The Beauty Is Seducing Me Again Chapter 1
byChapter 001 Shen Qing’an thought, this time her eyes resemble those of a fawn.
Country A, Manhattan.
The first ray of morning light shone through the floor-to-ceiling windows of the high-rise conference room, casting warm halos onto the long wooden table.
The air was permeated with a faint tension.
Shen Qing’an sat in the main seat, her slender fingers turning a fountain pen, her gaze fixed on the bald European man opposite her, her expression completely unreadable.
The European man, speaking in heavily accented English, continuously elaborated on an ambiguous detail in one of the contract clauses, attempting to secure the last bit of profit for his company.
Faced with the European man’s lengthy discourse, Shen Qing’an remained silent, leaning slightly back against the chair.
The man standing behind Shen Qing’an immediately stepped forward.
He fluently countered the opponent’s point of view, citing three sets of market data and an international commercial law clause, thoroughly nailing the opponent’s defense to the spot.
Suddenly, the large conference room fell into a brief silence.
Fine beads of sweat broke out on the European man’s forehead. He glanced around, seeing that while the people Shen Qing’an brought wore smiles, they were all like Smiling Tigers, seizing any small point and refusing to let go. His own team was repeatedly at a disadvantage, and only he was still making a dying struggle.
When his eyes met Shen Qing’an’s gaze at the head of the table, the European man’s heart tightened.
These were incredibly beautiful eyes, as lovely as brilliant gems, yet more terrifying than the eyes of the alpha wolf in a pack. They were overly sharp, chilling the hearts of those they fixed upon, and signaling her rapidly diminishing patience.
“…Alright,” the European man finally conceded weakly, closing his folder. “CEO Shen, we will proceed as you suggested.”
The corner of Shen Qing’an’s lips curved slightly, though it was barely a smile. She stood up and extended her right hand: “A pleasure working with you, Mr. Berg.”
“The pleasure is mine, CEO Shen.”
The meeting concluded.
The opposing team filed out, every one of them looking solemn.
“CEO Shen.” Shen Qing’an’s Chief Assistant, Zhou Ming, quickly approached and handed her private phone over.
The screen was lit, showing a call from Butler Xu, who had called three times consecutively.
Shen Qing’an frowned almost imperceptibly. This conference was important, requiring her to fly personally to Country A, and Butler Xu should have known this. If it wasn’t urgent, he wouldn’t have called repeatedly like this.
She took the phone, walked to the window, and dialed back.
The call was answered almost instantly after a few seconds, and Butler Xu’s anxious voice came through: “Eldest Miss, Madam has had an accident.”
Shen Qing’an’s heart skipped a beat. She subconsciously gripped the phone tightly, her fingertips losing color and turning slightly pale.
She maintained her composure and said, “Explain clearly, what happened.”
“This afternoon, Madam went to a tea house near Central Plaza. When she was crossing the road, a novice driver drove right toward her.”
“Fortunately, fortunately, there was a female student who reacted quickly and pulled Madam away. They both fell to the ground. The female student is fine, just some scrapes. But Madam is older and her bones are fragile, she suffered a Bone Fracture in her left arm and was quite shaken. She is currently undergoing examination at the hospital. There is no life danger, the other party is fully responsible and is cooperating well with the handling of the situation…”
Shen Qing’an didn’t listen closely to the rest of what Butler Xu said. Upon learning that her mother was not in life danger, the heavy weight in her heart lifted significantly.
“Which hospital, and who is the attending physician?” Shen Qing’an interrupted him.
After receiving the answer, Shen Qing’an instructed: “I understand. Go and invite Doctor Xu to look at Madam’s left arm; he specializes in orthopedics. I am returning to the country immediately.”
Shen Qing’an then hung up the phone, turned around, and instructed: “Zhou Ming, book the earliest flight back home right now. Ye Yan, Guo Huiqing, the two of you stay in Manhattan to wrap things up. Return after this matter is handled.”
“Yes, CEO Shen.”
During the approximately thirteen-hour flight, Shen Qing’an barely closed her eyes.
A tablet was placed in front of her, displaying the electronic version of the accident report, along with a document sent by Zhou Ming. It contained preliminary investigation data on the female student who had passed by and saved her mother.
Chen Xiaonuan, twenty years old, a sophomore in the School of Economics and Management at Yunjing University. An orphan, raised at Cixin Orphanage. There was a coffee shop near the accident site where her mother was injured, which was where Chen Xiaonuan worked part-time.
The girl in the photo smiled brightly at the camera, two small dimples showing on her cheeks, making her look particularly cute. Her eyes were clear, carrying an untouched simplicity and innocence.
Shen Qing’an closed her eyes, but her mind kept turning.
This girl was too clean, clean like a meticulously designed script.
The Shen Family was prominent and attracted many people looking to get a piece of the pie. Especially after her father passed away from illness a few years ago, there was an endless stream of people trying to approach the Shen Family by clinging to her mother.
A life-saving grace—the oldest yet most effective plot—and from an innocent, harmless pure white flower with a clean background? This could easily make her soft-hearted mother drop her guard.
The plane passed through the clouds and began its slow descent. Outside the porthole, the morning mist gradually dispersed, and the familiar city skyline began to appear.
A black Bentley drove in and parked at the VIP channel exit.
“CEO Shen.” The driver standing next to the Bentley quickly opened the car door. After Shen Qing’an sat in the back seat, he quickly jogged to the other side of the car.
Zhou Ming sat in the passenger seat, handing Shen Qing’an the information he had received immediately.
“How is Madam’s condition?”
Zhou Ming immediately replied: “Madam’s condition is stable and normal, she is just worried about you. Miss Chen… has been accompanying Madam at the hospital for the past two days.”
Shen Qing’an quickly flipped through the pages with her fingertips, scanning the key information, which was largely consistent with what she had seen on the plane.
“Mhm, to the hospital,” Shen Qing’an closed the file, tossed it aside, and turned her face to look at the scenery outside the car window.
The trees lining the road rushed past. She couldn’t help but narrow her eyes, though the coldness in their depths had not dissipated.
Quanhai First People’s Hospital.
The door to the ward was pushed open from the outside, and Shen Qing’an walked in. A faint scent of flowers and warm food completely dispelled the strong smell of disinfectant in the corridor.
Yuan Yanyu was half-reclining on the raised hospital bed, her left arm in a cast. Her face was a little pale, but her spirits were good. She was leaning her head to the side, listening with gentle eyes to the girl beside the bed.
The girl had her back to the ward door, wearing a simple white T-shirt and faded jeans, her hair tied up in a cute bun. She was gesturing animatedly, her voice soft and sweet, with a cheerful lilt, as if telling some earth-shattering joke.
Shen Qing’an’s gaze passed over the top of the girl’s head and met her mother’s eyes on the hospital bed.
“Qing’an?” Yuan Yanyu was first surprised, then joy spread in her eyes. “How did you come back so quickly? Didn’t you say the conference was very important? I thought you wouldn’t be back for another couple of days.”
Yuan Yanyu waved to her: “Come here quickly.”
The voice by the bed stopped abruptly.
Chen Xiaonuan seemed to have been pressed with a pause button. Her body stiffened, and then she stood up somewhat flustered, yielding the spot beside the bed.
Shen Qing’an clearly saw the girl’s face. She looked similar to the photo, but her face was smaller, still carrying a hint of un-faded baby fat on her cheeks.
Her eyes were large, like two moist purple grapes, and her pupils were a clean light brown. At this moment, perhaps due to shock, those eyes were wide and round.
Shen Qing’an thought, this time her eyes resemble those of a fawn.
Chen Xiaonuan subconsciously twisted the hem of her T-shirt. Faced with the sudden appearance of a stranger, a situation she hadn’t anticipated at all, she was somewhat at a loss.
Her acting was quite good, a shy and harmless appearance, truly deceptive. Shen Qing’an sneered inwardly, but her expression remained calm as she walked to the side of the hospital bed.
“The meeting ended early. Knowing you were hospitalized, I rushed back immediately. Mom, how are you feeling?”
“Much better, thanks to Xiaonuan accompanying me these past two days, running around doing things. If Xiaonuan hadn’t appeared and pulled me away that day, I’m afraid my old bones wouldn’t have withstood the car crash.” Yuan Yanyu smiled, reaching out to pull the stiffly standing girl closer. “Xiaonuan, this is my daughter, Shen Qing’an. You can call her Older Sister from now on.”
Chen Xiaonuan was forced to look up, meeting Shen Qing’an’s utterly cold gaze. Her heart leaped, and her cheeks uncontrollably began to heat up.
“Old—” Just as she uttered the first syllable, the other party’s gaze seemed to grow even colder. Immediately, Chen Xiaonuan’s voice became as thin as a mosquito’s buzz, carrying obvious nervousness. “Miss Shen, hello.”
Up close, the woman in front of her was excessively beautiful, but also frighteningly cold. Her features looked as if they had been meticulously carved by the Goddess Nüwa. If she looked a few more times, her soul would be sucked away.
Chen Xiaonuan felt a sudden, inexplicable panic and shortness of breath, wanting only to avoid the other party’s scrutinizing gaze.
Shen Qing’an gave a very faint ‘Mhm,’ which served as her response to Chen Xiaonuan, then looked at her mother: “What did Doctor Xu say?”
“He just said to rest, and have regular check-ups. It’s nothing serious.” Yuan Yanyu patted her daughter’s hand. “Don’t worry.”
Shen Qing’an nodded and added, “I’ll go find Doctor Xu to ask about the specific situation.”
She needed to obtain the most objective information from a professional, rather than listening to her mother’s emotional description after being warmed by the ‘Little Sun’ beside her.
Doctor Xu’s account was no different from Zhou Ming’s report, perhaps even more optimistic, emphasizing that Madam’s physical foundation was good and her recovery speed would be faster.
Hearing this result, Shen Qing’an felt much more at ease.
Shen Qing’an returned to the ward again. This time she stayed for less than ten minutes. After confirming her mother was fine, the piled-up work at the company prevented her from staying long.
“I have things to attend to at the company. I’ll go now and come back to see you tonight.” Shen Qing’an said, standing up and walking towards the door.
“Oh, you child. Rushing to the company right after returning home, are you made of iron? You should rest a little.” Yuan Yanyu couldn’t help but complain. “Can’t you stay and talk to your mother for a few more minutes?”
“I’ll be back once I finish handling things.” Shen Qing’an’s tone was flat. As she turned around, her gaze inadvertently swept over the girl by the bed who wished she could shrink into a ball.
Chen Xiaonuan was secretly looking at Shen Qing’an. The moment their eyes met, she lowered her head abruptly like a startled rabbit.
Only the top of her fluffy head was left facing Shen Qing’an.