Chapter 119: Chapter 117: Jiang Sifan Learns the Truth, In Disbelief

Jiang Sifan brought Wen Wan to a food stall.

"That’ll be twenty," the owner said, handing two rice-stuffed chicken wings to Jiang Sifan.

Jiang Sifan paid immediately.

Then, he handed one to Wen Wan. "Here, go ahead and eat."

Looking at the fragrant rice-stuffed chicken wing, Wen Wan said softly, "Thank you, Class Rep."

Jiang Sifan watched Wen Wan take a delicate bite, finding her expression as she savored it quite adorable.

He couldn’t help but tease her. "Wen Wan, have a lot of guys chased after you over the years?"

"N-No, not at all," Wen Wan said, her face immediately turning red.

"No way. You’re so good-looking and so gentle. There must have been plenty of guys who liked you," Jiang Sifan chuckled.

For some reason, Jiang Sifan might feel a little nervous around other girls.

But when he was with Wen Wan, he felt much more relaxed and natural. He would even tease the introverted Wen Wan from time to time.

Moreover, being with Wen Wan always made Jiang Sifan feel respected, which inexplicably boosted his sense of masculinity.

Wen Wan shook her head again. "They used to write me love letters, but I... I always turned them over to the teacher."

"Wow, that’s harsh," Jiang Sifan said, a little surprised.

"Because the teacher said we shouldn’t date while we’re still in school," Wen Wan explained.

Jiang Sifan laughed. "What about now? You’re in university and you’re an adult. You can’t still be forbidden from dating, right? Have you thought about getting into a relationship?"

Hearing this, Wen Wan glanced up at him before quickly lowering her head, blushing. "I..."

Seeing her hesitate, Jiang Sifan didn’t press the issue. Instead, he pulled her toward the next food stall. "I think there’s more good stuff up ahead. Let’s go."

"Okay."

Wen Wan obediently followed behind him.

The two of them ate their way from the east end of the food street to the west.

Whenever they saw something that looked good, Jiang Sifan would buy a portion for Wen Wan to try.

Even though Wen Wan insisted she couldn’t eat anymore, he still wanted to repay her properly.

Just then, Jiang Sifan’s phone rang.

He quickly took out his phone and saw it was a call from his counselor.

"Hello, Professor."

"Sifan, what are you up to?" the counselor asked from the other end of the line.

Jiang Sifan replied, "I’m grabbing a bite at the food street off campus. What’s up, Professor?"

"No wonder. I just sent you a message and you didn’t reply, so I figured you were busy. Here’s the thing: the department head has invited an entrepreneur to give a seminar on finance for the freshmen," the counselor explained.

’Why would an entrepreneur suddenly come give us a seminar out of the blue?’ Jiang Sifan thought with surprise.

But he didn’t dwell on it. Instead, he asked, "Okay, what time tomorrow? I’ll notify the class."

"10 AM tomorrow. Just @ everyone in the group chat. I’ve already sent you the message content, so you can post it directly in the group," the counselor replied.

"Okay."

After hanging up, Jiang Sifan immediately opened WeChat to check.

When he saw the message from his counselor, his eyes widened in disbelief.

He couldn’t believe it, reading it over and over again.

Seeing his reaction, Wen Wan, who was beside him, asked curiously, "Class Rep, what’s wrong?"

Jiang Sifan didn’t answer. Instead, he dialed the counselor’s number again.

The counselor picked up quickly.

Jiang Sifan asked nervously, "Professor, is the entrepreneur’s name Lu Fan?"

"Yes, it is. Why?" the counselor inquired.

"N-Nothing," Jiang Sifan stammered in reply.

He hung up again. This time, Jiang Sifan’s eyes were visibly vacant.

Wen Wan grew anxious. She had never seen the class representative with such an expression before.

She quickly asked, "Class Rep, what’s wrong? You’re scaring me."

A moment later, Wen Wan saw the message on her phone.

[@All, tomorrow at 10 AM in the multimedia classroom of Building 2, there will be a seminar for all freshmen hosted by the renowned entrepreneur, Mr. Lu Fan. He will be giving a free lecture on financial knowledge. Please be sure to arrive early.]

She read the message but didn’t see anything wrong with it.

So she looked up and asked cautiously, "Class Rep, is something wrong with the message?"

Jiang Sifan looked at Wen Wan, hesitating. He wasn’t sure if he should tell her about his family affairs.

But seeing how worried she was, he finally said, "That’s my dad."

Wen Wan was stunned.

She looked at the message on WeChat again.

It clearly said Lu Fan.

’The Class Rep and his father don’t have the same last name?’

’What’s going on?’

Jiang Sifan explained, "I’ve never met my dad, not since the day I was born. My mom raised me, so I took her last name, Jiang. I thought I didn’t have a father, until a little over two months ago. He suddenly showed up to acknowledge my sister and me, and he wanted to compensate us."

"I didn’t agree. I refused his compensation. I feel that when I needed him most, he wasn’t there. Now I’m a grown man and capable of starting my own business. I certainly don’t need his handouts."

"This whole thing has been like a heavy weight on my heart. I’ve never told anyone about it."

"I don’t know why he’s coming to our university to give a seminar. I don’t know what his motive is, or if he was simply invited by the school."

"I just don’t know."

Jiang Sifan then looked up at Wen Wan and said apologetically, "Sorry about that. I made you worry just now. I’m fine."

Wen Wan comforted him, "It’s okay, Class Rep."

"You’re too kind," Jiang Sifan said with a knowing smile. "By the way, I’m curious. Why do you always listen to me? Doesn’t that make me seem kind of bossy?"

Wen Wan shook her head, blushing.

She looked at Jiang Sifan shyly, bit her lip, and after a few seconds of hesitation, she answered, "Because... growing up, my younger siblings always listened to me. I’ve gotten so tired of making decisions. I just want to be the one who’s told what to do for a change. I don’t want to make any more decisions."

From that short explanation, Jiang Sifan knew that Wen Wan must have had an unhappy home life.

He comforted her, "Don’t worry. With a guy and a girl working together, the work won’t feel tiring. We’ll definitely make our startup a huge success!"

"Okay~" Wen Wan nodded as well.

After their lighthearted exchange, Jiang Sifan returned to the previous topic. He thought for a moment and said to Wen Wan, "Should I go to the seminar tomorrow? I don’t want to see him."

"Class Rep, are you asking for my advice? I’m afraid my suggestion might interfere with your own thoughts..." Wen Wan said softly.

"It’s okay, just say it. I trust you. I believe you can look at my situation objectively and help me make a better choice," Jiang Sifan replied.

Wen Wan thought for a moment before finally saying, "Actually, I think you should go, Class Rep."

"Why?"

"If your father didn’t love you, he wouldn’t be trying so hard to get close to you." As Wen Wan spoke, a hint of disappointment flickered in her eyes. "It’s like... when I left for university, I went to the train station all by myself. My parents didn’t even come to see me off."

Hearing her sad words, Jiang Sifan’s heart ached for her.

’How could someone as angelic as Wen Wan not have anyone to dote on her!’

’If you all won’t cherish her, then I will!’

So Jiang Sifan patted his chest and declared, "When winter break comes, I’ll take you to the train station. I won’t leave until you’re safely inside!"

"R-Really? Thank you, Class Rep." Wen Wan was easily cheered up, a shy, happy smile appearing on her face. 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

"Really!"

Jiang Sifan nodded.

But after promising Wen Wan, he found himself in a difficult position again.

According to Wen Wan’s advice, he was supposed to go to the seminar Lu Fan was hosting tomorrow.

But he really didn’t want to see that scumbag dad of his.

After thinking it over, however, Jiang Sifan ultimately decided to take Wen Wan’s advice. "Alright, I’ll go. But I’ll sit in the back. I doubt he has any real knowledge to share. He’s probably just some nouveau riche guy who’s all flash and no substance."

Wen Wan wanted to explain something, but seeing how certain he was, she decided against it.

「That evening.」

After walking Wen Wan back to her dorm, Jiang Sifan returned to his own.

He thought things over and ended up sending a message to Jiang Silu.

Jiang Sifan: [What are you up to?]

Jiang Silu: [Still revising my project. The competition submission is the day after tomorrow.]

Jiang Sifan: [Okay, I won’t bother you then.]

Jiang Silu: [What’s wrong? You sound like you have something on your mind. Spill it. Your little sis is here to help.]

Jiang Sifan: [Have you been in contact with him recently?]

Jiang Silu naturally knew who the "him" in Jiang Sifan’s message was.

Jiang Silu: [Not constantly, but he comes to see me every now and then.]

Jiang Sifan: [Has he asked you to do anything?]

Jiang Silu: [No, he’s been pretty good to me.]

Jiang Sifan: [So have you accepted him?]

Jiang Silu: [No, I still can’t get over that hurdle in my heart.]

Reading this, Jiang Sifan finally breathed a sigh of relief.

No matter what, his sister still had a backbone.

At least she wouldn’t throw away her dignity just for a few favors.

Jiang Silu: [So what’s really going on?]

Jiang Sifan: [He’s coming to our university tomorrow to give a seminar for the freshman finance students.]

Jiang Silu: [Wow, that’s impressive!]

Jiang Sifan: [What’s so impressive? He probably just bribed the school leadership and paid to have this seminar. You really think our professors invited him?]

But Jiang Silu offered a different perspective: [You can’t think of him like that. He’s actually very capable.]

Jiang Sifan: [He just has some money. At best, he’s just nouveau riche. What kind of real knowledge could he have?]

Jiang Silu: [You haven’t talked to him much. When he took us out for that Western meal, he could talk about anything and everything, from geography to culture and history.]

Jiang Sifan was skeptical of what Jiang Silu said.

It wasn’t that he didn’t believe his sister, but he figured Lu Fan must have prepared his topics in advance.

With his level of knowledge, there was no way he could just talk about those things off the cuff.

Jiang Sifan wanted to chat more with Jiang Silu, but considering she still had drawings to do, he just told her to get some rest and ended the conversation.

He put down his phone.

Jiang Sifan lay on his bed.

His roommates, Gao Lao and Brother Ming, were engrossed in a game of Honor of Kings, having a blast.

Qiu Zai, meanwhile, was chatting endlessly on the phone with his girlfriend.

They were all just freshmen, so why did Jiang Sifan have so many worries?

Meanwhile, they could live so carefree, their days just a cycle of class and entertainment.

Thinking about this, Jiang Sifan picked up his phone again, wanting to find someone to talk to.

But after scrolling through his chat list, his focus ultimately landed on Wen Wan.

But the poor girl must be tired after doing accounts all day, so he just sent her a message: [Good night. Get some rest.]

A moment later, Wen Wan replied: [Good night (*^▽^*)]

Jiang Sifan couldn’t help but smile when he saw it. It was the first time he had seen Wen Wan use a kaomoji, and he found it quite interesting.

"Whatever, I’ll just deal with it. Tomorrow, I’ll sit in the back, listen to what he has to say, and leave as soon as it’s over."

That was Jiang Sifan’s final decision for tomorrow’s plan.

"Time for bed!"

Meanwhile, Wen Wan, having sent a single kaomoji, blushed for a solid half an hour before it finally started to fade...