Chen Cheng watched the two leaving and pondered for a moment before returning to the table.
"Mr. Chen, do you know Su Liya?"
Everyone looked at him curiously.
Cheng Cheng took a sip of tea, "I know her, but not too well."
Cheng Cheng couldn’t let the rumors continue to hurt Su Liya, so he said, "Xiao Ya is right."
Chen Cheng’s brief comment, like a stone thrown into a still lake, stirred up a thousand waves.
The girls immediately erupted in chatter, bombarding him with questions.
"Wow! Really? How extraordinary must Su Liya’s family be?"
"I knew it! The aura about her, you can tell she’s not from an ordinary family!"
Cheng Cheng didn’t pay attention to their gossip, just gave a faint smile and said, "Alright, stop guessing, it’s for the best that we talk less about other people’s affairs."
The more ambiguous the answer, the more it sparks speculation.
Since the wealthy Cheng Cheng has said so, the rumors about Su Liya must all be false.
Liu Zhiya remained silent.
Looking at Su Liya standing beside Wen Shulin, she recalled her own days being manipulated by Wen Shulin and felt even more pity for Su Liya.
"Could Brother Cheng have lied to me?"
"Has Su Liya also received money from Wen Shulin?"
"Such an innocent girl, to be used by her..."
The more Liu Zhiya thought about it, the more something felt off, and on the other side, Chen Cheng sent a message to Chen Donghai.
"Brother Cheng, I want to ask..."
Before Liu Zhiya could finish speaking, Chen Donghai hurriedly returned.
He whispered a few words in Chen Cheng’s ear, and Chen Cheng nodded, "I got it."
He looked at the few sitting at the table, "Sorry, I’ve got something to deal with."
Cheng Cheng stood up, "The bill’s already covered. Xiao Ya, Xiao Hai will take you back to school, are you leaving now?"
With too many questions in her heart, Liu Zhiya nodded obediently to Cheng Cheng’s words.
Chen Donghai wisely picked up the shopping bags on the table, "Miss Liu, this way, please."
The ceremonious procedure once again garnered lots of envy.
Chen Cheng and Liu Zhiya led the way out, followed by the girls with melon seed faces.
In the parking lot, Chen Donghai put everything in the trunk and opened the car door, waiting for Liu Zhiya to get in.
"This is the car that visited our school a while back! I remember the license plate!"
Chen Cheng then walked over to the Mercedes-Benz, but Liu Zhiya couldn’t help following him.
Liu Zhiya asked in a low voice, "Does Su Liya have some kind of leverage in Chairman Wen’s hands?"
Chen Cheng immediately understood what she meant and chuckled.
Of course he couldn’t tell Liu Zhiya their real relationship, so he whispered in her ear, "Su Liya is Wen Shulin’s distant niece."
Liu Zhiya’s eyes widened.
"Alright, don’t overthink it," Chen Cheng hugged her, "I’m off, call me if you need anything."
Liu Zhiya gave him a kiss.
Chen Cheng got into the car and drove off without any delay.
The girls waiting by the Rolls-Royce exchanged glances, not knowing what to say for a moment.
"He’s leaving just like that?"
The girl with the melon seed face watched Cheng Cheng’s departing figure, bewildered, "I still wanted to ask about Su Liya!"
"He already said it’s inconvenient to share, you still have the nerve to ask?"
Another girl gave her a disdainful look and said, "Besides, he’s a busy man, where would he have the time to gossip with us here?"
Liu Zhiya walked back toward the Rolls-Royce and before she could get into the car, she was stopped by the melon seed face girl.
"Liu Liu, can we go back together?"
Their eyes were all eagerly fixed on the luxurious interior; rather than Governor of Jingzhao, having a photo in the Rolls-Royce for their social media was worth boasting about.
Liu Zhiya naturally couldn’t decide; she wasn’t Cheng Cheng’s girlfriend, he had just given her a lot of face.
"Miss Liu, please get in the car," Chen Donghai said in a low voice, "Mr. Chen asked me to take you back."
Liu Zhiya scrambled in, and Chen Donghai closed the car door for her.
The Rolls-Royce started smoothly, leaving behind the girls holding their gift bags, watching its taillights disappear from sight.
"What’s with the snub? I can’t believe..." The girl with the melon seed face looked down at her figure.
"Let’s go, Xiao Xiao, we’ll take a cab back."
Chen Cheng drove around in his car and came back.
He walked straight back into Governor of Jingzhao’s lobby and headed for the private room.
The waitress stopped him as part of her job duty.
Realizing who he was, Chen Cheng said, "I have an appointment with Chairman Wen."
"Is that so..." Despite him having just left a few minutes ago, she chose to believe, "Please, this way."
The waitress brought Cheng Cheng to the door of the private room and gently knocked.
"Come in," Wen Shulin’s voice came from inside.
Cheng Cheng opened the door to find the spacious and elegant private room, where Wen Shulin and her daughter were leisurely enjoying pastries.
A third set of utensils was already on the table; clearly, Wen Shulin had anticipated Cheng Cheng would come looking for her.
But her heart was in turmoil.
Su Liya at her side had already made her feelings clear, she liked Cheng Cheng; to prepare or not was a big issue.
Seeing Cheng Cheng enter, Wen Shulin set down her teacup and looked at him with a smirk, "Mr. Chen really is a man of many engagements, to have wrapped up so quickly?"
Chen Cheng knew Wen Shulin was purposely putting him in an uncomfortable position, but he didn’t get annoyed, just smiled lightly and said:
"Chairman Wen jests, they’re just Xiao Ya’s classmates, there’s nothing important, just a meal and a chat, that’s all."