Chapter 2 Loving Chen Yanzhou
Loving Chen Yanzhou was something I could not help.
The first time I met Chen Yanzhou was at the convenience store where I worked part-time. A middle-aged man who had drunk too much came to buy cigarettes. At checkout he got impatient because I was slow. After cursing a few times, he still was not satisfied and actually reached out to hit me.
Just as I closed my eyes and shrank back, a slender hand grabbed the fist heading toward me.
I looked up. Under the convenience store's bright lights was a handsome face full of youthful charm.
The boy wore a black hoodie. His neck was fair, and even his Adam's apple looked delicately beautiful.
In the hazy light I saw his crimson lips move. His expression was cold.
"A loser taking out his anger from outside only knows how to bully a young girl?"
The man cursed and tried to hit again. But the moment the boy gripped harder, the man twisted in pain. He did not dare say more and left in embarrassment.
I was still shaken and stuttered,
"Th-thank you!"
He said expressionlessly,
"No need."
Then he picked up the bottle of soda he had paid for and turned to leave.
After that, I did not have to try hard to learn that the boy who helped me was Chen Yanzhou, the heartthrob of the finance department. He was in the same year as me.
I heard his family was very wealthy. A single piece of clothing cost more than my yearly tuition.
But he had a terrible relationship with his family and earned all his own money, starting from his freshman year by writing software to sell.
In his sophomore year he founded his own company. He was a typical rich second-generation who also built his own empire. His resume highlighted the software he had sold and the company he had founded.
The more I learned about him, the more I liked him.
Who would not like a Chen Yanzhou like that?
I fell hopelessly in love. But I knew the huge gap between us and only dared to watch him from afar.
Every night when he left the company, he would stop by the convenience store for a few minutes. That became the happiest part of my day.
Even if I could only exchange one sentence with him, I felt incredibly happy.
Finally one day I could not hold back and paid for Chen Yanzhou's items. When he looked at me I was so nervous I could barely speak.
"That day, thank you for helping me--"
He interrupted me expressionlessly and placed a bill on the counter.
"It was nothing. No need to thank me."
My face paled. I mumbled,
"Oh, okay."
Many girls liked Chen Yanzhou, but he had never dated anyone.
I always thought it was because his focus was on work and he had no time for relationships. I began to harbor secret hopes. Using my status as a classmate, I slowly approached him. After we became more familiar, I gradually entered his life.
His stomach was not in great shape, and he often skipped breakfast. So I brought him breakfast every day.
When it rained, I brought him an umbrella. When he played basketball, I washed his jersey for him.
Once we got closer, I learned that his mother had been driven to death by his father's mistress. That was why he had completely cut ties with his family and had not returned home in many years.
On every family reunion holiday I stayed with him. For several years I only rushed back to my own home after the New Year.
I accompanied him like this for three full years. Finally, after a New Year's Eve Dinner just for the two of us, the drunk Chen Yanzhou said in a low, hoarse voice,
"Tang Ning, let's be together."
There was no confession, no flowers, and not even a hint of romance.
Yet I felt my heart bloom with joy. My eyes stung as I replied,
"Okay."
In the two years we were together, I went along with everything Chen Yanzhou wanted. Although he was always indifferent toward me, I simply thought that was just his personality.
It was only after Feng Linlin came back that I realized even the cold Chen Yanzhou could hold his phone and chat with someone until late at night, a smile constantly on his lips.
I finally understood my own self-deception.
He was not incapable of love.
He just did not love me.