The Favored Heiress
Chapter 222: Photo of the Female Stock God

Chapter 222: Chapter 222: Photo of the Female Stock God

At that moment, Shang Yu lowered his eyes to look at his phone, with the umbrella above casting a dark shadow on his cheek, making the faint dark circles under his eyelids gradually more apparent.

Li Qiao blinked, wanting to say something but then hesitated.

One could tell from his expression that he hadn’t rested well the night before.

It was probably the incident at the dormitory that still troubled him.

This man, pride and sensitivity coexisted deep within his heart.

There are some things better left unspoken; there’s no need to delve too deeply.

Contemplating, Li Qiao eventually decided to ask nothing, put down her cup, and turned her eyes away to the distance.

Before long, Luoyu’s figure appeared in her sight.

She stood alone near the mid-mountain lawn, holding a cigarette between her fingers, continuously puffing smoke into the air.

Luoyu smoked quickly, lighting another as soon as one ended, seemingly agitated.

Even her sharply contoured face grew more tense.

Li Qiao focused her gaze a while longer, during which Luoyu’s pace of smoking didn’t slow, her whole being sinking into an unprecedented state of irritation.

Just then, Shang Yu’s magnetic voice reached her ears, "Luoyu has been too successful over the past few years, the blow from this assessment is bound to make her feel frustrated."

Upon hearing this, Li Qiao withdrew her gaze, her fingers lightly tapping on the teacup, a mischievous look in her eyes, "Is this also your deliberate arrangement?"

Shang Yu placed his phone on the table, leaning back against the chair in a lazy posture, "Not entirely, it’s her own arrogance and conceit that led to such results, no one else is to blame."

The comprehensive ranking that Luoyu achieved as third in this morning’s four assessments was indeed surprising.

Li Qiao, looking into Shang Yu’s profound gaze, teased with a curved lip, "If Luoyu heard your assessment, she might just smoke the entire box of cigarettes."

A trace of amusement flickered through Shang Yu’s deep eyes, and then he leaned forward, his well-proportioned fingers pushing the phone towards Li Qiao, "Take a look at this."

Li Qiao, puzzled, had just picked up the phone when she heard the man’s deep voice adding, "The Female Stock God’s photo, Charles found it."

In an instant, Li Qiao’s heartbeat quickened.

She hadn’t taken Charles’s polite words to heart, considering he was a financial magnate from the British Imperial, overwhelmed with daily tasks, it was unlikely he would remember her small request.

Unexpectedly, Charles was true to his word and really sent the photo.

Li Qiao lifted her eyes to look at Shang Yu, saw his gaze gently lowered, and with unexplainable emotions, she turned to the phone.

On the screen was an old, yellowed black-and-white photograph.

A woman with her hair in a bun sat in front of an old-fashioned piano, her fingers still in the motion of striking the keys, yet her face turned to look at the camera, eyebrows raised and smiling softly.

Despite the noble and elegant pose of playing the piano, the slight upturned brows and smile conveyed a sense of boldness and casualness.

Li Qiao carefully examined the photo, perhaps due to its age, many details in the image were blurred.

The only point of interest was the slight overlap between Li Qiao’s and the other person’s facial features, but that was it.

If one would say there was a resemblance, it would be the unrestrained and haughty expression in their eyes.

If one would say there was a difference, their faces and features were indeed uniquely characteristic.

Li Qiao looked at it for a long time, then lifted the phone to her cheek, turned to Shang Yu, and raised an eyebrow, "Master Yan, do I resemble her?"

The man, who had lit a cigarette at some point, pursed his lips to blow out a thin stream of smoke, gesturing with his hand holding the cigarette from across the air, languid in tone, "No, you are one of a kind."

Li Qiao lowered her eyes, unable to suppress a chuckle.

She put down the phone, gave it another look, and handed it back to Shang Yu, saying, "Could you send me a copy of the photo?"

Shang Yu took the phone and smoothly forwarded the photo.

Li Qiao stared at the photo in WeChat and gradually sank into contemplation.

Did she and this "Female Stock God" have some kind of connection?

...

Evening, six-thirty.

The assessment of the four major assistants was nearing its end.

Li Qiao had been sitting not far away, observing. She glanced at the scoreboard on the computer and couldn’t help but sigh.

Luoyu, ranked third overall.

If it weren’t for Wang Yue’s unexpected mistake in the grappling competition, Luoyu’s ranking might have been at the bottom.

From being the top-ranked overall three years ago to second-last this year, she wondered how Luoyu would feel about such a drop.

"Worried about her?" At that moment, Shang Yu, who had been silent beside her, suddenly spoke up, eyeing Li Qiao with a tone that seemed teasing and playful.

Li Qiao knew who he was referring to, raised an eyebrow with a light smile, "Worried? Not really. I actually think that such a result might not be a bad thing for her. Perhaps in the next assessment, she’ll amaze everyone again."

Someone as proud as Luoyu wouldn’t allow herself to fail for too long.

Hearing this, Shang Yu darkly gazed at Li Qiao, lazily curling his lips, dropping a few words, "Then we shall wait and see... in three years."

A three-year promise was thus made with his assured words.

As if he never worried about whether they’d still be by each other’s side in three years.

Li Qiao couldn’t help but feel stirred, looking at the man’s profile with her eyes shining, and murmured an agreement.

...

The moonlit night was clear, and a dim yellow haze of lights lit up around the Mansion.

Near the grassy hillside, a figure sat broadly on the steps, with cigarettes and a lighter beside her leg. Wisps of smoke drifted from her mouth, and seven or eight cigarette butts were accumulated on the ground.

Behind her, the soft sound of footsteps approached.

Luoyu, holding a cigarette, leaned back, her elbow resting on the step above her, her voice hoarse, "Don’t bother me, let me be alone for a while."

Li Qiao walked up behind her with a calm expression, one hand in her pocket, her tone flat, "Do you want me to get you another pack of cigarettes?"

Luoyu’s gaze was stagnant, and as she turned her head and saw Li Qiao’s figure, she quickly stood up and nodded, "Miss Li, it’s you?"

She had thought it was Liuyun or someone else, which is why she spoke without restraint.

Li Qiao’s gaze fell to the ground, observing the cigarette butts, and tugged at the corner of her lips, "If I wouldn’t have come, would you have kept smoking?"

Luoyu hung her head, hiding the hand holding the cigarette behind her and kicked away the cigarette butts on the ground with the tip of her shoe, speaking in a rather obscure tone, "I’ve made Miss Li laugh."

"This isn’t a laughing matter." Li Qiao looked at Luoyu’s subdued expression, slightly curving her lips, and gestured forward with a tilt of her head, "Join me for a walk?"

Luoyu glanced at her, threw the cigarette butt to the ground, and nodded, "Sure, after you."

The night grew dense, and the ground lights near the steps cast long slanted shadows of the two of them.

Li Qiao walked unhurriedly, while Luoyu followed half a step behind, occasionally glancing at her silhouette.

"You’ve been sitting here alone for two hours, is it because you can’t accept the result of today’s assessment?" After a while, Li Qiao asked softly.

Luoyu lowered her eyelids, was silent for a moment, and then spoke in self-mockery, "Even if I can’t accept it, there’s nothing I can do to change it, I truly am not as skilled as the others."

Li Qiao glanced sideways at her, "Have you thought about the reason?"

"What reason?" Luoyu rolled her throat, puzzled, her voice rough.

Li Qiao raised her eyebrows slightly, looking toward the mountains immersed in darkness in the distance, she halted her steps, "It’s not that you are less skilled, but because you are too competitive, wanting to win too much."