Edited by Elv
Wen Le’s New Home
“What are you two doing?” They turned around to see Wen Tianqi.
Wen Le felt her heart tighten, feeling extremely guilty. She shot Zhou Kao a quick glare, then turned to Wen Tianqi with a smile and called out, “Dad.”
Upon spotting Wen Tianqi, Zhou Kao withdrew his hand that was about to pinch Wen Le’s cheek and stood politely to the side. Wen Tianqi approached, his sharp gaze sweeping over the two, seemingly assessing and warning, with an almost intimidating pressure.
Feeling the weight of his gaze, Wen Le’s scalp tingled, her heart sinking. Dad couldn’t have found out, could he…?
Remembering her father’s reminders earlier made Wen Le feel overwhelmed. If he found out…what would happen?
As Wen Tianqi approached, his gaze first lingered on Wen Le, seeming to find nothing amiss, then shifted to Zhou Kao standing beside her.
As Wen Tianqi took in Zhou Kao’s handsome face, he felt a sense of familiarity but also slight disapproval. The familiarity stemmed from having seen that face somewhere before, while the disapproval arose from the fact that young girls always liked good-looking boys. Having this young man with such looks around Wen Le made Wen Tianqi uneasy.
Furthermore, the playful behavior between the two just now seemed overly… intimate.
Wen Tianqi’s sharp gaze was like a knife, seemingly wanting to pierce through to the soul.
Just as Wen Le felt embarrassed and wanted to say something, Wen Tianqi suddenly withdrew his gaze, returning to his usual gentle and elegant demeanour. He smiled at Wen Le and said, “Le Le, is this your classmate? Aren’t you going to introduce him to Dad?”
Seeing that her father was no longer scrutinising Zhou Kao, Wen Le secretly breathed a sigh of relief and glanced up.
Sensing Wen Le’s gaze, Zhou Kao took a step forward and said, “Hello, Uncle. I’m Zhou Kao.”
Hmm?
Wen Tianqi raised an eyebrow, thinking: surnamed Zhou.
Then, as he looked at the boy’s features, Wen Tianqi seemed to finally understand where this familiarity came from.
Sure enough, in the next moment, Zhou Kao said, “My father is Zhou Chengyun. I often heard my father talk about Uncle since I was young, saying that Uncle was the outstanding figure of his generation.”
Flattery knows no bounds, but Zhou Kao earnestly praised Wen Tianqi, probably just to leave a good impression on his future father-in-law.
However, Wen Tianqi clearly wasn’t buying it.
With a faint smile, Wen Tianqi seemed to think of something, his expression becoming complicated and unreadable. He seemed to pay no heed to Zhou Kao’s earlier words.
His indifferent demeanour was far from the usual reaction one would have when hearing praises from a friend’s child.
The air seemed almost stagnant. If it were anyone else, they might feel a bit embarrassed at the moment, but Zhou Kao remained as steady as a rock, smiling humbly and graciously, making it hard not to develop a favourable impression.
Wen Le watched the interaction between the two, feeling as if countless ants were crawling in her heart, causing her agony. After a while, she saw Wen Tianqi relax his expression and return to his usual gentle and refined demeanour, smiling as he said, “So, you’re Chengyun’s son. You’ve grown up so much. Your father and I grew up together since childhood. It’s been so many years since we last met. I wonder how he’s been doing.”
Zhou Kao calmly smiled and replied, “Father’s health has always been good. He mentioned Uncle to me recently. He heard that Uncle returned to the capital and was very happy, saying that he must find an opportunity to have a meal together.”
Wen Tianqi simply said, “Yes, it has been a long time since we last met.”
He then patted Zhou Kao’s shoulder. “Your father was quite a figure back in the day. You’re quite talented as well. Like father, like son.”
Wen Le’s heart skipped a beat as she couldn’t help but glance at her father. No wonder she felt her father’s tone and attitude were somewhat familiar. It turned out that what her father had said to Zhou Kao just now was almost identical to what he had said when he took her to meet the college leaders and teachers earlier.
Thinking of this, Wen Le sighed lightly. Although her father seemed to appreciate Zhou Kao on the surface, it wasn’t as genuine as he appeared. It was just polite greetings, and perhaps even colder and more distant beneath the surface.
Zhou Kao probably sensed Wen Tianqi’s polite distance, so the two bid farewell shortly after their conversation.
Before leaving, Zhou Kao smiled reassuringly at Wen Le when Wen Tianqi wasn’t looking.
Wen Le walked beside Wen Tianqi as they left the school together.
From the school auditorium to the school parking lot, Wen Tianqi didn’t say a word the entire time.
Wen Le secretly glanced at her father, noticing that his expression wasn’t very good. It wasn’t until they got into the car and sat down, with the driver slowly starting the car, that Wen Tianqi’s expression returned to normal.
Wen Le glanced at Wen Tianqi’s improved expression and cautiously struck up a conversation, “Dad, do you know Zhou Kao’s father?”
Wen Tianqi remained silent but instead asked Wen Le, “How did that boy find out about your identity?”
Wen Le’s back stiffened, and her fingers instinctively clenched together. Feeling the pressure of her father’s gaze, Wen Le felt uneasy and whispered, “I told him…”
Wen Tianqi’s voice carried a hint of displeasure. “Are you very close to him?”
Wen Le didn’t know how to respond, so she lied, “We were classmates in high school. We’ve always been competitive. In high school, we competed for the top spot. In college, he was in the student union, and I was in the student council. We’re friends but also rivals. As for my identity, he noticed the necklace I was wearing last time and asked me about it… So, I admitted…”
After finishing her explanation, Wen Le realised that what she said wasn’t exactly a lie; it was all true, except she omitted the fact that Zhou Kao was her boyfriend.
Wen Tianqi frowned slightly at her words, thinking to himself how could Zhou from the Zhou family be Wen Le’s high school classmate? But then he remembered that Zhou Chengyun had indeed been transferred to a remote mountainous area three years ago, and then it all made sense.
Wen Tianqi couldn’t help but think back to the past. Back then, Wen Tianqi and Zhou Chengyun had the kind of relationship Wen Le described, except the only difference was that both he and Zhou Chengyun were boys. So the competition between them was even fiercer than between Wen Le and Zhou Kao. They weren’t friends or sympathisers; they simply couldn’t stand each other.
Because both of them were outstanding in their generation, they were always compared. They had been fierce competitors since kindergarten. Wen Tianqi never expected it would still be the case in their children’s generation.
Wen Tianqi chuckled softly to himself, thinking, The Zhou family just won’t go away.
Looking at Wen Le, he said, “Lele, do you remember what Dad told you before?”
Wen Le nodded.
Satisfied, Wen Tianqi continued, “At your age, studying should still be your priority. Of course, socializing is also important, but you need to discern who can be friends and who should only be acquaintances. And some people are best kept at a distance.”
Wen Tianqi couldn’t help but recall the scene he witnessed earlier today, where Zhou Kao’s hand was about to squeeze Wen Le’s face. He frowned, feeling an urge to chop off that annoying hand.
Continuing in a chilly tone, Wen Tianqi said, “…for example, boys with frivolous behaviour are best kept at a distance. Associating with the wrong people can have a very negative impact on you. Of course, you’re old enough to understand these things, so there’s no need for Dad to say much.”
At first, Wen Le felt a bit guilty upon hearing the first part, but when she heard the latter part about “boys with frivolous behaviour,” those words kept flashing through her mind like a barrage of on-screen comments popping up.
Wen Le had to force herself to contain her laughter in front of her father. She realised that the scene where Zhou Kao wanted to squeeze her face had left a very bad impression on her father. While feeling a bit amused, Wen Le also felt worried.
Zhou Kao, this disappointing guy, managed to leave such a bad impression on Dad at their first meeting, labeling him as a “boy with frivolous behaviour.”
The car drove into the villa area, along the spacious roads, and into the courtyard of the detached villa.
It was hard to imagine such a luxurious villa area in the prime location of Beijing.
Wen Le got out of the car. Looking at the huge villa that resembled a small castle, she once again realised that her family was indeed wealthy.
Wen Tianqi led Wen Le inside while explaining, “We bought this villa several years ago, but because we haven’t been to Beijing much in recent years, it has been vacant. It wasn’t until the year you entered college that Dad remembered to refurbish it. Your room is on the second floor. Go take a look. If there’s anything you’re not satisfied with, let Xiao Yang know, and he’ll take care of it.”
The interior of the villa was magnificently decorated in European style, and Wen Le could tell that it was meticulously designed when the villa was purchased.
Wen Le ascended the stairs to the second floor and entered her room.
It was a huge suite, probably more than 200 square metres just for Wen Le’s room alone.
There were large French windows, beautiful crystal chandeliers, every corner meticulously decorated, and thick carpets covering the floor, creating a soft and warm atmosphere throughout the room.
There was a living room, bedroom, balcony resembling a castle, a huge bathroom, and a walk-in closet.
Wen Le walked into the walk-in closet and saw it filled with brand-new handbags, clothes, and high heels, neatly arranged and occupying three walls entirely. All of them were new items that Wen Le had never worn or used before.
Wen Tianqi said, “These clothes were all prepared for you by Auntie Yu. Recently, I haven’t been sending clothes to you at school because I had Auntie Yu send them all here.”
Looking at those clothes, bags, and shoes, Wen Le felt an overwhelming sense of happiness. What could be more joyful for a girl than seeing a room full of beautiful clothes, shoes, and bags that belong to her?
However, Wen Tianqi immediately demonstrated that there was indeed something even more joyful.
Perhaps Wen Le hadn’t expected it, but the closet door at the far end of the walk-in closet was actually a hidden door.
Wen Tianqi led Wen Le over to open that closet door, revealing a password-protected door inside.
Wen Tianqi entered the password, which Wen Le could clearly see was her lunar birthday.
With a soft click, the password door opened, and Wen Le followed Wen Tianqi inside. The sound-activated lights automatically turned on, nearly dazzling Wen Le’s eyes with the dazzling array of colourful jewels inside.
It was a room filled with jewelry.
Inside, Wen Le saw some jade and ruby jewelry that her father had given her last time, as well as some jewelry she had never seen before.
In this huge room, glass cabinets lined the walls, each filled with such jewels.
Wen Le’s eyes widened, feeling like she was in a dream.
Wen Tianqi looked at his arrangement, very satisfied.
Wen Tianqi couldn’t help but lower his head to look at Wen Le, wanting to know his daughter’s reaction, only to see Wen Le standing quietly in place, saying nothing.
Wen Tianqi couldn’t help feeling a bit nervous and asked Wen Le in a low voice, “Lele, do you like it?”
Wen Le turned to look at her father, her eyes crescent-shaped, sparkling with light.
She could see the care her father had put into this room, every detail, every little decoration, even the flower in the vase was carefully chosen.
Her father’s cautiousness in asking if she liked it resembled that of a clumsy father trying to please his daughter.
Tears welled up in Wen Le’s eyes. “Yes, I like it,” she said earnestly, “I love every bit of it.”
TN: If I had a father who could decorate my room like this, I would love every bit of it too T.T
