Xia Xiaolan had always been a passionate person by nature.

Patience and restraint weren’t part of her character – she preferred to settle scores immediately. All emotions needed expression; holding them in would only harm oneself, wouldn’t it?

Even in her previous life, she hadn’t risen through corporate politics by being diplomatic. Director Xia simply had real ability and was persistent – deals others couldn’t close, Director Xia could make happen. The process didn’t matter; results and performance did! She was decisive and efficient, and her team followed the same style. Only later, as she rose higher in position and spent less time in direct combat and more time dealing with people, did Director Xia gradually temper her temperament.

Living life again with a young body, it was as if time had reversed, making her mindset young again.

She was only 19 now – why act so mature? Save the shrewd maturity for business dealings. Why hide her feelings from her boyfriend?

Being a bit willful and following her heart might make this relationship easier.

Right now, Xia Xiaolan wanted to pinch Zhou Cheng’s ear.

After asking Kang Wei to book tickets, she was ready to leave immediately. Liu Yong was puzzled: “Why such a hurry? I was planning to treat you to seafood at the restaurant.”

Xia Xiaolan replied matter-of-factly: “Uncle, for young people nowadays, birthdays are just an excuse to celebrate, an excuse to date… so, you understand, right?”

Her niece’s frankness felt like many small daggers piercing Liu Yong’s heart.

Want to know how a future father-in-law feels?

This was it!

He knew he shouldn’t have agreed to Xiaolan dating Zhou Cheng. Zhou Cheng, who wasn’t honest from their first meeting, had turned out to be the weasel who stole away the Liu family’s daughter! Even worse, when children grow up, they have their ideas, and his daughter was particularly strong-willed – opposition would be futile.

Liu Yong had previously worried that Zhou Cheng wasn’t serious about the relationship, feared Xiaolan might get hurt, and worried about the gap between their families – what if it didn’t work out?

But after Xia Xiaolan became Yunan Province’s top scorer, guaranteed to enter Huaqing University, these worries vanished! Now Boss Liu was feeling a bit proud – even if they broke up, his niece wouldn’t struggle to find someone. Nobody had ever heard of a Huaqing University student unable to find a partner. With future money and career prospects, why rush into marriage? She should choose carefully and find the best match.

Liu Yong had made peace with everything now.

For Xia Xiaolan’s first flight, Liu Yong acted as if he were flying himself. He not only accompanied her to the airport but also pressed a package into her hands:

“Our family isn’t short on money now. Enjoy yourself in Beijing as you like, but mind your manners, and… well, never mind, your uncle knows you’re smart!”

Both Kang Wei and Liu Yong assumed Xia Xiaolan was going to Beijing to “meet the parents.” Knowing that most of Xia Xiaolan’s money was tied up in new business ventures, Liu Yong had stuffed 5,000 yuan into the package, not wanting her to appear lacking in Beijing.

No matter how high the Zhou family’s standards might be, with a few thousand yuan for gifts, how could anyone consider her impolite?

Young ladies should spend money on their birthdays, and buy things they like – this money was Liu Yong’s red envelope birthday gift.

While everyone else made assumptions, Xia Xiaolan herself hadn’t given it much thought.

These people, just like Zhou Cheng, moved too fast in relationships, operating on a different frequency from Xia Xiaolan. Of course, if Zhou Cheng wanted to introduce her to his parents, she wouldn’t be intimidated. They were dating, and now that she had time, visiting his family in Beijing would be fine… but if they expected her to lower herself completely, to crawl into the Zhou family on her knees, Xia Xiaolan would probably dump Zhou Cheng without hesitation.

Affection was one thing, being polite and respecting elders another, but was it worth losing one’s dignity?

In any case, Xia Xiaolan flew to Beijing, bringing neither bodyguards nor letting Kang Wei and Shao Guangrong notify Zhou Cheng in advance.

Let Zhou Cheng think she was still wavering about choosing a car. When she suddenly appeared before him, she’d ask if he was surprised and delighted!

To Xia Xiaolan, distance wasn’t a major problem in their long-distance relationship. As long as she maintained her ability to earn money, no matter how far apart they were, if the train was too slow, couldn’t she just buy a plane ticket?

The biggest problem with long-distance relationships was the inability to communicate promptly, and now she was going to have a good talk with Zhou Cheng!

In the sweltering summer heat, Zhou Cheng sneezed.

His subordinate grinned, “Boss, Sister-in-law must be thinking about you!”

Zhou Cheng couldn’t exactly announce to the whole unit a loudspeaker about Xia Xiaolan’s exam results – the estimated 584 points becoming 616 points, becoming Yunan Province’s top science student – that was his private joy. But those around Zhou Cheng knew he’d been in an exceptionally good mood lately, which was why his subordinate dared to joke.

“It’s your sister-in-law’s birthday today. If only the boss would approve my leave request.”

Zhou Cheng spoke casually with his subordinate, who usually helped him handle personal errands like collecting and sending packages. Though the subordinate didn’t know Zhou Cheng’s exact family situation, he knew his boss must have connections.

Despite their sister-in-law being from rural Yunan, her previous commanding presence hardly seemed like that of a country girl.

Just take the watch sister-in-law had sent to Boss Zhou – it had even scared away Director Fang’s girlfriend High Fei. Recently, High Fei had stopped hanging around Zhou Cheng, which the subordinate took as her accepting she couldn’t compete with her sister-in-law.

The watch was certainly beautiful. The subordinate wondered aloud: “It’s sister-in-law’s birthday? You haven’t asked me to send anything…”

The subordinate gave him a “how stingy of you” look, making Zhou Cheng laugh and scold him: “What do you know? Find yourself a partner first!”

He wanted to present all good things to his wife, but she always kept him at arm’s length. He wondered if his wife would accept Kang Wei’s suggestion. Kang Wei hadn’t even called to tell him whether she’d bought a car or which one she’d chosen.

Some cars were too boxy and unsuitable for women to drive.

He wasn’t sure if there were any cars among the customs seizures that Xiaolan would like.

Zhou Cheng hadn’t previously thought himself short on money, but after learning about import car prices, he realized he hadn’t achieved true wealth yet. Cars ranged from tens of thousands of yuan to tens of thousands of dollars, with even more expensive options available. The business with Kang Wei couldn’t stop – though he had no worries about food and clothing at work, he still had to support a wife in the future.

While Zhou Cheng felt he needed to diligently save more money, old Fang was distributing wedding candies with High Fei.

Old Fang was radiant today. Though he and High Fei had their disagreements, after he proposed marriage to her family, High Fei’s parents agreed without much difficulty. High Fei ran out of excuses to delay marriage, and old Fang wasn’t stupid. Last month, he submitted their marriage application, which had now been approved – wasn’t that as good as being married?

He would certainly need to treat his peers, superiors, and junior leaders in the unit to a meal.

Outside work, the High family would host a banquet at a restaurant. Old Fang’s hometown was quite poor, and he didn’t want to return there, so his parents would travel to Beijing instead. These things could be arranged between the two families. Old Fang was beaming as he distributed wedding candy – in getting married, he had gotten ahead of Zhou Cheng.

“Hey, dating someone from out of town is different from dating a local Beijing girl. Zhou Cheng, why don’t you arrange a job for your girlfriend? Are you two just going to stay long-distance?”