“Elders are talking—where do you get the right to interrupt?”
Zhou Bingchen did not even know what he had said wrong, but he could clearly feel his Fourth Uncle’s expression growing darker and darker.
However, when elders lost their temper, the only thing juniors could do was admit fault.
“I’m sorry, Fourth Uncle.”
“You finally come back once in a while, and you still don’t hurry home to see your Grandmother!”
“Yes, sir.”
The young man respectfully finished speaking and walked down the plane.
Qiao Shuran curled up in her seat and did not dare to make a sound, afraid of being affected.
She only slowly followed the man after he stood up.
After stepping out of the cabin door, Zhou Yannan lit a cigarette, tilted his head slightly and asked, “I’m going downstairs to handle work. What about you?”
“I… I’ll go back to Yuelan Bay.”
Their wedding room.
“Alright. Let A Wen send you back.” Zhou Yannan did not bother with polite small talk.
Work that had been compressed for two days needed to be dealt with immediately.
Qiao Shuran agreed. She had not expected him to send her back anyway. She had not even planned to trouble A Wen—she could just take a taxi herself.
But since he assigned her a driver, she might as well use it.
The city had just rained, and the wind on the rooftop was strong.
Qiao Shuran only wore a thin layer and was shivering uncontrollably.
The man beside her noticed it, bit the cigarette between his lips, took off his coat, and handed it to her. “Wear it.”
“No, no, I have a coat—in your suitcase…”
“Wear it.”
His voice was cool and emotionless.
“If you get sick, Grandmother will blame it on me again.”
“Alright… thank you.”
Qiao Shuran took it and draped it over herself.
A faint woody scent mixed with tobacco lingered on it.
It did not smell particularly pleasant, but it was warm.
A Wen sent her back to Yuelan Bay.
The first thing she did after entering was take a shower. After changing into comfortable home clothes, she curled up on the sofa and replied to messages.
It was Qiao Chu inviting her to dinner.
After landing in Hancheng, Qiao Chu only then found out that her obedient niece had not only married the “living Yama,” but had also gone to Hong Kong alone to save her.
She was so moved that she almost impulsively decided to transfer half of her shares to her.
But after thinking it over, she realized her shares were already pitifully few—nowhere near even a single strand of Zhou Yannan’s hair.
Since her niece had already married Zhou Yannan, she would surely have more money than she could spend in the future.
With that thought, she dropped the idea.
No shares then—but she had to treat her to a meal.
Preferably one with a few male models, one on each side, serving dishes for her.
But Qiao Shuran had no strength to go out. She just wanted to stay home and recover properly.
Seeing that she refused to go out, Qiao Chu insisted on coming over herself.
Unable to refuse such enthusiasm, Qiao Shuran agreed.
Half an hour later, Qiao Chu appeared in her living room in high heels, clicking loudly as she walked in.
As soon as she entered, she looked around.
“Wow, your wedding room is nicely decorated!” she smacked her lips.
Curled up on the sofa, Qiao Shuran did not move. “Regretting it? Too late now.”
“You brat, how do you talk to your Aunt like that? Do you think I’m someone who forgets kindness for profit?” Qiao Chu threw her bag onto the sofa.
Qiao Shuran rolled her eyes. “You are.”
“You little brat, your skin must be itching for a beating.” Qiao Chu rolled up her sleeves. “Believe it or not, I’ll hit you.”
“Hey, hey, I’m your savior! If not for me, the one suffering now would be you.”
“Save me from what suffering?” Qiao Chu grabbed her hand and flipped her around to face her. “Aren’t you fine? Not missing any limbs. I think Zhou Yannan just looks scary. When I ran away from the wedding, he still swallowed the loss himself!”
“I can’t explain this to you,” Qiao Shuran said lazily.
She did not bother exposing her.
She did not know who it was yesterday crying and begging her to save her.
Now that she saw nothing bad happened, she was acting arrogant again.
Qiao Shuran suddenly felt like defending her husband’s dignity.
She lifted her chin and motioned toward the wall. “Aunt, there are cameras in my house.”
Qiao Chu turned her head and glared. “You brat, you should’ve said that earlier!”
“Come, Miss Qiao, have some fruit.”
Aunt Lin brought in a fruit platter and placed it on the coffee table. “What would you like for dinner? I’ll ask the chef to prepare it in advance.”
“Hotpot,” Qiao Chu said casually. “I’ve been traveling for days, my mouth is completely tasteless.”
“You really want to eat here?” Qiao Shuran straightened up. “What if Zhou Yannan comes back later? That would be awkward.”
“What a joke. Do you think men like him come home for dinner?” Qiao Chu felt her niece was too naive.
“To build such a large business, they need to socialize outside. Especially Zhou Yannan—if he comes home for dinner, I’d be surprised if he doesn’t stay out all night.”
“Staying out all night would be better,” Qiao Shuran muttered.
Then she could be alone, watch a movie, soak her feet—how comfortable that would be.
Aunt Lin stood nearby. “Miss Qiao, Mister used to rarely eat at home, but now that he’s married, it might be different.”
“You don’t understand. Married men are even less likely to come home!” Qiao Chu retorted.
That was also one of the reasons she did not want to marry.
The wealthy men around her, married or not, all played around.
Not coming home for ten or fifteen days was normal.
If she had to marry and be left alone, she would rather stay single and let everyone do as they pleased.
“Shuran, listen to me. Since you’re married, you need to prepare yourself mentally. Men are playful—don’t think marriage will change them.”
“Let them play then, as long as they don’t cross the bottom line of marriage.”
Qiao Shuran did not care about the rest. “Everyone likes to play. Marriage is to make life more comfortable, not to restrict each other.”
“Heh, you little brat, thinking like that—you really are destined for a rich life. But…”
She changed tone. “How do you know he won’t cross the line? Lust is human nature. What if he does?”
“He said he wouldn’t. I believe him.”
He had no reason to lie to her.
Qiao Chu smacked her lips again. “You really have a big heart. Definitely a life of ease.”
They were still talking when another servant came in. “Madam, two designers from Jade Workshop are here outside requesting to see you.”
“Jade Workshop?”
Qiao Shuran froze. “I didn’t schedule them.”
“Perhaps Mister did,” Aunt Lin suggested.
Only then did she remember—during the return banquet a few days ago, Zhou Yannan had said he would custom-make jewelry for her.
She had thought it was just a casual remark to save face.
She did not expect him to be serious.
For the wealthy, jewelry was nothing special.
But the master craftsmen of Jade Workshop were extremely particular, accepting only a limited number of orders each year.
Once the quota was full, no amount of money would convince them.
Previously, Qiao Chu had wanted them to design a necklace, but she was told to book two years in advance.
Yet this time, Zhou Yannan had actually brought them here.
It seemed that so-called strict rules meant nothing in front of real authority.
That man’s way of doing things was indeed brutally direct.