Heartthrob, Your Image is Crumbling!

Chapter 561: New Year Again

Liu Shuo grabbed Cripple Li like he was carrying a little chick and tossed him roughly in front of Zhou Yuwen.Cripple Li had lived a comfortable life for too long. Having never witnessed such a violent scene, he was genuinely terrified. He scrambled backward on the ground, shouting, "Assault! They are hitting me! Somebody, help! Call the police!"

Frowning in displeasure at the noise, Zhou Yuwen instructed Liu Shuo, "Keep him quiet."

Without a word, Liu Shuo prepared to act, but Cripple Li beat him to the punch. "Don't! If you have something to say, just say it! I will be quiet! I will shut up!"

Seeing Cripple Li clamp his hands tightly over his mouth, Zhou Yuwen sighed. "Let me introduce myself. My name is Zhou Yuwen, and I am Li Shiqi's boyfriend. Shiqi is coming to my home for the New Year. I heard what you said earlier. If you feel she owes you, name your price. I will pay it for her."

"Zhou Yuwen?"

"Is it that Zhou Yuwen?"

Some people in the crowd had already found him familiar. After all, Zhou Yuwen currently possessed quite a bit of national fame. As for his hometown, his name was absolutely legendary.

Who didn't know that the small county town of Xuhuai had produced a business genius? Rumor had it that he had spent over a billion yuan to build a logistics park right in the county.

"His father is the chief prosecutor at the Procuratorate!"

"Who would have thought this Cripple Li would have such good luck? His daughter is actually Zhou Yuwen's girlfriend?"

"Sigh, what use is that? Look at them, they clearly do not want anything to do with him!"

The crowd murmured among themselves. It was their first time seeing Zhou Yuwen in person. They could not help but agree that a billionaire truly lived up to the title; his aura was completely different from ordinary townsfolk like them.

Cripple Li and Li Shiqi's mother also overheard the discussions and finally recognized who he was. They remembered neighbors gossiping about a nineteen-year-old who had made tens of billions of yuan.

At the time, Li Shiqi's mother had even commented that he was the same age as her Shiqi.

She never expected that Zhou Yuwen would turn out to be her daughter's boyfriend.

Zhou Yuwen asked the man on the ground how much money he wanted.

Realizing that Zhou Yuwen was wealthy, Cripple Li's eyes darted around shiftily. "Th-three hundred thousand!"

He hadn't actually figured out an amount, but since Zhou Yuwen was pressing him, he blurted out the number. In his mind, three hundred thousand yuan was an astronomical figure.

"Three hundred thousand?! You have the nerve to ask for that?!"

Hearing this, Liu Shuo felt that Cripple Li was greedily opening his maw like a lion. Without hesitation, he hoisted the man up, ready to teach him a severe lesson.

However, Zhou Yuwen stopped him.

He instructed Liu Shuo to go to the car and fetch his ICBC checkbook.

Then, he wrote out a check for the requested amount and handed it to Cripple Li. "Here is a check for three hundred thousand. Take it to the bank, and you can withdraw the money."

Cripple Li stared at the slip of paper in disbelief. To be honest, in his entire life, he had never seen a real check before. He had only ever seen them on television shows.

Dazed, he accepted the check.

Zhou Yuwen walked over and picked up Li Shiqi's dropped backpack from the ground. Approaching her, he said, "Let's go."

Li Shiqi was still standing beside her mother. Glancing at her, she spoke with absolute resolve, "Mom, I am leaving."

Her mother's expression was incredibly complex. She did not want her daughter to leave, yet she had no grounds to make her stay. Ultimately, Li Shiqi linked her arm through Zhou Yuwen's, and Zhou Yuwen simply nodded politely at her mother.

With that, the three of them departed from the mahjong parlor.

While Zhou Yuwen was present, the onlookers had been too absorbed in the spectacle to make a sound. But the moment he left, the mahjong parlor erupted into a cacophony of chatter.

Everyone was most interested in the three-hundred-thousand-yuan check in Cripple Li's hands.

"Good heavens, is that a real check? That is my first time seeing one!"

"Old Li, you struck it rich!"

"Struck it rich? Old Li, you suffered a massive loss!"

Some said he was wealthy now, while others insisted he had been severely shortchanged. One person pounded his fist in frustration and told him, "Sigh! Old Li, do you even know who you were talking to just now?!"

"He is a billionaire! He just whisked your daughter away, and you only asked for three hundred thousand!"

"Forget three hundred thousand; I bet he would have given you three million! Who would have thought you would only ask for three hundred thousand!"

In truth, Cripple Li was initially extremely satisfied with this windfall. Although he had raised Li Shiqi, she had always been sensible since childhood and rarely caused the family any trouble. Furthermore, she earned scholarships every year. Getting three hundred thousand out of nowhere was absolutely a huge profit.

But listening to the bystanders, he suddenly felt like he had been cheated.

This was especially true given the many people gloating over his supposed misfortune.

They mocked him, saying that even when immense wealth was handed to him on a silver platter, he could not hold onto it.

Unable to endure the taunts, Cripple Li shot back, "So what? Worst case, I will just go ask for more!"

Meanwhile, sitting in the back seat with Zhou Yuwen, Li Shiqi felt deeply moved by his willingness to step up for her. However, she was somewhat bothered by the money he had given away, insisting that he completely did not need to pay him.

She felt she owed the man nothing. Every day, she was busy running around helping at the mahjong parlor; that alone was more than enough to repay him for raising her.

Zhou Yuwen, however, dismissed her concerns, saying it did not matter. What was given was given.

"He is not a good person, but you cannot say he is completely evil either."

In fact, as long as the amount Cripple Li asked for had been within reason, Zhou Yuwen would have paid it.

After all, the money was not given for nothing; it was essentially buying out eighteen years of child-rearing debt. Zhou Yuwen would not dwell on it, but Li Shiqi would remember it forever.

Her real worry was that once Cripple Li and his associates fully grasped Zhou Yuwen's identity, they would aggressively demand more like greedy lions.

"You do not need to worry about that, Sister Shiqi. They will not get the chance to bother my brother," Liu Shuo interjected from the driver's seat, grinning broadly.

"?" Li Shiqi looked at him in confusion.

Liu Shuo snorted coldly. "Damn it, three hundred thousand. He treats my brother like a charity! If you ask me, Brother, you are just too kind!"

Zhou Yuwen was rich and did not care about a little lost cash, but Liu Shuo truly felt that handing over that much money was a massive loss.

Liu Shuo felt that given Cripple Li had been on the verge of hitting Li Shiqi just moments before, calling it a debt of upbringing was utter nonsense.

Forget three hundred thousand; giving him a single cent was too generous!

He was already planning to summon a few of his underlings later to teach Cripple Li the true meaning of society's dark underbelly.

Yet here was Li Shiqi, worrying that Cripple Li would be insatiably greedy and try to extort more money.

'Ask for money?' Liu Shuo thought.

'It will be a miracle if I do not force him to spit that money back out!'

Did they really think the Xuhuai Association was a charity run by saints? Hell, in Jinling, the Xuhuai Association might merely be a Student Mutual Aid Association, but this was Liu Shuo's hometown. The organization's fearsome reputation had long since spread here. Many local street thugs were practically begging in tears to join, and since Liu Shuo himself had a bit of a gangster streak, he definitely would not turn them down.

Zhou Yuwen was aware of all this, but he could not be bothered to intervene. He simply said, "Take it easy. Shiqi's mother is still there."

"I know, I will just scare them a bit," Liu Shuo replied. "If worse comes to worst, Sister Shiqi, you should just bring your mother to Jinling. It is not like my brother cannot afford to support her!"

Zhou Yuwen felt that comment was entirely unnecessary, but since it was already out there, he could only glance at Li Shiqi to gauge her reaction.

Li Shiqi shook her head. She explained that her mother and Cripple Li had a child together, so they were still a family.

"This is fine as it is. From now on, I will just stay by your side," she told Zhou Yuwen.

Zhou Yuwen hummed in acknowledgment. Just then, his mother, Yang Lirong, called him again regarding lunch.

"Alright, I am heading over now," he answered.

He had originally intended to help Li Shiqi settle in first. However, reconsidering, he decided to just bring her and Liu Shuo along for lunch. The meal was relatively simple. Although a few of his father's work friends joined the relatives at the table, it was clear Zhou Yuwen had other matters on his mind. He did not speak much with them, merely discussing a few points about the hometown's development before they inquired if he had any investment plans to give back to his roots.

Zhou Yuwen politely stated that he did have plans, but it was not convenient to discuss them at the moment.

He added that they could talk in detail when they had more time.

With a few brief excuses about having pressing business, he made a hasty departure.

At that point, among the group of relatives, a few started muttering behind his back, claiming that Zhou Yuwen was putting on airs and had forgotten his roots now that he was rich.

Such gossip was unavoidable. It was truly impossible to please everyone.

They clearly shared no actual emotional bond, nor did they bother to keep in touch when he had no money. Yet, now that he was wealthy, any lack of contact or over-the-top enthusiasm was immediately branded as forgetting his roots.

Zhou Yuwen had no patience for such trivialities. He was already planning to become a major plantation owner.

His original intention was to have Li Shiqi stay in the new house he had purchased the previous year. However, Liu Shuo woke him up to reality with a single comment. He pointed out, "Brother, it is the New Year. Are you really going to make Sister Shiqi stay there all by herself?"

"It is not like your place does not have any spare rooms. If you ask me, just take her straight to your house!"

At his words, Zhou Yuwen realized he made a valid point. He glanced at Li Shiqi and asked for her thoughts. Although she politely claimed that she would follow whatever arrangement he preferred, it was glaringly obvious that she wanted to return home with him.

Thus, saying nothing more, Zhou Yuwen simply brought her back to his family home.

It just so happened that their family owned several single-room units they rented out to others. Upon returning, he found a vacant room and settled her in, before taking her out again to buy some daily necessities.

At a time like this, there was absolutely no need for Liu Shuo to tag along. During the New Year festivities, Liu Shuo was currently quite the hot commodity among his own relatives. Even while accompanying Zhou Yuwen to Li Shiqi's house earlier, his father had called him countless times.

In the end, Zhou Yuwen directly shooed him away.

A bit reluctant to leave, Liu Shuo called out, "Hey, Brother, if you need anything, do not forget to call me!"

Finally, the persistent third wheel had been chased off.

With him gone, Zhou Yuwen and Li Shiqi held hands and began strolling through the shopping mall. As the New Year approached, the streets of the small county town were incredibly bustling. In the past, Li Shiqi rarely came out to wander during the holidays because the mahjong parlor was always busy, and she had to stay and help.

This time, wandering the streets hand in hand with him brought her an immense sense of fulfillment. What touched her most was that throughout their entire walk, Zhou Yuwen never once let go of her hand.

To Zhou Yuwen, this might have been an entirely ordinary gesture.

But to Li Shiqi, it was a simple, quiet kind of happiness.

He bought her a wide array of daily necessities, everything from small items like toothpaste and towels to larger essentials like bedding. Realizing that the old air conditioner in her room might not provide enough warmth, he even decided to buy a new one.

Finding this somewhat amusing, Li Shiqi remarked, "I might not even stay at your house for that long. Buying a whole new air conditioner is such a waste."

"Why worry about waste? You have barely enjoyed any good days growing up. Now that you are with me, the least I can do is give you a taste of the good life," Zhou Yuwen replied with a warm smile, gently pinching her cheek.

His tender words made Li Shiqi flush with embarrassment.

Taking her hand again, Zhou Yuwen led her deeper into the shopping mall, muttering to himself about what else they needed to buy.

Without realizing it, they eventually wandered straight into the women's underwear section.

An energetic middle-aged saleswoman brandished a bra and enthusiastically called out to them, "Underwear on sale! All name brands! Buy one for your wife, handsome!"

Zhou Yuwen inspected it and casually remarked, "This one is too small. Do you have anything bigger?"

"Ha! This one is absolutely perfect. I have been selling underwear for over twenty years; I can tell at a single glance!" the woman boasted.

"No matter how much you look, you definitely do not know her sizes as well as I do! Huh?"

Zhou Yuwen had only been making an offhand comment, but when he turned around, he found that Li Shiqi, face completely crimson, had already distanced herself far away from him.

He was truly teasing her relentlessly.

'He has clearly only touched them once. How could he possibly know?'

Chuckling mischievously, Zhou Yuwen caught up to her and said he was just joking.

"Why are you so shy?"

"Hmph!"

The two of them playfully bickered for a little longer. By the time they headed back, it was already past six in the evening. As they walked home hand in hand, they were surprised to find Yang Lirong waiting outside the door. Seeing Zhou Yuwen return, she finally breathed a sigh of relief before furrowing her brows sternly. "You rarely ever come home, yet I can barely catch a glimpse of you all day!"

"Am I not back now?" Zhou Yuwen replied calmly.

"You are back now? Earlier, a few of your uncles wanted to treat you to a meal. I called you eight hundred times! Did you even check your phone?"

"Uh, my phone ran out of battery and died," he lied. In reality, he had seen the calls but deliberately ignored them.

Yang Lirong was genuinely a little angry. She scolded him, pointing out how rare it was for his uncles and older relatives to visit.

"They just wanted to see you!"

Zhou Yuwen shrugged. "Then let them see me. It is not like I am leaving tomorrow."

"There are still plenty of days left in the New Year. We can take our time and see them later."

Seeing her son's nonchalant attitude, Yang Lirong felt a wave of helpless frustration. Then, noticing the numerous daily necessities and bedding he was carrying, she looked confused and asked what he had bought all of that for.

"Do we not already have all this at home?"

"I bought it for Shiqi," Zhou Yuwen explained simply. "Shiqi is staying at our house this year."

"Ah?" Stunned, Yang Lirong turned her gaze toward Li Shiqi.

At that moment, Li Shiqi was staring down at the ground, too timid to meet Yang Lirong's eyes.

Actually, just seconds earlier, she and Zhou Yuwen had still been holding hands.

When Yang Lirong had suddenly appeared, it had startled Li Shiqi so badly that she had hastily snatched her hand back.