Chapter 17 Don't Throw It Away

The lights in the gym on the third floor were on, a window was half open, and the wind blew the satin curtains, which fell on a corner of the treadmill against the wall.

A faint hissing sound came from the tracks.

The man jogging on the treadmill was tall and slender with broad shoulders and a narrow waist. The muscles in his arms, visible beneath the sleeves of his black tracksuit, were firm and smooth. From a distance, this 1.9-meter-tall man resembled a silent mountain peak in the dark night.

"drop-"

Chen Jiashu felt the speed was too slow, so he pressed the button to switch to normal running, which increased the track speed and made his pace faster.

Running is the sport he has persisted with the longest. Before his eyesight deteriorated to this extent, he could still go to the gym to play basketball and badminton to improve his eye reaction speed. Now, he has been forced to give up those sports one by one, and running is the only one left.

I remember last year, when his eyes had just become like this, he spent a week getting familiar with his home. The following week, he went to a school for the blind to learn how to use a white cane and how to travel independently.

At that time, he felt that he could overcome any difficulty. After studying for three days, he went out to practice on his own with a white cane. However, he overestimated himself. He couldn't tell which way was which as soon as he went out. Although the blind paths in big cities are well-maintained, there are still problems with random parking. But these are not the most difficult things to overcome.

Instead, his cane could only reach half a meter to his feet. Once, he was scratched on the face by a sharp, protruding branch from a tree, and blood flowed freely. Unexpected situations, such as a flying ball, a dog jumping out, or a child riding a bicycle, were even more difficult to predict.

He was covered in wounds after only a few days, and it had even delayed his business. Zhu Ao suggested adopting a guide dog, but he flatly refused.

He was reminded of the little spotted dog he had as a child, which he named Xiaohua. Xiaohua had been with him for eight years, bringing him a lot of joy, and he was heartbroken for a long time when it passed away.

Throughout his life, his parents died in car accidents one after another, his grandmother passed away peacefully, and his best brother died of illness... He was always losing things, but he could never get used to it or bear it.

After careful consideration, he decided to train three assistants to work with him. After a period of adjustment, they learned how to guide him efficiently, allowing him to focus his energy on important matters and avoid unnecessary waste of time.

For example, before an important business meeting, there won't be half an hour wasted searching for a meeting room. And when signing a contract, there won't be hesitation because the details of the terms are unclear…

In short, he showed weakness, acknowledging that not every mountain in life can be crossed.

...

The temperature inside the gym was lower than in the other rooms, but even so, Chen Jiashu was already covered in sweat after running for just over twenty minutes.

Sweat streamed down his forehead, stinging his eyes. He blinked frequently, then suddenly lost his balance and fell off the treadmill.

Fortunately, he was not injured. Chen Jiashu got up from the ground, ignored the treadmill that was still running behind him, and walked straight to the cabinet against the wall.

His long, clean fingers reached out onto the table, touching the side of the wine glass, and he cupped it. He tilted his sharp chin back and finished the rest of the wine in the glass.

Then he groped around to find the bottle, gripped it, and poured wine into the empty glass. He stopped only when the wine overflowed the rim and wet the back of his hand, then put the bottle back.

There were a few red wine stains on the white tabletop, which I accidentally got on my fingertips when I pulled them back.

As the effects of the alcohol washed over him, Chen Jiashu hummed the tune of "Wedding in a Dream" and staggered to the center of the gym.

He lowered his head, raised his eyebrows, and a smile spread from his eyes to the corners of his mouth.

Holding a glass in one hand and half-raised in the air with the other, as if accompanied by an invisible dance partner, he gracefully twirled around, moving forward and backward, repeating the cycle to the music he hummed.

The soundproof floor mat felt soft underfoot, making very little noise when you stepped on it. Outside the window, the moon shone brightly, casting a pale golden light on the glass.

"puff!"

The wine glass fell from a height, hitting the floor mat with a dull thud. The red wine spread, covering a larger area, and under the light, it reflected fragments of light.

Red wine spilled to his feet, soaking the soles of his white sneakers. He lifted his foot, landed, and walked straight across the stain.

A long trail of reddish-brown footprints was left on the blue mat.

He poured himself another glass, held the stem, and swirled the liquid inside.

Chen Jiashu's thin, upturned lips appeared on the glass of red wine, but suddenly, the smile cooled, his lips straightened, Chen Jiashu chuckled, drank the wine in the glass in one gulp, and then slammed the glass heavily on the counter.

Feeling sleepy, Chen Jiashu decided to go back to his room. He propped himself up on the counter with his elbows.

Just then, a series of rapid, hurried high heels sounded outside, "clack clack clack," all the way to the door.

The gym door was forcefully pushed open from the outside.

Tian Jiayue stopped in her tracks as soon as she entered the room.

On the ground, there was an empty wine glass lying on its side, and a series of red footprints that looked like bloodstains, stretching haphazardly towards the rectangular cabinet that was protruding to the east.

The cabinet was about one meter high and two meters long. It was usually used to store sports protective gear and towels, but at this moment there were two bottles of wine and an empty wine glass with wine stains on it.

Chen Jiashu was leaning against the counter, his eyes slightly red. He swayed as if he was about to collapse.

"elder brother!"

Tian Jiayue rushed over and helped him up.

*

Tian Jiayue doesn't usually come to Chen Jiashu's place.

At 6 p.m., Tian Jiayue returned from her business trip. Instead of going home immediately, she went to the company headquarters.

I ran into Assistant Ye in the elevator. They chatted casually, and the topic turned to his sister-in-law's visit to the company today. Assistant Ye didn't know about his sister-in-law and brother's past relationship, but anyone with eyes could see that it was something special.

When the story reached the point where her brother fell to the ground and her sister-in-law watched coldly, Tian Jiayue was horrified. She had been on tenterhooks the whole way there, fearing that her brother might do something similar to what happened back then... and have a moment of despair.

This man's shoulders can bear many burdens. A fire wiped out his savings of many years overnight, but he made a comeback. A large number of appliances he sold malfunctioned and had to be recalled, leaving him with tens of millions of yuan in unpaid debts. He struggled to survive. Despite numerous hardships and his worsening eye disease, he was not defeated. The only thing that mattered was the name "Qin Qiao," which was both love and disaster for him. No matter how many years had passed, he could not let go of it, or rather... he would not let go.

Two years ago, one evening, Tian Jiayue stood outside the ward and overheard her brother and Shuang Ge talking:

“Every time… I see them going in and out together, the lights in the room turning on and off, I feel an urge to be a bad guy and snatch her back. But… what did the children do wrong? What did Qiaoqiao do wrong…?” The older brother sighed heavily. “Actually, I don’t even know what I’m waiting for…”

"What nonsense are you spouting? Chengcheng is only five years old. Don't think about things that don't exist. Don't you know how tough your life is? Not to mention four years, even fifty years wouldn't be a problem." The older brother also laughed. "President Zhang, I'm still waiting for you to come back and fight those people on the board of directors for me."

"You're too soft-hearted, kid. What did I teach you? 'Old bastard,' 'old thing,' 'old coward,' you eat your food, then curse me, and you still have the nerve to lick my boots and ask for credit!"

Zhang Shuang's voice was full of righteous indignation: "Director Li's brother-in-law embezzled R&D funds to buy shares of 'Dongheng' and lost everything... Does he really think I don't have accounting records? If he dares to cause trouble again, I'll show him the PPT at the next shareholders' meeting!"

If only Brother Shuang were still here.

Shuang-ge's witty banter always makes his brother laugh, and the two can talk about anything. His brother no longer keeps everything bottled up inside like he does now…

When my sister-in-law came back this time, I thought everything was getting better. During this period, my brother seemed to have a new vitality. Several times, while writing documents, he would inexplicably chuckle out, thinking of something funny.

Seeing her brother like this, she was genuinely happy for him and sincerely hoped that they could be together happily.

The man on the bed, his eyes closed in a light sleep, had cheeks flushed from the smell of alcohol, but his skin was unusually pale. Under the bright white light, the moisture in the corners of his eyes resembled the moon shattered on a lake.

It's heartbreaking.

“Taking an inch and wanting a mile…you’re right…” he mumbled the words for the third time.

Sister Bai knocked on the door and brought over some hangover soup.

Tian Jiayue brought it over and placed it on the bedside table. She squatted down and gently patted Chen Jiashu's shoulder: "Brother, brother, wake up, get up and drink some hangover soup."

Chen Jiashu heard Tian Jiayue calling him. He moved his neck, opened his eyelids, and a white light suddenly flooded his eyes.

"Brother, it's me, Jiayue."

Chen Jiashu turned his head slowly and saw Tian Jiayue right in front of him, but her features were still blurry: "Jiayue... what are you doing here?"

"Never mind how I got here," Tian Jiayue chuckled. "Get up and have some hangover soup first."

With his arms braced against the bed, Chen Jiashu raised his upper body, leaned against the headboard, and exhaled a breath of stale air.

The smell of alcohol wafted through the air. Tian Jiayue brought over some hangover soup and said softly, "You'll feel better after drinking this."

Holding the porcelain bowl, Chen Jiashu tilted his head back and drank it all in one gulp.

Tian Jiayue caught the empty bowl, put it back, and then took two tissues and put them in his hand.

"What time is it?" Chen Jiashu asked her after wiping his mouth.

After wiping her mouth, Tian Jiayue placed the tissue on the bedside table, silently took it, and threw it into the trash can in the corner.

"Around 9:30."

There were fresh strawberries she had bought on the bedside table. Tian Jiayue picked one up, intending to put it directly into Chen Jiashu's mouth, but in the end she just put it in his palm: "These are strawberries I bought. Eat two, and your mouth won't be bitter anymore."

Chen Jiashu chuckled softly, "You treat me like my child."

Despite saying that, I still ate one, which was quite kind of me.

Tian Jiayue gave him a second one: "Didn't you say back then that eating something sweet would make the bitterness disappear?"

Chen Jiashu swallowed and recalled, and it seemed that there was such a thing.

Tian Jiayue was twelve years old that year and was in junior high school.

One day, a very handsome older brother came to visit. It turned out he was a good friend of her father, named Chen Jiashu. That day, she was frustrated because she couldn't solve a math problem, and she didn't want to pick up the test paper that had fallen on the floor, but he picked it up as soon as he walked in.

Seeing that the test paper was full of red crosses, he actually sat down and wrote out the steps for her. Later, when asked, he found out that he just couldn't stand the wrong questions and instinctively wanted to correct them all.

His steps in solving the problem were clear and concise, and most importantly, she could understand his thought process, which was an effect that many private tutors could not achieve.

Because of this incident, after he left, she kept pestering her father to have Chen Jiashu be her teacher. Her father said helplessly, "That's not his profession."

She was stubborn and insisted that he come, no matter what. Her father had no choice but to try and communicate with him. No one knows how he convinced Chen Jiashu, but a few days later, he actually came.

As agreed with Chen Jiashu and her father, he would come to tutor her every weekend afternoon until she graduated from junior high school. This new teacher's personality was difficult to describe in a few words; he wasn't the gentle type, but rather rather aloof.

If she still gets a question wrong after he's explained it several times, he'll become a strict teacher and criticize her harshly. But when he sees her eyes redden, his gaze will immediately soften, and he'll explain the question to her again.

After that, she always called him brother, but he coldly said, "Don't call me that, and don't call me Teacher Chen, just call me by my name."

Upon hearing this, tears streamed down her face like broken beads, soaking her homework.

He was taken aback. It seems that men can't stand seeing women cry. He took out a tissue and handed it to her: "Why are you crying?"

With a pout, she began to recount her painful past: "I thought of my brother, but he passed away three years ago..."

Chen Jiashu was taken aback, then picked a lychee from the bowl and gave it to her: "Have something sweet."

At that moment, she suddenly realized that this seemingly aloof brother was actually very humane.

*

Over the past three days, an auntie has been frequently visiting the company to see Chen Jiashu.

This lady had her hair up in a bun, fair skin, and a good figure. She was wearing a modified cheongsam and looked to be in her early fifties. She belonged to the more elegant category of older women.

The receptionist and security guards are very good at judging people. Those who look sloppy and unreasonable will not be let in by the security guards, nor will they be served by the receptionist.

So when this aunt came for the third time, the receptionist greeted her with a smile each time. However, the aunt only said she was looking for Chen Jiashu and wouldn't reveal anything else, which made things difficult.

The first two times they could say that Chairman Chen was away on a business trip, but today... to be honest, they were also afraid of offending someone.

"Please call Chen Jiashu and say 'Qin Qiao,' he'll know."

The woman was very persistent, which put the receptionist in a difficult position.

Just then, Tian Jiayue passed by, and the receptionist called out to her: "Secretary Tian, ​​this lady wants to see Chairman Chen."

Tian Jiayue turned around and saw the face of the "auntie" the receptionist had mentioned, and immediately recognized her.

The year her brother got married, her father was invited, and she went to Jiang City with him.

Before the wedding began, the parents gave speeches. Since the older brother's parents had passed away, only the sister-in-law's parents went on stage.

The aunt said many touching things, the most memorable of which was: "Jiashu, I'm entrusting Qiaoqiao to you. From now on, you are both my children."

Applause erupted from the audience, and she excitedly clapped along, offering her blessings to them and to her brother.

The morning light streamed into the coffee shop, gently draping over the two people sitting in the booth.

Upon hearing her aunt say that she was looking for her brother because of her sister-in-law's situation, Tian Jiayue twitched her fingers but put her phone back on the table.

"Auntie, you may not know me, but I know you. I attended your wedding eight years ago."

Yang Shuhua smiled and asked, "Then you're Jia Shu's relative?"

The aunt's eyes were full of kindness, and she had a very gentle face.

My sister-in-law looks a lot like her.

As the company secretary, Tian Jiayue was adept at reading people... Perhaps it was due to the passage of time, but the aunt had gained a touch of worldliness in her eyes.

"You could say that," Tian Jiayue asked again, "Auntie, do you want them to remarry?"

“This… young lady, please help me invite Jia Shu down.” Yang Shuhua did not answer her directly.

“Auntie, you may not know, but Chairman Chen and your daughter said a few days ago that they would never speak to each other again.” As she said this, Tian Jiayue observed her expression.

The aunt seemed incredulous: "How did you know?"

Tian Jiayue picked up the name tag hanging around her neck and showed it to her: "I'm Chairman Chen's secretary. I'm with him every day, how could I not know?"

Yang Shuhua breathed a sigh of relief, and the corners of her mouth couldn't help but turn up slightly. Tian Jiayue saw this and immediately judged: Auntie is definitely not here to mediate; she's more likely here to add fuel to the fire.

The brother had his reasons for the divorce, but his sister-in-law kept misunderstanding him, and of course, his sister-in-law's parents felt sorry for their daughter.

“Like this…” Yang Shuhua squeezed her palm.

Tian Jiayue said apologetically, "Auntie, unfortunately Chairman Chen is going abroad this week to discuss cooperation. Why don't you leave your phone number and I'll pass it on to him when he returns?"

Yang Shuhua touched the corner of the table with both hands and stood up: "No need, since Jia Shu is not in the country, let's just forget about it."

Tian Jiayue escorted her to the company gate, watched her get into her car, drove away, and then turned and went upstairs.

Inside the office, Chen Jiashu had just finished reading an agreement. He took off his vision glasses, rubbed his tense temples, and leaned back in his leather chair to rest.

Tian Jiayue pushed the door open and came in: "Brother, I just ran into President Zhu. Why is he going to Vietnam again before he's even settled in?" She didn't mention that her sister-in-law and mother had come to see him.

Chen Jiashu turned to look at her: "He can't sit still. He said he's more optimistic about that other project and wants to learn more about it."

"Which company's CEO is always running around?" Tian Jiayue said with a laugh. "I've noticed that President Zhu is becoming more and more like Brother Shuang. Back then, Brother Shuang was always running around, and his butt looked like it had needle marks."

Chen Jiashu smiled and brought up another matter: "Where did I put the invitation letter that the provincial TV station sent last week? I looked everywhere but couldn't find it."

Tian Jiayue walked around to his side, took out the dark green invitation from the bottom of the third drawer, and placed it on the table: "Here it is. Brother, you're not really going to record this kind of program, are you? I don't think it's... very appropriate."

Chen Jiashu picked it up and unfolded it. Without his glasses, he couldn't see the few lines of text clearly, but after seeing them many times, he could recite them from memory.

This invitation was handwritten by Qin Qiao herself; her handwriting has its own unique style and is easily recognizable.

"I stopped loving you a long time ago."

"It's just a favor."

It's been three days, and Qin Qiao hasn't come looking for him, so it's clear that the documentary project has been abandoned.

The invitation was placed back on the table, and Chen Jiashu said coldly, "It's no longer needed. Throw it outside."

Tian Jiayue was slightly surprised, but saw that her brother had already leaned back, closed his eyes, and pursed his thin lips, looking like he didn't want to say anything more.

She had no choice but to comply, take the invitation, and turn to leave.

The moment his hand touched the doorknob, the man's slightly deep and cold voice came: "Put it here..." and then, very softly, added: "Don't throw it away."

A note from the author:

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