The Bowl of Seven Emotions

The three of them sat down and ordered drinks. Aila then smiled apologetically at Bai Mian. "I talked with my husband, and I finally persuaded him. He decided to give the designs to Bai Corp, if… you still want them."

Bai Mian was a little surprised, then nodded. "Of course I do. But is Mr. Ning really okay with this? He seemed to appreciate Genesis Group more."

Aila lowered her eyes, her voice soft. "It's alright. He's already agreed."

Since Aila had no objections, Bai Mian didn't waste any time. To prevent any changes, she directly called someone to bring the contracts over.

In less than half an hour, two contracts arrived. Aila signed without much hesitation and handed the design drawings to Bai Mian.

Tang Susu was naturally happy that Bai Mian was able to obtain the Eternal Life design drawings. She didn't understand much about business, but she understood more about people.

Although Aila seemed unchanged, she appeared to have something on her mind, just concealed very well, making it difficult to detect.

Although she wanted to understand Aila better, Aila seemed to have something to do. After signing the contract, she excused herself and left first.

Not long after leaving the Forest Coffee Shop, Aila's phone rang. The old woman's loud voice came from the other end. "Xiao Ai, are you home? Why aren't you opening the door for Mom?"

Aila paused, her eyes darkening slightly. "Mom, you're discharged? Why didn't you tell me? I was just about to go to the hospital to pick you up."

"Why tell you? It would be another trip. You know about this old problem of mine. Walking a bit won't tire me out. If I get tired, I can take a taxi. Staying in the hospital is uncomfortable, so I came back first. Are you really not home? Why do I feel like there's someone in your house? Why are the curtains drawn?"

The old woman chattered on the other end of the phone, while Aila's expression was a mixture of joy and sorrow, indescribably complex.

"I'm really not home. You must be mistaken. I probably forgot to open the curtains this morning."

"Really? This old woman's eyes are failing her." The old woman sighed.

"I'll be back soon. Why don't you call Akai first?"

"Forget it. He's busy all day long, who knows what with. He didn't even show up when I was hospitalized. Raising a son is worse than raising a dog." The old woman's tone became less amiable when she mentioned her son.

Aila smiled. "Alright, I'll be right back. I'll bring you some walnut crisps."

"Good. Buy two jin. Get the ones with lots of walnuts. The ones they sell near the hospital aren't good."

"I know. You wait. I'll go buy them now."

After hanging up her mother-in-law's call, Aila maintained her smile and called her husband.

"Aila, what's the matter?" Ning Kaize's calm voice came through the phone.

"Are you at the company?" Aila asked softly.

"Ah, yes, I'm at the company."

"Oh, I just wanted to let you know, Mom discharged herself and is now at the front door. Do you have time to come home?"

"What!" The sound of something crashing to the ground came from the other end of the phone. After a while, Ning Kaize spoke again. "Mom is at the front door now?"

"She said she's waiting at the guardhouse. I'll be back soon."

"Oh, okay. I'm a little busy. I can't go back now." Ning Kaize's voice seemed much lighter.

"Okay, goodbye then."

Aila didn't hear her husband's goodbye. Only the disconnected tone remained.

She put her phone back in her bag. As she walked, she suddenly crouched down, covering her face with her hands, and remained motionless for a long time.

It was half an hour later when Aila returned home with two jin of walnut crisps. She picked up her mother-in-law, who was watching TV, from the guardhouse.

After giving half of the fruit and walnut crisps she bought to the guard, she took her mother-in-law home.

Leaving the guardhouse, the old woman said with some distress, "Why did you give all the walnut crisps to him? Giving him some fruit would have been enough. It's a waste for him to eat such good things."

Aila chuckled. "Didn't you tell me to give him half?"

"I was just being polite. You're such a sincere child."

The old woman had bound feet as a child. Although they were later unbound, her feet remained smaller than others, yet her walking pace wasn't slow. Aila worried she might fall, so she quickly helped her, and the two walked home arm in arm. Anyone who didn't know them would have thought they were mother and daughter.

Passing by the community's garbage bins, she glanced casually at the garbage bag on top before quickly walking on.

Back home, after settling her mother-in-law in, she returned to her room. The window facing the community was half-open, and the drawn curtains swayed gently in the breeze.

She stood by the window for a long time, until her mother-in-law's call startled her.

"Mom, what's wrong?" she called out.

"Aiya, why are there pieces of glass on the floor? I almost stepped on them." The old woman's voice came from the bathroom.

Aila hurried out and saw the old woman angrily holding something. Looking closer, it was indeed a small shard of glass, which looked like a piece of a broken water glass.

"You're not careful. It's good that I saw it. What if I had stepped on it?"

"I'm sorry, Mom. I'll be more careful next time." Aila didn't explain, apologizing as she tugged at her mother-in-law's clothes.

The old woman glared at her and threw the glass shard into the nearby trash can.

After that collaboration, Tang Susu never heard about Aila again. However, the Eternal Life jewelry series launched by Bai Corp broke the previous monopoly of Genesis Group in its first month on the market, capturing eighty percent of the market share.

Tang Susu naturally received a set of new jewelry. The one she received was different from those sold publicly; it was a specially customized classic edition, specifically for collection.

She rarely wore jewelry, but a gift from a best friend was different from others. She picked out the necklace and wore it to work.

Upon entering the company and stepping into the elevator, she found it full of familiar faces. At the front was Sister Xu, and the person standing next to her seemed to be Lü Yao?

Tang Susu couldn't help but glance at Lü Yao a few more times. Even though she was now far from the secretarial department, she was well-informed about the company gossip because she discovered that the biggest gossip in the company was actually Secretary Wu.

Since confirming her relationship with Shi Chengxuan, Secretary Wu seemed to have finally found a breakthrough in life. When she was free, she would come to gossip with her about who was waiting for the boss in the parking lot and got a face full of exhaust fumes.

She suddenly understood why Shi Chengxuan always pushed Secretary Wu out to take the blame. It was definitely deserved.

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