CHAPTER 250: BE GOOD, LET’S NOT MESS WITH HIM" _1

Zhou Xiangqun reminisced; he had given her quite a bit.

He waved his hand. "Keep it. It’s from the Zhou Family, a token for peace and well-being since you’re here for the New Year."

Shen Jing received it with both hands. "Thank you, Mr. Zhou. May your future be smooth and successful."

This was noteworthy because she never addressed Zhou Luchen as "Mr. Zhou." Yet, when she said these two words to Zhou Xiangqun, her tone was polite and respectful.

In the study, Zhou Luchen, leaning against the bookcase, inadvertently heard that soft "Mr. Zhou" and glanced out the window.

She couldn’t see him. Her eyes sparkled with joy as she happily pocketed the red envelope.

"Is your father coming back?"

The elder Mr. Zhou’s question pulled Zhou Luchen’s thoughts back. "You were saying, Father? I’m listening."

"Which part did you actually listen to?"

Zhou Luchen answered respectfully, "All of it."

After she tucked the red envelope into her pocket, she turned her attention to the White Begonia. Zhou Xiangqun’s next words were for her.

"If you damage his White Begonia, he’d be furious with you."

Shen Jing remembered receiving the air-freighted White Begonia.

Zhou Luchen was always like this, she thought. He wouldn’t let anyone ruin the things he liked. Only he himself could throw or break them.

After a moment, Zhou Xiangqun gestured for her to go into the living room to warm up.

She didn’t go in.

Looking at the begonia, Shen Jing said wistfully, "It doesn’t even bloom."

Zhou Xiangqun glanced at her. "I suggest you come back next time. It hasn’t bloomed for you."

She wasn’t sure if there would be a next time.

Shen Jing, imitating Zhou Xiangqun, put her hands behind her back and gazed at the begonia.

He had a canary in his hand; she did not.

Zhou Xiangqun had seen White Begonias since childhood and found nothing particularly remarkable about them.

"Is he always misbehaving and getting lectured?" Shen Jing discreetly gestured with her finger towards the adjacent study.

Zhou Xiangqun suddenly laughed. "Him? He’s been coddled since he was a child. We really can’t afford to provoke him."

Shen Jing chuckled along.

"I can’t afford to provoke him either."

The man in the room naturally heard her. How amusing, he thought. Taking advantage and still playing innocent.

「After a long while.」

Zhou Luchen finally emerged from the study and immediately caught sight of the two of them admiring the begonia under the veranda.

Zhou Xiangqun, carrying the birdcage, turned and walked side by side with Zhou Luchen.

In terms of stature, the two brothers were quite similar.

"Keep up," Zhou Luchen said to her without turning around.

Shen Jing murmured an "oh" and silently followed them, barely listening to their conversation, which seemed to be about internal matters of the Zhou Family.

Along the veranda with its green-painted pillars, Zhou Xiangqun walked with steady steps. Dressed casually at home in a white shirt, he insisted on buttoning it to the very top, nearly concealing his prominent Adam’s apple as if afraid someone might see it.

As it was cold, Xiaozhang draped a jacket over his shoulders, completely concealing his imposing build.

In contrast, Zhou Luchen was relaxed and casual, his black suit unbuttoned, hands in his trouser pockets, brimming with vigor.

Their auras were equally commanding, and the aristocratic air they exuded was palpable, impossible to suppress.

"Is the Cheng Family still dredging up old issues with you?"

"Older Brother, do you think they would?"

"Someone over there has picked the wrong side. Old Man Cheng is trying to distance himself from the dispute, but he can hardly protect himself now. In the future, keep your distance from the scions of those families as much as possible. If you push them too far, they might go mad and lash out, which wouldn’t be good. The Zhou Family certainly won’t play their scheming games. What era are we in? Such tricks are useless. Just wait for them to expose themselves. Also, you’re attending social functions day and night—drink less."

It was as if, in that moment, they were their true selves: composed, resolute, and decisive—like hunters positioned outside the wolf pack’s encirclement.

Suddenly, Zhou Xiangqun extended his hand backward, offering Shen Jing the birdcage.

Curious about the green-plumaged canary, she smoothly took it.

He instructed Zhou Luchen, "If you go back to Shanghai, give Queque to Grandmother. I’ve just trained Queque to be quite smart."

Shen Jing realized this bird had been trained to be clever to amuse someone in Shanghai and relieve their boredom.

"Queque? Your name is Queque?"

The creature in the cage flapped its wings and chirped, SQUEAK!

After a few more steps, Zhou Luchen noticed the distance between him and the girl behind him had widened. He glanced back. She wasn’t listening to their conversation; her head was lowered, engrossed in teasing the bird.

Zhou Luchen, showing a hint of patience, stopped and waited for Shen Jing. "Why are you walking so slowly?"

"Ah?"

She’s just a silly, clueless thing, he thought.

Zhou Xiangqun also turned back, glanced at Zhou Luchen impassively, then stopped their conversation and put his hands behind his back.

He smiled and said, "I’m going out for a stroll."

His casual use of the Beijing dialect made Zhou Xiangqun seem completely different from the stern and serious man he had been just moments before.

A crafty old fox indeed, his true nature deeply hidden.