"Of course. Do you have any new ideas?" Although the old lady was old and had not personally managed any of Qin's group companies for many years, she had been in the business world and experienced great storms in her youth, so she could still keenly perceive the other party's intentions.
Gu Susu said, "Old Madam, I don't know much about fashion week, but I have some ideas about the clothing designs to be shown. May I design the clothing for this fashion week myself?"
The old lady smiled and said, "I've handed the company over to you, so you can manage it as you see fit. You don't need to ask me about these things. If you want to do it, then do it."
"Wife, you'll design it yourself. The fashion show at fashion week will surely be a success," Qin Tianyi agreed wholeheartedly.
Gu Susu was surprised by Qin Tianyi's words. Hadn't he already found out that her overseas diploma was fake? Why did he still believe she could do a good job with design? But she still had to play along, saying, "Thank you, husband."
The old lady happily held one of their hands each and said with a smile, "Good, this is good. If you two are of one heart and one mind, the company will surely be managed well."
"Old Madam, Young Master, Young Madam, you can eat now." Rong Ma came out from the kitchen with a plate of dishes.
Qin Tianyi was the first to stand up and said, "I'm hungry. What's good to eat? Hurry and serve me some rice."
"Young Master, don't rush. I'll serve you rice right away." Rong Ma smiled and turned back into the kitchen.
The old lady looked at Qin Tianyi as if he were a child of a few years old, with a loving smile on her face.
Gu Susu watched Qin Tianyi, who had a childlike innocent smile, and recalled Xiao Anjing's words: Qin Tianyi was most adorable when he pretended to be foolish. She couldn't help but sigh, thinking that if Qin Tianyi were truly foolish, he might be happier. Pretending to be foolish made people find him adorable, but would he feel better in his heart?
For a person who was perfectly normal to pretend to be foolish and silly in front of others, enduring ridicule, the taste of it was self-evident.
Gu Susu, the old lady, and Qin Tianyi sat together and ate harmoniously. Rong Ma brought out a stewed tonic and placed it in front of Gu Susu, saying, "Young Madam, it's not hot anymore, just warm enough to eat. Eat this bowl of stew first; it's very nourishing for your body."
The old lady put down her chopsticks and smiled at her, saying, "This was specially stewed for you. Eat it quickly."
All eyes in the dining room fell on her, expecting her to finish the tonic.
She had no choice but to pick up the spoon, enduring the unpleasant medicinal smell, and ate and drank it all in a few bites. Then she handed the empty bowl to Rong Ma and said, "I've finished it."
Rong Ma deliberately showed the empty bowl to the old lady again. They exchanged a knowing smile, as if Gu Susu would get pregnant immediately after drinking the tonic.
Gu Susu lowered her head, feigning shyness, but secretly thought that no matter what tonic they stewed, she would not get pregnant, because she was secretly taking birth control pills.
Before marrying Qin Tianyi, she had already decided that even if they had marital relations, she would not have children with someone she didn't love, especially since she already had a child.
If Xiao Xingxing could return to her side and they could depend on each other, she would be content.
"Old Madam, are you having dinner?"
Just as Gu Susu was picking up a piece of sweet and sour pork rib and putting it into her mouth, trying to suppress the medicinal taste of the tonic she had just consumed, she saw Jin Meiyao and Huang Xiuli walk to the dining table together.
The old lady glanced at them and said to a nearby servant, "Add two more sets of bowls and chopsticks."
Jin Meiyao quickly said, "Old Madam, we've already eaten. We're not here to freeload."
Upon seeing the two of them, Qin Tianyi deliberately put on a frightened expression and hid beside the old lady, looking as if he was afraid of them.
The old lady put down her chopsticks, sat up straight, and said to them unhappily, "If you're not here to eat, then what are you here for? I like peace and quiet. If there's nothing else, you should go back to the big house."
Jin Meiyao gave a wry smile, feeling annoyed that this old woman always spoke so sharply to her, but she didn't show it on her face.
Huang Xiuli, however, didn't mind that the old lady had already issued a dismissal order. She pointed to a video on her phone and said, "Old Madam, you don't like using your phone to watch things online, so you probably don't know how disgraceful your newly married daughter-in-law is."
Gu Susu quickly finished the meat on the pork rib, knowing that this meal was ruined. She wondered what these two people were up to by coming here, and it certainly wouldn't be anything good.
"Second Aunt, you're saying I'm disgraceful? What have I done to be disgraceful?"
Huang Xiuli sneered and said, "You'll know if you look at the trending topics on your phone. You've become famous online overnight. The dignified young madam of our Qin family has actually become a mistress!"
"What mistress?" the old lady asked, not understanding.
Huang Xiuli opened a video on her phone and said to the old lady, "Look at this video that's gone viral on short video platforms."
Gu Susu felt it was inexplicable. She also took out her phone and opened a short video app to see what Huang Xiuli was talking about.
Qin Tianyi also went to look at his phone, but he pretended not to know what to look for and deliberately clicked on it a few times before finally entering the short video app.
Gu Susu saw that the video with the highest viewership on all short videos today was a short video of a wife kneeling to a mistress. It was the scene from yesterday when Guo Mei knelt to her, which someone had filmed and posted online.
In that video, which was no more than fifteen seconds long, Guo Mei was begging her, repeatedly saying, "Let my husband go, let my husband go..." Someone had added misinterpreted text and emojis to this video during post-editing.
There were over a thousand comments following this video, with some calling her a vicious woman, and others saying that she looked pure and beautiful but was actually dirty in heart and body...
Gu Susu casually scrolled through the comments, finding all sorts of accusations and curses directed at her. It was obvious that someone had hired internet trolls to deliberately attack her.
"Old Madam, someone has deliberately posted an untrue video online to ruin my reputation!" she quickly explained to the old lady.
The old lady snatched Huang Xiuli's phone, stared at it, and watched the entire video. Her hands were visibly trembling with anger, and she asked Gu Susu, "How could this happen?"
Gu Susu said, "This woman is the wife of a supplier who had a conflict with Mi Shang Company. She came to me about her husband's affairs. I only met her husband once at the company, the man who cut my arm with a knife. How could there be any such relationship? This is all nonsense written online..."
"That's not necessarily true. If, as you say, this woman came to you to discuss her husband's affairs, why didn't she go to your office? Why was she on the street, kneeling to you?" Huang Xiuli interrupted her, trying to pin the blame on her.
The old lady threw the phone aside in anger, sat up straight, and said, "How dare you! You, kneel down!"