Upon hearing this, Liu Yinggui, Chen Zhong, and Yang Linzhi instantly hit the roof.
"What? You say no way, and that's it? Even though your name is on the deed, this house truly belongs to us. Like it or not, you're going to hand it over," Liu Yinggui threatened Chen Zhezhe. Chen Zhezhe gave her a disdainful glance and remained silent.
Chen Zhong lowered his voice. "Chen Zhezhe, we're all family, so let's not talk as if we're outsiders. Don't let a matter over a house tear us apart like this. It's just not worth it!"
How utterly shameless!
When the house wasn't worth much, they wanted money. Now that the house was valuable, they wanted to take it back.
When he and his sister had fallen on hard times, these people had never treated them like family. Chen Zhezhe didn't even care that much about the apartment, but rather than let this bunch of relatives live here, he'd rather burn it to the ground.
"There's nothing to discuss!" Chen Zhezhe refused to give an inch!
"Chen Zhezhe, we're brothers, but there are some things I need to make crystal clear. You know what I do for a living. I can't force you if you refuse, but don't come crying to me if you end up missing a limb or two down the road!" Chen Zhong threatened with a dark expression.
"Get lost!"
Chen Zhezhe spat out the single word from the corner of his mouth and couldn't be bothered to look at them another second.
"You'll pay for this!" Chen Zhong pointed viciously at Chen Zhezhe, grabbed a disgruntled Yang Linzhi, and stormed out, slamming the door behind them.
"Sigh! Really, Yangyang, we're all family—how can you be so heartless? You know how Xiao Zhong's temper is, this isn't good for you either. What if something happens..." Liu Yinggui deployed her silver tongue, still refusing to give up on her persuasion.
"Get lost!"
Chen Zhezhe turned around, pulled Qin Xin back into the bedroom, and said, "Shut the door tight."
"Some people never shed a tear until they see the coffin, hmph!" Liu Yinggui slammed the door shut. On her way downstairs, she spotted Chen Zhong and Yang Linzhi waiting for her.
"Xiao Zhong, the kid is completely immune to both hard and soft tactics. What should we do?" Liu Yinggui glared bitterly up at the window of Chen Zhezhe's apartment.
Chen Zhong took a fierce drag of his cigarette, tossed the more-than-half-smoked butt onto the ground, and ground it out viciously with his heel. "I'll handle this, you just stay out of it. Get the furniture ready anyway—we're coming to take the apartment in a week."
With that, Chen Zhong pressed his key fob, and a silver Bora parked a short distance away let out a sharp beep.
"Let's go!"
"Oh, Xiao Zhong, I'm telling you not to be too heavy-handed. After all, we're family!" Fearing things would go too far, Liu Yinggui wiggled her barrel-shaped waist over to the car, pulled open the door, and squeezed herself into the tight space with a groan...
Back in the bedroom, Chen Zhezhe pulled over a chair and stared blankly at a photo sitting on the computer desk.
"Hey, hey!" Qin Xin waved her hand right in front of his face. "Were those people all your relatives?"
"Yeah."
Qin Xin squatted down in front of Chen Zhezhe. "Those people are terrifying. Looks like relatives are completely useless—good thing I don't have any, I'm an orphan!" She grinned ear-to-ear, completely carefree.
The photo Chen Zhezhe was staring at was a family portrait taken when his parents were still alive.
He was still just a baby in it, with his parents leaning in close. His sister, Chen Qi, who was only eight years old at the time, was holding him. Chen Zhezhe's vision began to blur.
"Are these your parents?"
Qin Xin pointed at the photo. "Is this you? No, wait, this one is a girl—must be your sister?"
Chen Zhezhe nodded.
Qin Xin cheered and clapped. "So this little baby is you! You're so tiny, and you're even wearing split-crotch pants. Haha, how funny..."
Chen Zhezhe's face nearly turned dark. This woman really had no tact; can't she read the room when a guy is feeling depressed?
Ignoring Chen Zhezhe's gloomy mood, Qin Xin kept pointing and chattering. "Your sister is so pretty! Oh? I noticed she looks just like your dad—very heroic-looking. You take after your mother, the refined type."
Chen Zhezhe remained speechless...
"You and your sister must have been very close, right?" Qin Xin continued.
"I suppose so. Ever since our parents passed away, it's just been the two of us against the world," Chen Zhezhe replied.
"Then where is your sister?"
At that moment, Chen Zhezhe suddenly felt an urge for a cigarette. He didn't usually smoke; it was bad for his health. He only ever lit up one or two when he was feeling exceptionally good or exceptionally bad. He opened the drawer and found half a pack.
There was no lighter, only a box of matches. Qin Xin eagerly helped him light the cigarette.
He shot her a wary look. "What are you plotting?"
"As if!" Qin Xin said, feeling a bit guilty. "I just... I never had any family growing up, so I have no idea what having relatives feels like! Except for my master and fellow disciples, I mean. Can you tell me about your sister?"
Actually, a part of Chen Zhezhe also felt like opening up.
"My sister is eight years older than me. When we were kids, we didn't actually get along—we fought all the time. Well, mostly she beat me up. She was always taller than me, and no matter how hard I struggled, I couldn't beat her. Five years ago, my parents died, and our other relatives drifted away. That was when we realized we were probably each other's closest kin.
My parents actually favored my sister more because she studied better and was more like them. Unlike me, I barely paid attention in class during primary school. My sister was always at the top of her class. If things had gone on like that, she would've gotten into a national key university, whereas I—living like I do now—would at best manage a second-rate one.
But when our parents passed away, we had no money. The savings they left behind weren't enough for both of us to keep studying. Then my sister said: 'You go to college.' Of course I disagreed, because she was the smart one, and if I went, it would waste her chance to get an education.
She said: 'I'm the man of the house. A man with no money has no future if he doesn't go to school, but a woman without an education can still find a good husband.'
She didn't give me any room to argue. Then she went south to work, and I went to college here. Later on, I worked hard and got into university. Every month she sends me allowance money, starting from three or four hundred back then up to two thousand now.
She refuses to send me more because she's afraid I'll waste it and pick up bad habits, but she won't send me less either, for fear I won't have enough to spend... Oh shit! It's already half past five! We're supposed to go out for dinner tonight. Damn it, there's no time, I have to hail a cab."
Chen Zhezhe had been so engrossed in his story that he hadn't realized how fast time was flying.
Hearing only half of it, Qin Xin felt somewhat unsatisfied, but Chen Zhezhe's dinner appointment was non-negotiable. Even though she didn't like the idea of a woman treating him to a meal, seeing how rich Jiang Chen was—and how deeply punchable he seemed—taking him for all he was worth was practically doing a public service.
Besides...besides, that Shen Rong wasn't bad on the eyes either!
Chen Zhezhe sprang to his feet, quickly tidying up his things while warning Qin Xin, "Remember, don't open the door no matter who knocks. I'll be right back. Just kill some time watching a movie on the computer, and I'll bring you back something to eat!"
"Alright, got it!" Qin Xin replied impatiently.
Closing the door, Chen Zhezhe rushed downstairs like a storm and headed out to the street, raising a hand to flag down a taxi.
He had forgotten that this was the exact time Jiangcheng City's taxi drivers switched shifts. The drivers were all busy handing over their cabs, and coupled with the evening rush hour, traffic was a mess, making it extremely difficult to catch a ride.
"Damn it, looks like I just saved Jiang Chen a meal today!"
Chen Zhezhe stomped his feet in frustration, but there was nothing he could do.
Huh?
There's an empty one.
A taxi saw Chen Zhezhe waving and pulled over, but unfortunately, there was a female student from Jiangcheng University hailing a cab just a few steps ahead of him. The girl was wearing a short skirt and dressed to the nines—it was none other than Liu Huanhuan.
The taxi driver deftly bypassed Chen Zhezhe and pulled up right beside Liu Huanhuan. Before getting into the car, Liu Huanhuan even gave Chen Zhezhe a triumphant wave of her hand.
Damn it, being a guy is tough; even hailing a cab subjects you to gender discrimination!
There's no helping it—everyone wants a pretty young thing sitting next to them to look at, even if she's not much to write home about, it's still way better than hauling around a scruffy, wretched-looking dude.
Cursing and stamping his feet, he watched ten whole minutes fly by.
A Honda Accord zipped past and pulled up right at the gates of Jiangcheng University. A man in a full suit stepped out and gave his car key a slick press, followed by a beep.
It was Wang Dong, the teacher Chen Zhezhe had infuriated earlier that day.
Hah, driving a car makes you a big shot now?
Wang Dong was dressed with exceptional flair today, holding a massive bouquet of roses. He stared anxiously into the campus, occasionally glancing down at his Omega watch.
Catching sight of Chen Zhezhe, he let out a light huff and gave the body of his beloved car a gentle pat.
Looks like Wang Dong is waiting for a woman.
"I hope he bombs today, I hope the woman totally ghosts him, and best of all, I hope she throws herself into my arms instead—so I can reject her!"
He checked his cheap domestic cartoon watch. It was 5:45 PM. Even if a taxi showed up now, it was already too late.
Still, he might as well stick around and see which woman it was!
A silver Porsche Cayenne slowly rolled out from the campus. Chen Zhezhe had great eyesight and saw through the windshield that the driver was a woman wearing sunglasses. Her chin and face looked awfully familiar, though he couldn't quite place who she was.
Seeing Wang Dong standing right there, the Porsche came to a stop. Wang Dong hurried up to it, and the Porsche's window slowly lowered.
Wang Dong bent down, smiled, and handed over the bouquet. The woman inside nodded, took the flowers, and said, "I'll take these!"
Seeing the girl accept his flowers, Wang Dong's face lit up with wild ecstasy. "Tonight we'll go eat—"
The woman had already turned her face away...
Still, the fact that she accepted his flowers meant he still had a shot.
Wang Dong glanced at Chen Zhezhe, smiling smugly, feeling like his trip today had paid off after all.
Then the Porsche slowly pulled over to the roadside, and the beauty inside, right in front of Wang Dong, forcefully and accurately tossed his bouquet straight into a trash can. The smile froze right on Wang Dong's face—
Chen Zhezhe let out a sudden snort of laughter.
He couldn't help it; Wang Dong's expression just now had been way too rich.
His prayer from a moment ago had actually come true.
Seeing that spectacle was enough excitement for one day. The idea of that woman throwing herself into his arms was out of the question now, so Chen Zhezhe figured he'd just head back—hanging out with Qin Xin was pretty fun anyway.
Vroom...
A 4.8-liter displacement was undeniably obnoxious. With the melodious roar of its engine, that Porsche Cayenne pulled up right in front of Chen Zhezhe. The window hadn't been rolled up yet, and the woman inside leaned her head out, her voice crisp and pleasant with a hint of seductive gentleness: "Where are you going? Want a ride?"
Chen Zhezhe's jaw dropped as he stared blankly at the girl. She was gorgeous, but did he even know her?
Seeing Chen Zhezhe giving her a thorough, hard look, the girl leaned forward slightly, her eyebrows knitting together in a look of mild grievance: "We literally just met today, how could you already forget? You can't just go around hurting people's feelings like that!"
With her leaning forward like that, the full curves of her chest were practically bursting out, and a flash of insight struck Chen Zhezhe's mind.
"Ah, I remember now, you're the nurse from the campus clinic who dressed my wound today..."
Right under Wang Dong's glare of pure fury, Chen Zhezhe pulled open the passenger-side door and plopped right inside.