Chapter 467 — Zhong Yongliang's New Plan

But Wei Zhao said nothing. He simply placed something in Feng Xiaoxiao's hand, then turned and walked away.

The bracelet? Feng Xiaoxiao stared at what Wei Zhao had left in her palm, too stunned to speak. She had searched for it for so long, and Wei Zhao had just reached into the sea and groped around — and found it?

Feng Xiaoxiao watched Wei Zhao's departing back, incredulous, her eyes full of disbelief. The more she saw of him, the less she understood him...

Wei Zhao was no treasure hunter. Under normal circumstances, how could he possibly have found the bracelet Feng Xiaoxiao had lost in the sea? What Wei Zhao had made use of was simply the faint hostility Feng Xiaoxiao held toward him — through the sensing ability of the jade pendant, he had located the object in the sea that carried her aura.

This was merely an ordinary function of the jade pendant. Back when Wei Zhao was on the battlefield, he had often used this little trick to find things the enemy had hidden.

Of course, this function only worked on people who harbored hostility toward him. On anyone else, it had no effect at all.

And so the spring outing came to a plain and uneventful end, amid Zhong Yongliang's farce.

As evening fell, the classmates boarded the same seaplane that had brought them and returned to Songshan City.

Zhong Yongliang sat beside Gao Xiaofu, his face pale. The two of them no longer dared to show off by sitting in the back row; instead they took the seats behind everyone else, in the middle of the cabin.

"The spring outing was supposed to go so well, and I went and ruined it!" Zhong Yongliang found himself wondering why his luck was so bad. Whatever he did, it always ended in failure. At this rate, he was starting to think the god of misfortune had possessed him.

"Brother Liang, I'm sorry. When that shark came earlier, I didn't have time to warn you..." Gao Xiaofu said, somewhat guiltily.

"Forget it. I was too impatient." Zhong Yongliang waved a hand. "Now Gu Mengyao's impression of me is probably even worse. She must think I'm a coward who lures danger toward a woman. I'm finished — completely hopeless!"

"Brother Liang, you can't give up on yourself. There's still hope!" Gao Xiaofu hurried to console him, though in truth even he thought Zhong Yongliang's chances were slim indeed.

"Is that so? There's still hope?" Zhong Yongliang was like a drowning man clutching at the last straw. He knew perfectly well there was no hope, and yet he still did not want to give up.

"There is!" Gao Xiaofu hesitated a moment, then said, "Brother Liang, actually, I think you should just force yourself on her!"

"Force myself on her?" Zhong Yongliang was stunned, staring at Gao Xiaofu in shock. "You mean you want me to..."

"Exactly!" Gao Xiaofu had only spoken offhandedly, but once the words were out, even he thought it was a good idea. So he went on: "Brother Liang, look, it's already April. The college entrance exam is in two months — time is tight. If you don't seize the moment now, I'm afraid your chances will be even slimmer once you're in university! What if Gu Mengyao decides she wants to date someone and goes after another man?"

"Mm, you have a point!" Zhong Yongliang nodded. "But forcing myself on her is far too risky, isn't it? Gu Mengyao's family is no ordinary family. I'm afraid it could backfire on me!"

Zhong Yongliang had given Zou Ruoming similar advice before — telling him to force himself on Tang Zhi — but that had been aimed at a girl like Tang Zhi, with no family connections to speak of. Gu Mengyao was different. If he really did something like that to her, would Gu Pengzhan ever let him off?

"Not so!" Gao Xiaofu waved a hand with an air of deep wisdom. "Brother Liang, think about it. What do people in high society care about most? Nothing but reputation! And once Gu Mengyao has really become your woman, would she dare to report you? Even if she wanted to, Gu Pengzhan might not agree. This concerns his daughter's reputation for the rest of her life! If word of this got out, how would Gu Mengyao ever marry?"

"That's true, but how can I be sure Gu Pengzhan won't come after me from the shadows?" Zhong Yongliang hesitated, still a little worried.

"That's easy enough! First, once Gu Mengyao is your woman, I refuse to believe she won't care about any of this. As long as she cares, you can ride the momentum and break down her emotional defenses!" Gao Xiaofu argued with conviction. "And second, Brother Liang, you must build momentum. Go to Gu Pengzhan's company and build momentum — say that Gu Mengyao is already your woman and that you're his son-in-law. Let everyone know about it. Make it an established fact. That way, even if Gu Pengzhan wants to come after you, he can't, because everyone will know. The only way he avoids being laughed at is to acknowledge you as his son-in-law!"

"Hey? Xiaofu, you really do have a knack for this, don't you?" Hearing Gao Xiaofu's analysis, Zhong Yongliang felt it really did make sense. If handled properly, it would truly be a good plan!

"Of course, Brother Liang. And if you're really afraid something might go wrong, you can also do it this way!" Gao Xiaofu grew more and more excited as he spoke. "First lock Gu Mengyao up, then go to Gu Pengzhan and build momentum — say Gu Mengyao is already your woman, and see how he reacts! If he acknowledges you as his son-in-law, then you go back and finish what you started. If he refuses and wants to come after you, then let Gu Mengyao go and tell him it was all a joke. That way the risk is much smaller!"

"Xiaofu, I never realized it before — you're simply too clever!" Zhong Yongliang had been worried, but once he heard Gao Xiaofu's method of operation, he relaxed at once. This way, there was no risk at all to speak of.

"Heh heh, isn't this thanks to your fine training, Brother Liang?" Gao Xiaofu laughed smugly.

"Ah, the thing down there got kicked by Feng Xiaoxiao — swollen up tight. Looks like it'll be out of commission for a while, so forcing myself on her is out of the question too!" Zhong Yongliang said with some regret.

Feng Xiaoxiao clutched the bracelet tightly in her hand; she would have to reassess Wei Zhao's strength.

Before this, Feng Xiaoxiao had underestimated Wei Zhao far too much, and so she had suffered setback after setback. And it seemed that making Wei Zhao fall in love with her was no easy task either. Today Wei Zhao had stepped in to save her, but Feng Xiaoxiao could tell that he had not done it out of any fondness for her, but out of a kind of pity! So Feng Xiaoxiao felt her plan needed some slight adjustment — if she kept chasing Wei Zhao like this, he would probably never like her in his whole life. It seemed that without resorting to some tricks, it simply would not work...

Glancing at Wei Zhao beside her, Feng Xiaoxiao hesitated again. He had saved her; if she now went looking to make trouble for him, wouldn't that be repaying kindness with enmity? And most important of all, he had even helped her find her mother's bracelet...