To Marry My Little Chestnut - Chapter 28

The dreamcatcher in the flower shop swayed in the wind as the door opened.

“Welcome to, Xiao Yan? You are back? When did this happen?” Ning Yuan set down the watering can, his eyes full of surprise and joy.

Yu Yan untied his scarf, the tip of his nose still red from the cold. He said with a beaming smile, “I felt bad always asking you to cover my shifts. You are a senior and have many things to handle; I did not want to hold you back.”

Ning Yuan instinctively glanced toward the street. Seeing that Rolls Royce parked right across the road, the smile on his face stiffened slightly and his heart sank. “It was not that busy. I only opened the shop yesterday.”

Yu Yan remarked on what a coincidence it was. While he was away on the business trip with Zheng Tingyang last week, the shop just happened to be undergoing renovations.

“The boss did not come by?”

Yu Yan scanned the shop. There were no major changes, though the arrangement of flowers on the shelves had shifted slightly. Two fresh Bird of Paradise plants, replacements for the ones previously sold, were in full bloom.

“No. The delivery driver brought two pots of flowers, and the boss has not asked about anything else.”

Yu Yan nodded. The account books he prepared on the computer were never checked either. He thought to himself that the boss was truly thick-skinned; if he had hired two dishonest clerks, the shop could have been emptied without the owner ever knowing.

After resting at home for a few days, his spirit had recovered significantly, and his morning sickness had eased up quite a bit. Zheng Tingyang had returned to work at the company two days ago. Staying home was getting a bit dull, and since Xiang Qian said he was coming to visit today, Yu Yan thought he would come to the flower shop to give Ning Yuan a break.

As a senior, Ning Yuan was at a critical stage. His family was not short on money, and he had heard that Ning Yuan’s older brother wanted him to pursue a master’s degree, so the school had assigned him many tasks.

“What is wrong? You seem a bit strange today.” Yu Yan supported his waist as he slowly opened a can of food for Orange. It seemed the kitten had lost weight during the few days he was gone.

Ning Yuan scratched his head unnaturally. “It is nothing.”

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed the car at the intersection was gone. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief and take off his apron. “Xiao Yan, how did you get here? Is your body up for it right now?”

“My husband dropped me off. He started work a bit late today.” Yu Yan scratched Orange’s chin and looked up to ask, “Why do you ask?”

Ning Yuan’s attention was still on the street outside. It took several calls from Yu Yan for him to snap out of it. “Nothing, nothing at all.”

Yu Yan pulled two boxes out of his lunch bag. He mentioned that since he knew Ning Yuan had been working hard, he specifically asked Tingyang to pack an extra portion as a thank you for covering his shifts.

In Ning Yuan’s eyes, although Yu Yan was a few years older, he retained a youthful purity in the way he handled things. One could tell at a glance that he was a young master who had never experienced hardship. He had a great personality and was always smiling, showing deep dimples when he did.

Until the day he met Zheng Tingyang. That elusive President Zheng, Yu Yan’s husband, was far too dangerous. That Rolls Royce had always looked familiar, and now he finally realized why. Yu Yan had started working at the shop six months ago. Ning Yuan had joined just a week after him. But did Xiao Yan not only get married when his belly was already showing?

That car.

Over the past few days, Ning Yuan had specifically checked the surveillance footage at the entrance. Five months ago, that Rolls Royce would park across the street every day after Yu Yan started work. Back then, they clearly were not married. Why did his car come every single day?

Zheng Tingyang knew his name, his school address, and even his family history. That day in the car, Zheng Tingyang had given him a chestnut candy and pulled a photo from a gap in the seat. It was a family portrait of Ning Yuan’s family, including his brother’s work address and position. Then, as he lit a cigarette, he burned the photo and said softly, “You know what should be said and what should be done. Yu Yan will never know about today, right?”

As Ning Yuan watched the ashes of his brother’s photo scatter out the window and vanish into the snowy night, his heart went cold. “Right.”

Even though this man was not even an Alpha, his every gesture and word carried a sense of oppression like an invisible net, controlling everything. When exactly had he started targeting Xiao Yan?

Yu Yan felt that Ning Yuan was being very strange today. Usually, Ning Yuan was a cheerful, carefree boy, but today he was moving flower pots in silence, only answering when Yu Yan took the initiative to speak. In the afternoon, Ning Yuan prepared to head back to school to work on his thesis. Before leaving, he moved the outdoor racks inside, still feeling uneasy. “Xiao Yan, why did you marry a Beta?”

Yu Yan was a bit confused by the question. “Why can I not marry a Beta?”

Ning Yuan pulled out a chair, moved Orange to the side, and leaned in to ask, “Were you forced?”

Yu Yan blinked. “Huh? What is wrong with you? Why are you asking that all of a sudden?”

“My brother, in my brother’s class, there was a couple, a Beta and an Omega. They were dating, but they eventually broke up because they could not complete a marking. It was a huge mess. Since there is no marking, any Beta who sees their Omega talking to another Alpha or acting close to someone else might go crazy. That Beta ended up locking the Omega at home and would not let them out. Someone almost died. So,” Ning Yuan trailed off.

Yu Yan gave a light laugh. “Don’t worry. Tingyang is a very good person. He is long past his adolescence; he could not possibly be that kind of person.”

Aside from Xiang Qian, Yu Yan had not really talked about Zheng Tingyang to anyone else. “We have known each other for a long time. And in many ways, I am the one who owes him.” Yu Yan pursed his lips as Orange came over to rub against his ankle. “Anyway, he is not the type of person with a scary personality. You met him, did you not? He is a very gentle man. I feel like his personality is much better than mine.”

To him, Zheng Tingyang was a qualified husband and a perfect father to be. Hearing his words, the string in Ning Yuan’s head felt like it had snapped. He thought to himself, It is precisely because I have met him that I know he is not a good person!

His mouth twitched slightly, but he did not dare say more. He could only scratch his head. “Xiao Yan, have you ever been in a relationship before?”

Yu Yan nodded. “Although I have not, I have seen my friends date. I suppose I have some experience as a strategist?”

He remembered when he first started university, his father had mentioned having him get engaged right away. Later, during the holidays, a very wealthy boss came to the house. He was likely from the capital. The marriage was settled without them even meeting. Through that “blank check” engagement, he had finished his four years of university peacefully. For those four years, no one had ever mentioned the marriage. Even now, he did not know the person’s name.

Yu Yan was an optimist who knew how to comfort himself. He always felt that his being with Zheng Tingyang now was an act of fate. Otherwise, how could it be such a coincidence? In the end, he married the Zheng Tingyang who had remained consistently gentle from high school until now.

Ning Yuan was silenced by his words, not knowing where to begin if he wanted to warn him.

Changxing Group

Zheng Tingyang looked at the flower shop surveillance on his computer, frowning slightly. He tapped his pen rhythmically and irritably against the desk. Secretary Lin stood nearby, his heart in his throat. “President Zheng?”

“Is it handled cleanly?”

Secretary Lin nodded. “Haoyang Group’s stock has plummeted, and the evidence against the Gao father and son has been submitted. As long as they sell their shares, our lawyers will defend them to secure a suspended sentence of a few years while we proceed with the acquisition. When we bid on the capital land, we used 3 billion, which was 1.8 billion over budget. The planning department just finished the calculations. After acquiring Haoyang Group, the profits from Haoyang over the next year will exactly cover the excess capital, around 1.8 billion.”

Secretary Lin had been by Zheng Tingyang’s side for a long time, yet he was still awed by his boss’s meticulousness and methods every time. The Gao father and son had tried to steal a chicken only to lose the rice. Gao Wenjing had competed with Zheng Tingyang for the land at the auction and driven up the price. In the end, not only would his family’s company have to work for Zheng Tingyang to make up the difference, but he would also be in prison. By the time they got out, there would be no place for them in the world.

“President Xiao is here; he is waiting for you outside.” Secretary Lin took the documents from his hand.

Zheng Tingyang raised an eyebrow, a hint of coldness in his eyes. “What is he doing here? Let him in.”

Xiao Kai was his investment partner from abroad. The office door opened, and a man in a light gray suit walked in. He had short curly hair, wore glasses, and had very fair mixed-race skin. He entered holding a gift box of baby diapers. “Happy wedding? You have not visited me abroad in so long; I had to fly back for hours.”

He decisively placed the gift box on the desk and made himself at home, sitting directly on the sofa and picking up an apple to bite into. “Hey, I am here. Why are you ignoring me? That is so impolite.”

Zheng Tingyang did not even bother to look up. “If you are sick, go find Jing Chen. Let him treat you.”

Xiao Kai shrugged, muttering about how boring he was. “Old Pei sent me. He said if you are busy lately, I should come over and take a position as Vice President. After all, since Old Man Yu is dead, how long do you think it will be before Yu Yan finds out? I suggest you spend more time coaxing your wife. Pei is afraid you will not be able to handle it and might just drop this massive group and quit.”

Zheng Tingyang’s gaze was fixed on the surveillance. Once he saw that Ning Yuan had left the flower shop and Xiang Qian had arrived, he finally closed the surveillance tab. “Why did you come back if the cleanup is not finished?”

Xiao Kai rolled his eyes. “Do you know how much debt that old thing owed and how many lawsuits he was involved in? I can handle his overseas debts, but what am I supposed to do about the active contracts domestically? Even with heavenly power, it is difficult.”

Before Old Man Yu died, the unfulfilled contracts would have continued to accumulate debt in his name. But once a person dies, it is recorded in their identity file. The debts are either canceled or transferred to their children through lawsuits.

“You should just come clean with him.” Xiao Kai had spent much energy erasing Old Man Yu’s debts and traces of his existence abroad. “Old Pei only helped you delay the time for Yu Yan’s marriage back then. There were bound to be oversights. You could not even move on your hospital bed at the time, and Old Man Yu was hiding things everywhere while trying to sell Yu Yan off. How could a normal person find him?”

This matter was a thorn in Zheng Tingyang’s heart.

Pei Changji’s family was a mess of brothers and fathers killing each other. Zheng Tingyang had always worked for Pei Changji and had attracted no fewer enemies than Pei himself. During the time of the Pei brothers’ power struggle, Pei Changji had been assassinated and nearly died from a cut to an artery. Zheng Tingyang had also been targeted and shot; the opposition clearly wanted to eliminate Pei Changji and his right hand men once and for all. At that time, the Yu family had also gone bankrupt. The people responsible for watching the Yu family in Haicheng had already been recalled to the capital because of the assassination attempt on Pei Changji.

Xiao Kai asked, “Has your bipolar disorder been acting up badly lately? He is already pregnant. Even if he finds out his father is dead and the debts are paid off, you can just find any excuse to brush it off. It is not like he can run away, right?”

Zheng Tingyang ground his back teeth. “If you do not know how to speak, sew your mouth shut.”

There are no walls in this world that do not leak air, but he had to calculate exactly how that wind would leak and who would let it in. He only wanted Yu Yan to live in the utopia he had created, where outsiders could not touch him.

Orange let out a loud “Meow!” in the flower shop.

Yu Yan’s hand froze over the keyboard. He supported his lower abdomen, frowned, and stood up. He looked at Xiang Qian and asked hesitantly, “What?”

Xiang Qian hurried to make him sit back down. “Don’t get excited, don’t get excited! I only just found out myself! Otherwise, would I have come all the way to the flower shop to tell you?” Xiang Qian acted mysterious yet worried. “I only saw it over the past few days while I was helping my dad check the old account books at the company. It should not be wrong.”

Xiang Qian’s family had originally collaborated with the Yu family, but after the Yu family’s crisis, all contracts were canceled. Checking the books at the end of the year was a normal occurrence. When Xiang Qian looked over the collaboration with the Yu family, he saw that the legal representative had changed. Furthermore, the other party had even paid the Xiang family the penalty for the canceled collaboration.

Xiang Qian was curious and looked up the legal representative of the Yu family’s company. The person held several foreign financial companies and was named Xiao.

“The legal representative changed. Your father really must have,” Xiang Qian said. Old Man Yu was a gambler. Once the legal representative of the company changed, the man completely vanished. He might have even turned to ash by now.

“Little Fish, do you know this person?”

Yu Yan was stunned. “Xiao… Xiao Kai?”

“Yes! Did you know? This guy’s companies abroad are incredible; he controls several major stock markets and was one of the founders of virtual currency! The Yu family was just a small company; to him, it was probably just,” Xiang Qian gestured with his pinky, “a drop in the bucket! How could he be the legal representative of your family’s bankrupt company?”

Yu Yan’s breathing gradually slowed. That name sounded very familiar. “I have heard that name.”

Xiang Qian asked, “Where did you hear it? Do you actually know a big shot like that?”

He did not know him. He must have heard it somewhere. It was from Tingyang. He had heard it when Tingyang and Secretary Lin were speaking.

Support