Superstar Assistant [GL] - Chapter 45

Chapter 45

Li Ziyu and Zhou Tiantian did not travel to Z City alone. While Li Ziyu didn’t care much for her own sake, she was worried about Zhou Tiantian’s physical condition, so she brought along two bodyguards.

Zhou Tiantian felt she was being a bit dramatic. “There shouldn’t be any danger going back. Do we really need bodyguards?”

“You’re currently carrying a large belly and going to negotiate with loan sharks,” Li Ziyu said. “How could I feel at ease? I wish I could bring an entire division of soldiers with me.”

Zhou Tiantian thought about it. “Bringing people along is fine. You’re famous now; if you’re recognized, they can protect you.”

Li Ziyu poked her forehead. “Silly girl, always thinking about me. If you keep this up, I’m only going to like you more and more. Let’s see how you plan to escape my grasp then.”

Zhou Tiantian glared at her, having no choice but to sulk privately while trying to soothe the fluttering in her heart.

Upon arriving in Z City, the two didn’t go straight home. Instead, they checked into a hotel and asked Han Ping to meet them there.

Han Ping arrived at the best hotel in Z City with a pounding heart, hesitating at the door. A bellboy politely greeted her and led her to the hotel’s cafe.

As Han Ping walked into the private room, seeing Zhou Tiantian felt like finding her anchor—but she froze when she saw her daughter’s rounded belly.

Zhou Tiantian stood up and welcomed Han Ping to sit beside her. To her shocked mother, she said, “Mom, as you can see, I’m pregnant. I’m working in B City all by myself, and there’s no one to take care of me.”

Li Ziyu rolled her eyes. Am I not a person?

Zhou Tiantian ignored her, her soft voice carrying an underlying forceful pressure. “I came back this time because I want you to divorce Uncle Zhao and come to B City to take care of me.”

Han Ping immediately shrunk back, her eyes full of bewilderment. “Divorce? Do I really have to divorce? Aren’t loan sharks illegal? Can’t we sue them? Your uncle says the interest is higher than the debt itself; there’s no way we can pay it back.”

Zhou Tiantian’s face darkened when she realized her mother was still making excuses. She let go of Han Ping’s hand. “Fine. Then go back and sue the loan sharks with Uncle. I’ll go back to B City alone. Mom, please return the money I saved with you; I intended to use that for the baby’s birth. Don’t call me anymore in the future—I have a child to look after.”

“You!” Han Ping was stunned. Seeing that Zhou Tiantian wasn’t joking, she panicked. “It’s not that I don’t want to divorce, but I’m a woman nearly fifty. If I divorce and go to B City, I can’t even support myself. What can I do? After your father died, the two of us lived alone, and those two years were so hard! Zhao Zhonggang has a bad temper sometimes, but at least I have a place to rely on.”

Zhou Tiantian frowned, and Li Ziyu found she couldn’t listen to this any longer either.

Zhou Tiantian’s past life had ended tragically precisely because she was influenced by her mother’s mindset. In this life, she had woken up. Who needs a man? Who needs a “reliance”? As long as one has ability and money, there is no need to depend on a man’s whims!

She sat further back, creating distance between herself and Han Ping. In this life, she had to push not just herself, but her mother as well.

Zhou Tiantian’s tone grew colder, and her softness vanished. “I told you before, Mom, you can rely on me. If you think the life I can give you isn’t as good as what Uncle gives you, or if you feel you can’t live without him, then stay here and pay off the debts with him. But if you make up your mind to leave, I promise you that the life I give you won’t be worse than his.”

Han Ping had been tempted long ago, but her deep-seated cowardice made her afraid. “But if I divorce, your uncle won’t let it go. It doesn’t matter if I get hit, but you’re so young—what if he goes crazy and hits you?” She looked at Zhou Tiantian’s belly. “You have a child. If he hits you hard, you might lose the baby.”

The memory of being beaten until she miscarried in her previous life suddenly flooded back. Zhou Tiantian’s face turned pale, and she couldn’t help but tremble.

Frowning, Li Ziyu stood up and moved behind Zhou Tiantian, pulling her into her arms. She looked at Han Ping with a cold sneer. “Auntie, how tough is your husband? Can he take on a former special forces soldier?”

Han Ping blinked, instinctively shaking her head.

Li Ziyu held up two fingers. “Then he won’t be able to touch a single hair on Tiantian’s head, because we have two former special forces soldiers with us.”

Han Ping stared blankly at Li Ziyu, finding her somewhat familiar.

Zhou Tiantian finally regained her composure, relaxing her back against Li Ziyu. She calmed down and said, “Mom, she is…” She paused for a moment. “She is the other mother of my child, and also my high school classmate, Li Ziyu. You should have seen her before.”

This was too much information for Han Ping to process at once.

Zhou Tiantian added, “Mom, with her here, we will definitely be fine.”

Li Ziyu looked rather proud. “Mm, Tiantian is right. I can protect you.”

It finally clicked for Han Ping. Li Ziyu was that rebellious girl from high school whom even the teachers couldn’t handle. She had been on good terms with Tiantian back then and had never bullied her.

But how was she the other mother of Tiantian’s child? What was going on?

Zhou Tiantian didn’t know how to define her relationship with Li Ziyu either, so she simply said, “I’ll tell you about Ziyu and me later. Right now, let’s solve the issue with Uncle Zhao. Do you want a divorce?”

Han Ping was silent for a long time. Finally, using all her strength, she nodded. “I want it. I want a divorce.”

Once Han Ping had decided, Zhou Tiantian didn’t let her go home. She took her to a room they had already booked at the hotel. “Stay here and rest first. He can’t get in here. Ziyu and I are going to talk to the loan shark boss about the repayment.”

“Should I go with you?” Han Ping asked.

Zhou Tiantian refused and left with Li Ziyu.

They got into a car rented by the bodyguards. Li Ziyu held Zhou Tiantian’s hand and asked, “Did your stepfather hit you?” She hadn’t forgotten Zhou Tiantian’s trembling earlier.

Zhou Tiantian hesitated for a moment before nodding. “Yeah. I could never beat him.”

Li Ziyu pulled her into a hug. “It’s over now. As long as I’m here, no one can bully you again.”

Feeling Li Ziyu’s warmth, Zhou Tiantian closed her eyes, her nose feeling slightly stingy.

…

Zhou Tiantian contacted the loan shark boss and arranged to meet at a teahouse in Z City.

It was an old teahouse—less of a place for tea and more of a place where people gathered to play mahjong.

They brought the bodyguards into a private room where a group was playing cards.

One man, hearing from his subordinate that Zhao Zhonggang’s daughter had arrived, turned around and froze. The cigarette nearly fell from his mouth. “Zhou… Zhou Tiantian?!”

Zhou Tiantian stared at him, unable to remember who he was.

Li Ziyu, however, said, “Why is it you!”

The man jumped up. “Li Ziyu!!”

A minute later, the mahjong tiles were cleared. Zhou Tiantian and Li Ziyu sat on one side, while the loan shark boss, Li Muqiang, sat on the other. He smiled at Zhou Tiantian. “I’m the one who wrote you love letters in high school. I got taught a lesson by Li Ziyu back then. It still makes me mad thinking about it; I should have fought her! To be honest, I never forgot you all these years. I even look for girlfriends who look like you. It’s a pity girls like you are getting rarer; most are ‘Green Tea Bitches,’ not like you, who is truly ‘Green Tea’ (pure/innocent).”

Zhou Tiantian blushed slightly. “I’m here today to talk about Zhao Zhonggang’s debt.”

“Since it’s you, it’s easy to talk,” Li Muqiang said. “You’re the ‘White Moonlight’ of my heart. But why are you pregnant? If you weren’t married and pregnant, I would have married you! Your stepfather’s case is fine. I’ll tell the boys—he can pay back what he owes, and we won’t count the interest.”

Zhou Tiantian recalled that in her previous life, because Zhao Zhonggang didn’t have much money to gamble with, the debt wasn’t large, and she had never met Li Muqiang.

Dealing with an acquaintance made things easier.

Zhou Tiantian gave a faint smile, making Li Muqiang’s heart race. “Actually, I’m not here to plead for him. Let him pay back whatever he owes, and calculate the interest however you normally do. I just don’t want my mother involved in this. She wants to divorce him.”

Li Muqiang understood immediately. “I’ve met your stepfather a few times. He doesn’t look like someone who lets go easily. He told us his daughter works away from home and makes a lot of money, so the debt would be covered.”

Zhou Tiantian shook her head. “I won’t help him pay, and neither will my mother. That’s why she’s divorcing him. As long as you don’t chase my mother for the money, I’ll just take her away.”

Li Muqiang looked a bit disappointed. “You’re leaving.”

Li Ziyu finally couldn’t take it anymore and slammed the table. “Li Muqiang, do you have a death wish? It’s been so many years and you’re still trying to steal her from me!”

Li Muqiang sneered. “What do you mean steal her? Tiantian is married with a child. You’re just an ‘ex’ now, okay!”

Li Ziyu smirked. “Heh. I’m the one she’s married to and having a child with!”

Li Muqiang went stiff.

Five minutes later, Li Muqiang was expressionless. “Tiantian, I… sigh. If Li Ziyu ever abandons you for fame and fortune, just tell me. I’ll definitely take care of you and the baby!”

“Get lost!” Li Ziyu snapped.

Li Muqiang laughed heartily. “Alright, alright. Tiantian, I’ll help you with what you said. Just take your mother and leave; Zhao Zhonggang won’t be able to set foot out of Z City for the rest of his life.”

Zhou Tiantian smiled. “Thank you.”

Li Muqiang pressed his hand to his racing heart and sighed. “Sigh, seriously, why are there no more girls as sweet and cute as you these days?”

Li Ziyu’s aura grew cold. Li Muqiang laughed again. “Come on, this is a reunion of classmates. Dinner is on me tonight; let’s eat together.”

He glanced at Li Ziyu. “In memory of my lost first love.”

…

After dinner, Li Ziyu was very unhappy and kept a cold face. “Baby, after I finished the college entrance exams and you suddenly disappeared, if Li Muqiang had found you before I did, would you have been with him?”

Zhou Tiantian paused for a moment, then shook her head. “No.”

Li Ziyu was instantly healed.

Zhou Tiantian knew she wouldn’t have—not in either life. In her previous life, she feared men; unless Li Muqiang had forced her, she wouldn’t have chosen him. In this life, she believed in men even less.

She now understood why she could naturally accept Li Ziyu and their ambiguous relationship. From the moment they met, Li Ziyu had given her an immense sense of security, which was why she relied on her so much.

Zhou Tiantian looked at Li Ziyu, who was looking arrogant and pleased. “How about it? Is everyone else not as good as me?”

Zhou Tiantian nodded. “Mm.”

Li Ziyu was stunned and leaned in close. “Why did you suddenly give me some ‘sugar’? Did something happen? Baby, is your stomach okay? Did Li Muqiang upset you just now?”

Zhou Tiantian sighed inwardly. “Ziyu, stop talking. If you say one more word, I’m booking my own separate room tonight.”

Li Ziyu immediately shut her mouth.