"Scared?" Lu Ziyin laughed as if she had heard something particularly funny, then her face turned cold. "If Han Zhengguo knew that he had a stupid son like you outside, he would probably wake up from his nightmares!"
Han Zhengguo? Isn't that his father's name?
Han Xi froze, then looked sharply at Lu Ziyin, his voice trembling with fear, "Who...who are you?"
Lu Ziyin ignored him, turned around, took Ding Kemeng's hand, and said gently, "Mengbao, let's go."
Ding Kemeng felt the warmth in her hand, and when she looked up, she saw Lu Ziyin's gentle smile. A familiar face, a familiar voice—everything was so familiar, as if Lu Ziyin had never left.
"good."
At the entrance of Xingyuan Restaurant, Tang Zhizhou, sporting a buzz cut, bounced around and waved to Ding Kemeng from afar. Xie Sichen was also beside him, a faint smile still on his face.
"Sister Meng!"
Tang Zhizhou's voice had changed quite a bit, but Ding Kemeng still wouldn't mistake it.
She looked up at Lu Ziyin, who still had the same gentle smile. He pinched her cheek and said, "Let's go eat together. They're all waiting for us!"
"Sister Meng!" Tang Zhizhou's smile widened as they approached. "Long time no see! You're still so short!" Tang Zhizhou's seriousness lasted only a few seconds before he started teasing them.
Lu Ziyin laughed and kicked him. Tang Zhizhou pretended to be in pain and dodged repeatedly. Xie Sichen also laughed out loud. Ding Kemeng looked at the familiar group of people in front of her, and her memory seemed to return to three years ago, to the scene of everyone playing around in high school.
That's good, they're still here.
The four of them went into the restaurant together and booked a private room. Since Lu Ziyin was treating, Tang Zhizhou and his companion didn't care about the cost when ordering food. They ordered whichever dish was the most expensive, determined to rip off Lu Ziyin!
Lu Ziyin, always wealthy and extravagant, didn't mind at all. He even opened a few bottles of expensive wine, just to liven things up.
Everyone enjoyed the meal and chatted about their respective universities. Xie Sichen had surprisingly become a top student in science and engineering at C University, while Tang Zhizhou hadn't been idle abroad either; although his studies weren't great, he hadn't failed any courses. He had even managed to start a small business overseas and achieve some success. Ding Kemeng also casually mentioned some interesting things that had happened to her at university over the past few years.
Lu Ziyin listened attentively, occasionally asking interesting questions, but he never mentioned his university life. It wasn't until Tang Zhizhou and Xie Sichen were both drunk that Lu Ziyin ended the dinner and arranged for someone to take them home.
Lu Ziyin didn't drink. After paying the bill, he took Ding Kemeng to his newly bought house in City B.
The house was newly bought, so it was only simply renovated. Apart from some essential furniture, there was nothing else.
Ding Kemeng went in, sat down on the sofa, and didn't say anything.
Lu Ziyin then walked in as well. He never liked to sit too far away from Ding Kemeng. Although he didn't say anything after seeing Ding Kemeng sitting on the single sofa, he still strode over and picked her up from behind.
Ding Kemeng was startled when Lu Ziyin suddenly hugged her, and exclaimed in surprise.
"Lu Ziyin!"
Lu Ziyin rarely saw her so frightened, so he smiled inwardly. With a little force in his hand, he and Ding Kemeng switched places, with him sitting on the single sofa and Ding Kemeng sitting on his lap.
Lu Ziyin wrapped her arms around Ding Kemeng's waist very naturally and chuckled softly in her ear: "Cute baby, don't be afraid, I'm holding you, you won't fall."
Is this what we need to worry about now?
Ding Kemeng blushed at Lu Ziyin's shameless behavior. She struggled slightly but couldn't break free, so she stopped moving. "Can't you just sit down over there?"
"No." Lu Ziyin gently kissed Ding Kemeng's head, rejecting her very seriously.
Fine, I'll just sit here. Anyway... there's no one else at home.
Ding Kemeng comforted herself in this way.
"Lu Ziyin, how have you been doing abroad these past few years?" After a moment of silence, Ding Kemeng suddenly spoke up.
During dinner, Ding Kemeng noticed that Lu Ziyin was acting strangely. He was too quiet. Tang Zhizhou and the others were talking about their university life, and even Xie Sichen, who was usually not talkative, talked a lot. But Lu Ziyin was not mentioned at all.
Although she didn't know much about the Lu family, she knew that they hadn't been doing so well in recent years. In fact, she had heard the year before that Uncle Lu had fallen ill. All of this made it hard for her not to worry.
Lu Ziyin had already guessed that his girl would ask about this, so it wasn't unexpected, but it was still difficult for him to bring it up.
She tightened her grip on his arm and sighed, "My dear, my biological mother passed away just a month ago."
Madam Qin has passed away? Ding Kemeng was a little worried and wanted to turn around to see Lu Ziyin's face.
Lu Ziyin quickly restrained her, saying urgently, "No, don't turn your head, my darling, listen to me, okay?"
The pleading tone in her voice was something Ding Kemeng hadn't seen Lu Ziyin like this in a long time.
"Okay, you go ahead, I'm listening." Ding Kemeng stopped moving.
"When I was in my senior year of high school, she forced me to take over the Qin family's business on the condition that I destroy and swallow up the Lu family. I didn't agree. She has a very strong personality and hates it when others disobey her." Lu Ziyin's voice rang in my ears.
Ding Kemeng immediately realized what was going on, and her voice trembled slightly, "So, she used me to threaten you, is that right?"
Lu Ziyin chuckled, kissed Ding Kemeng's cheek, and comforted her, "It's alright, it's all over now."
“No matter how outrageous she was, she was still my mother. I was a piece of her flesh and blood. She wouldn’t really do anything to me. Besides, her body couldn’t take too much strain at the time.” Lu Ziyin recalled Qin Wan’s face, her tone indifferent: “She asked me to stay by her side. Three years would be enough for me to take over the Qin family. Although I refused to agree to her going against the Lu family, she had been in the business world for so many years. Her methods and experience were far beyond what a child like me could compare to.”
“She secretly made a move against the Lu family. At first, it was just small-scale fighting, and my dad thought she was just feeling resentful, so he let her do it. But gradually, the small-scale fighting turned into business competition. The Lu Group lost several big orders in a row, and the company's cash flow ran into problems. But by then, it was too late to regret it.”
So, was Uncle Lu's sudden illness last year also because of this...?
"Then what will you do..." Ding Kemeng squeezed Lu Ziyin's hand, somewhat worried. After all, he was his biological father, and Lu Ziyin could not possibly turn a blind eye to him.
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