Jun Chen figured that once he handed the letter to Meng Liang in person, his mission was accomplished. Whether things worked out or not was none of his concern. Besides, it was almost lunchtime, and he still had to deliver food to his wife and their unborn child, so he had no time to linger.
Familiar with the layout, Jun Chen made a beeline for the kitchen.
That left Meng Liang standing frozen in place, holding the envelope, utterly bewildered and not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
A moment later, Jun Chen emerged from the kitchen carrying a food box. "Elder Mei," he said, "I'll be heading off now. I have to deliver lunch to my better half."
Elder Mei nodded. "Remember to bring that food box back to me. It's an antique, something from the imperial palace, and quite heavy."
Jun Chen grinned. "Got it! You can rest easy, Grandpa Mei."
Meng Liang also bowed and took his leave.
Elder Mei smiled warmly. "Good. We'll chat again next time."
Meng Liang bowed once more.
Jun Chen and Meng Liang walked out of Mei Garden together. As they parted ways, Jun Chen advised him, "Don't overthink it. I was just purely doing a favor for my sister-in-law by delivering a letter."
Looking at the envelope in his hand, Meng Liang felt an immense weight sink into his heart.
Shengxin Group.
Rushing all the way, Jun Chen finally arrived at Shen Liuli's office just before the lunch hour.
Seeing Jun Chen walk in carrying a food box, Shen Liuli asked, "Why are you here?"
Jun Chen replied, "Wife, did you forget what the national security officers said yesterday? They said you were in danger. So until those spies are caught, don't I have to protect you, my wife, every single step of the way?"
Shen Liuli sneered. "Didn't somebody say he didn't hear a single thing?"
Jun Chen's smile stiffened. He quickly changed the subject. "Let's eat first, Wife. These are all delicious dishes."
Jun Chen took the dishes out of the food box—four dishes and one soup, an exceptionally lavish spread.
As soon as the food box was opened, an appetizing aroma filled the air.
Shen Liuli asked, "Did you make this?"
Even though Mother Wu was a great cook, she hadn't reached this level of mastery.
Jun Chen denied it. "As if! Would I dare unless you gave the word?"
"I just took a trip to Mei Garden and had Chef Pang, the former state banquet chef, make these specially for you. Hurry up and eat, Wife, before it gets cold and loses its flavor."
Liu Yaoyao pushed open the office door and walked in. "What are you eating? It smells so good. I could smell it all the way out in the hallway."
"Ooh, four dishes and one soup, with chicken and fish! It sure is nice to be treated like an expectant mother."
Shen Liuli teased, "If you're envious, why don't you hurry up and find someone to marry and have a baby with?"
Liu Yaoyao clicked her tongue. "Get married and have a baby just for four dishes and a bowl of soup? I, Liu Yaoyao, am not that desperate."
Shen Liuli said, "Quickly swallow your drool before it drips into the food. And grab your chopsticks—dig in, I could never finish all this by myself."
Then Shen Liuli looked at Jun Chen and said, "You should eat a bit more with us."
Jun Chen replied, "No need, you guys go ahead. I've already eaten."
During the time Chef Pang was packing up the food box, he had squeezed in enough time to polish off two bowls of rice.
Liu Yaoyao chuckled. "Well, then I won't be polite." She eagerly picked up a pair of chopsticks, plucked a piece of fish, and popped it into her mouth. Sure enough, it was that exact taste.
Liu Yaoyao remarked, "Young Master Jun really carries weight. Ever since Chef Pang retired, he only cooks for the two elders at Mei Garden. To put it mildly, trying to taste his cooking again is as hard as ascending to the heavens."
Jun Chen laughed. "It's not as exaggerated as you make it sound."
Liu Yaoyao retorted, "That's only from the perspective of you, Young Master Jun. For ordinary folks like us, getting to eat a meal personally prepared by Chef Pang—how is that any different from ascending to the heavens?"
Jun Chen didn't argue further. What Liu Yaoyao said was true; Chef Pang's cooking wasn't something just anyone could eat.
After eating her fill, Shen Liuli lay down on the sofa to take a short nap. Liu Yaoyao left satisfied to rest in her own office. Taking advantage of the time, Jun Chen rushed the food box back to Mei Garden, then immediately returned to Shen Liuli's office. Since he had promised to provide close-up, personal protection every step of the way, he intended to stay by her side without leaving.
All afternoon, Shen Liuli buried herself in her work while Jun Chen buried himself in mobile games.
The most depressed person of the day had to be Meng Liang. Ever since he left Mei Garden, he felt like his head was about to split in two and he had lost all mood to do anything, so he went straight home.
Luo Yu called him to go out and hang out, but Meng Liang refused without a second thought.
When Meng Chen returned home from work, he found Meng Liang sitting in the living room sofa in a daze, eyes devoid of focus, sighing heavily. Meng Chen felt a jolt in his chest and secretly thought things looked bad—could some accident have happened at Mei Garden?
Meng Chen walked over and asked, "What's wrong? Did something unexpected happen at Mei Garden?"
Meng Liang shook his head. "No. Today I had a great chat with Elder Mei at Mei Garden. Elder Hua was upstairs the whole time, so I didn't get a chance to see him. When I was leaving, Elder Mei told me we could chat again next time and that I'm welcome to visit often."
A broad smile immediately spread across Meng Chen's face. "That's a good thing! Then why do you look so miserable?"
Meng Liang took out the love letter from Shiyu and placed it on the table.
Meng Chen asked curiously, "What is this?"
Meng Liang gave a bitter smile. "Young Master Jun gave it to me. A love letter from his sister-in-law."
Meng Chen was stunned, then burst out laughing. "Troubled by romance?"
"Jun Chen's sister-in-law... that would be Shen Liuli's younger sister, or a cousin. Shen Liuli is an only child, and Shen Huaiqiu is the sole heir of the Shen Family, so she must be a cousin—that girl from the Lin family, Shiyu?"
Meng Liang nodded.
Meng Chen asked, "Have you read the letter?"
Meng Liang replied, "I've read it."
Meng Chen asked, "How's the content?"
Meng Liang said, "Good writing style."
Meng Chen: "..."
After a brief silence, Meng Chen said, "You'll have to make your own decision on this; your old man can't help you. Whether you accept it or reject it, it's entirely up to you. Jun Chen won't be idle enough to give you trouble over this."
At that moment, the mistress of the Meng household, Xin Qin, opened the door and came back. Seeing the strange expressions on the faces of the father and son on the sofa, she asked, "What are you two sneaking around and talking about behind my back?"
Meng Chen confessed first. "Your son received a love letter and doesn't know how to handle it."
Xin Qin asked, "Which girl wrote it? She's got such good taste?"
Meng Chen replied, "It's your mahjong buddy Xu Manling's daughter."
Xin Qin was surprised. "It's Shiyu! Shiyu just turned twenty this year, hasn't even finished college, and is a whole five years younger than our Meng Liang."
Xin Qin teased, "Not bad, son, quite the romantic fortune! That girl Shiyu doesn't look a bit worse than her cousin Shen Liuli. Don't worry, Mom totally supports this."
With a dark face, Meng Liang said, "Mom, stop joking around. I'm stressed enough as it is!"
Xin Qin hit the nail on the head. "Isn't it because when you were little you only wanted to play with Shiyu and ignored all the other little girls? Now that she's latched onto you, what can you do about it?"
Meng Chen asked curiously, "There's history like that? How come I didn't know?"
Xin Qin rolled her eyes. "You're too busy! Such a big busybody. Just think about how many days you actually spent accompanying Meng Liang when he was little. You could count them on one hand."
Powerless to refute, Meng Chen could only scratch his head.