Chapter 155: Living Bodhisattva

Hua Jingjing snatched the phone from my hand, glanced at the caller ID, and clearly found it unfamiliar. She took another look before pressing the answer button.

I closed my eyes tightly, bracing myself for the impending doom...

"Hello, Tang Qian?" "He's not here right now, may I ask who—oh, I'm his fiancée. Hmm? Is that Xiao Xin? Oh my goodness, long time no view, it's your Sister Jingjing, haha, I didn't expect... what did you want with her... tutoring? Oh... he's back, you can talk to him yourself!"

With an expression of relief, Hua Jingjing handed the phone back to me and said, "It's Xiao Shu's younger sister. You've gotten pretty close to them over the past half year!" I laughed heartily, took the phone, and mentally praised the little imp's cleverness. "Hello! This is Tang Qian!"

"Tang Qian, since when did Hua Jingjing become your fiancée? Didn't my sister say she went to the United States to study?"

"About that? Well, let's talk about it later. I've got some things on my mind right now and no time to ponder it."

"Hmph! Is Hua Jingjing right next to you, making it inconvenient to talk? Fine, call me back later whenever you get the chance—any time at all!" As soon as she finished speaking, the line went dead.

I put down the phone, smiled wryly at Jingjing, and defended myself: "When I was injured, I owed a lot to the care of the Xu sisters, so we've had a good relationship since then."

Hua Jingjing snatched my phone back again, glared at me, and said, "I didn't ask you, and since you wouldn't tell me, hmph, did you really think I wouldn't find out on my own?" With that, she quickly dialed a set of numbers, put the phone to her ear, and said, "Hello, Xiao Shu! Were you startled? Yeah! I just got back today... Hmm, I'll tell you more tomorrow, right now I'm with Tang Qian. He's so hateful, he actually got bitten on the lips by a woman and still stubbornly refuses to admit it... Right, I came to ask you about it. Didn't you send people to keep an eye on him?... What? It was caused by a beer bottle cap? That sounds too absurd to be true... But he just admitted in person that he was with his old flame Qiu Jieqin... Of course I believe you... Is that so... Then I wronged him... Has he really been that good... Haha, the worst that can happen is I give him a few extra kisses! By the way, come over to my house for dinner tomorrow, I want to properly thank you... Can't guess why? You'll find out when you get here, haha, see you tomorrow!"

From Jingjing's conversation, I realized that Xu Shu had once again helped cover for me. Breathing a sigh of relief, I couldn't help but feel a surge of secret gratitude. Xu Shu had truly been wonderful to me, and the two sisters were unimaginably quick-witted.

Jingjing hung up the phone, looked at me with an apologetic smile, and acted coquettishly: "I'm sorry, Hubby, I was wrong. I'm so petty, it was all my fault. I was just worried about you..."

Though I had no idea how Xu Shu had managed to explain things away using a beer bottle cap, the crisis was at least over for now. My courage surged. I reached out, grabbed her back over, and feigned anger: "You couldn't even trust your own husband, you really deserve a beating. Tell me yourself, how many swats on the bottom?"

Jingjing giggled: "I'm not a child anymore, I'll let you kiss me a few times at most... Ow!"

***

I didn't care about her protests. I pushed her body down and applied a bit of pressure so that she was draped across my lap. I flipped up her skirt, revealing a pair of fuller buttocks encased in white panties.

Hua Jingjing's pretty face flushed bright red, and she struggled, saying, "If you're going to spank me, just spank me, why do you have to lift my skirt?"

Joy welled up in my heart, and I said, "If you do something wrong, you have to take your punishment. How can I spank you without lifting your skirt?" While speaking, I used my right hand to pull down and strip off her little white panties as well.

"Ah! Someone's going to see! Ow, go lighter, ow, that's enough, ow, that's three already!"

When I had punished her enough, I flipped her body back over and leaned in close until my face was only two centimeters away from hers. I said, "Do you know the consequences now? If you ever groundlessly harbor petty suspicions again, I'll pull down your pants and spank you again." Hua Jingjing's face was still flushed: "I know! I'll never dare do it again next time!"

My lips moved even closer, and I said, "Open your mouth, I'm going to kiss you to death!"

Hua Jingjing obediently parted her lips, hooked one arm around my neck, and we kissed again. This time, it was far more passionate than before.

I don't know how much time passed before we finally parted. I held her in my arms, savoring her presence with a sense of bliss, while asking her once more: "You said earlier you'd tell me how you managed to come back. Can you tell me now?" "Mm-hmm!" Jingjing happily leaned against my chest and began to recount her experience: "Didn't I tell you before? The three-year pact between my dad and me, the vow that I wouldn't see you for three years, was sworn in the name of my maternal grandmother, the only surviving elder on my side of the family. When I was little, Grandma adored me and treated me like the apple of her eye. But twelve years ago, after my grandfather passed away, she suddenly went to Baiyun Nunnery on Mount Jiuhua to become a nun. My grandmother was already a pious Buddhist, and back then she decided to fulfill a lifelong aspiration. No matter how much the family tried to persuade her, she wouldn't listen, and instead told us not to disturb her spiritual practice, claiming she wanted to achieve detachment from worldly desires and complete emptiness. I was still young then and didn't understand all of that. After my grandmother became a nun, I never saw her again. After my father sent me to the United States, I thought I would never be able to see you again during those three years. But the day before yesterday, I suddenly received a transoceanic call from my grandmother saying she had completed her spiritual merits and had returned to secular life. She asked how I was doing in the United States. Grandma had always loved me dearly since childhood, and at her question, I couldn't help crying and poured out all my grievances to her. When my grandmother heard this, she immediately called my parents over to question them, and it turned out to be entirely true. She scolded my dad so fiercely he didn't even dare to draw a full breath. Then she told me over the phone, 'Jingjing, come back home, Grandma will make things right for you.' I was so overjoyed! Grandma is the only surviving elder in our family, and when my dad was building his fortune, he relied entirely on the all-out support of my mom's maternal family. As long as her old ladyship gives a nod, it's an imperial decree—who would dare defy it? So I got on a plane last night and flew straight back."

I held Jingjing tightly, marveling, "The old lady is truly a living bodhisattva. Finally, someone has managed to keep your father in check. But why didn't you call me immediately when you got back, and what was going on with that little stunt your old man pulled?"

Jingjing laughed and said, "That was my grandmother's idea too. After she saw me, she made me recount the whole story between you and me in great detail. Then she said that since a fellow surnamed Tang could stand firm against the temptation of money, she summoned my dad. First, she chewed him out, saying how could he be so cruel to his own biological daughter, and asking what kind of father would do such a thing in this world, and so on and so forth. She left my dad speechless, forcing him to continuously admit his mistakes. Then she had my dad come find you, saying she wanted to test your character; only after you passed would she feel safe handing me over to you! So everything tonight was arranged by my grandmother. While you and my dad were talking outside, Grandma and I were listening right inside the private room!"

So that was how it was! No wonder he kept mocking and cursing Hua Qiming without the old scoundrel ever losing his temper. Turns out there was someone even more domineering present. I couldn't help feeling both deep respect and admiration for Jingjing's grandmother. I asked, "So, how did I do? Do I count as having passed?"

Jingjing chuckled: "If you hadn't passed, how could I possibly be seeing you now? My grandmother praised you to the high heavens, saying that young men nowadays who refuse to sell their love for money and refuse to sell their conscience for love are truly rare. Her old ladyship said that tomorrow afternoon, she warmly invites Mr. Tang Qian to honor our humble home, and she wishes to invite you to have dinner with our entire family."

I felt a mixture of shame and delight, and said, "The old lady is far too polite, what did I even do!"

***

Jingjing hooked her arm around my neck again and said, "Tang Qian, tomorrow is your first time visiting as a prospective son-in-law, so you need to behave your best. Especially with my dad—even though he treated you terribly and almost crippled you, who's to say? He's still my father! My dad wronged you, but a daughter will pay for her father's debts. From now on, I'll treat you with all my heart and take good care of you. If you're unhappy, you can hit or scold me all you want, and it won't matter. As long as you stop holding a grudge against him and don't pick fights with him, okay?"

I fell silent. Old scoundrel Hua Qiming had almost taken my life, torn Jingjing and me apart, and sent her to the United States under house arrest to keep us from seeing each other. For the past six months or more, there hadn't been a single day I didn't curse that old immortal. Asking me not to harbor resentment against him now was simply too difficult for me to accept.

Seeing me hesitate and remain silent, Hua Jingjing hurriedly pressed her little face against mine, kissing me as she pleaded, "Tang Qian, I'm begging you. At the very least, I'll let you beat me back to make up for it. No matter what, he's still my father, and no matter what happens in the future, we won't be able to avoid seeing him. By right, you'll still have to call him Dad."

I sighed and said, "Not holding a grudge against your dad isn't too hard; for your sake, I can just grit my teeth and bear it. But calling him Dad... I'm sorry, I really can't do it. Besides, this time he didn't realize his mistake and repent on his own; he was forced to submit because he had no choice against pressure from someone with more authority than him. I can't just forgive him so easily. I just can't do it!"

A look of obvious disappointment crossed Jingjing's face, but she also understood that this was truly asking too much of me. With a soft sigh, she said, "Let's talk about these things later then. But at least you have to promise me that you won't pick a fight when you see him, and that everyone can at least maintain a polite facade, okay?"

I thought for a moment, smiled, and asked, "If I promise you, what's in it for me?"

Hua Jingjing tilted her head and said, "Whatever reward you want, that's what I'll give you!"

With a wicked expression, I said, "You said it yourself! Wife, I've been holding back for a long time. Let's go to our old spot and love each other properly!" A wave of crimson quickly flooded Jingjing's face, and she shyly protested, "I knew you didn't have any good intentions. I... I only just got back today, and I haven't even had a proper rest."

I pulled her closer and whispered in her ear: "Then we can rest together!"

"Hmph! Don't try that, I won't fall for your trick! Hey, your hand, where are you touching?"