Xiang Wan shrugged her shoulders.Xie Wanwan"s gaze drifted away slowly. "In this world, one has to exchange for things that they need with equal value in return. She has nothing that I need, and my sympathy for her is not enough for me to put too much effort into her. She also knows very well that what the investor could offer her is something that I can"t give."
"Do you mean that you didn"t try to lead her on so you could offer her as a sacrifice?" Xiang Wan raised her doubt. "It"s not easy to get money from investors. At least for now, she"s representing you… The one who would benefit from this should be you."
Hur!
Xie Wanwan laughed.
"You"re sharp, but it"s just what you think it is."
"I don"t understand," replied Xiang Wan, "with your current status, is there a need to be so pa.s.sive?"
"I"ve said earlier," responded Xie Wanwan, "it"s a deal of equal exchange. From another perspective, it could also be said that it is a chance that I gave her… a chance to get into the s...o...b..z industry. Otherwise, she might be working as an a.s.sistant all her life and still unable to get what she wants."
Xiang Wan was unable to say anything more.
She was not the female a.s.sistant nor Xie Wanwan herself. She couldn"t belittle their choices.
"She has only seen the glamorous side of my life…" Xie Wanwan showed a half-smile. "What she doesn"t know that behind all this glamour is the hefty amount of effort that I put in so I could become an List celebrity. In this line, n.o.body can become a success just with some slipshod effort…"
Xiang Wan puffed a sigh.
"Come, let"s have dinner."
…
Xie Wanwan was right about Xiang Wan. She was indeed a calm and decisive woman. Since she took her in, she wouldn"t be mean or try to pick on her. Such a woman was a qualified lady of the household. Even though Xiang Wan stayed at home most of the time and would order takeout deliveries when she was too lazy to cook, with Xie Wanwan around, she would prepare meals and the latter could see that she had been maintaining the house well. Xiang Wan possessed the style of a refined woman.
To Xie Wanwan, if a woman like her became the daughter-in-law of a rich and influential family, it seemed fitting.
Xiang Wan was completely at ease while Fang Yuanyuan, who knew that Xie Wanwan was staying with them, couldn"t calm down at all.
Fang Yuanyuan was so worried about Xiang Wan that she "abandoned" Huang He the next day and took a flight to the Capital instead, wanting to help Xiang Wan chase away the "vixen".
When Xiang Wan welcomed her inside the house, she nearly burst into laughter seeing Fang Yuanyuan behaving all stern and "ferocious".
"If the airplane allowed knives, I have a feeling that you would dash inside my house with it."
"What do you think?" Fang Yuanyuan"s eyes darted around the house in search of the "vixen". "Where"s that person?"
"Who?"
"That little vixen!"
Xiang Wan gave a condescending frown.
"She"s older than me!"
"Fine, that big vixen. Where is she?"
This woman!
Xiang Wan laughed as she pulled Fang Yuanyuan down to the sofa. "What do you want to drink?" she asked in a lighthearted tone, "did you eat during the flight? Are you hungry?"
"… Xiang Wan?" Fang Yuanyuan was gritting her teeth and rolled her sleeves up. "Are you suffering from the last stage of the "kindness" disease or did a virus get inside your brain?"
"I"m asking, what do you want to drink? Coffee or tea?"
"Orange juice!"
"Wait a while."
"…" Fang Yuanyuan was speechless for a moment.
Xiang Wan soon put a gla.s.s of orange juice before Fang Yuanyuan. She even cut some cake and placed them on a plate for her. When Fang Yuanyuan saw the delicious-looking dessert, she helped herself to the cake. In the end, she got "interrogated" by Xiang Wan instead of the other way round. Fang Yuanyuan was supposed to be the one asking questions, yet she became the one answering questions.
"Is Huang He alright?"
"Mm, mm, he"s much better now."
"Who"s going to take care of him now that you"re here?"
"His mom, his paternal aunts, his maternal aunts, his great-aunt… all of them showed up."
Pffft! Xiang Wan burst into laughter.
Fang Yuanyuan could always make Xiang Wan laugh, even though she replied seriously with a straight face.
"Since his relatives are here, shouldn"t you stay by his side and be a good girlfriend by taking care of him?… It"ll look really good on you and gain favor from them!"
"Hurhur!" Fang Yuanyuan rolled her eyes. "Do you think I need to depend on them or something?"
She"s getting arrogant!.
Xiang Wan shook her head, grinning away.
Nevertheless, she felt relieved when she heard that Huang He was recuperating well.
This man who always got hurt and suffered from so many misfortunes should lead a normal life onward.
Xiang Wan asked casually, "Is he going back to work as a detective?"
"How would I know?" Fang Yuanyuan pouted a little. "I"ve asked him actually. He said that he would follow accordingly to what the organization wants him to do."
"…"
That did sound like Huang He.
The two of them chatted with each other as they ate.
When Fang Yuanyuan noticed that Xiang Wan didn"t seem like she was troubled or dejected, she calmed down a lot.
"It"s fortunate that this woman didn"t do anything out of line. Otherwise, I"ll exterminate her."
"Cut it out, who can you exterminate anyway?" Xiang Wan was amused by the remark. "Go take a bath and have a rest. I"ll prepare something nice for dinner tonight…"
"What?"
When she learnt that Xiang Wan wanted to cook every day, Fang Yuanyuan nearly jumped in a fit of anger.
"D*rn! How can you do this! When you live with me, you always make me cook or buy food for you. Why do you spoil her when she stays with you?"
Xiang Wan couldn"t stop giggling. "She"s a celebrity whereas you"re a heavyweight of 120 pounds, how can you be compared to her?"
Fang Yuanyuan scowled in dissatisfaction. "Xiang Wan, do you actually want to unfriend me?"
Xiang Wan burst out laughing then gave her a hug. "You"re jealous? Silly girl, how can you compare yourself to her? She"s a guest, an outsider. You"re my dearest sister, we"re family."
Hmph!
Fang Yuanyuan was content.
"That"s more like it. I"ll go take a bath now!"
…
Xiang Wan prepared dinner but Bai Muchuan hadn"t come back.
It was the same for Xie Wanwan as well. However, she sent a message to Xiang Wan when it was almost dinner time.
"Don"t wait for me for dinner. I got detained by your Little Bai."
Detained?
Xiang Wan knew that she was joking.
If she really got detained, she wouldn"t be able to send any messages for her phone would be taken away from her.
From the looks of it, Serious Crime Division One had summoned her to a.s.sist in their investigations.
So did they have any new developments in the case?
Xiang Wan gave it a thought and picked up her phone on the coffee table.
Fang Yuanyuan was sitting on the sofa and stroking Blackie. She was startled for a moment when she saw Xiang Wan looking grim.
"What happened? Did that little vixen… No, big vixen, did she do anything to upset you?"
Xiang Wan gave her a look of disapproval, then patted Blackie on the head before heading to the bedroom to make a phone call.
"Hey!"
Behind her, Fang Yuanyuan snorted unhappily.
Xiang Wan locked her bedroom door.
…
She dialed Bai Muchuan"s number but n.o.body picked up the call.
Xiang Wan paced around her room, looking worried and holding her mobile phone.
She decided to call again. After a few rings, Bai Muchuan finally picked up the call.
"h.e.l.lo, what"s up?"
Usually, if she couldn"t get through the first time, she wouldn"t call again.
Bai Muchuan got anxious. Without waiting for her to speak, he quickly gave an explanation.
"I was inside the interrogation room earlier and couldn"t take your call. I just got out and was about to call you when you called again."
"Orh." Xiang Wan spoke with a hint of worry. "Xie Wanwan didn"t come back and told me that she was in Serious Crime Division One. That"s why I called. She has been under a lot of scrutiny lately with some of her top fans being involved in Operation Heaven"s Wrath. I"m worried about her safety…"
"Her fans were indeed involved. But—"
Bai Muchuan paused for a moment and suddenly gave a low chuckle. "You called because of this?"
Xiang Wan: "Otherwise?"
Bai Muchuan: "It"s not because you missed me?"
Xiang Wan: "… If I miss you, you"ll be able to come home?"
Bai Muchuan: "Of course."
Xiang Wan: "I"d be a fool if I believe you."
Bai Muchuan: "If you don"t give it a try, how would you know?"
Pffft! Xiang Wan let out a chortle. "I miss you, I miss you… Is that okay? You better concentrate on your work. I only wanted to make sure she"s safe. Oh yes, Yuanyuan"s here in the Capital. Now our house is really lively… That"s all for now, I need to keep her company."
Xiang Wan hung up and went on to spend her time with Fang Yuanyuan.
No, there"s also Blackie with them.
It"s a world of two women and a cat.
She didn"t think that Bai Muchuan would really come back home.