Chapter 6: Sixth Day as a Salted Fish
Zhou Shaoli looked at the girl with half her face hidden in his suit jacket. She was like a little kitten relying on its owner, liking to sprawl out on her owner and curl up into a ball to sleep.
Sleeping in the car was ultimately not as comfortable as in a bed. Zhou Shaoli extended his well-defined hand and gently pushed Qin Jiaojiao’s fair, rounded, yet slender shoulder, calling out in a low voice, “Qin Jiaojiao, wake up. Go sleep inside the house.”
The driver watched this scene through the rearview mirror, thinking to himself, President Zhou is truly gentle with Madam.
The sleeping girl furrowed her brows slightly, seemingly annoyed at having her sweet dreams disturbed. She turned sideways, giving him her back, and continued to sleep.
Zhou Shaoli turned his head and said to the driver, “You can go back and rest first. I’ll drive the car into the garage later.”
“Understood, President Zhou.”
Old Li had been Zhou Shaoli’s driver for ten years. Occasionally, when they returned late at night, he would sleep in the servant’s quarters of the courtyard villa and then drive Zhou Shaoli to work the next day.
The air conditioning temperature inside the car was a bit too high for Zhou Shaoli, who was wearing a dress shirt and suit trousers. He opened the door, got out of the car, and leaned against the car door as he lit a cigarette.
Under the silver glow of the moonlight, the man’s distinct, bony fingers held the cigarette. The curling blue smoke blurred his features, making it impossible to read his emotions.
His phone suddenly received a message from his assistant. Zhou Shaoli clicked it open, his expression slightly stunned.
The photo had been secretly taken by the assistant that afternoon. At the time, the stylist had pulled open the curtain from the dressing room and rushed out to find matching jewelry for Qin Jiaojiao, constantly rambling about how beautiful Qin Jiaojiao’s gown looked and telling Zhou Shaoli to go take a look.
Inside the room, Qin Jiaojiao was wearing the off-the-shoulder black mermaid tail gown. With her head slightly lowered, she was fiddling with her pitch-black hair, revealing a fair, slender back.
Zhou Shaoli stood by the pulled-open door curtain, his gaze fixed on the girl standing in front of the floor-to-ceiling mirror inside the room.
In that instant, the atmospheric vibe peaked to the extreme. The assistant, as if possessed, had taken out his phone and snapped a picture.
Only after arriving home did he remember to send the photo to Zhou Shaoli.
[Thumbs up meme.jpg]
[President Zhou, this photo is absolutely stunning. You definitely have to send it to Madam.]
Zhou Shaoli lowered his eyes, looking at the photo, and clicked to download and save it. Turning his head to look inside the car, Qin Jiaojiao was probably truly exhausted today; he had finished smoking an entire cigarette, yet she still hadn’t woken up.
Extinguishing the cigarette and tossing it into a nearby trash can, he let the night breeze blow against him for a few minutes to dissipate the smell of tobacco on his body. Zhou Shaoli then went over, opened the car door, leaned in, and carried her out of the car.
Qin Jiaojiao had a perfect body ratio—she had curves in all the right places—yet her weight was surprisingly light.
Zhou Shaoli carried her into the courtyard villa. A gust of night wind blew by, and the red rose pinned in Qin Jiaojiao’s black hair came loose and fell to the ground.
Zhou Shaoli’s footsteps paused. Holding her, he bent down to pick up the red rose, slipped it into his trouser pocket, and continued walking towards the villa’s living room.
“Sir is back.” Auntie Zhang’s gaze landed on Qin Jiaojiao in Zhou Shaoli’s arms, and she asked, “Did Madam drink too much?”
With Zhou Shaoli carrying Qin Jiaojiao home, and Qin Jiaojiao still draped in Zhou Shaoli’s jacket, the relationship between the young couple was finally making progress.
Zhou Shaoli lowered his eyes and took a glance. “She had a few glasses at the banquet and fell asleep in the car.”
“Madam didn’t throw up, did she?” Auntie Zhang asked with concern in her voice.
Zhou Shaoli: “She didn’t throw up.”
Auntie Zhang said, “Sir, please take Madam back to her room. I’ll go to the kitchen to cook some hangover soup for her.”
Zhou Shaoli carried her towards the elevator. After going up to the third floor, he walked through the corridor to Qin Jiaojiao’s bedroom door, twisted the handle, and entered the bedroom.
This was his first time coming to Qin Jiaojiao’s room. The interior decor was fresh and minimalist. A soft carpet covered the floor, and many cute plush dolls were placed on the bed and bay window.
Zhou Shaoli was somewhat surprised. For an eldest miss who appeared arrogant and willful, her bedroom was full of an adorable, girlish charm. He pulled back the covers and placed her on the bed, retrieved his suit jacket, and then pulled the blankets up to cover her. Turning around, he left the bedroom, closed the door, and went downstairs.
It was now past eleven at night; it was getting late.
Zhou Shaoli went to the kitchen. Auntie Zhang, wearing an apron, was cooking the hangover soup. Seeing him enter, she said, “Sir, the hangover soup will be ready in just a moment.”
“She has makeup on her face,” Zhou Shaoli noted.
Auntie Zhang smiled broadly and said, “Don’t worry, Sir. Once the hangover soup is done, I’ll go upstairs to wake Madam up and remind her to wash up before going to sleep.”
Zhou Shaoli nodded and turned to go upstairs.
Qin Jiaojiao woke up before Auntie Zhang pushed the door open to come in. She rubbed her eyes and stared at the crystal chandelier on the ceiling, feeling a bit dazed. Wasn’t she just taking a nap with her eyes closed in the car? How did she end up back in her own room?
“Madam, you’re awake.” Auntie Zhang pushed the door open and came in, saying in a gentle voice, “The hangover soup just finished cooking. Hurry up and drink it to sober up.”
Qin Jiaojiao sat up, obediently took the hangover soup, and took two sips before asking, “Did Zhou Shaoli bring me back?”
“Yes, Madam.” Auntie Zhang’s face was covered in an auntie-like knowing smile as she said, “Sir personally carried you back, and even thoughtfully instructed me to cook hangover soup for you.”
“Oh.” Qin Jiaojiao’s face flushed red. Oh my god, Zhou Shaoli actually carried her back to her room. Did she grind her teeth or drool while sleeping?
After she drank the hangover soup, Auntie Zhang took the bowl and left the room. Qin Jiaojiao went to her en-suite bathroom to remove her makeup and wash up, then applied a face mask.
Just as she was getting ready to go to sleep, the ringtone of her phone inside her leather purse sounded. She unlocked her phone and answered the call.
“Miss Qin, my patience is limited.” A young man’s malicious voice came through the line. “If you still refuse to meet me tomorrow, I guarantee that our affair will be on tomorrow night’s headlines.”
Qin Jiaojiao furrowed her brows and shot back, “What affair do I have with you?!”
“Miss Qin, don’t pretend you don’t understand.” Xiao Yu gritted his teeth and said, “You saw the photos, right? I have even more explosive photos here.”
Listening to his threats, Qin Jiaojiao pursed her lips and said, “You think these photos are enough to threaten me?”
Xiao Yu sneered coldly, “I have more than just photos in my hands. I also have your wedding ring. Don’t you want it back?”
Qin Jiaojiao’s heart skipped a beat. Just how did the original owner provoke this huge trouble? His tricks were endless.
While photos could be denied and clarified, a wedding ring couldn’t be faked. However, she remained skeptical. “Send me a photo so I can see it.”
Xiao Yu thought he had her by the throat and laughed smugly, “Would I lie to you? You took the ring off with your own hands. If I hadn’t temporarily kept it safe for you, the ring would have been lost.”
“Let’s set a time and place to meet tomorrow.” Qin Jiaojiao felt she still had to meet him to completely defuse this ticking time bomb.
“Fine, as long as you’re willing to meet.” Xiao Yu said with satisfaction, “Tomorrow afternoon at three o’clock, Peninsula Restaurant.”
Qin Jiaojiao hung up the phone. Looking at the photo of the diamond ring sent to her phone, she couldn’t help but feel a slight headache. The ring and the one worn on Zhou Shaoli’s hand were very clearly a matching couple’s set.
She suspected that Xiao Yu must have stolen the ring just to use it to threaten Qin Jiaojiao.
This lingering ghost Xiao Yu had stolen a five-million-yuan wedding ring, yet instead of running away, he actually wanted to extort her. It truly was courting death.
Going to meet him tomorrow, she had to delete the photos without spending any money, and she also had to get back the lost wedding ring. It was a monumental task.
Meeting Xiao Yu all by herself, she would definitely be at a disadvantage. She had to think of a plan.
Qin Jiaojiao opened her door to go find Zhou Shaoli. He wasn’t in his bedroom. She then went to the study, but didn’t find anyone there either. Huh, where did Zhou Shaoli go?
Coming out of the study, she just so happened to bump into Zhou Shaoli coming upstairs.
The man was wearing a black-and-gray athletic short-sleeved shirt and sweatpants. Sweat beaded on his handsome face, dampening the stray hairs on his forehead, and his body radiated an intensely oppressive heat.
Clearly, he had just finished working out.
The two bumped into each other in the corridor. For some unknown reason, the spacious hallway suddenly felt cramped. The scent of roses from her post-bath routine mingled with the aura of testosterone radiating from the man.
Qin Jiaojiao was wearing a silky nightgown, revealing her fair and slender calves. Her alabaster toes stepped in her slippers, and her slightly damp black hair scattered behind her back. Her entire being exuded the aura of a white rose after the rain.
Zhou Shaoli lowered his eyelashes slightly, concealing the dark undercurrents in his eyes. His faintly magnetic voice carried an imperceptible hoarseness: “Not asleep yet?”
“Mhm…” Qin Jiaojiao’s gaze moved from his heaving chest to his face as she said, “You just went to work out?”
She had come back from the banquet dead tired, yet he actually still had the energy to go vent at the gym so late at night.
“Looking for me for something?” Zhou Shaoli walked closer to her.
“I do have a bit of something… Oh, no, it’s that I have a friend…” Qin Jiaojiao’s gaze dodged away, her toes unconsciously curling. “She encountered a difficult problem…”
“Is it urgent?” Zhou Shaoli’s gaze landed on her makeup-free face, which looked clear and elegant with a touch of delicate beauty. “I’ll go take a shower first.”
Qin Jiaojiao said, “You go ahead.”
“Go wait for me in the study,” Zhou Shaoli instructed.
“Okay.” Qin Jiaojiao took a step towards the study, then turned back and told him, “You shouldn’t shower immediately after working out. It’s best to wait a little while.”
Hearing this, Zhou Shaoli nodded faintly. “I know.”
With her heart thumping, Qin Jiaojiao scurried into the study, observing the retro, scholarly room.
The bookcases were lined with all sorts of books and luxurious jade and emerald ornaments. Behind the desk was a sandalwood chair, and on the desk sat a brush holder, an inkstone, a laptop, and a lotus-stand-shaped incense burner.
By the study’s floor-to-ceiling windows was a sofa and a coffee table used for receiving guests, upon which sat an expensive-looking tea set.
Qin Jiaojiao randomly grabbed a book from the bookcase and sat down on the sofa to read.
A moment later, the study door clicked open. She lifted her eyes to look. Zhou Shaoli walked in wearing loungewear pajamas. The man had taken a shower, and his hair flopped softly over his forehead, making him lose a bit of his cold, ascetic vibe.
The man strode towards the sofa with his long legs and sat down opposite her.
Zhuxing Group was the Zhou family’s family enterprise. Old Master Zhou and his wife had three sons and one daughter. Nowadays, Zhou Shaoli’s father held the greatest power, controlling Zhuxing Group’s important investments and revenues, which spanned real estate, hotels, technology, energy, and various other sectors. Zhou Shaoli’s older brother devoted his mind to research, so as the Second Young Master, Zhou Shaoli shouldered the heavy responsibilities of the group.
He had been outstanding since childhood, possessing both capability and a sense of responsibility. On the surface, he appeared gentle and polite, but in reality, his methods were fierce and decisive. The business world was like a battlefield, and he had seen all sorts of ghosts and.
This was the reason Qin Jiaojiao decided to ask him for help. The two of them were bound by a contract marriage, and it was impossible for him to let his wife’s scandal run rampant and affect Zhuxing Group’s reputation.
As soon as Zhou Shaoli sat down, Qin Jiaojiao immediately sat up straight.
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