Pitch Dark

Upon hearing this, Hua Jingjing became even more anxious. She grabbed old man Hua’s hand and cried out, "Dad, didn't you promise me you wouldn't make things difficult for Tang Qian anymore? You two..."

Old man Hua burst into hearty laughter, pulled his daughter closer into his embrace, and said, "That punk stole my beloved daughter away from me. My hatred for him runs deep as the ocean, so giving him a beating is letting him off easy. If I hadn't seen how frantic you were over him, I would have had the heart to kill him!"

"Ah?" Hua Jingjing was both bewildered and perplexed. Looking at our expressions, we didn't look like we had just been in a fight, so she could only shake her father's arm in a coquettish display of stubbornness.

I chuckled and said, "We were just joking! Couldn't you even tell that apart? Your dad and I were just chatting for a bit, what on earth were you so nervous about?"

Hua Jingjing widened her large eyes and asked, "Really?"

"Really!" Old man Hua released his daughter and said to me with a serious expression, "Now that the personal matters are settled, let's talk about business."

I asked in confusion, "What business?"

"Of course it's about the property rights of the Leaf Tip Fragrance tea drinks!"

"Leaf Tip Fragrance tea drinks have always belonged to our company, that is unquestionable! What is there to talk about?"

"Hah! Don't think that just because I withdrew the lawsuit, I've acknowledged that the property rights of Leaf Tip Fragrance belong to you. Do you dare claim you never researched it while you were at Green Lady Company?"

"But that..."

While arguing back and forth with old man Hua, I left Hua Jingjing behind and walked ahead with him toward the Hua family residence. Left standing alone in the spot, Hua Jingjing stared at us in disbelief.

Upon returning to the Hua residence, I finally caught sight of Xu Xin. There was now a piece of gauze plastered onto her forehead; when she had first arrived, she had only applied some medicinal liquor, but by now it had clearly been properly treated.

Tonight she was remarkably well-behaved and did not throw tantrums at all. Xu Shu deliberately avoided meeting my gaze, while Jingjing's brother, Hua Zhengquan, spent the entire evening staying closely by Xu Shu's side.

The original intent behind old man Hua's argument with me was actually to seek cooperation with our company, intending for us to jointly develop the Leaf Tip Fragrance series of tea drinks. I did not dare to agree on the spot, stating only that a decision could only be made after the matter had been discussed and approved by the board of directors.

The final agenda item for the evening was to finalize the arrangements for next Friday, when both sets of parents—mine and Jingjing's—would meet to officially set our wedding date. Furthermore, according to tradition, Jingjing would come to my house tomorrow evening to meet my parents.

Xu Shu and I took our leave at the same time. Jingjing held onto my hand, persistently asking me by the car about how things had gone with her father. I had no choice but to tell her the truth. The Xu sisters did not wait for me; they drove away first.

Ten minutes later, I finally parted ways with Jingjing with much reluctance, got into my car, and drove out onto the highway heading home. I pondered how I should break this joyous news to my family.

Halfway through the drive, my cell phone rang. I pulled it out and saw that the call was from Xu Xin.

Sighing, I answered, "Hello, what is it?"

"Hmph! Congratulations on becoming a groom-to-be, Brother Tang Qian!"

"Xiaoxin."

"Brother Tang Qian, let me tell you this straight, my sister and I have already discussed it. If you dare to marry Sister Jingjing, we swear we'll drive our car straight off the exact same spot where you had your car accident and end it all!"

I was utterly shocked and hurriedly shouted, "Hey! Don't you dare do anything foolish!"

Then I heard Xu Shu's voice coming from beside Xu Xin: "Xiaoxin, stop talking nonsense! Don't cause trouble for Brother Tang Qian!"

Following that, Xiaoxin let out a giggle and said, "Of course, if you manage to hurry over and stop us, we won't jump. We'll give you one hour. If you don't show up, you can deal with the consequences yourself!"

With that, she abruptly hung up the phone.

I yelled, "Hello! Hello!" The phone was filled with a steady drone of busy signals. Laughing through my tears, I dialed her number back, but she had actually turned her phone off. I had no choice but to call Xu Shu's number instead. After ringing a few times, Xu Xin's voice came through the receiver once more: "Brother Tang Qian! One hour, or you'll regret it for the rest of your life!" Then came the dial tone again.

Holding the phone, my head felt as though it was about to split apart from a migraine! After thinking for a long time, I ultimately could not just ignore them. I felt relatively at ease when it came to Xu Shu, but when the little demoness's wicked streak flared up, who knew what kind of disaster she might cause?

In agony, I muttered to myself, "Xiaoxin! Have mercy on your Brother Tang Qian, will you!" With that, I spun the steering wheel and floored the gas pedal toward Mount Caiyu.

Before long, I arrived at the sharp turn where the car accident had previously taken place. It was completely deserted here. Pausing to think, I reasoned that it was unlikely they would actually drive down the mountain. I picked up my cell phone and tried calling them again, but both of their phones were powered off. Just to be safe, I had no choice but to drive over to Xu Shu's villa.

The moment my car reached the front entrance, the iron gates automatically swung open. I let out a breath of relief; this indicated that both sisters were indeed at home! I drove into the estate and parked directly in front of the villa's entrance. Then I got out of the car and stepped inside. I knew the sisters must be furious tonight, so if going in meant letting them hurl abuses at me to vent their anger, so be it!

The interior of the villa was completely empty, and no one came to greet me. I searched all the way up to the third floor, yet saw no sign of the Xu sisters. Feeling baffled, I called out, "Xu Shu, Xiaoxin, are you here?"

Ten minutes passed, and with still no trace of anyone, anxiety began to set in. Throwing politeness to the wind, I started pushing open doors to check rooms one by one. After opening several rooms, I pushed open the door to the study.

It was pitch black inside, rendering everything invisible. I called out, "Hello! Is anyone here?"

No one answered. As I stepped inside and reached out to grope along the wall for the light switch, the door suddenly slammed shut with a loud bang, plunging the room into absolute darkness where I couldn't even see my own hand in front of my face.

Immediately afterward, a figure lunged toward me and threw their arms tightly around me.

I was startled and cried out, "Who's there? Xiaoxin?"

The person did not reply. Instead, they wrapped their arms around my neck, pressed their fragrant little face close, and swiftly kissed my lips. My mind plunged into complete chaos, yet I knew instantly that it had to be one of the Xu sisters. Was it the elder Xu or the younger Xu? It was impossible to tell in the dark, but I quickly realized it was Xu Xin, because she didn't know how to kiss properly.

I hurriedly pulled back and said, "Xiaoxin, stop messing around!"

Defiantly, Xu Xin retorted, "You don't even know how to kiss, so who else could it be if not you?"

"Ah? Does that mean you've kissed my sister too? No way, that's unfair!"

I broke out in a cold sweat. Oh no, I had let it slip!

Infuriated, Xu Xin grabbed me by the hand, guided me through the dark to the sofa, and pressed me down into a sitting position. Seeing that Xu Xin was completely unharmed, a weight lifted from my heart, and I asked, "Xiaoxin, where is your sister?"

Straddling my lap in a single motion, Xu Xin huffed irritably, "Who knows? She's probably mad and hiding from you! Let me ask you, have you kissed my sister before?"

Struggling to stand up, I said, "What do adults' matters concern a kid like you? Go turn on the lights, what kind of behavior is this sitting in total darkness?"

However, Xu Xin clamped her legs tightly around me, rendering me completely immobile; someone trained in Taekwondo certainly possessed formidable leg strength. Throwing her arms around me, she declared, "I don't care, you can't play favorites. You kissed my sister, so why can't you kiss me? Think I'm bad at it? You can teach me, can't you?"

Anxiously, I retorted, "Your sister is an adult, and you're just a kid—isn't this considered a crime? Go ask Sister Jingjing if this counts as a crime!"

"Hmph, what kind of logic is that? Just because my sister is an adult she gets to be kissed whenever? Why don't you go ask Sister Jingjing if this counts as a crime?"

Unable to come up with a counterargument, my brain was already thoroughly scrambled by her.

Xu Xin pressed close to me once more and whispered softly, "I'm already eighteen years old. By law, I'm an adult too, so by your logic, I can be kissed whenever, right? Come on, teach me!"

In the pitch blackness, Xu Xin's boldness was astonishing. She kissed me yet again. Pitifully, a strapping seven-foot-tall man like myself was actually being forced into a kiss by a young girl.

Right at that moment, the door was pushed open, and the overhead lights flashed on.

The entire wretched scene of the little demoness and me was exposed to the eyes of Xu Shu, who had just walked in.

A mixture of exasperation and amusement on her face, Xu Shu strode over, grabbed her younger sister by the ear, and scolded angrily, "What on earth are you two doing?!"

Yelling in pain, Xu Xin cried out, "Ow! Sis! Go easy, why are you only twisting my ear?"

I hurriedly stood up and said awkwardly, "Xu Shu..."

Xu Shu glared daggers at me, pointed at the sofa, and snapped, "Sit your ass down there, I'll deal with you in a minute!" Then, dragging her sister by the ear, she barked, "You, get over here! Have you completely lost your mind just in the span of a short while?!"

Grimacing in pain, Xu Xin was hauled out of the room by Xu Shu. I stood frozen in the middle of the room, momentarily at a loss for what to do.

A few minutes later, Xu Shu returned, marching back in with a furious expression. Slamming the door shut heavily behind her, she stalked toward me with a menacing look on her face.

I stammered, "Xu Shu, this whole thing is a misunderstanding. The actual situation isn't what you saw."

Fuming, Xu Shu yelled, "You still have the nerve to speak? Who told you to blabber to my sister about us kissing?!"

I broke into a cold sweat! Lowering my head, I conceded, "I'm sorry, I blurted it out in a panic!"

Seething with rage, Xu Shu delivered another kick straight to my rear end and snapped, "Now there are no secrets left between us sisters, and it's all your fault, you jinx! How are we supposed to face each other from now on?!"

Speechless and willingly taking the blow, I sighed, "Xu Shu, I've wronged you both!"

"Wronged us, wronged us, all you ever say is sorry! What good does an apology do? I'm telling you, Tang Qian, either you stop coming here to ruin my sister and me from this day forward and go live your happy life with your floral siren, or else—or else..."

Seeing Xu Shu trail off after saying "or else," I looked at her and asked, "Or else what?"

Her face flushed crimson with humiliation and anger, Xu Shu lashed out with yet another kick, delivering a truly astonishing ultimatum: "Or else you marry my sister as your wife and abandon that floral siren! Do you dare?"

"I..."

Seeing me hesitate, Xu Shu grew even more furious and proclaimed, "Two women: one is my friend, and the other is my sister! I can't help you with this, you have to choose one yourself! From now on, I'm staying neutral, I'm not helping anyone!"

Letting out a long sigh, I said, "Xu Shu, tell me the truth, what about you? Have you really never considered your own feelings in all of this?"