Chapter 32: First Marriage, Then Love, and a Side of Villain-Bashing 10 part 1
Ning Qingqing hurriedly waved to her mother.
Ning Ruoyun saw her, her gaze fixed for a moment, but her steps remained unhurried and composed.
Ning Qingqing felt a little nervous. She quickly whispered to Gu Youchen beside her, “Youchen, I’ll introduce you first, then we’ll find a place to sit down and talk about our marriage.”
Gu Youchen nodded, “Okay.”
Ning Qingqing took a deep breath, preparing herself.
However, at that moment, her phone rang. It was the bank, informing her that a wealth management product she had invested in had matured, and asking if she wanted to reinvest.
Ning Qingqing spoke to them for a few minutes, but because it was a bit noisy, the bank employee couldn’t hear her clearly. So Ning Qingqing gestured to her mother and walked to a less crowded area to take the call.
Ning Ruoyun walked over.
She had seen Gu Youchen beside Ning Qingqing earlier; they were talking, clearly acquainted.
She had come purely to meet the person Ning Qingqing was introducing, with no intention of staying long. She also had things to attend to at the company and hadn’t brought her assistant.
She walked towards where Ning Qingqing had been standing.
The moment Gu Youchen saw her, a storm raged in his heart.
He recognized her instantly: Ning Ruoyun, the founder, largest shareholder, and current CEO of Ningchuang Capital.
Three years ago, Gu Youchen had met her at a financial forum abroad.
As a representative of China, she had delivered a fluent English speech at the financial summit, her words concise, direct, and incisive.
Gu Youchen had a strong impression of her.
But his little wife had said that her mother was the CEO of a financial company, a “not very big” company that had moved to the imperial city from its hometown because the market there was saturated.
At a company gathering, Gu Youchen had asked Ning Qingqing the name of the company. She was eating a custard tart he had baked for her at the time, and with her mouth full, Gu Youchen had misheard it as “Ningzhuang Capital.”
This company did exist. Gu Youchen later checked it using Tianyancha (a Chinese business information platform) and found that the company was unremarkable in all aspects, having been established for five years with fairly average development.
He thought that since Ning Qingqing’s mother worked there as a professional manager, although the company’s scale was indeed small, with relatively small project targets, it would be good for Ning Qingqing, who only had experience in law after graduating, and zero practical experience in finance, to gain some experience in a smaller company.
However, Gu Youchen never expected that his little wife’s “not very big” company was the renowned Ningchuang in the southern financial world!
He had heard that Ningchuang was coming to the imperial city, and the Gu family had also been paying attention to this matter, as they might collaborate on some venture capital projects in the future.
But unexpectedly, he had met Ning Ruoyun herself, and in such a setting!
Suppressing his shock, Gu Youchen approached Ning Ruoyun and offered his hand, “Hello, Ms. Ning, I’m Gu Youchen—”
Ning Qingqing didn’t want him to reveal his identity, so this title issue had to be put aside for now.
As he spoke, he handed her his business card.
Ning Ruoyun calmly took it, her gaze fixed on Gu Youchen, and she asked directly, “Do you like my daughter?”
Gu Youchen was startled. He hadn’t expected Ning Qingqing’s mother to see through them so quickly and ask so bluntly.
He nodded, readily admitting, “Yes.”
Ning Ruoyun asked again, “She doesn’t know?”
Gu Youchen nodded, “Yes, Qingqing doesn’t know.”
Ning Ruoyun nodded, her expression calm and sharp, “To my knowledge, you two haven’t had any interaction before. So, is your affection for my daughter genuine, or is this a business marriage?”
Gu Youchen met Ning Ruoyun’s gaze, his tone firm, “Ms. Ning, I only learned three minutes ago that she is your daughter. I like her, regardless of her family background.”
Ning Ruoyun looked at Gu Youchen, automatically searching for information about him:
The current heir to the Gu family, the two Gu brothers. The eldest son, Gu Youchen’s cousin, had no interest in business and loved antique restoration, studying under a famous master in the field; he himself was also quite talented and a rising star in the antique restoration world.
Gu Heng, the second son of the Gu family, had a son, Gu Youchen. He went abroad to study when he was young, and by his first year of university, he had already shown promise in business administration. He was previously in charge of Gu’s overseas branches and had done an excellent job.
Ning Ruoyun remembered meeting him three years ago at a financial summit.
Gu Youchen didn’t have the right to speak at the time. She remembered him because her assistant had made a mistake and lost a page of her speech.
Gu Youchen had found the lost page and returned it to her.
However, Ning Ruoyun had already taken the stage by then; knowing the page was missing, she gave an impromptu speech, as everything she needed to say was ingrained in her mind from over two decades in the business world.
Recalling the incident, her first impression of Gu Youchen was quite good.
She asked, “Little Gu, Qingqing said that you were the person she wanted to introduce to me? Has she already accepted you and is willing to date you, or do you want me to persuade her?”
Ning Ruoyun had heard from her daughter a week ago that she and Shen Zhiqian were over.
And Ning Qingqing was slow to warm up in relationships. Ning Ruoyun didn’t believe that Ning Qingqing would fall for Gu Youchen within a week.
“Actually—” Gu Youchen felt it was time to reveal the truth.
He looked at Ning Ruoyun and respectfully addressed her, “Mom, we’re already married; we’ve gotten our marriage license.”
Ning Ruoyun’s pupils constricted, but her expression remained unchanged.
Two seconds later, she looked at Gu Youchen with certainty, “You tricked her into getting the marriage license?”
Gu Youchen: “…”
This question was difficult to answer; he was indeed a bit guilty, having taken advantage of Ning Qingqing’s drunken state to coax her to the Civil Affairs Bureau.
However, facing his future mother-in-law, he could only explain, “She was in a bad mood after her breakup, and I wanted to give her happiness.”
“So, you took advantage of her vulnerability?” Ning Ruoyun raised an eyebrow, “Only my silly daughter would believe your excuse.”
But this seemed to indicate that Gu Youchen genuinely liked her daughter.
After all, before Ningchuang moved to the imperial city, they had investigated several leading groups here. The Shen and Gu families were both deeply rooted, with no financial risks, so the Gu family didn’t need a business marriage to stabilize their situation.
Ning Ruoyun knew Gu Youchen couldn’t answer her question, so she asked, “When did you start liking my daughter?”
To this, Gu Youchen answered frankly, “Ten years ago, in Qingtang Town. She may not remember me, but I’ve never forgotten her.”
Hearing this, Ning Ruoyun believed about 70-80%.
She asked, “Doesn’t Qingqing want you to tell me that you’re married?”
Gu Youchen nodded, “Yes, Qingqing said she’ll tell you when we find a place to sit down and have dinner.”
Hearing this, Ning Ruoyun showed her first genuine smile since seeing Gu Youchen.
Her eyes softened slightly, “When she finishes her call, remember to cooperate.”
Gu Youchen couldn’t help but smile and nod, “Okay.”
Just then, Ning Qingqing finally hung up with the bank. Fearing any mishap, she hurried over, “Mom—”
After calling out, she felt nervous, but her facial expression didn’t show it. Pointing to Gu Youchen beside her, she said, “This is Gu Youchen, CEO of Gu Corporation.”
Ning Ruoyun seemed to notice Gu Youchen only then, and extended her hand proactively, “Mr. Gu, nice to meet you.”
A very business-like expression.
Gu Youchen also quickly shook hands with Ning Ruoyun, “So Qingqing’s mother is Ms. Ning, nice to meet you!”
Ning Qingqing was puzzled, “Huh, didn’t you know? That day, you asked me what my mother’s company was called, and I said Ningchuang Capital. I thought you’d checked it online!”
Gu Youchen laughed wryly: “…”
He almost got tricked to death by her, huh?
And if he had really heard “Ningchuang Capital,” would he have bothered to check it online?
Ning Ruoyun was the first to speak, “Let’s find a place to sit down and chat. I have a flight to Nancheng tonight.”
Ning Qingqing nodded quickly, “Okay, we’ve booked a restaurant, let’s go now.”
Then, she took Ning Ruoyun’s arm.
Hmm, could she still appease her mother? Would her mother go ballistic when she found out about the sudden marriage?
Ning Qingqing was apprehensive.
On the other side, Gu Youchen called to have the driver bring the car from the parking lot.
Long-term parking wasn’t allowed at the airport arrival exit. The three of them waited for half a minute before the driver brought the car, and they all got in and headed towards the restaurant.
Along the way, Ning Qingqing sat in the back seat, talking about Ningchuang’s affairs.
Ning Ruoyun nodded in response, “En, Nie Yu told you, right? You’ll be responsible for liaising with the Si family. Their CEO contacted me yesterday, but I haven’t responded yet. They’ll probably contact you in the next two days after hearing that we’ve moved here.”
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