Chapter 78: CH 78

Although the planning process met with a lot of issues, the engagement banquet was still held on schedule.

Naturally, it was all due to the efforts of Fu Changming and his wife after they found out about the problems when the planning was halfway through.  Fu Mingheng, who was unaware he was causing a disturbance, was eventually pulled by his ears and brought home by his parents.  The parents contacted a professional studio abroad who worked overtime on it and finally resolved the matter.

The night before the engagement banquet, Wen Ruan was so nervous that for the first time in her life, she could not sleep.

She was not even nervous on the day the college entrance examination result was supposed to be announced.

After tossing and rolling on the bed a few times, she still could not suppress the fire that was burning in her heart.  Finally, she got up, put on a coat, and went out for a walk in the courtyard.

After staying in the cold wind for a while, the restlessness in her body eventually subsided a little.

Wen Ruan stood beside the stone path, rubbed her hands together, and breathed in lightly as her thoughts started to surge.

She suddenly thought of the photo she saw in Fu Zhihuan’s house.

The photo that was taken in the basketball hall of her high school.

Although the shot was very blurry, the young man’s sharp and decisive eyes could still be seen faintly.  With his action of throwing the ball, his shirt was slightly lifted and a strong waist was exposed.

It was just a photo but recalling the scene, Wen Ruan’s throat felt inexplicably numb.

Suddenly, she started to think…….

In high school, if she had not skipped the basketball match and gone to the canteen to buy a popsicle and hid in the classroom to play the game ‘King of Glory’ with her classmates ……..would she have met Fu Zhihuan earlier?

And would they have gotten together earlier?

At this moment, her phone vibrated and she received a message.

[Fu Zhihuan]:  Not asleep yet?

Wen Ruan was surprised and replied.

[Wen Ruan]:  How did you know?

As soon as the message was sent, the screen on her phone flashed and a WeChat phone number immediately popped out.

She jumped with fright, her hands trembled, and then the call was quickly connected.

“Hello?”

Fu Zhihuan’s voice sounded magnetic and husky and it made her ears tremble.

With a smile, he asked.  “Why are you still awake?”

Feeling a little guilty, she rubbed her feet against the stones on the ground.  She was embarrassed to say that she was nervous and so she spouted nonsense.

“No, I was about to sleep but was woken up by you.”

He laughed meaningfully and his voice sounded ambiguous and gentle.

“Really?”

“……”

She changed the subject and asked him a question in return to hide her embarrassment.

“Why ask me when you’re also not asleep yet?”

“Um, because I am missing you.”  Fu Zhihuan replied lightly.

The straightforward words made Wen Ruan speechless for a moment.  She opened her mouth and suddenly felt a little annoyed in her heart.

It seems that whenever there is this kind of verbal provocation between the both of them, she had never won once.

She took a deep breath, pulled the jacket around her tightly, and continued to walk with her head lowered.

She did not know why when she heard his voice, her heart that was feeling restless just now due to her wild thoughts gradually calmed down.

“Why did you call me all of a sudden?”  She asked.

“Because there’s something I want to show you.”

“What?”

Fu Zhihuan said.  “Lift your head.”

Wen Ruan was slightly startled and looked up.

Tonight the sky is devoid of dark clouds and the moon is bright.  There are even a few more stars that are rarely seen which complemented the originally lonely night scene as though the whole sky has suddenly turned resplendent.

She laughed and spoke words that were not true to her heart.

“Are you this outdated?”

What era is it now?  Still playing the trick of ‘the moonlight looks beautiful’?

Fu Zhihuan was also laughing but stopped after a long while and said very seriously word by word.

“That was actually only an excuse.”

“Excuse?”

“Mm……”  Fu Zhihuan continued.  “…….Because I just wanted to listen to your voice.”

Those words were like the wind carrying the feeling of spring, blowing across the mountains and ridges to break into her heart.  It felt like the desolation in her heart had turned into blooming spring blossoms.

Sometimes Fu Zhihuan is indeed good at talking.

Every word of his could throw one’s heart into a total mess.

However, Wen Ruan never felt that he might be lying to her and perhaps it was because every word from him carried seriousness, or maybe whenever she looked into his eyes, she could see herself very clearly.

Wen Ruan also said softly.  “…….Well, I miss you a little too.”

After saying this, she felt a little shy again and hurriedly added.  “I’m hanging up.”

Then when she was prepared to hang up……….

Fu Zhihuan, who was on the other end of the line, laughed softly and said slowly.

“Little kid, don’t stand outside in the wind, you’ll catch a cold.”

“…?…”

Wen Ruan was shocked and stopped.

“Is this also a guess?”

“Mm…….”  Fu Zhihuan replied lazily.  “It’s a guess.”

Perhaps it was because the wind was a little cold, so she rubbed her arms and sneezed.  Then she went back into the house and returned to the room.

It was just that the call that she wanted to end was still on as she was reluctant to do so.

It was only after dawdling until it was almost eleven o’clock that she asked in a soft voice.

“Why are you still not asleep yet?”

“Mm, I’m about to sleep.”

She nodded.  “Okay, see you tomorrow.”

“But it’s alright if I don’t sleep…….”  Fu Zhihuan chuckled lightly and dragged on the last word of the sentence.  “Unless you tell me that you wish to see me.”

…….What is this?

Wen Ruan thought about it carefully.  Based on her character, she would have hung up after saying a few stubborn words but she did not know why she replied.

“I do feel like I want to see you.”

However, the other end of the line suddenly became quiet.  After calling out to him on the phone, Wen Ruan did not hear any reply except for some rustling and knocking sounds.

Just as when she was at a loss, Fu Zhihuan’s voice sounded again on the phone.

“Open the window.”

She was stunned.  She walked over to the window, opened it, and looked out.

Then she saw the familiar car outside the courtyard.

Fu Zhihuan was leaning against the car door and slowly waving to her.

The wind blew through the street and the leaves swayed with rustling sounds.  In the hazy night, Fu Zhihuan’s figure was exceptionally clear.

He was standing beside the car, tall and straight.  Even though he was quite far away, one could still see his extraordinary temperament.

Wen Ruan suddenly felt like crying.  Her nose turned sour and a few crystal droplets of tears appeared in her eyes.

Fu Zhihuan lowered his eyes with a smile and his voice was gentle and clear.

“See you tomorrow.”

She inhaled deeply, suppressed the urge to cry, and said with a smile.

“Um, see you tomorrow.”

***☆☆☆***

A great number of guests were invited to attend this engagement banquet but Wen Ruan and Fu Zhihuan were not familiar with most of them.

At the start of the banquet, both of them were very busy receiving their individual friends.

“You sent Earl to my house and told me to keep it with me and you came here to chase after girls?  It seems you were only asking me on how to chase girls about ten days ago but why are you getting engaged now?”

Zhao Zichen shook hands with Fu Zhihuan then gritted his teeth and said.

“Did you know that I was almost killed by Earl at home?  Do you see the scratches on my arm?  He did all these and you will have to reimburse all the expenses to me.”

Fu Zhihuan asked.  “Where’s your gift, the red envelope?”

“…?…”

Zhao Zichen had a questioning look on his face.  He took a deep breath and had the urge to reach out his hand to pinch Fu Zhihuan’s neck.

“You’re a f**king young master and an heir of a wicked capitalist wealthy family that lives in a villa!  You’re actually asking me, a poor wage earner, for a red envelope?  Don’t you feel ashamed?!”

Fu Zhihuan nodded and thought for a while.

“So where’s your gift?”

Zhao Zichen almost could not breathe.  He angrily pulled out a red envelope from his pocket and slapped it on Fu Zhihuan’s hand.

“Here!  This is the end of our friendship!”

Fu Zhihuan laughed.  He folded the red envelope in half, tucked it back into Zhao Zichen’s pocket, and said casually.

“Just kidding.”

Zhao Zichen was very touched.

“No, a gift should be given.”

Fu Zhihuan lifted his eyes and said.  “No, the main reason is that the color of the red envelope doesn’t match my suit.  Later, you can transfer the money to me.”

“…….”

Damn stingy!

Zhao Zhichen patted his chest angrily and then suddenly seemed to have remembered something and raised his head to look around.  He successfully caught sight of Simon who was bragging to a group of beautiful elder sisters in a corner.

“Yesterday, I got 200 percent for my test!”

“And my shooting is excellent.  Do you know about the balloon shooting game in the amusement park?  I’ve never failed!”

“Sister is so beautiful.  I like big sister the most and you’re so gentle!”

The group of women felt very happy being coaxed by the obedient little boy.  They surrounded him in a circle and rubbed his head intimately.

“Little brother is really awesome.”

Zhao Zichen was silent for a while.  “……”

Fu Zhihuan followed his gaze and lifted his eyebrows.

“If you are half as good as him in speaking, you wouldn’t still be single now.”

“Shut up!”

Zhao Zichen’s eyes darkened and walked to the middle of the group of people.  He grabbed Jiang Zishen’s arm and then dragged and brought him to stand in front of Fu Zhihuan.

“Come over to greet your uncle.”

Jiang Zishen’s father had almost recovered but it was not suitable for him to run around, so he had asked Zhao Zichen to bring Jiang Zishen to attend the engagement banquet.

Jiang Zishen lifted his head and stared at Fu Zhihuan for a long time.  Then he said arrogantly.  “I’m going to snatch back Sister Wen Ruan!”

“…?…”

Fu Zhihuan smiled and said.  “Zhao Zichen, throw this child out.”

***☆☆☆***

Qin Sushan attended the engagement banquet with Qin Ziran.

Ever since Wen Ruan picked up Jiang Zishen from school and discovered that his teacher was her university senior, Qin Ziran who had a crush on Qin Sushan, she kept creating opportunities for the two people to meet.

Unexpectedly, Qin Sushan had always been interested in this senior as well, so after the two of them met, their relationship progressed rapidly.

During the time when Wen Ruan was in Tong City, their relationship had successfully elevated to a new level.

As soon as Qin Sushan and Wen Ruan met, they hugged each other and cried.  First, they enthusiastically expressed missing each other, then sincerely recounted old times for a while and finally, complained about their boyfriends fiercely and in the end………

“You said that if you and Fu Zhihuan get together, you’ll become a dog.”

After Qin Sushan had completed the series of steps of a reunion with her best friend after a long absence, she quickly pulled out her phone.  Her expression changed and she turned on the recording on the phone.

“Okay, you can start barking now.”

Wen Ruan:  “…?…”

Sisters indeed!

After joking around for a while, Qin Sushan who drank a lot of juice could not hold back any longer and rushed to the toilet.

When Qin Ziran saw that Qin Sushan had left, he took a deep breath, turned around, and bowed sincerely to Wen Ruan.

“Miss Wen, thanks for your help in creating opportunities for me.”

Wen Ruan did not take it to heart at all.

“It’s all because Qin Sushan showed interest in you.  if it is someone else, I might not have helped.”

Then she paused and added quietly.  “However, if you really want to thank me, you can transfer money to me.”

“……”

Why are rich people such misers nowadays?

Upon hearing this, Qin Ziran laughed dumbly then nodded and said politely.

“When Miss Wen returns to Jiang City, I’ll definitely treat you to a meal.”

“Who are you treating?”

At this moment, a lazy voice suddenly said.

Fu Zhihuan was leaning against the table not far away with his arms folded.  His brows were raised and there seemed to be some impatience in his eyes.  It was a simple question but was full of meaning.

He remembered this man Qin Ziran.

Simon’s class teacher……..Wen Ruan’s senior in university…….and he had even touched his girlfriend’s head at the school gate………