And his mother's belt had also strangely broken. Lewis didn't suspect Zhou Xuan, because apart from getting close to him while drinking, they were never together. Besides, Zhou Xuan hadn't laid a hand on him. The only explanation was that the belt was of poor quality and broke!
But this belt cost several thousand dollars, it's a designer brand, so the quality shouldn't be bad, right? And Johnny's belt broke too, which means it's probably not a quality issue. The most likely explanation is that someone wanted to embarrass them, so they deliberately damaged the belt waistband beforehand, and then it broke after a while.
Alright.
But who could time things so precisely? Also, Yun only had the opportunity to do this while sleeping at night.
Lewis immediately realized that it might be the two women he brought back from the hotel last night who were behind this.
Volume One: The Lotus Buds Just Begin to Emerge, Chapter 197: On the Inkstone
"Of course, Louis and Johnny couldn't figure out the reason why this was happening, no matter how hard they tried."
On television, the camera suddenly switched to show the two of them with their pants down on the ground, with Lewis's bright red transparent underwear being particularly eye-catching!
Lewis was so furious he wanted to smash the television, but what good was his anger? He couldn't salvage his reputation no matter what. A man who was usually well-known on Wall Street and appeared refined and cultured in front of others had suddenly revealed a perverted image. How could he bear this? It would have a significant impact on both his reputation and his work.
In a fit of rage, Lewis blamed everything on Zhou Xuan, vowing to avenge all the humiliation on Zhou Xuan. However, Lewis felt that it was all Zhou Xuan's fault, because he wanted to embarrass Zhou Xuan, but instead of Zhou Xuan, he ended up making a fool of himself.
If Zhou Xuan knew, he wouldn't feel wronged, because he was the one who did it all.
However, Lewis was unaware that at this moment, Zhou Xuan, whom he hated, was already in the sky with Fu Ying on a plane bound for Beijing.
After sneaking back to the Fu residence in Chinatown from the Hilton Hotel, Zhou Xuan thought that he had been away from home for too long, and his parents and siblings were worried. His engagement ceremony with Yingying was also over, so he told Fu Tianlai and his grandfather that he wanted to go back to China.
Fu Tianlai readily agreed and even booked the earliest flight for them. Although his grandfather Fu Yuhai was reluctant, he could understand Zhou Xuan's feelings and hoped that he could spend as much time as possible in New York with him.
Zhou Xuan readily agreed. Neither he nor the Fu family cared about the airfare. At his age, what he valued most was the affection between his children and grandchildren.
Twenty hours later, at 9 PM Beijing time.
Jin Xiumei and Aunt Liu were chatting in the hall, Zhou Xuan's father was minding the antique shop, and Zhou Tao and Zhou Ying, the two siblings, were guarding the batch of raw stones that Zhou Xuan had instructed them to handle at the stone-cutting factory on the outskirts of the city. Only their mother and Aunt Liu were left at home.
When Zhou Xuan and Fu Ying appeared in the living room, looking travel-worn, Jin Xiumei was both surprised and delighted, quickly taking off the large bags and bundles they were carrying. Fu Ying happily called out, "Mom!"
Jin Xiumei reluctantly gave a soft reply. Fu Ying, being quite obedient, immediately went up to Jin Xiumei and, seeing her mother's displeasure, clung to her hand, saying, "Mom, I know I was wrong. I'll never make you angry again. Mom, please forgive me. I won't dare to do it again!" Seeing that such a proud person as Fu Ying could actually lower herself to act like a child with her mother for his sake, Zhou Xuan felt even more affection for Fu Ying. He said to his mother, "Mom, don't blame Yingying for that. It wasn't her fault. She was just trying to be good to me. Now everything is settled, so don't worry anymore. A daughter-in-law is still a daughter-in-law. In New York, I'm already engaged to Yingying!"
With her son saying all that, what could Jin Xiumei say? Besides, it wasn't that she disliked Fu Ying, but she was angry that Fu Ying had been so heartless when she left, leaving her son sick and just now being moved by Wei Xiaoqing's actions. But what good was her liking her? Her daughter-in-law belonged to her son; only if her son liked her did it matter.
Do you know how heartbroken I was when Zhou Xuan was seriously ill? Although Jin Xiumei forgave Fu Ying, a mother-in-law has her authority. If she doesn't show some authority, what will happen if this daughter-in-law throws tantrums over the smallest things and runs back to America? She needs to give her a warning, make her more apprehensive, and stop her from acting like a spoiled big sister all the time.
Fu Ying nodded with a wronged look on her face and said, "Mom, I know, I won't dare to do it again."
"Then forget it, let it go this time. But if there's a next time, I...I..." As Jin Xiumei was considering what harsh words to say, Zhou Xuan quickly pushed Fu Ying and said, "Yingying, you're not feeling well. Go upstairs and take a shower before coming down!"
Fu Ying took two steps and then glanced at Jin Xiumei.
Jin Xiumei felt a great sense of satisfaction. Her daughter-in-law clearly wanted to listen to her. She had put on her authority and her daughter-in-law was very obedient. She waved her hand and said, "Go, go, go take a shower, change your clothes, and rest if you're tired!"
Fu Ying then went upstairs with a smile.
Zhou Xuan then briefly told his mother about what happened in the United States, but he didn't mention the pirate kidnapping. He just said that the incident was because the Fu family company had encountered a big problem, and that not letting him go was for his own good. Now that the problem had been solved.
Jin Xiumei said "Oh," and forgave Fu Ying from the bottom of her heart. If it was a white lie for the good of her son, then it was good. At least it wasn't because of betraying her son, so it was worth it. If it were her, she would do the same if it was for the good of her son and husband.
Jin Xiumei quickly asked Aunt Liu to cook some porridge. Her son and daughter-in-law must be tired from the long flight, so some light porridge would be best.
More than ten minutes later, Fu Ying came downstairs, her hair slightly damp and her appearance fresh.
Jin Xiumei does indeed like Fu Ying. No matter what form her daughter-in-law takes, she is always so beautiful. Her son is truly blessed. However, Wei Xiaoqing is not bad either, but her son cannot accept her. There is nothing she can do about it. As a rural person, she still has traditional values and hates people who are two-timing. She approves of her son's unwavering faith and is very proud of him!
After Fu Ying came downstairs, she didn't sit down to talk to Jin Xiumei. Instead, she quickly opened the bag she had brought, took out a few small boxes, handed one of them to Jin Xiumei, and said, "Mom, I'm engaged to Zhou Xuan. I've also picked out a few small gifts for you, Xie Ka Deng Di, and Grandpa and Dad."
Jin Xiumei opened the small box, inside was a necklace inlaid with a large diamond. The diamond was very large, and the chain was not a single chain, but an inch wide, made of fine platinum interwoven into a silk-like ribbon.
Zhou Xuan was taken aback. This necklace was no cheap item. Just the diamond alone would cost millions, not to mention it was a famous brand designed by a renowned designer. The entire necklace was definitely worth over ten million.
I didn't expect Fu Ying to prepare such an expensive gift without saying a word. It's a gift for her sister, brother, and father, so it must be quite nice.
While Zhou Xuan was still hesitating about whether to tell his mother the value of the necklace, Jin Xiumei asked, "Yingying, this necklace looks very pretty, it must be expensive, right? But it doesn't look good on an old woman like me, so let's give it to Zhou Ying instead."
Fu Ying said with a smile, "Mom, it's not expensive, not expensive at all. This style is for middle-aged people, it will definitely look good on you. I've already bought a style that young people like from my aunt, and my brother and dad both bought watches. I think it'll be more convenient for them to have a watch since they work in the store."
"That's fine too. I'll accept what my daughter-in-law bought." Jin Xiumei smiled and accepted the necklace, then put it in the box. She thought to herself, "I'll wear it when my son gets married. Otherwise, I'll just put it away. I'm so old. If I wear this, my son's father will scold me for trying to look young!"
Jin Xiumei then recounted the situation of Zhou Tao and his sister, as well as Zhou Cangsong. They were all too busy with the shop to attend to everything. Business had been booming lately, keeping them incredibly occupied. With business booming, naturally more things came up, and they had hired four more workers even before the shop officially opened. If business was this good, it would only get better in the future. Fortunately, they had the experienced and well-connected Lao Wu as their manager, and Li Li, a high-achieving graduate from a reputable finance school, as their accountant, so they were managing. Old man Zhou Cangsong stayed in the shop, helping out whenever he had a spare moment, even though he didn't know much about it.
When Zhou Xuan thought of Li Li, he felt a great liking for this filial and pretty girl. He wondered how things were going between Zhou Tao and her during this time!
However, it's already past 10 PM tonight, too late to go to the shop now. We can't call my younger siblings to come to the stone quarry either. Mom said that Zhou Xuan had specifically instructed them that even though there are several truckloads of stones, Zhou Tao and Zhou Ying dare not relax their vigilance at all, along with Zhao Lao Er and the two security guards, the stone-cutting master Lao Chen, and his nephew Chen Er Mao—seven people in total—are divided into three shifts to take turns guarding the quarry.
Aunt Liu cooked the porridge, and Zhou Xuan and Fu Ying each ate a small bowl. After they finished eating, Fu Ying wanted to chat with Jin Xiumei, but Jin Xiumei was afraid that they would be too tired, so she insisted that they go to sleep.
Fu Ying was truly exhausted. These past two days had been filled with joy and excitement. She was indeed engaged to Zhou Xuan, and most importantly, the entire family had accepted him. Her wish had finally been fulfilled. She smiled sweetly as she got into bed and quickly drifted off to sleep.
Zhou Xuan didn't fall asleep so quickly. Because of the ice energy within him, as long as he got enough sleep, his mental state remained excellent. He practiced his ice energy in bed for two hours, then picked up a book and started reading again.
Zhou Xuan was still quite energetic while practicing his ice-cold qi cultivation. But as soon as he started reading, he became sleepy and fell asleep in less than ten minutes.
Fu Ying got up very early in the morning and chatted with Jin Xiumei in the hall. After Aunt Liu finished preparing the meal and put it on the table, Fu Ying slipped upstairs to her room to wake Zhou Xuan up.
Zhou Xuan was sleeping with his back to the outside. Fu Ying didn't dare to pull off the blanket directly. She was worried that she would be embarrassed if Zhou Xuan slept without clothes on. Seeing that Zhou Xuan was sleeping with his head and feet exposed, she thought for a moment and then gently scratched the soles of his feet.
Zhou Xuan flicked his wrist and sat up abruptly.
Fu Ying was startled, but seeing that Zhou Xuan was still wearing only underwear, she felt a little more at ease.
Zhou Xuan rubbed his eyes, stared at Fu Ying for a long time before saying, "You owe my Yingying!"