Chapter 47. President Zhou's Little Hobby.
After leaving Tianxiaju, Chen Ci got into Zhou Shilin's car. Zhou Shilin had driven there himself. It was already dark outside, and the changing neon lights flashed across Chen Ci's face. As he drove, Zhou Shilin glanced at her and asked, "Still angry?"
Upon hearing his question, Chen Ci turned her gaze away from the window: "I'm reflecting on whether I've been too nice to Chen Yun, which has emboldened him to provoke me."
Zhou Shilin smiled slightly and said to her, "Don't worry, after what just happened, he shouldn't dare to provoke you again."
Chen Ci raised an eyebrow. She had just seen Chen Yun's pale face, and it was no surprise that she was frightened by her: "Back then, the fight I got into caused quite a stir at school. At first, everyone said I was faking amnesia, but after a few more incidents, people started to think I wasn't faking it. Then, there was the incident of me cutting my wrists. Although the teachers kept it a secret from the other students, some of them still heard about it, and then the rumors spread, and eventually, it became the rumor that I had a mental illness."
However, the college entrance examination was approaching, and the students had a heavy workload. No one had much energy to care about her. After the college entrance examination, the students were scattered all over the country and it was difficult to keep in touch.
"Chen Yun probably thinks, 'He knows I have a mental illness but still likes me, how great is he?'" Chen Ci said, laughing at herself. "He's really good at self-pity."
Zhou Shilin asked her, "Does this count as what you said last time, Grandma?"
"..." Shen Ci choked for a moment, looking at the rubbish she had said in front of Zhou Shilin. "President Zhou's learning ability is indeed very strong, but this kind of thing should get out of your brain as soon as possible. It doesn't deserve to take up your brain capacity."
Zhou Shilin smiled and asked her, "Did you just eat? Would you like something else to eat?"
Chen Ci shook her head: "No need. Chen Yun was sitting next to me talking non-stop, so I just kept my head down and ate in order to avoid talking to him."
"...Well, then he did do a good deed."
Chen Ci couldn't help but curl the corners of her lips as she looked at Zhou Shilin, who was driving: "But I want to go shopping."
"Go shopping?"
"Well, aren't we going to your house for dinner tomorrow? I've been thinking about it, and I feel like I'm still missing a piece of clothing."
Zhou Shilin couldn't help but chuckle. He nodded and drove the car toward Starlight Department Store: "Okay."
The car was driving steadily on the road when Chen Ci suddenly called out to Zhou Shilin, as if she had thought of something: "Zhou Shilin, will your parents mind my illness?"
Zhou Shilin had never mentioned Shen Ci's illness to his parents, not because he was afraid they would mind, but because it concerned Shen Ci's privacy, and he was afraid she would mind: "Your illness is neither contagious nor hereditary, so there's nothing to worry about."
Chen Ci thought for a moment and asked him, "Have you talked to them about it?"
"No, if you want to tell them, you can tell them yourself."
"...Well, I didn't really want to tell them."
Zhou Shilin chuckled and glanced at her sideways: "If you don't want to talk about it, then don't. Anyway, your illness is starting to improve now."
"Hmm." Chen Ci looked at Zhou Shilin and voiced her slight worry, "After what just happened, I'm afraid someone might deliberately talk nonsense to your parents."
Chen Yun wasn't her only high school classmate back then, and Zhou Shilin's identity was rather special. It's not impossible that someone knew about their relationship and deliberately used it as an excuse to stir up trouble.
Zhou Shilin said, "Don't worry, if my parents were so easily led by the nose, they wouldn't be where Shijie is today."
"..." Hearing that, she was indeed relieved.
Upon arriving at Starlight Department Store, Zhou Shilin parked the car in the underground parking lot and took the elevator upstairs with Shen Ci. Seeing Zhou Shilin leading her directly towards the Bunny boutique, Shen Ci remembered the 5,000 yuan T-shirt in her wardrobe. She took Zhou Shilin's hand and coughed softly, "Um, actually, there are many women's clothing brands in Starlight Department Store."
Zhou Shilin paused slightly, turning his head to look at her: "You don't like Bunny? How about we go browse the women's clothing stores next door?"
"..." The women's clothing stores next door are also high-end and luxurious, so what's the difference?
She looked at Zhou Shilin for a while, and finally smiled at him: "Fine, Bunny it is."
Bunny's clothes were expensive, but it was her first time meeting Zhou Shilin's parents, so it was okay to pay a little more.
She and Zhou Shilin entered Bunny, and soon a sales assistant came out to greet them: "What kind of items would you like to choose?"
Chen Ci thought for a moment and said to her, "It's something to wear when you go to see your elders, something elegant and appropriate."
"Okay, this way please." The sales assistant led them inside and recommended several outfits that met Chen Ci's requirements, including dresses and suits.
Chen Ci tried on a long dress and stood in front of the dressing mirror to look at herself. Seeing that she liked it very much, Zhou Shilin said to the sales assistant next to him, "Take this one."
"OK."
"Wait, wait, wait," Chen Ci quickly interrupted them. "Don't decide so quickly. Let me try other options."
Zhou Shilin asked her, "Don't you like this one?"
Chen Ci: "..."
She really liked it, but when she tried it on inside, she checked the price and it was already beyond her budget.
"I really like it..."
"Then this one will do." Zhou Shilin took out his black card and handed it to the sales assistant next to him. Seeing this, Chen Ci quickly went over and pressed the black card in his hand: "No need, I can pay by myself."
Although this dress exceeded her budget, she could... change to another dress.
Zhou Shilin looked at her and said, "A new month has begun. Keep your money to pay off my debts."
Chen Ci: "..."
She returned 10,000 yuan to him, and he spent several times that amount to buy her a dress. Isn't something wrong with that?
The sales assistant next to them was also stunned. What was this about paying off debts? These young couples these days are really something else.
The sales assistant finally took the black card from Zhou Shilin, packed up the dress Chen Ci had changed out of, and handed it to them: "Is there anything else you two would like? Like matching shoes, bags, or jewelry..."
"Thank you, but I don't need it for now." Chen Ci smiled and politely declined, then took Zhou Shilin's arm and walked out.
If they stay any longer, they won't be able to leave without spending hundreds of thousands.
These luxury brands are the real money-devouring beasts.
Zhou Shilin, holding the paper bag the sales assistant had given him, smiled at Chen Ci beside him: "Last time we ate at Tianxiaju, you wanted to order more expensive dishes, but now you're being polite."
Chen Ci said, "Even eating at Tianxiaju wouldn't cost hundreds of thousands!"
Zhou Shilin said, "It's not impossible."
Chen Ci: "..."
She may have really been away from home for too long and no longer knows anything about the wealthy people in City A now.
"Are you sure you don't need shoes or anything?" Zhou Shilin looked down at the shoes on Chen Ci's feet. "You usually wear simple flat shoes for commuting, which don't really match the style of this dress."
Chen Ci also looked down at the shoes on her feet. She usually wears shoes for work, prioritizing comfort. Paired with the dress she had just bought, the shoes did look a bit plain.
“It’s okay, I have some more formal shoes at home that I can wear with this dress.”
"Alright." Seeing her insistence, Zhou Shilin didn't say anything more. "Then I'll pick you up tomorrow at noon."
"Mmm." Chen Ci nodded, then remembered the gifts for Zhou Shilin's parents, "Last time you said that Assistant Tian would help you choose the gifts for your parents..."
"Don't worry, everything is ready."
"That's good." However, the clothes and gifts given to the parents were all gifts from Zhou Shilin...
"I feel like I'm the only one who's made a difference." Chen Ci looked at Zhou Shilin and pursed her lips.
Zhou Shilin slowly smiled and looked at her, saying, "What my parents wanted to see was just you as a person."
Shen Ci suddenly understood why her mother wanted to raise her to be like Zhou Shilin, because it was indeed hard not to like such a person.
That day, Zhou Shilin took Chen Ci home. Chen Ci didn't try to lure him to her house again, since she was going to have lunch with his parents the next day and it wasn't appropriate to have anything too exciting tonight.
Chen Ci took a shower early and lay in bed, wanting to get some beauty sleep, but she felt a little nervous and couldn't fall asleep no matter how hard she tried. She simply picked up her phone and searched online for tips on having dinner with her boyfriend's parents.
As if knowing she would be too nervous to sleep, Zhou Shilin sent her a message: "Are you asleep?"
Chenci: Not yet.
Zhou Shilin: Nervous?
Amber Porcelain: A little [clunky, Mr. Wu's version.jpg]
Zhou Shilin: ...You even went after President Wu.
Chen Ci: Mr. Wu, you only have this one picture. Your collection of emojis is much more complete.
Chen Ci: I even made a few Cheese Rin emojis [Cheese Rin greeting.jpg]
Chenci: Isn't it cute?
Zhou Shilin: ...
Chen Ci sent him a bunch of emoticons in one go: Cheese Rin making a heart shape with her hands, staring, and saying goodnight to her friend. The last one was Cheese Rin suddenly popping her head out of the cheese.
Chenci: Your little cutie suddenly appeared!
Zhou Shilin: ...[Goodnight, friends.jpg]
Chen Ci: Hahahaha, you finally used your own emoji!
Zhou Shilin: I used Cheese Shilin [smile]
Chen Ci: Okay, can I use Cheese Rin's emoji in the work group?
Zhou Shilin: If only you had asked me before using my emoji last time! [smile]
Sinking Porcelain: Hahahahahaha
Zhou Shilin: You seem less nervous now, so go to sleep early.
Chen Ci also sent him a "Goodnight" emoji of Cheese Lin, then turned off the bedside lamp. Even though she had only chatted briefly with Zhou Shilin, her tension had indeed eased considerably, more effectively than with Dr. Zhang's consultation room.
Afraid of oversleeping, Chen Ci set an alarm for herself and got up on time the next day to wash and get dressed. Since she was going to eat at someone's house, she didn't dress up too formally, just wearing the dress she had chosen the day before and putting on light makeup.
She honed her makeup skills by cosplaying during her university years. In the past few years, she has been working at Pupu Amusement Park. At the beginning, she was just as lazy as everyone else and didn't bother with makeup. But as she rose through the ranks and had to meet clients from time to time, she would put on a simple makeup look.
She also had some jewelry such as earrings and necklaces. She picked out a few and tried them on one by one. In the end, she only wore earrings, which surprisingly matched the dress very well.
As if he had timed it perfectly, Zhou Shilin sent her a message the moment she put on the second ring. He had already arrived downstairs at Chen Ci's apartment building. Chen Ci asked him to wait a moment, tried on two more pairs of shoes, and then went downstairs with her bag.
Zhou Shilin was waiting for her outside the car. When he saw Chen Ci approaching, he opened the car door for her. Chen Ci stood beside the car and looked up at him: "Usually at times like this, shouldn't you compliment me by saying I look prettier than usual?"
Zhou Shilin paused as he opened the car door, carefully examining Chen Ci before him: "In my eyes, you are beautiful every single day."
"..." President Zhou is still a cut above the rest. He should be the one to write the novel "The Domineering President's Pampering".
She bent down and got into the car. Just as she fastened her seatbelt, Zhou Shilin handed her a beautifully wrapped little gift box: "This is for you."
Chen Ci took the gift box with some surprise, opened it, and saw a gold bracelet inside. Nowadays, gold jewelry from major brands is becoming more and more beautiful and is very popular among young people. The one Zhou Shilin bought was made up of several different plain chains, with a string of tassels with sparkling beads hanging from the bottom, making it very delicate and exquisite.
"It's so beautiful." Chen Ci couldn't help but take out the bracelet to examine it more closely.
Zhou Shilin said from the side, "The design of this bracelet is suitable for both everyday wear and commuting. I think you will like it."
"I love it!" And considering the current price of gold, I like it even more! "This... was this also chosen by Assistant Tian?"
"..." Zhou Shilin paused for a moment, "The gifts I gave you were all personally selected by me."
"Oh." The porcelain bracelet was on her left wrist, dangling twice in front of him. "It looks better on my wrist than in the box. But why did you think of giving me a bracelet?"
Zhou Shilin said, "Hobbies."
Chen Ci: "?"
"I like to give my girlfriend gifts."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
