The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 191 Inner Choices

Chapter 191: Chapter 191 Inner Choices

After some tough negotiations, Pei Yang made a concession, lowering the licensing fee for the recipe to 2000, and as of today, the Ronghua brand was exclusively owned by Shen Mingzhu—Fushun Cake Factory would no longer be allowed to use it, or it would constitute an infringement of rights.

Wang Hongcheng didn’t care about that.

The mooncakes had sold so well because of their flavor and his ability and skills, not because of the name Ronghua.

He would notify his customers tomorrow that the Ronghua mooncakes would be renamed to "Ronghua Yuelian."

With extreme confidence and arrogance, Wang Hongcheng believed he could still make a fortune from the mooncake recipe of Ronghua.

...

After leaving Fushun Cake Factory, Pei Wenping glanced at the bulging canvas bag held in Pei Yang’s arms and remarked with emotion, "You’ve really picked up a treasure. Others spend money to marry a wife, but you, your wife keeps making money for your family all day long."

"I can’t help it. Who told me to have such good taste, marrying such a good wife?"

Seeing his smug look, Pei Wenping felt both disgusted and amused, "Then you should hold your good wife tight and not lose her."

"She can’t be lost."

A look of confidence and determination shone on his deep and clear face.

She was his, for this lifetime, unless he died.

...

As Shen Mingzhu rode her bike back to the food factory and approached within fifty or sixty meters of the factory gate, she saw a beige Bentley parked there.

She rode up to the Bentley, bent down to look inside, and, finding no one in the back seat, saw the driver roll down the window with a smile to greet her, "Mrs. Pei, the miss has been here for a while, waiting for you inside."

After being used to being addressed as Pei Yang’s family, Pei Yang’s wife, it felt both strange and novel to suddenly hear someone call her Mrs. Pei.

When Shen Mingzhu got inside the factory, she saw Shen Hongmei and Shen Chaobei standing in front of her office door, sneaking peeks inside.

When they saw her return, they both rushed to her excitedly, enthusing about Zhong Qing in the office.

"She’s so beautiful, and she came in a small car. She must be a rich young lady, right?"

After parking her bike and sending the two away, Shen Mingzhu tidied her hair and clothes before heading towards the office.

Today, Zhong Qing wasn’t wearing a cheongsam but a maple yellow turtleneck dress with a slim brown-red belt, and a mini hat matching the dress color. She sat with her back to the door, her sitting posture graceful and demeanor serene, resembling a painting of a beautiful woman.

When she heard footsteps, Zhong Qing turned her head, her light brown eyes lighting up with a smile upon seeing her.

"Qingqing,"

At her greeting, Zhong Qing smiled even happier, her cat-like eyes slightly curving upward.

"Have you been busy with work recently? You seem to have slimmed down a bit," Zhong Qing observed her for a moment and gently said.

Indeed, work was tiring and she had lost some weight, but she felt fulfilled and happy.

"Just consider it dieting," she joked.

Zhong Qing scolded playfully, "You’re not even overweight."

The two exchanged a few pleasantries before Zhong Qing took out a brocade box.

"This is your wedding gift."

They would occasionally call each other, and during one call, Shen Mingzhu had let upon the 20th being her wedding day and invited her to attend.

Shen Mingzhu looked surprised when she saw what was inside the brocade box.

It was the Ice Waxy Green Jade Bracelet she had seen on her first visit to Junlin.

"This is too valuable. I can’t accept it."

"I am giving it to you because it suits you, not for its value. In the end, it’s just a stone. Doesn’t our friendship outweigh a stone?"

Shen Mingzhu sighed, "To you, it’s just a beautiful stone, but to me, it’s very expensive, and I can’t return a gift of equal value. I can only give you some affordable, ordinary gifts, which would make me feel like I’m taking advantage of you."

"I like you taking advantage of me. Feel free to do so."

"..."

That seemed a bit odd.

Shen Mingzhu finally convinced herself to accept the bracelet, but then Zhong Qing took out the second gift.

It was an exquisite and luxurious embroidered beaded wedding dress, embellished with plenty of small, round pearls from the neckline to the waist.

...

Zhong Qing got out of the car, walked into the restaurant, and sat down opposite Yan Yi.

"I ordered steak and salad for you, medium-rare," Yan Yi told her.

"Thank you."

Facing Zhong Qing’s smiling eyes, Yan Yi fell silent, "Did she take the clothes?"

"Mmm, I made up a very tragic love story, and she was quite moved."

"Thank you."

Zhong Qing lowered her head and spread the napkin on her lap, "She took it, but it doesn’t necessarily mean she’ll wear it."

Yan Yi picked up a glass of red wine and took a sip before speaking, "It doesn’t matter."

Zhong Qing looked up at him, "Then do you hope she wears it, or do you hope she wears it?"

"I hope she follows her heart’s choice."

...

As soon as Shen Mingzhu got home, Pei Yang dragged her to the bedroom.

Just as her imagination was running wild, thinking that the man wanted to do something with her, he instead took out three stacks of cash from a canvas bag.

Large denomination bills, three thick stacks; she blindly guessed it was three thousand yuan.

"Where did this money come from?"

Pei Yang carefully explained to her about his visit to Fushun Cake Factory with Pei Wenping today, and also presented the agreement.

Shen Mingzhu read the terms of the agreement carefully and felt the pent-up breath in her heart finally ease.

Her initial plan was to get back either the money or the brand; getting one back would suffice.

She hadn’t expected the man to give her a pleasant surprise, not only getting back both the money and the brand but also an extra two thousand.

Awesome!

Shen Mingzhu took out two thousand and handed them over.

Pei Yang, with a teasing look in his eyes, asked, "What for? A hardship allowance? Is factory manager Shen so generous?"

Shen Mingzhu gave him an "in your dreams" look, "Take it and pay back your sister."

All of Pei Yang’s money was in her hands; they had borrowed money from Pei Wenping for the wedding this time.

Before their parents passed away, they had distributed their possessions to the siblings.

The house went to Pei Yang, the savings were equally divided between the two, each receiving half.

This sum of money had been tightly held by Pei Wenping without being spent until Pei Yang decided to have a wedding and then it was taken out.

"Mommy, why did you buy another wedding dress?"

Pei Ziheng, holding the wedding dress Shen Mingzhu had casually placed on the entryway cabinet while changing shoes, had a look of curiosity on his fair little face.

Pei Yang approached his son, picked up the wedding dress to look at it, and turned his equally puzzled gaze towards Shen Mingzhu.

"It’s a gift from a friend."

Shen Mingzhu had noticed since dinner time that the man’s mood was a bit off.

Usually always cracking jokes, today he seemed somewhat silent and reserved.

She guessed that it might have something to do with the wedding dress she had received.

Because once she had a similar experience when, after giving a friend a watch, her friend received another, better, and more expensive watch from someone else.

Her friend chose to wear the more expensive watch, and the one she had given was never worn from start to finish.

She understood the feeling of betrayal and neglect.

That night, while lying in bed, Shen Mingzhu took the initiative to tell Pei Yang about the reason she received the wedding dress, "...She said that every time she looked at this dress, she felt very sad, but couldn’t bear to throw it away; she wanted to find a good home for it."

"Although this wedding dress is very luxurious, in my heart, it cannot compare to the one I personally altered to fit my taste."

Upon learning her thoughts, Pei Yang’s deep-set eyes came to life.

He drew her into his arms and murmured low in her ear, "Mingzhu, I will buy you better things in the future too, everything you want."