198 Siblings

Masaichi Xiu walked into the Marketing Director's Office of the Igarashi group without even knocking at the door. Riley Adams strode in just a couple of steps behind him. He raised a hand to stop the secretary who bolted from her seat just outside the door.

Midori Xiu, who was reading from a pile of folders subtly looked up unperturbed. She was wearing a mocha-colored turtleneck blouse topped with a navy blue blazer. It was such a contrast to her brother who wore an all black ensemble which must mean business.

Masaichi Xiu cleared his throat to get her attention.

She furrowed her brows then looked up to meet his eyes. "Niisan, what are you doing here?"

"I wanna switch positions with you." he declared.

She leaned back on her high-back cream swivel chair as she folded her arms at chest level. "Why?" Her tone had a hint of mockery.

Before her brother could answer, she continued, "Tsk, tsk...the CEO of XCG wanna quit and become a mere manager for a bigger group of companies? How low do you plan on putting yourself down, Niisan?"

"I want to be with my family. They are safer here. If I had to be demoted, then so be it."

Riley Adams gulped. He might get tossed to his former lady boss again; this time, with more complications.

"What about the safety of my family?!" Midori thought about her son, who is only an infant. She did not want him to be in danger as well.

"The man you're living with is not even your husband." Masaichi mocked.

"Tsk, as if you are sure that the woman you're sleeping with is really your wife."

"Midori!" Masaichi's fury was building up.

"Did I hit a nerve, Brother?" She had a sneer on her face.

"Just trade places with me and I will never bother you again." Masaichi Xiu calmed himself. He needed to achieve his goal of sending his sister back in City S, especially that ZFC asked for a collaboration project with XCG.

"You are so desperate..." she shook her head slowly as she smiled in disappointment.

Just then, it was as if she just noticed Riley Adams.

"Can I keep Adams then? He knows XCG too much that he is essential to the CEO." Midori requested.

"Help yourself. He will be over-qualified to be my assistant when I become a 'mere' director."

Riley Adams thought to himself, 'Help yourself? Am I just like a snack for these two? They really are siblings!'

"Fine!" Midori slammed her hand on the oak desk. The pile of folders as well as the pens in their holder shook with the impact. Then she grabbed a folder and shoved it towards her brother. "Get to work then." She had a look seemingly challenging him.

Masaichi Xiu's reflex caught the folder awkwardly. However, as his sister angrily strode away with her heels clicking against the wooden floor, a smile of victory bloomed slowly from his face.

__________

Vanessa Zhou stared intently at her brother who was browsing through their company files. Dr. Long's words rang in her ears.

"He might have lost his episodic memory, a part of his explicit or declarative memory, meaning the events that he could have recalled if he was to construct hiis autobiography, but his semantic and implicit memory seemed to be intact, that would be his general knowledge on common facts and his memory on how to carry out tasks respectively, so he could get back to work. You just might need to refresh him of the actual figures for ZFC."

She looked at her brother again. His fast-paced reading ability was still apparent. It might take him less than a week to take over ZFC.

Also, their father regained his position as chairman, while their mother seemed to have toned down her antics.

"Van-jie, what's this?" Verdan Zhou raised up a green legal-sized folder.

Her eyes shook. This is it.

"XCG has requested a collaboration. We will be meeting their CEO next week."

"Oh..." He innocently browsed through the file and nodded as he read on.

'Masaichi Xiu, I hope this plan of yours won't mess up.' she thought.

____________

Jiang Mei Ling sat looking excited. She was half an hour early at their meeting place.

When the door creaked open, she had the brightest smile on her face.

She was utterly delighted when Lu Shaoting asked to meet her after several months of not hearing anything from him. She actually thought that he went missing with Verdan Zhou for quite some time.

Her face fell when her husband walked in with a woman.

"Why...why is she here?!" She was furious to see the woman who caused her marriage to crumble down together with her husband.

"Mei, calm down. We have something to tell you." Lu Shaoting sounded indifferent.

Even when she was on the verge of crying, Jiang Mei Ling sat down and then glared at the woman before her.

"Mei..." Lu Shaoting looked her in the eyes. "She just got tested..." he wrapped an hour around Romina Ta.

With trembling lips, a tear fell on Jiang Mei Ling's cheek.