Compared with the chaos in the Yu family, Wang Cheng was enjoying himself. After leaving Capital University, he called Wang Ziyu from time to time to check how things were going. He worried that she might still like Gu Li and begin seeing him again. Whatever Gu Li’s intentions, Wang Cheng didn’t want it to happen. He even instructed Qian Baobao to contact him immediately if she saw signs of trouble. Fortunately, the university holidays were approaching.
Wang Ziyu appeared to have moved on. She stopped seeking Gu Li out. Although he had been injured protecting her, she had other people deliver meals or ask after him. It really did seem that she had let go.
Gu Li, by contrast, seemed unwilling to leave matters there. He sought Wang Ziyu out privately and apologized for concealing their relationship, saying he had never expected that hiding his identity would hurt her and asking her forgiveness.
Wang Ziyu told him she did not blame him, but her manner was much more distant. The easy conversations and laughter they had once shared were gone. Even when Gu Li tried to appeal to her sympathy, she showed no reaction. After several days of this, she seemed once again to be the girl devoted entirely to her studies. Perhaps realizing he had misjudged her, Gu Li stopped appearing in person, though he occasionally sent her breakfast. Every time, it ended up in Pang Chunjuan’s stomach.
Good news came one piece after another. Zheng Jingen suddenly called Wang Cheng and asked him to come to the Zheng family home that weekend.
The Zhengs held a family gathering on weekends. As one of them, Wang Cheng was supposed to attend when he wasn’t busy. He had planned to skip it, since he had no desire to see certain relatives’ faces, but Zheng Jingen promised there would be an entertaining spectacle. On that basis, Wang Cheng agreed.
The weekend soon arrived.
Chu Yifeng drove Wang Cheng near the Zheng residence. After agreeing when he would come back to pick him up, he left.
The Zheng house was even livelier than usual. Many younger relatives had returned. Zheng Ru, whom Old Master Zheng had ordered not to come home too frequently, had even brought her husband and son. Wei Qiqi had been invited too, but refused to attend, as though she anticipated trouble.
Zheng Ru had thick skin. The mocking looks from other relatives did not embarrass her in the slightest. The Zheng house was her home. Why shouldn’t she come and go when she pleased? Since her father had said not to visit too often, she had simply waited a while before coming back. She felt perfectly entitled to be there.
Stepping into the courtyard, Wang Cheng spotted several people he would rather not see.
Everyone in the Zheng family already knew about Wang Cheng and Chu Yifeng. Most guessed Zhou Lin or her son had been behind the pictures, but did not know Wei Wei was involved.
Some secretly delighted in Wang Cheng’s misfortune, Zheng Ru among them. After the pictures were exposed, she had repeatedly made sarcastic remarks to Mother Zheng. Even when it emerged that some images were edited, she kept insinuating that the men had an improper relationship. Now Wang Cheng himself had appeared, and remembering how he had embarrassed her in the past, Zheng Ru could not resist the chance.
“Well, if it isn’t the Zheng family’s busiest man! I heard your grandfather kicked you out of the Zhou family and you can’t go to work anymore. Have you nowhere else to go, so you’ve come crawling back to the Zhengs? How pitiful. Though you brought it on yourself. Instead of being a normal man, you had to get involved with another man. Now you’ve lost your place as heir. How are you going to explain that to your grandfather?” she sneered.
Why should he have to explain anything to Grandfather?
Wang Cheng raised an eyebrow and looked right past Zheng Ru at Wei Wei standing behind her.
Wei Wei hadn’t expected to be singled out. Wang Cheng’s dark eyes seemed capable of peering into his secrets. He grew uneasy. Had Wang Cheng found out about the photos? Surely not. The man they hired to follow him had already been sent away.
Seeing Wang Cheng ignore her, Zheng Ru became angry.
“Aunt, I can respect you for Grandfather’s sake, but you’d better watch your mouth. If you make me angry, I won’t care whether Grandfather approves or objects.” Wang Cheng was not someone who allowed others to push him around. He turned his gaze back to Zheng Ru and spoke calmly, but the threat was unmistakable.
Zheng Ru shivered at his cold stare. Yet she couldn’t bear to lose face to someone so much younger and did not believe he would dare do anything to her.
Her husband Wei Kai suddenly pulled her aside and whispered, “Xiaoru, stop it. Wang Cheng doesn’t have only the Zhou or Zheng families behind him.” The Chu family’s stance might be uncertain, but his ties to the Gu family had been in the newspapers only days before.
Zheng Ru had lost her head for a moment. Her husband’s reminder brought her to her senses. When she looked up, Wang Cheng had already gone inside without giving them another glance, which irritated her all over again.
“Dad, Mom, maybe I shouldn’t go in,” Wei Wei suggested. Remembering Wang Cheng’s look, he couldn’t shake the sense that something bad was about to happen.
“Absolutely not! I finally found an excuse to bring you and your father here. If you waste it, I’ll have to endure more ridicule from these relatives next time. You’re not backing out today!” Zheng Ru caught his arm to stop him running away.
Once everyone assembled, the spacious drawing room was crowded. There weren’t enough sofas, so the younger relatives sat on chairs brought in by the servants. Wang Cheng and Zheng Jingen were exceptions.
Mother Zheng hadn’t seen Wang Cheng for several days. She immediately pulled him beside her and asked about his life, without mentioning the photographs. Her only regret was that Zheng Jingxue wasn’t there. A few days earlier she had traveled with her supervisor’s team to a seminar in the United States. She had recently been to another province as well and was always traveling.
Feng Yuying and Zheng Ru resented seeing them getting along so well. They began hinting about the photographs, trying to steer the discussion toward that topic, but everyone ignored them. Even when they mentioned names directly, Mother Zheng and Wang Cheng silently declined to respond. The two women were almost beside themselves with anger.
Before long, Old Master Zheng came downstairs, forcing them to stop for the moment.
Lunch began almost immediately. The extended family filled two long tables. The meal passed peacefully. Although the Zhengs did not have a rule against talking while eating, the old master forbade arguments at the dining table. Once lunch was over, though, that restraint disappeared.
Feng Yuying seized the opportunity to make another dig at Wang Cheng, deliberately mentioning the photographs in front of the patriarch. Zheng Ru chimed in, saying Wang Cheng was still a descendant of the Zheng family and that being involved with a man would disgrace them all if it became known.
“Grandfather, since everyone is here, I have something to say.”
Zheng Jingen suddenly stood. The room fell silent as everyone turned to look at him.
His parents were startled too. Neither had known their eldest son was planning anything.
“Go ahead,” the old master said calmly.
“It’s about the photographs. Someone followed Chengcheng and Mr. Chu, taking pictures of them together. Then software was used to make the photographs look especially intimate.”
Everyone was astonished that Zheng Jingen himself had raised the subject. They had assumed it was the one topic his family would avoid. Feng Yuying and the others sensed something was wrong and fell silent. Zheng Ru followed suit. Only Wei Wei, seated behind his mother, felt his heart lurch and his unease deepen.
The old master nodded. “I know about that.”
“Then you may not know who arranged to have them taken. I hired someone to investigate and, fortunately, found the photographer. He named two people who instructed him. One was Zhao Chenlin. The other…” Zheng Jingen turned toward the increasingly nervous Wei Wei. “My cousin Wei Wei.”
“Impossible!”
Zheng Ru was the first to leap up and object.
“Why is it impossible? If you want to meet the man, Aunt, I can bring him here right now to identify your son face-to-face,” Zheng Jingen answered evenly.
Zheng Ru’s complexion shifted. She remembered Wei Wei’s reluctance to enter earlier and finally understood. The little brat had done something like this behind her back! Worse, he’d failed to cover his tracks. She was furious.
Wei Wei also wanted to protest. He and Zhao Chenlin had sent the photographer abroad. How could Zheng Jingen have found him? Even Zheng Jingen’s reach couldn’t possibly extend that far. What Wei Wei did not know was that the photographer couldn’t bear living indefinitely in a foreign country where he knew no one and had secretly returned. Zheng Jingen caught him then. Otherwise, finding the truth would have been difficult.
Even Wang Cheng was surprised. He hadn’t expected Wei Wei to be involved.
The old master’s face darkened. His sharp gaze settled on Wei Wei, who had gone pale. His low, commanding voice cut through the room. “Wei Wei, is what Jingen says true? Did you have those photographs made to frame Chengcheng? Answer me honestly!”
Wei Wei struggled to his feet, trembling. “G-Grandfather, I… I…”
“Dad, Xiaowei didn’t mean it! Please forgive him!” Seeing that the truth could no longer be avoided, Zheng Ru dropped to her knees. Her son’s guilt was obvious. If they brought the photographer in to confront him, things would only get worse. If her father forgave him, the others would not dare object.
“Forgive him?” Mother Zheng gave a cold laugh. “Zheng Ru, your son deliberately tried to destroy my Chengcheng’s reputation. Do you really think saying he didn’t mean it makes everything all right? It was bad enough that you used to insult us. Now you’ve joined outsiders to hurt my son. Your boy gets more impressive every year! Let me be absolutely clear: even if Father forgives Wei Wei, I never will.”
“Dad…” Unable to get anywhere with Mother Zheng, Zheng Ru appealed desperately to the patriarch to spare her son for the sake of family.
Mother Zheng also looked at him, her expression unwavering, as if warning him what would happen if he favored his daughter.