Chapter 20 - 1.17

The next day, Xu Jiaqi woke up to the bright sunlight shining upon her face, making her squint in discomfort as she tried to cover her eye area with the thick blanket she had warming her up. After laying in bed for several more minutes and clearing her thoughts up slightly, Xu Jiaqi got off the bed and started preparing herself for the day. She took a bath, wore good clothes, and went downstairs to dine in.

"Father, mother, good morning." Xu Jiaqi called out to the pair of adults who were enjoying their breakfast in the dining room sitting side by side. However, their faces were the exact contrast with each other. Li Jiayun had a happy and satisfied face, whereas Xu Zheng looked visibly pissed off at whatever he encountered. The contrast was quite severe, and it was also surprising since Xu Zheng was usually the one who wakes up with a great mood and lightened the atmosphere with his cheesy act.

Li Jiayun was not a morning person, so she tended to be extra grumpy in this time period. Things that could make her radiate with brightness right now were little in numbers.

"Father, it's so early in the morning and you're already putting up such a face?" Xu Jiaqi sat down, waiting as the servants came to server her food and service.

"Of course I am mad! Just look outside, look at what that bastard Qin is doing!" Xu Zheng replied, gnashing his teeth as he glared and pointed at the large window, from which slight outlines of a sleek black car was visible.

Xu Jiaqi tilted her head. Within seconds, it finally clicked within her mind. Qin Zicheng must be waiting outside. Before, she had said that the man could feel free to contact her anytime, and that she agreed with the idea of hanging out together next time.

'He is rather impatient, hm?' Xu Jiaqi commented.

To Qin Zicheng, Xu Jiaqi was the first woman that he even remotely took interest in. Thus, he wanted to explore what this newfound set of emotions were. He consulted her mother right after coming back home, and the old lady Qin immediately burst into joy upon hearing the woman's name, who she recognized as the prestigious lady from the Xu family.

In truth, the status was of second priority to the old madam. The first priority was Qin Zicheng's wish and motivation. The man has never wanted to pursue a woman, so upon hearing that he caught interest in Xu Jiaqi, she began to contact the woman's family. It started with Li Jiayun, who the old madam made great efforts for striking up a conversation and getting along with her. She wanted to hurry and cultivate their feelings.

It turned out that their views were somewhat similar. Although they could only exchange words through means of online contacts and couldn't fully judge each other's compatibility, they were able to raise each other's favorability meter and had already booked a future offline meeting in the upcoming days.

Which was why, Li Jiayun put up a happy face. Because she had somehow connected with the old madam and their personalities clicked. Her favor towards Qin Zicheng rose even more, so she welcomed him pretty well when he visited the Xu home moments ago. She rarely had friends in the high society, numbering to only one or two due to her personality and views. This was why, upon meeting the old madam, she felt like there was a potential for a much greater tie between them.

It could be said that the two couple had successfully obtained both of their mothers' consent before even interacting for longer than a day. It was quite a great feat to do.

"Ao, father, just don't mind him, alright? In front of me, can you still bear to put up that scary expression?" Xu Jiaqi played coy to her father, making his heart melt with adoration.

He coughed several times before conceding and dropping the matter. Little did he know, not pursuing his dislike further would eventually cost him his daughter's hand in marriage, but that was for the future Xu Zheng to regret.

After the family finished their breakfast, they went on to their separate ways and did their own things. Xu Jiaqi's first action was to go outside and meet Qin Zicheng, who has been patiently waiting since before Xu Jiaqi even woke up.

She went up to his car and knocked on the glass, which has been tinted black and didn't let you see what was inside.

"Hello, Qiqi." Qin Zicheng opened the door and said, flashing a gentle smile as he got out of the car. His eyes fell on the graceful beauty that had a pristine aura surrounding her, as if she was a pure flower that has never been tainted. It was the complete opposite of yesterday's glamorous looks, as she only wore a simple white flowy dress and made her image very relaxed and calming.

"Zicheng ge, how long have you waited for? Aren't you bored? You should've came inside, ah." Xu Jiaqi said.

"Your father wouldn't let me. Your mother wanted to ask me to join the breakfast, but I refused. Qiqi, are you free today?" he asked without even thinking twice. He was very frank and agile in his movements.

Instead of asking her that, Xu Jiaqi wanted to ask the same question to him. He was already in charge of several companies under the Qin family, why was he this free to actually come and wait for her?

"I'm free, but what did you want to do?" Xu Jiaqi asked.

"I want to take you out." Qin Zicheng said, his face stoic and serious, as rigid as stone.

Xu Jiaqi: Dearest mister, with the tone and expression you had, I would've misunderstood that you wanted to take my consciousness out.

System: Host, you're so poisonous. Can you not think of those connotations for just one second? If he knew all this.. Baby Cheng Cheng will be sad~ 

Xu Jiaqi: ...I'd rather be poisonous than be disgusting like you.