78: Chapter 78 The Chaotic Daily Life of a Rich Young Lady
On an early summer afternoon, sunlight filtered through the camphor tree leaves of Yujing Garden, casting dappled shadows on the stone path below the apartment building. A gleaming black minivan slowly pulled up to the entrance.
The car door opened, and four servants in neatly pressed dark gray uniforms and white gloves stepped out one by one, moving in unison to open the trunk.
The next second, Zhang Fan, standing on the balcony, stared in disbelief.
Sure enough, it was all Song Zhiwei's luggage. The young lady had actually packed eight whole suitcases, ranging from custom-made bedding to imported snacks, and all sorts of luxury items she was accustomed to using, taking up half of Zhang Fan's originally spacious living room.
"These... are all your things?" Zhang Fan looked at the mountain of luggage, dumbfounded.
"Mhm, these are all things I use regularly." Song Zhiwei said it as a matter of course, then picked up a white towel embroidered with delicate patterns and turned to walk into the bathroom. "I'll wash my hands first."
Not long after, Song Zhiwei's voice came from the bathroom: "Zhang Fan, why is this towel a bit stiff? And it has a smell of sweat?"
Zhang Fan's heart skipped a beat. He rushed over and saw that what Song Zhiwei was holding was the sports towel he had just used that morning, specifically for wiping off sweat!
"That's my sports towel! The face towel is on the second shelf on the left!"
Song Zhiwei froze for a moment, quickly put the towel down, and her cheeks instantly turned red. "I-I'm sorry, I didn't see clearly..."
In the evening, Song Zhiwei said she wanted to cook something to eat herself.
Zhang Fan had wanted to remind her that "a regular gas stove is different from the one at her home," but before he could say it, a "bang" came from the kitchen, followed by the alarm of a gas leak.
Zhang Fan rushed in to see Song Zhiwei standing helplessly in front of the stove. Water from the pot had spilled all over the floor, the gas stove switch was turned to the maximum, but it hadn't ignited, and the gas alarm was blaring.
"You didn't turn on the gas valve!" Zhang Fan quickly turned off the switch and opened the windows for ventilation. "And why did you put the pot directly on the stove? The water on the bottom of the pot wasn't wiped off, it could explode!"
Song Zhiwei's face went pale, and she apologized in a low voice: "I... at home, the servants always cook, I've never touched this..."
She looked at the ordinary gas stove in front of her, then at her own water-stained sleeves, her eyes full of helplessness, like a child who had done something wrong.
Zhang Fan sighed helplessly and resignedly picked up the pot. "Forget it, I'll cook. You go wait in the living room."
At night, Song Zhiwei wanted to go out to buy a bottle of water, but after entering the smart lock password, she accidentally pressed the "deadbolt" button. The door clicked and locked, and the key in her hand couldn't open it either.
Standing outside the door, she could only awkwardly call Zhang Fan: "Um... I locked myself out..."
Zhang Fan had just finished taking a shower and nearly lost his footing when he heard this.
He ran to the door wrapped in a bath towel, looking at the pitiful-looking Song Zhiwei outside, feeling both angry and amused. "How did you manage to break the door lock?"
"I didn't mean to..." Song Zhiwei lowered her head, twisting the corner of her clothes. "The door locks at my home are all fingerprint-based, I don't need to enter a password..."
While looking for the spare key, Zhang Fan grumbled to himself: "This wealthy young lady's life skills are practically negative!"
But looking at Song Zhiwei's aggrieved expression, he couldn't really be angry. After all, he was the one who agreed to let her stay, and this chaotic life had only just begun.
Once the door was opened, Song Zhiwei walked in and said softly: "Thank you... I've caused you so much trouble today."
She looked at Zhang Fan's wet hair, then at the empty water cup in her own hand, and suddenly felt a bit embarrassed. "Tomorrow... let me treat you to a meal? Consider it an apology."
Zhang Fan wiped his hair and agreed casually: "Sure, but don't go to too expensive a place. I still have to go to the company tomorrow to monitor player feedback for 'star path'."
Song Zhiwei nodded immediately, a flash of excitement in her eyes, like a child who had received a reward.
Zhang Fan looked at her, and suddenly felt—although this plot was very melodramatic and their cohabitation life was chaotic, perhaps... it wasn't so bad after all.
He didn't notice, however, that when he turned to blow-dry his hair, Song Zhiwei quietly took out her phone, deleted a number in her contacts labeled "Pei Yunxiao," and a flash of determination crossed her eyes.
With Zhang Fan by her side, she would never be deceived by that man again like in her previous life.
Pei Yunxiao sat in the maybach that Song Zhiwei had previously given him, his fingers gripping the phone screen until his knuckles turned white. The name "Song Zhiwei" on the screen lit up and dimmed, the call kept prompting "The number you dialed is busy," and even his WeChat messages disappeared into the void.
"What is going on?" He kicked the car door in frustration, a conceited yet angry smile curling his lips. "I was only intentionally giving her the cold shoulder for a few days, to let her know who is in charge. How dare she not answer my call? When she comes to me voluntarily, if she doesn't kneel down to apologize and admit her mistake, I won't pay attention to her for a week!"
He had always been certain that Song Zhiwei would never be able to leave him in this lifetime.
Indeed, in her previous life, she could even hand over the Song family's business for him. Even if her attitude was a bit cold in this life, deep down she was still that "lovestruck" girl who revolved around him. But this act of turning off her phone was like a thorn, piercing his heart with unease.
Unable to contain himself, he dialed his father Pei Jianjun's number.
From the other end of the line came the clattering sound of mahjong tiles being shuffled, mixed with the laughter and scolding of women. Pei Jianjun's voice sounded impatient: "Speak up if you have something to say! I'm winning money here!"
"Dad, do you know where Zhiwei went? Her phone is off, I can't reach her." Pei Yunxiao tried to keep his tone calm.
"Can't reach her?" Pei Jianjun's voice instantly rose. "How the hell do you have the nerve to ask? This afternoon, people from the Song family came to move her things, saying Zhiwei moved out to live elsewhere! Didn't you say you had her firmly under your thumb? Now she's run off and you don't even know?"
Pei Yunxiao's heart sank. "Moved out? Moved where?"
"How would I know!" Pei Jianjun's voice was even fiercer, accompanied by the crisp sound of slamming mahjong tiles. "If you can't handle her and make her ignore our family's affairs, I'll beat you to death, you little beast! The gambling debts for this month haven't been paid off yet, we're counting on her!"
The words "gambling debts" were like a whip, making Pei Yunxiao's temples throb painfully.
His father was a total gambling addict who relied on the money Song Zhiwei secretly gave him every month to fill the hole. If Song Zhiwei really stopped caring, their family would sooner or later be hunted down by debt collectors.
After hanging up the phone, Pei Yunxiao's face was ashen. Just as he was about to start the car to go find Song Zhiwei, a message popped up on his phone, attached with a blurry photo.
In the photo, Song Zhiwei was following a man into an apartment building, with the caption: "Miss Song spent 5 million to keep this small game company boss as her boy toy and moved in to live with him."
"5 million? Keep him as a boy toy?" Pei Yunxiao's eyes instantly turned red. He stared at the back of the figure in the photo, feeling blood rushing to his head.
He had always firmly believed that Song Zhiwei loved him to death, and even if the whole world betrayed him, she would still stay by his side. But now, she was actually spending money to "keep" another man? And moved in to live with him?
"How dare she!" Pei Yunxiao slammed the steering wheel hard, and the horn let out a harsh, long blare, drawing side-eyes from passersby.
He took out his phone, flipped through his contacts, found a "friend" who had helped him spread rumors before, and asked through gritted teeth: "Help me look up someone. Who is this man in the photo, which game company is he from? As fast as possible!"