Pampered Wife of Xavier

Chapter 6: When the Wind Rises and Rain Stops

Even though Emma's culinary skills were excellent, Arya could not eat much. She did not have any appetite after a bowl of soup and a piece of dim sum.

Xavier picked up a call across from her. Before he finished his breakfast, he got up and went upstairs.

It was only after about over an hour that she saw him on the phone again as he walked downstairs. When he saw Arya watching television on the sofa and waiting, he gently raised a hand to gesture to her. Arya nodded and then walked over to take her keys from the coffee table.

She had just stepped out of the villa entrance when Arya saw her car parked by the roadside from afar while his low-profile Phaeton was parked behind her car.

Arya frowned. She suddenly stopped and turned to look at the man behind her. When she saw him still on the phone and even flipping through the documents in his hand, she thought it must be something related to work.

When he saw Arya stopping to watch him, Xavier looked up at her too. His hand reached into his pocket and took out a car key before passing it to Arya.

He was clearly implying that she drive his car.

What about her car?

Arya looked a little lost at him, yet she saw that he had already tossed the car key to her. Still, on the phone, he walked toward the front passenger seat of his car.

She caught the car keys and could only helplessly slide into the driver’s seat of the Phaeton. She pulled open the door to hop in and very quickly started the engine. With ease of practice, she reversed the car and in the blink of an eye, the car was already steadily driving away from the Maple Residence Villa.

“Mmm, later I’ll go over to take a look. You guys just prepare the proposal. Tomorrow, I’ll be back at the company. Send the proposal to my desk next Monday. Any questions?”

Xavier flipped through the documents on his lap as he spoke on the phone.

A while after, he hung up.

“Where’re we going?”

She could tell that he seemed to be quite busy. He had just hung up on a call when another one came after.

“Take the Express Ring. Go to the south of the city. South River bridge.” He mentioned a place, then looked up at Arya.

“Do you know the way?”

Arya nodded before she pointed at the car’s GPS. “Even if I don’t, there’s this.”

Xavier smiled. He put his documents away and turned to look out the window. It was already close to noon time then. All around, he could see many cars zip by while on both sides of the sidewalk, pedestrians walking in a rush.

He suddenly bent down, took a CD out, and put it into the player. A soft and relaxing light tune started to pour out from the speakers.

The tune was one that Arya was very familiar with. It was a piano number that she also really liked— “Ballade pour Adeline”.

“You like Richard Clayderman’s music too?”

Xavier straightened his back before slowly leaning back. There was a faint ease on his handsome face.

“I listen to it sometimes. Do you know how to play the piano?”

As Arya listened, she then shook her head a little defeatedly.

“When I was younger, I envied those who could play the piano very much. I thought of learning when I started school, but maybe because I’m born clueless about music… I remember when I was in university, I chose a piano course. Later on, my teacher asked me to choose another specialty. She was worried that I wouldn’t be able to score and wouldn’t get my diploma.”

Xavier laughed softly and his voice was perceptive.

“I can tell that your teacher looked after you quite well. Had it been someone else, they’d probably have let you repeat the course until you passed.”

Arya pursed her lips and smiled defeatedly. There was a shift in her twinkling eyes as she held the steering wheel steadily while her other hand habitually leaned on the car window, propping up her head.

“Nah, it was because she couldn’t see any hope of me passing. I was a famous underachiever in school, a student that caused teachers the most headaches, especially in high school. The school calling my parents was nothing out of the ordinary.”

When she recalled those times, Arya suddenly felt an unnamed nostalgia. They had really been innocent back then. She would always skip classes with Mia. Because Mia and Ruan Heng were on different campuses, Mia would always skip classes to see him and even dragged Arya along. Back then, schools did not allow dating publicly.

As he listened, the curve on Xavier’s face gradually widened and he chuckled softly.

“Underachiever?”

He muttered, then turned over thoughtfully and examined Arya closely, smiling.

“They always say that underachievers struggle, that underachievers are tired, those underachievers can’t sleep before an exam. Are you sure you’re one?”

Arya took a glimpse at him. She thought about it and then nodded earnestly.

“I’m the type that loses five kilograms for every exam. Two weeks before an exam, I’d basically be in hustle mode, but come to think of it, I really lived an enriching life back then. What about you? By the looks of you, you probably belonged to the species of top students.”

Xavier smiled without a word. He turned his head slightly and watched the way she focused on driving while looking ahead.

“Where did you go for senior high school?”

Senior high school?

Arya frowned slightly as she thought about it.

“New Jersey High. I got in with connections and I made it into the elite class. Later on, though, I couldn’t catch up on the homework, so I got pushed back.”

New Jersey High School, New York City’s first aristocratic high school, was where usually powerful and influential students or children of rich families studied. It was not enough just to rely on family background; one still needed to have excellent results before one could enter.

New Jersey High School?

Xavier suddenly raised his brows as shock flashed in his eyes. Arya caught his expression and laughed.

“Don’t tell me that you were also in New Jersey High School before!”

After he fell silent for a while, Xavier suddenly said casually,

“Go to New Jersey High’s library’s XX year’s graduation wall and have a look. My name should still be up there.”

His profoundly handsome face relaxed a little as he turned over and looked out of the window.

Outside was already unlike the cloudy weather the day before. The sky was still misty and the cold breeze blew incessantly. He could vaguely see that on both sides of the sidewalk, some traders had already started to put out all sorts of merchandise for the New Year.

However, when Xavier said this, Arya was startled. She looked a little surprised at Xavier. She did not expect him to be a schoolmate of hers too, or they could even be senior and junior although he was older than her by a few years.

As she thought about this, she suddenly remembered something. It had been so long, yet she did not know his name…

She had not asked about it before and even later on, he did not offer it either.

She hesitated for quite a while before asking softly, “You…”

As if he could read her thoughts, before Arya could finish, his deep and terse voice quietly rang out in the narrow space, “Xavier Knight.”

Xavier Knight?

Arya’s first reaction was that she thought it sounded a little familiar as if she had heard that name somewhere before.

However, she did not give it much thought. They were about to come to a busy traffic junction ahead, so she pushed all her thoughts aside and focused on driving.

The car sped through the Express Ring and very quickly reached the South River bridge.

Underneath the bridge by the roadside, Xavier let Arya Park the car. Then, they walked for quite a distance along the sidewalk by the river. Arya realized that he wanted to inspect the landform at the same time.

The South River had been developed pretty well. Previously, Glory World Corporation had also planned to develop an Economic Development Zone, but later on, because they had to intensely follow up on another project, it had been temporarily paused.

This man seemed to have a very far-sighted vision. The population there was quite dense, and transportation was rather convenient too. If one were to develop this place, the future prospects should be quite bright.

Currently, although many people were still not optimistic about the area, she, however, personally thought highly of the place.

He did not stay there for long. After some deep thought on his part, the two of them returned to the car. It was already close to the evening at this point, so Arya decided to drive straight to their dinner location.

The place that Arya brought Xavier for dinner was not some high-class restaurant. Instead, it was an extremely unique South River restaurant. Built on the edge of a hot spring by the riverside was a fresh and elegant little Chinese restaurant.

“Just order anything you want. Don’t be shy with me.” Arya handed the menu over to Xavier across her. Her eyes shone brightly with hints of sincerity and gratitude.

Xavier accepted the menu and elegantly flipped it open.

“The game here isn’t bad, especially for hotpot…”

He had just flipped open the menu when Arya’s low and light voice suddenly came through indistinctly. He looked up to see her eyes shining ever so slightly like stars, seeming vaguely hopeful.

Ease flashed across his indifferent, handsome face. Eventually, he went with her suggestion and ordered the hotpot with the game as a side dish, plus a warm pot of green bamboo snake liquor.

When he handed the menu back to the waiter and was about to ask if she wanted to add anything, he noticed that she was already gazing out of the window a little absent-mindedly with her chin resting in one hand.

He gestured for the waiter to retreat. Following her distracted gaze, he vaguely heard amused laughter outside from the depths of the plum blossom forest by the riverside. The plum blossoms were blooming, their petals fluttering about and scattering across the ground. Many people held hands as they walked slowly on the green pavement in the plum blossom forest. They were either a pair of lovers or a family of three…

The restaurant was very efficient, so it was only a short while before the food was served.

Arya picked up the pot of liquor and silently filled up two empty cups. She gently pushed one of them to Xavier, while she picked up the other. With a frown, she then pulled her head back to finish it in a few gulps.

Arya’s twinkling eyes shifted, suddenly appearing a little distant as she poured herself another cup and took a small sip.

“I’ve also drunk this liquor once by chance. At first, I didn’t like its taste, but I don’t know when I started to get used to it. Try it, though I’m afraid you won’t be used to it.”

Xavier quietly listened to her speak as he picked up his cup of liquor. He took a small sip and found that it tasted pretty delicious. It had a smooth and sweet taste and was fragrant.

She vaguely remembered that her grandmother had once said that if a woman could be like the green bamboo snake liquor, it would perhaps be the perfect combination — mellow, rich, and elegantly fragrant like the wine, hidden, beautiful, yet possess a terrifying poison like the snake, and retained the fresh culture of tea.

However, sadly…

It was quite a while before she snapped back to her senses —

When she saw Xavier silently watching her from across, she smiled slightly and sounded apologetic as she said,

“Are you not used to it? Should I change it for a bottle of red wine?”

Xavier shook his head. He put down the cup in his hand gently and looked down at the boiling hot pot in front of him. In a lowered voice, he said,

“I was just thinking. If we just drink like this and don’t start eating soon, would the food inside be cooked into a pile of junk soon?”

When she heard his solemn question, Arya looked down into the pot and saw that the contents were already intensely boiling in the pot. She then laughed softly and cheerfully picked up her chopsticks to deftly choose a meatball.

“Try this. The meatballs here are pretty good, especially the prawn balls.”

She dipped it with a little sauce before slowly putting it into her mouth.

Watching her, Xavier picked up his chopsticks too and elegantly picked something from the hotpot. He fished out a thin slice of meat and was pleased to find that it did taste quite delicious.

Waves of cool breeze brushed past. There was a faint fragrance of plum blossoms floating about the air, refreshing the mind and lifting one’s spirits.

When they walked out of the restaurant, it was already dusk. The dazzling neon lights covered the entire New York City in a blurred fantasy-like way, the faint shadows of the dim streetlights seeming a little bleak.

In the driver’s seat, Arya rested her chin on her hand as usual while propping it up on the open car window, the other steadily steering the wheel. Xavier was relaxed and had shut his eyes to rest. The car was filled with a very natural tranquillity.

Two people who did not know each other well just quietly sat there. In theory, they should feel a little awkward, yet weirdly, there were no such feelings between the both of them. Instead, it was as if the two of them were friends who had known each other for a long time. When they sat together, even if they did not say anything, they did not find it odd.

The car steadily sped across the wide roads. Because they were passing the suburbs, there were not many pedestrians on the road. Sometimes only one or two cars were ahead of them.

Arya vaguely remembered that the road she was driving on was rather isolated, yet it was closer to Xavier’s Maple Residence. It was considered an accident-prone section because there were multiple bends along the way and many long tunnels passing through mountains with lots of turnings. The terrain was also steep and complicated. Because of that, people would not usually take this route, even more so on such a quiet night like this.

No thanks to the challenge of the roads, this place seemed to have become a haven for some young kids who would have night races with one another. A few days ago, the newspapers seemed to have just reported the news of many luxury cars racing in this area.

Just as she thought about this as if in agreement with Arya’s thoughts, there was suddenly the whizzing of vehicles speeding up from behind. Several bright lights pierced from behind. Because of the blinding light reflected in the rear-view mirror, Arya almost could not open her eyes. The hurricane-like cars swept past her, then came sharp sounds of whistling.

“Beautiful, if you don’t hurry up, they’re about to close the roads up front! Want to make a dash for it together?”

Amid the reckless and brash laughter, one of the cars beside started to keep pace with Arya. A young fellow wearing a pirate bandana stuck his head out of the window and looked at Arya to challenge her.

Arya shot him a cold look. Her brows frowned slightly but she planned to ignore them.

However, another car besides that car had already drifted over and almost bumped into Xavier’s car that Arya was driving. Thankfully, Arya was quick to respond and she quickly turned the steering wheel, evading them by a close shave.

Before Arya could breathe, a strong light flashed from the right side of her rear mirror as another car attacked from the right. This was when Arya realized that there seemed to be more than ten luxury cars chasing after one another behind her. In fact, they seemed determined to get her to join their game.

“Beautiful, since your skills aren’t that bad, try it out. Our destination is the entrance near the Grand Waves Villa. If you win, there’s a generous prize – an exclusive membership to our racing club!”

When she saw both left and right sides sandwiching her in between, Arya’s twinkling eyes dimmed. Quickly, the curve of a cold smile formed on her lips, and a flash gleamed in her eyes.

Racing?

This game was actually one of her hobbies from a few years ago. Especially three years ago, almost every two or three days, she would gather with her fellow racers and enjoy the insanity that came with the speed. To her, racing was also a very effective way of venting and releasing her pent-up emotions.

She remembered back then that her skills were considered top-notch among her group of friends. After stopping for three years, she was not sure whether her boldness and skills from back then were still just as good. Even though she liked driving fast, when it came to racing, it was not something she had done even once in the past three years.

However, now, what was the harm of indulging just once after rediscovering that feeling from her past?

When she thought about this, she also forgot about the man in the front passenger seat. With a snort, her hand that was propped up on the car window suddenly gripped the steering wheel steady and her eyes were filled with an indescribable calm and sharpness. She glared at the cars that provoked her and suddenly floored the accelerator. The entire car instantly sped up and sprinted ahead like an arrow leaving the bowstring.

Immediately from behind, there came the intense sounds of howling and even whistling. Instantly, the cars behind increased in speed and rushed to catch up with her. Suddenly, the quiet road instantly turned raucous with more than ten cars tearing forward extremely dangerously.

The wind that surged in violently was akin to the cries of dragons and tigers while the temperature of the air against her face instantly dropped. Her hair that had been tied up had swiftly turned messy from the strong winds as her hair tie had long been blown away. Her flowing hair was interweaved like dark clouds, as it whipped around. Arya’s eyes were focused and sharp as she stepped the accelerator underneath her feet to its limit.

The Phaeton that Arya drove belonged to the low-profile luxury category. It was the type of car with staid and honored individuals. Being more of a commercial car, it was a four-wheel drive and the control function was not of the common run. For someone like Arya who had pretty impressive skills, it was not hard to control, but this was not suitable for the sporty edge of racing.

Thus, it was not a car for racing after all. Like a Mercedes Benz, Porsche race cars were more agile and lighter. Winding roads were basically a Porsche’s haven, so when they tackled a few curves and rushed through a right-angle bend, Arya very obviously fell behind.

When she saw another Hummer speed past her on the left, Arya finally started to frown. She suddenly lamented her skills; she just had not trained for a few years, and indeed she was out of touch.

“Want to beat them?”

At this moment, there was suddenly a deep voice from beside her, startling Arya. This was when she was conscious of someone being beside her. She turned over to look and realized that the man who had been resting had suddenly opened his eyes and stared ahead calmly. In the depths of his eyes, there seemed to be a hidden incisiveness.

“Do you have a plan?” Arya raised her brows and asked softly, her beautiful eyes twinkling with a hopeful glimmer.

Xavier looked down at the speedometer in front of her. Then, a faint smile flashed across his honorable and handsome face as he said in a baritone voice,

“Scoot over here. Allow me!”

When she saw the flickering glow in his eyes that were sharp and filled with confidence, there was an indescribable grandeur that engulfed him as if everything were within his control.

She hesitated for a moment before gladly nodding. She then slowly stabilized the car. When the car was traveling across the straight high-speed route, she exchanged a look with Xavier, who held onto the steering wheel. Sharing an unspoken chemistry, the two of them jumped and swiftly switched places.

Xavier held onto the steering wheel steadily as the slightly wavering car instantly stabilized. He took a glance at the rear-view mirror and realized that behind them, two race cars were about to speed up and attack them from both sides. Xavier’s lips instantly turned into a perfect curve. The glimmer in his eyes suddenly turned sharper. Ahead, they were about to meet a semicircle turning.

“Sit tight,” uttered Xavier while he smiled coldly. Immediately flooring the accelerator and going all the way, he pushed the car to its maximum speed. His hand swiftly turned the steering wheel to half a loop, and the car very beautifully and rapidly drifted past the two Hummers that had sped past them earlier.

A huge curve was looking ahead, yet he dared to push the car to its fastest speed! Arya could not help but nag him on the inside. However, even so, she did not feel afraid at all as she sat in the co-pilot seat. The crazy winds that poured in tangled her hair and that sudden acceleration had also destabilized her.

Whoosh!

They whirled past like a hurricane and the steering wheel seemed to have suddenly become an extension of him. It allowed him to flexibly control it as he wished, especially when they drove through the huge bend ahead. Not even slowing down in the least, the car drifted beautifully and ditched the few race cars that were speeding like beasts behind.

The piercing sound of car tires screeching against the ground tore through the night as the cars flew past and before the leaves of the trees along the road could touch the ground, the cars behind quickly chased after them. In an instant, more than ten cars seemed to have sprinted forwards like crazy hurricanes. In the blink of an eye, they vanished.

The man handled the car very well; his angles and direction were beyond accurate. When she saw one of the luxury cars that were ahead earlier being ditched behind, Arya could not help but feel admiration for the man beside her.

Even though the car was key, the driver’s handling skills were even more crucial. This man’s driving skills were quite impressive. The way he used his talents and the way he accurately judged and grasped the dynamics of the situation unexpectedly made up for what the car lacked. Even at Arya’s peak before this, she could barely do it, yet he was now controlling the car with ease.

The car passed through the dark tunnel ahead at lightning speed. Quite a number of streetlights needed repairing, so a good distance of it was pitch-dark. Sometimes, there would be flickers of weak light from the cars behind. Despite the tunnel also being filled with bends, he still drove the car very steadily.

After the car sped out of the tunnel’s long, steep road, there was one more 90-degree ben. Upon looking down, they realized that they were already going to reach the Grand Waves Villa area, so the finishing point should be right ahead. Meanwhile, upfront, there were still two cars, a Cayenne and a Ferrari, running neck to neck.

Arya frowned slightly. She subconsciously turned to look at the man beside her, noticing that he looked extremely call as his eyes stayed fixed on the right-angle bend. The two cars ahead had already started to reduce in speed, yet…

Swoosh!

His car did not slow down as he tore ahead like a sharp arrow, surpassing the Ferrari beside them at lightning speed.

“What the heck!? Nut cases! Do they want to die!?”

“It’s a steep road ahead. Are they trying to die going so fast?!”

As the string of curses came, in that instant as they approached the curve, he stepped on the brake and the steering wheel in his hand retaliated with a powerful turn. The car unexpectedly did a terrifying drift at an extremely high speed. It was practically mid-air as it flew up before instantly passing the bend and smoothly driving ahead to the straight road.

“Bloody hell, is that God?!”

“Goddamn, that was cool! Who’s that man!? He’s mad reckless!”

“F*ck! That worked!? Bloody hell!”

“So cool! Domineering enough, mighty enough, headstrong enough!”

The few cars that rushed up from behind had all witnessed this shocking scene. They could not help but widen their eyes in disbelief and immediately blurt out curses!

Swoosh!

The urgent and piercing squeals of brakes broke the air. The black Phaeton was the first to cross the finishing line. The young fellows who were waiting at the closed-off intersection ahead while leaning on their car doors were all stupefied as they watched the car that raced over.

Xavier turned off the engine, then he turned to look at Arya and saw that she was still a little dazed. His lips instantly turned into a faint curve and his concerned voice slowly entered her ears.

“Are you frightened?”

Arya then snapped out of her daze. She lifted a hand to rearrange her messy hair slightly before she shook her head at him. As if she still felt frightened, she said,

“I was just a little surprised that your driving skills are this insane. In fact, when you really get into it, you can be so…”

“Recklessly crazy?” Xavier finished her sentence, seeing her body shiver slightly in the night breeze. He suddenly opened the car door, took off his black windbreaker and casually threw it onto her, then he walked away from the car.

The cool breeze brought with it a faint fragrance. She merely felt a black figure pass her. Then, there was a weight on her lap. When she looked down, she realized that his black windbreaker had already fallen into her lap.

Arya was startled and her hands tightened slightly. She could still vaguely feel the slight warmth from his body with the windbreaker on her lap. Hesitating for a moment, she quickly glanced up at Xavier.

He had already taken out a box of cigarettes from his pocket and casually pulled a stick out. Taking a light whiff, when he saw her looking, his deep and extremely attractive voice slowly floated through the night air.

“Put it on. It’s a little cold outside.”

That tone bore an insistence that was hard to resist.

Then, not too far away, one of the few young fellows who were waiting had walked over still in shock. He was about to say something when Xavier nodded at them and tossed his box of cigarettes and lighter to them. Swiftly catching it, they all passed it around to take a cigarette out. They lit their sticks and smiled with friendliness as they nodded at Xavier.

That was considered a greeting.

When she saw him looking behind while casually smoking, Arya looked down at the black windbreaker on her lap again. She breathed in slightly and did not resist putting it on. Then, she pushed the car door open and slowly got down too.

The night breeze was indeed very chilly. She had just gotten down from the car when a gush of cold wind attacked. She could not help but shiver as she gently rubbed her slightly frozen and stiff hands together. Then, she slowly walked around the car and made her way toward Xavier. Stopping beside him, she followed his gaze to look over at the cars speeding from behind.

The bleak night breeze floated with hints of the smell of tobacco. Beside them, the yellowish streetlights emitted a dim light, making the shadows underneath their legs appear very long and faint.

Very quickly, the other racers started to dash past the finishing point one after another. They slowly steadied and parked their cars. They got out of their cars and walked towards Xavier.