DF Chapter 64
by VolareIt was already 3:30 PM when Song Ji’an and Meng Yeran returned. Whatever they had gained, the two exhausted teenagers practically collapsed into sleep as soon as they returned to the castle. On the contrary, Sheng Jia and the others, who had already rested, were dragged down by Serena to have a party in the manor.
The auction was in the evening, and they already had a rough idea of who would win or lose. Spending the afternoon waiting without doing something was simply not in line with Serena’s restless personality.
The large lawn in front of the manor had already been set up with barbecue grills and long tables full of cakes. The golden retriever they met on their first day had bitten open the sprinkler, watering the lawn on one side, while on the other side, it entertained itself with a pitching machine, having a great time.
Julia and Dong Zhen sneaked over to Fu Minglang’s side. Among so many people present, it was clear that Ms. Fu was the easiest to deal with. The two intended to find out in advance who Song Ji’an and Meng Yeran would win or lose by extracting information.
But unfortunately, Fu Minglang didn’t give them what they wanted. After being surrounded by the two little girls, she played Tai Chi. Eventually, she couldn’t stand it anymore, so she picked up a cup of tea and shouted, “I just remembered that I still have something to discuss with Sheng Jia.” While saying that, she ran towards Sheng Jia.
Julia asked curiously, “Are Ms. Fu and Sheng Jia very close?”
Dong Zhen shrugged, “I haven’t heard of it. I’ll ask Sister Ru Ping next time I see her, but…”
Her hesitation prompted Julia to urge, “But what?”
“Ms. Fu has always liked to sponsor talented people from ordinary families. In her words, this is an investment in talent for the future of the group, just like me.” She said thoughtfully, “Perhaps she has the same idea about Sheng Jia?”
“Ah? Ordinary family?” A trace of confusion appeared in Julia’s eyes. Before this, she didn’t know about Sheng Jia’s family situation. She could even say that, based on her impression, Sheng Jia’s personal qualities and intelligence meant that even if she wasn’t born into a wealthy family, she must at least come from a family with some assets, otherwise she wouldn’t be able to support her long-term and bold vision and way of thinking.
“It’s not necessarily just an ordinary family,” Dong Zhen continued, “Ms. Fu doesn’t really like sponsoring ordinary families anymore. She says money should be spent wisely. She prefers ‘talented individuals from humble backgrounds.'”
The “talented individuals from humble backgrounds” in China are not truly from humble backgrounds, but using it here was a semantic that both of them could understand. Julia nodded, “So you mean that Sheng Jia is a genius, she broke through the limitations of economy and origin, and has the abilities that we admire? It’s really as amazing as in a novel.”
Sheng Jia couldn’t hear their words, because Fu Minglang had already walked up to her.
The party was relatively casual. The venue was large, and there were few people. Martha and Hongyue were drinking red wine at a long table not far away. Serena, Song Ningqiu, and Grando were discussing business on the other side.
Sheng Jia simply sat on the sofa closest to the rose field. The one lying on the other half of her seat was not the golden retriever. On the contrary, the golden retriever ran around the entire manor, but refused to come over here, because a golden python was coiled up here. It was brought out of the rainforest, and Serena allowed it to climb around the manor. It finally chose to sit on the velvet sofa, with half of its body lying on it, and the remaining fat tail lying on the grass, swaying back and forth, looking extremely relaxed.
Sheng Jia was originally a little scared, but the other party was so emotionally stable that it was unbelievable. In the short five minutes of sitting here, she could already touch its head without any scruples.
The snake’s tongue occasionally flicked out, touching her fingertips, which was a cool softness, and it didn’t even make people feel scared.
Fu Minglang came at this time. She patted the golden python’s head, pushed it to the middle of the sofa, sat on the other side, and put the tea she brought on the table.
“This is the older sister of the two snakes.” Fu Minglang sighed, “I haven’t seen them in a few years, and they’ve grown so big.”
“Do you know her?” Sheng Jia lowered her eyes and touched Ying’s head. If she had to distinguish them with her naked eyes, she would definitely not be able to tell Ying and Yun apart, after all, they looked too alike.
“I know them, they were rescued by me and Serena in Malaysia. Originally, they were kept in a circus to perform, and they were whipped every day. They were only one or two years old at that time. Ying is the older sister, her tail was injured, and there are missing scales, which is permanent. Even if she sheds her skin, it can’t be completely healed, and there will always be scars.” Fu Minglang pointed to the tip of Ying’s tail, where the gold color was indeed different from her overall color, much lighter.
“I see,” Sheng Jia nodded, and the two fell into silence.
Fu Minglang started the conversation again, “It’s been a few months, and you still haven’t figured out what you want from me?”
This was also what she had been curious about. How could ordinary people not seize this kind of opportunity? But Sheng Jia was even more indifferent than her, as if the transaction between the two of them that night was a dream, and she had never contacted her since then.
Now it was good, the curious and impatient person had become Fu Minglang, as if she was begging Sheng Jia to say it.
Of course, she didn’t care about this kind of relationship now that she was in her current position. No matter from which point of view, she was an elder who had the upper hand, but she still couldn’t help teasing Sheng Jia, “Let me remind you, Wang Jian will be released from prison in four months. Whether you have a way or not, I don’t mind helping you postpone his release time. Of course, this doesn’t require you to give anything in return, it’s purely humanitarian aid.”
Sheng Jia looked over, “Do you have any suggestions for this matter?”
“Of course, it’s best to keep him from coming out for the rest of his life.” Fu Minglang smiled slightly, she didn’t care how terrible the words she said were, because she knew that whether Sheng Jia could do it or not, she probably thought so in her heart.
Sure enough, Sheng Jia nodded in agreement, “I think so too.”
“Then what are you going to do?”
“Secret,” Sheng Jia slowly held Ying’s big head on her lap, but her eyes revealed a chill. She said softly, “But very, very early on, I chose the most suitable ending for him, and it will never go wrong.”
“Also, to correct you a little, it’s not that I haven’t figured out what to ask you for, it’s just that the time hasn’t come yet.”
“You’re really a kid who likes to be mysterious,” Fu Minglang muttered.
Sheng Jia was more stable than she had imagined, and she couldn’t get any information out of her at all. She wasn’t like Dong Zhen, who was sponsored by her and was willing to discuss everything with her. But her tone was full of appreciation and doting from an elder to a younger generation.
“Did you come here just to tease me?” Sheng Jia couldn’t help laughing, this was a very new experience for her.
“Yes, I came here to avoid Julia and Dong Zhen, they’re getting more and more difficult to deal with. They know that Ningqiu and the others are easier to talk to than me.” Fu Minglang complained with a smile.
As she spoke, she suddenly turned her head and asked Sheng Jia, “Who do you think will win?”
“Song Ji’an,” Sheng Jia’s answer was without the slightest hesitation, as firm as she had answered Julia in the morning.
Fu Minglang only smiled and didn’t speak, only saying, “You trust her so much?”
“Well, I’m here, and I’m not that familiar with the others.” Sheng Jia replied.
The intrusion of another voice made Fu Minglang, who had originally wanted to make a joke, shut her mouth.
“You trust Ji’an so much?”
Without knowing when, Song Ningqiu had finished her business and walked behind the two of them. She only managed to hear the last two sentences of the two of them, but she could also guess that Sheng Jia must have been talking about Song Ji’an.
She sat down on the armrest next to Fu Minglang, and joked, “Dong Zhen and Julia probably didn’t get anything good from you, so they ran to pester us again, which scared me into finding a reason to leave.”
“It’s quite boring to just eat and drink,” Fu Minglang glanced at the flowers in the rose manor, and suddenly said, “Why don’t we play something to pass the time? There are still two or three hours before the auction in the evening.”
“Okay,” Song Ningqiu nodded, she didn’t ignore Sheng Jia on the side, but instead gave the choice to Sheng Jia, “Little Sheng, do you have anything you like to play?”
Their experience was far greater than Sheng Jia’s, it could even be said that most of what Sheng Jia knew, they had probably been immersed in elite education for more than ten or even dozens of years, developing from specialties to hobbies, with a wide range of interests and erudition.
Sheng Jia wasn’t intimidated either, she thought about it very naturally, and then replied, “Why don’t we play Chinese chess?”
Hearing this, Fu Minglang and Song Ningqiu were slightly stunned, and then both of them laughed.
“Sure,” Song Ningqiu said first, “But your Auntie Song, I still have some understanding of Chinese chess, we have to decide in advance, what will be the punishment for losing.”
“The loser will have strips of paper pasted on their face, and the winner will pick a rose and wear it, how about that?” Sheng Jia suggested.
This suggestion was agreed upon by the two of them, and soon a servant came over to bring the Chinese chess set.
“I remember when you were a kid, your mother wanted you to learn Chinese chess, but you weren’t willing at all, and you liked to immerse yourself in mechanical books all day long. How did you suddenly get enlightened and insist on learning Chinese chess?” Fu Minglang recalled the past and couldn’t help but sigh, “And you really learned something from it.”
Song Ningqiu had a whole stack of certificates about Chinese chess at home.
She sat at the chess table, slightly lowered her eyes, and a trace of nostalgia flashed in her eyes, “Yeah, I really didn’t like it before, but my mother liked it. If I learned more, she would spend more time playing with me. Later, I really fell in love with it. Chinese chess is a good thing, it can make people’s minds more and more clear.”
The chess game between the three of them quickly attracted Dong Zhen and the others to watch. Fu Minglang wasn’t very interested in this, so only Sheng Jia and Song Ningqiu were playing chess on the table.
The more Song Ningqiu played, the brighter her eyes became. Only those who really played Chinese chess deeply knew how good Sheng Jia’s skills were at such a young age.
Even if she couldn’t compete with Song Ningqiu, many chess moves were a little immature, but it was still very difficult.
At least Song Ningqiu couldn’t do this at her age.
“Did Little Sheng learn it before?” Song Ningqiu asked while checkmating Sheng Jia.
Sheng Jia glanced at the chessboard and nodded, “I used to be interested, so I bought books to learn by myself. But I haven’t really practiced it much.”
As she spoke, a rare trace of shyness appeared on her expressionless face, “Am I playing okay?”
Song Ningqiu smiled and affirmed, “You’re playing very well.”
“Even if you’re playing very well, you can’t escape the fate of having small strips of paper pasted on your face!” Julia, who had already understood the rules, came over with a rose and a strip of paper, gloatingly saying, “Finally, someone can control Sheng Jia.”
In fact, Sheng Jia had already lost four games, but because the strips of paper and roses hadn’t been prepared yet, Julia heard about it and hurried to get them, and now she quickly handed them to Song Ningqiu.
“Auntie Song, you can exercise your power to punish Sheng Jia.”
Song Ningqiu picked up the strip of paper, reached over the chessboard, and pasted it on Sheng Jia’s face, on her forehead and chin. Her fingertips were warm, and she carefully wiped her cheek with her fingertips. It was the temperature that belonged to her mother, just as Sheng Jia had imagined for so many years.
She raised her eyes and stared at her with the cover of the strip of paper. For some reason, her eyes suddenly felt a little sour.
She knew that Song Ningqiu liked Chinese chess.
How could she not inquire about her preferences when she had admired Song Ningqiu so much since she was a child.
But most of them were too expensive, and she couldn’t afford to learn them.
Only Chinese chess.
Not international chess, but the most traditional Chinese chess, the red and black chess pieces killing each other.
She had worked hard in secret for a long time.
Just waiting for the day to get a chance like this, to get close to her with Chinese chess, so that she could notice herself.
Just like Song Ningqiu had wanted to use Chinese chess to keep her mother for a moment of time and company, the daughter in front of her who couldn’t recognize her and was even unknown to anyone, was also working hard day and night, dreaming that one day she could use Chinese chess to keep her mother for a moment of time and company.
Just like at this moment.
Julia handed the flower to her palm. She picked up the flower, covered the slight trembling of her hand with her sleeve, and meticulously pinned these four roses that had already had their thorns removed to Song Ningqiu’s temples. She said in a low voice, “Very beautiful.”
Song Ningqiu patted her hand soothingly. Julia pressed her back down to the opposite side of the chessboard, so that she could play a fifth game with Song Ningqiu.
Sheng Jia wanted to reorganize her thoughts, but while everyone wasn’t paying attention, Song Ningqiu and her exchanged a glance, and actually blinked, as if she wanted to hint something to her.
Before she could figure it out, Song Ningqiu on the opposite side had already exclaimed and picked up her general piece, “Little Sheng is really amazing, she actually won me this time.”
Sheng Jia was slightly stunned. Because she was too excited, she played chess according to her conditioned reflexes and didn’t use her brain at all. When she looked again, she realized that her elephant could directly checkmate if she moved it once more.
Song Ningqiu must have secretly let her win. She subconsciously looked up, and this time she met the other party’s smiling eyes, with a bit of slyness, and blinked at her again, obviously because Sheng Jia had been laughed at by Julia and the others, she deliberately did this.
Julia also saw it, and she made a fuss and said, “Auntie Song, how can you let her win?”
Song Ningqiu said leisurely, “I didn’t let her win. Since Sheng Jia won me, then Sheng Jia should leave the table first, and I’ll play with you.”
Julia wailed, “I don’t know how to play Chinese chess!”
But Sheng Jia, who had reacted, had already stood up, and then skillfully pressed Julia onto the chair, “Knowing a little bit is still knowing, didn’t you laugh at me very happily just now? Let me see how strong you are.”
Julia wanted to get up, but she couldn’t get up at all when Sheng Jia was pressing her down. She could only helplessly start playing chess with Song Ningqiu, and then was killed without leaving any armor behind, with a sad and gloomy face.
Sheng Jia couldn’t help laughing. She sparkled and placed the four strips of paper and four flowers on the table, and imitated Julia’s tone and said, “Auntie Song, you’re really amazing, you can exercise your power to punish Julia.”