Chapter 8: Green Tea Puppy's romance with her in cohabitation is suspected to be exposed
"Is this person chatting with a younger brother? He calls her 'sister' so sweetly." Shu Shu asked with a smile.
Cheng Guo breathed a sigh of relief. She had been worrying for nothing. Fortunately, Shu Shu only saw the last line of the speech-to-text conversion.
"I was under a lot of pressure when I first started working. It was a job introduced by someone, but we lost contact afterward." Cheng Guo skipped the last two questions and didn't answer them.
Shu Shu was very interested in this. Although Cheng Guo was very approachable and seemed gentle and cheerful, once you got to know her, you would realize that she was a very indifferent person. She was indifferent in the sense of being without desires or wants, as if she could do anything. She had very few emotions and never lost her temper. Moreover, her technical skills were among the best of the younger generation.
How can someone like that experience stress? And even seek companionship for chatting?
No, the point is, now she's looking for someone to chat with.
Shu Shu took Cheng Guo's arm, her face full of concern, "Are you under a lot of pressure and contacting them again?"
“No,” Cheng Guo thought for a moment, not wanting to reveal everything, so she could only give vague information, “He is having some financial difficulties right now.”
"Oh, okay," Shu Shu breathed a sigh of relief, then added to the story herself, "You want to come back and make money off your old customers again, right?"
She paused for a moment to process what she was saying, "You just searched for underwear, you weren't planning to buy some for this chat partner, were you?!"
Cheng Guo: "..."
The process was completely wrong, but the result was correct.
"So poor you can't even afford underwear? No way, Guo'er, Ruan Ning was buying it for her boyfriend, it's perfectly legitimate," Shu Shu said anxiously, "You can't buy it for this chat guy, he'll cling to you after you buy it!"
"I'm not buying it."
Cheng Guo put away her phone, but what she was thinking about was telling Shen Zhui that night not to tell Zhou Nanyu about him staying at her house. If Zhou Nanyu knew, it would be the same as Ruan Ning knowing.
Before she even got home, she received a Weibo notification.
Actor Shen Zhui's alleged relationship has been exposed.
*0*
Shen Zhui hasn't spent any of the family's money in a long time.
During his freshman year, Shen Zhui went to Licheng to study and signed up for the animation festival organized by the Licheng Municipal Government. However, he encountered a creative block. At that time, his roommate Zhou Nanyu was going to film a movie. He was going to play a small role in a low-budget film. Zhou Nanyu asked him if he wanted to go to the film set with him. Maybe it would inspire him. The director of that movie was not famous, but he was one of Shen Zhui's favorites. So Shen Zhui went.
That time, Shen Zhui not only became friends with the director and successfully broke through his creative bottleneck, winning an award for his entry, but also unexpectedly became famous for a role he played in a movie, after which he received a constant stream of offers.
While other actors consider the script, salary, and production team when accepting roles, Shen Zhui focuses on directing, screenwriting, and post-production. After finishing his third film, he established his own studio, going from working alone to having a team.
He submitted his entry to an competition a while ago. His team was free at the time, and since they were all young people, there was no age gap between them. Last night, they sent him a message asking when he would come back to oversee things, and also sent him a photo. In the photo, several people were sitting with Zhou Nanyu eating barbecue, with a mahjong table set up next to them, indicating that they were having fun that night.
At that moment, Shen Zhui was lying on the sofa. Cheng Guo was still awake. Light was leaking through the gap under her door. He stared at that sliver of light, smelling the faint scent lingering in the blanket on his body. It was the same as the bath towel, very light, the scent of Cheng Guo. He moved his legs.
The room temperature slowly rose, and the blanket was no longer enough. Chen Zhui folded it up and put it under his head as a pillow, thinking that the size 41 slippers and the pink mouthwash cup were no problem, nor were the clothes hanging on the balcony.
So what if Cheng Guo keeps these things? So what if she can't forget them for now?
He's lying here now.
But he was also angry.
The day after he and Cheng Guo separated, she moved in with him.
Judging from how worn those slippers are, the size 41 man has been living here for quite some time.
Frustrated, Chen Zhui sat up from the sofa, ran his fingers through his hair, and after sitting there for a while, opened his bank app.
Regardless of whether he uses the family's money or not, his parents still transfer money into the account every month without fail, and the balance is quite considerable.
Chen Zhui didn't touch the money in the card, but instead placed dozens of orders on a shopping app before lying down.
When Shen Qingli called, he had just finished unpacking a batch of packages. Before leaving, Cheng Guo opened the bedroom window and sent the air conditioner into the living room, making it comfortable and pleasant.
Shen Zhui rubbed his temples, sat down on the sofa, and answered the phone, "Mom—"
"Baby, quickly show Mommy if you've lost weight? Why didn't you tell the family about such a big thing as being hospitalized? I only found out by seeing the trending topics." Shen Qingli, who looked no more than thirty years old, looked at Shen Zhui with heartache.
"Minor surgery," Shen Zhui checked his WeChat; it was a photo of him in the hospital. "Mom, I'm 21 now—"
“What’s wrong with 21? 21 is also my son. How come he’s lost so much weight? Old Song,” Shen Qingli turned around and called out, “Quickly transfer 200,000 yuan to my son for nutrition expenses.”
"Is 200,000 enough?" Song Ting'an asked.
"Let's add a zero, and transfer the relationship fund over too."
"I don't need it."
Shen Zhui refused, because if Cheng Guo knew he was rich, she would kick him out in a heartbeat.
But no one listened to him.
"Why wouldn't you need it? You can't let a girl pay for things like shopping and eating out."
Shen Qingli turned her head to look at him, raised an eyebrow, and asked, "Tell Mom, how's the progress?"
"What's the progress?" Shen Zhui lowered his phone with a blank face, only patting his chest and chin.
"Stop pretending with your mother. Your cousin said that you spent all your earnings from rummaging through trash cans to pursue someone."
Shen Zhui's cousin is his agent, Qi Yun.
"..."
Shen Zhui didn't want to talk about this, his eyelids drooping. "If she's so talkative, why didn't she tell you about my hospitalization?"
"Stop shifting the blame. Shouldn't you tell us about something this big yourself? Oh right, your cousin asked you to take a picture and post it on Weibo to let her know you're safe. Baby, send the picture to Mommy and let Mommy give you some advice. Your dad had a whole series of little tricks up his sleeve when he was courting me."
"I'll send it to you if you change how you address me from now on."
"Okay, son."
"Hang up."
With Cheng Guo's permission, Shen Zhui drew the curtains, glanced at the screen, took a selfie, posted it on Weibo, and then sent it to Shen Qingli, who immediately replied.
[Mei Li: My son looks handsome no matter how you photograph him (smiling)]
[Mei Li: What about Cheng Guo's? (You're allowed to run 39 meters ahead of me with the 40-meter broadsword)]
They even found out his name.
Chen Zhui lowered his head, leaned against the window, and replied: 【Wait until I catch up】
[Meili: Good luck! Lesson one for pursuing a girlfriend: What she lacks most is what you can easily move her with. Lesson two: Go along with her wishes.]
Chen Zhui held his phone, thought about the outcome of going along with Cheng Guo's wishes, shook his head, and sent her a message: [What do you want to eat tonight, barbecue or hot pot?]
It was lunchtime, and the other party replied quickly: [Barbecue]
Chen Zhui moved his finger: 【Okay, hot pot】
Cheng Guo: ???
Chen Zhui posted again: [Should I use a spicy dipping sauce or sesame sauce for the broth?]
[Cheng Guo: Spicy Dish]
[Chen Zhui: Okay, sesame paste]
Cheng Guo: ???
[Chen Zhui: Spicy broth or clear broth?]
This time, after a few seconds, the other party seemed to be hesitating.
[Cheng Guo: Clear Broth]
[Chen Zhui: Okay, mushrooms]
Two full minutes passed without a reply from the other end. Shen Zhui was unsure if he had offended her. He was pondering whether to go along with her, since she hadn't chosen the top option without thinking this time. Just then, his phone vibrated a few times. Cheng Guo sent him two screenshots. She had ordered hot pot ingredients online, which would be delivered soon. She told him not to open the door and to wait until the delivery person left before taking them inside.
Shen Zhui clicked on the picture. Apart from the sesame sauce base and mushroom soup base that he requested, probably afraid that he would "go against" her with every dish as before, she made all the decisions for the other dishes. She bought pre-cleaned vegetables to save the trouble of picking them, and they only needed to be rinsed. If you looked closely, more than half of them were things that he would never eat but that she liked.
She wasn't like this before when they ate together; she always went along with him.
Is she deliberately "getting back at" him now?
Shen Zhui chuckled and replied, "Okay."
Cheng Guo saw Shen Zhui trending on social media when she got her phone after finishing her afternoon clinic. He had only stayed at her house yesterday, and his "relationship" was trending today. How could she bear this?
In her haste, she didn't go back to her office; instead, she closed the consultation room door and opened the notification, only to find that the "culprit" was a photo.
The top comment in the comment section was from a fan who wished Shen Zhui a good rest and a speedy recovery. The second comment was from a user with the ID "Shen Zhui No. 1884 Little Fan": Husband, are you dating?
One sentence sparked a series of discussions.
[I don't understand: how did you figure that out?!]
[Fan #1884: The IP address is still in Licheng, which means he hasn't gone back to his hometown. It's summer vacation now, and he's not staying in a dormitory. Judging from the shape of the window behind the curtain, this is a residence.]
[Seeing Through It All: This kind of gauze is called "Fufeng gauze." It looks especially beautiful when the wind blows, creating an amazing atmosphere. What man would install curtains like this in his room? Your brother is definitely in love.]
[Chenzhui's Mom 11: This little sister has such sharp eyes! Waaaa, my baby's grown up! Mom can already picture you kissing your girlfriend here!]
Wait, don't let your imagination run wild!
Cheng Guo zoomed in on the photo. Shen Zhui had only drawn a thin curtain when he took the picture, and the sunlight behind him partially filtered in, enveloping him in a hazy glow. Combined with the relaxed demeanor he exuded while taking the picture, it instantly made him seem closer to the viewer, as if he weren't a celebrity but a boy next door who was within reach.
He's handsome, and the photos are beautiful, but this kind of sheer curtain is very common!
Cheng Guo scrolled down the comments, but Shen Zhui hadn't responded yet. She looked back at his Weibo posts; Shen Zhui rarely posted, and his posts were usually work-related or holiday greetings, never appearing in the comments section. She figured if he wasn't replying, it was probably nothing to worry about. Celebrity rumors usually just fade away over time, so Cheng Guo felt relieved.
When she was almost home, she opened Weibo again and saw that Chen Zhui had replied to the comment two minutes earlier.
@Chenzhui: Don't call me husband anymore.
A thought automatically formed in Cheng Guo's mind. She clicked on more replies and realized that ordinary people's thought processes were indeed the same.
The comments section was almost overflowing, with some expressing doubt and others amazement, but all conveying the same message—
Shen Zhui did not deny being in a relationship + Shen Zhui told fans not to call him "husband" anymore = Shen Zhui is really in a relationship!
Having reached the bottom of the stairs, Cheng Guo didn't wait for the elevator to come down. She ran upstairs, opened the door, put her bag on the shoe cabinet, and called out "Chen Zhui" breathlessly, then paused in surprise.
Several colorful little fish have appeared in the fish tank that originally only had one aquatic plant. When they are placed close to the fish tank, the water ripples and the little fish are startled and scatter in all directions.
A cell phone and a plain ring are placed next to the fish tank.
The cell phone belonged to Chen Zhui, and the plain ring he once wore on his middle finger was something she had seen on the night he signed the consent form for surgery.
"What's wrong? Why are you in such a hurry?" Shen Zhui came out of the kitchen, carrying chrysanthemum greens, which he didn't like, to the dining table.
Cheng Guo snapped out of her daze, "How could you..."
She turned to look at Chen Zhui, and when she glanced at the dining table out of the corner of her eye, she noticed something was wrong but didn't pay attention to it for the time being.
"Why did you tell your fans on Weibo not to call you 'husband' anymore?" she continued.
"What's wrong with talking about this?" Shen Zhui asked dismissively, turning back into the kitchen.
"Your fans all think you're in a relationship now."
“I’ve told them before not to call me that.”
Cheng Guo stood at the kitchen doorway, watching him carry dishes to the dining table one by one, his steps light and his tone relaxed, truly showing that he didn't take the matter to heart at all.
Her tone became a little anxious, "But it's different now. If your fans ask you if you're in a relationship, and you reply that they shouldn't call you 'husband' but don't deny being in a relationship, they'll think you are!"
The hot pot was already boiling, bubbling away, the steam rising up and being silently enveloped by the cool air from the air conditioner, slowly dissipating.
Shen Zhui turned around, glanced at her, and said with a smile, "Why are you in such a hurry, sister? Nobody said I'm dating you."
His tone was relaxed, and Cheng Guo could tell that he had no intention of teasing her at all, but she was still speechless and her heart skipped a beat.
"Then what do you suggest? Should I keep letting them call me husband?"
Cheng Guo pursed her lips and remained silent.
"I will date sooner or later, and I want to date. If it's not with you, it will be with other people. They all understand that."
“But sister,” he looked up, staring directly into her eyes as if trying to see into her heart, “you don’t want me to focus my energy on you because you still like someone else.”
A note from the author:
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The older sister is reluctant to talk to her younger brother about many things, and now he's resorting to all sorts of tricks to get her to reveal her true feelings to him.
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