Long Face
The standing committee from the four major clans were shocked to know about the destruction of the Yan clan. It was unthinkable to believe that the culprit was Yan Buwen and not Yang Chen!
But, the government being the government, did not have much trouble concealing the issue.
The incident was written off as a gas explosion within the compound and that matters were being handled accordingly.
There were several people within the government who were displeased with the outcome but were forced to accept it under the pressure of Yang Gongmingâs students and the Li clan.
Luckily Yan Buwen was mostly in charge of biochemical engineering and not the manufacturing of the more conventional weapons.
Yang Chen suffered criticism for his gruesome actions but no one actually acted on their words.
Due to this incident, the return of the eldest grandson of Yang clan became the hottest topic among the major clans, replacing Yan Buwen as part of the âBeijing King Duoâ.
But only the major clans and prominent figures of the country had any clue of Yang Chenâs actual involvement. The second-class clans were blissfully unaware.
Yang Chen had lunch with Li Dun and his subordinates before flying back to Zhonghai.
The villa was already packed with people. Lin Ruoxi and Mo Qianni had just returned from work while Tang Wan and Rose were already seated in the living hall waiting for them.
An Xin was sitting on the sofa with brochures of properties in Xijiao Villas. She was probably discussing with them on which villa to choose.
They all smiled brightly when Yang Chen returned home safely except for Lin Ruoxi who was still frowning because of the ladies in the room.
Yang Chen winked at them and said to Lin Ruoxi who was standing across him quietly, âSay, Ruoxi, you shouldnât pull a long face even if you donât feel like smiling from seeing me.â
âHmph, youâre the one with long face.â Lin Ruoxi looked away, not wanting to see him but her expression had loosened.
Others exchanged looks and giggled. It was obvious that they saw her expression but they pretended to not know about it.
It was normal for her to feel this way ever since their meeting a couple days ago. But this time, they had all come uninvited.
Tang Wan smiled. âTold you heâd be fine. You guys have no confidence in him.â
âBut we had to confirm it for ourselves. You were only relieved once your clan members notified you about it. Why are you acting all tough now?â Mo Qianni teased her.
Tang Wan blushed after being exposed. She lunged forward and grabbed Mo Qianni causing her to giggle in response.
Rose pushed Mo Qianni backwards jokingly, bullying her together with Tang Wan.
Yang Chen was surprised to see them getting along so well. But he was sure that Lin Ruoxi had not taken the initiative to befriend them.
Guo Xuehua walked out of the kitchen holding a big plate of fruit slices. When she saw Yang Chen, she immediately started nagging, âYouâre finally back. What were you even up to? If An Xin didnât tell us about it, we wouldnât have known you went to Beijing. Your grandfather was the one who told me youâre fine when I called home. We have to lay low for now. People are starting to talk.â
âThereâs nothing we can do about them, let them be.â Yang Chen took a slice of watermelon and stuffed it into his mouth.
Suddenly, an unexpected voice arose from the kitchen.
âYour life in China must be exciting huh, Yang Chen?â
Yang Chen turned around dumbfounded.
A slender woman wearing a pink spaghetti strap top stood behind him. Her perky rear was held up nicely by her skin tight jeans. Her outfit was fairly casual but no one could take their eyes off her.
âJane?â
Yang Chen looked at her, puzzled. âWhy are you here?â
Jane bit on her melon and spoke, âIâll be staying in Zhonghai for a while.â
âWhat do you mean?â Yang Chen asked, getting more confused.
Lin Ruoxi spoke up with a clear voice, âMiss Jane will be supervising the development of synthetic materials between Yu Lei and several other companies from the UK. She will be opening a chemistry laboratory in Zhonghai University and also be acting as chancellor. Miss Jane will be developing new materials and teaching students in the university for at least a year.â
âWhat?! A year?!â Yang Chen was shocked.
Jane immediately looked at him sadly. âMy dear Yang Chen, am I not welcomed here?â
Yang Chen smiled bitterly. âI was just surprised thatâs all. But how were you chosen for some random project out of nowhere?â
Lin Ruoxi shot him a cold glare upon hearing this. â You mean the project that I approved of?â
Yang Chen realized his mistake and quickly made up for it. âDarling donât get mad⊠it was a mistake. Projects like these are very beneficial to societyâŠâ
Lin Ruoxi snorted lightly, obviously dissatisfied with his excuse. âMiss Janeâs students were supposed to come but things changed and she came in their place.â
Jane smiled mischievously. âI know, Yang Chen must be surprised seeing that I called him earlier this morning from the UK.â
Yang Chen didnât know how to respond to the âsurpriseâ.
But there had to be some other reason why Jane replaced her students and came to Zhonghai herself. Yang Chen was curious to know why. He wasnât notified of this.
Yang Chen shuddered when he remembered about their ambiguous relationship.?
It was awkward for us when she was in the UK. Now that sheâs here, how am I going to face her?
?he thought.
Wang Ma prepared a lot of dishes because of the number of guests. They sat around the round dinner table and had their meal.
After dinner, the ladies returned home. An Xin had already chosen a villa next to Tang Wan which wasnât too far from Yang Chenâs house. But unlike them, she wasnât able to move in immediately as she had a ton of things to pack.
Jane wasnât going to stay at Yang Chenâs house. Zhonghai University had prepared a bungalow nearby for her to reside in for the time being.
Although it wasnât as good as other mansions, the location more than made up for it.
Lin Ruoxi helped Wang Ma and Guo Xuehua clean out the trash as Yang Chen watched TV with Zhenxiu.
Yang Chen felt more at ease knowing that Yan Buwen would be out of his hair for the time being. He could finally enjoy his life and his family.
Wang Ma stepped out of the kitchen and slapped her forehead when she took a look at the calendar. âAh, I really am getting too old. I canât believe I forgot.â
âWhatâs wrong, Yulan? Youâre barely fifty this year.â Guo Xuehua looked at her weirdly.
Wang Ma laughed. âItâs the summer solstice today which means the Dragon Boat Festival starts tomorrow. We didnât celebrate it last time because it was only Miss and me. Now that we have so many people in the house, I feel like we should make it a proper celebration with dumplings.â
Zhenxiu turned around on the sofa and said cheerfully, âYay, yay, I want to make dumplings too, Wang Ma! I like to eat sweet rice dumplings!â
Guo Xuehua chided her, âYouâre such a foodie.â
Wang Ma said, âWe donât have the ingredients at home and I donât feel safe going out to buy them. I heard that they use colored dye to make their dumplings nowadays.â
Lin Ruoxi contemplated for a while after hearing her words. âWang Ma, why not let me ask my glutinous rice ball shop for some ingredients? I believe they will be making these dumplings as well.â