The Heiress's Game

After the Bentley's taillights disappeared around the street corner, Gu Yunjin and Zhang Zhuoran exchanged a glance and then laughed at the same time.

"Bai Tianyi's cousin has such a powerful presence."

Gu Yunjin sat down again, picked up her chopsticks, and continued to eat the half-eaten mantis shrimp.

"When he said 'I can read lips,' Bai Tianyi's face turned green."

"I've known Tianyi for so long, and this is the first time I've seen him act so cowardly."

Zhang Zhuoran smiled and shook his head, then picked up an oyster and handed it to her.

"He's usually jumping around like a monkey in front of us, but he's as well-behaved as a primary school student in front of his brother. Here, this won't taste good if it gets cold."

The two continued eating barbecue and chatting, neither of them letting the little incident spoil their mood.

Just as Zhang Zhuoran was about to ask the owner for another serving of grilled squid, his phone on the table vibrated.

Gu Yunjin and Zhang Zhuoran's WeChat notification sounds rang almost at the same second.

The two looked down and saw a small group chat for three people called "Dahai City Slacking Off Squad".

Bai Tianyi sent a series of messages. The first was three crying emojis, the second was an apology with hands clasped together, and the third was a voice message.

Gu Yunjin opened the voice message. Bai Tianyi's voice was very low, obviously sent secretly in the car.

"Brothers, I'm so sorry! I left in such a hurry that I didn't even have time to say goodbye properly! My brother just dragged me to the airport—yes, right now, I'm going back to Yunjing tonight!"

I am deeply grateful for your care over the past three months, Zhang Zhuoran. I will always remember your kindness in providing me with oysters!

Miss Gu, I will always remember your kindness in helping me with racing!

Once I'm settled back in Yunjing, you absolutely must come! I'll take care of you the whole time and make sure you have a great time!

The voice message paused here, and then a new one was sent:

My brother is looking out the window right now, so before he turns his head, I'll say it again—I just ate two of those oysters!!

Two!!! He ruined the rest!!! You guys eat a few more for me!!!

Zhang Zhuoran smiled, held the phone to his mouth, and pressed the voice call button:

"Alright, I got it. You can go back to Yunjing for reform in peace. I'll eat the oysters for you. Send me a message when you arrive."

Gu Yunjin also picked up her phone, her tone full of barely concealed amusement:

"Tianyi, when you get to Yunjing, remember to praise your brother a few more times, and don't let him catch you again."

Three seconds later, Bai Tianyi replied with a crying emoji, followed by an OK sign, and finally sent the message, "You guys absolutely have to come!!!"

It was followed by a whole row of exclamation marks, probably more than twenty, and it kept going until it stopped after several messages.

Gu Yunjin smiled, placed her phone on the table, and shook her head: "He really was caught and taken back."

Meanwhile, in the back seat of the Bentley on the way to the airport, Bai Tianyi sent his last WeChat message and put his phone back in his pocket.

Bai Junze, who was sitting next to him, was leaning back in his chair, looking at a document with no expression on his face.

The carriage was quiet for about three minutes. Bai Tianyi couldn't hold back any longer, so he turned around and adopted a posture as if he was ready to confess.

"Brother, to tell you the truth, I've had a really great time in Dahai City these past three months—not in the sarcastic way of saying 'I was wrong, I shouldn't have run away,' but genuinely happy."

It was wrong of me to run away from home after having a fight with my family, but these past three months with Zhang Zhuoran and Gu Yunjin have made me feel for the first time that I don't have to pretend, I don't have to put on airs, and I don't have to think about the family business.

Eating oysters and drinking beer at a street food stall, chatting with friends, makes me feel alive again.

Honestly, I wish I could live my whole life without having to work.

Bai Junze shifted his gaze from the documents to Bai Tianyi's face, his tone indifferent.

"Once I break your legs, you can never go back."

"To be honest, Dahai City is a pretty good place for a cripple to retire."

Bai Tianyi was taken aback, then resignedly leaned back in his seat and sighed.

"Fine, I won't argue with you. You've always been like this since you were little, I'm used to it."

He paused for about two seconds after saying that, then rallied, turned to face Bai Junze, and his eyes lit up.

"Brother, what do you think of Gu Yunjin? You know, that Miss Gu from earlier. Let me tell you, she's really interesting—you know she drives race cars? Real race cars, not the kind you see in photos."

The first time I sat in the passenger seat of her car, I was so scared that I screamed the whole way, but she was still able to tell me "Don't be afraid" while we were going around corners.

Also, she did a variety show called "Walking with Brilliance", which is incredibly popular now.

She was completely different from the rich heiresses I knew in Yunjing—those rich heiresses were either showing off their bags or going out for afternoon tea.

I'm telling you, she's really interesting.

After listening to this long-winded explanation, Bai Junze simply said one word: "Oh."

Silence fell over the carriage again.

Looking at his brother's expressionless profile, Bai Tianyi sighed deeply in his heart. His older brother was truly incredibly boring.

Bai Tianyi felt like a prisoner being escorted—no, at least prisoners can chat with their fellow inmates in the prison van, but the person next to him was more like a breathing stone statue.

He held it in for about five more minutes, but then he couldn't hold it in any longer.

"Brother, are you not interested in anything?"

He turned around, crossed one leg on the chair, and assumed a posture ready for a heart-to-heart talk.

"Are you interested in beautiful women? Look at that Miss Gu from earlier—don't you think she's different from other girls?"

Normal guys will chat a bit more with girls they find interesting.

She also said she'd take me go-karting next time! Go-karting! You know, that feeling of flying close to the ground, just thinking about it makes me so excited—”

He became more and more excited as he spoke, completely forgetting that he was being escorted back to Beijing.

"And Zhang Zhuoran, you know, he got a new fishing boat and said he'd take us out to sea for fishing next time."

Grilling it right after sea fishing—the taste is absolutely amazing.

We also made plans to go surfing next month. Gu Yunjin said she had surfed a few times abroad before, and she even said she would teach me a technique called "shortboard wave cutting"—"

As he spoke, he was still immersed in the beautiful image of sunshine, waves, sea breeze on his face, and Gu Yunjin standing on the surfboard, turning back to smile.

Then he opened his eyes and saw Bai Junze's expressionless face.

The images of surfing burst like bubbles, replaced by his older brother's deadpan face.

From this moment on, his life will no longer be about oysters, racing, and surfing, but about 8 a.m. meetings, mountains of project proposals, and the older brother next to him demanding that he submit revisions line by line.

He leaned back in his seat and clutched his chest with his hand: "Brother, I suddenly feel a little uncomfortable in my heart."

Bai Junze finally raised his eyes and glanced at him.

That glance showed no worry, no tension, not even the slightest curiosity.

"Are you having heart problems?" he asked in a flat tone.

"Yes, it's that feeling of being overjoyed but then saddened, of being caught in the act of being too happy to leave, and then feeling terrible."

Bai Tianyi clutched his chest dramatically, his expression one of such pain that he could win Best Actor.

"Brother, do you think I might suddenly have a heart attack? I'm only in my twenties. It would be such a shame if I died suddenly because I lost my freedom."

How are you going to explain this to Grandpa? "Grandpa, Tianyi had a heart attack because he couldn't go surfing"—do you think Grandpa will believe you?

Bai Junze glanced at him for two seconds, then looked down at his tablet again.

"Your heart is in excellent condition. See you in the conference room at eight o'clock tomorrow morning."

Bai Tianyi opened his mouth, then closed it again.

He mentally ranted – this is the difference between people.

If Zhang Zhuoran were here, he would definitely join in. The two of them could talk about everything from surfing to yachts, from yachts to racing, from racing to which country has the best seafood, and finally they would be howling like ghosts with beer bottles in hand at a roadside stall at three in the morning.

But sitting next to him now wasn't Zhang Zhuoran, but his cousin, who could treat even a joke as meeting minutes.

This guy's world probably consists of PPTs, Excel spreadsheets, and project schedules; even his breathing is based on KPIs.