Compared to her husband's worried expression, Liu Qin, sitting beside him, looked far more relaxed.
She was a traditional woman who had always relied on her family. The schemes and power plays of the business world had never made much sense to her.
Over the years, she had grown used to being a pampered society wife.
Liu Qin knew the company was in serious trouble, but she also knew that worrying alongside her husband would do nothing to help...
So she had remained remarkably calm.
She lounged against a sofa cushion with a handful of plain sunflower seeds, occasionally chuckling at a joke on TV.
Then came the crisp click of the front door unlocking.
Without even raising her head, Liu Qin cracked another seed and asked offhandedly,
"Bingning, is that you?"
"What would you like for dinner? Mom will go make it for you."
With that, Liu Qin tossed the last seed shell in her hand into the trash.
She brushed the crumbs from her hands, rose from the soft sofa, and turned toward the entryway.
But then...
Her gaze moved past her daughter, and she saw the handsome stranger beside Xu Bingning, a young man with a striking presence.
Liu Qin froze.
"Bingning, who is this?"
She frowned slightly, her voice thick with surprise.
She had every reason to be shocked.
In all these years, this was the first time Xu Bingning had ever brought an unfamiliar man into the Xu Family Villa.
And the man's looks and bearing were simply impeccable!
He wore a sharply tailored, handmade bespoke suit. It had no conspicuous logo, but the quality of the fabric made it obvious that it was an outrageously expensive piece of luxury clothing.
Liu Qin's eyes, trained by years spent among the wealthy wives of the Imperial