Chapter 132 Tan Zheng Coaxes People
The only person who could make Tan Zheng willingly call back was Song Ni, and the only person who dared to hang up on Tan Zheng multiple times was also Song Ni. If he still called after being hung up on several times, it could only be because of Song Ni. This behavior surprised Song Ni, and even Tan Zheng himself found it unexpected. Let alone Zhou Jin and Cheng Jing, both of whom had their eyes wide open and mouths agape. Involuntarily, they gave Song Ni a thumbs-up in their hearts.
Song Ni was already worried about Tan Zheng’s health. Hanging up earlier was purely out of emotion. She was too angry. Tan Zheng kept telling her to take care of herself, yet he was smoking after being hospitalized. Without hesitation, after picking up the call, Song Ni began to scold him again.
“Why are you still calling? Looking for a scolding?” Tan Zheng chuckled softly. “I didn’t smoke even a single puff. I’ve already thrown them away.”
Song Ni froze, her anger and the words on the tip of her tongue having nowhere to go. Tan Zheng continued, “If my wife tells me not to smoke, I won’t smoke.”
Song Ni: ...
Was the person speaking softly, earnestly, and with compromise on the other end of the line really Tan Zheng? Had someone switched him out? Could Tan Zheng be so obedient?
Tan Zheng also seemed unaccustomed to himself. He was naturally arrogant, and it was only because it was Song Ni that he would yield and compromise. After speaking softly for a few sentences, he reverted to his usual self. “You know drinking hurts your body, yet you still want to get drunk at a bar?”
Here it comes, this tone felt like the real Tan Zheng. Song Ni, for some reason, felt relieved. If Tan Zheng had remained so gentle and compromising, she wouldn't have known how to handle him. “Are you going to control me?” Song Ni’s rebellious streak started to act up again.
Tan Zheng knew Song Ni’s temperament well; this argument was also because Song Ni felt he was controlling her. “It’s not controlling you, it’s worrying about you.” He worried about her getting uncomfortable after drinking too much and getting drunk, and worried that she would be bullied if she got too compliant when drunk. With just such a light sentence, he smoothed over Song Ni’s prickly mood.
Song Ni didn’t know why she was making such a fuss. She clearly knew that the argument had started because of her careless words, and given Tan Zheng’s personality, it was understandable that he would say such things when provoked by her. Moreover, she had recently noticed that the bodyguards had been keeping their distance from her, and she no longer had to bother shaking them off when she went out to practice driving at night. It was clear that Tan Zheng had given the order. He knew she didn’t want him to know what she was doing, so he had the bodyguards keep their distance, only following behind to confirm her safety when she returned. Tan Zheng was using actions to tell her that arranging bodyguards was not for surveillance.
Song Ni remained silent for a long time. Tan Zheng, with rare patience, said, “Hmm? Ni Ni.”
Song Ni took a sharp breath. She couldn’t quite handle Tan Zheng calling her by her pet name so affectionately. She pouted. “I haven’t been drinking anymore.”
But her voice was so soft, so sweet, so alluring. Tan Zheng knew that even if Song Ni wasn't completely drunk yet, she was close. So, the man lowered his voice and coaxed her gently, “How many cups have you had?” Tan Zheng’s voice was already sexy, and now his tone was so gentle. Song Ni’s forced sobriety shattered, and her head began to feel hazy. Her eyes gradually became glazed, but she still remembered what Tan Zheng had said and began counting the empty glasses on the table. “One, two, three... I think it was five cups. Oh, and I also had a very interesting drink today, hankypanky. The name is quite nice, isn’t it?” Song Ni’s voice had become soft and wobbly.
Upon hearing that Song Ni had drunk hankypanky, Tan Zheng’s expression instantly darkened considerably. He was also involved in the bar industry and knew that not many bars in China sold this drink, and those that did sold it at a higher proof. Given Song Ni’s alcohol tolerance, one cup of hankypanky was enough to get her drunk, yet she had mixed it with five other drinks. “You’ll feel uncomfortable if you drink any more, won’t you, Ni Ni? Let’s not drink anymore, okay?”
“Okay.”
“Then sit there obediently and give your phone to Zhou Jin.” Song Ni hiccuped and handed the phone to Zhou Jin, then slowly straightened up, sitting as upright as a primary school student. Zhou Jin and Cheng Jing were somewhat at a loss regarding Song Ni’s sudden change. Just a moment ago, she was a fiery little chili pepper, and now she had become a docile little kitten.
On one side, Zhou Jin was listening to Tan Zheng’s instructions, while on the other side, Cheng Jing was carefully observing Song Ni. “Sister-in-law, are you drunk?” Song Ni hiccuped again in response. Cheng Jing found it increasingly strange. How could someone be like this? Just a few minutes ago, she was angry and scolding her husband, and then in the blink of an eye, she was pacified by her husband and then got drunk? What exactly did Brother Tan say? Cheng Jing had no idea about any of this. After listening to Tan Zheng’s instructions, Zhou Jin handed the phone back to Cheng Jing. “President Tan has something to say to you.” Zhou Jin said this with an irrepressible smile and a glint of schadenfreude in his eyes.
Cheng Jing suddenly felt that he shouldn’t have taken this call. “Quickly.” Cheng Jing took the phone, and as expected, Tan Zheng was lecturing him about the foolishness of trying to chat up Song Ni. Cheng Jing had always been the most excellent and well-behaved student in his teachers' eyes, but he had never heard a good word from Tan Zheng, his "racing instructor." It was one thing to be clumsy at racing, and another to be rejected by Song Ni when trying to chat her up, but Tan Zheng still had to say a few words. It was understandable, though. Who told him to try to chat up Tan Zheng’s wife? It was only natural to be scolded.
Cheng Jing remained silent, waiting for Tan Zheng to finish, and then he quietly added, “If it wasn’t me, it would have been someone else. Sister-in-law is very beautiful. I was just nipping other men’s thoughts in the bud.”
“So I should thank you?”
“That’s not what I meant, Brother Tan. I actually didn’t even see Sister-in-law’s face clearly. I just genuinely wanted to share a table. Moreover, Sister-in-law didn’t even acknowledge me. She rejected me very decisively, directly, and cruelly.”
Hearing this, Tan Zheng finally seemed satisfied. “That’s normal. She’s not interested in someone like you.” Tan Zheng was very confident; the young lady had been interested in him and agreed to the blind date precisely because she found him appealing. As for someone like Cheng Jing, Song Ni probably wouldn’t even say a word to him. Of course, if Tan Zheng knew that Song Ni had taken advantage of her drunken state to flirt with Cheng Jing, he would have felt a sting of embarrassment. Unfortunately, Zhou Jin, who had also been flirted with, wouldn’t say anything, and Cheng Jing certainly wouldn't. As for Song Ni, she might not even remember it. Tan Zheng would never know.
Cheng Jing felt a thousand blows to his heart. “Brother Tan, what you’re saying is too hurtful.”
“Send your sister-in-law back. Be careful, don’t let anyone take pictures.” Cheng Jing didn’t understand, and Tan Zheng didn’t offer an explanation.
“Brother Tan, are you okay?”
“Minor ailment.”
“A minor ailment can become a major one. The way Sister-in-law was just now, she was clearly worried about you. Occasionally using a bit of a ‘wounding’ strategy can have unexpected effects.”
“Cliché.”
Cheng Jing: ...
“It may be cliché, but it's classic. It must have been passed down because it works.”
Tan Zheng: ...
Cheng Jing wanted to say more but found that the call had been hung up. Is the ‘wounding’ strategy really that cliché? But he genuinely felt it would be effective.
(End of this chapter)