Chapter 40: The Others Are Actually Quite Nice

Chu Fei was just about to leave, intending to go home and check on the black box. He gave Shen Miaoyu an address, then, after hanging up, turned to Guan Ya and said, “I’m off.”

“Alright, let’s keep in touch on WeChat. I’ll treat you to a meal another day.” Although Guan Ya wanted to chat with Chu Fei a bit longer, she knew better than to hold him up when he had important matters.

Chu Fei looked at her seriously, then placed his hand on her shoulder. Guan Ya lowered her head, a little embarrassed, unsure of what he intended to do. Yet she didn’t mind the contact; in fact, she rather looked forward to it.

After what had happened last night and today, she saw Chu Fei through rose-tinted glasses. Even the casual way his fingers rested on her shoulder seemed impossibly refined and attractive.

What would he say? Was he about to confess his feelings? But she wasn’t ready yet!

While Guan Ya spun these scenarios in her mind, Chu Fei’s voice suddenly broke the silence.

“Since you don’t have a father, I’ll be your dad and protect you from now on!”

He left her with these words, then cheerfully turned and walked away, leaving Guan Ya standing windswept in his wake. Yet, gazing at his retreating figure, her lips curled into a playful, alluring smile.

“So eager to be my dad—is it because strict fathers raise filial children?”

Her cheeks flushed as she whispered this to herself. Remembering her mother was still upstairs, she hurriedly ran up.

Song Yalan had just finished changing when someone pushed open the door. Thinking it was Chu Fei, she tensed up and blurted, “Are you an animal? You’re back again?”

“What do you mean, back again?” Guan Ya asked, puzzled. “Mom, you look positively radiant!”

Song Yalan was mortified. “Nonsense. Has he… left?”

“He has. Since he’s alright, I’ll let it go about that needle you jabbed me with.”

Song Yalan composed herself and said, “I only did what I did to protect us.”

“But in the end, it was Chu Fei who protected us,” Guan Ya protested. “You schemed against him, yet he still helped us deal with the Huang family. You ought to apologize!”

Apologize? After what he did to me, I should apologize to him? Apologize for not making him feel at home?

Song Yalan was sorely tempted to tell Guan Ya all about Chu Fei’s outrageous behavior, but she suppressed the urge. There was no point getting worked up over a man doomed to die soon. Besides, it was far too humiliating to admit.

“Let’s not talk about the past,” Song Yalan said, waving her hand.

Guan Ya then asked, “Is Chu Fei really your fiancé?”

“We do have an engagement, but that’s all there is to it.”

“So you don’t like him anymore?” Seeing her daughter’s delighted expression, Song Yalan felt a pang of anxiety. With her understanding of Guan Ya, it was rare for her daughter to defend any man so passionately. Something was off.

“Don’t tell me you like him?” Song Yalan demanded, needing to nip this in the bud.

“I’m not someone who falls for a guy that easily!” Guan Ya denied.

Relieved, Song Yalan told herself it was one thing for her to get involved, but she couldn’t let her daughter get entangled too. Yet Guan Ya’s next words struck a fatal blow without her realizing it.

“I just think…” Guan Ya blushed. “He’s surprisingly wonderful!”

Nonsense! Song Yalan cursed fiercely in her heart. That brat must die—no one, not even Jesus, could save him now! I mean it!

…

Chu Fei, having left the villa, waited for Shen Miaoyu to pick him up while replying to Jiang Yunqi’s messages on WeChat. Since Guan Ya had sent her a screenshot, Jiang Yunqi’s tone had turned as delicate and dramatic as Lin Daiyu’s.

“You gave her my WeChat too?”

“I added her since we met, that’s all.”

“Oh, brother, how could you say such things? What’s a poor sister to do?”

“Jiang Yunqi, have you been possessed?”

“So now it’s my fault? If you’re going to treat me like this, you might as well ignore me entirely. At least then I wouldn’t seem unreasonable.”

“I’ll take you out tomorrow.”

“Then I want to see a movie…”

Chu Fei chuckled softly. Damn, she really is adorable. No wonder Jiang Yangrong would give her his heart, liver, and lungs.

As he pondered where to take Jiang Yunqi on their date the next day, Shen Miaoyu pulled up in her Maybach.

Today, Shen Miaoyu was once again dressed in her professional office attire. Her white blouse was nearly sheer, hinting at the curves beneath. Unfortunately, she’d skipped the black stockings in favor of loose black trousers. Even so, her sophisticated makeup and half-rim glasses with chain frames were more than enough to stir a man’s most primal desires.

“Get in,” she called.

Chu Fei got in without hesitation. Shen Miaoyu had already confirmed with Meng Ziyi that Chu Fei really did have seven fiancées, so she knew he wasn’t making it up.

As soon as he was in the car, Shen Miaoyu asked, “Judging by how pleased you look, did you succeed with her?”

“I did. Are you jealous?” Chu Fei replied with a grin.

Shen Miaoyu shot back instinctively, “Jealous? Not a chance!”

“How about not jealous, but just a little bit?”

“You’re so annoying!”

She rolled her eyes, then asked, “Aren’t you curious why I came to find you?”

“Not really.”

“What?”

Facing her incredulity, Chu Fei replied blandly, “Because if you brought me here, you’ll end up telling me anyway.”

“…Fine,” Shen Miaoyu conceded. “The Ouyang family’s assets have been consolidated, and Meng has sent a lot of key staff to help. As chairman of Chu Corporation, you have to show your face at least once!”

“Sounds dreadfully boring. Can I skip it?” Chu Fei frowned.

“If you don’t go, you’re disrespecting me. Disrespecting me is… well, you’re disrespecting me!” Shen Miaoyu was well aware she had no leverage over Chu Fei. If she did, it wouldn’t work anyway. The only reason she could handle this project was because of him. So, she could only mutter this feeble protest.

“How about this: I give you face, you give me… a taste,” Chu Fei proposed.

“I’m being serious!” Shen Miaoyu was exasperated.

“If you’re going to scold me, I’m not going.”

“Don’t push your luck!”

“So do you accept my suggestion?”

“…Just… one touch,” she relented. She’d already given him her first time, so what did it matter now? That was how she consoled herself.

Hearing there was a benefit, Chu Fei readily agreed. He decided to go to the corporation with Shen Miaoyu first, and check on the black box later.

…

In no time, the two arrived at the entrance of Chu Corporation. Shen Miaoyu’s efficiency was astonishing—the building had originally belonged to Ouyang Group, but in less than two days, the signs had all been changed, marking the complete takeover.

Chu Fei and Shen Miaoyu had just entered the building and were waiting for the elevator when a woman with gaudy makeup and overwhelming cheap perfume strode toward them. She glanced Shen Miaoyu up and down, then said with a cold sneer, “Well, well, isn’t this the eldest miss of the Shen family—Shen Miaoyu?”