The Heiress's Game

Julie had her assistant reopen a tea room. The room wasn't large, but it was very comfortable—only a small landscape oil painting hung on the wall, and the window faced the Japanese dry landscape garden in the inner courtyard. The bamboo blinds were half-rolled up, filtering the afternoon sunlight into thin lines of pale gold.

The three people sat around a small walnut tea table. Julie sat in the middle, fiddling with a set of celadon tea utensils.

She pushed the first cup of tea in front of Gu Yunjin, and placed the second cup next to Gu Zhenxing.

Gu Zhenxing didn't touch it. He leaned back in his chair, crossed his arms, and looked ashen-faced.

Julie spoke first.

"Miss Gu, Old Gu talked to me about your marriage before."

He didn't say much, only mentioning it once or twice.

But I understood—the reason he was in such a hurry to finalize this matter was not entirely because the Pei family was pressuring him, nor because of any business alliance.

His biggest worry is that you're just starting to fall in love, and in a moment of blind faith, you'll marry for love and end up being deceived.

She picked up her teacup and blew on the tea leaves floating on the surface.

"He felt that rather than letting you take that path, he would choose it for you himself."

In your father's eyes, Pei Yan is someone he knows very well.

He's a decent person, comes from a respectable family, and while his abilities aren't top-tier, they wouldn't be so despicable as to betray you. He sees this as a form of protection.

After she finished speaking, she glanced at Gu Yunjin, a glance that conveyed the message: the door is there, whether you open it or not is your own business.

Gu Yunjin paused for a moment while holding the teacup.

Then she took a deep breath.

"dad,"

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought up my sister. I take back what I said."

But I want to tell you the truth—being blinded by love will never happen to me.

Gu Zhenxing's lips twitched, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he didn't speak.

"I witnessed my mother's fate firsthand."

"What's so great about marrying for love? When my mother married you, she felt that she had married for love."

And what was the result? What did she get?

He retired from acting, endured hardship, was ostracized, and neglected; in the end, he had nothing left.

"I've already lost my life, there are living examples right in front of me, and I'm still jumping in—am I crazy?"

Gu Zhenxing's face went from ashen to pale.

"What kind of nonsense are you spouting?"

"That's the truth."

Gu Yunjin looked at him, her gaze clear and open.

"So you don't need to worry about me, I won't be blinded by love."

If I were to get married someday, I would only marry someone I approve of—not based on family background, but on his own merits.

But before that, Dad, I won't let anyone use my marriage as a bargaining chip.

"So what kind of person do you want to marry? Does it have to be someone who marries for money to be considered open-minded?"

Gu Zhenxing said coldly.

"Marrying for money isn't bad either," Gu Yunjin said earnestly, her lips even curving slightly.

Money will not betray you, will not abandon you, and will not disappear when you need it most.

"With enough money, I can protect everyone I want to protect."

"You—" Gu Zhenxing glared again, slamming his hand on the table, making the teacup clatter.

At the same time, Julie's hand firmly pressed down on his wrist.

"Old Gu,"

"Let her finish speaking. Your daughter is just as stubborn as you. If you slam your fist on the table now, you'll only push her onto the table too."

"Have some tea first, listen to her, and calm down."

Gu Zhenxing's hand paused on the table for two seconds before slowly retracting it.

He picked up his teacup, took a large gulp, and then leaned back heavily in his chair, looking at Gu Yunjin with anger still lingering in his eyes.

Gu Yunjin turned to look at Julie, a sincere smile on her face.

"Miss Julie, to be honest, chatting with you is much more interesting than chatting with my dad."

Julie was adding water to the kettle when she heard this. Her fingers paused for a moment, and she looked up at Gu Yunjin with a smile spreading across her face, but she didn't say anything.

Gu Yunjin placed the teacup back on the tea table, her tone casual, as if she were chatting with a friend:

"I'm telling the truth. My dad is good in every way, except he has terrible taste in women."

Who were all those confidantes I chose before?

Either their faces are so surgically altered they can't even make expressions, or all they talk about is jewelry and bags; the conversation dies down after just three sentences.

As she said this, she winked at Julie, "So it's no wonder the media praised you. What did they praise you for again? 'Gu Zhenxing finally brought a presentable female companion,' 'talented painter,' 'a temperament that surpasses her ex.'"

When I saw those headlines, I thought, "It's rare for these reporters to speak like a human being. I like you too."

Julie's cheeks flushed slightly, and she raised her hand to cover her mouth, her tone carrying a rare hint of unease:

"Miss Gu, you flatter me. I'm not that kind of person."

"Yes," Gu Yunjin nodded earnestly.

"The paintings in your gallery are proof that my dad was lucky to meet you. If I were him, I would choose you too."

Gu Zhenxing listened from the side, his brows still furrowed, but the stiff line at the corner of his mouth had begun to loosen at some point.

He picked up his teacup, took a sip, his Adam's apple bobbed, and although his tone was still harsh, his volume had decreased to a normal level.

"Alright, stop flattering me."

"I'm not flattering anyone, I'm just stating the facts."

Gu Yunjin turned to look at her father, and her tone suddenly became relaxed, as if she were gossiping at the dinner table.

"By the way, Dad, there's something you might not know—Zhang Zhuoran confessed his feelings to me."

Gu Zhenxing's expression snapped back to normal from the brink of relaxation.

He frowned, his voice carrying an undisguised wariness and disdain.

"That kid from the Zhang family? Zhang Mingyuan's son?"

"right."

"He confessed his feelings to you?" Gu Zhenxing's voice suddenly rose two octaves.

"That old bastard Zhang Mingyuan was notorious for his womanizing ways when he was young; he changed women faster than he changed clothes."

He's probably keeping countless mistresses outside right now, what good could his son be? You stay away from him!

"Zhang Zhuoran is different from his father."

Gu Yunjin spoke calmly, without any intention of arguing.

"I can be certain of that: Zhang Mingyuan is as promiscuous as Zhang Zhuoran is devoted."

Gu Zhen snorted, clearly disagreeing with the conclusion, but before he could continue his rant...

Julie coughed softly beside her and said gently, "Old Gu, let Yun Jin finish speaking first."

Gu Zhenxing glared at Julie, but didn't say anything more.

He confessed his feelings to me, but I rejected him.

Gu Yunjin picked up her teacup and took another sip, speaking in a nonchalant tone, as if she were talking about something that had little to do with her.

"I think it would be great to be friends with him. We can invest in projects together, make money, chat, race cars—being friends means we can make money and have fun together."

"If we become husband and wife, we might not even be able to be friends anymore. I can make that sense."

Gu Zhenxing remained silent for a few seconds, a hint of surprise appearing in his eyes as he looked at her.

She was someone he thought he knew well, but every word she said at this moment was overturning his assumptions.

"I'm not love-struck, Dad," Gu Yunjin said, her eyes clear.

"I never have been. If you're worried that I might be deceived by some man someday, you can rest assured, I won't."