He Jingchen’s gaze landed on her right side, and Tong Yue blushed and lowered her head.
Her bag?
She understood—he must think she was mocking him, that she had contributed too little money.
He had misunderstood her.
She picked up the bag and showed it to him: “This bag was a gift from my dad. It was quite expensive when he bought it. But it wouldn’t sell for much now, and I won’t buy such expensive bags in the future either.”
Looking at the bag, she felt a twinge of sadness.
Her dad had given her quite a lot of things, but after he went bankrupt, everything that could be sold was sold to pay off debts.
Only this bag remained—originally priced at 100,000, it could only fetch a little over 10,000 now. Tong Yue couldn’t bear to part with it and wanted to keep it as a memento.
Tong Yue looked at He Jingchen’s expressionless face and said earnestly,
“Don’t worry, this money is only for our living expenses. If I want anything, I’ll use my own money. I don’t have a job right now, but I believe I’ll find one soon.”
He Jingchen hesitated, wanting to speak but stopping himself.
Sounded nice, sure.
But in practice… he’d still have to observe.
If, in the future, she discovered he was rich, or learned his true identity, he would divorce her immediately.
He Jingchen continued, “Things were rushed yesterday. There are some things I haven’t told you yet.”
“Now that we’re living together, we should keep a certain distance. How many bedrooms does your home have?”
“Two,” Tong Yue answered readily—she had been worrying about exactly this.
She smiled and said, “Don’t worry, tomorrow I’ll go home and clean it up. I’ll take the small bedroom; you’re tall, so you should take the big one.”
He Jingchen nodded and said nothing more. That was all he could think of for now; he’d add more later if anything else came to mind.
Of course, he had recorded what she just said, as evidence for the future.
After dinner, He Jingchen drove Tong Yue home.
Sitting in the passenger seat, Tong Yue sniffed the air and turned to look at him in delighted surprise: “This is a new car?”
He Jingchen nodded. “Bought it on a loan.”
Tong Yue looked around the interior and leaned back comfortably against the seat.
“Very nice.”
He Jingchen shot her a glance and said nothing.
The car fell into silence again.
Tong Yue thought about what happened at the police station and felt she should explain it to He Jingchen, afraid he might misunderstand.
“Jingchen.” It was the first time she had addressed him this way.
He Jingchen’s hands tightened on the steering wheel, and he glanced slightly toward her.
Tong Yue’s eyes dimmed a little, and her voice dropped low: “The woman you saw at the police station used to be my younger sister. My situation is complicated. I’ll tell you about it slowly in the future.”
He Jingchen remembered—his grandfather had told him that Tong Yue had a younger sister and a younger brother.
For blood sisters to end up on such bad terms, to the point of involving the police…
It seemed she not only had a complicated background, but her personal relationships weren’t great either.
A trace of cold severity appeared in He Jingchen’s expression.
He figured they were just cooperating in this act anyway.
He had no interest in learning about her complicated relationships—less trouble was better.
Tong Yue quietly watched him.
She didn’t know whether her explanation had done any good.
Then, suddenly curious, she asked, “By the way, Jingchen, how did you know I was at the police station today? Who told you?”
He Jingchen paused for a moment, then said calmly, “My grandfather sent me. He happened to spot you by the roadside, next to the police car, and called me.”
Tong Yue was stunned and embarrassed. So it was because of Grandpa He.
How touching.
Grandpa He was truly so good to her.
Just as she said this, the old man’s call came in. Tong Yue answered it with nervous reverence.
“Grandpa.”
“Yueyue, where are you now? Are you safe?”
Tong Yue glanced at He Jingchen’s cold profile. “I’m safe, Grandpa. Jingchen drove me home.”
“Good, good. Go get some proper rest.” He Zhiguo couldn’t stop smiling.
Hearing her grandfather’s laughter, Tong Yue felt an inexplicable sense of comfort, and she smiled too. “Okay, Grandpa. Once I get the house cleaned up, come visit me.”
“Good, good.”
Tong Yue asked, “Grandpa, Jingchen is right here beside me. Would you like to say something to him?”
“No, there’s nothing I need to say to him. Go rest well. Everything will get better little by little.”
Tong Yue’s eyes stung. Holding back her tears, she nodded. “Mm, Grandpa, I’ll remember.”
The call ended.
Her heart felt sour, yet so warm.
Tong Yue had been abandoned at the gates of an orphanage the day she was born.
She stayed there until she was twelve.
At twelve, she was adopted, and spent six painful years with her adoptive parents.
After turning eighteen, she went to college and moved out for good.
Later, by a twist of fate, she found her own family—the Tong family.
She had returned to her family, but before half a year of good days had passed, the family went bankrupt, and her father suddenly fell ill and passed away.
It all felt like a dream.
Still, the one thing that comforted Tong Yue was that she had found her identity. She still had family—her younger sister and brother were her deepest concern in this world.
As the older sister, she had to shoulder the burden and keep this family going.
He Jingchen’s car stopped at the entrance of the Minghua residential complex.
He Jingchen looked out the window.
This complex was so old—at least twenty years old. She lived here?
According to Tong Yue, she had rented this place a while back.
She used to be the daughter of the Tong family. How could she possibly live in such a shabby place? And a rented one, at that.
Tong Yue followed his gaze and realized he was sizing up the complex.
Embarrassed, she spoke up: “I’m renting the apartment—two more years on the lease. It does look pretty old, but the environment isn’t bad. Once it’s cleaned up, it’s quite comfortable to live in.”
He Jingchen looked at her with some surprise.
“Passable,” he said flatly.
If it turned out to be uncomfortable to live in, she could move into his place right away.
It was almost “renovated” anyway.
Tong Yue opened the car door. Just before getting out, she suddenly remembered something in her bag.
She took out a paper takeout box, like a lunch box, and held it out to him.
Her eyes sparkling: “I noticed you didn’t eat much earlier, so before we left, I specially packed some xiaolongbao. Heat them up when you get home—they’re really tasty.”
He Jingchen stared at the plain takeout box as a distinctive meaty aroma wafted out of it.
Feeling rather uncomfortable under her gaze, he didn’t refuse and reached out to take the box.
Tong Yue smiled with satisfaction and got out of the car.
“Bye-bye! See you the day after tomorrow!” She waved at him, her smile warm.
He Jingchen froze for two seconds, then nodded.
The day after tomorrow, she’d be moving over…
He Jingchen drove away.
Tong Yue watched the taillights disappear, then walked into the complex feeling thoroughly content.
It seemed that ever since meeting He Jingchen, her luck had improved a great deal…
Perhaps being with him wouldn’t be such a bad thing after all.
Since she had accepted his bride price, she should cooperate with him properly and make Grandpa happy.
Still, she would work hard to earn money and pay him back.
When she got home, the place was a complete mess.
Worse than a doghouse.
Tong Yue was so angry she wanted to curse out loud.
Two scumbags, worse than pigs and dogs!
Just as she was fuming, her phone rang—an unknown number.
It was her adoptive mother calling.
Tong Yue’s adoptive mother, Xie Rui, was obsessed with playing mahjong.
She had lost several million, and Tong Yue’s adoptive father, unable to stand it any longer, had gone off to work in another city and never came home.
Xie Rui had always treated Tong Yue badly. On the phone, she yelled at the top of her lungs: “Tong Yue, where has your younger sister gone? Why can’t I reach her?”
Tong Yue snapped back irritably: “She’s in her twenties. Wherever she goes, does she need to file a report with me? What does that have to do with me!”
Unexpectedly, Xie Rui didn’t keep scolding. Her attitude suddenly softened considerably.
She said politely, “Yueyue, don’t be angry. Mom was just asking. Oh, by the way, a friend of Mom’s introduced a boyfriend to you. If you have time, I’ll arrange for you two to meet. He’s quite a catch—he’s willing to offer a bride price of 500,000!”