"Zhijing has become even more handsome!"
Nian Suian looked in the direction where Gu Zhijing was waving and couldn't help but let out a mischievous whistle in her heart: What a good-looking young man!
The man who was smiling and greeting Gu Zhijing was so strikingly handsome that it was hard to tell if he was male or female. His almond-shaped eyes were absolutely mesmerizing when he smiled. Despite his delicate features, his overall appearance didn't come across as feminine, thanks to his tall and fit physique accentuated by the well-tailored suit he wore. Somehow, his body perfectly complemented his face.
Nian Suian clearly noticed that as soon as this man appeared, many eyes in the venue were secretly glancing at him. Thinking of this, Nian Suian looked up at Gu Junxing beside her, feeling sympathetic towards him. It was understandable to feel psychologically imbalanced when you have such an attractive "friend".
The man walked up to their family, but instead of speaking to Gu Junxing, he jokingly said to Gu Zhijing, "Zhijing, why does your dad still look so dead when he sees me?"
"My dad is jealous of your good looks," Gu Zhijing, emboldened by the fact that his father wouldn't scold him in public, was becoming increasingly daring in throwing his old man under the bus.
"This beautiful lady must be my little sister-in-law, right?" The man smiled at Nian Suian and extended his hand to her. "Hello, sister-in-law. I'm Gu Junxing's good friend. My name is Fang Anzhi, but you can just call me Anzhi."
"Hello, I'm Nian Suian." Despite the turmoil in her heart, Nian Suian maintained a polite exterior.
"Who would have thought that despite your unremarkable looks, Gu Junxing, you'd have such good luck? Not only do you have a handsome son like Zhijing, but at your age, you've also got such a beautiful wife. I'm jealous!" Fang Anzhi teased.
Wow, what a sharp tongue! Nian Suian thought to herself. No wonder Gu Junxing looked like he was about to grind his teeth to dust when this guy showed up.
Gu Junxing forced a smile that didn't reach his eyes and retorted, "I don't know about my luck, but it's certainly better than being a middle-aged bachelor like you."
Nian Suian had quietly retreated to stand with Gu Zhijing as soon as the two men began their verbal sparring. They were now whispering to each other.
"Can you smell the gunpowder in the air?" Gu Zhijing asked.
"Yes, it's very strong!" Nian Suian replied.
Unfazed by the jab about being single, Fang Anzhi's smile only grew wider. "If I got married, too many people would be heartbroken. You wouldn't understand that kind of pain." Then, turning to Nian Suian, he added, "Little sister-in-law, you're so young and beautiful. You must be very unhappy being married to the old and ugly Gu Junxing, right?"
Nian Suian hadn't expected the crossfire to suddenly turn on her. She could only laugh dryly and say, "Oh, not at all..."
Fang Anzhi winked at her with a look that said 'you don't need to hide it, I understand everything,' and then pulled out a business card and handed it to Nian Suian. "Little sister-in-law, if you're ever feeling down, you can always come find me." After saying this, he patted Gu Zhijing on the shoulder and strode away.
Nian Suian stood there holding the business card, unsure of what to do. Just as she was about to look at its contents, a hand reached out and snatched it away. She didn't even need to guess - it could only be Gu Junxing.
"Why didn't you throw away this kind of thing immediately? Did you want to keep it as a souvenir?" he asked irritably.
"You two don't get along, what does that have to do with me?" Nian Suian hadn't actually intended to contact Fang Anzhi. That man was clearly a deeply cunning and dangerous character, giving her an even more frightening impression than Gu Junxing. She wouldn't dream of getting involved with him.
"Stay away from him in the future," Gu Junxing warned.
...
After the banquet ended, Nian Suian felt as exhausted as an old ox that had plowed eight acres of land. When she got home, she mustered the last of her energy to remove her makeup and take a shower. Only after lying down in bed did she feel alive again. The glittering world of high society, with its endless toasts and socializing, was clearly not suited for a simple person like her. She much preferred staying at home, ordering takeout, and binge-watching TV series.
Monday, 10 AM.
In the office of the Chairman of Junxing Enterprise.
"Chairman, after Friday night's banquet, you, your son, and your wife have become trending topics on social media! It's even caused our company's stock price to rise considerably today."
"Trending topics?" Gu Junxing found this strange. Although friends had advised him to buy some trending spots to generate buzz, as netizens nowadays love such gossip, he hadn't decided whether to do so yet and certainly hadn't arranged anything. How did they end up trending?
"Yes, you've been on the local trending list on Weibo for the past two days!" Gu Junxing's assistant explained. When the company was doing well, it meant bonuses for them, so he could already see the bonus waving at him.
"What are the netizens saying?" Gu Junxing rarely used social media, so naturally, he wouldn't have seen any trending topics.
The assistant hesitated for a moment before answering, "Um... netizens are saying that your family looks very loving, that you and your wife are a great match, and that your wife and son look just like a real mother and son!" In reality, that wasn't exactly what was being said, but he didn't dare to tell the truth. He just picked out a few nice comments to relay, figuring that whether the comments were good or bad, the important thing was that they were trending. Besides, the netizens hadn't really said anything bad, so he wasn't exactly lying.
"That's an exaggeration," Gu Junxing frowned.
"Huh?" The assistant was confused. What was exaggerated?
"How could anyone think they look like mother and son?" Gu Junxing thought of Nian Suian's appearance. If she were Gu Zhijing's birth mother, he wouldn't even need the police to come for him - he'd turn himself in and go straight to jail.
The assistant took a moment to realize that "they" referred to his wife and son. He quickly explained with a smile, "People just mean that they have a good relationship, not that they're actually mother and son." In fact, people were saying they looked like siblings, but the assistant didn't dare mention that part.
Gu Junxing nodded, "I see. You can go now. Take another good look at the application materials for the Model Entrepreneur competition in the next couple of days. We can submit it on Wednesday. We must succeed this time."
"Certainly!" The assistant nodded vigorously. This year, the boss was like a hexagonal warrior in the Model Entrepreneur version - who could compete with him?
...
"Gu Zhijing, I saw you on Weibo yesterday!"
"What Weibo?" Gu Zhijing was also confused. He knew about it but didn't use it, usually only playing games. He couldn't imagine what connection he had with Weibo.
"You, your dad, and your young stepmom are trending!"
Gu Zhijing finally realized what was going on. He was quite pleased and planned to check out what people were saying about them later.
His classmate continued, "Gu Zhijing, your stepmom is really young and pretty. You'd better be careful. If she bewitches your dad and gives you a little brother, you might lose your share of the family fortune."
Anyone who heard these words could sense the malice dripping from them. Gu Zhijing's face darkened, and he didn't bother being polite with the other person. He angrily retorted, "You don't need to worry about my family's affairs. After all, we don't even know where my brother is, but your brother is probably already in your father's mistress's belly, isn't he?" With that, he turned and walked away. This male classmate's family had a bit of money, and he usually threw his weight around at school. Gu Zhijing had disliked him for a long time. People who are lecherous see lechery everywhere; with his own family in such a mess, he assumed everyone else's family was the same.
Gu Zhijing returned to the classroom and opened Weibo to search for news about his family.
As soon as he saw the headlines, he couldn't hold back his laughter. The anger from being insulted earlier dissipated. After laughing for a while, he remembered to take screenshots and send them to his father.
[The Correct Way to Handle a May-December Romance! Exposing Junxing Enterprise's CEO and His Young Wife]
[Tycoon's Wife Too Young, Netizens Exclaim: Who Can Tell if She's the Stepmother or Sister?]
[True Love Exists Even in High Society, Gu Family Stepmother and Son as Close as Siblings!]
[Dad, congratulations on having both a daughter and a son now. (screenshot.jpg)]