After closing the chat window, Yu Shulin went downstairs and told Aunt Liu the news that Liang Zhou was coming home for lunch. Then, in a good mood, he returned to his room to continue surfing the internet. With his homework finished and his textbooks mostly previewed, he finally had the energy and time to properly experience the much-praised online surfing that his classmates always talked about.
On the entertainment gossip section of a well-known forum, a post titled "Let's Dish About the Love-Hate Entanglements of the Liang Family Over the Years" was pinned to the homepage, attracting countless eyes.
The original poster started from Liang Chi and took three days to sporadically get to the part about "Liang Jian angrily abandoning Rong Guang, his frail nephew carrying the burden on his thin shoulders." The progress was truly agonizingly slow. Finally, under the clamorous urging of netizens, the OP decisively chose to skip last year's wildly popular gossip and started talking about the recent hot news of "Yang Lin and Liang Zhou's private meeting in the park."
Milky Strawberry Candy: You impatient little fairies, hold your horses, okay? If we don't clarify the grudges and grievances of the previous generation, how can we fully appreciate the lingering and poignant story between Actor Liang and his uncle's family?
I'm Da Zhi, Who Am I Afraid Of: OP, stop beating around the bush, spill it, spill it! Also, 'lingering and poignant' isn't used like that. Was your Chinese teacher a PE teacher? [Smirk]
Ding Ding Dang Dang: Brother Da Zhi, don't interrupt. We're all here to listen to the OP's story; maintain internal harmony. Also, did we even have PE class when we were in school? Brother Da Zhi, you're not still in elementary school, are you? Hahahaha.
Summer Sunshine: Was Yang Lin and Liang Zhou's meeting that day really just a coincidence?
After the Leaves Fall, It's Bare: OP, you know these secrets so well. Are you an insider?
I Call You Country Bumpkin, Dare You Answer?: Gossip alert, comrades, come quick!!!
...
Milky Strawberry Candy: [Horrified face] You are all so enthusiastic, this humble girl is overwhelmed! Although the OP is not an insider, the content is basically true. If there's any fabrication, may the OP never get married! Okay, back to the topic. All those rumors flying around these days are, of course... fake! The OP happened to be in that park that day and even tailed [cough] Actor Liang and a handsome young man as they intimately entered a café. I also heard the young man call Actor Liang 'brother'; they seemed to be relatives. Then, the drama came! That pretentious woman Yang Lin popped out from who knows where and went over to greet them in a particularly clingy way. I pricked up my ears to listen carefully, wondering if they were very close, and then I heard her get roasted by Actor Liang's younger brother! Hahaha, then the two of them left, leaving Yang Lin sitting there alone. Yang Lin even pretended to look all reluctant to part, it was hilarious! In short, Actor Liang is not at all ambiguously involved with Yang Lin; their private relationship is probably quite bad, and he's not even willing to give her a friendly look!
After the Leaves Fall, It's Bare: So, OP, you're actually Actor Liang's creepy, die-hard fan, aren't you...
Hahaha I'm the Prettiest: OP, you've exposed yourself. A massive wave of Linlin's fans is approaching. Here's a helmet for you, be careful of getting flamed.
Linlin is the Prettiest: OP, you btch, slandering our Linlin with nonsense. You're clearly a jealous, ugly woman who can't get married!
Summer Sunshine: Oh no, Yang Lin's brain-dead fans are here.
I'm Da Zhi, Who Am I Afraid Of: OP, is this for real? So juicy! Begging for specific details, begging for deep gossip!
...
Milky Strawberry Candy: So what if I'm Liang Zhou's fan? If your own idol acts shamelessly, don't blame others for talking about it. Pah!
Ding Ding Dang Dang: The OP really is a die-hard Liang Zhou fan! Come on, shake hands, me too! It's a pity our idol is too low-key, sigh...
Linlin is the Prettiest: You two btches upstairs, shameless!
...
A perfectly good gossip post had just turned into a flame war between two fan groups. Wang Zhi finished reading with great relish, browsed some other derivative posts, and then, eyes sparkling, clicked open Yu Shulin's QQ, typing furiously before pasting the link to the post.
I'm Da Zhi, Who Am I Afraid Of: Shulin, come on, take a good look at the chaos of the outside world, broaden your horizons. Don't say your buddy doesn't think of you when there's fun to be had.
Yu Shulin, who had been looking at news and past college entrance exam questions, clicked open the message, then casually opened the URL. After taking a careful look, he fell silent.
I'm Da Zhi, Who Am I Afraid Of: So? Lively, right?
Shulin: ...Have you finished the ten error correction exercises for English?
I'm Da Zhi, Who Am I Afraid Of: ...
I'm Da Zhi, Who Am I Afraid Of: Shulin, I hate you! Goodbye!
Yu Shulin twitched the corner of his mouth, closed the dialog box, skimmed through the post content again, and started breaking out in a cold sweat. The feeling of someone close to you becoming a topic of discussion among netizens was... peculiar.
The restless Wang Zhi angrily cursed Yu Shulin for forgetting to bring toilet paper, then pulled up his QQ friends list. After pondering, he clicked open the class group chat that had been very quiet since its creation. Thinking about it, it seemed Yu Shulin hadn't joined the group. Hating his own lack of self-control, he dragged Yu Shulin into the group and then started sending messages.
Seeing that the group invitation notification was from Wang Zhi, Yu Shulin casually accepted. Then the group messages started popping up.
I'm Da Zhi, Who Am I Afraid Of: Come quick, look at this gossip! [Link]
Sese: What gossip?
Study Committee Member Liu Fen: Wang Zhi, why are you so noisy? Are you going to let people review or not?
Sese: If you find it noisy, you can turn off the QQ notification sound...
I'm Da Zhi, Who Am I Afraid Of: Sese, you're still supportive. That bore Shulin is utterly boring! I curse him to forget toilet paper when he goes to the bathroom!
Shulin: ...
Sese: Wang Zhi, you...
I'm Da Zhi, Who Am I Afraid Of: Oh no, I forgot I impulsively added him!
Study Committee Member Liu Fen: Shulin, you joined! Welcome, welcome. [Shy] [Smile]
Seeing Liu Fen like this, other lurking gossip enthusiasts in the class surfaced and started teasing. Wang Zhi's gossip-spreading journey was cut short once again.
With the classmates teasing wildly, Yu Shulin became even more hesitant to speak carelessly.
Shulin: Thanks for the welcome. You guys chat, I'm leaving.
Liu Fen, who had been enjoying watching everyone tease in the group, stiffened her expression, bit her lip, and said nothing. This Yu Shulin, why is he so... so clueless!
Wang Zhi and Yang Sese also couldn't stand everyone making such a fuss and simultaneously fell silent. Seeing the male lead of the ambiguous incident react coldly and the female lead not speaking anymore, everyone's enthusiasm for gossip faded, and the group gradually quieted down.
Just as Yu Shulin was about to go downstairs to help Aunt Liu serve the dishes, a QQ message flashed again, along with a friend request. He frowned and clicked it open.
"Study Committee Member Liu Fen requests to add you as a friend."
He refused without hesitation.
The message flashed again. He clicked it open.
"Li Tao requests to add you as a friend."
Li Tao? He was a bit surprised, casually clicked accept, then set his QQ to not allow friend requests. After closing QQ, he went downstairs.
On the other end of the computer, Li Tao stared at the words "Shulin" in his friends list, pursed his lips, and happily lay back on the desk, fishing out a book to read.
The two brothers had a good lunch together. After a short nap, they both settled into the living room.
Liang Zhou felt no psychological pressure about skipping work at all. He set down the documents and leaned over to look at Yu Shulin's computer screen, asking, "What are you playing? A game?"
"Mm-hmm," Yu Shulin replied without looking up, clicking the mouse rapidly. "Zhou He invited me to play. He said it can train eyesight and hand speed, but I can never beat him."
Just as he finished speaking, the game screen turned gray—he had lost again.
Liang Zhou curved his lips into a smile, placed his hand over Yu Shulin's right hand which was on the mouse, clicked 'Restart,' and said, "I'll help you. This time we'll definitely beat him."
"Really?" Yu Shulin perked up. Boys naturally have a bit of a competitive streak. Having lost so many points that his score was now negative, he naturally wanted to win them back.
"Of course."
The game began. Even with Yu Shulin's hand beneath his own, Liang Zhou could still make the mouse clicks swift and decisive. Icons on the screen disappeared in pairs, and before long, the sound of applause came from the computer—they had won.
"We won," Liang Zhou said with a smile but didn't move his hand away.
An angry call from Zhou He came through instantly, and Yu Shulin answered in high spirits.
"Shulin! Did you get outside help? How could you, with your turtle speed, beat me? That's not scientific!"
Yu Shulin admitted readily, saying with a grin, "My brother helped me play. Want to play again?"
Zhou He was shocked. His cousin actually played this childish game with them? Curiosity and competitiveness rose within him simultaneously. He said fiercely, "Play! I have to beat Cousin!"
After hanging up, Yu Shulin turned his head, smiling. "Zhou He says he must win against you."
Liang Zhou decisively tossed the documents aside and sat down behind him. "He can try. How about we win back all the points we lost?" He was naturally tall and broad, and sitting behind Yu Shulin like this, from the back, it looked as if he was holding the other in his arms.
Yu Shulin, excited from playing, didn't notice the impropriety of their posture at all and nodded. "Okay!"
Zhao Zhi had studied the proposal day and night until he understood it thoroughly. After setting up the project team, he prepared to call Liang Zhou over for a meeting. Going upstairs to ask, the secretary said the boss hadn't come in that afternoon. Calling his phone, it was switched off.
With no other choice, he called He Long.
"Where's Liang Zhou? Tell him to come to the company for a meeting."
He Long sat in a corner of the living room, silently glancing at the two brothers happily playing games, lighting a mental candle for Zhao Zhi. "The boss is very busy and has no time to go to the company for a meeting."
"Very busy? Busy with what? I don't remember him having any other work recently." Zhao Zhi was puzzled. Most of Rongguang's important work passed through his hands; how could he not remember assigning any work to the semi-absentee boss Liang Zhou?
He Long's face twitched, feeling somewhat speechless himself. "The boss is busy... playing games."
"Playing games?" Zhao Zhi exclaimed, his voice rising several pitches. "Is the company venturing into the gaming industry? Wait, no, what game is so captivating?"
He Long brought the phone, which he had held away from his ear, back and replied calmly with downcast eyes, "Lianliankan."
Zhao Zhi: "...What?"
"Lianliankan."
"..."
It's over. With a boss like this, Rongguang is bound to go bankrupt sooner or later.
Liang Jian had been having a very rough time lately. First, the movie the company had meticulously prepared received mediocre response, resulting in huge losses. Then, his attempt to scheme against others backfired, and the scandal between Yang Lin and Liang Zixiu was exposed, growing bigger and messier. To make matters worse, Yang Lin kept crying at the company every day about poor treatment, which was utterly infuriating.
"Dad, the Liu family told Yufen to stop contacting me recently. What should we do?" Liang Zixiu said dejectedly. Although he was promiscuous, unfaithful, and had a bad temper, he did have some genuine feelings for Liu Yufen. Coupled with the Liu family's substantial wealth, he had put great effort into pursuing the Liu family's young lady. Now, seeing it all about to fall apart, he was naturally extremely upset and unwilling to accept it.
"What should we do, what should we do, all you know is to ask me what to do! Can't you put in more effort? Huh? If you hadn't been messing around with that Yang Lin before, being all ambiguous and unclear, we wouldn't have this pile of trouble now! The assets in the Liu family's hands are crucial for Ronghua's development. Can't you be more capable?" Liang Jian spoke with the frustration of a parent seeing their child fail to meet expectations, his own irritation making his tone harsher.
Establishing Ronghua might have looked like a brilliant move of striking out on his own, but the money invested was enormous. Almost all the money he had embezzled from Rongguang over the past decade or more was poured into it! Worried about insufficient cash flow, he had even sold his ten percent stake in Rongguang before it went bankrupt, converting it to cash.
...If only he had known Rongguang would recover, he shouldn't have sold those shares back then!
Now it was too late for regrets. Most of his capital was tied up in that big summer blockbuster. Now, with the female lead notorious for all the wrong reasons and the film's reception lukewarm, not losing money was something to be thankful for, let alone making a profit! If it weren't for the artists he brought over from Rongguang still bringing in some income, Ronghua would have long been unable to maintain its surface prosperity.
For Ronghua's development, the marriage alliance with the Liu family was absolutely imperative!
The atmosphere in the living room was oppressive when Liang Keke walked in happily, arm in arm with Mrs. Liang. Seeing her father and brother there, she excitedly waved the bag in her hand. "Dad, look, my new bag! Isn't it pretty? Only a little over three hundred thousand, it's the latest model!"
Mrs. Liang looked at her daughter dotingly and called out to Liang Jian, "Husband, I bought you a tie. Try it on after dinner."
The price of the bag made Liang Jian's eyebrow twitch, and the anger he had been suppressing finally erupted. "Buy, buy, buy, that's all you know! All the money I earn gets wasted by you. What dinner? I'm not eating!" With that, he stormed out of the house.
"What's his problem, throwing a tantrum for no reason," Liang Keke pouted, muttering discontentedly.
"Be good, go put your things away in your room. Your father is in a bad mood, ignore him," Mrs. Liang coaxed, her gaze sweeping over the direction Liang Jian had left, her face completely indifferent.
Seeing his mother like this, Liang Zixiu only felt increasingly annoyed. He went upstairs to his room, slamming the door shut with a bang.
After the start of the new semester at City No. 2 High School, the school decided to hold a parent-teacher meeting for the second-year students due to the subject-stream selection.
Yu Shulin looked at the parent-teacher meeting invitation with a wry smile. Liang Zhou was even more famous now than before; disguises wouldn't work well anymore. This parent-teacher meeting... what to do.
"Let He Long go in my place. I'll wait for you at the school gate," Liang Zhou arranged with a dark expression, the thought of retiring from the public eye surfacing once again.
"Why not let Uncle He or Aunt Liu go?" Yu Shulin asked, puzzled. Wouldn't it be better to have someone older go?
Liang Zhou patted his head gently. "Then how would you answer when others ask about Uncle He and Aunt Liu's identities? Just let He Long go. Hmm, as your cousin."
"...Alright." Indeed, when introducing them, he couldn't very well say this is my family's butler, this is my family's housekeeper auntie... That would be too impolite. Better to let He Long go.
Three days after the semester started, the parent-teacher meeting was held. Having experienced it once before, the students and parents were no longer overly excited. They gathered in small groups, discussing the subject-stream selection.
After the academic track division, the advanced classes were still retained, but they were now split into three: one for humanities and two for sciences. Before the division, there was a placement exam. Whether one could enter an advanced class depended entirely on how solid their first-year studies had been.
The parent-teacher meeting in the morning was again held in the small auditorium. In addition to the final exam rankings and teacher evaluations, this time each parent received a track selection intention form, identical to the one the students had filled out.
After the meeting, He Long did not follow the other parents to peek at the students in class. Instead, he took the documents and walked to the school gate, approaching a black car parked in the corner. He handed the materials to Liang Zhou, who was waiting inside.
Liang Zhou flipped through them, quite satisfied with Yu Shulin's grades and teacher evaluations. He pulled out the track selection form, decisively checked the box for sciences, and signed his own name.
Seeing this, He Long hesitated and spoke up, "I'm the one who attended the parent-teacher meeting. Shouldn't I be the one to sign?" Otherwise, what if the teacher thought Young Master Shulin had forged a signature?
Liang Zhou's hand stiffened. He glanced at He Long coolly, stuffed the documents back into his hands, waved him off, and rolled up the car window.
He Long: "..."
He had a strong feeling that the boss's look just now held a hint of hostility... Was it just his imagination? 166 Reading Website
