"Does that mean you"re not mad at me, grandfather?" She asked him, her voice filled with high hopes that she would escape from his scolding.
"I will let you off this time because you were under the supervision of someone trustworthy." Zhao Moyao couldn"t help but relent.
Hearing her happy voice and seeing how diligently she followed the promise for one year, it was safe to say he wasn"t really angry at her anymore. Besides, he knew it was unrealistic to force a grown woman to stop drinking. He just wanted her to be able to control herself.
"I knew you would eventually break the promise sooner or later. I know it"s an impossible dream to force you to never drink, but I hope you will do it in moderate amounts and be around a friend who"ll take care of you when you drink." He continued to nag her, despite the fact that he wasn"t mad at her. He couldn"t help it.
Even if Zhao Moyao was an outstanding man who was a ruthless military Sergeant Major turned businessman, he cared for only a small number of people.
"I will lift my ban on alcohol but you cannot drink yourself stupid like you used to do." He did not want history to repeat itself. And above all, he didn"t want to see her pa.s.sed out in her living room, surrounded by empty bottles of wine after drinking and crying herself to sleep at the latest news of some sc.u.m"s despicable love affair.
Seeing her in such a pathetic state brought him immense pain, especially because she was such an outstanding woman with high potential.
She shouldn"t have to lower herself for a wretched man like Zheng Tianyi, much less cry a river for him.
Zhao Lifei was surprised to hear this. "Alright, but rest a.s.sured grandfather, I won"t drink unless it"s necessary."
Zhao Moyao smiled at her words. Instead of readily jumping on board with his words, proving she was still addicted to alcohol, she had impressed him yet again by always knowing the right things to say to him.
In all honesty, had she happily replied to him or even think about thanking him for erasing the ban, she might"ve lost some of his affection.
"I will hold you to your words, Xiao Fei." He warmly told her, his voice finally sounding like a man his age.
She laughed and said, "Then again, I am human so I cannot make sure that I can forever uphold this promise. But I will promise you I will try my hardest." She didn"t want to give him any false hope so she decided to give him a realistic expectation.
"Of course and I expect nothing less than that." Zhao Moyao mused.
"Moving on from the topic, have you eaten dinner yet?" And there it was, the doting grandfather yet again. He would never admit he loved her or discuss anything that concerns feelings as it wasn"t in his style to do so.
Grandparents like him show their affection by asking if their kin had eaten yet and perform tiny acts like cutting fruit for them. And since he would never do the latter, it was always making sure she was well-fed, protected, and her wallet was br.i.m.m.i.n.g with endless cash.
Some people would call it spoiling her rotten, but he liked to justify that it was his duty to cherish her when her parents couldn"t do so.
Zhao Lifei looked at the clock and realized it was the ideal time for an early dinner.
It was barely six in the evening, but she was pretty hungry after not eating anything since breakfast.
When she remembered how Yang Feng had cheerfully cooked her breakfast in her own kitchen, her mood slightly soured.
Not wanting to think about him any longer, she pushed thoughts of him aside, but her anguished heart refused to easily let her off for what she did.
She felt a p.r.i.c.kle of pain at the way he had treated her, coldly ignoring her the entire time he collected his things to leave. He did not even look back when he walked out of her apartment.
She bit her bottom lip and cast her eyes downward, knowing she was in the wrong for foolishly and stubbornly las.h.i.+ng out at him.
"I haven"t had dinner yet, grandfather." She answered him, wanting some company for dinner.
Zhao Moyao felt his mood lift at her words and immediately seized the chance. "Come and have dinner with me, I have a reservation at a restaurant not far from your house."
"A reservation? Is someone else joining you-"
"I"ll have Li Xuan send a car for you. Get ready within thirty minutes." And without giving her the chance to question him and potentially decline his offer, he hung up the phone.
Zhao Lifei frowned as she stared at the blank screen. For some reason, he sounded a bit suspicious for not disclosing who they would be dining with.
She hoped he wasn"t setting her up for a blind date like what Yang Ruqin loved to do.
"Eh, it"s probably just Wu Yuntai or a close friend." She shrugged off her suspicions and decided to get ready.
All of the restaurants around Sky Arc were luxury ones so she knew it was best to dress formally.
Her grandfather doted on her but not to the point of where he"ll pardon her for embarra.s.sing him if he was having dinner with an important person or close friend. Because of this, she decided to settle on a dress with a cla.s.sic silhouette that didn"t reveal too much skin.
She looked at the array of modest dresses and finally drained it down to two choices: a black dress and a white one.
After a few seconds, she decided to wear the white one. The black one looked like it was suitable for a funeral more than a dinner.
Slipping on the white dress that stopped a bit above her knees and had sleeves that ended on her elbows, she was happy with how well it fit her. It was a bit tight around her waist, showcasing her lean body, but that was the only thing it revealed about her.
The neckline hid her collarbone, leaving a perfect spot to wear a simple necklace. She was too lazy to put on any makeup, so she only fixed her eyebrows and placed a bit of blush on.
She had gotten a notification while she was spraying her signature scent after hurriedly fixing her hair. It was a text from Li Xuan letting her know the driver was downstairs.
Without watching which purse she grabbed, she placed her phone and other necessities into an unused limited edition purse. Slipping on low heels, she walked out the door and ensured it was locked before rus.h.i.+ng into the elevator.
"Good evening, ma"am!" The cheerful and usual elevator hostess greeted Zhao Lifei with a smile.
"Good evening. It has been a while since I"ve last seen you." Zhao Lifei exchanged pleasantries with her as they engaged in small talk.
"I remember hearing that you just had your birthday. Here"s a small gift from me." She faintly remembered hearing the receptionists talk to each other about holding a surprise birthday gift for the elevator hostess, Han Weiwei, so she had gone out of her way to get a makeup palette.
"Oh my, you shouldn"t have! Thank you so much!" Han Weiwei gratefully said, taking the gift with two hands. She was mesmerized by the fact that she was now holding a Chanel paper bag containing a black box with their logo. For her to even afford something as expensive as that, she would have to work additional hours!
"I just wanted to give you something for your services." Zhao Lifei warmly said, knowing it was really important to treat the workers of the apartment complex that you"re living in really well.
After all, these were the people who knew where you lived and who you"re entering the building with, so it was best to treat them with respect.
Just then, the door opened, signaling them it was time for her to leave. "I"ll see you later, alright?" Zhao Lifei waved her goodbye just as Han Weiwei readily nodded, bowing when Zhao Lifei left the elevator.
Holding the nicely-wrapped makeup palette close to her, Han Weiwei watched with happy eyes as Zhao Lifei slipped into the black lowkey car waiting for her.
She vowed right then and there to remain loyal to her and always try her hardest to block off people like her parents. She had remembered how crazy and horrible they were, thus, made a mental note to her friends at the front desk to tighten the security whenever they try to enter the building.