"Hello?" Yu He answered the phone.
"Where are you?" the man's voice was deep and cold, and she could feel his chilling aura even through the phone.
Yu He turned off the gas and said, "I'm hungry. I'm going out to eat nearby."
On the other end, Qin Beiting sat in front of his computer, holding the phone in one hand and typing with the other. He found that the phone's signal had been counter-tracked, and the location was uncertain every second.
However, this was no challenge for him.
His well-defined fingers flew across the keyboard, and soon a map with a coordinate appeared on the desktop, pinpointing Yu He's location.
It was nearly thirty kilometers from Di Yi Restaurant.
Heh, nearby?
And she said she wasn't running away!
This woman was truly a liar!
"I'll be back after I eat," Yu He said, glancing at the time. If she cooked and then rushed back, it should be in time.
Qin Beiting, however, said, "No need."
Back at the villa, Yu He looked at the hung-up phone, feeling a bit puzzled.
If she didn't need to go back, that was perfect. She could have a good meal with the children.
"Mommy, are you going to work on something?" Duo Duo blinked her eyes at Yu He, then added considerately, "If you're busy, you should go quickly. Auntie An Ran can cook for us."
Yu He saw through her daughter's thoughts at a glance. She squatted down and poked Duo Duo's delicate little nose. "My dear Duo Duo, Mommy isn't busy today. I'm staying home to be with you and your brother. Aren't you happy?"
Hmm~ If Mommy is home, I can't be lazy.
Duo Duo: "...Happy." She dared not utter the word "unhappy."
Yu He smiled, turned her little body towards the living room, and said, "Continue drawing your acupuncture point chart. Mommy will call you when dinner is ready."
Duo Duo reluctantly shuffled out in her slippers.
Yu He finished cooking the remaining dishes, brought them to the dining room, and called the children to wash their hands for dinner.
Xiao An Ran washed the bowls and chopsticks and brought them out. The four of them sat around the dining table.
Before they started eating, Duo Duo looked at the beautifully colored and fragrantly stewed braised pork on the table and swallowed. "Mommy, the acupuncture point chart is too hard to draw. Can I eat two less pieces of meat and not finish it?"
"No!" Yu He refused heartlessly.
"Wuwu ┭┮﹏┭┮ Then I want to eat two more pieces of meat to make up for it," Duo Duo said, picking two pieces of braised pork into her bowl.
"Reporting to Mommy, I've deleted all the surveillance videos," Yue Yue said.
Yu He nodded, "Good. Duo Duo, you should learn from your brother."
"What's the fun in life if you only learn?" Duo Duo complained.
"Sister He, the children are still young, there's no need for... Hey? Who are you? How did you get in?" Xiao An Ran hadn't finished speaking when she saw a man suddenly appear in the living room and immediately stood up to ask.
From her position, she had a clear view of the living room.
But she clearly remembered the main gate of the courtyard was closed. How did this person get in?
Yu He turned around and saw the man who had appeared in the living room at some unknown time. She knew something was wrong.
Qin Beiting stood in the living room with a cold expression, his narrow phoenix eyes emitting a gaze like a drawn sword, staring directly at Yu He.
He was still wearing the white shirt from that morning, with only a slim-fitting vest over it, no coat. It was as if he had rushed over immediately after finishing his speech at a press conference.
"..."
Yu He finally realized what he meant by "no need" on the phone. So he had come to launch a surprise attack.
"Uncle Handsome, you're here!" Duo Duo's eyes lit up when she saw Qin Beiting. She jumped off the floor with a "whoosh" and wanted to pull him over to eat together.
But seeing his cold face and the intimidating aura emanating from him, she stopped in her tracks, afraid to approach.
Daddy seems very fierce.
"You guys eat first, Mommy is going out for a bit." Yu He got up, put Duo Duo back on her chair, and then pulled Qin Beiting outside.
Outside the courtyard, it was Qin Beiting who grabbed her hand, forced her into the passenger seat, then walked around to the driver's side, started the car, and drove away.
The car was heated, but the temperature inside the cabin remained very low.
Yu He had left in a hurry and wasn't wearing a coat, only a white shirt. She felt a bit cold, so she couldn't help but reach out and turn the heat to the highest setting. "Where are you taking me?"
The man just drove with a sullen expression, not speaking.
Seeing that he wasn't talking, Yu He stopped asking. She looked at the familiar streets outside and soon knew their destination.
Half an hour later, the car stopped in front of a siheyuan.
Yu He looked at the familiar gate and thought about how she had met Qin Beiting here last time. She was a little dazed.
Had he come here often over the years?
Just as she was lost in thought, she felt a sudden dizzying sensation, and her whole body was roughly carried out of the car by Qin Beiting.
"Qin Beiting, what are you doing? Let me down!" Yu He slapped his back.
It was high noon, and there were quite a few people on the road casting strange glances, but Qin Beiting paid them no mind. He carried her like this, swiped his fingerprint to enter the siheyuan, and went straight to the west wing.
The furniture in the living room was covered with dustproof white sheets, but the bedroom remained as it was back then. It seemed someone came to clean it regularly, as the floor and tabletops were noticeably cleaner than outside.
Yu He stopped shouting, wondering who lived here.
Before she could react, she was thrown onto the hard bed by the man.
"Are those two your children?!" The man's sturdy body pressed down, and he was quite heavy.
Yu He didn't deny it. "Yes."
Although Qin Beiting had figured out what was going on when he heard the children call her "Mommy," seeing her admit it in person still made him feel very upset, even extremely angry.
"So, who are you really? What's your purpose in approaching me?!" Qin Beiting grabbed her chin and interrogated her.
"..."
Yu He wondered if she was like Duo Duo and had read too many melodramatic CEO novels.
"I didn't have a chance before, but now I'll introduce my other identity to you: Esther, Technical Director of Future Technology Company."
After she finished speaking, she savored the man's increasingly grim expression, her face practically screaming, "Surprised? Shocked?"
That dog man had refused her appointment before. Now, let's see how he refused.
"As expected!"
So she used the children to approach him, and then deliberately tempted him with her body, all to secure the chip cooperation with XS Group?
The thought that she had approached him with ulterior motives, and that he had fallen for her beauty trap, made Qin Beiting extremely angry. The hand holding her chin unconsciously tightened, and he said coldly:
"It was Zuo Ye who sent you, wasn't it? To resort to such unscrupulous means for a partnership?"
Yu He cried out in pain, slapped his hand away, and then with a surge of strength, turned the tables and pressed Qin Beiting beneath her. She said in a cool and wild manner:
"It was before, but I've changed my mind. Not only do I want to secure the partnership, but I also want to be the mistress of XS Group!"