Chapter 30 : Was the last meeting pleasant? (2/2)

He asked in a soft voice, “Should I drive?”

He had already taken time out of his day to accompany her to view the property, and Sang Miao felt that was more than enough.

No way was she going to trouble him further.

She opened the driver’s side door and smiled, “I’ll drive.”

Meng Peisheng smiled faintly and quietly sat in the passenger seat.

The interior of the car was very minimalistic.

There was no air freshener, no pillows, or decorative items.

Clean and tidy, with very few signs of use, almost cold in appearance.

The drive was less than ten minutes.

Parking today was easier than last time.

On a weekday afternoon, the café wasn’t very crowded.

Ling Xi was at the bar serving customers.

Hearing the door open, she instinctively looked up.

“Welcome.”

Seeing who it was, a hint of surprise flashed across her face.

She smiled gently.

“How come you had time to come by today?”

Her gaze shifted subtly between the two of them.

The man beside her stood tall with a refined and aloof temperament.

His presence was quietly commanding, impossible to ignore.

Ling Xi couldn’t help but speculate on his identity,

Could this be the man she had heard about…?

Even though Jiang Jingxun rarely talked to her about school matters,

the Meng family was too famous to be ignored.

Sang Miao said, “I happened to be nearby and thought I’d stop by to take some cake to go.”

Ling Xi’s curiosity was piqued.

Because the man might be her son’s classmate’s father, she gently asked, trying not to sound too forward, “This is…?”

Sang Miao was just thinking about how to introduce him.

Most people would probably say “my husband” or something like that, but in this situation, it felt weirdshe couldn’t quite bring herself to say it.

And Meng Peisheng, unlike the last time they met Shen Xingxia, didn’t take the initiative to introduce himself.

It was as if he was waiting for her to speak first.

Just then, the delicate chime on the door rang as someone else walked in.

It was a student in the uniform of Yuli High School Jiang Jingxun, just back from school.

“Mom, I’m home.”

He naturally headed toward the bar to help out but paused when he saw Sang Miao and the unfamiliar man beside her.

He quickly composed himself and greeted her, “Hello, Auntie.”

As for the man beside her, he hesitated and didn’t address him right away.

Sang Miao looked at him and suddenly realized.

the most appropriate way to introduce him was,

“This is Xici’s father,” she said lightly and casually, introducing him on his behalf.

Yes, that was the proper title.

He was the official guardian, after all.

Even though she had been mentally prepared, once Ling Xi learned his identity, she still couldn’t help but feel a little nervous.

“So this is Mr. Meng.”

The man in front of her, despite his powerful aura, looked quite young.

There wasn’t much about him that hinted at fatherhood.

There weren’t many similarities between father and son.

If she hadn’t seen him standing next to Sang Miao, she would never have made the connection.

Jiang Jingxun had transferred schools mid-semester last term.

He and Meng Xici didn’t have much interaction.

All he knew was that the other boy had excellent grades and came from the most prominent family at school.

Unlike the usual rich kids, his demeanor was very different.

But that was the extent of what he knew.

Now that he knew the man’s identity, even the word “Uncle,” which felt a little too intimate, stuck in his throat.

It didn’t feel right, so he followed his mother’s lead and greeted him politely, “Hello, Mr. Meng.”

Sang Miao knew that most younger people were naturally a bit in awe when meeting Meng Peisheng.

Take Ji Zhuoran, for example, loud and carefree normally, but his voice would soften in front of Meng Peisheng.

Even Xu Songyue, the headstrong heiress, would temper her attitude.

But this wasn’t just about respecting a senior.

The boy in front of her seemed to draw a line between himself and Meng Peisheng.

As if he didn’t see him as a classmate’s parent, but simply as a powerful adult.

Meng Peisheng gave a polite, faint smile, his voice natural and relaxed:

“I didn’t attend the last parent-teacher meeting due to some commitments,

but I heard Sang Miao talk about it afterward.”

His tone wasn’t arrogant or distant, which somehow put Ling Xi at ease.

She remembered why they had come to the café and asked,

“Would you like to take a look and see what you’d like?”

Sang Miao turned and asked Meng Peisheng, “Do you want anything?”

It was a casual question, and she didn’t expect him to actually consider it seriously.

To her surprise, he did look at the menu.

Then he spoke to Ling Xi in a calm voice, “An iced Americano, please.”

Sang Miao said, “No cake for you? Then I’ll just get a piece for Meng Xici.”

A faint smile surfaced in Meng Peisheng’s eyes.

“Alright.”

Sang Miao ordered a vanilla latte and two desserts, both to-go.

Ling Xi didn’t plan to charge them, but Sang Miao insisted.

“I’ll be working nearby from now on and probably coming here a lot.

If you don’t take my money now, how could I dare come again?”

Aside from their acquaintance, Sang Miao genuinely liked the food here.

Now that it was so close, she knew she’d be a regular.

Hearing that, Ling Xi smiled and didn’t argue.

“Okay, but let me treat you once in a while too.”

“Sure.”

After paying, Sang Miao and Meng Peisheng moved to a nearby table to wait.

Ling Xi had Jiang Jingxun make the coffee, while she packed the cakes herself and brought them over.

Something occurred to Sang Miao, and she asked,

“By the way, you guys do deliveries, right?”

Ling Xi nodded.

“Mm-hmm. Where are you located?”

Although Sang Miao had already rented an office address, she’d be spending most of her time at Xinghe (Star Core) for now,

so she gave Shen Xingxia’s studio address.

Ling Xi was surprised.

“So you work with Mr. Shen?”

“Colleagues… sort of,” Sang Miao replied, resting her chin in one hand.

Seeing that Ling Xi even remembered Xinghe’s location, she asked,

“Does he order takeout from you guys often?”

“Yeah, sometimes when it’s inconvenient for him to come by in person.

Your office can all order together from now on.”

Just as she finished speaking,

she suddenly realized her husband was right there.

Talking about male colleagues like this…

She subtly glanced at the man beside her.

Meng Peisheng’s expression remained calm and unreadable.

He didn’t seem quite as gentle as he had been a moment ago,

or maybe it was just her imagination.

Sang Miao didn’t think mentioning Shen Xingxia was any kind of problem.

She actually felt it was great she’d have a buddy to order takeout with.

Seeing Meng Peisheng looking at her, she shared the little story.

“Remember last time I brought cake home? It was such a coincidence.

That first meeting I had with Xinghe’s director was here,

Turns out, it’s his café.”

Meng Peisheng nodded slightly.

“Mm, so last time you were meeting him?”

Sang Miao nodded casually.

“Yeah.”

Actually, there were even more coincidences than that.

Beicheng was a huge city, yet the few people she’d gotten to know recently all seemed somehow connected.

Just thinking about it made her chuckle.

To Meng Peisheng, that smile looked like she was reminiscing fondly about that meeting.

He gave her a faint glance, half-smiling.

“Was that meeting particularly enjoyable?”

“Huh?”

Sang Miao thought he was asking whether the meeting had gone well.

“Yeah, it went pretty smoothly.

He’s young, but very capable.

Otherwise, I wouldn’t have chosen to work with him.”

Ling Xi, experienced and perceptive, picked up on a subtle shift in the air.

She hadn’t spent much time with them,

but she’d always thought Sang Miao carried herself with poise and maturity beyond her years.

Still, the way she said that just now…

It really made her want to laugh.

She was still such a young girl, after all.

Ling Xi cleared her throat and raised her voice slightly, calling to Jiang Jingxun behind the bar.

“Jingxun, are the coffees ready?”

Jiang Jingxun had just finished both drinks.

Hearing his mom’s prompt, he quickly packed them up and brought them over.

…

On the way home, Meng Peisheng offered to drive.

Sang Miao didn’t argue.

It was right around rush hour.

What would normally be a forty-minute trip stretched into an hour.

By the time they got home, Meng Xici was already there.

He had returned from school not long ago and had seen the driver bringing back his dad’s Maybach.

But the car had returned… and his dad was nowhere in sight.

It was the first time something like this had happened, and a sense of confusion rose in his heart.

So, was his dad coming home today or not?

She wasn’t home either.

The housekeeper said she had driven out that afternoon.

After not seeing him for a week, the border collie was especially affectionate toward him, and even Youyou came over to rub against his legs.

So he took them both outside to play for a bit.

After playing for about an hour and with the sky getting dark, he saw a white car one he didn’t really recognize come in from the main road and park in the garage next to the main building.

Two minutes later, Meng Xici saw the two of them come out of the garage together.

He let go of the cat and dog and walked toward the house, just in time to run into them at the door.

Seeing the familiar paper bag in Sang Miao’s hand, another layer of confusion surfaced in his heart.

So… did the two of them go to Jiang Jingxun’s family’s café together this afternoon?