My stunningly beautiful female boss at 29 (57-62)

57.
More than half a year ago, Li Jiaqi was diagnosed with late-stage cancer. The doctor said he had at most a year to live.
Only then did I understand why Li Jiaqi looked so pale on my wedding day; he was already seriously ill then, yet he had still been so cheerful at my wedding. Thinking of this, I felt incredibly sad.
"Chen Yu, I beg you, please come see him! He keeps talking about you. No matter what he did to you in the past, please come see him one last time. I'm begging you..." Sui Jinglei
sobbed uncontrollably on the other end of the phone. What could I say in this situation? I immediately gave An Xiaomei some instructions and took a flight to Chongqing that day.
An Xiaomin, having received An Xiaomei's message, picked me up at the airport in the Mercedes GLC she had given me and drove straight to Southwest Hospital. More than a month ago, when An Xiaomei and I left Chongqing, we hadn't taken this car back to Guangzhou; we had left it with An Xiaomin.
Outside the hospital ward, Li Jiaqi's mother and younger brother were sitting on a bench in the corridor, both looking grief-stricken.
"Brother Chen, you've arrived?" Li Jiaqi's younger brother stood up to greet me and An Xiaomin when he saw us.
The young man was around thirty years old; I had gone to jail largely because of him, and now he was a PhD.
I nodded. "Where's your brother?"
"Inside." Li Jiaqi's younger brother pushed open the ward door and said, "Sister-in-law, Brother Chen and the others are here."
An Xiaomin and I went inside and saw Sui Jinglei and her son, Li Suitang, there. Li Jiaqi lay on the hospital bed, an oxygen tube in his nose, unconscious—a stark contrast to his lively state at my wedding just over a month ago, though he had been forcing himself to be energetic then.
"Teacher An, you've come too?" Sui Jinglei was slightly surprised that An Xiaomin had accompanied me.
I walked to the bedside and asked softly, "How is he?"
Sui Jinglei, her face filled with sorrow, shook her head, tears streaming down her face. "The doctor said it might be just a day or two."
A wave of sadness washed over me. Even though this man lying unconscious in the hospital bed had wronged and hurt me, I felt no resentment towards him now. Even with the deepest grudges, who would hold a grudge against someone on their deathbed? At least I couldn't.
"What illness does he have?" I asked.
"Liver cancer..." Sui Jinglei said, looking at the emaciated Li Jiaqi on the bed, tears streaming down her face. "It's from overwork. For our son and me, for our family, he worked day and night..."
She covered her mouth and sobbed. An Xiaomin went over and put her arms around her, comforting her.
I said, "Don't be too sad, take care of yourself, you still have the child!"
She nodded, crying. An Xiaomin also shed tears. Although Li Jiaqi was completely unrelated to her, because he was my friend and she was kind-hearted, she couldn't help but feel overwhelmed with sorrow.
At this moment, Li Jiaqi, lying on the hospital bed, let out an extremely weak voice, "Brother, brother, is that you? You've come?"
I quickly leaned over to the bedside and grasped the hand that Li Jiaqi struggled to raise to me. In his eyes, there seemed to be a guilt that could never be erased. "Brother, I'm... I'm sorry, really... really... so sorry."
Tears slid down his cheeks. Sui Jinglei burst into tears, and An Xiaomin, with tears streaming down her face, tightened her arms around her.
My tears also fell. "Jiaqi, don't say that. I don't care about the past anymore, I don't care at all."
Li Jiaqi stared at me and showed a slight smile. "Brother, have you... forgiven me...?"
I nodded, tears streaming down my face. "Brother, you've always been my brother..."
His smile broadened a little, and he softly called out, "Son, Tangtang..."
Sui Jinglei quickly pulled Li Suitang to the bedside. Li Jiaqi, as if using the last of his strength, took his son's hand and placed it in mine. This action astonished An Xiaomin.
After Li Jiaqi did this, although his pupils were dilated and his eyes were lifeless, I could clearly see the joy of achieving some wish in his eyes and smile.
Then, his smile and gaze froze, and his hands, which had been holding mine and Li Suitang's respectively, limply released their grip.
"Jiaqi..." Sui Jinglei cried out in heartbreaking grief, then broke down in sobs.
I knelt by the bed, head bowed, tears streaming down my face, murmuring, "Jiaqi, Jiaqi..."
That night, Li Jiaqi's body was transported to the Shiqiaopu Funeral Home.
In the mourning hall, besides Sui Jinglei, Li Suitang, Li Jiaqi's mother, brother, An Xiaomin, and myself, several of his employees were also gathered, and several others who had come to pay their respects after hearing the news.
In the stillness of the night, a group of mourners played mahjong at two tables. Li Jiaqi's employees were either sitting nearby with their arms crossed or handling miscellaneous tasks.
Li Jiaqi's mother and younger brother sat together, deeply immersed in grief, while An Xiaomin held Li Suitang in her arms at another table. I told her to go back and rest, but she wouldn't listen and insisted on staying with me, so I let her.
"He always felt guilty towards you. You could say that for the last seven or eight years of his life, he lived in guilt..."
Sui Jinglei sat beside me, murmuring as she recounted her late husband's past.
"Back when we were still married, he fell in love with me, hopelessly in love, but because I was his sister-in-law, he dared not cross the line. Later, when you went to prison, fate brought us together, and he was plunged into the torment of self-blame... He's actually quite pitiful. Unrequited love caused him pain, and even having love still caused him pain..."
Sui Jinglei wiped away her tears and sobbed, "What did he do wrong? He just fell in love with a woman he shouldn't have loved. It was all fate playing tricks on him..."
She paused, looked at me, "And of course, it was also playing tricks on you, playing tricks on ..." "You two brothers."
After a moment of silence, she continued, "Chen Yu, tell me honestly, have you really forgiven him?"
I slowly replied, "If I wasn't sure before, after seeing him in his hospital bed today, I think I've completely let go of that matter. What in this world is more forgivable than the repentance of a dying person?"
I sighed, "That last look he gave me before he died was truly a life-or-death confession!"
Sui Jinglei said tearfully, "Thank you, on behalf of Jiaqi, thank you."
After that, neither of us spoke. After a while, Sui Jinglei said, "She really loves you."
I was taken aback and asked, "Who?"
Sui Jinglei glanced at An Xiaomin, who was nearby embracing Li Suitang. "She..."
I could only say, "Don't talk nonsense, she's my aunt."
She looked at me and said, "During the years you lived with me, although you told me about your childhood, you never told me about your romantic entanglement with your younger sister. But last year, when we argued, she stood up for you, and today I saw her accompanying you. Her protection of you, her concern for you, the way she looks at you—all of this tells me that she loves you very much."
"Jinglei..." I said, trying to explain something to her.
Sui Jinglei interrupted me, "Don't deny it, Chen Yu. I'm a woman, and I've loved before. I know what it's like for a woman to love a man. But I need to remind you, you're married to her sister now, so you must handle your feelings carefully and not hurt anyone who loves you."
I nodded, "I know..."

58.
That night, when An Xiaomin and I were alone, she asked me if Li Suitang was my son. I said no. She then asked me why Li Jiaqi, on his deathbed, placed my hand and his son's hand together.
I sighed, "He just entrusted the child to me; after all, I'm the most trustworthy person he could, and the only one he could trust."
"That's not necessarily true..." An Xiaomin was quite dismissive, "There are men in her family, her child has a younger brother, how could it be your turn?"
Her words made me realize something: Li Jiaqi's mother and brother didn't seem to like Li Suitang very much, and even Sui Jinglei didn't seem to like her much. Since Li Jiaqi's death, that mother and son had hardly comforted Sui Jinglei, and had never hugged Li Suitang.
I secretly guessed that Li Jiaqi's mother and brother probably already knew that Li Suitang wasn't Li Jiaqi's biological son.
I was a little annoyed, or rather, a little guilty, and said, "What do you mean? Did you come with me today to spy on me and my ex-wife?"
"Xingyan, why do you say that?" An Xiaomin looked at me aggrievedly, "The reason I came here with you is entirely because I care about you, I had no intention of spying on you at all."
"Then why are you telling me all this nonsense?" I said irritably.
Perhaps it was Li Jiaqi's sudden death and my worries about Li Suitang's future that made me feel so bad? That's why I inexplicably lost my temper with An Xiaomin.
An Xiaomin glared at me for a while, then said coldly, "Chen Xingyan, I've found that you can be really awful sometimes..."
She paused, then said coldly, "Your affairs have nothing to do with me. Even if I'm being nosy, it's because I'm asking on behalf of Meimei."
She picked up her bag and was about to stand up and leave. I quickly grabbed her hand and said, "I'm sorry, I take back what I said."
She sat down again, snorted coldly, and ignored me.
The next morning, I persuaded An Xiaomin to leave, and she left the car with me.
That day, even more people came to mourn. Sui Jinglei suppressed her grief and entertained the guests.
In her spare time, she told me that according to Li Jiaqi's last wishes, he wanted me to run the company. Because I was the only person he trusted, and I had many years of experience in construction and decoration projects. More importantly, the company originally belonged to me, and everything was rightfully mine.
I refused Sui Jinglei. I told her that Li Suitang would always be Li Jiaqi and her son, and the company belonged to them both; I had no intention of getting involved.
Faced with my refusal, Sui Jinglei seemed helpless and frustrated.
But later events gradually changed my mind.
Among the people who came to the funeral hall that day, many were creditors using the guise of mourning to collect debts from Sui Jinglei. Some of these people were suppliers, and some were construction workers.
I asked Sui Jinglei, "Why don't you just have them follow the contract, specify when and how much to pay? Everything should be done according to the contract, right?"
Sui Jinglei said that because they had been cooperating for a long time, some suppliers hadn't signed supply contracts with Li Jiaqi's company for certain transactions; they only had delivery slips signed by Li Jiaqi's subordinates. The construction teams were in a similar situation. Now that Li Jiaqi was dead, they were all afraid that the debts would be wiped out by his death, so they couldn't hold back and came knocking on their door.
Sui Jinglei didn't dare to offend these people easily, so she could only speak kindly to them, saying that she would seriously consider these matters after Li Jiaqi's funeral. Because there were still projects under construction, if the suppliers stopped supplying goods, or the construction teams went on strike, affecting the progress of the project, or even causing them to breach their contracts, the company's losses would be huge.
"This company is Jiaqi's hard work over the years, and it's the guarantee he left for my son and me. If it's gone, how can I face him and my son? But I'm just a woman; I simply don't have the ability to handle these things..."
Sui Jinglei said, and then she started to cry. I could only comfort her, saying that things would work out in the end.
Just then, another construction team leader arrived at the mourning hall. He looked to be in his forties, clearly a migrant worker, and appeared quite simple and sincere. Later I learned he was no saint either.
After offering his condolences, he said to Sui Jinglei, "Sister-in-law, may I speak to you in private?"
Sui Jinglei followed him out. I stood there for a while, then walked out of the mourning hall. I heard Sui Jinglei say to the man, "Old Li, Jiaqi treated you and your brothers very well when he was alive. He also came from the countryside, and that's why he was so understanding of your difficulties. When did he ever shortchange or delay paying a single penny of your construction fees?"
"Take you, Old Li, for example! That year when your mother was seriously ill, he didn't hesitate and immediately prepaid you a sum of money for construction so you could pay for your mother's surgery..."
Sui Jinglei pointed at the mourning hall, her voice trembling with emotion, "Jiaqi's body is barely cold, and you're already forcing us, a widow and orphan, to pay you. How can you be like this? If the payment deadline had arrived, it would be one thing, but the deadline hasn't even arrived yet, and you..."
She started crying, "How can you all be like this?"
“Sister-in-law, don’t be like this…” the man called Old Li said, “I have no choice! Dozens of my brothers are waiting to eat! They also have elderly parents and young children to support, it’s not easy for them…”
Sui Jinglei stopped crying and said, “You’re having a hard time, but are we, a widow and her children, having a hard time? Jiaqi left behind such a big business, every single thing has expenses. The key is, it’s not time to pay you for the construction yet, why are you in such a hurry?”
Old Li said with difficulty, “It’s because we haven’t signed a contract yet. The brothers are unsure, so they all asked me to come and ask…”
Sui Jinglei said, “You trusted General Manager Li back then, you should trust me now.”
“It’s not that I don’t trust you, sister-in-law…” Old Li said, “How about this, could you help us out a little…”
“The problem is I don’t have any money right now! The client still owes us a lot of money for the project! If I had money now, even if it’s not time to pay you yet, seeing how anxious you are, I would help you out.”
"You have no money?" Old Li suddenly became anxious. "What are you doing here talking to me if you have no money? No way, you have to settle this for me today."
Sui Jinglei said coldly, "I won't pay a single penny until the payment deadline. If the deadline comes, even if I haven't received the payment by then, I'll sell my house and car to give you every penny."
Old Li also said coldly, "Since that's the case, don't blame me for being ungrateful. I'll go back right now and tell my brothers to stop work, you believe me?"
"You..." Sui Jinglei was speechless with anger.
I walked over and said, "Old Li, right?"
Old Li said, "Yes, who are you?"
I said in a deep voice, "Never mind who I am for now. I overheard a few things. May I ask what illness your mother had? How much did Mr. Li borrow for your surgery?"
Sui Jinglei looked at me in surprise. Old Li said angrily, "What's it
to you?" I said, "Let me put it this way, a person should have principles and a conscience. Mr. Li helped you before, and now, even if you don't help him back, you shouldn't kick him when he's down, right?"
"Who do you think you are? Do you even have the right to speak here?"
“I’m not going to waste my breath on you. Everything will be done according to the contract. If there’s no contract, then we’ll go with the verbal agreement you made with Mr. Li. According to the Contract Law, verbal agreements are also legally binding.”
“Fine, I’ll go back and stop the project immediately.
Let’s see who can outmaneuver whom?” Sui Jinglei panicked a bit and tugged at me. I pointed at Old Li and said, “Fine, you can stop it all you want, but don’t even think about getting a single penny of the previous construction fees.”
“You, you…” Old Li pointed at me angrily and said, “I’m going to sue you for withholding wages from the migrant workers.”
I sneered, “Then let’s each sue our own. You sue me for withholding wages, and I’ll sue you for stopping work without cause, causing huge losses to our company.”
“Fine, kid, you just wait. My dozens of brothers aren’t easy to mess with…”
I grabbed the finger Old Li was pointing at me with and twisted it slightly, making him wince in pain. Sui Jinglei quickly tried to dissuade me, "Don't be like this..."
I said fiercely to Lao Li, "You want to play tough with me? I'm fucking ready. Let me tell you, I'll play with you, black or white, and you won't even know how you died..."
I let go of his hand and said, "You better work honestly and finish the project on time and to a high standard, and you won't be shortchanged by a single penny. Otherwise, take your men and get out of here right now, but don't mention money to me again. I'm also telling you, the moment you leave, I'll find a team to replace you, and I guarantee they'll do a better job than you, you believe me?"
Lao Li looked miserable, sighed heavily, and turned to leave.

59.
Sui Jinglei frowned and said to me, "What if he really stops the work and takes the team away?"
I sneered, "Don't worry, he wouldn't dare. If he really did, his dozens of workers wouldn't see their wages and would tear him apart. I know these people too well..."
Seeing that she was still a little worried, I added, "Even if he really does that, I can find teams to replace him. Most of the brothers who came to my wedding last time were construction contractors and had worked for me before. As long as I say the word, I can easily gather two or three teams, let alone have them all respond
. I then said to her, “Never pay the construction fee in advance. Once these bastards get the money, they’ll find all sorts of excuses to abandon you if anything seems amiss. Take Old Li for example! If you give him the money today, he’ll see that Jiaqi is gone anyway, and tomorrow he can leave you with his men. You won’t even have a place to cry then.”
“How could these people be like this? They seemed so honest and simple usually. I even told Jiaqi not to mistreat them, saying that it wasn't easy for them to work. But when it really comes down to it, they turn on everyone.”
I laughed. “Human nature is very complex. It has absolutely nothing to do with honesty or simplicity. Yes, they are usually quite simple and honest, but they only care about money. If you expect them to be loyal or have any feelings for you, forget it.”
I paused and added, “Perhaps this is what Qian Zhongshu meant by the viciousness of honest and kind people in *Fortress Besieged*?”
Then I told Sui Jinglei that if anyone came to ask for money again, whether it was a supplier or a construction team, she should tell them to come talk to me. After the funeral, give me all the information about those suppliers and construction teams, and I'll study it and find a way to deal with them.
Sui Jinglei nodded repeatedly and said, "So, you're willing to stay and help me?"
I sighed, "Let's get you through this first!"
"Chen Yu, thank goodness you're here. With you by our side, otherwise I really wouldn't know what to do!"
She burst into tears, sobbing uncontrollably, burying her head on my shoulder.
I could only comfort her, afraid of being seen, especially by Li Jiaqi's mother and brother, which would have a bad influence, so I pulled her off my shoulder.
I gently placed my hand on Sui Jinglei's back, comforting her as I walked towards the mourning hall. I heard a voice behind me calling, "Xingyan..."
I turned around and saw An Xiaomin walking over with a bag of fruit.
"Teacher An, you're here?" Sui Jinglei asked.
An Xiaomin smiled slightly, "I came to see if there's anything I can help with?"
Sui Jinglei thanked me repeatedly, "Thank you so much, I'm sorry to have troubled you."
An Xiaomin shook her head and smiled, "It's alright, Xingyan is my brother, I can't not care about what he cares about."
She looked at me as she spoke. Sui Jinglei glanced at me and said to An Xiaomin, "You two chat, I'll go in first."
An Xiaomin handed her the fruit she was holding, "I bought some fruit for everyone."
"You're too kind... Okay, thank you." Sui Jinglei took the fruit and went into the mourning hall.
As soon as she left, An Xiaomin said to me, "I heard your conversation with that contractor."
I was a little surprised; I hadn't expected her to have been there for so long without showing herself.
"Xingyan, you did the right thing," she added.
I looked at her and smiled, "What do you mean?"
An Xiaomin said, "What I mean is, you did the right thing by helping your friend's widow, your ex-wife."
I smiled again, "You're not here to spy on me again, are you?"
She glanced away and smiled, "Yes! I'm here to spy on you, to spy on you for Meimei, to see if you're showing any signs of rekindling your old flame with your ex-wife?"
I said seriously, "Don't worry, that's impossible."
She smiled, "That's not necessarily true, she even leaned her head on your shoulder..."
I couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed, "Just now... just now it was just a natural action under certain circumstances..."
An Xiaomin laughed, "Alright, I was just joking with you... Shall we go in?"
She said, taking my arm and walking into the mourning hall. I felt that this was also a very natural action for her; it's quite normal for a brother and sister, or a brother-in-law and sister-in-law, to have such an action.
In the days following the funeral, I reviewed the situation of Li Jiaqi's company and found it to be quite complex, involving various debts, receivables, ongoing contracts, and complex business relationships. It was simply beyond the capabilities of an ordinary middle school teacher like Sui Jinglei.
How could I abandon the mother and son under such circumstances? Even the last look Li Jiaqi gave me before his death was too much for me to bear.
Therefore, I decided to stay in Chongqing temporarily. Sui Jinglei was both relieved and apologetic about my decision. She felt deeply guilty that I was separated from An Xiaomei, who was still newly married, because of my help to her.
I made a special trip back to Guangzhou to seek An Xiaomei's understanding. I told her to give me a year; once Sui Jinglei found a reliable person to take over, I would hand the company back to her and return to Guangzhou.
Fortunately, An Xiaomei was very understanding and did not harbor any resentment towards me for helping my ex-wife manage the company. She also told me that we could meet once a week; this week I would fly to Guangzhou, and next week she would fly to Chongqing, which was actually quite romantic.
And just like that, I became the new general manager of Jiaqi Construction and Decoration Engineering Company, completing a magnificent transformation from driver to boss. At that time, I had no idea that my life was irreversibly heading in a different direction.
Two months have passed. During these two months, An Xiaomei and I have lived like the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl, flying to each other's cities several times to reunite. Because she was busy and I was busy too, we couldn't see each other once a week as we had previously agreed, but we still met twice a month.
Although we couldn't be together often, each reunion made us savor the sweetness of separation, which made life quite nice.
One afternoon in mid-August, I went to the Southwest Hospital to get my medication for Meniere's syndrome. For the past few years, I have been relying on medication to suppress my symptoms, and I have been living peacefully with this stubborn disease without suffering too much.
As I walked into the lobby of the hospital's outpatient department, I brushed past a mother and daughter in the crowd. I heard the daughter say, "Mom, slow down, let's rest a bit before we go."
Her voice sounded familiar, and when I turned around, I was surprised. The girl was Zhuang Youting, and she was helping an elderly woman who looked to be around sixty years old.
"It's okay, just walk slowly," the old woman said, her breathing weak.
Although she looked haggard and old, I recognized her at a glance. The elderly woman being helped by Zhuang Youting was none other than Aunt Zhuang, Uncle An's ex-wife and An Xiaodong's biological mother.
I was stunned and quietly followed behind the mother and daughter. I never expected to encounter Aunt Zhuang, who had taken care of me for several years, here again after twenty-four years. Back then, she was so beautiful and charming, but now she looked like this. I remembered she should be fifty-eight years old this year, but her hair had turned quite white, and her haggard face made her look older than her actual age.
It was clear that she had lived a very hard and difficult life for the past twenty years. Was she here for a medical appointment? What illness did she have?
I wondered to myself, feeling a pang of sadness. Although Aunt Zhuang hadn't been kind to me in the past, and in a way, I had been driven away by her scolding, seeing her like this still made me feel heartbroken.
I followed the mother and daughter along the hospital path as they walked out.

60.
"Tingting, Mom is a little tired, let's rest for a while?" Aunt Zhuang said.
"Okay, sure..." Zhuang Youting replied, helping her mother sit down on a nearby bench.
I also sat down on a bench not far from them, took out my sunglasses and put them on, listening intently to their conversation.
"Mom, how about we take a taxi? I'm worried you'll get tired," Zhuang Youting said.
Aunt Zhuang took a breath and said, "No need, we'll be at the bus stop soon. I'm not tired, I'll be fine after a rest."
After a moment of silence, Aunt Zhuang sighed, "Tingting, you've suffered so much with me..."
Zhuang Youting frowned and said, "Mom, why are you saying that again? I don't like hearing it."
Aunt Zhuang continued, "From childhood to adulthood, I haven't let you enjoy a single day of happiness, but I've made you suffer so much. When you were very young, I made you work with me..."
Zhuang Youting held her mother's hands, tears streaming down her face, "Mom, please don't say anymore, okay?"
"Now that Mom has this illness again, it's making you so young, having to take care of me and worry about me. I really can't bear it..."
Aunt Zhuang also shed tears, choking back sobs, "Child, do you resent your mother?"
Zhuang Youting burst into tears, "Mom, how can you say that? You are my mother, I am your daughter, taking care of you and serving you is something I do willingly..."
Aunt Zhuang said through tears, "But, other girls your age are either pampered by their parents or dressed up beautifully and dating boys. Only you stay by my side, suffering and toiling. You are so beautiful, very few girls are as beautiful as you. You should have had a bright future and a wonderful life, but I've dragged you down... When I think about all this, sometimes I really feel like I'd rather die and end it all."
"Mom..." Zhuang Youting cried out, "If you keep saying that, I'll really get angry!"
Seeing her daughter's angry expression, Aunt Zhuang had no choice but to stop talking and just keep crying.
"Mom, I've never resented you. On the contrary, I feel very happy to be your daughter. Although Dad left us when I was very young, and I've hardly ever even seen him. Although our family has always been very poor..."
Zhuang Youting couldn't help but burst into tears as she said these words, "But you've never let me suffer any grievances. From childhood to adulthood, you've always taken good care of me, making sure I had enough to eat, warm clothes, and access to education, and always dressed beautifully. I've never felt that I'm worse off than any other girl around me. I've always felt that I'm very lucky and happy to have you as my mother..."
She wiped away her tears and sobbed uncontrollably, "But you always think you're a burden to me, always saying things like that in front of me, as if I'm not your biological daughter. How am I supposed to feel? Do you know how sad I am?"
Hearing these words, I felt that Zhuang Youting was truly a rare and admirable girl. She was naturally beautiful and grew up in a poor family, but she didn't feel sorry for herself at all, nor did she despise her poor mother. On the contrary, she deeply loved her mother and took care of her seriously ill mother wholeheartedly and without complaint.
Girls like her are rare these days, practically nonexistent. At that moment, I couldn't help but feel a pang of pity for this beautiful and filial girl.
"Alright! Tingting, don't cry. It's my fault, I shouldn't have said those things..." Aunt Zhuang kept wiping away her daughter's tears.
Zhuang Youting continued to sob, and many people around them looked at them.
"Mom, you must never say such things again..." Zhuang Youting said between sobs.
"Okay, okay, I won't say it anymore, Mom won't say it again..." Aunt Zhuang smiled through her tears.
Looking at this mother and daughter, I felt both moved and saddened. Aunt Zhuang's voice echoed in my ears again, "Tingting, please don't let your uncle and your sister Xiaomin know about Mom's medical treatment in Chongqing. We've already troubled them enough these past few years; we can't add to their burden." Zhuang Youting wiped away her tears and nodded,
saying, "Yes, I know." I couldn't
hold back any longer. I walked to the mother and daughter's side and said in a deep voice, "Aunt Zhuang..."
The mother and daughter looked up at me, speechless with astonishment.
"Brother Xingyan?" Zhuang Youting looked at me, surprised.
"Xing...Xingyan?" Aunt Zhuang looked at me with embarrassment, guilt, and shame, and lowered her head.
"Brother Xingyan, what are you doing here?" Zhuang Youting asked, glancing at her mother.
"I came here to visit a friend who is in the hospital, and I didn't expect to run into you..."
I shifted my gaze from Aunt Zhuang to Zhuang Youting, "What's wrong with you, Aunt Zhuang?"
"N-no, it's nothing serious..." Zhuang Youting forced a smile, "I'm just feeling a little unwell, so I came for a checkup."
I knew she wasn't telling me the truth, and decided to find out more slowly. "Are you...going home?"
"Yes, that's right!" Zhuang Youting smiled.
"Then you wait here, I'll drive you." I said.
Zhuang Youting glanced at her mother again and said to me repeatedly, "No need, no need, Brother Xingyan, we were just about to call a taxi!"
Aunt Zhuang, who had been keeping her head down, also said to me, "Yes! Xingyan, we were just about to call a taxi! We don't want to trouble you..."
She seemed quite nervous. I raised my hand to stop the mother and daughter, then pointed to myself and said, "Stop talking, let me take you home, okay?"
Then, pointing to the ground, she said, "Wait here. I'll go get the car. Don't go anywhere else, just wait for me here."
Faced with my unquestionable attitude, the mother and daughter exchanged a glance, and Zhuang Youting said to me, "Okay! Thank you, Xingyan."
I quickly ran to the parking lot, got my car, and drove to the place where I had just spoken to the mother and daughter. When I arrived, I found that they were gone.
I got out of the car and looked around, but I couldn't see them anywhere. I thought to myself, "Those two really left quickly!" I subconsciously reached for my phone, only to realize that I didn't have Zhuang Youting's phone number, nor had I added her as a WeChat friend, so I had no way to contact her.
Just as I was feeling frustrated, a security guard came over and said, "Sir, you can't park here."
Helpless, I had no choice but to get in the car and drive away. At this point, I had no heart for getting my medicine and drove away from the hospital.
What I didn't know was that the mother and daughter emerged from somewhere and watched my Mercedes GLC drive away.
"Mom, why didn't you let Xingyan give us a ride?" Zhuang Youting asked, taking her mother's arm.
Aunt Zhuang sighed, "I've wronged him in the past, I'm too ashamed to face him, how could I possibly ride in his car?"
Zhuang Youting frowned and said, "But I've never heard Xingyan complain about you. Maybe he doesn't care anymore. Why are you doing this?"
Aunt Zhuang sighed again and said, "The three people I've wronged the most in my life are your uncle, Xiaodong, and Xingyan. Whether they care about what happened in the past or not, they will always care in my heart."
"Mom!" Zhuang Youting said, unable to bear it.
"Alright, Tingting, let's go! Let's get in the car."
Zhuang Youting helped her mother walk towards the hospital gate. Aunt Zhuang asked, "By the way, Tingting, what is your brother Xingyan doing now? I saw him driving such a nice car..."
Zhuang Youting said, "I heard from my sister that Xingyan is now the general manager of a construction and decoration company..."
Aunt Zhuang said with surprise and relief, "Oh, a general manager! That's very good!"
"Yes!" Zhuang Youting added, "He's also a very talented writer! He's written many novels, one of which, called 'Sand Flows Through My Fingers,' made me cry. I heard he's preparing to publish another book recently, about a story that takes place in his hometown of Wanzhou..."
"Really?" Aunt Zhuang was overjoyed. "Tingting, when Xingyan's book is published, you must buy a copy for Mom so she can read it too." Zhuang
Youting smiled and said, "Mom, I don't need to buy it. Uncle said that once the book is published, he'll buy many copies and give them to many people. You'll definitely get one."
"That's wonderful!" Aunt Zhuang said, then sighed, "Seeing Xingyan so successful now, Mom is truly happy for him."
"Yes!" Zhuang Youting said proudly. "Brother Xingyan and Sister Xiaomin are my most admired people, and I like them both very much."
Hearing her daughter's words, Aunt Zhuang glanced at her subtly.

61.
All the way, I kept thinking, wondering if I should tell Uncle An and An Xiaomin about seeing Aunt Zhuang today. When I overheard the mother and daughter's conversation, Aunt Zhuang seemed very reluctant to let them know she was sick and receiving treatment in Chongqing.
But if I didn't tell Uncle An and An Xiaomin, what if Aunt Zhuang's condition was serious? I couldn't make up my mind.
That night, my male assistant and I entertained two clients in a private room at a nightclub.
This nightclub was quite high-end, with excellent facilities, impeccable service, and beautiful women—their looks and figures were impeccable.
After singing and drinking for a while, the two clients took the women to a brothel. I said to my male assistant, "You go too."
The male assistant declined, "Mr. Chen, I guess I'll pass?"
I smiled slightly, "It's alright, it won't cost much, go ahead!"
He then cheerfully led the woman beside him out of the private room.
The woman with me was getting restless, hooking her arm around mine, her half-exposed breasts pressed against me, and said in a coquettish voice, "Big brother, how about we go upstairs and get a room?"
I smiled, took a sip of my drink, "I'm not in the mood today."
The woman persisted, laughing, "Then I'll help you relieve your stress! Don't you think so, big brother…"
I didn't reply, burying my head in my drink. The woman continued, "If you don't want to stay here, take me out, we'll go to a hotel room, I guarantee you'll have a blast." As
she spoke, her hand reached for my crotch, which I grabbed. I looked at her and said, "I've only been married a short time, I'm still newlyweds."
The woman laughed immediately, "Don't pretend, brother, isn't that how it is for men to have a wife at home and mistresses on the side?"
"Sorry, I don't do that," I said coldly. "Have someone bring the bill."
After paying, I walked towards the nightclub lobby. As I passed an open private room, I glanced inside casually and continued walking.
Suddenly, I was startled and stopped. I turned back and looked into the room again. Sure enough, among the men and women, I saw Zhuang Youting sitting there.
She was heavily made up, wearing a sexy, revealing dress that was short and exposed, showing off her cleavage and long legs.
A middle-aged man was holding her and singing into a microphone. She looked helpless. Then, the middle-aged man leaned towards Zhuang Youting. She was both helpless and shy, and quickly tried to avoid him, but he persisted.
In the struggle and dodging, her legs inadvertently parted, revealing her underwear because her skirt was too short. Without thinking, I grabbed the middle-aged man by the collar and snapped, "Let him go."
Everyone in the room looked at me in surprise, including Zhuang Youting, who was both astonished and ashamed.
The middle-aged man pushed my hand away and demanded, "Who are you?"
"I'm her father!" I yelled at him, pulling Zhuang Youting by the hand and dragging her out of the room in front of everyone. In
a corner of the nightclub, I slapped Zhuang Youting, but not hard. Tears streamed down her face.
The girl in front of me, now wearing high heels, was a head taller than me (1.75 meters). Such a pure, beautiful girl with such a stunning figure—and she was working as a hostess!
I was so angry I was panting. I pointed at her and said, "What are you doing here? Are you short of money? If you need money, tell your sister! You can also tell me!"
"I don't need your help!" Zhuang Youting covered the side of her cheek that had been hit, her tearful eyes staring at me.
"Fine, fine, you don't need my help, I have no right to help you, then I'll call someone who does..." I gasped, pulling out my phone to dial a number.
"No, please don't..." She grabbed my hands, tears streaming down her face. "Don't tell Uncle and Sister, and especially don't tell Mom, please!"
I shook off her hands and growled in a low voice, "Then why did you do this? How can you face your Uncle, your Sister, and Aunt Zhuang who raised you with such hardship and is now sick?"
"But I have no choice!" Zhuang Youting cried out in anguish. After a while, she said, "Mom's illness is so serious, and we've almost spent all our money. If I don't earn more money, how will I pay for her treatment?"
I stared in surprise, my heart aching at the girl's sorrow. After a long pause, I asked, "Tell me, what illness does Aunt Zhuang have?"
“Thalassemia,” Zhuang Youting murmured, looking at the ground.
“What?” I'd never heard of this disease before.
“A type of leukemia,” she explained.
This time I understood. Although I didn't know exactly what thalassemia was, since it was leukemia, it meant Aunt Zhuang's condition was quite serious. My heart clenched…
“How far along is it now?” I asked in a low voice.
“The doctor said Mom is currently in the middle stage and isn't in danger of getting sick for several years, but as time goes on, if the condition worsens, it's hard to say.”
Zhuang Youting began to sob. I asked again, "What's the current treatment plan?"
Zhuang Youting stopped crying and said, "The doctor said the best treatment is to find a matching bone marrow donor, but that's very difficult. Until then, chemotherapy is the only option."
I nodded. "Even chemotherapy costs a lot of money, right?"
Zhuang Youting's eyes were filled with sorrow. "Yes! Plus the medication, the cost is very high, and the medical insurance coverage is very limited. I advised my mother that if things really didn't work out, we should sell the house in our hometown and rent a place in Chongqing. But my mother said she couldn't sell the house; it was meant for me. If she sold the house and then passed away, I would have no home."
She started crying again. "But I don't want my mother to die. If she dies, even if we have a house, I won't have a home..."
"So you did this?" I asked, heartbroken.
“Hmm…” She nodded, then immediately added, “But I didn’t sell my body, I just drank and sang with the guests.”
I stared at her and asked, “Really?”
“It’s true, Xingyan, I’m not lying to you, please believe me.” She looked at me with teary eyes and said urgently.
I secretly breathed a sigh of relief and asked her how long she had been doing it. She said less than a month.
“I’ll figure out the money. Come with me now, and don’t come back.” I said firmly.
“But…” she said hesitantly, as if she wanted to say something but couldn’t.
“But what?” I stared at her, “If you don’t listen to me, I guarantee your sister and your uncle will find out about this. You’d better watch out.”
“No, no, that’s not what I meant…” Zhuang Youting shook her head repeatedly, “I still have money deposited with the manager. If I leave like this, I won’t get the money back.”
“How much?” I asked.
“Twenty thousand yuan, it’s a deposit.”

62.
In the manager’s office, a man with a small mustache sat behind the desk, looking at me coldly. He was in his thirties, of medium build, muscular, and dark-skinned—clearly a ruthless figure.
In the office were three other men with crew cuts, none of them looking benevolent.
“Are you her father?” the man with the mustache stared at me, nodding at Zhuang Youting.
“Yes,” I said, feeling a sense of familiarity with the manager, though I couldn’t quite place where I’d seen him before.
“You don’t look that old! At most forty, how come you have such a grown daughter?”
“That’s none of your business…” I said, trying to soften my tone. “I’m sorry, manager, could you please return my daughter’s deposit?”
The man with the mustache glared fiercely at Zhuang Youting, making her lower her head, trembling.
He looked at me again and said coldly, "Do you think this is a hotel where you can come and go as you please?"
I said politely, "Give me some face. I used to be in the underworld too. We all look out for each other." The man
with the mustache looked at me for a while and said, "Fine, I'll give you face and won't make things difficult for your daughter. Let's go!"
He then nodded to the three crew-cut men behind me, "Don't make things difficult for them!"
I said, "Where's the money?"
The man with the mustache looked at me for a while, then looked at the three men behind me, laughed loudly, and said to me, "Friend, I've already given you face and let your daughter leave. You still want money? If I give you the money, what about my face? Who will give me face?"
He pointed at me viciously and said, "Get lost!"
Zhuang Youting frowned and pulled me, whispering, "Forget about the money, let's go!"
I said to the man with the mustache, "Give me the money, and I'll give you face. Otherwise, don't blame me for not giving you face."
"Brother Xingyan..." Zhuang Youting pulled me again, looking very worried and scared.
The man with the mustache stared at me like I was a monster. He opened his desk drawer and took out two stacks of banknotes, probably worth about 20,000 yuan.
"Thanks!" I was about to reach for it when he pulled out a switchblade, the blade snapping open with a gleaming light.
Zhuang Youting screamed in fright and grabbed my arm tightly.
"Take it if you dare, or get lost," the man with the mustache said fiercely, brandishing the switchblade.
I pushed Zhuang Youting's hand away and sighed at the man with the mustache, "Brother, since that's how it is..."
In a flash, I snatched the knife from the man's hand, grabbed his hair with my other hand, and pressed the blade against his neck.
Amid Zhuang Youting's scream, I shouted sharply, "Don't move!" The man
with the mustache was terrified and said to his three men, "Don't, don't move, listen to him."
The three crew-cut men stopped, staring at me tensely and fiercely.
The man with the mustache said to me, "Brother, which gang are you from?"
"The Heavenly Path, the Yellow Springs Path, I'm on every path," I said, then beckoned to Zhuang Youting, who was frozen in fear, "Give me the money."
She stood there motionless, and I yelled at her, "Hurry up and give it to me!"
She said "Oh," reached out and took the money, looking at me with terror.
"Brother, do you think you two can walk out of here standing up tonight?" Even with a knife to his neck, the man with the mustache still showed his ruthlessness; he was indeed a formidable character.
"Try it!" I applied a little more pressure, and a drop of blood flowed from his neck.
"Brother, brother, don't do anything rash," the man with the mustache quickly said.
"That depends on what you do," I said.
"What do you want me to do?"
"Let us leave here safely."
"Okay, I promise you."
"I think you're a decent guy, you shouldn't break your promise. But if you've misjudged me..."
I suddenly grabbed his right hand and pressed it firmly against the table, turned the knife in my hand so the tip was downward, and stabbed it into his hand several times. The mustachioed man screamed in agony.
"No..." Zhuang Youting cried out in shock, covering her mouth.
The three crew-cut men also cried out in fear, "Boss..."
The mustachioed man almost fainted, large beads of sweat streaming down his forehead. After a long while, he looked down at his hand and finally breathed a sigh of relief.
The switchblade was stuck between his right index and ring fingers, deeply embedded in the table. The previous stabs had all passed between his fingers and embedded themselves in the table, without harming him at all.
"Impressive skills!" the mustachioed man exclaimed, looking at me with admiration.
"You flatter me..." I said, "I apologize for my earlier rudeness, but if you dare to go back on your word, I swear I will really stab you a few times."
He stared at me and ordered his men, "No one is allowed to cause them any trouble before they leave this house, understand?"
The three crew-cut men replied in unison, "Yes, boss."
I released his right hand, pulled out a switchblade from the table, and said, "I broke the gang rules in the past and was stabbed three times and stabbed six times. Luckily, I survived. Today, I offended you, and now I apologize."
As I spoke, I placed the blade of the switchblade against my left hand.
"Brother Xingyan, no..." Zhuang Youting cried out again.
I pulled the knife across my hand, creating a long gash, and drops of blood dripped down. Zhuang Youting covered her mouth again.
I threw away the knife, grabbed a large piece of toilet paper from the table, tore it off, wrapped it around my hand, and pulled Zhuang Youting away.
Once in the hallway, I asked, "Did you leave something here?"
"Yes, my clothes and bag are in the changing room..." Zhuang Youting said, glancing at my still-bleeding hand, "Brother Xingyan, your hand...?"
"Never mind..." I looked around warily, "Go to the changing room and get your clothes and bag. Don't change your clothes yet, hurry up, I'm afraid things might get complicated if we delay."
"Okay, I'll listen to you," Zhuang Youting nodded.
The two of us went to the parking lot outside the nightclub, and the three crew-cut men followed us out.
I had a bad feeling, grabbed Zhuang Youting and ran to my car. I opened the door and shoved her inside, saying, "Don't come out under any circumstances."
"Brother Xingyan..." she called out to me with great concern.
I closed the car door, pressed the lock button on the remote, then used the remote to open the trunk, took out a baton, and pressed the power door lock button on the trunk.
As I turned around, the three crew-cut men, each holding a three-foot-long steel pipe, rushed towards me. In the car behind me, Zhuang Youting was frantically pounding on the rear windshield and calling my name, her voice filled with terror and worry.
I swung my baton with a snap, staring at the three crew-cut men who were closing in.
At that moment, I felt as if I were back in Wuhan twenty years ago, participating in street fights with Brother Qi and the others. That day, Brother Qi was right beside me, his chest pierced by a watermelon knife, his intestines spilling out.
The last words I heard Brother Qi say to me were, "Brother, I shouldn't have brought you out. Run away! Never step into this business again..."
In my heart, I said, "Come on! Twenty years have passed, let me go back twenty years!"

(To be continued)

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