Bringing Her Home
Back then, she hesitated because the two-year term felt too long and she almost didn’t agree to his contract.
But today, she was the one who proactively suggested renewing it.
Zhou Sujin returned her phone. “Make sure you play your role well for these two years and don’t mess it up before then.”
Wei Lai took her phone, having already memorized everything she’d detailed in the notes. “I’ll definitely perform well. I’ll aim to stay with you for the full two years and see if the contract can be renewed.”
Zhou Sujin glanced at her but didn’t respond.
In preparation for meeting his family the day after tomorrow, she had meticulously prepared. She even subtly probed Uncle Yan and Secretary Yang for information about his habits and likes.
But he knew almost nothing about her, except that she ran a supermarket.
“Aren’t you going to ask me anything about myself?”
Zhou Sujin: “No need. I’ve reviewed your background check.”
“Does it include my likes?”
“No.”
“You should at least know some. It might not matter much with your family, but what about your friends?” He should at least show that he treated her differently from others in front of his friends.
Wei Lai reminded him, “President Zhou, you promised me you were the one who liked me first and pursued me.”
Pursuing someone meant you couldn’t possibly know nothing about them.
After a moment’s thought, Zhou Sujin said, “Tell me a few things you like, and I’ll remember them.”
Her tastes were complex, with many likes and even more dislikes. Wei Lai, ever thorough, said, “I’ll write them down, and you can remember the ones you need.”
When she got home, she immediately opened her laptop. Zhou Sujin had said she treated playing the role of his girlfriend like an important project, and it wasn’t an exaggeration.
She saw the message from her dad. Deep down, she didn’t want to go to that house, a place she had rejected since childhood. Her dad would never understand how cruel it was to make your child watch you being happy and loving with someone else.
“Dad, I’m going to Beijing tomorrow. I’ll come over when I have time.“
She didn’t give a specific time, as it might never happen.
Wei Huatian wanted to ask his daughter if she was going to meet Zhou Sujin’s family, but he held back.
“Business trip? Take care of yourself.“
Wei Lai: “En. Dad, go rest early. Good night.“
Wei Huatian wanted to see his daughter. “When are you coming back? I’ll pick you up. I haven’t seen you in days.“
Wei Lai wasn’t sure how long she would stay in Beijing, and her dad might be busy that day. “It’s okay. When I get back, I’ll join you for afternoon tea and take you to see the 17th store I’ve chosen.“
She hadn’t expressed her feelings to her dad in many years. “Dad, go rest early. In my heart, you’re just as important as Mom. I still love you both just as I did as a child, and that hasn’t changed.“
Putting her phone aside, she took a few minutes to gather herself before she started listing her likes.
The next day at noon, Zhou Sujin received a PowerPoint from Wei Lai as he boarded the plane. She had listed all her likes and dislikes, some even accompanied by photos for detailed explanations.
It was over thirty slides long, and the last slide contained a fairly objective self-assessment—vain and shallow.
He actually read the entire PowerPoint from beginning to end.
Meanwhile, Wei Lai was drinking coffee, trying to ease her nerves as the plane was about to land in Beijing.
Zhou Sujin glanced up at her. The coffee in her hand had been brewed specially for him by the flight attendant, but she didn’t hesitate to take it and drink it herself.
“Do you like it?”
Wei Lai snapped out of her thoughts. “Not really.”
His entourage was seated nearby. She took another sip and said, “Maybe if I keep drinking it, I’ll get used to it eventually.”
Zhou Sujin: “There’s no need to force yourself.”
It wasn’t that she wanted to force herself; she just suddenly craved coffee. However, on his plane, this was the only type available, so she had no other choice.
Wei Lai wasn’t sure if this was pushing her luck. “How about you keep some of the coffee I like on your plane?” That way, she wouldn’t need to force herself.
They would be together for at least two years, and she might often travel on his plane in the future. Zhou Sujin didn’t refuse her request, replying flatly, “That can be arranged.”
Upon hearing his boss’ response, Yang Ze realized his oversight. He should’ve clarified Wei Lai’s likes beforehand.
“President Zhou, what kind of coffee does Miss Wei like? I’ll have it prepared after we land.“
Zhou Sujin simply forwarded the PowerPoint Wei Lai had sent him to Yang Ze, saying, “Her likes and dislikes are all written here.“
Yang Ze: “…”
Up until this moment, he found it hard to imagine his boss being so attentive after falling in love, especially when it came to Wei Lai and every detail about her.
Wei Lai’s phone rang. Glancing at the screen, she saw it was from one of her plastic sisters in Jiang City.
Most of the time, they were superficial, but they also had their sisterly moments.
“Love, wanna eat hotpot tonight? I heard you’re helping Auntie Cheng manage the supermarket now and planning to open one at Jiang’an Cloud Residences.”
“There’s also gonna be a free book bar and cafe corner?”
Wei Lai: “En.”
She set down the hard-to-swallow coffee, deciding to sip it slowly.
“Who told you this?”
“Yuan Hengrui, of course. Who else? He’s the only one who keeps tabs on every little thing about you. But enough about him. Let’s talk about your cafe corner. We can brainstorm together tonight. Maybe add a mural? You like abstract stuff, right? A mural would be perfect. Anyway, I’ve got another call coming in. Let’s meet at the usual spot tonight. Remember, whoever is the last to arrive buys dinner!”
Wei Lai told her to hold on and not hang up, telling her that she couldn’t go to hotpot tonight. “I’m landing in Beijing soon. Let’s grab dinner when I get back.”
“Oh, going to Beijing to meet the parents?”
The brief moment of genuine sisterly warmth was over, leaving only the superficial connection.
Wei Lai: “It’s not really meeting the parents. Zhou Sujin’s uncle is turning fifty, so we’re just going for dinner.” It was the first time she called him by his name in front of him.
Hearing this, Zhou Sujin glanced over at her. She didn’t hesitate to show off, showing no reservations around him. Asking her to be low-key was probably a lifelong impossibility.
After she hung up, he typed a message on his phone for her to see: “Were you always like this?“
Wei Lai leaned over and typed on his phone:
“You mean my vanity and love for showing off?:
Zhou Sujin didn’t say anything, but his expression confirmed her words.
Being so close, their breaths mingled, and he made no effort to avoid her.
Wei Lai continued typing on his phone: “I used to be very low-key.“
Zhou Sujin: “…”
He couldn’t help but chuckle.
If he didn’t believe her, there was nothing she could do about it.
Wei Lai typed again with her fingertips: “President Zhou, you’re the only one I’ve ever bragged about.“
Once she was sure he had read it, she deleted each word one by one.
Then she typed again: “Once our contract ends and I can’t rely on your influence anymore, I’ll go back to being a low-key person.“
Zhou Sujin: “…”
It was the first time he had seen someone with such self-awareness.
The plane landed half an hour later.
Today was the 19th, and his uncle’s birthday party was tomorrow night, giving her a whole day to prepare.
That night, they stayed at Zhou Sujin’s mansion. The condo at Jiang’an Cloud Residences wasn’t really his home
this place was full of his presence and signs of his life.
Her suitcase was brought up to the master bedroom along with Zhou Sujin’s. Once they were upstairs, Zhou Sujin pointed to the room next to the master bedroom. “You’ll stay in the guest room. In the morning, you can move your things into my room.”
The mansion had a maid and a butler, making it less free than the condo at Jiang’an Cloud Residences.
Wei Lai went inside the master bedroom to get her suitcase, worried. “No one will come upstairs in the meantime, yeah?”
“No, they clean only after I’ve left.”
“That’s good.”
Wei Lai said goodnight to him and went to her room.
Zhou Sujin closed the door and began unbuttoning his shirt with one hand. Earlier, his aunt had asked him what Wei Lai liked to eat so she could prepare a few special dishes for her, but he hadn’t had a chance to reply.
He had looked through the PowerPoint she had sent him during the afternoon on the plane and remembered a few dishes she liked, so he sent that over.
After a moment, he added, “She likes seafood paella but only eats the rice. Please remove the seafood for her beforehand.“
Ning Rujiang: “No problem…“
Zhou Sujin asked, “How many people did you invite for tomorrow?“
Ning Rujiang: “Four tables. The house is limited in space, so we didn’t invite the youngsters; there wouldn’t be enough room.“
Zhou Sujin didn’t need to ask to know who was invited. “With such a big crowd, how is Wei Lai supposed to handle it?“
Ning Rujiang: “The more people who come, the more people will know you bought a girlfriend home. Shouldn’t you be happy about that?“
“Make sure to bring Wei Lai over early tomorrow.“
Zhou Sujin acknowledged with a brief response.
In the room next door, Wei Lai lay on the bed after showering, unable to sleep.
This unscripted play between her and Zhou Sujin—when would it end and how, she couldn’t even imagine.
Tossing and turning until late at night, she finally fell asleep. The next morning, she woke up at dawn.
After getting up, she tidied the room and bathroom to make it look like no one had stayed there. With time to spare, she reviewed the key points for visiting his family again.
Finally, at 7 a.m. — “President Zhou, are you up?“
Zhou Sujin had already finished his workout and showered. “Yeah.“
Wei Lai: “If it’s convenient, I’ll bring my things to your room now.“
“Come over.“
Shortly after, Wei Lai heard the sound of a door opening next door, and she took her suitcase over.
He had already changed into a shirt and was fastening his cufflinks.
While the guest room was tidied up, the master bedroom still needed a touch of deliberate arrangement. Wei Lai took her PJs out of her suitcase and placed them on the edge of his bed, carefully avoiding the spot where he would lie down to sleep.
There wasn’t a vanity in the room, so she took out her makeup and arranged them on the bathroom counter. She had brought quite a lot, and they took up three rows.
Zhou Sujin finished fastening his cufflinks, but she still hadn’t come out.
The bathroom door was wide open, so he walked over. “Wei Lai? Come down for breakfast.”
“Just a minute,” Wei Lai hurriedly piled the last few bottles onto the counter.
Her personal items had encroached upon his private space.
“President Zhou,” she pointed to the pile of makeup, “Can I leave these here and use them next time? That way, I don’t have to carry them back and forth.”
Zhou Sujin nodded. “Sure. There’s plenty of space for your things.”
After she finished arranging her items, there were still other areas to set up. Wei Lai tried to be casual because being too hesitant would only make the atmosphere even more awkward. “President Zhou, there’s another important detail to arrange. Do you want to buy the props?”
Last time, they were at a hotel, so lubricant and everything else were provided, ready for use.
Zhou Sujin understood. “Okay, I’ll buy them.”
Despite being outwardly calm, her heart skipped a beat, and it fell silent for a few seconds.
Wei Lai broke the silence. “When are we going to your aunt’s house?”
As she spoke, she walked out of the bathroom.
Zhou Sujin: “We’ll go in the evening.”
Wei Lai found herself torn between wanting the evening to come quickly and feeling anxious about how she would handle it.
It was an extreme contradiction.
The day dragged on, and finally, it was 4 p.m.
Wei Lai touched up her makeup and practiced her expressions in the mirror.
She had once imagined meeting the family and rehearsed it in her mind. Back then, she hadn’t broken up with Zhang Yanxin yet and was thinking about what to chat with his elders when visiting his home.
“Wei Lai?” Zhou Sujin knocked on the door of the master bedroom. “It’s time to go.”
She was touching up her makeup in his room, and he waited at the door without entering.
Wei Lai grabbed her purse and followed him downstairs.
She was not unfamiliar with the road to his aunt’s house, and as the car neared the entrance of the siheyuan, she subconsciously grabbed Zhou Sujin’s hand. At this moment, she considered him her boyfriend.
Zhou Sujin sensed her nervousness and gently held her hand.
“It’s just an act; you’re not really meeting the family. Why are you so tense?”
Feeling the warmth from his dry palm, Wei Lai calmed down a bit. Previously, she had always been the one to hold his hand, and while he would let her, he had never clasped her hand in return.
For the first time, he held her hand back.
Zhou Sujin lowered the partition in the Bentley, expanding the space in the car.
He asked, “Feeling any better?”
The expanded space in the car helped ease the tension.
Wei Lai nodded, deciding not to say thank you since Uncle Yan could hear everything from the front.
Uncle Yan thought Wei Lai might be car sick.
The car stopped in front of the siheyuan. Ning Rujiang had been waiting for her nephew and hurried out when she heard from the maid that Zhou Sujin’s car had arrived.
As usual, Zhou Sujin had bought a large bouquet of ice-blue roses mixed with eucalyptus. He handed the flowers to Wei Lai. “Give these to Auntie in a bit.”
“Sujin.” Ning Rujiang called out to her nephew even before reaching the entrance. She had only caught a glimpse of Wei Lai’s back in Jiang City 20 days ago and had been curious ever since. Now, finally seeing her in person, she was gentle and beautiful, her eyes sparkling like stars. No wonder her nephew had fallen for her.
“This must be our Lai Lai, right? We’ve been eagerly waiting for you to come.”
By not calling her “Xiao Wei” and using the more affectionate “Lai Lai,” the distance between them instantly got closer.
“Auntie,” Wei Lai followed Zhou Sujin’s lead in addressing her.
Ning Rujiang took the bouquet of roses and said, “Let me thank you on behalf of your Uncle. Thank you for coming all this way to celebrate his birthday.”
As Wei Lai walked, she didn’t stay close to Zhou Sujin but instead walked alongside Ning Rujiang. “I’m the lucky one, getting to eat Uncle’s 50th birthday cake and maybe even catching some of the birthday star’s good luck.”
Ning Rujiang liked children with a sweet tongue and a knack for conversing. Unfortunately, her own kids were like her nephews, not particularly talkative, and often wouldn’t utter a word for half a day, which sometimes left her feeling both stifled and annoyed.
Chatting along the way, they entered the courtyard.
In the courtyard, Ning Ruzhen was enjoying a cup of tea.
From a distance, Wei Lai stopped Zhou Sujin’s mom, dressed in a dark green qipao, exuding grace and nobility.
Just like Zhou Sujin, that aloof and detached demeanor emanated from deep within, even when she smiled, she was still distant.
Zhou Sujin introduced them.
Holding her breath, Wei Lai greeted with a smile, “Auntie.”
Ning Ruzhen returned a smile. “Come and sit down. Your uncle has made some tea for you, and your aunt has prepared some snacks.”
Zhou Sujin interjected, “I’ll first take her to greet Uncle, and we’ll come back to eat.”
Ning Ruzhen: “That’s fine.” Understanding that Wei Lai might be nervous, she specifically instructed her son, “Just say hello and then come back. No need to stay too long over there.”
Zhou Sujin led her into the main hall. At a glance, Wei Law saw the room was filled with influential figures from the upper echelons of society, a scene she had never witnessed before. Prior to this, she could hardly have imagined such a gathering, even in her wildest dreams.
While she usually navigated social situations with ease, here, she felt like a freshwater fish that had accidentally swam into the vast ocean.
Zhou Sujin wrapped his arm around her shoulder and leaned in, whispering, “Don’t be nervous. Just follow my lead with the greetings.”
As they made the rounds of introductions, her heart raced to a hundred and twenty beats per minute.
She finally understood why Zhou Sujin was so generous with resources and connections. Accompanying him back home felt like a trial by fire, an ordeal of life and death.
Today, his uncle was the center of attention, so she didn’t have to linger in the living room for long. Compared to the crowd in this room, she suddenly found Zhou Sujin’s mom to be particularly kind and approachable.
Coming out of the living room, she let out a deep breath.
Zhou Sujin glanced at her. “Treat today as a rehearsal. There are even more relatives on my dad’s side.”
Wei Lai: “…”
“Lai Lai, come here.”
Auntie waved at her from the tea table.
“Coming, Auntie.” Wei Lai quickly walked over.
Ning Rujiang picked up the bouquet of roses from the table. “Do you know how to arrange flowers?”
Wei Lai’s flower arranging skills were mediocre, but it was clear that Auntie’s interest lay beyond just the flowers. Catching on, Wei Lai said, “Just a little. I’d love to learn more from you, Auntie.”
Ning Rujiang loved astute and perceptive children, someone who understood her intentions without needing much explanation. “Come on, let’s go to the other sitting room and arrange the flowers.”
Wei Lai turned to Zhou Sujin and said, “I’ll go with Auntie to learn some flower arranging.”
Seeing that she wasn’t intimidated by his aunt and seemed capable of handling the situation, Zhou Sujin decided not to follow after.
His mom pointed to a chair beside her, indicating for him to sit down.
Sending Wei Lai away with an excuse was clearly a pretext; there was something his mom wanted to discuss with him. Zhou Sujin didn’t ask any questions, waiting for her to speak first.
Ning Rujiang got straight to the point. “A lot of people came today, and they all asked me about Wei Lai. When they heard she’s from Jiang City and that her family runs a supermarket, they didn’t say much else afterward. They just assumed you’re dating casually and wouldn’t seriously consider being with her. I told them that since you brought her home, you must be serious about marrying her. So, they don’t need to introduce any more girls to you.”
Zhou Sujin didn’t respond, waiting for his mom to continue.
Ning Ruzhen went on, “Your aunt mentioned that you bought a condo in Jiang City and decorated it warmly, unlike your other places that are furnished like hotels.”
Zhou Sujin looked at his mom. “Mom, what are you trying to say?”
Ning Ruzhen: “If you think she’s the right one, you can get engaged whenever you want. The person you choose, I won’t oppose.”
