Chapter 43 Let's go to Beijing together

Chen Jiashu glanced at the desk: "It's in the first drawer of the low cabinet."

Qin Qiao immediately got up and went over, quickly returned with the ointment, and casually remarked, "You have quite a lot of different ointments in your drawer." She unscrewed the cap and placed it on the table, then said to Chen Jiashu, "Give me your hand."

The man obediently offered his injured hand, glancing up at Qin Qiao's downcast face, and said casually, "These are just some ointments for treating sprains and bruises. With bad eyesight, you're always bumping into things, so you have to have them on hand."

A cool ointment was applied to the back of his hand, and a slight coolness spread, instantly easing the burning sensation. Soft fingertips circled the wound, introducing a soothing warmth.

"Okay." She let go of her hand.

The large hand slowly withdrew and placed it beside him. The owner of the hand asked, "Did you come all this way for something?"

Qin Qiao first put the ointment back where it was, and then walked back before saying, "Because of some comments online." She sat down again: "I have some thoughts I'd like to discuss with you."

Chen Jiashu nodded, signaling her to continue.

Qin Qiao integrated Gu Xu's suggestions with her own understanding, and explained the pros and cons of the plan and various potential possibilities to Chen Jiashu in a clear and detailed manner. Throughout the process, Chen Jiashu listened without saying a word, his expression gradually changing from surprise and confusion to sudden enlightenment, and finally turning into a knowing smile.

Chen Jiashu leaned back on the sofa, lightly tapping his knee with his fingertips, and gave a very official response: "This idea is very valuable. I need to synchronize the information with President Li first. Give me fifteen minutes."

Chen Jiashu made a phone call, and General Manager Li arrived quickly. Qin Qiao went into the rest room behind that small door.

The curtains inside were tightly closed, and not a single ray of light could be seen. Qin Qiao reached out and touched the switch on the wall to turn on the overhead light.

Unlike the cooler style of the outer office, this place resembles a high-end hotel room. A large sofa bed sits against the wall, covered with soft gray bedding. Next to it is a uniquely designed floor lamp with a large lampshade that looks like an inverted bowl.

Qin Qiao's eyes welled up with tears; she had personally chosen this floor lamp years ago. At the other end of the room was a frosted glass door, through which the outline of the bathroom could be vaguely seen.

As she approached the window, Qin Qiao sat on the small orange-patterned double sofa against the wall. Her mind drifted back to the night of Chen Jiashu's birthday that year, when she planned to take him out for a big meal and a movie.

Because a major client came unexpectedly, he had to accompany him. He told her he would definitely be back at seven o'clock, so she waited for him there. However, she waited until after ten o'clock. She was originally very angry, but when she saw his face, which was flushed with the smell of alcohol, and the way he staggered in, all her anger disappeared.

Qin Qiao grabbed the cushion that was placed against her back, hugged it to her chest, and inhaled the faint, cool fragrance into her nostrils. It smelled strangely pleasant.

A quiet, enclosed space is the easiest place to make people sleepy. She noticed a copy of The City Journal on the corner of the coffee table.

This is a publication based in the City of London, providing in-depth content for serious investors and professionals.

Looking for something to do, she reached for the magazine. It was about half the thickness of a Xinhua Dictionary and felt quite heavy in her hand. Qin Qiao noticed that two pages had folded corners. With a flick of her thumb, she unfolded the magazine from the middle. Those two pages featured an interview with global real estate tycoon Dey Wein. A full-body photo of the tycoon occupied a third of the page, and next to it was a transcript of the interview between the two.

That was three years ago.

She recalled it clearly.

These printed words seemed to be etched into her eyes. Qin Qiao's breathing gradually became heavy, and her eyelashes trembled as if they were wet and heavy from being rained on.

The sound of her even, slow breathing came from her left, very close. Chen Jiashu immediately realized she was probably asleep, and on the sofa side. He swallowed the soft call that was about to come out, and turned to look in that direction.

Sure enough, there was a dark shadow on the sofa, as if it were curled up there.

Chen Jiashu walked over with his white cane, taking very light steps, afraid of disturbing her.

Qin Qiao felt a weight on her body, as if something was pressing down on her. She flinched and woke up with a start. Opening her eyes, she saw a light gray thin blanket covering her. Moving her gaze upward, she saw Chen Jiashu with his jaw slightly clenched, his hands empty, standing there quietly and heavily like a large tree in the night.

He didn't notice she was awake. He stood there for a few seconds, then turned and walked towards the back of the sofa.

“Jia Shu…” her voice was hoarse.

The man paused for a moment, then turned around, his gaze falling on her face: "You're awake."

"Have you two made up your minds?" Qin Qiao propped herself up on the sofa and sat up, the blanket slipping off and piling onto her lap.

He walked towards her: "To Beijing, we'll leave tonight."

Qin Qiao grabbed his arm tightly, and through the fabric of his suit, his arm suddenly stiffened in her palm.

This action contradicted the resolute "goodbye" of six months ago, yet at this moment, revisiting this place stirred up countless memories and longings...

She crossed the line.

"I was just thinking of going to see Teacher Gu," she heard herself ask in a hoarse voice, "Want to come along?"

*

Assistant Wang and Assistant Zhang shared an office. Outside the window, the heavy snow showed no signs of stopping, cascading down like a white waterfall. The tall buildings across the street were barely visible. Assistant Wang leaned on the edge of the desk, looking at the snow scene. His thick eyebrows furrowed, and he muttered to himself, "With such heavy snow, will flights be canceled?"

Assistant Zhang looked up from his computer and glanced out the window: "Didn't we say we'd leave at 3:30? Why aren't you moving yet?"

Assistant Wang turned and picked up the phone on the table: "Chairman Chen hasn't called yet. Did you hear him come out?"

"No." Assistant Zhang lowered his head and continued typing.

The phone rang, and Assistant Wang quickly swiped to answer: "Chairman Chen."

Chen Jiashu asked him over the phone to buy an extra business class ticket and to send him his ID card immediately. Although Wang had doubts, he immediately agreed and went to process the request as soon as he returned to his seat after the call.

There were several footsteps outside the door, the sound of high heels being the clearest. As they approached, Assistant Wang immediately finished his work, shut down his desktop computer, got up, grabbed his briefcase, and chased after them.

As the group left the office area, they encountered Tian Jiayue, who was returning from the marketing department.

"Sister-in-law."

Tian Jiayue saw the delighted smile on Qin Qiao's face and quickly stepped forward to greet her.

Xiao Jun and Assistant Wang exchanged a glance, their understanding unspoken.

The news anchor, Ms. Qin, from the provincial TV station is the ex-wife of their chairman, and the two have been embroiled in a heated debate on Weibo these past few days. Now the entire group knows, and many people are urging the two to "get back together."

"Jiayue." Qin Qiao smiled, her tone gentle and affectionate.

Chen Jiashu tilted his head slightly, looked at Tian Jiayue, and said, "I'll be flying to Beijing for two days. You'll handle the daily affairs with General Manager Zhu. Contact me anytime if there's anything."

"knew."

Tian Jiayue watched their figures disappear through the glass door before slowly lowering her gaze. She recalled how fiercely they had argued that day, their voices so loud they echoed into her office—something she could never recall before.

Her sister-in-law's accusations against her brother were excessive. For a moment, she wanted to rush in and defend him, but she held back. This was a matter between the two of them.

And so, they made up again. My brother has never truly blamed my sister-in-law.

The heavy snow did not delay the flight, and at 6:00 PM sharp, the plane landed smoothly at Beijing International Airport.

Gu Xu learned that they would be arriving tonight, so he came to pick them up at the airport.

The man had a neat short haircut, striking features, and classic, narrow, almond-shaped eyes that conveyed both focus and affection. His khaki overcoat perfectly accentuated his gentle and refined demeanor.

Qin Qiao looked out from between the crowd and immediately spotted Gu Xu, who was on the phone with his head tilted to the side, not looking in their direction.

The two cars were parked at the end of a dimly lit alley.

A bright orange street lamp was directly above, casting a halo that enveloped the car body.

Pure white snowflakes fluttered down, like crystal-clear butterflies, and a thin layer of snow quickly accumulated on the roof of the car.

As soon as the car door closed, Gu Xu opened the black umbrella in his hand and held it over his head.

Tonight, unusually, there was no wind, and the snow fell silently. Gu Xu's gaze passed over the roof of the car and saw the van's door slide open silently.

Qin Qiao got out of the car first and stepped aside. The man followed closely behind, his red and white white cane embedded in the snow that was above his shoes.

Chen Jiashu's driver quickly ran over, but seemed a little embarrassed because he only had one large umbrella and didn't know who to hold it for.

Chen Jiashu said softly, "Give me the umbrella, you can wait in the car."

The umbrella ended up in Chen Jiashu's hands. The umbrella was tilted more towards Qin Qiao, and a striking white layer quickly appeared on the man's right shoulder.

Gu Xu remembered there was an umbrella in the car. He turned his eyes to look at the back seat, paused for a second, and then gave up.

Heavy snow, lovers...

The hot pot restaurant that Gu Xu had booked in advance was located in an alley, not far away, about a hundred meters away.

"Many celebrities frequent this restaurant; the food is quite good." Gu Xu led the way, glancing back at them every now and then.

The narrow alleyway could only accommodate two people at a time, with old-fashioned houses on both sides. High thresholds, vermilion wooden doors, and piles of white snow at the entrances.

The cobblestone path was uneven and covered in snow, making it difficult to walk without sinking deep into the ground. Qin Qiao stayed shoulder to shoulder with Chen Jiashu, but because the path was difficult to walk on, Chen Jiashu would occasionally lose his balance and tilt, causing their arms to bump together.

Gu Xu suddenly found it amusing that the two of them were actually trying to avoid suspicion at this moment.

The wooden door creaked open, and two tall, beautiful waitresses welcomed them inside.

This building is a quaint inn. The cashier is next to the spiral staircase leading to the second floor. The golden-brown wooden floor is polished to a shine, and the silhouettes reflected on it are clear.

The space was spacious, with four private rooms arranged along the back wall. The doors were closed, and the lights were on inside, casting swaying shadows on the carved window frames.

Qin Qiao looked around as if she had never seen the world before.

Suddenly, a sizzling sound of stir-frying over a high flame, accompanied by a fragrant aroma, wafted over.

She turned her head and saw that although the innermost door was closed, the paper on the window was glowing red from the intense fire inside.

"We're going upstairs. There are twelve steps on the first floor." Before going upstairs, Qin Qiao reminded Chen Jiashu in a low voice, "I'll tell you when we get to the second floor."

Chen Jiashu's gaze slowly moved to her face, a slight smile playing on his lips as he tapped his chin.

Then, the three of them chatted and laughed as they climbed the creaking wooden stairs.

The private room was intimate, simply furnished yet exuding refinement and elegance. A long, narrow table of rosewood, about one or two meters in length, sat at one end, with Qin Qiao and Chen Jiashu at the other, and Gu Xu opposite them.

The attractive waitresses standing at the short end of the long table are professionally trained and do not need to be instructed by the guests. They frequently bend down to pick up serving chopsticks and add hot food to their bowls and plates, only occasionally asking them in a low voice if they have any dietary restrictions.

Chen Jiashu doesn't eat meatballs, so it was inconvenient for him to pick them up with his chopsticks. The waiter immediately removed them from the table.

Gu Xu didn't elaborate on why Chen Jiashu did this, but instead talked about the arrangements for tomorrow.

Gu Xu asked Chen Jiashu to come to the station at nine o'clock the next morning to review some documents. Gu Xu would also take him through the process in the afternoon. Since it was a live broadcast and the questions would be selected from the audience, there were no fixed answers. The live broadcast would officially start at eight o'clock in the evening. All Chen Jiashu had to do was stay calm.

"Chen Jiashu is a man who has seen many storms, and I believe this will not be difficult for you."

Gu Xu had practically lifted Chen Jiashu to the heavens, and Qin Qiao turned to see how the people around her would respond.

Gu Xu laughed immediately upon hearing this, leaned forward slightly, gently pressed one hand to his abdomen, and picked up the serving chopsticks from the chopstick rest with the other. He then took a piece of handmade shrimp paste that had just floated to the surface from the boiling pot and placed it in the bowl next to Chen Jiashu: "Chairman Chen, you're joking. You're not 'forcing yourself forward,' you're 'having thunder in your heart but a calm face.' Don't worry, I'll be your 'navigator' tomorrow, guaranteeing a clear route and smooth sailing all the way. Here, try this, replenish your energy first, tomorrow will be a tough battle."

As expected of Gu Xu, he can handle any topic and elevate it to a higher level.

Qin Qiao smiled along. She couldn't let the mutual flattery between the two live streamers go on indefinitely, so she changed the subject, saying, "Speaking of live streaming, the audience selection process is actually the most challenging. Teacher Gu, what aspects will the questions likely focus on this time? That way, Jia Shu... and Chairman Chen can be mentally prepared."

Chen Jiashu swallowed the shrimp paste, Gu Xu put down the serving chopsticks, and the two of them looked at her at the same time. The ingredients in the pot were cooked and the waitress quietly served them the food.

"Come over tomorrow, and we'll talk more." Gu Xu ended the conversation with a smile, "Actually, there's something else important about inviting Chairman Chen over."

White steam rose in wisps, carrying the broth. As the waiter skimmed the foam, the steam obscured the faces of those opposite him.