Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation  Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

“I"ll see you out.” She could not care less about what Yu Qianying would think. She simply held his elegant hand and rubbed her thumb on the joints of his fingers.

The old lady sported an exceptionally content smile as she looked at them from the side. She genuinely felt that Song Yu"s previous engagement with Qi Chengji was no longer an issue.

Yu Qianying snorted coldly as if to admonish Song Yu, but the latter pretended not to hear and continued seeing Qi Chengzhi out.

Qi Chengzhi and Song Yu faced each other. One of his hands was still holding her hand, but the other crept up slowly to her waist. He tilted his head downward and leaned close to her. His thin, warm, and handsome lips were almost touching the tip of her nose.

Song Yu blushed as she glanced behind Qi Chengzhi, muttering softly, “Grandma"s here.”

Grandmother Qi turned her eyes away immediately and let Aunt Liu help her down a flight of stairs. She looked down from the porch, pointed to the ground below, then said to Aunt Liu, “Xiao Liu, look at how fat that dog is. It can"t even walk!”

Curious, Aunt Liu searched frantically for the dog. “Where is it?”

The old lady pinched Aunt Liu immediately after the question. Following an ‘ouch", she looked at the old lady and noticed a frown, prompting her to nod and say, “I see it! I see it!”

Song Yu"s ears were feeling extremely hot. It was obvious that the old lady was just cooking up an excuse to give Song Yu and Qi Chengzhi some s.p.a.ce.

Qi Chengzhi observed the white, downy vellus hairs on Song Yu"s ear. He bent his head and kissed her ear, letting his dry and warm lips brush gently against the downy hair. His actions made her feel rather ticklish, but knowing that the old lady was there, Song Yu did not dare to let out a pampered giggle.

Qi Chengzhi then continued kissing her from her ears to cheeks, and finally, his lips landed on hers.

Song Yu pushed him away and forbade him from kissing too pa.s.sionately since the old lady was still around.

Not satisfied with the kiss, he gave her a few extra pecks and held her waist with both his hands. A scorching-hot electric current was emanating from the gentle caresses of his lips. His voice was hoa.r.s.e when he began speaking, “I"ll talk a while with Grandmother before coming back here. She brought the driver and Aunt Liu, so there"s really no need for me to send her. She just has a few things she wants to tell me.”

“Take your time. Maybe you can go back first if you"ve finished talking with Grandma. My mom definitely wants to speak to me privately too, it wouldn"t be convenient to do that if you were there.” Song Yu tilted her head backward slightly, otherwise, her lips would have been rubbing against his when she spoke. She would have felt really hot if she did not tilt her head back.

“I"ll wait for you downstairs.” He tightened his grip and pressed her against himself. “It doesn"t matter if your conversation takes a long time. If you need me, tell me. I"ll come up.”

Song Yu listened to his words. His insistence on waiting for her meant that he was not about to let her stay there that day. Ever the dominant man, he wanted her to go home with him no matter how late it might be.

When a man of his composure made such a demand, he seemed like an insecure little child. She felt somewhat sorry for him.

“Okay.” She tiptoed and kissed him on the lips, but felt slightly embarra.s.sed after kissing him.

“You"d better get going. Grandma"s gonna be laughing at us.” Song Yu looked down and avoided his gaze. She fixed her eyes on his abdomen. His st.u.r.dy muscles were wholly covered by his clothes, but she could not control herself from recalling the sight of his half-naked body.

Qi Chengzhi smiled as he placed his lips on hers and kissed her once again. He proceeded to help the old lady down only when Song Yu re-entered her home.

The elderly lady stared at Qi Chengzhi continuously as they made their way down. In the end, Qi Chengzhi could not help but say, “Grandmother. Please keep your eye on the stairs. Don"t keep looking at me.”

Grandmother Qi was not staring at him on purpose. In fact, she did turn away at the start and looked at the scenery below. Nevertheless, Qi Chengzhi and Song Yu"s conversation still reached her ears.

Her grandson was so indifferent and so detached towards everyone else, but with Song Yu, he was soft-spoken and particularly caring.

When she peeked at them moments earlier, Qi Chengzhi was grasping Song Yu very tightly. He stuck to her like an herbal plaster and seemed unable to let go of her for even a second.

She heard everything that Qi Chengzhi said. He wanted to wait downstairs for her and insisted on bringing her back home with him; he did not want her to stay too long by herself with her parents.

How could the old lady not be shocked when it was Qi Chengzhi who did all those things?

Aunt Liu was also so shocked that her face went pale. It was the first time she saw Qi Chengzhi acting that way. She stole glances at him from time to time because she felt like he was a different person altogether.

After everything that transpired, Grandmother Qi could deduce that Qi Chengzhi would not break up with Song Yu. Even if Song Yu was willing to, he would most certainly refuse.

The old lady sighed. Qi Chengzhi"s act of running the Song family into bankruptcy was likely done just for the sake of voiding Song Yu"s engagement with Qi Chengji.

No wonder he never had a woman by his side: Song Yu was the only woman in his heart and the only person that was constantly in his mind.

As a result, it was impossible that Qi Chengzhi would let go of her even if his family protested.

Qi Chengzhi helped his grandmother into the Volvo. Xiao Fan had switched on the engine, but he remained outside the car with Aunt Liu. They chatted, and when a peddler selling roasted sweet potatoes pa.s.sed by, Aunt Liu bought two and ate with Xiao Fan.

It was late enough in the day that the weather was warmer, but the air was still chilly. In spite of that, eating those roasted sweet potatoes brought about a feeling of warmth in them.

Inside the car, Grandmother Qi looked at Qi Chengzhi with a very stern expression.

Nowadays, the old lady was genial and all smiles. She was always on good terms with the neighbors; moreover, she had minor roles in theatre and she was fond of plaza dancing. Her approachability, however, was a far cry from her younger days. Back then, she was known as the iron lady, both in name and in her real-life persona. Everything that she said became set in stone, and she governed the Qi family with absolute strictness.

If it were not for that, Xia Wenna would not have been so afraid of the old lady.

It was also the reason why Qi Chengzhi wanted to persuade her first—if he was successful in doing so, his other family members would pose no threat anymore.

“Your mother told me about the things you did to the Song family,” she remarked solemnly.

“How long were you two in a relations.h.i.+p? The car that Lao Xu saw during the new year, it was his, wasn"t it?” Yu Qianying asked the instant Song Yu entered the home.

“We just got together during the new year,” Song Yu told the truth.

“Hmph!” The thought of it made Yu Qianying"s blood boil. “You even told me that Lao Xu saw wrongly.”

“Mom, we had just gotten together at that time. Nothing was official. Your opinion of the Qi family is also a strong one, and I wouldn"t dare to rush myself into telling you all this,” Song Yu summoned up the courage and remarked.

“When you first asked me whether I was together with him or not, the answer was a solid no. But feelings are not something you can predict, especially after I got along with him later on. Feelings don"t always happen the way you want them to. I know that you don"t like the Qi family and I"ve told myself before that we weren"t compatible. Because of that, I had inner conflicts too, but in the end, I couldn"t stop my heart from feeling what it felt.”

“Mom, all along I"ve told you that feelings are dependent on fate. Who would"ve known that fate would lead me to Qi Chengzhi? I like him, and it has nothing to do with the Qi family. When I was with him, the only thing I thought of was him, not the Qi family. I just hope that you can distinguish Qi Chengzhi and the Qi family.”

“All I want is to let my heart search for someone that I can truly love. It wasn"t easy for me to find one, and I just want to be with him without further complications. You"re always introducing good men to me, urging me to be in a relations.h.i.+p and get married. I know you want nothing else but to see me happy. I believe that I can be happy with Qi Chengzhi. Will it be possible for you to not care so much about the Qi family anymore? Or, you can separate Qi Chengzhi as a person from the Qi family. Qi Chengzhi is Qi Chengzhi. He"s not the Qi family. Whatever that happened in the past was not his fault. You can choose to dislike the Qi family, but can you just accept him? Can you please accept him, Mom, for my sake?”

Yu Qianying pursed her lips into a tight straight line. Her breathing was tense, heavy, and clearly audible, while her face began turning red due to her overwhelmed emotion.

“Do you think that I"m against the relations.h.i.+p just because of my past with the Qi family? When our family went bankrupt and the Qi family refused to help, they did nothing wrong. I have no right to complain about it to them. The Qi family is a powerful family, and I"m worried that you won"t be treated right by the family if you were to continue your relations.h.i.+p with him! I wasn"t worried in the past because our family had power too, but now that we have nothing at all, wouldn"t you be bullied by the Qi family?”

“Qi Chengzhi is going to be the future leader of the family. It"s only natural that the Qi family would want his other half to be equally powerful, and useful to him. But you don"t have anything now, and it"s still a question of whether Qi Chengzhi"s parents will even accept you. Judging by the way Xia Wenna came today, I think she wanted me to persuade you to break up with him! If something happens to the Qi family in the future, they wouldn"t think twice about casting you aside.”

“What else is there for me to pursue? Don"t I have nothing in the first place? If they want to rid themselves of me, what more do I have that they would want to rid themselves of? The only thing that matters is that Qi Chengzhi will not leave me.” Song Yu pursed her lips and clenched her fists tightly. With full of confidence, she said, “And, I believe that Qi Chengzhi will protect me.”

Yu Qianying trembled in extreme anger. She only wanted what was best for Song Yu, but the latter"s words painted her as the bad person. Song Yu was stubborn and would not listen to her no matter how much advice was given.

“If you get hurt next time, don"t come crying to me!” Yu Qianying was so furious that her voice was faltering and her eyes became red.

Those who call themselves mothers would always love their children dearly. She was worried that Song Yu might get the worst out of the situation. It happened once already, so she should have the brains to learn from that mistake, should she not?

Song Yu, however, remained stubborn, and all Yu Qianying could do was be angry and start worrying. She rued not being able to protect Song Yu.

A rea.s.suring hand held her shoulder, and Song Donglin"s voice subsequently began resounding from beside her. “Let our daughter make her own decision on this. Our bankruptcy isn"t necessarily a bad thing. At least Song Yu has the power to make her own choices now. If today she chooses Qi Chengzhi, all we can do is hope that the man will not let us down.”

“Dad, Mom, I too had doubts about being with him. It took a lot for me to make up my mind and come to this decision. But I believe he"ll protect me. He placed his trust in me right from the very beginning, and I"m now trying to trust in him wholeheartedly. I know that it"s brave of me to do this, and although it"s a gamble, I"m confident that it"s a gamble that will pay off. Even if you don"t trust him, you can trust me. How about it?”

“It wasn"t easy for me to find someone that I really liked, and I really do want to continue being with him. Mom, I know that you were always tolerant of my stubbornness. Let me be stubborn one more time, please?”

“You…” Yu Qianying let out a sound but paused firmly. She wanted to lift her trembling hand, but she could not do so. She simply turned her head away in anger.

There was nothing else Song Donglin could do except to place his hands on her shoulder and comfort her. “Our daughter"s all grown up. A lot of things aren"t for us to decide. It"s her journey, and she should be the one to live her own life. I trust my daughter. You should have a bit of faith in her, too.”

Song Donglin shot Song Yu a glance and led Yu Qianying into the room so they could talk.

Song Yu sat in the living room but was still able to hear the loud arguing between both her parents. For the most part, it was Yu Qianying who raised her voice when speaking. Song Donglin"s voice was virtually indiscernible, but on the rare occasion that his voice was heard, he was advising her patiently in a very warm tone.

After a while, both of them came out. Yu Qianying"s eyes were still red, but there was an added hint of determination in her look; it was no longer the outright disapproval that was present in the beginning.

Yu Qianying took a few deep breaths. Her blocked nose made her voice rather m.u.f.fled, and she seemed quite uneasy when she said, “Stay for lunch. You haven"t been home for a long time now.”

Song Yu did not forget that Qi Chengzhi was waiting for her, but even so, she did not want to disappoint Yu Qianying, considering that things took a somewhat ugly turn that day. It was difficult to get Yu Qianying to relent and cease the objection, and if Song Yu did not stay back for lunch, it really would break her parents" hearts.

Therefore, Song Yu had no choice but to nod in agreement, albeit somewhat hesitantly.

Once Yu Qianying went to make lunch, Song Yu sneaked out to the balcony and called Qi Chengzhi.

“Have you finished talking with Grandma?”

“Yes. She went home already.” Qi Chengzhi"s deep voice resounded from the other end of the line.

As soon as Song Yu heard his voice, her anxieties and her insufferableness gradually turned calm.

“My mom told me to stay for lunch. I don"t know when I"ll be able to leave. I don"t want to make them even sadder than they are now,” Song Yu explained as her eyes darted across the room. Yu Qianying had yet to come out of the kitchen. Song Donglin caught Song Yu making the phone call on the balcony, but he paid no mind to it. “You should go back first. Don"t wait for me. I"ll take a cab there once I"m done.”

“Mm,” Qi Chengzhi replied crisply and directly. Song Yu was somewhat taken aback by his response.

Based on her understanding of him, he was a single-minded man when he had his heart set on something. When she saw him off earlier, he insisted on bringing her home with him, so she felt uneasy upon hearing his response.

He was a strong-willed and dominant man, but his dominance was exactly the things that made her felt spoiled. When he answered her without kicking up a fuss, she felt as though she did not feel adored anymore.

It was then that Song Yu realized that she had been spoilt far too often by him.

Song Yu shook her head and giggled at herself. There was no doubt that he had spoiled her quite a bit. She was never that petty in the past and she would never have taken such an insignificant thing to heart. Moreover, she was the one who suggested that he should leave, and repeated insistence was not her character at all.

Slightly hurt, she stroked her heart and listened as Qi Chengzhi"s voice rang through the phone, “When you"re ready to leave, tell me.”

“Okay,” Song Yu answered before hanging up.

Upon entering the house, there was a momentary awkwardness between Song Yu and Song Donglin, as she had no idea what to say to him.

Song Donglin adjusted his gla.s.ses, flashed her a smile, then s.h.i.+fted his attention back to his kifu.

Yu Qianying laid out all the dishes on the dining table and called on the two to eat. Song Donglin then removed his gla.s.ses and set his kifu aside. He promptly got up and headed for the dining hall.

“I heard your lease is expiring, so when it does, move back here. After all, I don"t feel too rea.s.sured with your quality of life when you"re living by yourself out there.” Song Yu had just taken some vegetables when she heard Yu Qianying"s words.

“It won"t be convenient for me to go to work if I stay here.” That was all Song Yu could say.

“Oh, so it"s convenient if you stay at Qi Chengzhi"s place?” Yu Qianying"s face turned sour, although she was not a close-minded person. When feelings between a young couple reach a certain point and they were more or less certain that they were each other"s life partner, living together before marriage was no big deal. If Song Yu were to reach that phase, Yu Qianying would not object.

However, Song Yu and Qi Chengzhi had not even been together long. The Qi family had yet to accept her and the marriage arrangements were not even discussed properly. It was nuts of her to stay with Qi Chengzhi so quickly!

If something happens in the future, Song Yu would be the one who would get the worst of it!

“You"ve known each other just recently, but you"re already staying with him. Aren"t you afraid that he wouldn"t appreciate you well enough because he thinks you"re too carefree?” Yu Qianying placed her chopsticks down and asked.

“I trust him.” Song Yu placed her chopsticks down too, before she continued calmly, “If he really did think about that, then he"s no longer Qi Chengzhi, he"s no longer the man I love. He never treats me half-heartedly. Hiding the relations.h.i.+p was my choice. He always wanted to meet you, and to bring me to meet his family, but I"m the one who"s afraid that you can"t take it. I told him to keep everything a secret, as if our relations.h.i.+p was something shameful.”

“He"s a man full of pride. He kept everything secret because of me, but not once did he complain, because he respected my decision. He brought me home to visit the Qi family, and they objected of course. But at least his att.i.tude remained the same. Otherwise, why do you think the elder Qi lady would come here today? If this is what you call half-hearted, what is your definition of sincerity, then? In my opinion, he wouldn"t treat me any less seriously if we stayed together.”

‘Slap!"

Yu Qianying hands slapped the chopsticks on the table and the resulting contact produced a crisp slapping sound, “You can say whatever you like now that you"re older. It makes me look like I"m the one who"s in the wrong.”

“Mom, that"s not what I meant, I…”

“Do whatever you like! If you don"t like hearing my sincere advice, then forget about it.” Yu Qianying cut Song Yu off and did not allow her to finish her sentence. Without even bothering to continue eating, Yu Qianying stormed off into the room.

Song Yu lost her appet.i.te after hearing the loud ‘bang" caused by slamming the door. She stared at the array of dishes on the table and felt a sourness rising in her throat.

Song Donglin sighed and patted Song Yu"s shoulder. “About all this, you can"t expect her to accept it all at one go. The least you could do is tell her bit by bit so she can take things one by one. I"ll check on her.”

“I think…I"d better leave.” Song Yu stood up and felt unworthy of facing her parents, especially when Yu Qianying took the trouble to cook so many dishes.

Song Donglin nodded and headed for the room. Then he heard Song Yu call out, “Dad. I"m sorry.”

Song Donglin chuckled. “Silly child. You just need to know what you"re doing.”

Song Yu watched as Song Donglin entered the room and closed the door behind him. Once again, her parents" voices could be heard from within: Song Donglin was advising and explaining, while Yu Qianying was grieving.

A sour taste manifested in Song Yu"s throat and her eyes felt sore too. She grabbed her bag and left silently.

She took her phone out and thought about calling Qi Chengzhi, but after thinking about it for a moment, she decided not to.

As she neared the entrance to the building, she stopped and rubbed her eyes, which had teared up unknowingly. She looked up and tried stopping the tears from coming out, though she did sniffle a few times before taking a few deep breaths. Finally, she took as deep a breath as she possibly could and walked out of the building entrance.

A few more steps later, she found herself glued to the spot as she laid her eyes on a Range Rover, parked not too far away. The vehicle body, as well as the window tint, was completely black. Its car plate number was blue, and she could not possibly mistake it for another car.

‘Didn"t he go back? Why is his car here?"

She walked a couple of steps forward and saw the car door swinging open. Every single movement seemed to slow down considerably, and she spotted those slender and fair-skinned fingers popping out from the door, as well as a pair of long legs extending out from the car.

Song Yu froze on the spot. Her heart thumped strongly all of a sudden when he got down from the car and stood silently in front of it.

Sporting a black Burberry windbreaker, he looked tall and stylish as the garment highlighted his slender frame. It made his long legs even longer, as though he was an unfinished work of art.