Chapter 182

Her gaze was calm, and her tone carried no extra emotion, yet Xie Shiqing was still pierced by her words.

In Zhong Ning's heart, what kind of person was she?

A shrewd businesswoman who would stop at nothing to expand her power and status? Judging by the things she had done, it seemed she had no right to argue otherwise.

Xie Shiqing had pale, delicate skin, and even the slightest change in emotion was clearly visible—including the redness around her eyes at this moment.

Zhong Ning acted as if she hadn’t noticed, continuing, “Thank you for your explanation today. You’ve worked hard.”

With that, she turned around and walked away, step by step.

She opened the car door and sat in the driver’s seat. Before she could close the door, Xie Shiqing had followed her again.

Zhong Ning’s brows furrowed, her face showing a trace of displeasure.

Xie Shiqing paused, biting her lip uneasily. “I didn’t come because of what just happened.”

Enduring the dense, pricking pain in her chest, she said softly, “It’s about the previous equity exchange. Ning Ning, you still haven’t collected the remaining 8% of the Xie Corporation shares. All the paperwork is ready. You just need to sign.”

“I don’t need it. You can keep it,” Zhong Ning replied, reaching out to shut the car door.

But Xie Shiqing didn’t leave. She remained standing outside, blocking the car from moving.

Zhong Ning had no choice but to lower the window. “Do you have anything else to say?”

“We agreed to exchange them. I had no intention of taking your shares, Ning Ning… Miss Zhong, if you can be someone who keeps her word, why can’t I?”

Xie Shiqing pressed her lips together. “And doing charity requires a lot of funding. With dividends from the shares, things would be much easier for you too.”

Zhong Ning lifted her eyes and stared at her deeply.

Xie Shiqing’s complexion turned pale, like a person sculpted from snow.

Zhong Ning said, “Where are the documents?”

“At home.” Xie Shiqing’s face lit up instantly with a radiant expression. “They’re at the villa. Ning Ning, would you like to come home with me?”

“Or, we could add each other as friends and set up another time to meet. I’ll hand the documents over to you.”

Zhong Ning stayed silent for a long moment, seemingly deep in thought. Xie Shiqing didn’t dare rush her, only gazing at her with something close to pleading.

In the end, Zhong Ning took out her phone and pulled up a QR code.

Xie Shiqing treated it like a treasure, quickly scanning it and sending a friend request. Zhong Ning accepted it right away.

“If there’s nothing else, please step aside. I’m going home now.”

Just this small gain was enough to satisfy Xie Shiqing completely. She didn’t dare ask for anything more. She earnestly reminded her, “Ning Ning… Miss Zhong, be careful on the road.”

Zhong Ning gave no response, simply turned the steering wheel and slowly pulled out of the parking spot.

In the rearview mirror, Xie Shiqing was still standing in the same place, completely motionless, like a statue.

Zhong Ning truly couldn’t figure her out.

When they first met, she thought she understood this person. Then, an unexpected incident revealed that Xie Shiqing had always been pretending. Later, they resolved their misunderstandings and faced each other sincerely. But in the end, it turned out Zhong Ning had thought too much again.

Xie Shiqing was still hiding things from her.

She was human too—when her sincerity was trampled on, she would feel exhausted.

Now, Xie Shiqing had come clinging again, even switching between forms of address over and over. Could the dignified head of Xie Corporation really make such a petty mistake? Clearly, it was intentional.

Did she really think Zhong Ning was that easy to fool?

She had never met anyone this stupid in her life, so was she planning to fool her a few more times?

Zhong Ning couldn’t be bothered to correct her. Saying even a few more words to her would make it seem like she cared.

The heavy, oppressive mood surrounding her didn’t lift until she got home and saw Pine Mushroom.

She crouched down and rubbed Pine Mushroom’s head. “Good baby, let me get a whiff… Mmm! So fragrant!”

“Let me see the leash. Didn’t we just buy it a couple of days ago? How did it break so quickly?”

Michelle held back a laugh as she handed over the leash. “Who else in this house could have broken it?”

Zhong Ning looked at the leash, then lowered her head to look at Pine Mushroom.

The scheming little dog glanced left and right before nudging its head into her arms.

“Really can’t do anything about you.”

There was a pet shop nearby. Since it wasn’t far, they didn’t drive. The two of them walked Pine Mushroom there.

Pine Mushroom was a dog with opinions. It insisted on picking its own leash, and Zhong Ning was more than happy to indulge.

She had always been doting when it came to small things.

With the pet shop assistant watching over them, Michelle also followed with her eyes. Zhong Ning sat on a chair, her mind occupied with the donation matters.

She planned to go through the entire donation process herself and witness everything firsthand. The first project she chose would be especially crucial.

Just then, her phone vibrated. She picked it up and looked.

It was a message from Xie Shiqing.

She had sent over a photo—inside were all the completed documents.

[Miss Zhong, when would you be available?]

[Tomorrow night.]

The “typing” indicator on the other end blinked for quite a while before a message finally came through:

[Would the day after tomorrow be okay?]

[Sure.]

Xie Shiqing: [There are still a lot of Pine Mushroom’s things at home. Can I give them all to you?]

Zhong Ning lowered her eyes and tapped quickly on the screen.

[Donate them to a stray animal protection organization.]

There was no reply after that.

Pine Mushroom had picked out a new leash, along with two teething snacks it liked. Zhong Ning paid the bill and led the dog back home.

Her only plan for the next day was to go sightseeing around Fengcheng with Michelle.

Though they were officially superior and subordinate, in truth they were friends. Zhong Ning could barely be considered the host here, and since the house was all tidied up, she naturally had to take her friend around and show some hospitality.

This matter took priority over retrieving the shares.

Sometimes, Xie Shiqing felt that even having her sight restored wasn’t entirely a good thing.

At least if she were still blind, she wouldn’t have to see Zhong Ning happily enjoying herself with someone else.

She would only be able to hear it, to imagine it for herself—not actually see how brightly Zhong Ning smiled, how genuinely happy she was now that she had left her behind.