"How is that possible?" Cherry Miller instinctively retorted, "No way!"
"I'm not entirely sure either," Ethan Yin said calmly. "Do you need me to look into it?"
"Don't!" Cherry blurted out.
Ethan Yin gave Cherry a meaningful look.
Cherry forced herself to stay calm. "I haven't had anything to do with him for a long time. I don't want to know anything about him! Ethan, just stay out of this."
Cherry really didn't want her scummy dad to pollute anyone else's eyes.
Those dirty things—let her deal with them herself!
That scumbag isn't even worthy of the Yin family's involvement.
The less they know about those things, the better. Ideally, they'd know nothing at all—let those secrets disappear forever.
Ethan Yin thought Cherry was acting a little strange, but he was willing to respect her wishes.
He knew Cherry wasn't some delicate damsel. She was more than capable of handling anything that came her way.
He didn't want Cherry to feel like he was controlling her life.
Ethan Yin said immediately, "Alright, if you say you don't want me involved, I won't interfere. But if you ever need my help, don't hesitate to ask, okay?"
"I know," Cherry managed a weak smile.
Her people had already started to uncover clues. As long as she destroyed those things—destroyed them all—she'd have nothing to fear.
All she needed now was a little more time.
Give her just a bit longer, and she'd be able to handle everything!
Maybe soon, she'd destroy all the evidence, get rid of her scummy dad, and reconcile with Ethan Yin.
Lost in her thoughts, Cherry didn't notice Ethan Yin finishing dinner.
Quentin Sheng stepped forward and said, "Young Master, it's time for us to head back and rest."
Ethan Yin was reluctant to leave, lingering as long as he could.
But Cherry Miller had already regained her composure and said, "You’re in and out so quickly this time, so I won’t keep you. Go home and rest early. The sooner you finish things, the sooner you’ll be back."
Ethan finally replied, "Alright, I’ll head back then. Take care of yourself, and don’t let any wildflowers catch your eye, okay?"
"What wildflowers?" Cherry shot him a glare.
Ethan laughed, "Exactly! How could those wildflowers ever compare to my precious flower at home?"
Ethan was always confident about his looks.
He didn’t believe Cherry would ever fall for another man.
Quentin Sheng urged him again, and only then did Ethan get up to leave.
Cherry knew Ethan had a mountain of work waiting for him, so she didn’t try to make him stay.
After Ethan left, Cherry couldn’t help but wonder: why would her good-for-nothing dad go to Ethan’s workplace?
What was he doing there?
If her dad was really over there, would the people she sent to investigate be able to do their job smoothly?
Cherry’s mood grew heavy as she wandered to the roadside, walking aimlessly.
She could only hope everything went smoothly.
She really didn’t want any more trouble!
Anything that could threaten her mom shouldn’t exist in this world!
Lost in her thoughts, her phone rang—it was Little Ji calling.
"Sister Cherry, why aren’t you home yet?" Little Ji’s voice sounded pitiful, drifting through the air.
Cherry answered instinctively, "Didn’t I tell you to go home first?"
"I... I..." Little Ji’s voice was low, "I didn’t go home. I’ve been waiting right here for you the whole time."
Cherry was speechless, not sure what to say.
"Did you go see him?" Little Ji sounded so hurt. "I know I can’t compare to that guy, but I have my good points too, right? You left me here alone to see him—do you know how much that hurts?"
Cherry couldn’t help but laugh and cry at the same time.
What was he even talking about?!
She and Ethan Yin were at least former lovers, but she’d never had anything with Little Ji!
The way Little Ji said it, it sounded like she was the one who abandoned him.
"Sister Cherry, will you come back for me?" Little Ji had figured out that Cherry always softened when someone showed vulnerability.
Sure enough, Cherry sighed and said, "Stay right where you are, I’m coming back now."
"Okay!" Little Ji finally hung up, sounding happy.
Little Ji muttered to himself, full of confidence, "I won’t lose to that pretty boy! He wins with his looks, but I’ll win with my thoughtfulness! I’ll do even better than him—I’ll be the last man in her life!"
Cherry quickly returned to where she’d left him, and saw Little Ji crouched by the roadside like an abandoned puppy, looking absolutely pitiful.
Cherry almost laughed out of frustration.
He was totally playing the sympathy card!
Seriously, so childish!
"Sister Cherry!" As soon as Little Ji saw her, his eyes lit up and he said cheerfully, "I knew you wouldn’t leave me behind."
Cherry remembered what Ethan Yin said earlier and decided she needed to set things straight with Little Ji, so he wouldn’t keep pestering her.
Before she could say anything, her phone rang again.
This time it was Yina Yin calling: "I’m already home, and you’re still not back?"
"I’ll be home soon," Cherry replied, remembering this troublemaker who always wanted to stir things up.
After hanging up, Cherry hurried back to the apartment on Shunjiang Road with Little Ji.
Little Ji was especially well-behaved tonight, not making any fuss at all. He said goodbye to Cherry, "Sister Cherry, you’ve had a tough couple of days too. Get some rest. Good night."
"Good night." Cherry nodded to Little Ji and went inside.
What Cherry didn’t see was the fire of determination in Little Ji’s eyes as she walked away.
When Cherry saw Yina Yin, she told her about meeting Ethan Yin tonight.
"My brother’s going to strip them down to the bone before he’s satisfied," Yina Yin clicked her tongue. "That’s just his style! Anyone who does business with him is probably crying right now. If he sets his sights on something, he always gets it!"
"So he and Mr. Gu will have to suffer there a while longer," Cherry said.
This chapter isn’t over yet~.~ Click next page to keep reading!
"True." Yina Yin mused, not sure how Gu Miao was really doing.
Sigh, she never felt anything when they parted before, but now she actually missed him a little.
"Enough about them. They’ll always land on their feet. Anyway, let me tell you about tonight at the Shang family…" Yina Yin grabbed Cherry and started ranting.
"What’s with Grandma Shang? Didn’t Uncle Shang leave the family because she forced him to? Now she’s pushing Xiao Jin—doesn’t she worry he’ll run away too?" Yina Yin was really sticking up for Shang Xiaojin.
Cherry calmly analyzed, "Xiao Jin isn’t the same as Mr. Shang. Back then, Mr. Shang left because he could afford to. I remember Madam saying Mr. Shang had a lot of businesses with others, so he could live well even without the family. But Xiao Jin is only twenty, not strong enough yet, and still needs the Shang family. Plus, his birth mother seems to be under their control. Xiao Jin’s soft-hearted—he wouldn’t let his mom suffer. So he won’t rebel against the family."
Yina Yin looked regretful, "That’s such a shame."
"Yeah," Cherry agreed. "Unless Xiao Jin can become independent early like his dad, maybe there’s hope. But Madam Shang already learned her lesson once—she won’t give Xiao Jin a chance to escape."
"So Xiao Jin has to obey the family, marry someone he doesn’t love, and have a bunch of kids? That’s so unfair!" Yina Yin huffed.
Cherry tried to comfort Yina Yin, "At least Xiao Jin is still young—there’s room to maneuver. Besides, he’s got friends like you who truly care. Maybe there’s still a chance."
Yina Yin was convinced, nodding, "You’re right, we won’t just stand by! By the way, did you have dinner with Little Ji tonight? What did he say?"
Faced with this gossip queen, Cherry could only sigh, "What else could he say? The same old stuff. Honestly, I want to set things straight with him—this can’t go on forever."
"No rush, no rush," Yina Yin chuckled. "A little hardship is good for young people—it’ll help in the future. Oh, and I saw Mason Ming tonight! He was singing at the Shang villa, surrounded by women flirting with him. I can’t believe it! Seriously, a guy who looks like a girl—isn’t that just unfair?"
Even the softest guy around Yina Yin, Shang Xiaojin, was a total straight guy.
There wasn’t anyone like Mason Ming—delicate and girly as could be.
Totally mind-blowing!
Cherry also found Mason Ming’s presence unusual. "I agree—he’s so soft, even softer than us girls! I can’t believe I’m not even that soft!"
"Exactly!" Yina Yin slapped the table, "Watching him in the car tonight, I felt like I was looking at a girl, not a guy! No wonder everyone wants to tease him. When he lowers his head, even I want to bully him! Good thing my parents raised me right, or I’d probably keep him for myself!"
Cherry shot Yina Yin a look, "I dare you to say that to Mr. Gu!"
"Hehehe, I wouldn’t dare." Yina Yin slung an arm around Cherry’s shoulders, "You always take his side."
"I’m on both your sides!" Cherry said. "You two were betrothed since childhood, so don’t mess things up! Otherwise, I’ll tattle to Madam!"
"Alright, alright, you win. I’m not stupid! Who could compete with Gu Miao, right?" Yina Yin quickly promised, "My little ancestor, my precious, please don’t tattle!"
Cherry let Yina Yin coax her for a while before saying, "Glad you know! Don’t do anything to let Mr. Gu down."
"Yep, yep, I remember!" Yina Yin said. "Alright, go to sleep—we’ve got work tomorrow."
With that, Yina Yin made a quick getaway.