As he was lost in thought, he suddenly heard Fu Laiying in the living room say, "Mom, I’m going to check on Zhili."
"Go ahead. Zhili should be sleeping, so keep your voice down and don’t wake him," Wenxiu advised.
Fu Laiying nodded and headed toward the bedroom.
Cheng Zhili quickly had Reinhardt dispel the water mirror, then lay back in bed, pulled up the covers, and closed his eyes.
Click—
The door was gently pushed open.
Fu Laiying entered quietly, seeing that Cheng Zhili seemed to be asleep. He tiptoed into the room, locked the door to shut out the noise from outside. Standing by the bed, he gazed at the peaceful sleeping face, his expression growing more solemn.
At this moment, his goodwill toward Cheng Zhixia had plummeted to below zero. As for Cheng Zhili…
He couldn’t quite say.
Cheng Zhili was too unpredictable.
In the car, Cheng Zhili had treated him like a pillow, flirtatiously asking for a kiss. But back home, he had coldly refused to be escorted to his room.
Fu Laiying felt his mood swing with Cheng Zhili’s closeness and distance, sometimes happy, sometimes angry.
He sighed inwardly and then tucked the blanket around Cheng Zhili.
Cheng Zhili opened his eyes.
Their gazes met, both silent.
Cheng Zhili was the first to smile. "How long have you been watching me? Do you like me that much?"
Fu Laiying stared at him, about to speak, when Cheng Zhili suddenly said, "Ah, no need to say it. I know you like Cheng Zhixia. A third party is always a third party, I won’t forget that."
Fu Laiying’s throat tightened, his face burning.
He wanted to say something, but couldn’t find the words.
Cheng Zhili yawned, opened the blanket, and asked with a cheeky smile, "General Manager, want to join me for a nap?"
Fu Laiying was silent for a moment, then quietly got up.
"Oh? Are you leaving?"
Fu Laiying paused in the act of taking off his jacket.
He glanced at Cheng Zhili, quickly shed his jacket, got into bed, and wrapped his arms around Cheng Zhili. "Sleep."
Cheng Zhili: …
He had thought Fu Laiying would be so angry he’d storm out, but to his surprise, Fu Laiying held it in.
Alright then, let’s sleep!
With that thought, Cheng Zhili snuggled into Fu Laiying’s embrace and peacefully drifted off.
*
The next day was Sunday.
After breakfast, Cheng Zhili noticed Fu Laiying still sitting at the dining table.
He raised an eyebrow. "Not busy with work today?"
Fu Laiying replied expressionlessly, "No work on Sundays. I’m staying to keep you company."
Cheng Zhili curled his lips. "No need, I’m heading out later."
"You’re going out?" Fu Laiying’s brow furrowed immediately.
Cheng Zhili explained, "I planned to meet a friend yesterday, but then that incident happened. He might be worried since I didn’t show up, so I want to see him today."
"You went to Laifengli to meet a friend?" Fu Laiying asked.
"Yes!"
In private, Cheng Zhili had already considered the woodcarving vendor a friend.
"Male or female?" Fu Laiying asked instinctively.
"Male," Cheng Zhili answered.
Fu Laiying’s expression grew more serious.
Cheng Zhili propped his chin on his hand, looking at him with a teasing smile. "General Manager, are you worried I’ll cheat on you?"
Fu Laiying remained expressionless. "No, you’re overthinking it." After a pause, he added, "I’ll assign you a bodyguard." With that, he began making a call.
Cheng Zhili raised an eyebrow.
After a while, there was a knock on the door, and a tall, muscular bodyguard entered, nodding respectfully. "General Manager."
"This is Su Meng," Fu Laiying introduced to Cheng Zhili.
Cheng Zhili’s eyes lit up, and he blurted out, "Wow! Handsome guy!"
Fu Laiying’s face immediately darkened, even glaring at Su Meng.
Su Meng felt a chill down his spine and couldn’t help but lower his head to hide his face.
Unexpectedly, Cheng Zhili walked over and squeezed Su Meng’s bicep, exclaiming, "These muscles are perfect!"
Fu Laiying kept a stern face, coldly watching Cheng Zhili.
Cheng Zhili seemed oblivious, reaching out to touch Su Meng’s chest, causing Su Meng to jump back in fright.
Cheng Zhili’s hand remained outstretched. He blinked innocently and asked, "Why are you dodging?"
Su Meng looked at Fu Laiying, sweating.
Fu Laiying snorted. "You, as my spouse, casually touching other men, do you think I’m dead?"
Cheng Zhili turned to him, looking innocent. "General Manager, we’re divorcing in a year. Isn’t it my freedom to do what I want?"
Fu Laiying’s face turned even darker. "That’s a year from now. Right now, you’re my spouse, so you can’t be flirting around! What about the Fu family’s reputation?"
Cheng Zhili shrugged. "That’s a bit much. I just touched his chest. If you had muscles, I’d touch you too~"
Fu Laiying immediately said, "Fine, tonight you can touch all you want, but if I see you touching anyone else, don’t blame me for locking you up at home!"
Cheng Zhili smiled at him, not angry at all. "Oh, someone’s a bit jealous~ Who knocked over the vinegar jar?"
Vinegar jar?
Fu Laiying’s expression froze, suddenly feeling awkward.
Cheng Zhili grinned, laughing without restraint.
Fu Laiying forced himself to maintain a stern face. "Don’t get it wrong, no normal man would allow his spouse to praise another man in front of him."
"Oh~" Cheng Zhili shrugged, speaking leisurely. "Alright, then I’ll take Mr. Su Meng to visit my friend." He patted Su Meng’s shoulder. "Mr. Su, sorry to trouble you."
"Just call me Su Meng," Su Meng said, trying hard to resist wiping his sweat.
The Fu family is too scary, he thought, feeling the urge to resign.
"Alright, Su Meng, let’s go." Cheng Zhili said, putting on his shoes and leading Su Meng out without a glance at Fu Laiying.
Fu Laiying watched his retreating figure, feeling a pang of discomfort.
Before, it was always him ignoring Cheng Zhili. When did it become Cheng Zhili ignoring him?
Feeling inexplicably upset, he even considered following Cheng Zhili…
Meanwhile, Cheng Zhili headed straight to Laifengli.
Today, Laifengli was unusually quiet. Despite it being the weekend, there were only a few pedestrians on the street, and noticeably fewer vendors.
Cheng Zhili was puzzled. "What’s going on here?"
Su Meng explained, "Because of yesterday’s incident, the city management cracked down on illegal vendors and hooligans in Laifengli."
"Uh…" Cheng Zhili hadn’t expected to be the cause of all this.
Wait, illegal vendors?
He immediately headed to the end of the street.
Sure enough, he saw two city officials flanking the woodcarving vendor, sternly demanding his ID and vendor permit.
One of the officials scolded, "Don’t you wash your face and hair? You’re filthy and still setting up a stall, ruining the city’s image. What’s your name? Show your ID quickly!"
The woodcarving vendor remained silent, his face expressionless.
The stray dog beside him tucked its tail, trembling pitifully.
"And this dog, does it have an adoption certificate? Registered at the police station? Vaccinated?"
The woodcarving vendor pressed his lips together, looking dazed.
"Why aren’t you speaking? Are you mute as well as lame?" The official grew impatient with his silence. "Looks like you have no permits! Xiao Li, go confiscate his stall!"
The woodcarving vendor didn’t move, just stared at the intricate wood carvings on the ground, a hint of melancholy and confusion in his eyes.
Cheng Zhili sighed.
He had intended to step in and help, but suddenly paused, reconsidering.
Perhaps, this was an opportunity?
So, after the officials confiscated the wood carvings and left, he slowly approached the vendor, smiling lightly. "Long time no see."
The vendor looked up at the sound, silently watching him.
The stray dog beside him, for some reason, tucked its tail even tighter, giving Cheng Zhili a pitiful look.
Cheng Zhili crouched down, ruffling the dog’s fur. "I saw this dog yesterday. When did you pick it up?"
The vendor lowered his eyes, his expression calm. "A few days ago."
"Is just bandaging it enough? Have you taken it to a vet for a check-up?"
The vendor slowly shook his head.
No money for a vet?
Cheng Zhili understood, then suddenly asked, "Now that you have no income, what are you going to do?"
The vendor remained silent.
Cheng Zhili squinted, deciding to push harder. "Are you going to beg? Like this stray dog, forever a lost soul, never avenging your family? Your parents in heaven would cry seeing you like this."
The vendor immediately looked up, his eyes sharp as knives, piercing into Cheng Zhili.
After a long silence, he spoke, his voice rough and cold. "Who are you!"
Cheng Zhili smiled. "Mr. Gu, let me introduce myself. I’m Cheng Zhili. Cheng Wenbin is my father."
The woodcarving vendor before him was none other than Gu Wending, the heir of Gu Jewelry, brought down by the Cheng family a year ago.
Although Cheng Zhili didn’t know how he ended up in Laifengli or why he was so down-and-out, he had guessed it was Gu Wending from the moment he saw those hands and the crippled leg.
Gu Wending’s eyes turned red at the mention, his body instinctively straightening. "You’re Cheng Wenbin’s son?!"
"I’m the illegitimate child," Cheng Zhili replied, his smile unchanged. Gu Wending was momentarily stunned, frowning.
"Mr. Gu, do you want to know the truth about that car accident? The truth about Gu Jewelry’s collapse? Do you want revenge on the Cheng family?" Cheng Zhili asked three questions in a row.
Gu Wending glared at him, gritting his teeth. "What do you know!"
"Everything you want to know," Cheng Zhili said, curling his lips. "Will you come with me?" He extended his hand to Gu Wending.
Gu Wending’s gaze lingered on his hand.
After a long pause, he reached out and took it.
Cheng Zhili smiled. "Let’s find a hotel to freshen up first. Once you’re cleaned up, I’ll tell you everything, how about that?"
"Alright!" Gu Wending nodded decisively.
So, they immediately found a nearby inn and rented a room by the hour.
Cheng Zhili had intended to help Gu Wending bathe, but was refused. In the end, he waited in the bedroom while Su Meng went into the bathroom to assist.
To be honest, when Su Meng first saw this "friend" of Cheng Shao, he couldn’t believe it.
How could this scruffy, disabled beggar be a friend of the General Manager’s spouse?
But when Gu Wending emerged from the bath, Su Meng was stunned!
Where did this ethereal man come from? His skin was so fair it seemed to glow, and his soft, delicate features were stunning without being effeminate!
Carrying Gu Wending out of the bathroom, Su Meng felt as if a new world had opened up for him!
With a man like this, how could anyone not be tempted?