Yin Mengfan hung up the phone and reached for her car keys on her desk. The door of her office burst open as soon as she rose from her chair. She glanced up sharply and saw Shen Hui sauntering into her office. Yin Mengfan sighed inwardly. What is she doing here again…
“Going somewhere, cuz?” Shen Hui said in a cheery tone.
Hello? Isn’t it obvious? Yin Mengfan resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Instead, she smiled. “Yep. Heading out to meet someone.” Yin Mengfan paused to study the young woman standing in front of her desk. “It’s your summer holidays, right? How come you’re so free? I thought Uncle Shen would’ve assigned you to some odd tasks by now?”
Shen Hui curled her lips in disdain. “As if he has time for me.” Shen Hui rolled her eyes. “He’s already gotten his hands full with his many mistresses.”
“Tsk! Hush!” Yin Mengfan raised her hand to feign a slap. “Don’t talk about your father like that.”
Shen Hui scrambled back a step and made a face at Yin Mengfan. “I was just telling the truth!” Shen Hui fired back. “You know as well I do the ways of that disgusting and narcissistic old man.” Shen Hui laughed bitterly. “You should drop by my house some time. That way you can check out the huge parade of women he had inside the house.” Shen Hui snorted. “It’s like he’s a feudal lord or something. Just thinking about it makes me wanna puke. Eugh!”
Yin Mengfan shook her head and sighed. “Well. I guess Uncle Shen’s promiscuity is his only flaw…”
Yin Mengfan could already imagine the inheritance war in the future, when his children—and there would probably be a lot of them what with the number of women Uncle Shen had slept with—fought tooth and nail for his assets.
It wasn’t rocket science to know that this wasn’t going to end well.
After a moment, Yin Mengfan snapped herself out of her gloomy thoughts. “Well, I’m heading out,” she said. “You’re welcome to hang out in the building while I’m out. Just don’t cause any trouble. I’ll be back soon, though.”
Yin Mengfan walked around her desk and headed for the door.
“Wait!” Shen Hui yelled. A moment later, Yin Mengfan felt a weight pulling on her right arm. She turned and saw Shen Hui clinging tightly onto her arm. The fawning smile on Shen Hui’s face meant that she was up to something.
Yin Mengfan sighed. “What?”
“Can I tag along? Please? I’m so bored…” Shen Hui batted her lashes.
Yin Mengfan stared at her younger cousin.
Shen Hui, the daughter of the great Shen family. Uncle Shen had indeed spoiled Shen Hui rotten. All her life, Shen Hui never really had to work for anything she wanted. If she wanted something, all she had to do was open her mouth, and voila. Uncle Shen would serve it up to her in a silver platter. On the downside, that was also the reason why Shen Hui was so immature and, well, spoiled. She would kick up a fuss and start throwing tantrums the moment things didn’t go her way. And when she did kick up a fuss, nobody dared do anything. After all, nobody wanted to get on the Shen family’s bad side.
Yin Mengfan smiled wryly. “I heard your co-mother enrolled you a bunch of classes. Let’s see…” Yin Mengfan counted off her fingers. “Piano class. Calligraphy class. Art class. And dance class…” Yin Mengfan gave Shen Hui a pointed look, then raised a brow. “You have so many classes to attend. Why are you even here?”
Shen Hui’s face twisted in contempt. “My co-mother? That bitch? Stop joking around, cuz.” She snorted derisively. “She doesn’t give a damn about me. All she cares about is her son’s future. She’s just using me to suck up to the old man. Ever since she gave birth to her son, she wanted the old man to herself! I saw through her schemes ages ago!”
Yin Mengfan stared at Shen Hui wordlessly, stunned by the younger woman’s outburst.
“Oh, and also,” Shen Hui ranted on. “That woman is a wolf in sheep’s clothing. And guess what, her son is exactly the same! He might seem like a perfect gentleman from the way he dresses and the way he acts in front of others. But the truth is that he’s nothing but an asshole. Do you know how many women got their hearts broken because of him? And that’s not even worst part.” Shen Hui gave Yin Mengfan a look. “The worst part is that he even tried to get into my pants. My pants. Ugh. Who does that brute thinks he is!”
Suddenly, Shen Hui’s face changed. She turned and gave Yin Mengfan a piteous look. “You’re the only person in my family who is nice to me, cuz. And you’re genuinely nice to me, not because you have some ulterior motive. And if… if you don’t wanna hang out with me, then I’ve really got no one else to hang out with anymore.”
Yin Mengfan pressed her palm against her forehead and sighed. “Alright, alright… You win… Geez.”
Shen Hui brightened up instantly. “Really? So I can tag along?”
Yin Mengfan gave Shen Hui a stern look. “On one condition.”
“What?”
“You must listen to everything I say, you hear me? Watch that mouth of yours. And don’t do silly stuff. Is that clear?”
Shen Hui let out a cheer, then nodded with zest. A moment later, Shen Hui threw her arms around Yin Mengfan. “I knew it! I knew you’re the best, cuz!” Shen Hui stepped back and beamed at Yin Mengfan. “But where are we going though? You should tell me. Maybe I can help.”
Yin Mengfan gave Shen Hui a wry smile. “You? Help?” Yin Mengfan rolled her eyes. “Yeah right.”
Shen Hui’s face fell. “What? I can help.”
Yin Mengfan sighed. “I’m going to see Li Yundong…”
“What!” Shen Hui jumped slightly. “Why on earth are you going to see that perverted basta…” Shen Hui gasped. “Don’t tell me… Oh my God! So it’s true… People are saying that he brought Cao Kefei to an orgasm with a head massage…” Shen Hui pointed a shaky finger at Yin Mengfan. “Y- You are attracted to him, cuz! You wanted him to… to… Oh, I can’t believe this! You of all people, cuz! What about the pure and innocent image that you’ve always maintained? Was all that just an act? Is everyone in the Shen family perverts like—”
Yin Mengfan’s palm connected with Shen Hui’s cheeks with a loud smack. Yin Mengfan herself didn’t even realize what she’d done until she heard the loud smack and felt the stinging sensation on her palm.
Yin Mengfan recovered from her shock first.
“Stop talking nonsense!” Yin Mengfan shouted. “Do you know that what he did that day saved Cao Kefei’s life? Cao Kefei! My best friend! Me? A pervert? How could you even say that about me? How could you…” Yin Mengfan slumped back down onto the couch near her desk.
“I- I’m sorry, cuz… I didn’t mean—”
“It was for Uncle Shen’s sake, okay? Li Yundong cured Kefei, so I figured I’d ask him to take a look at Uncle Shen’s condition.” Yin Mengfan glared at Shen Hui, who’d taken a seat beside her on the couch. “Uncle Shen’s birthday is in two months. This is supposed to be my birthday gift for him—a person who can cure his illness!” Yin Mengfan sniffed.
A guilty look formed on Shen Hui’s face. “I’m sorry, cuz… I misunderstood you. I- I was wrong… Forgive me?”
Yin Mengfan looked away without saying anything.
“Come on, you know me! Me and my stupid mouth, right? Always saying things without thinking them through first… Here, how about this? Why don’t I hit my own stupid mouth…”
SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! SMACK! SMACK—
Yin Mengfan burst into laughter. Shen Hui stopped smacking her mouth and smiled. “Should I hit myself some more?” Shen Hui raised her palm again.
Yin Mengfan laughed and pulled down Shen Hui’s hand. “Enough already, geez.” Yin Mengfan studied Shen Hui’s cheek, where red fingermarks had already formed. “Does it hurt?”
Shen Hui grinned. “My skin is super thick, so it’s fine! As long as you’re not mad at me, of course…”
Yin Mengfan shook her head helplessly. “I hate you…” she grumbled. “Why do you have to make me cry the moment you see me. Now my makeup is ruined!”
Shen Hui clung to Yin Mengfan’s arm. “You don’t need makeup. You’re a natural beauty, cuz.”
Yin Mengfan rose from the couch. “Whatever. Now let’s go or we’re gonna be late, or worse, miss the chance to see him.” Yin Mengfan grabbed a napkin from her desk and dabbed her eyes with it. “It took me quite a while to track him down.” She tossed the napkin into the dustbin. “I had to ask Zhou Qin for his address.”
Shen Hui snorted. “You asked Zhou Qin for help?”
“Yeah. And now she’s waiting for me at Tiannan University. So let’s not keep her waiting, shall we?”
“Of all the people in the world, why does it have to be him…” Shen Hui grumbled, rising from the couch.
Yin Mengfan began fixing her makeup. “You weren’t there, okay? I saw with my own eyes how he brought Kefei out of a cardiac arrest with just a head massage. He didn’t even break a sweat.”
Shen Hui snorted. “I bet it’s all an act. I heard he and Cao Kefei went out for drinks after that. Cao Kefei must have helped him put on an act and then receive sexual favors from him in exchange!”
The makeup kit clacked loudly against the desk when Yin Mengfan slammed it down in anger. “Keep saying stuff like that and I won’t be bringing you along with me!”
Shen Hui jumped slightly. “No, don’t! I- I’ll shut up. I’ll be good! I swear!”
Yin Mengfan shook her head and retrieved her car keys again. “Hurry up. Let’s go.”
***
Twenty minutes later, Yin Mengfan’s Audi A6 pulled up by the curb near Tiannan University’s gates. When Yin Mengfan lowered her window, she saw Zhou Qin having a conversation with two other women beside the gates.
Yin Mengfan poked her head out. “Zhou Qin!” When Zhou Qin looked over, Yin Mengfan gave her a wave.
Zhou Qin nodded in greeting, then turned back to address the two women she’d been speaking with. After that, all three women approached the Audi A6 together.
“So good to see you again, President Yin!” Zhou Qin greeted with a smile.
Yin Mengfan got out of the car and studied the two women beside Zhou Qin.
“These are my seniors, Feng Na and Cheng Cheng,” Zhou Qin said.
Yin Mengfan smiled. “Hello. I’m Yin Mengfan, the president of Dongsheng Realtors. It’s a pleasure to meet you both.” Yin Mengfan shook hands with both women and exchanged a few more pleasantries.
“I dropped by Li Yundong’s apartment this morning,” Zhou Qin continued. “But he wasn’t there. After that I ran into my seniors, who told me that they know where Li Yundong is. It just so happens that they have business with Li Yundong too. So I figured why not we all go see him together.”
Yin Mengfan smiled. “Sounds good.” She jerked her thumb towards her car. “Shall we?”
Zhou Qin nodded. “I brought my car as well.” Zhou Qin looked towards Feng Na and Cheng Cheng. “Do you two mind if we take my ca—”
The rumbling of an engine cut Zhou Qin off midsentence. A second later, another car—a Lamborghini—pulled up by the curb, stopping right behind Yin Mengfan’s car.
Yin Mengfan stared at the Lamborghini in surprise. Kefei? What is she doing here?
A moment later, the Lamborghini’s door swung open and Kefei stepped out. When Kefei took off her sunglasses, she seemed as surprised as Yin Mengfan felt.
“President Yin? What are you doing here?”
Yin Mengfan chuckled. “I could ask you the same thing, President Cao. What are you doing here? I thought you’re supposed to be resting.”
Kefei laughed bitterly. “Right. As if I have time to rest when there’s so much work to be done… And speaking of work… That brat Li Yundong bailed on me without even completing the assignment I gave him. And now he wasn’t even picking up my calls! I’ve been trying to reach him for two days, geez! So here I am, hoping to find him in Tiannan University.”
Yin Mengfan chuckled. “Must be an important assignment, then. I mean, you usually just let Xiao Zhang handle such menial tasks.”
A tiny smirk tugged at the corners of Kefei’s lips. It disappeared quickly, but not before Yin Mengfan saw it.
Kefei seemed to have noticed Yin Mengfan’s curious gaze on her. She turned away to address the rest of the group. “Wait. Don’t tell me you guys are looking for Li Yundong too?” Kefei’s eyes went from person to person in their group.
Yin Mengfan smirked. This was clearly an attempt to change the subject. What are you up to, Kefei?
Still, Yin Mengfan decided not to inquire further into what Kefei was hiding, at least not in front of outsiders. People in their line of work hated it the most when others start poking their noses into their business. Yin Mengfan smiled and decided to play along. “Well, how observant of you President Cao! All of us here are looking for Li Yundong. And these two girls”—Yin Mengfan gestured at Feng Na and Cheng Cheng—”know where he is. In fact, they’re just about to take us to him.”
“Wow! What a coincidence! That’s great! Why don’t we all go together!” Suddenly, Kefei’s gaze zeroed in on Zhou Qin. “I can give you guys a lift if you want.”
Zhou Qin smiled. “That’s so kind of you, President Cao. And yes, if it’s no trouble, then we’d like a lift.”
“It’s not a problem at all,” Kefei answered casually.
Zhou Qin turned towards Feng Na and Cheng Cheng. “Do you guys want to ride with President Yin, or…?”
Feng Na and Cheng Cheng shared a glance. “We prefer to ride with you and President Cao, if that’s okay?” Feng Na said, glancing from Zhou Qin to Kefei.
“No problem at all!” Kefei said. “Hop in!”
