Chapter 566 - 581: A Worthless Smile

Startled by the sudden voice, Hei Dan’er yelled toward the sound, "Sorry!"

Behind them, An Ning grew pensive. The voice sounded a little familiar.

All five of them looked toward the area behind them, which was obscured by a few trees. A woman dressed in a white golf polo, a pink skirt, and white shoes walked out, clutching her head as she stared at the group.

Seeing the woman approach, Hei Dan’er waved and called out again, "Sorry."

The woman’s eyes were like a price tag gun, clicking audibly as they scanned over each of them.

"Is a single ’sorry’ supposed to fix everything? If you’re blind, you shouldn’t be playing golf."

The woman’s gaze fell upon Yu Zheng and An Ning, then shifted to Baobei with his refined air. She scoffed inwardly.

’A May-December romance. And she’s a stepmother.’

Clearly, the woman had mistaken Yu Zheng and An Ning for a couple in a May-December romance. Baobei must be the wealthy son from the first wife, while a kid like Hei Dan’er was probably brought along by the stepmother. As for Tangtang, she couldn’t quite place her.

None of the five knew that the woman had already concocted an entire family drama about them in her head. But her sharp tongue and judgmental eyes were truly detestable.

Hei Dan’er didn’t need anyone’s help. The little guy stepped forward, puffed out his chest, and pointed a finger at a sign. "Here, repeat after me!"

"Golf Driving Range. Do Not Cross. Please Mind Your Safety."

"Can you read that, ma’am?"

Behind him, An Ning felt a swell of pride. ’Hei Dan’er is just like me.’

"You little brat, watch your mouth! You hit someone, and you think you’re in the right?!"

"Absolutely no manners!"

That "no manners" comment infuriated An Ning. That was an insult to the entire An family, all the way back to their ancestors!

’And she wasn’t having any of it.’

After all, every time she returned to her village, her eldest uncle would drag her to their ancestors’ graves to have a chat and pull weeds from her own future resting plot.

"Let your aunt handle this."

An Ning pulled Hei Dan’er back by the shoulder. He made a face at the woman before retreating to stand behind An Ning, looking like he was ready to charge forward at any moment.

"Young lady, you who seem to be missing twenty-some years of proper upbringing, did you misplace your brain stem? If you can’t see words that big, then you’re the one who’s blind. And if you can’t even see that entire ring of trees, I’d advise you to go to a hospital, see a neurologist, and get yourself checked out."

"Oh, and by the way, make it an emergency visit."

An Ning’s blatant insults sent the other woman into a blind rage. She pointed at An Ning and the others and began to shriek.

"You’ve got some nerve scolding others, you tramp playing stepmom! You’re just another gold digger warming some old man’s b— AARGH! AAAAAH! MY ARM!"

The woman clutched her arm, howling in pain. Behind her back, An Ning made a subtle hand sign. Baobei lowered his head and retracted his spell.

However, he would have acted again if the woman had dared to utter another disrespectful word.

Tangtang quietly put down the golf ball in her hand, and An Ning held back Hei Dan’er, who was poised to rush forward.

’I think I know who this woman is.’

"Lin Qing, isn’t it? You’re a perfect demonstration of the saying ’a dirty mind sees filth everywhere.’ Let me guess. You forced your way through here because you couldn’t get into the VIP area, right? And you’re trying so desperately to get there because you’re hoping to offer yourself to someone again?"

"Let me guess again... don’t tell me it’s President Jiang?"

Lin Qing, who had been clutching her arm in pain, stared at An Ning in terror. She knew of Jiang Xia, and this woman had read her intentions perfectly.

"You... Who are you?"

An Ning sneered, her voice turning even colder. "You’ve got an eye for opportunity, but not the brains to back it up. In fact, your head is well and truly empty."

"Now get lost."

Lin Qing couldn’t figure out who this woman was, but the mere thought that she might know Jiang Xia made her lose her nerve.

Clutching her arm, Lin Qing stumbled away.

"Auntie, is Uncle Jiang Xia here?"

"Never mind him. He can be wherever he wants. Let’s play."

An inexplicable irritation simmered in An Ning’s heart. She knew perfectly well that Jiang Xia had no idea this was happening, but a small part of her still felt annoyed.

Forcing herself not to dwell on it, An Ning turned to Baobei, who was standing behind her with his head bowed, looking as though he’d done something wrong.

"I’m sorry, Teacher. I broke the rules."

"What rule?"

"Members of the Mystic Sect are not to use Magic on ordinary people."

An Ning placed a hand on Baobei’s head, her voice laced with amusement. "Silly boy, that’s just a rule made by men."

"Baobei, listen to me. We can’t use Mysticism to commit crimes or break the law. But if your life, or the life of someone you love, is threatened, you are absolutely allowed to intervene."

"I understand why you did what you did just now. I know you were standing up for me, and I appreciate it."

Baobei finally looked up, his eyes shining, and nodded.

The five of them resumed their game. Less than ten minutes later, Lin Qing was carried out by two large men in black, one on each side of her.

"Let me go! Let me go!"

"I’m telling you, I’m the future Mrs. Jiang! You can’t—MMPH! MMPH!"

Lin Qing’s mouth was gagged, silencing her completely and without a hint of emotion from her captors.

One of the men in black even thought to himself, ’President Jiang has a better chance of marrying me than this woman.’

An Ning and the others watched as the men in black forcefully bundled Lin Qing onto a golf cart. Judging by the direction it was headed, she was being thrown out.

Knowing Jiang Xia’s personality, that woman would be banned for life.

Suddenly, An Ning felt that the sky had become a little bit bluer.

After practicing for another half hour, the five of them headed to the VIP area.

After a good session, everyone had improved significantly. The three children were all quite athletic.

While they were having fun, Jiang Xia had just finalized a contract and was preparing to leave.

A happy shout from Hei Dan’er made Jiang Xia, who was riding in a golf cart, suddenly call out, "Stop the cart."

The cart screeched to a halt. Jiang Xia peered into the distance, listening intently, and finally heard it a second time.

His eyes lit up. ’Could An Ning be done with her work?’

They had been in touch when An Ning first arrived in Beijing, but after he got back to the city from his trip down south, he hadn’t seen hide nor hair of her.

An Ning had been busy with matters for the power company, right up until today.

"Head that way."

Jiang Xia pointed in a direction. As he was the central figure of their gathering, the other executives naturally had no objections.

The large group rounded a bend just in time to see a ball arcing through the sky in a perfect parabola.

"A beautiful shot!"

"Great shot!"

"Incredible!"

The praise from the men made Jiang Xia inwardly beam. He even smiled at one of the executives and said, "You’ve got a good eye."

The executive who received the smile quickly smiled back, then felt a wave of confusion.

’He hadn’t seen President Jiang crack a smile once during their entire business negotiation. So why did this one feel so... cheap?’

"An Ning!"

"An Ning, over here!"

In the next moment, the executives truly witnessed what a cheap smile looked like.