Chapter 5 Return, Five Years Later

When Bianca next set foot in the busy A City once more, five years had passed. She had been away for almost two thousand days and nights. It was not a very long time, but it was not nothing either. Back then, she had been pushed about mercilessly by destiny. She had been completely powerless! Now, she just wanted to use her own strength to take control of her life with her own hands. It was morning. “Bea, over here—” Nina wound down her car window and waved at Bianca, who was walking out of her suburb. Time had passed. Five years later, the two of them were no longer clueless girls of eighteen or nineteen. Bianca and Jean had returned to the country together yesterday, and Nina had been the one to pick them up from the airport. That night, Jean had taken Bianca back to the Langdons’ place for dinner. Mr. and Mrs. Langdon were more than happy with Bianca as their future daughter-in-law. That morning, Jean had wanted to go to the interview at the company with Bianca, but something came up and he could not join her. Bianca got into Nina’s car and sat in the passenger’s seat, wearing her seatbelt. “Do you know what my mom said last night after you left with my brother?” Nina asked. “What did she say?” Bianca was worried that Jean’s parents would not like her. “My mom said, ‘Look at Bianca! She’s fair and beautiful, gentle and sweet. Now look at you! Why are you two different? You lay about at home, you’re rough like a man, and you swear like a sailor!” Nina could not help but touch her friend’s soft face as she said that, clicking her tongue. “The air out there sure is good for your skin.” “As if! You’ve never left home before, so you don’t know how tough it is.” Bianca smacked her naughty hand away. “Focus on the road.” The two of them chatted on the way. It was more than forty minutes past eight when they reached T Corporation. “I hope my brother isn’t late. The boss is a heartless tyrant, you know!” Nina muttered to herself as she lowered her head and hurried her brother on WeChat. A heartless tyrant? Nina was making Bianca nervous now too. She turned on her phone and went online, searching up information on the boss of T Corporation again. She was hoping that she might find something that could help her during the interview. Most of the stuff she found online was nothing more than baseless rumors about the rich and famous. The president of T Corporation, part of Crawford Industries, was a man called Luke Crawford. He was 29 years old this year, but no one knew if he was single or married. No members of the press had yet to find out anything about his private life all this time. Actually, the Crawford name still held a little significance for Bianca. However, those were just her innocent childish fantasies from her past. By now, she had long since buried those dreams in the deepest corner of her heart. The news also reported that there was a huge incident five years ago when the two Crawford sons fought over the family business. Louis Crawford, the legitimate heir that the outside world had acknowledged, was suddenly removed overnight. On the other hand, Old Master Crawford suddenly adopted another unknown heir to the Crawford name, Luke Crawford, and the latter successfully took over the family business, eventually inheriting the dying Crawford Industries. An unknown heir to the Crawford name… The author of the article was subtly hinting that Luke Crawford was, to put it bluntly, an illegitimate son of the wealthy family. Bianca looked at her phone thoughtfully. … The T Corporation tower was so tall that it immediately intimidated anyone the moment they stepped into it. Jean was in a rush to get here. He had read up on the company’s history before, and when he saw how huge the building was now, he grew inevitably worried. He did not want to embarrass himself in front of Bianca. That was why he was not allowed to fail this interview! In a workshop somewhere in the tower, there were five executives on the interview panel. One of them was none other than the highest-level boss here at T Corporation— Luke Crawford. After yet another graduate from a famous school completed their interview, one of the other interviewees glanced at Luke, trying to read his expression for some of his thoughts. However, he soon noticed that the boss’ attention had somehow shifted to the surveillance camera screen. What was he looking at? “Next,” said one of the other interviewees. The camera was showing the footage outside, where all sorts of men and women looking for a job were waiting for their interview. By watching how they behaved outside, the interviewees could clearly deduce how the candidates were like in private. Luke’s gaze was deep and complicated as he stared at one of the girls. No, she was a woman. Bianca was twenty-three now, and she no longer had her initial childlike innocence. She had developed spectacularly well, be it in her figure or her small smiles. Everything about her exuded a unique femininity. Luke’s mind was abruptly brought back to that time five years ago, when this woman moaned and cried out as he made love to her every night. … “My brother will be here soon.” Nina nudged Bianca outside in the corridor. Bianca came back to her senses and kept away the phone she had been looking at for so long. Was it because so much time had passed, and that was meddling with her memories? When Bianca looked at a picture of the boss, Luke Crawford, she found him somewhat familiar. He really did look a little like that upperclassman who played basketball back in that high school. They had the same last name too. Just then, Jean ran up to the stairs and walked up to Bianca, rubbing her hair fondly. “Sorry I’m late.” “It’s fine. It isn’t our turn yet, anyway,” Bianca said to Jean, perfectly understanding. Next to them, Nina pouted. “You’re blinding me with your PDAs, guys. Have some pity for this single pringle and tone it down, please! I still have use for my eyes!” “You’re only delaying the inevitable. Should you dig your eyes out before I marry Bianca and bring her home, then?” “Do it! Marry her!” Nina’s eyes were practically shining as she told her brother, “Mom and Dad were more than happy with Bea last night. Once both of you settle down with your jobs, you should just hurry it up and get hitched.” Jean nodded and could not help but glance at Bianca next to him. Bianca was feeling a little troubled. She was very happy with her life right now. In fact, she had to thank Jean for his tireless care and guidance over the past five years. He was the reason she had managed to overcome the trauma of her past. Before Jean confessed to her, she had noticed that he had feelings for her. Her past experiences had left her feeling small and worthless, so back then, she had instinctively avoided Jean. She even avoided all men who tried to approach her. During all those days that held not a hint of light for her, Jean never once stopped pursuing her and caring for her. Finally, he even managed to uncover her painful past. To Bianca’s surprise, Jean did not abandon her. He did not even think that it was her fault for ‘bearing a stranger’s baby’. Bianca thought she was very fortunate in that sense. “Next up, Jean Langdon!” “I’ll be off now.” Jean squeezed Bianca’s hand. “Go on,” Bianca said with a nod. When Jean pushed the door open and walked into the room, he immediately felt a sharp gaze on him. He followed it and traced it back to the famous young boss of T Corporation. Luke had seen everything Jean did with Bianca outside. The interview was very formal, solemn, and professional. Jean was very capable himself, so he answered every single one of the interviewers’ questions calmly and composedly. The way he carried himself earned him plenty of brownie points. Luke’s eyes turned back to the camera screens again. On the screen, Bianca was staring intently at the door, biting her lip softly and squeezing her fingers. She seemed to be very concerned about a certain someone’s interview results inside the room.