Beyond surprise, her concern was also unconcealed.
Xia Dajun’s heart had just been pierced into a gaping hole, but Xia Ziyu’s caring expression made him feel the warmth of family affection.
While Xia Xiaolan disowned him and had others threaten him, his niece Ziyu cared about him!
“I’m fine, Second Uncle just got a bit injured earlier, but I’m much better now. Ziyu, how did you come to Shenzhen alone?”
Xia Dajun was curious.
Xia Ziyu looked anxious: “Are you sure your injury isn’t serious? After you left the hospital, we searched everywhere for news about you. Jianhua felt very guilty too. When we heard from someone returning from work that they’d seen you in Shenzhen, I rushed here to check on you!”
Xia Dajun had always maintained a low profile.
Back home, he would just work silently, with no one openly acknowledging his contributions. Old Lady Xia’s occasional praise and Ziyu’s few words of “Second Uncle, you’ve worked hard” was enough to make him work like an ox. Now, Ziyu’s few caring sentences soothed his wounded heart – someone still cared about him!
Initially at the hospital, when Xia Dajun heard Wang Jianhua’s words about Xia Ziyu stealing Xia Xiaolan’s boyfriend, he had been angry.
That resentment disappeared once he learned that Xia Xiaolan now had a boyfriend from a powerful family background.
Now that Xia Ziyu showed concern for him, Xia Dajun, quick to forget grudges, didn’t even remember his previous anger. People said he favored his niece – how could he not when Ziyu was so thoughtful?
He had sat in his wheelchair in front of Xia Xiaolan, and that unfilial daughter had pretended not to see him.
But Ziyu had immediately taken the train to find him after hearing just one piece of news about him.
“I’m fine, the Hong Kong doctors said I can recover. I just need to persist with rehabilitation, and I’ll get better! Ziyu, was the train journey tiring? Your timing is perfect – I just returned from Hong Kong yesterday.”
Xia Ziyu’s ears perked up, catching the keywords “Hong Kong” and “rehabilitation.”
Her Second Uncle’s injury must be quite serious, otherwise, why would he seek treatment in Hong Kong and need rehabilitation? Looking at it another way, the fact that Xia Dajun could afford treatment in Hong Kong and rehabilitation meant he had a high income, or perhaps his boss valued him.
Xia Dajun had no guard up against Xia Ziyu, and after chatting for a while, she had gleaned most of what she wanted to know.
The situation Zhang Cui described in the telegram understated Xia Dajun’s “good fortune.” The Hong Kong Cheng Rong Group was a major company, and the Du family ranked among the wealthy elite. Xia Dajun’s boss was the Du family’s eldest young master, who seemed familiar… wasn’t he the one who had donated to universities in Beijing?
Young Master Du had casually donated millions to several Beijing universities.
The donations hadn’t reached Beijing Normal College. Xia Ziyu, facing disciplinary action and finding campus life increasingly unpleasant, had a weak sense of belonging to the school. She felt nothing unusual about Du Zhaohui not donating to Beijing Normal.
She only knew that Du Zhaohui was incredibly wealthy!
And behind Du Zhaohui, the Cheng Rong Group was a giant corporation in 1985.
Earning money from a small food stall, making five or ten cents at a time? Xia Ziyu didn’t have that patience! If she could use Xia Dajun to get close to Young Master Du, she could avoid many detours.
Xia Ziyu touched the scar on her face, feeling very resentful.
If she had Xia Xiaolan’s face, she wouldn’t need to scheme so much. Even with the Wang family’s downfall, she could have found a better prospect. Now she had to calculate every move carefully, each step taken with difficulty.
Fortunately, she had an ace up her sleeve.
“Second Uncle, could I… could I meet Mr. Du?”
Xia Ziyu softened her voice, leaving Xia Dajun puzzled: “Why do you want to meet Young Master?”
Belatedly, Xia Dajun remembered that Xia Ziyu had come to Shenzhen alone. How could his brother and sister-in-law let their daughter travel so far alone? And what about Xia Ziyu’s boyfriend?
“Right, why didn’t Jianhua come to Shenzhen with you? How are things between you two?”
Xia Ziyu’s tone immediately became dejected: “Second Uncle, you don’t know – it turns out Jianhua’s father is a state cadre who was previously sent to northern farms for reform. This summer he returned to the city and resumed his position. Jianhua treats me well, but his family looks down on us for being from the countryside… This time, Jianhua wanted to come with me, but his parents wouldn’t let him travel so close to New Year’s, so I came alone.”
Xia Ziyu was laying the groundwork for her plans, but unexpectedly, the effect was too good, striking right at Xia Dajun’s sore spot.
Why did all these cadres look down on people?
That woman at the hospital used her cadre family background to threaten him, and now even Xia Ziyu’s in-laws looked down on the Xia family for being rural. Xia Dajun instantly aligned himself with his niece.
“Their family is bullying people. Ziyu, you’re a university student – how are you not good enough for Wang Jianhua? When their son was a sent-down youth in the countryside, you never looked down on him. This is really…”
Xia Dajun’s face and neck reddened with anger. Xia Ziyu gave a bitter smile:
“Being a university student isn’t much these days. The Wang family can find plenty of university students. Second Uncle, let’s not talk about these upsetting things. I want to meet Mr. Du to thank him for taking care of you. If Mr. Du hadn’t taken you in, I might never have found you.”
Xia Dajun agreed with this.
If Young Master hadn’t kept him by his side, he’d still be a porter at the docks.
Staying with Du Zhaohui was dangerous, but so was being a porter. Young Master Du paid him well – what did a bit of danger matter!
Xia Dajun was very grateful to Du Zhaohui. Young Master Du kept his word and truly helped him rise above his station.
“I’ll have to ask Young Master first.”
Xia Dajun wasn’t sure if Du Zhaohui would meet Xia Ziyu. He couldn’t outright refuse – that would disappoint his niece and make him lose face. Xia Ziyu’s caring attention had him basking in this warm family feeling. Seeing that New Year’s was approaching and Xia Ziyu was dressed so simply, Xia Dajun, now financially comfortable, offered to buy her some clothes:
“A young girl should dress nicely. How did you get that scar on your face?”
Xia Dajun had wanted to ask earlier but hadn’t gotten around to it.
Xia Ziyu touched her cheek, “It was an accident… Second Uncle, you work hard for your money, let’s save where we can. Don’t buy me clothes.”
Compared to others who rejected Xia Dajun’s money, Xia Ziyu’s reasoning touched him deeply.
“Second Uncle has money. If I don’t spend it on you, I’ll spend it on others who don’t even want it!”
Xia Ziyu’s smile stiffened slightly, “Second Uncle, who are you talking about?”
Xia Dajun’s expression darkened, “It’s Xiaolan. She won’t take my money and doesn’t acknowledge me as her father. I just saw her today.”
Xia Xiaolan was here too, and had already met with Xia Dajun.
Xia Ziyu’s current mood was mixed with both frustration and relief – frustrated that Xia Xiaolan was everywhere, but relieved that Xia Xiaolan hadn’t reconciled with Xia Dajun. Xia Xiaolan must think highly of herself now, successful in both love and studies, naturally looking down on Xia Dajun who worked as a bodyguard for a Hong Kong boss.
Being a bodyguard was quite shameful, and Xia Ziyu looked down on it too.
But Xia Dajun the bodyguard could be very useful to her!