Chapter 130: Shaking Hands With The Feet

As the saying goes, clothes make the man, but they merely add to the inherent excellence, and cannot change the essence. A very ugly person, with the right clothing, might look better, but will never become an exceptional beauty.

Wen Qianyi herself is naturally beautiful, combined with years of cultivated charm and sophistication, which makes her effortlessly noticeable in everyday life, even without deliberate makeup or fancy clothes. With just a bare face and casual attire, she stands out. Li Yan meant this, and he wasn’t joking that she’d be mesmerising even without clothes.

Of course, Wen Qianyi understood, so she didn’t mind but admitted smilingly that the time she’d just asked for wasn’t spent on makeup or changing clothes.

"To be honest with you, I didn’t have time to do makeup or change clothes. My dad was just at my place!"

My dad was just at my place!

Li Yan was stunned upon hearing this, like being hit by a bolt from the blue! The man just now was her father?

Due to the distance, and him already being distraught at that moment, he hadn’t carefully observed the man’s specific facial features — he only noticed the stature, clothing, walk, which all appeared distinguished. Moreover, under such circumstances, without close observation or conversation, people typically only register it’s a man, not suspecting he’d be her father!

"What’s wrong?" Wen Qianyi noticed his surprise.

"You... have a dad?"

Wen Qianyi was somewhat incredulous, then glared at him: "What nonsense! If I didn’t have a dad, what am I—a product of parthenogenesis? And you’re the only one with a dad? Your dad is Li Gang!"

"..." Li Yan was a bit embarrassed, seeing a waiter nearby: "Let’s order some food first!"

After placing the order and the waiter left, Li Yan couldn’t resist probing further: "What I meant earlier was... I never heard you mention your dad before, and you bought a home and live alone, so your parents aren’t in this city, right?"

Wen Qianyi nodded but didn’t want to elaborate on her parents’ matters, merely saying briefly: "Today’s my birthday, right? My dad is in town for business and just got off the plane, left his luggage at the hotel, and came to see me. He hadn’t told me before, giving me a surprise. Originally, I wanted to have lunch with him, but since I had already made plans with you, I didn’t have time to call you. So I told him I had an appointment with a friend, let him go back to the hotel to rest, and planned to have dinner with him tonight."

It was clear she wasn’t aware of the scene Li Yan had witnessed and wasn’t specifically explaining it, just responding because he asked.

Having heard her story, Li Yan’s previous depression was all but gone. The way she described it, her father had just landed in the morning and rushed to see her, unlikely staying long, ruling out any morning rendezvous. Reflecting calmly now, it made sense — if Wen Qianyi really spent the night with a man, how could she have casually chatted with him after midnight? How could she have received a gift and remembered to call him early in the morning? In the few calls, she lowered her voice being mindful of others only this once.

"Actually, having him join us for dinner would be nice. I’m sure he also cares about your personal matters. It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve been your shield; you could introduce me as your boyfriend. I bet seeing such an outstanding man, your father would relax and stop urging you." Li Yan smiled as he spoke.

There was no longer the previous forced smile, but inside, he felt secretly ashamed for his doubts. Although they were based on what he personally witnessed, as Confucius once said, what one sees may not always be real!

Once, a student of Confucius found dirt falling into the porridge while cooking it. He hurriedly fished it out with a spoon, about to throw it away, when he suddenly remembered that every grain of food is precious and should not be wasted, so he ate it instead. Just then, Confucius walked into the kitchen and thought the student was taking advantage of cooking porridge to sneak in a bite, thus lectured him. Later, after clarification, everyone understood the situation. So Confucius was deeply moved: what I see clearly may not be certain, so how much less reliable are mere hearsays?

Wen Qianyi looked at him playfully: "Your face seems to have thickened lately — complimenting yourself as an outstanding man without batting an eye!"

"Just stating the truth! But, speaking of which, your dad is an older guy now, usually he wouldn’t be sent for business trips a lot. I suspect he used the business trip as an excuse and came specifically to see you. If that’s the case, having sent him back to the hotel because of me, wouldn’t it hurt his feelings?"

"Old guy?!" Wen Qianyi stared at him, "My dad is only a bit over fifty, that’s just middle-aged. He exercises regularly and maintains himself well, looking hardly fortyish and turning heads from young girls as a charming mature man on the street!"

"Not that exaggerated, is it?"

Since Wen Qianyi and Zhang Yurong were born the same year, month, and day, and Zhang Tianyi, being older, married and had children, now due to illness appeared as an old man since Li Yan met him for the first time, he thereby assumed Wen Qianyi’s father looked similar to that. Now recalling the man he saw, indeed, only mature and charming, not an old guy.

"I’ll let you see one day for real..." Wen Qianyi grinned: "But, this golden shield can be used in front of other guys, just not my dad."