I'm afraid I'm not interested in love

Chapter 604 Love or Responsibility
"Dad, didn't you keep saying you couldn't come back today? How come you are free again?"

When Chu Qingmian picked up the teacup, he did not forget to clink the cup with Su Chengyi in a playful manner. The porcelain cups collided, making a crisp sound.

Su Chengyi rubbed the bottom of the cup with his fingertips, guessing in his mind what answer Chu Yuanjiang might give.

Chu Qingmian's question seemed casual, but it was actually full of temptation.

"Of course, that's because I want to give you a big surprise!"

Chu Yuanjiang squinted his eyes and answered with a grin.

"."

"."

Su Chengyi and Chu Qingmian fell silent at the same time.

No matter how brightly the fire crackled in the fireplace, it could not change the freezing atmosphere outside.

Finally, Chu Qingmian could no longer bear it. She slapped the cup and said with raised eyebrows:
"Dad! If you have something to say, just tell me directly. Why are you beating around the bush? I thought you were my only comrade in arms in the family, and you stabbed me in the back!

I tell you, Su Chengyi is already very tired tonight, playing chess with Chu Xuanxuan and writing. If you have something to say, just say it directly. Don't do this anymore!"

After being angrily scolded by the blackened version of Little Cotton Jacket, Chu Yuanjiang said, "Hey," and said:

"Play chess with Chu Xuanxuan?"

"Yes, that child is very talented in Go."

Su Chengyi nodded and replied.

"Aha! Don't be polite to me. I know how strong that guy is. I've met a tough guy like you. It would be nice to teach him a lesson and put an end to his arrogance."

Chu Yuanjiang laughed, and after learning about this, he seemed to feel a little better.

"I know nothing about Go. Last time, this guy stole my mini sports car. Xiao Su, you are helping me vent my anger."

"Just luck."

Su Chengyi laughed.

"Still talking."

Chu Qingmian curled his lips and said to Su Chengyi:
"My dad was very confident. Even though he didn't know anything, he thought it was no problem to bully a little kid. But he ended up getting severely beaten up by Xuanxuan."

"That's it."

Su Chengyi lowered his head, took a sip of scented tea and smiled slightly.

"Hey, stop exposing your dad's shortcomings."

Chu Yuanjiang leaned back in the recliner and snapped his fingers.

Butler Han in the corner immediately came forward, bent down and waited for instructions.

"Sir, you say."

"Take Miss and clean up first. Also, Xiao Su will rest here tonight, so ask someone to clean up a room."

Chu Yuanjiang said with a smile.

"Ok sir."

Butler Han lowered his head, turned and walked to Chu Qingmian, hoping that the young lady could cooperate with the boss's arrangements.

But she obviously had no such intention.

Chu Qingmian frowned slightly and asked:
"Excuse me, Boss Chu, is there anything I can't be present to hear?"

She asked directly, and just like what she had just said, she had no intention of beating around the bush.

I originally thought that Chu Yuanjiang would use his favorite "laugh it off" skill again and pretend to be stupid to get away with it, but I didn't expect him to pause and answer the question in a very serious tone.

"Mianmian, sometimes it is indeed not appropriate for you to be present during the communication between your father and your boyfriend."

"."

It was an unexpected answer, and also unexpectedly sincere.

Chu Qingmian had originally thought about how she would refute him if he made all kinds of excuses, but he did the opposite, which made it difficult for her to start.

Su Chengyi quietly drank the last bit of tea in the cup.

This is Chu Qingmian's favorite tea, which tastes sweet, and only when it is mixed with tea leaves at the end can one taste a little bitterness.

"You can stay and listen if you want, but there are some things that we would normally talk about that I won't mention. I hope you can understand."

Chu Yuanjiang coughed and spoke slowly.

Chu Qingmian pursed her lips, feeling a little conflicted.

In fact, what her father said was a rare moment of sincerity on his part, and he also left a lot of room for her to make her own choice.

However, she felt a little worried about leaving Su Chengyi alone with him. After going through all the procedures tonight, she felt tired for Su Chengyi.

While he was struggling, Su Chengyi next to him suddenly spoke:

"It's okay. I also have something to talk to Uncle Chu about."

It seemed that neither the Chu father nor his daughter had expected that the stalemate between them would be finally settled by Su Chengyi who stepped forward and put the stamp on it.

Although Chu Qingmian was worried, she was also obedient. She knew that since Su Chengyi said this on his own initiative, it meant that he was mentally prepared to have a private conversation with Chu Yuanjiang.

Chu Yuanjiang's attitude just now seemed to indicate that among the Chu family, his position was the most inclined towards them.

Well, in this situation, it seems that it would be better for her to leave and give the two people space to talk.

Ms. Chu used her little capitalist brain to think for a while, and after weighing the pros and cons, she finally followed Butler Han upstairs, looking back every few steps.

Su Chengyi watched her leave. From her eyes, he could tell that she had a lot of instructions to tell him, but now was obviously not a good time.

Chu Yuanjiang drank his tea slowly. When the footsteps of the two people going upstairs disappeared, he smiled and put down the teacup.

"Okay, now we can talk about some men's stuff?"

"You say."

Su Chengyi nodded, his eyes falling on the shadow cast by the fire in the fireplace.

"You should be clear about the specific circumstances of the burn incident just now."

Chu Yuanjiang's smile disappeared at some point, and he returned to his previous gloomy expression.

"Yes, I know very well."

Su Chengyi replied calmly.

"She used this kind of trick a lot in the past to resist things she didn't want to do. From childhood to adulthood, she has been fighting with wits and courage, and has tried all kinds of tricks. But in the end, she found that this is the best way to do it."

Chu Yuanjiang pondered and said:
"However, this time she is not doing this for herself, but for you. You should know how important you are to her."

"I know."

Su Chengyi nodded slightly.

"Logically speaking, I should be the one in this family who is most responsible for protecting her. But many times, I feel that what her mother said is not wrong."

Chu Yuanjiang leaned back in his chair and let out a long sigh.

"Although her family is strict with her, they don't really want to hurt her or destroy her. When she becomes the head of the family, there will be countless people around her with real malice who want to bring her down.

Of course I can protect her for a while, whether at home or somewhere else, if anyone touches my daughter, I will fight him to the death.

But what if I am gone someday?" Chu Yuanjiang sat up straight and stared at Su Chengyi opposite him.

Both of their faces were submerged in the shadow of the firelight from the fireplace, one was young and handsome, the other bore deep traces of time.

"It's not that I don't know a lot of things, but I can't intervene. Maybe not having much affection for her family is not bad for her.

Because she is a very kind and sincere child, and this happens to be her biggest weakness. If she could learn to be a little indifferent to people, it would be a good thing. "

Chu Yuanjiang reached out and rubbed his temple, his breath still smelling of alcohol.

"I think she is generally aware of what you said."

After a while, Su Chengyi slowly replied:

"Your considerations, your plans, your support for her and your occasional support for her seem to be more important. Your daughter has the ability to refute right and wrong, and sincerity is not a weakness for her.

Being born in such a family was not her own choice. For a little girl, responsibilities and obligations should be secondary. What she needs first is love and security. "

"."

After hearing this, Chu Yuanjiang was silent for a long time, then he sighed.

“Although there are some things I don’t want to say, she always comes alive more when she’s with you.

She has grown up and has a new emotional attachment, and as a father I should be happy."

At this point, Chu Yuanjiang leaned forward, his eyes like lightning, and the rocking chair made a slight "creaking" sound because of his movement.

"Now answer me a question, can I trust you?"

The fire from the fireplace burned his face, and Su Chengyi felt his whole body slightly hot.

After a while, he raised his chin slightly and replied:

"For the rest of my life, I will do my best to protect her."

In fact, for Chu Yuanjiang, this sentence means much more than words like "I will love her forever".

Because he himself does not believe in the so-called love between young people. Love has a shelf life and is far less reliable than the word "responsibility".

Love can deteriorate at any time, but responsibility can become something that truly traps a person for a lifetime.

What Chu Yuanjiang was more inclined to hear was exactly what Su Chengyi had just said, which made the two of them reach a brief consensus in their conversation.

"very good."

Chu Yuanjiang coughed and smiled with great satisfaction.

"Mianmian has always told me privately that she regards me as a comrade-in-arms and asked me not to stab her in the back. Although I agreed verbally, what I actually thought was that it depends on whether you can become a comrade-in-arms. Now it seems that you are indeed qualified."

"Thanks?"

Su Chengyi raised his eyebrows slightly and replied.

Chu Yuanjiang laughed and shook his head:
"I did have the idea of ​​using you before, so it's normal for you to be on guard against me. But you must listen carefully to what I'm going to say next."

"I don't mind the past. You tell me."

Su Chengyi also shook his head and replied.

He knew that Chu Yuanjiang came back to see him specially this time because he must have something important to tell him.

For a business tycoon of Chu Yuanjiang's level, it is rare for him to go back on his word. What to do every hour is probably already arranged.

"The Hou family is already at the end of its rope, whether in business or in other areas.

In other words, now is the best time to crush them completely.

I have been fighting them for so many years, but this is the first time I have encountered such a good opportunity. "

Chu Yuanjiang narrowed his eyes. It was rare for him to show such an ambitious side in front of the younger generation.

"Excuse me for asking, do you and the Hou family have any old grudges besides the struggle for commercial interests?"

Su Chengyi narrowed his eyes slightly and asked.

"Old grudge?"

Chu Yuanjiang snorted coldly, threw a string of Buddhist beads from his wrist, and fiddled with them.

“In the early years, I was your age and also a college student starting a business. People thought I was smart and successful and didn’t seem to have encountered many setbacks.

Only I know that it is really unlucky to run into the Hou family in Tang'an City. These people rely on their family's wealth to bully and suppress many newcomers.

There was a period of time when I was running around everywhere but couldn't make any business deals. I had to spend the nights in train stations, eating instant noodles with cold water.

At that time, I thought, it would be best if I didn’t get ahead, because sooner or later I would kill them all.”

At this point, Chu Yuanjiang couldn't help but let out a dry laugh and rubbed his face.

"Don't laugh when you hear that. How old was I then? I was 18 or 19, which is when I should be full of passion.

It’s just that I thought things were too simple, so I fought with them for so many years before finally getting this opportunity.”

"What are your next plans?"

Su Chengyi thought about it and asked a more critical question.

Chu Yuanjiang waved his hand and said:

"To deal with this group of people, we have to use all means. You are still young, it will be good for you to listen less. What I want to tell you is something else."

He poured himself another cup of tea and drank it in one gulp.

In fact, Chu Yuanjiang was not drunk at the social gathering tonight. Pretending to be drunk is a compulsory course for businessmen, and he was only three or four points drunk at most.

After drinking those few cups of tea, the drunkenness had long gone and my mind was extremely clear and excited.

"I am very sure that the Hou family has no way to turn things around now. In half a month at most, everything will be over.

But what worries me most is that they will do something desperate.”

Chu Yuanjiang put the teacup heavily on the coffee table with a gloomy look in his eyes.

“You’ve dealt with the Hou family before, and you know what kind of people they employ to do things for them.

To be honest, I kind of regret involving you in this matter, but now that things have come to this, there's no point in regretting.

I can only say that they hate me with all their might, but they hate you the same way. It’s not an exaggeration to say that they are a thorn in their eyes, because they know the relationship between you and Mianmian.”

"I know that."

Su Chengyi nodded, thought for a moment and continued:
"But I was involved. It has nothing to do with you. It was me who insisted on intervening in the case."

"Whatever the reason, you have to be careful these days."

Chu Yuanjiang leaned over and patted his shoulder.

“If there is any situation later, I will contact you as soon as possible. Just like Mianmian said, we are comrades-in-arms now.

By the way, I haven’t congratulated your X1 Game Studio on winning the award yet.

Given your personality, you probably won't ask me to help you with your business, but if there's anything I can do to help, please let me know."

After hearing what Chu Yuanjiang said, Su Chengyi pondered for a while, then suddenly raised his eyes and smiled slightly.

"If I have to say, there is one thing that only you can help with."

(End of this chapter)