"Hey, mentioning her name, quite a few people in South City know her. Outsiders might think she's glamorous, but who knows her real life?"
Learning about her situation from cold numbers was quite different from hearing it from her friends.
Kicked out of her home, losing her job, and nowhere to stay?
Pei Kexin, so smart, really left herself no fallback, ending up in such a miserable state.
Fu Duoduo said this to stir up Zhan Jingchen's sympathy.
He was very aware of the Zhan family's power and status in South City. They were involved in almost every industry, and their wealth ranked them among the world's richest people, so rich that ordinary people could hardly imagine.
Not to mention if Pei Kexin could still have anything with him in the future, the Zhan family owned countless high-end properties. Even the most ordinary one would cost tens of millions.
If he showed a bit of compassion out of their past marital relationship, even a tiny bit of what he had from his fingertips would be immeasurable wealth for Pei Kexin.
Why not play the victim if it only meant a bit of self-pity?
Zhan Jingchen didn't speak immediately after hearing this. After a pause, he slowly said,
"Doesn't she pride herself on being smart? How could she end up so miserable?"
Fu Duoduo seized the opportunity to praise Pei Kexin profusely, saying that she was just too responsible, always thinking of the public and never herself, painting a grand and vivid image of her.
Then she changed the subject.
"So, what's your relationship now? You're divorced? No way, you divorced her right after the old man passed away?"
"Losing your loved one and becoming a divorced woman, don't you think that's a bit too much of a blow?"
Zhan Jingchen initially wanted to say they were never married, so how could there be a divorce? But then he thought.
She didn't even have a place to stay, yet he had received 160,000 yuan from her this morning.
This woman was truly resilient.
"It wasn't me who wanted to divorce her, it was her who wanted to divorce me. She's wary of me as if I were a monster just because my surname is Zhan. Don't think of me as so heartless."
Fu Duoduo looked surprised: "What? She's wary of you like you're a monster? She, could it be that she's fallen for you?"
"..." What kind of logic was this?
Zhan Jingchen gave her a look of disbelief, but Fu Duoduo explained earnestly.
"She stayed at my place last night, crying and throwing a tantrum while hugging me. I thought she was crying for the old man, but now it seems you're also a part of it."
"Alas, you might not believe this. Despite her beauty, she's never been in love her whole life. I can swear to you, you are the first man who has been so close to her in her 27 years. If you two have already... then you are her..."
"Ahem, you went to find her in Ha City on her business trip last time, right? You were showing off your affection to me privately, saying that although your husband wasn't old, he treated her very well, and she felt she had a lifelong reliance, but then..."
"Think about it, as her husband, you concealed your true identity from her. How disappointed she must have been when she found out, her first reaction would be to push you away, wouldn't it?"
"But I'm sure, this is absolutely not her true inner thoughts. She's already fallen for you, and this is her way of deliberately hiding her true feelings!"
Although it sounded a bit unreliable, people liked to hear nice things.
Pei Kexin had secretly fallen for him?
Thinking of her tearful reluctance to part with him, Zhan Jingchen couldn't help but feel a little sweet inside.
He knew Fu Duoduo wasn't entirely exaggerating; at least he knew he was indeed Pei Kexin's first man.
Although it was his first time too, and he couldn't be accused of taking advantage of her, she was still a woman.
To have her give him money afterward, if it got out, it would be quite disgraceful for him, Young Master Zhan.
With that thought, he took out his phone, opened Alipay, and entered Pei Kexin's phone number.
He transferred the sixteen thousand yuan back to her, untouched.
Despite his reluctance, he couldn't back down verbally.
"Why are you telling me this? Meeting you before was just a coincidence, we don't have any feelings for each other. Are you expecting me to make it real?"
Fu Duoduo: "Do you think you'll make it real just because I suggested it? Don't worry, I didn't mean anything else."
"I just want to say on behalf of Kexin that if she said anything unpleasant to you or did anything wrong, it was just a way for her to pretend and protect herself, not her true feelings, so please don't take it to heart."
"If you don't have a girlfriend, you could actually try to get in touch with her. Although her family background is a bit poor, she's capable and good-looking."
"Of course, this is just my personal suggestion. What you do depends on yourselves. You can pretend I didn't say anything..."
A way to pretend and protect herself?
Hearing her words, Zhan Jingchen fell silent again.
Fu Duoduo knew that if she continued, it would seem rambling and deliberate, so she remained silent for the rest of the way.
After dropping him off at the villa entrance, she suppressed the urge to peek inside and pretended to be nonchalant as she bid Zhan Jingchen farewell.
"It seems we can't be friends anymore, so I don't need to keep your WeChat. I'll delete it, don't worry."
Zhan Jingchen's hand, which was reaching for the car door to get out, stopped. He looked at her with displeasure.
"Why can't we be friends? Why are you deleting me?"
Fu Duoduo's heart screamed with joy, while her face feigned calmness.
"It's just that I'm afraid you... Fine then, if you say not to delete it, I won't."
Zhan Jingchen continued to express his displeasure: "This is why I didn't tell you my surname Zhan at first. What have you all thought of me?"
"I'll still look for you if something comes up. If I say don't delete it, then don't. I'm leaving, be careful on your way."
He got out of the car and watched his tall, straight back gradually recede into the light. Fu Duoduo couldn't help but let out a scream inside the car.
"Ah—"
She had really managed to get close to the Zhan family's young master! Zhan Sanshao had ordered her not to delete his WeChat! Was this her path to becoming a high-class, rich, and handsome man, reaching the pinnacle of life?!
The villa was too large, so when Zhan Jingchen reached the entrance, the security guard sent him in by shuttle.
Thus, Jiang Nan Fang and his wife knew he was back in advance.
As Zhan Jingchen entered the living room, his parents were sitting on the sofa in their pajamas, chatting intimately. He sat opposite them and obediently lowered his head.
"Dad, Mom, I'm back."
He had finally returned after being away from home for nearly a month.
Normally, he should have been thoroughly lectured. But seeing that he had made a good friend, Jiang Nan Fang restrained himself.
"It's good that you know how to come back... Is there anything you want to tell us?"
Since he was back, sooner or later, they would have an in-depth conversation. The sooner it was over, the more settled they would both be.
Zhan Jingchen then told them about his intention to acquire Pei's, cooperate with Yao's, and independently operate the appliance company.
It was a good thing for their son to pursue a career, and his ideas were clear, so his parents had no reason to object.
Jiang Nan Fang said, "You went out to busy yourself with this for the past month? Alright."
"But having an idea isn't enough. Have you prepared the acquisition proposal? Have you formed the team? What is the preliminary budget required?"