As if a fire was burning her palm, Gu Nianzhi held the key card and a bunch of keys in her hand.
Without saying anything, she pushed open the car door and got out, then chased after him.
“Professor He! Professor He!”
He Zhichu heard her shout, but he didn’t stop. Instead, he kept running towards the gates of his villa.
The five-hundred-meter walk was neither too long nor too short. He Zhichu reached his door first. He took out his key card, and the cherry-wood door slid open. He entered the house and slammed the door shut.
He leaned against the door, then looked up and took a deep breath. He looked at the empty hall in front of him, and at the crystal chandelier hanging from the high ceiling.
Like a sky full of stars falling into his eyes, the crystals sparkled in his dark, watery eyes.
Gu Nianzhi had already reached the door. She pounded on it and shouted, “Professor He! Open the door! Professor He, you can’t do this!”
She tossed the key card and a bunch of keys at him. How was she supposed to explain this to him when she got back?!
Gu Nianzhi pounded on the door for a long time. Seeing that He Zhichu wasn’t opening the door, she ignored him and said into the communicator, “Professor He, I’m opening the door!”
He Zhichu: ” … ”
Damn it!
He forgot about this..
He Zhichu turned around and pulled the door open. Gu Nianzhi happened to hold the key card in her hand and was about to swipe it on the sensor at the door.
The cherry wood door suddenly opened, and Gu Nianzhi took the opportunity to pass the key card to He Zhichu. She said solemnly, “Professor He, I appreciate your kindness, but I can’t accept this gift.”
It was too valuable, and beyond the scope of a normal gift.
Gu Nianzhi had grown up with Huo Shaoheng. She had no qualms about using what Huo Shaoheng had given her, but she couldn’t with others.
Moreover, Huo Shaoheng had always taught her that if she needed something, she should just tell him. She wasn’t allowed to ask for it from others, nor was she allowed to accept anything that was beyond a certain value.
He Zhichu’s eyes dimmed. He did not take the door card or the key. Instead, he said calmly, ” … Do you have to be so clear with me?”
“Professor He, I’m already very satisfied that you can accept me as a graduate student and help me with my studies and career. But I really can’t accept this.”
“You can’t accept it? Then what are you going to do during your wedding? Get married from Huo Shaoheng’s house? ——You might feel at ease doing so, but I would feel ill at ease watching you do it!” He Zhichu said expressionlessly. He Zhichu’s bright almond-shaped eyes dimmed, and the expression in his eyes seemed enigmatic.
Gu Nianzhi quickly said, “I have my own house. It’s in the Fourth Ring Road, near B University. Professor He has been there before… ”
“Your house is just a closet. How ashamed would I be if you get married from there? I don’t believe Huo Shaoheng won’t give you another place to get married from!”
He Zhichu was a little angry. “Huo Shaoheng used to be your guardian. It’s understandable for you to eat his food and live in his house before. But now that you’re an adult and want to get married and have a wedding, you still have the nerve to ask Huo Shaoheng to pay for your dowry?!”
Gu Nianzhi was flabbergasted. A house with two bedrooms and a living room of more than 100 square meters was just called a “closet”!
If her house had a spirit, it would definitely be crying now from being looked down upon..
“Stop fooling around and keep the card and key. After you’re done with your wedding, I’ll give you the deed to the villa.” He Zhichu stroked her head reluctantly, then said, “Let brother He do one last thing for you. After you’re officially married, we can’t keep being so interacting so intimately.”
He Zhichu knew that Gu Nianzhi and Huo Shaoheng had already gotten their marriage certificate, but they hadn’t had a wedding or made it public, so He Zhichu won’t acknowledge it.
Moreover, He Zhichu was still brooding over Huo Shaoheng using that method to force Gu Nianzhi to sign the marriage certificate.
In order to make things difficult for Huo Shaoheng, he had to spare no effort to get close to Gu Nianzhi.
Gu Nianzhi knew that even if they were biological brothers, they had to maintain a certain distance.
Not to mention that they weren’t even relatives…
She was so touched by He Zhichu that tears welled up in her eyes. She held the key card and keys in her hands and whimpered, “Professor He, don’t be so nice to me. I’m ashamed of myself. I’m afraid… ”
He Zhichu was originally filled with sorrow, but now he was so angry that he laughed. “Can’t I be nice to you? You’re such a difficult lady to please!”
“It’s not that I can’t, but Professor He, you’re so nice to me. Even siblings are rarely as nice as you.” Gu Nianzhi wiped away her tears, “Just tell me the truth. What is your relationship with me? If there’s really nothing between us, I definitely can’t accept this thing.”
Gu Nianzhi was very stubborn this time.
It had been so long, but she had never forced He Zhichu to reveal the past.
Even though she had always thought that He Zhichu knew about her childhood.
But as long as he Zhichu was unwilling, she had never forced him.
He Zhichu closed his eyes. He thought about what had happened back then. There was no need to talk about it now.
But if he didn’t say anything, Gu Nianzhi probably wouldn’t accept his gift.
“Come in. If you want to know, I can tell you.” He Zhichu stepped aside.
Gu Nianzhi’s heart pounded. She held the key card in one hand and the key in the other. Her palms were sweaty.
She sat down in He Zhichu’s living room and looked at him silently.
He Zhichu sat opposite her with his legs crossed. He rested one hand on the armrest of the sofa and the other on his leg. He stared at Gu Nianzhi and said slowly, “Nianzhi, do you trust me?”
Gu Nianzhi nodded. “Of course I do. There are two people in this world that I trust unconditionally. One is Major General Huo, and the other is you, Professor He.”
Her trust in Huo Shaoheng had been formed by her interactions with Huo Shaoheng over the past seven years.
Her trust in He Zhichu, on the other hand, had been inspired by the selfless help He Zhichu had given her in just two short years.
And the more time she spent with He Zhichu, the more she felt like she had just met him, like she had just returned from a long-lost friendship.
She couldn’t explain why this feeling was growing stronger. All she knew was that He Zhichu was showing signs that he was closely related to the past that she had forgotten.
He Zhichu was very pleased with Gu Nianzhi’s answer.
She was still his Cereus, the little girl that trusted him wholeheartedly. She could be carried by him in the middle of the night to see the nightview.
“Nianzhi, if you believe me, then remember what I say. In the future, if someone says something different than what I say, I hope you can use your brain to think about who’s telling the truth and who’s lying to you.”
His expression especially serious, He Zhichu pointed at his own head.
Gu Nianzhi also became serious. She sat up straight and nodded. “Please speak, Professor He.”
“The He and Gu families have a very deep relationship.”
He Zhichu said slowly, “My grandfather, He Shouwang, and your grandfather, Gu Haize, were both survivors of the Japanese ‘revenge plan’ against China.”
Gu Nianzhi suddenly remembered that her grandfather, Gu Haize, had mentioned “my friend, He Shouwang” in his letter!
“The enemy was furious and killed my friend, He Shouwang.”
“My friend He Shouwang’s son, He Chengjian, followed me to Europe. On the way, he found out about her father’s tragic situation and swore to avenge her father. He left quietly.”
These two sentences echoed in Gu Nianzhi’s mind. She immediately covered her mouth and said in surprise, “Wait! He Shouwang is your grandfather? Then He Chengjian… is your father?!”
The man who had called her that day when she was at the Kremlin in Russia was He Zhichu’s father, He Chengjian?!
He Zhichu nodded. “Yes, my father is He Chengjian.”
“I see…” Gu Nianzhi was deeply moved.
Now it made sense why He Zhichu seemed to know a lot about her past.
Because their families had been friends for generations!
From grandfather to father, and now to their generation.
He Zhichu smiled. “Now you understand why I said you were my fiancée, don’t you? Our father joked in the past that if they had children in the future, a man and a woman, they would become husband and wife.”
“You also said it was a joke.” Gu Nianzhi blinked and changed the subject. “How could I take it seriously? But what happened after that? Do you know where my father went?”
He Zhichu sighed. His eyes flashed as he reorganized his words, then said slowly, “This is a question I can’t answer. Seven years ago, your father’s plane crashed and you were taken away from home… When I found out about your disappearance, I started looking for you everywhere. It wasn’t until three years ago that I finally found out you were in the Huaxia Empire…”
He Zhichu had spent a lot of effort and effort to discreetly approach her.
In the end, he had predicted everything, except that Gu Nianzhi didn’t remember him at all.
” … I tried to awaken your memory, but when you tried hard to recall it, your head hurt like hell. Later, I realized that it’s fine if you don’t remember the past. People have to move on, don’t they?”
He Zhichu’s expression was still cold and aloof, but his tone was as warm as the spring breeze.
Gu Nianzhi’s heart warmed when she heard that. She picked up a tissue from the coffee table in front of her and wiped her tears. “Professor He… ”
“You can call me brother He. That’s what you used to call me when you were young. ” He Zhichu looked at her indifferently, with his gaze devoid of any warmth. It was as if all the passion had been extinguished and concealed by him.
Gu Nianzhi pursed her lips. “It’s okay to call me that when I was little, but I’m so old now. If I call you brother He again, I’m going to get goosebumps. I’d better call you Professor He. It’s both familiar and friendly.”
“It’s up to you.” He Zhichu didn’t insist. He leaned forward, then smiled and said, “Now, can you accept this gift? You might not have married me, but with the history between our families, I’m more than enough to be your mother’s family. If you still refuse, not only will I be disappointed, but the elders of our families will also be disappointed.”
With He Zhichu’s words, Gu Nianzhi would really be unreasonable if she didn’t accept it.
However, she didn’t know how Huo Shaoheng would react if she accepted such a large sum of property just like that. Gu Nianzhi really had a headache.
She focused her eyes and thought for a moment before saying, “… I still need to discuss this with Major General Huo. Professor He, can I give you an answer after I’ve discussed it with Major General Huo?”
“Look at you, you’re such an extrovert. You haven’t even married yet, and you’re already turning your back on him. ——Aren’t you being foolish? This is the dowry I gave you. It’s a private property that I gave you as a gift, not a joint property with Huo Shaoheng. If you hadn’t received your marriage certificate, I would have notarized it as pre-marital property.”
He Zhichu lowered his eyes and laughed mockingly. “Even though Huo Shaoheng might not be interested in such a small amount of money, others might not. Everyone thinks that you’re an orphan and have no family to rely on. ——Don’t you want to slap those people in the face?”
