“You know the status of our Gao family, so after we are married, I hope you will make the family your priority. As for children, don’t worry. Our Gao family is not the type to favor Alphas over Omegas. However, we do hope for as many as possible. It is not like we cannot afford to raise them.”
Xia Tingwang stirred her coffee. A brownie, her favorite, sat in front of her, but she did not have the appetite to take a single bite.
The long-haired female Alpha sitting across from her was Gao Shan, 33, the second daughter of Gao’s Real Estate.
“After the wedding, it would be best for you to let a professional manage your company.” Gao Shan sat with her legs crossed. Her long, slender phoenix eyes made it impossible to tell if she was struggling to keep them open or if they were just naturally small. “If you do not trust others, you can hand it over to me, although I do not really know much about your high-end luxury goods.”
Gao Shan pulled out her phone and answered a call right in front of Xia Tingwang. “Hello? What is so important that it has to be said right now?”
Xia Tingwang set down her spoon and leaned back into the sofa. She was only holding back her temper out of respect for her aunt, and she checked her watch.
Ten minutes. If it went beyond ten minutes, she would simply walk out.
“Mm-hmm, let’s leave it at that for now.” Gao Shan hung up.
Nine minutes and eleven seconds. What a pity.
“Where were we?” Gao Shan did not feel the slightest bit apologetic for the nine-minute phone call and naturally picked up the conversation again. “Oh right, while I do not know much about your company, managing any business is mostly the same. I am an expert at it; you can hand it over to me without worry.”
Gao Shan took a sip of her coffee. “To be honest, you are beautiful, and I am quite satisfied with you. It is just that you are a bit on the older side. Omegas are at their most fragile, and reproductive capabilities start to decline after twenty-five. You are already thirty, but it is a problem that can be overcome. Once we are married, you can stay home peacefully to focus on your health and having children. I will arrange the best doctors and the best hospitals for you.”
Before arriving, Xia Tingwang had assumed that if someone was thirty-three, wealthy, and powerful yet unmarried, it was likely because they were physically unappealing. After this short encounter, she finally realized that there were things about this person far more repulsive than their appearance.
“Forget it.” Xia Tingwang said. “I do not think we are a good match.”
Gao Shan was stunned. “Huh? Why are we not a match? I feel like your age is a problem I can overcome.”
Xia Tingwang closed her eyes. If not for her aunt’s face, she really would have dumped that cup of coffee right onto Gao Shan’s face.
She opened her eyes and smiled. “Because I am infertile.”
Under Gao Shan’s stunned gaze, she grabbed her bag and left. Spending even one more second there felt like it was shaving years off her life.
The fifth day of the Lunar New Year, the fifth candidate. Thank goodness it was the last one; if there were any more, she would have fallen out with her aunt. You do not realize what kind of monsters are out there until you go on blind dates.
As soon as she got into her car, her aunt called.
“Yinyin, I heard from that little Gao that you have infertility?”
Expecting a reprimand, she was surprised by the concern in her aunt’s voice.
“No, I just said that to disgust her.”
“That is good then.” Her aunt patted her chest in relief. “The way she spoke was so aggressive, I thought I had offended her deeply. That kind of Alpha is not worth it. It is my fault for not checking her character beforehand. Next time, I will do better.”
“Auntie.” Xia Tingwang rubbed her temples. “Please, let me take a breath and rest for a while. Can we talk about this later?”
“Alright, alright, alright.” Her aunt laughed. “You have worked hard these past few days, Yinyin.”
She did not feel like it was hard work since she was just going through the motions, but it had certainly been an eye-opening experience. What a freak show. Was there really no Alpha in this world who could make her heart flutter?
The car arrived at the Yin residence. Old Mr. Yin had been urging her to visit for days since New Year’s Eve. After five days of annoying blind dates, Xia Tingwang felt a little more settled. If she did not go to the Yin residence for a meal now, the old man would probably come to her house to lecture her.
She arrived at the Yin residence just in time for lunch. Since it was the fifth day of the New Year, those who were busy with work or visiting other relatives were gone. Only Old Mr. Yin and his eldest son’s family were at the table.
Xia Tingwang enjoyed this meal quite a bit. It was a little strange that Yin Wei and her Omega mother were not there, though Yin Wei’s mother had no family of her own, so there were no relatives to visit.
“Xiaowang.” Old Mr. Yin suddenly grabbed Xia Tingwang’s wrist. “Do you have anything going on lately?”
“I do not have anything before the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.”
“That is good.” Old Mr. Yin looked at her kindly. “Grandpa Yin wants to go to the island for a vacation, but none of the children are willing to accompany this old man. Would you be willing, Xiaowang?”
Of course, she did not want to, but she could not say that. Old Mr. Yin treated her like his own granddaughter; it would not be right to refuse when she had the time.
Why did she just say she had time?
“Mm.” Xia Tingwang gave a tight-lipped smile. “Sure.”
“What do you mean ‘sure’?” Ding Han looked at Sang Ying. “You did not even think about discussing it with me when you had a problem? You were having fun struggling on your own, were you not?”
Sang Ying frowned. “Keep your voice down.”
“I cannot keep it down.” Ding Han lowered her voice. “I am telling you, you never really treated me as a friend. You did not even tell me when you were short on cash, and you wanted to sell your creative designs? You told me everything was fine? What was fine about it?”
Sang Ying walked to the bedroom door, opened it, and checked the hallway. Sang Cheng was sitting on the balcony knitting a sweater. She closed the door. “You are a college student just like me. If you were a rich person, I would have definitely asked you.”
“You.” Ding Han was left speechless by her. She pulled out her phone and transferred a sum of money to her. “Even though my family is not exactly rich, my family has been healthy all these years, and my parents are still working and earning money. They are generous with my allowance, and I do not have many places to spend it, so I have saved quite a bit. At the very least, compared to you, I am a rich person.”
Sang Ying opened her phone; Ding Han had transferred 20,000 yuan. It was not a huge amount, but it was certainly more than Sang Ying, who was nearly penniless. Her heart softened. “Thank you.”
“Still saying thank you to me? We are sisters without the blood relation.”
Ding Han still felt a bit disgruntled. “Your creative works absolutely cannot be sold. If you dare to sell them, I will break off our friendship.”
Sang Ying did not speak. Selling one creative work could fetch at least 100,000 yuan; it would at least solve her immediate crisis. Seeing the look on her face, Ding Han knew exactly what she was thinking. She reached out and pushed Sang Ying. “Do not even think about it. The salary VW gives us is quite high. At worst, I can lend you 90% of my monthly salary. Saving your uncle is the priority. Ying, look at me.”
Ding Han placed both hands on Sang Ying’s shoulders, meeting her eyes. “If your uncle finds out later that you sold your creative works, he will be heartbroken, you know? Do not think you can keep it from him. If you dare to sell them, I will be the first one to tell him.”
What Ding Han said made sense. The works she was considering selling were two skincare products that had not been manufactured yet. Because the raw materials were too expensive, Sang Ying had not released them yet. She had spent years experimenting on these two; they were like her children, and she was reluctant to part with them.
“Mm.” Sang Ying surrendered. “I will not sell them.”
Ding Han sighed in relief. “Good that you realize that. By the way, let us rent an apartment together when the time comes. Once everything is set up, we will come back to bring your uncle over for treatment. I am here; are friends not meant to be used like this?”
“Mm.” Sang Ying nodded.
“You.” Ding Han suddenly poked her shoulder hard. “It would have been better if you had not rejected President Xia back then. Even heroes have to bow to the constraints of poverty.”
“I know I was wrong.”
“How about this?” Ding Han sat on the window sill, one leg pulled up, arm resting on her knee as she pointed at Sang Ying. “Why do you not go and beg President Xia again? I think she is quite special toward you. If she does not like you, she certainly appreciates you. You should be more accommodating to her. She is a CEO, after all; you have to give her some face, do you not?”
Sang Ying turned helplessly, took out her suitcase, and began packing. Ding Han continued, “I am being serious. I just think she likes you.”
“She will not.” Sang Ying replied.
“Oh.” Ding Han laughed instead. “Do you believe it? We have all seen how she treats you; it is practically written on her face.”
Sang Ying bent over while packing. Her train was that evening, and she would arrive in Wen City tomorrow afternoon. The short New Year holiday was coming to an end. She wondered if she would see Xia Tingwang.
Probably not.
“Nothing left to say, is it?” Ding Han wore a look that said she had seen right through her. “You have to believe in your own beauty. How many Omegas in our school have pursued you?”
Click. Sang Ying locked her suitcase, turned her head, and looked at Ding Han. “Because she told me herself.”
Ding Han almost bit her tongue. “What?”
Sang Ying told her roughly what had happened that night in S-Country. This time, Ding Han really did bite her tongue. She stood up and jumped in place.
This was comparable to the biggest news of the year.
“You did it with President Xia?”
“Mm.”
“Ah.” Ding Han covered her mouth. Even with ten brains, she would not have imagined that Sang Ying—who was used to rejecting Omegas at school—would actually sleep with someone. She blinked. “You are incredible. And what happened after you finished?”
“She said she did not need me to take responsibility.” Sang Ying’s mood dipped. “She said we were just in a pure business partnership.”
Ding Han nodded, half-understanding and half-confused, her mind still racing. Ten minutes later, she accepted the fact. “Then why was she so good to you before?”
Sang Ying smiled bitterly. How would she know why? She only knew that she had caught feelings because of Xia Tingwang’s intentional and unintentional contact.
Each time she had to leave was when Sang Ying felt the most reluctant, and Sang Cheng felt the same. Fortunately, it would not be long before she could come back to pick up her father.
After a reluctant goodbye, Sang Ying and Ding Han set off on their journey back to Wen City.
They arrived in Wen City on the afternoon of the seventh day. As soon as they got off the high-speed train, they headed straight to the studio to check on the products for the next night’s live stream.
The studio was the same as it had been before the New Year. Even the chef from Jinshixuan was still there, carrying fresh ingredients to prepare meals for the staff on the spot.
Nothing had changed, even though Sang Ying’s contract had been altered.
The studio was filled with a festive atmosphere; “Fu” (fortune) characters were pasted on the walls, and red lanterns hung from the ceiling. Bai Li had prepared a red envelope for everyone.
Sang Ying felt the envelope; it was quite thick. Judging by the weight, her envelope seemed to be a bit thicker than everyone else’s. She was too embarrassed to open it in public and tucked it into her pocket.
After work ended that night, Bai Li drove the two of them and stopped in front of a hotel. “Wen University has not started classes yet. You two stay here for the next few days; the company has already paid for the rooms.”
The two entered the hotel. In the elevator, Ding Han, who had been holding it in all evening, could not wait any longer and opened her envelope. “Two thousand! VW is so generous!”
Sang Ying counted hers once. When she reached two thousand, there was still quite a bit left. She did not continue counting and tucked the envelope away.