You and I as Desk Mates Aren't Suited to Be Father and Daughter (Thanks for the Gift)

The black bank card lay quietly on the coffee table.

"Pfft."

A highly inappropriate laugh broke the strange atmosphere in the room.

Pei Ningxue quickly covered her mouth and buried her head even lower, but her body was shaking like a leaf.

Sitting nearby, Dean Zhang of the Student Affairs Office was experiencing the most severe test of his career. His face was flushed the color of pig liver. He wanted to laugh, but reason told him that if he laughed out loud right now, he probably wouldn't be able to step foot through the school gates tomorrow.

To distract himself, Dean Zhang pinched his own thigh desperately, his nails almost digging into the flesh.

Pei Dongcheng froze on the sofa, maintaining his leaning-back, domineering CEO posture, but his expression was extremely peculiar.

Seeing no reaction from him, Chen Zhi raised an eyebrow slightly.

He stood up again, walked around the coffee table, and went straight to Pei Dongcheng's side.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, he reached out and heavily patted Pei Dongcheng on the shoulder.

Smack! Smack!

The sound was crisp, seemingly carrying a bit of an elder's affection for a junior.

"Why aren't you saying anything?"

Chen Zhi shook his head, speaking in an earnest and well-meaning tone.

"Uncle, it's good for middle-aged people to be steady, but being this slow to react just isn't right."

Chen Zhi sighed to himself, "No wonder my deskmate's personality turned out like that, it's because of her family. Spending too much time with a boring gourd like you would make any normal person sick from holding it in. The pressure is just too high."

Pei Dongcheng: "..."

He took a deep breath, just about to scold this insolent brat who didn't know his place.

But Chen Zhi didn't even give him the chance to get a word out. He turned around, walked back to his seat, sat down boldly with his legs wide apart, and crossed one leg over the other.

"Since you don't have anything you want to say, then I'll be blunt."

Chen Zhi cleared his throat, leaned forward, and crossed his hands over his knees, perfectly replicating Pei Dongcheng's earlier posture and tone.

"You and my deskmate are not suited to be father and daughter."

As soon as these words came out, everyone present turned red in the face, obviously having a hard time holding back their reactions.

"If she follows you, her personality will only become more and more withdrawn. When she's sad and upset, she won't even have a few friends she can talk to."

"Living in that oppressive environment of your family, she'll be doomed sooner or later."

Seeing that he still wasn't speaking and was just glaring at him, Chen Zhi couldn't help but frown, a trace of impatience showing on his face.

"What? You think the money is too little?"

He pointed at the bank card on the table, his tone turning somewhat cold, once again replicating what Pei Dongcheng had said earlier.

"Greed must have a limit, otherwise it just makes people think you're stupid."

Pei Dongcheng: "..."

He felt like this exact scene had just happened.

By now, Pei Dongcheng had changed his expression and was staring at Chen Zhi with great interest.

Chen Zhi shifted his posture, leaning back in his chair, and said slowly:

"If you think it's too little, there's nothing I can do. Your fatherly love is only worth this price."

"After all, for someone like you who only measures feelings with money, buying out your cheap desire for control for a million makes me feel like I took a loss."

Pei Ningxue raised her head, staring blankly at Chen Zhi.

The teenager's figure appeared exceptionally arrogant under the light, yet unusually tall and reliable.

Just when everyone thought Pei Dongcheng would flip the table, or simply call someone in to throw Chen Zhi out.

"Heh heh..."

Pei Dongcheng suddenly laughed.

His body relaxed, leaning back against the sofa again, looking Chen Zhi up and down as if looking at a rare treasure and an interesting novelty.

"You kid, you're quite interesting indeed."

Pei Dongcheng shook his head, his tone devoid of any anger.

Having navigated the business world for decades, he was used to seeing submissive subordinates and flattering partners.

Even his competitors had to maintain a degree of decorum in front of him.

Someone like Chen Zhi, who dared to point at his nose and curse him out, while remaining logically consistent, and even throwing money at him—this was the first time in his life he had seen such a person.

No wonder Ningxue was able to make friends with this kid.

Pei Dongcheng stood up and straightened his suit.

He glanced at the bank card on the table but did not reach out to take it.

"Come back with Ningxue tonight."

Pei Dongcheng turned his head, his gaze falling on Chen Zhi, who was still in a state of shock, as if the tension from a moment ago had never happened.

"Let's have dinner together."

After saying that, without casting another glance at anyone, he turned and strode out of the office.

The sound of his leather shoes stepping on the floor gradually faded away.

It wasn't until the office door was closed again that the few people in the room seemed to come back to life.

Dean Zhang let out a long breath of stale air.

"Oh my god..."

"Chen Zhi, is this what you meant by knowing what you're doing? Do you know who he is? That's the chairman of the Pei Group! The biggest taxpayer in the entire district!"

Wang Qian also looked at her student with a complex expression.

Chen Zhi, however, didn't care at all about what he had just said.

Pointing at the closed office door, he turned to Pei Ningxue and complained with a look of disgust:

"This kind of weird-tempered middle-aged uncle really doesn't deserve to be your dad."

It was the exact sentence Pei Dongcheng had secretly cursed after Chen Zhi had walked away earlier.

"Hahahaha..."

The girl's crisp laughter echoed in the office, pleasant like a silver bell.

How could this guy hold such a grudge?

She laughed so hard she was leaning forward and backward, tears almost coming to her eyes.

Chen Zhi looked at Pei Ningxue, who was shaking with laughter, curled his lip, and stuffed the bank card on the table back into his backpack.

"What are you laughing at? Hurry back to the classroom. I skipped morning reading class to save you, Teacher Wang will definitely deduct points from me."

Wang Qian rolled her eyes at him in annoyance.

"Alright, stop being so glib. Hurry back to class."

Although she said that, looking at the backs of the two kids, a relieved smile appeared on Wang Qian's face.

Walking out of the Student Affairs Office.

The hallway was empty, with only the occasional sound of reading aloud drifting over.

Sunlight spilled onto the floor through the windows, casting two long shadows.

Pei Ningxue walked beside Chen Zhi, her steps much lighter.

"Chen Zhi."

"What?"

"Thank you."

The girl's voice was very soft, yet very firm.

Chen Zhi walked forward with his hands in his pockets, looking straight ahead.

"Thank me for what? For not accepting your dad's breakup fee?"

Pei Ningxue shook her head, the corners of her mouth turning up slightly, revealing a pair of shallow dimples.

"Is there really a million in that card?"

Chen Zhi stopped in his tracks, turned his head, and looked at her with a serious face.

"Of course."

"I don't believe it."

Pei Ningxue blinked; those eyes that always carried a hint of melancholy were now sparkling with a sly light.

"Where did you get a million?"

Chen Zhi smiled mysteriously, leaned in a bit closer, and lowered his voice:

"Actually, I'm a billionaire. I'm richer than your dad."

Pei Ningxue paused for a moment, then burst into laughter again.

"Liar."

"Suit yourself if you don't believe me."

Chen Zhi resumed walking, his tone relaxed.

"But how about we skip tonight's dinner? I'll take you to jump the wall and run away right now, and we can pull an all-nighter at the internet cafe."

Pei Ningxue kept up with his pace. Looking at the teenager's straight back, an unprecedented sense of security welled up in her heart.

"No way~"

She said.

"If you're going to help someone, you might as well go all the way."