Chapter 96: Ch 96: Return to the Bus and Exploited Heir

After spending a slow hour outside the bus, the guests had simply sat and enjoyed the quiet, peaceful atmosphere of the rest stop. Conversations stayed light, smiles lingered easily, and no one seemed in a hurry to leave. Unfortunately, that calm ended when PD Xu Cui called everyone back.

One by one the guests began returning to the bus, the smiles still present on their faces. Among them, Su Wanyan and her small group carried the brightest expressions of all. Su Wanyan held the now deeply asleep Mo Yan against her chest. A thin trail of drool had already pooled on the front of her shirt. She did not flinch or shift the baby away. By now she was completely used to Mo Yan’s habit of dampening every shirt she rested against.

In front of her, Mo Xingxue carried Shen Guoxing and carefully wiped the remaining traces of Mo Yan’s drool from the girl’s shoulder. "I’m sorry about this," Mo Xingxue said softly as she climbed the steps of the bus, still holding Shen Guoxing securely. They had been about to change the damp shirt when PD Xu Cui’s call forced them to return. Remembering the memory made Mo Xingxue sigh.

Shen Guoxing only smiled and shook her head. "Don’t be, Aunt!" she said brightly, giving Mo Xingxue’s shoulder a gentle pat. "I don’t mind at all!" her grin remained as wide and open as ever.

The pure brightness of it pulled an answering smile from Mo Xingxue. "Thanks for your understanding, Xing’er," she said, tightening her arms around the girl as they walked toward their seats.

Behind them, Su Wanyan watched the exchange with a soft, loving smile. She glanced down at Mo Yan, whose drool had now soaked a sizable patch of fabric, and could not help laughing quietly, the sound filled with quiet tenderness.

From his seat, Gu Chengze saw everything. His teeth ground together. That inferior alpha! He thought, glaring at Su Wanyan as she carefully settled Mo Yan into the car seat. That should have been me and Mo Xingxue. His fists clenched so tightly they trembled. He wanted to strike something, but doing so would only draw Su Wanyan’s attention and risk the careful plan he and Lin Xuanyu had prepared.

Instead he forced his gaze downward, staring at his own tightly curled hands as rage continued to simmer beneath the surface. A moment later a warm hand settled over his. The touch was soft and full of life, a sharp contrast to his own cold, calloused fingers.

Gu Chengze looked up to find Lin Xuanyu watching him with a quiet smile. "How admirable of you to look away," Lin Xuanyu said softly, the words sliding easily into the darker corners of Gu Chengze’s thoughts. "That’s a step forward in our plan." His thumb brushed slowly across Gu Chengze’s knuckles. "I’m proud of you." The look in Lin Xuanyu’s eyes was devoted and intense, the kind of gaze that might have unsettled anyone else. However, it only settled something in Gu Chengze.

Gu Chengze pressed his lips together, fighting the small smile that threatened to surface. He covered it with a short cough and gave a single nod, finally unclenching his fists. Even then he kept the cold, distant demeanor of a domineering CEO.

Lin Xuanyu smiled and shook his head gently, tightening his hold on Gu Chengze’s hand as though the pressure alone could convey every ounce of loyalty and affection he felt. I’ll warm that cold heart of yours soon, he thought.

While the two remained lost in their shared darkness, Su Wanyan finished securing Mo Yan and sat back. She opened her phone again, eyes scanning possible openings. She had already begun gathering people who could help pull certain companies away from Gu Chengze’s orbit, believing that steadily draining the opportunities meant for him would weaken the heavy plot armor surrounding him. Although still a theory, she was roughly sixty percent certain this was the correct path.

What she needed most to achieve this goal is someone skilled, well-connected, and already deep inside the business world..... That person was Mo Fangyue. Su Wanyan’s lips curved into a small smile as her eyes landed on one particular opportunity currently tied to Gu Chengze. Found it, she thought, a quiet chuckle escaping her.

+-+-+-+-+-+-+

While Su Wanyan continued plotting ways to chip away at Gu Chengze’s advantages on the bus, an heir of a major company was moving at full speed inside a quiet office. That heir was Mo Fangyue, busy handling the tasks Su Wanyan had given her over the past week and a half.

Mo Fangyue typed without pause, dark circles marking the skin beneath her eyes. Rather than dulling her appearance, the shadows only sharpened her features, drawing more than a few glances from employees who passed by her glass-walled office. Some even made deliberate detours just to catch another look at their future CEO.

Through it all Mo Fangyue never lifted her eyes from the screen. Her fingers moved rapidly across the keyboard until, after three uninterrupted minutes, she finally stopped. She rolled her stiff neck and shoulders, then winced when she cracked the wrong joint. "Ouch," she muttered, leaning back in her chair as exhaustion settled over her.

I’m thankful to Su Wanyan-jiejie for giving me these projects, she thought, but I am dead tired. The complaints rose quickly, yet the moment she remembered the profits and connections the Mo Company would gain, the words stuck in her throat. Mo Fangyue sighed, closed her eyes, and let herself drift toward sleep.

Just then, her phone rang on the desk before she could fully sink into rest. Both hands rose to cover her face, dragging slowly downward in clear defeat. She straightened, picked up the phone, and stiffened the instant she saw the caller’s name. Dread settled in her chest before she even answered.

After a short pause she accepted the call. "Yes, Su Wanyan-jiejie?" Her voice trembled slightly, already scared for herself. After all, Su Wanyan never called for casual conversation. Every previous call had concerned either her older sister Mo Xingxue or business. The second possibility made Mo Fangyue shudder. She had only just finished one proposal; the thought of another already felt like a nightmare waiting to begin.

"Hello, Xiao Fang," Su Wanyan said, a quiet laugh coloring the greeting as she caught the reluctant tone. This is for all of us, Su Wanyan thought, remembering the brutal endings written for them in the original novel.

"Hello, Su Wanyan-jiejie," Mo Fangyue answered softly. It’s over, she told herself the moment she heard the opening "hello." In every previous call, that single word had signaled business, which always meant more late nights. Tears threatened at the corners of her eyes, yet she held them back. She needed to do this for her sister and her niece.

Her gaze drifted to the photograph of Mo Xingxue and Mo Yan that sat on her desk. The sight softened the strain in her expression. I was already an ass to them, she thought. The least I can do now is bring my jiejie back into the Mo family and register Mo Yan as an official member. A flicker of old regret passed through her eyes, then vanished when Su Wanyan’s next words reached her.

"A new company?" Mo Fangyue asked, intrigue cutting through the fatigue.

"Yeah, a new one," Su Wanyan replied. The faint sound of tapping fingers came through the line, matching the quickened beat of Mo Fangyue’s heart. "They’re looking for investors, and I’m aware that the Mo Company does that, yes?"

"Oh, yes. Yes, the Mo Company does invest," Mo Fangyue answered, nodding rapidly even though Su Wanyan could not see her.

Su Wanyan smiled and quietly sent the link to the advertisement she had seen earlier. "I sent it to you. Just take a look." A sudden bump in the road startled Mo Yan into crying. Su Wanyan’s smile turned wry. She hung up without waiting for a reply.

Mo Fangyue took no offense. She had heard her niece’s cry clearly and understood that Mo Yan came first. She’ll make a good in-law, Mo Fangyue thought with a small, private smile. The silly notion faded quickly as she shifted back into work mode and opened the link.

She read every line carefully, jotting down key details as she went. Five minutes later she finished the page and could not stop the bright smile that spread across her face. Her mind was already calculating the profit and prestige the investment would bring.

How does she keep finding these? Mo Fangyue wondered, then shook her head. She cracked her neck once more, stretched, and returned to typing a fresh proposal.

The office door opened. A beautiful woman with glasses and a cool expression entered, carrying a cup of coffee.

"Here’s your coffee, Young Lady," said Chen Yaoyuan, Mo Fangyue’s secretary.

Mo Fangyue did not look up. She simply nodded and held out one hand for the cup while the other continued typing.

"Thanks. You may leave."

Chen Yaoyuan bowed at a precise sixty degrees and stepped out quietly. Once outside the glass walls she remained standing for a full minute, eyes fixed on Mo Fangyue. Only after that long, silent look did she finally turn away, an unreadable expression lingering in her gaze.

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-

Y’all, is the format okie dokie to y’all? Also, I might reply tomorrow as it’s now current 12:50 AM and I have to wake up at 4 AM to prep for my class... sigh.