Following Yu Jing into the house, the two were just about to change into slippers when Yu Jing suddenly exclaimed, "Damn it!" Song Qingcheng followed her gaze and saw a pair of brown suede handmade leather shoes in the entranceway.

Seeing the man coming down the stairs, Yu Jing quickly picked up the bag lying at her feet and greeted him politely: "Uncle Second, you're home!"

Yutingchuan came back from a business trip ahead of schedule and was immediately assigned an impromptu meeting at the company. An important document was left at his ancestral home, so he came over to get it. Seeing his nephew standing in the entrance hall, he raised his wrist to glance at the time on his watch: "School let out this early today?"

On Friday, after we finished cleaning the whole place, the teacher let us go home early.

"Didn't you have the driver pick them up?"

After the questions were asked, Yutingchuan already noticed another graceful figure at the door.

The man wore a charcoal-gray shirt, the top two buttons unbuttoned. He was tall and imposing, with the air of a mature man. When his gaze swept over you, it appeared calm on the surface, but there was an underlying aura of power that was impossible to describe in words. It made you hesitate to play games around him.

"I came back with Qingcheng by taxi." Yu Jing said, circling Bian's arm and introducing: "Second Uncle, this is my classmate Song Qingcheng, from the next class."

Yutingchuan nodded, didn't ask any more questions, picked up the suit draped on the sofa and prepared to leave.

"Uncle Two, aren't you eating dinner at home?"

"Well, I have some things to take care of at the company."

Yu Jing held onto Song Qingcheng and leaned against the side, letting them pass. She said flattering words: "Uncle Two, please drive carefully."

Yu Tingchuan changed into his leather shoes and wanted to look at his nephew, but his gaze first fell on Yu Jing, the classmate who had remained silent from start to finish. The girl stood there quietly, her long black hair tied in a ponytail, revealing her smooth forehead, with a few strands casually falling by her cheeks. Her blue-and-white summer uniform didn't make her look old at all; instead, she exuded an air of purity.

At that moment, Yutingchuan's phone rang.

He took out his phone from his pocket and glanced at it, then instructed Yu Jing, the man's voice was steady and magnetic: "Study hard, don't just play computer games."

Yu Qing nodded repeatedly.

Until the sound of a car engine came from outside, Yu Jing relaxed and sat down on the ground. She patted the spot beside her, gesturing to Song Qingcheng, then turned her head towards the kitchen and said, "Aunt Xu, make two banana smoothies for us!"

From the doorway, Song Qingcheng asked casually, "Are you afraid of your uncle?"

Yu Qing was frowning and mumbling, "Don't even mention it. The person I fear the most in this family is my second uncle."

"Did he hit someone?"

"That's not true." Yu Jing pulled Song Qingcheng onto the sofa with her: "He just isn't very talkative, and doesn't say much usually. Maybe he has to keep a straight face as CEO to control people."

At that moment, the domestic helper brought two cups of milk tea to the living room.

Song Qingcheng took it and thanked him.

Aunt Xu didn't look at it for much longer.

Having sensed eyes looking down at her from above, Song Qingcheng looked up and smiled faintly at Aunt Xu. It was Aunt Xu who seemed a little embarrassed, addressing Yu Jing with, “Jingjing, this is your classmate? She’s so beautiful.”

"That's right!" Yu Jing hooked her arm around Song Qingcheng's shoulder, proudly saying, "Qingcheng is our Yuan Wei's goddess. The people chasing after her could circle our school several times."

Song Qingcheng lowered her eyelashes, and there seemed to be a slight curve at the corner of her lips.

I've always known that my face is photogenic.

Or, it was from the day Ge Wenjuan scolded her for looking more and more like that shameless fox mother.

……

Late one night, shortly after nine o'clock, Song Qingcheng returned to the Lu family villa. As soon as she opened the door, her vision blurred. Before she could react, a slap landed on her left cheek.

"What are you hitting the child for!" Lu Xishan's voice boomed.

"Child?" Ge Wenjuan sneered. "You treat this nephew of yours like a precious jewel, but he doesn't treat you like his own father! I went through many channels to get in touch with Mr. Liu. His wife passed away last year and his only son is studying abroad. Many people are hoping to become his wealthy wife. But you offended him to death! If Mr. Liu hadn't called me and said he didn't pick anyone up at the school gate, we wouldn't have known how long we would have been kept in the dark."

Song Qingcheng's skin was delicate and fair. The slap immediately left a red mark on her cheek.

Looking up, meeting Ge Wenjuan's furious glare, Shan Ruliu smoothly said: "Auntie, the last time you took me to a restaurant for dinner, you didn't tell me it was a blind date. Besides, in matters of matchmaking, it's all about compatibility. If we don't get along, it's normal. We didn't say that we have to register for marriage after just one meeting."

"Lü Xishan, listen to yourself. After raising you for so many years, how do you repay us now?"

Lu Xishan shouted, "Speak two sentences to me!"

"Let him go and meet Liu Zong. Didn't you agree? With Liu Zong's good conditions, he's being picky. If those scandalous things get out, which family in Nancheng would want him? He even looks down on Liu Zong! We should be grateful that someone doesn't reject him!"

Song Qingcheng smiled with her lips pursed. "It's a pity that my elder sister got married early, otherwise, considering how much aunt favors Mr. Liu, she would definitely treat the almost fifty-year-old Mr. Liu like her son in the future."

"You!" Ge Wenjuan choked on her anger, pointing at Song Qingcheng: "What kind of parents, what kind of child! Your mother had a wild affair while married and gave birth to you. After her husband died, she abandoned you and remarried. Sure enough, the upper beam is crooked, and the lower beam is also crooked."

Lu Xishan finally couldn't stand it anymore and slapped him back.

"You hit me?" Ge Wenjuan covered her face, looking at her husband in disbelief.

Lu Xishan gritted his teeth, his face extremely ugly. He said to Song Qingcheng, "Qingcheng, you go upstairs first."

Song Qingcheng's pretty face always had a faint smile, even when Ge Wenjuan said harsh words and her left cheek burned with pain. She didn't even frown. Hearing Lu Xishan's instructions, she nodded: "Uncle and aunt, I'm going back to my room."

……

Song Qingcheng threw her schoolbag onto the bed and picked up the mineral water on her dressing table, gulping down half the bottle to stave off hunger.

Not having dinner at home, he saw the domestic helper start to lay out bowls and chopsticks on the table, so he said he had something to do and left first. He didn't return to Lu's house until after two hours of aimlessly wandering outside.

From downstairs, there were occasional spats between Ge Wenjuan and Lu Xishan.

Song Qingcheng walked to the cabinet, opened the door, and took out an iron box from the bottom drawer. She then lifted the lid of the box and pulled out a copy of Entertainment Weekly hidden under other things. Flipping through it casually, she landed on the page with the bent corner.

This is a page of gossip news.

The photo is not very clear, but it's possible to tell that there are a man and a woman standing next to a business sedan. They are both wearing sunglasses and masks. The woman is tall and stands out from the crowd. As for the man, he is wearing a white shirt and black suit. There is only one blurred, long shadow of him, but it still gives you the feeling of his commanding presence.

The title is highlighted and enlarged in the center of the page: —Actress Zhou Qi attends a late-night meeting with Hengyuan's CEO.

"Tap, tap..." The sound of knocking on the door echoed.

Song Qingcheng put the magazine and tin box back into the drawer, closing the cabinet door as she got up. When Lu Xishan pushed open the door to enter, all he saw was her drinking water with her head tilted back.

Lu Xishan is here now, his intentions are obvious.

As expected, after showing concern for her slightly swollen face, Lu Xishan spoke in a serious tone: "I've already told your aunt, this evening, Mr. Liu called your aunt. He really likes you and hopes that our two families can get engaged. Of course, if you don't like Mr. Liu, your uncle won't force you. But in today's society, it's not easy to find a well-off partner. Your uncle doesn't want you to suffer after getting married."

Song Qingcheng quietly lowered her eyes, fiddling with the bottle cap without responding.

The Lu family isn't a wealthy, prosperous one. Their fortune started with Lu Xishan's father venturing into the clothing business at sea. After two generations of hard work, they finally carved out a space for themselves in Nancheng's commercial world. However, in the past five years, the Lu family's clothing company has been struggling. Funds are running dry, and several factories have closed down. If things continue like this, using their property deed as collateral to repay debts at the bank will be inevitable.

So, Ge Wenjuan thought of using marriage to alleviate the company's bankruptcy crisis.

Those unwilling to sacrifice relationships they value can only use outsiders as substitutes.

Lu Xishan sat by the bed, his hands resting on his knees. He paused for a moment and continued: "The hospital called in the evening. I've already transferred 50,000 yuan. It should be enough to cover your grandma's medical expenses and hospitalization fees from July and August."

Song Qingcheng's fingers clenched, the sharp edge of the bottle cap digging into her palm.

Silence spread through the room.

"After a long pause, she finally spoke: 'Uncle, about Mr. Liu's matter, I need some more time to think it over.'"

Riku Shigen's grave expression softened somewhat. He nodded, stood up, and seemed about to say something, but seeing his nephew's pale and unreadable face, he swallowed his words.

Watching Lu Xishan leave the room, Song Qingcheng turned to look at the floor-to-ceiling mirror by the door and examined herself. Her forehead was full and clean, her eyebrows were beautiful, her nose was high and delicate, her lips were pale, she was in her early twenties, just like a flower.

The man that Ge Wenjuan arranged for me to go on a blind date with is about 1.6 meters tall, bald, has a big belly, and even has age spots on his hands.

Do you still remember how Mr. Liu ate with his eyes fixed on himself, a lecherous and vulgar look in his eyes? It was as if he wasn't eating steak, but devouring himself, lying helpless on a porcelain dish.

Song Qingcheng opened her phone and browsed. The page automatically jumped to the Rong she had looked up on the way back.

The search box still read "Yu Tingchuan" in three characters.

<<>>

Song Qingcheng was just about to close Baidu Baike when Yu caught sight of a relevant link, the promotional title for a new residential complex in the suburbs of Nancheng - 'Royal Palace, Dreamy Sandalwood Garden'.

Accompanying a luxurious villa 3D model.

A 1 billion dollar sandalwood plantation is one of Hengyuan's newly launched investment projects this year.