Chapter 231 So in Baby's Heart I Am This Awesome

The balcony was too cold, so the two sat on the carpet in the room. Song Ni casually picked a bottle of wine, which turned out to be the oldest vintage. It was mellow and pleasant at first, and not very strong, but it crept up on them later, proving to be the most intoxicating. Tan Zheng looked at the bottle and recalled the first night he took Song Ni to Yulong Villa. He had gotten her drunk with a bottle of wine then, and watched her, meek and obedient, entirely his. This time, he shamelessly wanted to use the same tactic again. Song Ni smelled the smoke on Tan Zheng and asked cautiously, "Whose call was it?" It shouldn't be about the company's affairs; that kind of work wouldn't make Tan Zheng like this. "Li Wen." Song Ni thought for a moment and remembered. Oh, it was the brother of his nominal ex-girlfriend, Li Shang. They had even had a meal together last time. If she remembered correctly, Li Wen specialized in racing events. Song Ni's eyes flickered, and she subconsciously tightened her grip on the wine glass. "Why would he call me for something like this?" Perhaps without even realizing it herself, Song Ni's voice had become somewhat strained. Tan Zheng not only noticed but also saw her restless fingers. The man's gaze was deep. He had once caught Song Ni secretly watching videos of his past races. "Mm, he was talking to me about a race." Song Ni blinked. "Mm?" Tan Zheng looked up and met Song Ni's expectant gaze, speaking with complete honesty. "He asked if I wanted to compete." Song Ni immediately sat up a little straighter, and with the movement, a bit more wine spilled from her cup onto her pure white skirt. "Then... what did you say?" From Song Ni's reaction, Tan Zheng understood. His little girl was still thinking about his retirement, but she had never mentioned it to him. "I'm retired, how can I compete?" The light in Song Ni's eyes dimmed. "But..." But you could come out of retirement. Song Ni couldn't bring herself to say the words. Such an important matter shouldn't be spoken of so lightly. Song Ni took a large gulp of wine to wet her throat. "And then?" Tan Zheng smiled. "I said I'd register Ding Jing and Sheng Jiang, and remember Huan Yuan? He'll be participating too." Song Ni's eyebrows drooped. "I remember." How could she not remember? He was someone who had played a game of life and death with Tan Zheng. Ever since Sheng Jiang mentioned that Huan Yuan had extremely high talent, and was highly praised by those in the industry as the second Tan Zheng, she had specifically sought out videos of Huan Yuan's races. She wanted to see if this person, praised as the second Tan Zheng, had any trace of Tan Zheng in him. But after watching the race videos, she was only left with disappointment. She could tell Huan Yuan had immense talent, his skills were top-notch, comparable to Tan Zheng's, but he always lacked a certain ferocity that Tan Zheng possessed. Huan Yuan was ultimately just Huan Yuan; there was only one Tan Zheng, how could there be a second? She still preferred Tan Zheng. He was like a master, in control, effortless. "I asked Li Wen to keep a close eye on him. He's a promising talent, with rare, exceptional abilities." Hearing this, Song Ni felt a pang of bitterness in her heart and couldn't help but blurt out, "Is his talent as high as yours?" Tan Zheng was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and stroked Song Ni's head. "Ni Ni, why would you think my talent is high?" Song Ni wrinkled her nose. "Everyone says so. Lu Fang, Sheng Jiang, they all say it." Tan Zheng smiled, but there was a hint of loneliness in his eyes. "What they say doesn't count." Song Ni clenched her fists. "Then what about what I say?" The man's eyes regained their sparkle as he heard this, and with a smile, he asked, "Ni Ni, why do you think so?" Song Ni pursed her lips and told him about secretly watching his old race videos. "You are naturally talented. You're so amazing, everyone has been praising you since you debuted!" Listening to Song Ni's earnest insistence that he was indeed very talented, the smile in Tan Zheng's eyes deepened, and the corners of his mouth turned up. "So, in my baby's heart, I'm that amazing?" Song Ni nodded vigorously, then suddenly frowned, remembering something. She asked, "Do you remember? Six years ago, you competed in a rally race in Xingcheng." Tan Zheng's eyebrows rose. The little girl was finally willing to bring this up. "Six years ago?" The man pretended to furrow his brow, as if in deep thought, and finally shook his head. "I've participated in too many races." Song Ni became a little anxious. She put down her wine glass and took the man's hand. "You even won that race!" Tan Zheng stared at Song Ni, trying hard to suppress a smile, and let out a light cough. "I've won many championships." Song Ni: ...It seemed like that was true, and it made sense. Song Ni didn't care if Tan Zheng remembered or not. "I went to that race! I went with Yang Yang! I saw you cross the finish line first with my own eyes!" Song Ni didn't know why she was so eager to tell Tan Zheng this, to tell him that he was indeed very talented, that he had high innate ability. She couldn't bear to see the loneliness in his eyes. He shouldn't be like this. He should be standing high above, like a king, looking down upon the world. He was the most exceptional, and no one could surpass him. Tan Zheng finally raised his eyebrows. "You don't like racing, why would you go watch a race?" "Yang Yang dragged me there... No, that's not important. I really saw you race with my own eyes, you were incredibly, incredibly good, much more talented than that Huan Yuan, in my opinion!" Seeing Song Ni's eager demeanor, Tan Zheng finally couldn't help but laugh. Song Ni froze and looked at Tan Zheng. Upon seeing the playful amusement in his eyes, she immediately punched him. "You did that on purpose?" Tan Zheng laughed and covered his shoulder where he had been hit. "I remember every race." Especially since Song Ni had been there to watch that one. Song Ni: ... "Then why did you lie to me?" Tan Zheng reached out and took Song Ni's hand, holding it in his palm and squeezing it. "I just wanted to see my baby praise me. Who knew my baby was so silly and believed it." Song Ni: ... Heh heh heh, so she was the silly one? "So, after listening to all this, what are your thoughts?" Song Ni playfully tickled his palm. In her opinion, no, in everyone's opinion, Tan Zheng's retirement was too much of a shame. Tan Zheng just smiled and said nothing. Song Ni understood then. Tan Zheng had no intention of returning to racing at all. Why? Had Xi Jinjiang also returned to his hometown? Why wouldn't he make a comeback? Song Ni's gaze fell again on the man's left wrist. Was it still because of the old injury? Her gaze was too direct, so direct that Tan Zheng couldn't ignore it. Tan Zheng raised his left hand to show Song Ni. "It's a pity, I'm not as amazing as you say anymore. Will my baby still like me? Hmm?" The man asked with a smile and tenderness in his eyes, seriously. Song Ni's nose just felt a little sore. She hadn't liked him because of his past self. Song Ni leaned forward and hugged Tan Zheng. "Don't be silly, you're still amazing." He had always been the most amazing. Even with an old injury, so what? Didn't he still leave that group at the club behind last time?