Chapter Ninety-One: Pay Me Back

The two of them sat by the bed, neither of them saying a word. The violent exertion they had just gone through had drained them both, and for the moment all they could do was catch their breath.

Ning Jingzhe was deeply surprised. Although she had lost because of her own misjudgment, a defeat was still a defeat. If this had been a battlefield, such an error would have cost her her life. She would not make excuses for herself.

What was more, looking back over the entire struggle with Xiao Cheng, although he had not yet found a chance to strike back, his responses had been flawless, his reactions swift, and he had evaded every killing blow she had thrown at him.

She had originally thought Xiao Cheng would last at most a minute before she beat him until he begged for mercy. But now it seemed that if they had continued, Xiao Cheng could have held out for several minutes at least, and might even have turned defeat into victory.

From childhood to adulthood, apart from her elder brother Ning Junnan, known as the Blue Fox of the Northern Frontier, she had never lost to anyone. Yet today she had been defeated by Xiao Cheng.

She was astonished. When had Xiao Cheng, that idle, good-for-nothing wastrel long dismissed as the most worthless prodigal in the Xiao family’s history, acquired such strength?

She knew what sort of person Xiao Cheng was, even more clearly than Fang Yujia did. He truly deserved that reputation. And yet such a depraved, unambitious wastrel had just beaten her. It was beyond belief.

Before bathing, she had even goaded Xiao Cheng, telling him that if he could defeat her, he could bathe with her.

Now that she thought about it, she felt a faint sense of relief. Thankfully Xiao Cheng had refused at the time. Otherwise, if he had truly defeated her, would she really have had to bathe with him?

The way she looked at Xiao Cheng had completely changed. She had grown up around military life and revered strength. Since Xiao Cheng had managed to defeat her, he had earned her recognition.

Once her breathing had steadied, she turned her attention to the lingerie lying on the floor. One of the straps had snapped, and the clasp had broken as well; it was no longer usable.

Ning Jingzhe picked it up and casually tossed it into Xiao Cheng’s arms.

Xiao Cheng had sustained a few light injuries, especially from the blow to his groin. Although Ning Jingzhe had already shown him mercy there, any movement below the waist now brought a searing pain.

So when he saw his sister-in-law suddenly throw the dark red lingerie at him, he froze, not understanding what she meant by it.

Seeing the teasing look on Xiao Cheng’s face, Ning Jingzhe realized that this junior brother-in-law actually had a shy side to him. She let out a hearty laugh and said bluntly, without the least bit of reserve, “What are you thinking? You ruined my things, so of course you have to pay for them. Mine isn’t easy to replace, so take this to a lingerie shop and buy the same one.”

At her words, Xiao Cheng was left speechless for a moment. He truly did not know what to say. His sister-in-law indeed had not the slightest trace of womanly delicacy; she was actually sending him to buy this sort of thing.

He could not help grumbling inwardly that last time he had carelessly said he would buy a box of panties for Sister-in-law Yujia, and now he had to compensate his sister-in-law for her lingerie. He was practically becoming the family expert on women’s underthings. For a junior brother-in-law, he was certainly attentive.

But since she had put it that way, he obviously could not refuse. Strictly speaking, this lingerie really had been ruined by him.

Seeing that Xiao Cheng did not object, Ning Jingzhe dropped the matter and moved on. “Then let’s talk about the old man trying to arrest you.”

Xiao Cheng nodded. That was the very reason he had come to see his sister-in-law today. He did not want her involved in this matter. Although he had taken a bit of a shortcut just now, he had indeed won. And he knew her character: she always honored her word, the kind of person who would never take back what she had said.

“Here’s what we’ll do. I’ll go to the Middle East for a while. Something has happened over there anyway, so it’s a convenient excuse, and the old man won’t be able to fault me for it. But in the middle of next month, on the one hundred and fourteenth birthday of the family matriarch, I’ll definitely have to come back. I can’t stay in the Middle East for too long,” Ning Jingzhe said.

Xiao Cheng knew her reasoning was sound. As the family matriarch’s birthday approached, there was no way a daughter-in-law like her could fail to return.

“Mm, that’s only natural.”

Ning Jingzhe said, “Still, even if I leave, the old man can simply order someone else to come after you. I’m afraid it won’t be easy for you to escape the hunt.”

Xiao Cheng smiled. He naturally knew it would be difficult to evade pursuit, but difficult did not mean impossible. He believed he had the ability to do it.

In his previous life, during those few years, he had been relentlessly hunted, and that had only sharpened his skills at fleeing and concealing himself.

Still not entirely reassured, Ning Jingzhe said, “Let’s do this: you have Li Zhirui’s number, right? If necessary, you can contact him and have him tip you off. That should not be a problem.”

“Li Zhirui?”

Xiao Cheng frowned. He had met Li Zhirui several times and thought the man was sharp and alert, a decent person. What he did not understand was why his sister-in-law was so certain that Li Zhirui would definitely help him with advance warning.

Ning Jingzhe guessed his confusion, but did not explain.

In truth, strictly speaking, Li Zhirui was already one of Xiao Cheng’s own people. Both of Li Zhirui’s recent assignments had involved Xiao Cheng, and he had performed well in both.

Ning Jingzhe knew that as the sole heir of the Xiao family, Xiao Cheng would one day take over security matters. So she seized the opportunity and promoted Li Zhirui twice in succession, turning him into one of Xiao Cheng’s men, thereby paving the way for Xiao Cheng’s future.

“If you need him, just go to him,” Ning Jingzhe said.

Since his sister-in-law was so certain, she must have her reasons. On this matter, she would not be vague.

“By the way, you haven’t been back there lately, have you?” Ning Jingzhe asked.

Xiao Cheng knew that the place she meant was Tangchen. A while ago, because of the gunshot wound, he had gone to Jade Buddha Monastery to recuperate. Later, he had been investigating Wang Qiyi’s affairs and had never returned.

He shook his head. “It’s been more than ten days.”

“Before you came, I called Yujia. I originally wanted to tell her about the old man trying to arrest you, but she didn’t seem quite right emotionally at the time. When you have a chance, go back and see her.” For once, Ning Jingzhe’s expression turned melancholy.

Among the four women in the Xiao family, Fang Yujia had it the hardest.

The others might be people who went through fire and rain, but they all lived with a certain ease. The second sister, Yao Tiao, spent her days digging up artifacts and scamming people, yet she seemed quite content. The third sister, Ni Cai, was a big star; wherever she went, people praised her and treated her with deference, living in dazzling splendor.

Only Fang Yujia, the youngest, stayed in Shanghai all day, facing pressure from the clan and from every part of the family. On one hand she had to worry about family affairs, and on the other she had to look after Xiao Cheng, that troublemaker. She had it the roughest of all.

Especially since Xiao Cheng was anything but reassuring. Though he seemed to have changed a lot lately, who knew whether that was only an act? She did not believe he could turn good overnight. Character, after all, was hard to change.

Speaking of Xiao Cheng, she suddenly remembered something else. Hadn’t he once dug a hole in the wall to spy on Fang Yujia?

After some hesitation, she still chose not to mention it. It would be useless to say it, and besides, having just lost to Xiao Cheng, she no longer had the force of spirit to lecture him.

Hearing his sister-in-law’s words, Xiao Cheng could not help feeling a jolt of unease. Sister Yuer’s mood was off—could it be because of the matter of the arranged remarriage? If not that, what else could have affected her like this? It looked as though he would have to go home and see her today.

The day before, when he had returned to the old residence, he had already learned from the grandmother of the family that the Fang family intended to force Fang Yujia into a second marriage. At the time, though, the old matriarch had assured him that nothing would happen, so he had not taken it to heart. Now it seemed he had been careless. He had not expected the Fang family to move so quickly.

“All right, no more of that. There happens to be a flight to the Persian Gulf this afternoon. You’re taking me to the airport.”