A beautiful summer night

The next day, Xia Wanzhi woke up in Xie Tan's bed and lay on her back, reviewing everything that had happened the night before.

Xia Wanzhi remembered everything clearly, from being lifted off the car by Xie Qiyan like a chick to being carried back to Xie Tan's house like a sack of rice.

Resentment, confusion, disheartened, and enraged.

Xie Qiyan is simply inhuman; he is utterly impervious to reason.

"Sister Wanzi, what are you thinking about?" Xie Tan lay down in the same position as Xia Wanzhi, and they both stared at the white wall above them.

Xia Wanzhi rolled her eyes: "I'm thinking about how to dig out your brother's heart and analyze how the cellular structure inside differs from that of an ordinary person."

Xie Tan hissed and rubbed his arms: "Ugh, what a vicious heart."

Xia Wanzhi sighed softly, "Yes, what a vicious heart."

Xie Tan chuckled: "I'm talking about you."

"I'm talking about your brother." Xia Wanzhi propped herself up and sat up, but after a while she lay back down.

Xie Tan moved away and took Xia Wanzhi's phone, handing it to her: "Your cousin called you several times. I answered the last one for you and said you were sleeping."

Xia Wanzhi's first reaction was: "What cousin?"

"Cousin Zhou Yu." Xie Tan answered, then immediately lay down on Xia Wanzhi, humming, "Sister Wanzi, are you really going to marry Cousin Zhou Yu?"

Xia Wanzhi was lost in thought, and the disgusting scene from the bar last night suddenly flashed through her mind.

If Xie Tan had asked this question earlier, she might have answered that it was true.

But now, she patted Xie Tan's head, her gaze resolute: "I won't marry, I don't want to marry."

Xie Tan was overjoyed and cupped Xia Wanzhi's face in his hands: "Really? Really? Then you should call off the engagement today. I'll introduce you to someone new."

Xia Wanzhi was somewhat at a loss for words, both amused and exasperated.

As far as I can remember, Xie Tan, that little brat, seemed to be proclaiming to others that she was single the whole time.

"What do you think of Xie Qiyan?" Xie Tan whispered in Xia Wanzhi's ear, "I think he's pretty good. Sister Wanzi, why don't you be my sister-in-law?"

Xia Wanzhi stiffened, swallowed hard, and said, "I politely declined."

Xie Tan pouted: "Brother Qi Yan is very good."

Xia Wanzhi chuckled: "He's only been back in the country for less than two months. How much do you know about him to say he's so good?"

“He’s handsome, more handsome than any of my brothers,” Xie Tan replied seriously.

"What about your cousin Zhou Yu?" Xia Wanzhi asked softly, her eyes barely concealing her loneliness.

Xie Tan thought for a while before giving her answer: "Cousin Zhou Yu is also handsome, but not as handsome as Brother Qi Yan. Besides, I don't like Auntie. Auntie is very bad."

Xie Tan is the youngest child in the Xie family. Both she and Xie Nan were born to the third wife, but they are half-siblings. Xie Tan's mother died from postpartum hemorrhage during her birth. Later, Xie Tan's father remarried, and his third wife is Xie Tan's current stepmother.

Although the third wife of the Xie family treated Xie Tan like her own son, Xia Wanzhi knew that without the protection of Old Master Xie, Xie Tan's life in the Xie family would not have been easy.

But it seems that Xie Tan has become much more lively since Xie Qiyan returned.

After leaving the Xie family, Xia Wanzhi went to the flower shop to find Yun Li. The two stood face to face, and Xia Wanzhi felt embarrassed for no reason. Yun Li broke the silence with a laugh.

Xia Wanzhi covered her face: "How embarrassing!"

Yunli poured her a glass of warm water, pulled her to sit down, and asked about the progress, "Did you go home with your brother Xie last night?"

Xia Wanzhi glared and said, "What Brother Xie? Xie Qiyan doesn't deserve to be my brother!"

"Okay, you're pretty, so you can say whatever you want. What happened between you and him after we parted ways last night?" Yunli couldn't help but tease her.

Xia Wanzhi puffed out her cheeks: "Don't even mention it, it's such a downer."

Yunli kept babbling: "Tell me about it. Anyway, you'll dump that trash from the Zhou family sooner or later, so why not consider your second spring?"

Xia Wanzhi looked astonished: "Boss Yun is something else, is that how you advise people?"

Yun Li nodded smugly: "Yes..."

"Then why don't you kick your trash out?" Xia Wanzhi asked quietly.

Yunli's smile vanished instantly.

Xia Wanzhi looked at her and smiled back.

Although she was drunk, she was completely clear-headed and remembered everything she had talked about in the bar last night.

Yunli's parents divorced when she was ten years old because her father cheated on her and became a gigolo for a wealthy woman. This is also why Yunli's mother has always hated wealthy families.

Initially, Yun's mother rejected the arranged marriage partner within the system, resolutely severing ties with her family to be with Yun's father. Later, she was betrayed and was extremely disappointed. Not long after, Yun's father died tragically in a car accident. Yun's mother's personality changed drastically, and she became stricter with Yun Li.

When Yunli reached marriageable age, her mother repeatedly urged her to find a partner who worked within the system.

Later, Yunmu took a liking to Liang Jing. Regardless of whether Yunli liked him or not, she insisted that Yunli be with him, even if it meant threatening to jump off a building.

Yunli was being manipulated like a puppet on strings.

"Let's take it one step at a time," Yunli said with a bitter smile.

-

Xia Wanzhi returned to the Zhou family home after dark and bumped into Zhou Yu as soon as she entered. The two remained silent for a moment before Xia Wanzhi finally broke the silence: "Something to say?"

"I told you to stay away from Xie Qiyan, but you still didn't take my words to heart." Zhou Yu's eyes were complicated, filled with helplessness and great dissatisfaction.

Xia Wanzhi met his gaze: "I need his help."

"Is staying at Xingyao really that important?" Zhou Yu closed his eyes, suppressing his resentment. "It doesn't matter where the studio is located. Besides, the core of the studio is you, not that lousy place called Xingyao!"

"Important," Xia Wanzhi repeated, her voice gradually softening, "Very important."

But Zhou Yu didn't understand her; he never understood her.

In the instant they brushed past each other, Zhou Yu realized his outburst and pulled Xia Wanzhi into his arms: "I'm sorry, Zhizhi, I shouldn't have lost my temper. You didn't come home all night, I was just so worried about you..."

"I'm tired, I'll go back to my room to rest first. I've already had dinner with my friends, so don't call me." Xia Wanzhi used all her strength to break free from his grasp. When she regained her footing, she suddenly bumped into Zhou Yu's mother's gaze from behind. She smiled bitterly to herself, but felt that it didn't matter anymore.

"She doesn't recognize her current status, are you confused too?" After Xia Wanzhi returned to the bedroom, Zhou's mother scolded Zhou Yu with a look of disappointment.

"Enough!" Hurt by his pride, Zhou Yu clenched his fists, shouted angrily, and turned to go downstairs.

Zhou's mother, wearing high heels, chased after her, asking, "Where are you going?"

"You say I'm confused, Mom? I'm never confused." With that, he turned and drove off. After getting into the car, he closed his eyes and gave the driver an address: "To Jiang'an Club."