After the Bankrupt Heiress Married into a Rich Family - Chapter 33

Chapter 33: Fishing

It’s the kind of relationship where they sleep together.

It was the second day of Mingzhu’s period.

Outside, the morning sun flickered through the treetops; inside, the dining table was laden with steaming, fragrant dishes.

Through Mingzhu’s camera lens, Rong Zhao sat at the table. Her black hair was swept up with a gold filigree cloisonné U-shaped hairpin, revealing her pale, translucent cheeks. Her ears, adorned with white jasmine earrings, glowed a faint red under the bright light.

Rong Zhao set down her chopsticks. Raising a wrist adorned with a white jade bracelet and a Paraiba tourmaline watch, she brought a celadon teacup filled with jasmine tea to her lips. Just as she was about to take a sip, she suddenly looked into the lens.

“Do I look good?”

Behind the lens was Mingzhu, holding the mirrorless camera Rong Zhao had given her. Through the display, Mingzhu saw Rong Zhao—her willow-leaf brows elegant, her amber eyes soft and bright.

Mingzhu knew when to be narcissistic and when to give credit where it was due. “Not bad. Almost as good-looking as me. The lighting here is great, too.” She looked up from the screen. “You don’t hate the camera?”

She was filming Rong Zhao from point-blank range, yet Rong Zhao didn’t shy away at all.

Rong Zhao glanced playfully at Auntie Guan, who was busy nearby. “It is an honor to be a resident actor in Director Bai’s lens.”

Satisfied with Rong Zhao’s cooperative attitude, Mingzhu smiled and placed the camera on a tripod. “I must also thank President Rong for her generosity. Thank you, President Rong.”

Rong Zhao smiled faintly. “Don’t mention it.”

As Rong Zhao lowered her head to drink her tea, she felt a pair of eyes staring at her with predatory intensity from across the table. She paused, setting the cup down before the tea even touched her lips. “Now what?”

Mingzhu pointed at the cup. “I want to taste that.”

Rong Zhao was quite surprised. Mingzhu had always looked down on her tastes and refused to even try them. But Rong Zhao didn’t let her surprise show. She looked meaningfully at the hot latte with swan latte art that Auntie Tang had made for Mingzhu. “Is yours not good?”

“It’s good,” Mingzhu said, pushing her coffee toward Rong Zhao. “But today I suddenly want to try yours. You try mine, okay?”

Rong Zhao’s morning tea was a fixed amount—just this one cup. She could have asked Auntie Tang to brew another for Mingzhu, but since Mingzhu wanted hers, Rong Zhao had no reason to refuse.

She pushed the tea to Mingzhu and took the coffee. Mingzhu picked up the celadon cup. The tea was a pale, golden yellow, smelling of both tea leaves and fresh flowers—a very elegant scent. She took a small sip, and her brows shot up. She took another, and her eyes lit up.

“Why is this so delicious?” Mingzhu looked at Rong Zhao. The legendary “rock sugar sweetness” of high-grade jasmine tea was real. No wonder the Rong family loved it.

Rong Zhao arched an eyebrow. “Regret drinking it so late in life?”

A little, Mingzhu thought. If she hadn’t been so stubborn and “softened up” sooner, her taste buds wouldn’t have suffered so much. “Nothing to regret,” Mingzhu said cheerfully, calling out to Auntie Tang to brew her a large pot. She turned back to Rong Zhao. “Whether it’s early or late, tasting it now is just perfect.”

Mingzhu’s logic was often skewed, but sometimes she possessed a remarkably broad-minded philosophy.

“Mhm.” Rong Zhao responded and took a sip of Mingzhu’s coffee. It was a deep-roast Arabica with heavy caramel notes and a bit too much sugar, but as her lips pressed against the rim where Mingzhu had just drunk, her mood was excellent. More importantly, she was pleased that Mingzhu was willing to try the things she liked.

Mingzhu remembered her parents had tea here when they visited. “Do my parents like this tea?”

Mentioning her parents made Mingzhu’s heart stall for a beat before resuming its rhythm.

“They like it,” Rong Zhao said. “They mentioned you have a sweet tooth and guessed you’d like it, too. They told me to save some for you.”

Mingzhu puffed out her cheeks. She used the gesture to suppress the stinging in her eyes, but they remained puffy. Her parents messaged her every day; she didn’t dare look. Not at a single word.

“Let’s not talk about that,” Mingzhu said directly.

Rong Zhao: “Okay. When you want to talk, I’m here.”

Mingzhu tilted her head back and drained the tea with the bravado of someone slamming a shot of liquor.

After breakfast, Rong Zhao went upstairs to change for work while Mingzhu stayed downstairs, drinking tea and reviewing the footage she’d just shot. The doorbell rang. Auntie Guan checked the monitor and called out, “Miss Mingzhu, the Madam is here.”

Mingzhu immediately cheered and went out to greet her mother-in-law.

A red sports car pulled into the courtyard. Ji Yue took off her sunglasses and stepped out, carrying a thermal flask. Seeing Mingzhu running toward her like a colorful butterfly, she waved. “Good morning, Mingzhu baby.”

“Good morning, Mom!” Mingzhu smiled, linking her arm with Ji Yue’s and looking at the flask. “Did you bring us something good?”

The word “Mom” came out so naturally that Ji Yue couldn’t stop smiling. “Rong Zhao didn’t go to work yesterday. I only found out last night that she stayed home to look after you because of your cramps. This morning, I had the cook brew a ‘womb-warming’ soup—chicken stewed with sea cucumber, deer antler, and cordyceps. I specifically had a Chinese medicine doctor balance the antler and angelica to help blood circulation without overdoing it. But there was traffic; have you two finished breakfast? If so, save it for lunch.”

Mingzhu’s eyes sparkled. Her family’s cook used to make similar soups, and they were incredibly fresh. “Thank you, Mom. I’m so touched that you went to the trouble of finding a doctor and bringing this over.”

Ji Yue patted Mingzhu’s cheek. “Don’t be so formal with your mom.”

Mingzhu took the flask. “Actually, I’m only seventy percent full. I have room for soup. I’ll have some now.”

Ji Yue laughed. “Don’t overeat. Are you feeling better today?”

“Much better! It doesn’t hurt at all,” Mingzhu said. “I could even go shopping with you. Are you going today? I’ll go with you.”

Ji Yue was about to nod but then shook her head. “No, let’s wait until your period is completely finished, otherwise you’ll be uncomfortable.” She turned and saw the camera on the table. “Were you filming just now?”

Mingzhu immediately shared the footage. “I was filming Rongrong eating breakfast. Look, isn’t she beautiful even when she’s just eating?”

Rong Zhao, now dressed, came downstairs. Entering the dining room, she saw Mingzhu happily drinking chicken soup while sweetly praising her beauty and thanking Ji Yue for giving birth to her and passing down her perfect genes. Ji Yue, who was already wearing the lily-of-the-valley brooch Mingzhu had given her, was laughing so hard the camera in her hand was shaking.

Rong Zhao leaned against a pillar for a moment before speaking. “Ladies, I’m off to work.”

Mingzhu invited her: “Mom brought chicken soup. It’s delicious. Have a taste before you go?”

Ji Yue was about to say that Rong Zhao usually finds such soups too rich and oily, but then she saw Rong Zhao walk over to Mingzhu and lean down. “Give me a taste.”

Mingzhu held up the bowl and fed Rong Zhao with her own spoon. After, she wiped Rong Zhao’s lip with a napkin. “How is it?”

Rong Zhao: “Not bad. One more bite.”

Ji Yue was stunned. After two spoonfuls, Rong Zhao straightened up and asked, “What are your plans for today, Mom?”

“No plans. I’ll stay here and look after Mingzhu. You go to work.”

In truth, Rong Zhao had messaged her the night before, and Ji Yue knew it was a hint to come keep Mingzhu company. When a girl is sick or on her period, being alone can lead to loneliness and sadness.

Mingzhu didn’t want to stay home; she was bored out of her mind. Since Ji Yue wouldn’t take her shopping, she had a sudden idea. “I want to go fishing! Mom, will you come with me? We can call Jiangjiang and He Chan, too. What do you think?”

Ji Yue clapped her hands. “Wonderful! Fishing won’t be tiring. I heard your father say the fishing area at Xiansu Villa is well-planned, and the environment is great. We can book a room so you’ll have easy access to a bathroom.”

Mingzhu looked at Rong Zhao expectantly.

Rong Zhao thought for a moment. “Go relax. I’ll arrange for people to set up a tent for you and send a chef along. Any fish you catch can be grilled right there on the shore.”

Mingzhu loved the idea—it sounded so leisurely. She almost lunged at Rong Zhao in excitement but sat back down, remembering Rong Zhao’s mother was right there.

Rong Zhao arched an eyebrow, her tone turning a bit playful. “Not going to come over and thank me?”

“Mom is right here,” Mingzhu said shyly.

Rong Zhao: “She’ll close her eyes.”

Ji Yue immediately covered her eyes with her hands. “They’re closed! They’re closed!”

Mingzhu stopped being shy and lunged at Rong Zhao, causing her to take a step back to steady herself. When Ji Yue lowered her hands, she saw Mingzhu clinging to Rong Zhao’s waist, looking up at her. Ji Yue couldn’t see Mingzhu’s face, but she could see the clear smile in Rong Zhao’s eyes and on her lips.

Tsk, Ji Yue thought, raising an eyebrow like a seasoned pro. She was absolutely certain these two weren’t in a fake marriage—they were definitely sleeping together. The magnetic field was different, the atmosphere was different—it was all “sticky” and full of tension.

Two hours later, at Xiansu Villa, Ji Yue looked at He Chan and Jiangjiang, who were each carrying a small bucket.

“When did you two get together?” Ji Yue asked suddenly.

He Chan and Jiangjiang both jumped, nearly dropping their buckets.

“We aren’t!” Jiangjiang, the artist whose brain often glitched, denied it instinctively.

He Chan, the teacher who was used to patient children, smiled calmly. “No, Auntie, don’t tease us.”

Ji Yue looked at the back of Mingzhu, who was already sitting by the lake. She understood—these two were afraid that if things got awkward between them, the four-way friendship would suffer, so they hadn’t told Mingzhu yet. But Rong Zhao definitely knew. The only one kept in the dark was the insensitive little dummy, Mingzhu. Ji Yue shook her head with a smile.

“Fine, I won’t tease. Go fish.”

The mountains were green, the water was clear, and the breeze was gentle. Mingzhu and Ji Yue shared one sunshade; He Chan and Jiangjiang shared another. The four wore sunglasses and chatted idly.

“By the way, if I remember correctly,” Ji Yue said, “the first time Mingzhu met Rong Zhao was in sixth grade, right?”

Jiangjiang, who met Mingzhu in high school, was surprised. “That early?”

He Chan had been in the same grade as Rong Zhao since first grade, but she didn’t meet Mingzhu until junior high. “Didn’t you two meet in seventh grade?”

Mingzhu smiled casually. “It was the second semester of sixth grade. I remember it was June 1st, Rong Zhao’s birthday. My parents took me to celebrate with her. That was the first time I saw her.”

Mingzhu looked at He Chan, her smile fading slightly—though she kept it polite for Ji Yue’s sake. “But your best friend has a terrible memory. On her birthday, I gave her my favorite giant white rabbit plushie that was as tall as I was. I stayed in her room and played with her for a long time. I thought she’d remember me, but on the first day of seventh grade, I went to say hi and she had no idea who I was. She asked who I was and then told me my skirt was too short. Only three months had passed, and she had completely forgotten me.”

He Chan: “Huh? That can’t be right.” Rong Zhao having a bad memory? Rong Zhao being nosy about a skirt?

Ji Yue frowned as she listened to Mingzhu. She vaguely remembered something. As she thought about it, she suddenly burst out laughing.

“Oh, Mingzhu! So it was you!”

Mingzhu: “What?”