Chapter 175: A Test of Character

Chapter 175: Chapter 175: A Test of Character

"Wanwan, come on. We’re having lunch with Qi Hao. He’s treating us to celebrate my promotion." Lu Zhengchuan had just remembered to mention it.

Su Wan glanced at her watch. "I have to be back at the lab by one-thirty to work on my project."

"Don’t worry, we’ll have plenty of time," Lu Zhengchuan promised, patting his chest.

"The car is right outside. We can drive straight there."

Su Wan didn’t want to be a spoilsport, so she nodded in agreement.

Lu Zhengchuan turned to Zhang Yun, who was behind him. "Zhang Yun, do you want to come eat with us, or head back to the courtyard first?"

"Cousin, I’ll pass. I don’t know your friends, and I’m afraid I’ll just be in the way," Zhang Yun said, wringing her hands nervously.

Seeing her timid and unsophisticated air, Su Wan tugged on Lu Zhengchuan’s sleeve and whispered something to him.

Lu Zhengchuan thought she had a point and nodded. "Alright, then you’re coming with us."

Zhang Yun looked baffled. "Cousin, I thought I said I wasn’t going."

"You did, but I don’t think it’s a big deal for you to come. If there’s anything you don’t understand, you can just ask your sister-in-law."

"...Oh." Zhang Yun didn’t dare refuse. She was afraid her cousin would get angry and hit her; after all, he really used to hit people when they were kids.

Outside, Qi Hao had been waiting in the car for a while. When he saw Su Wan, he rolled down the window, nodding in greeting. "Sister-in-law."

"Hao, it’s been a while. Looks like we’re mooching off you again," Su Wan greeted him with a faint smile.

Qi Hao wasn’t one for pleasantries. "Sister-in-law, I’m afraid I’ll have to disappoint you. This was a last-minute plan, and there aren’t any big restaurants around here. I heard there’s a cafe and a Western-style restaurant on the front street. How about we eat there?"

Su Wan just wanted to sort out lunch and, while at it, broaden Zhang Yun’s horizons.

She could tell that Zhang Yun was giving Zhao Yuan a lot of extra points because he was from the Capital and came from a dual-income family.

Coupled with Zhao Yuan’s deliberate flattery and adoration, it was inevitable that she would fall for it.

To put it simply, it was a classic pig-butchering scam aimed specifically at Zhang Yun. It was no surprise she’d fallen for the trap.

’Considering the conflict between me and Zhao Xiangxiang, it’s highly likely that Zhao Yuan only developed this scheme after meeting Zhang Yun and learning who she was.’

’I have to take some responsibility for this.’

Riding in such a luxurious military vehicle again, Zhang Yun felt like she was back in the Southwest Military Region.

Her spirits lifted. She rested her hand on the open window, letting the gentle breeze blow past, and had the illusion that she actually owned a luxury car.

She also finally understood why the people back in her village always said her sister-in-law was fortunate, that she had married the right man and was now living a good life.

Zhang Yun imagined herself as Su Wan, and the corners of her mouth couldn’t help but curve upward. ’If I could really live a life like this,’ she thought, ’I’d wake up laughing in my sleep.’

"Sister-in-law, why did you marry my cousin back then?" Zhang Yun couldn’t help but ask.

The moment she spoke, she failed to notice that Lu Zhengchuan and Qi Hao, who had been chatting in the front, had both fallen silent in perfect unison.

Su Wan answered without a hint of hesitation. "Because he has a stable job and is a man of good character."

In the front seat, the corners of Lu Zhengchuan’s mouth turned up.

Qi Hao caught a glimpse of it. ’His brother’s smile sure is cheap,’ he thought. ’Not like me. I’d never get caught up in something like love.’

"...But, Sister-in-law, you and Cousin barely spent any time together. How did you know he was a man of good character? What if he was just putting on an act for you?" Zhang Yun retorted resentfully. She knew her dissatisfaction with her sister-in-law stemmed from the issue with Ah Yuan, but she didn’t dare say it directly. Instead, she tried to subtly use other things to prove she wasn’t wrong.

Su Wan caught the look in her eyes and found it somewhat amusing. ’I try to give her some advice, and this is the attitude I get.’

"It was just a gut feeling that his character was decent," Su Wan said. In front of Qi Hao, she certainly wasn’t going to say anything that would make Lu Zhengchuan lose face.

Her real thought was that if Lu Zhengchuan’s character had truly been poor, she would have naturally found a way to gather evidence and petition the military leadership for a divorce.

Because Lu Zhengchuan was a soldier, as long as he still wanted a future in the military, he wouldn’t refuse a divorce in the face of irrefutable evidence.

Of course, she would never say these details out loud.

Saying them now would only create resentment in Lu Zhengchuan’s heart, and that was no way to manage a marriage.

"Well, I think Ah Yuan’s a good person too, but you just don’t believe me." Zhang Yun was one step short of accusing Su Wan of having a double standard.

Su Wan couldn’t help but roll her eyes at that.

Qi Hao saw it in the rearview mirror and glanced at Lu Zhengchuan, his eyes asking what was going on and why the two were arguing.

Lu Zhengchuan’s face darkened. "Zhang Yun, can Zhao Yuan even compare to me?"

"Of course not, Cousin! I wasn’t saying he’s better than you. I just meant that he’s a good person and he’s good to me," Zhang Yun explained hastily, afraid her cousin would misunderstand.

Lu Zhengchuan said, "Then stop upsetting your sister-in-law. If she didn’t see you as family, she wouldn’t bother meddling in your business."

"If you’re determined to be with him, your sister-in-law and I won’t interfere further. We’ve just told you what we know. How you decide to act on it is your business."

Zhang Yun started to feel wronged as well. "Cousin, Sister-in-law, I’m not unhappy with you two, I just... I just want to be with Ah Yuan, and I want your blessing."

"Then just pretend we’ve given you our blessing," Lu Zhengchuan said, his tone that of a complete rogue.

Su Wan: "..."

Fortunately, they had arrived. Qi Hao pulled the car over to the side of the road.

Once everyone was out, he had his guard drive the car away and come back later. The road was narrow, and there were no parking spots.

"Brother Qi, you’re here! Your table is over there."

The Western restaurant surprisingly had glass walls. Inside, the tables were made of high-quality, dark brown wood, adorned with decorative flower pots. It was clearly different from everything else of its time—exceptionally modern and stylish.

Even Su Wan was a little impressed by the restaurant, to say nothing of Zhang Yun, who had never even been to a large department store.

Zhang Yun followed them inside, her movements stiff and constrained.

Su Wan dropped back a couple of steps to walk beside her. "Why are you so timid? Straighten your back, be more confident. This is just a restaurant, not the Great Hall of the People."

"Don’t tell me you think you’ll only ever get to come here once in your life?"

"If you want to live a good life, you first need to feel like you deserve it. It’s just a Western restaurant, that’s all."

Zhang Yun hadn’t expected Su Wan to say something like that to her. Her uneasy heart was soothed. As she mulled over Su Wan’s words, her back gradually straightened.

’That’s right.’

’What do I have to be afraid of? I may not have been as lucky as Su Wan to marry a great man like my cousin, but I have an outstanding relative like him.’

’In that sense, I’m not doing too badly myself.’

’And... I want to come back here again!’

The four of them sat down at a table by the window.

A waiter stood beside them and handed each a menu. The menu was entirely in English.

Zhang Yun grew embarrassed. She realized she couldn’t recognize a single word of English. She had stopped her education after middle school, which was considered a high level of education in her village.

Of course, she was no match for her sister-in-law.

Zhang Yun subconsciously looked at Su Wan beside her.

Su Wan saw her embarrassment and helplessness at a glance. "This is steak. It comes medium, medium-well... well-done... This is cream pasta..."