This sudden, shocking turn of events stunned three of the four people present. The only one who remained clear-headed, Cheng Ying, was slapped so hard she was seeing stars.
She didn’t know if she was angrier that Jiang Hanguang had just left like that, or angrier at herself for letting her go without saying a word. Driving slowly, she seemingly passed by Jiang Hanguang’s apartment building unintentionally, only to witness this family drama unfold.
The man and woman were, of course, Jiang Hanguang’s parents. Cheng Mantou had found out they ran a small to medium-sized food factory.
Eight years ago, that food factory had faced a bankruptcy crisis due to poor management. It later survived thanks to large orders from Feng’s Food Group. Currently, eighty percent of the factory’s orders came from Feng’s Food.
Eight years ago was precisely when Jiang Hanguang married Feng Nan.
Based on Cheng Ying’s understanding of Feng Nan, it was impossible for him to proactively help a nearly bankrupt company.
And based on Cheng Ying’s understanding of Jiang Hanguang, while she would never marry Feng Nan for money, the possibility that she was coerced by her parents and sold to Feng Nan to save their family company was quite high.
After all, even Xu Ning, someone she’d only met twice, could guilt-trip her. How much more so her own parents who had raised her?
And now, the reason these two worthless parents of hers had shown up was self-evident.
It seems that even if I hadn’t scolded you, your day wouldn’t have been easy, Miss Jiang.
Cheng Ying silently parked the car, opened the door, and got out. This time, she really did intend to watch a good show.
If Jiang Hanguang’s father hadn’t been so irritable as to resort to physical violence, that is.
Is protecting her becoming a reflex for me?
Cheng Ying swayed a couple of times and barely steadied herself. Her mind was buzzing, her right cheek burned with a fiery pain, and a faint taste of blood emerged in her mouth, likely from her teeth scraping the soft flesh inside.
“Cheng Ying!” Jiang Hanguang, from behind her, practically threw herself in front of her in a panic, cupping her face with trembling hands.
The woman’s fingers were cool, slender, and soft. As they touched the burning wound, Cheng Ying could barely resist the urge to nuzzle against them.
Thankfully, she held back.
Cheng Ying saw her reddened eyes. Those captivating eyes and brows were now furrowed in sorrow, filled with shimmering tears, making one want to both crush her and worship her.
She’s so beautiful, and so detestable.
Cheng Ying thought about how miserable she must look right now, to have scared Miss Jiang so much that she couldn’t even maintain her noble and aloof facade.
If only you had cried like this for me earlier.
Expressionless, Cheng Ying pulled her face from Jiang Hanguang’s hands, roughly pushed her behind her, and glared at the man who had slapped her, her face swollen.
Jiang’s father clearly hadn’t expected that his lecture to his own daughter would be interrupted by a meddler who popped out of nowhere. He was stunned on the spot, only snapping out of it when the young Alpha’s icy gaze fell upon him.
He sized Cheng Ying up and down. He saw that although she was well-dressed and exceptionally beautiful, she was, one, too young, and two, an unfamiliar face he didn’t recognize. He instantly knew who she was—it had to be the Cheng Ying who had been causing a stir online recently and displeasing President Feng.
At that, his anger flared up even more. Pointing at Jiang Hanguang behind Cheng Ying, he cursed in a low voice, “You divorced President Feng just to be with her?”
Cheng Ying: “…Sir, is there something wrong with you?”
She fearlessly rolled her eyes at this violent man with his bizarre train of thought and said, at a speed unrestricted even by her swollen face, “I’m her agent. If you don’t leave now, I’m calling the police. This injury is enough to land you in jail for at least half a month, believe it or not.”
Although she really wanted to slap him back, the man’s actions had already attracted a crowd of onlookers. Cheng Ying had no desire to make social news headlines for something like “Spoiled Rich Kid Brutally Beats Vicious Old Dad.”
Clearly, Cheng Ying’s words had hit a nerve. The man’s face twisted into an expression of someone who wanted to lash out but didn’t dare. He scanned the surroundings, let out an angry huff, and left with a parting shot, “You just wait!”
Then he pulled Jiang’s mother, who had approached him, into a black sedan and sped off.
The entire time, Jiang’s mother looked at Jiang Hanguang with a pitiful expression, as if she wanted to say something but ultimately didn’t dare.
After the car carrying the two of them disappeared from sight, Cheng Ying nonchalantly wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth and turned to leave.
Just looking at Jiang Hanguang made her angry.
But the person behind her grabbed her arm.
Cheng Ying frowned and looked back, only to see that Jiang Hanguang’s brows were furrowed even more tightly than hers.
“Come upstairs with me, I’ll treat your wound…” The woman’s reddened eyes made her look like a red-eyed rabbit. Her gaze fell on the injury on Cheng Ying’s right cheek, her eyes filled with an irresolvable guilt, as if she were about to cry.
Cheng Ying pulled her hand away, wanting to give a cold sneer to show she didn’t need it, but the movement aggravated the wound, and she couldn’t help but hiss in pain.
It had been too long since she’d been beaten up. She was no longer like her younger self, who could crack her own head open without a change in expression.
The moment she showed pain, her hand was grabbed once again.
So annoying.
Cheng Ying looked at Jiang Hanguang with an annoyed expression, only to see the woman’s eyes glistening as two tears slid down her pale cheeks.
She was actually crying.
Crying, she clutched Cheng Ying’s hand and looked at her, saying, “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have lied to you. Can you let me treat your wound before you go?”
As Cheng Ying sat on the old but comfortable sofa in Lu Sigui’s home, she still couldn’t figure out what wire she had crossed.
She’d heard that in ancient times, there was a type of ‘gu’ poison that could make people lose their minds and be manipulated by the caster. She might as well have been afflicted by such a curse.
The whole time, Jiang Hanguang supported her to the sofa as if she were already an invalid, then hurriedly ran off to find the first-aid kit.
Cheng Ying surveyed the small but clean room, her mind wandering.
The contract termination letter, signed with Jiang Hanguang’s name, sat squarely on the coffee table, mocking who knew whom.
Jiang Hanguang moved quickly—or to be more precise, her movements could almost be described as flustered. When she opened the first-aid kit, she nearly spilled its contents.
Cheng Ying had never seen Jiang Hanguang like this. This woman, even when being persecuted, always wore a calm and composed expression, as if bravely facing martyrdom. Could she really get this flustered?
She felt an inexplicable urge to laugh, but this time, she remembered to only lift the left corner of her mouth.
Jiang Hanguang washed her hands, dabbed a little ointment on her finger, and hesitantly studied the purplish-red patch on Cheng Ying’s right cheek. After a moment, she steeled herself and said, “This might hurt a little. Please bear with it.”
Cheng Ying didn’t waste words, simply turning her face to the side to indicate that she could proceed.
The cool ointment was pressed against the burning skin, bringing a wave of relief. The woman’s delicate palm pressed gently and slowly on the wound. The expected dull ache and an unexpected sense of comfort intertwined, strangely bizarre yet perfectly complementary.
Cheng Ying blinked unnaturally a couple of times before realizing that the distance between her and Jiang Hanguang had become extremely dangerous.
She was sitting on the sofa. To make it easier to apply the medicine, Jiang Hanguang was half-kneeling to her right, leaning over to treat her.
The woman’s breath brushed lightly against her cheek, causing a tingling itch. Cheng Ying’s nose was filled with the rich scent of roses.
It usually smelled so faint. Was it always this fragrant up close?
Cheng Ying unconsciously shifted her body and was immediately held still by Jiang Hanguang, who cupped her face.
“Don’t move, it’ll be done soon.” The woman’s tone was gentle yet brooked no argument.
Her hand rested gently on the side of Cheng Ying’s neck, and Cheng Ying instantly froze like a statue.
Should I push her away?
But she really is just applying medicine. Why would I push away someone who’s treating a wound?
Full of inner conflict, Cheng Ying could only continue to sit stiffly, letting Jiang Hanguang do as she pleased.
Because she couldn’t move, her gaze had no choice but to rest on Jiang Hanguang’s face.
And so, the woman’s trembling eyelashes, her bright and focused eyes, her full, rosy lips, and her fair complexion all came into view.
Cheng Ying closed her eyes.
I can’t look anymore. If I keep looking, I won’t be able to stop myself from forgiving Jiang Hanguang.
But to forgive her just like that would be too spineless.
The ointment was slowly absorbed by her swollen cheek, subduing the fiery pain. Cheng Ying was so comfortable she was about to fall asleep when Jiang Hanguang finally stopped. She then took a cotton swab from the first-aid kit, dipped it in some medicinal powder, and said, “Open your mouth.”
“Hm?” Cheng Ying opened her drowsy eyes and questioned her with a look.
“The corner of your mouth is bleeding. The inside needs medicine too,” Jiang Hanguang said with a serious expression.
“…” Cheng Ying didn’t want to open her mouth. Ever since she was a child, she’d always thought that opening one’s mouth wide for someone else, as if howling, was very silly.
Even if it was for treatment, it was still silly.
But seeing Jiang Hanguang’s stern face, she had a feeling that if she didn’t open her mouth now, Jiang Hanguang would try to pry it open soon.
So she could only open her mouth slightly to comply.
Fortunately, Jiang Hanguang probably considered the injury on her cheek and didn’t demand that she open it very wide.
The woman stared intently at her lips as the small cotton swab gently entered, pressing accurately against the wound.
“Just hold it in your mouth for a bit, then spit it out.” Having completed this task, Jiang Hanguang let out a soft sigh of relief and was about to stand up, using the back of the sofa for support.
But the person on the sofa grabbed her arm.
Her grip was much stronger than Jiang Hanguang’s; there was no way to break free.
Jiang Hanguang didn’t try to struggle, either. She just looked at Cheng Ying, thinking she was still uncomfortable somewhere.
But Cheng Ying just looked at her with downcast eyes, the cotton swab in her mouth moving slightly, her thoughts unreadable.
Fortunately, Jiang Hanguang was one of the most patient people in the world. Since Cheng Ying didn’t speak, she just waited.
Finally, Cheng Ying spat out the cotton swab, looked at her, and said out of the blue, “I’m still angry.”
Jiang Hanguang: “…”
She recalled that her actions just now had indeed crossed a line, especially after what had just happened.
The woman lowered her gaze, an apology already on the tip of her tongue.
“Can’t you coax me?”
This shocking statement from Cheng Ying made the words catch in her throat.
Jiang Hanguang’s eyes widened as she stared at Cheng Ying, who stared back defiantly.
“I don’t want to hear you say sorry. Say something else.”
The Alpha’s gaze was scorching, her somewhat hot breath hitting the side of Jiang Hanguang’s neck.
Jiang Hanguang seemed nailed to the spot. Only the blush spreading from the side of her neck indicated she wasn’t made of stone.
The supermarket owner’s words echoed in her mind: “Act cute with her a little more, and she definitely won’t have the heart to argue with you.”
Act cute? How?
Shake Cheng Ying’s arm and say, “I was wrong, please forgive me”?
Are acting cute and coaxing the same thing?
In an instant, Jiang Hanguang’s brain was overloaded with so many complicated thoughts it felt like it was overclocking. The “glaring tiger” beside her only intensified her nervousness.
Finally, under the Alpha’s gaze, Jiang Hanguang hesitantly leaned down and gently hugged her.
It was a gentle and simple hug. Cheng Ying’s chin rested on the woman’s rounded shoulder. The woman’s body was soft and warm, her hand gently stroking her back.
Stroke by stroke, as if soothing an angry, bristling cat.
“I know I was wrong. It will never happen again.” Jiang Hanguang’s voice now lacked its usual crisp, formal tone. Instead, it carried a soft, sweet accent, as if she’d grabbed the wrong voice pack in her panic. She asked cautiously, “Can you forgive me?”
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