The sleet turned into light snow, falling with a soft, rustling sound. It vanished the moment it touched the ground, yet many people still looked forward to it, hoping the snow would fall more heavily.
Xia Tingwang was one of them. She stood at the entrance of the cafeteria, reaching out to catch the flakes. They were too small to distinguish with the naked eye before melting into a damp smear on her palm, leaving only a cold, wet sensation.
Zhuang Yan stopped her car at the cafeteria entrance. Beside it was parked the car she had given to Sang Ying. The two vehicles had already attracted quite a few onlookers, feeling somewhat out of place.
The mutton soup was still warm in her stomach, and Xia Tingwang suddenly did not want to leave.
She had not heard Sang Ying’s voice for several days, and it felt as agonizing as if her heart were being clawed at. A single meal was not enough to satisfy Xia Tingwang, especially with several annoying people hovering around her.
Zhuang Yan walked toward her with an umbrella. Xia Tingwang shoved her hands into her pockets and walked down the steps slowly. The mechanical sounds of the world echoed in her ears, near and far, and she felt nothing but annoyance.
Xia Tingwang stopped in her tracks and turned her head. “While the snow has not gotten heavy yet, do you want to practice driving?”
Xia Tingwang sat in Sang Ying’s car as she had wished. She was in the back seat behind the driver, Sang Ying was at the wheel, and Zhuang Yan was in the passenger seat just in case.
Sang Ying rubbed her hands together. She had not touched a car since getting her driver’s license over a year ago. After Zhuang Yan coached her through the controls once, everything came back to her.
Still, she was somewhat afraid to start the engine.
Driving had once seemed like a simple task to Sang Ying. When she was a sophomore, her classmates had all signed up for the exam, so she followed suit. She learned much faster than the others; while it might take someone else a week or more to grasp, she could master it in just two or three visits.
She had passed all the subjects with perfect scores on her first try.
But when she truly stepped away from the driving school and put her hands on the steering wheel, she felt incredibly nervous, especially with Xia Tingwang sitting in the car.
“It is okay,” Xia Tingwang said, patting the seat. “Zhuang Yan is here, so feel free to drive.”
Xia Tingwang leaned in close to her to speak, and the scent of her perfume made Sang Ying grip the steering wheel tighter.
An unexpected thought sparked in her mind. She really wanted to know what Xia Tingwang’s pheromones smelled like. Would they smell better than this expensive perfume?
“Turn the key to start it,” Zhuang Yan said.
Zhuang Yan’s voice pulled Sang Ying back to reality. She cleared her throat and looked into the rearview mirror. “Fasten your seatbelts.”
Xia Tingwang obediently buckled her seatbelt.
Once the car started, Sang Ying’s attention was entirely fixed on the vehicle, leaving her no time to overthink. This car was much easier to drive than the manual transmission ones at the driving school.
She just needed to press the accelerator and control the steering wheel.
“Is it not simple?” Zhuang Yan said. “Your intuition is very strong.”
The car left the school and drove eastward, following a remote road for over an hour. Sang Ying grew increasingly comfortable. By the time it was pitch black outside and the snow began to fall heavily, she turned the car around to head back to school.
“Park the car in the teacher’s parking spot next to the basketball court, number 31,” Xia Tingwang said. “That parking space is yours from now on.”
Sang Ying parked the car in the spot Xia Tingwang had specified. This was a reserved parking area for teachers. Occasionally, wealthy students would park there, but even then, it was only temporary; no one could truly own a dedicated space.
Yet, she now had one.
The snow was falling harder. Zhuang Yan got out to drive Xia Tingwang’s own car, while Xia Tingwang sat in the car waiting. She tapped her phone screen a few times and handed it to Sang Ying. “Read this out loud.”
Sang Ying took it and saw that it was the formula for a skincare product. She recognized at a glance that it was a VW eye cream. She parted her lips and read it exactly as written.
Xia Tingwang crossed her arms, a smile playing on her lips as she enjoyed the moment. It was too pleasant to hear. She truly wanted to take Sang Ying home and have her speak into her ear twenty-four hours a day.
The formula was quickly read through. Sang Ying asked, “What is the matter, CEO Xia?”
“What?”
“I finished reading,” Sang Ying turned her head to return the phone. “Is there a problem with this formula?”
What problem? The “problem” was that it sounded wonderful.
Xia Tingwang did not take the phone back. “Read it again.”
Sang Ying read it once more. “There is nothing wrong with it. VW’s product formulas leave many other brands in the dust.”
Sang Ying knew a lot about these things. Even the eye cream she was developing herself was only for basic hydration; if she wanted more powerful functions, she would have to continue researching.
Xia Tingwang had not heard enough and wanted her to continue, but Sang Ying suddenly asked, “Why?”
“Huh?” Xia Tingwang was confused.
“CEO Xia, why,” Sang Ying looked at her. “Why are you so good to me, arranging the car and the parking space and everything?”
Sang Ying had always been a straightforward person. Xia Tingwang’s inexplicable kindness toward her had been bothering her for several days.
Xia Tingwang paused. She did it to keep Sang Ying working for her, and so she could hear the only sound in the world that mattered to her. Was it not normal to spend a little money and effort?
“We are business partners. Providing a car is not for your benefit, but to make it more convenient for you to serve me. Is there a problem with that?”
Sang Ying did not expect such an answer, and her expression froze. Zhuang Yan had already driven up and was trotting over with an umbrella to pick her up.
Xia Tingwang took the phone from her hand and got out of the car. Sang Ying watched her retreating figure and felt a sense of mockery.
What kind of nonsense was she thinking about? How could she dare to imagine that a princess would fall for a Cinderella like her?
She smiled and touched her chest. It felt somewhat empty inside.
As the year-end approached, Xia Tingwang was quite busy with endless summary meetings, year-end risk assessments, and product pros-and-cons analyses.
A supplier abroad had been providing new raw materials to VW, and Xia Tingwang had to go abroad before the new year.
She looked at her upcoming schedule and fell into deep thought. Going abroad meant being away for three to five days, and due to the time difference, she might not be able to watch Sang Ying’s livestreams in real-time.
By the time she returned, it would be only a few days before the New Year, and Sang Ying would be returning to her hometown.
No, she had to find a way.
The car stopped in the courtyard of her uncle’s house. As soon as Xia Tingwang stepped out, she was tackled by a little white ball and reflexively caught him.
“Auntie!” The little ball in her arms shouted excitedly. “Hug!”
Xia Tingwang smiled and tried to lift him up, but the little one was dressed in layers and looked quite sturdy, so she failed to lift him.
“Auntie can’t lift Nemo anymore,” Xia Tingwang squatted down and kissed his cheek. “Nemo has grown taller.”
Her aunt walked out from inside, shaking the toy car in her hand. “He is dressed like a dumpling, how could you lift him? Hurry, bring your aunt inside.”
Nemo was attracted by the car in his grandmother’s hand and tugged on Xia Tingwang as they ran into the house.
The noise of children in the house was a profound experience for Xia Tingwang every time she visited her uncle’s place. The five-year-old was a perpetual motion machine, his little legs running up and down the stairs non-stop. He never seemed tired, and the servants followed behind him, anxious and worried that he might trip, bump into something, or fall.
“How is it,” her uncle, Li Shaoyong, said with a smile. “Is it much livelier with a child in the house?”
Xia Tingwang chewed on a crab leg without answering. She never felt that having a child made things livelier. She was learning exactly how exhausting raising a child was right here.
With so many servants in the house, plus her aunt and Nemo’s parents, they were still not worried enough.
“You will be thirty after the New Year,” Li Shaoyong changed the subject. “When your cousin was your age, Nemo was already four.”
Nonsense. Her cousin was only one year older than her.
Her aunt joined in. “Yinyin, I know quite a few unmarried Alphas, both men and women. How about I call some of them over during the New Year for you to meet?”
“Whoosh, flying, flying!” Nemo’s shouting came from the second floor. Xia Tingwang pulled out a wet wipe to clean her hands and mouth. Nemo was cute, but the sound of his shouting felt like a piercing mechanical noise to her.
She sighed helplessly. “The company is too busy, I do not want to fall in love or get married for the time being.”
“Work is never-ending,” her aunt served her a bowl of soup. “We Ogas should have children sooner rather than later. After thirty, bodily functions decline rapidly. Don’t you want to have a cute little baby?”
Xia Tingwang had never thought about giving birth to a child herself. Even in her fantasies, it would only be with an Alpha she liked. She had never met an Alpha who had made her heart beat faster.
With her sensitive hearing, having a child would just mean one more mechanical noise. It was enough to drive her crazy.
If, and only if, the child could have a special, unique voice like Sang Ying’s, then having one would be quite nice.
Wait, what was she thinking?
Xia Tingwang held the soup and, for the first time, downed it in a very ungraceful manner.
“If you are worried that there will be no elders to help take care of the child,” her aunt said, “I will take care of you. With me here, you have nothing to worry about.”
Her aunt and her Oga mother were classmates and good friends, and it was because of that connection that her aunt had met her uncle.
Xia Tingwang was caught off guard by their enthusiasm and waved her hands. “My dear aunt, let me meet an Alpha I actually like first.”
Marriage and having children were such big life events; naturally, she had to find someone she liked.
Tonight was the night of the livestream. Upon leaving her uncle’s house, Xia Tingwang could not wait to open the livestream room. It was already more than halfway through.
Once certain thoughts had been opened up, everything that followed was out of her control. Sang Ying’s forehead, bridge of her nose, and lips were all perfectly shaped. Setting aside her voice and just looking at her face, she was a beautiful female Alpha.
Then, what kind of baby would she have with an Alpha like that?
Realizing what she was thinking, Xia Tingwang snapped the tablet shut, her cheeks heating up for no reason.
What a mess of thoughts.
“This essence cannot be used by pregnant women. It is best for pregnant women not to use skincare products containing hormones.”
Sang Ying’s voice came out through the speaker. “This one contains niacinamide, which has whitening functions, so it is not suitable for pregnant women. Pregnant women can purchase the lotion from the previous set; it focuses on hydration and contains no hormones.”
Pregnant women? What pregnant women!
Xia Tingwang opened the tablet again and saw a stream of comments asking what was suitable for pregnant women.
Her face darkened, and she closed it again, no longer looking at the screen.
At 10:00 PM, the sound of Sang Ying ending the stream came from the tablet. Xia Tingwang rolled down the car window, and after the broadcast ended, she tapped the dial button on her phone.
Sang Ying answered quickly. “CEO Xia.”
Xia Tingwang said, “There is a raw material factory in S Country that is a partner of VW. They have recently produced a new type of material. You know a lot about chemistry, so help me go take a look.”
Mentioning chemistry piqued Sang Ying’s interest. “Alright. When? I have my final exam for the last subject the day after tomorrow.”
Xia Tingwang checked the flight schedule for the day after tomorrow and said without changing her expression, “The day after the day after tomorrow.”