Chapter 317 - 181: The Parents Decide to Pretend They Don’t Know (2)
Old Shen was also frowning deeply.
Watching Shen Yuan and Li Zhi’s figures grow smaller in the distance until they disappeared from view, Old Shen seemed to snap back to his senses. "Forget it," he said.
"For... Forget it?" Zhang Yuyan was dumbfounded, clearly shocked by Old Shen’s decision.
"Yes!" Old Shen nodded firmly, as if solidifying his own resolve. "Let’s just pretend we didn’t see anything."
Zhang Yuyan gazed at her husband, her eyes full of confusion and disbelief.
Old Shen seemed to read his wife’s mind. He sighed and slowly explained, "Our finding out was too sudden. If we question them now, it’ll put us in an awkward position, and them too. It’s better to pretend we don’t know anything and just observe for now. We can give them some space, and give ourselves some time to process all this."
After listening to Old Shen, Zhang Yuyan fell silent for a moment before finally nodding in agreement. "...Alright, we’ll do it your way. We’ll pretend we don’t know for now. But, Old Shen, about this... we should still tell Li Zhi’s parents."
"Yes!" Shen Guohao nodded again. He gently patted his wife’s hand to comfort her. "I’ll take care of it. For today, let’s just act like nothing happened."
Zhang Yuyan glanced one more time in the direction Shen Yuan and Li Zhi had gone. Though she still had her doubts, she decided to follow her husband’s advice.
She took a deep breath, then turned and walked toward home with Old Shen.
Shen Guohao and Zhang Yuyan walked into their apartment building in silence. When they reached their floor, they took out their keys and opened the door, only to find the apartment completely dark.
The apartment was silent, without a single glimmer of light.
A flicker of confusion crossed Shen Guohao and Zhang Yuyan’s faces.
Just moments ago, they had clearly seen Shen Yuan and Li Zhi walking ahead of them, hand-in-hand, in the residential community’s garden. They should have arrived home before their parents, who were weighed down with luggage.
At almost the exact same moment, a thought struck them both like a bolt of lightning: ’They’re still downstairs!’
In an instant, Zhang Yuyan guessed what the two were likely up to.
’Tsk, they’re probably still holding hands.’
With that thought, Zhang Yuyan put down her things, turned around, and headed out the door.
"Where are you going?" Old Shen asked, watching his wife.
"To Li Zhi’s place. This is the perfect time to talk to Old Li and his wife."
"You’re planning to...?" Old Shen raised an eyebrow and made a slicing motion with his hand.
Zhang Yuyan shook her head. "What are you thinking? It’s a good chance to ask what that rascal Shen Yuan has been up to while we’ve been away."
Under Old Shen’s gaze, Zhang Yuyan knocked on the door to Li Zhi’s home, and the couple then stepped inside.
"You’re back already?" Xu Chan stared in astonishment at Zhang Yuyan and Old Shen. As she spoke, she called over her shoulder into the apartment for Old Li.
Instead of answering Xu Chan’s question right away, Zhang Yuyan glanced conspiratorially toward Li Zhi’s bedroom and asked in a low voice, "Zhizhi isn’t back yet, is she?"
Xu Chan nodded and said softly, "Yeah, she’s been coming home pretty late recently."
Zhang Yuyan blinked, a little surprised by the answer. "Always?" she pressed.
Xu Chan explained, "Yeah, she said Shen Yuan keeps her at school asking questions, so she gets back a bit late."
As she finished speaking, a knowing ’you-know-what-I-mean’ look appeared on Xu Chan’s face, as if she were hinting at something.
Zhang Yuyan understood Xu Chan’s meaning in an instant. She recalled the excuse Shen Yuan had used for coming home late right before their trip.
"Well, I’ll be..." A look of sudden realization dawned on Zhang Yuyan, and a smile crept onto her lips.
Just then, Old Li came out of the study. Seeing the strange expressions on Zhang Yuyan’s and Xu Chan’s faces, he asked quizzically, "What’s going on? Did something happen?"
Zhang Yuyan didn’t bother hiding it any longer. She said bluntly, "When I was coming back just now, I saw Shen Yuan and Li Zhi holding hands downstairs."
Old Li froze for a second upon hearing Zhang Yuyan’s words. He clearly hadn’t expected her to say something like that.
He quickly recovered, however, a look of ’I-knew-it’ spreading across his face. He didn’t seem surprised by this outcome in the least.
Old Li turned to his wife, Xu Chan, a slight smile playing on his lips. "See?" he said, grinning. "What did I tell you?"
"Yes, yes, you were right. Are you happy now?" Xu Chan shot Old Li a look and shook her head in resignation.
Zhang Yuyan blinked, watching the couple’s interaction with a face full of confusion.
She didn’t understand why Old Li was reacting this way, nor did she know what they were talking about.
At that moment, Old Li explained with a grin, "Well, it’s like this. I’ve suspected for a while that there was something fishy going on with those two always coming home so late. What you just said only proves my suspicions were correct."
"You guessed they were holding hands?"
Zhang Yuyan blinked. Before she could ask for more specifics, she heard Old Shen speak up from behind her.
Old Shen glanced at the time and said, "It’s already 10:00. Shouldn’t they be back soon?"
Xu Chan nodded. "Yes, they usually get home around 10:05."
The two fathers exchanged a look, seeming to reach a tacit understanding in an instant.
Old Shen was the first to speak. "Let’s head back. As for what happened today, let’s just pretend none of us know anything."
Old Li nodded. "Let’s let the kids handle their own affairs. They’re not little children anymore; they have minds of their own. I trust them not to do anything foolish."