It was not until the princess had become ill and was on her deathbed that she told the scholar the truth. The ancestor of the Ying family was filled with regret upon finding out the truth, so he began searching high and low for the last surviving child of the Gui family. Finally, before he died, he found the little girl and ordered his son to marry her. He even changed the family names of their children to Gui. Afterward, he hired a priest to place a curse on all his descendants, the contents of which ultimately became the Ancestral Behest. According to the behest, any male descendant of the Ying family who had the mark of the Totem on his body must marry a woman who was the descendant of the Gui family and whose body also bore the mark of the Totem. The pair must stay with each other and grow old together, never to part for the rest of their lives. Indeed, the behest had also mentioned that any violation of its decree would bring utter destruction to the Ying family.
"We already know all this," Xin Qing said, glancing at the ancient characters printed on the Ancestral Behest. "What about the rest? What do they mean?"
"The rest const.i.tutes of the discovery made by one particular generation in the Ying family. It states the true meaning of the Ancestral Behest," Boss Wan said, handing the paper containing the translated version to Xin Qing. "Read for yourself."
Xin Qing drew in a deep breath and began reading the pa.s.sage out loud: "I am the head of the five hundred and thirty seventh generation of the Ying family, and I have now learned the truth behind the Ancestral Behest. The curse as stated in the Ancestral Behest isn"t real. It is merely a product of our ancestor"s fear in his descendants" negligence to the behest. The so-called Totem is merely a gimmick involving the human blood. For those of you whose body contains the Totem, there will come a day when the pattern will vanish from your body entirely as the blood vessels thin out. I now beseech my descendants to remember the behest of our ancestors. An eternal friendship must be forged between the Ying and Gui family. This is a decree that should never be violated."
The revelation had stunned everyone. None of them knew what to make of it. So, at the end of the day, everything turned out to be some kind of practical joke by their ancestors.
"But there are in fact several cases in the history of the Ying family where a family was wiped out after disobeying the behest," Young Master Shen mumbled.
Boss Wan gave him a look. "Those were chaotic times, man. Everyone was practically homeless and wandering around in despair at that time. Exoduses and relocations were more common than ever back then. I think those cases you mentioned were merely coincidences but were then recorded by people from later generations. Our opponent, whoever they might be, must have known about Uncle Ying"s steadfast belief in the behest. That was why they had tampered with the behest in order to manipulate Uncle Ying through it."
For a moment, everyone felt overwhelmed by what they had just learnt. But now they were even more convinced that there was something fishy going on with Rong Siman. They had no doubt that Rong Siman was somehow involved in the tampering of the Ancestral Behest. Still, she could not have done it alone. She must have had help, but from whom? Who could be silently helping her in the shadows?
The matter was promptly forgotten after Boss Wan left. "If Rong Siman really was behind everything, then Rong Siman definitely has something to with Ah Cang"s disappearance. But if Ah Cang is in her hands, then we can at least be sure that he"s safe," Xin Qing had told everyone. As for other ramifications, Xin Qing did not even want to speculate. She refrained herself from making guesses and letting her imagination run wild. n.o.body expected Rong Siman herself to show up at their door right at this moment.
"You don"t have to be so jumpy," Rong Siman said. "I won"t be sitting here if I"m really up to no good." As usual, Rong Siman"s makeup was immaculate and she was now reclining herself in the chaise lounge with an air of superiority.
"Then why are you here?" Xin Qing had a bland smile on her face as she returned Rong Siman"s stare. It was like she was staring at someone who had nothing to do with her.
It was that look in her eyes which drove Rong Siman mad with jealousy. How dare this clueless little girl give her that look. "This, all of this, should"ve been mine..." Rong Siman thought, clenching her fists. Still, Rong Siman tried her best to appear calm and casual.
"I"m here to bid you farewell," Rong Siman said. Then, her tone suddenly turned somber. "You know as well that Ah Cang is dead, and Ah Hao is missing. I-"
"Ah Cang isn"t dead," Xin Qing said, cutting her off. "And whether he"s alive or dead has nothing to do with you."
Rong Siman"s face changed instantly as she tried to suppress the flare of anger inside her. "I"m taking my son to France. I came here todahy to tell you that I still own 10 percent of Ying Enterprises" shares. It was what Ah Hao had given me a long time ago. So please transfer my bonus shares into my account on time. Also..." Rong Siman smirked. "That"s actually the pension money for me and my son. So don"t even think about trying to buy the shares back."
Xin Qing stared at Rong Siman for a moment. Suddenly, her face broke into a smile as well. "I never really considered taking your measly shares from you. Why don"t you keep it as a memento or something?"
"Haha! Suit yourself, then!" Rong Siman stood up and turned around to leave. When she was at the door, she swiveled her head around to look at Xin Qing. Then, her eyes swept around the entire house as if she was admiring everything.
"You"re really pitiful, you know that? What else do you have left other than money? You and your son will spend the rest of your life as a widow and an orphan. Ah Cang is still alive? Hahaha. Keep lying yourself. Lie to yourself for the rest of your life for all I care!"
A stony-faced Uncle Fu shoved Rong Siman out the door while Aunt Tian gave Xin Qing a worried glance. Xin Qing smiled at the both of them. "I"m okay," she said. "I"m going upstairs to check on the baby."
When Young Master Shen and Zhang Mi came over for dinner that night, Xin Qing kept staring at Young Master Shen anxiously.
"My people have been tailing her all day. She"s already boarded her flight. Just her and her son. Their flight is bound for France." Young Master Shen looked at Xin Qing briefly. "Don"t worry. I"ve got everything set up in France. I"ll be notified immediately once my guys have determined the location of their temporary accomodation."
Zhang Mi swallowed a mouthful of fish. "Why on earth did that woman even come here?" Zhang Mi asked in bewilderment.
"I don"t know," Xin Qing said with a shake of her head. Then, with a slightly troubled look on her face, she said, "I thought I could maybe get her to loosen her tongue and coax out some information about Ah Cang. But she kept insisting that Ah Cang is dead. She had even tried to use that to provoke me."
Sensing Young Master Shen and Zhang Mi"s eyes on her, Xin Qing blinked a few times. "You guys have to trust me on this. Ah Cang really isn"t dead," Xin Qing said resolutely. "I"ve dreamt about him a few more times. In my dreams, he was always lying inside a house that was pitch-black dark. He never spoke, nor did he respond to any of my questions, but I just know it. I know that he must be alive!"
Young Master Shen and Zhang Mi shared a look with each other. Then, Zhang Mi spoke out all of a sudden: "Maybe what Xin Qing saw in her dream is the real deal. Didn"t they say that two people who are in love will share some kind of telepathic connection between them? Plus, they both have this Ancestral Behest and Totem thingy connecting their bodies. Who knows, maybe they can really feel what the other is feeling!"
After that, everything slowly fell into a routine. Xin Qing became a stay-at-home mom and had focused all her attention on raising her baby. Every day, Xunxun would bring Ah Sha and Xiao Rui to school. Zhang Mi and Monica would come by every night to give her a rundown on the situation at the company. The routine was broken by Chen Ming"s sudden visit at the end of autumn.
"I never got a chance to visit you. Well, I did plan to come visit during w.a.n.gw.a.n.g"s baby shower, but then I heard it"s back luck for someone who"s still in mourning to attend an event like a baby shower. That"s why I never came." Chen Ming picked up w.a.n.gw.a.n.g and glanced into his face, which bore so much resemblance to Xin Qing. "He looks just like you in your younger days," Chen Ming remarked.
Xin Qing laughed. "So, let me guess. You"re here today to tell me that your mourning period is finally over and that you"re about to get married?"
"Haha. Yeah!" There was a strange look on Chen Ming"s face. "Xiao Ru... She"s pregnant. Her belly will start showing soon, so we should get married before that happens."
Xin Qing"s eyes went wide. "Wow, taking the ride first before paying for the fare? You"re a real piece of work!"
The look on Xin Qing"s face made Chen Ming feel even more mortified than he already was. "Hey, we"re both adults. This is nothing."
"Oh, don"t even start," Xin Qing said. "You"re almost 30. And if I remember correctly, Xiaoru is two years younger than me! Hey... Don"t tell me you used some kind of trick to get her pregnant?"
"What sort of nonsense are you coming up with in that head of yours?" Chen Ming said, poking her head like how he used to back when they were young. "Look, I also agree that she"s still young. But Xiaoru insisted that a man of my age should have a kid around. That"s why we... didn"t use protection."
Xin Qing chuckled. "Come on, I was just messing with you! Have you guys set a date yet? I"ll prepare my gift ahead of time."
"Yeah, we have. It"ll be on the 1st of next month," Chen Ming said, pulling out a delicate wedding invitation card. "You guys have to show up, okay!"
Chen Ming"s wedding had eased the edginess that had been plaguing everyone"s lives these days. The happiness that arises from the act of witnessing the happiness of close friends is an exceptional feeling indeed. Those with a pa.s.sion for life will no doubt experience such a feeling at some point in their lives.
By the time it snowed for the first time that year, w.a.n.gw.a.n.g had mastered the art of cartwheeling. Xin Qing was so delighted by it that she would ask w.a.n.gw.a.n.g to put on a show whenever they had visitors over. It was as if she thought that doing cartwheels was some sort of bada.s.s skill. Xin Enterprises had survived the shaky period following its corporate restructuring and had now begun putting new plans and investment projects into motion. They had received no news from the people they had sent to keep an eye on Rong Siman. That woman had been living an honest life as a wealthy woman, though the string of men in her life had never once been broken.
As for Ying Qingcang...
It was like the man had evaporated from the world. Slowly, it reached a point where n.o.body in the world even mentioned that name anymore. The appearance of the two words "Ying Enterprises" in the newspapers was becoming less and less frequent. Humans are forgetful creatures, after all. On the other hand, Xin Qing"s name was appearing more and more frequently in all forms of print media.
To Xin Qing herself, it was as if Ying Qingcang"s name had been etched into her blood, circling through her system every second of the day. Nothing could change that fact, not even the pa.s.sage of time...
Three years later.
"President Xin, thank you for renewing my contract!" Zhang Yafei stood up and shook Xin Qing"s hand. Due to the commercials that she had been filming for Xin Enterprises, Zhang Yafei"s status had skyrocketed. She became the Commercial Queen of the new generation. Even so, she never did forget her roots. Zhang Yafei knew that the only reason she could be who she was today was because of the opportunity that Xin Qing had given her. That was why Zhang Yafei had remained in Xin Enterprises even until this day.
The woman across from her smiled. "Come on, you don"t have to be so formal. You"ve earned all of this!"
Zhang Yafei stared at the woman before her. Three years had gone by, and yet time had left no trace of its pa.s.sage on the woman"s body at all. People tended to forget that this woman, the one who was now the leader of the entire Xin Financial Group, had actually just turned 25. She was at an age where her physical appearance would be at its prime.
A knock sounded at the door.
"Come in."
Ah Nan pushed open the door and entered. Zhang Yafei smiled at Xin Qing. "I"ll be taking my leave, then, President Xin."
Xin Qing nodded. Ah Nan waited for the other woman to leave first before he frowned and said, "Young miss, Rong Siman had started a company in France."
"Oh?" Xin Qing was a little surprised at that. "I guess she finally can"t take it anymore, huh?" The sun would rise from the west before that woman would allow herself to spend the rest of her days living a simple and honest life.
Ah Nan pa.s.sed the doc.u.ments to Xin Qing. "Here"s the strange thing," Ah Nan said. "The name of her company is called Ying"s Trading."
"Snap!" The pen in Xin Qing"s hand broke into two halves. The two words "Ying"s Trading" glared up at her from the white paper, so much so that it made her eyes hurt.
"Young miss, what do you think she"s up to?" Ah Nan asked in a tone of suspicion.
Xin Qing pulled in a few deep breaths to calm herself and then spent the next few moments in thought. "Continue watching her. I don"t think she has the ability to run a company. If she has someone backing her, then we need to drag that person out of the shadows immediately!"
Ah Nan nodded. "Understood."
Xin Qing rubbed her forehead, her gaze falling onto the family photo on her desk.
"Ah Cang... It"s been three years. Aren"t you coming back? w.a.n.gw.a.n.g has already gone to kindergarten. If you don"t come home soon, don"t come crying to me when your own son fails to recognize you."