Chapter 28 (Revised)
"Sister, why don't you just not go to that dinner party? No, this white one is too plain, take the red one."
After Song Zhiyu finished directing the stylist, he turned around and said pitifully, "The old man from the Liu family sent me a message. I don't think the Qiao family has any good intentions."
"What did the Liu family tell you?" Song Zhiyi sat upright as the makeup artist painted on her face.
"It's about the marriage arrangement," the stylist brought over new clothes, and Song Zhiyu came over to help pick them out. "The old man heard that Miss Zhi was going to attend the banquet, so he urged me to go. But I said I sprained my ankle and there was nothing he could do.
"But from what he said, it seems that it's not just the Liu family that's interested in you?"
"Well, Qiao Liangze also wanted Qiao Nianwen to marry me, and he came to me two months ago to sound me out."
Song Zhiyu sighed and said in disdain: "Don't any of these people look in the mirror?"
"Don't say that about yourself."
"..." Song Zhiyu choked and simply stopped picking clothes. He pulled a chair and sat down beside him, saying, "Actually, I have always had a question. Why did the old man have to find me for the marriage? He has so many grandsons. He should be able to find one who can be used after picking and choosing, right?"
"Oh, this should be my fault." Song Zhiyi took a mirror and carefully checked her makeup. She said casually, "Two years ago, when you were busy with the announcement, I attended a banquet as Miss Zhi. That time, I happened to meet the cousins of the Liu family."
"Then what?" This was something he had never heard of before, Song Zhiyu asked quickly.
"What else can it be? You know what those scumbags are like. I took care of the slick ones."
"You did it?" Song Zhiyu exclaimed with wide eyes, "Won't we be recognized?"
"How could I be so stupid," Song Zhiyi moved the mirror, in which the makeup artist was using wax to adjust the shape of her ears. "After that day, I checked the projects they were responsible for and targeted them one by one. The old man knew it was me, and from then on he didn't dare to bring those people to embarrass himself in front of me."
"So it seems that the old man's choice is really just me." Song Zhiyu thought thoughtfully.
"No, there's another one?" Song Zhiyi glanced at him, looking unhappy.
"Who?" Song Zhiyu asked, and almost thought of the answer in the next second.
"Liu Qifan," Song Zhiyi put down the mirror, his eyes were extremely cold, "your 'rival in love'."
He is also her biggest suspect at the moment.
When Song Zhiyu heard this, he shuddered almost visibly, laughed dryly, and said in a flattering way, "How can it be that we are rivals in love? The relationship between me and... that person is obviously just slightly better than a stranger."
Although the makeup artist and stylist are both his own people, Song Zhiyu still swallowed the name as it involves other people's privacy.
Song Zhiyi said sarcastically, "I've already lent out 500,000 or 600,000 yuan to people whose relationships are just a little better than strangers. If the relationship is a little better, I don't even dare to think about it."
"How can it be so exaggerated," Song Zhiyu muttered quietly, "and human life is at stake. I just want to save it if I can, and the money is not much for us."
"This is not a matter of money..." Song Zhiyi's movements were a little bigger, and the wax on her ears that had just been shaped was deformed by her. Song Zhiyi apologized, took a calm breath and continued, "I've told you many times to stay away from her. You have to at least hold on for these ten months, otherwise you will die, Song Zhiyu, you will die, do you know that?"
“…”
No one spoke. Song Zhiyi closed his eyes and sighed secretly.
Song Zhiyu has always been soft-hearted. After all, human life is at stake, and it is normal for him to lend money to his colleague to treat his mother's illness, but that person should not be Lin Xiaofeng.
In her eyes, her brother's life is naturally much more important than others, not to mention.
"You could have told me about this and I would have handled it."
"sorry."
Song Zhiyu knew that her sister was really angry this time, so she made a self-examination and said, "I heard the voice of the phone call first that day, and it sounded familiar so I walked over. Who knew that when I turned around the wall, I found out it was Lin Xiaofeng.
"And there was no reaction of being manipulated at that time, so I took it for granted that the crisis was over. I know I was wrong this time, but I promise there will never be a next time, and I will stay away from her in the future!"
"You...ah, forget it." Song Zhiyi sighed, "If I really want to talk about this matter, I can't blame you entirely."
She had also seen in the character card book that Lin Xiaofeng's mother would be seriously ill, and this was originally supposed to belong to Liu Qifan. It was just because of the butterfly effect that something went wrong in the relationship between Lin Xiaofeng and Liu Qifan, and that's why she was picked up by Song Zhiyu by accident.
The reason why the relationship between Lin Xiaofeng and Liu Qifan did not develop according to the original plot was ultimately due to the trouble caused by Song Zhiyi.
The last time they went back to the Liu family, Song Zhiyi met Lin Xiaofeng by chance. After returning, he sent her a report on Liu Qifan's messy relationships between men and women, drastically severing the tie between the two of them.
Without the help of the domineering boss Liu Qifan, Lin Xiaofeng, a newcomer who had just debuted, naturally had no ability to pay for his mother's huge medical expenses. That's why Song Zhiyu heard the hospital's call urging payment at the company, and in desperation she chose to ask him for help.
But maybe Song Zhiyu was afraid that she would be angry if she knew, so he kept the matter secret without saying a word. If Lin's mother's condition had not suddenly worsened yesterday, and Lin Xiaofeng had not been desperate and turned to Song Zhiyu for help again, she probably would not have known about this even after the plot was over.
After sorting out all the timelines, Song Zhiyi's last bit of anger disappeared: "Anyway, if anything happens in the future, just let her come to me. Don't worry about her mother. I have already asked someone to help find a doctor. There will be a result tomorrow at the latest."
Lin Xiaofeng's mother should have received good treatment, but now she has been blown away by the butterfly effect. As the "culprit", she must make compensation.
Song Zhiyi had just finished speaking when Song Zhiyu came over and handed her a fruit plate attentively while nodding in a flattering manner: "Don't worry, sister. She wrote me an IOU and she won't default on the payment."
Song Zhiyi knew that he said this on purpose, and sneered, "Don't worry, since I'm helping her, I will definitely dig out more value from her. Although she has just debuted, she has much more potential than you."
After all, she is the heroine.
The disguise was almost done. Song Zhiyi glanced towards the door and asked, "Is Yu An here?"
The topic changed so quickly that Song Zhiyu was stunned for two seconds before answering, "He just said he parked downstairs and should be here soon."
"Mr. Song." Speak of the devil. Yu An arrived at the door as the last word was spoken. He was rarely wearing a suit. When he saw people looking at him, he moved his shoulders uncomfortably.
"It fits him well," Song Zhiyi nodded with satisfaction, stood up and pointed casually, motioning him to sit over here, and said to the makeup artist, "Please adjust his facial features and body shape as well."
*
At seven o'clock in the evening, just as the sky was getting dark, a red supercar stopped in front of the villa. Before it stopped, a waiter came over attentively.
The car door opened, and the leading waiter was stunned for a moment. He quickly gestured with his left hand behind his back, and the smile on his face deepened: "Excuse me, is this Miss Koreeda?"
The woman nodded slightly. She was wearing a flamboyant red dress with an irregular hem that stopped just above her knees, revealing a pair of straight, slender calves. But the most eye-catching thing about her was the gorgeous golden mask on her face.
The mask fits tightly to her face, revealing only her lips and a small half of her face, which is one of Miss Zhi's trademarks.
Miss Zhi - Song Zhiyi got out of the car and gave a subtle wink to Yu An who was getting out of the driver's seat. The gems on the mask also reflected bright light as she moved.
To match her, Yu An also wore a half-face mask, but it was a low-key black one.
The elaborate disguises and masks make it difficult for even acquaintances to recognize them.
The waiter who ran to report the news came back quickly, paused for a few seconds to adjust his breathing, and said respectfully to Song Zhiyi: "Miss Zhi, please follow me. President Qiao has been waiting for a long time."
Song Zhiyi curled her lips, blinked at him from behind the mask, and said in a low voice, "Please tell Director Qiao that tonight is a dance, not a place to discuss work."
"Yes, Miss Zhi." The waiter blushed uncontrollably, earning a low chuckle from the woman in return.
After the people left, he couldn't help but turn around and follow the figure, saying in a trance: "Miss Zhi is still so beautiful."
"Well, be clear-headed. You can't get that." His companion poked him warningly, "And haven't you heard? They say that Miss Zhi always wears a mask when she appears. That's because, well, only the lower half of her face can be seen."
Another person interrupted him hastily: "Hey, you're getting more and more ridiculous. Why don't you look at where you are? If this gets out, you'll lose your job, right?"
*
"Relax." Feeling Yu An's tension, Song Zhiyi patted his arm gently and soothed him, "It's just a formality. We can just take a quick turn and then we can leave."
"Okay, Miss Song...zhi."
Song Zhiyi smiled and leisurely took Yu An to the garden. At the entrance there was a table full of masks, and many young men and women were standing there choosing with great interest.
This is almost a "standard feature" of the banquets she attends.
When she was 18 years old, she invented the identity of Miss Zhi for herself, originally just to facilitate the layout to overthrow the Liu family, but she suddenly emerged as a surprise force, swallowed up many small and medium-sized enterprises along the way, and made a name for herself in the circle of wealthy families. However, it seems that they all think that Miss Zhi is just a "spokesperson" who was pushed out.
In short, as her actions became more and more big in recent years, the so-called wealthy families became more respectful to her. For example, whenever she attended a banquet, the host would prepare some masks at the table to show their "thoughtfulness".
As for those rumors about her "appearance flaws", she had heard them before, but she just didn't care at all.
Anyway, it's Miss Zhi who's lacking in appearance, so what does it have to do with Song Zhiyi?
The banquet was about to officially begin, but the Qiao family must have screened the invitees, so there were not many guests in the garden.
Song Zhiyi took a casual look, found an empty seat, and walked over with Yu An.
The Qiao family and the Liu family have been fighting for many years. This time, Qiao Liangze asked her to come to discuss financing matters. In order to restrain the Liu family, Song Zhiyi was happy to help them. But that was all. Don't even think about marriage.
Song Zhiyi was halfway there when he caught a glimpse of a figure that looked like Liu Qifan out of the corner of his eye. He changed direction naturally without stopping.
Xiaoyu was right. The Liu family really sent Liu Qifan. Really, instead of trying so hard to "marry" her, they might as well just give the Liu family to her.
If she could take over the Liu family and then destroy it on the spot, she could retire early with peace of mind.
Song Zhiyi complained inwardly, then found an empty seat nearby and sat down, looking very leisurely.
"I hate it so much, I hate it so much... I hate it!"
"Lingling, don't be like this, uncle probably doesn't mean that..."
Two familiar sounds rang in his ears. Song Zhiyi looked over and couldn't help but frowned.
How could I be so lucky today that I could meet Wan Bohong and Ou Lingling at Qiao's house? Could it be that Wan Bohong and Qiao Liangze have recognized each other? Will they officially announce it tonight?
It doesn't seem like it... wait, why are these two still so close, have they not realized they are aunt and niece?
Hiss, so exciting.
——
"Hiss—it hurts, be gentler!" Ou Lingling pulled her hand back angrily, tears in her eyes.
"Okay, I'll be gentle, gentle," Wan Bohong said with a look of restrained distress, "Can you show me your hand again to see if you have any bone injuries, please?"
Ou Lingling uttered a nasal sound and finally reached out her hand again.
Wan Bohong carefully examined his wrist, and as he looked at it, he thought about their identities and couldn't help but become distracted.
It's not that he didn't research his own background, but his mother would avoid the question every time he was asked. Over time, he accepted that he was a fatherless child.
Until his mother passed away, he never heard a word from her about his father. Originally, his father was just a symbol to him, a symbol that no one asked about or even remembered.
Until yesterday, his life story was suddenly made public in public, and even the ones who personally confirmed it were his love rival Qiao Nianwen and his "sister" who grew up with him, Ou Lingling.
He had spent the whole day in a daze, and until now he had not figured out what kind of feelings he should have towards Qiao Liangze, the man who might be his biological father.
"Brother Hong?"
"Brother Hong!"
"Um...what's wrong, Lingling?" Wan Bohong came back to his senses, with a hint of fragility in his eyes that he had not had time to hide.
"Hand," Ou Lingling moved again, pulled her hand back, and said angrily, "You've been looking at it for a long time."
"I'm sorry," Wan Bohong smiled, "It's probably just a scratch. Just apply some safflower oil when you get home. Remember to check if you have any other injuries when you get home."
"Yeah." Ou Lingling responded softly, looking at her wrist, not knowing what she was thinking. After a moment, she suddenly spoke with a crying voice, "Brother Hong, does he not want to recognize me? It's fine if he doesn't want to recognize me, but why does he slander me so much? Who cares about my broken family property?"
The "he" does not refer to Ou Lingling's biological father, Mr. Qiao, but Qiao Liangze, the current actual person in charge of the Qiao family.
"Don't worry," Wan Bohong smiled at her soothingly, his eyes dark, "Qiao Nianwen will intercede for you. If, if you really want to be recognized as a member of the Qiao family, I can also beg Qiao...Uncle for you."
"Really? Thank you so much. I knew that Brother Hong is the best." Ou Lingling was finally happy. She pulled a chair and sat down next to Wan Bohong. Then she smiled and stretched out her hand, wanting to hold Wan Bohong's arm like she did before.
When he dodged, they both froze.
"Brother Hong?"
"I'm sorry, I just, I just think," Wan Bohong pulled the corners of his mouth stiffly, "if what that person said is true, then maybe we can no longer be brother and sister."
"So that's what you're worried about." Ou Lingling pouted and said in a deliberately funny way, "Although I, your aunt, am older than you, I have called you brother for so many years, and I can't change it back in a short time. I allow you to call me Lingling in the future."
He's not talking about this.
Wan Bohong closed his eyes in silence and said in a deep voice, "Okay."
——
Song Zhiyi watched the show with great interest for a long time. From their casual conversation, it was not difficult to infer that Ou Lingling already knew her own life experience, and the same was true for Wan Bohong. It was just that Ou Lingling's "recognition of relatives" was not going smoothly.
Come to think of it, Master Qiao is getting old, and he might pass away one day. Now an illegitimate daughter of unknown origin suddenly appears. It seems that she is here to divide the family property. Qiao Liangze would not recognize her at this time unless he is crazy.
After all, Ou Lingling is not like Wan Bohong, who also has a "white moonlight" filter.
Song Zhiyi raised his hand and took a glass of red wine from a passing waiter. The deep red wine swayed, distorting the figure walking in the distance.
She raised her eyebrows beneath the mask, raised her glass to the visitor from a distance, and then drank it in one gulp.
It was really a good decision to come to the Qiao family tonight.
Ou Lingling noticed Qiao Liangze a step later than her, but still responded immediately. Knowing that Qiao Liangze didn't want to recognize her, she simply pulled Wan Bohong over to greet him.
"Chairman, I hope you can believe me. I have been without a father since I was a child, and my mother died very early. I just want to know who my biological father is... We can sign an agreement, and you decide. Just give me a chance to know my background. I swear, no matter whether I am a member of the Qiao family or not, I will not ask the Qiao family for a penny."
Ou Lingling stood in front of Qiao Liangze, her lips tightly pursed, looking both stubborn and pitiful.
Qiao Nianwen felt distressed, his eyes fell on her slightly red wrist, and he couldn't help but ask with concern: "Lingling, is your hand okay?"
"Awen..."
"That's enough!" Qiao Liangze was fed up with her behavior. He felt his forehead twitching. He opened his mouth to scold her again, but a deep and scratchy voice sounded first.
"Chairman Qiao, long time no see." Liu Qifan walked over with a glass of wine in his hand. When his eyes fell on Ou Lingling, he paused and said with a smile, "Is it a pity that I came at such a bad time?"
Qiao Liangze's expression froze, and he suppressed his anger with all his strength, then smiled heartily: "Why do you come at such an unfortunate time? Qi Fan, it's been a while since I last saw you. What projects are you working on recently?"
As he spoke, he winked at Qiao Nianwen, asking him to take Ou Lingling and leave first.
Song Zhiyi watched the three of them return to their old seats, and deliberately turned his back to hide himself, looking like he was going to continue watching the show.
On the other side, after the three of them sat down, they didn't seem to know how to start the conversation. Ou Lingling sobbed quietly to herself. Qiao Nianwen finally couldn't bear it and sighed, "Sorry Lingling, I didn't expect my dad to have such a big reaction."
"I insisted on following Brother Hong here. I originally thought it was a 'double happiness', but now it seems that I thought too much." Ou Lingling's appearance became visibly dimmer.
"You can't be blamed for what happened today. It's not up to you to decide... But, Brother Awen, since Chairman Qiao doesn't want to acknowledge me and doesn't even want to do a paternity test, can you take me to meet my father directly? I really want to know my life experience." Ou Lingling raised her head, a tear rolled down her face, her cheeks were pale and so fragile that they seemed about to break.
Qiao Nianwen looked at his hands being grabbed, then looked at the girl he liked in front of him, his eyes couldn't help revealing sadness, and he said harshly: "Lingling, in fact, isn't it also good if we don't recognize each other?"
As long as that result is not in front of them, they can still cover their ears, blindfold their eyes and continue to be together.
Ou Lingling shed more tears: "You are not me. Do you know what father means to me? Or do you not believe me anymore?"
"No, no, I didn't." Qiao Nianwen was so distressed that he wanted to hold her in his arms and comfort her. However, he was hesitant in the end, so he just held Ou Lingling's face and helped her wipe away her tears.
Wan Bohong was watching nearby, not knowing what he was thinking.
Qiao Nianwen was silent for a moment, looking at Ou Lingling's red eyes and the tears that could not be wiped away, and finally said with determination: "I can't disobey my father, but I know someone who can help you. I will go and ask her."
Who has such great energy?
Song Zhiyi took a sip of red wine leisurely, and felt that gossip went well with wine, and the more she drank, the more she enjoyed it. However, just as she lowered her head and put down her wine glass, three more people appeared in front of her - three gossip production workers.
The leader was naturally Qiao Nianwen. He was stopped by Yu An one meter away from Song Zhiyi. He looked carefully at the mask on Song Zhiyi's face, as if to confirm his identity.
Ou Lingling was held in his hand, her eyes moved on Song Zhiyi's mask, and she asked curiously in a low voice: "Brother Awen, is she the person you are talking about?" Such a young woman?
"I'm sorry, Miss Zhi, Lingling is just curious and has no intention of offending you." Qiao Nianwen secretly held Ou Lingling's hand and exerted force, signaling her not to ask more questions.
Song Zhiyi shook her head, and her pair of blue eyes (with cosmetic contact lenses) looked at him with interest, moving him to continue.
She now understood that the powerful person that Qiao Nianwen wanted to find was herself. Also, the Qiao family's financing was still in her hands. She just asked them to do a paternity test. Qiao Liangze had to agree even if he disagreed. But she was very curious about what Qiao Nianwen wanted to use to impress him.
The air was briefly quiet, and Qiao Nianwen's voice, with frustration and reluctance, rang out again:
"Miss Zhi, I have a favor to ask of you. If you agree, I can agree to marry you."
"ha?"
No, is this person sick?
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