Chapter 43 Jiangjin

Han walked back to the sales office with an expressionless face and sat down at her workstation in a daze. She rubbed her face, sighed deeply, turned on the computer, and stared at the screen in a daze.

The whispers of the people around her were like a swarm of flies circling around her ears, buzzing loudly. She couldn't hear a single word.

The screen in front of her eyes was sometimes far away, sometimes near, sometimes big, sometimes small, making her dizzy and blurry. However, Han felt unbearable pain in her lower abdomen. She could no longer support herself and fell on the table, buried her face in her arms and closed her eyes.

After an unknown amount of time, she felt someone coming over, putting a cup of hot water in front of her, and patting her shoulder. Han then raised her head in confusion, rubbed her eyes, and saw that it was Yu Xiaoli.

"What?" she asked in a low voice.

Yu Xiaoli leaned over to look at her, her face full of concern: "Are you feeling unwell?"

Han nodded, frowning: "My aunt is here."

"Oh, that's okay. Drink some hot water." Yu Xiaoli sighed softly and said, "Boss Jiang asked you to go to his office. He just called you but you didn't answer, and he sent you a WeChat message but you didn't reply either. He specifically asked me to come over to see what's wrong with you."

Han said "oh" and asked her, "Do you know why you are looking for me?"

Yu Xiaoli paused and said, "It's probably because of what happened just now." Then she became excited and said, "Hey, you don't know, Mr. Jiang had a big fight with Xiao Mei because of you. It was so cool."

"For me? Arguing with Xiao Mei?" Han was puzzled.

She knew Xiao Mei's background. She'd seen her in high heels, bossing things around the office with an air of authority. Her work style was overbearing, and her reputation wasn't good. But no one dared to offend her; after all, attendance checks and attendance were all based on her signature. She was also a crucial pawn in Li Zhekai's efforts to keep the business department in check.

"Yeah, Xiao Mei said something rude, saying you were out there..." Yu Xiaoli frowned and didn't repeat herself. "Anyway, she said something rude, and CEO Jiang scolded her severely. Oh, she looked so handsome that way." Yu Xiaoli's face was full of admiration. "I really didn't realize that. Although CEO Jiang is usually very strict with us, he still protects us when outsiders bully people in our department."

Han propped himself up, fixed his hair, and said nothing.

Yu Xiaoli looked at her with sympathy. After hesitating for a moment, she couldn't help but ask in a low voice, "Sister Han Que, what happened just now?"

Han shook his head, "Nothing."

Yu Xiaoli didn't believe it and asked doubtfully, "Really?"

Han said vaguely: "Something happened to a relative at home, and he couldn't find anyone, so he came to me."

Yu Xiaoli widened her eyes in surprise, "Hey, then you are really wronged, what kind of relatives are these, treating you like this."

Han shook her head and said nothing more. She stood up by the edge of the table, swayed her body and prepared to go to Jiang Jin's office. Just as she took a step, her steps became weak, her knees gave way, and she fell back into her seat. Yu Xiaoli hurriedly supported her and picked up the water cup and handed it to her lips: "Are you okay? Have a drink."

Han, panting, took her hand, lowered his head and drank a sip of water, calmed himself down, and said, "Thank you." He then stood up by supporting himself on the table and said, "It's okay, I'll go in."

Yu Xiaoli hummed and reached out to help her. But Han waved her hand and said, "It's okay, I can do it myself." After that, she stood up straight, took a deep breath, walked to the door of Jiang Jin's office, straightened her back, and knocked on the glass door.

After Jiang Jin said, "Come in," she walked into Jiang Jin's office and asked seriously, "Are you looking for me?"

Just after she finished saying this, Han suddenly felt a black screen in front of her eyes, her knees went weak, and she fell onto the sofa closest to the door. She gasped for breath, and cold sweat dripped down her forehead.

Seeing this, Jiang Jin immediately stood up from his chair, walked to the door with an expressionless face, closed the door, and quickly pulled down the blinds to block the prying eyes outside.

He walked quickly to the side of the sofa, lowered his eyes and bent down to look at Han Que, and said in a deep voice: "What's wrong?"

Han closed his eyes and said nothing, his hair was wet and stuck to his cheeks.

Jiang Jin stared at her pale, haggard face with a grim gaze. After a moment of silence, he finally couldn't hold it in any longer and sat down on the sofa beside her. He put his arm around her frail shoulders and shook them slightly. "Speak up, what's going on?"

Han still closed his eyes, "Don't shake me, I feel dizzy."

Jiang Jin stopped moving, paused, and then pulled Han Que into his arms. He stroked her forehead with his fingers, gently wiping the sweat off her forehead. He slowed his voice and asked in a low voice, "Okay, I won't touch you, but you have to tell me what's going on."

Han closed her eyes, but could feel the long and familiar smell and the strong and irregular beating of his heart. In a trance, she seemed to have returned to a summer vacation long ago. She liked to curl up in that embrace, with the scent of youth at the tip of her nose.

"Don't be afraid, I'm here." A familiar voice was in her ears, and the warm corners of his lips lightly touched the delicate skin under her earlobe, making her feel tingling and numb, which made her heart tremble.

Han forced her eyes open, and what she saw were Jiang Jin's dark eyes, staring at her with unspeakable emotions. She was stunned for a moment, startled, and quickly pushed him away: "Jiang Jin, are you crazy?"

She looked back in panic at the office door, which had long been closed, and then looked up at the tightly closed glass window. She sighed and muttered, "This is in the office. You're not afraid, but I am."

Jiang Jin's arm fell into the air, maintaining its original curved arc. He turned sideways and stared at Han Que motionlessly: "Tell me what's going on?"

Han moved to the other side of the sofa, away from Jiang Jin, and asked, "What's going on?"

"Those people." Jiang Jin looked at her and said word by word.

"Which ones?"

"Those two people who just came to the company to cause trouble." Jiang Jin's face was gloomy and his voice was low: "I have already understood it just now. They came to you to ask for money. What's wrong with you? Why do you owe them money?"

Han frowned and glanced at him, feeling both amused and annoyed. She wanted to explain, but she felt that there was no need to explain it to Jiang Jin. What did her family affairs have to do with him, Jiang Jin?

She leaned back on the sofa, looked at him lazily, and said with a half-smile, "Isn't it normal for me to owe money? A poor person like me is short of money and always has to borrow money from others."

"Don't give me that." Jiang Jin frowned and scolded, "Don't pretend, I don't know you yet."

"Pretending?" Han snorted, her face darkening as she said coldly, "What do you know about me? How well do you know me now, and you say I'm pretending?" After a pause, she sneered, "It's not that I have to pretend in front of you, but we all have to pretend, especially you. You have to improve your acting skills and pretend more convincingly. You said that you called me in for a talk like this, closing the door and pulling the curtains, aren't you afraid of being complained about?"

Jiang Jin snorted coldly, "Complain? Who dares to complain about me? Who am I afraid of complaining to?"

Han sneered and deliberately dragged out his voice to tease: "I advise you to be careful. You haven't even married yet, my son-in-law."

Jiang Jin: “…”

His face flushed red, and after a long while he managed an awkward smile, "Don't say such harsh words."

Han folded his arms and sneered, "How did I say that? Isn't it the truth? Your family background is as strong as Gu Ningli's? Are you from the Gu family? Are you rich and powerful? What's wrong with saying you're a son-in-law? It's not shameful to be a son-in-law. There are so many people who want to be one, but they don't have what you can do."

Jiang Jin said nothing, remained patient and let her vent her emotions.

Han ridiculed him a few more times, and felt very annoyed and bored. He leaned sideways on the armrest of the sofa, closed his eyes, and didn't want to say anything more.

She was particularly tired today and was full of anger, and Jiang Jin walked into the trap.

Jiang Jin looked at her silently, his expression unclear.

Han Que's attitude was always capricious. Sometimes she was very respectful, like a flattering subordinate, and sometimes she was cold and indifferent. Even in front of other employees, she would contradict him on some work issues, making him lose face in public. Jiang Jin was concerned about his reputation and sometimes felt very embarrassed, but every time she contradicted him, he felt an inexplicable joy, as if only in this way could she prove that she cared about him.

She must be jealous, he thought, women are always petty, especially since they loved each other so deeply back then.

He waved his hand and said slowly, "Forget it, I won't argue with you, but tell me what's going on? Are you in any trouble?"

Han leaned lazily on the sofa, crossed his legs, and nodded thoughtfully.

"What's wrong?" Jiang Jin asked.

"Money. What else?" Han said impatiently, "What kind of difficulties can there be these days? It's nothing more than lack of money. What problems can't be solved? It's nothing more than lack of money. If you have money, everything will be solved."

"I know it's about money, but why would you borrow money from that kind of person? Don't you know that those people are the ones that most people can't afford to offend? Don't you even realize the risk? I don't believe you are so stupid."

Jiang Jin frowned, stood up and paced back and forth. Yu Xiaoli had just called him into the office and questioned him carefully in the name of ensuring the company's safety. He basically figured out the whole story.

"So what if you have a sense of risk? When I really need money urgently, who else would lend me money except a microfinance company like Huili? Everyone is avoiding you, don't you think?" Han looked at him with a hint of mockery on his lips.

Jiang Jin: “…”

He lowered his eyes and met Han Que's slightly sarcastic look. His face froze and he turned away.

How could he not remember that year when Han Que's father fell ill and she ran to him, hesitantly and roundaboutly trying to ask him to borrow some money, but he refused her.

The amount Han asked to borrow was not much, but at that time he had already accepted financial support from his stepfather and was secretly preparing to study abroad. Scholarships were difficult to obtain for his major and the schools he was applying to. He had no idea about his future life and did not dare to spend a penny more.

It seemed that from that day on, Han Que no longer looked for him. He was busy, and Han was busy too. He was busy studying and preparing for exams, and Han was busy taking care of her sick father. They drifted further and further apart until he went abroad and they had no contact anymore. The relationship ended in vain.

Jiang Jin did feel guilty later, but he did not regret it at that time. Han was beautiful, but he had higher ambitions and could not be fettered by personal feelings.

After a long silence, Jiang Jin looked at Han Que and said in a deep voice: "I'm sorry, I didn't have the ability to help you at that time. Now I want to make up for it..."

Han was slightly stunned, her eyebrows moved slightly, and she lowered her eyes without saying a word.

Jiang Jin: "How much do you need?"

Han remained silent, but after a while she laughed, "Jiang Jin, you..." She pointed at him and laughed again.

Jiang Jin looked at her unbridled laughter, feeling a little embarrassed and baffled. He suppressed the throbbing in his heart and asked, "What are you laughing at? What's so funny about this?"

After a pause, he seemed to remember something, his expression becoming gloomy. "You don't need my help, do you? How could I have forgotten that you are no longer the same as before. Naturally, someone will stand up for you. Isn't it just that you are short of money? The last thing he lacks is money."