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墨書 Inktalez
“ Mingjie, let me introduce you. This is my girlfriend, Lan Xin'en.” Lin Guangying pulled his buddy and friend to sit down in front of Lan Xin'en. “Xin En, this guy is the troublemaker I told you about, Mingjie. Don’t be fooled by his sharp suit; he’s actually a wolf in sheep’s clothing, always trying to steal other people’s girlfriends… Haha, just kidding, just kidding!”
Lan Xin'en didn’t catch everything Lin Guangying said; she was too busy staring at the man in front of her.
Mingjie had a face that could enchant anyone, with deep-set eyes that sparkled with cunning. His perfect lips curled into a playful smirk. She could easily see his arrogance in every gesture, and he carried an air of decadent nobility from Ancient Europe, an aura that made women weak in the knees.
He kept looking at her with an odd expression. She wanted to look away but found herself unable to.
“Do you really think I need to steal someone else's girlfriend?” Mingjie laughed arrogantly, his devilish gaze lingering on her as if he had no intention of looking away.
“That’s true; with your status and looks, just getting close to you would require a queue—why would you need to steal?”
“Enough about that. Where on earth did you find such a beautiful girl?” Mingjie still hadn’t shifted his gaze.
“She’s my childhood sweetheart,” Lin Guangying said with a hint of shyness.
“Guess it’s true that the one closest to the water gets the first drink.” Mingjie nodded, amused by how the woman before him was staring right back at him. She wasn’t extraordinarily beautiful, but her provocative and proud eyes paired with her adorable doll-like face made it hard to guess her age. “Guangying, how old is this little sister?”
This girl was quite special; she didn’t seem shy under his gaze, which surprised him.
“She’s six years younger than me.”
“You have a thing for younger girls?” Mingjie asked in astonishment.
She was just a high school student; no wonder he always thought she looked like a doll—it wasn’t just his imagination.
"Age is not a problem."
Indeed, age is not an issue.
After ten years, she remained as she once was, focused on driving skillfully without uttering a word. A faint sadness welled up in Zhong Li Ming Jie’s heart.
He hadn’t seen her smile in a long time, it seemed like it had been since that incident.
She didn’t necessarily ignore his presence, but she wouldn’t submit to him or seek his favor; instead, she cleverly waited for him to feel guilty, for him to start making amends because he couldn’t bear the torment of his own guilt.
But how could she understand his thoughts?
"Over there," Lan Xin'en led him upstairs.
Reluctantly guiding Zhong Li Ming Jie back to her house outside the city, she took him to the guest room on the second floor to see the already sleeping Zhong Li Fan. She stood frozen in a corner of the room.
She felt helpless!
She didn’t want to see him, yet he insisted on appearing before her; he wouldn’t have made such a request in the past, but this time, perhaps because of the child, he had become much more assertive and unyielding. At first glance, it felt somewhat like seeing him from ten years ago.
"He’s asleep." Zhong Li Ming Jie tiptoed to the bedside, gazing at his son’s adorable sleeping face and couldn’t help but sigh; it seemed he hadn’t seen his son’s sleeping face in ages.
"Probably Sister Wu took care of him and then tucked him into bed!" She said as she turned to leave but then looked back and added, "Sister Wu is my housekeeper. I really don’t have time to tidy up and I don’t like eating out, so I hired someone to help me. Coincidentally, your son came to visit, and with Sister Wu around, I won’t be overwhelmed. You don’t need to worry about me mistreating your son; no matter how much I dislike him, I wouldn’t do that."
"I would worry that you might abuse him?" He chuckled lightly, following her outside.
There was no need to speak to him in a businesslike tone after work, was there? Her formal demeanor only made him feel uncomfortable.
"Aren't you going to keep him company?" What kind of father was he?
"He's already asleep. I don't want to wake him. I just want to talk to you." As they descended the stairs, he looked at her and then at the artistic decorations in the living room.
"You want to talk to me?" Sitting on the sofa, Lan Xin'en looked a bit dazed, but it didn't last long before she asked, "Did you bring protection?"
She thought he had lost interest in her, but unexpectedly...
"Protection?" He held the cigarette between his lips, momentarily pausing as he lit it, his thick brows knitting slightly.
Lan Xin'en quickly realized she had misunderstood and swiftly changed the subject. "How long do you plan to stay here? I have a project launching soon that I need to focus on, so I might not have time to entertain both of you."
Oh my God, she thought… how embarrassing.
Her ears slowly burned with heat as she struggled to maintain her composure, determined not to let him see her wandering thoughts.
Zhong Li Ming Jie nodded, suddenly understanding what she had just said.
She probably thought he intended to sleep with her, huh? Well, now he couldn't smile about it; he had no idea that in her mind, he was merely that kind of presence. He just wanted to chat with her but was mistaken for someone seeking intimacy!
"Isn't your body still feeling unwell? Didn't I ask A Ye to come help you so you could rest for a few days? Why are you rushing another project now?" Since she didn't want him to find out, he naturally wouldn't be heartless enough to expose her. But did she really need to torture herself like this?
"I’m fine now." After clearing her throat a couple of times, Lan Xin'en tried hard to appear more natural. "Thanks to A Ye's help, I’ve rested for a whole week and feel as strong as an ox."
"As strong as an ox?" What ox was as thin as she was?
"Anyway, I'm doing great now, and work is no problem." She felt a bit unaccustomed to the straightforward conversation between them, as it had never been like this before.
He seemed to treat her like a plaything, coming to her only when he needed something. Their interactions had always been devoid of words, relying solely on actions for tangible benefits. Such simple exchanges were far better than having to engage in idle chatter with him.
Besides, there had never been this kind of relationship between them.
"Our line of work certainly requires seizing opportunities, but without good health, seizing the opportunity is pointless." He didn’t know how many times he had advised her with such earnestness, but it was useless; she simply wouldn’t listen.
"Some people have good health but don’t contribute anything," she retorted subtly, confident he would understand.
But so what? He held a sense of guilt towards her; no matter how much she mocked or glared at him, he remained completely tolerant. She wasn’t taking advantage of him; it was just that she had grown accustomed to this dynamic.
"That's because I have an exceptionally capable Acting President, which allows me to be so relaxed." He understood her words but didn’t argue back because she spoke the truth; even this company wasn’t his creation—he was merely a fortunate heir enjoying the fruits of others' labor.
"Relaxed enough to spend your days idly having children?" She deliberately wiped the acidity from her tone.
Years ago, she had given birth to a child for him because she had decided to go all in; it was a trade-off of sorts—using the child for benefits. After all, she didn’t particularly like children, but upon seeing this one, it was clear that he had lied to her back then.
He had said he didn’t want to marry, but his brother pressured him into marriage for the sake of carrying on the family line. So he wanted a child as an excuse to refuse marriage.
If it was just to refuse marriage, one child would have sufficed. Why did he need so many?
Though she only saw one for now, who knew how many more there could be?
"I'm not that idle; just dealing with one Xiao Fan is enough trouble for me." Zhong Li Ming Jie lazily blew smoke rings, only to find her bright, watery eyes fixed on him. "Xiao Fan is our child; you can't possibly not see that, can you?"
Could she not think of him as such a terrible person?
He did not deny that even without her by his side, women continued to come and go, but that did not mean he wanted other women to bear his children.
"He?" Lan Xin'en suddenly stood up.
"Don't you see how much he resembles you?" He was at a loss for words! "That child doesn't look like me at all; he doesn't even have my temperament."
"But..." How could that be?
"It was you who said you didn't want to see the child, that you didn't want to know his name or anything about him. That's why I kept quiet. But you can't mistakenly think I've gone out and irresponsibly fathered a dozen children, right?" He had no intention of forming a baseball or soccer team.
"Is he really...?"
Seeing him nod, Lan Xin'en weakly collapsed onto the sofa.
Liar! Was it really too exaggerated like in those dramas? They always said that a mother and child could sense each other’s presence, even after being apart for twenty years; just one meeting could reveal their blood connection... Was it that she was heartless and couldn't recognize him, or were those soap operas just trying to tug at people's heartstrings with such human philosophies?
* * *
"Do you feel anything in your heart?"
After a long silence, Zhong Li Ming Jie extinguished his cigarette and lowered his heavy eyelids.
He had rushed to her office right after getting off the plane, and now it was already past seven o'clock. It was no surprise that he felt exhausted.
“No…” she replied, feeling a deep ache in her heart. “You didn’t tell him about our relationship, did you?”
The pain stemmed from the realization that she could not care for him as a mother should. It was hard to believe that the newborn she had brought into the world had grown so much; she had never even fed him a drop of breast milk or given him a bath—things every mother should do, yet she had done none of it.
Time passed quickly, making it hard for her to accept that the child born from her own selfishness was now standing before her, able to converse with her.
“When have I ever failed to do what you asked?” he said with a low chuckle.
When did Zhong Li Ming Jie ever go to such lengths to please a woman? Was it guilt, regret, helplessness, or perhaps affection?
Maybe at first, he only wanted to take what he desired; perhaps he couldn’t stand Lin Guangying’s ecstatic joy at having her and feeling fulfilled for life; maybe he was simply jealous of what Lin Guangying had that he could not possess; or maybe it was just the mindset of someone used to wielding power. Yet the harm he caused her was undeniable; she had indeed broken up with Lin Guangying, shattering his proud smile in the process, but in doing so, he had lost his own happiness.
Because she was even more unhappy.
“Then let’s make sure he never finds out,” Lan Xin'en said, not wanting her mistakes to negatively impact an innocent child. “Since you’ve found him, it’s best to take him back to Manchester soon.”
She didn’t want to see Zhong Li Fan again; his excessive kindness only made her feel guilty.
“Why rush me out when I’ve finally returned to Taiwan?” When did he need her permission just to see her? He felt utterly pathetic. “Anyway, I won’t be going to the office for inspections; everything is up to you. As long as you’re happy.”
If he could truly sever the ties of love, he would never allow himself to suffer like this.
Perhaps this is his retribution. A person who does not understand love cannot bear to see others in love, and he has forcibly torn them apart; moreover, if one does not understand love, they should never experience it at all. Why must he fall in love with her? Is this not a form of retribution?
"You’re lying. You want A Ye to inspect my company; don’t think I don’t know." She merely pretended to be unaware. After all, this was the Zhongli Family's business, and it was only natural for someone from the Zhongli Family to inspect the greatly expanded group. She had no objections; she just disliked the way he spoke, as if he were indulging her.
"That’s an annual inspection, a rule set by my brother. It’s not just Beiheng that does this." Zhong Li Ming Jie opened his cigarette case and elegantly picked up a cigarette, playing with it between his long fingers.
"I only know that your spies are everywhere around me. If there’s even the slightest disturbance, it will certainly escape your notice." The few young people responsible for the Zhongli Family's business always dropped by her place whenever they had free time; was that not surveillance?
Even if she caught a slight cold, Zhongli Ye would know about it and would even insist on sending her home, taking over various meetings on her behalf. Is there really such a coincidence in this world? It was because the company was filled with his informants.
"Aside from needing A Ye to handle some matters for you, I don’t know anything else." He lit his cigarette and wearily closed his eyes.
Sigh! How could she be such an inconsiderate woman? Couldn’t she see that he was exhausted? Shouldn’t she let him rest a bit before continuing their conversation?
He initially wanted to chat casually with her, but what she brought up never seemed to touch his heart, making him feel increasingly uncomfortable.
Lan Xin'en raised an eyebrow and suddenly understood. "You’re not hiding from them, are you? I heard A Ye say you secretly swapped A Chu's painting. Are you afraid A Chu will come looking for you over the painting, so you’re avoiding them?"
He didn’t need to be an art dealer at all because with the wealth he had inherited and her help managing Beiheng Group, he could live much more freely. He didn’t need… No, perhaps this was just one of his tools to get closer to women.
However, she had to admit that he was indeed well-suited to be an art dealer because if a spoiled rich kid like him were to take charge of Beiheng, it would likely plummet like a comet in no time; yet saying he used his identity as an art dealer to attract women seemed plausible as well.
He was a spoiled yet lonely and pitiful nobleman; living alone would surely drive him mad. Thus, he always sought out a crowd of women for company, and she was merely a small dot among thousands of red flowers—a woman he could easily capture and then discard like an old shoe.
"I have nothing to hide," he scoffed.
Though he was about the same age as them, he was a whole generation older, and they still had to call him 'Uncle.' Did he really have to fear them?
"That's true; who would dare defy you, the youngest of the the Zhongli Family?" she retorted coldly.
He was over twenty years younger than their father, Zhongli Jixu, making them half-brothers. He had been spoiled since childhood, so she wasn't surprised by his reckless behavior.
"I'm not as fortunate as you think. Even if I could summon the wind, there would still be times when things don't go my way." He was mocking himself. In the past, he believed that if he wanted something, he could have it all. But upon meeting her, he suddenly realized that fate had its own sense of fairness.
He possessed everything most men desired, yet his heart had no place to rest; loving her made him acutely aware of loneliness and pain.
No one's life can be entirely satisfactory or flawless. Those without money yearn for wealth, those without status crave recognition, and those without love long for affection. The parts we lack are often what we desire most. Perhaps this is humanity's inherent flaw, yet it also serves as the truest confession of our hearts.
She understood his feelings, but she did not respond; he wanted to wait, but ten years had slipped by in the blink of an eye, and the situation remained unfavorable for him. He had exhausted all his means, yet she remained unmoved. What more could he do to make her willingly accept him?
Alas! Even someone like him, who revered civilization and science, found himself wishing for divine intervention.
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