Codename:Phoenix 80 One True Love

The two executive chefs and their a.s.sistants wasted no time preparing the meals. Chef Maxima and her sous-chef were in charge of the appetizer and the main course while Chef Violet and her a.s.sistant took care of the side dishes and dessert.

As the two executive chefs started to get serious with their cooking, a smell of rich promising delightful taste wafted into the air. After some few minutes or so, the appetizer was served and the other dishes followed shortly.

The tray of b.u.t.ter garlic crab rolls looked tasty and the grilled steak was mouthwatering. The huge platter of roast duck stuffed with herbs and nuts was a must-to-eat. The varieties of seafood drizzled in sauces and the mixed salad were as equally impressive. There were also waterfalls of chocolates, beautiful apple crisp served with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and caramel syrup on top. A basket of minted fresh strawberries lay beside a platter of creme brulee.

The moment her eyes spotted the apple crisp with the scoop of vanilla ice cream, Europa's mouth watered. Apple was her favorite fruit, and vanilla was her favorite ice cream flavor, having two of her favorite flavors fused in one dessert, it made her feel like she was in cloud nine.

Noticing that her daughter was eyeing the dessert, w.a.n.g Reiji blocked Europa's view of the apple crisp.

"Sorry, babe. But the apple crisp will have to wait. You need to eat your meal first."

Europa frowned and turned her head to w.a.n.g Yuvin who was sitting beside her. With her best puppy eyes, she looked at him, silently pleading.

w.a.n.g Yuvin swallowed a lump in his throat. Why must this pair of mother and daughter torture him?

Seeing no clear reaction from her uncle, Europa took the pleading to another level, she pouted her lips and fluttered her long eyelashes at w.a.n.g Yuvin.

'Must resist!' w.a.n.g Yuvin silently battled with himself.

However, since Europa's charms were so powerful he was forced to give in. He then found his hands reaching out for a slice of an Apple Crisp. But instead of placing it on Europa's plate, he placed it on his plate.

"Bro!" w.a.n.g Reiji gave him a deadly stare.

"I am sorry sis. She's just too powerful." w.a.n.g Yuvin whimpered.

"Don't worry, I'll just give her one spoonful." He added.

w.a.n.g Reiji sighed. It seemed like she needed to talk to her brother about spoiling Europa or else her authority over her own daughter would be jeopardized.

Europa's eyes twinkled the instant she tasted the delicious apple crisp. She wanted more but w.a.n.g Yuvin remained firm about giving her only one spoonful of the dessert.

"You can eat the rest of it later. If I give you more, your mother's gonna strangle me to death." w.a.n.g Yuvin explained.

The little girl gently nodded her head as she silently gave the apple crisp a see you later look.

Soon after all the dishes were completely served and everyone started eating, Chairman Qin called the chefs and asked them to introduce themselves. After the chefs had finished introducing themselves and their recipes, they excused themselves. Chef Maxima needed to fly back to Italy and Chef Violet had an event to attend to. Everyone thanked the chefs and showered them with praises.

X---------------------------x

Once the satisfying lunch was done, Chairman Qin invited w.a.n.g Reiji and w.a.n.g Yuvin for tea in his study room. He then instructed his youngest son to look after Europa who was busy playing with her pet, Misha, while Qin Sho headed to his room to fetch some doc.u.ments before getting inside Chairman Qin's study room as well.

As soon as the siblings have settled inside the study room, Butler Quan who followed after them served the tea and immediately exit the room.

"Let's just wait for s...o...b..fore we start our discussion." Chairman Qin said before taking a sip of tea.

While waiting for Qin Sho, w.a.n.g Reiji scanned the chairman's study room.

The floor of the study was covered with lotus abstract carpet while the walls were full of Chinese landscape and calligraphy paintings. A beautiful Chinese style square led ceiling light made from wood hung perfectly above their heads and the pile of doc.u.ments on the chairman's solid wood desk was neatly arranged beside an old photograph.

Noticing w.a.n.g Reiji's gaze was on the photograph, the chairman lifted it up and handed it over to her.

"It's okay, take a closer look."

"Thank you, Uncle Luo." w.a.n.g Reiji said as she took the photograph from the old man's hand.

Curious as his sister was, w.a.n.g Yuvin also examined the photograph.

The photograph looked old, probably around 40 years or more. It was a photograph of the two patriarchs, standing side by side when they were still in their prime. Basing from the photograph's background, it was taken somewhere near the floating torii gate or the Itsukus.h.i.+ma Shrine in the Island of Miyajima.

"It was taken before your father left j.a.pan. He was 25 back then and I was only 21 years old." Chairman Qin started narrating the story behind the photograph.

"That was the day he sailed to Beijing to look for your mother, Skyla. They were lovers at that time but unfortunately, Skyla's mission here in Beijing tore them apart." Chairman Qin continued as his lips formed a bitter smile.

"Isamu spent 40 years looking for your mother. However, when he found her, she was already six feet under the ground. Though brokenhearted, Isamu still did his best to uncover the truth. He did whatever he can to know what happened to your mother during those years." The chairman tried to stay calm despite his crackling voice.

"Initially, Isamu thought that you were his biological daughter that's why he was stalking you. However, DNA results showed that you were not his. And after some more time, he learned that Skyla had permanently lost all her memories. That she died without any memory of him and their past."

w.a.n.g Reiji, though she already knew the story, felt her heart was squeezed by a strong nagging feeling. If w.a.n.g Daizhuo had found her mother sooner, maybe he was able to save her from depression and death. That maybe Zhang Chenric would not accuse her of having a romantic relations.h.i.+p with w.a.n.g Daizhuo when all she did was comfort an old man who was going through the toughest time of his life --- after many years of searching for his one true love, he found her --- grave.

She forced a smile. Maybe Zhang Chenric's love for her that time was of little depth. Yes, it was love. But not as enduring as what w.a.n.g Daizhuo had for her mother. Maybe it was a love that was supposed to grow during the pa.s.sing of days. But unfortunately, it wasn't strong enough to survive a calamity.

She took a deep breath before taking a sip from the tea to calm her system down. She was about to take another sip when she sensed a gaze from her peripheral view.

"Why are you staring at me like that bro?" She asked.

"Now that I heard that story again, it made me wonder. Is Aunt Skyla an orphan? It seemed like her relatives in j.a.pan did not bother to look for her." w.a.n.g Yuvin said before pouring his cup with tea.

w.a.n.g Reiji furrowed her brows as she turned her head to the Chairman's direction.

"Your mother has a younger brother."

Chairman Qin paused and took another sip of his tea.

"Sho and I think that he also went here in Beijing to look for your mother."

w.a.n.g Reiji almost spat the tea back to her cup.

"U-uncle? I have a maternal uncle?"