บท 139: Do Not Attempt to Be Someone Else You're Not

If one looked carefully at President Subaru's face, they could see veins popping on his temple from the rage he tried to suppress. But neither Tsubaki nor Mrs. Souma bothered with them.

"I saw President Fuse coming this way," the elegant lady continued to speak as if she wasn't affected with President Subaru's deathly glare. "Do you want him to catch you bothering his wife?"

President Subaru clenched his fists. He didn't want to abandon this opportunity of meeting Mrs. Fuse in private but he knew if the man got wind of what he was trying to do, this matter wouldn't end with just an apology. Swallowing down his pride, he attempted to smile at Tsubaki as he opened his mouth to speak.

"I'll leave now, Mrs. Fuse. I'll contact you in the meantime."

As President Subaru turned around to leave in a hurry, Tsubaki managed to send him her clear intention. She held her gaze on the man's back, burning a hole at the back of his head.

"If you bring your daughter to apologize to Miss Taki, my husband and I would much appreciate that."

"We'll discuss this another time, Mrs. Fuse. Till then, I'll contact you."

The plump man quickly went inside the main hall, afraid of being spotted by Ren.

Once the man left, Tsubaki paid attention to Mrs. Souma. She smiled as she bowed her gratitude to the older woman.

"Thank you, Mrs. Souma. I appreciate your help."

"It's nothing, Mrs. Fuse. I overheard him so I came to see what happened," said Mrs. Souma kindly. "President Subaru and his family are well known to love causing trouble to their subordinates. I'm sure he's not willing to apologize to your employee."

"We'll see about that," replied Tsubaki. "I hope he sees the wrong thing his daughter has done. It's bad if they continued being like that."

Mrs. Souma smiled as she looked at the young lady. Her smile graced her beautiful face. She looked elegant and refined, the one that didn't put up any airs around. Tsubaki felt peace just by looking at her.

"Excuse me, but you're called Mrs. Souma? But I met Mr. Souma earlier and he said he has yet to marry," Tsubaki asked after a while. "May I know who you are? Or are you from another Souma Family?"

Mrs. Souma chuckled. She shook her head. "That one is my brother-in-law. Souma Hisato. I married into Souma Family, my husband is Souma Shinjiro, the current head of the family. My maiden name is Okano Shiori."

"Oh, I've heard about him!" Tsubaki did remember Mr. Souma Hisato had mentioned about his older brother. "I heard he is sick."

Mrs. Souma sighed, she rubbed one side of her arms. "My husband just needs some rest. He's overworking himself. And his constitution is quite weak since young to begin with."

Tsubaki saw the expression of worry on the woman's face. Her eyes dimmed as she talked about her husband. It was evident that Mrs. Souma was indeed worried about President Souma.

Tsubaki smiled lightly. "President Souma is a lucky man. I could see you're worried about him. I wish him speedy and smooth recovery."

Mrs. Souma responded to her with her smile too but it didn't reach her eyes. There was something melancholy and sorrowful when she looked at Tsubaki who sincerely wished for her husband's health.

"You've just got married to President Fuse, right?" Mrs. Souma asked while they walked together to go back inside the hall. Then she added, "Congratulations on your marriage!"

"Thank you, Mrs. Souma," Tsubaki chuckled. "I think everyone is shocked by the fact he got married. I could see it on their faces."

Mrs. Souma laughed, she glanced at Tsubaki. "President Fuse is well-known as an aloof man and he never appears at any banquet with a female companion. Even his personal assistants are male so it was actually shocking when Matriarch Fuse suddenly announced your marriage."

Tsubaki's lips curled up. She was tempted to tease her husband over the fact he was so loyal to her, to the point of he didn't even have a female companion during banquets. Weren't he afraid people would get a wrong idea about him?

"Mrs. Fuse, may I give you advice on marriage?" Mrs. Souma suddenly asked her.

"Yes, you may," Tsubaki agreed. Mrs. Souma was being respectful to her.

Mrs. Souma smiled in relief. Because they had just met, she was afraid she would offend Tsubaki's feelings if she randomly gave the young woman advice.

"Marriage is a long journey of one's life and it's different from how we lived as a single individual. It takes hard work and being understanding of your partner is one of the important aspects of marriage. But you still should remember your own self. Do not attempt to be someone else you're not just for the sake of pleasing your partner. You'd lose yourself by doing so."

Tsubaki looked at Mrs. Souma in silence as she carefully listening to her. This woman had gone through a lot in life by the sound of it. Even though she was curious, but it wasn't her place to ask her the details.

"Thank you for your advice, Mrs. Souma," replied Tsubaki sincerely once they stopped before reaching the grand doors. She properly stood facing Mrs. Souma. Her hands clasping together. "You've helped me and even gave advice to me. Even though this is the first time we're meeting each other, I hope I could meet you again."

"I'm glad if you think my advice is useful to you," Mrs. Souma nodded. "I pray for you and President Fuse could overcome any obstacle successfully and live in peace with one another."

"Thank you, Mrs. Souma." Tsubaki bowed to her in gratitude.

"Tsubaki!"

Tsubaki turned around. Her eyes brightened once she saw her husband walking over her. She waved at Mrs. Souma before quickly get to her husband's side. Ren swiftly brought her to his embrace, earning envious glances from the young ladies around her.

"I've just gone for a while and you're already searching for me?" asked Tsubaki as giggles escaped her lips.

"What would I do if you're being kidnapped?" Ren asked back with a serious expression on his face. "You're so beautiful right now I thought I'm seeing a goddess."

"Stop that! You're being corny!" Tsubaki playfully slapped her husband's chest before she wiggled free from his embrace. Her face reddened as she was being stared by the guests. "I'm going to Grandma."

But Ren wasn't one to admit defeat easily. Tsubaki had just walked away before he pulled her back to him and whispered to her ear. Nobody could hear his words but looking at President Fuse's wife's blushing red face it was good they could not hear the lovebirds' interaction.

Mrs. Souma watched their loving interaction from the doors of the main hall. The two of them really suited each other. Like a couple she knew in her younger days. Two faces flashed past her mind, making the air around her melancholic.