Dad, cough up some gold

Xie Zhengde chatted with Shen Yeqing for a while, then called Xie Mi into the study.

When Xie Mi came in, Xie Zhengde was the only person there.

He was calmly leafing through a book. Seeing her enter, he nodded and spared her a single word. "Sit."

Xie Mi obediently walked over and sat down.

"How have you been doing out there all these years?" Xie Zhengde closed his book and asked.

"Badly."

He hadn't expected such a direct answer and froze for a moment, but admiration soon appeared in his eyes.

Straight to the point, no beating around the bush. Good.

"Why have things been bad? Because of money?"

"Not because of money, exactly."

Xie Zhengde nodded in satisfaction. Ambitious, neither servile nor arrogant. Good.

Xie Mi said, "Mostly because I didn't have any."

"..."

Honest, no hiding anything. Good.

"So what are your plans now that you're back?"

Xie Zhengde leisurely lifted his teacup and took a sip. He looked perfectly composed, but under the desk, his leg was shaking like mad.

The computer screen facing him still displayed his Baidu search history.

[How do I win back my daughter's heart?]

[What do I do if my daughter insists on leaving home?]

[Can a daughter unilaterally sever ties with her father?]

Xie Mi said nothing, her expression grave as she sat in silence.

Xie Zhengde had already drained his tea. As he chewed the tea leaves, cold sweat broke out on his forehead, and his leg shook even harder under the desk.

After what felt like several centuries, Xie Mi finally spoke.

"The sunny room on the second floor. The one with the big terrace."

"Huh?" Xie Zhengde didn't understand.

"Huh?" Xie Mi didn't understand either. "Weren't you asking which room I wanted to stay in?"

She had deliberated for ages and decided that the sunny room on the second floor was the best. Not only was it the largest, but its windows faced the lake. A luxury lake-view room, through and through.

Now that she finally got to be rich, of course she had to enjoy the best.

Xie Mi was feeling thoroughly pleased with herself, completely missing the wild joy in Xie Zhengde's eyes.

But as Chairman Xie, he had to maintain his dignity. He fought to contain his elation, keeping his face stern.

"All right. I'll have Old Bai get that room ready and decorate it to your liking."

"Thanks, Dad!"

Xie Mi cheered and jumped up, rushed over to hug Xie Zhengde, then eagerly dashed out of the study.

The moment she left, Xie Zhengde stood up in excitement, clutched the photograph of himself and his daughter from the desk to his chest, and shed a flood of tears.

"My daughter! My daughter-"

"Did you call me?"

A bright, lively voice rang out at the door, startling Xie Zhengde so badly that he nearly dropped the frame.

Seeing Xie Mi's head peeking around the door, Xie Zhengde instantly regained his serious expression, though a hint of mortified despair lingered in his eyes.

"Was there something else?" he asked calmly.

"Yep." Xie Mi's pretty eyes curved into crescents as she grinned. "Dad, cough up some gold."

[Ding-]

[Alipay payment received: five million yuan.]

Xie Mi jumped three feet into the air with excitement, practically ready to drop to her knees and kowtow three times in Xie Zhengde's direction.

She could hardly imagine what a cheerful, bubbly girl she was going to become from this day onward.

"Congratulations on returning to the family, Teacher Xie." An amused voice sounded behind her.

Xie Mi turned and found Shen Yeqing lounging on the sofa, his long legs crossed, one eyebrow raised slightly at her.

"I wanted to ask earlier. Why are you here?"

As Xie Mi tapped away on her phone, paying off her Huabei, Caobei, and every other assorted "bei" debt, she walked over and sat down by the sofa.

"To see you, of course, Teacher Xie."

"Cut the act!"

Xie Mi exposed him without mercy. "First, how did you know I was here? Second, how do you know my dad? Finally, the butler just said you're the first man my dad has ever brought home. This whole thing is weird."

Shen Yeqing wasn't annoyed at being caught out. "As expected of Teacher Xie. Sharp."

"Talk, or I'll put you in a chokehold."

Xie Mi narrowed her eyes menacingly, slowly reaching her wicked claws toward Shen Yeqing's neck.

Shen Yeqing lowered his head with a chuckle, unable to hide the sparkling amusement in his eyes.

"All right, I'll talk. Chairman Xie and I have business dealings. You happened to come up in conversation, and I told him a few things about you. Then he invited me over."

"A few things about me?" Xie Mi sensed something fishy and pressed him. "What exactly did you tell him?"

"Hmm... Like how you picked food out of the trash on the street when you were hungry and couldn't even beat a homeless man in a fight. How you were cyberbullied and stalked and threatened by haters. How you look like you're mentally ill, but actually are mentally ill..."

Halfway through, he noticed Xie Mi's expression growing dangerous. Shen Yeqing wisely stopped and flashed a brilliant smile.

"As you know, I do enjoy talking nonsense."

Xie Mi understood now.

No wonder this part had never appeared in the original novel. Shen Yeqing had been behind it.

But why would Shen Yeqing do this?

"I want you to have a good life." It was as though he had read her mind.

Xie Mi's heart unexpectedly skipped a beat. For some reason, this scene felt familiar, though she couldn't say why.

But smart people didn't wear themselves out overthinking. If she couldn't figure something out, she simply stopped thinking about it. She slapped the table.

"To thank you, I'll treat you to dinner!"

"Sounds good."

Shen Yeqing's beautiful, alluring eyes curved into a smile, his expression impossibly gentle. "What are you treating me to?"

"Shaxian Delicacies."

"..."

The richer people got, the stingier they became. Nothing wrong with that saying.

On her first night in her new home, Xie Mi was too excited to sleep.

To calm herself down, she played two rounds of a game.

Two rounds later, joy had turned to misery. Great. Now she really couldn't sleep.

Suddenly, rustling came from outside the window.

"Mom, slow down."

"Son, we have to seize this chance. If we can't drive her away in the next two days, we won't get another opportunity once she leaves to film the show."

"Don't worry, Mom. I've got everything ready. We didn't scare her during the day, but there's no way we'll fail this time."

Xie Mi walked to the window and saw two figures wearing white dresses and long, straight black wigs climbing ropes toward her windowsill.

So that was it.

This must have been how the original owner of this body had been frightened into mental illness back when she lived here.

"We're here, we're here. Same as before. Knock on the window, make scary faces, scare her to..." Before Li Meiyan could finish, she met Xie Mi's smiling eyes.

Xie Mi aimed the flashlight in her hand at her and Xie Lian.

She pressed the switch.

Bam-

The ultra-powerful, long-range outdoor flashlight lit up half the sky. Old Bai, the butler, had only just gone to bed, but hurriedly got up to prepare four dishes and a soup.

Blinded by the light, Li Meiyan's eyes rolled back. Her hands loosened, and she dropped straight down.

"Mom!"

Desperate to save his mother, Xie Lian let go and leaped after her, landing on Li Meiyan's back with a thud.

"Pfft-"

She had been fine before. Now she was seriously injured.

Li Meiyan: What a blessing it is to have you.