Chapter 259 What Exactly Have You Guys Been Hiding from Me? (1/2)

The holidays drew to a close when summer reached its end. Xin Qing had decided to personally drop by Boss Wan's base in order to pick up Xiao Rui and Wangwang. She figured she could take the opportunity to ask Chen Huan about Ying Qingcang as well.

Zhang Mi was kept between the sheets by Young Master Shen, so she could not accompany Xin Qing. At first, Xin Qing had wanted to bring Monica along with her, but Monica had told her in a series of stammers that she had something on so she could not leave the city. With that, Xin Qing had no choice but to travel alone.

When she saw Xiao Rui and Wangwang, Xin Qing immediately assumed that the two of them must have been to Africa.

”How did you two get so tanned?”

The two children, whose skins were now hideously dark, merely stared back at her with wide eyes.

”Mother!” Wangwang pounced on her first. ”Look, I've developed muscles now!” Wangwang yanked up his sleeve to reveal his arm. Much to Xin Qing's surprise, there really was a tiny bulge of muscle on his arm.

Xiao Rui came over and tugged Xin Qing's arm. ”Uncle Wan asked his subordinates to do combat drills with us in the forest every day.”

”No wonder!” Xin Qing ran her fingers through Xiao Rui's hair. ”Are you tired? I'm here to take you both home.”

”If you have anything to ask Aunt Huan, then you shouldn't waste your time. She has nothing to say,” Xiao Rui said.

Before Xin Qing could ask Xiao Rui whether he knew something, she saw Chen Huan running towards them from afar. Chen Huan also had Liuliu in her arms while she ran.

”Xin Qing!”

”Auntie!” Liuliu pounced on Xin Qing.

Xin Qing set Wangwang down on the ground and picked up Liuliu. ”Oh, my, look at you, Liuliu! You've grown prettier again! I bet you'll become a gorgeous lady in the future!” At three years old, Liuliu had a face that was as round as a bun, which made her look like one of those dolls found on New Year paintings.

”Then can I become Brother Xiao Rui's mommy once I'm a gorgeous lady?” Liuliu had very huge eyes and she was now staring at Xin Qing, batting her long eye lashes. Oh, how adorable!

Chen Huan rolled her eyes. ”Not mommy. It's wife!”

”Liuliu likes Brother Xiao Rui?” Xin Qing smiled and pinched the little girl's bun-like face.

”I like Brother Xiao Rui the most!” Then, Liuliu threw herself at Xiao Rui happily. Xiao Rui picked up the girl with his poker-face still intact.

Wangwang stared at Liuliu with a look of distaste on his face. ”Brother Xiao Rui is mine. As if our family would want a chubby girl like you!”

”Wow!” Liuliu burst into tears. Her snot and tears were now dripping all over Xiao Rui, though it was like Xiao Rui never even realized it. He did not complain that Liuliu was making a mess of his clothes, nor did he recoil in disgust. He just ignored everything.

Xin Qing took Liuliu from Xiao Rui. Then, she began comforting and coaxing Liuliu as she gave Xiao Rui a worried look. ”It'd be a miracle if this kid could find himself a wife in the future...”

They stayed on the island for two days. During her stay, Xin Qing had asked Chen Huan a lot of times about Ying Qingcang, though Chen Huan's answer was always the same: they were still working on it. All in all, Chen Huan kept trying to reassure her that they would definitely be able to remove the device from Ying Qingcang's body.

Then again, the more she put it that way, the more Xin Qing worried. Xin Qing kept feeling like everyone was hiding something from her, especially Xiao Rui, who always seemed like he wanted to tell her something but then changed his mind in the last minute. Whenever she asked him about it, the boy would just tell her that it was nothing.

Xin Qing told Boss Wan in private about Xiao Rui's past. She asked Boss Wan to look into the incident that year and at the same time verify that the Jiang family had indeed told her the truth. It was as if the incident was no secret to the upper ranks of the military; it did not take long at all for Boss Wan to come to her with the results of his findings.

”The Jiang family didn't lie. The incident that year happened exactly as they had told you,” Boss Wan said, showing all the information he had gathered to Xin Qing. ”Also, the perpetrator was never found. I'm guessing it was some kind of terror organization.”

”In that case, Xiao Rui can't go back to the Jiang family.”

Boss Wan nodded. ”He'll be safer if he stays with you instead.”

With the start of a school year around the corner, Xin Qing, Xiao Rui and Wangwang prepared to head back to S City. On the day of their departure, Liuliu clung on to Xiao Rui and began bawling her hearts out. A dark glower formed on Boss Wan's face when he saw the way his daughter was clinging to another man, refusing to let go. Scowling, Boss Wan picked up Liuliu and carried her away. Liuliu's heart-wrenching sobs were still audible even after they had all boarded the helicopter.

”Xiao Rui, Liuliu is very fond of you, huh!” Xin Qing felt rather delighted at how things had turned out. It seemed like her son was popular with the ladies even at such a young age. She had long since forgotten about that time when she had been worrying about the possibility of no women ever wanting her son as a husband.

Wangwang curled his lips. ”What's so nice about being liked by a ball? Brother Xiao Rui, don't start liking that fat girl. Like Sister Ah Sha instead!”

”Fine. You go tell Xunxun that, I dare you.” Xiao Rui gave Wangwang a sidelong glance. A look of terror washed over Wangwang's face and he shook his head. ”I never said anything! I never said anything!”

At the end of that month, Xunxun and Ah Sha came home as well. On Xin Qing's special request, Ah Sha had abandoned Xunxun and decided to sleep in Xin Qing's room for a few nights. That d*mned brat had been monopolizing her daughter every day. Xin Qing could barely remember the last time she and Ah Sha had slept together.

As a result, Xunxun did not waste a single day when school reopened before dragging Ah Sha back to Caesar Academy. Xiao Rui brought Wangwang to the academy only on the second day. Since Wangwang would be in first grade this year, he had requested to stay at the dorms, but Xiao Rui then told him that Xin Qing would be left all alone at home and that she would be bored. Xiao Rui told Wangwang to stay home to keep Xin Qing company.

What Xin Qing found really weird was Monica's recent behavior.

”I asked you to give me the plans for the underground hot springs, but the heck is this? What did you just give me?” Xin Qing tossed the document onto her desk and stared at Monica who seemed to be miles away even if she was just standing across from her.

Monica blinked a few times. ”Ah, I'll go get it immediately.”

”Alright, that's enough,” Xin Qing said, standing up and grabbing Monica's arm. ”Sit down,” Xin Qing ordered. Monica did as she was told. Then, Xin Qing said, ”Now, talk. What's going on with you?”

”No... Nothing!” Monica's eyes darted around their sockets, looking at anywhere but Xin Qing.

Xin Qing chuckled. ”You think I'm blind? I can tell that something's wrong with you just from the way you're acting.”

Monica sneaked a glance at the doorway. Then, she spoke in a wary tone: ”If I tell you, you have to promise me not to tell anyone else, okay?”

”I promise,” Xin Qing said. ”To tell everyone else...” Xin Qing added inwardly.

Monica swallowed. ”It's about that dude, Ah Nan. He kept rejecting me. So I drugged him. And then I had sex with him.”

”...” Xin Qing's eyes went wide. ”You... You really... D*mn, you really have balls of steel!”

”What else was I supposed to do?” A dejected look formed on Monica face. ”That blockhead is interested in me, and yet he kept holding me at arms' length. I'd probably be an old woman by the time he finally says something.”