Originally, he was supposed to go home with her, but something happened along the way.
If she didn’t tell him the truth soon, the misunderstanding would only deepen.
Zhōng Yì:【My dad didn’t have a very good impression of you at first. From what I know of him, he wouldn’t let me be with someone unreliable.】
Zhōu Shíyì:【Dad said I’m unreliable?】
Zhōng Yì, a bit more tactful:【That’s more or less what he meant.】
She went on to explain:
【I’m not trying to defend my dad, but since you’ve lived abroad for so long, he didn’t really know you well and naturally had some prejudice. After he got to know you better, didn’t he even want you to be his son-in-law?】
Zhōng Yì also considered another possibility:【Maybe my dad has some inexplicable bias against you because of your dad. You’re probably caught up in your father’s reputation.】
Zhōu Shíyì: “”
Even though the father-in-law and her father had a good relationship, it didn’t stop him from excluding their family first when thinking about his daughter’s happiness.
Her father was truly unreliable, and he knew it well.
Years after the wedding, her father still helped his ex.
Of course, her mother was no less stubborn.
After all, they each cared about different people.
Zhōu Shíyì:【It’s late, aren’t you going to sleep?】
Zhōng Yì was still thinking about that wedding dress—the first time she had ever worn one, the significance was always different.
【Going to sleep now, good night.】
Zhōu Shíyì took a screenshot of their last few messages and casually sent it to his father.
Zhōu Yúnlián:【What are you trying to say?】
Zhōu Shíyì:【Nothing to say.】
The silent battles between father and son were always quiet.
Zhōu Yúnlián looked at the chat screenshot again and admitted to himself that he felt somewhat guilty toward his son.
He stubbed out his cigarette and informed his secretary: the end-of-month flight back to Beicheng, no more trips before the wedding.
Zhōu Shíyì logged out of the chat and put his phone on silent.
Working overtime this late was exhausting, yet he felt no sleepiness.
He went downstairs and poured himself half a glass of red wine.
He had no idea when Zhōng Yì deleted him.
Such a painful thing, he couldn’t bring himself to ask.
“Why aren’t you asleep yet?”
The butler’s voice came from behind.
Zhōu Shíyì drained his glass in one go. “Almost. Why are you up so late, too?”
“I’ve already had a nap.”
The butler noticed the wine cabinet light was still on. Thinking a worker forgot to turn it off, he came closer and found someone sitting by the island counter.
“By the way, Jiang Bo, I need to rearrange my study. Make it a double office space, with room to hang paintings.”
“Do you have the dimensions for the painting?”
“No.”
The butler said, “Just tell me which painting it is. I’ll confirm the exact size.”
Zhōu Shíyì said, “Not decided yet.”
He wanted to gift her a painting but hadn’t figured out which one.
***
On Saturday, Zhōng Yì rested at home and didn’t go to the company.
She woke up at eight and went downstairs. Her parents were already in the dining room—one working on a laptop, the other reading a fashion magazine.
Her mother’s most repeated phrase was: “Your father and I aren’t from the same world. It’s no surprise we can’t get along.”
Hearing footsteps, Zhōng Zhuóhuá looked up. “Why didn’t you sleep longer?”
“Got woken up by a work call. Couldn’t get back to sleep.” Zhōng Yì pulled a chair close and sat beside her mother, resting her head on her shoulder, eyes closed.
Zhōng Zhuóhuá put down the magazine and hugged her daughter gently.
“Have you arranged to meet Jì Fánxīng? Going shopping this afternoon?”
Zhōng Yì shook her head. “No shopping.”
“Lazy again! What about your wedding dress? Want the brand to send one to try at home?”
“No need. Zhōu Shíyì bought me a wedding dress, and he’s kept it all this time.”
“The one from the wedding photos?”
“Yeah.”
Zhōng Zhuóhuá had seen the twelve restored photos. Over her career, she’d worn hundreds of haute couture dresses, but seeing the wedding dress on her daughter still stunned her.
Maybe a mother’s eye played a part, but the style was truly unique.
From agreeing to the alliance to holding the wedding, only two months passed—there was no time to customize a complicated dress. Having a ready-made dress she liked as her main gown was perfect.
“I’ll pick out some beautiful dresses for you, too.”
“All right.”
Jiāng Jìngyuān stayed quiet throughout. Originally, he just wanted the kids to get married quickly, but he’d overlooked many details.
Last night, Zhōng Zhuóhuá even scolded him for not being attentive enough and made him reflect on it.
Zhōng Zhuóhuá patted her daughter’s head. “Get up and eat.”
Zhōng Yì straightened up from her mother’s embrace and saw the breakfast the housekeeper brought—so abundant.
“Mom, Dad, haven’t you eaten yet?”
“We’re not hungry, waiting to eat with you.”
Jiāng Jìngyuān closed his laptop and asked if she had plans that afternoon, wanting to take the two of them out for afternoon tea.
Zhōng Yì smiled. “Not going out with you guys, too scary.”
Used to hiding her identity, just thinking about going out with her parents made her nervous.
Jiāng Jìngyuān said, “What’s there to fear? With your mom and me with you, if we get photographed, so be it. The sky won’t fall.”
Since the video with Zhōng Zhuóhuá was leaked and she appeared on set, some past thoughts had changed.
No longer worrying about the big picture, he just wanted to spend more time with his daughter openly.
He and his wife owed her too much.
Zhōng Yì thought for a long moment. “Maybe next time I’m off. Today, I’ll help you recover the photos.”
“Are you sure you’ll go out next time you’re off?”
Zhōng Yì nodded. “I am.”
She wouldn’t go back on her word.
During the meal, she asked about Zhōu Shíyì’s parents, since she hadn’t met her in-laws since their registration.
Before they broke up, she’d heard Zhōu Shíyì mention his parents’ marriage was more or less dead, possibly on the verge of divorce. Three years had passed; she didn’t know how things were now.
“Have they… not divorced yet?”
Zhōng Zhuóhuá: “No. Shi Fanyin contacted her a few days ago, inviting her over to play. ‘Probably won’t divorce.’ At their age, romantic feelings fade, and what matters most is holding onto the benefits.
If they divorced, the biggest loser would be their children.
Shi Fanyin is very clear-headed. If they divorced, knowing Zhōu Yúnlián’s nature, he’d remarry quickly and might have more kids, which would affect Zhōu Shíyì’s resources and interests.
Who would want to mess with huge wealth?”
She sympathized with Shi Fanyin. “Their life turned out like this mostly because of Zhōu Yúnlián, who still thinks about his first love after marriage!”
Jiāng Jìngyuān corrected her: “That wasn’t his first love. It was his second girlfriend.”
Zhōng Zhuóhuá shot him a glare. “Not first, not first. Why argue? I’m not talking about you, what’s there to be guilty about?”
Jiāng Jìngyuān:
He wasn’t guilty at all.
Just wanted to correct the record to avoid rumors.
Zhōng Zhuóhuá: “If it weren’t for Zhōng Yì liking Zhōu Shíyì, I wouldn’t have agreed to be in-laws with Zhōu Yúnlián!”
She sprinkled some crushed nuts and fruit into the oatmeal and mixed it before handing it to her daughter.
“Eat up and take another nap. Your dad and I aren’t in a hurry to recover photos. They’ve been deleted for years anyway, and we rarely look at them.”
“Want to go?”
Zhōng Yì wanted to recover them as soon as possible. There were early photos of her dad and his first love online; her mom must have seen them.
After breakfast, Zhōng Zhuóhuá took her daughter upstairs.
“Mom, you don’t have to stay with me.”
“I’m not staying with you. I’m going to do my makeup.”
“Work?”
“I’m on break recently, haven’t taken any jobs. Meeting Shi Fanyin to go shopping and have coffee.”
In the living room, Jiāng Jìngyuān didn’t catch their conversation clearly. To his wife’s retreating back, he said, “I’m going to the company today. Change clothes and come with me.”
Zhōng Zhuóhuá didn’t even turn back, waving her hand. “No time! I’m long past the age of showing off!”
If she were ten or twenty years younger, she wouldn’t just go; she’d probably ask her agent to take photos secretly to post and show off their relationship.
But now, her mindset was different. She couldn’t go back.
So during her daughter’s prime youth, no matter what she wanted to do, she fully supported her. Just like when her daughter asked for help with the journey—even if it meant lowering her status, she didn’t mind.
Jiāng Jìngyuān said, “Zhōng Yì wants to recover photos. Aren’t you bored being home alone?”
Zhōng Zhuóhuá: “Who said I’m alone? I’m meeting Shi Fanyin! You should find Zhōu Yúnlián; we each do our own thing!”
Before he could respond, she disappeared up the stairs.
Zhōng Yì leaned on the second-floor railing and looked down, watching the show. “Dad, maybe the shirt you’re wearing today makes you look old. Go change!”
Jiāng Jìngyuān laughed, annoyed.
As soon as his wife returned, their daughter immediately changed sides.
“Dad, do you have any extra money?”
Jiāng Jìngyuān smiled gently. “There’s money for raising a daughter.”
Zhōng Yì: “Then give me some. I want to invest.”
Jiāng Jìngyuān gestured toward the sofa beside him. “Come down and talk. Isn’t it tiring shouting across the room? What do you want to invest in? Got any projects in mind?”
Zhōng Yì nodded. “I want to invest in chips.”
Jiāng Jìngyuān:
No wonder she climbed upstairs to ask for money from afar.
Investing in chips for billions is just a drop in the bucket.
“Jinghe has been developing chips for so many years. They invest hundreds of billions every year. Why do you suddenly want to invest in chips separately?”
As Jinghe’s second-largest shareholder, since the company has self-developed chips, he no longer invests externally in dedicated chip projects and only builds the related industry chain.
Zhōng Yì said, “I plan to invest in chips specialized for intelligent driving.”
Jiāng Jìngyuān nodded thoughtfully, instantly understanding her intention. “To help Zhōu Shíyì?”
“Yeah.”
He had always thought she didn’t care much about him, but that wasn’t the case.
Maybe everyone just expresses it differently.
Now, she was being a little more straightforward.
Jiāng Jìngyuān: “Is Kuncheng Motors planning to cooperate with Jinghe on developing dedicated chips?”
“Not yet planned, just my suggestion. The security and computing power requirements of current chips can’t keep up. It’s too difficult to achieve breakthroughs in large models.
Many companies’ large models can’t be commercially applied yet. But the intelligent driving large model market is big enough. It could put Kuncheng Motors in a leading position in the industry.”
Jiāng Jìngyuān reminded her, “Do you know Kuncheng Motors had self-developed chips before?”
Zhōng Yì nodded. “Yes.”
She had studied it in detail. The project was halted due to technical difficulties. Because of commercial secrecy, she couldn’t find exact investment numbers.
But judging from the data, at least hundreds of billions were sunk.
Du was one of the leaders of the chip project back then. He was once very motivated but suffered a huge blow. Psychological scars were inevitable.
So restarting chip development at Kuncheng Motors would be extremely difficult. Zhōu Shíyì would face immense pressure on the board.
Zhōng Yì told her father her plan: “If Tongxin Capital invests, I’ll approach Zhōu Sujin. With four parties jointly developing, the funding chain will be stable, and Kuncheng Motors might approve the plan.”
Jiāng Jìngyuān laughed. “You’re putting all your hopes on Zhōu Sujin?”
Zhōng Yì: “Who else? Kuncheng Semiconductor has the money. Zhōu Sujin is the boss. If not him, then who?”
Jiāng Jìngyuān: “True. After Zhōu Sujin took over the semiconductor company, he heavily developed foundry technology. Now Kuncheng Semiconductor dominates the manufacturing sector.”
When Zhōu Sujin invested in Jiangcheng’s base, no one was optimistic. He pushed through against opposition.
It turned out to be a wise investment.
Actually, besides Zhōu Sujin, you can consider Zhōu Jiaye.
Zhōu Jiaye is Zhōu Sujin’s older brother and manages Kuncheng Group’s finance and insurance divisions. Chairman Zhou is grooming this eldest nephew to succeed him.
Kuncheng Group is such a massive conglomerate that each core division must be handed to different younger family members. Even Chairman Zhou, the founder, no longer has the energy to manage the sprawling empire.
He had earlier advised Chairman Zhou to delegate power quickly, or he’d end up exhausted. Otherwise, the money would be spent by the kids, and he wouldn’t get a cent.
Chairman Zhou sighed that each of his children only wants to do what they like. No one wants to take the reins.
He told Chairman Zhou to just dump the responsibilities on them—they had to accept.
If they didn’t train them now, when he was too old to manage and the youngsters couldn’t take over, the group would inevitably decline.
He used Min Ting as an example. Min Ting never wanted to take over Jinghe, but the family burden forced him to. Once he took charge, he grew into the role.
In just seven or eight years, Jinghe’s market value doubled under Min Ting.
Chairman Zhou finally made up his mind to assign each of the seven younger family members a core division. Four boys and three girls.
However, Chairman Zhou’s son, the eldest among them, refused to take on a role. He preferred to trade a business marriage for freedom to stay out of the family group.
His message was clear: “I’ve sacrificed my marriage for the family. Don’t ask anything else.”
Being the eldest, he set a poor example.
With no choice, Chairman Zhou had to persuade the eldest nephew, Zhōu Jiaye, second in rank among the youngsters, with all sorts of inducements:
“Zhōu Jiaye, if you take over the group, I guarantee freedom in marriage. Be with whoever you want. If you don’t want to marry, that’s fine. I’ll shield you from your parents’ side.”
Only then was the eldest nephew appeased.
Jiāng Jìngyuān suggested to his daughter, “You can also approach Zhōu Jiaye. He has money too.”
Zhōng Yì: “Not yet. I’m not familiar with him.”
Jiāng Jìngyuān laughed, “You sound like you’re very close to Zhōu Sujin.”
Zhōng Yì teased her dad: “I’m close with his daughter.
I’ve shared a boat with Chenchen and eaten Dingsheng Cake together.”
Getting back on topic, “Dad, please reconsider investing in the dedicated chips.”
In truth, Kuncheng Motors doesn’t lack funds to develop chips. They always adhere to a cash-is-king philosophy. But due to historical issues and uncertainty about the future, they won’t take reckless risks.
Zhōng Yì went back to her study and turned on her computer while messaging Zhōu Shíyì:【I’ll wear the wedding dress you bought me.】
Zhōu Shíyì:【It’s in my wardrobe. You can come get it anytime.】
After sending the message, he added:【I’ll have the butler deliver it to you.】
Zhōng Yì thought, if she had gone into his bedroom that day, maybe she would have seen the wedding dress.
But they were still so distant. She couldn’t bring herself to open that bedroom door.
***
It wasn’t until the end of April that Zhōng Yì’s next day off came—just nineteen days before the wedding.
Her parents’ photos had all been restored. When her mother deleted photos, she hadn’t encrypted and shredded them like Zhōng Yì did.
She must have seen these photos as a child, but had no memory of it. She hadn’t expected her mother to have such tenderness.
That kind of tenderness was something she’d only seen on the big screen after growing up.
After lunch, her parents took her out shopping and for afternoon tea.
She had never gone out with them like this before.
Excited but inevitably nervous.
After getting into the car, Zhōng Yì sent Zhōu Shíyì a message:【I’m planning to go to Jiangcheng next week.】
Zhōu Shíyì:【To see Teacher Yú?】
Zhōng Yì:【I’ll visit Teacher Yú, but mainly to meet Zhōu Sujin.】
At work, Zhōu Shíyì never interfered with her decisions. They were both pushing forward the dedicated chip project separately.
He replied:【I’m not in the country these days.】
At that moment, he was on his way to the airport for an evening flight.
Zhōng Yì:【Business trip?】
Zhōu Shíyì:【Yeah.】
Actually, it wasn’t a business trip.
The study layout had been adjusted.
Because the painting’s dimensions were not finalized, the designer reserved plenty of space.
She had looked at many paintings over several days but still hadn’t found one she liked.
If the study didn’t have an oil painting, she would feel it was unfamiliar.
He decided to go back home in Boston.