Chapter 37 The Madman "If I didn't do this, how could you possibly stop and wait for me...?"

After a long while, the people in the conference room finally noticed Qiao Yunzheng outside the door, and they looked surprised.

Qiao Yunzheng was not embarrassed by being discovered. She did not hide and remained standing there motionless.

Tonight, too many things occupied her mind, and they strung together into a terrible thought: her father's death might not have been an accident, but a deliberate murder.

The person who wanted to harm his father seemed to have intricate connections with the Wen family.

Qiao Yunzheng stared at Wen Jinliang's face, looking at the man's hypocritical and smug smile, thinking about the Wen family's astonishing rise over the years, and Shen Xingduo's words, "If it weren't for me, would that Wen family be where they are today?"

She slowly clenched her palms until the stinging pain of her nails digging into her flesh brought her back to a little bit of sensation.

Their gazes were focused on the hard drive that Wen Jinliang had handed to Wen Hong.

Qiao Yunzheng almost frantically wondered if what was on that hard drive was related to her father's accident.

Wen Hong quickly stood up, strode open the door, and stood in front of her.

He reeked of tobacco, suggesting he'd been inside for a long time: "Why did you get here?"

Upon seeing her, Wen Hong's lips almost instinctively curved into a smile. He raised his hand, wanting to pinch her cheek.

Qiao Yunzheng took a half step back, avoiding his touch.

What was supposed to be an ordinary sentence took on a sarcastic tone to Qiao Yunzheng at that moment.

She looked up at him and smiled, the curve of her lips stiff, but her eyes and brows were cold: "What? Did I come at the wrong time?"

Wen Hong froze, his hand lingering in mid-air for a moment before slowly retracting.

He wasn't angry at her sharp tongue, and said calmly, "No."

Wen Jinliang also got up.

He tugged at the front of his suit jacket, looking quite pleased with himself.

He strolled leisurely out of the conference room, seemingly oblivious to the subtle tension between the two young men. As he passed Wen Hong, he gently patted him on the shoulder.

Like any loving elder, he said to him earnestly, "I'm so glad you can understand."

After speaking, he glanced at Qiao Yunzheng almost imperceptibly before leaving the office area.

Qiao Yunzheng found the scene of filial piety and parental love extremely jarring.

A surge of anger at being betrayed welled up inside me for no apparent reason.

In the vast office area, only two figures, one tall and one short, stood facing each other.

Sometimes, human intuition is just that unreasonable and domineering.

In just a few hours, countless speculations rushed uncontrollably toward Qiao Yunzheng, giving her no chance to refuse.

Qiao Yunzheng's whole body was tense, and her blood was surging and roaring.

After a long stalemate, Wen Hong sighed softly.

Ignoring her stubborn resistance, he took her hand and pried open her taut fingers one by one.

"Why did you think of this?"

He stared at the deep red marks on her palm, feeling a pang of heartache, and gently stroked them with his fingertips.

Qiao Yunzheng just looked at him, at the person she had entrusted her heart to again after five years.

His tone of voice was still so gentle when he spoke to her, and the warmth of his hand when he held hers was still so intense.

However, he is, after all, a child of the Wen family, and no matter how unwilling he is to admit it, this is an undeniable fact.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that? Why did you bring this up?"

Based on Qiao Yunzheng's understanding of Wen Hong these past few days, at least, the information Wen Hong wanted her to know was that the relationship between Wen Hong and Wen Jinliang and his son was quite distant, and it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that they were irreconcilable enemies.

He was even ashamed to admit that he was a member of the Wen family.

Wen Hong didn't answer immediately. After a moment, she replied ambiguously, "I have some urgent matters to attend to, so I came here."

Qiao Yunzheng keenly noticed the evasive look in his eyes.

She immediately thought of the black hard drive that Wen Jinliang had handed him when they were together earlier.

"Can't you say?" she asked, emphasizing each word.

When the red marks on her palm were less noticeable, Wen Hong stopped rubbing her hand, then took her small, soft hand in his. He looked down at her and said, "It's just some trivial matter, so don't worry about it."

He reached out again, and this time he finally pinched her cheek, showing no displeasure at her sudden sharpness.

Perhaps because she looked sullen, her skin felt different than usual, and he even found her somewhat cute.

"How long have you been standing here? Why didn't you tell me beforehand?"

Qiao Yunzheng stood there stiffly, as if rooted to the spot.

As soon as I lowered my eyes, a warm current surged through my body and was about to overflow from my eyes.

I did call you.

Wen Hong was surprised. He still held her hand with his left hand, and with his other hand he reached into his pocket to take out his phone, and also took out the black hard drive that was about the same size as the phone.

Once this thing appeared, Qiao Yunzheng couldn't take her eyes off it.

She reached for the hard drive almost instinctively.

However, Wen Hong subtly avoided it.

"You can't show me?" She lowered her eyes, and his retreating action almost confirmed her suspicions.

Wen Hong casually tossed the hard drive back into his pocket, unlocked his phone, and saw a dozen or so missed call notifications popping up on his screen.

He was somewhat frustrated, realizing that Wen Jinliang had muted his phone and hadn't heard him.

Wen Hong tossed the phone back in, then put his other arm around her shoulder, making the awkward girl face him.

She sighed resignedly, "It's not that I don't want to show you, it's just that now is not the right time."

Qiao Yunzheng almost sneered inwardly.

So when is the right time?

Is it when everything has settled down and there is no room for maneuver?

A fire rose in her heart, and she resisted by pressing against his chest, refusing to get any closer to him.

Wen Hong frowned, finally realizing a problem.

She didn't seem to be angry just because he hadn't answered her call since he had come to see Wen Jinliang.

"What exactly happened?"

She refused to let him hug her, so he stopped forcing her and loosened his grip.

But he still held her hand with his other hand, and bent down slightly to bring his gaze level with hers: "Why are you acting so strange tonight? What's wrong with you?"

His series of cover-ups and evasive responses almost instantly destroyed her trust in him.

Since their reunion, she had been so cautious, and it took her a lot of effort to convince herself to trust him.

He destroyed it so easily.

Her vision was blurred, and she could barely see the person in front of her. Her mind was filled with old photos in her father's study, information records on the computer screen, and her father's unrecognizable appearance before he died.

Qiao Yunzheng tugged at her arm, trying to pull her hand away.

No twitching.

She bit her lip and used almost all her strength to pull her hand out of his grasp inch by inch.

Wen Hong looked at her empty palm, her eyelashes trembling: "A-Zheng?"

Qiao Yunzheng slowly took two steps back.

The meeting room door was half-open, and cold white light, compressed into a diamond shape, spilled out, creating a dividing line between light and shadow between the two people.

Sharp and clearly defined.

Qiao Yunzheng suddenly smiled.

All the complex and frantic emotions seemed to vanish in an instant.

With a calm expression, she said to Wen Hong, "I'm a little tired, so I'll head back now." Just as calm, restrained, and polite as when they first met, she even waved to him, "Goodbye."

Qiao Yunzheng disregarded Wen Hong's reaction and resolutely turned around.

She straightened her back and walked out of the Wen's Building with her head held high.

Only she knew how pathetic she looked as she fled at that moment.

It was already quite late when we returned to the Qiao residence.

The hall, which was a mess during the day, has now been cleaned up and the old items have been sorted and neatly stored away in the storage room.

The file box that she specifically instructed Yao Jing to keep was lying quietly by the stairs.

The lights in Yao Jing's room were already off, so she must have gone to sleep.

Strangely enough, ever since the mother and daughter tore off that layer of foggy pretense and exposed each other's raw wounds, they have become much more relaxed and at ease than before.

Yao Jing also rediscovered a part of her own soul and stopped obsessively focusing all her attention on Qiao Yunzheng.

Just like today, when Qiao Yunzheng came home late, she only sent her a message reminding her not to stay up too late and to be careful on the road.

Qiao Yunzheng picked up the box of documents and went upstairs to the second floor.

Back in my room, after washing up, I collapsed onto the soft bed, completely exhausted.

Her phone was right next to her pillow, vibrating incessantly, which was making her very agitated.

Qiao Yunzheng picked it up and glanced at it; it was still Wen Hong calling.

Since she left the Wen Group building, Wen Hong has called her countless times.

She stared wide-eyed, as if that would make the mist in her eyes evaporate faster.

After the ringing went on for several times, Qiao Yunzheng, unusually, swore: "Damn it!"

She decisively pressed the power button and rudely threw the phone onto a table not far from the bed.

After a muffled thud, the phone slid rapidly along the tabletop, only stopping when it accidentally bumped into something.

Things were knocked down and scattered all over the ground.

Qiao Yunzheng glanced up and saw a stack of men's photos.

She belatedly remembered that it was information about eligible young men that her mother had previously compiled for her.

She looked away in disgust, but caught a glimpse of a string of words out of the corner of her eye.

On the resume with the name "Jiang Qi" written on it, the asset section surprisingly included the words "high-end business firm".

Qiao Yunzheng's heart skipped a beat.

She struggled to her feet, reached out and took the page in her hand, and read it carefully.

Very good. If he's not a local of Kuncheng, then the possibility of him being involved with local families like the Wen family is unlikely.

She folded the page several times and placed it on the bedside table.

When Qiao Yunzheng went downstairs in the morning, Yao Jing was already sitting at the dining table waiting for her.

She seemed to be in a good mood, busy serving rice and humming a little tune. When she saw Qiao Yunzheng come down, she paused and asked, "What time did Xiaozheng get back last night? Didn't you sleep well?"

Qiao Yunzheng hummed in response, without denying it, and sat down at the dining table, picking up a soup spoon to add porridge to her bowl.

After finishing her meal, Qiao Yunzheng stood up and, before leaving, casually said, "By the way, Mom, there's something I'd like to ask you for help with."

Yao Jing looked up in confusion: "What?"

Qiao Yunzheng paused for a moment before continuing, "Among the information on those boys you gave me a few days ago, there was one named Jiang Qi, do you remember him?"

Yao Jing was caught off guard by this sudden mention and was a little confused: "Yes, there is such a person."

Qiao Yunzheng: "Does your mother know him well?"

Although she didn't understand, Yao Jing answered honestly: "I wouldn't say I know him well. His mother and I were college classmates, and we occasionally keep in touch."

"Oh," Qiao Yunzheng nodded, it was pretty much as she had expected, so she suggested, "If you have time, why don't you make an appointment with this person?"

Upon hearing this, Yao Jing was stunned.

She had long given up hope of arranging a blind date for Qiao Yunzheng, but now that she brought it up herself, Yao Jing was somewhat at a loss.

"Then you and..." Yao Jing hesitated, unable to finish her sentence.

Qiao Yunzheng pretended not to understand the meaning behind her words: "Is there something inconvenient?"

Yao Jing quickly shook her head: "No, okay, Mom will listen to you."

Qiao Yunzheng nodded, grabbed her bag, and went straight out the door.

She didn't wait for Uncle Zhang and drove herself to the company.

Just as I left my house and turned a corner, I saw Wen Hong's black SUV speeding towards me along the curve of the road.

Qiao Yunzheng pretended not to see and drove straight ahead without looking to the side.

The moment the two cars passed each other, the window of the SUV rolled down.

“Ah Zheng…”

As soon as the sound reached her ears, Qiao Yunzheng secretly increased the pressure on her feet.

The car sped past, leaving the lingering echo of the call in the howling wind.

She bit her lip, not wanting to say anything more to Wen Hong in such a chaotic state.

We hadn't gone far when we heard a sharp screech of brakes behind us.

She glanced quickly in the rearview mirror and saw that the SUV had turned around and was speeding toward her at an astonishing speed.

Before long, Wen Hong caught up: "Qiao Yunzheng, stop the car!"

Fortunately, there were very few cars on the roads in the suburban villa area, and it was just the two of them chasing each other.

Qiao Yunzheng became increasingly sullen and ignored him, gripping the steering wheel tightly with both hands.

Suddenly, a loud "bang" was heard.

My heart sank suddenly.

Sure enough, the black SUV in the rearview mirror didn't chase after them anymore; it crashed into the roadside embankment, and thick white smoke billowed up.

Her body reacted almost before her brain, and Qiao Yunzheng quickly turned the steering wheel back.

No cars were passing by, and that car was stuck there all alone.

Her hands, gripping the steering wheel, trembled uncontrollably.

Qiao Yunzheng quickly parked the car on the side of the road, got out, and ran towards the accident site.

Apart from the flashing headlights and wisps of smoke, she could see nothing, didn't know where he was, and didn't know how he was doing.

It felt like walking through mud; the short distance was incredibly difficult for her.

Finally, upon reaching the front, the front of the car collided with the bricks and stones, causing one section to be dented and the bricks and stones to be scattered and rolled to the side.

My heart was pounding, and I had a terrifying feeling of weightlessness, like someone had thrown me from a high mountain peak.

Qiao Yunzheng reached out her hand, trembling, intending to open the car door, but the door was opened from the inside.

Wen Hong took a long stride and crawled out of the vehicle's driver's seat.

Apart from her hair being a little messy, there seemed to be nothing wrong with her.

Qiao Yunzheng carefully examined him, and her heart was slightly relieved.

Realizing it too late, I felt a surge of anger.

She wasn't driving very fast. With Wen Hong's driving skills, such a basic accident shouldn't have happened on such an empty road.

Guessing that he did it on purpose, Qiao Yunzheng was furious: "Are you sick in the head?!"

Wen Hong clutched his chest, as if he was feeling unwell. He walked closer to her, leaning most of his body on her shoulder: "If I didn't do this, why would you stop and wait for me..."

The author's note: 1. Don't drive recklessly out of anger. Be extremely cautious and don't follow the example of those two classmates...

2. Thank you to "Sunshine" and "Black and White Rice Ball" for the nutrient solution! Mwah!

3. Also, the prize draw is tomorrow evening, but it seems we won't be able to get 15 winners, hahaha (getting increasingly frantic.jpg). How will the system allocate prizes in this situation? Will it just count as many as there are? This is the first time I've encountered this situation, sob~