The Favored Heiress
Chapter 223: Luoyu’s Vinegar, You’re Eating That Too?

Chapter 223: Chapter 223: Luoyu’s Vinegar, You’re Eating That Too?

Li Qiao’s outspokenness was like a heavy punch hitting Luoyu deeply in the heart.

She stopped in her tracks and, using the light, looked toward Li Qiao, "I..."

Luoyu wanted to make excuses to refute, but the words at the tip of her tongue were forcefully swallowed back.

Because excuses would always be just that, excuses, and deep within her heart, she knew better than anyone that she indeed desired victory too intensely.

Li Qiao turned back and looked at Luoyu with an indescribable expression, and continued bluntly, "Because you care about winning and losing, that’s why you lost your standard during the assessment process.

Throughout the assessment today, you were distracted several times by the progress of others. With such a restless heart, failure was inevitable."

A flicker of embarrassment crossed the depths of Luoyu’s stunned eyes. She stubbornly averted her gaze, her tone slightly stiff, "If I’m not as skilled, I’m not as skilled. Miss Li doesn’t need to make excuses for me..."

At the end of the day, she still didn’t want to admit that her desire to win had clouded her judgment, and Luoyu exhibited a stubborn obstinacy.

At this moment, Li Qiao fixed a deep gaze on Luoyu, her eyes holding some profound meaning, "You lost so miserably yet you still refuse to see reality..."

Luoyu froze, those words hitting too close to home.

Li Qiao seemed somewhat disappointed as she shook her head and turned to walk away.

Consider it a lonely conversation, then.

Behind her, Luoyu’s gaze flickered, her hands tensed at her sides. She suddenly took a deep breath and called out to Li Qiao’s receding figure, "Miss Li, if it were you, could you really face it so calmly?"

Li Qiao slowed her pace and looked back at her pensively, "Why not? The peak is also the valley, don’t you understand that principle?"

With those words, Li Qiao turned and walked away.

Luoyu stood there dumbfounded, unable to snap out of it for a long time.

...

A few minutes later, Li Qiao returned to the open-air terrace.

In the dimming lights was the tall and lean figure of Shang Yu.

He was casually holding his phone with one hand in his pocket, seemingly on a call. As Li Qiao drew near, the man naturally extended his palm to her.

Li Qiao approached unhurriedly and took his hand, the two strolling leisurely on the terrace.

In her ear, Shang Yu was saying into the phone, "I won’t be back for now. If there’s anything, instruct Zhui Feng first."

After hanging up the phone, Li Qiao turned to look at him, "Is there an issue at Parma’s end?"

"Mm, a minor one," Shang Yu replied, his voice deep as he hooked her fingers in response. He then glanced toward the direction of the hillside lawn, "How did your talk with her go?"

Li Qiao, with a hint of casual indifference, twisted her mouth, "Not bad."

Shang Yu unexpectedly lowered his gaze with a slight tilt of his thin lips, and asked meaningfully, "Sure?"

Li Qiao: "..." Indeed, nothing could be hidden from him.

She lifted her chin to meet his gaze, and after a few seconds, she sighed and answered honestly, "Not good, not bad, just a bit stubborn."

From the peak to the trough, the blow indeed wasn’t small.

At this time, Shang Yu’s gaze gently shifted toward the distant lawn, his eyes as deep as the sea, his tone slightly cool, "You’ve wasted too much time on her tonight."

Li Qiao’s gaze turned sharp, and then she looked at the man with displeased eyes, barely suppressing a smile, "Master Yan, are you jealous of Luoyu?"

Shang Yu pinched her fingers slightly harder, narrowing his eyes with a trace of danger, and leaned in, "Can’t I be?"

"You can, whatever you say goes," Li Qiao responded fearlessly, meeting his gaze with a submissive smile.

...

Half an hour later, the time reached ten o’clock at night.

Li Qiao bid farewell to Shang Yu in front of the mansion’s entrance, "Then I’m heading back, you should rest early."

The man stood before her, his shoulders bathed in the clear glow of the crystal lamps.

He raised his hand to stroke Li Qiao’s hair, "When’s your next day off?"

"Wednesday." After pondering, Li Qiao shrugged somewhat regretfully, "But on Wednesday, I have to go to the hospital, my grandfather’s surgery."

At that, Shang Yu fell silent for a few seconds, then tilted his chin towards the business vehicle, "Alright, you can go back now."

Li Qiao waved her hand, and as she turned to leave, she hesitated slightly, inexplicably wanting to give him a farewell kiss.

But just as she turned her head, the man’s tall figure had already stepped down a stair, forcefully pulling her into his arms by her slender waist, cradling the back of her neck, and planted a deep kiss on her lips.

It must have been a case of hearts beating in sync.

Li Qiao looked up to respond, a vivid and bright smile spreading across the corners of her eyes and eyebrows.

After the kiss, Shang Yu pressed his forehead against hers, his hot breath spilling over the corners of her lips, and he reminded her gently yet firmly, "Call me if you need anything."

Li Qiao’s lashes trembled slightly, she lifted her gaze to meet his deep eyes, and tiptoed to peck the tip of the man’s nose, "The same goes for you."

"Mhm, get in the car." Shang Yu said, as he wiped the moisture from her lips with his thumb, his gaze covertly observing the previously injured corner of her mouth, where the wound had faded to being nearly invisible, and the hidden tension in his eyes also subsided a bit.

Li Qiao said goodnight and turned to get in the vehicle under the man’s watchful eye.

...

Two days later, Tuesday.

Guan Mingyu and Guan Mingchen, the siblings, arrived at Renhe Laboratory as scheduled.

In the meeting room, Li Qiao and Lian Zhen sat across from them with the recent research reports laid out on the table.

Guan Mingyu looked at Li Qiao with a slightly anxious expression and carefully asked, "Miss Li, is there a problem?"

Li Qiao shook her head slightly and flipped through the documents in her hand, "No problems, the research is still ongoing, I called you over because there is something I want to confirm with you."

Hearing this, the siblings breathed a sigh of relief as if a weight had been lifted off their shoulders.

Guan Mingchen gave his sister a reassuring pat on the shoulder and said with a booming voice, dropping a bit of flattery, "I told you to stop worrying. Miss Li is so capable, she will definitely cure you."

Li Qiao glanced at him with a cool expression, and refocused her gaze on the documents, "I’m sorry, but we can’t make any guarantees."

Guan Mingchen: "..." The flattery missed its mark.

At that moment, Lian Zhen smiled warmly, his tone soothing as he alleviated the awkwardness, "Mr. Guan, we really can’t make guarantees, but we will certainly do our best."

Guan Mingchen scratched his head and laughed sheepishly, "I know, I know, thank you for your efforts."

Then, Li Qiao raised her eyes to Guan Mingyu and asked directly, "I called you here today because I want to ask, did you previously live in the countryside?"

Without hesitation, Guan Mingyu replied, "Yes, at Zhao Family Village in Cen County."

Li Qiao had never heard of it and seeing Lian Zhen also shaking his head in confusion, she continued to inquire, "Besides the two of you, is there anyone else in your family?"

"No." Guan Mingyu pursed her lips and shook her head, "Over ten years ago, there was a fire at our home, and both of our parents died in that blaze. Only my brother and I were left."

As she spoke, a trace of sorrow could not help but surface on Guan Mingyu’s face.

Li Qiao frowned, thoughtfully looking at her, "What about other relatives?"

Guan Mingyu still shook her head, "None, our parents weren’t from Zhao Family Village. I heard they only went there temporarily to settle down, we had no other relatives."

After listening to her explanation, Li Qiao and Lian Zhen exchanged a meaningful glance.

Soon, Guan Mingchen couldn’t contain his curiosity and leaned forward tentatively across the table, "Miss Li, is there a problem with Zhao Family Village?"