Chapter 467

Chapter 467 Ulterior Motives

It was unexpected that Xia Qing, who was usually gentle and quiet, would show such a resolute attitude, and this caught Su Rui completely off guard.

Of course, the way she stood up for him also made Su Rui feel a warmth in his heart. Before this, Su Rui hadn’t realized that Xia Qing’s feelings for him had already become so steadfast.

Thinking back on everything that had happened between him and this girl, Su Rui couldn’t help but shake his head with a wry smile.

He had never intended to attract romantic attention, yet along the way, petals had somehow fallen all over him.

And indeed, given everything Su Rui had done for those girls, it was simply impossible for anyone not to be moved.

“Xia Qing! On this matter, you have to listen to your parents!” Xia Min said coldly. “I may not have met that Su Rui, but I can tell you with certainty, he shouldn’t even think about setting foot in our home!”

Cao Tianping next door rubbed his nose and said, “Hey, Su Rui, the way her old man’s talking, it sounds like you’re the one moving into their house.”

Su Rui shot him the middle finger with irritation. “Take your thoughts and get as far away as they’ll carry you, and stop bothering me.”

“Dad, how can you be so stubborn? You haven’t even met the person, and you’re already drawing conclusions?” Xia Qing hadn’t expected things to blow up like this the moment she saw her parents, and she sat there with reddened eyes.

“Xia Qing, you have the same temperament as your dad. You both seem easygoing on the surface, but nobody is as stubborn as the two of you. Listen to your mother, this Su Rui is not right for you.” Ma Lan said earnestly.

“Then in your eyes, who is right for me? And who am I right for?” Xia Qing’s heart was full of grievance. She had thought her parents would wholeheartedly support her falling for Su Rui, but who could have imagined it would turn out like this?

Shi Cheng heard those words and immediately cleared his throat.

The sudden turn of events delighted him beyond measure. He had watched as Xia Qing was about to fall into his rival’s hands, only for that rival to be so disappointing that the initiative had swung back to him. How could he not be thrilled?

Sure enough, Ma Lan said, “Who else could it be, of course it’s Shi Cheng! He grew up with you, you know each other inside and out, and now after studying abroad, he’s already a senior executive at Tenghui. He’s talented and he cares about you, so why would you drop a watermelon to pick up a sesame seed?”

Shi Cheng was very pleased. This future mother-in-law was really something, her words filled him with joy.

Even so, he still needed to express his own position in order to win Xia Qing’s favor. “Auntie, please don’t flatter me like that. I may be just a tiny bit more accomplished than that Su Rui, and I do have deep feelings for Xia Qing, but the decision still rests with Xia Qing.”

Listening to this from next door, Su Rui felt a strong urge rise within him to slam this guy into the ground.

What do you mean only a tiny bit more accomplished? Pfft, more like a whole lot more shameless than me.

Hearing this, Xia Qing couldn’t help but feel both amused and exasperated. “Shi Cheng, I’ve always seen you as a brother, I’ve never thought about things going in that direction between us.”

“It doesn’t matter that you haven’t thought about it before, it’s not too late to think about it now.” Xia Min said coldly, truly a rigid and domineering old man.

Xia Qing frowned. “Can you at least respect my opinion? This isn’t your generation anymore.”

Ma Lan continued to persuade her. “My dear, listen to me and your dad. We’re your own parents, we wouldn’t harm you, we only want you to marry well.”

Shi Cheng also chimed in. “Xia Qing, how about giving me a chance to pursue you?”

The way he phrased this was quite clever. Rather than directly confessing his love or making a declaration, he only asked for the chance to pursue her. Even if Xia Qing refused, the initiative would still remain in Shi Cheng’s hands. Besides, a request like this was nearly impossible for anyone to flatly reject to someone’s face.

Xia Qing said apologetically to Shi Cheng, “Shi Cheng, this is all too sudden, I’m completely unprepared.”

Shi Cheng quickly said, “That’s alright, you don’t need to be prepared, I just need to be prepared. Don’t worry, I’ll definitely be a hundred times better than that man called Su Rui.”

Ma Lan nodded quietly to herself on the side, feeling that this future son-in-law was truly wonderful.

Su Rui, on the other hand, furrowed his brow. Regardless of what his feelings toward Xia Qing actually were, watching this guy called Shi Cheng fawn over Xia Qing’s family while constantly putting him down stirred up a deep sense of displeasure within him.

Xia Qing shook her head. “Shi Cheng, some things really can’t be forced. I’ve always seen you as a brother, I’ve never had any other thoughts.”

That was a fairly direct rejection. Upon hearing it, a shadow flickered across the depths of Shi Cheng’s eyes.

His credentials were so impressive, and from school days to now, countless women had pursued him, yet he had lowered himself again and again, and still Xia Qing remained completely unmoved.

The harder a woman was to win, the more of a challenge she presented. Shi Cheng understood this deeply, and as he furrowed his brow, a plan came to mind.

“Xia Qing, how about this, feelings always need time to adjust, so let’s not bring it up today. Uncle and Auntie have made the trip all the way to Ninghai, so let me be the host. Tonight we’ll go to the most upscale hotel in Ninghai, the Junlan Kempinski, to welcome them. What do you think?”

Shi Cheng wore a face full of sincere smiles and continued, “And we can also invite that person from your company called Su Rui, so he can meet Uncle and Auntie together.”

Xia Min let out a cold snort. “I have no interest in meeting that Su Rui.”

In the eyes of the older generation, whether “League of Legends” was some kind of shameless behavior or truly just a game, it was a sign of lacking ambition. A young person with no ambition would naturally not impress the older generation.

Shi Cheng put on a very sincere expression. “Uncle, since Xia Qing likes him so much, this Su Rui must have something going for him. Why not meet him? That way Uncle and Auntie can form your own judgment, since relying solely on what Xia Qing’s colleague said just now is a bit one-sided.”

Hearing this, Xia Min frowned and said, “Since that’s the case, then invite him along. I’d like to see just what kind of person he is, that he’s got my daughter so infatuated.”

Xia Qing looked at Shi Cheng with gratitude and said, “Shi Cheng, I know how good you are to me, and I keep it all in my heart. Thank you so much for this.”

Shi Cheng smiled graciously. “Given our relationship, something like this is nothing. It would be too formal to even say thank you. Xia Qing, no matter who you ultimately choose, I only hope you can live happily and peacefully.”

These words were spoken with such deep feeling that even Ma Lan couldn’t stop nodding. She so wished her daughter could end up with Shi Cheng, but this stubborn girl just wouldn’t come around.

Hearing this, Xia Qing lowered her head and said, “Shi Cheng, I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright, Xia Qing. I’ll always be standing behind you, and whenever you turn around, you’ll see me.”

Shi Cheng gazed at Xia Qing with deep affection, but in his heart he sneered, “Xia Qing, who you end up marrying is not in your hands, it’s in your parents’ hands. I may have invited Su Rui to dinner, but this isn’t me helping you. I want you to watch the man you’ve chosen get trampled under my feet.”

Meanwhile, the nearby Su Rui had already broken out in goosebumps from Shi Cheng’s words.

“It’s almost time to get off work anyway. Uncle, Auntie, ride with me to the Junlan Hotel first, and Su Rui can just take the subway over later.” Shi Cheng said.

This guy had already assumed from the start that Su Rui didn’t have a car.

Xia Qing thought for a moment and said, “Alright then, I’ll text Su Rui right now.”

…………

After the others had left, Cao Tianping winked at Su Rui, who was slumped listlessly over his desk. “Didn’t expect even the chairman’s assistant Xia Qing to have feelings for you. You’ve completely broken the hearts of so many male employees in this company.”

Su Rui said irritably, “What does that have to do with me, I had no idea about any of this.”

“Still, your rival really is a sneaky piece of work, dead set on stepping all over you to lift himself up.” Cao Tianping said. “You’d better think about how you’re going to handle the dinner tonight.”

“That guy really is underhanded, I’m already having a hard time tolerating it.” Su Rui narrowed his eyes. “Even if Xia Qing ended up with someone like him, she’d never be happy.”

“Even a bystander can see it clearly. This guy at most puts on a good show on the surface, but even that little act has Xia Qing’s parents completely wrapped around his finger. There’s nothing you can do about it.”

“Honestly, being so young and already serving as assistant to the Greater China president of Tenghui Group, I just can’t quite believe it. For a position that critical, why wouldn’t Tenghui use an American they trust?” Su Rui furrowed his brow.

“That’s exactly why I’m saying this rival of yours is tough to deal with, young and capable, very competent.” Cao Tianping said. “In a key position like that, just two years without any major mistakes and he’d easily be promoted to vice president.”

A look of mockery appeared in Su Rui’s eyes. “Multinational companies are all the same. If you told me there wasn’t something shady going on, I wouldn’t believe it even if you killed me.”

“But even if there’s some kind of deal between them, you can’t prove it.” Not being part of that circle, Cao Tianping naturally couldn’t understand how they operated.

“It can be proven.” Su Rui muttered to himself.

At that moment, Su Rui’s phone chimed, showing a text message from Xia Qing.

“Su Rui, my parents want to meet you. We’re having dinner together tonight at the Junlan Kempinski. Come by if you have time.”

Su Rui looked at the message and shook his head with a wry smile. It seemed like he really had no choice but to go to this dinner.

“You don’t know how lucky you are.” Cao Tianping pursed his lips. “I want to see how you explain the whole League of Legends thing later.”

Nobody knew how this chubby guy had ever become the head of sales team one. He had absolutely no ability to read the room. It would have been fine if he hadn’t brought it up, but the moment he did, Su Rui’s temper instantly flared.

Then, from within the expensive and upscale Colonna café, came the sound of Fatty Cao’s anguished cry.

The masked server behind the counter took a long look at Su Rui, then smiled and shook their head, saying softly in English, “Long time no see, yet you’re still the same as ever, not changed one bit.”

Pausing for a moment, a hint of sadness seemed to pass through this server’s beautiful eyes, and they continued murmuring to themselves, “But this is good. Who can truly stay true to themselves through all the time that passes?”