Chapter 8 It’s time for Titi to go home
The banquet upstairs was almost over, and the waiter had already changed the plates, with each person receiving a bowl of bird's nest with fresh milk as a final dessert.
Tonight is a family dinner, and only Old Man Ye and eight younger generations are present: Ye Siheng is the eldest brother, with two younger sisters and two younger brothers. The second younger sister, Ye Xiaowan, is already married and came with her son-in-law and son. The oldest of the remaining three children is twenty-three, and the youngest is only seventeen.
Mrs. Ye was not present, and the seat next to Ye Siheng was empty. Cheng Ti went out ten minutes ago and has not returned yet.
Ye Xiaowan didn't let her son eat bird's nest, fearing that it would make him angry, so she sent her husband with their son Chenchen to play at the children's center on the third floor.
In his seat, Old Master Ye was questioning Ye Siheng, also in a casual manner. "An Cheng's lawsuit will officially go to trial next month. I asked Xiao Zhou to give you the information. What do you think of it?"
Ye Siheng said lazily: "I didn't see her much. The old lady is still sick."
"Stop talking nonsense. Your mother has a nanny, so why are you staying in the hospital all day long? Don't think I don't know that you spend all day eating, drinking and having fun outside. You don't even go home. You play mahjong all the time, but never do anything serious."
"That's your business, what does it have to do with me?"
"Aren't you a lawyer? Isn't it considered a serious matter to review the family business?"
"I don't handle patent disputes, and I have no interest in your business at all." Ye Siheng smiled. "I'm a family lawyer. If you want to handle a divorce case, I'd be happy to help."
Mr. Ye put down his teacup and said, "Nonsense!"
Old Master Ye's face darkened, and none of his children dared to breathe. Only his eldest son dared to take it lightly. Not only was he not dependent on his family for support, but Old Master Ye also felt somewhat guilty towards this son, a secret that everyone knew well.
Ye Siheng drank his tea carelessly, not even looking at his father. Instead, Ye Xiaowan smiled and said, "Dad, don't be angry. Big brother is just teasing you. If he really didn't want to take over the family business, why would he change his girlfriend and get married at the last minute?"
Ye Siheng looked over in surprise and met his sister's smiling eyes.
Ye Xiaowan said, "If my sister-in-law wasn't Shao Mengdong's sister, my brother wouldn't have married her within half a year, right?"
As she spoke, she took out an envelope from the bag behind her and poured out several photos.
… …
Cheng Ti met Shao Mengdong at the door of the private room.
He was only a few steps behind her, and his footsteps made no sound on the thick carpet. She even felt the air tightening on her back before she heard the waiter who opened the door call out, "Sir," from behind her.
Turning around, she was stunned and hurriedly hid her phone behind her to cover the message Ye Siheng sent her on the screen: Come back, something happened, leave it to me later, just look at my expression.
She stammered, "Why...why are you here?"
Shao Mengdong's tall shadow pressed down on her. Cheng Ti was confused and nervous. She subconsciously felt that his appearance would make the already "in trouble" situation worse, but it was too late.
The door was open, and they both suddenly appeared in the brightly lit room. They were greeted by everyone's surprised gazes and the strange, stagnant atmosphere in the room.
An explanation is needed. Cheng Ti opened her mouth, but her eyes were drawn to the things on the table.
Three or five photos were thrown on the revolving table and had obviously been displayed around. Now they were facing Ye Siheng, a confrontation between evidence and the suspect.
He was sitting near the door, so Cheng Ti saw it. The top photo was a travel photo of a man and a woman with London Bridge behind them on a sunny autumn day. It was probably taken with an old digital camera, so the photo looked retro and hazy, very romantic. If you get closer, you can see the red time watermark in the lower right corner.
Exactly half a year ago.
The bright and beautiful curly-haired woman snuggled up to the handsome man affectionately, smiling brightly.
It’s Ye Siheng and Bella.
Cheng Ti took a breath of cold air.
But it was too late, she knew the people behind her had seen it too.
Shao Mengdong remained calm. His eyes moved from the photo to the face of the old man in the main seat. He called out "Mr. Ye" without any emotion. "I just ran into Xiaoti in the corridor. I invited her to our place for a drink and a chat. I just found out it was your birthday. I think it was time to toast you because you've taken care of An Cheng's recent lawsuit."
The waiter was already pouring the wine and soon brought him a glass, but he didn't take it. He tapped the table with his fingertips, indicating to put it down first.
"If you don't mind, I'd like to hear your daughter's words first. This seems to concern my sister."
Shao Mengdong pulled out the chair next to him, and when he sat down, he slowly buttoned the top button of his lapel, put one arm on the table, and his slender fingers loosely grasped the glass wine cup. It was a calm and oppressive posture, as if he was at the negotiation table, and he would bite the other party's throat no matter what he said.
Old man Ye gave Ye Xiaowan a fierce look.
Ye Xiaowan had never imagined that this Cheng Yaojin would appear midway. Now the old man was trying to win over the Shao family, intending to expose the eldest brother, but he was afraid that he would be self-defeating.
Ye Xiaowan was in a dilemma, so she raised it high and lowered it gently. She said with a stiff upper lip, "A few days ago, I took Chenchen to visit Grandpa. There was a briefcase in the living room on the first floor, and I didn't know whose it was. I wasn't paying attention, so Chenchen flipped through it... I don't understand these photos, and I can't usually contact Big Brother, so I had to bring them here today to ask."
Only then did Cheng Ti truly understand the meaning of Ye Siheng's text message. She was furious: Shao Mengdong was right next to her, how could she explain this?
But the top priority is obviously not Shao Mengdong.
She had no choice but to pretend to be deaf and dumb and wait for Ye Siheng to speak first.
Ye Siheng's reaction was beyond everyone's expectations.
"That's boring, second sister. It's just that little thing. Why bother with three trials?" He smiled nonchalantly. "It was just that time when I had two girlfriends at the same time, that's all."
Cheng Ti almost vomited blood. Was he crazy? He still thought it wasn't lively enough!
Is this what he said, leave it to him?
After thinking about it, she was about to laugh in horror: He is worthy of being a lawyer, he can describe cheating in such a subtle and unconventional way.
Cheng Ti took a deep breath and managed to calm down. She looked at Ye Siheng, but saw a mocking look in his eyes. Everyone in the Ye family kept silent, as if something had been revealed about them. Old Master Ye looked embarrassed, not to mention Ye Xiaowan.
Ye Siheng continued, "At the time, I was transferred to the New York headquarters. Titi couldn't come over due to visa issues, so she had to stay in Vancouver. I was flying back and forth, and I met this girl, a model. At the time, I was just curious and wanted to see how exciting it would be to keep it a secret from both sides. After trying for a few months, it didn't seem to lead to anything, so I broke up with her and confessed to Titi, promising not to do it again. Then we got married."
He smiled meaningfully, "It's nothing, right, Dad?" Then he turned sideways and looked at Cheng Ti, "I'm sorry, Titi. I didn't mean to keep these photos. You heard it too. Chenchen accidentally found them in an old briefcase of mine. I don't remember when I put them there-"
Before he could finish his words, there was a slight ding sound in the silence. It was Shao Mengdong putting down his wine glass, interrupting Ye Siheng's strange monologue.
Shao Mengdong stood up, his tone flat and subdued.
"Titi, come home with me."
Cheng Ti was stunned. Those six short words, so distant they seemed to come from the bottom of the ocean, were the echo she'd waited six years for. But it had been so long, and she didn't feel any joy when she heard them. Instead, there was a bitterness in her nose, and perhaps a hint of resentment. ...Home? Where could they even have a home?
She didn't move.
"I don't."
Shao Mengdong turned his head and finally looked down at her.
After a few seconds, he spoke again.
"Let's go back and talk, okay?"
The tone of negotiation, however, revealed an unquestionable oppression, cold and indifferent enough, yet also intimidating enough. His request at this moment was merely to give her face. He had one hand on her shoulder, ready to pull her up and away at any time, in full view of everyone. But what was wrong with that?
No brother could tolerate his sister being treated like this.
Shao Mengdong stood beside her, his back reflected on the evening window, a blurry shadow, but Cheng Ti could feel the chilling presence. He certainly had the power to summon her and dismiss her at will, but the rare thing was that she now had a reason to resist.
Cheng Ti's face was flushed with heat. In the cold night, only this little bit of heat from her body was so endearing and lovely that she was reluctant to let it go.
"I won't." Cheng Ti heard her own voice. Raindrops hit the glass window. Every word was as clear as a streak of water. "My husband is here, my home is here too. I'm not going anywhere."
At the end, she even smiled, turned her head to look at Ye Siheng, and said softly, "Siheng, let's go."
Ye Siheng never expected her to react like this. Looking at Cheng Ti, he was a little at a loss for a moment.
Thanks to the complicated emotional relationships between the Ye family siblings, and thanks to Ye Siheng having seen too many bizarre situations in court; the estrangement between the brother and sister had already been foreshadowed on the wedding day, and the current friction did not seem so difficult to digest.
After a brief moment of confusion, Ye Siheng stood up slowly and went to deal with the mess in front of him.
He smiled at Ye Xiaowan first. "Before we got married, I didn't know about Mr. Shao and Titi's relationship. Even if I knew, Second Sister, you saw it, so what's there to worry about? I'm marrying this woman, it has nothing to do with anyone else. If Dad and Mr. Shao have any business agreements or plans, I'm not interested in knowing, and I won't get involved."
Then he took the keys from his pocket and threw them on the table. He looked at the birthday boy in the main seat and smiled even more deeply and happily. "Old man, today is an opportunity. I'm telling you clearly: your business and your hard work have nothing to do with me. Don't even think about getting me involved. Even if you really give it to me, I will sell it immediately. I'm coming back to China to hold the wedding this time because of grandpa and mom. It has nothing to do with you. This is your house and car. We will find a place to live on our own. It's useless to compensate me for what you owe my mom."
Finally, he leaned over and lightly grasped Cheng Ti's wrist, a sincere and flattering gesture: "Titi, let's go."
Cheng Ti raised her chin and nodded slowly.
The hand was still pressing on her other shoulder, squeezing her bones to the point of breaking them. Cheng Ti pulled it back twice before finally breaking free. She held Ye Siheng's hand instead, and he silently pulled her up and walked out, never looking back.
Old Master Ye was speechless. The eyes of everyone in the room followed their departing figures, like waves on the seabed, flowing silently to one place.
Only one person still maintained the same posture as before, not looking at them. He stood there, tall and stern, yet indescribably shabby and solemn. His sleeves were loosely rolled up, and his arms were long and strong, with distinct muscles and bones. His cheeks and chin were also tense, making his already cold and hard figure even more like a sculpture.
… …
Outside the heavy ebony door is another world. The long glass corridor stretches as far as the eye can see. Two tall windows are open. On a cool spring night, the sound of raindrops can be heard.
The relationship between husband and wife was fake, and they were escaping all the way, but it felt like they were eloping. Ye Siheng gradually found that the wrist in his palm was too thin and too cold, like a piece of crisp jade. If it was loose, it would slip off; if it was tight, it would break.
Only after entering the elevator did he wake up from his dream and quickly let go.
The elevator opened again, and Cheng Ti walked out first, with stiff shoulders, walking straight into the rainy night.
Ye Siheng was stunned for a moment, then took a few steps to catch up.
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