Chapter 28: Lend Me Twenty Thousand

Chapter 28: Lend Me Two Hundred Thousand

They talked on the phone for nearly half an hour. Although Zhao Yu described his life back home like a hidden paradise, Guo Lin was still worried about him. They didn't hang up until Meng Qi was about to be late for class.

Zhao Yu hadn't even had a chance to collect himself when his phone rang again—this time it was Chen Li. He glanced at it and let it ring—three times in total—without picking up.

Ten minutes later, Zhou Lan texted him: Where are you? Chen says she can't reach you.

Zhao Yu: What does she want?

Zhou Lan: I don't know. If you'd rather not see her, I'll just say I can't reach you either.

Zhao Yu hesitated briefly: I'll call her back.

He was annoyed by Chen Li, but he didn't want to cause trouble for Zhou Lan by disappearing. As long as his agreement with Chen Li wasn't over, poor Zhou Lan would be stuck in the middle, caught between both sides.

He called Chen Li and got straight to the point: "What's the matter?"

Chen Li said, "I'm almost at the east gate of the complex. Come out and meet me."

"I'm at Gu Hansheng's."

"I know."

"What's so important that it can't be said over the phone?"

"I'm already almost there. Just come out and meet me."

Not knowing what kind of trouble Chen Li was about to stir up for him, Zhao Yu still went out.

Chen Li was waiting outside the east gate, leaning against her car, deep in thought. When she saw him come out, she gave him a wan smile: "Xiao Yu, I knew you'd still be willing to see me."

Zhao Yu stopped about a meter away from her: "Just tell me—what's this really about?"

"You haven't been home, so I don't know how you're doing. Zhou Lan told me you got into a fight and got hurt. You feeling better now?"

She suddenly put on a show of concern, but the fight was ages ago, and she was only now putting on an act. Zhao Yu wasn't falling for it: "If you don't care, don't bother faking it. Just tell me—what do you want from me this time?"

Chen Li was quiet for a moment, then said in a low voice, "It's not that I don't care about you. It's just that your grandfather passed away, and I got swamped all of a sudden."

She suddenly brought up someone Zhao Yu barely even remembered. Even hearing about his death, Zhao Yu could hardly muster any emotion.

Chen Li continued, "I went back a while ago to take care of his funeral arrangements. Watching your grandfather get wheeled into the crematorium broke my heart."

"How did he die?" Zhao Yu asked.

"Sick. He was old and his health was already bad. He'd been bedridden for years, so it was kind of a relief." She looked at Zhao Yu: "I've thought about it a lot. Using Guo Lin to threaten you—I'm sorry."

After experiencing her own father's death, Chen Li's cold heart finally began to crack. Only after experiencing the pain of losing a loved one did she understand why Zhao Yu was so afraid of Guo Lin dying and why he'd gone to such lengths to save her.

"She must have taken care of you a lot over the years, huh?" Chen Li said.

"Yeah."

"When I have some time later, I'll go see her too."

"Don't bother."

"Xiao Yu, I know you resent me, but I really want to make things right."

Zhao Yu picked his ear: "I feel like I've heard that line before. How many times are you gonna say it before you actually do something?"

"Once this period passes..."

"How long is 'this period'? A day, a week, a year? Or until Gu Hansheng gets bored of me?"

Chen Li's expression flickered: "Do you have to be so harsh? Mom is trying to have a real conversation with you."

"Conversation? Your dad died, so why are you trying to guilt-trip me?"

"Zhao Yu! He was your grandfather too—your own flesh and blood!"

"Didn't you cut me out of the Chen family when you got divorced? Who do I even have left in this world?"

Chen Li was at a loss for words, her tone suddenly going soft: "I don't get why every time we talk it turns into a fight... Will you at least go pay your respects at your grandfather's grave? Before he died, he was still thinking about you and Xitong."

Zhao Yu turned his head away: "No."

"I know you hate me, but your grandfather doted on you. He held you way more than he ever held Xitong. Anything you wanted, he'd always buy it for you. Go visit his grave—put his mind at ease."

"I said no. Your family's stuff has nothing to do with me."

"Xiao Yu, I'm begging you."

Zhao Yu let out a cold laugh: "Give me two hundred grand, and I'll go."

Chen Li's eyes widened in disbelief: "How can you put a price on something like this? How... how could you say something like that?!"

"Why not? Or are you saying your dad isn't worth two hundred grand..."

"Smack!"

A slap landed across Zhao Yu's face. His head snapped to the side, and a red mark immediately spread across his cheek. Chen Li's chest heaved with rage, her hands shaking.

At that moment, a black Maybach pulled up and slowly stopped in front of them. The window rolled down, and Gu Hansheng rested his arm on the window frame with a knowing smirk: "Looks like I came back at a bad time."

Neither Zhao Yu nor Chen Li said anything. They could argue all they wanted, but having a third party present was always awkward.

However, Gu Hansheng was never the type to leave just because the atmosphere was tense. Not only did he not leave, he even fanned the flames: "Is there a second round? You can continue at my place."

Chen Li's face couldn't take it anymore: "This is my family matter. Please stay out of it, Mr. Gu."

Gu Hansheng smiled: "Did I hear that wrong, Chen? You don't really think I spent all that money out of charity, do you? You touched something of mine—how is that your family matter?"

His implication was that Chen Li had already sold Zhao Yu to him, and Chen Li's expression grew even uglier. This was the first time she'd heard with her own ears how Gu Hansheng treated Zhao Yu like a purchasable object—and this kind of humiliation was just Zhao Yu's daily reality.

Her heart suddenly clenched painfully. She bent down and forced a smile at Gu Hansheng: "Mr. Gu, Xiao Yu isn't feeling well. Let me take him home to rest for a few days."

"Is that so?" Gu Hansheng looked at Zhao Yu.

"I'm fine," Zhao Yu said.

"Xiao Yu!" Chen Li was frantic.

Gu Hansheng cut in: "Chen, I just cleaned up the injuries on his face. Please be careful—I hate it when people touch my things. If the company isn't busy enough for you, I don't mind finding you something to do." Then he ordered Zhao Yu: "Get in the car."

Zhao Yu opened the door and got in.

Chen Li didn't understand why he'd rather go with Gu Hansheng than listen to her, and she didn't dare stop Gu Hansheng's car either. She could only watch as he drove Zhao Yu away. Her palm stung fiercely, and suddenly she deeply regretted slapping Zhao Yu just now.

After getting home, Gu Hansheng took a bottle of iced water from the fridge and tossed it over to Zhao Yu. Zhao Yu, puzzled, politely unscrewed the cap and took a sip, saying, "Thanks."

"It's for your face, not your mouth."

"...Oh."

Gu Hansheng didn't ask why they had been arguing, maybe because he didn't care. Zhao Yu quietly sat down on the sofa and held the bottle against his face, where condensation dripped off the bottle and ran down his wrist into his sleeve.

Chen Li's slap didn't really hurt that much; she was petite and not very strong, and the red mark on Zhao Yu's face had already faded by the time they got back. Gu Hansheng hadn't needed to intervene, yet he had, and he'd even put Chen Li in her place.

But in a way, he had actually stood up for Zhao Yu, which made Zhao Yu feel even more conflicted.

The red mark on Zhao Yu's face soon disappeared completely. Once he'd calmed down, he replayed what Chen Li had said in his head. He truly couldn't recall what his grandpa looked like anymore, but he vaguely remembered running around like crazy at his grandpa's house as a kid—stuff Chen Li wouldn't let him eat at home, his grandpa would secretly buy for him and Chen Xitong.

Maybe he should go visit the grave.

With that in mind, he called Zhou Lan to get the address of the cemetery where his grandfather was buried.

The next morning, as Zhao Yu was about to head out, a delivery guy happened to be hauling several big boxes to the door. Zhao Yu glanced at them, noticing one box with a big "Happy Birthday" printed on it.

He asked the housekeeper, "Auntie, is Mr. Gu's birthday coming up?"

The housekeeper said, "It should be next Friday. Gifts start showing up about a week early every year. You coming back for lunch?"

"No, don't bother saving me anything." Zhao Yu checked the time and hurried out.

Zhou Lan was waiting outside the gated community, and surprisingly, Chen Li wasn't there.

Zhou Lan said, "Ms. Chen was worried you'd feel awkward seeing her, so she didn't come. She bought all the stuff for the grave and asked me to bring it to you."

"She actually thought of that?"

Zhou Lan smiled and turned to look at him. "How's it going at Gu Hansheng's place?"

Zhao Yu scratched the faint scar on his arm. "Pretty good. How about you? Getting bored without me?"

"Not really, just been working."

"Come on, isn't it way more fun with me around? Chen Li wouldn't even drink with you!" Zhao Yu slapped his arm playfully.

"Now that you mention it, wanna grab a drink tonight?"

"Quit."

"Why?"

"It gets me in trouble."

They made small talk in the car, and Zhou Lan glanced at him from the corner of his eye, seeing how energetic he was, slowly feeling relieved.

Zhao Yu was highly adaptable, finding a way to make it work in any situation. Zhou Lan knew him well, yet still often worried.

They entered the cemetery together. Zhao Yu swept the fallen leaves off his grandpa's tombstone, set out the offerings Chen Li had prepared, and stared at the elderly man's portrait on the stone, momentarily at a loss for words. Finally, he said, "Chen Xitong couldn't make it, so I'm here in his place. Please bless him with good health and a speedy recovery."

Zhou Lan asked, "Why not ask him to bless you too?"

"He's probably forgotten me by now. No point in asking for myself." Zhao Yu turned and walked down the steps. "Let's go, Assistant Zhou, time for hotpot. Got any recommended places?"

"Let's go, my treat."

"You always pay—how embarrassing. This time it's on me."

"Do you even have money? Didn't you send it all to that auntie of yours?"

"I've got enough for a meal."

They went for hotpot together, and afterward, Zhou Lan wanted to buy a wedding gift for his sister, so Zhao Yu accompanied him to a jewelry store.

The glass display cases were filled with dazzling ornaments. While the clerk made recommendations to Zhou Lan, Zhao Yu's attention was caught by a pair of champagne-gold buttons. They featured a brushed finish, with fine patterns that shimmered from certain angles and appeared understated from others. The moment Zhao Yu saw them, he inexplicably felt they would make perfect cufflinks. And immediately, Gu Hansheng's face flashed in his mind.

A clerk noticed him staring intently at the gold buttons and approached, saying, "Would you like to take a look at the gold accessories? I can show them to you."

Zhao Yu asked, "Can these be made into cufflinks?"

"This style can, but there's an additional crafting fee. Turning them into cufflinks would take three to five days."

"How much with the crafting fee?"

"Around twenty thousand."

Even if Zhao Yu emptied his pockets, he couldn't scrape together three thousand. He'd only asked casually, so he dropped the subject.

After Zhou Lan finished his purchase, they walked a short distance from the store when Zhao Yu suddenly stopped, hesitated for a long moment, and asked, "Assistant Zhou, could you lend me twenty thousand?"