Getting Married? I Thought we Were Sworn Enemies - Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Meng Lingyao got into the car, rubbing the space between his eyebrows. In the past, he might have hurled a few curses at Qi Zhongjing in front of Uncle Zhao, but now he had learned to mask his emotions.

Uncle Zhao drove steadily. Meng Lingyao flipped through the documents in the car, scanning them and sending them to his secretary to have the legal team review the clauses.

The company had undergone massive upheavals recently. People were panicked; every day, batches of employees submitted their resignations, either unable to withstand the pressure or incited by others.

At first, Meng Lingyao felt angry and resentful, thinking these people were merely fair-weather friends following the wind. Now, he was used to it. Water flows downward and man climbs upward; it is human nature to seek benefit and avoid harm. He understood.

Fortunately, his brother and father had left him a few capable hands. They were loyal to his father and brother, though not necessarily to him.

That didn’t matter. It wasn’t important. As long as their goals aligned—as long as they all wanted the Meng Group to stand on its feet again—things were manageable. Otherwise, his position would be even more precarious, facing external enemies without any internal control.

If he were a “commander without an army,” the Meng Group would have vanished long ago.

…

Upon arriving home, Meng Lingyao rubbed his face to hide his exhaustion, putting on a faint, artificial smile.

The living room lights were bright. Just as he entered the main door, a figure blocked him at the entrance. Words full of concern rushed toward him: “Jiaobao*, are you alright?”

The newcomer was Meng Lingyao’s mother, Lin Qingwan. She wore a light-colored loungewear dress, her waist-length black hair held back by a pearl headband. She shared seventy percent of her looks with Meng Lingyao. Though she was over fifty, she looked to be in her thirties. Perhaps due to the erosion of time or the heavy blows of the past six months, fine lines had appeared at the corners of her eyes, adding a trace of passing years to this beauty.

She knew her ill-tempered precious younger son very well—she knew exactly how he acted when he hated someone to the extreme. Now, for the sake of the company, he had to compromise and bow to someone he detested.

How painful that must be for his heart.

The emotionally sensitive Lin Qingwan felt her heart breaking. A mist of tears instantly clouded her eyes. Seeing her son appear, she couldn’t wait to approach him, looking him up and down and staring intensely at his expression. Her fingers gripped her clothes so hard her knuckles turned white.

“I’m fine. The cooperation went smoothly. Mom, don’t worry. When your son takes action, it’s a piece of cake.” Meng Lingyao smiled with feigned lightness, waving the documents in his hand. “We’ll discuss the details at the company tomorrow. The company’s problems are about to be solved. I’ve saved the Meng Group.”

Lin Qingwan understood him too well. Seeing her son’s forced smile and pretended ease made her feel even worse. “But… you still suffered grievances.”

If only his husband were still here… If only Lingheng had woken up…

There would be no need for Jiaobao, a young master who knew nothing of corporate affairs, to run around like this, finding no help anywhere and being forced to see someone he hated to beg for a compromise.

Now, as a widow and a fatherless son, they were like meat on a chopping block—anyone could take a swing. The Meng Group was a cake that everyone wanted a bite of.

Naturally emotional and pampered like a greenhouse flower in the past, Lin Qingwan couldn’t help but shed tears for her pitiful younger son. Her poor little Jiaobao; in the past, he never had to suffer such hardships or grievances.

“Don’t cry, Mom. That was years ago. Besides, I was the one who threw the punches back then to vent my anger; the other guy was the one who got beaten. Now he’s letting bygones be bygones. Even Qi Zhongjing doesn’t care. He’s being the bigger person, so why should I mind? Moreover, this is a win-win situation. We should actually thank him for stepping in. Qi Zhongjing reached out with an olive branch; we should thank him for returning good for evil,” Meng Lingyao said, instead comforting Mother Lin. He wiped away her tears and changed the subject. “How is Brother? Is he any better today?”

“Still the same.” Mentioning her comatose eldest son, Lin Qingwan’s heart ached even more.

Her husband was dead, her eldest son was critically injured and unconscious, and her youngest son was struggling to stabilize the company. Only she remained, useless as a waste, unable to do anything.

“I’ll go see Brother. I’ll tell him the good news. After all, everyone used to say I was a do-nothing playboy. Now that I’m so capable, let’s see who dares to look down on me.” Meng Lingyao puffed out his chest and raised his head, looking like a child showing off his grades to a parent, waiting for praise.

This tone full of pride and the exaggerated expression successfully made Lin Qingwan laugh through her tears. She instinctively began to praise her precious son. “Yes, my Jiaobao is the best! No one can compare to you. You are Mama’s pride. I’m so proud to have raised such an excellent son.”

“Of course.” Meng Lingyao suppressed a smile with a look of satisfaction. “I’ll go see Brother first. Mom, you should get some rest too. I have to go to work tomorrow. The second uncle and the aunt’s families are calculating their schemes, thinking our family is easy to bully. Just wait and see how I deal with them later.”

“Go ahead. Don’t worry, I’m watching over things at home, it won’t fall into chaos. You’re working hard outside all by yourself; get some rest early.” Lin Qingwan nodded. She didn’t understand business; in the past, she only knew how to arrange flowers and maintain her beauty, playing the games of noble ladies. Now that her youngest son was charging forward, she could at least stabilize the rear, not cause trouble, and take care of her comatose eldest son.

“That child from the Qi family is a good child too.” Lin Qingwan didn’t know the details. Teased by Meng Lingyao, she reflected that his words made sense, so she added a word of praise.

“Yes, he is indeed quite good. I misunderstood him before. He’s helping me despite our past grudges.” To prevent his mother from worrying or obsessing, Meng Lingyao had to build up a tall, upright image of Qi Zhongjing for her. “During this time, I’ve come to realize that a charcoal fire in the snow is much more precious than adding flowers to a brocade.”

“The friction we had before is ancient history. One must look at the present. He is truly helping us regardless of the past; he’s a good person.”

He handed Qi Zhongjing a “Good Person card.”

Lin Qingwan nodded; it indeed made sense. This was how one could see who was sincere and who was fake. She was equally gratified by her son’s growth. “Later on, have the Qi family child over for dinner. Mama wants to properly thank him.”

“Yeah, let’s wait until this busy period is over first,” Meng Lingyao replied casually.

…

After parting with his mother, the proud expression he had been wearing vanished instantly. That act was merely to coax Mother Lin.

After the eldest son of the Meng family was saved from the car accident but left in a vegetative state, Meng Lingyao had medical equipment installed at home and brought him back. They now employed a small medical team; the monthly cost was by no means a small figure.

The Meng estate was large—a Western-style manor built a century ago. It had a main building and two side wings. The side wings were the private residences of the two Meng brothers, connected to the main building by a corridor.

The medical team was currently looking after his brother here. The equipment was complete; the medical conditions were no less than those of a hospital. Compared to a hospital, it felt more like the warmth of a home.

The reason Meng Lingyao refused to let the Meng family’s foundation crumble in his hands was partly because his brother still needed treatment. In the past, his brother had provided for him; now, he would provide for his brother.

“Young Master Meng, everything was normal with the eldest young master today.” The doctor stepped forward respectfully and briefly explained Meng Lingsheng’s condition, reporting every detail from massages to sponge baths.

“Understood. I want to be alone with my brother for a while. You all may leave.” Meng Lingyao waved his hand, dismissing the staff on duty.

The doctor and two nurses on shift glanced at each other, their emotions visibly shifting as they left the room. It was no secret that the Meng family’s company was in trouble. Knowing this, it was natural for people’s hearts to waver.

However, regardless of what they thought, as long as the Meng family could pay, nothing was an issue. His brother would receive the highest quality care.

Once everyone had left, Meng Lingyao became like a deflated balloon. He slumped into a chair and leaned over the bedside, looking at his brother’s eyes-closed, sleeping form. He grasped his brother’s warm hand from beneath the covers.

The eldest Meng brother differed from Meng Lingyao, who took after their mother; he looked more like their father. His features were much sharper—sword-like eyebrows and starry eyes. He shared fifty percent of his looks with Meng Lingyao, though he was now pale and lacking color in his sleep.

Meng Lingyao had always been a young bird hiding under the wings of his elders. Now forced to fly, he would only drop his guard when seeing his family.

His forced expression dropped completely, revealing his exhaustion. Deep grievance and sadness surfaced.

“Brother… I’m so tired.” “When will you wake up…”

His mother could not provide a shoulder to lean on; instead, he had to be her support. Meng Lingyao could not voice his grievances to her for fear of worrying her too much.

His brother had always protected him. Since childhood, he had been sheltered; whenever he started a fire, his brother would clean up the mess. Because of his total reliance on him, Meng Lingyao felt no need to put up a front in front of Meng Lingsheng.

He was like a little kitten who had spent the day pretending to be a tiger outside, only to return home and curl into a ball, looking quite pitiful.

The tall young man leaned by his brother’s bed, clutching his hand to express his sorrow. Over the past six months, every time he suffered a setback outside, Meng Lingyao couldn’t help but ramble to Meng Lingsheng about his grievances.

In short—he was tattling.

It was like a wounded kitten tattling to a wounded, comatose big tiger, trying to get the tiger to wake up and take revenge for him. Unfortunately… there was never a response.

Today was no different. Meng Lingyao had many grievances today, as well as one happy thing.

“Brother, the company probably won’t go bankrupt now. You won’t run out of medical fees for your treatment.

You know that guy Qi Zhongjing, right? The annoying nerd from before who tried to cut me off and couldn’t squeeze out two words if you hit him with a stick? He actually came to the door saying he wanted to invest in the Meng Group. He looked like a ‘rich man’s dumb son’ with more money than brains.

I thought he was some kind of saint, being so merciful to a rival. Turns out, this guy definitely had some bad intentions.

You have no idea… how out of line he was!”

As he spoke, the indignant Meng Lingyao couldn’t help but slap the side of the bed, making a loud thump.

“Young Master Meng! What happened? Is something wrong with the eldest young master?” Clearly, the sound worried those outside; they inquired through the intercom without barging in.

“It’s nothing. I accidentally kicked the bedpost.” After being questioned, Meng Lingyao’s emotions settled a bit, and he replied.

“Understood.”

Turning off the intercom, Meng Lingyao continued to tattle to Meng Lingsheng about Qi Zhongjing.