Chapter 85
They had agreed to meet Chung Wai-yan again, but the actual meeting was a bit delayed. Iris was busy dropping off Chong Cheuk-wah, picking up Jennie, and then going to Elaine's mother's company for a script reading to support the adapted drama. Iris didn't make time to meet Pan Tze-lung until about two weeks later when Chung Wai-yan's internal investigation was almost over.
Pan Zilong was curious why she was so concerned about Zhong Wei'en's affairs. Iris shrugged, admitting that she was probably just a natural gossip; she always wanted to get involved in things that interested her, until she knew the outcome. Pan Zilong smiled but didn't comment. However, towards the end of afternoon tea, he gave his apprentice a relatively clear answer: "There shouldn't be any major problems."
When he said "no major problems," did he mean the investigation results were fine, or that his reinstatement was secure? Zhong Wei'en wanted to know more, but Iris, who hadn't known that much before, couldn't ask now. She patted Zhong Wei'en's hand, comforting her, "Since Master said there were no problems, it must mean both are fine. I think you'll receive a notification soon. Remember to let me know when you're reinstated, and we'll go out for a meal to celebrate."
The facts have been established, and a lie detector test has been conducted. From the day the statement was taken until now, the truth should be clear. Zhong Wei'en believed that the police wouldn't find anything that didn't match up. After thinking for a moment, he nodded, raised his glass of water, and clinked it with Iris's: "Thank you."
Iris didn't stand on ceremony: "You should thank me. I've been taking care of this cactus and these two fish for quite some time, and now they're returning to their rightful owner." The daisies had already withered, so Iris didn't bring them again, only pushing the remaining two items in front of Zhong Wei'en. Seeing these again, Zhong Wei'en no longer showed surprise, nor did he refuse them. He smiled faintly at Iris and politely thanked her.
Accepting the gift proved they had begun to become friends. Iris was pleased with their progress and left with particularly light steps. In stark contrast was her bodyguard friend, Derek, whose face was etched with worry. Iris had only ever seen him look like that on one occasion, and, with a mischievous glint in her eye, she deliberately asked, "Derek, did you meet Huihui?"
"Oh, shut up!" Derek was utterly fed up with this woman; he couldn't even bear to hear her name. He couldn't understand why Ding Huihui was still clinging to him like a leech, even though he had already directly rejected her advances and made it clear she wasn't his type. Perhaps it was his grumpy expression, or perhaps Iris could hear his thoughts, but just as Derek was thinking this, a "language" reminder came from the back seat. He then turned to Iris, who had recently become quite the matchmaker, and said, "Miss, if you really want to be friends with Ding Huihui again, then please, put everyone else aside and focus all your efforts on getting Ding Huihui to stop bothering me."
Regarding this, Iris could only say that she couldn't help. There were indeed many high-quality men in her circle of friends, but Ding Huihui's ideal type was beyond her grasp. Perhaps even Ding Huihui herself wasn't sure when or what kind of person she would fall in love with.
“How about Jacob?” Derek, regardless of whether he was desperate or not, wanted to push any man he could think of toward Ding Huihui. “I remember the two of them seemed to get along quite well for a while. And coincidentally, I recently heard from AK that Jacob and his sister Larine have come to Hong Kong again.”
“Jacob isn’t a good choice.” This rich kid’s character is only suitable for one-night stands or short-term relationships, not for a lifelong commitment. Even though breakups and makeups are common in today’s society, Iris doesn’t want Ding Huihui to get hurt by Jacob. She decisively cut off Derek’s budding thoughts: “I advise you to find a more reliable man, otherwise when Huihui comes back heartbroken, she’ll find that you were the best one.”
Derek couldn't help but shudder.
With Tiger's new bar opening, Derek, who had been hiding for several days, seized the opportunity to persuade Chong Cheuk-yuen to suggest to Chan Hon-tao that they bring out the Flying Tigers for a spin. He figured rich kids were unreliable, but there were bound to be some good ones among the police force. Since returning to Hong Kong from England, Iris had rarely been to bars, and consequently, he wasn't familiar with the new members of A Team or the new Flying Tiger recruits. This gathering for drinks would allow him to get to know people and assess their backgrounds—killing two birds with one stone.
Iris didn't have as many ulterior motives as him; she was simply there to congratulate Tiger. He was Ah Yuan's most respected senior, and had taken great care of Zhuang Zhuoyuan both during their time in the police force and after his retirement. So, it was only right and proper for Iris to do this. As for the trainees, Iris simply couldn't spare the time to deal with them lately. She was only thinking that she could learn more about them once these young men were qualified to join Team A.
"You're here, and you even brought things." Tiger looked at Iris's huge belly, which made him anxious. Even though it was still early and there were no customers in the bar, he came out from behind the bar and, as if clearing an obstacle, put his arm around her to keep a safe distance.
Iris sat down as he gestured, smiling to indicate she was really alright. The bag contained only light items, which Derek had carried the whole way; she only took it from him at the door, so it wasn't a burden at all. Tiger laughed, "With all this and your thoughtfulness, it's not light at all." His cafe, Tiger Cafe, had opened, and everyone had given him a lot of gifts, but only Iris, besides thinking about the bar, had also considered Dingding and Lele, the two children. "Dingding and Lele aren't my children, but I truly love them."
Iris had met the two children once before, but at the time she was dealing with Du Tianyu's matter and didn't have time to ask Tiger about their background. Now that she had some free time, she casually mentioned, "These two kids have only been in Hong Kong for a short time, haven't you mentioned them before?"
Tiger nodded: "Yes, their father just returned from England not long ago."
When Iris thought of Chinatown, the first thing that came to mind was England and Chinatown. Many Chinese people who travel abroad would stroll around there a few times. Iris and Ella had even worked summer jobs there during high school; if they were lucky, they might have even met Tiger's friends. Just as she was about to ask Tiger's friends for more details, she heard voices at the door—customers had arrived. Iris quickly urged him to greet the guests, and after sitting for a while, she asked the bartender, Ah Xian, for honey and fruit to make herself a Mommy's drink. She used to love the colorful drinks at bars, but now she couldn't drink alcohol at all, so she could only enjoy the visual appeal. But after making one, Zhuang Zhuoyuan still hadn't arrived, so she had to snatch Derek's glass and make another one, satisfying her craving for drinks as well.
Derek dared not speak out his anger, inwardly despising Iris's flashy but tasteless drink. His eyes kept glancing towards the door, and finally, he found a few more suckers.
A few burly young men walked into the bar. They were strangers, but that didn't stop Derek from striking up a conversation. He pretended to be a bartender, enthusiastically promoting the row of freshly made specialty cocktails on the bar, hoping that at least one of them would help him finish one.
Pale pink, blue and white, orange, plus bubbles—the drinks looked like they were designed to appeal to younger women. The group instinctively wanted to shake their heads, but Iris quickly stopped them, leaving only a freshly made Cosmopolitan aside. She then proceeded to promote all the others. She concluded, "If you want to meet girls, cocktails are a great conversation starter."
"It's like we've met now?" one of the young men joked, cheerfully raising a glass of wine. He wanted to clink glasses with Iris, but looking at her figure, he could only sigh, "I never thought pregnant women had to work so hard to sell alcohol these days."
Iris frowned and sighed, putting on her dramatic act: "Yeah, my husband prioritizes work over his friends, and I don't even know where I come in. I don't even know if he'll be there for me when I give birth, so I'm rushing out to earn some more money for baby formula before my due date."
For the sake of the children, the young men obediently took the remaining drinks from the bar. Iris chuckled and gestured to Ah Xian, preparing to have a few more drinks. She had just started to speak when the voice she had been waiting for appeared: "So that's what all these people are doing around the bar. It turns out Miss Zhou is talking badly about me here."
Old friends watched the couple's playful banter with amusement, while the children remained completely bewildered. Zhuang Zhuoyuan and Iris tacitly refrained from explanation, continuing their conversation while leaning against the bar. Thanks to Iris's opinion on the way she addressed him as "Mrs. Zhuang," their tone now carried a slightly frivolous air. Miss Zhou then adopted a coquettish tone: "How come I run into Mr. Zhuang everywhere I go? Looks like you'll have to pay for this last drink again."
Zhuang Zhuoyuan tapped his fingers on the table: "What are you going to use to buy it? If Miss Zhou wants to taste it, then I can't do that."
The guys behind him were struggling to suppress their laughter when Yu Xueli couldn't help but speak up: "Ah Yuan, control yourself, you're a married man." The guys at the bar immediately dismissed their assumptions, their eyes widening in disbelief. What was going on? They looked at each other, turned around, and finally turned back in shock.
Iris had already brought the wine to Zhuang Zhuoyuan's lips, the wine wetting his lips. She leaned closer and whispered, "Just a little bit." Then she leaned forward and kissed him.
"Ah!!!" Amidst the surrounding panic, Yang Gang screamed in shock. Iris finally broke down, spilling half her drink and laughing as she slumped against Zhuang Zhuoyuan. This was no small feat; Zhuang Zhuoyuan's heart tightened, fearing his wife would fall off the chair, he quickly caught her firmly and helped her sit back up. He used one hand to drink the remaining half of his drink, while his other hand remained behind Iris's back for support. Zhuang Sir proudly introduced her to the children: "This is my wife, Iris Zhou Yishi."
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