If It’s Wrong, Then It’s Wrong - Chapter 6
Chapter 6: The Second Day
The garden occupied a large area, every corner meticulously designed and maintained.
Ji Chaozhou pushed Aunt Yun to a gazebo overlooking a pond of green water, where koi leisurely swished their tails.
Yun Se opened the fish food box on the stone table, took a handful, and turned to offer it to Ji Chaozhou.
Ji Chaozhou took the fish food, walked around the wheelchair, and sat down on the gazebo’s backrest. Leaning his long forearm against the railing, he extended his hand, fingers slightly apart, letting the fish food slowly fall through the gaps.
The koi in the pond swam towards the gazebo, a swathe of red gathering in the water, darting back and forth.
“What’s the story with that bodyguard just now?” Yun Se asked gently, looking at her nephew.
Ji Chaozhou’s gaze was fixed on the water, where a small koi was looking up, mouth open, waiting for food: “He hired her.”
Yun Se understood: “Your father is worried about you.”
Ji Chaozhou sprinkled more fish food, quietly watching the small koi swallow it.
“Chaozhou, I don’t have much time left,” Yun Se said, her eyes filled with complex emotions, but her gaze towards her nephew remained gentle. “In the future, I’ll be with my sister…”
“Aunt Yun, it’s windy out here. Let me take you back inside.” Ji Chaozhou finished scattering the fish food, wiped his hands, interrupted her, and stood up.
“Chaozhou, sit down.” Yun Se’s tone became slightly sterner, but her emotions surged, and she began to cough.
Ji Chaozhou immediately frowned and stepped forward, rubbing her back: “Don’t get upset.”
Yun Se calmed down, took Ji Chaozhou’s hand, pulled him closer, and looked up at him: “Listen to me first.”
Ji Chaozhou bent down and squatted, meeting Aunt Yun’s gaze.
“You look like my sister,” Yun Se said, touching her nephew’s face, her eyes filled with remembrance. “Even your hobbies are similar. If my sister knew…she would be so happy.”
Ji Chaozhou’s eyelashes trembled, but he remained silent.
“Matters between the older generation have nothing to do with you,” Yun Se said, gripping her nephew’s hand tightly. “Chaozhou, you’re still young. You have to live well. Nothing else matters. Aunt Yun only hopes that you won’t neglect your health.”
“I know,” he murmured.
Yun Se shook her head: “Chaozhou, I want you to promise me.”
Ji Chaozhou looked up at the thin, pale woman in the wheelchair. She was his mother’s younger sister, the one who had raised him, and now…she was also going to leave him.
Finally, a clear yet slightly hoarse voice echoed in the gazebo: “…I promise.”
A smile finally appeared on Yun Se’s face. She patted her nephew’s hand, indicating for him to push her back inside.
On the way, she picked up the lily-of-the-valley from her lap, lowered her head to smell them, and then said, “Yun Fei has grown up now, and she has her own agenda.”
Yun Se looked back at Ji Chaozhou: “She is her, and you are you. You don’t have to be constrained by her because of me.”
“Alright.” This time, Ji Chaozhou agreed readily.
The woman in the wheelchair elegantly tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, her body finally relaxing completely.
…
In the villa’s living room, Cheng Liu had been sitting on the sofa for a while.
The caregiver had led her here and then left.
Cheng Liu was a little nervous.
She hadn’t expected her boyfriend to bring her home so directly.
The woman in the wheelchair had similar features to her boyfriend, so she must be a family member.
This was all happening too fast!
She wasn’t prepared at all.
Cheng Liu thought carefully but realized she was completely unfamiliar with the process of meeting a partner’s family. Her middle-aged business partners had never mentioned anything like this.
So, CEO Cheng subtly surveyed the living room, making sure no one was around before carefully taking out her phone to do some research.
However, before she could even type anything, the caregiver returned, carrying a tray of tea and snacks.
The caregiver gave Cheng Liu a polite smile and placed the refreshments in front of her: “This tea is from Madam’s own tea plantation. Please try it.”
“Thank you.” Cheng Liu returned the polite smile, wondering if she should try to glean some information from the caregiver about what the older woman liked.
Just then, the caregiver turned on the TV, perhaps to ease Cheng Liu’s awkwardness.
“Shenyin Technology has achieved groundbreaking results in artificial intelligence technology in recent years…”
A technology program was playing, with the host introducing Shenyin Technology. The screen showed a few rare images of Cheng Liu, taken from her speech at Shenyin Technology’s third anniversary celebration. She had spent two hours just getting her hair and makeup done for that event.
That was why she disliked attending such events, and consequently, the media rarely had any recent footage of her.
But now, Cheng Liu straightened her back, subtly glancing at the caregiver, realizing that she was being shown on TV.
The heavens were helping her!
When she and her boyfriend returned, the caregiver would surely mention her to Madam Yun.
—The founder of Shenyin Technology.
Cheng Liu thought that her net worth had been quite highly estimated on various wealth rankings last year.
She looked down at her legs – they were quite long. Her face was also presentable. She could barely be considered a successful and eligible young woman.
Her boyfriend’s family should be satisfied, right?
Moreover, the TV program was showering her with praises!
Cheng Liu suddenly felt that appearing on TV more often wouldn’t be a bad thing.
The caregiver glanced between the founder of Shenyin Technology on the screen and Cheng Liu, observing her discreetly.
However, the caregiver's thoughts were quite different from what Cheng Liu imagined.
When she saw the founder of Shenyin Technology on the screen, the caregiver had found her familiar. After a moment, she realized that this person looked seven or eight points similar to Young Master Ji's bodyguard.
But their social statuses were vastly different.
One was the founder of a tech company. On TV, she had shoulder-length, light brown, center-parted wavy hair, and was dressed in a grayish-brown suit with the jacket open, revealing a brown shirt underneath. Her overall appearance was sharp and sophisticated.
She stood on stage, speaking eloquently, as if the spotlight was made for her.
As for…
The caregiver looked at Young Master Ji’s bodyguard again. She was wearing a simple, slightly wrinkled black tracksuit, with no makeup.
Perhaps realizing the resemblance to the person on TV, she lowered her head, seemingly feeling self-conscious.
The caregiver felt a pang of sympathy for the bodyguard. Ordinary people like them were the vast majority. Not everyone could be a young, dazzlingly successful founder like the one on TV.
So, the caregiver moved closer to the bodyguard, patted her shoulder in consolation, and reached for the remote control.
Cheng Liu, bewildered by the pat on her shoulder, looked up just as her boyfriend and Aunt Yun entered the room. Her heart skipped a beat, and she nervously wondered: Aunt Yun was about to see her on TV. Should she stand up when she introduced herself?
“Click—”
The caregiver, having grabbed the remote, pressed the bright red power button. The image on the TV disappeared, leaving only a blank screen. She smiled at the young bodyguard, fully understanding her embarrassment.
Cheng Liu slowly turned to look at the caregiver beside her, shocked to see a provocative smile on her face.
…Was this a show of dominance from the caregiver?
Cheng Liu was puzzled, unable to understand how she had offended her.
Forget it. Her boyfriend already knew who she was. There would be other opportunities to introduce herself.
“You should go back now,” Yun Se said, holding Ji Chaozhou’s hand after they entered. “Aunt Yun won’t keep you for dinner.”
Because of her illness, her dietary needs were different from those of healthy people.
“Alright.” Ji Chaozhou bent down and adjusted Yun Se’s shawl. “I’ll come visit you again soon.”
Yun Se patted her nephew’s hand and nodded slightly, then turned to Cheng Liu: “Take good care of him for me.”
Hearing this, Cheng Liu understood that this was a request from an elder. She stood up resolutely and said earnestly, “I will.”
After Ji Chaozhou and Cheng Liu left, the caregiver stepped forward to push Yun Se’s wheelchair, saying, “Madam, Young Master Ji’s bodyguard looks very much like the founder of a company.”
“There are many people who look alike in this world.” Yun Se wasn't interested in the bodyguard. The long conversation had exhausted her. “Take me back to my room to rest.”
…
“What do you want for lunch?” Cheng Liu asked as soon as they were in the car.
Ji Chaozhou leaned against the car window with his eyes closed, saying indifferently, “Whatever you want.”
He had just made a promise to Aunt Yun and didn't want to break it.
“How about somewhere lively?” Cheng Liu asked tentatively.
Since her boyfriend didn’t respond, she took it as agreement.
They arrived at a small stir-fry restaurant. It wasn’t large, occupying only two storefronts, but it was clean and packed with customers.
As soon as they entered, the noisy chatter inside suddenly ceased.
After a moment, the noise gradually returned.
“Are you celebrities?” the server asked hesitantly, bringing over the menu.
Cheng Liu took the menu and shook her head: “No.”
“I didn’t think so either.” Seeing Cheng Liu looking at her, the server said a little embarrassedly, “You’re both so good-looking. If you were celebrities, I would definitely recognize you.”
“You can order first. I’ll come back for the menu later.” The server handed Cheng Liu a pencil, snuck another glance at Ji Chaozhou, and then hurried away.
“I don’t know if you’ll like the food here, but let’s try it.” Cheng Liu pushed the menu towards Ji Chaozhou. “We can go somewhere else next time if you don’t like it.”
Ji Chaozhou seemed not to have noticed the earlier commotion, or perhaps he simply didn't care about anything happening around him.
He opened the menu, glanced at it for a moment, and casually ordered two dishes.
Cheng Liu peeked and, as expected, he had chosen lighter options.
As they were ordering, a young man with remnants of lipstick on his lips walked past on the street outside. A half-smoked cigarette was tucked between the fingers of his left hand, and his right hand held a newly bought drink. He strode forward, drawing the attention of those around him.
Wang Hongyang unscrewed the cap, tipped his head back, and finished the drink in a few gulps. He had been posing for magazine photos all morning, and no one had even bothered to bring him a bottle of water. He had to come out and buy it himself.
Wang Hongyang angrily crushed the empty bottle and threw it into a nearby trash can. A bunch of people who judged others by their appearances.
As he threw it, Wang Hongyang noticed someone familiar sitting in the small stir-fry restaurant across the street. Before he could get a clear look, the server inside blocked his view.
As if it could be Cheng Liu.
Cheng Liu never had time for leisurely meals, let alone coming to a small stir-fry place like this where you had to wait in line.
Every time they ate together, she practically brought her laptop, her phone constantly buzzing with notifications.
Thinking of Cheng Liu, Wang Hongyang took out his phone and called her as he walked, but she didn't answer. She was probably busy with work again.
Wang Hongyang dropped his cigarette butt and ground it out with his foot. He scrolled through his contacts, found a number, and dialed it. The other end answered quickly.
He invited the girl to a bar that night, and she accepted shyly and excitedly.
As expected, only Cheng Liu could be so unromantic.
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