Translator: Dj2203
Editor: Dj2203
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A majestic voice interrupted the quarrel in the study.
When everyone looked back, they saw a man in his thirties standing outside the wool-carpeted corridor. His unusually tall figure blocked the crystal chandelier hanging at the entrance of the spiral staircase, casting a heavy shadow.
He frowned with sharp eyebrows like a knife, as if he was extremely displeased, his eyes were like a hawk, looking straight at him, his thin lips were tightly pursed, his expression was cold and hard, and his whole body exuded a strong sense of oppression.
He walked slowly into the study, took off his leather gloves, handed them to the butler without looking back, sat on a sofa placed alone beside him, and said in a deep voice: “Everyone, sit down. If you have any dissatisfaction with Zhuang Li, you can tell me in person. I will help you be the arbitrator.”
In fact, he was indeed an arbitrator.
As the chief executive of China, he had the power to legislate, amend laws and make decisions. He represented the country’s laws, morals and order.
He was the kind of person that Zhuang Jincheng would never meet in his life. He was in a high position and had great power, and his words were law.
Zhuang Jincheng’s face, which was distorted by anger, immediately formed a humble smile. He nodded and bowed to the man, greeting him frequently, looking like a funny clown.
Liao Xiujing had already known who this newly appointed administrator was through her son, so she could only lower her head to hide her resentful expression. Old Shao had already turned to ashes, but he still left Zhuang Li with such a big backer! God was so unfair!
Only Zhuang Han behaved calmly and politely, greeting the man: “Uncle Zong, you are back. Was this trip difficult?”
Uncle Zong? Zhuang Li looked his lover up and down, his expression a little subtle. For no reason, he actually became a generation smaller?
Zong Zhengming ignored Zhuang Han and looked past Zhuang Jincheng, locking his eyes with Zhuang Li. He pointed at the sofa opposite him and softened his solemn and cold voice: “Sit down.”
Zhuang Li walked over slowly and sat down opposite him, his thin lips as red as blood curling up a little sincerely. Seeing this person, he finally felt much better.
Zong Zhengming stared at Zhuang Li for a while, then glanced at Zhuang Jincheng, his face full of cold impatience, “Didn’t you have a lot to say just now? I’m giving you a chance to accuse him now, why don’t you open your mouth?”
How could Zhuang Jincheng dare to say those words that belittled Zhuang Li in front of Zong Zhengming?
Everyone knew that this administrator received favors from Mr. Shao when he was young. Due to work reasons, he had not had much contact with the Shao family in recent years, but he would still stand up for them at the most critical moment.
He personally admitted that he was a member of the network left by Mr. Shao, and the meaning of this was very subtle.
Then Zhuang Jincheng understood everything. Zong Zhengming was not here to be an arbitrator. He clearly wanted to help Zhuang Li suppress the other members of the Zhuang family. Although Mr. Shao was gone, he would take his place and continue to be Zhuang Li’s protector.
Zhuang Jincheng couldn’t afford to offend Zong Zhengming, so he could only grit his teeth, bow and apologize, his attitude was really humble.
Zhuang Han smiled bitterly and said, “Mr. Zong Zhengming, you misunderstood. We didn’t want to have a conflict with Big Brother. Big Brother has been stimulated and his emotions are a little unstable. Please help us comfort him. Don’t let him say those words that seem to want to kill me in public anymore. It won’t be good for Big Brother if people spread it outside. Mr. Zong Zhengming, we will leave first. Big Brother, you should have a good rest and don’t let your mind wander. We are all your relatives and will stand by you when you need us.”
After saying these words, he nodded slightly, then took Zhuang Jincheng and walked away slowly, without any panic or servility.
Compared with his elegant demeanor, Zhuang Jincheng looked like a grumpy and ignorant clown.
Zhuang Li didn’t even bother to give any attention to the Zhuang family, he just stared at his lover sitting opposite him.
Zong Zhengming was also looking at him, but his gaze was deeper and his emotions were more obscure.
On weekdays, he would often call Mr. Shao, and the topic they talked about most was what trouble Zhuang Li had caused yesterday, who he had offended today, and what kind of mess he would leave behind tomorrow.
Mr. Shao had a lot of headaches because of this naughty grandson.
Over time, Zong Zhengming’s impression of Zhuang Li thus hit rock bottom.
If he had not promised Mr. Shao that he would take care of Zhuang Li, he would not have come this time. In his mind, Zhuang Li was a rude man with no restraint, a playboy with a decadent private life, a fool with no brains but who loved showing off, and there was almost no redeeming quality in his body.
However, when he actually met this person, all his negative impressions were instantly overturned.
Yes, Zhuang Li was indeed outspoken, but under the extreme grief and anger, Zong Zhengming could fully understand his feelings. If his grandfather’s death was so suspicious and hasty, and he had no reaction at all, then he would have failed his grandfather and his meticulous care and concern for him would be in vain.
This showed that he was a straightforward person who took feelings very seriously, but his personality was still a bit impulsive and needed to be polished.
Zong Zhengming was also surprised by Zhuang Li’s appearance. He thought he would see a young man with pale skin, dark eyes, and a listless look due to excessive consumption of energy by women.
But the real Zhuang Li was not decadent at all. He bore almost no resemblance to the one in the news pages. His facial features were still the same, but his temperament was completely different.
The corners of his narrow, upturned eyes were tinged with crimson, as if he had just cried, but his pupils were surprisingly bright. Every line on his face was soft, yet it outlined a cold face.
He was a complete contradiction, with a mysterious aura all over him.
No wonder he had so many girlfriends, it turned out that it was this face that caused the trouble.
Thinking of this, Zong Zhengming frowned even more and warned in a deep voice: “Some things should be kept in your heart and not spoken out. Your grandfather is gone, so you’d better be more restrained in your actions in the future.”
“So what if I don’t restrain myself?” Zhuang Li raised his chin and spoke with a smile.
When he put on an arrogant look, this cold face suddenly became extremely beautiful.
Zong Zhengming’s gaze froze for a moment, but he quickly looked away as if nothing had happened and said patiently: “I know you are very sad now, but you are the only one left in the Shao family, and the people in the Zhuang family are unreliable. You must learn to be independent as soon as possible. You must control your emotions, manage your expressions, and lock your mouth. If you can’t say something, you must hide it; if you don’t want to say something but must say it, you must learn to package it beautifully. The world of adults is very complicated. You must learn to compromise, give in, and endure, and you must also learn to be strong, brave, and decisive.”
Zong Zhengming said coldly: “I know this is difficult, but I will teach you.”
Zhuang Li knocked his elbows on his knees, clasped his fingers together, leaned forward, and looked at Zong Zhengming very closely, his tone very aggressive: “How do you teach me? What do you want me to become? Like you, wearing a cold mask, hiding my true self, not showing any sincerity? Like you, obviously in love but pretending to be indifferent, and then pushing the person I want further and further away?”
“I’m sorry, I can’t learn these and I don’t want to learn them.” Zhuang Li shook his head slowly and sat up straight.
His lover in this world had already climbed to the pinnacle of power and was used to the intrigues of the political arena, so he was very introverted and acted very cautiously. When they first met, he did not show any emotion at all, so Zhuang Li could not tell whether he still had feelings for her.
But it didn’t matter. He would force this person’s true face out if he had to.
“Don’t try to change me. I won’t listen to you. Do you understand——”
Zhuang Li stood up and walked forward slowly. He then placed his hands on the armrests of Zong Zhengming’s sofa, and took him into his shadow. He whispered, “If I like someone, I will tell him loudly; if I want someone, I will reach out and hug him. I will love when I want to love and hate when I want to hate. I will not suppress it, nor will I pretend. Don’t try to make me like you.”
His eyes were very dark, deep, and bright, with a little light flowing in his irises, as if hiding a vast universe. He was indeed very mysterious, but when necessary, he was surprisingly frank.
Zong Zhengming’s mind was unknowingly absorbed by the universe and he fell into a state where he could not think.
He finally understood why Mr. Shao doted on this naughty grandson so much. His debauchery, his recklessness, his madness, in fact, were all powerful genuine forces.
He was out of tune with this world where everyone wore a mask, yet he was so dazzling and special.
Zong Zhengming’s steady heartbeat suddenly became chaotic.
He suppressed his voice and said, “If you don’t know how to conceal yourself, you will suffer a great loss in the business world sooner or later. If tens of billions of assets fall into the hands of an incompetent playboy, what do you think those wolves outside will think? I’m not belittling you, but this is the impression you leave on others. When facing someone who has no ability to resist, those old foxes in the business world will never be merciful and will only attack him in groups. Sit back and think about your future.”
The last sentence was full of irritability.
Zhuang Li sat back, crossed his long legs, and narrowed his narrow eyes slightly, as if he was thinking, but his gaze was always fixed on Zong Zhengming.
Zong Zhengming took out a pack of cigarettes from his suit pocket, lit it up and took a deep puff, his thick brows tightly furrowed from beginning to end.
He thought he could easily deal with Zhuang Li, but he didn’t expect that the other party was such a difficult person.
With such looks, such personality, and such charm, it was no wonder that the Internet was flooded with gossip about Zhuang Li.
The more Zong Zhengming thought about it, the more irritated he became, but he didn’t show it on his face. He just smoked one cigarette after another and then looked across the smoke. After the lingering mist blurred his vision, his rapid heartbeat finally calmed down a little.
Zhuang Li suddenly chuckled, “Uncle Zong, it is said that when a man suddenly feels sexual urges in public, he will use smoking to suppress and relieve this emotion.”
Zong Zhengming, who was smoking a cigarette, said: “…”
If he had not been accustomed to strong winds and waves and adapted to all kinds of situations, he might have been choked by the smoke and started coughing loudly.
Zong Zhengming fiercely slammed the burning cigarette into the ashtray and asked in a deep voice, “Where did you hear such words? Is it appropriate for a junior like you to tease an elder like this?”
“This was said by Sigmund Freud. It has nothing to do with me.” Zhuang Li spread his hands with an innocent look on his face.
“If you can’t control your mouth, you will offend everyone sooner or later.” Zong Zhengming stood up and said helplessly, “Since you won’t listen to me, forget it.”
He wanted to say that he would not care about him anymore, but when the words came to his lips, he changed them to: “This is my business card, you can call me if you have any problems in the future. If you still have feelings for your grandfather, take good care of the things he left for you and stop playing around. I will tell the police station to continue investigating your case and your grandfather’s case, and I will help you find the murderer.”
Placing the business card next to the ashtray, Zong Zhengming turned around and left. When he was about to leave, he turned back and warned in a deep voice: “Don’t date random girls anymore. People who want to deal with you may start from this aspect. Exposing your weaknesses is the most dangerous and stupid thing to do. Find a few more bodyguards, don’t go out alone, and my phone is on 24 hours a day.”
The butler bent over and presented him a pair of black gloves.
Zong Zhengming put on his gloves, walked down the spiral staircase, and never looked back.
Zhuang Li leaned on the railing and watched him go, smiling and said, “Uncle Zong, I forgot to tell you that I don’t like women now. I only like men, especially tall and mighty men like you.”
Zong Zhengming paused for a moment, then quickened his pace and left.
7480 said cautiously: “Master, it seems that the gods of this world don’t like you very much?”
Zhuang Li smiled even more excitedly: “You don’t understand, this is the really interesting part. I like to drive serious people crazy.”
7480: “…”
All right, big devil.
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