Chapter 170 Song Ni, Your Taste Isn't Great
Song Ni wasn't one to flaunt things, but Tan Zheng's affection was too much to keep hidden. She couldn't help but snap a photo of the roses and post it on her Moments. As if that weren't enough, she then posted it on Weibo. After nearly a month of seclusion, her return to social media caused a frenzy on both platforms. A flood of admiring fans on Weibo praised her "brother-in-law's romance," while a gaggle of her close friends in Moments teased Tan Zheng about being too clingy.
This time, there was no need for Song Ni to prompt him. Tan Zheng had liked her post long before, snagging a front-row spot. When he saw people calling him clingy, he even replied with a domineering response: "What are a bunch of people without wives so jealous about?" This comment immediately sparked another round of banter in Song Ni's Moments.
Tang Qin Yun: You have a wife, you're awesome. Ni Ni, how could you be so unsupportive! Give him the cold shoulder for a while longer!
Lu Fang: Some people have wives but don't know how to appease them, yet they come to us for advice!
Lu Hao Ting: Sister-in-law, sister-in-law, your strategist is me!
Sheng Jiang: Brother Tan! You say you're not a wife-slave!
Qin Yang: Wuwuwu! God Tan is so handsome!
Song Jing: Posting dog food first thing in the morning, don't you guys find it nauseating?
Cheng Ling: I want a wife too!
"..."
Song Ni scrolled through, chuckling. She opened Tan Zheng's chatbox and finally stopped giving him the cold shoulder.
"Did you arrive?"
Tan Zheng immediately called.
"You're awake?"
"Mhm, I'm getting ready now."
Hearing Song Ni's soft, sweet voice, with its occasional hint of a pout, Tan Zheng finally breathed a sigh of relief and let out a low chuckle.
"You're willing to talk to me now."
Song Ni felt a blush creep up her neck, and she instinctively twirled her hair around her finger.
"Did Hao Hao teach you to send flowers?" Tan Zheng didn't want to admit that he'd been too preoccupied with other things last night to ask many questions. Even if he had, it would have been in bed, and that didn't count. "So, Miss Song, can you explain why you're meeting another man when you came back?"
Even through the phone, Song Ni could feel Tan Zheng's simmering jealousy. It was this very jealousy that had led to her "harsh lesson" from him last night. Song Ni rolled her eyes, feeling a mischievous urge to tease him.
"Li Jing? Don't you know? I've liked him for years, since high school? Or maybe middle school, I've liked him."
Tan Zheng: ...
Su Qing followed behind Tan Zheng, watching his boss's expression shift from affectionate and relaxed to stiff and tense. Without a doubt, it was his Madam on the other end of the line. As they exited the elevator, Su Qing stepped forward to open the office door for Tan Zheng. The man took her files and then slammed the door shut with a bang. Su Qing: ...
"Like him? Your idol?" Song Ni seemed to be retaliating for Tan Zheng's behavior last night, or perhaps she felt emboldened by the hundreds of miles separating them. "You could say that. More accurately, he's the template for my high school ideal partner."
Tan Zheng was silent for a long moment, then let out a cold snort. "Ideal partner template? Him?"
"Mhm, that's right." The man commented indifferently. "Song Ni, your taste isn't great."
Song Ni was amused by Tan Zheng's words, her shoulders shaking with laughter. The makeup artist paused, but remained silent. She wanted to keep listening to Sister Ni talk to her husband.
"What are you laughing at?" Tan Zheng tossed the files onto his desk, his mood somewhat sour.
Hearing the commotion on the other end, Song Ni also dropped her teasing. After all, today was a new beginning for her and Tan Zheng. She couldn't possibly upset him. "Aren't you quite smart? Don't you see anything strange?"
"What?"
Song Ni, in her magnanimity, gave him a hint. "You asked Zhou Jin about everything else, so why didn't you check the time of my return flight?"
With that, Song Ni hung up. Tan Zheng frowned and obtained Song Ni's flight booking information from Zhou Jin. It was a flight in the early morning. The competition had ended close to eleven, leaving just an hour, enough time to get to the airport. Was there anything special about that?
As Tan Zheng sat down, the words Song Ni had just spoken suddenly flashed in his mind. She had said Li Jing was her childhood idol and that she had only gone to see his performances in the past. Li Jing's performance had ended at half-past nine last night. Therefore, she had deliberately left an hour and a half. Given Song Ni's attitude and tone just now, this hour and a half... was for him.
And so, early this morning, in the GN Group CEO's office, the man sitting at his desk was smiling foolishly at his phone.
...
The recording site last night was a chaotic mix of people. Someone happened to capture the scene of Lu Hao Ting picking up Song Ni, and also the scene of Tan Zheng carrying Song Ni away. Although Song Ni was dressed discreetly and her face wasn't visible, a woman being involved with both Lu Hao Ting and an unknown man was enough to stir up a storm in the entertainment industry. At noon, someone with an agenda posted both sets of photos, and the topic immediately shot to the top of the trending list.
#Shocking! Lu Hao Ting Suspected of Intimate Contact with Girlfriend!#
#Lu Hao Ting's Girlfriend Carried Away by Unknown Man!#
#Lu Hao Ting's Girlfriend Exposed#
#Identity of the Unknown Man#
"..."
Song Ni, who had just finished filming that morning, was informed of the news by Chang Zi. Since Lu Hao Ting was a popular actor, the buzz was growing.
"Did they get Tan Zheng's face?" Chang Zi shook her head. "Neither you nor Mr. Tan were clearly captured, but Lu Hao Ting's photo is very clear."
Song Ni opened the top trending Weibo post. It was a scene from last night where Lu Hao Ting had come to pick her up while Tan Zheng was on the phone. It was precisely the moment Lu Hao Ting was helplessly tugging at her clothes, asking how to handle Tan Zheng. If she hadn't known the real situation, looking at Lu Hao Ting's trusting and pleading expression, and the distance between them, it would indeed look like a couple.
Song Ni then clicked on the second Weibo post. The picture clearly showed her being carried on Tan Zheng's shoulder. However, the lights at the scene were focused on the stage, and the corridor was quite dim. Even if Tan Zheng's face was captured, it was too dark to see his features clearly.
"How does Lu Hao Ting's side plan to handle this?"
"Zhou Ning intends to say you're Lu Hao Ting's sister. They're already preparing a PR statement and asking for our opinion."
"That's fine. It's not entirely untrue." Even if it were exposed later, netizens would have no grounds to complain. Lu Hao Ting called her sister-in-law, so calling her "sister" was perfectly acceptable.
"Then I'll relay the message to Zhou Ning." Lu Entertainment's speed in handling matters was always impressive. First, the studio posted on Weibo, then Lu's official account reposted, and finally, Lu Hao Ting issued a statement.
"She's my older sister. She came to listen to the performance to relax because she had a fight with her husband. As for that man, you're thinking correctly. It's exactly as you imagine." He also attached a cartoon illustration of Song Ni being carried away by Tan Zheng. Lu Hao Ting's Weibo post, with its humorous tone, finally reassured his fans. Fans began commenting, and one particular comment, due to its popularity, appeared at the top.
"Hahaha, I've already imagined a novel plot where she runs away from home, gets found by the domineering CEO, and is carried back to be taught a lesson."
Song Ni saw this comment and blushed, a rare occurrence. It seemed to be exactly what had happened.
(End of this chapter)