Chapter 326 - Humble

"I am speaking to Xiaobei, who are you to cut in!"

Yang Hongzhi was curt, and he glared at Xiao Luo with undisguised loathing. His angry voice frightened Su Xiaobei, who was still clinging on to Xiao Luo's back.

Xiao Luo was quite stunned as he did not expect that his word of advice would have agitated Yang Hongzhi to such a degree. But Xiao Luo brushed it off with a chuckle and decided to ignore him.

"Yang Hongzhi, you're scaring Xiaobei!" Su Li chided.

The scowl on Yang Hongzhi's tensed-up face vanished instantly as he slapped his forehead dramatically and said, "Oh, Li, it's my bad, it's my bad… I'm so sorry." He then attempted to make a cute face and waved at Su Xiaobei, flashing her a broad smile. "Xiaobei, uncle Yang was too loud; you must be scared, right? Here, here… Uncle Yang is very sorry. Don't cry, okay?"

As he spoke, he bowed like a gentleman in a rather fawning manner, which didn't seem to impress Xiao Luo or the little girl.

Su Xiaobei hugged Xiao Luo's neck more tightly and looked frightened.

"Ms. Su, why don't you all continue playing, and I'll take Xiaobei for a stroll nearby." Xiao Luo said.

"You're not joining us?" Shen Qingyan asked, toying with the racket in her hands.

"You guys carry on, don't worry about us."

Xiao Luo turned and left with Su Xiaobei on his back, and Luo Pingxiang followed the pair.

Yang Hongzhi looked at Xiao Luo as he walked away and sneered, "Hah! To think that this catfish really thinks he's Xiaobei's real father!"

"He's doing his job very well!"

Su Li's terse response told Yang Hongzhi where she stood on the matter in no uncertain terms.

"Li, I know you love Xiaobei very much and want to give her a happy childhood. However, is this really appropriate? Xiaobei might be happy for the time being, of course. But what about the future, how long do you think that catfish over there will stick around? When he's had enough and leaves, wouldn't she be heartbroken? I think this whole arrangement is detrimental to her, and I urge you to reconsider," Yang Hongzhi said.

"If it turns out that Su Xiaobei wants to treat Xiao Luo as her father forever, I will never allow him to leave her. Even if it means I have to pay an enormous sum of money, I'll make sure to keep Xiao Luo by her side."

Shen Qingyan, seeing that this was going nowhere, laughed sweetly and said, "Li, don't you understand where young master Yang is coming from? If Xiao Luo remains Su Xiaobei's 'father,' then wouldn't it mean that you're technically married to Xiao Luo. Young master Yang is expressing his concern about this."

"Qingyan knows me too well!" Yang Hongzhi chimed in.

"Li, you know that, in this life, my heart yearns for no one else but you. I can't allow you to suffer from any stain that will tarnish your reputation; even if his title of "father' is just a job, I cannot tolerate it. Get rid of that catfish, give me time, and I'll make Xiaobei accept me as her father."

"Don't waste your time on me, I'm sure you have better choices. Okay, that's enough, let's play. Qingyan, you're serving first." Su Li promptly walked toward the other end of the tennis court and did not allow Yang Hongzhi to pester her any further.

Shen Qingyan gave Yang Hongzhi a shrug and walked to the opposite side to serve.

"Cough, cough…"

Yang Hongzhi felt a little awkward. "Errm, may I join you guys?"

"Sure, whoever scores fifteen points first wins the round, and the loser takes a break… this is much more fun," Shen Qingyan said.

Su Li did not object.

Su Li and Shen Qingyan changed into their sportswear, and they were both wearing a similar design—pink short-sleeved top and a short white skirt—which made them look like twins. The outfits generously revealed their perfect figures and fair skin to a pair of predatory eyes perched on an armchair's side nearby.

Intently watching the ladies twisting their waists and buttocks as they swung the tennis racket, Yang Hongzhi could not contain himself, and his thoughts wandered to dark places. He kept swallowing his saliva as he indulged in fantasizing about being in bed with these two sexy ladies. However, he knew that this could only happen in his imagination as he was well aware that they no easy game to be stalked and taken down.

He had been rejected by Su Li countless times, which took a toll on his ego, but as they say, patience is a virtue, and he had now found the key to unlock the door to her heart—Su Li's mother, possessing a character full of weaknesses, would be easy to manipulate.

After half an hour of thrashing it out on the court, both Su Li and Shen Qingyan were drenched in sweat and decided to take a break.

Yang Hongzhi, who had thoroughly enjoyed watching them play, was reluctant to let them rest. "Li, Qingyan, why don't we play a few more rounds?"

"No, no, our stamina is no match for you. You practice kickboxing regularly, you're fit," Shen Qingyan said, waving him off.

Yang Hongzhi smiled, "What's the use of having stamina when I keep losing every round to you? My tennis skills are horrible."

"Haha, I know that Young Master Yang went easy on us. Who doesn't know that you're a sports fanatic? Be it golf, tennis, basketball, or soccer, you are unrivaled."

Shen Qingyan received two clean face towel from her maid and handed one to Su Li.

"Don't flatter me, Qingyan. You guys are really better than me in tennis," Yang Hongzhi said, feigning humility.

"Ho, ho, ho…" Shen Qingyan chortled.

As Su Li dabbed the towel on her face and neck, she asked the maid, "Where's Su Xiaobei and Xiao Luo?"

"Ms. Su, they are at the basketball court," the maid replied.

Su Li put the towel down and made for the basketball court. As she walked past Yang Hongzhi, he detected her sweet scent, and his nostrils unconsciously followed its trail.

Shen Qingyan and Yang Hongzhi decided to tag along, and it didn't take too long before the trio arrived at the basketball court. There, they saw Xiao Luo playing basketball with Su Xiaobei.

Xiao Luo was shooting at the hoop, and the little girl was giggling and gleefully retrieving the ball and passing it back to him for the next shot. She would cheer every time Xiao Luo made the shot. "Yay! Daddy's so awesome!"

A small basketball may not seem heavy for an adult, but to Su Xiaobei, it weighed a ton. Her cheeks were flushed, and she was drenched from running and carrying the ball around the court. The mirth and excitement in her laughter filled the air as father and daughter indulged in their playtime.

"Li, this guy's not bad, he's really good with Xiaobei," Shen Qingyan said.

Su Li was delighted with Xiao Luo's performance, she had not seen Su Xiaobei this happy in a long time.

Yang Hongzhi sulked when he saw them playing together. He was livid at the thought of some low-born catfish winning the child's heart. He had to think of something and fast; keeping a smile on his face, he said, "That Mr. Xiao seems like he's good with basketball, I feel like having a game with him."

"Oh, really? Young Master Yang wants to have a match with him?" Shen Qingyan gave him a knowing smile.

"Indeed, I want to play with him, I was just getting warmed up with tennis," Yang Hongzhi said.

"Then go play with him, but don't overdo it and make a fool out of him completely."

Shen Qingyan knew that Yang Hongzhi just wanted to show off his skills to Su Li, and she wasn't going to object that. After all, in her eyes, they were a matchings couple, and if they got hitched, she'd be very happy for her sister, Su Li.

"Haha… perhaps he'll make a fool out of me," Yang Hongzhi responded.

"Young Master Yang, you're only revealing your arrogance by being overly humble. Others may not know, but we're well aware that you hired a CBA coach and underwent intensive training. How could he match up to you? So, you better show him some mercy and let him save some face, alright," Shen Qingyan said.

…