Mr. Zhou had an elegant and refined appearance. Dressed in casual clothes and still holding a fishing rod as he walked through the door, he was all smiles. "It's all Old Zhang's fault. He refused to leave until he caught a fish, which kept us out so late." He put his arm around Mrs. Zhou, who greeted Li Ruoyao upon seeing her and called out to the back, "Congli."
Li Ruoyao looked over with a smile, her eyes hiding a hint of anticipation. Zhou Congli's expression was very faint, and he just gave a slight nod. A trace of resentment flashed through Li Ruoyao's eyes, but she quickly hid it.
"Big Brother!" Zhou Ye suddenly spoke up.
Everyone looked at him and simultaneously noticed the girl standing beside him. Mr. Zhou glanced at Mrs. Zhou, and seeing her nod, he immediately knew this was Zhou Ye's girlfriend.
As for Zhou Congli, the moment he saw Lin Zhi, his gaze blanked, almost thinking he had seen wrongly.
"Dad, Big Brother, let me introduce you." Zhou Ye suddenly pulled Lin Zhi forward. Having practically ignored her just moments ago, he was now suddenly enthusiastic. "This is my girlfriend, Lin Zhi." He stared at Zhou Congli, his gaze carrying a provocative undertone. "Big Brother, what do you think of my girlfriend?"
Mr. Zhou and Mrs. Zhou were completely baffled by this move of his. However, they generally didn't interfere much in their children's affairs, so they kept quiet.
Zhou Congli looked at the exquisitely dressed person opposite him, whose smile was even sweeter than usual. His voice grew even more indifferent. "...Not bad."
"I'm going upstairs," he said, turning around and leaving the living room to head upstairs.
Mr. Zhou laughed heartily. "Not bad, not bad at all. The young lady is very pretty. You've got a good eye, kid." He patted Zhou Ye's shoulder and ushered everyone inside, saying to Lin Zhi, "Don't be nervous. Make yourself at home."
Lin Zhi smiled and nodded. She was incredibly speechless at Zhou Ye. Relying on the fact that no one else knew the truth, he had the audacity to arrogantly bring her in front of Zhou Congli to show off. However, on the surface, she also acted as if she knew nothing and could only treat Zhou Congli like a regular boss.
Mr. Zhou had just returned and needed to freshen up, so Mrs. Zhou accompanied him upstairs. Li Ruoyao, who was clearly in a bad mood, also retreated to her room in the Zhou family home. Zhou Ye looked as though he wanted to chase after her immediately, so he hurriedly dropped a warning—"From now on, don't speak unless absolutely necessary"—before rushing upstairs in a frantic hurry.
The living room was soon left with Lin Zhi alone. She chatted with her two roommates in their small group chat, listening to them share all sorts of workplace gossip. Just as she was laughing uncontrollably, she suddenly heard footsteps. Turning her head, she saw Zhou Congli coming downstairs. He had changed into loungewear. He stood in front of the water dispenser to get a drink, his side profile looking exceptionally handsome.
Lin Zhi glanced around the empty living room. After a moment of hesitation, she walked over and called out softly, "Mr. Zhou..."
SPLASH. Amidst the sound of flowing water, Zhou Congli stared at his glass, seemingly not hearing her.
A flash of awkwardness crossed Lin Zhi's face. She softly tried to coax him, "Mr. Zhou, can I ask you for a favor? Could you please not tell Ah Ye about my internship at the company?"
Zhou Congli shot her a very cold glare. Lin Zhi stammered and fell silent, but feeling a bit unwilling to give up, she continued, "Can you? I really want to work at Dongning. I love the company's atmosphere, and if Ah Ye finds out, he will definitely get angry and forbid me from—"
"Why would he be angry?" Zhou Congli interrupted. As soon as the question left his lips, the faint anger of feeling deceived suddenly found an outlet. "Did you already know that Zhou Ye and I are brothers? Were you intentionally trying to get close to me at the company?"
Lin Zhi's eyes went wide, and she shook her head vigorously. "No! I didn't know you were Ah Ye's older brother at first. It was only later that I realized you two looked somewhat alike."
"How do we look alike?" Zhou Congli remained expressionless. Thinking about how this woman had occupied his mind for the past few days, how he had spent all day worrying if she was the one from that night and what to do if she was... the sheer fury of being played for a fool almost made him laugh out of anger.
Lin Zhi instantly felt at a loss and let out a dry laugh. "Actually, you don't look that much alike. It's mainly because I told Ah Ye before that I was submitting my resume to Dongning, and he wouldn't let me. He told me to choose a different company. Later, when I met you and found out your surname was also Zhou, I just made a guess. But it was only when I saw you just now that I finally confirmed it." Staring at him pitifully, she pleaded, "Mr. Zhou, I'm begging you."
Zhou Congli's breath caught in his throat. He abruptly turned away and walked toward the sofa. "Begging is useless."
Lin Zhi chased after him. "Mr. Zhou..."
Lin Zhi hadn't expected Zhou Congli to be so difficult to deal with. He still hadn't agreed to her request by the time dinner was served. On the other hand, when Li Ruoyao came downstairs, her lips were red and swollen, and Zhou Ye looked incredibly smug and spirited—he had clearly managed to coax her back into a good mood.
The nanny asked everyone to move to the dining room. Mr. Zhou and Mrs. Zhou took the head seats, while their two sons sat on either side with their respective girlfriend and fiancée. Thus, Lin Zhi sat opposite Zhou Congli, and Zhou Ye sat opposite Li Ruoyao.
"Zhizhi, I heard you're also from University A. You're graduating this year, right? Have you thought about where you want to work?" Mr. Zhou asked casually, before pointing out Zhou Ye. "You need to start thinking about this too, kid. Don't tell me you plan on being a slacker forever."
Zhou Ye flashed a cheeky grin. "What's wrong with being a slacker? Big Brother is so capable. If I go work there, I'll just be holding him back."
Mr. Zhou pointed at him. "You're just lazy, kid." However, his face showed pure indulgence. Evidently, he also felt there was nothing wrong with his second son being a rich slacker. After all, his eldest son was incredibly capable, so handing the company over to him would be perfectly fine.
Lin Zhi shot Zhou Congli a guilty glance and chimed in, "I'm currently interning at a company recommended by a senior from school." After speaking, she buried her head, not daring to look at Zhou Congli's expression.
Mr. Zhou nodded and didn't press further, assuming it was probably just a small company.
"Miss Lin, I heard you are from C City. Who else is in your family?" Li Ruoyao spoke up. She wore a beautiful smile, acting as if she were just asking casually.
Lin Zhi fell silent for a moment. She waited until everyone was looking at her before replying, "Just my mom."
Li Ruoyao covered her mouth in shock. "So you're from a single-parent family? I've heard that children from single-parent families have very strange personalities. Of course, I'm not saying you're strange, Miss Lin. However, did your dad abandon your mom...?"
"Li Ruoyao," Zhou Congli called out faintly.
Li Ruoyao's face darkened for a split second, but she quickly smiled again. "I'm so sorry, Miss Lin. I was just a bit curious. You aren't mad, are you?" She blinked, her expression a picture of innocence.
Lin Zhi looked at her, certain that Li Ruoyao was doing this on purpose and had investigated her thoroughly. She suddenly recalled the incident involving the original host's nude photos in the original plot, and felt that besides Li Ke, Li Ruoyao was also a likely culprit. Despite their brief interaction, it was obvious that this woman was highly possessive of Zhou Ye. Seeing Lin Zhi appear as his girlfriend made her so restless that she couldn't help showing hostility. Thus, it was completely plausible for her to do other extreme things as well.
Zhou Ye said impatiently, "What's there to be mad about? You were telling the truth! And Big Brother, why are you treating an outsider better than your own girlfriend?"
Zhou Congli scoffed. "An outsider? Do you consider your girlfriend an outsider?"
Zhou Ye replied without even thinking, "Ruoyao and I have over twenty years of history together. How could anyone else ever compare..."
"Alright, alright, let's just eat," Mr. Zhou hurriedly interrupted. He served a chopstickful of food to each of the kids, beaming brightly. "Nanny Wang made so many delicious dishes today. Make sure you don't let them go to waste."