The Stepmother’s Counterattack: Raising a Child in a Bygone Era
Chapter 629 - 628 Good Gatherings, Good Partings

Chapter 629: Chapter 628 Good Gatherings, Good Partings

Today Pei Yang was away on business and not at home, so Shen Mingzhu specially invited Zhong Qing and Yan Su out to sing and have a drink, to unwind a bit. As it turned out, none of them could hold their liquor, so Shen Mingzhu simply ordered a pot of jasmine tea, along with a table full of fruits and snacks.

After ordering, "Ladies, would you like to hire some young masters?"

Shen Mingzhu was stunned for a second before she realized what the waiter meant by "young masters." Just as she was about to refuse, Zhuang Xueqi preempted her by throwing a stack of hundred-yuan notes onto the table:

"Bring a few good ones over to have a look."

"Certainly, please wait a moment, I’ll arrange it right away."

Watching the server dash out of the private room, Shen Mingzhu looked at this one, then at that one.

"It’s just the few of us, there’s no need for that kind of messy business, right?"

Zhuang Xueqi looked at her with a smile that was not quite a smile, "We’re just singing, what did you think we were going to do? Or is it you who wants to do something?"

Yan Su laughed and patted the back of her hand, "Your husband isn’t at home anyway, there’s nothing to worry about."

Zhong Qing also looked at her with a teasing smile, "Thanks to you, I can enjoy a different kind of service for once."

Shen Mingzhu: "..."

It wasn’t her business at all; she just wanted to sing some songs.

Soon after, the server led six or seven young men into the private room.

She didn’t know if they were short on staff or if there just weren’t many in that line of work, but the quality was hard to speak of.

Rather than spending money on these Little Douyas, she might as well have called Pei Yang.

Just as she was thinking this, the mobile phone on the table began ringing urgently.

It was only after leaving the private room that Shen Mingzhu answered the call, and sure enough, it was from Pei Yang.

"Hello?"

"What are you doing?"

Thinking of the "young masters" in the private room, Shen Mingzhu felt inexplicably guilty and sidestepped the question, "Not doing much, what about you? You’re not sleeping this late at night."

"What do you mean what am I doing, am I not calling you right now?"

"When are you coming back?"

"Do you miss me?"

"Yeah, I miss you."

Shen Mingzhu casually fended him off, and as she did so, the door of the private room opened behind her, and the "young masters" came out one by one. Clearly, none of these "young masters" had caught the eye of Zhong Qing and her friends.

However, one of them had a face that somewhat resembled a certain male celebrity, and Shen Mingzhu couldn’t help but take a second glance.

Just those two glances were enough to beckon him over, "Sister, pick me, I’m very obedient, and I sing pretty well too."

Before Shen Mingzhu could react, Pei Yang on the other end of the phone blew up, "Who’s talking? Where are you?!"

Shen Mingzhu: "..."

When Shen Mingzhu returned to the private room, Yan Su teased, "Your husband even calls to check up on you when he’s on a business trip?"

Shen Mingzhu was silent, about to take a sip of her tea, when she saw Yan Su reaching out to Zhong Qing and Zhuang Xueqi.

"Pay up, I guessed right!"

Zhong Qing and Zhuang Xueqi each took out a hundred yuan and handed it to Yan Su.

Yan Su joyfully pocketed the money, while Zhuang Xueqi mockingly scolded Shen Mingzhu, "You made me lose money, you need to compensate me."

Zhuang Xueqi: "Let’s hear you sing a song."

Shen Mingzhu nearly choked on her tea, "So I’ve been made into a gambling bet, and now I have to entertain you as well?"

"Your singing is lovely."

And so, Shen Mingzhu was coaxed into picking up the microphone and ended up singing several songs in a row.

By the time she grew tired of singing, Zhong Qing and the others also picked up the microphones and selected songs to sing by themselves.

As midnight drew near, all four of them were too drained to continue singing, but they also didn’t want to go home. After all, it was rare for them to get out and enjoy themselves, so they turned on the lights, chose a few soothing piano pieces, and chatted leisurely over tea and music.

Women’s topics are wide-ranging—culinary art, shopping, traveling, work, children—anything but men is up for discussion.

As the conversation got lively, Shen Mingzhu couldn’t help but express the frustration in her heart.

"...Regarding her suspension, I admit I was somewhat impulsive, and I wanted to give her a wake-up call, but even in my anger, I did make a series of plans for her."

"First, send her to the marketing department, then to production, and afterward to each subsidiary company. She would go through training in all sections, for approximately two years. Then, I would hand over the entire food factory to her to manage as the factory head."

Zhuang Xueqi snorted lightly, "I’m afraid she already looks down on such a minor position as factory head."

Shen Mingzhu fell silent, "She wants 10% of the shares."

Zhuang Xueqi bluntly said, "There’s nothing wrong with a boss negotiating compensation, but she should take a long hard look at herself. Is she worth 10%? With that kind of money, you could hire ten professional managers who are better than her in every aspect."

Yan Su comforted her with a gentle voice, "Let it go, let her go. Some people are bound to walk only part of the way with you. It’s better to part amicably before all affection is spent."

Shen Mingzhu looked at Zhong Qing, who had been silent, "Qingqing, what do you think?"

Zhong Qing spoke with a gentle tone, but her words were anything but gentle:

"Both Xueqi and Second Sister make good points. I think she’s tired of the good life; without you, her good fortune would be at its end."

Shen Mingzhu gave a wry smile, "That’s not necessarily true; she may be headed for even greater luck."

Given Zhao Dafa’s financial resources and connections, coupled with Shen Hongmei’s own efforts, her achievements in the future may well surpass Shen Mingzhu’s.

"For such a small immediate gain, to give up such a good friend and friendship is sheer foolishness."

...

After pouring out her heart, Shen Mingzhu felt much more at ease.

Before parting ways and heading to the parking lot to retrieve their cars, Zhong Qing couldn’t help but comment upon seeing Shen Mingzhu’s old car:

"Why don’t you get a new car? You’ve been driving this one for so many years; it’s time to retire it."

The car that Shen Mingzhu was driving was the old Crown that Zhong Qing had given her, which, including the time Zhong Qing had used it, amounted to almost ten years.

"I think it’s quite good, it can last another couple of years with no problems."

Zhong Qing gave her an annoyed look, "If you’re reluctant to spend the money, I’ll buy it for you."

Thanks to Shen Mingzhu, Zhong Qing had made a killing investing in Lihua’s Chinese Character Paging System project, and Shen Mingzhu herself had also earned quite a bit.

Not to mention anything else, affording a better car was definitely not a problem.

"No need, Qingqing, a car for me is just a means of transportation. Besides, there is nothing wrong with this one, and I’m used to it now."

"The money to buy a car can build dozens of rural schools, helping thousands of poor children complete their elementary education. The sense of achievement from that far outweighs the value of any car to me."

Zhong Qing stared at her intently for a while before saying, "Everyone else makes money for a better life, but you, you work hard to earn money and then spend it all on others. Are you silly or what?"

"Well, that’s not entirely true. I still keep a lot for myself; I’m not that selfless and great. What I do is just a modest contribution."

Zhong Qing hugged her lightly, "Alright then, as long as you’re happy."

...

Upon her return home.

After parking the car, Shen Mingzhu was about to unbuckle her seatbelt when she suddenly caught a glimpse of the car parked in front, and her heart skipped a beat.

Before she could think further, the car window was knocked on, startling her.

"Scared of what? Got a guilty conscience?"

Ignoring the man’s sarcastic tone, Shen Mingzhu asked in puzzlement, "When did you get back?"

"Five minutes ago. If you hadn’t shown up, I would have gone to the nightclub to find you."

Pei Yang said this while leaning in closer to her, his hands on her shoulder.

Shen Mingzhu instinctively closed her eyes, but the expected kiss from the man didn’t come. She opened her eyes to find his fuzzy head moving back and forth in front of her.

"What are you doing?"

"Checking for any scents of other males on you."

Shen Mingzhu: "..."

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