Unexpected Second Chance at Love

Chapter 852 - Variegated Tulips

Inside Yue Ling's office, Lin Hui recited the situation that happened when he took Liu Ye out for lunch. From start to finish, Yue Ling listened in silence without disrupting him.

" ... and that's how I got Chief Ren involved."

Lin Hui spoke with his head down. He stares at his hands on his lap and steals a glance up at Yue Ling.

"I'm sorry, boss. Without thinking, I called Chief Ren."

He apologized with a guilty heart. He knows that he had messed up, but he ended up calling Chief Ren in the heat of the moment.

Yue Ling didn't say a word or utter a sound. She sat in place and thought about Lin Hui's report.

After thoroughly thinking, she looks at her subordinate. She could tell that he was nervous and apologetic.

"It's alright. You don't need to apologize. What you did was not wrong at all."

Lin Hui felt as if the heavy weight on his shoulders was lifted, and he could breathe again. He honestly thought his boss would be angry since she told everyone not to involve Chief Ren once they came to Imperial.

He straightened his posture and raised his head to look at his boss.

"I promise to never bother Chief Ren without informing you."

Yue Ling chuckles at Lin Hui's serious expression. She doesn't put too much into his words and disregards the matter.

"You can leave. Once I'm off the clock, I'll go with you to the station."

Lin Hui's eyes widened ever so slightly when he heard her words. He didn't expect her to go with him to the police station.

He thought that since coming to Imperial, his boss wanted to avoid the past. This was the reason why he was hesitant to tell her.

However, unable to guess what she was thinking, he could only oblige.

"Alright. Call me when you're ready."

He stood up from his seat and left the room.

"Ah, I almost forgot. I sent Ju Suo to pick up Liu Ye's sister. The two boys are currently with Liu Shan. Please help keep an eye on them and provide them with any necessities."

Yue Ling spoke after Lin Hui, and he stopped in front of the door. He turns back to look at her and nods his head before walking out.

Since he has nothing to do, he'll hang out with the two boys until his boss is off.

Once the room was engulfed in silence, Yue Ling tilted her head back and stared up at the ceiling.

"I wonder if I have any clothes here that will fit..."

The words escaped her lips in a murmur then she remembered Lin Hui's report again.

She heaves a sigh and closes her eyes to rest.

From what she heard, the woman Lin Hui helped was her friend, Qin Xue. If she remembers correctly, Qin Xue's parents were constantly forcing her to attend blind dates.

Her eyes slowly flutter open, and she tilts her head to the side. Her bluish-green eyes stare out the window, and she sighs.

"Life is already hard. Why can't some parents think about their children's happiness?"

A few seconds after the words escaped her lips, she got up from the couch and walked to her desk.

Although she is worried about others, she cannot ignore her duty as CEO.

While Yue Ling returned to work, Lu Tian had just finished attending a meeting at his company.

His tall and handsome built entered his office and walked to his desk. He pulls open one drawer and reaches for his phone.

He turns it on and frowns. He assumed that by now, his wife should have already returned from An Qing.

However, there was no missed call, let alone a single message.

He looked at the wall clock, and seeing that it was already late in the afternoon, his frown deepened.

"Does she not miss me?"

"Ahem."

Xu Long stood in front of the desk with a folder in hand. He couldn't help but cough in an awkward position. He had been behind his boss the entire time and was waiting.

He noticed the intense wrinkles between his boss's eyebrows and thought it was because of the meeting.

However, it was actually due to his lady boss not contacting his boss.

He kept a regular expression but rolled his eyes millions of times.

His boss is known for being merciless yet, he (Lu Tian) was blessed with love before him (Xu long).

Quickly as the thought came to him, he smacked it away. How can he thought of such a thing when God blessed him the chance to meet Zhao Ya 'Er.

He cleared his throat but grinned like a little girl on the inside before turning serious.

"Boss, a report came while you were in a meeting. After lady boss left An Qing, she and Liu Shan met up with Lin Hui and Liu Ye."

Lu Tian was quick to understand what had happened. He pinches his chin and immerses himself in his own thoughts for a brief second.

"Have Shaofeng follow the father. If he makes any suspicious move, inform me right away."

Xu Long nodded in his head in understanding. He opens the folder in his hand and takes out a piece of paper.

"Here's your boarding pass to City Z. I have also informed Jiangyu and Yiqing about the situation."

He placed the boarding pass on his boss's desk then dismissed himself.

As he walked out of the room, he walked at a fast pace towards his office. He needed to inform Shaofeng about their boss's task.

However, that wasn't the reason why he was quickening his steps.

He wanted to call Liu Shan or Lin Hui and find out what happened.

Did they give Liu Ye's father a good beating? Or did they give him a slow and painful near-death experience? Also, he needed to inform Liu Shan and the others about the photoshoot his boss had in mind for the wedding.

Inside Lu Tian's office, he stares with unblinking eyes at the boarding pass his assistant gave him. He couldn't help but recall the bad memories every time he left his wife.

The first time was when he learned about Shin, and the second time was when someone wanted his wife's life.

Although there were only two incidents, each one was able to cause a disturbance in his heart.

What if he leaves, even if it's only for a few hours, and something happens again? What kind of husband would he be to not be there in her need?

Oblivious to Lu Tian's thoughts, Yue Ling sat in silence in her office. She had finished going over a few assignments with Jiang Shengyi.

Before anyone realized it, the time had already arrived for everyone to go home for the day.

Yue Ling turned off her computer and stepped out of her office. She met her secretary at the elevator, and the two women rode together to the first floor.

"See you tomorrow, CEO Han."

Jiang Shengyi bid her boss goodbye and left the company. However, unlike her, Yue Ling didn't go.

She makes her way to the break room at the back of the company.

As she nears the room, she could hear the sound of laughter belonging to that of a child.

She knew at once that it was Jianan.

A small smile appeared on her face, and she entered the room. She was glad to know that he wasn't afraid of them.

Upon her entrance, the room became quiet. She sees her design team and assistant surrounding Jianan and Liu Ye.

Lin Hui was also in the room as he sat the closest to Jianan.

The view of her subordinates and the two boys softened her heart.

"I hope I didn't ruin the moment."

She chuckles and walks over to an empty seat as everyone stares at her sudden arrival.

However, in the next second, Jianan was the first place to break the silence.

His little body jumps down from his seat and runs over to Yue Ling. In his hand was a single variegated tulip.

He stops in front of Yue Ling, and his cheeks flush a shade of pink.

"Miss Angel, I hope you don't mind, but I wanted to give this to you."

He hands the variegated tulip in a bashful manner. He steals a glance at the woman then looks away.

"You have very beautiful eyes."

After he ate in the break room, Liu Shan took him out on a stroll. Although it was only inside the company, he was indeed in awe of everything he saw. He has never seen so much luxurious clothes in his entire life and everything looked so expensive that he was afraid he might dirty them.

When they returned to the break room, he saw a bundle of variegated tulips in a vase. It was then that Liu Shan told him the meaning behind the flowers.

And the first person he thought of was Yue Ling.

She didn't interact much with him and gave an emotionless expression, but he knew right away that she was a nice person.

He also engraved her smile when she turned back to look at him in his heart.

And her eyes... Her eyes were so beautiful that he couldn't feel any danger in them.

Yue Ling was taken back by surprise. She looks at Jianan for a long second then the corners of her mouth raise.

"Thank you."

She takes the flower from him and gently pats his little head.

'Thank you for still being able to smile after everything you went through.'

She spoke the remaining words in her head as she was genuinely thankful and looked down at the flower.

Any child who suffered the kind of abuse Jianan had would have long forgotten how to smile, let alone trust another adult.

Yet, here he is, smiling like how a child should.

Brushing her thoughts aside, she raised her head to look back at Jianan.

She wanted to ask him a question but was interrupted by Liu Ye.

"Miss Han, I hope my brother didn't offend you in any way. I'll lecture him later and tell him not to touch anything without permission."

Liu Ye sincerely apologized as he stood next to his younger brother. He knows that Yue Ling is a nice person, but he and his siblings shouldn't step out of line.

He gestures a bow and apologizes again.

"I'm very sorry. I promise this will never happen again."

Yue Ling remained composed and stared at the top of Liu Ye's head. She didn't need to think about his words and chuckles.

"Jianan didn't offend me at all, so you do not need to apologize."

She glanced at Jianan, and a smile remained on her face.

"Thank you for the flower. To compensate you, what do you want?"

Liu Ye abruptly lifted his head when he heard Yue Ling. He looked at his brother and wanted to stop him from saying anything improper.

However, it was too late.

"I want a lot of food!"

Jianan exclaimed with brightly lit eyes. Both his arms spread wide like he was giving an example.

"I want to eat a lot of food. So I can grow big and protect older brother and die!"

His words brought tears to Liu Ye's eyes as it did the others in the room.

He didn't ask for toys or things a child would buy but for food. He wanted to be strong, so his older brother didn't have to protect him when their father hit them.

Yue Ling sighs a smile. She gently caresses the boy's face and nods her head.

"Mm. I will make that come true."

'I will make sure no harm will ever come to you or your siblings.'