Coming back from school, Zhan Yiran still felt refreshed and invigorated, as if she had been reborn.
She went to find Gu Nanyan, but there was no one in the room, only a phone lying on the table.
Zhan Yiran picked it up and discovered it was the one she had used yesterday, logged into Jia He's WeChat account.
Zhan Yiran was curious about what her brother and sister-in-law had chatted about, so she sneakily took a look.
To her surprise, the chat history only showed messages sent by her brother, with Jia He not replying a single word or punctuation mark.
Zhan Yiran was stunned, holding the phone as she went to find Gu Nanyan. "Sister-in-law, why didn't you reply?"
Gu Nanyan put down the book in her hand and calmly said, "A writer once said, if you eat an egg and find it delicious, why bother meeting the hen that laid it?"
Zhan Yiran scratched her head, unsure how to respond. After a long pause, she finally blurted out, "But, but it's not quite the same. In the entertainment industry, fans need to be maintained."
"Is that so?"
Gu Nanyan raised her eyelids slightly, giving Zhan Yiran a cursory glance. "But with 5 million followers on Weibo, if fans really need to be maintained, wouldn't 5 million be more in need of maintenance than one?"
Zhan Yiran was stumped.
Gu Nanyan ignored her, lowering her gaze to continue reading her book. After finishing the remaining half page, she unhurriedly said, "What kind of fan would be able to find Ji Ying through Zhan's Music, then find you through Ji Ying, and even have you register a separate account just to add them?
This fan's identity must be quite special.
Let me guess, is their name Zhan Lingfeng?"
Crack—
Zhan Yiran's jaw dropped. How on earth did her sister-in-law figure that out?
She hadn't said anything except that the person liked Gu Nanyan's songs.
Zhan Yiran was dumbfounded, approaching Gu Nanyan like a puppy and crouching at her feet, looking up with a puzzled expression. "Sister-in-law, how, how did you know it was my brother?"
Wasn't that difficult to guess?
Gu Nanyan didn't understand why Zhan Yiran had to ask, as it was just a simple deduction.
In the ancient Great Qi, she had to handle complex government affairs every day, with tens of thousands of court memorials to review. Those officials would argue endlessly, each insisting they were right.
If she lacked the ability to discern truth from falsehood, wouldn't she have been misled by them?
With a glance, Gu Nanyan could tell whether someone was telling the truth or not.
It had almost become an instinct for her.
"Sister-in-law, actually I didn't want to hide it from you. I just hoped your relationship with my brother would improve. You've been married for so long but never even met face-to-face. My brother definitely doesn't like you, and I'm worried you might get divorced.
So, I thought if you could chat anonymously through WeChat, you'd have a chance to showcase yourself, letting my brother see your good points and fall in love with you."
Zhan Yiran truly had good intentions. Her brother Zhan Lingfeng was really, really difficult. No matter how beautiful a woman was, he would look down on her with disdain.
Zhan Yiran really liked Gu Nanyan and wanted her to stay in the Zhan family forever as her sister-in-law.
After hearing Zhan Yiran out, Gu Nanyan's brows furrowed in even more confusion. "Why should I be the one showcasing my strengths? Shouldn't he be the one showcasing himself? I should be the one choosing him. If he's not outstanding enough, not loyal enough, not valiant enough, I certainly wouldn't want him."
As the Princess of Great Qi, how could she let a man choose her? It had always been her choosing the men.
If they were in Great Qi, Zhan Lingfeng wouldn't even be qualified to be her male consort, yet he dared to choose her?
Zhan Yiran was dumbstruck, completely bewildered.
She did really like her sister-in-law, who was indeed very accomplished. But in the eyes of the world, her sister-in-law was not a match for her brother.
Her brother Zhan Lingfeng was the top-tier global diamond king, 1.86 meters tall, handsome, wealthy, and capable beyond compare. He had never had a girlfriend and was incredibly pure of heart and mind, the dream man of countless women.
Yet her sister-in-law wanted to choose him!
Zhan Yiran stammered, "S-Sister-in-law, my brother is very picky and difficult to please. If you don't showcase your strengths and let him appreciate you, he won't fall in love with you.
If you don't believe me, you can chat with him. He's really an extremely arrogant person!"
Convinced by Zhan Yiran's insistence, Gu Nanyan took the phone and replied with a single sentence—
"You're disturbing me."
Zhan Lingfeng had been waiting for a reply for a day and a night. Just as he was about to give up, the other person suddenly responded.
Zhan Lingfeng was overjoyed and quickly went to check, only to see that single sentence.
The other person felt he was being a nuisance and disturbing them.
Zhan Lingfeng's heart instantly tightened with anxiety, regretting his rashness and feeling he shouldn't have sent so many pointless messages.
He hurriedly apologized to Jia He: "Sorry, sorry, I disturbed you. I just wanted to chat with you about this song. When will Jia He have time?"
Gu Nanyan replied: "Wait until I summon you."
Zhan Lingfeng: "Okay."
Gu Nanyan handed the phone back to Zhan Yiran, perplexed. "He doesn't seem arrogant at all."
Zhan Yiran: "..."
Was this world too magical? Could that really be her brother? When had her brother become such a sycophant?
Zhan Yiran couldn't make sense of it, utterly confused.
The young girl was crestfallen, hugging the phone as she racked her brain but couldn't find an answer.
Gu Nanyan reached out and plucked the phone from Zhan Yiran's arms, then gently booped her finger on Zhan Yiran's nose.
Like teasing a little cat.
Zhan Yiran's round eyes instantly widened in bewilderment as she looked at Gu Nanyan.
Gu Nanyan curved her lips, her tone as gentle as a feather brushing against skin. "You like your sister-in-law so much, don't you? You don't want to be separated from me, right?"
Zhan Yiran's eyes reddened as she nodded vigorously.
No, she didn't want to be separated from her sister-in-law. She wanted Gu Nanyan to stay in the Zhan family forever.
"What a silly girl."
Gu Nanyan shook her head indulgently, then spoke, "Is our relationship so fragile that it needs a man to sustain it? No matter what happens between me and Zhan Lingfeng in the future, you'll always be my little sister.
Instead of spending time trying to match me with your brother, you should spend time with me. There are plenty of men in this world, but there's only one adorable Yiran."
Wah wah wah~
Zhan Yiran was about to cry. She loved Sister Gu Nanyan dearly.
Sister Gu Nanyan could always touch her tender heart, knowing what she cared about most and what she longed for the most, and then soothe her gently.
"Sister Gu, you will always be my sister."
Zhan Yiran sniffled, wanting to rush into Gu Nanyan's embrace, but her feet were numb from crouching, delaying her for a moment.
In that delayed moment, a small figure beat her to it, rushing into Gu Nanyan's embrace.
"Wah wah wah~"
Little Ruirui's eyes were red, his tiny mouth opening and closing urgently, expressing: You will always be my Auntie.
The little guy had heard Zhan Yiran's words outside the door, and his heart was racing. He adored his Auntie, he loved his Auntie the most, he didn't want his Auntie to leave.
At the door, Zhan's Mother saw this scene and her eyes reddened as well.
She turned around and sent a WeChat message to her son Zhan Lingfeng: "If you dare divorce Nanyan, I will disown you as my son!"
The innocent Zhan Lingfeng: "......"
