October 28, 20XX (Sunday) In Zhao Family"s Private Jet
Yang sat down on one of the window seats, in front of Secretary Bai who in response handed a think folder to the CEO causing him to smirk when he saw through the plastic cover and into the files that he had been waiting for the whole week.
In his hands were the private files that had the information, both public and private ones, on Mei Li, her former boyfriend Chen Zhong, and ambitious Lu Yi Jie.
"Chang Min took his time perusing these," Yang commented to Secretary Bai with a snort, waving the files in his hands.
Xue Chang Min was one of his four affluent close friends. He was also a CEO that inherited a large business empire that runs manufacturing and sales of weapons and military technologies. Because of the nature of his business, Chang Min have connections in both public and private sectors so securing a public personnel file was not hard. What should be hard though was securing private files yet Yang, having a company that deals with information technology, could easily command one to be perused on the net, encrypted or not.
Secretary Bai slipped his eyegla.s.ses on as he replied, "CEO Xue had found discrepancies on Miss Wu"s files."
Yang crossed his legs, his eyebrows raised at his secretary, "What kind of discrepancies. Aren"t orphans easily tracked because of government records?"
"Half of Miss Wu"s files is closed and have been on red lockdown since eight years ago. CEO Xue was surprised to notice these, he had tried to unlock the files with his connections but he needed a level 5 clearance from the government for it to be released in his hands." Secretary Bai"s explanation brought mixed reactions towards Yang.
The CEO"s usual smile was gone and was replaced with a stoic face, eyes narrowed, brows furrowed, and lips thinned in contemplation.
Only public officials and special high profiled people have their public files on lockdown and only High Ranking Personal are capable of having their files on red lockdown. Red Lock Down meant having the best protections guarding their secrets, most of the time those secrets were distressing, that is why levels of clearances have been issued to control the files that can be view. Even Yang, a high profiled CEO with n.o.ble blood, only have level 3 clearance for unlocking files while Xue Chang Min have level 4 clearance.
"That is unsettling, who is capable enough to lock an orphan"s files into Red Lock Down?" Yang mumbled to himself not caring if Secretary Bai heard him.
There was an uneasy silence before it was broken.
"Your mother can…"
Yang felt himself straighten with shock.
His mother, Zhao nee Xing Hui Ying, was someone who acted like a spoiled Princess but was actually a devious Empress. She is still the only person left that can legitimately claim any resemblance of blood connection to the last Emperor that ruled. No other woman nor man is higher in rank in n.o.bility from China than Yang"s mother.
"These open more mysteries…" Yang had always wondered why his mother had been so adamant to pair him with Mei Li. He knows that his mother was carrying a large secret only she and selected other knows. Why had this parents readily accepted Mei Li to be Yue"s best friend? Why had they gone above and beyond to make her comfortable with his Family? They even renovated a room to be Mei Li"s art studio in case she comes to stay in the mansion! These questions were always in Yang"s mind far before he even met Mei Li in person but never really gave importance to since his father was a possessive man, Yang knew he wouldn"t let anyone be harmed if ever Mei Li had ulterior motives.
Yang was thrilled as adrenaline pump through his veins. Once again, Mei Li has proven herself more interesting than previously thought and this time she didn"t even have to lift one finger.
Meeting the woman in Paris and getting to spend time with her, was one of the most fun Yang has come to have.
In their first meeting, he expected her to be the same with other beautiful women. He expected her to be either boring and afraid of him or talkative and tactile with him but he was shown a woman who showed care in the most direct and blunt way. He remembered being offended when Mei Li had listed all the health issues he could get with his uncontrolled alcohol intake and he also remembered how his knees buckled in weakness after being reprimanded for taking his mother"s love for granted. It was one of the most embarra.s.sing moments of his life but it was also the moment that cemented his interest to Mei Li.
The next day after, he grew bored with the world and seemed to feel the need to see the woman who could embarra.s.s him. He quickly hacked Mei Li"s phone for her location (although he used Yue"s name instead of telling her the truth) and went to Louvre with a ticket he had Secretary Bai book online while he prepared to go out. He had not expected to see Mei Li lining up alone, looking so pitifully lonely. It was then he remembered that this woman was probably distracting herself from the thoughts of her break up so he spent the day testing his limits, probing her bottom line, and trying out jokes. He dragged her to shop for him, which was entertaining, to say the least. Mei Li had been careful, almost as if she tiptoed when dealing with him and other people that he interacted. Whatever Yue had told Mei Li concerning him was clearly not all good things.
After that when the next day came, he could not help the excited feeling he felt. Whenever he tried to do work, his mind would wander towards Mei Li. He felt as if he was dragged into the clouds, floating into the air, and throwing all his worries out the window… he hacked for her location again and stormed towards the Eiffel tower in a hurry, leaving behind his secretary to do all the work. Only to arrive seeing her lonely back again with eyes unfocused and a face full of gloom.
That day he realized that a woman"s tears could easily be wielded to be both an emotion and a weapon because if Mei Li cried more often, Yang would topple cities just to wipe it. If she ever asked for his help, he had already thought of a thousand ways to destroy Chen Zhong. Dammit, he should not have granted her proposal for leniency. d.a.m.n her soft heart! An ordinary woman would have already been fuming for vengeance but not her. No, not with her… but that was what attracted him most to her, she wasn"t like most woman.
When the sun set and rose again the next day after, he had not slept a wink trying to decipher why he was so interested in Mei Li. He admits… she was interesting… and beautiful, and her voice so unique, and her lips so kissable, and her brown eyes sparkle like polished gemstones, and her subtle scent of lavender, and her blunt manner of bantering with him, and how cute her red ears were when she puffed out in anger, and how she could just stay beside him and breath and he was already satisfied.
No woman had ever made him feel these emotions, no one else but her. That day he did not eat, did not sleep nor drink anything as he sat on the sofa contemplating about Mei Li.
As the day drew to a close, he talked for a while with his dad concerning business and realize in the middle of the conversation that maybe he liked Mei Li. Even already knowing her phone number because he had already hacked her into her phone, Yang still asked Yue so she wouldn"t be surprised if he did text. That night he slept decided to let things happen on its own but he also remembered promising to himself that one way or another, no matter how slow, Mei Li would be his.
And when his friends, Li Alexandre and Li Ru s.h.i.+, had called him for lunch the next day, Yang"s thoughts immediately remembered Mei Li. She had just cut her relations.h.i.+p but he would let her make more friendly relations so Yang dragged Alexandre to fetch Mei Li at a local bookstore.
That day, Yang felt Mei Li trying to control her emotions. She was like an overflowing dam, ready to explode because her mood had fluctuated like a pregnant woman. One minute she was giggling, next minute she was glaring, then crying, and then asking pitifully for cheesecake.
Yang had always hated moody women but Mei Li is always the exception.
He returned to looking at the files in his hands and cursing inwardly as he saw the 2x2 picture of Mei Li"s Ex. Good riddance to inferior goods. Trashes like him don"t deserve to have a great woman.