Milady's Fine Gentleman 400 MY BATTLE

At some other part of the globe, Teng Man Rui's lips could not help but curl up as she watched the news. It was a live stream of the most talked about and newest chemical tanker in Beijing, the MV Milady Kinship.

She smiled as she watched Zhu Li Qiang get interviewed about the vessel. Among Xue Minhe, Chen Linyun, and Zhu Li Qiang, the latter was the most sociable. Perhaps that was the reason behind being assigned to do the interview.

The interviewer from the media asked basic information about the new tanker. One of the questions was about the naming of the vessel. "MV Milady Kinship… Is there a reason – or perhaps a meaning behind its name? As was customary in other cultures, the names of vessels usually have significant meaning. Some name their boats after their wives or mothers or deities for a blessing. Is it the same for MV Milady Kinship? Kindly enlighten us, Sir." The interview inquired. He passed the microphone to Zhu Li Qiang and attentively waited for his answer.

"That is correct. That is our intention. Since this is a collaboration project of three big companies, and therefore, spearheaded by three gentlemen – myself, Xue Minhe from Xue Shipping, and Chen Linyun from Chen Holdings, we couldn't be selfish as to name the vessels after one particular and significant woman, right? It's common knowledge that Chen Linyun and Xue Minhe are brothers-in-law so if that's the case, the vessel would have been voted to be named after the Big Miss of Xue Shipping who happened to be Chen Linyun's wife and Xue Minhe's sister. The vessel would have been named MV Milady Jinxu. However, I begged to disagree because it wouldn't hold any meaning to me – Jinxu, if you're watching, apologies, hehe!"

Teng Man Rui slightly chuckled at his remark. Zhu Li Qiang could always be candid and funny.

"…So we decided to name it MV Milady Kinship instead. It's still after the woman we love and adore without naming anyone in particular while still being reminded of our cohesive comradeship and promise to protect the important women in our lives.

"Sir, that is commendable; however, we received a report that you and the Xue young master are in truth not in good terms with each other and that the existing feud is caused by a woman. There is some hearsay that your name is dragged with the Xue young master's recent divorce. Is there any truth at all, Sir?"

"Uhm, first of all, your question is already too personal, but I will answer. Xue Minhe and I get along pretty well. There's no feud whatsoever. My plea to the public is to please respect our personal lives and leave it be behind the limelight. I'm sure Xue Minhe will say the same thing. Otherwise, anyone who will not abide by our plea would have to face double the consequences – from me and Xue Minhe."

"Is that a threat, Sir?"

Zhu Li Qiang smiled good-naturedly and shrugged, "No, I'm just laying out upfront the consequences of bad behavior. That's how things work, right? Any bad behavior is punishable by law. We as law-abiding citizens have equal rights, same with everyone else to press charges for slander, right?"

At this point, Xue Minhe and Chen Linyun joined Zhu Li Qiang's interview. Xue Minhe asked casually, "What's the matter?"

"Oh, nothing, just our interviewer getting a little bit more excited about our personal lives." Zhu Li Qiang answered casually. Xue Minhe laughed at that. It was all captured on camera.

Teng Man Rui felt uneasy, but she slightly chuckled, too. 'These two were teaming up against the poor reporter.' She thought, quite amused. However, at the back of her mind, the thought of her getting linked to both of them was quite unsettling. But she's a tough cookie, so she decided to let go of it for the time being.

"Now, now. Today is such an auspicious wonderful day. Let's focus more on the vessel's launch, shall we?" The young master Zhu steered the interview away from the sensitive topics and back on track to the launch.

Teng Man Rui's lips still had hints of a smile lingering on it.

She went down to memory lane of what had transpired not so long ago.

A few days ago, after visiting her friend, Xue Jinxu, she directly went to the airport for her flight out of the country.

She was taken by surprise when she found Zhu Li Qiang by the boarding gate in the airport, panting and almost out of breath.

"Did Jinxu… Did Xu-er tell you?..." Teng Man Rui breathed in utter incredulity. 'No way.'

"…Yes." Zhu Li Qiang answered in between pants. He tried hard to catch his breath first before closing the gap between him and the lady. "She sent me a message full of typo errors. She must have been in such a haste to let me know. It's too sudden, Xiao Rui."

"I'm not here to stop you." He added.

"Hmmm?" That made her eyebrows arch. "Then…"

"I'm here to support you. I just want to tell you that, Man Rui. Go ahead. Do what you want to do. But I will never stop loving you."

"Don't wait for me, Zhu Li Qiang. I don't want you to wait for me."

He took one step closer. "No pressure. Don't think about me. You've been through so much." He wrapped his strong, warm, comforting arms around her, and… cried.

Teng Man Rui was again taken aback. She pulled back, but for naught. "Why are you crying?" In return, she wrapped her arms around his waist in an attempt to soothe him. She even tapped at his lower back lightly.

There are several ways to express love other than saying 'I love you'. At that instance, Teng Man Rui could feel Zhu Li Qiang's one hundred percent sincerity, loyalty, and support. She could not have asked for more.

'He doesn't judge me or look at me condescendingly. He doesn't pity me. He… grieves with me… It feels so nice and warm to have someone to share my pain with. I didn't even ask him for it.'

She buried her head on his shoulder and took his scent with her. 'Zhu Li Qiang…'

"You don't have to tell me anything. I know. You're too exhausted, aren't you?" He continued crying as he cradled the base of her head with his hand.

She nodded and closed her eyes.

"Take care, Xiao Rui. I will depend on fate for us to meet again favorably somewhere along the road. Perhaps then you could have a cup of coffee with me? Hehe. Don't think about me waiting for you here. Don't get pressured by me or by anyone. Live freely wherever you prefer. I won't stop you…"

She tightened her embrace around his waist, then nodded. Afterward, she pulled back, tiptoed, and gave a quick peck on his cheek. "Thank you, Zhu Li Qiang. Till we meet again. You take care of yourself, too."

With one last tight hug, Zhu Li Qiang responded and finally let her go.

Chapter end

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