Atlas Studios

  Atlas Studios

  Her appearance was no longer youthful. Her face used to be tender and beautiful, but these past few years had been hard on her, and she now had wrinkles on her face.

  “Okay……” she softly agreed. She clasped her hands together and hid the bone-deep sorrow she felt.

  She bit down on her lower lip and then smiled at Zhang Manhua, asking curiously, “Mom, where do you want to go?”


  “I…… I want to visit the place we used to live……” A nostalgic look appeared on her mother’s face.

  Pei Ge felt her nose tingle again.

  “Mhm, then let’s go there today. I’ll accompany you.” She smiled widely at her mother.

  Zhang Manhua’s sadness lessened a lot upon seeing her daughter’s vibrant smile. With a gentle smile, she agreed, “Mhm-okay. Let’s go there.”


  The mother-daughter pair finished their breakfast and then discussed about their plan to go out later while they cleaned up the table.

  Meanwhile, another mother-daughter pair was also chatting over their meal.

  “Shishi, you don’t know what a terrible life your big auntie has!” Liu Yan chattered away while having her congee.

  While her voice had a tinge of pity, it was evident that she only wanted to be an onlooker in this affair.

  “Hm?” Pei Shishi, who was having congee as well, was slightly shocked by her mother’s mention of Zhang Manhua.

  “Ge Ge came over to borrow money from us yesterday, saying that your big auntie has cancer.” Her mother laughed.

  She was instantly stunned by this piece of news.

  “Big auntie has cancer?!” When she regained her senses again, she turned to look at her mother in disbelief.

  “That’s right! Your big auntie has cancer. I said this before; Pei Ge, that lass, is a jinx. She jinxed your big uncle to death, and now, it’s your big auntie’s turn,” Liu Yan lamented while shaking her head.

  Pei Shishi would usually rebuke her mother when she talked like this, but she strangely remained quiet today.

  “Did you lend Ge Ge money, then?” she asked softly after a long while.

  “Lend money? We wanted to at first, but that damn lass shouted at us and then ran off.” Her mother’s words were tinged with rage.

  That lass clearly came to borrow money from them, yet she dared to be arrogant and stubborn in front of them!

  “Does that mean you didn’t lend her any?” Pei Shishi frowned.

  “That’s right. Your dad was furious because of your cousin last night,” Liu Yan shared.

  “Your dad has made his stance clear; we will only lend your cousin money if she lowers her head.”


  Pei Shishi gave up on speaking when she heard this.

  “I’m full.” She put down her spoon and stood up.

  “Huh? There’s still a lot left. Have some more,” her mother urged upon noticing her half-full bowl of congee.

  She refused with a shake of her head, “I have something to discuss with dad.”


  With that, she left the dining room and made a beeline for the study room on the second floor.

  Her father would usually read the newspaper in the study room first thing in the morning.

  She rapped her knuckles on the study room’s door.

  “Come in,” Pei Zhenghui’s voice was heard from within.

  She opened the door and entered the room. As expected, her father, who was sitting in a wooden chair by the floor-to-ceiling window, was indeed reading a newspaper.

  “Dad,” she called.

  “Oh, Shishi.” He put down the newspaper in his hand and looked at his daughter. “Is something the matter?”


  “Mhm.” She nodded as she approached him.

  “What’s the matter?” Setting the newspaper aside, he asked, “Is it regarding the project?”


  “No,” she shook her head and clarified, “it’s regarding Ge Ge coming over to borrow money.”


  His forehead immediately scrunched up at this.

  “Why are you suddenly bringing this up?”


  Sensing his displeasure, she answered, “Mom told me moments ago that you didn’t lend cousin money when she came over to borrow yesterday.”


  “It’s not that I don’t want to lend her some; it’s just that that damn lass doesn’t appreciate it!” He grunted with hostility.

  “Dad, why are you so mad at her?” She was a little confused. Her parents were already asleep when she came home last night, so she was unaware of what had transpired earlier that evening.

  “That damn lass is just like her dad: stubborn to no end! I only asked her to inquire a little about her company’s project, but she actually reprimanded me. She even said that she had already resigned from Chenguang Real Estate. You tell me; how can I not be angry at this?!” he complained angrily.

  Clearly, after Pei Ge’s scolding yesterday, not only did he not reflect on his behavior, he even grew angrier.

  It was so bad that he held a grudge and his temper became more volatile today.

  She frowned at her father’s words, and displeasure flitted across her face.

  “I think that Ge Ge doesn’t treat us as her family! If she did, she wouldn’t act out that scene with Ji Ziming to bluff me.” She coldly narrowed her eyes.

  Not a trace of gentleness was on her face. Instead, her face only looked menacing and quarrelsome.

  He was not at all surprised by this because he knew his daughter’s personality well.

  He would only worry if his daughter was really gentle and kind.

  After all, he, Pei Zhenghui, only had this one daughter, and all his inheritance would go to her, so it was better that she was calculative and scheming.