Deep in the alley, a breakfast shop was flanked by a Rolls-Royce and an unassuming Red Flag car parked not far away.
Xiaozhang and Zhuang Ming stood guard quietly by the cars, non-smokers both, bored enough to watch the snow drift through the sky.
Light snow was falling. A weathered wooden table stood at the entrance of the breakfast shop, and withered tree branches lined the street.
Zhou Xiangqun and Zhou Luchen sat opposite each other at the table.
On the table were two steaming bowls of mutton noodle soup, two cups of mild and sweet floral tea, and a plate of freshly fried dough sticks—simple, standard fare.
Zhou Xiangqun, in a black jacket, thodically separated a pair of wooden chopsticks, aligned them carefully, and then passed them to Zhou Luchen.
As the eldest son in the family lineage, he had always wished for his younger brother’s well-being.
"Who angered our Second Young Master and got him to drink so much last night? Such impulsiveness doesn’t suit you."
In Zhou Xiangqun’s impression, his younger brother was never one to condescend to throwing a punch. Zhuang Ming would handle such things; it wasn’t his place to act so rashly. But sothing had happened; sothing was clearly amiss.
He thought for a mont. "That Shen girl?"
Zhou Luchen took the chopsticks. "No."
Zhou Xiangqun glanced at him, and choosing not to press him on his mood, he steered the conversation back to the main issue. "Clashing with Cheng Jinchuan is truly unbecoming of you."
Zhou Luchen shifted his long legs, eting Zhou Xiangqun’s gaze. "So, you’d rather wait until he crashes into your kneecaps next ti?"
Zhou Xiangqun tasted the noodles, his deanor modest and refined; even when he smiled, his eyes remained as placid as ever.
"His arrogance is his problem."
With that said, he pushed the fried dough sticks toward Zhou Luchen.
Zhou Luchen, with little interest, asked, "And what about the Mins?"
Zhou Xiangqun replied, "They wouldn’t get involved with the thorny Cheng Family. Nowadays, the children can’t even play together. Those Mins have a strong sense of responsibility and prefer to keep to themselves."
Zhou Luchen couldn’t be bothered to talk anymore. He picked up the floral tea and took a sip. It had been years, but it still had that sa flavor—or rather, lack thereof. Utterly bland, yet it was precisely this that Zhou Xiangqun loved most.
Once breakfast was over, Zhou Xiangqun picked up the thermos bottle by his feet, carefully straightening his clothes. "Second Brother, go settle the bill."
This breakfast cost 36 yuan.
Zhou Luchen frowned as he scanned the QR code.
The owner recognized the two brothers. "It’s been a while since you last ca! The noodles are 15 yuan a bowl, the dough sticks are 2 yuan, and the tea is 2 yuan. The other Mr. Zhou—your brother—cos whenever he has ti. I haven’t changed my prices in over ten years."
Zhou Luchen opened an umbrella to shield himself from the snow, one hand tucked in his pocket. When he didn’t speak, he always appeared cold and unfeeling.
Zhou Xiangqun, holding the thermos, suddenly laughed and said leisurely to the owner, "He’s not in a pleasant mood today. With no one here to humor him, how could he have any appetite for breakfast? So, it’s best not to provoke him."
The owner smiled and waved, watching the two imposing figures depart from his small shop.
They each got into their cars and drove out of the narrow hutong lane, one after the other.
Daylight was just breaking, and the two cars parted ways at a fork in the road.
「...」
In the days that followed, surveillance footage from a road exit revealed that Cheng Jinchuan had deliberately rear-ended the other car; the video was so clear that it even captured the expression of him gritting his teeth in anger inside his car.
This matter was quite serious. The Cheng Family was truly unwilling to shield him, so they had no choice but to offer Cheng Jinchuan up.
A different young master from the Cheng Family took over the Cheng Group, and on the surface, the matter was lightly swept under the rug.
Shen Jing knew nothing about the other details.
Zhou Luchen, on the other hand, seed quite idle these past couple of days. He had taken the cat back to his place at Taihe Middle Court, and he would co to Sheng Peng to pick her up from work.
At six o’clock, just like the day before, a black sedan was parked in front of the office building. The man leaned against the car, legs crossed, a Monet grey shirt tucked into neatly pressed, tailored trousers, exuding an air of refined nobility.
Truth be told, Monet grey simply looked exceptionally classy on him. However, the way he was now pursuing her, according to Xie Qinyang’s assessnt, could be sumd up in one word: besotted.
Shen Jing really didn’t want him to always co to the office building in this car, with a license plate that made his connection to the Zhou Family too obvious. She had ntioned it several tis. Today, he had finally deigned to switch to a more low-profile dostic car, but it still had one of those highly distinctive license plates. What was the difference between changing cars and not changing at all? Truthfully, there was nothing to be done; all the cars the Zhou Family provided him ca with those signature plates. He was their precious young master, after all. The Zhou Family couldn’t bear for him to suffer the slightest inconvenience.
Shen Jing strolled leisurely toward him, a hint of a smile playing in her beautiful eyes. "Afraid people won’t know you’re trying to woo , are you?"
Zhou Luchen, who had been lost in thought, finally lifted his gaze slightly when he heard her voice, his expression visibly lightened. He reached out to touch her face. "I haven’t succeeded in wooing you yet. Can’t have soone else snatching you away."
After all, she had only given him one chance. It was quite a challenge to a privileged young master’s desire for pursuit.
Touching her face, Zhou Luchen couldn’t resist giving it a pinch, gently and unhurriedly, as if with a touch of indulgence.
"Still pinching." Shen Jing huffed. "You’re going to leave a mark on my face."
He laughed, a touch of roguishness in it, the pressure from his fingertips gradually increasing. "I’ve only picked you up from work a few tis, and you’re already getting bold with , huh?"
Shen Jing’s cheeks quickly showed faint red marks, like a delicate blush blooming from within.
It wasn’t pain; it was shyness brought on by his flirtatious gesture.
"That hurts. Next ti, I won’t let you touch it."
Zhou Luchen’s smile deepened, his lips curved as he spoke in an extrely low voice, "If you keep treating like this, I’ll go chase after other girls tomorrow."
Shen Jing swung her bag at him, but before it could connect, he easily intercepted it, tossing it onto the backseat.
Shen Jing tutted. "Go on then. I can just find soone even more powerful than you."
Zhou Luchen’s long fingers landed on her neck. Right there was a love bite he had left, still visible. Arrogant as Young Master Zhou could be, his eyes were deep and intense. "Can you really find one?"
Shen Jing replied without restraint, "Your father, your older brother."
Zhou Luchen laughed and let out a soft curse, not taking her playful words to heart. "Get in the car."
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