Teasing the Strawberry-Flavored Baby Alpha (ABO, GL) - Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Shen Xian had already had someone investigate Lu Ningwan’s uncle and aunt. When she went to pick up Shen Tian after school, she made a point to look for Lu Ming. She walked over and said, “Hello, are you Mr. Lu Ming?”

Lu Ming worked at a Sino-foreign joint venture company and had seen a bit of the world. Noticing Shen Xian’s high-end tailored clothes, he immediately flashed a smile. “Hello, hello, that’s me. Is there something you need?”

“My daughter and Lu Ningwan are good friends. I was wondering if Little Lu could come to our house to play this weekend. Is that okay?” Shen Xian spoke politely.

“Well…” Lu Ming hesitated.

Shen Xian sneered inwardly. He didn’t treat Lu Ningwan well usually, but now he was putting on quite a show.

“Don’t worry, we’ll take good care of Little Lu. She can stay with us for the weekend, and I’ll bring her back to school on Monday. My name is Shen Xian. I run a company here in Linhai City, so I’m definitely not some trafficker,” Shen Xian said with a light laugh.

Upon hearing her name, Lu Ming immediately knew who Shen Xian was. As a rising star in Linhai City in recent years, Shen Xian’s Shen Corporation was too famous. She often appeared in financial magazines. Lu Ming let out an “Oh!” and cursed himself for not recognizing her sooner. To think he’d hesitated when such a big-shot CEO was talking to him.

Zhang Ruohua, noticing Shen Xian didn’t pay her any attention, was instantly displeased. “Who are you? You think you can just take a kid away? On what grounds?”

Lu Ming quickly pulled Zhang Ruohua back, glaring at her. “What’s it to you? Be quiet.”

Then he turned to Shen Xian with a smile. “So it’s CEO Shen! Why didn’t you say so earlier? We’re fond of Little Lu too. Since you’ve said so, let her go play at your place for the weekend. But that kid can be a bit stubborn. I hope she doesn’t upset you.”

Zhang Ruohua was still indignant and wanted to argue, but seeing her husband treat this woman with such respect, she held her temper, planning to ask more later.

“She won’t. Little Lu has been to our house before. She’s very well-behaved, and I like her a lot. You must treat her well too, right?” Shen Xian said with a smile, though her eyes held a hint of coldness. Lu Ming felt a chill down his back under her gaze.

“Yes, CEO Shen, her aunt and I care for that kid a lot. It’s sad, you know, losing her parents so young,” Lu Ming said, furrowing his brow to feign sympathy for Lu Ningwan.

As they spoke, Shen Tian and Lu Ningwan approached. Shen Tian happily threw herself into Shen Xian’s arms, cooing, “Mommy, Mommy, can Little Sister Lu come to our house this weekend?”

Shen Xian bent down and touched her little one’s face. “She can. I’ve already talked to Little Lu’s uncle. We’ll pick her up after school on Friday.”

Shen Tian hugged her mommy, nuzzling her. “Thank you, Mommy!”

Shen Xian held her daughter with one arm and patted Lu Ningwan’s head with the other. “Do you still remember me, Little Lu?”

“I do. Hello, Aunt,” Lu Ningwan said politely.

“Good girl, Little Lu. We’ll go home together on Friday, and I’ll take you to see my little one,” Shen Xian said with a warm smile.

“Okay, I’ll wait for you on Friday. Thank you, Aunt,” Lu Ningwan replied obediently.

As they were talking, Lu Deyu and Lu Zixuan rushed out from the school gate. Seeing Shen Tian and Lu Ningwan, Lu Zixuan immediately got upset. “Dad, why are they here? Anyone who’s nice to Lu Ningwan is sick. Why bother with them?”

Lu Ming quickly pulled his daughter over, his face stern. “What nonsense are you saying? Apologize to your sister and her friend right now.”

“She’s not my sister! What’s wrong with you, Dad? Scolding me for Lu Ningwan? I’m done with you!” Lu Zixuan’s eyes reddened as she ran to Zhang Ruohua.

Lu Deyu shot Lu Ningwan a fierce glare before going to Zhang Ruohua too.

The smile on Shen Xian’s face faded. She let out a soft chuckle. “That doesn’t quite match what you just said, Mr. Lu.”

Lu Ming gave an awkward laugh. “Oh, kids, they don’t know better. I apologize on their behalf to your daughter. I’ll make sure to discipline them when we get home.”

He then waved to Lu Ningwan. “Ningwan, come on, Uncle will take you home for dinner.”

Lu Ningwan looked up at Lu Ming but didn’t move.

Shen Xian and Shen Tian’s gazes lingered on Lu Ming, and with Lu Ningwan ignoring his gesture, his smile nearly froze.

In the end, Lu Ming had no choice but to step closer to Lu Ningwan, putting a hand on her shoulder with an awkward smile. “This kid, hasn’t seen me all morning and now she’s shy. CEO Shen, it’s settled then. You can take Ningwan on Friday.”

Shen Xian gave him a half-smile. “Alright. See you, Ningwan. I’ll pick you up on Friday.”

“Bye, Aunt. Bye, Tiantian,” Lu Ningwan said, raising her hand to wave at them.

Lu Ming forced a smile. “Goodbye, CEO Shen. Goodbye, little friend. Take care.”

Lu Ningwan looked up at her uncle’s smiling face and found it so insincere. His change in attitude wasn’t because he cared about her—it was because of Aunt Shen.

Lu Ming was practically fawning over Shen Xian and her daughter, even watching as they got into their Maybach, his eyes lighting up at the sight of the car.

Only after their car started did he take Lu Ningwan to their own, and for the first time, he opened the car door for her.

Once in the car, Lu Deyu and Lu Zixuan kept complaining. Lu Zixuan, still crying, yelled at Lu Ming, “Dad, why are you siding with Lu Ningwan? I’m done with you! You always used to take my side.”

“No more nonsense. Be polite to your sister from now on. Haven’t I taught you manners? Don’t do this again,” Lu Ming scolded. He’d finally managed to exchange a few words with Shen Xian. At his company, even seeing their general manager was hard, let alone someone like Shen Xian.

“No way! Anyone who’s nice to Lu Ningwan isn’t a good person,” Lu Zixuan cried and shouted.

Seeing her daughter cry, and recalling how Lu Ming had stopped her from speaking earlier, Zhang Ruohua was also upset. “Exactly, what’s gotten into you? Who’s that woman that you’re so respectful to? Is it really necessary?”

Lu Ming, for once, stood his ground. “What do you know? That’s CEO Shen of Shen Corporation. Enough, we’ll talk about it at home.”

Then, remembering something, he asked Lu Ningwan, “Ningwan, how do you know CEO Shen and her family?”

Lu Ningwan’s face was expressionless. “Tiantian and I went to the same kindergarten.”

“Same kindergarten, huh? That’s great, like growing up together,” Lu Ming said with a grin. “Ningwan, Uncle’s thinking about having someone redesign the balcony area for you. We don’t have many rooms at home, but we still need to make sure you’re comfortable.”

Zhang Ruohua glared at Lu Ming. “Have you lost your mind today? Where’s all this money for renovations coming from? I wanted to buy a dress the other day and held off.”

“I said we’ll talk at home. Why so many words? The money for fixing up Ningwan’s balcony has to be spent,” Lu Ming snapped, unable to explain in front of Lu Ningwan. He thought she was sensitive, and saying too much would give it away.

Lu Ningwan stayed silent throughout. She knew clearly that her uncle’s change in attitude was because of Aunt Shen. She didn’t want someone like her uncle to take advantage of Aunt Shen. She and Tiantian were good friends, and she didn’t want their friendship mixed with other motives.

The car fell quiet. Lu Deyu and Lu Zixuan were angry, Zhang Ruohua didn’t want to talk to Lu Ming, and Lu Ningwan had no desire to speak with her uncle. Lu Ming was the only one in a good mood.

Lu Ningwan didn’t care much about it. She went to her small bed as usual to do her homework. Lu Ming told his kids to do theirs and pulled Zhang Ruohua into their room.

As soon as they entered, Zhang Ruohua shook off his hand. “What’s with you? I think you’re possessed today. You scolded Zixuan and now want to fix up the balcony for Lu Ningwan? Are you crazy? Where’s all this money to throw around?”

“You’re the crazy one. Shen Corporation is one of the top companies in Linhai City, way bigger than ours. So many people can’t even get a chance to talk to them. Now, with Lu Ningwan’s connection, even the CEO of Shen Corporation has to deal with us. The more important Lu Ningwan is to CEO Shen, the better our prospects. Her custody is in our hands—how could we not benefit later? Zixuan and Deyu might even get jobs at Shen Corporation. It’s so hard to get in there; even graduates from top universities aren’t guaranteed a spot,” Lu Ming said, looking like he’d hit the jackpot. He leaned back on the bed, already imagining a bright future.

Zhang Ruohua’s eyes lit up at his words. “Lu Ming, why didn’t you say so earlier? I would’ve understood. So, our family’s struck it big?”

Lu Ming nodded, smiling. “So we need to be a bit nicer to Lu Ningwan. At least stop with the constant sarcasm and don’t let our son and daughter bully her anymore. We all need to get along on the surface. If she goes to CEO Shen’s house and says something bad, all our plans will fall apart.”

“Alright, as long as it’s good for our future, I won’t treat her like that anymore. Oh, I’ll tell our son and daughter,” Zhang Ruohua said, beaming as she left the room.

After talking to Lu Deyu and Lu Zixuan, the siblings didn’t care about Shen Corporation and weren’t convinced. Zhang Ruohua figured since they were all at home, she’d just keep a closer eye on them.