Cecilia Gu saw Wendy approaching, and only then did her expression gradually return to normal.
"Wendy, please deliver this painting to Mom. She seemed interested in Tang Dynasty ladies paintings recently, so this is her New Year's gift." Cecilia instructed Wendy directly. "I'm a bit tired, so I'll head home and rest for a while."
Wendy glanced nervously at Cecilia, then at her own cousin, feeling utterly distraught inside.
Cousin, oh cousin, please don't make the young madam angry!
The young master is almost eight months old now—she absolutely cannot be upset!
Henry Shaw, upon hearing that Cecilia was heading home, immediately turned to bring the car around. After Wendy helped Cecilia into the car and left, she took a cab to Yin Manor to deliver the painting Cecilia had just purchased.
When Mrs. Yin received the Tang Dynasty ladies painting, her usually cold and proud face finally softened a little.
She had never really approved of this daughter-in-law before.
Even after Cecilia, with Charles Yin's help, acquired so many shares, Mrs. Yin still held prejudice against her.
But after witnessing Cecilia's filial piety towards Jane Gu, she suddenly felt envious of Jane.
Even for an adoptive mother, Cecilia was willing to pay such a high price to protect her.
So how much more would she do for her biological parents in the Yun Family?
Because of Cecilia's filial piety and persistence, even Charles Yin, who was always ruthless, showed mercy to the Yun Family.
How could Mrs. Yin not feel envious?
After settling the Yun Family's affairs, Cecilia often had Wendy deliver things to Mrs. Yin.
Sometimes it was a soup that Cecilia had made herself, sometimes it was a set of carefully designed clothes from a famous designer.
Although the gifts were small, Cecilia's careful thoughtfulness was deeply appreciated by Mrs. Yin.
Cecilia wasn't like Sylvia Ran, who always used sweet talk to coax her. Instead, Cecilia paid attention to the little things and prepared everything in advance.
Take this Tang Dynasty ladies painting, for example. Mrs. Yin had only bought a book because she was interested, but Cecilia remembered and went out of her way to ask around at local auction houses for a painting.
As soon as she heard about an auction, she didn't hesitate—she bought it and delivered it right away.
These things might go unspoken, but that doesn't mean they're unnoticed.
Cecilia's gesture made many people in the Yin Family very pleased.
Charles Yin, of course, was one of them.
He was well aware that Cecilia had been racking her brain for gifts lately—not only for Mrs. Yin, but for the elder Mrs. Yin too.
Naturally, Cecilia also prepared gifts for her Yun Family parents and Jane Gu.
Charles Yin hadn't said anything, but he was very curious about what his own gift would be...
Cecilia's gift to Mrs. Yin even made the elder Mrs. Yin jealous for a while.
Both are daughters-in-law, but the difference between a granddaughter-in-law and a daughter-in-law is huge...
Wendy was about to leave after dropping off the gift when Mrs. Yin suddenly spoke up: "I just received an 800-year-old wild ginseng. It's not particularly rare, but it's grown at 3,000 meters on a snowy mountain. Take it back for Cici—she's due in just over a month, and it's time to nourish her body. If she gets her health in order now, it will make childbirth much easier."
Wendy was stunned for a moment, then quickly responded, "Yes, Madam."
Mrs. Yin immediately had her assistant hand a beautifully wrapped box to Wendy. Without another word, she turned her wheelchair and left.
Wendy was so excited, hugging the wild ginseng, she could barely contain herself!
This was the first time Madam had ever sent a return gift to the young madam!
If the young madam found out, she'd be over the moon!
Whether Cecilia would be happy or not was a matter for later. Right now, she didn't seem pleased at all—because Henry Shaw was still wearing that cold expression!
Sigh, having such a grumpy assistant around was truly exhausting.
But he really did save her just now, so she couldn't complain.
Henry Shaw drove fast, but steady.
In less than half an hour, they arrived at the front door.
Henry Shaw opened the car door for Cecilia. Because her belly was so big, it was usually Wendy who helped her out of the car.
But now Wendy had been sent to Yin Manor, and no one at home knew Cecilia would return at this hour, so nobody came out to greet her.
Henry Shaw hesitated, feeling a bit awkward, but still reached out his hand to Cecilia.
Cecilia was stunned for a moment, then realized he was offering to help her.
Cecilia's gaze fell on Henry's large hand. After a brief hesitation, she placed her own hand in his. Henry was tall and strong, and his hand was as big as a fan—making Cecilia's hand look absolutely tiny in comparison.
Henry glanced down at the small, delicate hand in his palm—like a little doll's. His cold expression gradually softened.
She really is a woman, after all!
Henry thought to himself.
Cecilia thought: Henry spent six years in underground boxing rings overseas. That temper probably won't change anytime soon. Whatever, I'll just let it go.
With Henry's help, Cecilia slowly got out of the car.
Once she was out, Cecilia withdrew her hand and walked ahead.
Henry Shaw paused, glancing down at his palm.
The feeling of her fingers holding his just now was like a feather brushing across his heart—a strange sensation he couldn't quite describe suddenly welled up inside him.
Only now did Henry realize that Cecilia was truly a delicate woman.
She wasn't like the rough men he'd met in the boxing ring, nor like those female fighters who looked fragile but were actually fierce.
She really did seem quite vulnerable.
Henry suddenly started to reflect on his attitude today.
If it had been six years ago, he would never have made such a mistake.
Six years ago, he had been a gentle and composed assistant.
But six years of brutal hand-to-hand combat had gradually replaced his gentleness with ruthlessness.
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He'd forgotten that ordinary people aren't actually that strong.
When Cecilia faced his criticism, she only showed a helpless expression. She didn't get angry or complain, even when he overstepped his bounds.
To be fair, Cecilia really was a good woman.
She was tolerant and resilient.
If it had been someone else, they might have either used their status to scold him or immediately gone to complain.
Henry gradually calmed himself and looked at Cecilia, who was walking ahead.
Even though she was almost eight months pregnant and so weak she could be knocked down with a finger...
...at this moment, Henry still saw something else in Cecilia's figure as she walked away.
Cecilia walked to the door, scanned her fingerprint to unlock it, and hearing no sound behind her, turned to find Henry standing there, lost in thought.
Because the distance was a bit far, Cecilia couldn't see Henry's expression clearly. She thought he was still upset about her not bringing enough bodyguards and nearly getting hurt, so she said helplessly, "Henry, I apologize again for today's oversight. Since it's already noon, how about I cook lunch myself as a formal apology?"
Henry's thoughts were pulled back to reality, and Cecilia's words shook him.
What did she just say? She wanted to cook for him as an apology?
How could that be!
She's the mistress of the house!
Henry quickly left, tossing the car keys to the gatekeeper to park the car, then hurried after Cecilia.
At the door, Henry looked a bit awkward and said, "Young madam, you're too kind—I really don't deserve it. I'm just following the young master's orders to protect you. As long as you stay out of trouble, I'm satisfied."
Cecilia sighed. This assistant was definitely still upset!
Alright, she admitted it—things really had been too dangerous just now!
If she hadn't been careful, she might have gone into labor early!
Cecilia said nothing, and entered the house, where Mrs. Zhang greeted her: "Young madam, you're back so soon? Weren't you supposed to be out for lunch today?"
Cecilia waved her hand and said, "It's nothing, I just went out for a walk and got tired, so I came home. By the way, is there anything to eat?"
Mrs. Zhang replied at once, "I'll have the chef prepare something. Oh, I baked some pastries this morning—if you're hungry, would you like a snack first?"
Cecilia waved her hand, "No, it's fine. I'll see what's in the kitchen and make something myself. Didn't Lao Meng take the day off today?"
Lao Meng was one of the house chefs, always in charge of Cecilia's meals.
Only then did Mrs. Zhang remember, "I'll go cook something then."
Cecilia reached out and stopped Mrs. Zhang. "It's fine, I'll do it. Have you all eaten already?"
"Yes, we've all eaten," Mrs. Zhang replied.
"Alright, I got it," Cecilia said, washing her hands and heading straight into the kitchen.
Mrs. Zhang helped out on the side while Cecilia quickly whipped up a few dishes.
In less than twenty minutes, a simple lunch was ready.
"Why don't you sit down and eat with me?" Cecilia said to Henry, her belly prominent. "It's just a simple meal, but let it be my apology to you, alright? I promise I'll learn my lesson and bring more bodyguards next time!"
Just like that, all of Henry's anger mysteriously vanished.
A mistress apologizing to an assistant—how often did that happen?
Luckily, Henry's skin was thick; otherwise, she would've seen him blushing.
Henry stammered, "I... I didn't mean it like that..."
Cecilia sighed.
Of course she knew Henry didn't approve of her.
She really was trying hard to smooth things over!
It was precisely because she knew Henry meant so much to Arthur Yin that she was working so hard to win his approval.
But he just wouldn't accept her goodwill—what could she do?
"They've all eaten already, and I can't finish this by myself. You were with me at the auction all day and didn't get a chance to eat or drink, so why not join me? Mrs. Zhang, you sit down too!" Cecilia called to Mrs. Zhang. "This isn't the Yin Manor, so we can set aside the usual rules for now."