Chapter 42 His marriage partners can only be a few...
Chapter 42
Li Changjing moved without warning, from the detached villa that Wen Yining used to frequent to this room, where only hourly cleaners come to clean regularly.
Wen Yining would cook with him and take a walk downstairs during her free time on weekends.
At some point, the house, which was initially empty and lifeless, gradually became filled with the presence of their life together, with Wen Yining's leftover clothes, hairbands, and matching toothbrushes on the washstand.
The property management of this community is very compassionate; they haven't driven away or killed stray cats. Every spring, the stray cats come out.
Wen Yining is very popular with cats and dogs. After being fed by her once, those wary stray cats will come out of the bushes to rub against her.
However, Li Changjing strongly resisted her touching the cats and dogs. He always felt that the cats carried viruses and might scratch her at any time.
But Wen Yining wouldn't listen to him. Every time, she would squat down with her eyes shining, and her voice would instantly turn into a pinching sound, as if she wanted to grow ten hands to pet the cat.
While touching him, she would repeatedly look up and ask, "Isn't he super cute?"
Li Changjing stood tall and elegant in front of a huge crabapple tree, patiently answering her with a smile each time, "Super cute." He showed no sign of resisting her petting the cat.
He was very cunning. No matter how unwilling he was, he would never confront Wen Yining directly or forcefully stop her from petting the cat and upsetting her.
Li Changjing wore a gentle smile, thinking about getting the property management to catch the cats and move them away as soon as possible. But when he looked up and saw Wen Yining's bright eyes and cheerful smile, he changed his mind.
Li Changjing had investigated Wen Yining's parents' situation and found nothing wrong. They could rest assured about the money. Wen Yining was completely at ease with Li Changjing's work and felt at ease.
The amount of this money ranges from ten thousand to thirty thousand per month. Although it is not much for others, it is a huge sum for Wen Yining's family. She no longer needs to worry about her parents and can live quite well with her scholarship money.
She bought a lot of cat food to feed the stray cats, but she was only free on Saturdays and Sundays. The rest of the time, she had to coax and beg Li Changjing to feed them every day after get off work.
And so, she raised those kittens from spring to early autumn, and they had begun to recognize her and Li Changjing. Sometimes when they came downstairs, they would meow and run up to her and roll around.
Autumn arrives in the northern part of the city right on time. After the start of autumn, a cool breeze blows the leaves yellow, and the weather gradually gets colder. Recently, the drizzling rain has been almost nonstop.
Wen Yining held an umbrella and carried a bag of groceries downstairs. The rain had been falling for so long that everything was damp, and the moisture seeped into her through the wet bluestone bricks.
She swiped her card to go upstairs and enter the house, which was quiet inside. Wen Yining turned on the light and started preparing ingredients in the kitchen. It was still early, but she was used to doing everything in advance.
When we finished preparing, there were still several hours before we finished eating.
She glanced at her watch, puzzled. Li Changjing should have been back long ago; why hadn't he arrived yet?
She opened her phone and found that Li Changjing had sent her a message. He said something came up and he would be back later, and asked her not to touch anything difficult to handle and to wait for him to return.
Wen Yining put down her phone and was about to go downstairs to check on the kitten when her phone rang again.
Gu Lingling's hoarse and weak voice came from the other end of the phone, "Wenwen, when are you coming back?"
"What's wrong with your voice? Do you have a cold?" Wen Yining frowned. "It sounds so serious."
"Hmm, I think I have a fever. I feel so awful. I wanted you to buy me some medicine when you come back." Gu Lingling's usually lively voice had become weak, and she sounded very aggrieved.
Jiang Fengqing had some family matters to attend to and went home last night, leaving Gu Lingling alone in the dormitory.
Unable to let it go, Wen Yining immediately said, "Then wait for me, I'll go back now."
Gu Lingling was the kind of pampered little princess who didn't know how to take care of herself. Wen Yining immediately rushed to the school and sent a message to Li Changjing from the car.
I put down my phone, and the rain outside intensified, turning into a downpour. The windshield wipers struggled to clear the rain from the windshield, barely allowing me to see the road ahead. The car windows were soaked by the torrential rain, obscuring all the view.
*
The lush greenery outside the window was damp. Li Zeming's house looked like it was built in a forest. Opening the back window revealed a grove of huge, lush trees. Standing on the second floor, you could see the tops of the trees and almost reach out to touch the leaves. At this moment, the tall trees outside the window were battered by the rain, and their leaves and branches drooped down, like drowned rats in a downpour.
Li Changjing stood by the window, looking at the forest outside in the torrential rain, smoking one cigarette after another. There were already five or six cigarette butts in the ashtray next to him, some long and some short, some not even burned out, as if the smoker was too busy to finish smoking and anxiously lit the next one.
"If you're not happy that Yuhan is too noisy, the Xu family has a girl who is your high school classmate. Although she can't compare to Yuhan's childhood sweetheart, she's still someone you know well, which is better than not knowing her at all."
After finishing speaking, Li Zemin slowly picked up his cup.
The figure by the window remained silent.
Li Zemin looked up at the silent figure and asked, "What's so interesting about that rain?"
Li Changjing looked up at the incessant rain outside, stubbed out his cigarette, lit another one, and frowned, saying, "This rain is really annoying."
Li Zemin was almost stunned for a moment, then raised an eyebrow, put down his cup and teased, "No way, the second brother can speak human language now."
This cousin never comments on anything, whether it's people or things. It was quite surprising to suddenly hear such a comment from this cousin who never makes judgments about good or bad, beautiful or ugly.
“Your nephew is almost walking, and your third brother is getting married soon. You, as the older brother, haven’t even made an engagement yet. I’m so annoyed by all the people asking about your marriage every day.”
"These are the few families you can choose from. You can decide for yourself." Li Zemin emphasized, "Anyway, no matter how many families you choose, they'll all be your marriage partners. Your grandfather personally approved them all for you."
The slender cigarette swayed between his fingers. Li Changjing remained silent, lowered his head, and forcefully pressed the cigarette he had just lit into the ashtray beside him. He slowly but forcefully spun it, and the grayish-white ash instantly clung to his pale fingertips, covering them with a layer of dull gray.
Despite his obsessive-compulsive disorder, he seemed oblivious. He pulled out another cigarette from the nearly empty pack, took out his lighter, and tried to light it a few times, but failed. He lost patience and simply put down the lighter, holding the cigarette between his fingers. The soft cigarette bent and broke at his fingertips, revealing brown fragments inside, which quickly leaked from his fingertips like fine sand and spilled onto the ground.
"We'll talk about this later."
Li Zemin slammed down his cup. He didn't look much like Li Zeqing, but rather resembled his mother. He was dignified and unyielding, and when he frowned, he made people's hearts pound.
"Even in the future, there will always be an end. I know why you're doing this. You haven't lost your mind, have you?"
In an instant, he regained his composure and looked at the person by the window, "Li Zeqing, although I am your brother, I believe you know better than I do which path to choose."
Outside the window, the rain was pouring down, but Li Changjing remained silent.
It seemed like a long time later when someone said calmly, "I know."
*
Wen Yining rushed back to the dormitory in the rain and saw Gu Lingling lying on the bed with a fever that made her face red and she looked a little dazed. She took out a thermometer and measured her temperature: 39 degrees Celsius.
Originally, she was going to buy some fever reducers, but when she saw the temperature, Wen Yining immediately started getting her a thick coat to wear. "We need to go to the hospital right away. We can't delay. Your condition is too serious."
Even the fearless Gu Lingling was a little scared. "Won't I get brain damage from the fever, Wenwen? I've never had such a high temperature before, how could it be 39 degrees!"
"No, you're not that easily fooled. Let's go to the hospital now, don't be afraid. Besides, this also shows that you're actually in good health, otherwise you wouldn't have such a high fever." Wen Yining comforted her gently as she dressed her.
"Waaah." Gu Lingling's eyes were filled with tears. Touched and saddened, she leaned on Wen Yining's shoulder, letting her button her clothes. The shoulder under her head was a little thicker than before, but it was still very thin and bony, and she could clearly feel the bones. Gu Lingling raised her head again, otherwise she felt like she was going to be crushed.
Yue Feng has practically become Wen Yining's driver, but she really doesn't want to bother him easily. However, with the heavy rain, Gu Lingling is so feverish that she can barely stand.
She dialed Yue Feng's number and explained the situation apologetically. Yue Feng readily agreed and said he would be there right away without saying a word.
Wen Yining breathed a sigh of relief, hung up the phone, tied Gu Lingling's hair up, and then went to get some hot water for her to drink.
After Yue Feng called to say he was downstairs, Wen Yining checked what she needed to bring before helping Gu Lingling down.
The car sped forward with the windshield wipers on, and Yue Feng's voice came from the front, "I've already made arrangements in advance. Once we've registered, we'll go straight to the check-up."
Wen Yining keenly heard the phrase "greeting," and immediately recognized it as Li Changjing's doing; he knew it too.
She took out her phone, somewhat surprised, to find the message bar blank. Li Changjing hadn't contacted her; their conversation ended with him saying he'd be back soon.
Logically, he should have contacted her if he knew. But he was probably busy; Wen Yining put down her phone, not having time to think about it.
They arrived at the hospital quickly. With Yue Feng's help and prior notice, many unnecessary procedures were skipped. Gu Lingling completed several necessary examinations and received a fever-reducing injection.
After all that fuss, I got back to the dorm. It was dark, and the rain had subsided a lot.
Gu Lingling's fever had subsided. Wen Yining bought her some porridge, and after she finished eating and took her medicine, she went to sleep. Only then could Wen Yining breathe a sigh of relief.
Li Changjing took out his phone, but still didn't contact her.
Wen Yining sent him a message, and almost immediately after sending it, less than half a minute later, Li Changjing called.
Wen Yining went to the balcony to answer it, but there was no sound from the other side.
"Hello? Li Changjing?"
Wen Yining called him several times in surprise before Li Changjing finally spoke. He sounded perfectly normal, but his voice was hoarse. "Ningning, wait for me downstairs. I'll be there in a bit."
"Now?"
Or downstairs?
Wen Yining thought she had misheard. Didn't they agree not to go downstairs? What if they were seen?
Before she could speak, Li Changjing had already hung up.
Wen Yining called him a few more times, but no one answered.
She had no choice but to put on her hat and go downstairs. Fortunately, it was already pitch black and raining, so there was no one outside the dormitory. Before long, the familiar modified Maybach appeared in the rain.
Wen Yining hurriedly opened the back door and got in, only to find that there was no one in the back. Li Changjing was driving. She glanced back and saw that it was empty. The bodyguard who usually followed him closely was not with him today. The usually clean car was also filled with a strong smell of smoke.
The car had already turned and was driving away. She quickly sat up and looked at the driver's seat in front. It was too dark inside the car, and with the help of the light, she could only see a blurry profile of Li Changjing.
He was driving, the streetlights flashing by outside, and his beautiful yet unfathomable eyes were reflected in the rearview mirror. He didn't call her Wen Ningning like he used to.
Author's Note: Li Changjing will break up with Wen Yining because of family responsibilities and his desire for power.
The next chapter or the chapter after that will be divided.
I've been taking care of the kids during the holiday, and they've had recurring fevers for the past few days. They're feeling a bit better today, and I should be able to resume normal update schedules soon.
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