Chapter 100 No reward without merit

That one second felt like an eternity.

"What do you want in order to let her go?"

A chilling frost settled in Sheng Tingzhou's eyes.

"Young Master Zhou, then it depends on how much sincerity you are willing to give her."

"what would you like?"

Zhou Yuze's voice was low and deep.

He knew that talking about feelings at this point was pointless.

Sheng Tingzhou will not be swayed by weakness; he only cares about the consequences.

"The sapphire you bought at the auction six months ago. A deep-sea Kashmir blue, there are only two in the world. Use it to pay for her life."

Zhou Yuze's heart tightened.

That gemstone was a deep-sea blue, clear and bright.

That was Zhiwei's favorite color.

He stood in front of the display case and stared at it for a full ten minutes.

I've already planned in my mind to put it on her myself on her birthday and say to her, "Wanwan, this color is like your eyes."

But now...

He stared at Qiao Yiqing's pale, trembling face.

A moment later, he gritted his teeth, his jaw clenching.

"Okay, I agree."

"I never expected that you, Yu Ce, would be so protective of her?"

Mo Huaizhi couldn't help but speak up, his tone full of surprise.

"Qiao Yiqing did such a despicable thing, almost causing Zhiwei's death. She nearly became a vegetable... and you're still willing to stand up for her? You're ruining yourself!"

Zhou Yuze completely ignored him, not even glancing at him out of the corner of his eye.

His gaze fell directly on Sheng Tingzhou.

"I'll give you the things right away, and deliver them to your designated location within three days. Can you release the person now?"

Sheng Tingzhou chuckled softly.

"Alright, release them."

The two tall bodyguards immediately released their grip on Qiao Yiqing and took a step back.

Qiao Yiqing's legs went weak, and she collapsed to the ground, breathing heavily.

She was soaking wet, her hair was stuck to her face, and her eyes were unfocused.

Zhou Yuze didn't even glance at her.

He turned and left, his steps quick and resolute.

The wind lifted the corner of his clothes, revealing a solitary and resolute figure.

Sheng Tingzhou glanced at Qiao Yiqing, who was standing there, and curled his lip.

"What? You really want to spend the night here? Or do you think the gates of the Sheng family are a place you can just linger and refuse to leave?"

Qiao Yiqing shuddered suddenly, a chill running down her spine and up to the back of her neck, making her shiver uncontrollably.

She quickly came to her senses and stumbled as she jogged after him.

"Yu Ce! Wait for me! Please... don't leave me alone!"

She ran all the way, her throat tight, and she almost cried as she shouted.

"Yu Ce! I know I was wrong, I really know I was wrong! Please give me another chance, okay?"

But Zhou Yuze didn't slow down at all, nor did he turn his head, as if he hadn't heard her calls at all.

It wasn't until he finally reached the car, reached out to open the door, and prepared to get in that Qiao Yiqing finally rushed to the car.

She clung tightly to the car window frame with one hand, while supporting herself on her knee with the other, panting heavily.

She tilted her head back, her eyes so red they looked like they were about to bleed.

"Yu Ce...you still care about me, right? Otherwise...why do you still care about me? Why did you come to pick me up?"

Zhou Yuze felt a lump in his throat, as if something was pressing down on him.

He stared at her familiar yet unfamiliar face, a trace of pain flashing in his eyes.

"Qiao Yiqing, let go. Don't force me to completely lose hope in you."

Her tears could no longer be stopped and fell down in a steady stream.

"If you really don't care about me, why did you come? Why did you care who took me away? Why did you show up when I was in trouble?... Tell me! You said you don't love me anymore, but you clearly still care!"

"This is the last time."

His brow was furrowed tightly.

"From this day forward, we are even. Our relationship is severed, and we have no further connection."

"If you dare to lay a finger on Zhiwei again..."

He paused.

"Don't blame me for turning my back on you. When the time comes, not only you, but even the connections you have, I can make you disappear completely from Shengjing."

As soon as he finished speaking, he no longer hesitated and reached out to pry open her fingers, which were clinging tightly to the window frame, one by one.

In the end, she could only watch helplessly as he withdrew his hand and closed the car door.

Immediately afterwards, I stepped on the gas, the engine roared, and the car shot off with a "whoosh".

The tires screeched as they scraped across the ground before quickly disappearing into the night.

—

at night.

The office building had long since quieted down, with only a few lights still on.

At the end of the corridor, in the translation area, Song Zhiwei was engrossed in her work, her forehead slightly damp with sweat.

She was surrounded by thick stacks of international contracts, the dense foreign language text making her frown.

The pen moved rapidly across the paper, the tip almost piercing the page.

Suddenly, footsteps approached from afar, accompanied by a deep, steady male voice, which startled her so much that her hand trembled.

"Assistant Song, there's a document that you need to report in person. Come to my office."

She was startled and hurriedly looked up, only to be met with Sheng Tingzhou's expressionless face.

"President Sheng... wanted to see me?"

Something about that tone sounds off.

He would never come down to call people himself, much less use such a commanding tone.

Sheng Tingzhou didn't reply, but simply tapped the corner of her table lightly with his fingertips, making a soft "tap, tap" sound.

He said calmly, "Come here."

"Oh... okay."

She nodded quickly, hurriedly put away her pen, hastily tidied up the documents, and got up to follow him inside.

I walked cautiously, but my heart was pounding with anxiety.

I don't know if I did something wrong.

The office door slammed shut, cutting off the outside light.

Only a warm yellow table lamp was on in the room, casting long shadows of the two people.

Sheng Tingzhou sat down behind his desk, his gaze falling on her, and began to ask questions.

He only asked about the details of the translated manuscript.

Song Zhiwei was well-prepared and gave a flawless answer.

They can even master the most difficult technical terms without any ambiguity.

After he finished asking about the last detail, Sheng Tingzhou raised his hand and glanced at his watch.

Six o'clock sharp, just the time to get off work.

He didn't let her leave immediately, but silently opened a drawer, took out a black velvet box, and gently placed it on the table in front of her.

Song Zhiwei was stunned, her eyes widening instantly as she stared at the box.

"For me?"

Sheng Tingzhou curled his lips slightly, his expression remaining indifferent.

"Otherwise what? Is there a third living person in this house? Or do you think I would use something like this to curry favor with someone?"

She pursed her lips, her fingers unconsciously twisting together, and didn't say anything, just staring blankly at the box.

"Aren't you going to open it and take a look?"

He raised an eyebrow and leaned back slightly.

"No."

She pushed the box back onto the table decisively, without the slightest hesitation.

"Keep it and give it to someone else."

One should not accept rewards without merit.

She didn't want to owe him anything.

I don't want to think about it at all.

Sheng Tingzhou chuckled lightly, showing no anger, but rather his tone softened slightly.

"This box was given to me by your uncle."

He said, "You can take it."

"What's the meaning?"

Song Zhiwei thought he was mocking her again, and her eyes instantly became more wary.