The Favored Heiress
Chapter 407: My Xiao Qi Zai, Let Sister Give You a Hug

Chapter 407: Chapter 407: My Xiao Qi Zai, Let Sister Give You a Hug

Shang Qiongying’s gaze burned as she watched Li Qiao, not missing even the slightest flicker of expression, "Even Academician Jiang Hande hasn’t been able to be heavily relied upon by the Council all these years.

You should understand that joining the medical council would be beneficial and harmless to you.

Or is it that... you don’t have any grand ambitions and simply wish to cling to the coattails of Shang’s heir, reaping the benefits without effort?"

Shang Qiongying’s tone was calm and cold, but her words were extremely grating.

As if in her eyes, Li Qiao was nothing more than a little girl who relied on men.

At this moment, Li Qiao looked at her, and as their gazes met, there was a tumult of emotions.

Shang Qiongying curved her lips into a smile, her fingers gently tapping the back of her hand, "Miss Li, I’m older than you and have been through more.

Being with Shang’s heir, you’ll have to face more than just difficulties from some collateral branches.

I heard your elder brother Li Jun had an incident recently. A senior official from South Sea can be framed by someone; surely you don’t think everything is as simple as it appears to you.

This time it was Li Jun, but what about next time? Are you sure you can always count on Shang Shaoyan’s protection?

Besides, his feelings for you may not be as sincere as you think.

Otherwise... why would he allow the venue for the exchange to be moved from South Sea to Chong City?

Tell me, is he hiding something?

Or perhaps he does not like you that much after all, hence he’s kept you out of his life."

Oh, the deliberate instigation and attempts at sowing discord.

Li Qiao did not speak, nor did her expression show any fluctuation.

She just looked at Shang Qiongying, her dark eyes like spilt ink, causing Shang Qiongying to feel momentarily bewildered.

After a while, Li Qiao spoke indifferently, "Are you done?"

Shang Qiongying adjusted a strand of hair without changing her expression, covering her lips with her fingers and sighing softly, "Miss Li, relying on a man is indeed a shortcut, but having everything under your control could perhaps increase your odds of winning."

Li Qiao nodded with a semblance of a smile and stood up, raising her eyebrows slightly, "Thanks for the advice."

As she spoke, she turned to leave, and whether it was because Shang Qiongying had disturbed her mind, in that instant, she bumped into a woman passing through the aisle of chairs.

They bumped shoulders, and both swayed slightly. Then, a decidedly unfriendly voice crashed over, "Are you blind?"

The woman’s voice was cold and indifferent. She stared at Li Qiao with a mean face, but in the depths of her eyes was an indecipherable light.

Li Qiao steadied herself and glanced sideways at the other person, "You have eyes, did you not see the way either?"

The other woman laughed lightly and crossed her arms, her expression haughty as she sized up Li Qiao, "What’s this? You bump into me and you think you’re in the right? Don’t you know respect for the young and the old, love for the young?"

What sort of nonsensical conversation was this?

Li Qiao’s eyebrows twitched, and she glanced coldly at the other person, "You sure don’t."

The woman turned her gaze away indifferently and proceeded to walk forward, not so politely bumping against Li Qiao’s shoulder as she passed, "I’ve never seen anyone as uneducated as you."

Li Qiao: "..."

The other woman left behind a scornful comment and walked past Li Qiao towards the front rows of the conference room.

Then, Shang Qiongying slowly stood up from the corner seat, smoothing out the wrinkles on her trousers and looking at the figure dressed in black. Glancing at Li Qiao, she smirked, "Miss Li, do you know who she is?"

Li Qiao looked back and raised her eyebrows but remained silent.

Seeing this, Shang Qiongying explained in a seemingly polite manner, "That is Miss Xia Siyu, the daughter of the chairman of Huanxia Pharmaceutical.

Huanxia Pharma Enterprise has sponsored hundreds of laboratories within the country and holds a pivotal position in the pharmaceutical industry.

Even the Council has to give Huanxia some face.

Offending her is not a wise move.

Miss Li, being too... arrogant is not good."

Oh, so she is the heiress of Huanxia Pharma Enterprise!

Li Qiao curled her lips slightly, her gaze toward Shang Qiongying revealing an almost imperceptible mix of... pity and ridicule.

She turned and strolled lazily down the steps, completely ignoring Shang Qiongying.

...

In the afternoon, at the medical equipment exhibition hall.

Li Qiao, with Luoyu by her side, aimlessly wandered around the exhibition hall.

There was no denying that Shang Qiongying’s words had left a mark on her heart.

Why had Shang Yu secretly changed the meeting place from South Sea to Chong City?

Was it to avoid the South Sea Conference?

Li Qiao was deep in thought, yet her expression remained calm and undisturbed.

Emotionally, she trusted Shang Yu.

But that didn’t mean she had no doubts.

Most likely, what Shang Qiongying said was true.

Such a shrewd woman wouldn’t tell lies that could easily be exposed with a little investigation, thereby causing trouble for herself.

Thus, Shang Yu’s arrangements most likely meant... he was indeed keeping something from her, and it probably involved danger.

After all, that man always did more than he said, or he would share only the good news, not the worries.

Li Qiao slowed her pace, standing in front of a gene tester, her gaze drifting to Luoyu’s face.

"What’s wrong, Miss Li?"

Luoyu, catching Li Qiao’s glance, looked back at her, somewhat puzzled.

Li Qiao shook her head lightly, her eyes lingering for two seconds before she slightly turned her body, and a takeout coffee cup conveniently fell onto the ground.

It appeared as though Li Qiao had accidentally bumped into the other person’s wrist, causing them to drop the cup, spilling the muddy coffee onto both of their pants legs.

Li Qiao looked back innocently at Xia Siyu, who was glaring angrily at her, and before the other could speak, Li Qiao preempted her, "Miss Xia, are you going to say I don’t watch where I’m going again?"

Xia Siyu seemed quite frustrated, looking at the coffee on the ground before coldly addressing Li Qiao, "This is Gold Foil Coffee, how do you plan to compensate for it?"

Gold Foil Coffee, costing thousands of dollars a cup—how expensive.

Li Qiao curled her lips, "I won’t compensate. Are you going to forbid me from continuing my visit?"

"Yes!" Xia Siyu raised an eyebrow, her intention to provoke quite clear, "Either you compensate me with an identical cup, or you and your entourage leave right now."

Quite the demand.

Li Qiao glared at her, shrugged, and said, "Fine, I’ll compensate you with a cup. Luoyu, wait here for me."

"Miss Li..." Luoyu stepped forward with reluctance, his dislike for Xia Siyu’s arrogance darkening his gaze significantly.

"It’s fine, just wait here."

In a blink, Li Qiao and Xia Siyu left the exhibition hall, one after the other.

And many onlookers had witnessed this scene, unavoidably feeling a hint of sympathy for Li Qiao and Renhe Laboratory which she represented.

It was well-known that the heiress of Huanxia Pharma Enterprise wasn’t someone to provoke. Offending anyone else would have been better than offending Huanxia, a leading pharmaceutical enterprise in the country.

For Renhe Laboratory, this conference might well be fraught with risk.

Because Huanxia Pharmaceutical was one of the co-sponsors of the conference.

Outside the convention center, Li Qiao walked shoulder to shoulder with Xia Siyu, hands in pockets, towards the alley around the corner, which grew quieter as they delved deeper.

Five minutes later, well away from the convention center, the two of them leisurely stopped underneath an old tree in the alley.

Scanning their surroundings, Xia Siyu then suddenly reached out towards Li Qiao, and the instant her fingers clamped down on Li Qiao’s cheek, her smile melted away the chill, "My little Qi Zai, come let your sister give you a hug."