Chapter 645 Intuition
At six o’clock that evening, Ning Ran brought two bottles of fine wine and went to Lu Jingyuan’s house with Cheng Xiangyun.
Although Cheng Xiangyun had told her that Lu Jingyuan was wealthy, Ning Ran was still shocked when she saw the villa Lu Jingyuan had built for herself.
She’s not just wealthy. She’s ultra rich!
The villa was not enormous, but the three-story building was luxurious.
Its fence wall and exterior were painted light blue with a cool undertone, giving the place a particular character.
Once they entered the courtyard, they saw a pathway paved with colorful natural pebbles.
On both sides of the path were blooming flowers.
Most of the places were still cold during early spring, but over at Livingsfill, the temperature did not go through drastic changes throughout the year. There was no extreme cold, and flowers bloomed all year round.
However, despite the geographical advantage, most plants had their own flowering period.
Although some flowers were out of season then in Livingsfill, Lu Jingyuan’s garden was still filled with flowers of all kinds.
This went to show that Lu Jingyuan was a flower connoisseur. Not only could she collect all the different types of flowers, but she could also make them blossom at that time of the year.
This was enough to attest to her refinement and knowledge—two invaluable traits unable to be bought with money.
The nouveau riche could well build huge mansions with their money, but cultivating good taste and an informed mind would take time. One would need to read a lot and see the world.
This realization only made Ning Ran more vigilant.
I’d better not underestimate this woman. She stays in a border town with two children but has the ability to run a big inn and stay in a villa. This is impossible unless she has a strong background. Could it be that she’s Nan Chen’s secret lover? He can definitely do that, though. He has the ability to keep more than one lover, actually. In fact, I won’t be surprised if he has a hundred women outside.
While Ning Ran was thinking, Lu Jingyuan came out to welcome them, holding her two girls.
Woah! She’s pretty. It only took Ning Ran one glance to agree with Cheng Xiangyun.
Ning Ran was a beautiful woman herself, so she had her standards, but even then, she still considered Lu Jingyuan a rare beauty.
When Ning Ran saw the two children, she agreed that they looked like Erbao.
Ning Ran gasped in her heart. She would not be surprised that a woman like Lu Jingyuan would know Nan Chen, for she totally had what it took to be in his circle.
Her appearance and demeanor were exceptional. More precisely, she was way above those ladies from affluent families like Ouyang Qing.
“Hi, Ms. Lu. This is Erbao and Dabao’s mother,” Cheng Xiangyun introduced warmly.
“Hi. Nice to meet you. I’m Lu Jingyuan.”
“I’m Ning Ran. Nice to meet you too.”
The two women gazed at one another and were amazed by how gorgeous each other was.
“I knew you must be pretty when I saw your kids, but I’m still surprised. You’re the most attractive woman staying at my inn,” Lu Jingyuan praised with a smile.
“Thanks. You’re dashing yourself too. Thank you for taking care of my children,” Ning Ran replied, smiling, as she gave the two bottles of wine to the host.
“This is good wine. Let’s try them during dinner.”
Lu Jingyuan was straightforward and elegant, and Ning Ran had a good impression of her.
Their first encounter assured Ning Ran that Lu Jingyuan was not cunning, so she put away her suspicion. However, that was solely based on her intuition.
One’s sixth sense was not entirely baseless. Human emotions were the product of experience and knowledge, and they made sense sometimes.
“Come. This is Ms. Ning. Say hi,” Lu Jingyuan said to her daughters.
“Hi, Ms. Ning,” the two girls greeted politely with a bow.
Lu Yunxue went forward and pulled Ning Ran’s hand. “Ms. Ning, I’m Erbao’s best friend. We always play together!”
Ning Ran bent down, pulled the girl’s hand, and patted her. “You’re a sweet little girl. Who’s older? You or Erbao?”
“I’m older; she’s younger,” Erbao chimed in.
Erbao felt proud because it was the first time she could consider someone else her younger sister. She had always been the younger sibling at home.
“Well, then, you should take care of your younger sister, all right?” Ning Ran said.
“No. I can take care of myself. We can take care of one another,” Lu Yunxue replied frankly.
Her answer made everyone laugh except Lu Yunbing, who had been observing Ning Ran since they met.
Seeing this, Ning Ran approached the girl. “Hi, are you Yunbing? Are you the elder sister?”
“Yes.” Although Lu Yunbing’s answer was short, it did not sound rude.
Interestingly, the girl had a cold expression on her face, which was rare for children her age.
Ning Ran exhaled deeply, recalling Nan Chen’s emotionless face.
They don’t look exactly the same, but I can see hints of Nan Chen in her. If I were to compare the four children, Erbao would look more like Yunxue, while Dabao would look more like Yunbing. I won’t say they are the same, but I can definitely spot some common ground.
Ning Ran tried to shake off the thought, but deep down, she felt slightly disturbed.
The family would get too complicated if Nan Chen really had two other children outside.
“Ms. Ning, you may wash your hands here. Dinner’s about to start,” the housekeeper said.
“Sure. Thanks.”
Everyone sat down after washing their hands. Lu Jingyuan had arranged a smaller table for the children.
That was a telling sign that Lu Jingyuan came from a big family because children would not join the adults at their table until they turned eighteen.
It would also give the adults more freedom during mealtime if the children ate on their own.
“Welcome to Livingsfill, Ms. Ning. I’m glad to host you at my inn,” Lu Jingyuan said.
Ning Ran lifted her glass and smiled too. “The honor is mine. Thank you for having us. Cheers.”
Everyone raised their glasses and drank.
“Did you make these dishes yourself, Ms. Lu?” Ning Ran inquired, smiling.
“Most of them. I bought the rest. The food here is on the spicy side, so I’m not sure if you’ll like it,” Lu Jingyuan said.
“They’re not bad. I like them. Your cooking is really good. It’d be great if you could spare some time to teach me.”
“I’m more than happy to do that. I enjoy cooking. It gives me a sense of achievement. Do you like cooking as well?”
“I’m okay. I just know how to cook a few simple dishes. Nothing fancy.”
“That’s good enough. I heard you’re an actress?”
Erbao quickly said, “Mommy is a celebrity! She’s the female lead in The Sound of Thunder 2. The movie was a big hit!”
Ning Ran felt embarrassed at the compliment. “I’m not that famous. Don’t listen to her.”
“I’m sorry. I don’t watch TV a lot.”
Lu Jingyuan’s honesty made Ning Ran feel awkward.
“But I’ll check the movie out. I’m sure your acting is good. Your eyes tell me you’re a person who has a story,” Lu Jingyuan added.
“Thanks. I can equally say the same about you. I’m sure you’ll be better than me at the craft if you become an actress,” Ning Ran said.
“Well, let’s put platitudes aside, shall we? I’m glad I met someone like you. Cheers,” Lu Jingyuan said, raising her glass.
“Cheers!”
