"Hey? The girl who saved me last time, we just happened to run into each other." Zhou Zhou smiled helplessly, "Okay, okay, I'll go home early."
After hanging up the phone, Zhou Zhou said, "So sensitive." The complaint was actually sweet in tone, and after saying that, she unconsciously glanced at the bag containing the expensive tie on the table.
Xie Ying watched his every move, but she seemed lost in thought, sipping the complimentary iced water from the restaurant. She only put down her glass when he hung up the phone.
"Was that your lover just now?" Xie Ying asked casually, her left hand stroking the teardrop-shaped crystal pendant on her right bracelet. "You two seem to have a good relationship, don't you?"
"Yes, I originally planned to treat you to a meal to thank you, but we haven't had the time yet." Zhou Zhou chuckled softly and sat back down.
"Really?" Xie Ying looked him up and down, then glanced at Fu Xiaofan, repeating Fu Xiaofan's surname over and over again, seemingly lost in thought.
"Miss Xie?" The other party's behavior was too obvious, and Zhou Zhou couldn't pretend to be indifferent. "Is there anything you want to say?"
"Um... there is something."
Zhou Zhou's phone was the latest model, which would enlarge the caller's name on the screen when a call came in. Xie Ying glanced at it when she handed it over, and paused when she saw the three big characters "Fu Hengzhi". After thinking for a while, she decided to ask him.
"It's very impolite, but I just accidentally saw a call coming in on my phone... Is your partner the president of the Fu Group?" Xie Ying looked Zhou Zhou up and down, and pursed her lips after he nodded.
The other person's expression confused Zhou Zhou.
"Miss Xie, do you know my husband?"
"I guess we know each other." Xie Ying said a little awkwardly, taking a sip of ice water and looking out the window. "My family has only arranged blind dates for me."
"..." A long silence ensued at the table. Fu Xiaofan was still folding his napkin. After a moment of silence, Zhou Zhou asked calmly, "When?"
Xie Ying felt inexplicably embarrassed, as if she were the third party who had interfered. "It was only about half a month ago."
[Author's Note: Fu Xiaofan: I already told you not to buy Daddy ties for 55,000 yuan, just buy me clothes instead.]
Chapter Ninety-Four: I've Come to See My Eldest Grandson
!
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More than half a month ago, when he was still in the hospital, Fu Hengzhi stayed with him in the ward every night, practically moving his office to the ward to be with him all the time.
Since Zhou Zhou requires the other party to trust him wholeheartedly, he will certainly give the other party 100% trust in return.
Have you two met before?
The dishes were all served. Zhou Zhou ordered a plate of crystal shrimp dumplings for Fu Xiaofan and told him to eat them slowly with a fork. He and Xie Ying each had a plate of pasta with salad. Zhou Zhou stirred the sauce on his pasta with his fork. Although he believed that Fu Hengzhi's love for him was genuine, why didn't the other party tell him?
"You can rest assured about that. We've never met." Xie Ying picked a cherry tomato from the salad, popped it into her mouth, chewed it twice, and swallowed it whole. She said awkwardly, "The blind date was arranged by my elders. Our elders exchanged photos, and I just glanced at them."
After saying that, he shrugged and said, "I'm still young, dating is fine, I haven't had enough fun yet."
"Family elders?" Zhou Zhou frowned. Duan Yun and Fu Hongjiang had no reason to do such a thing, otherwise they wouldn't have forced him and Fu Hengzhi together in the first place. Zhou Zhou knew only a limited number of Fu family elders, and then there were Fu Wen's parents, but the couple were both abroad, so the possibility of them interfering in their affairs in China was very slim.
The most likely person to do such a thing is probably the elders of the Fu family. Zhou Zhou still remembers that when the two held their wedding, Fu Hengzhi's grandparents refused to attend because they were dissatisfied with their son-in-law.
Zhou Zhou didn't plan to ask Xie Ying for more details. After all, it was a family matter, and asking an outsider would make the Fu family look bad. He would ask Fu Hengzhi directly when he got back, as he would know better than anyone else. He didn't like to procrastinate, and it was best to clarify any conflicts directly.
During the meal, apart from Fu Xiaofan who ate heartily without paying attention to anything else, Zhou Zhou and Xie Ying ate listlessly, each lost in their own thoughts. Before saying goodbye, Fu Xiaofan politely said to Xie Ying, "Goodbye, beautiful sister~"
"Goodbye~" Xie Ying waved to him gently, then nodded slightly awkwardly at Zhou Zhou, indicating that she was leaving.
"Goodbye." Zhou Zhou smiled slightly, appearing polite, unaware that this made Xie Ying feel even worse. She secretly blamed the parents of the man who was busy arranging blind dates for her, saying that the so-called outstanding heir of the Fu family already had a four-year-old child, yet he was still telling everyone he was single.
Suddenly, Xie Ying remembered something and said to Zhou Zhou, "Mr. Zhou, you are a good person, so I want to give you a heads-up."
Zhou Zhou asked in confusion, "What?"
"Recently, it seems that the elders of the Fu family have been looking for blind date candidates for President Fu." She heard this from her parents. After she refused the blind date, her mother complained to her with regret a few days later, saying that she had missed the opportunity and someone else had taken it.
"I didn't mean to interfere in your relationship," Xie Ying quickly explained when she saw the other person looking at her with a probing gaze. "I just meant well..."
"Thank you." Zhou Zhou interrupted the other person's explanation, smiled, and said, "Thank you for telling me all this."
"Hey, don't be so polite." Xie Ying waved her hand. "I'm leaving now. Maybe we'll have a chance to meet again in the future."
After watching Xie Ying leave, the father and son got into the car. Fu Xiaofan tilted his head and looked at Zhou Zhou, who was starting the car with a calm expression, and asked curiously, "Daddy went on a blind date behind your back, aren't you angry, Daddy... Ouch!"
"Don't try to sow discord." Zhou Zhou withdrew the finger that had flicked the other person's head, started the car, and said, "You must believe in your daddy's unwavering loyalty to me."
"I was just worried about your marital crisis." Fu Xiaofan's head throbbed from the flick, and he pouted, "I didn't try to sow discord, why would I? If you two break up, I might end up being assigned to you, and you're not as rich as Daddy... Ouch! Daddy, I was wrong, I'm sorry, stop pinching me!"
Just as they missed lunchtime, around lunch break, Zhou Zhou brought Fu Xiaofan home and noticed that Fu Hengzhi's car, which he had driven out that morning, was parked in the garage. Instead of going in right away, Zhou Zhou prepared the questions he wanted to ask before opening the door.
“Fu…Dad?” Zhou Zhou was surprised to see Fu Hongjiang sitting in the living room as soon as she entered the door. She was stunned for a second before reacting quickly. She turned her body slightly to the side, trying to block the other party’s gaze from looking at Fu Xiaofan.
"Stop blocking me." Fu Hongjiang's face darkened, and he said in an authoritative voice, "That brat has confessed everything. You two have done such a daring thing and you're still trying to hide it!"
How audacious was this? Zhou Zhou was completely dumbfounded, but he couldn't show it yet. He wondered why Fu Hengzhi hadn't rehearsed his story with him before doing it, in case they were exposed.
Just as she was thinking this, the front door behind her suddenly opened again. Zhou Zhou turned around and met Fu Hengzhi's gaze, who looked nervous.
"You just got back?"
"You're just getting home?"
The two spoke at the same time. Fu Xiaofan clutched Zhou Zhou's clothes, looked nervously at Fu Hongjiang, and upon seeing Fu Heng, she ran towards him as if she had seen a savior, calling out, "Daddy~"
Fu Hengzhi bent down and picked him up. Seeing that his cheeks were flushed, he frowned slightly and asked with heartache, "What happened to your face?"
Zhou Zhou coughed lightly twice upon hearing this. Fu Xiaofan understood immediately, chuckled, rubbed her face with her chubby hands, and said, "From mosquito bites~"
Seeing that the child looked human-made, Fu Hengzhi breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that his son had been bullied. He picked up his son and walked towards Zhou Zhou, saying succinctly in a low voice, "I told Dad that the child was the one I asked for when I was tutoring you in your senior year of high school."
"?!" Zhou Zhou looked at him in shock. Before he could speak, Fu Hongjiang, who had been looking over at them, spoke up.
"What are you two whispering about over there!" Fu Hongjiang stood in the living room, tiptoeing and leaning forward, trying to see what his eldest grandson looked like, but the young couple stood together, completely blocking the child's view.
Fu Hongjiang sat on the sofa with an air of authority, staring at the two people sitting close together on the other side. Zhou Zhou couldn't stand such a gaze, so she nudged Fu Xiaofan, who was standing in front of Fu Hengzhi, and asked him to go over and talk to his grandfather. However, Fu Hengzhi stopped her.
"Dad, why did you come to my house without saying anything?" Fu Hengzhi put his arm around Fu Xiaofan to stop him from going over, and then said, "You even stole my car keys."
"You bastard! Do you call that stealing?!" Fu Hongjiang was furious upon hearing his words, his beard bristling and eyes wide with rage. "Your keys are right there on the coffee table in the office! They're so conspicuous, is it wrong for me to take them and use them?!"
Fu Hengzhi knew that Fu Hongjiang just wanted to see the child first, but he didn't call him out on it. "No problem, but Dad, what are you doing at home?"
"Isn't it enough that I'm just here to take a look?"
“Sure, but there’s no need. Didn’t you complain that I didn’t handle Uncle Shen’s matter well enough last time?” Fu Hengzhi said, “Let’s talk about this again.”
After saying that, she put Fu Xiaofan in Zhou Zhou's arms and said softly, "Take the child upstairs first."
Zhou Zhou was worried that Fu Hengzhi hadn't finished negotiating with Fu Hongjiang about the child, so she nodded and carried Fu Xiaofan toward the stairwell.
Fu Hongjiang watched as his eldest grandson perched on Zhou Zhou's shoulder, blinking his big eyes and looking at him curiously. The heart of the man in his fifties melted instantly.
But Fu Hengzhi casually said from the side, "Dad, let's talk about company matters."
"Get lost! Who wants to talk to you about company matters!" Fu Hongjiang slapped his thigh and roared, "I'm just here to see my grandson!"
[Author's Note: Fu Xiaofan: I am the mediator of family relationships.]
Zhou Zhou: Oh.
Does the pacing feel a bit slow? Should we speed things up in the next chapter?
Chapter Ninety-Five: Fu Hengzhi—Perhaps, maybe, probably—is gone.
Chapter Ninety-Five Fu Hengzhi: Perhaps, maybe, probably not.
===============================================
"Xiao Zhou, bring the child down so I can see him!" Fu Hongjiang shouted as Zhou Zhou was carrying the child and almost reached the second-floor entrance.
With the elders having spoken, Zhou Zhou quickly carried Fu Xiaofan to the living room and obediently sat down next to Fu Hengzhi, watching Fu Hongjiang hold Fu Xiaofan on his lap.
Although he didn't resemble Fu Hengzhi at all, Fu Hengzhi had said that he was of the Fu family bloodline. Fu Hongjiang's old friends of the same age had all become grandfathers or maternal grandfathers, and now it was finally his turn. Worried that Fu Xiaofan would be shy, Fu Hongjiang even lowered his voice and coaxed her, "Xiaofan, I am your grandfather."
Fu Xiaofan was all soft and chubby, with a round, dark eye that blinked eagerly at Fu Hongjiang. He showed no signs of fear or apprehension typical of children, and giggled as he said in a sweet, childish voice, "Hello, Grandpa~"
"Oh, my good grandson!" Fu Hongjiang was pleased by the word "grandfather" and his face was full of wrinkles as he smiled, completely unlike the Fu director who used to be a big shot in the business world.
Tell Grandpa how old you are.
"Four years old~"
Seeing Fu Hongjiang busy playing with Fu Xiaofan and having a great time, Zhou Zhou nudged Fu Hengzhi's waist with her elbow and whispered, "Didn't you say you'd go home this afternoon to explain to Mom first? How come Dad already knows about this? And you didn't even tell me when Dad came back."
"Dad just happened to be at the company today, so I thought about it and told him directly." Fu Hongjiang was coaxing his grandson on one side, while President Fu was coaxing his wife on the other. "It's my fault. I should have told you. Besides, I didn't know Dad took my car keys to come here."
Zhou Zhou frowned. He still remembered the blind date, but it would be awkward to ask Fu Hongjiang about it in front of him. He planned to talk to Fu Hengzhi about it in private. Even so, he couldn't help but complain to Fu Hengzhi: "Why didn't you tell me anything? Did you think it would be better to deal with it first and then tell me?"
"Honey, how could that be? Nothing like that." Fu Hengzhi felt there was something more to the other person's words, and he couldn't help but think of the blind dates his grandparents had arranged for him. Suddenly, his scalp tingled.
He was right; he planned to handle the blind date properly before talking to the other person.
"Don't overthink it. I'll definitely tell you in advance next time something comes up."
The blind date was something from last time. Zhou Zhou narrowed her eyes and didn't say anything, but revealed a smile that Fu Hengzhi couldn't figure out.
"Daddy~ Daddy~ Grandpa said we can come home for lunch this afternoon~" Fu Xiaofan, perched on Fu Hongjiang's shoulders, waved excitedly at the two of them. "Grandpa said there's a tiger in the house~"
"Huh?" Zhou Zhou was slightly taken aback.
“It’s a real tiger-skin rug that Dad’s friend gave him a few years ago,” Fu Hengzhi whispered in his ear, then looked at Fu Hongjiang and remained silent for a moment.
"Dad, Grandpa and Grandma will arrive this afternoon." Fu Hengzhi said tactfully, "You can have your own get-together tonight. I'll be at Grandpa's birthday banquet later. We won't bother them tonight."
This was a way of putting pressure on him indirectly. Fu Hongjiang glared at him, thinking to himself that this kid was getting more and more cunning as he grew up. Before, he would either confront him head-on or stubbornly refuse to back down. Now that he had a wife and a son, he knew how to play the victim.
Zhou Zhou felt a little embarrassed upon hearing this. He didn't know what to say at this moment, but since the two elders had finally come back from X City, and Fu Hengzhi didn't plan to go to the family gathering, he had to persuade them.
Zhou Zhou sighed. He finally understood how difficult it was to be a wealthy family's daughter-in-law, as portrayed on TV and disliked by elders.
The inspiration for the creation came from reality, because the old man of the Fu family didn't like him as his son-in-law.
"Dad, don't worry, we will..."
"Grandpa, Daddy said it's an eyesore. An eyesore means I don't like it, right?"
Before Zhou Zhou could finish speaking, Fu Xiaofan pouted slightly and said pitifully, "The house with the tiger doesn't like Xiaofan, right? Then Xiaofan shouldn't go."
If someone were to say that Fu Xiaofan isn't his son Fu Hengzhi, that would be ridiculous. If he weren't his son, would the father and son be so in sync?
He didn't want to go to this or that. Fu Hongjiang had no intention of blaming his good grandson at all. He was just so angry at his son that he gritted his teeth. "Go, all of you go. I'll do some ideological work!" Fu Hongjiang admitted defeat.
Fu Hongjiang went back first, and before leaving he thought of taking Fu Xiaofan with him to show Duan Yun, but Fu Hengzhi stopped him.