At a little after 5 o'clock in the morning, Qi Qingci woke up under the drive of her biological clock. After making sure that her clothes were intact, she smiled. After repeating "I'm number one" several times in her mind, she got out of bed. Because of her family background, she had attended the top schools in TS during her kindergarten, primary school, and junior high school years. The competition was fierce, and she had always been striving for the first place. Later, even after the college entrance examination, when she got the admission notice from Jiaotong University as expected, during the summer vacation, she habitually previewed the university courses. After getting up early, she would first run two laps in the community with an incredibly large green area that even the developers themselves found astonishing. When she turned on the light, she found that only Song Yanv was sound asleep. Her pajamas were also in disarray, and one of her fair and tender thighs was propped on the railing of the upper bunk.
Qi Qingci quickly got off the bed and covered her with a sheet. She picked up some toiletries and opened the door. She saw the extremely proud boy sleeping with his arms crossed over his chest, and the boy she cared more about was "reading" that German magazine that was an eyesore. However, he was only mouthing the words and not making a sound. Qi Qingci only knew a little bit of German, so she wasn't sure if he was just pretending. She asked politely, "Did you just get up or haven't you slept at all?"
"We're arriving in the big city soon. We're so excited that we can't sleep at all." This time, Zhao Jiadi didn't hide the fact that he had a pornographic magazine. Maybe it was because they would part ways in two hours, and he no longer had the urge to hide it. After all, with a girl like Qi Qingci's temperament and beauty, only a blind person would fall in love with Zhao Jiadi at first sight.
Qi Qingci also seemed not to know how to make small talk, so she went to wash her face and brush her teeth. When she returned to the carriage, Song Yanv was woken up by her movement and said with sleepy eyes, "They didn't do anything to you, did they?"
Qi Qingci sat on the upper bunk, opened the curtain, and checked the time. It was exactly 5:30. Looking at her best friend in a black silk nightgown, she smiled and said, "If they were really going to do something, you'd be the first target. Please change into a less sexy nightgown next time you take a train."
"Sister never deliberately hides her own beauty."
Song Yanv made a seductive pose and rolled her eyes. "If it weren't for that sucker who was out of his mind and bought the tickets for us without asking, I wouldn't have taken the train to Shanghai. It's more than ten hours from TS to Shanghai. When I entered the train station and saw the sea of people, I really thought I was crazy at that moment. Fortunately, you're with me to endure this suffering."
"Call them in. At the very least, let them lie on the bed for a while. What method did you use to make them willing to endure the whole night outside?" Qi Qingci asked curiously.
"The secret of heaven must not be revealed."
Song Yanv said mysteriously. She got dressed, opened the door of the carriage, and said with a bright smile, "Good morning."
After the door was opened by Song Yanv, Sparrow was the first to walk in. He very rudely lay down and went straight to sleep. Leopard, on the other hand, looked at the two neatly - dressed beauties with a disappointed expression and squatted on the ground to play with the dog. After Zhao Jiadi returned to the berth, he also went to wash his face and brush his teeth first. Finally, he sat on the lower berth and said with a smile, "Song Yanv, I'd better give you the money. I have some change."
Song Yanv was amused. She lay on the bed, poked her head out, and looked at Zhao Jiadi with a sincere face. "Aren't you afraid that I'll say you're vulgar?"
Zhao Jiadi paused for a moment, then smiled shyly.
Since Song Yanv refused to haggle over a few dozen yuan, and Zhao Jiadi, who had always disliked owing people favors, didn't want to make others think he was overly shrewd either. He tore a piece from the magazine, took out a ball - point pen, wrote his mobile phone number on it, and handed it to the bewildered Song Yanv with a solemn attitude similar to presenting credentials. The latter asked in confusion, "Contact information? You could just tell me, and then I can save it in my phone. Isn't that all?"
Zhao Jiadi was stunned for a moment and then explained, "It seems more sincere this way."
Song Yanv hesitated for a moment, but still took the out - of - place "business card" and reluctantly stuffed it into her classic Gucci wallet that had been used for several years.
Qi Qingci chuckled softly. This guy was really meticulous when he got serious. It seemed that he wasn't afraid of guys like Han Kun at all, but he had little resistance to beauties like her best friend. Qi Qingci believed that she had good judgment of people. After the farce, she thought that this Zhao Jiadi was not bad. To be exact, he was a pseudo - otaku who had the intention but not the courage, seemed innocent but was actually scheming, yet at least he had a bottom line. Deep down, she was a little looking forward to something happening between this Brother Balang and her best friend. After all, a girl like Song Yanv, who had seen many men but none of them were the right one, seemed unrestrained, but actually she still needed to find a reliable support. As for whether this man was outstanding or not, that was secondary.
After all, Qi Qingci had taken a liking to Zhao Jiadi's sense of security, which indirectly showed how much of an insignificant commoner Zhao Jiadi was in the eyes of strange women. Next, Song Yanv jumped onto Qi Qingci's bunk to whisper. Zhao Jiadi, Sparrow, and Leopard put their three heads together and whispered. Zhao Jiadi carefully pulled out a suitcase that could be bought for one or two hundred yuan in any small commodity market. After rummaging around, he took out a stack of money, about two thousand yuan, and handed it to the bewildered Leopard. After thinking for a while, Zhao Jiadi took back a part and only left four or five bills. He said softly, "These five hundred yuan are the spare money of me and Sparrow combined. I'm giving it to you because I'm afraid you'll starve to death on the street after sneaking out of the train station. The reason I'm not giving you the rest is that I'm afraid you'll get itchy - handed and lose it all in a game of three - card poker."
"Uncle, no need. I have buddies in Shanghai who have connections. They're just waiting for me to get familiar with the place and then take you and Sparrow to enjoy the good life. There's no reason for me to take your money." Leopard said, scratching his head.
"Your bunch of lousy buddies are all worthless scum. During that cross - school fight the year before last, five of us were trapped on the playground by fifty or sixty people from the other school's basketball team and track - and - field team. We fought for over half an hour in the chaos, and your friends didn't even show up. When they're bragging at the drinking table, they make themselves out to be big - shot gangsters in the northern underworld. Shit, that's what fair - weather friends are. " Zhao Jiadi remembered that incident vividly. It wasn't that he was hung up on being besieged and beaten for half an hour because of the betrayal of the backup. Their small group, which never had more than ten people, had plenty of glorious deeds of taking on much larger groups and getting beaten in the end. It was just that Leopard's so - called friends, who had no sense of morality at all, really pissed him off. So Zhao Jiadi patiently explained, "Even if we step back and say that your friends can or can't help, when you visit someone's turf for the first time and meet them for the first time, you should at least have a decent pack of cigarettes in your pocket. Are you really planning to offer Zhongnanhai cigarettes that cost a few cents each?"
"So what? They can take it or leave it. If I offer them, it's giving them face," Leopard said stubbornly.
"Idiot. Right now, the cigarettes in your hand are for brothers to smoke. When you give them to your scumbag friends, you still have to save face." Zhao Jiadi cursed.
Leopard said "Oh" without anyone knowing if he understood or not.
After smoking a cigarette, Zhao Jiadi said slowly, "Back in TS, we all knew each other well, so we could make a bunch of reliable brothers. In the future in Shanghai, you need to be more cautious. The bigger the city, the more rootless people there are. They can do cruel and bad things more smoothly. It's the same as when we were in middle schools outside Caofeidian and could be especially domineering."
Sparrow, who was even more beautiful than a male peacock, said straightforwardly, "Idiot. What uncle means is that you shouldn't be so open - hearted with people in Shanghai. You have to be smarter and take more advantages and avoid losses."
"No problem with that. I'll never go back to TS until I make something of myself," Leopard vowed.
"Put the money away. If you're short of money, come to my place or Sparrow's school. Worst - case scenario, just eat in the cafeteria with us. There are also hundreds of pretty girls for you to look at. It's not embarrassing." Zhao Jiadi said with a smile.
Leopard nodded vigorously and put those bills of money into his inside pocket.
In Shanghai, even if 50 million or 500 million yuan were thrown into the Huangpu River, it might not make a sound. This is the unique pride of this outstanding city of the People's Republic. What awaits Zhao Jiadi and the others is a new world far broader and more complicated than TS.
Zhao Jiadi didn't get off the train with Qi Qingci and the others. Leopard had already continued to have a fierce battle with the railway police for several rounds with the local dog Laifu. With his agile skills, it probably wouldn't be difficult for him to get out of trouble. This kind of guy is a madman who can dive into a river or a pond and catch a big grass carp. After Zhao Jiadi and Sparrow walked out of the station, they first bought a map of Shanghai. When Zhao Jiadi asked Sparrow to buy breakfast, he began to study the dense map, striving to reach Yangpu University Town with the least money and time. Zhao Jiadi had always been good at mathematics, to be exact, extremely good. So by the time Sparrow walked up to him with tea - flavored eggs, he had already figured out the best route.
When he finished eating the tea - flavored eggs and was about to set off, the Nokia ringtone rang. Zhao Jiadi took out the only shabby mobile phone in his life. It was an unknown number. After answering it and listening for a few sentences, he said, "No need. I'll take the bus by myself."
One minute after hanging up the phone, the ringtone rang again. Zhao Jiadi picked up the phone and said calmly, "Don't worry. I'll help you explain to Zhao Xin."
"Uncle, who's that?" Sparrow asked with a smile.
"The driver arranged by Zhao Sanjin. He's a big shot. I can't afford to be served by him. Besides, it's said that he has never liked people like me. I don't want to be an annoying guy by being overly friendly," Zhao Jiadi said self - mockingly.
"It's better to be self - reliant. But uncle, you should still send a text message to grandpa to explain the situation so that the old man won't worry." Sparrow nodded and smiled. He knew Uncle Balang's temper best. He hated trouble and would never make himself uncomfortable. However, he knew the grandpa's temperament even better. He loved trouble the most and was a god - like awesome man who would find some fun or cause some trouble when he was bored.
"Let's go." After standing up, Zhao Jiadi walked out of the train station with his little brother, who had a much higher head - turning rate than him.
Since Qi Qingci and her group were "protected" by Han Kun, they didn't need to bother with taxis, school buses or public transportation. Instead, there were luxury cars driven by the rich young men from TS in Shanghai waiting for them. An Audi and two BMWs were parked side by side in the parking lot. However, this was really nothing to the people in TS, even for the ordinary folks. You should know that TS is a unique city where luxury cars can be seen every hundred meters on the street. The wealth and explosive nature of TS have always been talked about by outsiders with great relish. So Qi Qingci's group didn't make a fuss after getting in the cars. What surprised them was a red Audi R8 not far away. Those who know cars understand that it's very difficult for a four - wheeled vehicle to have a really perfect red color. The bright red of Ferrari can be regarded as a classic, and that R8 is also one. But that's not the key point. The most stunning thing was that there was an un - made - up woman sitting inside.
In today's society, women who dare to go out without makeup are either the type who have given up on themselves, or those who have no money to take care of their faces or are extremely lazy. Only a small number of them truly deserve the description of "naturally beautiful". And even fewer among this small group are the rare ones who are more beautiful without makeup than with makeup.
Qi Qingci, Song Yanü and the others had the fortune, yet also the misfortune, of encountering such a great beauty.
She had no makeup on and wasn't wearing sunglasses. She was around twenty - seven or twenty - eight years old. She was dressed in rare and unique clothes that were impossible to have a duplicate of, yet they weren't dull. Her dress was simple, elegant, and perfectly matched her appearance and temperament. She sat quietly, serenely, and refreshingly in the R8, and she was in the driver's seat.
"Qingci, don't you think that woman looks very familiar?" Song Yanü and Qi Qingci were more privileged. The two of them chose to sit in the back of an Audi. Han Kun sat in the front passenger seat, and a rich second - generation youth from TS who was hanging out in Shanghai was driving. Song Yanü had been observing the beautiful woman in the R8 across from them, constantly looking for flaws. Unfortunately, the final result was that she was flawless. Her wealth didn't have the slightest hint of being nouveau riche or a kept woman. She was dignified and calm without giving people a sense of conceit. So Song Yanü wholeheartedly admitted that she was indeed a public enemy that could make people of the same sex despair.
"A bit," Qi Qingci nodded and said.
"Doesn't she look a lot like Empress Chen from Caofeidian District in TS? We noticed her when we were waiting for you here. She arrived a little later than us. Her driving skills are excellent. She reversed the car so smoothly. She probably has some years of driving experience," the rich second - generation youth from TS said with a smile.
"Sure enough, she's very similar. There aren't many good characters in the entertainment industry. Empress Chen is one of the very few actresses that I can accept, not some chaotic and smoky clowns." Song Yanü said in surprise. Caofeidian in TS is an area rich in resources such as oil, so it has a large number of wealthy people from resource - based industries. However, about five years ago, there emerged an actress Empress Chen who was favored by art - house filmmakers and was insulated from all kinds of scandals, so she was very niche. Because she only participated in some extremely artistic and unpopular films, and there were only about seven or eight in total when added up. In addition, she never accepted interviews from newspapers or magazines. It's said that even columns like "Film and Television Synchronous Sound" on CCTV were rejected by her, so not many people know her. But once people have watched her films, very few can resist her unique charm. Therefore, among her long list of die - hard fans, there are no lack of highly successful people over fifty in various fields. Song Yanü is from TS, so she also knows Empress Chen, this blue lotus that seems to emerge unstained from the mud.
"We didn't dare to go up and ask. We were afraid of being really embarrassed if it wasn't her," the rich second - generation youth said with a smile. He started the car, looking a bit regretful.
His Audi and the two BMWs behind left the parking lot, while the R8 remained motionless.
Having been hung up on twice in a row by the same person, the woman, who could drive all men with a thing for mature and attractive women crazy, held the mobile phone. Without getting angry or annoyed, she smiled and then put the phone away. Inside the car, Guns N' Roses' "Don't Cry" was playing. The song was so popular that it was almost overplayed. However, the sound effect of a high - quality genuine disc played through top - of - the - line car audio was something that ordinary people could never experience.
She is Empress Chen, an actress from Caofeidian. She has always considered herself an actress. She ignores any social engagements other than what an actress should do. Such an anachronistic figure who can't even bring substantial profits to the signing company, apart from causing some disputes for the company, only has some so - called good reputation left. If the boss hadn't been tolerant enough, Empress Chen would never have achieved what she has today. After all, not every boss is willing to fight with some boring rich people in the Beijing - Tianjin circle for his employees. So even though Empress Chen doesn't like some of the boss's extreme business methods, she doesn't deny that he is a businessman with courage and skills. Empress Chen likes to be grateful, which is why she has persisted until now. Even when the nouveau riche boss from TS, who likes to wear gold necklaces, asked her to pick up the young master at the train station in person, she made an exception and agreed.
Perhaps the only thing that surprised Empress Chen was the refusal of the young master of the Zhao family.
Is it a vulgar trick of playing the long game?
If it is, it only shows that he has good acting skills. Empress Chen curled her lips. If not, it means that among the Zhao family full of oddballs, there is finally a relatively normal guy. Up to now, she still clearly remembers the old grandma of the Zhao family who cursed "Actresses are heartless and prostitutes are ungrateful" as soon as they met, and a little brat who shouted "Sister, I want to drink milk" as soon as he saw her. And damn it, that little brat was already in junior high school at that time! If Empress Chen remembered correctly, that little brat is Zhao Jiadi's younger brother, Zhao Yango, a very classical name. Unfortunately, he is an out - and - out little pervert.
She started her self - purchased R8 and directly returned to Hengdian World Studios in Dongyang, Zhejiang Province. She still had work there, which was enough to show that the boss surnamed Zhao was indeed the ultimate boss who held great weight in her heart. After driving onto the Shanghai - Hangzhou Expressway, she hesitated for a moment and then decided to make a return call to the boss, saying apologetically, "Chairman, your son didn't agree to let me send him to the university town."
There was a pause on the other end of the phone, and then there was a bold laugh. "I expected that. If he doesn't want it, then forget it. That little brat has wasted such a great opportunity for a romantic encounter. He'll be so regretful."
Concubine Chen hung up the phone very simply.
She knew that this boss had always been interested in introducing her to Zhao Jiadi, the crown prince of the Zhao - style enterprise who was as elusive as a dragon that shows its head but not its tail. However, she had always been very resistant. She also knew that this inscrutable boss had a deep family background and such strong assets that she couldn't even estimate. But in Chen Huangfei's value system, money was something that was best in moderation. Too much of it would become a burden. Moreover, she had no confidence at all to deal with a bunch of freak - like characters for a lifetime.
However, a message she received on the way made her smile knowingly, "I've already arrived at school. No need to worry. Thank you."
She had been in a very bad mood today, but now it suddenly brightened a lot. After some mental struggle, she decided to save this number and added the three words "Zhao Jiadi". In her mobile phone, there had only been a few numbers saved all along, including those of her parents, relatives and a handful of best friends, and no others.