The Green Tea Supporting Girl Is Still Playing Her Role Today (GL) - Chapter 88

Chapter 88

“Brother Xie, how do you plan to handle this?” Gu’s mother asked.

Xie Hongxu’s face darkened slightly. He patted Xie Zhifei’s head, then lifted his eyes to look at the uneasy Wen Pinghan. After a long moment, he said to Gu’s mother, “If you have no other matters, you should head back first. This is a Xie family affair, something to discuss behind closed doors. How we handle it is no concern for outsiders.”

Gu’s mother’s face did not look good. She wanted to say more, but Wang Wan had already stood up. “Yes, Aunt, let’s go back.”

Gu’s mother glanced at her displeasedly.

Gu Zhizhang left without a care, full of anger. Gu’s mother hurried after him. “A-Zhang, A-Zhang!”

“Uncle Xie, sorry for the disturbance. We’ll head back now. Goodbye.” Wang Wan bid Xie Hongxu farewell, glanced at the two of them again, and quickly slipped away.

“Alright, now it’s just us. You can drop the act.” Xie Hongxu said.

“I’m not acting. I really do admire you so much. I declare that from now on, I’m a total daddy’s girl!” Xie Zhifei hugged his arm and acted coquettishly.

Xie Hongxu laughed once and poked her forehead. “You, have I been too indulgent with you, letting you get so spoiled?”

“It’s because you raised me so well~ Nothing like Gu Zhizhang’s mom!” Xie Zhifei huffed.

At that, Xie Hongxu’s face darkened again. He accused her, “Such a big matter, why didn’t you tell me in advance? I actually found out from Qingmin’s mouth. Do you know what kind of mood I was in at the time?”

“I was wrong…” Xie Zhifei lowered her head and admitted her mistake with a sincere attitude. “If you want to hit or scold me, just do it directly. I won’t resist at all, really.”

Xie Hongxu raised his hand. Wen Pinghan startled and instinctively rushed over.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Xie Hongxu asked.

“I…” Wen Pinghan’s lips moved. She hesitated, “You wouldn’t really hit her, would you?”

“What if I would?”

“Then could I take it for her? She’s your daughter. You’d feel heartbroken if you hit her, but I’m not. You can take it out on me.” Wen Pinghan pleaded.

“How could that be? Dad, if you hit her, I’d really get mad at you.” Xie Zhifei said quickly.

Xie Hongxu’s palm landed on her arm. “Get up. You’re pressing on my arm so much it’s gone numb.”

“Oh, alright.” Xie Zhifei immediately let go and stood up with an obedient face. She proactively went to massage his shoulders and back, and invited help. “Sister, come quick. You do the other side.”

“Ah?” Wen Pinghan was stunned for a moment. She looked at Xie Hongxu, who seemed about to speak but held back, then nodded. “Okay.”

“…” Xie Hongxu’s two arms were being massaged by them. He hummed, “Don’t think that by being so attentive, I’ll just let it go.”

“Here, Dad, have some hot tea.” Xie Zhifei picked up the cup and held it to his lips.

Xie Hongxu took a sip and frowned. “It’s cold.”

“I’ll go pour some hot.” Wen Pinghan immediately snatched the cup and dashed to the kitchen to pour hot water.

“Be careful not to burn yourself.” Wen Pinghan blew on it a few times before placing it in front of him.

Xie Hongxu looked her up and down a few times, set the cup aside, stood up, and said, “Come with me to the study.”

“Dad.” Xie Zhifei looked worried.

“It’s fine.” Wen Pinghan patted her hand reassuringly and followed Xie Hongxu into the study.

Xie Zhifei pressed against the door, listening carefully, but the door’s soundproofing was too good, so she heard nothing. After scratching her head in frustration for a long while, the door finally opened. She stumbled inward by accident, but Wen Pinghan caught her and steadied her.

“Dad, what did you two talk about?” Xie Zhifei asked eagerly.

“Nothing much.” Xie Hongxu strode out.

Wen Pinghan shook her head, signaling her not to ask yet.

Xie Zhifei had to hold back her questions for the time being. At that moment, her stomach suddenly growled.

Xie Hongxu turned back and stared puzzled at her stomach. “It’s only two-thirty. You’re already hungry?”

“Dad, I haven’t even eaten properly, have I? As soon as I got your call, I rushed over in a panic.” Xie Zhifei said aggrievedly. Then she suddenly thought that Wen Pinghan had arrived around the same time, so she asked quickly, “Sister, you haven’t eaten either, right?”

Wen Pinghan nodded.

Xie Hongxu looked at them helplessly.

Half an hour later, the two sat at the table eating. Xie Hongxu watched the computer in the living room.

“Dad, aren’t you mad at all?” Xie Zhifei asked while gnawing on a chicken leg.

Wen Pinghan looked up at her in confusion, only to hear her continue, “The Gu family investigated me behind your back. Can you swallow that?”

Xie Hongxu did not answer.

“Anyway, I couldn’t swallow it. I don’t want to pretend to be an obedient junior anymore just because of the relationship between you two elders. I don’t owe their family anything. From now on, I won’t have any dealings with that mother and son.” Xie Zhifei said bluntly.

“Just eat your meal properly.” Xie Hongxu said.

Xie Zhifei made a face at Wen Pinghan, which made her laugh.

“Eat some of this.” Wen Pinghan picked up some greens and put them in her bowl.

“I don’t want to eat that.”

“You need to eat more vegetables.”

“I don’t want to…”

“Just one bite?”

“Is there a reward?”

“There is.”

“Okay!” Xie Zhifei gritted her teeth and stuffed a mouthful of greens. After she finished, she held out her hand. “Where’s the reward?”

Wen Pinghan raised her thumb. “You’re great. Your reward is verbal praise.”

“Ha! You’ve gone bad!”

“I learned it from you.”

“Hee hee.”

Xie Hongxu turned his head and glanced at them.

After the meal, Xie Zhifei slipped behind Xie Hongxu and sneaked a peek at the computer screen. She saw he was reviewing the Gu Group’s annual financial report, with a split screen showing a chat with an old friend. If she remembered correctly, that old friend was one of the Gu Group’s major shareholders.

Indeed, he’s still an old fox. How could he allow anyone to bully his little fox?

Xie Zhifei smiled, pretended she saw nothing, took Wen Pinghan’s hand, and said, “Dad, are you still mad? If you haven’t calmed down, we’ll head back first and come see you another day?”

Xie Hongxu waved his hand. “Go on. I’m busy.”

“Okay.”

“Goodbye, Uncle Xie.” Wen Pinghan said.

Xie Hongxu nodded. He heard the two of them turn to leave, and moments later, heard his daughter say, “Sister, look at him. He didn’t even reply to you. I wouldn’t do that~”

Xie Hongxu: “???”

“Wait.” Xie Hongxu suddenly called them back.

Wen Pinghan turned around and waited for his instruction.

“…Goodbye.” Xie Hongxu awkwardly replied to her, then quickly turned back to the computer.

Wen Pinghan was stunned for a moment, a smile tugging at her lips. “Mm, we’ll come see you in a few days.”

Back home, the food had long gone cold. While Wen Pinghan dealt with the meal, Xie Zhifei could not help but ask again, “Sister, what exactly did you talk about with Dad?”

Wen Pinghan paused, then said, “He said he doesn’t agree.”

Xie Zhifei was shocked. “No way?”

“But he also doesn’t oppose it.” Wen Pinghan smiled a little.

“Oh, I get it. He’s taking a wait-and-see approach.” Xie Zhifei said.

Wen Pinghan nodded. “He also made one request.”

“What?”

“That we be discreet at the company and not let any bad rumors spread.”

“Mm… I’ll try.” Xie Zhifei said resentfully.

Wen Pinghan smiled faintly, wiped the table, and let out a long breath. “This is already much better than what I expected.”

“Really? So what did you expect? Beating the mandarin ducks apart, or offering five million to make you leave me?” Xie Zhifei asked with a laugh.

Given Gu’s mother’s first encounter with her, it had indeed made Wen Pinghan consider that possibility. On the way to the Xie residence, she had already imagined such a scene more than once, rehearsing in her mind over and over how she would respond.

“If my dad really did that, would you agree?” Xie Zhifei asked, her arms around her waist.

Wen Pinghan thought for a moment, then shared her true thoughts. “I wouldn’t decide alone. Dating is a matter for both of us, so I’d ask your opinion first. If you wanted to break up due to pressure, I wouldn’t blame you. Then I’d take the five million as emotional damages and leave. If you didn’t agree, I’d face no temptation or difficulty no matter how great.”

Xie Zhifei lifted her hand, cupped her face, her lips curving slightly. “I just love how clear-headed you are.”

“I don’t want to be this clear-headed.” Wen Pinghan lowered her eyes.

“It’s okay. None of what you’re worried about will happen.” Xie Zhifei kissed her gently. Wen Pinghan stroked her back, then lifted her onto the table.

Xie Zhifei’s arms wrapped around her neck. Her long hair brushed her cheek, tickling her heart. Soon, they shifted positions.

A few days later, Xie Zhifei received a message from Li Hongyan saying the Gu Group was holding a shareholders’ meeting.

The Gu Group’s annual report from last year did not look good, especially the second half’s performance, which had plummeted straight down. Plus, with Gu Zhizhang recently addicted to alcohol and unable to provide a satisfactory answer to the shareholders, they were furious. Someone had already proposed a change at the meeting.

It was said that Gu Zhizhang’s face had darkened at the meeting, and he argued with several old shareholders, showing no respect at all. His temper was huge, which greatly disappointed everyone.

Li Hongyan: [Next week, they’ll hold another shareholders’ meeting to re-elect. It depends on whether he can stay in that position.]

Xie Zhifei: [His mom will definitely go around begging shareholders for peace.]

Li Hongyan: [But this time he angered several shareholders. It won’t be easy to make peace.]

Xie Zhifei: [Which ones?]

Li Hongyan named a few people, one of whom was the old friend Xie Hongxu had contacted.

Xie Zhifei: [But the Gu family is the largest shareholder. It’s hard to topple him, right?]

Li Hongyan: [If I didn’t hear wrong, Wang Wan holds one percent of the shares. Gu’s mother gave it to her when she fought for custody. Don’t underestimate that one percent. Also, another shareholder is preparing to transfer shares and emigrate overseas. I don’t want to take it all myself, so I wondered if you’re interested in joining in?]

[Sure.] After hanging up for a long while, Xie Zhifei finally called Wang Wan.

“Hello? What are you up to?”

“Your family must be in quite a mess right now, huh?”

“It is a bit.” Wang Wan glanced at the mother and son arguing in the study, utterly exhausted. “Cousin came back from a meeting, and Aunt has been arguing with him ever since.”

“You must know what happened, right?”

“Mm.”

“Have you thought about transferring your shares?”

“You want them?”

“Mm, they’ve annoyed me for a long time.” Xie Zhifei did not bother with pretense, believing Wang Wan understood her mood at the moment.

Wang Wan was silent for a long time, then said, “I understand you, but… I can’t transfer them. Sorry.”

Xie Zhifei smiled a little. “Mm, I understand you too.”

If Wang Wan really transferred them to her at this time, it would indeed be too ungrateful to the Gu family.

“If it really comes to a vote… I’ll abstain.” Wang Wan said.

“That’s exactly what I was waiting for.” Xie Zhifei laughed.

“You guessed it already?”

“Just confirming. Anyway, whatever choice you make is fine.” Xie Zhifei said.

Wang Wan pursed her lips. “Can I come find you guys now? They’re so noisy.”

“Not convenient. I’m at Sister’s place.”

“The more the merrier. I don’t mind.”

“I do.”

“…”

Wen Pinghan passed by and, hearing their conversation, suddenly asked, “Isn’t she about to go abroad for school?”

“Yeah, I have to leave next week!” Wang Wan shouted from the other end of the line.

“Then let her come over and hang out. Bring Fang Ningshu and Zhao Xiaojing too. Everyone can gather before she leaves?” Wen Pinghan suggested.

“Okay, you’re the kindest!” Wang Wan immediately hung up, not giving Xie Zhifei time to refuse.

Wen Pinghan took Xie Zhifei to buy groceries. They had hotpot that evening. After preparing the ingredients, the guests arrived one after another.

The first to arrive was Fang Ningshu, since she lived closest.

The second was Wang Wan, who rushed in excitedly, darting around like she was back at her own home, looking everywhere, her mouth never stopping.

Zhao Xiaojing arrived last. As soon as she entered, she shouted, “These past few days have worn my legs numb, A-Fei. Come help me massage them.”

“I’m busy.”

“I’ll help you.” Wang Wan volunteered.

One minute later, Zhao Xiaojing’s pig-like squeals rang out.

The hotpot soon boiled up. Wen Pinghan picked up some cooked beef and put it in Xie Zhifei’s bowl.

Seeing that, Zhao Xiaojing deliberately said, “Wen Pinghan, you know about even distribution, right? If you’re too biased, I’ll get mad!”

Xie Zhifei looked innocent. “Sister, don’t worry about me. Go coax her quick, or she’ll throw a fit at you again. It’s different with me. You really don’t need to mind me~”

Zhao Xiaojing: “……I’m done. Xie Zhifei, I really am done with you!”

Wang Wan: “Me too!”

Fang Ningshu: “Same.”

Warmth alert: Just one more chapter of main story to the end~