He Yu knew Zhong’s grandfather had a forceful personality, so her voice grew increasingly timid.
Indignantly, she said, “The old man is truly… An Yanqing is such a selfish, cold-blooded bastard. Sister Chuchu, you are so kind, yet he just watches with open eyes as he pushes you into a fiery pit.”
Zhong Chu frowned uncomfortably, a sudden sense of weariness washing over her.
Although He Yu’s words were meant to defend her, whether it was the hidden resentment toward the old man or the now-familiar extreme disparagement of An Yanqing, it sounded exceptionally piercing to her ears today.
A sudden knock came from the door. After three unhurried vibrations, An Yanqing’s cool voice sounded: “Zhong Chu, are you awake?”
Zhong Chu’s brow jumped violently, and she subconsciously gripped her phone tighter. Every vibration of the door felt like it was knocking directly against her heart. A sense of guilt surged up like a towering wave; her current feelings were simply indescribable.
She didn’t know how to face An Yanqing after what happened last night. Unfortunately, this was a painful reality that could not be escaped.
Taking a deep breath to suppress her chaotic thoughts, she truly wasn’t in the mood to tangle further with He Yu. She hurriedly said to the other end of the line, “I need to get up and get ready. We have to go see the old man today. He values etiquette above all else; we can’t be late.”
He Yu froze. When she finally reacted, her voice instinctively rose: “We? Sister Chuchu, you actually stayed with An Yanqing last night?!”
The sudden spike in volume made Zhong Chu’s eardrums buzz. In that instant, she suddenly experienced one-thousandth of the torture she had inflicted upon An Yanqing when she sought revenge yesterday.
Zhong Chu’s thoughts shifted to An Yanqing, and her non-existent conscience felt a faint pang of pain. She moved the phone away from her ear and repeated helplessly, “It’s Grandpa’s request.”
He Yu’s low sobbing came through the receiver, followed by a moment of silence. Feeling listless, Zhong Chu had no desire to say more, only stating, “Xiao Yu, I’m really in a hurry. I’m hanging up.”
After hanging up, Zhong Chu sat dazed with her phone for a moment before remembering to call out a response to An Yanqing: “I’m awake.”
She thought that after so much time had passed, An Yanqing would have already left. To her surprise, as soon as she finished speaking, she heard a response, followed naturally by: “Get up and eat breakfast. We’re going home after we eat.”
Whether it was the rare peaceful dialogue between them or the word “home”—plain and ordinary yet seemingly carrying a warm atmosphere—it caused an indescribable, strange emotion to stir in the depths of Zhong Chu’s heart.
She gave a low “Mm,” her phone screen lighting up and then darkening, much like her own turbulent state of mind. As the minutes ticked by, she finally let out a long breath and struggled to get up to wash and dress.
When she pushed the door open, An Yanqing was outside setting out takeout boxes. Seeing her come out, An Yanqing pulled out a chair for her.
Her caretaking gestures were practiced and smooth. Zhong Chu didn’t find anything odd about it and took her seat. Even though many years had passed and the relationship between the two had undergone earth-shaking changes, some things seemed to be carved into their very bones.
An Yanqing’s nonchalant demeanor did a good job of smoothing over Zhong Chu’s embarrassment. She didn’t mention the humiliating scene from last night, and Zhong Chu naturally wouldn’t go looking for trouble by bringing it up herself.
As An Yanqing unpacked the utensils, she glanced at her and asked in a light, conversational tone, “Are you still in contact with He Yu and the others?”
Zhong Chu’s hand stiffened as she reached for a food box. The soundproofing of the apartment wasn’t great; since An Yanqing had been outside, it wasn’t surprising she could hear the faint sound of the phone call and guess who was on the other end.
The familiar scent of gunpowder returned.
Zhong Chu’s expression cooled. She pressed her hands on the table and looked directly at her. “Are you going to say again that my friends are no good and that I should stay away from them?”
The moment she spoke, An Yanqing stopped unpacking the cutlery. She lifted her eyes to look at her, her dark pupils unreadable.
Because she was so calm, Zhong Chu actually felt a bit of regret. She was annoyed that her emotional management had slipped slightly, causing her to displace her anger onto An Yanqing, the primary culprit.
An Yanqing handed her the spoon and chopsticks. To Zhong Chu’s surprise, she didn’t cling to her lapse in composure. She simply said, “Eat first, before it gets cold.”
Zhong Chu stole a glance at her face. Seeing no significant reaction, her sense of irritability grew. She took the utensils, pursed her lips, and said softly, “Sorry.”
An Yanqing was somewhat surprised by this. She pulled out a chair and sat down, raising an eyebrow in astonishment. “The eldest Miss Zhong actually knows how to apologize now?”
The takeout was simple white porridge, but the heat had been managed perfectly. The scalding steam, mixed with the fragrance of the rice grains, billowed into Zhong Chu’s face.
She stirred the porridge, her expression weary. “Fine, stop picking on me.”
She was still thinking about An Yanqing and He Yu. The conflict between these two had existed long before she appeared and was deeply rooted.
Each had their own standpoint. He Yu said An Yanqing used unscrupulous means, had no sense of right and wrong, and was not someone to be befriended.
An Yanqing, on the other hand, said He Yu was only using her and warned her to stay away.
Both sides held their own story, and Zhong Chu was caught in the middle, exhausted in body and mind.
When she and An Yanqing originally fell out, it was more or less due to He Yu.
Now that their relationship had warmed slightly, Zhong Chu wanted to ask An Yanqing about what He Yu had mentioned—the matter of her snatching the Mr. magazine cover.
She looked up at An Yanqing, but the words reached her lips and she held them back.
There was no rush. The matter was already settled; even if it were to be changed, it wouldn’t be easy.
Besides, even if she leaned toward He Yu emotionally, the resource already belonged to An Yanqing. Could she really use her status as a legal spouse to force An Yanqing to give it up?
Zhong Chu couldn’t bring herself to do such a thing.
An Yanqing ate slowly and methodically. She wasn’t fast; she was unhurried, chewing carefully, her movements elegant and meticulous.
The porridge was just simple white porridge, but the taste wasn’t bad. However, Zhong Chu found it tasteless, having no appetite for the meal. Her gaze was instead drawn to An Yanqing’s movements, and she stared blankly, lost in thought.
She and An Yanqing had been separated for years, and this reunion was entirely unexpected. The interactions of this single day already amounted to more than all the years they had been apart.
At times, her thoughts were inevitably pulled by the familiar appearance of the person before her, drifting back to memories of their youth.
An Yanqing might look cold, as if she didn’t take many things to heart, but she wasn’t actually someone who was easy to bully. If Zhong Chu snapped at her, she would snap back. If others bullied her, she would find ways to retaliate.
Just as He Yu said, she wasn’t a good person; she was unscrupulous and cold-natured.
How could Zhong Chu not know that?
Zhong Chu was clearly hungry, yet she had completely lost her appetite. Looking again at An Yanqing’s familiar, beautiful face, the suppressed anger in her heart rose steadily.
“Why are you looking at me? Eat properly,” An Yanqing said.
She looked up at her calmly, her tone still flat and ripple-less. Zhong Chu’s anger felt as if it were being enveloped by a boundless ocean, quickly extinguished within the infinite coldness.
Zhong Chu snorted coldly. Under An Yanqing’s puzzled gaze, she lowered her head and buried herself in her porridge. She thought to herself: What an annoying person.
What could possibly make someone like An Yanqing lose her cool?
That damned calm and restraint!
After breakfast, the driver sent by Grandpa Zhong arrived at the door.
The timing was handled perfectly. When the driver delivered them to the Zhong family residence, it was exactly nine o’clock.
As the two entered the Zhong family’s old manor, Grandpa Zhong was sitting steadily in the primary seat. His hands were clasped over the handle of his cane, his expression stern as he watched them enter the hall.
This former patriarch of the Zhong family had white hair but a vigorous spirit, possessing a natural aura of authority. His presence made the atmosphere in the entire room feel inexplicably heavy and oppressive. The servants moved with light steps, each looking solemn and not daring to relax for a second.
An Yanqing and Zhong Chu entered one after the other, still maintaining a gap the size of a person between them.
An Yanqing stopped before Grandpa Zhong. She lowered her head slightly, her gaze falling on the cane in his hands, and was the first to speak: “Grandpa Zhong.”
The Zhong and An families were said to be family friends, but that was a relationship from several generations ago. The An family had gradually declined; by the time it reached An Yanqing’s father’s generation, the unworthy descendants had lost all the assets left by their ancestors.
The Zhong family, through the diligence and hard work of several generations, had made their various industries flourish, jumping to become a well-known giant in N City and even all of China.
As the actual person in power of this massive commercial empire, Grandpa Zhong’s prestige was naturally incomparable to ordinary people.
Lifting his cane slightly, Grandpa Zhong’s gaze moved from Zhong Chu’s face to An Yanqing. A slight smile finally appeared on his face, diluting the oppressive atmosphere.
“Xiao Qing, how did you two get along yesterday?”