Meanwhile, when Mu Chen was hurrying back to his office, he ran into his secretary who was just about to leave. He asked, “Is she awake?”

The secretary shook her head. “There’s no movement inside.”

“Alright, you can return to your work.” Mu Chen nodded. He walked into the lounge quietly to have a look. Sure enough, Song Ning was still sleeping. Upon seeing this, he sighed in relief.

After returning to his office, he fell deep into his thoughts. After a moment, he decided to have a look at the surveillance footage.

Initially, he had planned to introduce Song Ning to Ye Cheng in the afternoon so that the Ye family would give up on their ideas. He did not expect her to be in such a state when she came over.

If Song Ning had not been feeling well since the beginning, she would not have come over at all. Moreover, based on her reaction earlier, it was obvious to him that she did not want him to see her in such a state. Therefore, he deduced that something must have happened when she arrived and before she came up to the office.

Mu Chen rewound the surveillance footage until he saw Song Ning. Soon enough, he saw her talking to Ning Zhe. He was taken aback by this. They were familiar with each other?

‘Ning Zhe… Ning Xia?’ It did not take long before an idea appeared in Mu Chen’s mind.

He picked up his phone and dialed a string of numbers. When the call connected, he said, “Cheng Che, find out the name of Ning Zhe’s daughter…”

“What’s wrong, brother? Why did you suddenly take an interest in Ning Zhe? I saw him in our restaurant in the afternoon,” Cheng Che said.

Mu Chen asked curiously, “Who was he meeting in our restaurant?”

“That’s right. I was rather curious as well. He was meeting a middle-aged man. Wait, I’ll send a picture to you,” Cheng Che said before he sent the picture he had taken earlier to Mu Chen.

Mu Chen’s heart sank when he saw the middle-aged man in question. He had seen the middle-aged man before; he was an employee in Song Ning’s studio.

Song Ning had previously said that many of the outstanding employees from the studio had left. Those who remained were mostly those who had a good and long-standing relationship with her mother.

Where did those excellent employees go? The answer was obvious.

After a beat, Mu Chen said in a low voice, “Cheng Che, investigate the Ning group’s textile and clothing businesses. I want all the information you can find.”

“Alright. Can you tell me what you’re trying to do?” Cheng Che asked tentatively.

“There’s nothing concrete yet. Anyway, get ready. I’m bringing you somewhere tonight; I have a new challenge for you,” Mu Chen said.

“Are you going to reward me for it?” Cheng Che asked.

Mu Chen asked patiently, “What do you want?”

“Ask sister-in-law to introduce me to the girl who looks like a grape,” Cheng Che said without beating around the bush.

“A girl who looks like a grape?” Mu Chen was confused as the images of a bunch grapes flashed in his mind.

Cheng Che explained, “You know, the one who’s really fierce!”

After a moment, realization dawned on Mu Chen, and he could not help but smile when he realized Cheng Che was talking about An Jiahui. “That girl is indeed rather fierce.”

Cheng Che said, defending Jiahui, “Yes, yes, she’s quite fierce, but she’s quite cute as well…”

Mu Chen said nonchalantly, “If you like her, you should pursue her on your own…”

“You still have to provide me with a chance before I can start doing that. Are you bringing sister-in-law tonight? If you’re bringing her, why don’t you ask her to invite Little Grape along?” Cheng Che said excitedly.

“We’ll see.” Mu Chen did not give Cheng Che a definite answer before he disconnected the call.

At this moment, the door to the lounge clicked open.

Upon hearing this, Mu Chen rose to his feet immediately. He asked worriedly, “You’re awake? How do you feel? Do you feel uncomfortable anywhere?”

He held Song Ning’s shoulders as he leaned closer to have a look at her. A hint of exhaustion could be seen on her slightly pale face.

Song Ning nodded. “I’m fine.”

Mu Chen helped Song Ning to the sofa before he squatted down in front of her. Then, he continued to ask, still worried, “Are you sure you don’t want to see a doctor?”

Song Ning looked at Mu Chen who was squatting in front of her and smiled. “Mu Chen, have you forgotten I’m a doctor as well?”

Mu Chen waved his hand and said, “Doctors can’t treat themselves. Let’s have the doctor come over and take a look at you.”

Song Ning shook her head before she swiftly changed the topic. “I’m hungry. I want to eat.”

Mu Chen sighed in relief. At least, she still had the appetite to eat. It seemed like she was fine now. “Alright, let’s go eat.”

…

In the end, Song Ning chose a small and cozy congee shop close to her studio.

The lady boss was a chubby and friendly woman in her forties. She seemed rather happy when she saw Song Ning. “Little Song, it’s been a long time!”

When the lady boss’ eyes shifted to Mu Chen, they lit up immediately. “You found yourself such a handsome boyfriend! Not bad, not bad! Today, I’ll give you a special promotion; buy one, get one free! I’ll have to feed you well; look at how skinny you’ve gotten.”

Then, the lady boss looked at Mu Chen and continued to say, “Young man, Little Song is a good girl. You must cherish her. If you marry her, you’ll have good luck for the rest of your life! Little Song will definitely be a good wife!”

Song Ning was embarrassed when she heard the lady boss’ words.

On the other hand, Mu Chen nodded and said with a smile, “Yes, of course…”

Song Ning pinched him gently and said, “Don’t talk nonsense…”

Following that, the duo found a table at the corner and sat down to wait for their food to arrive.

Mu Chen looked around as he asked, “Do you come here often?”

Song Ning nodded. “This place is close to the studio, after all. Sometimes I’d have supper here. Moreover, the lady boss is really nice; she’d give me a bigger portion when I came here in the past.”