104: Chapter 104 Controlling Feng Youmei

Feng Youmei picked up a cigarette case from the coffee table, pulled out a long, slender lady's cigarette, and lit it. "Do you smoke, Xiao Cao?"

"Occasionally." Cao Kun took the cigarette. Feng Youmei leaned forward to light it for him, a posture that left her neckline wide open, revealing a full view of her charms.

Cao Kun politely looked away, lit the cigarette, and exhaled a cloud of smoke. "Auntie, it couldn't have been easy raising Moli on your own, right?"

Feng Youmei's expression flickered with a momentary daze. "Yeah, twenty years ago, I came to Zhongzhou holding Moli while she was still nursing. I've slept under bridges and picked through trash... but that's all in the past now."

She suddenly laughed, a smile filled with an indescribable sense of weariness. "Now that my daughter is married, it's time I lived for myself."

"You're right." Cao Kun followed her lead. "Life is short, and one should enjoy it while they can. It's just that... sometimes the methods and approach are very important."

Feng Youmei narrowed her eyes at him. "Xiao Cao, there's more to your words than meets the ear."

"Just a passing thought." Cao Kun smiled. "A charming woman like you, Auntie, should have many suitors, right? Why settle for..."

He didn't finish his sentence, but Feng Youmei understood.

She stubbed out her cigarette and looked Cao Kun over again, her gaze even more direct this time. "Are you speaking up for Moli?"

"I just feel that you deserve better, Auntie." Cao Kun met her gaze.

"Better?"

Feng Youmei fell into deep thought.

...

Inside the bedroom, Tian Moli was explaining things to Zhang Chao.

"I met him on the road today..." Tian Moli lowered her voice. "I told him about the situation at home, and he said he has a way to solve it."

Zhang Chao smiled bitterly. "What way could there be? Your mom is practically..."

"He said he could... could attract my mom's attention." Tian Moli blushed. "I can see that my mom is quite interested in him."

Zhang Chao's eyes lit up, but then he hesitated. "Is that really okay? Won't it..."

"It's better than how things are now!" Tian Moli grabbed her husband's hand. "Zhang Chao, I really can't take it anymore. If this keeps up, our marriage will be over."

Zhang Chao fell silent.

Over the past few months, he truly had been on the verge of a breakdown.

Feng Youmei's demands were like a bottomless pit, and he was just an ordinary man who still had to go to work during the day.

He felt like a squeezed-dry orange, both his spirit and body overextended.

"Then... let's give it a try," he finally said.

...

In the living room.

The conversation between Cao Kun and Feng Youmei had moved to a deeper level.

"So, Auntie, is it because you didn't get to play enough when you were young that you want to compensate yourself now?" Cao Kun asked directly.

Feng Youmei didn't shy away either. "You could say that. I got pregnant at sixteen and had a child at seventeen, followed by twenty years of hardship. Now that my daughter is grown, it's time I enjoyed life a bit."

"I understand." Cao Kun nodded. "But why Zhang Chao? With your qualities, you could easily find a more suitable partner."

Feng Youmei laughed, her smile tinged with bitterness. "Xiao Cao, you make it sound so easy. At my age, and with a grown daughter, what kind of good man could I find?"

"They're either divorced with kids or old men. Zhang Chao is at least young, clean, and someone I know well..."

"But he's your son-in-law," Cao Kun said softly. "If this continues, Moli's marriage will be ruined, and you'll lose your daughter too. Is that right?"

Feng Youmei fell silent.

Of course she knew it wasn't right, but desire was like a demon—once released, it was hard to pull back.

Cao Kun struck while the iron was hot. "Auntie, let me take you out to dinner tonight. I know a nice private kitchen with a great atmosphere and delicious food."

Feng Youmei looked up, a strange light flashing in her eyes. "Just the two of us?"

"Just the two of us." Cao Kun smiled. "We can have a good talk about life, and about... better choices."

The corners of Feng Youmei's mouth curled up. "Alright."

...

That evening, Cao Kun drove Feng Youmei out.

She had changed her clothes.

She wore a tight black dress with a camel-colored coat over it, and her makeup was exquisite, making her look even more radiant and moving.

"Auntie is truly beautiful." Cao Kun opened the car door for her.

"Still calling me Auntie?" Feng Youmei sat in the passenger seat and gave him a sidelong glance. "You're making me sound old."

"Then... Sister Youmei?" Cao Kun tested.

Feng Youmei laughed. "That's more like it."

The private kitchen was located in a small alley in the old city. The storefront was unassuming, but the interior was elegantly decorated, and the private rooms had excellent soundproofing. Cao Kun had booked the innermost room in advance.

After they finished ordering, the waiter withdrew, leaving only the two of them in the room.

Cao Kun opened a bottle of red wine and poured some for Feng Youmei. "Sister Youmei, let's have a toast to our meeting."

Feng Youmei raised her glass, her fingertips lightly brushing against the back of Cao Kun's hand. "Cheers."

After a few glasses of wine, Feng Youmei became more talkative.

She spoke of her youthful recklessness, the hardships of raising a child alone, and the loneliness of all these years.

Cao Kun listened quietly, refilling her wine from time to time and responding at just the right moments.

"Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and look at the empty room, feeling like I've lived this life for nothing."

Feng Youmei's eyes were hazy. "I was young and foolish, falling out with my family over a man, only for him to run away. Now that I'm middle-aged and want someone to accompany me, I find that the men on the market are either vulgar or hypocritical..."

"So you set your sights on Zhang Chao?" Cao Kun asked softly.

Feng Youmei smiled bitterly. "I know it's not right, but... he's at least genuine. And when Moli is at home, that sense of sneakiness actually makes me feel quite excited..."

"But that kind of excitement comes with a price." Cao Kun took her hand. "Sister Youmei, you deserve better."

Feng Youmei looked at Cao Kun, her eyes shimmering with moisture. "What is 'better'? You?"

Cao Kun didn't deny it. "At least I won't destroy your family or make you lose your daughter. We can have a different kind of relationship—one that's healthier and freer."

Feng Youmei's heart began to race.

The man before her was young, handsome, had a career, and was clearly interested in her.

Compared to Zhang Chao, Cao Kun was simply on another level.

"What do you want from me?" she asked directly.

"Your happiness." Cao Kun's answer was even more direct. "Seeing a charming woman like you unhappy feels like a waste to me."

The food arrived, but neither of them touched their chopsticks much.

The alcohol and the ambiguous atmosphere fermented in the room. Feng Youmei's face grew redder, and her gaze became bolder.

"Xiao Cao, are you married?" she asked.

"I don't have an official girlfriend." Cao Kun answered cleverly. "I have a few female friends with whom I'm on good terms."

Feng Youmei understood the subtext. Instead of minding, she became even more interested. "A man like you must be very popular, right?"

"That depends on who's doing the welcoming." Cao Kun said meaningfully. "If it's a woman like you, Sister Youmei, I would be very honored."

By the time dinner ended, Feng Youmei was half-drunk.

She leaned against Cao Kun, her breath carrying the scent of wine and perfume.

"Where... to next?" she asked, her fingertips tracing circles on Cao Kun's chest.

Cao Kun put his arm around her waist. "There's a hotel upstairs. I've already booked a room."

Feng Youmei laughed, a sense of liberating pleasure in her smile. "You really are... well-prepared."

"When dealing with someone important, one naturally has to be well-prepared."

...