Heartthrob, Your Image is Crumbling!

Chapter 557: Dawn Blossoms Plucked at Dusk

However, Zhou Yuwen simply nodded at them, indicating that there was no need to be so polite.His father had indeed drunk too much today. Sitting there listening to the flattery of their relatives, he only glanced up when Zhou Yuwen arrived. Zhou Guobin was not the type of person who enjoyed being buttered up, but he was genuinely happy that Zhou Yuwen had achieved such success.

Zhou Yuwen asked his father how much he had to drink, and Zhou Guobin replied that it was not much.

"I just had a little to drink with your uncles," he explained.

Zhou Yuwen told him to stop drinking. "Aren't you going to the office tomorrow?"

With that, Zhou Yuwen called out to Peng Xiaoyong, who was standing behind him, and then turned back to Zhou Guobin. "Xiaoyong hasn't started drinking yet. I will have him take you home later."

Zhou Yuwen then helped his father to his feet, and Zhou Guobin nodded in agreement.

Peng Xiaoyong was quite observant. He quickly stepped forward to support the older man and then led Zhou Guobin away.

Before leaving, Zhou Yuwen smiled at the relatives, gesturing for them to continue drinking.

His old man was truly drunk, so he needed to see them home first.

"Have the accommodations been arranged?" he asked.

"Yes, we have everything sorted out."

These relatives all worked out of town and only gathered together during the New Year. Aside from a few who did not own property in the area, the rest had their own homes to return to.

Seeing that they had everything sorted out, Zhou Yuwen did not say anything else.

He assigned two bodyguards to stay behind and help his mother wrap things up.

He then arranged for another bodyguard to take Liu Shuo home.

As for himself, a bodyguard drove the car as Zhou Yuwen escorted Li Shiqi home.

The small private room at the Moon Gazing Pavilion remained bustling. Before anyone knew it, it was already ten o'clock at night, but some relatives showed no signs of having had their fill and continued to toast each other.

The waiters had already cleared the empty tables, and Yang Lirong was over there chatting with people. A few relatives watched the busy crowd.

They watched Peng Xiaoyong support Zhou Guobin as they left.

Whether out of envy or something else, they could not help but mutter that the kid, Xiaoyong, had really lucked out.

His mother still looked as if she looked down on us.

Look at her now, kissing up more than anyone else.

Zhou Yuwen was completely unaware of what was happening back in the private room. He and Li Shiqi first took Liu Shuo home. At the beginning, Liu Shuo could still string a few normal sentences together, but once inside the car, the stuffiness of the air conditioner caused his face to flush intensely. The alcohol quickly caught up to him, leaving him completely intoxicated.

By the time they arrived at his house, he was completely wasted.

Liu Shuo's home was located in a famous villa district in the small county town, offering a quiet sanctuary amidst the bustling city.

Two bodyguards helped Liu Shuo out of the car, while he drunkenly slurred that he was not drunk at all.

"Open the door! Liu Gang, open the door!"

Liu Gang was Liu Shuo's father, and Liu Shuo was screaming at the top of his lungs.

The main gate of the villa swung open immediately. A rugged, burly man strode out wearing a set of dark blue pajamas, his brows furrowed tightly.

He thought to himself, 'Which family's drunkard dares to cause trouble at my house?' But his eyes lit up the moment he saw Liu Shuo. He roared, "You little brat! You come home and don't even know how to give a heads-up!"

"Hey, mind your own business!"

"Who do you think you're talking to?!"

As Liu Gang spoke, he looked around for a shoe to smack Liu Shuo with. At that moment, Zhou Yuwen, who was standing to the side, spoke up. "Is that Uncle Liu?"

Only then did Liu Gang notice Zhou Yuwen. He went from being slightly dazed to instantly wide awake. "You must be Yuwen!"

He had been ready to grab a shoe to teach his son a proper lesson, but upon seeing Zhou Yuwen, he immediately dropped the idea. Realizing he had been abrupt, he hurriedly straightened his clothes.

He even stepped forward to shake Zhou Yuwen's hand.

To be fair, Liu Gang was a famous boss in the county, but compared to Zhou Yuwen, he fell short by more than just a little bit. Most importantly, in Liu Gang's eyes, Zhou Yuwen was his son's benefactor.

Liu Gang knew exactly how much his son was capable of. The fact that Liu Shuo had achieved such success today was entirely thanks to Zhou Yuwen.

Therefore, Liu Gang's attitude toward Zhou Yuwen was genuinely excellent. He even grabbed Zhou Yuwen's hand with both of his own, shaking it vigorously.

Liu Gang mentioned that he had been talking about not being able to see Zhou Yuwen the last time he visited Jinling.

"I've always wanted to thank you in person. This rascal hasn't caused you too much trouble in Jinling, has he?"

Zhou Yuwen replied that he had not, and that Liu Shuo had been a great help.

Liu Gang grinned and said, "Little brother, there's no need to be so polite with me."

"I know exactly what he's capable of. This rascal, why did he drink so much today?"

Liu Gang frowned.

Zhou Yuwen apologized, explaining that Liu Shuo had taken the drinks for him.

Liu Gang replied, "Oh, then he should have."

"This kid might not have any other skills, but he does have some real skills when it comes to drinking. In the future, if there's ever a need for drinking, just leave it to him!" Liu Gang was indeed a man of straightforward temperament.

He kept inviting Zhou Yuwen to come inside and sit for a while, but Zhou Yuwen politely declined.

"Uncle, I'm sorry for troubling you today. It's almost the New Year, and yet I let Liu Shuo drink so much."

Liu Gang waved his hand dismissively, and Zhou Yuwen continued, "It's too late today, so I won't intrude by coming inside."

"I'll come visit another day."

"Then pick a time, and I'll treat you brothers to a good meal."

Liu Gang meant every word of it.

Zhou Yuwen simply smiled.

The two exchanged a few more pleasantries before Zhou Yuwen excused himself, citing the need to take his girlfriend home, and they finally parted ways.

While Zhou Yuwen was speaking with Liu Gang, Li Shiqi stood quietly by his side the entire time.

Once they returned to the car, Zhou Yuwen felt a sudden pang of hunger.

Zhou Yuwen said, "I was so busy exchanging pleasantries with the relatives earlier that I hardly ate anything. Are you full?"

Li Shiqi smiled bashfully, indicating that she had not eaten well either.

At large gatherings like this, it was basically impossible to get much food.

Zhou Yuwen asked if she wanted to grab something to eat.

Li Shiqi nodded and agreed.

Then Zhou Yuwen pointed out, "But if we do, you probably won't get home until very late."

Li Shiqi replied, "I'm not going home tonight."

"Hmm?" Zhou Yuwen did not understand what she meant.

He then listened to Li Shiqi explain that it was already very late.

"My mother and uncle should already be sleeping. I don't think they'd want me going back right now either."

Looking at Li Shiqi's calm expression, Zhou Yuwen finally remembered that she was part of a blended family. Perhaps, in her eyes, that place was not her family home at all.

Zhou Yuwen said, "Since that's the case, let me go book a room at a hotel for you first."

"There's no need. I just booked one."

"Ah? You already booked one?"

"Yeah, Meituan was running a promotion, so it was quite cheap."

Li Shiqi said with a hint of pride. It was already 2015, and Meituan had long since dominated online services. Zhou Yuwen took a look and realized she had booked a 7 Days Inn. He felt that the environment of such a hotel could only be considered below average. It might look clean, but the hardware facilities were quite poor; for example, the rooms were drafty, and the heating from the air conditioner was practically just for show.

Zhou Yuwen said, "Let's change to a different hotel."

"You can just submit the receipt to the company for reimbursement later."

"There's no need. Since it's just one person staying, making do for one night is fine." Having grown up poor, Li Shiqi was not one to be extravagant and wasteful.

Zhou Yuwen said, "I'll be staying with you. Let's change rooms."

"?" Li Shiqi froze, the corners of her mouth twitching with irrepressible shyness.

Lowering her head, she asked softly, "Don't you need to go home?"

Zhou Yuwen replied that it was already quite late.

"Besides, I don't feel entirely at ease leaving you alone out here. Let me stay with you. We'll change to a different hotel."

Since Zhou Yuwen had put it that way, what could Li Shiqi possibly say?

The two had already established their relationship as boyfriend and girlfriend. Hearing his words, Li Shiqi could only let the corners of her mouth curl up slightly and agree with a hint of shyness.

Thus, Li Shiqi began searching for a hotel, but unfortunately, it was almost eleven o'clock.

With the New Year approaching, the hotels with the best environments were completely fully booked.

After all, the small county town relied heavily on these few days to make money.

Unable to book a good hotel, Li Shiqi felt a bit uneasy, feeling as though she was making Zhou Yuwen suffer alongside her.

Zhou Yuwen, however, indicated that it was nothing.

"I'm not that delicate," he said. "By the way, do you know that boiled vegetarian sausage stall at the entrance of New China Elementary School?" Now that Zhou Yuwen was finally back home, rather than expensive delicacies, he actually missed the cheap street snacks that cost a buck or two—the very food he had grown up eating.

"Ah! Are you talking about the ones made by that old lady at the gate?" Li Shiqi clearly knew it. Reminded by Zhou Yuwen, she suddenly craved it as well.

Zhou Yuwen mentioned that he was not sure if she was still open at this hour.

"Let's drive over and take a look."

Zhou Yuwen had the driver navigate to New China Elementary School.

The small county town was pitch black at night.

Except for the streetlights that illuminated the empty streets one by one.

A few minutes' drive brought them to New China Elementary School.

During the ride, Zhou Yuwen casually chatted with Li Shiqi and discovered that she had also attended New China Elementary School. They had gone to the same elementary school.

Li Shiqi was equally shocked by this revelation. She asked Zhou Yuwen curiously, "You didn't know?"

Zhou Yuwen honestly had no recollection of it.

As it turned out, Li Shiqi knew that Zhou Yuwen had been in Class Seven, while she was in Class Five.

Logically, the two of them should have met long ago.

In fact, Zhou Yuwen had known her even longer than he had known Su Qing.

Hearing this, Zhou Yuwen merely chuckled, admitting he genuinely had no memory of it.

When he was little, he only cared about playing games and watching Dragon Ball; he hardly paid attention to things like that.

Zhou Yuwen still remembered how the television's on-demand channel used to broadcast Dragon Ball every day, showing Goku traveling to Namek and encountering the Ginyu Force.

There was also Shaolin Wuzang, featuring Hua Xiaolan, Chen Xiaohu, and Tang Xiaolong.

They only aired one episode a day, and he would always wait eagerly in front of the TV. When the opening theme song finally started, he would excitedly rush to the restroom to pee, avoiding any interruptions that might make him miss the best parts of the show.

Thinking back on it now, Zhou Yuwen found it all so childish.

He didn't even know what was so great about those cartoons back then, but he just loved them.

At the time, he felt that the days passed so slowly, and he could experience so many things every single day.

Now that he was older, he no longer felt that way.

As the car drove up to New China Elementary School, it brought back a flood of memories for Zhou Yuwen. The corner east of the school was exactly where the old lady used to sell boiled vegetarian sausages.

That corner used to be a rare bustling spot in the small county town. In the past, a few small vendors would set up stalls, selling snacks to the passing elementary students for ten or twenty cents a piece.

Later, as these students grew up one by one, they would always reminisce about the childhood snacks they used to eat, like boiled vegetarian sausages, roasted pork liver, and mushroom wraps.

Though these things were cheap, they were genuinely unaffordable when they were kids. Then, as they grew up and finally had money, their hearts swelled with joy as they thought, 'I finally have money now, I definitely have to come back and splurge wildly.'

But upon returning, they would find that the vegetarian sausage that used to cost ten cents now cost a whole yuan.

The wrap that used to cost fifty cents now sold for four yuan.

In this rundown city, not to mention the low wages, the cost of living was outrageously high.

It was already very late, but a few small vendors still had their lights on. Faintly, they could even see a few people standing there buying wraps to eat.

Zhou Yuwen asked the driver to pull the G-Wagon over by the side of the road and wait in the car.

He then got out with Li Shiqi to buy a few skewers of vegetarian sausages and some wraps.

Most of the people who came here to eat were, much like Zhou Yuwen, former students returning to reminisce about their childhoods.

During the New Year, generations of grown-up children would bring their boyfriends and girlfriends from out of town back here to savor the tastes of their youth.

The person selling the vegetarian sausages was still the same old woman.

Zhou Yuwen asked how much it cost, and the old woman replied that it was fifteen yuan.

Zhou Yuwen froze for a second. "That expensive?"

The old woman countered, "Ah, of course! Prices have gone up so much nowadays!"

Feeling helpless, Zhou Yuwen scanned the QR code and paid her.

Zhou Yuwen turned to Li Shiqi and remarked, "I remember they used to be ten cents a skewer. I was originally planning to eat more this time."

Li Shiqi smiled and nodded. She remembered that this old woman was no pushover. When she was little, she hadn't had much pocket money but had a serious craving. After finally scraping together ten cents, she had been too embarrassed to eat when there were many people around.

Only when the crowd had thinned out would she sneak over and ask for a skewer of vegetarian sausage.

The old woman's blunt response had been, "Oh my God, you actually have the nerve to come eat with just ten cents!"

At the time, Li Shiqi hadn't said anything; she had merely eaten her vegetarian sausage in silence.

However, she had definitely remembered those words right up to the present day.

Hearing Zhou Yuwen's complaint, the old woman spoke up while preparing his skewers. "How many years has it been since you graduated? Back then, an egg only cost twenty cents."

Zhou Yuwen chuckled upon hearing this, saying nothing more.

At this time, a guy wearing a large red padded jacket who had brought his girlfriend over for a snack kept staring at Zhou Yuwen. He had been too embarrassed to confirm it, but after a long while, he finally couldn't hold back anymore. "Zhou? Zhou Yuwen?"

Zhou Yuwen turned around and glanced at him. To be honest, he didn't recognize the man at all, but Zhou Yuwen still offered a polite greeting. "Hello."

The guy instantly broke into a wide grin. "It really is you! Do you remember me? We were in the same class in elementary school! I'm Li Xu!"

"Oh, I remember," Zhou Yuwen replied.

Li Xu was incredibly excited and hurriedly introduced him to his girlfriend. "I told you I was elementary school classmates with Zhou Yuwen! You didn't believe me! See? You're looking right at him!"

Li Xu's girlfriend was also taken aback. She had originally just come out in the middle of the night to grab a late-night snack with her boyfriend. She never expected to run into someone who was constantly in the news.

She thought, 'If only I had known, I would have put on makeup.'

Now she felt quite self-conscious.