The next day, a woman wearing a long black dress exited Flower City’s airport’s ‘Domestic Arrival’ in the afternoon.
She was Feng Jialing, the wife of the Chairman of Sunshine Corporation’s board of directors — Ouyang Duo. She was also Ouyang Qing’s mother.
“Mom.”
Ouyang Qing, who had been waiting for her mother for quite some time now, immediately went forward and hugged Feng Jialing tightly. “I’ve missed you, Mom.”
“I don’t believe you. If you had really missed me, why didn’t you come back home instead of hanging around in Flower City,” Feng Jialing gently chided her daughter as she rubbed her head affectionately.
“Well, that’s because I have been busy.” Ouyang Qing said playfully, “That’s why I didn’t have time to go home and pay you a visit.”
“It has been a long time since I had met you, Jialing.”
Bai Hua, who had also come along to pick Jialing up, put out one hand.
“You still look as young as ever, Bai Hua,” Feng Jialing chuckled.
The fact that they were on a first-name basis with each other showed just how close they used to be.
“Ugh, I’m getting old. The years have certainly worn me down,” Bai Hua laughed, “But you, on the other hand, have done a great job on maintaining your figure. How do you do it?”
“Oh please, you’ve done a far better job than me. You look like a young girl in her early twenties, whereas I look like an old hag.”
After a round of compliments, both of them held hands and walked towards the car park. It was very clear that both of them were really close to each other.
However, Bai Hua got the feeling that Jialing was no longer as friendly towards her as she had been in the past.
Feng Jialing used to address her as Hua. Now, she addressed her by her full name – Bai Hua.
The Nan family and the Ouyang family were some of the wealthiest families in the cities. However, if one were to make a comparison, the Nan family was slightly more powerful than the Ouyang family.
The main reason behind this was that the Ouyang family was primarily in the banking industry whereas the Nan family had businesses in different industries.
Hence, the Ouyang family business fared better overseas. But, their business paled in comparison with all the other top global banks.
This, however, wasn’t because the members of the Ouyang family were incapable. But rather, it was because China’s finance industry had had a late start compared to their counterparts overseas who had had more than a hundred years of establishment.
Although rich women like them were polite and civil to each other on the surface, they all loved keeping up with the Joneses.
Back when the Nan family was the more powerful family, Bai Hua naturally felt more superior to her friend. And this superiority proceeded to manifest through her actions and the way she treated Feng Jialing.
Thus, even if hadn’t sat well with Feng Jialing, she had no choice but to address her friend as Hua.
But now, things have changed. The Bai Hua today could barely compare to who she had been in the past.
A few years ago, she had been kicked out of the Nan family. It wasn’t much of a secret and many people in this circle knew about it.
Although she had now returned to China, it would be incredibly difficult for her to regain her former position within the Nan family.
That was why Feng Jialing no longer felt the need to address her as ‘Hua’. In her opinion, she had shown Bai Hua enough respect just by agreeing to meet her.
Even though both of them knew what was happening, nothing showed on their faces.
After they had reached the hotel, Feng Jialing went to get some rest first before arranging to have dinner together with them.
After Bai Hua made a move, Feng Jialing was left with her daughter.
“Qing, where are the other members of the Nan family? Why was Bai Hua the only one who came to pick me up at the airport?” a displeased Feng Jialing asked.
“The others were busy. That’s why Aunt went to pick you up.”
“And what’s the point in that? She’s like a discarded pawn now. She doesn’t have any authority whatsoever in the Nan family.”
Feng Jialing was clearly unhappy with the reception at the airport. Although it was definitely impossible for Nan Zhengde to personally come and pick me up, shouldn’t Nan Chen turned up as a junior?
But this wouldn’t have crossed her mind had she known that Nan Chen was unaware of her trip here.
“You can’t think that way, Mom. It’s better now that she doesn’t have any authority,” Ouyang Qing said with a grin on her face.
Feng Jialing immediately caught her daughter’s drift and chuckled, “That’s true. Bai Hua used to be so arrogant. She was aloof and acted as though she was superior to everyone else.”
“In the future, the most powerful woman within the Nan family won’t be Bai Hua,” Ouyang Qing said with a grin on her face, “It’ll be someone else.”
“Who?”
“Nan Chen’s wife, of course! He’s the head of the Nan family. His wife would naturally be the First Lady of the Nanshi Corporation. Who would be able to compare to her?”
“That makes sense. But I heard that Nan Chen’s already in a relationship and has two kids too? I thought that the both of you are a match in heaven. I certainly hadn’t expected him to be in a relationship with someone else! What a twist of fate,” Feng Jialing sighed.
“And that was why I have asked you to come. You can rest assured, Mom. That woman may have borne him two kids, but she doesn’t come from money. Furthermore, she’s just a small-time actress. She doesn’t know anyone or have any connections, so I have nothing to fear. As long as we make our move fast enough, Chen definitely won’t marry her.”
Feng Jialing looked into her daughter’s eyes. It was like looking at her younger self.
Back then, she had ruthlessly eliminated all her opponents and successfully married into the Ouyang family, thus becoming Ouyang Duo’s wife.
Now that her daughter had encountered a similar problem, she was definitely prepared to go all out to help her daughter.
“But Qing, you are the girl in this relationship after all. I can’t go and propose to the Nan family on your behalf, can I?” Feng Jialing said with a frown on her face.
“Of course you can’t. That’s why this has to be done by the unimportant Bai Hua. She’ll be the one proposing on Nan Chen’s behalf.”
“But she doesn’t have any authority within the Nan family. Can we even take her word for it?”
“But she’s Nan Chen’s mother. This fact alone gives her every right to make this proposal. What’s more, with the extensive assets our family have, we’re certainly compatible with the Nan family. What reason does the Old Master have to object to this union? That’s why It doesn’t matter who brings this up. The most crucial step is that someone does that. The Old Master has always supported Chen. Would he not wish for a pillar of support as powerful as the Ouyang family behind Chen? The Nan family is doing very well, but everyone who runs a business knows that risks and challenges can present themselves at any time. If the Nan family were to run into some kind of trouble, will they be able to count on that small-time actress to protect them? The answer is a resounding no. Would someone as shrewd as the Old Master not be able to make the right decision in such a simple analysis on benefits? There are only a few people who can decide who Chen marries. They’re none other than the Old Master, the Old Madam, Bai Hua and Ning Zhiyuan. Bai Hua and Ning Zhiyuan have agreed, so as long as the Old Master gives his consent, the Old Madam obviously wouldn’t have any objections as well. That way, all the people who have a say in who Chen marries will be on our side. We’ll definitely be able to succeed!”
Feng Jialing nodded her head in agreement.
Others might think that her daughter looked as innocent as a high school girl. But only she knew how sly and cunning her daughter really was.
“Alas, the Nan family is doing very well now. If the Nan family were to run into some trouble, the Old Master will value their relationship with our family more,” Feng Jialing said.
“Well, that won’t be too difficult,” Ouyang Qing sneered, “As long as your father agrees to help, it will be quite easy to cause the Nan family some trouble.”
