Tang You's rebelliousness and resistance reached an unprecedented level tonight, or perhaps it was an outburst of emotions that had been pent up for so many years. After seeing the words written on Zhou Qinyao's paper airplane, an idea suddenly popped up in her mind.
An extremely bold and crazy idea.
It was like a spark falling into her barren world, instantly setting the prairie on fire, and all her thoughts were controlled by it.
Tang You had never been so impulsive and irrational before, but as soon as she thought of the words "You will still be my daughter when you are 80 years old", and thought that every day in the future would be under Fang Lai's extreme control.
She can't stand it.
Tang You can let herself be a puppet quietly before she turns eighteen.
But after meeting Zhou Qinyao and experiencing the freshness of life, she didn't want to and was unwilling to go back to the past.
She wanted to escape, desperately wanted to escape from this cage.
Tang You's decision was made in a matter of seconds.
I folded the paper airplane and hid it in my pocket. I turned around and looked at the distance between the second-floor balcony and the ground.
After a while, he suddenly asked Zhou Qinyao in a self-deprecating tone:
"Look at me standing here. Do I look like the princess imprisoned in the tower in those stories you told me?"
Zhou Qinyao: “Not really.”
"Um?"
"They are not as good as you."
Tang You paused for a moment, looked up at the air and smiled softly:
"Yeah."
“But I don’t want to be good anymore.”
Zhou Qinyao: “…”
An unfathomable emotion flashed across the girl's eyes. She said no more, said good night, and went back to her room.
Zhou Qinyao wanted to ask more, but the lights upstairs soon went out.
The room fell into darkness.
Although Tang You didn't explain the reason in detail, one look was enough to let Zhou Qinyao know that she was unhappy at the moment.
Their emotions were intertwined with each other. Tang You was unhappy, and Zhou Qinyao's heart was also tied to her, and he couldn't muster any interest.
He was not sure what had happened, but Tang You had already turned off the lights and gone to bed, so it seemed that there was no other way except to wait for her to wake up and ask.
I can't just rush into her house at this time.
Not suitable.
It was only ten o'clock, and Zhou Qinyao had no intention of going home to sleep, so he called Wei Kai out, and the two of them drank in a small shop on the street.
Zhou Qinyao was thinking about Tang You and didn't say much. He has always been like this. Wei Kai understood him and didn't ask too many questions. He just accompanied him to drink.
Although he was drunk, his mind was not. Zhou Qinyao thought in a contradictory way -
If she hadn't met me, Tang You might still be quietly learning her cello and successfully studying abroad.
But when she met herself, the trajectory of her life changed.
Zhou Qinyao raised his head and drank a glass of wine.
The wine was strong, just like his strong emotions.
It was his love that brought about earth-shaking changes in Tang You.
If she was a princess imprisoned in a tower, then he had to be the one to bring her out.
We drank until midnight, when the customers gradually left the store. The noisy atmosphere became much quieter and the surrounding sounds became clearer.
The entertainment channel's evening news was being replayed on TV. The host's announcement was in a clear and loud voice. Zhou Qinyao didn't pay attention at first, but Wei Kai beside him detected some gossip.
He was watching TV and chewing peanuts:
"Fuck, even a big brand like Moon has to fake it. In this world, there is really nothing we can trust now."
Hearing Wei Kai's words, Zhou Qinyao felt a chill in his heart, thinking that he had misheard the name. However, when he looked at the TV, the news headline in the lower right corner made his eyes sink immediately -
Moon was exposed to have mostly artificial diamonds and moissanite products, and the brand has not responded yet.
Zhou Qinyao: …
The movement holding the cup froze.
"Brother Yao? Brother Yao?" Wei Kai waved his hand in front of him and asked him, "Two more bottles?"
Zhou Qinyao stood up and walked out: "I'll make a call."
He called Zhou Yan, but no one answered Zhou Yan's call.
I called several senior executives I knew in the past, but their calls were all transferred or turned off.
The world seemed to be in chaos in an instant.
Zhou Qinyao had no choice but to search for relevant information on the Internet himself.
It turned out that an Italian fashion blogger bought Moon's necklace. After her friends complained that it looked like a fake, she became more cautious and went for an appraisal. Only then did she discover that the diamond advertised as a famous diamond was just an artificial synthetic diamond. After the news broke on Twitter abroad, many domestic buyers went for appraisals and found that what they were wearing were almost all synthetic imitation diamonds.
This topic is still on the hot search list and is spreading rapidly.
The incident happened too suddenly. When Zhou Qinyao saw the ugly comments online cursing Moon, every word hurt him.
He closed his Weibo account, and anger quickly surged in his heart.
He took a sip of his drink, put the glass down on the table with a slight thump— "Fuck."
Wei Kai was startled by him and looked up to find that the man opposite him had a horrible expression on his face.
He didn't understand, so he asked weakly:
"… What's wrong?"
Zhou Qinyao shook his head and controlled his emotions: "It's okay."
In fact, he should have thought of it earlier. The fake goods at the last jewelry show would not be the first time by coincidence. It must have started long before that.
Wu Meng's greed and shamelessness far exceeded her ability as a mistress.
Zhou Qinyao closed his eyes and frowned.
At this moment, the phone on the table rang. Thinking it was Zhou Yan calling back, Zhou Qinyao picked it up without even looking at it, but heard the soft voice of a little girl:
"Are you asleep? Can you open the door for me?"
Zhou Qinyao could hear the sound of wind blowing past his ears. He was stunned for a moment and immediately stood up: "Where are you?"
Tang You said with a little excitement: "In front of your house!"
"… "
One o'clock in the morning.
Is she crazy...
"Stand there and don't move. I'll be right back!"
Zhou Qinyao paid the bill and quickly ran back to the alley.
There was a small street lamp every five meters in the alley. Just as he reached the corner of the courtyard, Zhou Qinyao saw Tang You leaning quietly against his door under the dim street light.
The dim light enveloped her, and at first glance, it occupied her entire world.
He couldn't help but walk quickly forward and call her name.
Tang You turned around, the corners of his lips raised subconsciously: "Where have you been? I thought you were at home."
Zhou Qinyao walked closer, still in disbelief: "Why are you here?"
The girl's eyes were filled with a faint glow, and she smiled in a relaxed manner and said:
"I escaped from prison."
Zhou Qinyao: “…?”
Only then did I notice the school bag and cello case on her shoulders.
He was stunned for a moment, a little unbelievable: "What do you mean? Running away from home?"
Tang You blinked: "Yes."
"… "
Zhou Qinyao paused, and rubbed her head as if trying to hold back his laughter: "What are you thinking about now?"
Tang You didn't smile at all: "I'm serious."
Zhou Qinyao’s expression froze.
Tang You looked at him calmly:
"My mother knows everything."
"She won't let me go out, and she's going to take me back to Haicheng tomorrow."
Zhou Qinyao: “…”
As if feeling childish about his own behavior, Tang You laughed as he spoke, and murmured softly:
"Actually I know I can't escape from my mother's grasp, but if I have to leave..."
The little girl raised her head, her eyes clearly reflected in the night:
"I want to try to see you again."
Zhou Qinyao was stunned by her words.
He guessed that the problem might be caused by his identity being exposed, and Fang Lai's opposition was also within his expectations.
But Tang You's bold move now was far beyond his expectations.
I was touched by her trust, but also felt strongly guilty.
He actually let her bear the storm alone.
Zhou Qinyao looked at her distressedly, and it was only then that he realized, "If you are not allowed to go out, then how did you get out?"
Tang You smiled secretly: "I climbed down from the balcony."
After saying this, he spread out his hand to show off: "I calculated the distance, it's just a slight scratch."
Crazy…
Zhou Qinyao's heart tightened and he hurried to look at her hand.
Only when he saw that there were no major wounds did he relax and heaved a sigh of relief.
The girl's eyes were brave and determined, just like herself two years ago, young, impulsive, full of passion, and desperate.
I took her home, took some iodine and gauze to clean her wound, and asked calmly:
"You know what it's like to live alone out there?"
"... I don't know." Tang You's eyes were clear and full of trust: "But you will accompany me, right?"
Zhou Qinyao shook his head, his hands moving slowly:
"I'll keep you company, but not like this."
Leaving home is not a good life experience.
He had already walked this path once, and didn't want her to repeat the same mistake again.
Tang You looked at him blankly, not quite understanding what he meant.
Zhou Qinyao smiled faintly, helped her put on the band-aid, and didn't say anything else, but changed the subject:
"Are you hungry?"
Speaking of which, Tang You hasn't eaten anything since he came back, so he is indeed hungry.
But she looked around the man's simple room: "What do you have to eat here?"
"What do you want to eat?"
“Are there any noodles?”
Zhou Qinyao stood up: "I'll go out and buy it for you."
"Then don't."
Now every minute they spend together is precious to her. Tang You grabbed Zhou Qinyao's sleeve and said, "Don't leave."
Zhou Qinyao knew what she was thinking, but the little girl was hungry and refused to let him go...
After thinking for a while, he stood up and said, "Wait for me for two minutes."
Although he didn't know what Zhou Qinyao was going to do, the time was within an acceptable range, so Tang You nodded: "Okay."
Two minutes later, Zhou Qinyao came in with a bag.
Put it in front of Tang You: "See if there is anything you like to eat."
Tang You leaned closer and opened it to take a look—
A variety of snacks, jellies, cakes, chocolates, wafers...
"Where did it come from?"
Zhou Qinyao pointed to the room opposite: "Xiaoyang's."
Tang You chuckled, "Will he blame me for stealing his snacks when he wakes up?"
"He has been on a diet recently, so he can't eat these." Zhou Qinyao rummaged through the bag, took out a cream-flavored wafer biscuit, and opened the package. "That brat loves this the most, try it."
Tang You took it and took a bite. It was fragrant and crispy: "Hmm, so fragrant."
He generously broke it in the middle and gave him the remaining half: "You eat it too."
Zhou Qinyao narrowed his eyes, but took away the bitten half of her hand lazily: "Okay."
As he spoke, he slowly put it into his mouth, chewed it twice, and said meaningfully:
"Mm, it smells really good."
This indirect intimacy made Tang You blush.
She unnaturally lowered her head to open a bag of Jellyfish: "…Then I'll eat this."
She took a deep sip, her cheeks sunken in, the jelly was smooth and sweet, and the little girl's eyes curved into a beautiful arc:
“This is delicious too!”
"Then I'll try it too."
"… "
After that, every time Tang You ate something, Zhou Qinyao would come over to taste a bite. At first, Tang You was a little embarrassed, but slowly it turned into a snack tasting session for the two of them.
The sad atmosphere of separation tomorrow was completely gone, and in the east wing in the middle of the night, the girl's giggling could be heard continuously.
Only Zhou Qinyao can give Tang You this kind of relaxation.
Only Tang You can give it to Zhou Qinyao.
When the atmosphere was getting tense, the cell phone rang rapidly.
Zhou Qinyao took a look and his expression calmed down a little.
He stood up and left:
"You eat first, I'm going to go out and answer a phone call."
Tang You: “Oh.”
I walked into the yard and answered Zhou Yan's call.
The person on the other end said a little tiredly: "I've been busy, so I just had time to call you."
Zhou Qinyao asked: "I saw the news. What happened?"
"That's what you saw. In fact, the incident broke out a few days ago. I tried everything I could to suppress it."
"… "
After a moment of silence, Zhou Yan said, "Brother, I'm actually in the hospital now."
Seeing Zhou Qinyao didn't say anything, he added: "Uncle was so angry that his blood pressure exploded and he was hospitalized. He is just being rescued."
A deep sigh.
"These past few days, there have been chargebacks and claims everywhere, as well as countless lawyers' letters. People from the Industrial and Commercial Bureau have also come. The company is in chaos, and Wu Meng doesn't seem to want to save the situation at all."
"elder brother… "
There was pleading and helplessness in Zhou Yan's voice.
Zhou Qinyao once swore with great ambition that he would never set foot inside the Zhou family no matter whether it prospered or failed. But when he really saw it collapsing like a mountain, he found that he was not as free and easy as he imagined.
I smoked a few cigarettes, the ashes blended faintly into the moonlight, and my thoughts became longer and longer.
When I returned to the room, Tang You had fallen asleep leaning against the bed.
Zhou Qinyao helped him pull up the quilt and sat next to her.
The girl who ran away from home, the house that collapsed overnight, Zhou Yan's repeated pleadings.
It seemed as if fate made all this happen. For the first time, Zhou Qinyao felt as if the burden on his shoulders was being pressed down by something.
And he had no choice.
The sky turns white and a new day begins.
The little girl slept soundly, but Zhou Qinyao didn't sleep a wink all night.
At seven o'clock, he woke Tang You up: "Be good, get up, and go somewhere with me."
Tang You opened her eyes and saw the clear face of the man in front of her. The happiness in her dream seemed to continue in reality.
She stretched and asked, "Where are you going?"
Zhou Qinyao: "Your home."
"… "
Although she was extremely reluctant, Tang You, who had run away from home for a night, was still taken back home by Zhou Qinyao.
At the entrance of the villa, Aunt Rong was talking to someone on the phone. When she saw them coming in, she said to the person on the phone with great joy:
"She's back! The lady is back!"
The other party said something, and Aunt Rong handed the phone to Zhou Qinyao: "Our wife is looking for you."
Tang You was afraid that Fang Lai would make things difficult for Zhou Qinyao, so she wanted to grab the phone and take responsibility for the incident, but Zhou Qinyao stopped her.
His eyes suggested that it was okay, and he picked up the phone.
If a daughter runs away from home in the middle of the night, every mother would think that she was corrupted by her man.
Naturally, there was a burst of scolding, but Zhou Qinyao listened quietly without refutation.
After listening for a while, he replied politely and calmly:
"No need. It's tiring to go back and forth. I'm here to see you."
This meeting was inevitable.
After hanging up the phone, Zhou Qinyao said to Tang You:
"I'm going to Haicheng to see your mother."
At the same time, he also sent a message to Zhou Yan:
—All the information is ready, I will be back today.
The author has something to say: Sorry everyone, I have been stuck on this chapter for two days, and I have written three or four versions that I am not satisfied with. I didn’t do the double update today as promised!! I kneel down! I will try to make up for it tomorrow or the day after tomorrow, and I will definitely not miss it!!
——
◎The Millennium Star Diamond is one of the largest diamonds in the world, weighing 203.04 carats, and was found in Mbujima, Democratic Republic of Congo. Its clarity grade is Internally Flawless. Harry Oppenheimer, a senior figure in the diamond industry, described the Millennium Star as the most beautiful diamond he had ever seen.