"Good morning, Miss Beautiful," Yibo greeted the secretary.
"Good morning, Yibo." Mrs. Yingchun gave a wide smile to Yibo. "Mark is inside. Go ahead."
"For the most efficient secretary I've ever met," continued Yibo who gave a stem of a rose to the old woman. Mrs. Yingchun's eyes sparkled when she saw the red rose. "Yibo, how could you be so sweet!" Yibo winked at her and proceeded to Mark Chao's office. Mrs. Yingchun was still smiling and satisfied.
"Who gave you that, aunt Yingchun? It's beautiful," said a voice from behind and placed an envelope in front of the old woman.
"Zhan!" exclaimed the old woman. "When did you come?"
Picked up the envelope and looked at the contents. "Is this it?"
Zhan sat on the edge of the table. "Two hours ago. What do you think of the pictures, are they fine?"
"Beautiful!" She looked at the photos. "This is what you inherited from your mother, Zhan. Photography. It's too bad..." her throat closed. "Auntie, please..." Zhan said.
Mrs. Yingchun waved her hand away. "Don't mind me. I'm over it a long time ago. I have forgiven them already. If your mother had apologized to me, she wouldn't have passed away early. It was guilt that took her life." Her voice was full of emotion. Then she cleared her throat. "Anyway, are you going to show this to Mark?"
"Of course. I want to ask for his approval on which part of the villa I can display." Zhan stroked the rose. "From an admirer?" she teased.
Mrs. Yingchun smiled. "From a gorgeous hunk."
Zhan raised his eyebrows. "Ow? Don't tell me that your loyalty is no longer with the Chao's when it comes to physical looks, Aunt?" Zhan said laughing. He played on the petals absentmindedly. During his stay with his aunt for more than a year, he learned how loyal Yingchun was to the Chao's. For this, the Chao's are a rare breed of good-looking men.
"They still top my list but it doesn't mean that I have closed my eyes to other adonis created by God."
Zhan burst out laughing. If there's one thing that he liked most about his mother's sister is that he doesn't feel an age gap. Not to mention her being romantic most of the time.
"And who is this gorgeous?" Zhan's still smiling. "Will I get to meet him, aunt? Is he as handsome as Mark's cousins?"
"The VP-GM of the other company. But I think he left the office and Mark will have his hands full in choosing someone to take over."
"Well, he is as gorgeous-and a hunk, dear. And younger. And you'll meet him later." Mrs. Yingchun looked up at her nephew. "I wonder why you didn't consider Mark handsome?" He shrugged his shoulders "Oh, yes, but..."
"You gave Mark all the adjectives for a man in the dictionary except for the word handsome," added the old woman.
Zhan frowned and pursed his lips. "But it doesn't mean he's less attractive. Of course not. In fact, there's something about your big boss that I can't explain. Some animalistic kind of..." he shrugged his shoulders again.
"I know what you mean. Well, I'm telling you all these. Mark is also as ruthless, as arrogant, as completely set in his ways, and a domineering brute that I've met-" Mrs. Yingchun said.
Zhan smiled again. "That is what makes him different. I probably wouldn't know how to deal with him. He could be-frightening, too."
"People thought so. I am only so sorry that his wife did not know how to deal with him."
"What do you mean?"
Suddenly, the old woman raised her head, and her face became pale. "Forget I said that" she said in a strict tone. "I really don't wish to discuss Mark's personal life."
Zhan smiled sweetly. "So back to being the most trusted and confidential little boss, eh," he teased. "Do you know that I can't put into words how grateful I am to you? You have given me a way of opportunities, Aunt Yingchun."
The old woman hid her smile. Zhan is like her youngest sister when it comes to being sweet. Only- she sighed and stood up. "Don't bother me anymore. I'll let Mark know you're here. If he's not busy, I'm sure he'll see the photographs."
