I See Roses

I See Roses – Chapter 8

Cheng Yu was about to pounce on Ming Si to snatch her phone.

Ming Si quickly retreated on the sofa, holding her phone up and leaning back, “No way! What can you do to me?”

“What can I do to you?” Cheng Yu repeated fiercely, as if he was about to unleash some great power. But the next moment, he suddenly clutched his chest and fell to one side, “I can’t do anything – I’m infuriated by her, one of you take over.”

Ming Si: “…”

This person sure knows how to put on a show.

She casually adjusted her hair and returned to her usual elegant and cold demeanor, sitting properly, “I won’t argue with you.”

The others nearby were accustomed to such scenes and didn’t seem surprised. Yu Chuan clinked glasses with Liang Xian and calmly watched the conflict unfold.

Cheng Yu buried his head in the sofa, staying silent, acting like an autistic child.

He continued this act for a full two minutes until Ke Lijie couldn’t bear it anymore, “Alright, don’t you know her temperament? Can you win an argument against her?”

Ming Si was born as an unyielding young lady. When she was younger, she had bickered with Cheng Yu quite a bit, but it was mostly trivial matters that they quickly forgot about after making a fuss. The next time they met, it was as if nothing had happened.

“I don’t care! If they don’t make up, I won’t get up!” Cheng Yu stubbornly declared.

Ke Lijie was about to say something when suddenly a thought struck him—

Ming Si didn’t hold grudges against Cheng Yu, but whenever she had a conflict with Liang Xian, they would both coldly ignore each other for several days.

What was going on?

But after regaining his senses, Ke Lijie shook his head, laughing at himself for overthinking.

If the two of them had any secret relationship, they would have discovered it over the past decade.

Yu Chuan spoke at this moment, his tone still gentle, “Ming Si, why not just add him back?”

Cheng Yu had no other issues except occasionally having abnormal thought processes. Once he was set on something, he could act like a kid, throwing a tantrum.

When Ming Si blocked Liang Xian that day, it was an impulsive act, and she hadn’t thought much about it.

Today, however, being collectively scolded by everyone like this was not something she would have expect as the end result.

“Fine, I have unblocked him,” Ming Si put down her phone, her voice filled with reluctance as if she was forced to make amends.

Cheng Yu crawled up contentedly.

Just at this moment, Ming Si suddenly felt her phone vibrate. She looked down.

Liang Xian sent her a question mark.

This question mark was very puzzling.

Without even thinking, she knew that Liang Xian must have told them about this matter and might have even blackened her image in the process.

Liang Xian had been listening to their conversation just now; now, he was pretending to be an innocent bystander?

Ming Si sent back a question mark as well:「What?」

Liang Xian sensed an inexplicable vigilance from that question mark and couldn’t help but laugh:「Just checking if you really unblocked me or not.」

Ming Si:「……」

She felt like she had grown up with a group of immature dogs.

Today, Cheng Yu drove his SUV over.

Yu Chuan acted as the human navigator and naturally sat in the passenger seat. Ming Si and Liang Xian sat on opposite ends, with Ke Lijie in the middle.

No one deliberately arranged this, but it seemed like everyone had an unspoken agreement to keep the two of them separated.

Ke Lijie was a chatterbox. After getting into the car, he kept checking his social media and chatting with Liang Xian. Most of the time, he was the one doing the talking, while Liang Xian’s responses were brief and concise.

Ming Si pushed a strand of hair out of her seatbelt and unlocked her phone.

She opened Liang Xian’s WeChat and typed two words with lightning speed, almost pressing the send button with her eyes closed.

She performed all these so swiftly as if she was afraid she would change her mind in the next second.

The rain was still heavy, and the scenery outside was rapidly retreating. Raindrops blurred as they were blown by the wind, leaving sharp marks on the windows.

Liang Xian diverted his gaze and casually opened the WeChat message he just received.

Ming Si:「Thank you.」

He raised an eyebrow:「Thank you for what?」

Ming Si typed a few words, but quickly deleted them and replaced it with:「Figure it out yourself.」

Liang Xian, who had been propping up his elbow, he withdrew his hand now:「For saving you?」

「Yes.」

「That was ages ago, and you’re thanking me now? Isn’t it a bit late?」

Ming Si:「……」

「But.」

「But what?」

Liang Xian lightly tapped the seat with his fingers, a smile playing on his lips:「You’ve grown up.」

This tone…

Ming Si subconsciously bit her lip and hadn’t figured out how to reply when Ke Lijie next to them looked over with suspicion, “Are you two chatting with each other?”

She felt inexplicably guilty for a moment, but her face remained calm, “No.”

“Why is your phone constantly ringing, and his too?” Ke Lijie couldn’t be easily fooled.

He looked at Liang Xian.

Liang Xian didn’t even lift his eyelids, “Coincidence.”

“Really?”

“Yeah,” Ming Si nonchalantly took the opportunity and showed him the chat box she had randomly opened, “I’m chatting with my friend.”

Liang Xian also raised his phone, “Me too.”

Very cooperative.

Cheng Yu, who was driving, chuckled, “Ignore him; he’s always guessing and never gets it right. He really thinks he’s the reincarnation of Conan.”

Conan’s reincarnation, Ke Lijie had nothing to say.

But in his mind, he wondered: I clearly saw his WeChat interface open in her phone just now, could I have been mistaken?

Private Kitchen Restaurant was located in the villa area on the other side of the city. When the group arrived, it was already dusk, and the heavy rain had just stopped. Raindrops dripped down along the dense leaves.

Streetlights gradually lit up, adding a bit of warmth to the dim and obscure sky.

Among friends, there was not much formality during gatherings. While waiting for the meal, Cheng Yu and Ke Lijie got into an intense conversation.

They seemed to have a disagreement on something, and Ke Lijie, bearing a grudge from being called Conan, took this opportunity to retaliate fiercely, bringing up Cheng Yu’s embarrassing history of scoring 3.5 points in exams during his childhood.

“Why do I have friends like you? Every one of you only knows how to make me, your Dad, angry!” Cheng Yu stood up abruptly, looking like he wanted to bite someone, “After the New Year, I’m going to Xicheng, and you guys are not even cherishing these last few days with me!”

“Isn’t it just going to the branch office for experience? It’s not like you won’t come back,” Ke Lijie said.

“Can it be the same?” Cheng Yu sighed, “It’s over two hundred kilometers away. At that time, you won’t be able to see your lovely Yu Yu every day.”

“That would be great,” Ming Si added timely.

Who told him to say, Every one of you only knows how to make me, your Dad, angry? It was clearly including her and was taking advantage of her.

Cheng Yu glanced at her, his eyes full of resentment, to the extent that Ming Si lifted the menu slightly to shield herself.

Cheng Yu turned his gaze to the two silent people across the table and shouted, “Brother Xian, you be the judge of it!”

Liang Xian leaned back in his chair and casually raised his arm, “I’m neutral.”

Before Cheng Yu could open his mouth, Yu Chuan also declared his stance, “I am too.”

“You call this neutral? Clearly, you’re biased,” Cheng Yu sneered, sitting back down.

He seemed to think of something and became more spirited, smiling mischievously, “You’re just saying that because you haven’t experienced it yet. Just wait, you guys will also have to work for your family.”

The words you guys in his statement specifically referred to Liang Xian and Yu Chuan. One had just graduated from a foreign postgraduate program, and the other was pursuing a doctorate in medicine, both of them still yet to take over the family business.

As for Ke Lijie, he had been regarded as Little CEO Ke in his family’s company for two years now.

On this point, Ming Si had nothing much to say.

She didn’t like being tied down and naturally wouldn’t enter Ming Family’s company. Building a personal jewelry brand required time and couldn’t be rushed.

“No need to wait, I’m also going to work next week,” Liang Xian raised an eyebrow lightly.

“Really? Where are you going to work? To Jinghong Headquarters?” Cheng Yu immediately asked.

Liang Xian replied, “Jinghong Films.”

He didn’t explain further; however, both Cheng Yu and Ke Lijie exchanged a glance, exchanging unspoken words with their glance.

In the end, Ke Lijie spoke first. He smiled dryly, “It’s good to practice your skills in the film industry first. You can’t just start big right away. Haha.”

Although he said that, everyone present knew that Liang Xian’s situation was different from Ke Lijie and Cheng Yu, who had no inheritance rights. He was the only biological son of Liang Zhihong, the most influential figure in Jinghong Group and the unquestionable heir.

Born with a silver spoon, there was no need for him to be low-key.

However, Liang Zhihong’s attitude was quite mysterious. He didn’t allow Liang Xian to learn about managing the family business in advance, and he even sent him abroad. Now that Liang Xian was back, he still wasn’t allowed to enter the headquarters?

Could it be true what the rumors outside suggested, that Liang Zhihong had been persuaded by someone else to hand over the vast family business to his stepson?

“Don’t worry, Brother Xian, no matter where you are, we’re all on your side,” Cheng Yu said straightforwardly, “If you really can’t make it, we’ll sell cars to support you. Ming Si, you can sell some bags and jewelry or something.”

Ming Si gave him a look that said, “As long as you’re happy.”

Liang Xian’s lips curled slightly, “It won’t come to that.”

Others might take it as comforting words, but Ming Si knew that Liang Xian truly wouldn’t end up in dire straits.

Since the moment Liang Zhihong decided on the marriage between the two families, the name of the heir had been set.

However, in Jinghong’s board of directors, there were one or two directors with their own little schemes. To prevent any unexpected situations, Liang Zhihong hadn’t announced it publicly yet.

Everything would be settled after the engagement ceremony.

“That’s right! Our Brother Xian is capable enough, so don’t worry about him,” Ke Lijie smoothly changed the subject, “Have you ever thought about how many beautiful stars and supermodels there are in Jinghong Films? Brother Xian going there could be an opportunity to find a few girlfriends. A sure bet!”

“Stars and supermodels are out of the question,” Liang Xian propped his head up diagonally, his gaze seemingly lost somewhere. A faint smile appeared on his thin lips, “Though I may not be very righteous, I still have some moral principles.”

Ke Lijie and others, including Yu Chuan, automatically interpreted this statement as not eating grass on the rabbit’s nest.1 They laughed and joked about it, but only Ming Si understood the true meaning behind his words.

He meant he wouldn’t have an extramarital affair.