No Ulterior Motives C15

Chapter 15: Marked for Attention

“Mom, what’s wrong?”

Li Mingwei dared not go against his mother. In their family, even his district mayor father’s authority at home was only half of what his mother wielded.

“Your sister’s company is busy with the bidding for Xinglan Plaza in the south of the city. Why are you causing trouble?”

“I’m not causing trouble, I really have something important!”

As he spoke, Li Mingwei raised the design blueprint in his hand.

“A friend’s shop is opening and needs renovation. Doesn’t my sister’s company handle this kind of business too? This is actually bringing more work to her company…”

His voice grew weaker as he spoke because his mother had already walked up to him.

She stretched out her hand and took the blueprint from Li Mingwei.

Shen Hui unfolded the blueprint and gave it a quick glance.

It was indeed a design drawing, and it looked quite professional.

The angles, details, and dimensions were all meticulously marked.

One could say that with this blueprint, there was no need for a second on-site measurement.

However, Shen Hui’s sharp eyes soon noticed that this blueprint seemed to be drawn by a girl.

The delicate handwriting was particularly beautiful.

Seeing her son’s nervous expression, Shen Hui suddenly had a bad feeling.

Narrowing her eyes, she glanced at the address and phone number on the blueprint. Then, she looked up and, without saying much, calmly stated:

“You’re already in your second year of high school. I hope you remember who you are right now.”

“Go and come back quickly.”

These four words made Li Mingwei breathe a small sigh of relief. He quickly took the blueprint his mother handed back and rushed out the door.

Watching her son leave, Shen Hui silently returned to the sofa.

She put down her newspaper and quietly recalled her son’s expression, movements, and demeanor just now.

She murmured to herself:

“Is it Old Yao’s daughter?”

As soon as she spoke, another thought crossed her mind, and she gently shook her head.

“Or Director Li’s? Bureau Chief Pang’s? President Chen’s?…”

She pondered for a long time but couldn’t come up with a satisfactory answer.

However, she had already memorized the phone number and address from the blueprint.

She wouldn’t call, but she was definitely planning to visit the shop.

She had to see for herself what kind of girl had given her the first-ever feeling of losing her son.

On the other side, Li Mingwei had no idea that his mother was already thinking about a certain Jiang girl.

At this moment, he was riding his bicycle through the streets of Jiangzhou City.

Before long, he stopped in front of a commercial building.

After parking his bike, he held the design blueprint in his hand and walked into the building.

Taking the elevator to the top floor, he entered without waiting for the receptionist to greet him and called out:

“Qian-jie, where’s my sister?”

Hearing his voice, the plump, bespectacled receptionist glanced toward the meeting room and gestured with her mouth.

“Still in a meeting. It’s been over an hour now.”

“At this rate, they’ll probably have to eat lunch in there.”

As she spoke, she subtly adjusted her glasses and unbuttoned the top of her uniform, revealing a deep, fair-skinned cleavage. She smiled at Li Mingwei.

“Urgent matter? Want me to notify President Li for you?”

“No need.” Li Mingwei was anxious but wouldn’t interrupt a meeting.

He quickly refused:

“I’ll just wait in my sister’s office. You go ahead with your work, Qian-jie.”

Saying that, he waved with a smile and left.

“Tsk, tsk, such a polite little cutie. Too bad the age gap is too big, otherwise…”

The woman muttered to herself as she buttoned up her uniform again.

An hour later.

As lunchtime approached, the meeting room doors finally opened. A tall and elegant woman walked out.

She wore a well-fitted burgundy jumpsuit, the hem of her skirt reaching just above her knees, revealing her fair legs. She stepped lightly in high heels, her rhythmic footsteps echoing through the office.

She walked across the workspace and stopped in front of a door labeled “General Manager.”

Pushing open the door, she scanned the office before finally resting her gaze on the young man lying on the sofa.

Seeing her little brother covering his face with a piece of paper, half-asleep, she smiled.

Closing the door behind her, she walked over to the sofa. Lifting the hem of her skirt slightly, she sat down gracefully on the edge.

“Xiao Wei, what brings you to your sister today?”

Hearing her voice, the young man jolted awake in a panic.

In the rush, the paper on his face floated down, landing on Li Mingyu’s thigh.

She picked it up and glanced at it.

“Blueprints?”

“Shi Ning Ji?”

“Xiao Wei, what’s this?”

Facing his sister’s question, Li Mingwei chuckled sheepishly.

“Sis, I need a favor from you.”

Half an hour later.

Li Mingyu stared at the blueprints on her desk, lost in thought.

She pondered over who owned this shop, someone worth all this effort from her little brother.

He had even requested the lowest bid while secretly asking her to use the best materials.

Was he afraid the owner wouldn’t accept it?

So… the owner was a girl?

Thinking this, Li Mingyu instinctively picked up the office phone to call home.

But just as she was about to dial, she hesitated.

What if she was overthinking it?

Maybe they were just friends…

Lost in thought, she glanced again at the 3D-rendered sketch on the blueprint, drawn in pencil.

She couldn’t help but admire it.

“Nice style. I like it…”

Meanwhile, Jiang Ning had no idea that her blueprints had nearly caused an uproar in someone else’s household.

At this moment, she was sitting in her classroom reading.

Normally, students weren’t allowed back in the classroom during military training.

But Jiang Ning’s persistent requests, coupled with the fact that several boys had already approached her that morning, convinced the instructor to make an exception.

Someone had even given Jiang Ning the nickname “Phoenix Goddess.”

Fearing further distractions, the military training instructor finally allowed her to stay in the classroom.

With that, Jiang Ning enjoyed a relaxing few days.

Sometimes solving problems, sometimes resting with her eyes closed.

Sometimes humming an unknown tune, sometimes scanning the classroom with her gaze.

She pondered the absurdity of life while waiting for lunchtime.

During these days, Jiang Ning’s easygoing and slightly mischievous personality quickly helped her bond with other girls in the class.

Especially with Qi Wen.

Jiang Ning’s friendly approach, coupled with Qi Wen’s receptive nature, made them fast friends.

Qi Wen even invited her to go shopping after military training ended that weekend.

Of course, Jiang Ning happily agreed.

Who wouldn’t want to shop with a beautiful girl?

As for Shi Ning Ji’s renovation, Li Mingwei delivered the quote the next day.

When Jiang Ning saw the price, she checked multiple times to make sure she wasn’t imagining things.

Less than 20 yuan per square meter—for a 100-square-meter shop, including materials, it totaled less than 2,000 yuan.

She had been bracing herself for a financial hit, but this deal was beyond her expectations.

And so, after a week of military training, it finally ended on Saturday afternoon…

With a downpour.

When Jiang Ning saw Qi Wen and the others soaked like drowned rats…

She laughed like a pig.

Of course…

Five minutes later, she got beaten until she squealed like one too.