What Are Your Tastes? chapter 68

No Longer Just Friends

Two days later, Zhou Yanchuan was still in S City. After work, Lu Yunchu had dinner with Ning Ruowei. An Yuan was on night shift and couldn’t join them.

They chatted as they left the restaurant. Ning Ruowei mentioned she had failed her driving test and had to retake it next month.

“That must be tough.”

But her mood quickly shifted, and she started praising the coconut chicken they had just eaten, saying she wanted to bring An Yuan next time.

“When will Mr. Zhou be back?”

“The day after tomorrow.”

“You won’t have to stay alone anymore.”

“Stop talking nonsense.”

A jewelry store at the corner caught Lu Yunchu’s eye with its LED billboard advertising wedding rings.

Seeing him pause, Ning Ruowei also turned to look.

“They’re beautiful,” she said, asking, “Do you want to buy them?”

Lu Yunchu hadn’t decided. Zhou Yanchuan didn’t even wear cufflinks or tie clips, so he probably wouldn’t find them useful.

“I’ll think about it,” he said softly, glancing at her. “Have you two ever bought any?” Rings would suit the two girls more.

“Um… We’ll pick some out together next time.” They were still walking in the same direction. Lu Yunchu was heading to the parking lot, and Ning Ruowei was walking home since it wasn’t far. She planned to stroll to digest the meal. “That jerk Meng Xiao hasn’t bothered you, has he?”

“He wouldn’t dare.” Lu Yunchu guessed that Meng Xiao wouldn’t stay in the country much longer.

“If he does, let me know, and we’ll beat him up together!”

As they left the commercial street and walked through an alley towards the parking lot, Lu Yunchu suddenly stopped.

It might have been his imagination, but the streetlight seemed to cast a fleeting shadow, and he heard faint rustling.

“Who’s there?”

He turned, but saw nothing but the empty alley.

“Is anyone there?” Ning Ruowei asked belatedly. “Did you see something?”

“It didn’t seem like it,” Lu Yunchu murmured. “It felt like someone was following us.”

“No way,” she looked around. “Besides, anyone can walk this path. It’s not strange to see others.”

“Then why did they disappear when I turned around…”

The bright streetlight illuminated their surroundings clearly, making it easy to see to the alley’s end.

“Don’t worry,” Ning Ruowei patted his shoulder. “If there really was a bad guy, they probably came for me. Then they’ll see how tough I am!”

Lu Yunchu didn’t relax at her joke. He glanced at her thoughtfully. A young woman walking alone at night could indeed attract unwanted attention.

“I’ll take you home,” he said.

“Isn’t that unnecessary? It’s so close,” she felt it was a bit of an overreaction. “I’m pretty good at Taekwondo, you know!”

“Since it’s so close, driving won’t be a hassle—just a quick press of the gas pedal.”

“Phew!” She sighed, “Alright, I’ll ride with you then.”

When they reached the parking lot, there were more people around, and nothing unsettling was noticed.

Ning Ruowei had moved to An Yuan’s apartment, just opposite People’s Hospital. Lu Yunchu took five minutes to drive her there, watched her enter the community, and then drove back home.

He didn’t dwell on the “stalker” incident anymore. It seemed like it was just some petty thug eyeing Ning Ruowei, but seeing she had company, gave up.

Remembering he hadn’t had a bath in a while, Lu Yunchu filled a tub with hot water, sprinkled some bath salts in it, and immersed his whole body. He picked up his phone to choose a movie to watch.

There was a missed call from Tao Jin on his phone.

Tao Jin had school during the day, making it inconvenient to call. Since it wasn’t too late yet, Lu Yunchu called back directly.

“Hello, you haven’t gone to bed yet?”

“No, it’s still early.”

“I didn’t hear the phone earlier; what did you need me for?” Lu Yunchu was curious. Although they had exchanged contact information, it was the first time Tao Jin had called him.

“I… I have a request,” he said haltingly. “I don’t know if you guys would be willing.”

“We?” It should be referring to him and Zhou Yanchuan. What could require both of their opinions… Lu Yunchu was even more curious now. “Go ahead.”

“I’m planning to go abroad in September—”

“You’re going abroad?” Lu Yunchu interrupted, surprised. “Where to?”

“France, to study.” Tao Jin smiled shyly. “Teacher Lu, you’ve always taught me to follow my own thoughts. This time… after considering it for a while, I’ve decided I really want to go.”

“In that case… as long as you like it, that’s great, congratulations,” Lu Yunchu said. “So, what’s your request for us—” He had a vague guess.

“I want to leave Sabrina with you before I go,” he hesitated, “but keeping a pet is troublesome, so if you don’t want to, it’s okay, I’ll find another new owner.”

Tao Jin’s mother wasn’t particularly fond of pets. The dog was originally bought to keep Tao Jin company. Now that he was going so far away and wouldn’t be back for years, it would be an extra burden for his mom to take care of the dog alone.

“How could we not want her?” Zhou Yanchuan was so eager to adopt it back then. Thinking of this, Lu Yunchu felt very happy. “Sure, just let us know when to pick Sabrina up.”

Tao Jin let out a sigh of relief, “Thank you.”

Just the other day, they were contemplating getting a dog similar to Sabrina. Now that they knew they could continue taking care of Sabrina, Lu Yunchu was overjoyed. He believed Zhou Yanchuan would be equally happy when he found out.

The water in the bathtub had lost its intense heat and was now pleasantly warm. He leaned back comfortably against the cushion and closed his eyes.

---

Zhou Yanchuan, who was on a business trip in S City, had dinner at a hotel buffet with old friends that night.

After the meal, his friends went to the restroom, and he waited in the hotel lobby.

On the sofa chairs by the window for guests to rest, two stylishly dressed women were chatting. Their voices were not loud, but because the lobby was relatively empty, their conversation continuously flowed into Zhou Yanchuan’s ears, who was not far away.

“Hmph, raising a son is useless, just an ingrate.”

“You should calm down and stay out of the younger generation’s business, just pretend you never had him.”

“Of course, I know that.”

…

Zhou Yanchuan didn’t pay much attention to their conversation at first, but when he inadvertently turned his head, he realized that the woman who had been complaining was Lu Yunchu’s mother.

“Mr. Zhou, I’m ready,” Manager Zhang walked up to him. “Shall we go?”

Zhou Yanchuan had agreed to ride back to the hotel in his friend’s car, but now that he saw Wu Lan here, he changed his mind. He told his friend, “You don’t need to drive me. I ran into someone I know, so I’ll call a car later.”

His friend had no objections, bid farewell, and left first.

“Oh, I need to go. My husband doesn’t allow me to stay out so late.” The woman talking to Wu Lan stood up. “What about you?”

“You go ahead. My driver hasn’t arrived yet.”

After the woman left, Zhou Yanchuan naturally walked up and stood in front of Wu Lan.

“Auntie, hello.”

“You—” Wu Lan looked up. “It’s you.”

She had seen Zhou Yanchuan at Lu Yunchu’s home last time but didn’t know who he was. Last month, she saw an article in a magazine introducing Hongchuan Group in Sen city, which included Zhou Yanchuan’s photo, and she learned he was the head of Hongchuan.

However, since she had no relationship with him, she couldn’t understand why he was greeting her.

“Auntie,” Zhou Yanchuan guessed her confusion, “I’m on a business trip to S City these few days and happened to run into you, so I wanted to say hello.”

“Say hello?”

“Yes, how have you been recently?”

Wu Lan’s confusion didn’t lessen. Instead, it grew. “Mr. Zhou, you are too polite.”

Zhou Yanchuan sensed her underlying message, likely thinking he was being redundant. He still politely asked, “Auntie, may I have a word with you? It’s late today, so how about tomorrow—”

“No need,” Wu Lan motioned for him to sit down. “Say what you need to say. Are you here to talk about Yunchu?”

“Yes.”

“Let me advise you,” she said expressionlessly, “if you’re just his friend, it’s best not to get involved in our family matters.

“Or are you not just an ordinary friend now?”

Zhou Yanchuan was silent for a moment, then lowered his head and said, “Indeed, I’m not just an ordinary friend anymore.”

“What did you say?”

“Auntie, please don’t be angry,” he paused slightly, “I have fallen in love with Yunchu. We are already together, so we are no longer just ordinary friends.”