Lingering On and On

Chapter 7: Wealth and Ordinariness

The winter morning sunlight shone through the clear floor-to-ceiling windows, adding a soft touch to the clean and tidy room.

This was a purely masculine bedroom. From the ceiling, walls to the floor, everything was decorated in cool colors, and the furniture and the bed were no exception.

The room was quite large, with simple yet essential furnishings. It wasn't hard to tell that the owner was a person with great taste but also a cold and aloof personality.

Even though the man was tall and slender, compared to the huge gray bed, he still seemed a bit small. At this moment, he was lying on the expensive and high-quality bedding, his eyes closed tightly, his heroic eyebrows slightly furrowed, as if he hadn't slept very peacefully or comfortably.

Suddenly, a unique and pleasant ringtone cut through the silence of the bedroom and woke the sleeping man up.

His eyebrows furrowed even deeper. Instead of opening his eyes, the man directly reached out his hand to fumble for the phone and hung up the call.

Soon, the phone rang again, and the man hung up once more.

About a minute later, a message alert sounded.

The man remained quiet for a while and finally slowly opened his eyes and turned on his phone. "Chase, why didn't you answer my call? Are you still angry with me? Hurry up and turn on the video. I have something to tell you."

With a cold snort, he read the words back and forth but didn't respond.

Soon, another text message came. "Chase, why don't you turn on the video? Do you know it's so cold here? It's freezing outside. Although the hotel has the heating on, I still feel shivering all over. It would be nice if you were by my side!"

"Chase, I miss you so much. I want to see you."

"Chase, you're so heartless. You're willing to let me sit in front of the computer and wait bitterly. If you don't show up, my hands and feet will turn into ice. Boohoo!"

After a series of such complaining messages, Long Chase still couldn't bring himself to be too harsh. He suddenly got up, got out of bed, and went to the desk beside it. He opened his laptop.

"I knew you wouldn't bear to see me freezing!" Immediately, Cheng Jiawen's beautiful and elegant face clearly appeared on the screen. Especially with the pitiful look she deliberately put on, Long Chase's originally cold heart began to soften.

"I'm so not used to it without you by my side!" Cheng Jiawen continued to look sad, looking at him pitifully. Her watery eyes were really pitiful.

A hint of pity unconsciously rose in Long Chase's heart, but he still said stubbornly, "That's your own doing!"

Cheng Jiawen pouted her bright red lips again and said in a coquettish way, "I'm doing it for you too! You know that there are very few Chinese people who have won awards at the Oscars. If I win the Best Actress award then, not only will I attract the world's attention, but I'll also bring honor to our country and make all Chinese people around the world proud and excited. Don't you want to have a wife who's an Oscar-winning actress? It'll also add luster to your family's face."

"I don't care!!" Long Chase didn't take it seriously and wasn't grateful at all. "You know what I really want!"

Cheng Jiawen was stunned for a moment. Of course, she knew what he wanted, but... Soon, she cleverly changed the topic. "I wanted to call you when I got off the plane, but I was worried about waking you up, so I held back in the end. By the way, did you sleep well last night?"

Sleep well? A thoughtful look appeared on Long Chase's handsome face. Last night, he tossed and turned in bed, waiting until the time she got off the plane. But in the end, he didn't call her. It took him a long time before he finally managed to fall asleep reluctantly.

"Chase, when will you be free to fly over to see me? The director said that after filming this movie, he'll officially recommend me to the Oscar Sawyer Film Company and customize a role for me to compete in the Oscar Film Festival at the end of next year. I'll be really busy next, and I definitely won't have time to go back, so you have to come to see me!"

Long Chase didn't say anything, his thin lips tightly pursed.

"Chase—"

"I'm not free!"

"No, you must be free." Cheng Jiawen put on a look of being on the verge of crying again. "Do you like another girl? Don't you love me anymore?"

"Since you're worried that I'll be snatched away by other women, then come back immediately!"

"You... I've got everything ready, and I've already signed the contract. I can't break it!"

"I'll pay for all the consequences and expenses!"

"Chase—"

"Beep—beep—" The alarm clock suddenly rang. It was seven o'clock in the morning, the time when Long Chase got up on time every day!

"I'm going to wash up and get ready for work!" Long Chase reached out his hand, ready to turn off the video.

"I still have something to say!" Cheng Jiawen looked at Long Chase's extremely cold and handsome face with annoyance and sadness.

"Come back immediately, and I'll act as if nothing had happened and will love you as always. Otherwise... Think it over carefully!" After saying the last sentence, Long Chase turned off the video and the computer without hesitation.

After that, he was slightly stunned for a moment and then casually walked out to the balcony. While breathing in the fresh air, he quietly looked into the distance and then started doing some exercises. By the time he had finished washing up and went downstairs to the dining room on the first floor all dressed up neatly, it was already eight o'clock in the morning.

In front of the huge dining table sat an old man with a solemn look and a heroic appearance. He was Long Xiaotian, the founder of the Felice Eurasian Bank. His wives, one older and one younger, were sitting on his left and right sides respectively, both dressed elegantly and luxuriously, looking like typical noble ladies.

The older one was Qiu Xuelian, Long Chase's biological mother. She looked at Long Chase who was walking slowly towards them with a loving look and said, "Ah Chase, Aunt Hua cooked your favorite macaroni today."

Long Xiaotian's second wife, Rong Yanhong, also smiled at Long Chase. From her attitude and expression, one could vaguely sense her awe towards Long Chase.

"Good morning, Dad, Mom, Second Mom!" As usual, Long Chase greeted them before sitting down.

"Yeah!" Long Xiaotian replied faintly and continued to eat his breakfast silently.

Long Chase also took the breakfast handed over by the servant and ate it leisurely.

Except for Qiu Xuelian occasionally chatting with Long Chase, most of the time the dining room was quiet.

About fifteen minutes later, Long Chase was the first to finish his breakfast. "Dad, Mom, Second Mom, take your time. I'm going back to the company."

Under the same sky, on the same morning, at the Tong family's place.

Tong Kaijian and his wife, Tong Yuling, and Tong Yuzhe were sitting around the small dining table, eating breakfast while chatting and laughing.

"Dad, it was a close call this time. You really should learn a lesson and never gamble again!" Tong Yuling played her role as a little nag.

"Yeah, I got it! No matter who tells me which stock can earn hundreds of times the profit in the future, I won't be fooled again!"

"The matter is solved, but the kids will have to endure hardships with us again next!" Tong's mother was both relieved and worried.

"Mom, don't worry. We've survived even tougher times before. Don't worry. We'll pay off this debt as soon as possible, and then you can really enjoy a happy life!" Tong Yuling quickly comforted her mother.

Looking at her sensible daughter, Tong's mother was filled with gratification. "Xiao Ling, luckily we have you!"

"By the way, Sis, how did you persuade that Long Chase? Dad said he's a cold-faced guy and really hard to talk to." Tong Yuzhe suddenly interrupted and asked.

"I played a trick!"

"Played a trick?" The whole family was surprised.

Tong Yuling thought for a while and then told them how she lied and how Long Chase did her a favor in return and so on.

"Xiao Ling, is it okay for you to do this?" Tong's mother's wrinkled face showed worry again.

"Absolutely no problem. By the way, Dad, remember this matter. We know it's a lie, but in front of others, especially in your company, you must act as if it's true, as if I really saved Long Hao once. Got it?"

"Sis, what if Long Hao suddenly shows up? Won't it be exposed?"

"Don't worry. It's an old thing. I can always say that he has a bad memory! Anyway, rich people like them won't remember such a thing."

"Yeah, Sis, you're so smart!" Tong Yuzhe took the opportunity to praise her, clearly flattering her. Hehe.

"Of course!" Tong Yuling was full of a sense of superiority. Suddenly, she remembered something and said, "Dad, does that Long Chase... have a girlfriend? Who's his girlfriend?"

"I don't know. He's a very low-key person, mysterious in his ways, and seldom appears in the newspapers. His private life is even less known to others."

"Sis, why are you asking this? Don't tell me... you've taken a liking to him?" Tong Yuzhe said with a sly smile.

Taken a liking to him? Are you kidding? Although that man was incredibly handsome, he was moody, strange, unromantic, and had a cold and arrogant personality. It was really hard to put up with him. At least, he wasn't Tong Yuling's type. A boyfriend should be like Xiaohaozi, gentle, considerate, super patient, and refined...

"Sis, are you in love? Don't tell me you're dating someone?" Tong Yuzhe suddenly shouted.

Tong Yuling came back to her senses and immediately knocked him on the head twice, pretending to be a bit angry. "You're the one in love!"

"Wow, why did you hit me? Ask Mom and Dad. The look on your face just now was exactly like a lovesick girl. What else could you be thinking about if not a lover?" Tong Yuzhe rubbed his slightly aching head and complained.

"What do you know? You've never been in love but act like an expert. I'm telling you, you're not allowed to date without my permission!" Tong Yuling still glared at him with her almond-shaped eyes wide open.

"I'm not a high school student anymore. I'm going to college. Why can't I date?"

"Yes, college students can date, but you, Tong Yuzhe, can't! Because you're my brother!"

"Authoritarian! Bossy! No wonder no man wants you!" Tong Yuzhe muttered in a low voice.

But Tong Yuling, who had good hearing, heard it clearly. She glared at him with her eyes wide open. "No one wants me? Humph, just wait for another year. Then I'll bring back an outstanding man. Don't feel inferior then!"

"Eh, Xiao Ling, do you have a boyfriend? Why don't you bring him back for Mom and Dad to see?" Tong's mother heard it and immediately said happily.

"Uh, no, not yet. I was just talking nonsense!" Tong Yuling blushed, quickly ate the last mouthful of porridge, randomly took a tissue to wipe her mouth, and said as she walked towards the door, "There's a morning meeting today. I'm going to work now!"