Lonelytree

  Millman97

  Once Ye Shuang finished, Su Zheng instantly looked at him with a complicated expression. “Big brother, just say what’s on your mind.”


  Brother Shuang smiled and stopped talking in circles. He pointed at the second floor. “It just so happens that Xia Cheng lives so close.”


  He then pointed at the door, “And no one else is around.”


  Finally, he pointed at Su Zheng. “And we also happen to have a professional with us.”


  Brother Shuang leaned his upper body forward and said in a seductive voice, “Xiao Su, it is time for the organization to test your ability.”


  Su Zheng had been in this business for so many years, and this was the first time that she had felt so uncomfortable during her mission. Could this really be called stealing? The owner did not have any caution against her, and it felt like it had lowered her standard!……

  Even though she was rather dispirited, Su Zheng still went up to the second floor. There was no hair or broken pieces of paper left behind when she unlocked the door. There was no dust on the ground, the luggage was strewn all over the place, and even the windows in Xia Cheng’s room were not closed. Even if there were no other people entering the room, this kind of set-up would cause the scene to be disturbed easily……

  Although she was already bored, Su Zheng’s boredom was increased another twenty percent. She lost even the self-awareness that she was a professional thief. She yawned and walked toward Xia Cheng’s luggage. She turned the look toward the sun and went through the tedium of following the turn of the gears as she tried to crack the lock…… Due to the reflection of the light, she could see the inside of the suitcase’s lock perfectly.

  “See, I told you there’s nothing worth stealing,” Su Zheng grumbled. “Xia Cheng has already fallen once in Shanghai under the cruelty of Lin Chen. With just one order, he was kicked out of the company without being given the chance to take his luggage and personal effects…… Even if he had anything important, it was probably left behind with that luggage.”


  The items that Xia Cheng had left behind in Shanghai had been seized by Lin Chen. After Lin Chen’s people had removed all the business information related to Tian Wang Media, Lin Chen had followed his promise and had his assistant call Ye Shuang. Then, Ye Shuang had informed Anthony. Since Anthony could leave San Lin City and Lin Chen had removed all the online trace, he would have to go personally to Shanghai during his holiday. The time was not too late. Ye Shuang would get the result once she returned from France.

  Brother Shuang hugged his arms and stood by the door. While she focused on the noises outside of the house, she smiled. “It’ll feel better after we give his place a thorough check. Xia Cheng wouldn’t have stayed alone simply because he has some cleanliness demands, right? Even if there’s nothing suspicious about his luggage, we could use this opportunity to plant a Trojan virus inside his laptop.”


  “But I don’t know how to do something like that.” Su Zheng opened another suitcase and sifted through it professionally. She closed it again. “This is perfectly fine.”


  Ye Shuang lifted her chin to point at the table. “Then plant the virus. See whether he’s connected to the internet or not. If he is, download QQ to contact Ol’ K……”


  With a pout, Su Zheng obliged. Su Zheng and Ye Shuang were quite lucky—they were not disturbed throughout the whole process. It was not until they were done with everything that the sound of a car came from outside.

  Su Zheng immediately retreated from the scene. When she closed the door to Xia Cheng’s room, Karen and the two walked into the room, each holding a paper bag. They saw Su Zheng and Brother Shuang walk down from the second floor.

  “Oh……” Karen was first surprised, and then her curious gaze landed on the top two buttons that had gone loose on Su Zheng’s shirt. Her surprise turned into understanding, and she smiled. “I have no idea Easterners are so romantic as well.”


  Su Zheng was totally confused, not only because she did not understand the joke but mainly because she did not understand French. Qiu Yu lifted her eyes to scan the two and turned her face away without translating.

  Ye Shuang smiled calmly. “There’s been a misunderstanding, Madam.”


  “It’s okay, I understand. There’s no need for you to explain.” Karen smiled even kinder, with a look of understanding. “Don’t worry, your secret’s safe with me.”


  She turned to say something and then led Rong Su and Qiu Yu into the kitchen. Su Zheng then realized that her two buttons had come undone. She jumped with shock and grumbled, “Why are my buttons opened?”


  Then it hit her. She looked at Ye Shuang with tears. “Big Brother, how did you manage to move so fast?”


  Ye Shuang coughed and turned away. “Let’s go and help. It’s not good for us to make the hostess work.”


  “Don’t change the subject!”


  Ye Shuang then realized how inappropriate it was. Even though it was something that she had done to avoid suspicion, Su Zheng was still a girl. To avoid the awkwardness, Ye Shuang quickly escaped into the kitchen under the pretext that he wanted to help.

  “How about beef with white sauce?” Even though Karen admired Ye Shuang’s looks, at her age, looking at Ye Shuang was like looking at her son. As much as she adored him, it was like an adoration for the younger generation. So, when she saw Ye Shuang walk into the kitchen, she greeted him like a kind adult and did not insist on chasing him out. “Your countrymen seem to prefer a taste that is saltier and spicier, but since you’re in France, of course, you have to try some local dishes…… This white sauce is not bad—it’s thick and milky. How about we try that tonight?”


  “It’s great, I’m not a picky eater.” Ye Shuang accepted the hostess’ recommendation. She looked at the other ingredients on the counter and picked up a carrot. “Will there be a vegetable stew as well?”


  “Oh, I plan to make a salad because Xia Cheng doesn’t seem to be able to accept the local taste…… Of course, feel free to do any other recipe you want with it.”
……

  Ye Shuang and Karen had an enjoyable conversation in the kitchen. The women who sat in the living room were shocked. They thought that he was in there to get closer to the hostess, but ten minutes later, they realized that the man was really there to help.

  Even though there was no talk of knife skill in France, the skill shown by Ye Shuang impressed all the ladies, including Karen. Furthermore, after witnessing the way that he managed to expertly toss the pan around with the food flipping gracefully in the air without spilling out, even Karen could not help but ask how to do something like that. Karen had initially just been polite, so she was surprised that Ye Shuang easily made five dishes. Following the local taste palette, they were not overly seasoned, but they smelled amazing.

  The girls in the living room were stunned, and they looked at each other with shame.

  “As a girl, I’ve lost at something like this,” Su Zheng said with tears in her eyes.

  Rong Su claimed excitedly, “Brother Ye is good at everything!”


  “Hmm……” Qiu Yu murmured.

  When Xia Cheng returned, he saw three girls clogging up the door to the kitchen. Even Karen had also stopped and started to observe after she finished her stew beef.

  “What’s going on?” After a three second silence, Xia Cheng walked over with this question. Rong Su turned back, and when she saw Xia Cheng, she smiled politely.

  “Hello, Mr. Xia. We’re watching Brother Ye cook.”


  “Dinner’s ready.” Ye Shuang put the last dish in the plate. He removed the apron and asked, “Who can help serve the dishes?”


  The group of embarrassed girls volunteered. If they did not do anything, it would feel like they were quite useless. Xia Cheng looked at the excited expression on Karen and the girls, and he felt speechless.

  The door swung open, and the women filed out with the plates of food. After the scene was cleared, Xia Cheng looked at Ye Shuang and forced a smile. “Mr. Ye, you’ve come to France as well. This is such a coincidence…… Hmm, I’m surprised you also know how to cook.”


  Ye Shuang knew that she was not welcomed by Xia Cheng. Furthermore, there was his failure back in Shanghai. Outsiders would not know about his black history, but Ye Shuang knew. So, to preserve his face, Xia Cheng did not want to see other people from China…… However, as much as Ye Shuang pitied Xia Cheng, her ultimate goal was to block Xia Cheng, so how could she be absent?

  Ye Shuang smiled at the compliment. She said something that could be easily misunderstood. “Her brother and myself were a bit worried that Xiao Su coming overseas alone. Mr. Qian is a bit busy with work, so I came to accompany her. Of course, it’s mainly because I’m also on my holiday, and it’s fun coming to France to unwind.”


  “Xia, come and try Ye’s cooking,” Karen said with good cheer from the dining room. “It’s marvelous.”


  Rong Su and Su Zheng’s compliments and praises followed, “Yes, it’s amazing, Brother Ye!”


  “Definitely!”


  Speechless, Ye Shuang and Xia Cheng could not say anything. He looked at Ye Shuang with particularly complicated emotions and left the kitchen unwillingly.

  This was the first time that everyone was there. Brother Shuang, who looked good and could cook so well, had a landslide victory—it felt like Xia Cheng was not even there.

  “This is stir-fried sliced vegetables…… It’s actually just cutting vegetables into small slices and then cooked. It’s very simple.” Su Zheng used her chopsticks to go through the dishes for Karen. “That is a prawn dish, but the sauce has been changed by Brother Shuang to white sauce. They complement each other surprisingly well, and then……”


  Karen took several bites and nodded. Her eyes were shining.

  Ye Shuang also entered the room and then saw that the dining table had already been half emptied. She looked at the girls and could not help but comment, “Mrs. Karen, don’t we need to wait for your husband and son to return first?”


  Karen froze and turned back with a shocked expression. She had completely forgotten about that!

  Ye Shuang sighed. “Shall I go and cook a few more dishes?”


  Karen wiped at her lips in embarrassment. “It’s alright. You should stay and chat.”