Font Size:
In the study.
Torrential rain lashed against the floor-to-ceiling windows, the relentless downpour drumming heavily against the glass. A thick curtain of water blurred everything outside.
“Yuanshuang said you don’t plan to get married ever. Is that true?”
Zhou Lao’s face was tight, severe—his face like a frost.
Zhou Tingyun had only been on his way downstairs for a glass of iced water when he was summoned.
Hearing the question, he answered plainly.
Zhou Lao’s eyes widened. Disbelief.
“Do you even hear yourself?”
The heir of the Zhou family—his eldest grandson, the one who bore the weight of their legacy—refusing to marry?
“You have more than one grandson,” Zhou Tingyun replied evenly, unfazed by his grandfather’s outrage.
“What’s your reason?” Zhou Lao’s voice was sharp with demand. “Why won’t you marry?”
His furrowed brow deepened, struggling to grasp why the grandson he had placed such high hopes in would hold such a rebellious notion.
“You refuse an arranged marriage? Fine. Then find a woman you like and marry her—simple as that. But not getting married at all?! Do you plan to remain a bachelor your whole life? How will you face the ancestors of the Zhou family?!”
Zhou Tingyun leaned back slightly, unfazed. “If you really have nothing to do, I can open a matchmaking agency for you??”
His nonchalant response made Zhou Lao so furious that a sharp pang shot through his chest.
He truly didn’t understand. His grandson excelled in every way, yet when it came to relationships, it was as if he were in a barren wasteland. At his age, he still hadn’t found a wife! And now, he was spouting nonsense about being anti-marriage!
It was already frustrating enough that he refused an arranged marriage. After finally accepting that they wouldn’t gain any strategic benefits from such unions, now he didn’t want to marry at all.
When Zhou Lao was just eighteen, he had already kissed his future wife! All that talk about ‘the student surpassing the master’ was utter nonsense—this kid was a disgrace!
As he stewed in frustration, a sudden thought struck him.
His expression changed dramatically.
Although he wasn’t particularly fond of Zhou Tingyun, he had to begrudgingly admit that the young man possessed some of the charm he himself had in his youth. He was undeniably the type women would adore.
A terrifying thought gripped Zhou Lao.
He hesitated before finally blurting out, “Be honest with me, do you… do you…”
He felt an urgent need for a heart tonic. “Do you like men?”
The mere possibility was unbearable—he was a traditional man and could never accept such a thing!
Zhou Tingyun arched a brow, mildly amused.
“You’re quite trendy,” he remarked.
Then, after a pause, he added, “If thinking that way makes it easier for you to accept.”
Hearing this, Zhou Lao nearly sagged in relief.
Good. That makes things much easier.
With the air of a man who had seen it all, he advised, “Before I met your grandmother, I thought the same way. You just haven’t met the right woman yet.”
“You should settle down sooner rather than later. You—”
“I won’t meet anyone I like,” Zhou Tingyun interrupted, his voice calm.
What kind of remark was that?!
The old man was about to explode and was ready to slam the table when his hand accidentally bumped into something hard and cold.
Looking down, he saw a zitan wood scroll box lying there.
This was a birthday gift from that little girl, Ming Zhao—one of his favorite collections of ancient paintings.
The image of her pretty face flashed in his mind. Zhou Lao suddenly understood something and sighed helplessly.
“Even if you get married, it won’t stop you from taking care of that girl. Besides, having a sister-in-law wouldn’t be bad for her, right? They could get along better than you and—”
“It has nothing to do with her.” Zhou Tingyun’s expression turned cold, interrupting him sharply.
As soon as he spoke, the air seemed to freeze, silence stretching for a moment.
Zhou Lao, a seasoned veteran of the business world, keenly sensed the chill in his grandson’s tone—an instinctive protectiveness.
Having observed the way the siblings interacted, he had sensed something amiss, and now, that unease was growing.
Zhou Lao’s expression turned truly cold, his stern countenance conveying both authority and interrogation.
“You better know what you’re doing, Zhou Tingyun. You are her older brother, you—”
“I know.” Zhou Tingyun’s expression remained unchanged.
He hadn’t maintained a distance from Ming Zhao, so he wasn’t surprised that his grandfather had guessed.
The next second, there was a dull thud.
“You damned fool!”
A porcelain cup struck his forehead before shattering on the floor.
“She’s only twenty-one, and you’re already twenty-nine!” Zhou Lao, still seething after throwing one cup, felt like he wanted to whip the young man awake with a cane.
“You’re seducing her, do you know that?!”
He had been so proud of this grandson, but now he was just as disappointed.
He hadn’t imagined that such a wicked heart could be hidden beneath such a respectable exterior.
Zhou Tingyun stood quietly, not offering any explanation for himself. His actions had been inappropriate, and his thoughts were even more unspeakable.
A gentleman is judged by his actions, not his intentions, and he had failed to live up to either.
Even if he intended to remain unwed for life, simply protecting her and ensuring she married a worthy man would have been enough. Yet, he was unable to bring himself to avoid her touch.
Zhou Lao watched as blood slowly trickled down his grandson’s forehead, a mixture of anger and worry welling up within him. How could the Zhou family produce such a degenerate?
It was all too easy for an older man to deceive a naive girl.
They had enough experience, a mature and stable appearance, and the natural trust that came with being a brother—enough to make a young, inexperienced girl give her heart.
Ming Zheng had kindly taken him in; how could he do this?
Zhou Lao struggled to calm the tumult of emotions within him, taking a deep breath.
“Speak honestly. What are your feelings toward Ming Zhao?”
It was both a warning and a reminder.
The torrential rain lashed against the windows, and the entire city was enveloped in a heavy curtain of rain.
Zhou Siyu intercepted Ming Zhao in the corridor, urgently pulling her toward the study. “It seems Grandpa and Brother Tingyun are arguing. I heard the servants say they even smashed something.”
“Huh?”
Ming Zhao looked puzzled. Smashing something?
That wasn’t Zhou Tingyun’s style at all.
It was hard to imagine him angry enough to break things. Her curiosity piqued, she followed Zhou Siyu to the door of the study, eager to eavesdrop.
The door wasn’t fully closed, and the wind pushed it open slightly, making it creak ominously in the quiet atmosphere, adding an inexplicable sense of dread.
She peered inside, and her pupils instantly constricted.
Just as she was about to push open the door, Zhou Siyu grabbed her. “What are you doing!”
Ming Zhao panicked, struggling. “Let go of me! How could he throw a cup at my brother?! Even Mommy has never hit him!”
The scene she had just witnessed was too shocking. Blood trickled down his cheek from his brow, and broken pieces of porcelain were scattered on the floor. She could hardly believe it.
Zhou Siyu had only wanted Ming Zhao to understand that her presence was hindering Zhou Tingyun’s marriage prospects, but she hadn’t expected the situation to escalate so dramatically. Grandpa was actually angry enough to throw a cup at someone.
She couldn’t let Ming Zhao go in and bear the brunt of Grandpa’s anger, so she held her tightly.
Ming Zhao couldn’t believe that Zhou Siyu, who seemed so delicate and weak, had so much strength!
“Speak honestly. What are your feelings toward Ming Zhao?”
Their tug-of-war stopped abruptly.
Why did their argument involve her?
Ming Zhao pricked up her ears, confused.
Time passed, the second-hand ticking around the clock. The sound of the torrential rain seemed to fade into the distance, leaving only the quiet rise and fall of their breathing.
“Just a sister,” he said.
As soon as the words left his lips, a deafening clap of thunder seemed to split the sky open.
Lightning tore through the dark night sky, illuminating Ming Zhao’s worried, furrowed brow.
From behind the closed door, the moment that cold voice was heard, the sympathy in Zhou Siyu’s gaze toward Ming Zhao was evident.