Zhao Chen looked at her glowing eyes on the screen, and the soft place in his heart was gently touched again.
He suddenly remembered Previous Life, who had also longed for such recognition - pure affirmation of his abilities and choices from his elders.
Not because of his surname Zhao, not because of what he inherited, but because of what he did and what he accomplished.
In this life, he got it in an unexpected way.
"Then I have to work harder."
Zhao Chen said with a smile, his tone was half serious and half joking, "We can't let our future 'father-in-law' down."
"Who, who is your father-in-law!" Shen Zhiyi blushed instantly, grabbed the doll and threw it at the screen--
Of course, it only hit her own side of the camera, "Zhao Chen! You are so glib!"
"Did I say something wrong?" Zhao Chen pretended to be innocent,
"Your dad already approves my strategy. Doesn't it mean that he approves of me as a person? If I reject it further..."
"No extraneous items are allowed!"
Shen Zhiyi was shy and anxious, but couldn't stop the smile on his lips, "You, if you keep talking nonsense, I'll hang up!"
"Okay, okay, no nonsense."
Zhao Chen gives up when he sees fit, but he can't hide the smile in his eyes.
"Seriously, thank uncle for my recognition. When the time is right, I will visit him in person."
"That's pretty much it." Shen Zhiyi snorted, but the blush on his face didn't go away.
"But... do you think I should hide it from them? I mean, about your identity."
Zhao Chen was silent for a moment.
"Keep it a secret for now." He said softly,
"Wait until the company is more stable and those messy things are almost settled. I don't want your parents to get involved prematurely, and I don't want them to worry."
Shen Zhiyi understood his concerns. She nodded and softened her voice:
"Well, I listen to you. Anyway... no matter you are Zhao Chen or Chairman Zhao, it's the same in my heart."
"Silly." Zhao Chen whispered.
"You are stupid." Shen Zhiyi retorted, but his tone was so sweet that it could drip honey.
The two chatted for a long time.
From the program list of Spring Festival Gala, to who in the classmate group posted funny videos, to where they want to go together after the winter vacation...
The topic was trivial and meaningless, but it made time flow unconsciously.
Zhao Chen found that it had been a long time since he had chatted with someone so purely and without any purpose.
Occasionally he would look up and see Su Wantang coming out of the kitchen with the brewed tea and quietly placing it on the coffee table at his hand. Then he silently sat down on the single sofa diagonally opposite and picked up a half-read book.
She lowered her eyes and looked at the page intently, as if she was completely immersed in her own world.
But Zhao Chen knows that she is listening.
She could hear the relaxation in his tone, the truth in his laughter, and the childish and sweet conversations between him and Shen Zhiyi.
Once, he deliberately said a particularly disgusting love word. Shen Zhiyi on the screen screamed in embarrassment, while he laughed so hard on the other end that his shoulders shook.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Su Wantang pause for a moment while turning the pages of the book, and a faint blush crept up on his ears.
The blush disappeared in an instant, and she quickly regained her composure, as if she hadn't heard anything.
But Zhao Chen saw it.
There was a strange emotion in his heart - not embarrassment, nor guilt, but a kind of... calmness of being witnessed.
It seems that in this family, all his looks are allowed:
It can be the decisive and decisive Chairman, it can be a tired and lonely Avenger, or it can be an ordinary boy who can say stupid things to his girlfriend.
Su Wantang embraces them all.
This knowledge gave him a deeper sense of security in addition to the sweetness of talking to Shen Zhiyi.
The phone call lasted nearly an hour.
When they first arrived at Shen Zhiyi, they heard their mother's voice urging them to go to bed, and the two reluctantly prepared to hang up.
"Go to sleep." Zhao Chen said, "Say hello to my uncle and aunt for me."
"Yeah! You too, go to bed early and don't stay up late!"
Shen Zhiyi hugged the doll and waved vigorously to the camera, "Good night, Achen!"
"Good night."
The screen goes dark.
Zhao Chen put down the phone and let out a long sigh of relief.
The smile on his lips has not completely dissipated, and his whole body is immersed in a long-lost, relaxing joy.
He picked up the tea cup on the coffee table. Tea Soup was a deep amber color, flowing with a moist light under the light.
The temperature is just right, the mouth is mellow and smooth, the aroma and sweetness are intertwined, and it is ironed from the tip of the tongue to the stomach.
"Good tea." He praised sincerely.
Su Wantang then put down the book and looked up at him with a soft smile in his eyes, "Are you done talking?"
"Hmm."
Zhao Chen took another sip of tea and sank into the sofa, "This girl is talking more and more."
"That's why I'm willing to tell you so much because I like you."
Su Wantang said softly, "Zhiyi is a good girl and treats you sincerely."
"I know."
Zhao Chen put down the teacup, his eyes fell on the rising heat, he was silent for a moment, and suddenly said, "Her father... quite approves of Henglong's current strategy."
"Oh?" Su Wantang was a little surprised, but then he understood, "He knows his stuff and can naturally tell the good from the bad. This is a good thing."
"Yeah, that's a good thing." Zhao Chen smiled. There was relief in that smile, but also a bit of self-deprecation.