Chapter 72
Iris's speculation sounds a bit like worrying about nothing, especially since Du Tianyu is still in jail and Zhuang Zhuoyuan doesn't seem to care about it.
During happy hour, everyone was naturally curious about Iris's sudden reclusive lifestyle. Since Zhuang Zhuoyuan still had the energy to come out for drinks, it meant that both he and Iris were safe and sound, so his question took on a slightly teasing tone: "Brother Yuan, how come your wife is finally willing to stay home and rest during her pregnancy?"
"More or less," Zhuang Zhuoyuan said with a smile. "My wife thinks Du Tianyu is about to escape from prison, so she plans to stay home for a while to avoid getting into trouble."
Even though they were used to Iris's wild imaginations, the A Team members couldn't help but laugh when they first heard this: "Good heavens, Yuan's wife's joke has gone too far. Could she be using this as an excuse to secretly plan something big?"
"Then it's best not to." Zhuang Zhuoyuan was horrified just thinking about it.
Only Zhan Hantao acted differently, subconsciously asking, "How could Iris suddenly make such a deduction?" He knew Iris was studying criminal psychology, and was somewhat concerned about it. Du Tianyu was a serious offender; no one wanted him to return to society.
Zhuang Zhuoyuan pondered for a moment before replying, "It was probably inspired by Cheng Wanting's case. But I think it might also be an emotional projection." As he spoke, it seemed as if he himself didn't trust his wife enough. Indeed, Iris rarely drew conclusions without evidence. His expression immediately became more serious: "My wife must have her reasons, or perhaps it's her intuition, which has always been accurate."
"Stop thinking about these things that are still far from settled," Yu Xueli and Zhang Jiguang said, giving him a sudden, heavy pat on the shoulder as they both jolted him back to his senses. "What's more important now is, what stage are Zhan Sir and your sister at?"
Zhuang Zhuoyuan glanced at the two of them sideways: "Shouldn't we ask the parties involved even more about this?"
"We're afraid the person involved will be shy." They don't dare to be presumptuous at the base, but when it comes to joking around with Zhan Hantao after work, they don't hold back at all.
Being teased in front of so many people, Zhan Hantao felt quite helpless. He clenched his fist, put it to his mouth, and coughed lightly twice. His good friend Zhuang Zhuoyuan, however, didn't help him. Seemingly ignoring his embarrassment, he said, "You all know that Zhan Sir is shy. I'm more curious about why Zhan Sir is so shy?"
His sun-darkened face flushed red. Zhan Hantao felt rather uncomfortable, but he was surrounded by people and couldn't get away. His parents had also arrived after hearing the commotion, so he had no choice but to say, "I think we don't need to talk about this. Everyone understands."
"What 'understanding'?" Zhuang Zhuoyuan said dismissively. Even he didn't buy it, let alone his sister. In his words, he was quite anxious for his brother: "Brother, have you forgotten what I told you before? Love needs to be spoken. If you don't say it, how will my sister understand what you mean? Besides, she's such a principled person."
Zhan Hantao hesitated for a moment: "Is it really necessary?"
Everyone nodded in agreement.
It was his parents who knew their son best. Knowing that Zhan Hantao was not good at saying these kinds of things, Pauline gave him a suggestion: "Your father's birthday is the day after tomorrow. Why don't you invite Madam over for dinner and see if she agrees?"
Zhuang Zhuoyuan immediately clapped and exclaimed, "Meeting the parents isn't something just anyone can do. Ah Tao, once you make the invitation, my sister will know what you're up to. Then, you can confess your feelings, and everything will fall into place! Sister Pauline, you're so smart, it must have been you who pursued Uncle Chao back then!"
The conversation eventually circled back to herself. Pauline gave Zhuang Zhuoyuan a reproachful look, but seeing that her son had already taken out his phone, she didn't care about anything else and just wanted to get closer to find out the result as soon as possible.
Organisation was too busy; Zhan Hantao had just been stood up by Zhuang Zhuohua. He had already lowered his expectations a bit, but to his surprise, she agreed so readily after he explained the situation. He could almost picture Madam Zhuang's smiling face and the small dimples on her cheeks, her joy overflowing.
"She agreed." After saying that, an even louder cheer rang out.
"Is there any need to get so excited?"
Yes! Of course I want it!
Iris, who had heard the news, was excited all night and knocked on Zhuang Zhuohua's door early the next morning. The two sisters-in-law were buried in a pile of clothes, looking for a suitable outfit. Zhuang Zhuoyuan leaned against the door and raised an eyebrow. While his sister went into the dressing room to change, he whispered to his wife, "Are you supporting Tao in return because of his support for you yesterday?"
“You’re overthinking it.” Iris tapped his head, but that was all she said. Zhuang Zhuoyuan wanted to guess, but was interrupted by Iris’s sigh. “What is it now?” he asked.
This time, Iris thankfully didn't dwell on the word "again," otherwise, if she accused him of being impatient, he would truly be wrongly accused. But anything that could make her sigh deeply couldn't be much better. Seeing her hand touch her lower abdomen, Zhuang Zhuoyuan quickly stepped in front of her, squeezed in between, and turned to hold her hand: "Wife, the doctor said your weight gain is normal. With Auntie here, your beautiful dress will definitely be fine."
"But I can't wear any of those figure-hugging dresses anymore." Iris was ultimately disappointed; at the after-party, she had to give up her favorite things.
"But your belly is growing bigger month by month, which is less likely to cause stretch marks than for others who grow rapidly in a short period of time, right?" Zhuang Zhuoyuan cleverly changed the subject: "Our Tangyuan still cares about Mommy, hmm, let's look forward to our angel baby, okay?"
Iris still couldn't cheer up.
This problem truly has no solution. Zhuang Zhuoyuan, after so many attempts to strategize, ultimately placed his hopes on time. Facing his intractable problem head-on would likely only make things worse. Having learned about 80-90% of Edward's method, he promptly changed the subject: "Actually, do you think I should tell my sister what A-Tao is thinking? Although it might seem like A-Tao is being unreasonable if I bring it up, if I don't, my sister might not know the truth for years. To exaggerate a bit, it's not impossible that she'll never know."
Iris laughed and punched him lightly: "You know you're exaggerating." In her opinion, it would be best if Zhuang Zhuoyuan could take this opportunity to hand over that hot potato key to Zhuang Zhuohua. "Bang Ge has too much influence on my sister. If this matter is dragged on until she and Tao Ge are together, it probably won't be so easy to resolve."
Zhuang Zhuoyuan genuinely hoped to call Zhan Hantao "brother-in-law." He sighed, pulled Iris into his arms, and put most of his weight on her shoulder: "Let's do it after tomorrow. Uncle Chao should have a good birthday. I'll talk to my sister about A-Tao's thoughts later. It seems I'll have to help break through this barrier."
Knowing that Zhan Hantao didn't want to push her too hard, so that she would have time and space to sort out her feelings for Qian Fubang, Zhuang Zhuohua felt a sweet and satisfied feeling inside. She hadn't expected Zhan Hantao to be so thoughtful and meticulous. Although she complained, her feelings for him actually grew even stronger.
Seeing Iris's smile, her husband and she understood perfectly. Covering their mouths and putting their arms around each other's shoulders, they hurriedly slipped back to their room before Iris's older sister became angry from their laughter. They expected things to go smoothly, but unexpectedly, less than half an hour after Zhuang Zhuohua left the house the next day, Zhuang Zhuoyuan received news of Du Tianyu's escape from prison.
Iris never expected things to happen so coincidentally, so when Zhuang Zhuoyuan was checking the information, she wasn't paying much attention. She was half-asleep, only thinking about going upstairs to nap after her husband left. Suddenly, Zhuang Sir pressed her cheek and kissed her hard. Iris looked up innocently, puzzled by Zhuang Zhuoyuan's serious expression: "...What happened?"
"Du Tianyu escaped from prison." As soon as he finished speaking, Zhuang Zhuoyuan caught a fleeting glimpse of smug satisfaction on Iris's face, a satisfaction that her guess had been correct. That single second was enough to worry Zhuang Zhuoyuan. "Actually, BB," he said cautiously, "Mommy's been thinking about going back to England lately, hasn't she? Or how about you go back with her to prepare for the wedding?"
No way! Avoiding and distancing are two completely different things. She was indeed worried, but it was absolutely impossible for her to give up her research on Du Tianyu so easily. Iris chose to leave, swaggering past Zhuang Zhuoyuan and heading upstairs, supporting her pregnant belly. When she left, she said with a bit of arrogance, "Mommy has her own plans, and I will continue to stay at home. As for you, baby, you'll be late for work."
Zhuang Zhuoyuan really doesn't dare to mess with her now.
Fortunately, his wife was very trustworthy, staying firmly at home and not moving an inch. Even when he invited her to happy hour, the little princess resolutely refused to leave her heavily guarded castle. She truly deserved a reward! Smiling, he finished ordering the dessert, holding his phone, still hesitating whether to call his dear wife again, when he glanced out of the corner of his eye and saw his sister's subordinate, May, staring at him with shining eyes: "What's up?"
Are you going to call Iris?
Originally, he thought that inviting O-Ke to PC Bar to relax would give Zhan Hantao and Zhuang Zhuohua another opportunity to meet, but he didn't expect that he wasn't the only one who came with ulterior motives. Looking at the gossip magazine in May's hand, Zhuang Zhuoyuan immediately understood: "You want to get gossip from my wife."
“Let’s exchange ideas,” May smiled. Who wouldn’t want to hear more about the secrets of Hong Kong’s richest family, which have been making headlines recently? “It’s just a pity Iris didn’t come.”
Zhuang Zhuoyuan laughed: "You can call her all you want, or you can come home from get off work with my sister and have dinner at our house."
Gossiping to this extent, it's hard not to be called a gossipmonger. May waved her hands repeatedly, not wanting to make such a big sacrifice for a piece of gossip. However, "Did Jiang Baiyao's wife really have a miscarriage? She didn't even attend her own charity foundation's event."
Zhuang Zhuoyuan actually knew a little about this: "There shouldn't be a miscarriage. I ran into Iris when I accompanied her to her prenatal checkup. As for the event, both my mother-in-law and Iris declined to attend, so we don't know any more details."
"Wow, Yuan-ge—"
"Yuan-ge, you've changed!"
The moment Jianren opened his mouth, you knew he wouldn't say anything nice. Zhuang Zhuoyuan raised his forearm to block his outstretched hand and calmly replied, "I'm assuming you didn't just find out I married into a wealthy family."
Everyone laughed. Jianren also changed his tune: "I know, and I also know that you're about to have your second wedding, so I came to offer you a toast in advance."
Recently, due to the escape of the notorious thief, Zhan Hantao has been training his team intensely, hoping that the Flying Tigers will always be in top condition to deal with any crisis that may arise at any time. The daytime training has been a bit excessive, but thankfully, they can relax a bit in the evening. Chatting and laughing, much of their fatigue has been swept away. The conversation then shifted to Hong Kong's richest man, Jiang Baiyao, who had been mentioned earlier.
It turns out that after Du Tianyu's accomplices rescued the prisoner from the ambulance that day, Fang Yongbin led a search party along their possible escape routes, including Jiang Baiyao's mansion.
"But their butler wouldn't let us in at all. Besides, he just pointed to their high walls and heavy gates to show us. Indeed, the security at the Jiang family mansion is more exaggerated than that at our headquarters."
“So, I still prefer our family’s understated yet luxurious security setup.” Iris nodded, stroking her chin, then turned her attention back to the case: “No need to think about it, Du Tianyu and Yao Meiling are definitely at the Jiang family mansion. It’s the best option for them to escape and recuperate, bar none.”
Her certainty stemmed entirely from her understanding of Yao Meiling. For the kingpin to risk serious injury to secure a release from prison was already an immense gamble. Therefore, every step from here on out had to be flawless. The Jiang family mansion, conveniently located at a suitable distance from the accident scene, was the best option. The richest man in the land possessed wealth, power, and territory, along with an easily manipulated weakness—practically a natural pawn.
"Baby, baby, pay attention to prenatal education." Zhuang Zhuoyuan was a little worried about her excitement. Iris staying at home for so many days was almost a "miracle." He was afraid that she would hold back for too long and suddenly make a big move, directly barging into Jiang Baiyao's house to confront Du Tianyu and Yao Meiling head-on, which would be a major crisis.
"Tsk tsk tsk." Iris's disdain was palpable. She had thought that since the Zhuang siblings were drinking together tonight, Zhuang Zhuoyuan would know something about Zhuang Zhuohua's plans. She hadn't expected her brother to be so slow-witted. Now she was truly worried about her daughter Tangyuan's inherited intelligence. "Baby, haven't you considered what your older sister's thoughts and actions will be after she learns the same information? Are you waiting for me to go to the Jiang family? By the time I wake up tomorrow, the Jiang family mansion will probably have been ransacked. But it's too late. The news of Mrs. Jiang's absence from the event has been in the newspapers; the thieves have probably already run away. The place is empty, what a waste."
Zhuang Zhuoyuan felt he had suffered a huge blow, and nothing but kisses and hugs could comfort him.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
