Chapter 80: Give And Take

The atmosphere in the living room was tense.

It was as if the air had suddenly stopped circulating, frozen in place.

Xu Yi stood holding an apron, waiting for Zhao Qiao to put it on, awkwardly standing there like a wooden post. Zhao Qiao held Meng Ying’s hand, her mouth moving slightly. She glanced back and forth between the watch in Meng Ying’s hand and Xu Dian across from them, blinking a few times. She hadn’t yet had the chance to feel embarrassed, guilty, or angry on Meng Ying’s behalf.

Xu Dian took off his glasses, his fingertips pinching an orange, his hands resting on his knees. His peach-blossom eyes, usually carefree and charming, now held a trace of hidden nervousness.

He didn’t look at anyone—only at Meng Ying.

Meng Ying’s fingers clasped the watch strap. Then she asked, “Is the tracker installed?”

Xu Dian: “It’s installed.”

“Can yours be installed too?”

Xu Dian: “No, it can’t.”

Beside them, Zhao Qiao’s mouth opened as if to speak, but Xu Yi hurriedly stepped forward, covered her mouth, and dragged her away in a rush. Zhao Qiao mumbled incoherently, pointing at the watch.

She still wanted to share some knowledge she had, but she was taken away.

Meng Ying nodded, her expression calm. A few seconds later, she slowly pressed a button, loosening the watch strap a bit.

She took off the watch, dangled it for a moment, then placed it on the coffee table, saying, “Answer me again when you’ve thought it over.”

Xu Dian squeezed the orange hard enough that juice dripped out, the orange liquid spreading along his slender fingertips. He stood up abruptly, licked the juice off, walked over, grabbed Meng Ying’s arm, and pushed her down onto the sofa. He pinned her in his arms, leaning over to meet her gaze. Meng Ying’s eyes showed no ripples.

But the calmer she was, the more flustered Xu Dian became. He lowered his head, kissed her forehead, then moved downward, aiming for her lips. Meng Ying slightly turned her face away.

Xu Dian only managed to kiss the corner of her mouth. He sighed and said, “This infringement case was a wake-up call for me. Over the past month, I’ve received eight threatening letters.”

“I was afraid it would affect you, so I didn’t go to East City to find you. For the same reason—worrying about your safety—I installed that feature on the watch.”

Meng Ying’s gaze shifted back slightly, looking at his face.

As he leaned forward, the panic in his eyes became clearer. Meng Ying kicked his leg lightly, but Xu Dian didn’t dodge. Instead, he pressed closer, as if encouraging her to kick harder.

Meng Ying reached out, pinched his waist, and applied some force. Xu Dian’s muscles tensed instantly, but the next second, he relaxed. He covered her hand with his, guiding it slightly lower on his waist, urging her to pinch harder. Meng Ying didn’t hold back—she pinched him firmly. Then she reached up again, grabbed his ear, and pulled it downward.

Xu Dian bent forward, letting her tug at him.

Meng Ying narrowed her eyes. “Shouldn’t you have told me before doing something like this?”

“I forgot for a moment.”

“You did it on purpose.”

Xu Dian fell silent. His other hand rested lightly on her waist, subtly blocking any possible escape routes. Meng Ying spoke again, “You didn’t just decide to install this tracker today, did you?”

“You’ve been thinking about it for a while?”

Xu Dian grew even quieter.

His expression darkened slightly.

Not for any other reason—just the fear that she might leave. He had to find a way, didn’t he?

“Tsk.” Meng Ying let out a cold laugh.

Xu Dian’s grip tightened as he pulled her closer. Meng Ying kicked him again. “Why are you holding so tight? Can my waist handle your grip?”

Xu Dian’s voice was low, tinged with a hint of reluctance. “Whether your waist can handle it or not—don’t I know?”

He suddenly spoke in that tone.

Meng Ying got annoyed and kicked him again. Xu Dian didn’t care, wearing an expression that said she could kick him all she wanted. Meng Ying grabbed his shirt collar, pinching and tugging at it, and said, “What do you think I want right now?”

Xu Dian pressed his lips together, lowering his eyes to look at her.

Meng Ying met his gaze openly. Their eyes locked, entwined. Xu Dian noticed the slight curve at the corner of her eyes and the beauty of those striking eyes.

After a long moment, he spoke in a low voice, “You want to put one on me too.”

“Yeah, are you willing?”

Xu Dian remained silent for a long time, his collar tugged until a small red mark appeared. Only then did he say, “Yes, I’m willing. Tomorrow, I’ll send the watch out and have it installed.”

“Good.” Meng Ying nodded with satisfaction. Give and take—that’s what makes an equal relationship.

Xu Dian pressed his hand against the back of her neck, kissing her hard. The orange juice burst between their lips.

Not far away, the couple Xu Yi and Zhao Qiao watched the scene with rapt attention. Zhao Qiao looked at Meng Ying, absolutely loving how she handled her son. She kicked Xu Yi lightly. “Go cook.”

Xu Yi, holding the apron, looked confused. “?????”

What did I do wrong?

He muttered under his breath, “I don’t know how to cook.”

“How can you not know how to cook?” Zhao Qiao turned and glared at Xu Yi fiercely.

Xu Yi: “…”

Zhao Qiao forcefully snatched the apron from him. “Forget it, I’ll do it myself.”

After the kiss, Xu Dian picked up the watch and put it back on Meng Ying’s wrist. Meng Ying grabbed his wrist, lowering her head to examine it. The gemstone in his watch was black—not a heart shape, but a bow, without any small diamonds. His was a bit more imposing. Xu Dian sat back on the sofa, continuing to peel oranges.

Once peeled, he fed a piece to her mouth.

Meng Ying looked at her own watch, studying it to figure out where the tracker was. She opened her mouth to eat the sweet orange, the juice bursting in her mouth—delicious.

Xu Dian watched her investigate but didn’t tell her anything, pretending not to know as he kept feeding her oranges.

When he lowered his eyes, he let out a quiet sigh of relief in his heart, his fingertips peeling the oranges even faster.

Soon, the food was ready. The nanny came over to invite them to eat. Xu Dian stood up, took Meng Ying’s hand, and walked toward the dining room.

He casually set his phone down.

In his social media feed…

Zhou Yang posted a status update.

Zhou Yang: Women are honestly so easy to coax.

Xu Dian commented below with his honest thoughts: Hard to coax.

Zhou Yang replied to Xu Dian: ?????

Zhou Yang replied to Xu Dian: That’s not what you said back then.

Li Yi replied to Zhou Yang: Maybe he’s been tamed.

Zhou Yang replied to Li Yi: You think women are hard to coax too?

Li Yi replied to Zhou Yang: I’ve never tried coaxing one.

Zhou Yang replied to Li Yi: That’s pretty scummy of you too.

Li Yi replied to Zhou Yang: *Shrugs*

Jiang Yu: Tsk, when you’re scared, just kneel down straight away!! No need to coax!!

Zhou Yang replied to Jiang Yu: Get lost!!!

Li Yi replied to Xu Dian: Learn from Jiang Yu—no need to waste words.

Zhou Yang replied to Li Yi: Would you kneel?

Li Yi replied to Zhou Yang: No, that suits you better.

Liu Yan: I’ve finally seen what a bunch of jerks you all are.

Wen Zeli: A whole new world has opened up.

Zhao Qiao’s cooking skills had always been excellent—she could make even simple dishes taste amazing. After dinner, Meng Ying wanted to head home, but Zhao Qiao was reluctant to let her go. She held Meng Ying’s hand and said, “We’ve prepared a room for you upstairs. Do you want to take a look? Check it out before you leave…”

Her face was full of eagerness.

Meng Ying hesitated for a moment and glanced at Xu Dian.

Xu Dian was sitting on the armrest of the sofa, raising an eyebrow. “Go take a look.”

Meng Ying: “Alright.”

With that, she followed Zhao Qiao. Before heading upstairs, she saw a Mercedes pull up to the entrance. A middle-aged man in a suit stepped inside, wearing gloves on both hands. He respectfully took a brocade box, inside of which was the watch Xu Dian had taken off. Xu Dian glanced at Meng Ying and raised his wrist slightly.

Meng Ying gave a faint smile, one that radiated charm and allure.

Seeing this, Xu Dian’s Adam’s apple bobbed, and the last trace of reluctance in him dissipated.

The Xu family’s main villa had three floors. The front hall was spacious and open. After climbing the stairs, each floor had two bedrooms, a study, and a storage room. Every bedroom was a suite. Xu Dian lived on the third floor, while the room prepared for Meng Ying was on the second floor, right next to the master bedroom. Each floor also had a small living area, decorated in a bright, airy style.

The guest bedroom was spacious, with a large bed and a huge floor-to-ceiling window. The window opened onto a big balcony, which was connected by a staircase leading to the building behind. That building was a leisure space, featuring a swimming pool, a media room, a tea room, and a billiards room. From the outside, it looked recently renovated. The swimming pool was open-air, reflecting faint blue glimmers of water and the inverted image of a bright moon.

Zhao Qiao pulled back the curtains and said, “Xu Dian rarely comes back to stay.”

“When he was a teenager, we were busy, and he got used to being alone. By sixteen, he started moving out. Honestly, raising a son feels less rewarding than raising a dog.”

Meng Ying: “…”

“But now that you’re here, I feel like he might come home more often for you—though just a little. If he came back too often, we’d get annoyed anyway.” Zhao Qiao grumbled and sighed at the same time. Meng Ying stood beside her, smiling. Zhao Qiao wasn’t as tall as her. Meng Ying had changed into slippers upon entering, but she was still slightly taller than Zhao Qiao.

Zhao Qiao held Meng Ying’s hand. “I’ve always dreamed of having a daughter.”

“If you don’t marry him, you can be my goddaughter.”

Meng Ying laughed and said, “Auntie, you’re really adorable.”

“I’m beautiful,” Zhao Qiao corrected.

Meng Ying: “Beautiful—absolutely stunning.”

Zhao Qiao burst into laughter, pulling Meng Ying over to the sofa. “Tonight, I’ll sleep with you. If Xu Dian wants to go back, let him leave.”

“Didn’t you just want him to stay?”

“I changed my mind.”

Meng Ying laughed again.

“Will you stay?” Zhao Qiao looked at Meng Ying with hopeful eyes. Seeing her say it like that, Meng Ying felt that if she didn’t stay, Zhao Qiao might be really upset.

Besides, her bond with Zhao Qiao wasn’t because of Xu Dian—it was simply because she liked Zhao Qiao, and Zhao Qiao treated her well.

“Alright.”

Meng Ying agreed.

After touring the room, Meng Ying and Zhao Qiao returned to the first floor. Xu Yi and Xu Dian, the father and son, were playing Go. When Xu Dian saw her coming, he picked up the remote and handed it to Meng Ying.

Meng Ying took it.

Xu Dian said, “Pick whatever you want to watch.”

Meng Ying set the remote down and walked over, sitting beside him. She leaned in to look at the Go board. Xu Dian glanced at her, then wrapped an arm around her, pulling her closer. Meng Ying had no choice but to rest one hand on his thigh. She didn’t understand Go, but Xu Dian was playing with the black stones.

Though she couldn’t follow the game, she could tell there were a lot of black stones on the board.

The white stones were being heavily surrounded. Over on the other side, Zhao Qiao was texting her friends in a group chat, secretly snapping photos of Xu Dian and Meng Ying sitting close together. She took more than a dozen pictures, all of which made Meng Ying look especially beautiful. Xu Dian, in most of the shots, only showed half his face—or just his sharp jawline brushing against Meng Ying’s fingers.

His hand, the one not playing Go, was holding Meng Ying’s.

The scene was picture-perfect.

[Group Chat: A Bunch of Flowers (36)]

Zhao Qiao dumped more than a dozen photos into the group chat.

Then she started typing.

Zhao Qiao: Come take a look.

Wen Qinqin: Congrats, your son has finally figured things out.

Li Yuan: Wow.

Li Yuan: They match so well.

Li Yuan: This girl is really beautiful.

XX: When are they getting married?

ZZZZ: They’ve already met the parents, so it must be soon.

Wen Qinqin: I’ll prepare a car as a gift for the girl.

Zhao Qiao: Thank you so much—we don’t want anything cheap.

Wen Qinqin: Nonsense, would I ever give something cheap?

[Group Chat: A Bunch of Flowers (35)]

Li Yuan: How come there’s one less person?

Wen Qinqin: Cheng Yu, Yang Rou’s mom.

The group fell silent for a moment.

Zhao Qiao: Take your time leaving, no need to see you out.

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