Chapter 7: The Overpowering Scent of Green Tea
“…Can someone please come save me…”
The message she sent to the group chat received no response. Ying Jiayi took a deep breath, put down her phone, and numbly continued to deal with Yu Zhou’s spring-breeze-like enthusiasm.
“Jiayi, are you hungry? I’ll go get you a slice of cake from that table,” Yu Zhou asked with a smile, unconsciously shortening the distance in the way he addressed her.
“Sure. Thanks. Hurry up and go,” Ying Jiayi replied coolly.
She watched as Yu Zhou moved with ease, asking the waiter about the flavors, taking a porcelain plate and carefully selecting cakes. In between, he even struck up light conversation with a few young ladies who were also choosing desserts.
Originally, the excuse had been for Ying Jiayi to look after Yu Zhou, since it was his first time at such a banquet and they were worried he’d feel awkward among strangers.
But where did he need her to look after him?
Honestly, she truly admired this type of person. With that kind of thick skin, no matter what they did, they’d probably succeed. So why insist on hanging himself on her tree?
Did she look like some silly, sweet girl who was easy to manipulate? Was her rejection not obvious enough?
Good lord, how could someone be this shameless?
Taking advantage of the moment, she grabbed the two bystanders who were watching the show and ground her teeth.
“He’s practically glued to my face. And you two aren’t stopping him?”
Gu Yang asked softly, “Weren’t you madly in love with him?”
“Get lost… You believe Yu Bai’s nonsense too?” Ying Jiayi inhaled deeply to calm herself. She wasn’t intentionally putting on a cold face; it simply wasn’t in her upbringing.
But every time she looked at Yu Zhou, she felt like his left cheek had “kept man” written on it, his right cheek “phoenix man,” and a horizontal banner across his forehead saying “restore the clan after three generations.” There was no way to have a proper conversation.
“I’m going out for some air. One of you figure something out and deal with him.”
“Then it has to be our Brother Gu,” Yu Bai eagerly recommended. “Fair skin, good looks, great family background—top-tier competitiveness.”
Ying Jiayi found that extremely reasonable. She patted Gu Yang on the shoulder, ignored his complete lack of enthusiasm, and entrusted him with the heavy responsibility.
After reluctantly bidding farewell to the young ladies, Yu Zhou returned carrying a plate of small cakes.
He hadn’t forgotten today’s primary mission. He couldn’t neglect one thing for another.
But as soon as he turned around, he saw Ying Jiayi leaning in close with the two boys beside her, whispering something.
The complacent smile on his face instantly fell.
Before he could walk back, Ying Jiayi left the hall directly.
“Jiayi just went out. You can keep those cakes for yourself,” Yu Bai said, clearly standing firmly on Ying Jiayi’s side. The way he looked at Yu Zhou was all wrong—eyes not eyes, brows not brows.
“You’re Jiayi’s classmates?” After adjusting his mood, Yu Zhou put a faint smile back on his face. “You seem pretty close. What were you whispering about just now?”
“We’re alright. Just ordinary friends.” Gu Yang smiled back at him and answered the second question as well. “Nothing much. She asked me to take good care of you.”
Seeing his vaguely possessive tone and that subtle air of being part of the family, Yu Zhou felt instantly uncomfortable. The overwhelming scent of green tea made his teeth ache with sourness. “Then I really have to thank you.”
Gu Yang casually brushed aside the overly long bangs by his cheek. “It’s my duty. No need to thank me.”
Yu Zhou’s gaze dropped to Gu Yang’s wrist. The glimpse of a ruby bracelet—pigeon-blood red set in a diamond-studded base—stung his eyes.
He knew Ying Jiayi attended an expensive private high school, so her classmates were bound to be either rich or powerful.
Although Uncle Liu had already reached an understanding with him in private about marrying his only daughter to him, at this moment Yu Zhou felt a strong sense of crisis.
After all, among wealthy families, alliances between equals were far more common.
…And this guy had a face women tended to like.
Yu Zhou was sour to the core, yet he forced himself to maintain an affable demeanor, chatting with Gu Yang and probing his background in roundabout ways.
“Xiao Zhou, why are you standing here?” A woman in a white strapless evening gown approached. “I just saw Miss Ying outside. Why are you—”
She stopped mid-sentence at the warning look Yu Zhou shot her.
“This is my mother. She’s not used to this kind of environment, so she worries about me,” Yu Zhou explained briefly before pulling his mother away.
Gu Yang said nothing, though his peripheral vision swept over the jade pendant around the woman’s neck.
That was the second one he’d seen tonight.
The texture and translucency looked quite similar.
Speaking of Yu Zhou’s mother… she had some scenes in the original story too, didn’t she? Was her name Zhou Qinqin?
“Mom!” Once they were far from Gu Yang, Yu Zhou’s voice dropped. “Didn’t I tell you? Don’t bring that up outside.”
“What do you mean bring it up? I just wanted to ask why you weren’t by Miss Ying’s side,” the woman said awkwardly.
“The one beside me just now was Ying Jiayi’s classmate. If you say things like that, what will people think? They’ll assume I have ulterior motives. I’ve told you before—rich people are full of schemes.”
Yu Zhou felt irritated, but seeing his mother’s embarrassed expression, he softened his tone. “I was with Ying Jiayi just now, but she left after a few words. I can’t follow her everywhere. That would make me look desperate.”
“That’s true.” Zhou Qinqin hurriedly agreed, then couldn’t help but complain, “That girl is too aloof. Always doing things her own way. Clearly spoiled at home.”
“I just saw she kept such long manicured nails. How is she supposed to do housework…”
“Mom, when we visited the Ying family before, you saw it too—they have several housekeepers. Why bring that up?” Yu Zhou laughed.
“Even so, she can’t let the housekeepers do everything. After marriage, is she going to have you serve her? What kind of talk is that…” Zhou Qinqin muttered.
She was satisfied with the marriage, but the Ying family’s daughter didn’t look like someone considerate. She was afraid her precious son would suffer.
“Ying Jiayi is an only child. A little temper is normal. After we marry, I’ll guide her slowly,” Yu Zhou said gently. “And I’ll make sure she treats you well too.”
Only then did Zhou Qinqin smile in relief.
Her husband had died early. With a child in tow, the men she met afterward were mediocre. She had high standards and delayed remarriage until she met Liu Chaoyin before the new year.
She hadn’t expected that the boy who once pursued her in high school—so unremarkable in both looks and family background—would transform into the CEO of a listed corporation.
And that once-green youth still seemed to harbor unclear feelings for her.
She had always known how to seize opportunities to climb upward.
Clearly, so did her son.
“Chaoyin, are you even listening to me?” Mrs. Ying asked softly, pulling her husband back from his wandering thoughts.
“Sorry, I wasn’t. I’ve been a bit tired lately. Probably company matters,” Liu Chaoyin replied with an apologetic smile, placing his hand over hers. “What did you want to say?”
Mrs. Ying opened her mouth, intending to discuss something about their daughter, but in the end said nothing. “It’s nothing. If you’re tired, go to bed early tonight.”
Liu Chaoyin agreed, but his gaze drifted again, landing on the graceful figure in the white evening gown. His hand tightened unconsciously.
Ying Jiayi, returning from outside, saw this scene and let out a breath of relief. The doubt in her heart eased a little.
[Impressive.] Gu Yang’s inner voice sounded at just the right moment. [The live-in son-in-law really managed to secure his position.]
[What on earth does Ying Jiayi see in him? Was she bewitched? Or is it simply parental arrangement? Is she really that feudal?]
Ying Jiayi’s face stiffened.
What did he mean by “secured his position”? Was he talking about Yu Zhou?
That shouldn’t be right. Even without Gu Yang’s chaotic first impression, she didn’t have much goodwill toward Yu Zhou himself.
[…So it’s a forced melon? A high school student—where did he learn these tricks? Playing this dirty.]
[He—]
The inner voice stopped abruptly. Gu Yang had been interrupted.
What exactly did he do to me?!
Ying Jiayi screamed like a marmot in her heart, wishing she could take off her shoe and throw it at whoever had cut him off.
But the one who interrupted wasn’t some nobody.
It was the host of tonight’s banquet, the eldest son of the Lu family—Lu Zheng.
Lu Zheng, the Lu family’s eldest son, was a generation older. After studying overseas, he had entered the family group and, barring surprises, would inherit the entire Lu family in the future.
The man on stage wore a faintly apologetic expression, yet without appearing humble—still elegant and poised.
He explained that due to health reasons, the guest of honor tonight—his second younger brother—could not attend. He expressed apologies and wished everyone a pleasant evening nonetheless.
At first glance, the explanation seemed reasonable. According to public claims, the Lu family’s second young master had always been absent from the public eye due to frail health.
“He’s not coming?” Yu Bai looked shocked. “Are you kidding? For such an important occasion, if it were me, I’d crawl here if I had to.”
“Still can’t tell what matters, huh?” A flippant voice came from behind. An arm hooked around Yu Bai’s. “After finally being acknowledged by the Lu family, he can’t even seize this opportunity. They won’t throw him a second welcome banquet. A bastard raised outside is still unpresentable.”
“Right, Xiao Bai?”
The boy who approached wore the same ceremonial school uniform. His overly long bangs were slicked back into an apple hairstyle, giving him the appearance of a model student.
Yet the usually talkative Yu Bai merely gave an awkward smile and stayed silent.
Because this guy was a professional troublemaker—thriving on chaos. Whoever got involved with him suffered. Better to keep quiet.
Ying Jiayi was already irritated. She shot him a cold glare.
“Oh, Miss Ying,” the boy grinned and wiggled his fingers in greeting. “Don’t look so unhappy. Isn’t this good news?”
She knew he meant that knowing in advance allowed her to prepare, but she still snapped, “Ye Chen, what does this have to do with you? I don’t need you teaching me what to do.”
She was so annoyed that even a passing dog would have earned a kick.
Since the evening’s protagonist wouldn’t appear, the guests began chatting in place.
Their peers gradually gathered together. Gu Yang had been looking at these faces all day and now felt fed up. He turned his head. “So stuffy.”
The classmates were speechless. A moment ago he thought it was cold; now it was stuffy. Wasn’t he just annoyed that they’re too noisy?
The class monitor, however, was considerate. “If it’s stuffy, go get some air. There’s nothing happening now anyway.”
Ignoring the murderous looks from the others—after all, they had shamelessly crowded around just to keep eating gossip—he had the nerve to send him away?
Ying Jiayi grew anxious and glared at the monitor.
“I’m not trying to stop you from knowing,” he said calmly. “Here’s the situation: since this afternoon, we’ve been hearing Ah Yang’s thoughts.”
“Whether it’s you or Shen Mingjun, Ah Yang is extremely familiar with matters related to you. There’s a high probability it’s not just you—it might include us too.” He paused, his gaze slightly complicated as he watched Gu Yang’s retreating figure. “But have you noticed? He even knows who you’ll be with in the future.”
“Damn, that’s predicting the future,” Yu Bai realized. If earlier information could still be explained as wealthy family secrets told by some Gu elder, this was on another level.
Ying Jiayi forced herself to calm down. “You’re right.”
“So instead of urgently gathering more information…”
“We should verify its accuracy first.” She tucked her hair behind her ear. “Let’s pick something closer in time.”
Just then, Gu Yang happened to pass Lu Zheng head-on. They exchanged nods without speaking and brushed past each other. The inner voice sounded again.
[So about the Lu family’s second young master—he really couldn’t attend due to health issues. But the reason is a severe pollen allergy. The hotel corridor outside is filled with fresh flowers. He barely arrived before going into anaphylactic shock and being rushed to the hospital.]
Hearing this, the classmates’ expressions shifted. Ying Jiayi immediately said, “I’ll ask my parents.”
One of the most vicious things in the world was gossip delivered only halfway.
Yet Gu Yang had no idea how sinful he’d been. Carrying his tea, he walked out.
But just as he rounded the corner, the teacup slipped from his hand.
A hand caught the ceramic cup in time, preventing it from shattering.
Gu Yang stared toward the end of the corridor.
Shen Mingjun’s father was holding a woman and kissing her passionately. His meticulously styled hair had fallen loose. Gu Yang recognized the jade necklace at her neck.
It was Zhou Qinqin.
His wife’s younger sister.
