Chapter 188 - My Big Brother Treats His WeChat Moments as A Place to Display His Affection
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Qi Chengzhi found it annoying that Mu Sisi always texted him. What if Song Yu saw those texts and misunderstood?
“Chengzhi.” At that point, a handsome man walked over, smiled, and fist-bumped Qi Chengzhi. “You joker. You never came to see me even after I returned to the country.”
Qi Chengzhi flashed him a plain smile. “If you came back, does this mean that a decision has been made to expand within the country?”
“That’s right.” Mu Huaisheng nodded. “My father has decided to expand all throughout Asia, and naturally, the first step is to go back home.”
Qi Chengzhi nodded. “I’ll introduce you.”
When he was introducing both Yan Beicheng and Han Zhuoli to Mu Huaisheng, Mu Sisi handed her glass over to her brother. Empty-handed at last, she hugged Qi Chengzhi’s arm and looked flirtatiously at him. “Big Brother Chengzhi, I’ve been staying in the US since I was in primary school, and this is the first time I came back after so many years. It’s all very foreign to me here, so you have to bring me around and get me familiarized with this place!”
“Sisi, Chengzhi’s very busy with work and he has his own things to do, too. Don’t bother him,” Mu Huaisheng voiced out his disapproval.
“It’s no big deal, isn’t it? Back in America, I always followed both of you out to have fun.” She scrunched her nose at her elder brother and turned to Qi Chengzhi. “Big Brother Chengzhi, do you still ice-skate?”
...
...
Song Yu, meanwhile, was called over by the old lady to get acquainted with the matriarchs of a few other families.
When the old lady brought Song Yu to visit Grandmother Han previously, Song Yu only got to meet her as well as Grandmother Gui and Grandmother Yan. Many others were still unacquainted, more so those of Xia Wenna’s generation.
Thus, the old lady tasked Xia Wenna with bringing Song Yu around. They went from family to family, and she was introduced to everyone older than her.
Just as the old lady was reveling in her good mood, Grandmother Han’s eyebrows twitched. She pointed at Qi Chengzhi’s direction and said, “Oi, why is your grandson getting really close with that girl over there?”
As soon as the sentence was completed, the old lady turned swiftly. What she saw was a young woman hugging Qi Chengzhi’s arm and clinging intimately to him.
The old lady noticed that the young woman’s attire was not too revealing—at least her breasts were well-covered and not in full display. Nevertheless, she was pressing them vehemently onto Qi Chengzhi’s arm.
The old lady’s gaze sharpened and her temper exploded, leading her to curse out, “Youngsters nowadays are just too thick-skinned. Does she even have any her dignity when she’s throwing herself all over a man!”
In fact, the old lady originally wanted to say, ‘Why not just prostitute yourself then if you’re throwing yourself all over a man?’
Realizing that she was in a public place with so many people, she modified her words and maintained her composure.
After she was done being angry, she turned to look at Song Yu, fearing that the latter might misunderstand and get into an argument with Qi Chengzhi.
“My dear Song Yu, let’s go! Follow me to chase away that little minx. When we get home, I’ll give that little brat a smack!” the old lady exclaimed undauntedly.
Song Yu was speechless.
“Grandma, Chengzhi’s not an idiot. He wouldn’t do something that’ll disappoint me, especially in a situation where I’m here and the entire family is here, too. Maybe it’s someone he’s on good terms with. It wouldn’t be good if he just went away,” assured Song Yu.
His feelings toward her enabled her to trust him a hundred percent, but it still could not stop jealousy from bubbling inside her.
She said all that just to comfort the old lady and prevent someone old like her from fretting too much about her grandson.
Despite that, there was still some anxiety deep down in Song Yu’s heart.
No woman would be happy to see her husband in such close proximity with another woman.
Song Yu had just completed her sentence when she saw Qi Chengzhi take a glass of champagne from the server, thereby breaking free of Mu Sisi.
He held it in his hand without drinking it, and Mu Sisi was no longer able to bother him.
Once he spotted Song Yu and the old lady coming over, the corner of his eye twitched. He shoved the glass to Yan Beicheng and stretched out his hand to Song Yu.
Song Yu looked at his outstretched palm and smiled tenderly, but did not return his gesture. Ignoring it, she walked to the front of the crowd and stood beside him without touching him.
Deep inside her heart, the old lady was already beginning to cry out disaster. Song Yu made light of things when she spoke, but she was clearly still a bit peeved at him.
The elderly lady understood that even though the blame was put wholly on that other woman, Song Yu’s heart could still not be at ease. He was lucky Song Yu did not show her anger at him in public.
Calm and composed, Qi Chengzhi held Song Yu by the waist and pulled her close to him. His warm palm had a tight grip on her, as if afraid that she might escape.
Song Yu had no intention of getting into an argument with him. One look was all she needed to see that the woman in front of her lusted for Qi Chengzhi. If Song Yu kicked up a fuss in public, she would be revealing her weakness in front of that woman.
She looked up at him in a half-smirk.
It used to be Qi Chengzhi who gave her that look all the time. The role reversal prompted Qi Chengzhi to pinch her waist slightly.
Ever since Song Yu’s presence, his eyes never looked at anyone else. He lowered his head and asked, “Are you tired from standing so long?”
Although Song Yu did not want him to look bad, she was in no mood to entertain him.
Luckily, the old lady opened her mouth in exasperation, “Little brat. Your extremely old grandmother has been standing with your wife for the same amount of time. Why didn’t you ask me whether I’m tired?”
Then, the old lady turned to Mu Sisi and said, “My grandson spoils his wife too much, hehehe!”
Song Yu knew that the old lady—now thoroughly irked—was trying to hint at Mu Sisi that Qi Chengzhi had a good relationship with his wife.
Song Yu could not help but smile and marvel at how adorable the old lady was. She felt that she never needed to worry about being bullied or wronged, as long as the old lady was there.
On the other hand, Mu Sisi was shocked, with her expression turning sour in a flash.
She subsequently straightened her back and put on a cute smile. “You’re Big Brother Chengzhi’s grandmother, right? Nice to meet you. I’m Mu Sisi and this is my brother, Mu Huaisheng.”
The old lady smiled, albeit not genuinely, and said, “Okay.” Mu Sisi then turned to Qi Chengzhi and asked, “Big Brother Chengzhi, this is?”
“Let me introduce her.” Qi Chengzhi hugged Song Yu even tighter. “This is my wife, Song Yu. We registered our marriage a few days ago. The wedding will be next month, and since both of you have returned to the country, do join.”
Mu Sisi felt her blood drain out of her body. Her feet and legs ran cold. Without drawing too much attention to her actions, she held Mu Huaisheng’s arm to prevent herself from collapsing.
“Your wife?” Mu Sisi asked. Then, she remembered something. “The other day you posted the picture of a marriage certificate on your WeChat Moments. That’s yours?”
She then continued, “I thought that was your friend’s.”
She always thought he would not get married, because he treated everyone coldly during his university days in America. Campus girls were not the only ones that liked him. Others, whom he encountered in his daily life, also liked him.
Those American-born women were usually much more open-minded, and they would confess their liking of him without the slightest hesitation. Regardless, Qi Chengzhi never even looked at them.
Back then, Mu Sisi was the only odd girl out who could approach him.
At that time though, she was still in junior high, and it was only because of Mu Huaisheng that she got to know Qi Chengzhi.
For whatever reason, she was the only girl who could get close to Qi Chengzhi. Perhaps it was because she was the only one who had the opportunity to do so.
It was not entirely accurate to say that Qi Chengzhi was very close to her during that period. He always maintained an invisible distance, and no matter how she tried to come close to him, it seemed as though she could never get him. It was almost as if there was a red tape cordoning her off from reaching him.
Nevertheless, she made use of her position as his friend’s sister to get near him. She would use every given opportunity to engage in physical contact with him.
She did, however, think about the possibility that he might meet other women while she still had to continue her studies.
Mu Huaisheng kept in touch with Qi Chengzhi during that span of time, so Mu Sisi frequently asked her brother about Qi Chengzhi. She was constantly aware of the fact that Qi Chengzhi never had a girlfriend for all those years, not even a fun fling.
She always regarded him as someone whose standards were so high that no woman could even enter into his thoughts.
In that respect, she was rather self-confident. She was young and beautiful, while her father was the founder of a fashion brand that encompassed everything from cosmetics to luxury goods. He may be Chinese, but he still succeeded to get himself into America’s upper-class society. When Mu Sisi was nineteen, she even participated in New York’s International Debutante Ball, treating it as her coming-of-age ceremony. Amongst those debutantes who attended the ball at that time, she was the sole person with Chinese ethnicity.
In terms of status and background, she would surely be a cut above everyone else present during the birthday celebration!
Her family’s decision to expand their products across Asia came at just the right time, and they were in the process of discussing cooperation with Wu Feng. Since Mu Sisi studied fashion design, she intended to work as a fashion designer for her family’s company after completing her studies.
With another month to go before she graduated, she immediately followed Mu Huaisheng home when she knew that he was going back to the country.
For many years prior, Qi Chengzhi never used WeChat, but she used it frequently to chat with her primary schoolmates. Many of them added each other there. Suddenly, near the end of last year, she noticed another person in her address book. It was Qi Chengzhi, and she added him immediately without any hesitation.
She tried messaging him on WeChat but never received any reply. It was the same with her texts.
That day, when she saw him post the marriage certificate on his Moments, she felt a sudden thump in her heart, which apparently stopped when she laid eyes on that photo.
She did in fact wonder if Qi Chengzhi had gotten married after not seeing him for so many years.
That was why she sent him a message to test the waters, asking if the certificate belonged to his friend.
As expected though, he never replied.
She then asked Mu Huaisheng if there was any news from Qi Chengzhi, because if Qi Chengzhi were to marry, he would surely tell Mu Huaisheng.
The relationship between the two men went back to when they were in university. They had a friendship so good that they were practically inseparable. If Qi Chengzhi really was getting married, Mu Huaisheng would definitely be in the know.
Her doubts were thus cleared.
Therefore, it came as a surprise to her when he personally proclaimed his marriage in such a public place.
“Of course not. My Big Brother treats his WeChat Moments as a place to display his affection. He wouldn’t care about whether his friends marry or not, since he can’t even get enough of showing off all his own lovey-dovey antics there,” a woman’s voice rang from the crowd.
Mu Sisi never met that woman before, but she already disliked the woman after merely hearing the woman’s tone of voice.
Song Yu looked over and saw Qi Chengyue, who had her arm around Cheng Dongge and was walking over.
The two of them had actually stood behind the group for quite some time, and they heard what Mu Sisi had said earlier.
No one in the group noticed because their gazes were all fixed toward Song Yu and Mu Sisi. Everyone seemed curious to see what would happen next, so none of them noticed the presence of Qi Chengyue and Cheng Dongge.
For the old lady, her granddaughter’s words were right on the dot. She nodded approvingly. “Exactly, exactly!”
Song Yu smiled then looked at Qi Chengzhi. Her monochrome eyes seemed to warn him, ‘I’ll settle this with you when we go home.’ After that, she asked, “And these two are...”
Qi Chengzhi looked at her wryly, seemingly to punish her for giving him the look earlier. He grasped her waist even tighter and allowed her to lean herself on his body, whether intentionally or otherwise. He was worried that she stood too long and got tired.
“Mu Huaisheng, my classmate from university and a good friend. This is his sister, Mu Sisi,’ Qi Chengzhi introduced them in a clear voice.
“Hehe, nice to meet you. When Big Brother Chengzhi was in university, I always followed him and my brother to have fun.” Mu Sisi grinned like a cat.
Yu Keyao’s negative impact on Song Yu made her dread hearing the words ‘Big Brother Chengzhi’. Such a term of endearment sent waves of unease throughout her body.
“Big Brother Chengzhi, do you still remember when I came to work at your company during the holidays? Everyone said that I didn’t know anything and was making things worse, so all everyone let me do was photocopy papers and pick up phone calls.” Mu Sisi stuck out her tongue and continued flirtatiously, “I’m much better now, not like the little girl who knew nothing last time. Will your company accept me now that I’ve changed for the better?”
“Mu Huaisheng told me that you’re going to work as a designer in your family’s company. I can’t possibly be poaching talent. Also, there aren’t any suitable jobs for you in our company,” Qi Chengzhi responded bluntly.
“If you hire me, then I can choose not to work at my family’s company!” Mu Sisi then added, “Designing is just a hobby for me. It’s not like I can’t do anything else. Oh yes, Big Brother Chengzhi, do you need a personal assistant?”
Qi Chengzhi kept mum, but shot Cheng Dongge a glance.
Cheng Dongge came to his senses immediately and stood straight, clearing his throat. “Ahem, my apologies, Miss Mu. I’m his assistant.”
At one side, Mu Huaisheng was quietly observing the situation. He did not join the conversation as his attention was focused on Song Yu instead.
He could not refrain himself from being shocked when he heard Song Yu’s name.
A connection was immediately made between Song Yu and the company—named ‘Feather’—that Qi Chengzhi once established.
Mu Huaisheng was indeed a very smart person. If that were not the case, he would not have been able to befriend and keep pace with Qi Chengzhi
Once he had that suspicion, he suddenly remembered the events that happened after Feather became a strong enough company. Qi Chengzhi spent six years dismantling another company, whose owner, if Mu Huaisheng remembered correctly, was also surnamed Song.
Mu Huaisheng recalled the multitude of women who made their affections to Qi Chengzhi known. Not a single one received another look from Qi Chengzhi. Even those who were bold enough to throw themselves all over him were rejected in the harshest of manners.
He once asked Qi Chengzhi if—having had countless admirers during the four years of university—there was ever a woman who managed to capture his heart.
Mu Huaisheng remembered the clear yet sudden pause in Qi Chengzhi’s movements. The latter’s long and fair fingers lowered the book he was holding. His bespectacled eyes looked out at the window. Warm sunny rays were illuminating his body, covering his face in a golden veil.
Qi Chengzhi answered him plainly. “Someone’s waiting for me back in the country.”
“Your girlfriend?” Mu Huaisheng asked a question that seemed normal in that circumstance.
The reply came after a pause. “She’s the woman I want to marry in the future.”
Mu Huaisheng looked at Song Yu and was doubly certain that she was the same woman Qi Chengzhi spoke of in the past.
He stretched his hand toward Song Yu, saying, “Just call me Huaisheng, like how Chengzhi calls me. He’s older than me by two months, so I think it’s proper that I call you sis-in-law.”
Song Yu looked at the smiling man in front of her and felt a distinct similarity with Qi Chengzhi.
When Qi Chengzhi took off his glasses, his gaze was frighteningly sharp, causing his entire aura to turn even more unwelcoming.
Mu Huaisheng was different in that he had scholarly mannerisms. His gaze was tender and far from intimidating. Song Yu knew, however, that Mu Huaisheng was not as well-tempered as his looks suggested—he was definitely not someone that should be provoked.
“Chengzhi and I were university classmates, and I was also his business partner.” Mu Huaisheng smiled.
Song Yu knew what he was talking about, but she still turned to Qi Chengzhi and asked, “Business partner?”
“Yes, didn’t you know? When Big Brother Chengzhi was studying in America, he founded a company with my brother. It did pretty well and even made a small name for itself in the industry,” Mu Sisi explained. She was beaming because she felt like she knew much more about Qi Chengzhi than Song Yu.
Mu Huaisheng smiled warmly and said, “I was a partner-in-name only. In truth, I was only just helping out a bit. It was a concept Qi Chengzhi proposed. I had time on my hands. And because I look up to his abilities, I invested some money into it. It wasn’t much, and strictly speaking, the company belonged to Qi Chengzhi entirely. I just hitched on his success. Now that I think about it, the company’s name was Feather, and isn’t your Yu the character for feather?”
Mu Sisi was shocked. She could not believe that Qi Chengzhi would set up a company just for Song Yu.
During that period, Mu Sisi put in a lot of effort for Qi Chengzhi, hoping she could make him notice and pay attention to her.
“Yes.” Song Yu nodded. She was rather surprised as well.
Mu Huaisheng then turned to Qi Chengzhi, seemingly full of questions.
Qi Chengzhi asked instead, “Since your family’s company will expand their range of products into the domestic market, you’d surely need a place to work, right? Have you identified a site, yet?”
“We’re still looking. Recently we’ve been doing work from the hotel,” Mu Huaisheng said. He did not press on with his questions because Qi Chengzhi had changed the topic.
“Big Brother Chengzhi, we’re staying right here at Dynasty. Don’t forget to come look for us!” Mu Sisi exclaimed. She then reached for Qi Chengzhi’s hand and grabbed it right in front of everyone there, flinging it coquettishly.
Qi Chengzhi pulled his hand back and retorted, “If I have the time. We’re preparing for the wedding, so it’ll be a bit busier.”
Mu Sisi looked at her own empty palm and bit her lip. Sunken though her expression was, she forced out a happy smile and said, “I never thought that you’d get married so early!”
“Not early enough I say. My grandson’s already thirty-five. If this is early, then how late is late?” The old lady waved her hand and was itching to ask, ‘Are you going to say that it’s better if he got married to you?’
“No, Grandma, I just thought... I just thought...” Mu Sisi looked askance at Yan Beicheng and the group, who was standing there to watch some drama instead of leaving. “Back in America, no other girl except me could approach Big Brother Chengzhi. He never looked at any of those women, so I thought that Big Brother Chengzhi wouldn’t get married so early.”
“I don’t suppose you thought my big brother was going to wait for you?” Qi Chengyue had no reservations about being blunt. The old lady could not do the same as she had to maintain her prestige, and so was unable to make any stern comments toward Mu Sisi.
“When my big brother was at university, you were nothing more than a kid, so of course my big brother wouldn’t care if you followed him. If you’re at your current age at that time, just try and see whether he’d let you follow him,” Qi Chengyue jibed. “Even if he did let you tag along, it’s only because your elder brother is his friend.”
Qi Chengyue then snickered. “My big brother did, in fact, wait for one particular woman to grow up, and isn’t he married to that woman now? That woman isn’t you, sadly. But she’s right in front of you.”
Grandmother Qi was immediately elated! It was the first time she ever admired her granddaughter’s cutting words.
historical
In the past, she often felt that Qi Chengyue’s words were too nasty and unkind, but at that moment she was absolutely loving her granddaughter’s scathing remarks!
Keeping up appearances, however, the old lady pulled Qi Chengyue close, then said to Mu Sisi and Mu Huaisheng, “I’m so sorry. My granddaughter is just too direct. She says what’s on her mind and only speaks the truth. Her words can sometimes be unpleasant.”
Everyone fell silent.
Perhaps it was the old lady’s words that were truly unpleasant.
Finding it hard to control herself, Qi Chengyue nearly burst out laughing. She immediately grabbed her grandmother’s arm. “Grandma, how could you say that about your own granddaughter!”
“Don’t you act all coy with me. If I don’t tell you off, you’ll say whatever you want without being aware of the time and place. Huaisheng is your big brother’s friend and you still have to respect him!” The old lady never even mentioned Mu Sisi throughout the conversation.
Mu Huaisheng smiled and said, “Grandma, my sister was in the wrong. She didn’t think properly before speaking.”
“Hehehe, little kids, no one will take what they say to heart.” The old lady waved her hand and looked at Mu Sisi as if the latter was an immature girl who did not understand anything.
Mu Sisi was fuming, but she did not show it out in front of Qi Chengzhi. A doleful and repentant look was suddenly displayed on her face. She imitated Qi Chengyue and held the old lady’s arm, swinging it while acting coyly, “Grandma, I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to be mean. I just said what’s on my mind, that’s all. It’s just facts and I didn’t actually mean anything by my words, but others can easily misunderstand them too.”
“Hehehe.” The old lady chuckled. She then appeared to spot something, and so turned away and said, “Oh dear, Lao Han’s calling me. I’ll be going now!”
Having said that, she broke free of Mu Sisi’s grip and hurried over to where Grandmother Han was.
Song Yu gave Qi Chengyue an appreciative glance, for she did not expect Qi Chengyue to come to her aid so willingly.