Chapter 3
Whether Had Checked Her Background
That person was also looking at her.
He was about 1.85 meters tall, with a cold, handsome face and sharp eyes.
This was Jiang Cheng, the young master of the Jiang family. He was 24 years old and had already taken over the Jiang family’s business in Sea City. He was the legitimate leader of the Jiang family in Sea City.
All of this was mentioned by Old Madame Jiang and Shi Yan during their conversation on the phone.
Shi Yan put down her teacup and stood up. She smiled, then nodded, “Hello, I’m Shi Yan. Sorry to bother you.”
Jiang Sheng looked at her and retracted his gaze. He walked in and said, “Miss Shi. Hello, I’m Jiang Sheng.”
He didn’t intend to shake her hand or greet her. He only nodded his head slightly, his expression indeed very cold.
Perhaps it was because someone had warned her in advance, or perhaps it was because Shi Yan didn’t care, but her expression didn’t change at all. There was still a decent smile on her face. She greeted him again, “Young Master Jiang.”
Jiang Cheng’s gaze fell on her face once again.
However, he only paused for a few seconds before he shifted his gaze away. It was as if he was curious about her bearing, which did not seem like that of a country bumpkin, but he did not intend to probe further.
“Miss Shi, you’re too kind. You’re Grandmother’s guest.”
He implied that he was not disturbing her.
“Miss Shi, please take a seat.”
Shi Yan sat down, and Jiang Cheng sat down on another sofa.
“The family members aren’t at the old residence, so they’re being neglectful. Grandma and my sister went to visit an old friend who is sick, and they won’t be back for at least three days. I’m busy with work, so I’m afraid I won’t be able to receive Miss Shi personally. If Miss Shi needs anything, just look for the butler, Uncle Hai, and he’ll make the necessary arrangements.”
Jiang Sheng was polite, but he was also cold.
However, the family members weren’t at the old residence? Didn’t they say that there was another master five?
Shi Yan did not ask any further.
She smiled and replied, “Okay.”
She did not say anything else, but he reminded her to look for the butler, Uncle Hai, if she needed anything.
Jiang Sheng glanced at the old zhong on the wall and said, “Dinner is usually at 6:30 pm. There’s still about half an hour left. Miss Shi, please sit here for a while. I have something to take care of in the study.”
“Young Master Jiang, go and do what you need to do. Don’t worry about me.”
Jiang Cheng nodded and got up, but he didn’t leave immediately. Instead, he called a passing servant and said, “Go and call uncle Hai over to have dinner together.”
“Yes, Young Master.”
Jiang Hai usually didn’t come over to have dinner together.
Although the servant was suspicious, she didn’t ask any more questions.
However, hearing Jiang Cheng’s instructions, Shi Yan once again lamented that the Jiang family of Sea City was meticulous and considerate in their work.
There was no one else in the Jiang family’s old mansion, and the fifth master of the Jiang family didn’t go out often. It was indeed a little inappropriate for her and young master Jiang to be the only ones having dinner later. However, it was her first time visiting, and they had met and greeted each other in the main building. It would be rude of young master Jiang to leave her alone for dinner.
It wouldn’t be inappropriate or rude to call the housekeeper, Jiang Hai, along with her.
Half an hour passed very quickly.
In the dining room on the second floor of the main building, the dining room was very big. There were five solid wooden tables, and they were seated at the main table.
“Please take a seat, Miss Shi,” Jiang Hai smiled kindly.
Shi Yan thanked him and took her seat.
“I only heard from Old Madame Jiang that Miss Shi doesn’t mind eating. I don’t know exactly what Miss Shi likes to eat, so I asked the kitchen to prepare something. If Miss Shi has anything you want to eat, just tell Little Zhao and she will tell the kitchen tomorrow.”
Shi Yan replied with a faint smile, “Okay. Thank you, Uncle Hai.”
Jiang Hai poured a glass of red wine for Jiang Cheng and half a glass of white wine for himself. He then asked Shi Yan, “Miss Shi, do you want to drink?”
“I’m fine, thank you.”
Jiang Hai was the one who served the entire meal. Other than saying “Please” to Shi Yan at the beginning of the meal, Jiang Cheng did not speak the entire time. His expression was cold and solemn, and his aura was a little oppressive.
If it were any other young lady who had just met him for the first time, how could she be so calm and eat with him at the same table?
Yet, Shi Yan had done so.
This not only made Jiang Hai look at her, but it also made Jiang Sheng look at her slightly.
In fact, he looked at her a few more times.
After dinner, Shi Yan left the main building and returned to the courtyard that Old Madame Jiang had arranged for her. It took more than ten minutes to walk from the main building to the courtyard, which saved her the time it would take to take a walk after dinner. When she returned, she went straight into the study room and took a book from the bookshelf that Old Madame Jiang had prepared for her.
After she left, Jiang Hai, who was accompanying Jiang Cheng for a walk after dinner in the courtyard, began to talk about her.
“This Miss Shi Yan is quite different from what I imagined.”
Jiang Cheng did not respond to his words.
Jiang Hai seemed to have gotten used to this, continuing, “When I heard Old Madame Jiang mention her in the past, I always thought that she was just an obedient country child. She must have had a simple and honest aura about her, but I feel that Miss Shi is completely different.
“I personally led Miss Shi into the house this afternoon. The Jiang family’s mansion can be considered one of the best manors in Sea City. However, from the beginning to the end, there was not even the slightest change in Miss Shi’s expression. It was not that Miss Shi was acting like she had never seen the world before. However, she was really too calm. It was as if in her eyes, the Jiang family’s mansion was no different from the earthen walls and tile-roofed houses in her house.”
Jiang Sheng paused his footsteps and glanced at him.
This was a rare response, which meant that he was a little interested in this topic.
Jiang Hai continued, “Of course, it’s possible that this is because of her upbringing. After all, there’s no rule that children from the countryside can’t have an upbringing.
“It’s just that this is the first time I’ve met a young lady who can eat with a young master on their first meeting and still maintain such a calm expression.”
Not to mention the young master’s cold face. Even he, who was over 50 years old, was afraid when he looked at it. With the young master’s overly outstanding appearance, what young lady would not be shy when she first saw him?
However, Miss Shi was not affected by him at all.
This was not something that could be achieved with good manners.
“Also, Miss Shi’s temperament… She doesn’t deliberately disguise it. Her every move gives people the feeling of a lady from a well-off family.
“If Miss Shi had been born into a family with some background, it would be understandable that she would have such a temperament. Yet, she comes from an ordinary peasant family. She was an orphan who grew up with just her grandmother. After her grandmother passed away, she lived alone for six years.”
Jiang Cheng could think of anything that Jiang Hai could think of. However, before Jiang Hai mentioned it, Jiang Cheng’s thoughts were elsewhere, so he didn’t think too much about Shi Yan.
Hearing this, he asked Jiang Hai, “What do you want to say?”
“I don’t want to say anything. I’m just lamenting.”
Jiang Sheng frowned, “Uncle Hai.”
Jiang Hai was intimidated by his gaze, so he quickly said, “Alright, I actually wanted to ask the young master if you need to carefully investigate Miss Shi’s background.
“When I thought about how she was Old Madame Jiang’s savior and how Old Madame Jiang had to invite her over several times to be a guest, coupled with the fact that she was younger than young miss by a month, she was just a child in my eyes. Suspecting a child like this seems to be making a mountain out of a molehill, so I hesitated…”
“But eldest young master, the Jiang family in Sea City is not an ordinary family after all. You must not have the intention to harm others, and you must also have the intention to guard against others.”