What Was Zhou Qiao'er Doing in Your Room?

Happy moments are always fleeting, like trying to squeeze out the last drop of water from an empty brain.

Quickly, Zhou Qiao'er, like a slippery eel, slid out from Tang Ao's bed. She hadn't forgotten the purpose of her visit to Tang Ao's room:

"Honey~ I've been feeling uneasy lately, especially just now. I have a bad feeling that something might happen to our Zhou family's Da Zhou Pharmaceuticals. Just thinking about it makes me so anxious that I can't sleep."

[Something is definitely going to happen. Your Da Zhou Pharmaceuticals subsidiary, Zhou's Special Ling, is about to be targeted by the protagonist, causing its stock to drop by thirty percent over three days!]

[But, there's no way I'm telling you this. It's a necessary step for Ye Chen's rise. If I tell you, and your family sets a trap for Ye Chen in return, it would ruin everything.]

[Besides, a loss of a few billion in cash flow is nothing more than a drop in the ocean for your Zhou family. Ye Chen's target is just a small subsidiary of your massive pharmaceutical group, it won't cause any serious harm to the Zhou family.]

Hearing Tang Ao's inner thoughts, Zhou Qiao'er's lips curled into a smile.

So, that's the situation.

A mere subsidiary losing a few billion is just a trivial matter for the giant that is Da Zhou Pharmaceuticals.

But~

The Zhou family is not a fish on the chopping board to be slaughtered at will!

The Zhou family is not to be trifled with!

"Honey~ goodnight. Make sure I'm in your dreams tonight!"

With that, Zhou Qiao'er hurriedly left for her own room.

She needed to inform her family to prepare for this!

Tang Ao was left baffled, not understanding Zhou Qiao'er's sudden departure.

[Dream of you? What would that even do?]

[And what's going on? I haven't even answered your question, why are you leaving so happily?]

[No wonder they say a woman's heart is a needle at the bottom of the sea, impossible to understand. Forget it, I'll just go to sleep.]

Just before opening Tang Ao's door, Zhou Qiao'er muttered to herself: "Don't worry, I won't let that Ye Chen have a chance to harm you, nor will I let him have a single good day!"

As soon as she opened the door, Zhou Qiao'er froze.

It wasn't anything else, but Tang's mother standing there with two bowls of ginseng soup, staring at her with a mix of curiosity and expectation.

"Qiao'er? Why are you coming out of this room?"

"I..." Zhou Qiao'er's heart started pounding again, feeling a thrilling sensation of being caught sneaking around with her lover. Her face turned red as she stammered, "I... I borrowed Tang Ao's shampoo."

Tang's mother looked at her suspiciously and then nodded: "That's strange. I specifically arranged for everything in your bathroom to be fully stocked and brand new. It shouldn't be missing a bottle of shampoo. Maybe I forgot. I'm sorry about that. I'll deduct the housekeeper's pay tomorrow for not doing such a simple task properly."

Hearing about deducting the housekeeper's pay, Zhou Qiao'er felt guilty. She didn't want someone to get unfairly punished because of her.

"Ah... no, it's not that there was no shampoo. It's just that I didn't like that particular brand, so I asked Tang Ao if he had a different one. That's all."

Tang's mother finally understood and believed her: "In the future, if you need anything, just tell the housekeeper. Don't be shy. Here, this bowl of ginseng soup is something I made myself. Drink it to nourish yourself."

Taking the bowl from Tang's mother, Zhou Qiao'er took a sip, feeling the warmth spread from her throat to her heart.

Late at night, as the matriarch of a top-tier wealthy family, Tang's mother personally making her a bowl of ginseng soup showed Zhou Qiao'er's importance in her eyes, equal to that of Tang Ao.

Tang's mother truly saw her as a daughter-in-law.

Zhou Qiao'er smiled sweetly: "Thank you, Auntie. It tastes great!"

Tang's mother pretended to be angry: "Still calling me Auntie? Qiao'er, let me be clear, Tang Ao's future wife can only be you. No other woman can get past me."

Seeing Zhou Qiao'er lower her head shyly, Tang's mother realized she might have been too hasty and stepped into Tang Ao's room: "Rest early. Leave the bowl here. I'll take it when I leave. Don't feel constrained here. Treat it as your own home."

With that, she turned and walked towards the center of the room where Tang Ao lay.

"Son, wake up and drink this ginseng soup before sleeping."

"Okay~"

Tang Ao obediently crawled out of bed and downed the ginseng soup his mother handed him.

He was almost used to this routine. Every now and then, his mother would personally make some tonic and bring it to his room to nourish his body.

It wasn't that Tang Ao was so weak that the doctor ordered intensive supplements; it was his mother's belief that Tang Ao, who spent his days fooling around, needed to nourish his body.

There's a kind of weakness that only your mother perceives, just like how she insists you wear thermal underwear because she thinks you're cold.

Seeing Tang Ao finish the soup, Tang's mother smiled lovingly: "Son, today you said something about 'wanting to support your parents but they won't wait' on the phone. What does that mean?"

"Pff~!!!"

Tang Ao couldn't hold back and sprayed the last mouthful of soup back into the bowl.

"You're always so careless. Besides Qiao'er, what other girl would want to marry you~"

"Mom~ Love can't be forced. I'm really tired. Can I go to sleep now?"

Tang Ao yawned dramatically, trying to evade his mother's probing questions.

"You brat, I already know. You're growing up and starting to worry about me and your dad's retirement. I'm very happy about that. Don't be embarrassed. I understand, and I'm looking forward to having grandchildren."

Tang Ao was at a loss for words. He hadn't thought about that at all. He could only pretend to be clueless: "Mom... I'm really tired."

"Alright, alright, I get it. Rest well." Tang's mother said, picking up the bowl as she prepared to leave. She casually asked, "By the way, I saw Qiao'er coming out of your room when I came in. Don't you only like that Lin girl? What was Qiao'er doing in your room?"

Tang Ao was startled. My god, what a coincidence! She saw Zhou Qiao'er leave my room.

Thinking quickly, Tang Ao came up with a suitable excuse: "Um, she... she came to borrow some shampoo!"

"I see."

Tang's mother looked disappointed but sighed quietly: "Rest well."

Before leaving Tang Ao's room, Tang's mother checked the bathroom. The shampoo had indeed been used tonight, with some water droplets on it.

Shaking her head, she left Tang Ao's room, picked up the bowl from Zhou Qiao'er's room, and watched her applying a face mask. There was a mischievous glint in Tang's mother's eyes.