It was just an invitation; did it have to be as dramatic as a flood drowning the temple?
The phone call lasted more than ten minutes with hardly any actual conversation, filled entirely with whimpering sounds. After hanging up, Ji Chen even felt a twinge of regret. Bringing along a crybaby, would it have been better to just go alone?
It was too late to back out anyway, as the other person had started packing her suitcase ten minutes prior and had even mentioned wanting to buy him a gift before leaving.
The Fu Corporation and the Golden Horn region frequently traded with each other, and this time they had sent a message saying they would take the Fu family’s private jet, which saved them the trouble of buying airline tickets on the spot.
Early the next morning, Aunt Wu came to knock on his door, her expression looking delighted, as if flowers were blooming.
“Young master, hurry up and get ready. The young lady is waiting for you, so dress nicely.”
“A young lady?”
“That’s right, her name is Zhou Qing. She is truly gorgeous, a sparkling, vibrant girl. The young master has a peerless eye for people.”
Ji Chen was left baffled. Weren’t they supposed to wait for him to pick her up? How did this Zhou Qing know where he lived? Could his group of buddies have told her?
He casually changed his clothes and went downstairs.
Sure enough, he saw the girl sitting on the sofa drinking tea with a white suitcase placed beside her. She wore a simple gray dress and white short boots, with her long princess-style hair tied back by a white ribbon. She looked very pretty.
Mainly, her watery eyes always looked on the verge of rain, which explained why she had infatuated those good-for-nothing fellows so completely.
Ji Chen remained expressionless. He glanced at her, withdrew his gaze, and walked toward the door carrying a black suitcase: “Let’s go.”
“Okay,” Zhou Qing nodded immediately and followed him out, leaving Aunt Wu watching with the proud smile of an aging mother.
Pulling out her phone, she muttered: “Madam, the young master has good news.”
From Ji Chen’s perspective, since that fellow Fu Chi had already revealed such intentions, he surely wanted to go to the Golden Horn alone with him. As it turned out, he was measuring a gentleman’s heart with his own petty yardstick.
Inside the plane sat the familiar faces of Beishang, Cheng Cong, and the poorly-complexioned Fu brothers.
Several pairs of eyes fixed on the sole female present, Zhou Qing. Zhou Qing was evidently rather nervous and tightly clutched Ji Chen’s arm.
Fu Chi wore a smile that didn’t reach his eyes: “Young Master Ji, are you planning a holiday trip?”
Ji Chen thought for a moment, turned his head to look at Zhou Qing, and said: “Since everyone here is male, it might be a bit inconvenient. Why don’t you…”
Seeing that tears were about to burst forth, Ji Chen immediately changed his words: “Why don’t you go sit over there inside, and I’ll sit on the outside.”
Zhou Qing smiled through her tears, chose a seat, and looked at Ji Chen with a somewhat embarrassed expression while dragging her suitcase.
Ji Chen sighed, casually placed his own luggage down, and tried to lift hers with one hand. To his embarrassment, he couldn’t lift it.
Zhou Qing’s face flushed red: “It might… be a bit heavy.”
Ji Chen struggled to lift it with both hands, let alone hoist it up onto the overhead rack. His mouth twitched as he said: “Are you carrying dumbbells for a trip?”
Cheng Cong raised his peach-blossom eyes and put on his most handsome expression toward Zhou Qing: “Young Master Ji probably doesn’t exercise regularly. How can you talk to a young lady like that? Leave this to me.”
Ji Chen immediately let go. Cheng Cong stood up, grabbed the handle, and his face turned green.
“Cough cough… It is indeed a bit heavy, huh. Young Master Ji, give me a hand.”
Ji Chen looked at him with disdain. The two of them lifted the suitcase together and stowed it away, then sat down panting and looked around at the others: “Why are you all tagging along?”
Beishang was busy wiping his hands and the table with a wet wipe. Hearing the question, he replied: “For a vacation. Besides producing jadeite, the Golden Horn is also famous for its hot springs, which are great for health. Cheng Cong is kidney-deficient and needs to soak in them, and I’m simply accompanying him to clear my mind.”
Cheng Cong’s expression twisted viciously: “Who did you say is kidney-deficient? Do you really want me to make you change your name to Tragic?”
“I don’t think so, changing names requires personal application,” Beishang calmly retorted, irritating Cheng Cong so much that his teeth itched. Still, Cheng Cong didn’t forget to clarify: “Don’t listen to his nonsense, I am perfectly healthy.”
Ji Chen didn’t pay much attention; his gaze had actually remained fixed on Fu Xi.
If he wanted to prevent Fu Chi’s identity from being exposed, he couldn’t let the woman from the Fu family leak the fact that Fu Chi wasn’t her biological son just to elevate Fu Xi.
Naturally, biological brothers didn’t look alike. Fu Xi wasn’t bad-looking, he was even somewhat handsome, but overshadowed by Fu Chi, he looked utterly ordinary, like a passerby. If not for the backing of designer clothes, his presence would have been virtually nonexistent.
Ji Chen sat comfortably beside Zhou Qing. His silver-tipped hair had faded into a silvery-white hue, making it look increasingly striking.
Fixing his gaze on the pale-faced Fu Xi, he spoke up: “Are you dissatisfied with me, Second Young Master Fu, that you haven’t even offered a greeting?”
The cabin fell silent. Fu Xi’s expression turned somewhat unnatural: “What is Young Master Ji saying? I saw that you and everyone else are old acquaintances, and I didn’t have the face to interrupt.”
“Is that so? I thought that because Liuguang has been quite active in the industry lately and has cut into the profit margins of quite a few brands, you must be holding a grudge against me, Second Young Master.”
“I didn’t want to either, but taking over Liuguang got all the subordinates overly excited. Relying on my status, they pulled off some moves they wouldn’t normally dare to make. If Liuguang wants to grow big, it has to step over corpses to reach the top. Second Young Master, please understand.”
Fu Xi’s expression turned even uglier.
“Young Master Ji, although the Fu family supplies raw stones, anyone in the jewelry industry knows that selling finished products is the path to growth. No one would dare stop Liuguang from expanding, but as for the Fu family’s side, could Young Master Ji show some mercy?”
Ji Chen stroked the silver strands on his forehead and chuckled softly: “Sitting on a Fu family private jet while making this request, I really find it hard to refuse. Alright, let’s talk when we get back from the Golden Horn. Business is business, and naturally, it’s something to be negotiated.”
Fu Xi visibly breathed a sigh of relief, relaxing completely. He moved closer to Ji Chen and enthusiastically began introducing the Golden Horn.
Fu Chi, who had organized the trip, ended up acting like an outsider.
After the plane took off, the other three people sitting together listened to the endless chatter over there. Cheng Cong shot a glance at Fu Chi.
Seeing that the other person showed no reaction, Cheng Cong muttered quietly: “What on earth are you thinking? We’re going to the Golden Horn, why did you bring him along?”
Leaves piled up deep in Fu Chi’s eyes as he spoke with self-mockery: “My mother forced him to come, what can I do?”
Cheng Cong wore an expression that said I knew it and muttered with disgust: “I’ve never seen such blatant favoritism. They came out of the same belly, how can the treatment be so different?”
Beishang gave Cheng Cong a forceful poke in the ribs, prompting him to shut up. Glancing at Fu Chi’s calm demeanor, Beishang sighed helplessly. Saddled with such biased parents, Fu Chi had it the hardest.
Whether he acted sensibly or not, he never got any candy.
Ji Chen had only been chatting idly with Fu Xi, but Zhou Qing beside him kept shifting her body restlessly, looking extremely uncomfortable. At that moment, her face turned pale as she gritted her teeth in endurance.
“Where does it hurt?” Ji Chen asked in surprise.
Zhou Qing bit her lower lip tightly and shook her head: “I’m fine.”
“What do you mean you’re fine, your face is completely pale. Beishang, hurry up and see what’s wrong with her!” Ji Chen hastily called out.
Beishang stood up and walked over. Seeing Zhou Qing clutching her stomach and massaging her temple, he tested out: “Are you airsick?”
Zhou Qing lowered her head without answering.
Ji Chen was speechless: “If you’re airsick why didn’t you say so earlier? Why did you tag along with me, just to suffer?”
He yielded his seat to Beishang.
Beishang took Zhou Qing’s hand, muttered an apology, and pressed her Neiguan acupoint, located two inches above the transverse crease of the inner wrist, to help relieve her dizziness.
The soft whimpers made Ji Chen feel a bit awkward. He simply walked over to Beishang’s vacated seat, pinched the bridge of his nose, and tried hard to recall when on earth his clone had provoked this Zhou Qing.
That wasn’t right either. The surname Zhou, among his usual circle, no family carried that surname.