Chapter 29 Being Difficult

The Xia couple couldn’t bear to see their children suffer, especially not wanting Xia Yuan to endure hardship.

They worked so hard to earn money, hoping to save enough for Xia Yuan to buy a house and a car. They didn’t need to become wealthy, but at least they wanted her to live without worries.

Xia Yuan had to make up an excuse about going to the library to write her thesis, while in reality, she was working at the French restaurant.

From three to seven in the afternoon, it was the employees’ break time, and Manager Sun treated everyone to afternoon tea out of his own pocket.

Manager Sun said, “This week’s sales are equivalent to what we usually make in half a month, and it’s all thanks to Yuan Yuan!”

Xia Yuan was caught off guard by the mention, laughing, “I’m not in sales; how could I possibly influence our restaurant’s revenue?”

The barista chimed in, “But I’ve noticed that we have many repeat customers who come for all three meals just to get your attention.”

Having worked from a young age and learned from being around Qin Mohuai, Xia Yuan was no longer the little girl who would feel flustered after a few teasing remarks.

Her delicate, fair fingers held the teacup as she took a light sip, responding with ease, “Unfortunately, the foreigners don’t tip very much. Otherwise, I could earn a nice bonus from their generous tips.”

Since Chinese people generally didn’t tip, after working for so many days, she had only received four or five tips from foreigners.

Xia Yuan was beautiful, with smooth, fair skin that looked like it had been meticulously cared for, exuding an elegant and poised demeanor. She was completely unfazed by the playful banter from her coworkers.

As a result, the staff at the French restaurant didn’t make things difficult for her. They assumed she was a rich girl there to experience life and would eventually return to inherit her family’s wealth, so there was no conflict of interest.

At seven in the evening, the French restaurant opened for business.

As soon as Song Cien entered, she spotted Xia Yuan carrying a tray and her eyes lit up. She grasped Ouyang Jing’s arm.

“Look, isn’t that Xia Yuan? Let’s go see! She’s actually serving here. She must have been dumped by Prince Qin!”

Ouyang Jing replied calmly, “Xia Yuan has been with Qin Mohuai for a long time. I’m the one who interrupted their relationship. Qin Mohuai does have some genuine feelings for Xia Yuan; if he could casually abandon her, how would he treat someone he feels nothing for, like me?”

“Don’t you think Qin Mohuai is a scary man? When he loves you, you’re like the moon in the sky. When he doesn’t love you, you’re just mud under his feet.”

Song Cien felt a bit dizzy and tried to organize her thoughts, saying, “You’re going to be the eldest grandson’s wife of the Qin family; he would never treat you casually! Xia Yuan is just a pretty toy; if Qin Mohuai wants to play with her, he will, and if he wants to throw her away, he will too. You can’t possibly feel sorry for Xia Yuan, can you? Jingjing, you’re so silly; she’s the one stealing your man!”

“Those who are pitiful must also have something to hate about them! A month ago, you were Qin Mohuai’s fiancée. Xia Yuan should have known her place and left him voluntarily instead of being delusional about becoming the eldest grandson’s wife of the Qin family. Her downfall to this state is the result of her greed! If you don’t want to confront her, I’ll take it upon myself to vent your frustration!”

—

Ouyang Jing couldn’t stop Song Cien, and the two of them sat down in Xia Yuan’s designated area.

Seeing Ouyang Jing, Xia Yuan maintained her smile and took their orders.

After ordering the appetizers, main courses, and desserts, Song Cien also ordered a bottle of 1978 Romanée-Conti red wine, valued at 250,000 yuan.

Song Cien was a petite beauty with an oval face and dimples that gave her a harmless, girl-next-door vibe.

“I like to drink red wine before the meal, so please bring it out quickly,” she said.

Xia Yuan replied, “Sure, please wait a moment, ladies.”

Upon hearing Ouyang Jing call her Cien, Xia Yuan remembered who Song Cien was—the supporting character in the original story.

Both the Song and Ouyang families had fallen from grace and faced similar struggles, which led to their close friendship. However, after Ouyang Jing got together with Qin Mohuai, her family leveraged the Qin family’s influence to regain their standing in high society.

In contrast, the Song family faced bankruptcy due to a lack of funds and debts, leaving Song Cien in a difficult position. She sought help from Ouyang Jing, but what could Ouyang Jing do to save the Song family? She would still have to seek help from Qin Mohuai.

Ouyang Jing was proud and refused to bow to Qin Mohuai for her own sake, let alone for her friend’s. In the end, the Song family went bankrupt, and Song Cien returned to her hometown in the northwest with her parents.

Unable to bear the drop in status, Song Cien secretly came to Xiangzhou to borrow hundreds of thousands from Ouyang Jing, hoping to start her own business. However, Ouyang Jing didn’t have that much money and was unwilling to ask Qin Mohuai for help. She advised Song Cien to start from scratch and then drove away in her Maybach.

As the saying goes, true feelings are revealed in times of hardship. Song Cien didn’t expect her good friend to be hypocritical and genuinely cold-hearted. In a moment of desperation, she kidnapped Ouyang Jing, but of course, Ouyang Jing emerged unscathed, while Song Cien was shot by the SWAT team.

Xia Yuan retrieved the red wine and had just placed the Romanée-Conti bottle on the table. Just as she was about to pick up the decanter to aerate the wine for the guests, she saw Song Cien move her finger and push the Romanée-Conti off the table.

“What are you doing?” Xia Yuan exclaimed.

The sound of the wine bottle shattering on the ground was considered noise in the otherwise quiet French restaurant, successfully drawing Manager Sun’s attention.

Manager Sun approached, his heart aching at the sight of the shattered wine on the floor, but he maintained a composed smile. “What happened?”

Song Cien replied impatiently, “I ordered a bottle of Romanée-Conti worth 250,000 yuan, and she smashed it on the floor without me taking a sip.”

Xia Yuan calmly responded, “I didn’t break it. I placed the wine on the table, and she deliberately pushed it off. You can check the surveillance footage for details.”

Manager Sun looked around, and unfortunately, this area was a blind spot for the cameras!

Song Cien sneered, “Breaking an expensive bottle of wine and then lying to shift the blame…”

—

“Guests! How can you allow such a server in a high-end restaurant? Manager Sun, you probably don’t know the background of Xia Yuan. She’s just a shameless woman who specializes in seducing men!”

Manager Sun was at a loss for words and could only ask Xia Yuan to clean up the floor.

At that moment, Qin Mohuai arrived at the French restaurant, guided by the location from his Patek Philippe watch.

As soon as he entered, he saw his wife squatting on the ground, looking aggrieved as she picked up shards of glass, while Song Cien stood nearby with an arrogant demeanor.

Qin Mohuai’s gaze darkened as he strode over and grabbed Xia Yuan’s wrist.

“You don’t want to enjoy life at home; instead, you come here to play with broken glass, huh?” His expression was almost a twisted smile, his heart torn between anger and concern.

Xia Yuan had known that Qin Mohuai was back in the country but hadn’t expected to run into him in such a humiliating situation. She obediently let him pull her away, not daring to resist.

Two bodyguards in black entered the restaurant, one handing a check to Manager Sun while the other stuffed shards of glass into Song Cien’s mouth.

“Miss Song, if you swallow it, you’ll die. If you spit it out, the Song family will perish. You decide.”

Song Cien’s face contorted in pain.

Ouyang Jing’s complexion turned pale. “Did you misunderstand something?”

The cold-faced bodyguard looked at her. “Miss Ouyang, Mr. Qin will settle this score with you later.”

—

The Maybach didn’t return to Shenghai Manor but stopped outside the Xia family’s building.

Xia Yuan felt a sense of foreboding.

With her parents working outside and Xia Yuzhe missing, only Qin Mohuai and Xia Yuan were left at home.

He held her delicate wrist and walked into her room, locking the door behind him.

“Qin, Qin Mohuai, what are you going to do?” Her soft voice trembled uncontrollably.

“You’ve been wild outside for so many days, and you don’t even call me your husband anymore?”

His long, defined fingers pulled at his tie, and his gray-blue hair couldn’t hide the cold, fierce look in his eyes; he looked as if he was about to go mad.

Qin Mohuai was reluctant to hurt Xia Yuan, but that didn’t mean he would show her tenderness in bed.

Xia Yuan’s waist was fair and delicate, and the black and white, austere uniform clung to her slender waist. Since being with Qin Mohuai, her waist had become less flexible—not due to excessive work, but because of overexertion.

After finally being apart for seven or eight days to recuperate, she found herself tired again from working, as if she couldn’t handle even a little hardship now. Her hips were plump, her waist slim, and her body had become dependent on Qin Mohuai.

She had to do something to save her waist.

Xia Yuan raised her hand and slapped Qin Mohuai, her beautiful eyes reddening. “It’s all your fault! How can you have the face to be angry at me!”

—