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Chapter 6
Wen Tang had waited a long time for Gong Yue’s reply. Losing patience, she eventually turned to playing games on her phone.
Just as she was nearing home, Ke Xin received a phone call that startled her so much she almost jumped from her seat. Wen Haifeng had been calling Wen Tang repeatedly, but she had ignored every call and eventually blocked him. After a few days of peace, Wen Haifeng had now managed to reach Kexin’s phone!
Wen Haifeng, knowing Ke Xin was Wen Tang’s assistant, was obsequious and polite with Wen Tang but was entirely different with Ke Xin—arrogant and impolite, speaking loudly enough for Wen Tang and Yang Yang, who were in the same car, to hear.
Wen Tang recognized Wen Haifeng’s voice immediately. She looked up to see Ke Xin covering the phone’s speaker, anxiously pacing and looking at Wen Tang for guidance on whether to answer or not.
Everyone around Wen Tang knew that her father was the person she disliked most in the world.
“Ah, Mr. Wen, this is Ke Xin. Wen Tang is currently filming an advertisement…”
Ke Xin was trying to find an excuse to hang up when Wen Tang took the phone from her hand.
Ke Xin watched as Wen Tang took the phone, her face showing clear irritation as she spoke in a curt tone, “Wen Haifeng, what do you want? Didn’t I tell you a long time ago not to contact me again?”
Unsurprisingly, Wen Haifeng’s tone shifted when he realized Wen Tang had actually answered the call. He chuckled and said, “Tang Tang, what are you saying? I’m your father. If I miss you, isn’t it natural to call you?”
Wen Tang felt a wave of nausea at his shamelessness, her stomach turning at the thought of Wen Haifeng’s face, always so well-dressed but unable to hide his greed. She wondered just how selfish and despicable people could be.
“Wen Haifeng, I don’t have time for your nonsense.” She was about to hang up, but Wen Haifeng quickly said, “Wait, wait! I’m not calling for nothing. It’s about An’an, your younger brother! His eighteenth birthday is next month, and we need to make a big deal out of it! I won’t bother you or show up in person, and I won’t call you again. But this time, it’s for your brother!”
Wen Tang initially thought Wen Haifeng was just trying to get money from her. “Haven’t you already asked my mom for money?”
Wen Haifeng had grown accustomed to larger sums of money and now found the previous amount insufficient. He clicked his tongue in disdain, “A mere one million is nothing. It won’t even cover the cost of the birthday party!”
Fearing Wen Tang would hang up, Wen Haifeng got straight to the point. “Your brother An’an is turning eighteen next month. He’s not a child anymore and should move out and live independently. As his elder sister, you haven’t seen him in years and haven’t done anything for him. How about you contribute a bit for his birthday gift? We’ve found a villa in Xilin, not very big—about 800 square meters. It’s small, but it will be enough for our family of three plus two nannies. The price is around 60-70 thousand per square meter, quite a bargain. And if we pay in full, we’ll get an even better discount…”
Wen Tang could no longer tolerate the conversation and snapped, “Get lost!” She hung up and blocked the number in one swift motion.
Frustrated, she tossed her phone back to Ke Xin and, seething with anger, dialed Liu Meifen’s number. When the call connected, Wen Tang said, “What’s going on? How did Wen Haifeng end up calling Ke Xin? Did you give him the number? What do you want from me? Do you want me to give him tens of millions every year and buy him a seaside villa to retire in?”
On the other end, Liu Meifen remained calm and reproached Wen Tang, “He’s still your father. Look at how you’re speaking!”
Fuming, Wen Tang retorted, “No, he’s not my father, he’s just a scoundrel! A bastard! A criminal!”
After hanging up, Wen Tang was so enraged she nearly threw her phone. Her temper was so volatile that Ke Xin and Yang Yang were trembling in fear.
Wen Tang’s fury didn’t subside even after she got out of the car. The vehicle drove straight into the underground parking lot of her apartment. After exiting the car, Wen Tang walked briskly, her high heels making sharp, rhythmic sounds on the ground. Ke Xin and Yang Yang followed, carrying multiple bags of Wen Tang’s personal items and various luxury goods from the day’s shoot.
Despite their efforts, they couldn’t catch up with Wen Tang, who had already entered the elevator. As the doors closed, Liu Meifen’s call came through again.
When Wen Tang answered, Liu Meifen said, “Wen Tang, let me go over the schedule for the next week. I need to fly to Huzhou…”
Liu Meifen seemed to have forgotten the earlier argument, treating it as a minor issue not worth dwelling on. But Wen Tang was deeply bothered by it.
Wen Tang interrupted her sharply, “Where you go and what you do is none of my business. Even if you’re taking Wen Haifeng to jump into the sea, I don’t care!”
“Oh, wait, if that’s the case, I’d actually be very grateful.”
Liu Meifen’s irritation flared at Wen Tang’s comment. “Wen Tang, how can you speak to your mother like that? You…”
Wen Tang had no intention of listening further and hung up.
She couldn’t understand why others seemed to have responsible parents and loving families so easily, while her own family situation was so difficult.
Her anger made her cry. She wiped her tears with the back of her hand, her movements rough.
At that moment, a hand reached out from behind her, startling Wen Tang. She hadn’t noticed the other person in the elevator due to her intense anger. Turning around abruptly, she saw Zhou Jingyu standing there, a few tears still on her face.
“Maybe you need this right now,” Zhou Jingyu said in a gentle tone, offering her a tissue.
Wen Tang didn’t show any gratitude, her anger flaring up even more at the idea of someone overhearing her private phone call.
“Did you hear everything?” Wen Tang asked, her voice sharp.
Zhou Jingyu, unperturbed, simply responded, “Yes,” as he had indeed overheard.
Wen Tang didn’t care whether he had overheard by accident or on purpose. She knew her reaction was unreasonable, but the frustration inside her was about to explode.
Her temper, formed by a life of fame and pampering, was volatile. While she typically kept her composure, when she did lose her temper, it was explosive.
And she would take it out on others.
“Is this how your parents raised you?” Wen Tang didn’t take the tissue from him, refusing any sympathy. She snapped, “Eavesdropping on someone’s phone call?”
Zhou Jingyu remained calm. Since Wen Tang didn’t want the tissue, he put it back in his pocket.
He replied calmly, “It wasn’t eavesdropping.”
Wen Tang was taken aback by his response. “Are you arguing with me now?”
Zhou Jingyu looked at the beautiful but irate woman before him, like a cat with its tail stepped on. His gaze was clear and unflinching.
He replied calmly, “It was done openly.”
Wen Tang was infuriated by his composed demeanor!
She didn’t have time to argue further. As she spoke, her home arrived. The elevator doors opened, and Wen Tang rushed out, eager to escape the elevator as if staying even one more second was unbearable.
However, as she walked a few steps, she noticed something odd.
Turning around, she saw that the man from the elevator had followed her out. Given her experience with fans and stalkers, her first reaction was, “Are you following me?”
To her surprise, the man didn’t respond to her accusation. Instead, he walked past her and approached her apartment door. After pressing his hand on the fingerprint scanner, the door opened with a beep.
He entered his apartment.
The layout of their building had two apartments per elevator.
…He was her new neighbor?!
It’s so unlucky!
*
Before moving in, everything in Zhou Jingyu’s new home was taken care of by his assistant. Following Zhou Jingyu’s instructions, the fridge was stocked with easy-to-prepare food. After preparing a simple meal, Zhou Jingyu checked the time and decided to visit the nursing home.
He had been very busy, flying in and out. It had been a week since his last visit.
Coincidentally, Zhou Donghai was awake. Upon seeing Zhou Jingyu, Zhou Donghai asked, “Did you add the young woman I told you about on WeChat?”
It had been a week, and Zhou Donghai was still concerned about this matter.
Zhou Jingyu answered honestly, “Yes, I added her.”
He chose not to mention that he hadn’t contacted her at all since adding her on WeChat.
Zhou Donghai nodded in satisfaction. He sighed and said, “You’ve always been like this, reluctant to socialize, only moved by a push. You’re too passive.”
Zhou Jingyu remained silent.
Zhou Donghai, who had raised him, continued, “Have you made any effort to reach out to her since adding her?”
Reach out?
Zhou Jingyu paused and then slowly shook his head.
Zhou Donghai was not surprised. He pointed at him, exasperated, “Are you planning to remain single for life just to make me angry?”
He became so agitated that he started coughing.
Zhou Jingyu quickly went over to pat his back.
After Zhou Donghai’s coughing subsided, he weakly asked, “…Do you really want to make me mad?”
Zhou Donghai’s stubbornness was growing. He seemed to expect everyone to listen to him. Zhou Jingyu was at a loss.
He replied, “Grandpa, I don’t.”
Zhou Donghai wasn’t easily fooled. “If that’s the case, why don’t you make an effort to contact her? You’re a grown man, and you expect her to take the initiative?”
Zhou Jingyu remained silent.
Under Zhou Donghai’s relentless gaze, Zhou Jingyu had no choice but to take out his phone.
Opening WeChat, he saw a few messages from the past week. He remembered that after today’s work, the girl had sent him a message. He had been in the elevator at the time, and after getting home, he had completely forgotten about it.
He had not replied to any messages.
Zhou Jingyu stared at his phone for a moment before Zhou Donghai’s impatience grew.
“Are you going to do it or not?” Zhou Donghai urged.
Zhou Jingyu put his phone away. He felt it was strange to be pressured into contacting the girl by his grandfather, who seemed more like a matchmaker than a grandfather.
Zhou Donghai asked in confusion, “What are you doing?”
Zhou Jingyu looked at Zhou Donghai with a hint of complexity in his eyes and explained patiently, “I’ll contact her when I get home.”
Zhou Donghai was skeptical. “Are you not lying to me?”
Faced with Zhou Donghai’s doubtful gaze, Zhou Jingyu felt truly helpless. “Grandpa, when have I ever lied to you?”
Zhou Donghai considered this. Zhou Jingyu had always been a man of his word, so he nodded in agreement. “Make an effort, talk to her a bit more, understood?”
Zhou Jingyu replied, “…Yes.”
When Zhou Jingyu got home, he took a shower and put on his bathrobe, drying his hair with a towel. His gaze fell on the phone resting on the coffee table.
Recalling his promise at the nursing home, Zhou Jingyu walked over and picked up the phone.
After opening WeChat, Zhou Jingyu hesitated for a moment.
What should he reply?
This was a problem.
He knew who Jiang Qianya was. Lu Yi had only asked him to use his WeChat circle. After using it, he realized from the likes that he had posted some peculiar things. Zhou Jingyu had deleted that post.
But the aftermath wasn’t over.
Facing the message from his blind date today, which concluded that they were both fans of Jiang Qianya and had some kind of fate, Zhou Jingyu was left in silence.
It would be troublesome to explain.
Also, he wasn’t particularly enthusiastic about chatting with the matchmaker.
In the end, Zhou Jingyu replied with a single message.
[Y: Oh.]
After sending the message, he placed his phone back on the coffee table.
**
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Ayalee[Translator]
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