Sleepless Spring Tide - 1
Beginning·Sleepless
When Yi Siling received the message that ruined her perfectly good mood, a young heir was standing beside her table, inviting her to have a drink.
He was the third young master of Yu Xin Bank, a man accustomed to looking down his nose at everyone, with beautiful women forever orbiting him. Now, however, he was putting on such a ingratiating smile that he looked almost comical.
Yi Siling gave him a gracious smile. Her jewel-laden fingers tapped twice against her phone screen, a silent indication that she was occupied.
Then she turned her eyes away and ignored him.
The message had come from a girl in their social circle, someone she occasionally played mahjong with, neither close nor distant. She hadn't expected anything from her beyond the usual idle chatter, which was why the sudden blow nearly knocked Yi Siling flat.
[Babe, I heard you're getting married soon! Congratulations!]
Yi Siling stared at it, not understanding. She caught her lower lip between her teeth, puzzled over it for a long while, then sent back a single question mark.
The other girl laughed at her feigned ignorance.
[Oh, come on! Everyone knows already! Tell me! Who's the big shot you're marrying?]
The young heir waiting beside her had begun to lose patience, though he hardly dared show it. In the end, he simply turned and went to toast the woman sitting opposite Yi Siling instead.
The woman obligingly covered for Yi Siling, smiled politely, then took a sip. He had his way out, and his dignity survived intact.
Yi Siling had no attention to spare for the little twists and turns of social etiquette. Her mind was filled with two words: Married. Fiancé.
An indefinable irritation rose inside her. Her clear eyes narrowed as she gazed absently through the floor-to-ceiling windows.
The view here was spectacular, stretching across the whole of Victoria Harbour.
A light rain had fallen that morning. The sky was a clean, brilliant blue now, skyscrapers glittering along the open waterfront, a helicopter drifting across, descending slowly toward some tycoon's private pad.
The glare caught her eyes. She turned back.
The place was hosting a lively opening banquet that day, celebrating the launch of this new Thai restaurant. Its owner, Lumi, knew everyone worth knowing and knew how to work a room, and the guests had come in droves. A few acquaintances had wanted to come over to toast her, but seeing how distracted she was, they wisely kept their distance.
Why risk upsetting Eldest Miss Yi? Even Young Master Yu hadn't gotten anywhere.
“What on earth is wrong with you?” Yi Leling had tried several times to catch her sister’s eye and received nothing in return. At last, she called out.
Yi Siling tossed her phone onto the sofa. “I’m getting married.”
Steam rose thickly from the tom yum hot pot on the table, veiling her lush, luminous face in white.
Yi Leling's brain stalled on the news. It took several seconds before she managed, “…Married to whom?”
“Exactly. Married to whom?” Yi Siling hugged her arms, sulking.
Yi Leling could not decide whether to laugh or cry. Her ears tingled from the spoiled coo of her sister's voice. She said, patiently, “Which gossip rag started another rumor about you getting married? Is that why you're in such a mood? Dad hasn't said a word. Married to whom, exactly, and when?”
She said it lightly, but neither of them actually felt reassured.
Last month, Yi Kunshan gave a public interview to Finance World. Hong Kong media had never been shy about gossip, and the host had tossed in a few questions that had nothing to do with finance but everything to do with ratings.
“Mr. Yi, we all know the public is interested in you, and naturally, in your four precious daughters as well. Though, of course, people are even more interested in your future sons-in-law.” The studio broke into laughter. The host continued, “So, if you don't mind me asking, have you already found a suitable prince charming?”
Yi Kunshan waited until the laughter died down, the answering in his usual unhurried manner. “There is someone promising.”
The host laughed. “Then I suppose good news is on the horizon?"
Yi Kunshan played along. “I'll do my best. I'm trying to find my eldest daughter a model husband before I turn fifty.”
The audience erupted again.
The host laughed. “Mr. Yi, you really are a man of wit! Then let us all look forward to it and send our blessings.”
Yi Siling was that unfortunate eldest daughter.
Her marriage had always been the favorite subject of speculation, gossip, and wild conjecture in their circle.
“Still…”
Yi Leling lowered her eyes with a sigh. “Dad has been strange lately. Going crazy in interviews, dropping hints left and right. Last week I ran into him playing golf with Chairman Zheng. They were practically hugging each other. What if…”
“Second Sister!” Yi Siling glared at her. “I'm warning you, Second Sister. Don't jinx me."
Yi Leling was the second daughter, two years younger than Yi Siling.
She knew perfectly well she had just stepped on a kitten's tail, but some things that had to be said.
“You dumped the scumbag. If your ex suddenly turns into your husband, that's just rotten luck. But I've thought about it, and of all the families, the Zhengs are the most likely choice Dad would make. You'd better prepare yourself.”
“Impossible.”
Yi Leling held her patience and spoke with deliberate gravity. “Mia, I'm hypothesizing now. Suppose Dad absolutely insists on marrying you into the Zheng family. What are you going to do?”
Yi Siling fell silent for a long time. Then she lifted her chin with a faint little huff. “Then I'll marry him. The scumbag dares to marry me, and I don't dare to marry him? What am I afraid of?"
Yi Leling rubbed her brow, switched to a gentler tone, coaxing her as much as reasoning with her. “Mia. I need to remind you. The scumbag hooked up with a lingerie model barely a month after breaking up with you. Don't tell me you're planning to just swallow that. I'm only telling you this so you can prepare in advance. Think about how you're going to deal with it. Don't be stubborn with me, all right?”
The scumbag in question was Zheng Qijun, the second young master of the Zheng family, Yi Siling's ex-boyfriend.
When they first got together, Young Master Zheng had catered to Yi Siling's every whim. Whatever she wanted, he gave her. No request was too much.
Then two months ago, for no clear reason, he'd picked a fight over something trivial and insisted on standing his ground, declaring that if Yi Siling refused to back down, neither would he.
He forgot. Yi Siling had never been the sort to back down.
Words once spoken can't be taken back. Zheng Qijun had his pride, and so the relationship ended, just like that, without rhyme or reason.
The next time Yi Siling heard anything about him was last month, paparazzi had caught him entering and leaving a luxury hotel with his new fling.
Yi Siling's hotel.
The story had turned Yi Siling into a laughingstock in their circle, and she had never quite gotten over it.
“I'm not being stubborn. This isn't endurance. I'm only pretending. That's acting. What would you know?”
Her voice was petulant, spoiled, even a little flippant, and entirely unreasonable.
Yi Leling's head throbbed. She wanted nothing more than to lunge across the table and strangle her sister, but barely restrained herself.
If she strangled her, she'd only have to spend a fortune making it up to her afterward. Not worth it.
Just then, a server approached, said Mr. Zhang was asking if they were free, and wanted to buy them mojitos.
What nonsense. Yi Siling waved him off without a second thought and continued, “Anyway, whoever I marry, it'll all be for show. At least Zheng Qijun is someone I know. The others I wouldn't even recognize."
“You think I want this?”
Her voice softened. Her long lashes lowered with it, fingers absently turning the diamond bracelet around her wrist. The mist from the hot pot blurred her beautiful face, leaving something painfully vulnerable in its place.
Yi Siling was very, very rarely vulnerable.
Yi Leling's heart ached. She knew this marriage was probably inevitable for Yi Siling, and there was every chance she herself would not escape it.
It was only a matter of time.
Her cool face took on a trace of defeat, and her voice sank with it. “Forget it. I can't outargue you. If it really is the scumbag, you should find a new boyfriend. Make him jealous."
The moment the words left her mouth, Yi Leling regretted them. What was wrong with her? How could she possibly say something so incendiary to Yi Siling?
She was about to walk it back when she saw those dim eyes across the table go bright again.
“Mia! You really are my brilliant little strategist!”
Yi Siling was suddenly radiant, her voice rising with excitement.
“If I find myself a man right now, real or fake, Zheng Qijun will be furious. And if he can't stand losing face, he might even call off the engagement himself! Is that what you mean?"
“…”
Yi Leling pressed her lips together and sighed helplessly.
.
The last two desserts were berry granita and coconut milk pudding. The owner, Lumi, came over to toast them, taking the opportunity to thank Yi Siling once again for leasing her the restaurant space.
The restaurant occupied one of the upper floors of the Star Summit Hotel, one of the most coveted commercial locations in all of Hong Kong. Land there was worth its weight in gold, and plenty of people had wanted the lease.
Lumi had secured it only by purely by keeping Yi Siling happy.
After all, the hotel belonged to Yi Siling. The building, the land, all of it.
Yi Siling's mood had improved slightly, so she was pleasant enough. Lumi grew more attentive, a torrent of flattery flowing easily. She'd once been Miss Hong Kong and had married into a wealthy family a few years ago. Her talent for navigating people and situations was precisely how she had gotten there.
In the middle of their small talk, the waiter who had been dismissed earlier returned.
With impeccable deference, he said, “Miss Yi, Mr. Xie would like to invite you to his private room for a few words. May I ask if you're available?”
The waiter knew nothing about the intricate dance of high society. He had only been told to deliver the message politely. He never imagined that the moment the words left his mouth, the atmosphere would turn ugly.
Inviting Eldest Miss Yi to a private room for a chat?
Quite the grand attitude.
Lumi froze beside them. She didn't even dare smooth things over, and could only watch Yi Siling's expression.
Yi Siling smiled, tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear, said lightly, "Who invited this Mr. Xie? How amusing."
Lumi's face shifted. She heard the implication, aimed at her, the hostess. Today's event wasn't strictly managed. There was her guest list, and there were friends of friends. She couldn't possibly know every single person who showed up. Inside, she could only curse the idiot who'd caused this mess.
Outwardly, she smiled brightly. “Babe you're just too charming! Even at my little gathering, six or seven people have already asked me about you tonight. Don't worry, babe, I turned them all down! These men really have no sense. They know you're already engaged and still insist on throwing themselves at you. Honestly, they're just…”
Mid-sentence, she caught Yi Leling watching her with a quiet warning in her eyes and shut up.
Yi Siling genuinely had not realized that the news of her marriage had already spread through the city, even Lumi knew, and she, the person it concerned, was the last to find out.
Nine times out of ten, it had to be the Zheng family.
Her father didn't dare bring it up with her. So he'd kept her in the dark.
Yi Siling swallowed her hurt and forced herself to calm down. Then she drew a thousand-dollar Hong Kong note from her purse and handed it to the waiter. “Please tell this Mr. Xie that I'm in a passionate romance and have no interest in chatting with irrelevant men. Tell him to get lost and stop embarrassing himself.”
She wanted to vent, and her words came out sharp. If anyone was to blame, it was this clueless Mr. Xie for wandering straight into her line of fire.
The waiter felt cursed. All he had wanted was a tip. Why was earning one so difficult?
Lumi hurriedly picked up the conversation. “Babe, you and your fiancé are so sweet."
Yi Siling blinked innocently. “Hmm? Did I say fiancé?”
“…”
Yi Leling quickly nudged Yi Siling's foot beneath the table.
Don't make this worse.
Yi Siling nudged back, told her it was fine, then smiling brightly, she turned to the stunned Lumi and blinked. “Next time I'll bring my boyfriend along and we'll all have fun together.”
Barring accidents, the news would soon spread far and wide, making its way straight to Zheng Qijun.
.
Inside the restaurant's private room, the unfortunate waiter stood rigidly upright, staring fixedly at the floor.
“She really said that?” Xie Mingsui refused to let it go. She insisted that the waiter repeat Yi Siling's exact words, word for word.
The server's voice got quieter and quieter. “Those were her exact words. Miss Yi said she has a boyfriend and is in a passionate romance… She has… no interest in chatting with others... told him to... to... get lost..."
He could not bring himself to repeat the final insult: ‘Don't embarrass himself’
Xie Mingsui's brows tightened.
All right. The exact words had been even worse.
She slipped the waiter a tip and dismissed him, then quietly glanced toward the man sitting diagonally across from her.
Steam rose ceaselessly from the tom yum hotpot, concealing a pair of eyes as still and deep as an ancient well.
The man's long fingers, pale and fine as jade, held his chopsticks. He ate with unhurried precision, saying nothing.
“Little Sister-in-law probably doesn't know about the marriage yet…” Xie Mingsui attempted to smooth things over, trying to ease the strange tension in the room.
“To hell she doesn't know! Didn't the Yi family say the wedding would be in two months?” Xie Zhiqi shot to his feet, his handsome face flushed red. “Fine. So they think the Xie family is easy to push around? I'll go ask her myself!”
His chair scraped sharply across the floor.
“Come back.”
Two words, heavy as stone.
Xie Zhiqi stopped dead. He did not dare take another step, but indignation still burned in him. “Ge, she actually told you to get lost. Who does she think she is? Even the Chief Executive wouldn't dare act like that with you!”
It was not an exaggeration.
Hong Kong's economy was currently battered by the financial crisis, the market sliding into a downturn as its ties with the mainland deepened and its dependence on it grew. As one of the mainland's five major conglomerates, Lanyao Group had spent the past two years responding to government policy by increasing its investment across the Greater Bay Area, launching several projects worth tens of billions each.
On this visit to Hong Kong, the Chief Executive had personally received receive them throughout their stay, accompanied by the mayor of Bin City.
Xie Xunzhi's eyes lowered halfway. He leaned back in his chair, relaxed without ever seeming lax, his thoughts impossible to read. “She and I aren't married yet. She has every right to date whoever she wants.”
Xie Zhiqi thought his elder brother had gone mad. How could he possibly say something like that?
He said, pained, “…Ge, wake up. She's giving you a show of force! I'll admit she's pretty, and I can understand being temporarily dazzled, but this is a cuckold's hat! A cuckold's hat! Second Sister, you talk to him!”
Xie Mingsui covered her nose in disgust and pretended not to hear.
Xie Xunzhi slowly raised his eyes to his unruly younger brother. “Xiao Qi, if you can't keep that mouth of yours under control, go straight back to the capital and spend a month reflecting behind closed doors.”
His tone was mild, but Xie Zhiqi shivered.
When his brother said one month, it meant not a day, not a minute, not a second less.
He shut his mouth and sat down sullenly. Xie Mingsui seized the opportunity to pinch the little brat hard.
What a disaster.
Xie Minggsui never expected that things had come to this. She had accompanied her elder brother to Hong Kong this time partly for business, second for the marriage.
They had carved out this single lunch hour from an otherwise packed schedule because they wanted to meet Miss Yi.
They had met her. And it had been nothing like expected.
Miss Yi was beautiful, certainly, and she carried herself as someone accustomed to being obeyed. Everything she wore was probably worth tens of millions. But she was also astonishingly blunt. Xie Minggsui didn't know if it was a show of force for her brother, or for the Xie family.
The more she thought about it, the less she understood her mother's strategy.
After all these years of choosing and rejecting, this was the woman she had finally settled on.
She was not some gentle, virtuous flower suited to a quiet household.
She was a dazzling, extravagant, high-maintenance flower.
Her brother was austere, upright. How could he possibly suit such a flower?
Xie Mingsui sighed inwardly.
The meal had lost all flavor. They finished it quickly and left. Xie Xunzhi sent Uncle Mei to settle the bill, while Xie Mingsui dragged Xie Zhiqi aside and quietly warned him to rein himself in, or he'd get an earful again.
.
Yi Siling had lost her appetite too. She'd stirred her ice cream into a garish palette with her fork.
“Your lipstick's smudged,” Yi Leling said, trying to stop her from dwelling on things that might not happen.
Yi Siling immediately pulled a compact and lipstick from her purse. “Though the scumbag lives next door to us. That part's not bad."
She twisted up the lipstick and studied her beautiful reflection in the mirror. “If we ever fight, I can come home whenever I want.”
She was very good at comforting herself.
Yi Mansion stood at No. 28 Repulse Bay. The Zheng Mansion was two hundred meters ahead, at No. 29.
Yi Leling humored her. “You won't even need to fight him yourself. Send Fourth Sister in your place.”
Yi Siling smiled, all soft sweetness and spoiled charm.
The tom yum broth was still steaming as the meal wound down.
Yi Leling went to the restroom. Once she was gone, Yi Siling drifted into thought, slowly spinning her lipstick between her pearly fingertips.
She still needed a way to make the whole act convincing. A rumor alone wouldn't be enough. Maybe she should just hire a fake boyfriend?
Or…
Distracted, she failed to steady the lipstick. It slipped from her fingers, struck the dark green enamel floor tile with a sharp clack, and skidded a long way across the floor.
Yi Siling curled her fingers and pouted.
She did not move.
Her mood had soured again. Now she was angry at the lipstick too, and simply refused to pick it up. She watched as the little gold tube trembled to a stop before a pair of men's leather shoes.
Immaculately polished Oxfords, handmade in the English style, spotless and gleaming.
Above them were sharply tailored suit trousers, the crease razor-straight, the fabric unmistakably fine.
Yi Siling blinked. Her gaze rose before she could stop it.
Xie Xunzhi came to a halt without a change of expression. He bent to retrieve the lipstick blocking his path, and when he straightened, his eyes met hers with uncanny precision.
Caught completely off guard by the stranger’s gaze, Yi Siling's heart gave a startled beat.
For once, she looked almost uncertain.
And, more unusually still, impressed.
She rarely encountered like him in her world.
He was tall and lean, his presence commanding, yet his temperament was its complete opposite. Quiet. Deep. Almost infinitely composed, with something solemn about him. There was a nobility to his elegance that made it clear no one dared trifle with him.
Behind him came a rebellious-looking young man in sunglasses and an elegant urban beauty with a gentle air.
When he stopped, the other two stopped too.
No one spoke.
The air seemed to thicken between them.
Then the man walked toward her. Even with that calm, courteous gaze, even with the restraint that kept it from lingering, he still seemed to cast a vast, unfathomable shadow as he approached, bringing with it a weight of pressure that could not be seen and could not be escaped.
He stopped directly in front of Yi Siling.
She curled her fingers. Her heart, for some reason, beat faster.
She composed herself, smiled, and pointed to the lipstick in his hand. “Sir, that's mine.”
Her voice was beautiful. It brought to mind red wine simmering over a low flame, its warmth releasing a dense, intoxicating fragrance into the air, subtle enough to tease the senses and rich enough to linger.
Something shifted in Xie Xunzhi's eyes.
Of course he knew it was hers.
He had been watching her the entire time.
A month earlier, his mother had sent him a photograph of a girl and asked what he thought.
He had opened it hurriedly during a break in a meeting.
Very beautiful.
That was his only impression. Nothing more.
In person, she was even more exquisite than the retouched photo, like a extravagant flower blazing beneath a summer sky, beautiful to the point of almost seeming superficial. The corners of her eyes, the tips of her brows, carried the unmistakable delicacy of someone raised in indulgence. One languid, careless glance could be arrogant, even lazy, yet somehow never unpleasant.
A woman that beautiful was difficult to dislike.
And yet this impossibly beautiful woman, who was two months away from marrying him, was apparently in the middle of a passionate romance with another man and far too busy to discuss marriage with him.
She had even told him to get lost.
There was a very good chance this marriage was already doomed.
Xie Xunzhi withdrew his gaze and placed the lipstick on the table.
Yi Siling was just about to thank him when the man turned and walked away, leaving only an emotionless back behind.
---
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