Chapter 71: Hearing About Chen Qianqing

Afterward, Lu Zhengfei and Chen Qianqing returned to City A together.

Once the situation stabilized, Lu Zhengfei was no longer as busy and started spending more time at home. If there was nothing pressing, he would practically laze around the house all day.

In Chen Qianqing’s memory, the Wang family, which had collapsed in this political upheaval, continued to exist as he had predicted.

In his previous life, after the Wang family’s downfall, Chen Qianqing had learned from certain sources that the reason they made such a monumental mistake in decision-making was because of one key individual.

Wang Wulin’s second uncle had betrayed their family. He secretly colluded with the Wang family’s political enemies, delivering false intelligence as critical information to the head of the Wang family.

It’s hard to guard against an inside traitor. Before his true nature was exposed, almost everyone believed him to be a good man, including Wang Wulin, who trusted his uncle deeply. However, you can know a person’s face but not their heart. No one could have imagined that their family would be destroyed by one of their own.

By the end of his previous life, Chen Qianqing still didn’t know why that man had gone to such great lengths to ruin the Wang family. But he didn’t care. Even now, the only thing he was concerned about was whether Wang Wulin was making any progress.

Wang Wulin did not disappoint Chen Qianqing. Shortly after Chen Qianqing returned to City A, Wang Wulin reached out and asked to meet.

Lu Zhengfei was extremely jealous about Chen Qianqing meeting Wang Wulin. After repeated questioning, he pretended to agree generously but still sent someone to follow Chen Qianqing, as if afraid that Chen Qianqing might run off with Wang Wulin.

Chen Qianqing acted as if he hadn’t noticed and went to the agreed location on time.

After not seeing Wang Wulin for a few months, Chen noticed he had lost a lot of weight. His brows were relaxed, and he looked noticeably more at ease, a clear sign that things were going well for him.

In his previous life, during this same period, Chen Qianqing had also seen Wang Wulin. At that time, his face was gaunt. Though his expression remained calm, his eyes betrayed an unshakable anxiety.

Wang Wulin raised his glass to Chen Qianqing. “A toast to you first,” he said before downing the drink in one go.

Chen Qianqing, mindful of his poor health and the doctor’s advice to drink less, merely took a small sip to reciprocate.

Wang Wulin’s expression grew complex as he looked at Chen Qianqing. After a moment of silence, he said earnestly, “If there’s anything I can do to help, just say the word.”

This was the second time Wang Wulin had said something like this. The first time was out of sympathy for Chen Qianqing, but this time, it was purely because he didn’t want to see Chen Qianqing continue to do things he didn’t want to do.

As a soldier, Wang Wulin had a fiercely determined nature. Though he often appeared calm, he was unyielding at his core, even to the point of stubbornness. The importance of the information Chen Qianqing had given him was beyond measure. He couldn’t imagine what would have happened to the Wang family if Chen Qianqing hadn’t told him about it.

Chen Qianqing simply smiled and shook his head. “Eat,” he said lightly.

Wang Wulin looked at Chen Qianqing with some confusion. “Why?” He felt that Chen Qianqing didn’t love Lu Zhengfei. Otherwise, back then, when Lu Zhengfei came to see him in the pouring rain, Chen Qianqing wouldn’t have refused to meet him.

Almost as if reading Wang Wulin’s mind, Chen Qianqing sighed. “I’m old now. I don’t feel like running around anymore.” If he were still his younger self, he might have done everything in his power to leave Lu Zhengfei. But now, just thinking about the effort it would take made him feel exhausted.

In this regard, Wang Wulin was destined never to understand Chen Qianqing. “You’re only in your twenties,” he said, implying that there was still plenty of time.

Chen Qianqing replied, “Let’s not talk about this. Let’s change the subject.”

Realizing that Chen Qianqing was resolute about staying with Lu Zhengfei, Wang Wulin sighed. “If you ever change your mind, let me know.”

Chen Qianqing only smiled in response.

Wang Wulin was the kind of person who made an excellent friend. He was always considerate, never overstepping boundaries, and if he considered someone a friend, he was willing to go to great lengths for them.

Chen Qianqing preferred to befriend intelligent people, as they understood the appropriate boundaries—neither too close nor too distant.

After a few rounds of drinks, Wang Wulin seemed to suddenly remember something. “You and Lu Zhengfei’s sister don’t seem to get along well?”

“Why bring that up all of a sudden?” Chen Qianqing asked.

Glancing at the person Lu Zhengfei had sent to tail Chen, Wang Wulin lowered his voice. “She’s been digging into your background recently.”

In his previous life, Lu Yiqin had been so happy but still committed some horrifying acts. In this life, she was teetering on the edge of a breakdown. It wouldn’t be surprising if she did something drastic. But Chen Qianqing was confident he had no weaknesses to exploit.

However, Wang Wulin didn’t see it that way. “She doesn’t seem to be in a good mental state. Be careful,” he warned.

In other words, a madwoman could do anything.

Chen Qianqing nodded, accepting Wang Wulin’s advice.

After dinner, Lu Zhengfei’s men took Chen Qianqing home.

Lu Zhengfei wasn’t there when Chen arrived. After a bath, he went straight to bed. Lying on the soft mattress, he quickly drifted into a deep sleep.

The next day, the weather was beautiful again.

As May progressed, the days grew increasingly warm. When Chen Qianqing got up, he was surprised to find that Lu Zhengfei hadn’t come home all night. After leisurely washing up and heading downstairs, he finally saw Lu Zhengfei sitting at the table, expressionless, drinking coffee.

Chen Qianqing sat down and poured milk into his cup. He originally wanted to drink coffee, but his body wouldn’t allow it, so he reluctantly switched to milk.

While Chen Qianqing did all this, Lu Zhengfei didn’t say a word. Something was clearly off about him—he looked like he hadn’t slept and was in an extremely foul mood.

Chen Qianqing pretended not to notice. He swallowed the bread he was chewing, then sliced into his soft-boiled egg and put it into his mouth.

Lu Zhengfei called out slowly, “Chen Qianqing.”

Chen Qianqing’s hands, which were holding the knife and fork, paused for a moment. Lu Zhengfei hadn’t called him by his full name in a long time, usually opting for “Qianqing” or “darling.” The fact that he did so now was a clear sign that his mood was terrible.

Chen Qianqing responded with a soft “Hmm” and took another sip of milk. His movements were as calm and measured as ever, completely unaffected by the oppressive atmosphere emanating from the person beside him.

Lu Zhengfei said, “You lied to me, didn’t you?”

If Chen Qianqing had been feigning ignorance earlier, this question completely threw him. He didn’t understand why Lu Zhengfei was angry. “What do you mean?” he asked.

Lu Zhengfei clenched his fists tightly, clearly trying to suppress his emotions. “You like Wang Wulin, don’t you?”

Chen Qianqing: “???” What nonsense is this?

Lu Zhengfei’s calm expression twisted in an instant. He roared, “Chen Qianqing, stop playing dumb. Tell me—did you give Wang Wulin any information?”

At last, Chen Qianqing understood where the problem lay. From his perspective, he hadn’t betrayed anyone. But Wang Wulin didn’t see it that way, and neither did Lu Zhengfei.

From Wang Wulin’s perspective, Chen Qianqing had obtained information from Lu Zhengfei and passed it on to him, which is why he kept asking Chen Qianqing if he needed help. From Lu Zhengfei’s perspective, Chen Qianqing had betrayed his trust by sharing his information with someone else, hence the accusation about liking Wang Wulin.

In reality, Chen Qianqing knew very well that Lu Zhengfei currently had no idea that Wang Wulin’s second uncle was the traitor. But clearly, that didn’t matter anymore.

Putting himself in Lu Zhengfei’s shoes, Chen Qianqing thought that if he discovered the real Chen Qianqing secretly giving information to Wang Wulin, he would probably lose his mind as well.

Judging by Lu Zhengfei’s reaction, it didn’t seem baseless—someone must have given him concrete evidence.

Faced with Lu Zhengfei’s fury, a mischievous idea suddenly came to Chen Qianqing’s mind. Looking at Lu Zhengfei, who was on the verge of losing control, Chen Qianqing said softly, “Zhengfei, do you really not trust me?”

Lu Zhengfei froze, caught off guard by Chen Qianqing’s unexpected reaction.

What happened next left Lu Zhengfei even more stunned. Chen Qianqing suddenly stood up, took two steps forward, cupped Lu Zhengfei’s face in his hands, and stared into his eyes. His voice trembling, he said, “In your eyes, am I really such a person?”

Lu Zhengfei: “…” Something about this feels off.

Then, Chen Qianqing dramatically covered his face with his hands and cried out, “If that’s how you see me, I might as well just die!”

Lu Zhengfei: “Wait, wait, hold on?!”

Without giving Lu Zhengfei any time to react, Chen Qianqing turned and walked off, grabbing the dining knife from the table and heading straight upstairs. At that moment, Lu Zhengfei finally realized what Chen Qianqing intended to do. Panicked, he chased after him, shouting, “Qianqing, don’t do anything rash!”

When Lu Zhengfei reached the second floor, he found that Chen Qianqing had already locked himself inside the bathroom.

Lu Zhengfei’s mind instantly filled with dramatic images of Chen Qianqing slitting his wrists. He rushed back downstairs and shouted at Aunt Zhao, “Aunt Zhao, where’s the key to the second-floor bathroom?!”

After locating the key, Lu Zhengfei fumbled with it in his trembling hands, failing multiple times to insert it into the lock because his hands were shaking so badly.

When he finally managed to open the door, he was met with a sight far removed from his worst fears: Chen Qianqing sitting inside, a cigarette in his mouth, his expression completely blank. As for the dining knife? It sat clean and untouched on the sink countertop nearby.

Seeing Lu Zhengfei open the door, Chen Qianqing casually removed the cigarette from his mouth, exhaled a puff of smoke, and said, “Have you calmed down?”

Lu Zhengfei: “…”

Chen Qianqing continued, “If you’ve calmed down, why don’t you tell me who’s been tattling to you?”

Lu Zhengfei’s response was to hurl the keyring in his hand onto the floor with a loud clink, his face void of any expression as he turned and left without another word.

Watching Lu Zhengfei’s retreating figure, Chen Qianqing suddenly had the sinking feeling that perhaps he had gone too far this time.

And as it turned out, Chen Qianqing’s instinct was absolutely correct—he had indeed crossed the line.