Volume One, Chapter 15: Jealous Again, Fierce and Overbearing

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That clear, sweet little cry of “Mama,” though it faltered halfway through, was still enough to melt anyone’s heart.

It was simply too adorable. Any ambiguity in the child’s words was automatically ignored by Jiang Qin. Unable to resist, she bent down, wanting to say a few words to the little girl—but before she could speak, a tall, gentle-looking man strode over.

“Sorry.” It was Wen Chen.

“Duoduo, let go of your sister.” Wen Chen crouched down and gently took hold of the little girl. She clearly did not want to let go, but he quickly diverted her attention. “Daddy bought you some new fairy-tale picture books. Shall we go upstairs and read them?”

The little girl loosened her grip, and the man seized the opportunity to lift her into his arms. He straightened and gave Jiang Qin an apologetic smile.

Jiang Qin returned the smile and walked over to sit beside Huo Sili, who was on the sofa with a cup of water in hand, gazing in their direction.

Wen Chen carried Duoduo over. “The child’s sleepy and being fussy. President Huo, would you mind waiting a moment? I’ll take her upstairs and get her to sleep.”

Huo Sili gave a slight nod. Wen Chen then turned to a somewhat elderly man nearby who looked like a butler.

“Uncle Wen, please take good care of President Huo and Mrs. Huo.”

Only then did he carry Duoduo into the elevator.

Jiang Qin, meanwhile, was rather startled by the way he had addressed her.

As far as she could remember, this seemed to be the first time anyone had called her Mrs. Huo.

But perhaps because she no longer loved Huo Sili as she once had, hearing the title now brought none of the sweetness she had once longed for.

Instead, it stirred up a sense of disgust.

Mrs. Huo—the wife of Huo Sili?

Hah. Whoever wants to be the wife of a cheating scumbag can have the honor!

Jiang Qin failed to notice that when Wen Chen had called her Mrs. Huo, the gloom that had abruptly deepened in Huo Sili’s eyes after seeing the little girl cling to her and call her Mama suddenly brightened considerably.

While waiting, Jiang Qin continued thinking about that major decision. Perhaps because the little girl had been so unbearably adorable, Jiang Qin became even more certain of what her heart truly wanted: she really did want to keep this child.

She knew she had already made her choice. Even so, before making the final decision, she planned to find time to go to the hospital for another examination, just to be sure.

Jiang Qin checked Huo Sili’s work schedule alongside her own. She also remembered that she still did not know the exact validity period of the exhibition ticket Xie You’an had given her, and that she had promised to treat him to dinner next Wednesday evening.

For the moment, she marked out several possible openings. She would have to wait until she returned to Cloudsea Residence that night, find the exhibition ticket, and check the date before making a final decision.

Wen Chen spent nearly half an hour coaxing Duoduo to sleep. When he came back down, his face was full of apology, but Huo Sili said nothing and went straight to the point.

The conditions for the project cooperation between the Huo and Wen families had already been nearly finalized. Wen Chen and Huo Sili were also on good terms, so Jiang Qin naturally had not been worried.

Unexpectedly, the two men talked for a full hour, yet the contract still had not been signed. In fact, they seemed poised to revise the terms yet again.

Jiang Qin was genuinely surprised. But sitting right beside them, she could naturally tell that Huo Sili was the one pressing aggressively at every turn.

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The terms Wen Chen had offered were already quite favorable. Yet for some reason, from the moment negotiations began, Huo Sili had been cutting away the Wen family’s benefits with an almost hostile sharpness. Wen Chen’s expression was visibly worse than before, while Huo Sili’s remained so stern that it seemed cold enough to freeze.

Just then, after another round of verbal sparring, both men fell silent.

Jiang Qin rose and poured two cups of hot tea. She placed one before Wen Chen and politely invited him to drink and soothe his throat. Then she picked up the other, blew lightly across its surface, and brought it directly to Huo Sili’s lips, coaxing him gently.

“Have some?”

The strange, intangible tension that had solidified throughout the hall instantly shattered.

Jiang Qin herself did not notice anything unusual. It was only when Huo Sili accepted the teacup from her hand, his stern expression visibly easing as he drank the tea, that she realized.

At the same time, Wen Chen picked up the cup before him, took a sip, and set it back down. His gaze fell squarely on Huo Sili, his tone carrying a trace of helplessness.

“Children say whatever comes to mind. President Huo, shall we each take a step back?”

“The two conditions I just conceded will both go to the Huo family. Consider it my apology to you and Mrs. Huo for my daughter’s careless words.”

Only then did Jiang Qin belatedly understand.

It was because the little girl had called her Mama.

A chill slowly spread through her heart.

So when Huo Sili had heard Duoduo call her that, had he assumed that she and Wen Chen might be having an affair? Or did Huo Sili simply hate the idea of her having a child?

Either possibility struck Jiang Qin as absurd.

After two years of high-pressure work in major, demanding situations, along with the professionalism expected of an executive secretary, Jiang Qin remained utterly composed. Though anger had already flared fiercely within her, not the slightest flaw could be found in her expression.

It was already getting late—nearly five o’clock.

After signing the contract with its revised terms, Wen Chen invited them to stay for dinner.

Dinner would be served at six. Perhaps afraid that Duoduo might wake up and come downstairs to repeat what had happened earlier, Wen Chen personally led them to a suite in the rear courtyard. He also had an exquisite afternoon tea brought in and asked them to rest there for a while.

With a smile, Jiang Qin watched Wen Chen and several servants leave. The moment the door closed, the smile vanished from her face.

She sorted through the documents in a strictly businesslike manner, checked them carefully, and placed them in a kraft-paper file envelope.

After glancing around, she found a clean, open, dry spot to set them aside temporarily and took a photograph.

The instant she straightened after bending down, she realized that Huo Sili—who had sat down on the sofa to rest with his eyes closed as soon as they entered—was nowhere to be seen.

Her heart gave a start. A shadow suddenly appeared beside her. Her pulse quickened, and she turned sharply.

“…”

Jiang Qin was speechless. “Why were you deliberately walking so quietly?”

She had no idea when he had come up behind her.

A smile touched Huo Sili’s lips. “What makes you think I did it deliberately?”

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Meeting that faint smile in Huo Sili’s eyes, Jiang Qin had no idea what he found so amusing. Was frightening her really that entertaining?

She had no time to bother with him. After glancing at him, she looked toward the sofa where he had been sitting. Its soft leather upholstery made it look extraordinarily comfortable.

“You’re not sitting anymore?”

Huo Sili asked, “Do you want to sit?”

A strange sound suddenly came from the doorway, followed by the young male voice she had heard earlier blurting out, “Damn!”

Jiang Qin looked over. Huo Sili raised his brows slightly and strode to the door, then opened it.

Sheng Zhan and another young man Jiang Qin had never seen before were pressed against the doorway, their expressions awkward and ambiguous.

“Uh, Brother Huo… well! I—I just came to tell you that the things in the trunk of your car are gifts for Brother Wen Chen, right? I just moved them into the Wen family’s storeroom with a few people from the Wen household!”

As he spoke, Sheng Zhan took a step back.

“Well, then, I didn’t disturb you…”

His face flushed as he peered inside once more.

“You two were…?”

Huo Sili’s brows lifted slightly as he glanced back. Jiang Qin’s small, fair, beautiful face remained calm as she deliberately avoided his gaze.

Huo Sili turned his head toward Sheng Zhan, who was a head and a half shorter than him. He raised a hand and patted Sheng Zhan on the shoulder, then cast a sidelong glance at Qiu Zichen, the young man beside him.

“No classes today? Skipping school again to drag him around and fool around?”

The words “skipping school” struck Qiu Zichen like a spell. He hurriedly tugged Sheng Zhan away.

“Come on, come on. This is adult business. Children shouldn’t get involved!”

“Who the hell are you calling a child? I’m twenty!” Sheng Zhan turned back, clearly reluctant to leave.

Huo Sili shut the door, cutting off their booming voices.

Jiang Qin’s lips twitched. She naturally realized that the two men had probably misunderstood something. She silently reminded herself that next time, she must not speak so close to the door.

Walls had ears—and so did doorways.

She walked toward the sofa, intending to sit down and rest with her eyes closed for a while.

Before she could sit, her phone rang shrilly. She pulled it out, took one look at the screen, and froze.

When Huo Sili saw that she held up the phone for several seconds without responding, his brows lifted slightly. Yet when he spoke, his tone was calm and utterly devoid of emotion.

“Who’s calling? Why aren’t you answering?”

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