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Chapter 3: “Do you still want to be Mrs. Zheng?”
At this moment, someone knocked on Chen Wengang’s door.
Chen Wengang’s thoughts were interrupted, and he looked up, asking, “Who is it?”
The response from outside came not from Zheng Yucheng but from another young male voice: “It’s me, Mu Qing.”
Chen Wengang went over and opened the door. The person who came was shorter than him by 2 or 3 cm, with delicate features and a cold temper.
Mu Qing didn’t share the Zheng surname; he was Master Zheng’s nephew. After his mother passed away, with no one to take care of him, he stayed with his uncle’s family for these years.
Zheng’s family had several children, close in age, growing up and studying together.
Zheng Bingyi had two sons and two daughters of his own. In addition to adopting Chen Wengang, there was another, Mu Qing, who was his sister’s child.
So, in terms of circumstances, Mu Qing actually had the most similarities with Chen Wengang: both were orphaned, living under someone else’s roof, and even their facial features bore a resemblance.
However, this inexplicable fate didn’t bring them closer. Instead, Mu Qing seemed to harbor some inexplicable aversion toward Chen Wengang.
Chen Wengang had no memory of offending him at any point, so he remained polite on the surface, asking, “Is there something you need?”
“Regarding the issue between you and Yucheng, it seems Uncle already knows,” Mu Qing said softly and slowly, with a calm tone. He was here to inform Chen Wengang of the bad news. His personality was aloof and indifferent, always maintaining this attitude and tone: “Uncle Lin wants to meet you first to talk about it.”
Uncle Lin was the housekeeper of the Zheng family, serving the household for twenty years. In this household, he represented another kind of authority.
“Okay,” Chen Wengang responded. “Did he say anything else?”
Mu Qing lifted his eyes, only to be met with a pair of eyes scrutinizing him.
Chen Wengang’s irises were a light brown color, but in the absence of light, they appeared almost black, deep, and profound.
Mu Qing felt a twinge in his heart as he said, “No. I didn’t ask much about it. You’ll know when you go.”
In the Zheng family, there were many people handling various tasks. The housekeeper, along with other staff such as chefs and drivers, lived in a separate building. Chen Wengang relied on his memory to go there.
When Uncle Lin saw him, his expression was stern: “Chen Wengang! Come over here! What’s going on between you two?”
One couldn’t blame him for his unfriendly attitude. He had never witnessed such a situation in his entire life, and the impact was significant. “Even though you haven’t changed your surname, you still address Zheng Bingyi as your Yifu1Adoptive father, and you and Zheng Yucheng are considered brothers. With so many people around, why did you have to get involved with him—huh?”
“Don’t say that. No one outside sees it that way.”
“So you still know who you are? I thought you had drifted away a long time ago.”
In front of him, Chen Wengang lowered his head in acknowledgment: “I didn’t consider these things properly.”
“Didn’t you have many female classmates writing love letters to you before? Why did you have to go down this crooked path?”
“Uncle Lin, calm down,” Chen Wengang said, looking at the man with white hair. His emotions were complex, and he took a few steps forward: “Since my father passed away when I was young and my Yifu was busy, every parent-teacher meeting was attended by you. In my eyes, you are the same as an elder.”
Suddenly mentioning this, the old man found it difficult to stay angry: “Don’t talk to me about useless things.”
When Chen Wengang first came to the Zheng family, he remembered the housekeeper being very strict, correcting him in every aspect of his life.
He can’t do this; he can’t do that. He should do it like this; he should do it like that…” His entire adolescence was restricted by this old-fashioned and stubborn guardian. At that time, he often thought that once he became independent and moved out, he would never have to see him again.
Until later—
In his previous life, when Chen Wengang’s injuries worsened and he had to remove his eyeball, Uncle Lin went to visit him privately in Huo Niansheng’s villa after the surgery.
The houskeeper seemed to have aged ten years: “When you were released from prison, you quietly left on your own. I sent people to look for you several times but couldn’t find where you were… I know you resent Zheng Yucheng for treating you unfairly, but couldn’t you have come to find me? Could I just let you go without caring?”
Before leaving, Uncle Lin gently touched the bandage on his face, and there was a hint of teary glimmer in his clouded eyes: “Look at this, you’ve suffered so much.”
Across the passage of time, the twenty-year-old Chen Wengang reached out and hugged him, saying, “I know you did it for my own good.”
***
Uncle Lin took a deep breath: “Why do you think I’m angry? Do you know you’re playing with your own future?”
Chen Wengang said calmly: “I understand.”
In his previous life, he didn’t believe in such things and ended up shattering himself.
“I don’t know what you young people are thinking. I’ll ask you straight, can you still listen to advice? Zheng Yucheng, as the eldest young master, has the capital to be willful. What about you? Do you still want to become Mrs. Zheng? Do you think that’s possible?”
Chen Wengang adjusted his posture, refrained from arguing, and instead persuaded him. Uncle Lin patted his shoulder, and finally, his expression softened a bit:
“Don’t scare me anymore, and I’ll be thankful to God. Fortunately, this time it was just a minor incident, and it didn’t make headlines in the newspaper. Your Yifu has had high blood pressure lately, so try not to anger him. Go and explain things to him calmly. If anything happens, let me know.”
He glanced at the clock. It was 11:30 noon: “Okay, go have your lunch first.”
Chen Wengang walked out of his room and used the bathroom on the floor to wash his face.
When he looked up, the mirror reflected the same gentle expression that never lost his temper.
His appearance seemed a bit pale and tired, but he was healthy—that’s the capital of a twenty-year-old.
Chen Wengang felt emotional. When he touched his face, the sensation was no longer uneven but somehow felt lacking.
He wouldn’t face strange looks everywhere he went. No more malicious nicknames like “ugly freak” and “one-eyed monster” from children in public places. Fate had been kind to him; it seemed that all those years of suffering had been erased so lightly.
According to the rules of the Zheng family, lunch usually began at twelve, and those who wanted to eat couldn’t be late.
Chen Wengang regained his composure and arrived at the dining room. The others from the Zheng family had not yet come.
Only two servants were setting the tablecloth and cutlery in advance. The young girl among them was unfamiliar and not very skilled; she was probably new. She called out crisply, “Young Master Mu Qing, hello.”
Chen Wengang smiled kindly at her.
The girl was dazzled, but A-Mei, the one next to her, pulled her aside. The girl was startled and quickly lowered her head to work.
After they finished their tasks, A-Mei dragged her to a small corner under the stairs. “You mistook the person. That was Chen Wengang.”
Zheng Yucheng had privately mentioned that he felt, in this day and age, there was no need to address the family members as “young master” or “young miss” at home. But Master Zhang was a man who cared about rules. In terms of seniority, distinctions were made, and in this household, he had the final say.
“Oops?” The girl was surprised and embarrassed. “I didn’t mean it. What should I do? Should I go back and apologize?”
“You’re lucky you made the mistake in front of Chen Wengang. He has a good temper, and if he didn’t correct you, it’s probably because he didn’t want to embarrass you,” A-Mei said. “But it’s a big taboo the other way around. If you dare to call Mu Qing ‘Young Master Wengang,’ he’d probably go crazy.”
“I won’t make the same mistake again,” the girl promised. “But go crazy? Is it that serious?”
A-Mei looked around to make sure no one was listening and whispered to her, “I’m telling you this in private. That ‘Young Master Mu Qing’ is a perfectionist. He learns everything from Chen Wengang—clothes, walking, talking—everything has to be just like him. Do you think you can still make mistakes?”
“There’s someone like that?”
“Just knowing is enough. In the future, don’t provoke him for no reason. Be careful; he might undermine you.”
Uncle Lin, the housekeeper, walked down the corridor toward them. The two fell silent and hurriedly made their way to the kitchen.
***
The dining room in the Zheng household was quite Western-style, with a long table covered in a pristine white tablecloth, creating a considerable distance between each person’s seat.
Chen Wengang took his seat, and soon someone walked over and sat down next to him. It was Zheng Yucheng.
It had to be admitted that Zheng Yucheng had a pleasing appearance, with a broad forehead and clear eyes.
He was young, vibrant, and full of energy. Upon entering the room, it seemed like he brought the warmth of sunlight with him.
Zheng Yucheng glanced sideways, eyeing the profile of Chen Wengang’s face. He reached under the table, attempting to secretly hold his hand.
However, Chen Wengang gently moved his hand back, placing it on the table, leaving Zheng Yucheng’s hand hanging in the air.
“Why does your face look so gloomy? Don’t be so nervous, really.” He thought Chen Wengang was afraid of Zheng Bingyi. “I told you, if Dad wanted to get angry, he would have done it a long time ago. He came back yesterday, and until now, he hasn’t had an episode. It means he doesn’t really care about our little affair.”
Sometimes, Chen Wengang felt that Zheng Yucheng, despite growing up in such a family, was still overly protected.
It wasn’t like he was entirely lacking in scheming, but he appeared somewhat brash amidst the sea of cunning individuals.
This innocence could be seen as a kind of sincerity, something that had once fascinated Chen Wengang. However, innocence could also be destructive, and society didn’t tolerate too much of it.
In fact, Zheng Yucheng was also pretending to be relaxed.
He had considered how to make his father accept this relationship, but not in such an unprepared manner of exposure.
Especially with a stepmother and a younger brother at home, Zheng Yucheng guaranteed that the current Mrs. Zheng was eagerly waiting to see him make a fool of himself.
Speaking of which, his father had married two wives in total, each bearing two children.
The first Mrs. Zheng was Zheng Yucheng’s birth mother. She gave birth to his elder sister, Zheng Dongqing, who was now married, and Zheng Yucheng. After her death, Zheng Yucheng was still in infancy, leaving him with no memories of her. This lack of a motherly presence created a unique bond between him and Chen Wengang. In any case, from the time Zheng Yucheng could remember, the mistress of the house had been the second Mrs. Zheng, Huo Meijie.
However, this stepmother clearly hadn’t cultivated any close relationship with Zheng Yucheng. In fact, there seemed to be a lot of animosity between them.
Huo Meijie focused all her attention on her biological twins—a pair of joyous dragon and phoenix twins, the son named Zheng Maoxun and the daughter Zheng Baoqiu, who were just two years younger than Zheng Yucheng. Considering the timeline, Zheng Bingyi remarried shortly after he was widowed.
For Zheng Yucheng, whether it was his elder sister, Zheng Dongqing, who moved out soon after marriage, or the lively and cheerful Zheng Baoqiu, who was the apple of Zheng Bingyi’s eye, he always had a generous and caring attitude toward his sisters.
Zheng Bingyi held conservative and feudal thoughts, and after all, the family business wouldn’t be passed down to his daughters.
The only one who could compete with Zheng Yucheng was his younger brother, Zheng Maoxun.
Zheng Yucheng was the eldest son, and Zheng Maoxun was the second son. Both had ambitions and as they weren’t born to the same mother, there was always a subtle distance between them. Since last year, when Zheng Maoxun also started attending university and joined the company on a temporary basis, signs of competition with his elder brother have become particularly evident.
As Chen Wengang pondered over these thoughts, he heard a voice behind him saying, “Dage, Wengang-ge.”
Both Zheng Yucheng and Chen Wengang turned around, locking eyes with Zheng Baoqiu.
Zheng Baoqiu smiled playfully at them and sat down on the chair that the servants had pulled out.
As others arrived and took their seats one after another, the atmosphere became less relaxed.
The poster incident at school, as well as He Wanxin’s incident, were difficult to conceal. A low-pressure vortex was quietly forming around the two offenders.
The Zheng household’s dining table had a set arrangement. Master Zheng sat unwaveringly in the main seat, his face stern and unreadable.
Next to him was the current Mrs. Zheng, Huo Meijie. She observed quietly, more interested in the spectacle than worried about the outcome.
Little did she know that while she was scrutinizing Zheng Yucheng, both Zheng Yucheng and Chen Wengang were observing her as well.
Not for any other reason, but among the prestigious families with the surname Huo in Jin City, there was no second family.
Huo Meijie also had the “Huo” surname, and she had some distant connection with Huo Niansheng—she was Huo Niansheng’s aunt.
To her right were her two children, Zheng Maoxun and Zheng Baoqiu. In terms of seniority, they were cousins to Huo Niansheng.
There was a tacit understanding between them, and finally, the current Mrs. Zheng broke the silence. She engaged in small talk with Master Zheng—
“Unconsciously, our Baoqiu and Maoxun have been in university for almost a year. Time really flies, don’t you think?”
Master Zheng hummed and focused on his meal.
Huo Meijie then turned to her daughter and asked, “Is there anything new happening in your school recently?”
With the heart of Sima Zhao2Sima Zhao (司马昭), courtesy name Zishang, was a Chinese military general, politician, and regent of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of China and Emperor of Jin dynasty. , Zheng Yucheng let out an almost imperceptible cold snort.
Zheng Baoqiu innocently replied, “Yes, I went to the art school yesterday to see the student art exhibition they organized.”
“It seems like it was the one that Mu Qing joined last year,” she subtly steered the conversation toward trouble, “but after searching around, I didn’t see his work.”
Zheng Baoqiu locked eyes with Chen Wengang across the dining table, secretly revealing a triumphant expression of camaraderie.
“If he didn’t get selected, that’s okay. Just make sure not to bring any more paint home.” Huo Meijie showed disinterest and remarked, “Last time, he painted at home for half a month, and the smell gave me a headache. It didn’t amount to much in the end.”
Mu Qing pursed his lips, his mouth subtly downturned, but he quickly lifted it again. “Okay, I’ll be more careful in the future.”
Before Mrs. Zheng could say anything more, Zheng Bingyi suddenly spoke, “If you have a headache, call a doctor to come home and take a look.”
Her smile stiffened.
As it turned out, Zheng Bingyi didn’t like anyone bringing up family matters in front of him: “You are the mistress of the house; you should handle family matters. If you have a headache, see a doctor. When you’re not feeling unwell, pay more attention to household affairs. Don’t spend all your time complaining about this and that.”
Huo Meijie changed the topic wisely.
She had always been talkative, ensuring that there was never an awkward silence when she was around. Suddenly, Chen Wengang heard her mention Huo Niansheng: “He’s been in Zhang City for several years. I heard he’s finally coming back—expected, isn’t it? After all, it’s more comfortable near your own doorstep. Baoqiu, Maoxun, remember to contact your cousin Niansheng. We’re all family; it’s good to get together and strengthen the bonds.”
This time, Zheng Baoqiu responded cheerfully.
Zheng Maoxun, however, remained indifferent, feeling that his mother was being overly enthusiastic about relatives—especially a younger one: “We’ll see. He’s just a cousin. Recently, Dad asked me to help with the company. There’s a lot to learn, and I work overtime every day. I might not have time.”
Zheng Yucheng sneered inwardly again, thinking what a fool. It was clear that Huo Meijie was trying to build connections and gain support.
He looked at Chen Wengang, but Chen Wengang’s gaze was firmly fixed elsewhere, showing no sign of mutual understanding.
In any case, the meal was eaten oddly, but no storm erupted. After dinner, everyone dispersed.
Mu Qing returned to his room, absentmindedly opened his computer on the desk, and leaned back in his chair.
The computer woke from sleep mode, revealing a forum interface.
It was the university’s student forum.
When Mrs. Zheng excitedly inquired about recent events at the school, he was eager yet nervous, wanting to see the fruits of his planted seeds. Unfortunately, Zheng Baoqiu had interrupted, leading the conversation astray.
By the way, when did Zheng Baoqiu ever consider him important?
Huo Meijie was the same. His uncle and aunt never regarded him highly.
As for Zheng Yucheng and Chen Wengang, yes, he posted the posters. Looking back at all the actions he had taken, there was no reason for them to know what he had done. Mu Qing had no reason to feel remorse for it.
In fact, he always understood that the more invisible the actions, the more he needed to maintain a calm attitude. However, for some reason, today when he saw Chen Wengang, the way the other party looked at him carried a profound meaning, as if a teacher were looking at a mischievous and childish student.
Yet, it was precisely that kind of condescending “maturity” and “sophistication” that made Mu Qing nauseous and want to vomit every time he saw it.
He placed his hands on the keyboard: “Have you all not seen the true face of that gay guy in private? Don’t be deceived by his appearance. I am his classmate, and this person is fond of flattery and sycophancy. He’s two-faced and has a very bad character.”
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