Chapter 30: Marriage First, Love Later, and a Side of Villain-Bashing 8 PART 1
Down on the court, Shen Zhiqian watched Ning Qingqing smile at Gu Youchen. That moment, her smile was entirely genuine.
She was excited, cheering because Gu Youchen had personally avenged her.
And he…? He had never thought of such a simple and direct method—simply informing friends in the circle, ignoring Kevin’s pleas for help. He could make it difficult for Kevin and the others in the industry, but the anger from being shoved and injured by Kevin that day could only be forever suppressed in her heart.
For the first time, Shen Zhiqian felt a sense of self-deprecation. He hadn’t done as well as Gu Youchen.
He didn’t go over, just watching Ning Qingqing and Gu Youchen put down their rackets together and go to the sidelines to stretch after their workout.
Ye Peicheng quickly called another friend to play, no one paying attention to Kevin, who limped off the court, bruised and swollen.
Everyone knew that after today, Kevin wouldn’t be able to survive in this circle. So many people had come today, all expressing their stance, and those who didn’t come naturally wouldn’t offend these top-tier families for him.
Si Luoqing’s attempt at a comeback was just a pipe dream!
Off the court, Gu Youchen took a tissue from Ning Qingqing to wipe his sweat, asking, “Qingqing, did you have fun tonight?”
Ning Qingqing’s eyes were bright: “Mm, thank you, Youchen.”
“We’re married, I’ve told you not to say thank you to me.” Gu Youchen’s gaze was serious: “Protecting your wife is a husband’s responsibility.”
Surrounded by the clamor, Ning Qingqing felt as if they were isolated from the noise. It was as if only the two of them existed.
“I thought you’d find a dark alley, put him in a sack, and beat him up.” Ning Qingqing’s eyes curved into crescent moons when she smiled, “I didn’t expect such a cool method!”
Gu Youchen was amused by her imagination and chuckled: “Qingqing, I’m a law-abiding good citizen and would never do anything illegal.”
Moreover, this open and above-board method of slapping him in the face would not give anyone a handle to make a fuss about, while also achieving revenge for what Kevin did to Ning Qingqing, and making it impossible for him to continue his career. Three birds with one stone.
“Oh.” Ning Qingqing thought, her previous idea was quite dangerous!
Gu Youchen continued, “Within a week, he’ll definitely come to apologize to me.”
Ning Qingqing understood immediately—
Everyone saw Gu Youchen’s attitude today, and news that Kevin had seriously offended Gu Youchen would quickly spread through the circle. If Kevin wanted to continue his career, he had to apologize, even if he himself might not even know where he went wrong. That’s reality!
“Mm, what will you do if he comes to you?” Ning Qingqing asked.
Gu Youchen’s lips curled slightly: “Mr. Gu and Mrs. Gu are very busy, we won’t have time for just any Tom, Dick, or Harry.”
Ning Qingqing was happy with his words: “Mm, ignore him!”
Gu Youchen said, “Qingqing, do you know the relationship between Kevin and Si Luoqing?”
Ning Qingqing shook her head: “Aren’t they just a simple manager and artist? Are they dating?”
“No.” Gu Youchen said, “Kevin is the illegitimate son of Si Luoqing’s uncle. His father doesn’t like him because his mother conceived him using certain means. So he always wants to achieve something, to make everyone see him.”
Ning Qingqing understood why Kevin cared even more about the Si family and Si Luoqing than an average manager. He was also part of the Si family, cousins with Si Luoqing.
That made things interesting…
Nie Yu had entrusted Ning Qingqing with the matter of dealing with the Si family, and when they were desperate, they might really come to her!
Ning Qingqing was suddenly curious, what would Kevin’s reaction be when he saw her?
“Youchen, are you thirsty? I’ll go buy you some water.” Ning Qingqing saw sweat beads on Gu Youchen’s forehead.
On the sports field, girls buying water was a common scene, but Gu Youchen had never received any of the offered water, so he had never accepted water from other girls.
Even though it was a few years late, the right person was by his side now.
He nodded, “Okay.”
Ning Qingqing took out her phone to order, only to find that it had suddenly shut down.
Seeing this, Gu Youchen directly handed her his wallet: “There’s change inside, just use the cash.”
Ning Qingqing agreed, ran to buy water. When she opened the wallet, she saw a photo in the inner compartment, a girl in the photo.
The photo’s resolution was low, clearly from years ago, so Ning Qingqing didn’t see clearly at first glance.
At this time, the vendor handed over the water, Ning Qingqing took out a ten-dollar bill and paid, putting the change back in the wallet.
But she didn’t look at the photo again, feeling that secretly looking at it was an invasion of Gu Youchen’s privacy.
The photo in a man’s wallet should be a girl he likes, right?
Ning Qingqing thought, maybe Gu Youchen had liked a girl before, that’s why he had been single for so many years.
But what kind of girl was she, to actually reject such an excellent man? Did Gu Youchen still miss that girl?
Thinking of this, Ning Qingqing felt a slight dullness in her heart, but it wasn’t obvious.
She quickly ran back with the water, seeing Gu Youchen chatting with Zhou Linghang and the others, so she handed over the water and wallet.
“Hey, sister-in-law, where’s our water?”
“Yeah, sister-in-law, why only Brother Chen has water? We’re so miserable, don’t we deserve water?”
“So sour, so sour, I need to find a wife to get married soon, otherwise, this dog food is too much!”
Everyone was teasing, Ning Qingqing was slightly embarrassed and slightly amused.
Gu Youchen gulped down the water and said to Ning Qingqing, “Ignore them, I’ll send you there first, say goodbye to your colleagues, and then we’ll go home.”
Ning Qingqing nodded and went with Gu Youchen to the club.
In the private room, everyone was chatting happily, seeing Ning Qingqing being sent back by Gu Youchen, they were excited.
“Wow, the handsome guy sent our Qingqing back?” Xiao Zhu smiled, “Did you have fun?”
Gu Youchen nodded, then took a business card from his wallet and handed it to them, “Qingqing was tired from playing tennis, I’ll send her home first.”
“Wow! Already calling her by her name?” Everyone teased jokingly.
Some were still wary, after all, how could they let their beautiful girl go with a stranger?
However, Xiao Zhu’s expression quickly told everyone what happened—
Xiao Zhu was surprised, “You are Mr. Gu of Gu Corporation?”
Gu Youchen nodded and extended his hand, “Gu Youchen.”
No one present could possibly not know this name.
They were investors, and having come to Di City, they had already made various preparations.
Half a year in advance, they had researched the major families and companies with assets over 100 million in Di City. If it was Gu Heng and Li Lan, they would probably recognize them at a glance, but Gu Youchen had only been back in China for two weeks and hadn’t given any media interviews, so everyone was unfamiliar with his face.
“Then please, Mr. Gu, send our Qingqing home.” Lao Zhao, the oldest among them, stood up, “Qingqing is our little sister, we all love her very much, please help us send her home safely.”
Gu Youchen nodded, “Of course, please rest assured.”
He said, turning to Ning Qingqing, “Qingqing, shall we go?”
Ning Qingqing nodded, picked up her bag, and said goodbye to her colleagues.
Everyone was winking and gossiping excitedly.
Coming out of the club, Gu Youchen went to the opposite side to get his car, asking Ning Qingqing to wait for him.
He hadn’t had a single drink today, and hadn’t let the driver drive, the parking spaces here were already full, so he parked in the underground parking lot on the opposite side.
Ning Qingqing was looking at the opposite side of the road, when someone called her from the side, the voice slightly hoarse, “Qingqing.”
Ning Qingqing turned her head and saw Shen Zhiqian standing alone in the shadows two meters away from her, seemingly having been there for quite some time.
Instinctively, Ning Qingqing was about to turn back to the club to wait for Gu Youchen.
But Shen Zhiqian took a step forward: “I have something to tell you, it won’t take long.”
Seeing Ning Qingqing not looking at him, Shen Zhiqian said again, “Give me two minutes, if I don’t say it today, I’ll find a chance to see you later.”
Ning Qingqing stopped, saying calmly, “Go ahead.”
Shen Zhiqian said, “I want to talk about my relationship with Gu Youchen.”
“Actually, there are many people of our age in this circle in Di City. If it weren’t for certain things, I wouldn’t have considered him an arch-rival.”
“It’s because my mother almost married Gu Youchen’s uncle.”
Hearing this, Ning Qingqing was truly surprised, “I’ve never heard anyone mention this.”