A Chan – CH 062

Chapter 62: Fresh Boyfriend (1)

Li Weiyi and Zhang Jingchan stood on the small terrace at the end of the corridor. Turning around, they could saw the executives emerging from the study, their expressions grave. Zhang Moyun saw the last person off, looked up and met their gazes, smiled calmly, and returned to his study.

The evening sun cast its glow, and Li Weiyi watched this scene, as if witnessing the end of this legendary figure in the business world. Only this time, there was no cowardice, only a sense of magnanimity and tragic grandeur.

Li Weiyi leaned on the railing, gazing at the distant clouds, and said, “I wonder what life will be like when we go back this time.”

“139XXXX0001.”

Li Weiyi turned to look at him.

Zhang Jingchan wasn’t like her, sprawled out like a boneless limp slat. He stood ramrod straight, only one elbow resting on the railing, and said, “Memorize it.”

“Whose number is this?”

Zhang Jingchan glanced at her: “The one you’re using now.” He smiled and added, “To be precise, it’s mine.”

This was 19-year-old Zhang Jingchan’s phone number.

Li Weiyi turned to look at the sky, kicking the wall repeatedly: “What if you change your number?”

“I won’t.”

Li Weiyi said, “Oh,” silently memorizing it in her mind.

“What about you?” he asked.

Li Weiyi blurted out, “I won’t change it either.”

Zhang Jingchan chuckled softly and said, “You’d better keep your word.”

“Of course!”

The two were silent for a moment. Zhang Jingchan let out a soft sigh, put his hands back in his pockets, and gazed at the setting sun. The horizon was a deep red, the sky a clear, serene blue. He said, “Since 2014, I’ve rarely acted impulsively. I always plan three steps ahead, considering things carefully and cautiously. Because in my life, there’s no room for error. But now, I want to do something impulsive.”

Li Weiyi asked curiously, “What is it?” What could possibly made him impulsive?

Zhang Jingchan glanced at her, then looked ahead again, smiling but not answering.

And so Li Weiyi knew that what he wouldn’t say now, he wouldn’t say no matter what.

“Tch, you’re just teasing me.”

Zhang Jingchan maintained his enigmatic smile, seemingly both amused and nonchalant. He glanced down at the ground, then looked up again, saying, “What message are you planning to leave for yourself this time?”

Li Weiyi hadn’t really thought about it. She counted on her fingers for him: “Look, my dad’s alive…

he’s here, Zhou Zhihao’s been sent to jail, Zhong Yi’s going to take over as expected; I’ve switched to painting, and said goodbye to that scumbag. My life is going to be smooth sailing from now on; everything’s solved. Thinking about it, I really have no regrets, hahaha.”

Zhang Jingchan glanced away, then turned back to look straight ahead, not at her, and said, “Think it through, really nothing to leave behind?”

Li Weiyi was startled.

He finally turned his head, looking directly at her. His dark, cold eyes, like those of someone shrouded in thick fog, were deep and serene. Those weren’t her eyes; they were the eyes of 27-year-old Zhang Jingchan.

Li Weiyi felt a sudden “thump” in her heart, as if she understood something, yet also as if she did not. She turned her face away, burying it in her arms, but her tone remained light and cheerful: “Okay, okay, I’ll think about it some more.”

When Li Weiyi looked up again, Zhang Jingchan was already looking down at her phone, as if everything was normal.

Li Weiyi rested her face on her arm, tilting her head and asking softly, “What impulsive thing are you going to do?”

He smiled, raised a hand, and pressed it against the back of her head. Unlike before, when he would just give a light pat and leave. His fingers ran through her black hair, holding it there without letting go.

“You’ll know when you wake up tomorrow.”

That night, when no one was around and Zhang Jingchan was at evening self-study, Li Weiyi went back to the Li family home. She sat at her old desk for a long time, scratching her head and fidgeting. Finally, she pulled out a piece of white paper, slumped onto the desk, and wailed, “What does he want me to write? I don’t even know how to write it…”

She stared blankly for a while, not even realizing her face was turning red. Finally, she picked up a pen and wrote only two lines on the paper:

“Don’t change your phone number.

Treat Zhang Jingchan well.”

Signed: Li Weiyi from 2022.

Then, like a thief, she put the paper into an envelope and stuffed it into her desk drawer.

Zhang Jingchan asked for leave from an early evening study session and went to the Zhang family home. Wu Xinhui and Zhang Moyun weren’t home, and the nanny, Sister Liu, was surprised to see the young girl. Zhang Jingchan waved the spare key she had taken during the day: “I dropped something here. Jingchan gave me the key, so I can get it.”

Sister Liu didn’t suspect anything.

Zhang Jingchan entered the bedroom and saw the schoolbag lying on the floor. He stuffed a very thin envelope inside.

—

January 13, 2022.

Li Weiyi woke up again. There was no alarm clock, no music, and everything was quiet.

She found herself leaning against a light gray leather sofa, her face pressed against the backrest, as if she had just taken a nap. In front of her was a coffee table with a takeaway paper cup of coffee on it. A brown woman’s coat was draped over the sofa; she was only wearing a sweater and a skirt. Her intuition told her the coat was hers.

She was in a large living room, easily seventy or eighty square meters. This was neither her home nor the apartment she had visited at Zhang Jingchan’s place.

The decor was Chinese style, simple yet grand, elegant and refined. Even the tables and chairs were made of extremely expensive materials. A classic crystal chandelier on the ceiling cast a serene glow, filling the room with a soft, warm light.

Li Weiyi’s mind was still reeling from the memory. She rested her chin on her hand, wondering: Had her family become wealthy because of that lottery winnings? Or had Zhang Jingchan changed his tastes?

It felt like opening a blind box. Excitedly, she stood up and began to tour the house. She noticed several pairs of men’s dress shoes and sneakers in the shoe cabinet by the entrance. Next to the dining table was a wall-to-wall bookcase, mostly filled with books on finance and history. However, there was also a row of art books tucked among them.

Li Weiyi smiled.

Passing through the large living room, there was a hallway. The total area of ​​this house was probably close to 300 square meters. The first room on the right was a huge walk-in closet, easily twice the size of her old bedroom.

The closet was brightly lit. The dark brown wardrobe was filled with men’s overcoats, suits, shirts, ties, and some casual wear. In one corner, there were dozens of pairs of men’s dress shoes and several designer briefcases. Everything looked high-quality and expensive.

Whose house was this? The answer was obvious.

Next to the walk-in closet was a bathroom, frosted glass, the air thick with mist. She could vaguely see a tall figure showering inside.

Li Weiyi immediately shrank back against the wall, her face slightly flushed. She thought to herself, “Eight years later, am I really this close to Zhang Jingchan? I’m sitting in his living room waiting, and he’s brazenly showering inside. What… what kind of relationship is this?”

Oh… She covered her face with her hands, thinking that she hadn’t even kissed him yet, it must be Zhang Jingchan who was heartless! No wonder he said so mysteriously yesterday that she would know what he was going to do when she woke up.