Volume One, Chapter 9: Wants to See Me? Is He Worthy!

As soon as Shan Shan returned home, she instantly transformed into a gentle and adorable kitten, leaping straight into Shen Zhi’s arms with a plaintive expression.

“Ah, Zhi Zhi, I’m really sorry. It’s all my dad’s fault—he insisted I deliver some documents early this morning…”

Shen Zhi was busy with official duties but obediently stayed home, waiting patiently.

“By the way, Shan Shan, Fu Nan Feng is back.”

Hearing Fu Nan Feng’s name, Shan Shan suddenly paused in surprise—wasn’t he abroad? Just yesterday, he had reached out to her proactively and even asked after Shen Zhi. She had only replied after settling Shen Zhi down. Unexpectedly, this fellow had flown back to the country early this morning.

“What’s the matter?”

Seeing her stunned, Shen Zhi tilted his head in curiosity.

“N-nothing. Isn’t he supposed to be abroad?”

Shan Shan forced a smile, guessing that it was because she had let slip that Shen Zhi had run away from home, which had lured Fu Nan Feng, the hopeless romantic, back.

“Yes, I find it strange too. He hasn’t been home for almost a year!”

“Have you met him?”

Shan Shan hadn’t expected that during her brief absence, Fu Nan Feng had already sought out Shen Zhi. It seemed likely that He Yun Shen’s earlier anger was connected to him.

Shen Zhi nodded. “Yes, we’ve met.”

Well, they had met. Since Jiang Shan already knew, it wasn’t surprising—Fu Nan Feng’s entire life revolved around two things: music and Shen Zhi.

“Alright, Zhi Zhi, don’t pay him any mind. Come on, I’ll take you out to eat!”

The two exchanged smiles and went out laughing and chatting.

He Yun Shen was feeling gloomy and had planned to meet friends, but just as he was about to leave, he received a call from Chairman Zhou.

“Dad, okay, okay, I understand.”

Zhou Teng had found out about Zhou Qin’s return and her appointment at the company, inviting He Yun Shen and Shen Zhi to bring her home for dinner. He immediately called Zhou Qin.

“Qin Qin, get ready. Dad wants to see you.”

Hearing He Yun Shen’s words, Zhou Qin’s heart trembled. After all these years, it was the first time she heard her father voluntarily say he wanted to see her.

“Today?”

“Yes, I’ll pick you up this afternoon.”

After hanging up, Zhou Qin still found it hard to believe. She had never imagined her father would meet her so soon. An inexplicable fear welled up inside her.

As a child, she had only heard from her mother that her father was a very busy man working far away. But she had never seen him visit her or her mother.

Before she turned fifteen, Zhou Qin had followed her mother moving from city to city, never feeling a trace of familial love or paternal care.

It wasn’t until university that she learned her father was none other than Zhou Teng, the famed chairman of the Zhou Group.

Yet her father refused to acknowledge her, and her mother forbade her from seeking him out.

“Mom, why? Others have fathers, but I don’t! Now that I finally know who my real father is, why won’t you let me meet him?”

Zhou Qin couldn’t understand her mother’s hardship and cried out hoarsely. She had endured over twenty years of hardship running around; she had truly had enough!

It was then she discovered that the boy she had secretly admired for years was actually her brother.

When He Yun Shen was twelve, his mother married her father. That was also the year He Yun Shen moved away from the neighboring house.

She once thought He Yun Shen’s distant attitude was because he was focused on his studies and uninterested in romance.

Finally, when he confessed and said he wanted to bring her home to meet his parents, her mother fled in panic upon seeing He Yun Shen’s father.

“Qin Qin, let’s go. You and he aren’t meant to be!”

At first, Zhou Qin thought her mother’s fear stemmed from insecurity. It wasn’t until she saw the treasured photos and letters that she realized He Yun Shen’s stepfather was actually her biological father.

“Mom, tell me—Zhou Teng—is he really my dad?”

“Stop asking. Who he is doesn’t matter. You have a mother who loves you, and that’s enough…”

At that moment, Zhou Qin broke down. She screamed hoarsely, “It’s not enough! Never enough! If he never acknowledged me from the start, I’d rather not have a father at all!”

More unbearable than meeting her father this way was that He Yun Shen was her brother.

Even if she didn’t mind, how could she be sure He Yun Shen wouldn’t?

From the first time she met He Yun Shen, she had been deeply drawn to him.

Back then, she watched the young He Yun Shen torment himself daily, like a soulless shadow sitting on the doorstep, gazing at the sky.

Just like her, the sky was empty yet comforting.

In this world, she wasn’t the only one lonely and painfully waiting—there was someone who shared her suffering.

She felt she had found a kindred spirit, though they never spoke a word.

But one day, she noticed He Yun Shen had changed.

A smile appeared on his face, and he held a handmade painting and breakfast box from that orphan girl.

She felt her “kindred spirit” had been stolen.

So when He Yun Shen was leaving, carrying a box to bid farewell to the neighbor, she lied.

“She’s not home.”

“You know her? Can you tell me her name?”

Zhou Qin pursed her lips, staring at the wooden box in his hands. “Her name is Gu Man.”

He Yun Shen politely handed the box back. “Could you please give this to her? Tell her I’ll definitely come back for her. Thank you.”

At that time, Zhou Qin still went by her mother’s surname, Gu Man.

He had deceived that innocent little boy, thinking it was just a momentary selfishness, never expecting to meet him again in university.

But he was no longer the gloomy boy he once was; he was outstanding and excellent, a high-and-mighty scion of a wealthy family.

From the first time Zhou Qin saw him at the manga club, she recognized him as that little boy.

He kept drawing the same picture repeatedly.

It depicted their old neighborhood.

A long-haired girl holding a box full of breakfast.

She recognized it immediately.

Afterward, she would often appear near He Yun Shen, deliberately exposing her identity to catch his attention.

When He Yun Shen learned her name was Gu Man, at first he doubted it was the same person, thinking it was just a coincidence.

But when Zhou Qin mentioned childhood details, he was convinced she was the little girl from back then.

She knew this love was stolen and guarded it carefully.

Yet the grown-up He Yun Shen didn’t seem to like the current her much.

He only kept reminiscing about childhood. Zhou Qin knew well that what he longed for was the past, not the present her.

This left her frustrated, and she vowed to win all of He Yun Shen’s love.

If her mother hadn’t recognized her father, perhaps she would have been the one to marry He Yun Shen!

A father she’d never met, who had never shown her any affection, had even destroyed the love she had painstakingly built the moment they met.

If not for him, none of this tragedy would have happened.

“He wants to see me? Does he even deserve that?”

A dark, cunning gleam flashed in Zhou Qin’s eyes. She proudly took out a mirror to touch up her makeup, deliberately applying a striking shade of bright red lipstick.