Wang Ziyue asked the staff to bring paper and pen.
She chewed on the end of the pen for a moment, then leaned over the table and began to write.
Jiang Xiaoyue stood to the side, watching.
“Here, wait… add this: Before Jiang Cheng finishes her college entrance exam, Wang Ziyue shall not approach her. If contact is absolutely necessary, she must first request permission from the guardian and obtain confirmation from both Jiang Cheng and the guardian.”
Wang Ziyue’s hand slipped; she nearly scratched through everything she had written.
She glanced guiltily at Jiang Xiaoyue.
The woman was staring at her with perfect calm.
Behave.
That was the unspoken message.
Wang Ziyue sighed and added the clause in the blank space below.
【Before Jiang Cheng finishes her college entrance examination, Wang Ziyue shall not actively approach her. Should active contact become necessary, she may submit a request to the guardian Ms. Jiang Xiaoyue and must obtain unanimous confirmation from both Jiang Cheng and Ms. Jiang Xiaoyue.】
Though she had changed a few words, the meaning was essentially the same.
Jiang Xiaoyue nodded.
Wang Ziyue continued writing.
The guarantee covered nearly every possible place the two might meet: school, the residential complex, even random streets were under strict monitoring.
Wang Ziyue’s home was classified as an absolute no-go zone.
Letting Jiang Cheng stay overnight again? She could forget about it.
“Also, President Wang—if you fail to abide by these rules, you know the consequences, right? Suddenly ‘bumping into each other’ on the street would be unreasonable, don’t you think?”
She couldn’t watch her daughter every second. If Wang Ziyue engineered a “chance encounter,” there would be no defence.
“Ahaha… well, those kinds of coincidences do happen sometimes…”
“In my book, the probability is zero.”
Zero probability doesn’t mean impossible, Wang Ziyue grumbled inwardly, but on the surface she wore an obedient smile.
Like a big golden retriever.
“My demands aren’t many. I just want my daughter to prepare for her exams in peace and spend her final year of high school without complications. President Wang…”
Jiang Xiaoyue suddenly bent into a deep bow. Wang Ziyue hurriedly stood up and bowed even lower.
Their foreheads collided with a thud.
“Ziyue…?”
The door to the private room opened at that exact moment.
Wang Ziyang stood panting in the doorway, staring at the bizarre scene.
Fang Qinghua behind him was equally out of breath.
“Bro… haha, you’re here.”
Wang Ziyue and Jiang Xiaoyue’s foreheads were still touching as they turned toward the couple.
“Cough, cough. Let me introduce everyone.”
Wang Ziyue helped Jiang Xiaoyue straighten up.
“This is my older brother Wang Ziyang, and this is my sister-in-law Fang Qinghua.”
“Hello, I’m Jiang Xiaoyue. I’m…”
Jiang Xiaoyue extended her hand.
“She’s a colleague from my company and an elder I deeply respect,” Wang Ziyue quickly interjected.
Wang Ziyang felt something strange. He shook Jiang Xiaoyue’s hand lightly and shot his sister a look.
What the hell is going on?!
He could tell it wasn’t the board-related crisis his wife had feared, but what else could make his sister summon him so urgently?
“Bro, what I’m about to say concerns the rest of my life…”
Wang Ziyue’s voice grew quieter.
“You’re using the same tone you used when you got in trouble at school and the teacher called the parents.”
There was helpless affection in his eyes; he assumed she was joking.
“Let me explain.”
Jiang Xiaoyue took a deep breath.
“Mr. Wang, your sister—Wang Ziyue—kept my underage daughter at her home last night. And just before you arrived, she suddenly told me she likes my daughter and wants to marry her, and asked me, the mother, to agree.”
Wang Ziyang rubbed the stubble on his chin. It felt prickly.
“If I heard correctly, my sister kept your underage daughter overnight and then, the very next day, verbally harassed you with a series of outrageous statements.”
Jiang Xiaoyue nodded vigorously, as if she had finally found someone who understood.
“This is your emergency?! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?!”
Wang Ziyang’s face and neck flushed crimson as he roared at his sister.
Luckily Fang Qinghua closed the door quickly so the shouting didn’t leak out.
He remembered now.
Everything came rushing back.
Wang Ziyue had always been most afraid of her big brother when he was truly angry.
He rarely even raised his voice, but when he did get serious, it was terrifying.
Even their nephew Wang Yu knew that well.
When she got in trouble at school, Big Brother had always gone in place of their parents.
Now, faced with his thunderous scolding, Wang Ziyue couldn’t muster a single word of rebuttal.
Bloodline suppression.
“Mr. Wang.”
“Yes… Ms. Jiang, please go ahead…”
Wang Ziyang glared at his sister once more, then turned to Jiang Xiaoyue with a gentle expression.
From the earlier introductions, this lady was his sister’s colleague?
So the girl was the daughter of a family acquaintance?
The more he thought about it, the worse he felt. Guilt piled up.
“President Wang and I have already discussed this thoroughly. She… understands where she went wrong. The reason I asked you here is mainly to act as a witness.”
Jiang Xiaoyue handed him the freshly drafted guarantee.
Wang Ziyang skimmed it quickly. When he saw the time and location restrictions, his eyelashes twitched.
The worry this mother felt about his sister crossing the line… it was off the charts.
He was mortified.
“No issues here. Ziyue has always been too free-spirited. No one at home could rein her in, and now that she’s grown she still acts like a child.”
Wang Ziyue remembered how her brother had praised her just days ago for becoming more capable.
She swallowed the urge to retort and listened obediently.
“Not at all. President Wang’s achievements in business are obvious to everyone. I actually think she’s quite impressive.”
“She just gets a little cocky when things go well. I think this lesson will do her good. If you have any grievances, tell her directly. She really went too far this time!”
The words “underage” alone made Wang Ziyang’s heart skip a beat.
He glanced at his sister; she looked properly chastised, so he didn’t continue the scolding.
“Since I’m here as the witness, I’ll also supervise her going forward. You… really…”
Wanting to date was fine, but why did it have to be someone this young?
And—sigh—if their old-fashioned father found out, there’d be hell to pay.
Fang Qinghua leaned close to Wang Ziyue and whispered, “So you like younger girls… If you’d told me earlier, well… I still wouldn’t have been able to set you up.”
“It’s not like that… sigh. I just like her.”
She wanted to explain that it wasn’t “young girls” in general, but that the girl she liked happened to be young.
But it sounded awkward, and her sister-in-law would probably just tease her more.
Wang Ziyang exchanged a few more quiet words with Jiang Xiaoyue, reaching a united front on “supervising Wang Ziyue.”
“President Wang has actually helped our family a lot. I’m truly grateful. But… she’s my only daughter. My husband passed early, and she grew up with a lot of hardships. I have no other wish than for her to be safe and happy.”
Before leaving, Jiang Xiaoyue couldn’t resist one last jab at Wang Ziyue.
Sure enough, Wang Ziyang’s face darkened terrifyingly.
This was exactly like those ancient playboys taking advantage of a widow and her orphan!
“I still have to go home and cook for my daughter, so I’ll take my leave.”
“Wait, Auntie…”
Wang Ziyue called her back again.
This time Jiang Xiaoyue genuinely had no idea what she wanted.
“Anything else?”
Wang Ziyang suddenly craved a cigarette.
“Bro, Sis-in-law… could you step outside for a moment? I have something to say to Auntie.”
Wang Ziyue twisted her fingers, looking exactly like a child who knew she was in trouble.
“Mr. Wang, Ms. Fang, I’ll stay just a little longer.”
“Alright… we’ll wait outside.”
Wang Ziyang shot his sister one last glance before leaving.
Wang Ziyue looked hesitant.
“Auntie, I’ll be quick. Um… please take this bag home with you.”
The small bag that had been sitting beside her handbag since she entered the room was suddenly stuffed into Jiang Xiaoyue’s arms.
She looked inside.
A milky-white bra and panties printed with strawberries were neatly folded inside.
Weren’t these her daughter’s?!
“You—you, I—”
“Auntie, please don’t get worked up! This is what Jiang Jiang left in my car—really, it’s not what you think!”
“What am I supposed to think?! How dare I think anything?! And—what’s with calling her Jiang Jiang?!”
Hearing that intimate nickname again nearly made Jiang Xiaoyue faint from anger.
“Well… it’s just between us… she calls me Sister, so I call her Jiang Jiang… It’s normal for sisters to have cute nicknames, right…?”
Wang Ziyue tried to sound casual, but her eyes darted everywhere.
“Great. Wonderful. Thank you, President Wang, for informing me. Goodbye!”
Jiang Xiaoyue ground out through gritted teeth.
Wang Ziyang and Fang Qinghua, waiting outside, watched the door suddenly fly open.
Jiang Xiaoyue stormed out of the café, her high heels clacking like thunder.
Wang Ziyue, still inside, met their gazes and forced an awkward smile.
That was… intense.