“Because he’s good to you, I’m willing to fear him.”

When Shen Qianzhan heard this, she felt momentarily dazed.

When Su Zan first came under her command, he was a stubborn monkey who found fault with everything, arrogant and self-righteous. To temper his character, Shen Qianzhan made him do whatever he was unwilling to do, assigning him tasks he normally disliked: serving tea and water, cleaning offices, escorting clients.

She had a relentless determination to achieve her goals.

The more Su Zan opposed her, the harder she came down on him.

Fortunately, this foolish boy wasn’t too stupid. After figuring out Shen Qianzhan’s temperament, he retracted his sharp edges and became obedient and compliant.

Day by day, Shen Qianzhan gradually taught him negotiation and social skills.

He wasn’t particularly clever and was easily provoked. Year after year, he only grew in age and muscle, never in brains. In Shen Qianzhan’s view, his maturity wasn’t even on par with Qiao Xin’s. When facing situations, he often prioritized emotions and acted impulsively.

Over the years, he’d caused Shen Qianzhan considerable trouble.

She’d taught him and scolded him.

It wasn’t without effect – at least he wouldn’t make the same mistake twice.

Many times, Shen Qianzhan felt Su Zan was particularly like a large dog – somewhat foolish and naive, but deeply loyal and protective when it mattered.

Just as she’d grown accustomed to cleaning up Su Zan’s messes, he’d grown accustomed to depending on and protecting her.

They’d never experienced any earth-shattering, deeply moving stories, nor encountered friendship-threatening crises. Each day passed in ordinary routine, mechanically operating between company, film sets, and business dinners. Even earth-shattering disasters were just failed projects or lost investments – nothing that couldn’t be solved with a hot pot meal.

Perhaps it was this silent companionship and gradual infiltration, day after day, year after year, that planted their friendship so deep-rooted and unshakeable.

Shen Qianzhan sighed softly, shifted position, and ruffled his hair: “Then I won’t smoke.”

She thoroughly messed up Su Zan’s gelled hairstyle, watching him jump around like a ruffled chicken after his brief bewilderment, then smiled with satisfaction.

This should… count as making up, right?

After dinner, Shen Qianzhan sent Old Shen a video call invitation.

Old Shen seemed to have been waiting for a long time. Her video call was answered immediately.

He sat under a grapevine trellis, the video angle from bottom to top making his face appear unnaturally long and thin.

Shen Qianzhan looked carefully and asked: “Did you lose weight?”

“No, I didn’t.” Old Shen deflected: “I turned on the slimming beauty filter.”

“Were the seafood on Beiji Island delicious?”

“Quite fresh.” Old Shen grinned, then asked back: “Your mom said you’re bringing your boyfriend home. Your boyfriend arrived, but when are you coming?”

Shen Qianzhan snorted coldly, glaring at him.

Old Shen felt guilty under her stare, cleared his throat, stopped beating around the bush, and honestly admitted his mistake: “This time I made you and your mom worry. I promise there won’t be a next time. Haven’t I been taught a lesson? I ate seafood for two days…”

Shen Qianzhan asked: “What were you thinking? How could you rent someone’s boat for sea fishing without settling on a price?”

Old Shen answered: “It’s all because Uncle Hai bargained too hard, and that boat captain was oddly tempered and silent. I thought they’d reached an agreement. Who knew that captain would bottle up his anger? He dumped us on shore and left without a word. Where could I go to reason with him?”

After getting older, Old Shen feared two things: his wife crying and his daughter getting angry.

This afternoon, Shen’s mother’s tears had already worn him down considerably. He was terrified Shen Qianzhan would grab onto this incident and not let go, so without any loyalty, he threw all the blame onto his fishing companion, Uncle Hai.

After shifting blame, he dramatically played the victim for a while. When Shen Qianzhan half-smiled and half-scolded with a glare, estimating she wasn’t angry anymore, he perked up again: “Happy now? Not holding grudges anymore?”

Shen Qianzhan remained stubborn: “If you don’t take yourself seriously, what’s there for me to hold against you?”

Old Shen grinned carelessly: “I reported before leaving home. I figured after another day, your mom would definitely notice I couldn’t be reached and would find a way to look for me. I’d definitely be rescued. I’m not like Uncle Hai – no one at home to care, and no one would know if he went missing.”

Shen Qianzhan looked at Old Shen in the video.

Old Shen looked somewhat haggard, his spirits still seemed good, but his cheeks were slightly hollow, making him appear older. He smiled at Shen Qianzhan, the wrinkles around his eyes squeezing them into narrow crescents, showing only a bit of bright black pupils.

In his eyes were hints of placation, pleading, and indescribable joy.

She suddenly thought of Old Chen, thought of Mrs. Chen in some room of this same hotel.

Mrs. Chen’s tears and endurance had deeply moved her. Her heart had been clenched all evening, now slightly aching, both bitter and soft: “Two days ago I called Mom, saying the crew was returning to Beijing, and I wanted to bring my boyfriend home to meet you both. Mom was so happy, she hung up and went to find you, but couldn’t get through. She was panicked and afraid, didn’t sleep all night, calling you and Uncle Hai every little while. Finally at dawn, she turned to me for help, and with one crisis after another, I almost missed her call.”

“You know how Mom is when she scolds me – like a tiger, practically ready to grab my neck and fight. I heard her voice trembling like she was about to cry, at a complete loss asking me what to do. Old Shen, you really scared her this time.”

Old Shen fell silent.

The smile on his face gradually faded, his lips drawing into a flat line.

When those eyes weren’t smiling, they lacked luster, looking at her gray and dim, revealing several traces of regret.

Shen Qianzhan thought about how he and Uncle Hai must have felt when trapped on Beiji Island with no way to call for help – probably no better than she and her mother. Now that it was over, the panic, helplessness, and urgent desperation of standing on a cliff’s edge had been diluted by news of Old Shen’s safe return.

She might have truly become softer, more empathetic. All those prepared words she’d planned to unleash on Old Shen vanished completely at this moment. Her heart softened as she said: “I don’t mean to blame you. This kind of thing can’t happen again. If you want to play and enjoy life, you must first ensure your own safety. Don’t trouble others or waste social resources due to your own ignorance, selfishness, and foolishness. You’re my father – I hope you live a long, healthy, and safe life, able to accompany me and Mom a little longer.”

Old Shen was deeply ashamed but, maintaining elder dignity, couldn’t quite bring himself to lose face: “Dad knows he was wrong. Did this delay your work?”

“No.” Shen Qianzhan still kept a stern expression: “Someone went to find you in my place. I could sit securely in the rear command center.”

Old Shen scratched his head, chuckling foolishly: “You know what, when I saw Qinghe, I thought I was seeing things. I thought, ‘I can’t have gone crazy from constantly wishing for such a son-in-law, can I?’ I was so startled I kicked Uncle Hai.”

Mentioning Ji Qinghe, Shen Qianzhan’s brows and eyes relaxed with unconscious tenderness: “How did he introduce himself to you?”

Old Shen immediately beamed: “Didn’t have time for that. Uncle Hai and I had drunk all the water we brought to shore – we were busy asking for water.”

“You know what, that boy is quite thoughtful. He had water bottles and dry rations prepared, whatever we needed. After Uncle Hai’s emotions stabilized, he first had the rescue team’s medic examine us. Even your mom isn’t this considerate.”

Shen Qianzhan raised an eyebrow, clearly not believing Uncle Hai would get emotionally agitated enough to need stabilizing.

This was like saying “I have a friend” – everyone understood tacitly.

Old Shen had obviously been holding back for a long time, wanting to confide in her: “I figured it out myself. At first I didn’t dare think too deeply – after all, with your foul temper, ordinary people can’t handle it. Even if attracted to your pretty face, they couldn’t last a month.”

Shen Qianzhan couldn’t bear it anymore, interrupting with “Hey”: “Is that how you talk about your own daughter?”

Old Shen chuckled, undeterred, and continued: “I initially guessed he came with you, but when I asked, he said you were tied up with crew matters. My brain turned this over – even if your crew was short-staffed, it wouldn’t be so desperate as to have investors come find me when your old father was missing at sea. No matter what, you still have Su Zan nearby. He gets along with me and you can direct him – he’d be the obvious choice.”

“Later, I remembered last year when he came to our house for dinner. He mentioned that you’re a light sleeper. You didn’t notice, but I heard it. So I probed indirectly, asking him ‘Is Deng Deng’s work situation alright? How’s her sleep lately?'”

Shen Qianzhan watched Old Shen’s face, unable to hide his cunning satisfaction, and silently rolled her eyes.

Turned out he’d met someone even more difficult to handle than Shen’s mother.

Old Shen: “He probably knew I was testing him. He smiled and gave me a reserved answer: ‘Before I came, I assured her that Uncle’s situation was under control and shouldn’t affect her sleep.’ Look at this boy – such emotional intelligence, such eloquence. With that answer, what didn’t I understand? I immediately realized this was a dream come true.”

Shen Qianzhan was much calmer than Old Shen: “So you’re satisfied enough that mentioning him makes you grin like you won fifty million?”

“Fifty million isn’t enough – at least a hundred million.” Old Shen’s eyes showed approval as he praised repeatedly: “I can see Qinghe is steady in his work, has good character and outstanding appearance. With your dog-like temper, you must bully him constantly.”

Shen Qianzhan: “???”

Who exactly was bullying whom?

Perhaps her dissatisfaction was strong enough to show through the screen. Old Shen slightly restrained himself, coughed lightly, and said seriously: “Of course, your dad isn’t that unreliable. Last night I chatted with him, asked about your usual interactions, hobbies, and indirectly set traps to see how well he understands you.”

Shen Qianzhan’s interest was piqued. She raised an eyebrow and asked: “What did you ask?”

“Nothing much. Afraid of being too obvious and seeming like I was making things difficult, I just asked what you’ve been busy with lately.” Old Shen’s mood suddenly dropped. He looked at her for a while before saying: “But Dad doesn’t have the answer himself, so I don’t know if what he said was right.”

“Qinghe said your work has a new direction, that you want to try a new field as an independent producer. I worried you’d work too hard, but he was very supportive, saying your life is stable with some savings, so even if you make mistakes, you’d still have chances to start over.”

“I said you’re strong-willed. He said you’re actually quite delicate – when bumped or hurt, you tear up from eyes to nose tip, all pouty.”

“I said you usually only care about looking good, always wearing too little, choosing style over warmth. He said this needs to be addressed and managed, but girls all want to be beautiful, especially in your work environment with its clothing and appearance requirements.”

“I said you have bad eating habits and are picky. He laughed and said that’s fine, but someone needs to remind you to eat on time. As for being picky, it depends on how you’re fed…” Old Shen’s sentimentality paused as he looked at her curiously: “So how do you need to be fed to not be picky?”

Shen Qianzhan remained expressionless, asking back: “Where is he?”

“He went back.” Old Shen glanced at the clock, estimating: “He should have arrived by now.”

Just as he finished speaking, a beam of headlights swept outside the window and drove into the parking lot. Shen Qianzhan leaned against the window to look down – a black SUV with gleaming paint, draped in night, was parking in a spot.

The man who got out of the car was tall and elegant, slender and upright, walking through two straight beams of headlights toward the hotel.

Behind him, the large car made the soft sound of doors locking. The ambient lights on the door handles dimmed accordingly, and the headlights flashed twice, switching from far to near, from bright to dim, like a spotlight illuminating his path straight into her heart.