Chapter 58: Meeting the Parents (12,000 words completed)

  An Zhishui and Li Luyu returned home happily, with An Zhishui humming a tune and looking very pleased. Li Luyu didn't say anything, but she couldn't help feeling a little embarrassed, her face flushing red as she thought about all the ordinary things she had done without even daring to think about them before.

  Holding hands and hugging don't count as dating, I think. An Zhishui doesn't know if that's right or not, but since they're friends, it's not dating anymore. It's normal for friends to be like this, isn't it?

  In the future, they probably won't often hold hands and hug each other. This is the first time, maybe the last time. After all, it's two people formally establishing a friendship relationship, a kind of sacred promise that's almost like a contract. So An Zhi Shui thinks being serious and grand about it isn't bad... although what was given up were her own two first times.

  "Kitty, I've made a friend, not a doggy friend like you, but a boy friend." An Zhishui said, stroking the head of the Saint Bernard.

  The kitten hummed, still weak and didn't actively share its owner's excitement.

  "Later on, the three of us might play together often, you have to like him, but as a girl, you can't just casually like someone else's, do you know? Because he might not like you back, and that would be very embarrassing for you." An Zhi Shui was warning Xiao Mao, perhaps also warning herself.

  The kitten still doesn't have much energy and usually plays with a flying disc at this time.

  An Zhishui naturally knew, took the Longines watch in his hand and threw it far away into the grass, anyway Li Luyu didn't want it, saying it was worthless, the watch was solid, so throwing it like that wouldn't break it.

  The kitten immediately stuck out its tongue and ran over with a "whoosh", then shook its head and found the watch, bringing it back in its mouth.

  The security guard next to him was trembling with fear, if he picked it up, it would be his own... He would rather run over on all fours and pick it up, he had vaguely heard earlier, Langga... If the watch was the best quality inside, he wouldn't be able to afford it even if he worked as a security guard for a lifetime.

  An Zhishui was playing with a kitten, while in Villa No. 18, Tang Yi and Lao An were sitting in the living room talking.

  Lao An is a tall and large middle-aged man, not particularly handsome. His two eyebrows are thick and dense, furrowed in the middle, exuding an air of majesty. However, his entire demeanor does not have the calmness and composure that people of this age usually have, but rather seems to be on the verge of exploding at any moment, as if someone who displeases him will immediately be scolded severely.

  Lao An's name is Andong Yang, but not many people in the entire Zhonghai City know how much he is worth and what his background is. There are many wealthy merchants and nobles in Zhonghai, and the top ones are all low-key. Andong Yang can be counted as one of the top two among them, but no one would casually take on the title of the richest man in Zhonghai. The person who has recently been called the richest man in Zhonghai is surnamed Zhou, and now he's not even worth mentioning in the same breath as Andong Yang.

  "You said she took a watch and gave it to someone?" Antong Yang's head turned back and forth, looking angry but having nowhere to vent.

  "Yes, Lang Ge. For mature men, watches and shaving kits are always suitable gifts. Although Li Rouyu is not considered a mature man, he has a calm temperament, but the watch is a bit too expensive." Tang Yi's attitude was even more indifferent, and she continued to drink her tea.

  "She never gave me a watch." Anton's mood turned bad.

  "Maybe she thinks you're immature." Tang Yi let out a snort of laughter and put down her tea cup.

  An Dongyang glared at her, still indignant. "I said yesterday she accompanied me to the mall and was so enthusiastic, even asking me what kind of clothes, shoes, watches, and gifts I liked. I was delighted and bought her a watch, thinking my daughter finally knew how to give me gifts..."

  "A woman's fate is not in her own hands, there will always be a day like this, you have to get used to it." Tang Yi shook her head, and didn't seem to care.

  "If that kid dares to accept it, I'll send someone to take it back." An Dongyang said in a very ungracious manner.

  "They all say you're not mature. Li Rouyu, that child won't want it. Even if he did, it's just a few dollars, and it's clear what kind of heart this child has, is it worth fighting for?" Tang Yi sighed, in most families, there's only one father, and the daughter and father are relatively close, but An Dongyang and An Zhi Shui don't have that, this father is not just an ordinary failure.

  "That's also true. Now society is complicated, and Zhi Shui is too simple. Sigh, I'll worry about this matter for the rest of my life. Once she gets married, we can relax, and then we can talk about our own matters." An Dongyang reached out and grasped Tang Yi's hand.

  Tang's aunt quietly withdrew her hand, not saying anything. It wasn't that simple to be free from worry. There were many things that An Dongyang wouldn't tell her about, but that didn't mean she was completely unaware of them. Just like recently, there had been a mysterious woman contacting An Dongyang, making Tang's aunt feel uneasy.

  There was no shortage of women who actively sent themselves to Andong Yang's doorstep, with all sorts of stunning beauties available. In the face of Andong Yang's power and wealth, these beauties were nothing special, so Tang usually didn't care about such things. But this woman was different - she wasn't trying to curry favor with Andong Yang or get something from him... The only thing Tang could be certain of was that Andong Yang, who feared neither heaven nor earth, was afraid of this woman.

  Just as they were talking, An Zhi led the little cat in, excitedly calling out to Dad and Tang Ayi, then went to find the nanny to feed the dog.

  Antonyang sat upright and still, without getting up, making eyes at Tang Yi.

  "The watch has been returned, it should be that Li Luyu didn't want it. She still doesn't know that we're all clear about what she's done, and asked me to give the watch to you, would you like it or not." Tang Yi went out for a moment and came back quickly.

  "Give it to me if you don't want to give it to anyone else?" An Dongyang was furious, "Tell her I don't like it."

  "You go and say it yourself." Tang's aunt wouldn't help him with this kind of thing.

  "What can I say?" An Dongyang said with a smile.

  After a while, An Zhi Shui put the watch in the box and gave it to An Dong Yang.

  "Good, good, Zhi Shui understands now, Dad is very happy and delighted." An Dongyang smiled with joy, as if he had won 50 million... or rather, 5 billion, 5 million wouldn't even be worth him opening his eyes.

  An Zhishui went to the water tower to take a bath, An Dongyang immediately opened the box, put it on his hand, looked left and right, asked Tang Ni what clothes this watch would look good with, and decided to wear this watch to attend the recent banquet. This way, he can show off and say that his daughter picked it out for him, those guys who only know how to buy their kids supercars, yachts, and private islands will definitely be jealous to death.

  Tang's aunt could only lower her eyebrows and drink tea, men are like that, don't expect them to be as mature as described in movies, no matter how old they get, there will always be some childishness.

  "You think Li Luyu is pretending to be weak? If he catches up with Zhi Shui, what's the point of this watch? If so, his ambition is not small." An Dongyang started to worry again.

  "You're overthinking things. You know your daughter, she's said before that she won't date in college, and she's not a careless or frivolous child. It's certain that Li Ruyi has feelings for her, but it doesn't mean he'll definitely pursue Zhi Shui. I think this kid is quite realistic, without too many unrealistic ideas, maybe he also knows that pursuing Zhi Shui would be a huge pressure. For now, the two are just friends at most, you're thinking too much ahead of time."

  Tang Yi glanced at the time and didn't want to get entangled with An Dongyang on things that no parent could perfectly resolve, "You're being too picky, looking down on others' children, saying they lack life experience and can't become great. And then you worry that poor families' kids are after your wealth. It's best if you just don't interfere in this matter, give her some space, I'll keep an eye on things for you. If you don't trust Zhi Shui's judgment, do you not trust mine?"

  Two people were talking, after a while, Antong Yang was ready to leave, An Zhi Shui came downstairs to see off his father.

  "Let's take a walk with Dad, I'll have the driver wait outside." Antong Yang said with his hands behind his back.

  An Zhishui nodded and walked beside Tang Yi.

  "Has any boy been chasing you at school lately?" Antong Yang showed a gentle smile, trying not to make his daughter feel pressured. His daughter had grown up and he had also changed his attitude, no longer just frowning and telling her what she could or couldn't do like before.

  "No." An Zhishui was unaccustomed to discussing such topics with his father and softly denied it with his head lowered.

  "For now, studies are still the priority, university romances aren't reliable." An Dongyang was actually quite unhappy, he thought Li Luyu must be pursuing An Zhi Shui, but he couldn't let his daughter know that he was paying attention to her every move.

  "Uh-huh."

  "Is there still money to spend?" seemed like a trivial topic with his daughter, and although Anton had concerns for her in his heart, how could he be like a nagging woman? He didn't know what to say to make his daughter understand his concern. Asking if she had enough money was the simplest and most direct way.

  "Yes." An Zhishui's response was still brief, not like a daughter who had knelt down in front of her father, but rather like an obedient little employee.

  An Dongyang also felt helpless, but there was no way out. The family education An Zhishui had received since childhood was like this, and the emphasis was not on affection and paternal love. An Dongyang thought that telling her what was right, what was wrong, how to do it, and what not to do was enough.

  Now he regrets it, but doesn't know how to make up for it.

  As I walked out of the residential area, a black Mercedes-Benz S65 that had been lurking behind the tree wall on the corridor suddenly turned off its headlights and slowly slid over.

  An Zhishui was startled, the driver of her father was hiding there, if not for herself and Li Luyu's hug would be seen by the driver... but the driver should not speak out of turn, An Zhishui began to feel a little flustered.

  An Dongyang was about to say something when Li Luyu, panting heavily, ran over and stopped in front of An Zhishui.

  Antonyang didn't know Li Luyou, but he could guess. Without changing his expression, he shook his sleeve slightly to cover up the Lange watch, making people aware that Antonyang was happily wearing a watch given by his daughter to someone else, which was too humiliating.

  "I just ran to the supermarket and bought a pack of bamboo skewers, and quickly made one for you." Li Rouyu held the bird's nest and also bought a similar white plate, running over with fine sweat beads on her face.

  "Thank you." An Zhi Shui revealed a sweet smile, feeling warm and fuzzy inside. Is this what it feels like to have friends?

  "Hello Aunt Tang." Li Luyu greeted Aunt Tang.

  "This is Zhi Shui's father." Tang Ayi introduced Li Luoyu.

  "Hello, Uncle Li." Li Luoyu was startled and saw his parents. Fortunately, he wasn't An Zhi's boyfriend, so he didn't need to be too nervous. However, he also knew that running over to give gifts like this might seem like something a friend would do in An Zhi's eyes, but to others, it definitely had other implications.

  "Li Luyu is great, the National University is very good. After graduation, you can come to my company to work." An Dongyang surprisingly stretched out his hand and shook hands with Li Luyu.

  Tang's aunt sighed, a middle-aged old man, what's the point of showing off with someone else's university student?

  "Li Luyu will take the certified public accountant exam in the future, and it's okay to enter PricewaterhouseCoopers or KPMG. Then you can make fake accounts for me." An Zhi Shui was a bit angry, feeling that her father looked down on Li Luyu, but Li Luyu was her friend. Between her father's authority and her loyalty as a friend, An Zhi Shui chose to stand up for her friend today, which was the first day she confirmed their friendship. Li Luyu also hurriedly made a bird's nest for her, so An Zhi Shui had to tell Li Luyu that she valued their friendship very much.

  Li Luyu felt it, An Zhi Shui's EQ rose rapidly after having her first friend.

  "What am I supposed to pretend?" An Dong was quite angry, but still didn't forget to say to Li Luoyu: "Come and play often when you're free."

  Watching the black Mercedes leave, An Zhi took a deep breath, looked at the bird's nest in his hand, then at Li Luyu, and smiled with his eyes. He stood there, gently swaying his body, looking very happy.

  "I'm going back." Li Luoyu didn't know what to do next either. He was originally in a hurry to rush home, but thinking of the sad look on An Zhi's face when the bird's nest was ruined, he decided to make another one for her and bring it over. Unexpectedly, he ran into her father.

  "Come over here." An Zhi Shui hid behind the wisteria trellis in the corridor, looked around and saw that there was no other driver hiding with her father.

  Li Luoyu saw her mysterious and suspicious, seeing that security guard looking around, quickly ran over.

  An Zhishui opened his arms and hugged Li Luyu.

  An Zhishui had just finished bathing, her fresh and clean body emitting a subtle fragrance. Her arms were slightly cool to the touch, but after lightly hugging Li Ruyi, her skin felt warm, as if it had been scalded by Li Ruyi's body heat, causing her to shrink back, twisting her head and not daring to look at Li Ruyi: "This is to thank you for your hug, because...because...you gave me two gifts, so I'll give you my first and second hugs."

  An Zhishui was a little scared, but she also felt that she had done nothing wrong. Just now, she saw Li Luyou running over with a huff and puff. It turned out that he hadn't gone back, but had been busy making a bird's nest for her all along. An Zhishui was really touched, because her father only knew how to give her money, and the only one who would be so busy for her like this was Li Luyou, because he was her friend, so he did it, not like others who helped her with things just because they took the money given by her father.

  Looking at the simple and innocent An Chixia, Li Luyu's heart, which had been stirred up by her hug just now, suddenly calmed down. He really cherished this feeling, being friends with An Chixia like this was already very satisfying to him. If he rashly tried to take it further, perhaps this feeling of friendship would vanish into thin air.

  It's great like this, Li Luyu smiled, An Zhi Shui was also smiling, that's what friends are for, being together is warm and happy.

  I feel a bit uncomfortable and hope I won't wake up with a crooked mouth again, it was like that last time.