Belated Romance (Mu Tongrui)

Xiang Nanqian and Xiaohan were in the kitchen when Mu Tongrui entered. Xiang Nanqian smiled at her and greeted, “Tongrui,
morning.”
“Morning, Sister-in-law.”
Mu Tongrui took a clean glass and was about to pour herself a drink when Xiang Nanqian stopped her, “That was water from last
night. It is not good for your body to drink such staple water. Let me pour you a glass of water which I just boiled.”
Mu Tongrui was flattered, “Thanks.”
Mu Tongrui turned to leave with the glass in her hand after Xiang Nanqian poured her the drink, when she suddenly felt a push
on her back. The water in her glass spilled all over Xiaohan's hands.
“Ah.... voodoo...ah! So painful!”
Xiaohan burst into tears after he was scalded by the piping hot water.
Fu Lingye rushed into the kitchen, his brows knitted when he heard Xiaohan's sobs, “What happened?”
Fu Lingye noticed the almost empty glass in Mu Tongrui's hands and the steam that was still emitting from the glass.
Xiang Nanqian immediately carried Xiaohan in her arms, and put his little hands under the cool running water from the tap. She
bellowed at Mu Tongrui, “Tongrui, I know you dislike me but Xiaohan is only 5 years old. How can you be so cruel? That was
boiling hot water!”
Mu Tongrui was stunned and could not react in time. She could only register the angry words from Xiang Nanqian.
Xiang Nanqian's eyes were red when she pleaded with Fu Lingye, “Lingye, please send Xiaohan to the hospital okay?
Otherwise, his hands will be covered with blisters.”
Fu Lingye glanced over at Mu Tongrui. Biting her lips, Mu Tongrui met his gaze and tried to explain, “Fu Lingye, I...”
Before she could finish, he had turned to take an ice pack from the fridge and lay it on Xiaohan's hands. He replied coldly, “I will
send you both to the hospital now.”
Mu Tongrui looked at Fu Lingye and Xiang Nanqian leaving the house swiftly with the injured Xiaohan.

Apparently, Fu Lingye did not bother to listen to her explanation and had believed Xiang Nanqian unconditionally.
She started to feel jealous.
It was Xiang Nanqian who had pushed her from behind, causing the water in her glass to spill right on Xiaohan's hands.
Xiang Nanqian, as his mother, was indeed ruthless. In order to make Fu Lingye dislike her, she could actually sacrifice her own
son.
Taking in a deep breath, she was cleaning up the spill on the floor when she heard a child's voice drifting in from the stairs
above.
“Daddy! Daddy! Mu'mu! Mu'mu! Where are you?”
Mu Tongrui went out and saw Sweetheart in her yellow, cartoonish slippers slowly making her way down the stairs with her little
hands grasping the stair railings tightly.
Mu Tongrui was worried that she might fall down and hurriedly went over to her. Holding her little hand, she asked, “Sweetheart,
you have awakened? Shall I bring you to freshen up first before we have breakfast?”
Nodding her head, Sweetheart glazed across the room and frowned, “Mu'mu, where is Daddy?”
“Your Daddy... sent your brother to the hospital.”
“Is my brother sick?”
Mu Tongrui shook her head, “He was scalded by boiling water this morning. It was all my fault. I was careless hence Xiaohan got
hurt.”
Xiaohan would not get hurt if I have paid more caution to Xiang Nanqian.
Sweetheart lifted her head to look at her and asked, “Is his injury serious?”
“It should not be serious, maybe just that his hands cannot be in contact with water for some time.”
When they reached the foot of the stairs, Sweetheart ordered in her childish voice, “Mu'mu, squat down.”

Mu Tongrui was perplexed but obliged. After she squatted, Sweetheart patted her head with her little, tender hands and consoled
her in a grown-up manner, “Mu'mu, I know you did not hurt my brother on purpose. Do not be sad.”
Mu Tongrui was touched by Sweetheart's sweet gesture and was even more bothered by the fact that Fu Lingye refused to listen
to her explanation when even a little girl, Sweetheart believed in her unconditionally.
She knitted her brows and said wearily, “But your daddy seemed to be angry.”
With her eyes wide open, Sweetheart replied, “Don't worry, I will tell Daddy it is not Mu'mu's fault. Daddy will not be angry for
long.”
Mu Tongrui patted Sweetheart lightly on her head, and smiled, “No need, I appreciate your kind intentions though.”
But Sweetheart was thinking, I cannot let Daddy and Mu'mu quarrel!
She really was very fond of this 'stepmom', Mu'mu. If Daddy and Mu'mu break up, wouldn't Daddy bring some nasty women
home again to be my 'stepmom'?
....
In the car.
Xiaohan finally stopped crying after a long while. Xiang Nanqian was hugging him and pressing the ice pack on his scalded
hands, while looking at the man who was driving the car at the very moment.
“Lingye, I do not know where I have done wrong. Tong Rui dislikes me so much that she actually would spill hot water onto
Xiaohan's hands. Lingye... what if she does this again when I am not around...”
Before Xiang Nanqian could finish her aggrieved speech, Fu Lingye cut her off in his cold, distant manner, “Nanqian, what
happened just now was an accident. No matter how much Mu Tongrui dislikes you, she will not dare to hurt Xiaohan right under
my eye.”
Mu Tongrui was not that stupid.
“But...”
Xiang Sister-in-law hesitated to continue. Fu Lingye continued in an even colder, commandeering manner, “Sister-in-law, let this
matter rest.”

'Let this matter rest.' Xiang Nanqian was clever enough to know that this was directed at her.
She had to keep quiet. With her lips pursed, she looked at the Xiaohan's scalded hands and was filled with hatred.
Xiaohan could not suffer for nothing!
Mu Tongrui wanted to work in Fu Corporation. Humph, I would definitely chase her out!
So, what if Fu Lingye is suspicious about the incident? After all he has sided with me in front of Mu Tongrui in the kitchen earlier.
...
With Fu Lingye and Xiang Nanqian at the hospital, and since Fu Zhengyuan was not at home nowadays, the task of sending
Sweetheart to school fell on Mu Tongrui's shoulders.
After she sent Sweetheart to school, she glanced at the time. At this hour, it would be faster to take a cab to work.
It looked like she would be late on her first day at work in Fu Corporation.
Just as she was getting desperate as she could not flag down any cab, a car pulled up in front of her. She was delighted when
the car window was rolled down.
“Zibo, what are you doing here?”
Ye Zibo looked at her with his eyebrows raised, “I seemed to have telepathy with you. Quickly board the car!”
Mu Tongrui boarded the car in a swift movement. As she was putting on her seat belt, she continued talking in relief, “Thank god
I run into you, or else I would surely be late for work today? Oh ya, why are you up and out so early today?”
Ye Zibo gave a mysterious smile, “I was not roaming around. I was on my way to Fu Corporation to work when I ran into you just
now.”
Can it be...
“But, why are you not working in your own company and choose to work in Fu Corporation instead?”
Ye Zibo almost blurted out, of course it is for your sake.

But he held his tongue, and replied instead, “Ye Corporation has nothing suitable for me. I had begged my father for a long time
before he agreed to ask my uncle if I could work in the Fu Corporation's creative department.”
The condition that he has agreed with his father was, if he could not produce any results in regard to his beloved Arts within 1
year, he would have to return to his family business immediately and to learn the ropes of doing business from Ye Hong Tian.