hand made a crisp sound as it touched the table. "Mr. Jiang, I'm really curious. What do you mean by robbing?"
Jiang Qichen's back was already soaked with cold sweat, and the sticky shirt stuck to his spine was particularly uncomfortable. Seeing Ling Shen's silence, Jiang Qichen spoke inexplicably: "A Shen, even if you don't consider my face, you have to consider Xiao Yi's face."
These words were like a boulder dropped into a deep pool, completely shattering the surface calm. Ling Shen's head shot up, bloodshot streaks at the corners of his eyes, his knuckles white from excessive force, and deep wrinkles formed in his suit trousers.
Father Ling slammed the teacup in his hand, shattering it. The porcelain shards splattered onto the Persian carpet, and the dark red tea stains spread like blood. "Oh, how ridiculous! Jiang Yi saved Ah Shen, and Ah Shen has paid him back a hundredfold over the years. So, is he going to make Ah Shen pay for it his entire life?"
"What? Has your Jiang family fallen to this point now? Jiang Qichen, it was Jiang Yi who saved my son, not your Jiang family." Father Ling's anger made Jiang Qichen suddenly not know what to do.
He could only stand up quickly and say, "No...no...that's not what I meant. I said the wrong thing. Xiaoyi was just...helping...ah...no, A Shen, don't take it to heart." His trembling fingers gestured randomly in the air, but he never dared to point at Ling Shen, who was sitting on the sofa with a gloomy face.
Jiang Qichen was in a panic and had no idea what he had said. He was so frightened by the furious Father Ling that he was at a loss of his mind. He apologized repeatedly but dared not ask Ling Shen to show mercy.
"Butler, show him out." Ling's father loosened his tie, causing his gold cufflinks to clink, and his knuckles struck the sandalwood tabletop with a dull echo. "And let him take everything he brought with him. My Ling family isn't that shameless."
The door slammed shut in front of Jiang Qichen, and the gift box he brought was thrown at his feet.
The cold wind blew snowflakes onto Jiang Qichen's face, bringing him back to his senses. He suddenly realized that his palms had been pinched to the point of bleeding.
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