On the evening of 1 September 2006, He Zhen left home carrying two suitcases.
He had only packed a few changes of clothes, several management books, less than a thousand pounds in cash, and a small amount of renminbi.
That night, He Zhen checked into a hotel near the airport.
He lay awake almost until dawn, spending the whole night pondering his future path.
Dai Chenglan called He Zhen several times, reiterating her threats against him in the calls. He Zhen did not wish to argue, yet he paid little heed to his mother Dai Chenglan’s threats.
The next day, He Zhen boarded the plane as per his scheduled itinerary.
As soon as the plane landed in Britain, He Zhen discovered that all his bank cards had been frozen. This was Dai Chenglan’s economic sanction against him, intended to force him to yield. He Zhen was not surprised.
In truth, even if Dai Chenglan had not frozen He Zhen’s bank cards, he would have found it difficult to continue spending his family’s money with a clear conscience.
He Zhinian wanted to secretly transfer money to his son, but He Zhen, for the moment, did not know how to face his father, whose stance felt so divided. He refused the help He Zhinian offered.
“No longer using my parents’ money” seemed to have become the only thing He Zhen could do now. He used this to declare his position.
Fortunately, He Zhen still had a girlfriend, Rebecca, who was willing to support him.
Rebecca had He Zhen list out the essential expenses for his final undergraduate year. They discussed and agreed on a method for repaying the principal plus interest. After having He Zhen sign the IOU, she transferred the full amount of this “loan” to He Zhen’s new account in one go.
“My dear, I sincerely hope you can manage your finances well~”
Rebecca smiled: “If you spend this sum ahead of schedule, I will not give you a second one.”
“It is enough. Any surplus will come from my scholarship.”
He Zhen appeared to have little pressure.
He Zhen dared to accept Rebecca’s support on the premise that he was confident in repaying it within the agreed timeframe.
What he felt grateful for now was that he had always done well in his studies from a young age. The university he applied to for studying abroad was also excellent. As long as he graduated smoothly, he was certain to find a job with a decent salary.
The support Rebecca provided was neither too much nor too little. It would allow He Zhen to complete his undergraduate studies without issue, yet it could no longer sustain his lifestyle as a wealthy second-generation international student.
He Zhen gave up the large house he rented outside the school and switched to a cheaper small one.
The luxury car he had bought upon arriving in Britain was also sold off at the fastest possible speed.
He Zhen did not keep any of this money for himself. He transferred it all back to his parents’ accounts.
From a wealthy second-generation to an ordinary student, He Zhen’s circle of friends in Britain began to speculate wildly. They all suspected that He Zhen’s family might have gone bankrupt.
How could a poor boy be with a goddess-level senior like Rebecca?
Breaking up was only a matter of time.
Rebecca was already very popular to begin with. Some impatient suitors could not even wait for her and He Zhen to officially break up before launching their offensives. For these overly enthusiastic pursuers, Rebecca simply smiled it off, unwilling to explain further.
The depth of affection between lovers was something outsiders could not comprehend. In love, she would absolutely be loyal, but she was not the sort of silly girl who revolved entirely around her boyfriend. Loyalty and her popularity did not conflict. The former was her character, the latter her charm!
From as far back as he could remember, He Zhen’s family had been quite well off. Though the He family could not be counted among top-tier tycoons, He Zhen had never lacked for money growing up.
As a minor rich second-generation, He Zhen had many friends. Whether they had money or not, He Zhen did not mind. As long as they could gather to have fun, that was fine.
When He Zhen was a rich second-generation, these friends were all very friendly towards him. Once rumours spread in Britain’s international student circles that He Zhen’s family business had gone bankrupt, some immediately changed their tune.
He Zhen had originally wanted to call a friend to consult on a matter. The call connected, but before He Zhen could speak, the friend prattled on at length, all of it circling around one core message: things were tight lately, and lending money was inconvenient!
He Zhen was left speechless with amusement.
From beginning to end, he had not mentioned a single word about “money”. There was no need to be so guarded against him!
As Rebecca had said, family support was the icing on the cake for He Zhen. Without it, his life would return to its true state.
Who was he?
How capable was he?
How many true friends did he have?
Both love and friendship would undergo a round of testing.
For now, love seemed very solid. Rebecca even admired He Zhen more because of it.
Friendship, however, was indeed precarious. After the waves washed the sand, who knew how many true friends would remain!
The He family had of course not gone bankrupt. It was merely that He Zhen had fallen out with his parents.
He Zhen had good character and had indeed made a few true friends. They did not distance themselves from him because of this. Instead, they were all willing to generously offer financial help.
“I am not short of money.”
He Zhen was torn between laughter and tears: “If I were short, I would say so!”
The friends were half-believing, half-doubting.
Having self-respect was a good thing, but too much self-respect meant enduring hardship.
He Zhen could refuse help from all his friends, but he could not refuse the childhood friend who had stabbed the female secretary with a knife.
The childhood friend rarely took the initiative to contact He Zhen. Upon hearing of He Zhen’s recent situation, he called at once.
“You have fallen out with your family?”
“…Mm.”
Fortunately, the childhood friend did not press for the reason behind the fallout, sparing He Zhen some embarrassment.
Every family has its own hard-to-recited scriptures. The childhood friend was probably the one who could best understand He Zhen’s current predicament. He had experienced the warmth and coldness of human relationships even earlier than He Zhen.
Other friends thought the childhood friend had been abandoned by his father and gradually accepted overtures from the illegitimate son. Even those who explained their difficulties to the childhood friend, saying their parents required them to maintain superficial ties, left him feeling betrayed.
Only He Zhen had never given that illegitimate son a good look from start to finish, maintaining a firm stance throughout.
The childhood friend had never said thanks to He Zhen out loud, but he truly regarded He Zhen as his only friend.
When his only friend fell into difficulty, the childhood friend helped without reservation: “I have over five hundred thousand in hand. I will give you all this money. Can you build the company yourself? If you give up now, it would be too much of a pity.”
‘Silan’ was He Zhen’s idea.
With the fallout with his family, He Zhen clearly would no longer manage ‘Silan’.
He Zhen held no shares in ‘Silan’. The shares belonged to He Zhinian and Dai Chenglan. Once he stopped handling ‘Silan”s affairs, the company would have nothing to do with him.
He Zhen was optimistic about the future of this industry and had described the company’s prospects to his childhood friend more than once. His original intent was to encourage the childhood friend to rally. Even without studying abroad, they could start a business together. The childhood friend had not responded at the time, yet he had taken He Zhen’s words to heart.
Now that He Zhen had no ‘Silan’, the childhood friend did not want He Zhen to abandon his career pursuit and wanted to help him establish a new company!
The name of the company was not important, nor even how much the initial investment was. What mattered was that it had to be managed by He Zhen. The childhood friend distrusted everyone else and was only willing to entrust his money to He Zhen to operate!
He Zhen neither said he wanted it nor that he did not. He asked about the source of his childhood friend’s funds: “How do you have five hundred thousand?”
The childhood friend gave a cold laugh: “Of course it could not be from that beast. This is what my mum scraped together in secret while enduring humiliation. I told her to divorce, but she would not. I do not blame her, because I know she still wants to fight for more for me.”
The mother’s sacrifices for the greater good made the son feel immense heartache.
The childhood friend had already thought it through. His father was unreliable. Rather than hoping for scraps from his father’s fingers, it was better to be self-reliant.
Perhaps, once he had made something of himself and could stand on his own in society, his mother would have the courage to divorce?
