Milady's Fine Gentleman 258 HELPING HAND

Xue Jinxu stood still in the middle of her store, Kodomo-toki, one windy, chilly day in November. She ended her jittery plight being frozen on the spot, immersed in her own thought bubble, after pacing back and forth at the farther end of her store, away from prying eyes.
'How can I be so oblivious?' Graduated with horizontal lines, her forehead cringed even deeper from her awakening.
These past days of bliss and happiness, Xue Jinxu had been nothing more than a contented bride, ready to take on a new chapter and role as a mother to the future Chen spawns. Being in such high emotionally, mentally and spiritually, she had even been tolerant with the on-going gossips about her twin brother, and with the latest mess her younger, Xue Guangxi, was in.
But that was external concerns which were akin to foreign news to her.
The source of her agitation now was the discovery of negligence on her part towards the love of her life, Chen Linyun.
Just last night, she woke up in the middle of the night unintentionally after sensing that she had been lying alone their gigantic bed, the space beside her empty and already cold from not being occupied by a warm body, probably for hours already.
Groggy from untimely waking up, she stood and sauntered around the house, in search of the husband who had gone missing. The search did not take up too long though, because she found him on his study.
However, the way she had found him melted her heart and made her question what kind of a wife she had been.
There behind the huge mahogany desk was Chen Linyun – seated limply and uncomfortably leaning back and sleeping on it at the same time. Face pale as paper, he had slept with his spectacles on, his head tilted upward towards the ceiling. He would probably have a stiff neck in the morning.
Xue Jinxu felt a slight prick on her heart.
The husband was dead tired.
She approached him silently in cat-like demeanor, afraid to wake him up. Her eyes landed on the enormous pile of paperwork on the side of his desk. His laptop was still turned on. Without the screensaver or automatic configuration to hibernate, the screen was still on, allowing her to take a clear view of what he was doing before his slumber.
'Numbers. Lots of numbers.'
'He's still in charge of Chen Holdings. I have forgotten.'
'He's also hands-on with Xue Shipping.'
She looked at his sleeping face. Contrary to the turmoil and challenges he was facing alone, without telling the wife, his face reflected such peace while sleeping. He must have been having some well-deserved quality sleep.
'He has too much on his plate already. But he's not complaining, not even letting me inside his head. Again.' She rolled her eyes in dismay.
She gently stroked his chin amorously with her thumb. "Honey, sleep properly in our room." The lovely wife kissed Chen Linyun's cheek.
He only grunted and moved slightly, a little frown evident on his face.
Xue Jinxu let out a defeated sigh. What could she have done if he wouldn't wake up? As if she could carry him towards the master's bedroom. As a workaround, she turned off the room's main light and shifted the illumination from the lamp at the distant corner of the room. Afterwards, she draped a warm, thick, fleece blanket around his body, across his chest. She couldn't do anything about his position either. With her frail fingers, she helplessly caressed his hair with a few strokes.

"See you in the morning, hon." She kissed his cheek again. "We have to tackle this situation ASAP."
Of course, the sleeping Chen Linyun could not hear her words, but she uttered them anyway.
As much as she was worried about him, she's also disappointed. 'There he goes again, acting all tough alone as if he's the only one capable. We're a team. Dammit.' She gritted her teeth as she returned to the master's bedroom to return to her slumber.
However, in the morning, when she woke up, Chen Linyun had already left. She sent him a message. 'You went off early today. Didn't even kiss me goodbye, huh?'
***
At Xue Shipping, in the midst of a sea of papers needing his utmost attention, Chen Linyun smiled like a crazy person as his eyes landed on the missus's morning rant. With such mirth in his eyes, he decided to play on. 'I did. I kissed you but you were asleep so you didn't notice. You didn't even flinch. I should be the one slighted here.'
"Hehehehe." He laughed gently as he continued reviewing his documents. After a while, his phone beeped again.
'Hmph. We have to talk. It's serious. Don't you try to evade again. See you tonight.'
Chen Linyun gulped in nervousness. The message was foreboding. 'What have I done? Did I miss something? Did I do something off? Or didn't I do something I should have?' He wracked his brain for answers but for naught. He raked his head with his fingers in annoyance. 'What is it?'
He sent another message. 'But honey I might get off work late tonight… Don't wait for me. Sorry, just text it, okay? Did I do something off?'
'See you at home tonight or I'll go there. Choose, Chen Linyun.' Her stern message popped on his phone's screen. It initially gave the husband some goosebumps.
The OIC of Xue Shipping sighed when he finally recovered his senses. He did not have the time for this. His schedule was already fully booked as it was, and even then, it was still not sufficient for all his pending activities. He needed to finish lots of projects prior to his two-week trip to Southern China.
Dialing, he called the wife.
*Ring* *Ring* *Ring*
There was a click. "Mhmm?" Xue Jinxu answered, signs of displeasure were apparent in her voice.
"Jinxu, dear. Can you tell me what's bothering you? What's the matter?"
"Honey, it's something we need to talk face-to-face…" Silence engulfed them both. Afterwards, the missus added, "Don't think much about it but I'll wait for you~"
There was a drastic change in her demeanor. Just seconds ago, she was too grumpy and even terrifying. Another moment, she took a complete one-hundred-and-eighty-degrees turn and had gotten sweet as caramel.
Chen Linyun squinted his eyes as he got suspicious of his wife's actions. It was unusual for her to behave this way. 'There's really something wrong. What is it?'
***
Xue Jinxu started off steaming with exasperation. She was determined to give her husband a lashing of scoldings and a piece of her mind about being kept in the dark and for taking everything and being responsible for everything as if he's Superman. However, the moment she heard his voice, which, by the way, mirrored such uneasiness, her strong façade simply melted like ice cream under the scorching sun in the middle of summer. 'He's doing everything he could, trying to survive each taxing day without burdening me of the details. He's alone yet we're together. I don't have to add on top of all the trepidations he's already exposed to.'
'He needs my support.'
"Honey, it's something we need to talk face-to-face. Don't think much about it but I'll wait for you~"
She said sweetly instead of the scolding.
That night, she cooked his favorite meals and some other nutritious food and waited for his arrival. There was mushroom soup, fried rice, sweet and sour pork, and sautéed vegetables. While waiting, she turned on the television in the living room and navigated until she reached the business channel. Although she had been recently detached from that world, she's still part of it. Once in a while she still made herself well-informed of and well-acquainted with the latest happenings and trends – who bought this or that company, which company was at the top rankings, etcetera etcetera. After all, she's not just the humble Madame Chen. She's the Xue goddess and heiress first and foremost, the former lioness COO of Xue Shipping.
Conviction taking over her whole persona, she made up her mind as she balled her hands into fists, a look of determination and purpose radiating on her lovely face. 'I need to convince him.'

Chapter end

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