Qian Meng looked at the woman.

  It was Mo Qingchen who made the whole scene comical. "Who is this?" he asked. His voice was not loud, or soft. Everyone present could hear him clearly. Funnily enough, he didn't sound curious in the least. It was more like he was asking where this insect had dropped from.

  But Qian Meng humored him. "Uncle Bai's wife," she responded. She didn't want to take Bai Ye Qing's name in this situation.

  "Uncle—" Chen Yue spluttered.

  "What an odd combination," Mo Qingchen muttered under his breath.

  "You—" Chen Yue began, but Jiang Xin stopped her mid-sentence.

  "Ah, they're just kids. Why are you getting angry with them?" she asked with that sweet voice of hers.

  "You allow this stepdaughter of yours to insult you left and right. Because you allow it, she thinks she can speak this way to others, too!" Chen Yue scolded.

  Jiang Xin lowered her head. "It's all my fault."

  Mo Qingchen felt his jaw drop to the floor. He had never seen someone act like they were part of an imperial harem before. This was straight out of the movies!

  "See what I mean?" Qian Meng whispered to him. He didn't respond, but then, he didn't need to.

  Yun Sui Bo, too, shook up at his wife's words. "It's not your fault. She got this attitude from that mother of hers. Always going out and focusing on work. It turned the girl into a loveless woman. She only thinks about profit and humiliating others to get her way," he grumbled.

  Qian Meng scoffed. "Mr. Yun, stop waxing poetry and tell me what you wanted to say when you called me over. Just because I brought someone with me, you've forgotten what you wanted to say?" she asked.

  The lowered voice and the meeker attitude were for the benefit of Mo Qingchen. They could be from enemy families, but letting the other think that it was somehow his fault that his daughter was acting up was a no-no.

  "You bought their company?" he asked, finally remembering.

  "I did. What is that to you?" she asked, folding her hand across her chest.

  "I told you to marry into the family, not buy their company and show off!" he said, slamming his hand on the arms of the couch.

  Qian Meng shrugged. "I already told you I didn't want to marry. You were doing your best to force me into it, so I wondered what treasures the company held for you to do so."

  Yun Sui Bo glared. "I was thinking about your future! Jiang Xin and I brought you up while your mother pursued her career. Look at her, is she happy with her life?" He pressed his lips together. "Chasing money all day. You don't know how to cherish human relationships. Marrying into the Bai family would have done you good."

  Still so polite. Yun Qian Meng wanted to bring out the real man behind this mask Yun Sui Bo had on. She wanted Mo Qingchen to see with his own eyes.

  "You can pretend all you want but neither of you brought me up. I did a fine job of it myself. About the company. I didn't find any treasures there, but I did find a clogged sewer. Mr. Yun, have you lost your touch in business, or are you desperate for something?" She leaned in and stared intently at him.

  Yun Sui Bo didn't show panic.

  "If there weren't people in this room, I would have slapped you across the face. I have had enough of you!" he shouted.

  "You're finally revealing yourself!" Qian Meng exclaimed. Mo Qingchen laced their fingers together and squeezed it, suddenly feeling a pang of melancholy. Good thing he was here. Otherwise, he knew Yun Sui Bo would hit her.

  "You shouldn't make threats so easily," Mo Qingchen said in a low voice. Everyone turned to him, stunned that he was speaking.

  "You're an outsider, you don't get to talk!" Yun Sui Bo warned.

  Mo Qingchen scoffed. "I am glad to be an outsider. I feel sad for those that you call family." Such sharp words.

  Jiang Xin sucked in a sharp breath. Her face twisted in a grimace. "What does Mr. Mo mean? Don't you think you are speaking out of line? This is the Yun house. Qian Meng is related to us by blood but you have just driven her to the house. You shouldn't speak in family matters."

  By saying he had just driven her there, she was not taking their relationship into account. She was also calling Qian Meng part of the family, opening her to attack from her family.

  "This is not a family matter, though. This is clearly about Mr. Yun and his inability to control his business. He is using his daughter as a pawn to make a quick buck, isn't he?" he accused, glaring towards Yun Sui Bo now.

  This startled Yun Sui Bo greatly.

  "What nonsense have you been telling people?" Yun Sui Bo asked Qian Meng. He gritted his teeth.

  "I didn't tell anything. Anyone with half a mind could see what you are doing. First, you brought up letting Qing Yuan take over the company. Then you told me that I needed to marry Bai Ye Qing. Don't you think you are being transparent? You are making a deal with the Bai family… something related to your company. And you are using me as a pawn to do it." She sniffed with disgust.

  "Nonsense!" Yun Sui Bo started.

  Jiang Xin meekly spoke up. "Meng Meng, no matter what you thought, you should have tried to clear the misunderstanding with us first," she said.

  Chen Yue interjected. "What benefits can we give such a big family like the Yuns?" she said. "Your father saw that ours was a good family and wanted to give you a peaceful home."

  "Peaceful home," Qian Meng scoffed. "And you jumped at the opportunity, didn't you? A billionaire for a daughter-in-law."