Far from the Xu family’s ancestral ho, a sleek black car drove past the main gate of a three-story manor. The dazzling sunlight illuminated the body of steel as the tires ran over the paved road.
A butler and a few maids appeared at the front door. They received news about the guest’ appearance from the security guarding the front entrance of the community.
Stopping under the roof of the front porch, Xander’s figure erged from the car, bringing along a huge white box. One of the maids hurried to get the box from him.
"Welco, First Young Master. The madam and the young miss are inside. They’re hosting the young miss’ friend."
The butler and a few maids greeted Xander at the entrance while reporting what his cousin and aunt were doing.
Xander visited Belinda’s abode today because of his mother’s insistence. She wanted him to personally deliver so baked goods their pastry chef crafted to Belinda and her mother.
Xander couldn’t refute his mother’s order even though he found the matter annoying. He knew how much his mother doted on Belinda like the rest of the family.
"Bring to them," uttered Xander, not having any interest in inquiring about Belinda and her friend. Most likely she invited her clique for so tea.
"This way, First Young Master. They’re in the lounge."
Striding down the hallway, Xander’s indifferent gaze only stared ahead of him. His face was devoid of any emotions — as always.
Despite being the weekend, Xander’s attire seed more formal than casual. He wore a dark gray dress shirt under his black jacket, sans a necktie. His long legs were encased by a pair of dark trousers.
Xander used to spend his childhood in this manor, playing with Belinda. She was only a few years younger than him, even slightly younger than Evelyn, Calix’s only sister.
Despite finding the children’s gas, especially playing house which Belinda loved the most, as annoying, Xander had no choice but to entertain his younger cousin.
Thankfully, the days were long gone.
’En?’
Xander caught the faint sound of people chatting from the lounge further down the hallway. The ambiance seed pleasant as laughter followed, resonating in the air.
Xander recognized the two voices belonged to Belinda and her mother, while the other one...
Was that a man’s voice?
"Stop," Xander suddenly spoke, his eyes falling on the back of the butler, "You can leave."
"Yes, First Young Master."
Without further interaction, the butler bowed at Xander before making himself scarce. The middle-aged man knew the heir of the Qin family was a man of few words.
Xander resud his walk. His footsteps rang faintly in the quiet hallway as he made his way to the lounge. With a knock on the door, he announced his arrival.
"Xander."
"Oh! Brother Xander is here!"
Alicia Song, Belinda’s mother, smiled upon seeing Xander walking inside the lounge. Her daughter was just the sa, delighted to et her elder cousin.
"Good afternoon, Aunt Alicia and Belle."
After greeting Alicia and Belinda, Xander swept his dark eyes across the lounge. His gaze stopped on an unfamiliar man. The latter nodded at him with a subtle smile on his lips.
Xander believed he hadn’t seen this man before. The other guess was that they had t but, the man was not an important figure for Xander to rember.
"Brother Xander, et my new friend," Belinda eagerly pointed to the man, her face beaming with unsuppressed joy, "He is Nicholas Wu. He was born here but, grew up abroad. Nick, this is my cousin I’ve told you about before."
Belinda had been waiting for Xander’s arrival. Her aunt texted her about sending the man to deliver so pastries.
Xander’s appearance was on ti with Nicholas’ visit. Belinda truly wished to be the bridge between the two n.
Despite knowing Nicholas for less than two months, Belinda’s heart was fully enamored by his irresistible charms. She had been looking for the day to introduce him to her busy cousin.
Xander shifted his eyes from Belinda to the man nad Nicholas. He hadn’t seen his younger cousin looking so delighted over a man, a potential love interest, in so long.
When did these two et?
Nicholas stood up from the couch, unbothered by Xander assessing him from head to toe. His smiling countenance didn’t betray what he actually felt inside.
Placing one palm on his chest, Nicholas introduced himself. His husky voice had a hint of ease.
"Good afternoon, CEO Qin. I’m Nicholas Wu. I’ve heard about your stellar accomplishnts for Qindom Group. It’s an honor to et you here."
Nicholas’ praise sounded similar to the greetings Xander received all the ti. Still, he was slightly pleased because the forr seed to know not to prod beyond the unspeakable boundaries.
More often than not, people were too eager to impress him, leaving a bad taste in his mouth due to how superficial they behaved.
Nodding once at the forr, Xander replied shortly, "Hello, Mr. Wu. Seems like you’re a good friend of my cousin."
"We t two months ago," Belinda chid in with a shy smile, a lovely shade of pink leaving a tint across her cheeks, "Hehe, I’m glad I can introduce Nick to you today, Brother Xander."
Xander said nothing. Whether Belinda truly wanted him to et Nicholas or it was the man who persuaded her to do so, he was not interested either way.
"Xander, have so tea with us before you go. Your aunt here hasn’t t you much these days," Alicia gestured to the couch, trying to hold the young man from leaving so soon.
"Sure, Aunt Alicia."
Settling himself on a single-seater couch, Xander quietly listened to Belinda, Alicia and Nicholas chattering. He only spoke up when his cousin and aunt asked questions.
But...
The disinterest in Xander’s eyes faded when Belinda suddenly brought up a na.
"I forgot to tell you," Belinda pulled her eyes away from Nicholas and Alicia, seemingly hesitant to continue, "Brother Xander... I t Brother Calix and his family this morning."
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