Chapter 1626 - 1624: Lives Past and Present 62
Chapter 1626: Chapter 1624: Lives Past and Present 62
Chapter 1624
"Your assistant is quite likable too!"
She then looked at the busy little assistant beside him.
"When she called me, her voice was so soft that I couldn’t help but want to hear it a few more times!"
Hearing herself being mentioned, Xia Ruqing suddenly looked up, meeting Lady Xu’s gaze.
The two women held each other’s gaze for a few seconds.
It was strange.
Though they had never met before, an inexplicable sense of familiarity surged in their hearts.
Both froze there simultaneously.
It was Xia Ruqing who reacted first. How could she have ever met someone like Lady Xu? It must be a mistake.
She quickly offered an apologetic smile.
"Lady Xu, you’re too kind. This is all part of my job!"
Xu Wanning was momentarily dazed, then shook her head with a smile and asked.
"What’s your name?"
Xia Ruqing glanced at Zhao Junyao, seeing no sign of disapproval, she answered gracefully.
"My name is Xia Ruqing. If Lady Xu doesn’t mind, you can call me Xia!"
Big bosses typically called their assistants like that.
With surnames Xiao Zhang and Xiao Li, she naturally became Xia.
Unexpectedly, Lady Xu seemed a bit surprised.
"Your surname is Xia?"
Coincidentally the same as her ex-husband.
Her daughter should be about this age now. If she were here, would she smile at her like this?
Probably not; she must hate her.
Seeing Lady Xu somewhat distracted, Xia Ruqing was confused.
"Madam? Is there a problem?"
Xu Wanning quickly adjusted her expression, replacing it with a graceful and elegant smile.
"Nothing, just suddenly thinking of an old friend!"
Oh... that’s not something she could respond to.
Xia Ruqing gracefully stepped aside.
Zhao Junyao casually chatted.
"Does Madam have an old friend?"
The tone was calm, like friends chatting.
Maybe because she felt connected to Zhao Junyao, Xu Wanning couldn’t help but open up.
She gave a bitter smile.
"It’s a long story. Years ago, I lost a daughter here!"
"I haven’t seen her in many years!"
Her expression was sad, her mouth bitter, and her eyes carried indescribable pain.
Zhao Junyao’s face grew solemn.
After a moment’s silence, he asked.
"Haven’t you searched? No leads from the police station?"
He had taken a long time to understand what a police station was, roughly equivalent to a government office in the Chu Dynasty.
When people were wronged, lost things, or threatened, they could go there for help.
So he naturally thought losing a child required the police’s help.
Lady Xu shook her head bitterly.
"No"
"I lost my child due to youthful foolishness!"
She bowed her head, eyes reddened, her voice slightly choked.
Xia Ruqing: "..."
What’s going on? Immediately her mind filled with a scenario: a young unmarried woman unexpectedly pregnant, abandoned by a scoundrel, unable to raise the child, forced to abandon it, and so on.
Indeed... these strong women, like ordinary ones, encounter scoundrels too!
She couldn’t fathom that she was the child this grieving woman spoke of.
If she knew...
Of course, there was no "if."
...
Lady Xu shed tears, Zhao Junyao timely handed over a handkerchief.
It was a precious silk handkerchief, embroidered with the finest crystal silk thread depicting Fish Playing with Lotus Leaves.
The handkerchief exuded refinement, the fish’s fins and tail, and floating water ripples were all semi-transparent, lifelike, making it irresistible.
No one knew which skilled artisan produced such a masterpiece, indeed, this era was more advanced than the Chu Dynasty.
Having liked it upon sight, he bid heavily for it at an auction, and carried it ever since.
Lady Xu stared at the handkerchief for a while, suddenly smiling.
"I didn’t know Mr. Zhao had such refined taste, enjoying embroidery!"
Zhao Junyao smiled gracefully.
"Madam is too kind. I just happened to come across it and bought it!"
"It’s new, never used!"
Just a handkerchief, Lady Xu chuckled and picked it up to inspect closely, feeling moved and marveling.
"Truly exquisite!"
The fish’s fins, the white veins on the lotus leaves, the transparent dewdrops, the water ripples, the tadpoles at the bottom, even the tadpoles’ eyes, all embroidered lifelike, like a painter’s brush strokes.
Every thread’s direction was soft and delicate, like the lines drawn by the most gifted artist, with great artistic impact.
"Turns out there’s such embroidery!"
"Mr. Zhao indeed has refined tastes; I’ve never seen anything like it! A real eye-opener today!"
Lady Xu exclaimed joyfully.
This was essentially a feminine item, Zhao Junyao simply found it intriguing, not intending to use it.
Seeing Lady Xu speak so, he generously said.
"Madam, feel free to use it if you like!"
"I, a man, have no use for this! I bought it just because it was interesting"
Xu Wanning laughed heartily.
"You’re quite generous!"
"It’s a rare piece of art!"
Zhao Junyao chuckled lightly.
"What difference does it make, in the end it’s just a handkerchief!"
Lady Xu was amused by him, laughingly said.
"Alright, if you’re willing to part with it, I’ll take it!"
Saying so, she turned around and took out a delicate box from her bag.
"As the saying goes, courtesy demands reciprocity. If Mr. Zhao doesn’t mind, shall I give you this sapphire ring as a return gift?"
She opened the box.
"I got this from an auction too; I liked it, but unfortunately, the design is too large to wear!"
Zhao Junyao accepted it graciously, complimented it a bit and expressed his thanks.
Exchanging gifts fulfilled the etiquette.
They chatted for a while, having a pleasant conversation.
Although the meal didn’t conclude any business, it significantly enhanced their rapport.
Zhao Junyao felt he hadn’t left empty-handed.
...
After the meal, Zhao Junyao escorted Lady Xu to her car and left with Xia Ruqing.
On the way back, Xia Ruqing murmured in puzzlement.
"Not sure what Lady Xu really meant!"
"I have a feeling she doesn’t want to cooperate with us!"
Zhao Junyao’s lips curled slightly.
"Business and personal interactions are two separate things!"
"Business is about benefits, personal interaction is about interest! They don’t really conflict!"
Xia Ruqing pursed her lips, leaning back and sighed.
"Sigh, negotiating business is exhausting. This one client dragged on for six months!"
Zhao Junyao chuckled lightly.
"Hasty attempts won’t boil the tofu fast!"
"Being too eager sometimes leads to failure!"
"In fact, fate is still quite favorable to us!"
Xia Ruqing immediately turned her head upon hearing this.
"What do you mean?"
Zhao Junyao smiled silently.
"Tell me, tell me!"
Pestered by her, Zhao Junyao finally spoke.
"What if we helped her find her daughter?"