Leaving the villa, Su Banxia had no choice but to drive. She didn't have the pride to refuse his car—walking from the villa to where she could hail a taxi would take at least half an hour. Her clothes were disheveled, and even with a man's jacket draped over her, she couldn't be sure she'd avoid the probing stares of passersby. Driving, at least, would let her escape some of that humiliation.
When she returned to the apartment, Guoguo and Su Hao were already asleep, with only Fang Shiqing waiting for her in the living room. Seeing her like this, Fang was more than shocked. "What happened? Did you get mugged on the way? Assaulted?" Taking in her disheveled state, Fang was almost frozen with worry. When Su Banxia didn't respond, she instinctively assumed she'd been robbed. Noticing the torn hem of her skirt, Fang helped her to the sofa, crouched beside her, and asked softly, "Are you hurt anywhere? Should I call the police?"
Su Banxia was just tired. Seeing Fang's concern, she offered a faint smile and said, "I'm fine, you're overreacting!"
"Su Banxia, at a time like this, you can still laugh? You—" Fang was nearly in tears, her eyes red as she choked out, "Are you hurt anywhere?"
Seeing her like this, Su Banxia sighed silently. She knew if she didn't say something, this woman would keep pestering her endlessly. Pulling Fang to sit beside her, Su Banxia said, "I'm really fine. This is all Pei Shaoze's doing..."
"That bastard, how could he do this? I'm going to find him and settle this!" Fang's fiery temper couldn't hold back.
Su Banxia grabbed her, pressing her back onto the sofa. "Calm down. Settle this? Do you even know where he lives? Running out in the middle of the night like that would just make everyone worry!"
Her words deflated Fang a bit. True, she didn't know where that jerk Pei Shaoze lived. Turning to Su Banxia, she asked, "What exactly happened? How did he leave you in such a state?" Pei Shaoze was usually cold and aloof, but deep down he was steady and reserved—not the type to act like this. Yet seeing Su Banxia now, she couldn't help wondering if there was something wrong with him.
Afraid Fang would worry, Su Banxia gave her a rough account of the evening. "Pei Shaoze still suspects me. What he's doing now is just trying to force me out of Dingsheng."
Fang frowned deeply. "Banxia, tell me honestly—what's your real purpose for joining Dingsheng?"
Su Banxia hesitated, unsure how to explain. After a pause, she said, "I came back to China for two reasons. One is to help Guoguo and Su Hao adapt to the living environment and education system here." She shrugged slightly, then smiled. "Of course, even though I don't like a lot of things about this place, they belong here, so I have no reason not to bring them back."
Fang nodded. "And the second?"
Even without her saying it, Fang could guess part of it. The June weather was hot, so Su Banxia took the jacket off her shoulders and set it aside. "As for the second, it's a bit hard to explain, but I think if I don't tell you, I'll be interrogated all night, so I'll say it. I have a friend in France whose company ran into some problems a few months ago. They weren't serious, but they weren't trivial either..."
"So these problems are connected to Dingsheng? Your friend asked you to join Dingsheng to investigate?" Fang looked at her, her gaze falling on the jacket Su Banxia had taken off.
Su Banxia nodded, reaching out to gently lift Fang's chin with a playful smile. "I have to say, babe, you're really sharp."
Fang didn't want to engage with her anymore. She snatched the jacket from her hand and clicked her tongue. "This is Pei Shaoze's, isn't it?"
Su Banxia didn't answer. Instead, she got up to wash up and get ready for bed. Fang wasn't about to let her off that easily. Following her, she said, "Su Banxia, I'm really curious now—what are you thinking? On one side, your friend; on the other, the father of your two precious kids. Aren't you going to do something?"
Su Banxia paused, turning back. "What should I do?"
Fang frowned. "Make a choice."
"A choice?" Su Banxia let out a laugh. "What choice? When it comes to Pei Shaoze being the father of my kids, I need to make one thing clear: those two children have nothing to do with him. So I don't need to choose at all."
"So you're planning to stay at Dingsheng for your friend and be a... spy?" Fang leaned against the door of Su Banxia's bedroom, squinting at her.
Su Banxia stripped off her disheveled clothes, wrapped herself in a towel, and looked at Fang seriously. "I'm not a spy. I joined Dingsheng with a purpose, but it's definitely not to steal trade secrets or harm the company. I'm just investigating the truth about some things."
Fang shrugged and said no more, handing her the jacket. "OK. Whatever. I don't really care, but you still need to be careful. Seriously, don't let Pei Shaoze find out anything, or no matter what your goal is, the outcome won't be good."
Su Banxia knew that well. She nodded slightly. "Alright, it's late. Go to sleep. I'll take a shower and turn in too."
Fang nodded and turned to leave. After a few steps, she stopped and looked back. "I'm curious—do you have any romantic feelings for Pei Shaoze? I mean, you two have..." She brought her fingers together to imply they'd slept together.
Su Banxia understood. She rolled her eyes and shot back, "Nosy!" Then she pushed Fang out of the bedroom.
In the bathroom, Su Banxia stood naked under the shower, her mind drifting to Fang's words and Pei Shaoze's face, as well as that night by the pool when he'd defended her. The more she thought about it, the more tangled it became. She was a slow-burn person, so when she couldn't figure things out, she stopped forcing it.
...
Yan Xin received Pei Shaoze's call at one in the morning. Honestly, if he could, he'd kill this man. After days of insomnia, he'd finally fallen asleep at three in the morning, only to be woken by Pei Shaoze. It proved that turning off your phone before bed was crucial.
"President Pei, what orders do you have? How can I serve you?" Yan Xin gritted out through a forced smile, barely containing his anger.
"Come out for a drink."
"Damn it!" Yan Xin couldn't help cursing. "Pei, did you take the wrong pills? Calling someone in the middle of the night to go drinking—don't you think that's a rotten thing to do?"
"Kaiser Bar. If you don't come, don't bother showing up at the office tomorrow." With that, Pei Shaoze hung up, leaving Yan Xin no chance to argue.
"Fuck!" Muttering a curse, he finally dragged himself out of bed and reluctantly made his way to the bar. As soon as he walked in, he unluckily spotted Pei Shaoze surrounded by two beautiful women, arms around them, looking anything but unhappy. Yan Xin ordered a drink, leaned against the bar, and watched him, wondering what was bothering the man tonight.