novelA War Without Fire (4)
| ← Ch.200 | Ch.202 → |
Later in the morning, Lan Jinyao received a call from Chen Meile, asking her to go to the Chen family's manor in the afternoon for lunch. The latter also repeatedly told her to arrive earlier to leave a good impression on the Old Man.
Lan Jinyao felt extremely tired after yesterday's incident, so she hurriedly accepted the invite and hung up before closing her eyes again. However, this time, she couldn't fall back asleep as Chen Meile's words were stuck in her head.
Chen Meile's tone and instructions seemed a bit off. This thought instantly crossed Lan Jinyao's mind.
From what she knew, the person who Old Chen doted on the most was his youngest daughter, Chen Meimei. In other words, the current her. So, even if she was late, how could she possibly leave a bad impression on the Old Man? Besides, after learning about her true identity, Chen Meile had generally started avoiding her and returned home right after their talk. Hence, what Chen Meile had said earlier sounded odd to her ears, and she couldn't help but become suspicious.
However, no matter what, she still had to make a trip to the Chen family's manor later.
Lan Jinyao only got up when the clock struck ten. When she entered the living room, there was already no sight of the fruit knife as Fu Bainian had already thrown it away; even the blood stains on the coffee table had been wiped clean.
As for the incident that had happened the night before, the couple didn't report this to the police.
While Lan Jinyao lazed on the sofa, she pondered: Was Fu Bainian having the same thoughts as her? She personally thought that since Shen Wei'an was already 'dead', then it was best to let her rest in peace 'in a fair manner'.
Time had flown by quickly. When it was around eleven o'clock, Lan Jinyao drove to the Chen family's manor. On the way, she gave Chen Meile a call.
"One second!" Chen Meile's voice sounded through her Bluetooth earphones.
Lan Jinyao inexplicably glanced at her phone screen, and a huge question mark popped up in her mind. Why did Chen Meile ask her to wait a bit longer? Could it be that it was inconvenient for her to speak at the moment?
A minute later, Chen Meile finally asked, "Have you arrived? It's almost lunchtime, so why aren't you here yet?"
"I'll be right there!"
"Hurry over, Qingqing is already here! She's currently in the living room chatting with my Old Man."
Upon hearing this, Lan Jinyao instantly froze."What did you just say?! Qingqing is there? Sis, don't tell me that you believe in that woman's nonsense?!"
Was this Chen Meile's ultimate decision? To think that she would invite Qingqing to the Chen family's manor! Then, didn't this mean that Qingqing had already gotten entangled with Old Chen?!
On one hand, there was the Jiang family, and on the other hand the Chen family... This time, victory was practically within Qingqing's grasp.
"Believe her? Chen Meimei, are you brain-dead? If I were to believe her, then I wouldn't be on the phone with you right now, and I would've revealed your identity in front of my Old Man. Otherwise, was there such a need for me to worry about this and go through the trouble to invite you home for lunch?"
Chen Meile's words struck Lan Jinyao like a hail of bullets, leaving the latter somewhat baffled. As Lan Jinyao recollected her thoughts, she inwardly considered: That's right! If Chen Meile really wanted to expose her, then a word was all it would take...
"I'm sorry about that; I wasn't thinking straight earlier. Sis, thanks a million for believing in me!"
"Since I'm your 'Sis', there's no need to stand on ceremony. I just think that... forget it, let's say no more. You better hurry over as everyone's waiting for you!"
In the Chen family, Old Chen had always doted on Chen Meimei a lot, and the extent of her pampering exceeded that of Chen Meile by a significant degree. Therefore, Old Chen surely knew Chen Meimei better than anyone. Since Qingqing had come prepared this time around, she would have to stay alert and proceed with caution later.
Soon, Lan Jinyao arrived at the Chen family's manor. Chen Meile happened to be waiting for her at the courtyard. Upon seeing her, Chen Meile hurried over and hooked her arm around Lan Jinyao's affectionately; they then proceeded towards the living room.
"Meimei, how come you're back today? Did you foresee a guest visiting home?"
Chen Meile deliberately raised her volume as she asked this.
As if on cue, Lan Jinyao replied, "Sis, what do you mean? Can't I simply come back when I'm free? And, can't I come home to check on Dad?"
As soon as they entered the living room, Lan Jinyao saw Old Chen talking to Qingqing about something. He looked delighted and was so amused that he burst into laughter several times.
Immediately, Lan Jinyao felt a strong sense of precariousness.
Qingqing looked over in their direction and revealed a sweet smile. Today's Qingqing didn't dress in a rustic manner. Instead, she wore a very casual outfit consisting of a simple white T-shirt, and a pair of jeans. She didn't look one bit formal nor like a guest...
"Qingqing, you're here too!" Lan Jinyao took the initiative and greeted her.
Old Chen went ahead and answered, "This girl said that she's quite familiar with you, so I've spoken a few words with her. I've noticed that she's not bad. She's very similar to your old self; the same wildness and craziness."
The smile on Lan Jinyao's face almost faltered at the mention of that."Dad, I'm married now. If I were to behave as I did in the past, then Fu Bainian might not have fallen in love with me. Then, your poor daughter, I, will stay single for the rest of my life!"
She didn't know if Old Chen was probing her or not, but she couldn't give the game away.
Lan Jinyao sat down beside Old Chen and casually explained, "Qingqing and I met at the Awards Ceremony. How did you get to know her, Dad? Could it be that our family is somehow related to Qingqing?"
At the mention of the Awards Ceremony, Old Chen seemed particularly happy."That... in fact, it's all thanks to you, Meimei. Those old geezers always chide that our family can't do anything besides making money. Consequently, you won the Best Actress Award and earned our family some honour and dignity. However, none of those stubborn old geezers were convinced and kept saying that the award was bought with money. Then, I met Qingqing at the banquet, and she spoke up for you and managed to convince those old geezers at last. That's how we earned back our dignity. This girl's temperament is exactly like yours; bold and decisive. She's very down to earth, so I invited her home for lunch."
Qingqing unexpectedly spoke up for her in order to gain Old Chen's trust? It seemed that Shen Wei'an's acting hadn't merely progressed a tiny bit, but by leaps and bounds.
But, even so, she wasn't afraid of her.
Soon, the cook began to serve the dishes, and the four sat down at the dining table. Qingqing sat next to Old Chen intimately.
That level of intimacy was on another level; if it were her, she certainly wouldn't be able to act like Qingqing... Lan Jinyao thought, but she also sat down next to Old Chen, on his other side.
"Meimei, here's your favourite foie gras, so eat your fill! When the cook saw you come in earlier, he specially prepared this dish for you."
As she spoke, Chen Meile shot Lan Jinyao a meaningful glance.
Lan Jinyao instantly followed along and proceeded to grab a bite. However, just as her chopsticks were about to touch the foie gras, Qingqing got ahead of her and snatched it first.
"Oh, Meimei also likes foie gras? It's my favourite dish too! It looks like we have similar tastes!"
At this point, Lan Jinyao revealed a slight smile, but her heart was sinking.
| ← Ch. 200 | Ch. 202 → |