Chapter 22

After Meng Zidan left the terrace, he held a glass of red wine and slowly walked along the marble embankment. Not long after, he suddenly paused.

At the entrance of a terrace, at the wooden bridge, a well-mannered and elegant man in a white suit stood straight, wearing a red bow tie and with a refined face. His dignified demeanor was like that of a prince awaiting the arrival of a princess.

Meng Zidan smiled and quickly walked over. The man in the white suit heard the crisp sound of high heels approaching, turned around, and smiled faintly, walking forward to greet him, extending his hand first, "President Meng!"

"President Zheng!" Meng Zidan shook hands with him. This person was none other than Zheng Longqing, the president of Shengqing Group.

One was in a white suit, the other in a plain white cheongsam. The man was tall and handsome, the woman graceful and beautiful, both with extraordinary bearing. Standing by the white ivory coast, they seemed like a pair of golden boys and jade girls.

After letting go, Meng Zidan glanced at the empty terrace at the end of the wooden bridge and said with some surprise, "I wonder which distinguished guest President Zheng is entertaining today, to have you personally stand here to welcome them."

"I think the person I am entertaining, President Meng, should be familiar to you." Zheng Longqing tilted his head, nodded slightly, and smiled, "Here they come!"

Meng Zidan followed his gaze and was taken aback again. A cold and stunning beauty was walking gracefully, wearing a black silk dress and with her long black hair down, swaying in the white world, very eye-catching.

Meng Zidan indeed recognized her. She was Qiao Yun, the general manager of Minghua Group, known as the first beauty of the East Sea. What puzzled her was that, as far as she knew, the Zheng family and the Qiao family were now enemies. How could these two people be having a private meeting?

Zheng Longqing had already taken a few steps forward and extended his hand with a gentle smile, "President Qiao!"

"Thank you for waiting, President Zheng." Qiao Yun's face was still icy, and she released his hand after a brief touch.

"It is an honor for Zheng Longqing to have President Qiao's presence." Zheng Longqing said politely, his eyes flashing with admiration, but he was not bothered by her cold demeanor, as he had heard that Qiao Yun never smiled at anyone, and there were even rumors that she had a problem with her smile reflex.

Although he had dealt with Qiao Yun before, he had never stood face to face with her like this. After seeing her clearly, no matter how many beautiful women he had seen, he could not help but be amazed, secretly thinking that the first beauty of the East Sea indeed lived up to her name.

"President Zheng is too kind," Qiao Yun replied coldly, turned around, and extended her hand to Meng Zidan, "President Meng!"

The power of the Meng family was not something ordinary businessmen could compare to, so even Qiao Yun and Zheng Longqing had to lower their postures.

Meng Zidan smiled and said, "I wondered who was worth President Zheng's long wait, it turns out to be President Qiao, no wonder."

She was joking, but inside, she was feeling a bit disheartened. No matter what Qiao Yun wore, she was always a peerless beauty. Every time she stood in front of her, she felt inferior. What was wrong with her? Fortunately, Qiao Yun was always cold and unsmiling, otherwise, she would have been a city-tilting beauty with just a smile.

The three exchanged a few words, and Meng Zidan personally led the two to the seaside terrace. After their drinks and dishes were served, she raised a glass in a gesture and then left.

As soon as she left, the two dining on the seaside terrace became interesting. One always smiled, the other always remained cold, and their attire, one white and one black, seemed like a pair of natural opposites.

Qiao Yun spoke very little, quietly eating the food in front of her, as if she had come here just to eat, showing no interest in the surrounding beauty.

Zheng Longqing's mind was not on the food. His gaze often lingered on Qiao Yun's face and her swan-like white neck, constantly trying to find topics to break the ice, hoping to find common ground with this cold beauty who made his heart race.

However, what left him speechless was that Qiao Yun's answers never exceeded three words, and her occasional gaze seemed to say, "Don't you think this topic is boring?"

He was almost at a loss for words, looking at the beautiful night scenery around him, Zheng Longqing smiled bitterly. Which woman doesn't like romance? That's why he chose this place, but this woman was really too unromantic.

Despite this, Zheng Longqing still maintained his gentle and elegant smile, calm and composed, with excellent manners. But in the end, he really didn't know what to say.

Qiao Yun, who had been eating silently, finally stopped talking nonsense. She rinsed her mouth with red wine, wiped her mouth with a napkin, and placed it aside, looking at him coldly.

Zheng Longqing was taken aback and said, "President Qiao, is that it?"

Although his face showed no expression, he was inwardly annoyed. I invited you here, and you treat me like this?

"President Zheng, I think we don't need to beat around the bush. We both know why we are sitting here today. The issues between our two families need to be resolved. Continuing like this will not benefit either of us," Qiao Yun said.

Seeing her like this, Zheng Longqing couldn't beat around the bush anymore. Since beating around the bush didn't work, he decided to be straightforward.

He put down his knife and fork, picked up a glass of red wine, and took a sip, smiling faintly, "To be honest, it was President Qiao who overstepped first. How do you plan to resolve this?"

"It's not about how I plan to resolve it, but how we resolve it together."

"The terms we Shengqing have put forward are clear. As long as your Minghua agrees, the issue will be resolved."

"Those terms are too harsh. I won't agree, and neither will the board."

"OK! Then I'll change the terms. I don't need your board's approval, just yours," Zheng Longqing said with a thick smile.

Qiao Yun's bright eyes flickered, "Tell me more."

Zheng Longqing looked at the red wine in his glass and smiled faintly, "You, Qiao Yun, marry me, and from then on, the grievances between our two families will be settled."

The atmosphere between the two suddenly became tense. Qiao Yun's face was cold, "President Zheng, are you joking? Do you think I, Qiao Yun, would marry someone I don't like?"

"Ha ha! I fell in love with President Qiao at first sight and really don't want to force you," Zheng Longqing put down his wine glass and frowned, "How about this, let's each take a step back and find a condition we can both accept."

"Go on."

"Whether you like someone or not, you need to get to know them first. President Qiao can't make a blind conclusion," Zheng Longqing said seriously, "There are countless people who want to pursue you, but I've heard you never give anyone a chance, always keeping them at a distance. My condition is simple: I ask you to open the door and give me a chance to pursue you. If I succeed, you can marry me later. This condition isn't harsh, right?"

"What if you don't succeed?" Qiao Yun said calmly.

"If I don't succeed, it's my fault, and the matter will be dropped. I won't bother your Minghua Group again, and the grievances between our two families will be settled. However..." Zheng Longqing paused, "To avoid a hasty decision, we should give each other some time to get to know each other. We can interact for a year. If after a year you still don't agree, we'll go our separate ways, and our two families will have nothing to do with each other."

His intention was clear. He was afraid that Qiao Yun would find an excuse to dismiss him after a day or two, so he added a time limit. He was being quite direct, especially when dealing with a woman like Qiao Yun, where being direct was the only way to proceed.

Qiao Yun hesitated for a moment and then firmly said, "Six months!"

Zheng Longqing smiled bitterly, "I really don't want to force you. Alright, six months it is!"

"Then it's settled. But I don't want to see anything like what happened to my father again. Otherwise... I will use all my capital power to completely eliminate your Shengqing Group and the forces behind you, even if it means the Minghua Group will suffer. You should know that the Minghua Group has the strength to do this," Qiao Yun said firmly.

Zheng Longqing's eyes flashed with a cold light, then he laughed heartily, "Alright! It's a deal!"

Seeing that he had agreed, Qiao Yun immediately stood up and said, "Goodbye!" and turned to leave.

"Qiao Yun!" Zheng Longqing called out to her, "Since you've agreed to let me pursue you, leaving like this seems a bit lacking in sincerity, doesn't it?"

Qiao Yun paused, slowly turned around, and asked, "What do you want?"

Zheng Longqing stood up, walked to her side, and smiled, "This is our first date, and it shouldn't be too rushed. I have some arrangements and hope to give you a small surprise. Please wait a moment!" Without waiting for Qiao Yun's response, he left, as if he was sure she wouldn't refuse.

Qiao Yun hesitated for a while, thinking that since she had agreed, it wasn't right to not show some surface-level sincerity. So she walked back to the terrace, looked at the sea in the night, and then walked down the stairs to the beach.

On the other terrace, Lin Zixian, who had been eating heartily, was full and burped, looking satisfied. Ning Lan found it amusing, and Meng Zidan, who was sitting with her, rolled her eyes and said, "Lin Zixian, can't you be a bit more gentlemanly in front of us two beauties?"

"Ah! I'm not saying I can't pretend to be a gentleman. Since there's no one else around, and we're not friends anymore, there's no need to be so formal in front of friends. You two enjoy your meal, I'll go have a smoke first," Lin Zixian said nonchalantly, lit a cigarette, and walked down the stairs to the beach.

Meng Zidan smiled at his back, thinking of Zheng Longqing, who always maintained a gentle and elegant demeanor, especially the smile that seemed to be cast from a mold. It must be tiring to maintain such an appearance every day.

Not just Zheng Longqing, she herself greeted people with a smile every day, which was also a form of pretense. People like Lin Zixian, who treated beauties as nothing special, ate when they were hungry, and drank when they were thirsty, showed their true nature. How many people could do that?

Such people, either they were pretending, or they had the confidence to face everything, so they didn't need to pretend. Was Lin Zixian the former or the latter? Meng Zidan couldn't help but wonder.

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