Exposed

Hesta's face drained of all color in her extreme fury, turning ash-pale. Yet at the same time, the anger in her eyes vanished completely. Her gaze became calmer than ever. She looked at Eucali, who did not avert her eyes. After a moment of silence, Hesta turned and left the apartment.

"Are you leaving?" Cheng Xiaoshu came to her senses. "Wait for me—sorry, Eucali, I'm leaving too. Be careful on your own. Call if you need anything."

Cheng Xiaoshu hurried after her, but Hesta could not even be bothered to wait for the elevator. She swept down the stairwell like the wind. Cheng Xiaoshu ran down two flights, then went back through the door into the corridor and took the elevator down to the first floor.

Downstairs, Hesta had not gone far. She was crouching by the edge of the landscaped greenery, her head lowered.

Cheng Xiaoshu walked up beside her. "Are you angry?"

When Hesta gave no response, she bent down to look at Hesta's face. "Jane?"

Hesta looked up. "How did you negotiate with that woman just now? She actually agreed to go wait in the bedroom?"

"It was nothing," Cheng Xiaoshu said, crouching down as well. "I just spoke to her respectfully, like an ordinary junior would. I suppose that's my experience—when you play the role of a junior in front of someone, they unconsciously play the role of a typical elder. I'm an outsider, after all. She wouldn't make things too difficult for me."

"Is that so."

"Is your hand all right?"

Hesta tucked her hand away. "It's fine."

"Don't take it too personally," Cheng Xiaoshu said. "They're a mother and daughter who have lived together for over twenty years. You can't change anything with just a word or two—"

"Let's leave it here for today."