Since then, Jiang Lian had to survive under the control of the legal wife, because the old Mr. Jiang had only two sons in his lifetime: one was the eldest son Jiang Chen, born to the legal wife, and the other was his youngest son Jiang Lian, born to his beloved.
Last year, when Jiang Decheng died, he went against the family rules and left all his assets to his second son, Jiang Lian.
As a result, without his father’s protection, Jiang Lian was eventually driven out of Hong Kong City by his father’s legal wife and the influential forces behind her.
Fortunately, Jiang Lian had brought all the money his father had given him when he left.
While the real estate and companies couldn’t be taken, he managed to bring all the liquid assets and the entire lifetime savings of cash his father had accumulated.
It was an enormous sum, one that could almost rival the wealth of a nation.
Thus, Jiang Chen had been secretly pursuing his only younger brother, intent on reclaiming that vast fortune.
Jiang Lian had been drifting through various cities in the mainland for a year, and Jiang Chen had been chasing him for just as long, relentlessly and refusing to give up.
…
Naturally, Li Yue knew nothing of this. She had no idea that the person sitting across from her was a super-rich heir.
Even if she had known, it wouldn’t have concerned her. Those two were dangerous figures, so she stopped paying them any attention.
After waiting a while longer, Gu Huaichuan arrived late.
The young man was dressed conservatively, but his appearance was clean and sunny. He wore glasses, giving off a strong scholarly vibe, with a white shirt tucked in at the waist, making him appear tall and upright. He looked very friendly.
However, Li Yue noticed a hint of gloom in his eyes, as if he wasn’t in a good mood.
Could it be that he didn’t want to come?
When Lu Qing saw Gu Huaichuan, she quickly smoothed her high ponytail and stood up with a shy, sweet smile, her voice dripping with affection: “Huaichuan, you’re here?”
Her affected voice sent shivers down Li Yue’s spine, making her break out in goosebumps.
Gu Huaichuan nodded indifferently. He hadn’t wanted to come, but his mother had threatened to go on a hunger strike if he didn’t.
So he had no choice but to brace himself and show up.
However, he came with the intention of making things clear to Lu Qing—that they weren’t suited for each other and she shouldn’t seek him out anymore.
Gu Huaichuan sat in the chair Lu Qing had pulled out for him, thanked her, and then glanced at the person across from him.
He saw a thin, wiry girl with exceptionally bright, large eyes staring intently at him.
He lowered his gaze and didn’t speak further.
Lu Qing happily waved to the waiter first.
Then she turned to Li Yue across the table.
“Huaichuan, this is my second sister-in-law, Li Yue. She hasn’t seen much of the world, so I brought her out today to try steak and cream cakes she’s never had before.”
Lu Qing’s tone was full of pride, showing no consideration for Li Yue’s feelings, though Li Yue didn’t need her to save face anyway.
Theoretically, what Lu Qing said was correct—she really had been brought out by her.
Hearing this, Gu Huaichuan was taken aback for a moment, then took a closer look at the person across from him.
Her features were unmistakably those of the Li Yue he knew.
Though she was dark and thin.
But those bright, black eyes were still as luminous as stars in the sky.
“Li Yue?” he tentatively called out.
Seeing that he had addressed her, Li Yue grinned and replied, “Hello.”
As soon as she finished speaking, Gu Huaichuan sprang to his feet: “You’re really Li Yue?”
It was a question, but his tone was certain. He had recognized her voice—it was indeed the Li Yue he knew.
His sudden movement startled Li Yue, and even Lu Qing stared up at him in stunned silence.
“I’m Gu Huaichuan, your high school classmate. I heard you got into East China Petroleum University?”
Since going abroad, he hadn’t kept up with her at all, only learning a little about her after returning.
Never expected to run into her here – saying he wasn’t surprised would be a lie.
“So… we’re classmates? Hello, classmate.”
Li Yue frantically searched through her memories. The original host had indeed been admitted to Petroleum University, but was too poor to attend.
Suddenly she realized she shared many similarities with the original host – she had also graduated from a petroleum university, though hers was Beijing Petroleum University.
Gu Huaichuan nodded eagerly: “You couldn’t have forgotten me, could you? Have you really forgotten?”
The young man seemed quite agitated.
Li Yue truly found no memories of him – the original host hardly knew any male classmates, let alone someone this handsome.
Lu Qing tugged at Gu Huaichuan’s wrist: “Huaichuan, you know my sister-in-law? That’s wonderful! I never knew you were classmates.”
She could already sense something amiss, though she maintained what she considered the most appropriate expression.
Gu Huaichuan glanced down at his wrist and pulled it away, ignoring Lu Qing.
Instead, he said brightly: “I’m Gu Huaichuan. Remember that summer in second year of high school? The rain, the school lake…”
He didn’t continue, only mentioning keywords. That incident had been intentional, not a classmate prank, so it wasn’t something to be dug up again.
Li Yue fabricated: “I have some impression.”
“Are you free? Let’s have a meal together.”
Gu Huaichuan said enthusiastically. That summer, it was this very girl who had saved him. He never expected she would marry, and become so thin?
He transferred schools after that year. When he later tried to find her, he only managed to learn a name before going abroad.
Lu Qing finally couldn’t hold back.
“Huaichuan, we’re already having a meal. Let’s order – why go out to eat?”
She grabbed Gu Huaichuan’s hand again, shaking it forcefully while pouting and frowning pitifully.
Gu Huaichuan gave Li Yue a strained smile and awkwardly extracted his hand.
“She’s my high school classmate. We’d like to chat alone. Can you leave? If not, we’ll go out to eat,” he said to Lu Qing.
Seeing Gu Huaichuan deliberately distancing himself, Lu Qing grew momentarily angry, but directed her resentment at Li Yue: “Li Yue, say something!”
“Then… let’s eat here. She’s paying anyway,” Li Yue said.
Hearing this, Lu Qing nodded frantically, afraid Gu Huaichuan might leave her behind to eat out.
Simultaneously, she shot Li Yue a warning look, reminding her of her status as a married woman not to cross boundaries.
Only then did Gu Huaichuan reluctantly sit down. He didn’t want to eat with Lu Qing – he only wanted to catch up with Li Yue.
“Sister-in-law, order whatever you want,” Lu Qing emphasized when addressing her.
Also reminding Gu Huaichuan that Li Yue was a married woman.
Li Yue took the menu and skimmed through it: “I’ll have curry chicken, medium-well steak, French baked clams, foie…”
Before she finished, Lu Qing snatched the menu: “Give that here!”
“I’ll have a medium-rare steak and a cream pastry. Huaichuan, your turn to order.” When Lu Qing looked at Gu Huaichuan again, her tone was exceptionally gentle.
Completely different from her snarling expression when she grabbed the menu.
Actually, Li Yue had seen – even foie gras only cost 150.
In her previous life, she had never eaten anything so expensive that she couldn’t afford it.
However, compared to the steak and chicken she ordered, it was indeed a bit pricey—curry chicken cost nine yuan, steak fifteen, and clams ten.
She had originally intended to make Lu Qing foot a hefty bill, but it didn’t work out.
“Xiao Yue, if you want foie gras, just order it. I’ll pay,” Gu Huaichuan eagerly handed the menu back to Li Yue.
Li Yue shook her head: “Forget it, ordering too much would be wasteful.”
Compared to modern times, one hundred and eighty yuan is indeed cheap, but in the 1980s when the average salary was fifty yuan, it was still quite expensive.
She couldn’t blame Lu Qing for being stingy—she couldn’t afford it in her previous life either.
“Then next time you want to eat it, I’ll treat you,” Gu Huaichuan said gently.
Lu Qing was so angry that her nostrils flared noticeably. Huaichuan actually called her “Xiao Yue”—what exactly is their relationship?
When angry, Lu Qing had a habit: she couldn’t hold it in and needed to use the restroom, but she didn’t dare leave Li Yue alone with Gu Huaichuan.
“Come on, sister-in-law, come with me to the restroom.”
“Not going,” Li Yue waved her hand dismissively.