Be a guest

Early the next morning, as soon as I entered the classroom, I noticed Julie anxiously looking around her seat. When she saw me, she quickly said, "Kris, it's not good! It seems like my dad has found out about us!"

"Huh?" Although I already knew, my heart still skipped a beat. Could it be that Zhao Junsheng interrogated Julie again last night? I hope she didn't spill the beans about us, considering Zhao Junsheng warned me.

"How did he approach you?" I quickly asked.

"He didn't say much, just, he suddenly called me into a room alone last night and asked if our class had someone named Kris Liu. I confirmed it. He said he wants me to invite you to our house tonight for a talk," Julie explained.

"He didn't ask anything else?" I asked, feeling uneasy.

"No. I'm also puzzled. How does he know you? Do you think he found out something?" Julie's face turned red with anxiety.

"Don't worry, it's fine!" I felt relieved when I heard it was only about this matter.

"Will you go tonight?" Julie asked.

"Do you want me to go?" I jokingly asked with a smile.

"Ah! You're still joking! It's already such a critical situation, and you're not the least bit nervous," Julie exclaimed.

"Why should I be nervous? What's so strange about a father meeting his future son-in-law? Maybe he'll be so happy and marry you off to me," I replied calmly.

"Sigh! I can't believe you. How can you be like this? Forget it, you better not go tonight. I'm afraid my dad will get even more furious and beat you up again," Julie shook her head and said.

In my mind, how could he bear to beat me? He was counting on me to help him make money. So I said, "Why not go? Of course, I have to go. Fortune or misfortune, there's no escaping it."

"Alright then. But if my dad asks about us, please don't say anything random. Let's stick to the story that we're just good friends!" Julie reminded me.

I didn't expect Julie, the studious type, to participate in this kind of deception. I reluctantly agreed.

After school that evening, I made a phone call home from a public telephone booth, telling my family that I was going to a classmate's house as a guest.

My mom kept asking if it was a boy or a girl. I lied and said it was Guo Qing. My mom knew Guo Qing because he had visited our house once before. She didn't inquire further and told me to come back early.

Julie took me in a red flag sedan, which, in my eyes, looked exactly like an Audi 100, like twins. I really couldn't understand how this car was designed.

Zhao Junsheng's house was in the newly developed area of Songjiang City. Due to his busy work, Julie often stayed at her grandfather's house. Most of the houses here were duplexes. In 1994, only influential figures in the business community in Songjiang City could afford such luxury.

As we entered, there was a spacious living room, with an indoor staircase leading to the second floor. These luxurious apartments were still a dream destination for many even ten years later.

When he saw me, Zhao Junsheng smiled and greeted me at the door, saying, "Little Kris, you're here!"

"Uncle Zhao, you called me over so urgently. Are you trying to wear me out before I become your son-in-law?" I joked.

"Look at you, not serious at all. How

could I entrust my daughter to you?" Zhao Junsheng lightly tapped me on the shoulder and chuckled.

"Heh~ Look at you, what sinister plan are you hatching to summon me to your house? Do you think it's a way to bond?" I knew this old fox too well. If there was nothing going on, he wouldn't have called me to his house for a visit. Did he really think it was to build a relationship?

"Hehe! Let's eat first, let's eat first. We can discuss the rest after the meal," Zhao Junsheng chuckled.

Julie stared at us in astonishment, witnessing our easy banter as if we were old acquaintances. When I referred to myself as a prospective son-in-law, it shocked Julie, who had thought I was just scaring her with the possibility of Zhao Junsheng finding out. But his statement about entrusting his daughter to me left her dumbfounded. What on earth was happening?

"Julie, stop standing there. Come and have a meal together!" Zhao Junsheng called out to Julie, who was still standing at the door without even changing her shoes.

"Ah! Is Kris here?" A glamorous woman wearing an apron emerged from the kitchen. She must be Julie's mother.

"Hello, Auntie," I politely greeted her.

"Don't be so formal. Call me Auntie. Zhao, you entertain Kris, and I'll finish preparing the dishes in the kitchen!" Julie's mother turned around and headed back to the kitchen.

"Don't mind her, treat this place as your own home. Don't be polite. Let's eat now. I'm not sure if these dishes suit your taste, but please bear with them," Julie's mother said as she arranged the tableware.

"No problem at all. Auntie, the dishes you made look appetizing," I quickly replied.

"Hehe, you child," Julie's mother laughed.

"Mom, don't bother him. You're making him uncomfortable," Julie said, as she picked up a piece of meat and placed it in my bowl.

"Hehe, your daughter is quite something. How can she speak for you like that?" Julie's mother glanced at me with hidden meaning.

"Mom, you were the one who said Kris is not an outsider," Julie defended herself with a blush on her face.