With Xu Tingsheng’s mentality, he would avoid offending anybody as much as possible unless it was absolutely necessary.

  He saw Mr and Mrs Xiang leaving with the official contract in hand through the surveillance. The matter had been settled successfully.

  Xu Tingsheng then patiently explained and clarified things to the infuriated, tyrannical daughter of the city’s deputy mayor. He said that with how Zhicheng was a new real estate company and how this lucky draw was something which so many people were paying attention to, there really wasn’t anything that he could do at all.

  At the same time, he also promised her that the villas from Ning Garden’s second phase of flats would definitely not be sold before she had first taken a look at them, regardless of whoever the other party might be. He had given her enough to satisfy her bruised ego with that.

  With that, along with Chen Jianxing’s efforts in helping him to persuade her, the rich lady finally accepted his offer, albeit rather grudgingly.

  He personally walked them out of his office.

  Chen Jianxing turned and exchanged glances with Xu Tingsheng, smiling.

  Ning Garden’s second phase of flats would be coming in 2007 at the very earliest. At that time, this would probably have nothing at all to do with that rich woman anymore.

  Therefore, Xu Tingsheng was actually not conflicted about this. What really caused him to feel somewhat conflicted was the current condition of Chen Jianxing, as well as that mother and daughter pair whom he had seen in that alley then and how they might presently be doing……

  Amidst his hatred, even as he was resolved to sacrifice himself, was it really worth it?

  By what benchmark could one judge that it was so?

  Xu Tingsheng knew Chen Jianxing’s home address. In the afternoon, he unconsciously drove to the vicinity of that district without realising it and parked there for a time. Chen Jianxing’s ex-wife rode by his car on a bicycle with simple clothes and dishevelled hair, her face expressionless……

  Only when the little girl on the backseat called ‘Mum’ did she turn back, a smile appearing on her face.

  Chen Jianxing had previously requested that Xu Tingsheng help him protect this mother and daughter during that torrential storm that was to come in the future……

  Mr and Mrs Xiang got home to find Little Xiang Ning watching a television drama in the living room.

  “Mum, Dad……”


  Xiang Ning had actually been in a great mood as she leapt up rather joyfully, about to ask her parents if they had already bought the big flat. Still, as soon as she drew near, seeing that the two of them had rather unhappy looks on their faces, she did not speak further, just trailing off.

  “Little Ning……” Mrs Xiang sat down, speaking in a rather dismal tone.

  “Yes, what is it, Mum?” Little Xiang Ning asked.

  “Oh, we didn’t manage to buy the flat,” Mrs Xiang said.

  “Huh? Why?” Little Xiang Ning asked.

  “Little Ning, tell Mum where exactly you got that lucky draw ticket, okay? When we went over today, they said that they checked and found out that our ticket was invalid. So, they couldn’t sell that flat to us at half-price anymore.”


  If Little Xiang Ning had been a bit older and more experienced with the ways of the world, she would find that there were actually many discrepancies in Mrs Xiang’s statement. For example, the lucky draw ticket had actually been checked on the spot and then taken back. What Mrs Xiang had returned with was the letter of attorney. And how was it possible that that was invalid?

  Yet, she was still young, and definitely would not have imagined that even her own parents might be intentionally setting her up like this.

  “But that’s impossible! How could that be?……” Little Xiang Ning became distressed.

  “Did you really draw it out of that lucky draw box?” Mr Xiang pressed.

  “I……yes, I did. Uh, I’m going back to my room for a bit.”


  Little Xiang Ning went to her room upstairs.

  Mr and Mrs Xiang exchanged looks, knowing that their suspicion was definitely not far from the truth.

  Xu Tingsheng received a call from Little Xiang Ning, who urgently explained how her Mum and Dad had told her that they hadn’t been able to buy the flat as something had come up with the lucky draw ticket……he immediately realised what was up as he decisively told her, “Xiang Ning, hang up the phone. Just ignore their words.”


  But it was already too late.

  On the second floor of the Xiang family home, having secretly followed Little Xiang Ning up and hidden outside her door earlier, Mr and Mrs Xiang now pushed it open and came into her room……

  “Oh, so you were actually cheating me just now? How could you do that?”


  Sitting on a small stool in the living room, Little Xiang Ning who was the one being interrogated made the preemptive strike, expressing her immense dissatisfaction towards her parents actually fooling her in such a morally questionable manner.

  “You, and you’re even questioning us now?” A rather emotional Mrs Xiang rebutted.

  “Of course! You’re the ones who cheated me,” Little Xiang Ning declared with firm conviction.

  If this had been any other time, Mr or Mrs Xiang might be amused, smiling wryly at this. Still, it was different today. Whether it was from the standpoint of their pride or their wariness, their mood and their thoughts were not in a good spot at all right now.

  “Give me your handphone,” Mrs Xiang said.

  Seeing her mother’s fierce expression, Little Xiang Ning felt rather fearful. Yet, she still shook her head stubbornly and brought her hand behind her back.

  “Will you hand it over or not?” Mrs Xiang hollered.

  “Sob……” Tears gushed down Little Xiang Ning’s face as she bit her lip, continuing to shake her head.

  “It’s looks like I’ve been spoiling you too much……” Mrs Xiang raged.

  She shot up to her feet and lunged over, pulling Little Xiang Ning’s arm as she tried to wrest her phone away. Little Xiang Ning was crying as she got up, attempting to stay out of her grasp. Mrs Xiang grabbed her wrist with one hand while trying to wrest the phone away with the other……

  “It hurts……” Little Xiang Ning yelled.

  Mrs Xiang halted momentarily but still refused to let go. As the two struggled with all their might, the phone slipped out of Xiang Ning’s grasp and flew……

  Crack!

  The flipscreen phone landed on the ground, the screen and keypad immediately breaking apart.

  Little Xiang Ning crouched down on the ground, crying as she gripped the two halves of her tragically broken phone.

  Mrs Xiang’s eyes were reddened too as she turned rather awkwardly to look at Mr Xiang.

  “I, I’m afraid of you getting cheated. You’re still little, you know?” Mrs Xiang ventured guiltily.

  “Is that also what Grandma told you last time?” Xiang Ning continued rebutting her mother even as she still sobbed.

  Xiang Ning did actually have a very magnanimous, forgiving side towards the mistakes of others. She also had a shameless side as she would be willing to ingratiate herself and try to remedy things after having done something wrong. Still, if she felt that she had been wronged, having done nothing wrong, she could be very stubborn as well.

  “You……” An infuriated Mrs Xiang was almost leaping up in rage.

  Fearing that his wife might really use force against their daughter, Mr Xiang hurriedly pulled her back, consoling her and getting her to sit down. Next, this ‘devious mastermind’ who was the one behind them plotting against their own daughter personally entered the fray……

  “No matter what, Little Ning, you’re still young. Mum and Dad will surely worry and want to get to the bottom of things……right?” Mr Xiang ventured very tactfully.

  Little Xiang Ning sniffed, not saying anything.

  “Let me ask you then. So, the lucky draw ticket was given to you by Xu Tingsheng, right?” That Ning Garden was also built by him, right?” Mr Xiang asked.

  “Well……what’s wrong with that anyway?” Little Xiang Ning retorted in what was basically equivalent to an admission.

  Mr and Mrs Xiang had actually already come to this conclusion earlier, just that they could only be a hundred percent certain of it now. Still, seeing her daughter’s rebellious expression and tone, Mrs Xiang’s temper flared up again.

  She burst out chastising, “What’s wrong with that? What’s not wrong with that? Is he trying to show off that he’s rich? Does he want to exchange a flat for my daughter? You, do you think that you’re just worth a single flat?”


  Frowning, Mr Xiang spoke gently, “That’s going too far, Youmei.”


  Little Xiang Ning’s eyes were blurry with tears as she looked as her parents and declared, “The two of you, you’re too much! You’re big bullies, treating Xu Tingsheng like this. He’s so great, there’s no one else who can bully him. But however the two of you bully him, he just takes it all, even having to try to get on your good side……”


  Mr and Mrs Xiang said nothing.

  “Just because he wants to be good to me, he has to suffer so.”