A Miao placed herself in front of Zhou Xiao. "This is my friend. If you don't have anything nice to say, don't show up in front of us."
"What gives you the right to dictate that?" Xia Mei sneered. "This is my home! Do you trust that I'll go and get someone to throw her out?"
"Very well. Go ahead and do it!" A Miao looked in the direction of the second floor. "Ruin Xia Wan's banquet and let's see who'll be the disgraced one in the end!"
Xia Mei's expression changed. Truly, she had no courage to do so. She clenched her teeth. "Hey! You’d better be honest! If I catch you stealing things, I'll send you to the police station!" After threatening Zhou Xiao, she shot A Miao a glare before turning around to leave.
Downstairs, Xia Wan appeared in the crowd with people surrounding her. Xia Yongqiang was currently introducing her to everyone. A Miao quietly brought Zhou Xiao to a corner of the hall. They sat down and began enjoying the light refreshments. Zhou Xiao saw how A Miao was focusing her attention on the dance floor and pondered over it before finally speaking.
"A Miao, you don't have to accompany me. You're also one of the hosts today. Go and speak to your guests!"
"This family has nothing to do with me." A Miao's mouth twitched.
"I'll excuse myself for just a short while. Be careful." She really must go over but it was not to entertain the guests.
Zhou Xiao nodded. "Don't worry. I'll stay here and won't go anywhere!"
Seeing that Zhou Xiao did not seem afraid, A Miao left with a peaceful mind. She slowly made her way near Xia Yongqiang.
"Mr. Shen, I've been looking forward to meeting you for a long time. I'm very glad that you're able to attend my birthday banquet!" Xia Wan revealed a clean smile at Shen Xinglan. Inside, she quietly sighed over how good looking he was.
Bai Youran and the other young masters were no match for him at all. She was determined to marry Shen Xinglan!
"You're welcome." Shen Xinglan was still wearing a neutral expression. Seeing that his expression did not change, Xia Wan felt somewhat clueless.
The starlet next to Shen Xinglan smiled at her. "Happy birthday, Ms. Xia!"
"Thank you!" Xia Wan returned a courteous smile all while carefully observing the woman. Besides her pair of beautiful eyes, there was no part of her that could rival Xia Wan.
This boosted her confidence a little. Just as she was about to invite Shen Xinglan for a dance, everything before her eyes suddenly darkened.
"Ah!"
"What happened?"
"A blackout?"
Chaos immediately erupted inside the hall. The sound of women's screeches and chinaware falling to the ground resounded here and there.
Xia Haixin quickly turned on his phone to placate everyone. "I'm very sorry! We have neglected it. Please be patient. The servants have already gone to fix the fuse wire!" He stood atop a chair and shouted. Xia Yongqiang darkened his face, sitting aside. It was a great embarrassment to have a blackout on such an important occasion.
The guests gradually calmed down. The men all turned on their lights on their phones.
"Grandfather, did you see Mr. Shen?" Xia Wan noticed that Shen Xinglan had disappeared.
Xia Yongqiang said in a displeased tone, "Where do I find him in such darkness? Once the light comes on again, you must find an opportunity to talk to him."
Behind him, A Miao was slowly creeping over. She was so close to coming into contact with Xia Yongqiang.
"What are you doing? Let me go!" The sound of Zhou Xiao's voice drifted from the corner of the hall. Even though it was so noisy inside the hall, A Miao still heard her friend's voice because she had been keeping her eye on the corner all along. She whipped her head around.
Under the dim light, she saw Xia Mei clasping her hand over Zhou Xiao's mouth and dragged her out...
"Damn it!" A Miao cursed. She estimated that no more than two minutes had passed since the blackout. She could not make any more delay. However... The direction was headed toward the garden. She remembered that there was a large fountain there. She closed her eyes and in the next second, she turned around without hesitation. "Let her go!" The scene in the garden caused A Miao's anger to erupt. Xia Mei was suppressing Zhao Xiao at the fountain, forcing the latter's head into the water. A Miao ran to them and shoved Xia Mei aside. With a turn of her body, Xia Mei plunged into the water. "Zhou Xiao, are you okay?" A Miao helped Zhou Xiao sit down, frantically patting her back. "Ha... A Miao... Ha..." Zhou Xiao was gasping for breath. She then burst into tears and threw herself into A Miao's embrace. "A Miao! I thought I'm going to die! I nearly died earlier." Xia Mei pathetically c
"What's wrong with your car?" "The engine burnt out. I'm calling for a repairman." Bai Youran glanced at A Miao who was seated in the backseat without concealing his loathing at all. "Where are you going?" Xia Wan chuckled. "I'm treating A Miao to dinner today. Why don't... Why don't you come with us?" Thinking that he was being humorous, Bai Youran replied, "I'm coming along even if you don't ask me! I'll drive, so ask your driver to drive my car to your home." If it was Xia Wan who planned for their meeting with Bai Youran, then A Miao had become thoroughly stupefied after seeing Shen Xinglan in the restaurant... "Mr. Shen!" Xia Wan cried in surprise. "So you're also here for dinner!" Shen Xinglan was not alone and his female companion was a familiar face. A Miao felt like it was a face that she frequently saw on television. However, it was not the same one she met in Xi
A Miao was walking downstairs for her meal when she heard Xia Mei's voice. She then turned around to go upstairs. "Stop right there!" Xia Mei threw the photo at her. "It's fine if you embarrass yourself, don't get us involved!" The photo depicted A Miao, dressed in a chick costume, delivering condoms. She picked up the photo but before she could take a clearer look, Yao Lili's voice resounded. "What is this?" Yao Lili snatched the photo out of A Miao's hands. Before long, she began screeching. "Disgusting! How can you do something like this?" Seeing the development of events, A Miao thought she might as well sit down. "It's just a job. You all don't have to make a fuss about it." "Job?" Xia Mei grabbed the photo and waved it in front of A Miao's face. "This photo is pinned up in our school board. Now everyone knows that there's someone in Xia family that does this sort of shady busine
"Is this stinky tofu?" Shen I pinched a block of the tofu with his fingers and gave it a sniff. He nearly vomited. He rushed to the door, about to open it. "Don't open the door." Shen II stopped him while he opened the windows. "The smell will get out." Shen I was dumbstruck as he imagined the entire office floor being filled with the smell of stinky tofu. He could not help but wanting to retch. "Boss, why don't you take a shower and change your clothes?" Shen II did not dare to look directly at Shen Xinglan. Shen Xinglan, who had not spoken all this while, slowly raised his head. The first thing he did was loosening his necktie. Then he took off his suit and shirt and walked into the bathroom. While walking in, he began to slowly turn around. "Hehehehehe..." Shen I swallowed uneasily. "Boss..." "Oh no. Did he get so mad that he lost his mind?" "Go.&quo
A ripping sound resounded as the man tore A Miao's shirt and began touching her all over. She felt something rising from her stomach and then vomited all over herself and Xia Mingde. "Let me go… You bastard, let me go!" Without even bothering to wipe her mouth, she felt around for the table lamp on the floor and swiped Xia Mingde with it. "F*ck!" Xia Mingde blocked her attack with his arm and snatched it out of her hands. With a turn of his hand, he landed a hard slap on her face. "You bitch." A Miao fell on the floor. Xia Mingde once again grabbed her thighs and ripped her skirt with one smooth movement. "No! Let me go… Mom… Help!" A Miao stared at the ceiling with tears streaming down her face. The only thing she could think of was her mother's final words. Thud! Just as she was about to close her eyes and waited in despair for Xia Mingde to climb over her, the door abruptly opened. "Boss, how s
Shen I held onto A Miao's arm and took no more than a few steps before turning his head to ask, "Boss, where should we…" "Just find a random dark room." Shen Xinglan waved impatiently. "Not the underground." "Understood." Noticing that A Miao was faintly trembling, Shen I comforted her while dragging her. "Don't worry. I'll be locking you in the storeroom. When boss' mood improves the next morning, I'll let you out." Worrying that she would catch a cold at night, Shen I kindly found a particularly small storeroom and even placed a quilt inside. When he saw how A Miao lied on the quilt without moving, he said nothing and locked the door. It was pitch-black inside the storeroom without even a hint of the moonlight. In the darkness, A Miao began to quiver. She could not stand staying in a cramped space like this. To a claustrophobic person, this was life-threatening torture. "Let me out! Let me ou
Shen Xinglan ordered the hospital to inform the Xia family that A Miao was involved in a car accident. "How did you end up getting involved in a car accident? What about Shen Xinglan?" Xia Wan questioned her as soon as she entered the room. Yao Lili and Xia Mei carefully observed A Miao. "Where are you injured?" A Miao raised both of her hands. "If that guy didn't dump me on the roadside, I wouldn't have been hit by a car." It was Le Yi who told her that Xia Wan might get suspicious if A Miao said that Shen Xinglan dragged her home. "Don't tell me you've gone blind!" Xia Mei said, evidently happy over A Miao's misery. That was because the bedridden A Miao was wearing a pair of shades. Beside her, a nurse who was preparing to leave immediately replied, "Her eyes were injured. She can't see light for the time being." "What sort of injuries are these? You're even staying in such an expensive ward
A Miao's smile instantly disappeared. Le Yi got up while shaking his head. "Have you been here for long?" Le Yi meant that he must have heard most of their conversation. "I just got here," Shen Xinglan shamelessly lied. He then looked coldly at A Miao. "You better recover as soon as possible. Otherwise, don't dream of going to classes in the second half of the year." A Miao stared at him and suddenly smiled. "I'm not in a hurry then. Worse comes to worst, I'll just attend next year." What she did not know was that her smile earlier had stupefied Shen Xinglan. It was as if the soft and gentle little girl in his memories was lying on his body, saying, "Brother Lan, it'll stop hurting after I blow on it…" Le Yi called him. "Shen?" "I'm fine." Shen Xinglan sat down on the sofa. "How soon can her hands recover?" "One and a half month if she obedient