"Grandfather?" That was totally unexpected.
Silence.
He just coldly stared at her with his steady eyes as if expecting an explanation. The clock continued to tick in the background but he showed no signs of movements. Was he using some kind of psychological trick on her, he learned to scare his employees into obedience? If it was, it sure was working! She found her heart beating faster.
Hmm... thinking about it, she should try this trick sometimes. She could learn a lot from her grandfather.
"Grandfather. How long are we going to have this stare competition?"
His face twitched in anger. He struggled to maintain a serious, scary face. Is this all she had to say? Is this all after almost giving him a heart attack?
"You think its a joke?"
"No obviously not. I just came back after witnessing a brutal massacre. It is obviously not a..."
"Do you think I care for a bloody massacre?"
That was a strange thing to say. Jing Lihua was befuddled. Who wouldn't care for a bloody massacre?
Tang Liuwei had inquired about the incident from his secretary. But being as old as he was, he had witnessed countless mascaras during struggles for power between notable families of Beijing. All he needed to know was that his granddaughter wasn't affected. The rest didn't matter to him. So his cunning granddaughter couldn't use that excuse to escape.
"Don't you dare to act so clueless. I received a call from your secretary. She told me everything. You were knocked unconscious and had to stay two nights in hospital"
Damn Mei Xiu! I'll make sure to cut your wages half!
"You can't fire Mei Xiu. You might be the President but I'm the Chairman. Her position was decided by me. I had entrusted you to her and she'll stay to keep you in line."
"I never said I was going to fire her" Why must she be blamed?
"Your face tells everything"
"Grandfather I know you are worried. But I'm alright. If it was something serious, informing you would be the first thing I would do." Jing Lihua said putting the utmost sincerity in her words. Her grandfather's love for her was more genuine than anything else in the world. He was the only family she was left with after her mother's death. In her last life, he was the one who had supported her till her death. She felt guilty for not giving him a call. She should have paid more attention to him. After all, he was her only family.
"Who said I was worried? I was merely upset about who would look after the company in your absence"
"..."
Screw everything she just thought in her mind.
Her grandfather finally smiled, letting lose his serious face after pissing his granddaughter off.
"Stupid Xiao Lizi. You scared me to death."
"Don't call me that in my office at least" The last thing she wanted was to have her employees hear her being called Little pear.
"When I heard the news I instantly flew to Beijing and went to the hospital straight. But I couldn't find you. I thought you must have gone back to your apartment to rest but you weren't also there. Knowing the lazy you, this office was the last place I had decided to look but considering your past, that I always found you at the most unexpected place, I drove here. And here you are"
"Grandfather?", Jing Lihua's eyes widened in disbelief, "How can you call me lazy? I have been working tirelessly these past weeks. Even after getting out of the hospital, I went straight to work despite the doctors telling me to rest. You are the chairmen. I sent every file to you to sign before finalizing. You have seen how many changes I've made in the corporate. How can you blame me of being lazy?" Jing Lihua felt emotional. She was waiting to be praised for her hard work. But she was called 'lazy'? How unfair!
Her grandfather's face turned dead serious again.
Oops.
"The doctors asked you to rest and you still came to office?"
Her grandfather tricked her into telling him everything. And she was tricked... once again.
"G-Grandfather, it wasn't that..."
"You are coming with me to my farmhouse right now" His tone was unrelenting. He walked to the glass panes and called his secretary to book two tickets to his farmhouse.
No, she had to stop it. There was a lot going in here. She couldn't leave it all in the middle. Especially now that Su Liwei was up to make his next move.
"Grandfather!"
"No negotiations"
"But grandfather, the hospital said that I must go for a check-up for the next two days. if I leave, how will I have those check-ups?", she quickly came up with an excuse. The doctors had indeed told her to come for a checkup. But she had never planned to go, not until that crazy doctor was still in the hospital.
Her grandfather glanced at her suspiciously.
"They also said if I didn't come for the check-ups immediately after I felt something bad, it can be quite serious." She lied shamelessly.
Tang Liuwei relented. His grandfather was clever with words.
"Fine, you can stay here. But, I'll not let you do any work. And you must stay in your apartment. And if you do anything against that, I'll immediately drag you to my farmhouse and won't let you go for a week"
"Okay" She agreed like an obedient child.
He wouldn't be here right. How would he know she had gone to work? Besides she didn't need to go to the office for work. She just had to call her secretary to bring her the files. She could just ask...
"And I'll be staying with you to ensure you follow the doctor's guide"
(┳Д┳)