“A blind date?”
Tong Yue laughed in anger. “Xie, thank you for your kind intentions, but I’m already married. No blind dates for me!”
The moment Tong Yue heard the woman claim to be her mother, she felt disgusted.
What kind of mother was she supposed to be? Her mother had died long ago!
Hearing this, Xie Rui assumed Tong Yue was lying to her and grew anxious. “Your family is bankrupt, and your father is dead. If I don’t look after you, who will? You can’t be so ungrateful. I’m kindly taking care of you, and you insult me for it?”
Now the fox’s tail could no longer be hidden—the malice was overflowing, impossible to conceal.
Tong Yue showed no mercy. “Don’t think I don’t know what you’re really thinking. You want to marry me off to someone else and pocket the bride price, right? Even if I do get married, what does the bride price have to do with you? We have nothing to do with each other. Do you understand? Stop scheming against me!”
With that, without waiting for a response, she hung up the phone and blocked the woman’s account.
Half a year ago, when Tong Yue returned to the Tong family, her adoptive mother’s family had all come flocking over, hoping to squeeze out some benefits.
Tong Yue ignored them completely and had the family security guards drive them away.
A month ago, the family went bankrupt. Xie Rui mocked her relentlessly and even spread rumors to the outside world, claiming that her father’s death was caused by Tong Yue herself.
Because Tong Yue was a Jinx.
Anyone who was with her would suffer misfortune.
All kinds of sarcastic remarks and pointing fingers from outsiders reached her ears, tormenting her so badly that she nearly broke down.
In the , it was sheer willpower that got her through!
Now, things were different. She had a younger brother and a younger sister, she had a home, and she was even married!
Everything was going to get better!
At this thought, Tong Yue was filled with energy again.
She took off her coat, rolled up her sleeves, and started cleaning.
The apartment wasn’t big—only 70 square meters, with two bedrooms, one living room, and one bathroom.
After Tong Yue returned to the Tong family half a year ago, this apartment had been occupied by Luo Fanglin and Su Qing.
They hadn’t taken care of it at all, leaving the place a complete mess—nothing but garbage!
The kitchen was piled with unwashed dishes and chopsticks that had gone rotten and stinky!
Tong Yue got right to work, putting on gloves and sweeping and mopping the floors.
Then she went to the bedroom, which was even more unsightly, with a strange odor hanging in the air.
She quickly opened the window to air the room out, then opened the wardrobe. It was stuffed full of Luo Fanglin’s clothes, including quite a few pieces of sexy lingerie.
Just thinking about what Luo Fanglin and Su Qing might have done in here made her feel nauseous.
After a moment’s thought, she packed up the bedding and bundled the clothes together, then threw the mattress out.
This bedroom was the larger one, and it had a balcony. She planned to let He Jingchen have this room.
She would buy new bedding tomorrow! She couldn’t shortchange him!
After finishing this bedroom, Tong Yue moved on to the one next door, which had become a storage room for the two of them.
She tidied it up, spread out her own bed sheets, and without even time to shower, lay down on the bed.
Lying there, the bed board was still a bit hard.
She stared at the slightly yellowed ceiling, but her heart felt unusually calm.
From now on, she would be living here with He Jingchen.
She felt both nervous and excited.
The man’s face surfaced in her mind…
Meanwhile, at Lan Ting.
He Jingchen’s villa was on the outskirts of the city, named Lan Ting, located halfway up Lan Peak.
He liked living in the mountains, far from the noise of the world.
There were quite a few luxury mansions on the mountain, but He Jingchen’s was the highest, occupied the largest area, and was the most luxurious of them all.
From here, one could take in a panoramic view of Jingshi’s night scenery—breathtakingly beautiful!
By the time he got home, it was already 9 p.m. He took a casual shower and changed into gray silk pajamas, lazily tying the belt.
He Jingchen had a great physique, thanks to his years-long habit of working out.
Exercise gave him the energy he needed for work, so he never tired of it.
He settled onto the sofa, and from here, he could overlook the entire night view of Jingshi!
Thousands of lights glowing, neon flickering.
The thought that one of those lights illuminated Tong Yue’s home stirred an inexplicable feeling in his heart.
As if something had begun to weigh on his mind—though he himself hadn’t noticed it yet.
That woman…
He Jingchen’s mind replayed the things she had said.
Could a face that pretty and innocent belong to someone who lies? Would she be easy to get along with?
The box of xiaolongbao still sat on the coffee table. He Jingchen rose to his feet.
He picked it up, glanced at the trash can beside him, and was about to toss it in.
But the moment the lid opened, he stopped.
By the time he came back to his senses, he realized he had already put it in the refrigerator instead.
He thought for a moment, then closed the fridge door.
…
The next day.
He Jingchen finished his workout, showered, and sat on the sofa drinking water.
Suddenly, a great commotion came from the doorway—He Zhiguo had arrived.
He changed into slippers, and the moment he entered, he saw He Jingchen lounging lazily on the sofa.
He Jingchen wiped his mouth and stood up. “Grandpa, why are you here so early?”
He Zhiguo hurried over, stopped in front of him, and said gruffly, “You’re moving in with your Yueyue tomorrow. Why haven’t you packed your things yet?”
He Jingchen ruffled his freshly washed hair, holding back a smile. “Grandpa, it’s still early. It’s only morning—I’ll pack later.”
Besides, there was really nothing to pack. All his clothes were designer brands; wearing them over there would give the game away.
Just then, his assistant Wei Yu arrived, dragging a huge suitcase behind him.
“Grandpa, look—my things are here.”
The assistant pushed the suitcase in front of him and stood respectfully to the side.
“What’s this?” He Zhiguo asked curiously, leaning in.
He Jingchen smiled and crouched down to open the suitcase.
Inside were clothes he’d had his assistant buy just now.
All cheap, budget items—mostly two to three hundred yuan apiece, the most expensive no more than a thousand.
Clothes like these fit the persona he was supposed to be playing.
He Zhiguo glanced at Wei Yu, who quickly excused himself.
Turning back, He Zhiguo said earnestly to He Jingchen, “I know you’re afraid Tong Yue is after your money, but let me tell you—you should be as generous with her as you can, because she deserves it.”
He Jingchen looked at his grandfather helplessly.
Over the past few days, he’d heard nothing but praise for Tong Yue from the old man’s mouth—his ears were practically calloused.
He felt a flicker of rebellion.
“Fine, Grandpa, I get it. Don’t worry.”
With that, He Jingchen patted He Zhiguo on the shoulder.
Seeing that his attitude had softened considerably compared to when they registered the marriage,
He Zhiguo secretly rejoiced. Clearly, this brat was gradually developing feelings for the girl and was just being stubborn about it.
He thought very highly of Tong Yue as a granddaughter-in-law.
Things between them were bound to get better and better.
However, He Jingchen’s mother didn’t know yet.
This matter would have to be kept from her for now…
…
Early in the morning, Tong Yue got up and took a bus to the furniture store, where she bought a new mattress.
Then, gritting her teeth, she spent five hundred yuan on a new four-piece bedding set and brought it home.
After all that work, the house had finally been restored to its original state.
That morning, she had thrown out a full ten bags of trash—ten bags! It showed just how sloppy those two people were!
She had just sat down to rest for a moment when a knock sounded at the door.
Tong Yue had just placed an order on her phone for some vegetables and rice, and assuming it was the delivery person, she got up to answer the door.
But the moment she opened it, she regretted it—it was her adoptive mother, Xie Rui.
The moment they met, Xie Rui launched into her, berating her: “Your younger sister has been taken to the police station! You wretch. How can you be so vicious?”