Chapter 30

Chapter 30

Two months later.

Because of a new film project, I had to stay in West City for half a month.

Qiaoyi said she had never been to West City and insisted on tagging along. She said she wanted to see the place where I grew up and try all the famous local snacks.

I hadn’t been back in eleven years, and West City had changed a lot.

As soon as I stepped off the plane, a massive crowd of fans swarmed the airport to greet me.

I smiled as I took photos and signed autographs for them. For a fleeting moment, I thought I saw a familiar face in the crowd.

It was gone in a flash, and when I looked back, it was nowhere to be found.

After finally breaking through the layers of the crowd, I took a car back to the hotel where I was staying.

As soon as Qiaoyi entered the room, she flopped lazily onto the bed, pouting as she complained, “I’m never traveling with a big star again. My feet were almost crushed!”

Eleven years had passed, and Qiaoyi was fifteen now. She was already taller than me, with fair skin and beautiful features-the spitting image of her father.

Just then, a cool male voice came from the doorway. “I told you a long time ago not to be a third wheel, but you just had to shamelessly follow us!”

The man speaking was a handsome British guy-tall, well-built, with abs that felt great to the touch.

Don’t ask me how I know; he’s my new boyfriend.

His name is Dylan. In terms of family hierarchy, he’s Lu Qiaoyi’s Little Uncle. He’s young, but he holds a high seniority in the family.

Two months ago, when I accompanied Qiaoyi to England to visit her mother, I met Dylan.

This Little Uncle Dylan fell for me at first sight. He asked for my number that very night and invited me out to dinner.

We got together quickly. We’re compatible in every way, and it’s been incredibly pleasant.

However, Qiaoyi is very hostile toward Dylan. She believes that the biggest obstacle to her father winning me back is this young, handsome Little Uncle.

Dylan pulled the luggage inside and gave Qiaoyi’s foot a light kick. “I’ll book you a flight back to Gangcheng. Your old man is so traumatized by his heartbreak that he’s planning a flash marriage with a model he’s known for less than a week. It’s becoming a joke. Shouldn’t you hurry back to stop him? Otherwise, when your stepmother has a child, they’ll be fighting you for the family inheritance.”

“If you don’t speak, no one will think you’re mute.”

Qiaoyi sat up from the bed and bickered indignantly with Dylan. “If it weren’t for you, Zhiyi would have been my Mommy long ago.”

Dylan deliberately pulled me into his arms and gave me a hard kiss on the cheek. “She’s only in her early thirties. You have the nerve to call her ‘Mom,’ but she’d be too embarrassed to accept it. Remember, Zhiyi isn’t your mom; she’s your Little Aunt.”

I shook my head and smiled. Let them argue.

I couldn’t control them; I really couldn’t.

At that moment, my Assistant knocked on the door and entered.

“Zhiyi, a man named Shen Jincheng found his way to the hotel. He brought his daughter and says he’s a relative of yours. He wants to see you.”

My heart skipped a beat.

Shen Jincheng?

It really had been many years since we last met.

“Ask him to come up. And call the Bodyguards over.”

Before Shen Jincheng and his daughter entered, the Bodyguards searched them thoroughly from head to toe to ensure they weren’t carrying any knives, poisons, or recording devices.

After all these years, I saw the father and daughter once again.

Shen Jincheng was only in his thirties, but he looked world-weary and old. He had a buzz cut and wore glasses as thick as the bottom of a beer bottle. He had gained quite a bit of weight and looked timid and shrinking. There wasn’t a trace left of the refined, handsome man he once was.

He was holding the hand of a dark, thin young girl in her early teens. She had delicate features; it was Shen Yuqing.

When I saw Shen Yuqing’s face, I was momentarily stunned.

There were two ugly burn scars on her left cheek…

Likely because of these scars, Shen Yuqing kept her head down. When she saw the tall and beautiful Lu Qiaoyi, she seemed to grow even more self-conscious, her shoulders hunching even further.

“Zhiyi…” Qiaoyi had always been sensible. She knew about my past and understood who this father and daughter were. She smiled and asked me, “Do you have business to discuss with this Uncle? Why don’t I take this little sister out to play?”

I was suddenly reminded of the events of my past life.

Shen Yuqing and her biological mother had conspired against me. She had even asked Shen Jincheng when exactly I was going to die so that her father could marry her mother sooner.

I didn’t trust this Shen Yuqing. I could not let Qiaoyi come to any harm.

“No need,” I said, turning to Dylan. “You and Qiaoyi go out for a stroll. Don’t take anyone else with you.”

Despite having the face of a playboy, Dylan was actually very honest and devoted. He listened to me implicitly and nodded immediately. “Alright, we’ll leave you to talk.”

With that, Dylan grabbed Qiaoyi’s arm and headed out. As they passed the doorway, he smiled gentlemanly at Shen Jincheng. “Uncle, please excuse us.”

I pressed a hand to my forehead. “He’s not much older than you. Call him Big Brother.”

“Oh, sorry.”

Dylan shrugged apologetically and said with a smile, “Please excuse us, Big Brother.”

Shen Jincheng was deathly embarrassed. He quickly pressed himself against the wall to make way.

Once Dylan and his niece were gone, I made a welcoming gesture toward Shen Jincheng. “Have a seat.”