Heartthrob, Your Image is Crumbling!

Chapter 552: The Treasure Hidden in the Estate

"He is busy right now and doesn't have much time."Without Zhou Yuwen's permission, Zheng Yanyan felt too embarrassed to ask him to show his face on camera. However, her parents could not find peace of mind until they actually saw him.

After all, Zheng Yanyan was just an ordinary university student. Telling her family that she had found a billionaire boyfriend would leave anyone's parents feeling a complex mixture of joy and worry.

"Just secretly turn the camera around so we can take a look," Zheng Yanyan's mother requested once again.

In truth, Zhou Yuwen had no idea Zheng Yanyan was on a video call. He was over on the other side, discussing the future construction of the estate with Anne Hathaway.

At that moment, Lu Lin walked over and informed him about the call.

"Her parents seem to want to say hello to you."

Hearing this, and seeing Zheng Yanyan hesitating in conflict over there, Zhou Yuwen called out to her.

"Yan Yan."

"Ah?"

His sudden call startled her. She looked up just as he walked over, a warm smile on his face. "Are you on the phone with your parents?" he asked.

With that, Zhou Yuwen stepped directly into the frame, catching sight of Zheng Yanyan's mother on the phone screen.

He greeted her with a gentle demeanor. "Hello, Auntie. You must be Yan Yan's mother, right?"

Mother Zheng had seen Zhou Yuwen on the news before, but she had never dared to believe that such an excellent young man would date her daughter. Seeing him in person still left her slightly stunned. It was only when he spoke that she managed to reply, "Ah, hello. Are you and Yan Yan dating?"

Zhou Yuwen nodded, naturally wrapping his arm around Zheng Yanyan's shoulder. "I haven't had the time to visit you yet. I have just been too busy lately."

His words were perfectly measured. In reality, Mother Zheng had not expected a formal meeting so soon. However, since her daughter had been spirited away to the United States, she needed to know a little more just to have some peace of mind.

Seeing him now set her at ease significantly. She then asked if it was true that her daughter was currently staying at his estate.

Zhou Yuwen confirmed with a nod, explaining that he had just purchased the estate.

"When the time is right, please come with Uncle and stay at the estate for a few months."

Hearing this, Mother Zheng immediately felt a bit shy. She replied that she and her husband were nearly fifty and could not handle such a long journey. As long as he and Yan Yan were living well, that was enough for them.

"When are you coming back to China?"

"Soon. I will come visit you and Uncle then."

"Well then, Little Zhou, you must tell me in advance before you come so your Uncle and I can prepare!"

They chatted for a while longer. Instead of trailing off, Mother Zheng became increasingly talkative. It was the classic case of a mother-in-law growing fonder of her prospective son-in-law by the minute, which was entirely unobjectionable.

After all, any mother-in-law would be more than satisfied with a billionaire son-in-law like him.

When she saw him walking over earlier, Zheng Yanyan had actually been extremely nervous. She thought he would dislike facing her mother, but to her surprise, he generously gave her face.

This left her feeling deeply moved.

Especially since he kept his arm around her shoulder the entire time, providing her with a great sense of comfort and peace of mind.

As the conversation dragged on and her mother kept asking more questions, Zheng Yanyan finally could not stand it anymore and interrupted. "Mom, why do you have so many questions? Alright, Zhou Yuwen is busy. We are done talking."

Turning to Zhou Yuwen, she told him to go back to his work and not worry about her.

Mother Zheng was quite displeased by this. "You child, what is wrong with me chatting a bit more with Little Zhou? I think we are having a very pleasant conversation. Isn't that right, Little Zhou?"

Zhou Yuwen merely smiled and nodded in agreement.

On the other hand, Zheng Yanyan kept urging him to ignore her mother and get back to whatever he needed to do.

Seeing her insistence, Zhou Yuwen nodded at Mother Zheng and excused himself. "Well then, Auntie, I have some other matters to attend to, so I will get back to work now."

"Alright, go do your work, Little Zhou. When you return to the country, make sure to come visit us in Jingcheng."

He nodded to show he understood.

That night, the girls all shared a room with Zhou Yuwen.

They changed into their respective pajamas; some wore sexy styles, while others opted for cute ones.

They flaunted pair after pair of long legs, along with impressive curves that looked spectacular from every angle. Some revealed a bit of cleavage while others did not, but in truth, all of them were equally stunning and on the same level.

Lu Wanting was slightly more well-endowed, followed closely by Shen Yu.

Zheng Yanyan looked at Zhou Yuwen with deep emotion and whispered, "Thank you, Hubby."

He chuckled. "What is there to thank me for?"

"It is what I should do. I told you before, since I have claimed you all, I will absolutely take responsibility for you. Not just you, but everyone else too. If any of you need me to meet your parents, I am more than willing. Once the estate is fully built, we can invite them all over as guests."

Hearing this, Lu Lin could not help complaining about his sheer audacity.

She remarked that he really was not afraid of giving them all simultaneous strokes and having them team up to hack him to pieces.

"It wouldn't be that bad, right?" Zhou Yuwen mused.

"Are your parents really that terrifying?"

Lu Lin shot back, asking if he was scared.

He replied that it was a bit too late to be scared now.

The girls all burst into a chorus of laughter at his response.

At that moment, Zhou Yuwen seriously considered Lu Lin's words and felt that she had a point. With so many females involved, it was inevitable that some of their parents would be quite traditional.

The best solution would be to give them a sum of money so they could comfortably enjoy their retirement back in China with peace of mind.

As for where he and his women would live in the future, that was their own business.

The most pressing priority right now was still the construction of the estate.

As they lay on the massive bed, everyone freely expressed their thoughts, offering plenty of constructive suggestions for the estate's future. Zheng Yanyan presented the most practical idea. She pointed out that since the estate was so massive, it would be terribly boring with just the few of them, so they needed to give their Hubby a few more children!

This suggestion was met with enthusiastic approval from the other women. Deciding to put words into action immediately, the females swarmed him, eager to start making babies.

Zhou Yuwen was instantly pinned down on the bed.

Seeing their predatory expressions, he playfully shrieked for help.

"Help! You are murdering your own husband!"

"Heavens, this is going to kill me! No, I need to get out of here!"

He put on a show of struggling but was swiftly dragged back by Zheng Yanyan and Shen Yu. Zheng Yanyan hummed triumphantly, "Haha, it's too late to run now! Shen Yu, you go first!"

"Ah? Me?"

Shen Yu was only putting on a brave front with Zheng Yanyan. When actually told to go first, she instantly chickened out.

Zheng Yanyan was left utterly speechless, teasing Shen Yu for being such a coward.

"At the crucial moment, it still falls to me!"

Zheng Yanyan was certainly bold, but the problem was that her bravery alone was not enough. Ultimately, the tables were turned, and Zhou Yuwen took the dominant position.

'This brash lass dared to rally the others to overpower me,' he thought.

How could he possibly let her off the hook? Since she wanted it, he would give her everything.

The other females simply knelt by the side and watched. The scene was incredibly fierce, and by the end, Zheng Yanyan was constantly begging for mercy. "Ahhh! Hubby, I was wrong! Hubby, I won't do it again!"

After that exhausting night, Zheng Yanyan could barely walk properly when she came down for breakfast the next day, limping her way down the stairs.

The other girls, whose steps were light and nimble, all covered their mouths and snickered as they trotted past her.

Seeing these treacherous women who had sold out their friend for self-preservation, Zheng Yanyan seethed with anger. However, she had no choice but to awkwardly waddle forward step by step.

The original plan was to stay in the Americas for half a month, but buying the estate created so much work that their schedule was significantly delayed.

Zhou Yuwen had arrived on New Year's Day in 2015, before the winter holiday had even begun. Staying this long meant that even the upcoming Chinese New Year would likely be affected.

Originally, Liu Jing wanted to invite him over for dinner, and she had specifically called him after New Year's Day to arrange it.

Only then did Zhou Yuwen remember, and he replied apologetically, "Ah, Auntie, about that... I might not be able to make it."

"You can't make it? Why not? Didn't you already promise Auntie?" Liu Jing was deeply confused.

He explained that he was currently in the United States, held up by some urgent matters, and truly could not return in time.

Hearing "United States," Liu Jing naturally assumed he had gone to find Su Qing. Her expression instantly soured as she demanded to know why he had run off to America right before the holidays.

Since Liu Jing insisted on interrogating him to the bitter end, Zhou Yuwen was left with no choice but to reveal his purchase of an estate, reiterating that he genuinely could not travel back right now.

He promised that when he eventually returned, he would absolutely bring her a gift.

Seeing that his trip was genuinely for career development, Liu Jing did not press the issue further. However, when she later relayed the news of his whereabouts to Jiang Xinyi, the younger woman's face immediately clouded with unhappiness.

Sure enough, no matter which of the mother-daughter duo heard the words "United States," their very first thought was of Su Qing.

The 2015 Chinese New Year fell around February. Zhou Yuwen briefly checked the calendar and felt he could make it back in time. More importantly, even if he could not, he had to make sure the girls were sent back.

Lu Wanting would be there to supervise the estate's construction progress, and Anne Hathaway could also come over to assist.

Of course, Zhou Yuwen would need to pay her a certain amount of compensation for her time.

During his final few days before departure, Zhou Yuwen learned to ride from several cowboys. He successfully conquered that herd of wild horses and drove them into the stables, transforming them from untamed beasts into his private property.

The difference between wild horses and those bred in captivity was that, as herd animals, they possessed a leader—a stallion king. This dominant horse, usually the strongest and most feral of the lot, was responsible for the safety and reproduction of the entire group.

While taming the herd, Anne Hathaway had told him that as long as the stallion king was subdued, the other horses could be tamed with ease.

However, she had also warned him about just how difficult subduing the king would be.

After all, every year, a significant number of people died from falling off horseback.

By this time, Zhou Yuwen had thoroughly mastered his riding skills. With his natural talent, he could even defeat Hathaway effortlessly. However, he believed that a wise man never stands under a collapsing wall. With his immense wealth and expansive enterprises, there was no need to play the reckless hero. Instead, he ordered the cowboys to use pack-wolf tactics, wearing the wild stallion down through sheer endurance.

The method was simply starvation—penning it in and depriving it of grass.

The second method was beatings. There was no need for fancy, complicated techniques.

When Anne Hathaway discovered that his methods were so crude and brutal, she frowned slightly. She warned him that the stallion king possessed immense pride. If he blindly relied on such harsh tactics, it would not only fail to tame the beast but would actually enrage it further.

Zhou Yuwen casually replied that if that turned out to be the case...

"Then we will feast on horse meat and drink red wine tonight!"

He said this so breezily that Hathaway parted her lips in sheer astonishment.

Yet to Zhou Yuwen, this logic was perfectly normal. He was not a professional rider, nor was he deeply invested in taming horses. Riding was merely a passing whim. If a horse refused to submit to him...

Even if it was exceptionally strong...

What did not belong to him simply did not belong to him.

He told her not to look so surprised.

"It is a smart horse. It will know exactly what choice to make."

He declared with a light smile.

As they were chatting, a cowboy rode over on horseback and announced, "Hey, Boss, it surrendered."

"Beautifully done!" Zhou Yuwen praised. "I'll reward each of you with a crate of premium liquor!"

"Wow!"

Out on the grassland, the cowboys atop their tall steeds cracked their whips and cheered wildly.

Anne Hathaway stared at Zhou Yuwen's tall silhouette as he sat upon his horse in the distance. To be honest, she felt a profound sense of awe. She had originally thought he was just an ordinary nineteen-year-old youth and had always treated him with a casual, relaxed attitude. It wasn't until witnessing him command the taming of the wild herd that she finally realized the truth about this boy.

It was incredibly fortunate that he was born in an era of peace.

Otherwise, he would undoubtedly have been a terrifyingly ambitious warlord.

When she first met him, Hathaway had not bothered to learn much about him. In her biased perception, people from the East all looked the same anyway. Only after knowing him for a while did she uncover the myriad of his legendary exploits, including his infamous moniker as the Eastern Dark Knight of Wall Street.

He truly was a miraculous boy from the East.

That evening, Anne Hathaway wore a black light gauze nightdress that half-concealed her snow-white skin. Lying prone on her bed, she used a quill pen to write in her diary, noting that she had initially treated Zhou Yuwen as just another ordinary boy.

"But now I find that this Eastern boy possesses an utterly unique charisma. It is incredibly difficult to imagine that he is only nineteen years old."

"He claimed they come from an ancient lineage of wizards, and now... I am actually starting to believe it."

While Zhou Yuwen was busy building the estate and taming horses with Hathaway, the girls were not sitting idle either. They contributed every single day, doing whatever they could to help construct the estate.

Lu Wanting coordinated with Su Qing remotely to purchase the raw materials required for the construction.

Meanwhile, Shen Yu was busily planning her very own flower garden and winery.

Zheng Yanyan, having nothing better to do, dragged Lu Lin along, declaring that they were going to explore the ancient castle on the estate.

"Movies always show that these ancient buildings hide secret treasures," Zheng Yanyan reasoned.

Lu Lin, however, deadpanned, "It might not be treasures. It could very well be vampires."

"Haha, how could there possibly be vampires? Linlin, those are purely fictional," she laughed.

Zheng Yanyan was brimming with enthusiasm for this castle expedition. Not only did she drag Lu Lin along, but she also pulled Shen Yu into the fold. And so, the three girls spent their days exploring the ancient castle.

Of course, there was absolutely nothing hidden in the ancient castle. However, they could at least tidy the place up, allowing it to serve as a temporary residence.

Despite this, Zheng Yanyan refused to give up hope. She continually fantasized about uncovering endless riches within the ancient castle. She would run her hands under the stone tables or pull on the wall lamps and candelabras, hoping to trigger some hidden mechanism.

Watching her frantic search, Lu Lin was rendered completely speechless. She explicitly told Zheng Yanyan that finding any treasure was absolutely impossible.

Just as those words left her mouth, Zheng Yanyan pulled down on a wall lamp hanging on the stone face.

A sudden, grinding clack echoed through the room.

A stone brick on the wall suddenly sank inward.

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