Yan Beicheng had sunk into her sadness for a while. Someone knocked on the car window several times before Yan Beicheng lowered it and saw Zuo Qiu bending down to him. His face was right outside the car window. "Master Yan, we"ll be late if we don"t leave soon."
Yan Beicheng allowed them to enter the car with an impatient expression.
Yan Beicheng glanced at Zuo Qiu. He did not say anything, but this put Zuo Qiu on edge.
Some time had pa.s.sed before he muttered, "Don"t post so many selfies online next time. If you"re going to do it anyway, make sure to pay attention to the things behind you!"
Zuo Qiu was shocked. He instantly reacted and opened his WeChat. He carefully observed the photo he took earlier and was surprised to discover that Yan Beicheng and Miss Chen were in the frame as well.
Zuo Qiu"s first instinct was to delete the picture, but Yan Beicheng shot daggers at him immediately. "You"ll make it seem like I"m guilty if you delete it."
Zuo Qiu selected Lin Chu"s contact on WeChat and sent her a message.
"Miss Lin, Master Yan and Miss Chen are really innocent. T.T"
Lin Chu did not have time to check her WeChat messages at work. She only opened it on the way home after work when she was bored in the subway.
She ended up seeing nineteen unread messages from Zuo Qiu.
"Miss Lin, Master Yan was really stern when he sent Miss Chen away."
"Miss Lin, Master Yan didn"t even touch her fingertip."
"Miss Lin, why aren"t you replying? Are you really angry, Miss Lin? OTL"
Lin Chu remained silent as she read those messages that were all sent at noon. She did not reply because a long time had pa.s.sed since then. She discovered that the last name of the young woman whom Yan Beicheng met in Ning City was Chen.
Lin Chu told Xu Moyan about this once she returned home. Only then did Xu Moyan calm down.
Lin Chu woke up early on Sat.u.r.day and freshened up. Once she had finished eating her breakfast, she saw Xu Moyan who was still dressed in her pajamas with bed hair walking out of her room yawning. When she noticed that Lin Chu was already neatly dressed, she remembered what was going on. "Oh yeah, you"re going to visit the orphanage today."
Lin Chu smiled and walked to the doorway. The gifts that she had prepared to bring to the orphanage were already placed at the entrance. They were not expensive items. Just some snacks, fruits, and little toys.
"Hold on." Xu Moyan quickly returned to her room. Moments later, she brought out a large bag. "These are the clothes that I bought for the children. You can bring them over as well."
"Okay." Lin Chu did not have to be modest around Xu Moyan. She left the house with those items.
Her financial status improved after she left the orphanage. She could occasionally return to the orphanage with gifts because of that. Once she had found a job, she thought of visiting them again. The gifts had already been bought a long time ago. She decided to go today when she realized she did not have anything to do today.
The teachers at the orphanage came and went, but the old princ.i.p.al remained where she was always. Lin Chu truly respected her for that. The old princ.i.p.al was the only person whom she considered as a real family member.
Lin Chu carried the bags of various sizes and called a cab.
As the price of the land in B City was not exorbitant more than twenty years ago, the orphanage was not located in a remote area. It was located in the city instead. Although it was not in the expensive city center, she could travel there by cab because it was not too far away.
Before the cab reached the entrance of the orphanage, Lin Chu saw an elderly woman standing at the doorway from afar. The woman was glancing in her direction.
The rims of Lin Chu"s eyes turned red, and her heart warmed up immediately.
That woman was the old princ.i.p.al of the orphanage. The old princ.i.p.al used to be a teacher at the orphanage when she was younger. Later, she took the job of the previous princ.i.p.al and remained at the orphanage this entire time without leaving. She never got married or had any children. She simply treated the children in the orphanage as her own.
When some of the children left the orphanage several decades ago, they became heartless scoundrels. Some had forgotten their roots while others returned to borrow money. The old princ.i.p.al was not rich, but she lent them money anyway. Sadly, those people vanished entirely after that and never came back. It was impossible to ask them to return the money now. Meanwhile, there were others who constantly tried to b.u.t.ter the princ.i.p.al up by pretending to be obedient and respectful toward her. Unfortunately, they acted as though she owed them a favor when they were unable to benefit from their actions. They stopped contacting her after that.
Nonetheless, the old princ.i.p.al did not lose trust in the children because of this. She continued treating them kindly as she did in the past.
The old princ.i.p.al was lucky because there were many other orphans like Lin Chu who remembered her kindness all along. They were not necessarily rich, but they would occasionally return to visit the orphanage. They contributed to the best of their abilities.
When the cab reached the entrance of the orphanage, Lin Chu pa.s.sed the loose change that she had already prepared earlier to the driver. She got down from the car right away, not wanting the old princ.i.p.al to wait for a long time.
"Why did you come outside and wait for me again? No matter which one of us returns, you"ll always be waiting at the entrance to welcome us. Do you know that this makes us feel bad? Next time, I"m not going to inform you beforehand." Lin Chu helped the old princ.i.p.al as they walked inside together.
Lin Chu"s hand was on the old princ.i.p.al"s arm. The old princ.i.p.al patted it twice affectionately and lifted her head to look at Lin Chu. She relaxed when she noticed that her complexion was healthy. "I don"t have much to do now. Aside from taking care of the children, all I do is look forward to your visits. I feel relieved when I come outside and wait for you."
"That"s fine when the weather is good, but it"s getting colder now. You need to take care of your health," said Lin Chu.
The old princ.i.p.al smiled. She was about to speak when they entered the house together, but a few little children who were playing in the garden ran up to them immediately.
"Chu Chu!"
Several children called out to her in child-like voices. They used to greet her this way ever since they were younger. They were about five or six years old now, but they continued doing that. Lin Chu did not mind.
Lin Chu noticed that the little children"s faces had turned red from the wind from playing outside. She said, "All of you should come inside with me. I"ve brought gifts and Moyan bought clothes for you as well."
"Go and tell the other kids!" said the old princ.i.p.al as she smiled.
The children clapped their hands and skipped inside the house.
The smile on the old princ.i.p.al"s face vanished. She looked at Lin Chu with a concerned expression. "Have you been well recently? I"ve heard that you and Cheng Ziming…"
Lin Chu was shocked. "How did you know?"
The old princ.i.p.al smiled. "Hexuan told me when she came over a few days ago."
The old princ.i.p.al saw Lin Chu pouting. It was obvious that she disliked Zhu Hexuan for gossiping about her. However, the old princ.i.p.al did not mind. She merely said, "It doesn"t matter what her intentions were when she said those things. At least she informed me about your situation…"
Lin Chu held the old princ.i.p.al"s arm. "You don"t have to worry. I never told you this before because I didn"t want these little things to worry you. I really don"t think of it as a big deal. I"m not going to insist on something that isn"t supposed to be mine. That man willingly abandoned me for the sake of money so I"m not upset that I lost him either."
The old princ.i.p.al stopped worrying when she realized that Lin Chu was truly unbothered. She dropped the subject after that.
Lin Chu would have told the old princ.i.p.al about her relations.h.i.+p with Yan Beicheng now if the news and Zuo Qiu"s selfie incident did not occur. The old princ.i.p.al would be relieved to discover that she had a boyfriend again.
The news might have exaggerated the truth, but Lin Chu did not want to mention her relations.h.i.+p yet. She wanted to wait for Yan Beicheng to return so that she could confirm everything with her own eyes first. Truthfully, she had no confidence in this.
"There was a period of time when you didn"t come. Will you be sleeping here tonight? There are a lot of empty rooms in the orphanage." the old princ.i.p.al said once they had both entered the home.
Lin Chu pondered for some time before she agreed. The old princ.i.p.al was extremely delighted. She went to tidy up a room for Lin Chu herself at once.
After some time, the old princ.i.p.al went to the kitchen once she had finished cleaning the room but was stopped by Lin Chu. "You shouldn"t overexert yourself. You haven"t rested at all since I arrived."
"I"ll be done in a while. I"m just going to get some snacks from the kitchen. I made them myself. Don"t you like the pumpkin cookies that I usually make? I baked some for you this morning." the old princ.i.p.al said happily.
Several moments later, she came out carrying a tray of pumpkin cookies. "Try them and tell me whether my skills have gotten worse or not."
Lin Chu grabbed one and took a bite. There were various kinds of snacks out there in the world and those unique to other countries could be purchased online. These pumpkin cookies were not such a delicious delicacy anymore.
Nevertheless, the orphanage did not have an abundance of funds when Lin Chu was younger. The old princ.i.p.al would always use the ingredients that she had on hand to make snacks. Lin Chu missed the taste of the old princ.i.p.al"s food. She was also kind enough to treat Lin Chu as her real granddaughter.
Lin Chu had suffered ill-treatment at the hands of the Lin Family numerous times lately. She nearly was choked with sobs when she ate the pumpkin cookies that the old princ.i.p.al woke up early to bake. She pressed herself against the old princ.i.p.al"s bosom immediately. "You"re so nice. I"ve always loved your snacks the most."
"Silly girl." The old princ.i.p.al stroked her hair gently. "You can come back here if you"re getting bullied in the outside world. I"ll always be here."
Lin Chu nodded in silence. "If I could, I would have happily grown up here all along so that I could be with you."
The old princ.i.p.al ruffled her hair. Her heart was also filled with regret. If she knew this beforehand, she would not have allowed the Lin Family to adopt her. They were an affluent family, but that meant nothing.
The old princ.i.p.al blamed herself even after all these years. However, she never mentioned this to Lin Chu because she did not want to hurt her even more.
Lin Chu convinced the children to take a nap in the afternoon. After playing with them earlier, it was also exhausting for her to make them go to bed. She looked tired as well, so the old princ.i.p.al nagged her to return to the house and rest for a while. She would be energized and ready to run around again later once the children woke up from their naps.
Lin Chu was half-asleep during her nap when she heard the sound of laughter coming from downstairs. The old princ.i.p.al was laughing. She wondered who she was speaking to and what made her so happy.
She rubbed her eyes. She was more curious than sleepy now. After she opened the door, the sound of chatter and laughter became more distinct. That refined voice resembling a cool breeze rustling through the willow tree"s leaves sounded very familiar to her.
Lin Chu went downstairs and saw that a man was sitting on the sofa with his back facing her. His back was straight, and he wore a light gray suit that fit his body nicely. The view of his body from the back gave off a desirable aura. A light brown cashmere coat and a plaid scarf were hung on the side of the sofa.
It was impossible for Lin Chu not to recognize that familiar silhouette.
The old princ.i.p.al was the first one to notice Lin Chu walking downstairs. She beamed and called her over saying, "Lin Chu, come quickly. You never told me that you"d found yourself such a nice boyfriend."
She could tell that the old princ.i.p.al was elated, but she did not know how Yan Beicheng managed to make a good impression on her. It was his first time visiting the orphanage and he had already made the old princ.i.p.al this happy.
Yan Beicheng stood from his seat when he heard that. He turned around and smiled at Lin Chu who still looked confused by what was happening. The corners of his lips were curled upward while his black eyes were filled with a refres.h.i.+ng kind of gentleness. He resembled the pleasantly warm suns.h.i.+ne in June that warmed up the entire room in the radiance of spring.
He was the epitome of a gentle and refined person.
The old princ.i.p.al placed her hand on her chest and gasped in admiration when she saw him.
This young man was so handsome!
Lin Chu suppressed the fury in her heart. She was still thinking about the incident with the photo, but her face was expressionless when she walked over. She simply glanced at Yan Beicheng flatly. However, she was the only person who knew about the indescribable relief in her heart. Yan Beicheng had come to see her at once when he returned. The comfort she felt in her heart was indescribable. It seemed like everything had settled down once she saw him. The indecisive feelings and worries that she felt earlier were completely insignificant now.
He wore a simple and clean white s.h.i.+rt without a tie. His slender and graceful body was bathed in the sunlight s.h.i.+ning through the room. Everything about him was magnificent.
It seemed as though everything would be perfect as long as he existed and was a part of her life.
"How did you know I was here?" Lin Chu was stunned for a while before she walked to Yan Beicheng and asked him.
Although the old princ.i.p.al was present, Yan Beicheng did not restrain himself when he tried to curry favor with Lin Chu. He overlooked Lin Chu"s indifferent expression and reached out for her hand to pull her closer to him. "I went to your house straight away, but Xu Moyan said you were here. That"s why I came over."
Yan Beicheng did not tell her how incredibly nervous he was along the way. He rushed over to find Lin Chu immediately after he got down from the plane. Lin Chu ending the call without making her feelings clear yesterday had made him unable to sleep. They had just gotten into a relations.h.i.+p recently, but Yan Beicheng was worried that he would lose his girlfriend today.
He had seen Lin Chu"s att.i.tude toward Cheng Ziming with his own eyes. He knew that this woman would be wholeheartedly devoted to someone when they were on good terms. However, once someone had betrayed her, she would break up with them without any hesitation. It would be impossible for them to reconcile.
This incident was truly a misunderstanding. He never intended for this to happen, and he did not mean to do anything that would disappoint Lin Chu. There was no need for him to cast curious glances at other women when he already had Lin Chu. Nonetheless, he was also partly responsible for the issue since he had given the other party an opening to exploit him. If he had done a better job, this misunderstanding would not have occurred.
He was terribly anxious during his journey to Lin Chu"s house. In the end, Xu Moyan told him that Lin Chu was not at home but was at the orphanage. Xu Moyan left out certain details on purpose. This was Yan Beicheng"s fault. Who told him to be so careless as to involve himself in such a scandal? When Xu Moyan saw the shocked and panicked look on his face, she thought that it served him right.
Yan Beicheng a.s.sumed that Lin Chu ran to hide at the orphanage because she was angry and sad. His mind was horribly tormented throughout his journey there.
He could only let out a brief sigh of relief when he saw Lin Chu now.
Lin Chu noticed that his luggage was still placed in the corner, and his clothes were stained with dust.
"Did you come here right after you got off the plane?" Lin Chu could not help but ask.
Yan Beicheng could not suppress a smile from forming on the corners of his lips. He knew that Lin Chu was not angry at him since she was so concerned about him now. He said, "I couldn"t wait to see you."
Lin Chu blushed when she caught a glimpse of the teasing look on the old princ.i.p.al"s face. She mumbled, "I"d already planned to come back here for a visit today."
Yan Beicheng realized that Xu Moyan had lured him here. He silently made a mental note to get back at her. However, he was elated to discover that Lin Chu was not mad at him.
"Don"t just stand there, hurry up and sit down," said the old princ.i.p.al happily.
Yan Beicheng immediately tugged at Lin Chu and made her sit down with him. He sat very close to her.
The old princ.i.p.al looked at Yan Beicheng up and down. She felt that he was more than a hundred times better than Cheng Ziming in every way.
Yan Beicheng took a check out of his suit pocket and pa.s.sed it to her. "I know that this place is like a home to Lin Chu. She"s very attached to it. I"m also very grateful to you for loving and protecting her. Lin Chu has suffered a lot, but it"s fortunate that she had you. This is merely a little token to the orphanage from me."
The old princ.i.p.al"s expression changed when she saw the numbers on the check, but she did not take it. "I took good care of Lin Chu because I treated her like my own granddaughter. I didn"t do it for money."
"Please don"t get the wrong idea," said Yan Beicheng sincerely. "This is just my donation to the orphanage. I don"t have any other intentions. I hope that this place will prosper because it was Lin Chu"s home. I hope that the children will have better lives here as well. I"m aware of the hards.h.i.+ps that are faced by orphanages. Why shouldn"t I help when I"m able to do that? When the orphanage prospers, Lin Chu will be happy and so will I. Moreover, I know about your contributions toward the orphanage too. Lin Chu doesn"t want you to always be troubled over the issues regarding the orphanage"s application fees."
"That…" The old princ.i.p.al hesitated and looked at Lin Chu. In the end, she felt that it was not a big deal to accept the check in this case.
"Since Lin Chu considers you as her real grandmother, you"re my grandmother as well. It"s my duty to show respect to you and do things like this." Yan Beicheng sounded extremely sincere when he said that. n.o.body could harbor any ill feelings toward him when they saw his handsome and refined face.
Lin Chusaw that the old princ.i.p.al was troubled, so she tried to drag him away after whispering, "Come with me for a while."
Yan Beicheng smiled at the old princ.i.p.al kindly. His smile made the old princ.i.p.al felt dizzy for a moment or two. Once she returned to her senses, Yan Beicheng and Lin Chu were not there anymore.