Although Su's mother was angry, she didn't dare to cause a scene at the Pei residence. She stormed back home, furious that the engagement could have been settled if not for Pei Shaoze!
"Sinian, I went to the Pei family today," she said to Su Sinian, who was sitting on the sofa fiddling with her laptop.
This caught Su Sinian off guard. She immediately set aside what she was doing and turned her attention to her mother. "Mom! Why did you go there?"
"To ask about your marriage to Pei Shaoze!" Su's mother replied with a look of innocence, as if she had done something good, but unfortunately, it hadn't worked out.
"How did it go? What's the result?" she asked eagerly.
Although Su Sinian was a bit annoyed that her mother had gone to the Pei family without consulting her, she still cared about the outcome. If it had succeeded, she would have become the Pei family's daughter-in-law!
"Old Master Pei agreed, but he insisted on calling Pei Shaoze back to finalize it. Pei Shaoze directly refused, so..."
"I understand!" She clenched her fists, her expression turning ugly, her demeanor inscrutable.
In the blink of an eye, a few days had passed. Su Banxia could now walk normally, and the first thing she did was ask Pei Shaoze to take her to school.
"Guoguo! Haohao!" At the school gate, Su Banxia spotted her two little treasures from afar. She quickly crouched down and opened her arms.
Guoguo seemed to have spotted Su Banxia too, stumbling on her unsteady little feet as she ran until she threw herself into Su Banxia's arms. "Mommy!" Su Banxia hugged her tightly, filled with longing.
"Mommy, you were gone for so long this time. You didn't even call Guoguo!" Guoguo pouted, complaining.
Thinking about it, Su Banxia felt guilty. She hugged her and kissed her. "Guoguo, be good. Mommy had work!"
"When will Mommy have time to be with us?" Guoguo blinked her big eyes, eager to know.
Su Banxia didn't know when she'd have time for them either. Lately, she had been either working overtime or recovering from her injuries, leaving little time for the kids.
"Soon!" she said with a smile, knowing it was the only way to comfort Guoguo.
Haohao snorted coldly and walked straight up to Pei Shaoze. "Uncle, when will you give our mommy back to us?"
It had to be said that Haohao was a clever child. Using the tactic of catching the leader first worked perfectly on Pei Shaoze.
Pei Shaoze was a bit embarrassed by the question. After a moment of thought, he said gently, "Uh, your mommy did an excellent job this time. She won't need to work overtime anymore."
Haohao was clearly excited—this meant their mommy would have time for them. "Really? Thank you, Uncle."
Su Banxia overheard this and felt grateful. "President Pei, I'll take the kids home now. Shiqing drove over."
She had already troubled Pei Shaoze enough and didn't want to impose further. Pei Shaoze nodded, didn't linger, and drove off.
The three of them walked hand in hand toward the parking lot, chatting and laughing, where Fang Shiqing was waiting for her.
"Banxia? What are you doing here?" Just as she was about to head into the parking lot with Guoguo and Haohao to find Fang Shiqing's car, someone called out to her.
She turned around and froze. "Miss..."
At that moment, Su Sinian's gaze was fixed entirely on the two children. Their striking resemblance to Pei Shaoze made her suspicious.
"Are these your children?" she asked doubtfully.
Su Banxia's heart raced. She couldn't let Su Sinian discover her children!
"No... no... Miss, you're joking. How could they be my children..." She quickly denied it with a smile, hoping Fang Shiqing would come to her rescue soon.
Hearing her mother deny them, Guoguo's eyes welled up with tears. She looked up at Su Banxia and cried out, "Mommy..."
"Mommy's here, Guoguo." Just as Su Sinian grew suspicious, Haohao's voice drew her attention.
Fang Shiqing was walking toward them, as if she knew what was happening.
"Sweethearts, were you tired from class today?" Fang Shiqing, playing the role of a temporary mother, hugged the children convincingly.
Haohao, being very clever, immediately played along. "No, Mommy. Did you miss me and Guoguo?"
Guoguo was confused, but since Fang Shiqing was their godmother, she just watched Haohao without saying anything.
Fang Shiqing warmly patted Haohao's head and quickly said, "Of course, of course!" She then picked up Guoguo and walked over to Su Banxia.
"Banxia, we'll have to rely on you, as their godmother, to cook for the little ones when we get back."
This gave Su Banxia an excuse to leave, and she didn't hesitate to take it.
"Miss, as you can see, I have to go now."
"Banxia!" Su Sinian tried to stop her, but she was already far away.
In the car, Su Banxia was still shaken. "That was close. We almost got exposed. Haohao, thank you so much."
She was grateful to have such a clever son who always came through when it mattered. Thinking about it, she even thanked Pei Shaoze for his genes.
"You're welcome. It's my duty," Haohao said coldly, his tone eerily similar to Pei Shaoze's.
Fang Shiqing was impressed by his demeanor. "Banxia, your son is only a few years old, but he's so mature?"
"Sigh..." Su Banxia was helpless. Her son had been like this since he was little, completely different from Guoguo, and there was nothing she could do about it.
On the other side, Su Sinian didn't believe Su Banxia's explanation. If it were true, there wouldn't be such a coincidence. Those two children, especially the boy, looked like they were carved from Pei Shaoze's mold!
If they were indeed that woman's children, it could only mean her relationship with Pei Shaoze was anything but ordinary!
"Help me look into two children, a boy and a girl. They look very much like President Pei." She made a phone call, determined to uncover whatever secret lay hidden.
If they were really Pei Shaoze's children, he wouldn't keep it a secret. The only possibility was that he didn't know about them!
And she was just speculating.
She couldn't let the Pei family's power fall into anyone else's hands, least of all that wild girl Su Banxia!
"Yan Xing, how's the cooperation with the Su family going?" As soon as he returned to the company, Pei Shaoze eagerly asked about the Su family's situation. That day, the Su family had relied on Old Master Pei's ignorance to push their daughter into the Pei family—how cunning.
"President Pei, you're finally back. I've been working myself to death while you were away!" Yan Xing was relieved to see him but, after complaining, caught Pei Shaoze's cold glare and quickly pulled out the Su family's contract follow-up report.
"The Su family has stabilized their foundation now. The Lin family and we have brought them significant profits."
"Pull the funding. Let them fend for themselves. Isn't there still Lin Tongze?" Pei Shaoze waved his hand dismissively, tossing the contract onto the table.
Yan Xing was intimidated by his unpredictable nature. He had helped the Su family, and now he was pulling the funding—playing them like a fiddle!
But Yan Xing didn't dare disobey Pei Shaoze's orders. As long as the hostility was directed outward, he was safe. If he didn't comply, the target would shift to him.
Pei Shaoze felt disgusted just thinking about Su's mother's behavior that day. As the CEO of a thriving company, how could he let a woman from a small firm dictate his marriage? Just because she had gained a foothold, she thought she could dream big!
Just then, there was a knock at the door. Yan Xing poked his head in. "President Pei, we've made contact. Su Sinian is requesting a face-to-face meeting with you."