Becoming the Runaway Little Wife of the Domineering CEO - Chapter 15

Fu Mang was not the type to alert the enemy prematurely. Having sensed that something was off, she didn’t confront the girl directly. Instead, she chose to spend the next day observing her with calculated nonchalance.

Internally, Fu Mang was wavering. Logically speaking, the art of magical disguise didn’t exist in this world.

But logically speaking, neither did “flying immortals,” and yet she had seen one with her own eyes just a month ago.

After a whole day of being watched by Fu Mang’s suspicious, shifting eyes, “Jin Xiaoyu” finally got the creeps. She walked up to Fu Mang cautiously and asked in a small voice, “President Fu… did I do something wrong today?”

Fu Mang went silent, finally dropping her head in a gesture of defeat. She rubbed her temples, feeling a sudden, intense wave of hatred for that female thief, Yu Yinshuang.

It was all that girl’s fault. She had turned Fu Mang into a paranoid mess; if anyone saw her acting like this, they’d think she’d lost her mind!

After wallowing in her misery for a moment, Fu Mang snapped back to attention and decided to turn the tables on Yin Shuang. “How should I know if you did something wrong? Why are you asking me? Shouldn’t you go find a corner and engage in some sincere, heartfelt soul-searching?”

Yin Shuang: “…”

What on earth is she talking about?

Yin Shuang obediently went off to “soul-search” in a corner. With that distraction out of the way, Fu Mang stopped obsessing over whether magic existed and finally focused on her work.

******

By 6:00 PM, the sky was pitch black. Fu Mang and Yin Shuang headed to the parking lot. As they sat in the car waiting for the heater to warm up, Fu Mang shot a disgruntled look at Jin Xiaoyu, who was dutifully bucking her seatbelt.

“Exactly when are you going to get your driver’s license?”

Yin Shuang hadn’t even bothered to look into it. Initially, she thought she’d just steal the sword and leave. A license took two or three months to acquire—far too slow. She figured she’d be home by the time the plastic card arrived.

But plans change. Now that she was in it for the long haul, she realized she needed to put “driving school” on her to-do list.

Yin Shuang did a quick mental calculation. “Probably another two or three months. I’ll go check out the registration office tomorrow.”

Fu Mang: “…”

“You haven’t even registered yet?!”

They had discussed this ages ago! She had assumed the girl was already halfway through her lessons.

Yin Shuang tugged at her seatbelt and ignored the interrogation. Instead, she looked at Fu Mang expectantly. “President Fu, can the registration fees be expensed to the company?”

Fu Mang: “…No!”

Yin Shuang pouted. “Fine, fine. Then just deduct it from my salary this month. Getting a license is so expensive here; I can’t afford it upfront.”

Fu Mang drove out of the parking lot with a stone-cold expression. As she navigated the traffic, a single question echoed in her mind:

Did I hire a bodyguard, or did I adopt a high-maintenance princess?

******

The previous day, while Yin Shuang was meeting with Qin Ke, Fu Mang had received a call from Fu Quanru. He had sent Sister Chen first, then Lu Shaomin; both had failed. Likely feeling that his pride was on the line, the old man had finally called personally to summon her for dinner.

The father and daughter hadn’t shared any “unnecessary” words. One ordered her to return for a meal, and the other gave a non-committal “Fine.”

Fu Mang had zero desire to go back, but she couldn’t avoid them forever. No matter what, he was her father. While he had never given her love or care, he had never lacked in providing for her material needs over the years. Furthermore, they occasionally crossed paths in business; it was best not to burn the bridge entirely.

Since taking over the He family enterprises, Fu Mang’s hidden brilliance had sharpened into a formidable edge. She used to avoid her family; now, she didn’t hide, but she didn’t seek them out either. Her temper grew shorter by the day. When Fu Quanru was younger, he hadn’t cared for this daughter of his first wife, but as he aged, he found himself craving filial affection. He genuinely hoped Fu Mang would get closer to him.

To that end, he had cleared the house today. Only Lu Shaomin was permitted to stay. He had even warned the others to stay in their rooms so they wouldn’t irritate Fu Mang.

Regardless of his efforts, Fu Mang wasn’t moved. Upon arriving at the Fu estate, she gave her father a curt nod and walked straight to the dining table to wait for the meal.

Yin Shuang sat in the living room, waiting for Fu Mang to finish so they could go out for a second meal.

Fu Mang had told her she’d have no appetite here. She was craving lamb skewers today, so she planned to find an outdoor stall along the street the moment they left.

A long rectangular corridor separated the dining room from the living room. Despite the distance, the atmosphere in the house was so stiflingly quiet that Yin Shuang could hear the clinking of silverware. Ten minutes passed, and of the three people dining, not one said a word.

Good grief, Yin Shuang thought. Eating in that kind of pressure… aren’t they afraid of indigestion?

Yin Shuang shifted uncomfortably on the sofa and began planning her own feast. I’ll order twenty lamb skewers, five orders of grilled potatoes, five of lotus root, three sets of chicken wings, two of squid… oh, and a lamb marrow bone! And some chicken cartilage—I’ll tell the boss to grill it until the edges are crispy and coated in cumin and chili powder… that smoky, savory crunch… Mmm…

Lost in her charcoal-grilled daydream, Yin Shuang didn’t notice the front door open. A girl carrying a hiking backpack walked up to her, watched her for two seconds, and then asked in a puzzled voice:

“Hello. May I ask who you are?”

Yin Shuang looked up. Her casual glance instantly turned into a wide-eyed stare.

Holy cow, she’s gorgeous! Now THAT is a movie-star face! A pure, innocent movie-star face!

The newcomer wore a pair of completely unstylish leisure clothes under a massive, thick down jacket. The hiking pack on her back was wider than her shoulders, yet none of it could hide her stunning features. Yin Shuang was dazed by the girl’s beauty for two seconds before standing up properly.

“My name is Jin Xiaoyu. I’m President Fu’s bodyguard.”

Hearing the title, the girl blinked. “Which President Fu?”

…Fair point. There were a lot of “President Fus” in this family.

“Fu Mang,” Yin Shuang clarified.

The girl’s expression immediately turned to one of surprise. “Fu Mang? She’s actually here?”

The commotion reached the dining room. A maid walked over and bowed slightly to the girl. “Third Miss, the Master requests your presence. He is currently dining with the Mistress and the Fourth Miss.”

The girl known as Third Miss nodded, the surprise on her face fading into a calm mask. She unslung her heavy pack and handed it to the maid. “Understood. I’ll head over now. Please put this in my room.”

She turned back to Yin Shuang, offered a polite, formal smile, and walked toward the dining room.

Yin Shuang sat back down on the sofa, marvelling to herself.

Wow, talk about a glow-up. So that was the Third Miss? In Fu Mang’s “slideshow,” there was only a photo of her from her college days. In that picture, she was a bit chubby and didn’t know how to style herself. Apparently, she had gone on to grad school after graduation and was now in her second year. A few years had passed, and she’d become this beautiful? Incredible.

But then again, this Third Miss was the most “delicate” member of the family because she was the only one who didn’t carry the surname Fu.

Fu Mang had told her that the girl’s mother was a hostess. Fu Quanru hadn’t intended for anything serious, it was just a one-night stand. Even the mother couldn’t remember exactly who the father was at first, so she gave the child her own surname: Su Qian. It wasn’t until Su Qian turned fifteen that her mother finally “remembered” the father was Fu Quanru. She had hoped to drop the kid off at the Fu estate and blackmail him for a fortune, but she ended up getting nothing—Fu Quanru simply took the child and kicked the mother out empty-handed.

Yin Shuang felt a brief pang of sympathy for the girl, but her focus quickly shifted back to her lamb skewers.

******

Fu Quanru hadn’t expected Su Qian to return today, though school was indeed breaking for the holidays. He nodded to her and said flatly, “Sit. Join us for dinner.”

Su Qian’s break had actually started a week ago, but she had stayed at school to finish a thesis. As for why she chose today of all days to come home…

She looked at Lu Shaomin, who was currently smiling and placing food onto Fu Quanru’s plate.

Lu Shaomin looked up at Su Qian, her smile widening into a perfect display of maternal affection. “Oh, you’re back! Don’t just stand there, dear. Sit down quickly; the food will get cold, and that’s no good for your stomach.”

Fu Quanru sat at the head of the table, with Lu Shaomin on his right and Fu Mang on his left. Su Qian smiled politely and took the seat next to Lu Shaomin.

Lu Shaomin made a mental note of Su Qian’s behavior. Good, sit next to me. This would show Fu Quanru how well she treated her step-children, and highlight how poorly Fu Mang got along with the others.

In truth, Lu Shaomin was overthinking it. Su Qian was a graduate student; she wasn’t a fool to be led by the nose. She simply knew that Fu Mang disliked her siblings and didn’t want to sit next to her and cause friction.

Even with Su Qian there, the atmosphere didn’t improve. Fu Mang felt she had put in enough of an appearance. She picked up her napkin, dabbed her lips, and prepared to take her leave. At that moment, Fu Quanru set down his utensils and looked at her.

“How is the company lately? Do you need any help?”

This was a clear offer of investment.

Under the table, Lu Shaomin’s hand tightened into a fist. On the surface, she remained calm, but she was cursing Fu Quanru in her heart. Old fool! You ignored He Yuqiu’s daughter when you were young, and now that you’re old, you want to compensate her? He still held a massive amount of equity, and there was no doubt he wanted to give the lion’s share to Fu Mang. She couldn’t let that happen. She hadn’t fought for decades just for a measly ten percent!

Lu Shaomin turned her gaze to Fu Mang as well. “Yes, Mang-mang, how is the company? When I visited you last time, I heard your employees talking about year-end bonuses. They said they might double this year—is that true?”

The “doubled bonus” was complete fiction, but by saying it, Lu Shaomin made it seem like Fu Mang’s business was doing exceptionally well. Lu Shaomin’s greatest talent was manipulating people’s perceptions; she outshined everyone in that regard.

Even if she didn’t get along with Fu Mang, she understood her perfectly. She knew Fu Mang was the type to be prideful to a fault—the kind who would “slap her own face until it’s swollen just to look fat.” She knew that hearing this, regardless of the truth, Fu Mang would never deny it.

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