By the time the car reached the vicinity of the Cheng Family, the sky was already growing light, though the streetlights had not yet been completely extinguished. The dimly lit road still revealed that this was a high-end villa district.
Just as the car was about to turn into the neighborhood gate, Cheng Youyi leaned over and called out to the driver, “Excuse me, please stop here. Thank you.”
“Miss Cheng, we must escort you safely home, otherwise we cannot explain ourselves to Mr. Gong,” Wen Zhuo, seated beside her in the car, sternly stopped her with a serious expression.
As Gong Ming’s subordinates, they only recognized their master’s orders, so naturally, they could not comply with her request.
Seeing how tall and burly they were, with weapons tucked behind them and a fierce, intimidating demeanor, Cheng Youyi had no choice but to give up.
She sighed inwardly. These people looked so fierce, and they were driving her home in such a car. If her family saw them, they would probably be terrified, right?
Moreover, she hadn’t yet come up with an excuse to explain her absence last night.
So, she could already imagine how Grandpa would scold her later.
Ugh! If only she hadn’t paid attention to that idiot Gong Qianyu last night, she wouldn’t have ended up in this situation.
The car soon came to a stop in front of the Cheng Family’s main gate. Cheng Youyi got out, stood still, and took a deep breath.
Although she had prepared for the worst, she still felt nervous and afraid when it came time to face it.
It was around five or six in the morning, but the Cheng Family’s small garden was brightly lit. Sister Lin and A Xiang had already gotten up to work, leaving the main hall empty and eerily quiet.
Cheng Youyi walked into the hall, intending to turn on the lights, but as soon as she lifted her foot, she heard a sound from the staircase. Startled, she immediately pulled her foot back and stood still, her heart leaping into her throat.
“Oh, Miss, you’re finally back,” an anxious voice came from behind her.
Was it A Xiang?
Cheng Youyi breathed a sigh of relief and quickly turned around. Recognizing the person, she hurried over, grabbed her, and whispered, “A Xiang, is Dad up yet? And Grandpa… is he… in the house?”
Seeing this, A Xiang quickly stopped her from firing off questions one after another and lowered her voice to remind her, “Miss, Sir and Madam searched for you all night and were nearly frantic with worry. Why didn’t you call when you stayed over at the Gong Family? What time is it now? And as for the Old Master, he was even more worried. Fortunately, the Gong Family called later, otherwise the Old Master and the others would have reported you missing.”
“What??!!” Cheng Youyi couldn’t help but exclaim, staring at A Xiang in horror. “You mean… the Gong Family!? Called?”
A Xiang nodded vigorously. “Yes, Miss, weren’t you staying there? Besides, your marriage to Young Master Qianyu is approaching, so there’s nothing to be embarrassed about. Everyone knows about your engagement.”
Cheng Youyi didn’t hear a single word A Xiang said. She only felt dizzy, as if she were weightless, teetering on the verge of collapse.
Oh my god! It’s over. This Gong Family is not that Gong Family.
If Grandpa and her parents found out about what happened between her and Gong Ming, she would be dead for sure.
He actually called the Cheng Family—was he trying to shorten her life? Given Grandpa’s temperament, if he found out about that incident, he’d definitely strip a layer of skin off her.
Cheng Youyi was completely stunned. She looked at A Xiang with a dejected expression and said weakly, “A Xiang, I’m going back to my room first. If Grandpa asks for me, tell him I’m asleep and not seeing anyone.”
“Alright, Miss, take care.” Seeing her seemingly shaken, A Xiang didn’t dare say more and quickly stepped aside, watching her disappear from sight.
Cheng Youyi stumbled upstairs and, after returning to her bedroom, quickly locked the door from the inside.
Perhaps exhausted, she slept until evening. Surprisingly, no one disturbed her during that time, and there were none of the stormy scenes she had imagined.
This was too strange. Given the Cheng Family’s strict rules, staying out overnight was a capital offense. She had imagined ten thousand ways she might be beaten to death, but she never expected the day to pass so peacefully.
Cheng Youyi sat up dazedly, her eyes still blurry with sleep. It wasn’t until faint sounds of discussion drifted in from outside her room that she began to sober up.
…
Outside the bedroom, in the living room.
The Cheng Family was flattering and fawning over the man seated on the single sofa.
Everyone was delighted by his arrival. It was said that this younger uncle of the Gong family was usually low-key and rarely interacted with business partners from other families, so the Cheng Family had only a vague impression of him.
They only knew that the entire economic lifeline of the Gong family was in his hands alone.
As for his other identity outside the family, even the Gong family members weren’t entirely clear about it.
Although the Gong and Cheng families had long been bound by a marriage alliance, Cheng Yu Hua was well aware of the vast gap between his status and Gong Ming’s. Naturally, in business, he never dared to hope for any interaction with the other party.
That was until the auction a few days ago, when Gong Ming unexpectedly helped him secure a project with ease. Cheng Yu Hua was deeply grateful for his gesture.
Because of this, he had invited Gong Ming to dinner several times, but each time, his invitation was declined.
Today, however, Gong Ming had broken precedent by visiting in person, bringing along the things his daughter had left behind at the Gong family last night, saying he wanted to return them to her personally. This was enough to prove the Gong family’s regard for his daughter.
Cheng Yu Hua secretly rejoiced, thinking it must be because his daughter had stayed overnight at the Gong family that they had fully acknowledged the relationship between the two families.
He was inwardly relieved that the marriage alliance had been established since their fathers’ generation. Otherwise, given the Cheng Family’s current status, there was no way they could ever hope to be connected to the Gong family.
“President Gong, I owe you for that project last time. You must stay for dinner tonight so I can express my gratitude,” Cheng Yu Hua said politely, gesturing for him to sit while instructing the butler to serve tea.
Gong Ming nodded indifferently, but his gaze remained fixed on the tightly closed door of Cheng Youyi’s bedroom. His attention was not on anyone else in the Cheng Family at all.
No matter how much Cheng Yu Hua tried to curry favor, Gong Ming’s expression remained cold and aloof, at most nodding politely in acknowledgment.
“Qianyu asked me to pass on a message to my niece-in-law, along with the things she left behind,” Gong Ming abruptly and firmly steered the conversation to Cheng Youyi. Leaning forward slightly, he flicked the ash from his cigarette unhurriedly, his eyes never leaving that closed door.
Hearing this, Cheng Yu Hua’s expression instantly turned extremely awkward.
Gong Ming’s tone was gentle and smooth, but to Cheng Yuhua’s ears, it carried another layer of meaning.
He thought to himself that he must have said something wrong earlier, which was why Gong Ming was so eager to steer the conversation toward his precious daughter. He couldn’t help but feel deeply regretful.
He quickly offered an apologetic smile and said, “My daughter has a rather careless temperament. To think she would trouble you, President Gong, to make a personal trip—I’m truly sorry.”
Gong Ming’s expression remained unchanged as he calmly replied, “It’s fine.”
The Cheng family collectively breathed a sigh of relief. Meanwhile, Grandpa Cheng quietly signaled to Mother Cheng beside him and whispered, “Hurry and wake You You up. Tell her President Gong has come to visit.”
“Right away!” Mother Cheng promptly responded, then quietly slipped out of the hall.