Jiang Ruyi spent the next few days in the Peace Mansion. The woman had no issue when interacting or communicating with Xia Changhe. She had long been referring to him as ‘Uncle Xia’, there was already a foundation for their transition into father and daughter in law. Xia Xue, on the other hand, accepted her right away. They were neighbours and Jiang Ruyi had always been feeding her candy. The woman had long bought over this ‘younger sister’ of hers.
Truthfully, if Liang Siyao was the female boss of the Thunder Horse Military Factory, then Jiang Ruyi was the female boss when it came to family relations.
Now that he had successfully handled his problems with the Knight Hospitaller and lost all courage to barge into the ancient alloy world, Xia Lei spent the next two days pouring all his concentration into work. The Thunder Horse’s first tank was at its last phase of technical research. Everyone was counting on him to solve all the difficult technical obstacles they faced. Aside from that, he was also required to oversee the new material project and progress of the Artificial Intelligence department. Though Li Youdon and Huang Xuewen were both intelligent talents, they didn’t possess a super brain like his. The tank technology, new material and AI technology came from him. Xia Lei’s mind was like the CPU of a computer, it was a compulsory element.
With that, Xia Lei tried to practise good work-life balance by going to work in the morning and returning home to rest in the night.
However, the rest he was getting was merely theoretical. There were two women who yearned to be a mother back home and he was the only one who could make their dreams a reality. When night fell, either Jiang Ruyi or Liang Siyao would join him in bed. Not a night was free from strenuous activity.
Perhaps it was out of concern for his recent busy episode that Jiang Ruyi decided to boil herbal soup every day for him. Her soups were filled with deer antlers, tiger whip, ginseng and all sorts of nourishing materials. Consuming it once a day was alright. However, she would serve it for breakfast, send it to the office in the afternoon and serve it after dinner in the night. The frequent consumption was getting too much for him to stomach.
Days like this went on for a week until Jiang Ruyi’s leave was over.
On the day when Jiang Ruyi was set to return to Haizhu, Xia Lei drove her to the airport.
“Wow, I really don’t want to leave.” Jiang Ruyi sighed as they made it into the hall.
“Then don’t,” said Xia Lei.
“Really?” Her eyes glimmered as she stared at him.
Xia Lei flashed her a grin. “Of course. I have more than enough to support you.”
Jiang Ruyi snickered. “I know that very well and I’d really like to stay but… Nevermind, going back to our lives is probably the best for now. That way, I will never get sick of you.”
“What’s with that face?” Jiang Ruyi immediately noticed that he had interpreted her words wrong. She punched Xia Lei playfully. “Hey, you damned pervert. I’m not talking about getting sick of that!”
Xia Lei laughed. “Alright, the offer still stands. You can resign and come work for me. You can work with Liang Siyao. Alternatively, you can just live at my place and do nothing. I’ll support you. I won’t force you if you’d like some time before making a decision. Whenever you’re ready, all you need to do is pack your bags and come. Remember, we’re a family now.”
His words filled her with warmth, Jiang Ruyi could feel nothing but happiness. She embraced Xia Lei tightly, not willing to let him go. She broke the silence after a heartbeat, “I still love my current job. I have eight days of leave each month. If you don’t come to me, I’ll just come to you. As long as I can be with you, I am content.”
Who wouldn’t want to live with someone they loved?
Her decision had her own supporting rationale. It wasn’t because she was worried that she’d get sick of Xia Lei someday. It was just that Xia Lei had too many women around him. If she were to stick to him like glue, how would the other women react to it?
Her decision was for the sake of Xia Lei. She loved him. She was willing to accept his complicated and messy private life. The current arrangement was the best for her, Jiang Ruyi was no match against women like Liang Siyao and Shentu Tianyin. The smartest way to survive is to distance herself from the warzone.
“Alright, I should go in now. You should go back too.” Jiang Ruyi pried herself away from Xia Lei, then tidied his crumpled suit and tie.
“Remember to go get examined. If you’re pregnant, decline all dangerous operations and avoid strenuous exercise. I wouldn’t want my baby to be hurt,” reminded Xia Lei.
Jiang Ruyi flashed him a smile. “Jeez, we don’t even know if there’s a child on the way and you’re already so protective. I bound myself to a lifetime of misery. You two will most definitely bully the shit out of me later.”
Xia Lei just stared at her in silence.
Jiang Ruyi took that as her cue, waved goodbye, and left.
Though it was still unclear if she was pregnant, from Xia Lei’s relentless performance and effort for the last few nights, it was entirely possible.
The image of a pregnant Jiang Ruyi placed a smile on his face. As he drove back to the Thunder Horse Military Factory, his mind pondered. “Fan Fan’s pregnant. If Ruyi and Siyao are pregnant, I would have three kids. Would Long Bing be willing to give me a child? If she was willing to, that would make it four kids. Wouldn’t that be wonderful?”
Ring… Ring…
As his mind wandered all about, his phone rang. He glanced at the screen before swiping it. “Ah Bing, I was just thinking about calling you.”
“Haha.” Long Bing laughed dryly. “I’m not some seventeen-year-old girl. You can’t trick me. You’ve been crazy busy for a while, would you still have the time to think about me?”
“I’m serious. I was thinking about asking if you would like to bear a little monkey or a princess for me.”
“What the fuck? Hell no.” Long Bing quickly diverted the topic. “Come to Bureau 101 quick, there are two visitors you’d like to see.”
“Who?” Xia Lei’s curiosity was piqued.
“You’ll know when you’re here. I’ll be waiting for you.” Long Bing ended the call.
Xia Lei could only sigh. Long Bing was a great woman but she wasn’t keen on being a mother. Though he was a little dejected, he understood her.
Half an hour later, a Cavalier’s XV heavy off-road vehicle made it to the entrance of Bureau 101. This was a little something Xia Lei decided to treat himself to after returning from Malta. The hefty six-tonne vehicle was worth twenty million, equipped with a V10 engine. Its overall performance was way superior to that of any military four-wheel drive. The shell was practically impenetrable to normal bullets. With this baby, he could even avoid attacks from RPG rocket bullets or roadside bombs. It was basically like driving a moving fortress.
The appearance of Xia Lei and his new Cavaliers XV heavy off-road vehicle immediately attracted much attention. Normally, people would only be able to catch a glimpse of it in Fast and Furious 5, where Johnson drove it.
Tang Yuyan and Long Bing were part of the curious crowd.
“Since when did he buy this car?! It’s hideous!” complained Tang Yuyan. The woman found it hard to move past the trauma. Now, everything about him was infuriating to her.
Long Bing had her eyes glued to the majestic Cavaliers XV heavy off-road vehicle that stuck out like a sore thumb in the parking lot. “I find it pretty cool. I’d really like to have a car like that.”
Long Bing loved four-wheel drives. The woman had mostly driven her fierce military warrior off-road vehicle. Sadly, her ride pales in comparison to Xia Lei’s new drive. It was almost akin to comparing an Audi to a Ferrari.
Tang Yuyan tossed her a weird glance. “You like that? That car is probably worth twenty million, how are you going to afford that with your salary? It’s a car that I wouldn’t dare to buy for myself. The car is almost the price of a plane. Only prodigals like Xia Lei would buy that.”
At this moment, Xia Lei approached them. With a toss, a central control key flew towards Long Bing.
Long Bing caught it with ease. “What are you up to?”
Xia Lei smiled. “I saw the way you looked at my car and I know that you like two things. Guns and four-wheel drives. If you like it so much, I’ll gift it to you.”
“Huh?” Long Bing gaped.
Tang Yuyan could feel her jaw drop.
The man had gifted away his twenty million dollar car just because of the appreciative stares Long Bing had graced it. If gifting cars to women was a new height, then Xia Lei was clearly a god.
Xia Lei said, “I already paid its taxes but I hadn’t gotten to install its car plate. I’m sure you can get it done fast.”
“No, no, no.” Long Bing finally snapped out of it, quickly returning the keys into Xia Lei’s hand.
“I… I can’t accept such an expensive gift from you.”
Tang Yuyan interrupted them. “Yeah, what would your Fan Fan think about you giving something so expensive to Long Bing? Wouldn’t that just be fuel for fights?”
Xia Lei chuckled. “Now that you mention it, I should call Fan Fan and have her accompany Ah Bing to get the car plate done.”
Tang Yuyan was rendered speechless.
Long Bing had failed at returning Xia Lei his keys. Truthfully, she didn’t want to decline his gift because the car was beautiful.
After a few pushes and pulls, Long Bing sighed and gave in. Sheepishly, she mumbled, “I… I guess I’ll accept it.”
Xia Lei nodded. “I’ll go buy another so we can both drive a few.”
Watching the scene, Tang Yuyan forced her lips into a line. Her tone was filled with jealousy. “Director Xia, you really are living like a king now. The government arranged a wife for you and then you got Liang Siyao into your harem. Oh, right. How could I forget Jiang Ruyi? I know she has stayed a week at your place. Look at you now, you got women everywhere. You’re literally living in paradise.”
Xia Lei smiled helplessly. “Yuyan, you know my circumstances. Don’t rub more salt in my wound.”
Tang Yuyan rolled her eyes at him. “If this is considered a wound, all men would love to be covered in wounds, no?”
Xia Lei choked at her words.
“Since I had my eyes glued to your new car, how about you give me one too?” Tang Yuyan challenged.
Xia Lei could feel his head throb. The man was starting to regret his attempts to make Long Bing happy by gifting her an expensive car in front of Tang Yuyan. Now Tang Yuyan was asking for a Cavalier’s XV. Was he really going to give her one?
“Yeah? You could give Long Bing one but not me?” Tang Yuyan glared at him.
At this moment, Long Bing interrupted the tension. “Lei, come stay the night at my place later. I’ll inform Liang Siyao.”
Tang Yuyan was taken aback.
Long Bing had intended to tell her that the man was willing to give her a car because she sleeps with him.
“If you want him to get you a car, go sleep with him tonight,” whispered Long Bing into her ear.
She was a daughter of the Tang family. There was no way she would sleep with anyone for the sake of a Cavalier’s XV, even if the man was Xia Lei.
