Chapter 221 - Don't Flatter Yourself

After Ye Fan left the study with Zhao Guodong, Zhao Lina didn’t immediately start to tidy up Ye Fan’s calligraphy.

Instead, she stood by the desk and savored it carefully.

Influenced by her father, she too possessed some ability to appreciate calligraphy.

Of course, her own calligraphy was pretty lousy.

When she was in elementary school, she was sent to a calligraphy interest class by Zhao Guodong for three years.

She studied diligently, but her brush writing turned out to be as if earthworms had crawled over the page—simply unbearable to look at.

Seeing she really didn’t have the talent, Zhao Guodong stopped sending her to the calligraphy class.

Even if she couldn’t learn calligraphy, it had left an imprint on her life.

She had particular admiration for people who wrote beautiful calligraphy.

Zhao Lina watched Ye Fan’s calligraphy almost as if she were in a trance, wanting to touch it but afraid of ruining it.

So she could only hover her slender jade hands above the characters, gently moving them.

She was lost in thought for a while, and suddenly Ye Fan’s nonchalant and frustrating demeanor came to mind.

She couldn’t help but mutter indignantly and shyly under her breath, “This annoying guy, always so infuriating!”

After a while, Zhao Lina tidied everything up and then left the study.

Seeing that Ye Fan and Zhao Guodong were sitting on the sofa in the living room, deep in conversation over the coffee table, she didn’t go over to join in but instead headed towards the kitchen.

Upon entering the kitchen, she called out, “Mom,” and then started to help out.

As Yang Zhizhuo was frying some dishes, she asked Zhao Lina, “Your dad showed Ye Fan’s calligraphy, didn’t he?

Ye Fan must be feeling down.

Why didn’t you stay and comfort him a bit?

Your dad, really now, he must feel content only when he has outdone Ye Fan.”

Not hearing Zhao Lina respond, Yang Zhizhuo asked, “Lina, why are you silent?”

Saying this, she turned her head to look at Zhao Lina and saw her making a strange expression.

Seeing her daughter’s odd expression, Yang Zhizhuo’s heart skipped a beat, and she had a bad premonition, “Could it be that your dad’s calligraphy was surpassed by Ye Fan?”

“Not only was it surpassed, but it was also too dreadful to look at,” Zhao Lina said with a smile.

Yang Zhizhuo was initially stunned, thinking it impossible.

But then she remembered how Ye Fan had once bested Zhao Guodong at chess.

So, she immediately believed it.

She couldn’t help laughing, “What a joke.

This is good too, to take down a notch of his arrogance, so your dad doesn’t always act like he’s the leader of the house.”

She decided to teasingly bring up the matter later that night before going to bed, to embarrass Zhao Guodong a bit.

Seeing that Yang Zhizhuo didn’t mind that Zhao Guodong got a reality check, Zhao Lina explained a bit awkwardly, “Mom, actually before we entered, I had already warned him he must lose at chess to dad.

But I didn’t expect dad wouldn’t play chess with Ye Fan and switched to calligraphy instead.

Next time, I’ll make him lose to dad no matter what.”

Yang Zhizhuo laughed, “Let’s not meddle in this kind of issue.

Maybe they’ve got a taste for competing with each other already.”

After dinner, Ye Fan and the Zhao family were chatting in the living room, enjoying tea and fruit.

About half an hour into the conversation, Zhao Lina slipped away without making a sound.

Seven or eight minutes after Zhao Lina left, Ye Fan’s phone suddenly received a text message.

After excusing himself to Zhao Guodong and Yang Zhizhuo, Ye Fan checked the message on his phone, and a strange look appeared on his face.

Seeing this, Yang Zhizhuo asked, “What’s the matter?

Did you get some bad news?”

“Hehe, no,” replied Ye Fan shaking his head, “It’s a message from Lina.

She said she has something to tell me and asked me to come to her room.”

Zhao Guodong and Yang Zhizhuo looked at each other, thinking that Zhao Lina probably had something to say to Ye Fan that she didn’t want to say in front of them.

So, Yang Zhizhuo playfully scolded “That girl!”, then said to Ye Fan, “Go ahead, her room door has a celebrity poster on it.”

“Alright, uncle, auntie, I’ll be excused for a moment,” Ye Fan replied, getting up.

Zhao Guodong and Yang Zhizhuo nodded, smiling.

Leaving the living room, Ye Fan found the door with the celebrity poster, knocked, and reached out to open it, only to find that the door was locked from the inside.

“Ye Fan wondered what the busty girl was up to, all secretive about changing planes.”

At that moment, Zhao Lina’s voice came from the room, “Who’s there?”

“It’s me,” Ye Fan called out.

Then, Ye Fan heard the sound of the door lock clicking, followed by the door being cracked open slightly.

Zhao Lina peeked half of her stunning face out, glanced outside, then whispered, “Hurry in, then immediately close the door.”

Seeing Zhao Lina acting as if she was up to no good, Ye Fan couldn’t help but feel a surge of curiosity.

Ye Fan pushed the door open a little wider, then slipped through the gap and immediately turned to close and lock the door.

After locking the door, Ye Fan turned around and was instantly dazzled by the sight, his eyes fixated and his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed.

Zhao Lina was wearing a brightly colored silk skirt on the bottom and wrapped the Indian saree she bought last time at FIC Shopping Center around her upper body, striking a pose full of feminine softness, giving him a provocative look.

Different from when she had tried it on last time at the FIC Shopping Center, she wore the gorgeous Indian saree even more daringly and temptingly this time.

“Hehe, do you think it looks good?” Zhao Lina switched to another flirtatious pose and asked with a seductive smile.

“Beautiful, it looks incredible!” exclaimed Ye Fan, unable to help himself from walking towards Zhao Lina.

However, she immediately said, “Don’t come any closer!” as he took a step forward.

Ye Fan had no choice but to step back and stand still.

Zhao Lina pretended to explain, “I’m wearing this saree for you since you bought it; I’m putting it on just this once for you to see.

Don’t get the wrong idea and think I’m accepting your pursuit.”

Then she lifted her delicate chin with pride and said, “Let me tell you, it will take at least ten years of effort before you have a chance of impressing me!”

“Hehe, of course, of course,” Ye Fan agreed continuously and then blinked, asking, “So how long can I gaze at you now?”

“Hehe, that will depend on my mood,” Zhao Lina said, laughing as she switched to a third enticing pose.

Ye Fan’s blood raced as he watched, eager to pounce on her.

But he noticed that Zhao Lina’s pose resembled that of Indian women wearing saree, reminding him of belly dancing.

Belly dancing is characterized by seductive and flirtatious movement of the hips and abdomen, along with shaking the chest, which greatly stimulates the adrenal glands of male spectators.

“Lina, how about doing a belly dance for me?” he asked, admiring Zhao Lina’s graceful figure.

Zhao Lina glared at him and said, “Keep dreaming!

Getting ahead of yourself!

Look or leave!”

Actually, she didn’t know how to belly dance at all.

“Hehe, I love to watch, I really love it,” said Ye Fan hastily, smiling apologetically, “Don’t be angry.”

Zhao Lina proudly lifted her face and struck another seductive pose.

“Ye Fan, tell me, didn’t I tell you not to beat my dad in chess before going upstairs?

How come you ignored my words?” Zhao Lina questioned.

Ye Fan smiled and said, “You just told me not to win at chess against your dad, you didn’t say that I should deliberately lose in calligraphy as well.

Besides, it’s impossible to purposely write badly.”

“Dodging the issue!” Zhao Lina said with a light bite of dissatisfaction.

Ye Fan could only helplessly spread his hands and smile.

Actually, before he started writing, he wasn’t confident himself, having not used a brush to write for so many years; he didn’t know how well he could still do it.

However, the outcome was somewhat unexpected; despite not having written for so long, his calligraphy still turned out to be better than Zhao Guodong’s amateurish skills.