A luxurious stretch limousine stopped outside the gates of Capital University, instantly attracting a crowd. The students had seen expensive cars before, but they always drew admiring looks. While everyone speculated about which rich student the car had come to collect, Wang Ziyu appeared and climbed in under their stares. Only after it drove off did the students recover and begin discussing it excitedly. Ever since Wang Ziyu’s second brother was identified as Zhou Group’s young heir, even people who once disliked her had changed their attitudes. Some staged chance meetings to cultivate a connection; a few boys had even confessed their feelings publicly. Wang Ziyu rejected them all.
One young man in particular had approached her half a month earlier. He had previously pursued Tang Xin, supported her when she caused trouble, and even published online posts attacking Wang Ziyu. Once Wang Cheng’s identity became public, however, he changed his tune.
He claimed he had admired Wang Ziyu for a long time. When others uncovered his previous behavior, he insisted he had only done it to attract her attention. His skin was so thick a bullet could not pierce it.
Naturally, Wang Ziyu refused him. He held a grudge and arranged for defamatory posts about her on the gossip forum. The posts inverted right and wrong, alleging that Wang Ziyu looked down on others because of her brother. Some even asserted she had no blood relation to Wang Cheng: he was a descendant of the Zhou family, while she remained a farmer’s daughter. His long absence from campus, the rumors said, proved he was distancing himself from her.
Before Wang Ziyu even responded, someone taught the boy a lesson. It was Lei Yunze. Afterward, the posts disappeared. Later someone revealed that Tang Xin had encouraged him to approach Wang Ziyu. Tang Xin was unwilling to accept her ruined reputation. Once her role was exposed, she could no longer stay at Capital University and reportedly began arranging a transfer.
The boy happened to witness Wang Ziyu being collected by the limousine.
The unusual looks from those around him made his face burn. He had dared pursue Wang Ziyu because, although her second brother was powerful, she herself came from a village family. He thought his background gave him an advantage, and that belief had filled him with superiority.
Today he had been humiliated in public. The middle-aged man who stepped out of the limousine had clearly addressed Wang Ziyu as “Miss” and even mentioned her grandfather.
“What are you staring at? Wang Ziyu is nothing but damaged goods nobody wants! I was doing her a favor by pursuing her!” the boy shouted at the people nearby. Someone promptly kicked him hard from behind.
Caught off guard, he pitched forward and landed heavily on the ground. The rough pavement scraped his palms raw. Furious, he yelled, “Who the hell kicked me?”
“Your mother, that’s who.” Zheng Jingxue stood over him looking spectacularly displeased. She had only just returned to campus when she heard this man insulting her brother’s younger sister. He must have a death wish.
The boy stared in disbelief. Zheng Jingxue was a prominent student at Capital University, much like Lei Yunze, though she rarely sought the spotlight. She often traveled with her academic adviser to conferences or research work elsewhere in China and abroad, and she did not belong to the student union. Yet everyone knew her. Like Lei Yunze, she was not someone to provoke.
Zheng Jingxue had little contact with Wang Ziyu on campus, but since Wang Ziyu was the cherished younger sister of her second brother, she would not allow someone to insult her in front of her.
“Zheng Jingxue, why did you kick me? I wasn’t talking about you!” Humiliated before the crowd, the boy demanded an explanation.
Zheng Jingxue smiled very gently. “That’s right. You weren’t talking about me. But you were insulting my second brother’s younger sister. Do you honestly think I’ll let that pass? Here’s some advice: transfer to another university as quickly as that wretched Tang Xin. Otherwise I won’t guarantee what your days here will be like.”
“Y-you’re threatening me!” The boy pointed angrily at her, his face scarlet. Wang Ziyu was Zheng Jingxue’s second brother’s sister? How had he not known that? Had he known, he would never have said those things.
Zheng Jingxue folded her arms. “And what if I am?” The sheer arrogance of the response left the boy speechless.
Onlookers were equally stunned.
What had happened to the famously gentle goddess?
Still, the arrogant boy deserved a lesson. He acted superior just because his family had some influence. Did he not know genuinely powerful people were often more discreet? Lei Yunze’s family had even greater influence, yet despite his reputation, he had never behaved so conceitedly.
At the Gu family’s old mansion, Wang Ziyu sat at the dinner table feeling dazed. Papa and Mama Wang had just told her who the elderly man in the principal seat was. She needed a moment to process it.
In the months since she started university, she had learned that her second brother actually belonged to the Zheng and Zhou families and had no blood relationship with the Wangs. Now apparently the rest of her family was in a similar situation. Were examinations drawing near and stress making her hear things?
“Big Brother.” She leaned cautiously toward Wang Ning’an. “Am I really not dreaming?”
Wang Ning’an knew accepting so many unbelievable revelations at once was difficult. He pinched her cheek. “Does that hurt?”
She nodded. “A little.”
“Then it isn’t a dream.”
“But how could Dad not be Grandma’s child?”
“It’s complicated. I’ll explain when we get back. For now, just remember that our family has nothing to do with the Wang elders anymore. Mom and Dad have severed their relationship with them. That’s enough.”
Wang Ziyu hesitated. “All right. Actually, it’s a good thing. Dad and Mom won’t have to endure those people’s treatment anymore. That part is nice.”
“Exactly.” Wang Ning’an smiled and stroked her head. They spoke in low voices, but the three adults at the table could see and hear them. Papa and Mama Wang were pleased their daughter accepted the news so quickly.
Just then dinner was ready. Under Lu Yi’s direction, servants brought dishes to the table in an orderly fashion. Their delicious aromas stirred everyone’s appetite.
Gu Shouzhuo smiled at his guests. “Help yourselves to anything you like. There’s no need to be formal.”
Wang Ziyu shyly thanked him, drawing an even warmer smile in response. Then she glanced over the dishes in astonishment and nudged Wang Ning’an. “Big Brother, these are all my favorites.” Their whole family had similar tastes, so what Wang Ziyu enjoyed was what the others enjoyed too.
Wang Ning’an was surprised as well. He did not believe the patriarch of the Gu family had guessed their preferences by chance. There was only one explanation: once Gu Shouzhuo learned of their existence, he had researched their habits and tastes. Such thoughtfulness was genuinely touching. It won more goodwill than rushing to demand an immediate family reunion.
Papa and Mama Wang noticed that detail too. Papa Wang was especially moved. For more than fifty years, he had longed to receive that kind of care from Wang De and his wife, but he never had. Now, for the first time, he was experiencing it from an elderly father he had met only the day before. His eyes reddened. Mama Wang noticed and nudged him. He could cry when nobody was watching, not in the middle of dinner.
Papa Wang hurriedly lowered his head and struggled to compose himself.
For someone with deep feelings, the smallest gestures could be especially moving. Gu Shouzhuo clearly knew his guests well. Father and son should have been awkward after their first meeting in more than fifty years, but the old man had won Papa Wang over almost immediately. Papa Wang really was the easiest person in the household to persuade. As expected!
After dinner, everyone moved to the sitting room.
Without waiting for instructions, Lu Yi served everyone a cup of tea to cleanse their palates. It was pleasantly sweet and could be swallowed.
Papa and Mama Wang, who were accustomed to doing everything themselves, still felt uneasy with such attentive service. Some things took time to adjust to, even when they knew the elderly man before them was Papa Wang’s biological father.
Gu Shouzhuo set down his teacup, and Lu Yi immediately removed it.
“Was dinner to your liking?” the old man asked. Papa Wang was momentarily startled before replying awkwardly, “Thank you. It was very good.”
“Good. Come whenever you want to eat here.” Gu Shouzhuo continued, “Truthfully, I’d be happier if you moved here to keep an old man company. Ever since your younger brother died, this house has been empty for years. It hasn’t been so lively in a long time. If I can spend time with my family before I step into the grave, I’ll have no regrets. But don’t feel pressured. I understand you need time to adjust. I won’t force you.”
Papa Wang felt a pang of sadness. Imagining the old man eating alone year after year, he could almost feel that loneliness. Yet he had a wife and children to care for and could hardly agree to move immediately. He could only say, “Thank you.”
Gu Shouzhuo smiled. “We’re family. There’s no need to thank me.”
Wang Ning’an raised an eyebrow. Wasn’t the old man’s wife still alive?