011 Brother Yan Song

Zhuang Xiyue led her out of the restroom, "Which private room are you in? I'll walk you over."

Yun Ya pointed it out to her.

It turned out that the two private rooms were next to each other. Zhuang Xiyue smiled and led her over.

Just at that moment, the door of that private room suddenly opened from the inside, and Kang Jinse walked out. She went to the door of the adjacent private room and touched up her makeup in the mirror before knocking on the door.

Zhuang Xiyue stopped in her tracks, her brows slightly furrowed.

The restroom was at the end of the corridor, and with the dim lighting, unless they spoke up, Kang Jinse wouldn't notice them.

The door was opened from the inside, and a middle-aged woman dressed in the club's uniform asked, "May I help you?"

Kang Jinse glanced inside, but a wall blocked her view; she couldn't see anything clearly.

She then smiled and said, "I heard Lady Su is here. I am Kang Jinse, and I've come to pay her a visit."

Kang Jinse? Her recent affair with Yun Shen had been the hot talk of the town—it was nearly impossible not to know her. But why was she inserting herself into this gathering?

"Just a moment, Miss."

Soon, the woman reappeared, "The Lady won't see guests, please return another time." With those words, she didn't glance at Kang Jinse again, turned around, and "bang"—shut the door.

Kang Jinse was bewildered. How could this be? After hearing her name, why would Lady Su refuse her?

"Hmph, she's just a mayor's wife, what's there to be so proud of? Sooner or later, someone will kick her out." Kang Jinse turned back to her own private room.

This Kang Jinse really wasn't presentable—such a woman was no match for Yun Shen.

Zhuang Xiyue shook her head; she was incomparable to Ji Lanyi.

As they reached the door of the private room, Zhuang Xiyue said to Yun Ya, "Yun Ya, go back. Remember to visit Auntie's house when you have time. Your Brother Yan Song always talks about you."

Yun Ya smiled and agreed.

That naughty boy would talk about her? He probably couldn't wait to gobble her up.

When Zhuang Xiyue pushed the door and entered, Lady Su was already dozing off. Hearing the sound, she opened her eyes, "Why did going to the restroom take so long?"

Zhuang Xiyue smiled, "I bumped into a junior and we chatted for a bit."

"Is that so?" Lady Su closed her eyes again, as the beautician dripped essential oil onto her face and skillfully massaged her, eliciting comfortable hums from Lady Su.

"How are the preparations for your birthday party tomorrow evening? You've been low-key these past two years, but my husband is about to be transferred. The place of Jiangzhou ought to be handed over to you."

Zhuang Xiyue showed surprise in a timely manner, "Mayor Su is being promoted?"

Lady Su's voice brimmed with pride, "He's going to the Capital City. Speaking of which, it's all thanks to Minister Yan. This time, I really need to thank you."

Zhuang Xiyue's smile was gentle, "Lady Su is joking. It's all due to Mayor Su's outstanding achievements and governance. It's only right for him to be promoted."

Lady Su felt immensely gratified by those words, "You do have a way with words. Rest assured, my husband and I won't forget your great kindness. I've been in Jiangzhou for over a decade; there's nothing I don't know—what should and shouldn't be known can't escape my eyes. In the future, I'll leave this place in your hands." Jiangzhou, a land of wealth and prosperity. As the mayor's wife, she had enjoyed all the flattery and favor there. However, once she got to the Capital City, she would become a nobody, starting all over again. She truly did not want to leave, but a person always aims high, and for her husband's career, she had to make the move.

Lady Su looked at the graceful and serene woman, with picturesque brows and eyes and dignified elegance—a daughter raised by a family with over a hundred years of scholarly legacy. Moreover, with the Yan Family as her backing, it was foreseeable that Jiangzhou would be her domain in the future.

...

Kang Jinse grew angrier the more she thought about it after the mayor's wife had shooed her away. The Ji's were the leading family in Jiangzhou, and Yun Shen was its CEO. As Yun Shen's fiancée, she had already shown great respect by her presence, yet her kindness was not reciprocated.

What was there to be so arrogant about? She had heard that Mayor Su would soon be stepping down. By then, she wouldn't be the mayor's wife anymore, and Jinse wondered where her arrogance would be then.

Seeing Yun Ya return, Kang Jinse's anger escalated, "Dilly-dallying like that, why don't you just fall into the toilet?"

Yun Ya hung his head in silence.

Thinking she could cling to the mayor's wife, she should first evaluate if she was qualified. Just a mistress, in Lady Su's eyes she wasn't much more distinguished than a girl from a salon. Moreover, she was soon accompanying her husband to Capital City for his new position. A place like Jiangzhou was of no significance to her.

That afternoon, Kang Jinse rushed to get her hair done, then went shopping in the mall. She browsed and bought a dress for herself, and only then picked out a random skirt for Yun Ya. By the time she got home, it was already nine o'clock in the evening.

Yun Miao insisted on waiting for Yun Ya to come home before going to sleep.

"Rock-a-bye, rock-a-bye, rock the boat to grandma's bridge..."

"Grandma dear, grandma dear, smiling at me so cheerfully..."

Yun Ya hummed nursery rhymes, and even though Yun Miao couldn't hear, he still fell asleep with a sweet smile. Yun Ya watched his serene sleeping face, smiled faintly, rested his head against his and contentedly closed his eyes.

In another room, Kang Jinse had just finished showering and came out when her phone on the table suddenly rang. She thought it was Yun Shen calling, so she hurried to answer.

"Sis... something terrible has happened, Mom collapsed, sob... What do we do...?" a little girl's panicked voice came from the phone.

All the joy within Kang Jinse instantly vanished as she furrowed her brows, "What happened?"

"Sob... When I came home from school, I saw Mom had fainted in the yard. I'm so scared, sis, please come back..."

"Don't panic. Go and find Uncle Wang next door, have him take mom to the hospital. Stay home and be good, I'll be right back, do you hear me?"

"Yes, okay, I'll be good and wait for you to come back."

After hanging up the phone, Kang Jinse tried calling Yun Shen. After three tries with no answer, she had no other choice but to make her way back to the countryside overnight.

The distance from Jiangzhou to Jiangtian Village was over a hundred kilometers, and with it being a night drive, she didn't dare go too fast. Despite her urgent worry, there was nothing she could do.

Her phone suddenly rang. Seeing the caller ID, Jinse felt a surge of relief and quickly answered.

"What's up?" came Yun Shen's indifferent voice from the phone.

"Brother Shen, my mom had an accident..."

"Hmm, where are you?"

"I'm on the way home, halfway there. Brother Shen, what should I do? I'm really scared, could you please stay with me?" Jinse's voice tensed with nervousness as she finished.

There was a pause on the other end, "I still have things to do, so I won't be able to join you. Let Ah Biao accompany you back. For anything else, you can contact Liang Yu." The call was ended right after.

Listening to the "beep beep" busy signal on the phone, Kang Jinse's heart instantly turned cold.

Hadn't she already experienced how unfeeling this man could be? So what exactly was her heart aching for?

The highway at night was exceptionally quiet, the wind howled, and the passing headlights flashed by, casting light on her delicately made-up eyes, making them painfully bright.