Chapter 46 begins the desire for change

Monday morning, the Fok Group's monthly financial meeting.

The long conference table was filled with people on both sides—the CFO, department heads, and audit consultants. The projection screen displayed last month's financial statements, densely packed with various data and charts.

Huo Yanli sat in the main seat, listening to the financial director's report, but his eyes were somewhat unfocused.

"...The group's overall revenue increased by 12% year-on-year, net profit increased by 8%, and cash flow is ample. Regarding overseas investment, the Middle East project is progressing as planned, and the European market..."

The sound echoed in his ears, but Huo Yanli's mind was elsewhere.

He remembered what Huo Zheng had said at the shooting range on Saturday. He remembered the wound on Song Zhiyi's back. He remembered the image of her digging three children out of the rubble.

Those scenes were so real that he could almost smell the gunpowder and feel the pain of shrapnel piercing his flesh.

"President Huo?" The CFO's voice interrupted his thoughts.

Huo Yanli snapped out of her daze and looked at him: "Hmm?"

"Regarding... Madam's monthly living expenses," the finance director hesitated, "the transfer was made on the 1st of this month, but the account balance remains unchanged. This has been going on for thirty consecutive months. The bank has warned that prolonged inactivity in the account may..."

"Let her do as she pleases," Huo Yanli interrupted him, his tone indifferent. "She'll use it when she wants to. If she doesn't want to, then leave it."

The CFO paused for a moment, but quickly nodded: "Understood."

The meeting continued, but Huo Yanli was no longer listening.

He said "Let her be" very casually. But inside, he was anything but.

Thirty months. Ten thousand per month, three million in total.

Not a penny has been touched.

what does that mean?

This means she really doesn't need his money.

This means that she really doesn't care about the material benefits that the identity of "Mrs. Huo" can bring.

This means that she really... as she said, was just there to fulfill an agreement and keep a promise.

When the five years are up, she will calmly sign the divorce papers, then turn around and leave to continue on her own path.

Just like it was at the Civil Affairs Bureau more than two years ago.

Decisive and straightforward, without lingering attachment.

This realization stirred a strange emotion within Huo Yanli.

It wasn't anger, it wasn't disappointment.

It's... a kind of empty panic.

It's like you've always thought something was yours, and even though you didn't care, you knew it was there. Then one day you suddenly realize that it never belonged to you and could leave at any moment.

And you don't even have the right to try to keep me.

Because from the very beginning, you told the other party: this is just a transaction, and we will go our separate ways in five years.

The meeting finally ended. Everyone left the conference room one after another. Huo Yanli was the last to get up and walk to the window.

Outside the window, the CBD is filled with towering buildings, their glass curtain walls reflecting the morning sunlight so bright it makes you want to close your eyes.

He suddenly remembered the Ministry of Foreign Affairs dormitory building where Song Zhiyi lived.

It was old and dusty, standing out starkly from the bright and shiny buildings around it.

But she chose to live there.

It's not because the conditions are good, nor because it's convenient—the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has apartments arranged for senior translators, which are much better than dormitories.

She chose the dormitory because it was close to her workplace, which would save her commuting time and allow her to work more.

Or... to be further away from his world.

Huo Yanli took out his phone and opened the bank account page.

Song Zhiyi. Last four digits of her bank account: 3876. Balance: 3 million yuan.

That number lay there starkly, like a silent mockery.

They mocked his arrogance.

They mocked him for thinking that money could buy everything, including marital fidelity and a person's stay.

But Song Zhiyi told him in the calmest way: Not everything can be measured by money.

Some people, some things, some choices are about ideals, responsibilities, and the deepest convictions in one's heart.

It has nothing to do with money.

Huo Yanli closed the page and put away his phone.

He walked to his desk and picked up the investigation report his assistant had brought him. He turned the page and stopped at the page with photos of Song Zhiyi's parents.

The two people in the photo have gentle yet firm smiles.

They chose their own path—a dangerous but noble one. And then, they left that choice to their daughter.

Song Zhiyi inherited their choice.

It wasn't for money, fame, or any worldly gain.

It's just to... live up to my conscience, to fulfill my parents' wishes, and to be worthy of those who need help.

Huo Yanli suddenly wondered what Song Huaiyuan and Shen Qingru would feel if they were still alive and saw their daughter marry into the Huo family.

Will you be relieved? Will you feel that your daughter has found someone to rely on?

Will I still be... disappointed?

Disappointed, the daughter marries a man who doesn't understand or cherish her in order to fulfill her grandfather's last wish.

This thought made Huo Yanli's heart tighten.

He closed the folder, leaned back in his chair, and closed his eyes.

The sunlight shone through his eyelids, casting a warm red glow. But he couldn't feel the warmth.

I only felt a heavy, unsettling emotion.

He was thinking: What exactly does Song Zhiyi want?

I don't want money, I don't want fame, and I don't want the Huo family's resources.

What does she want?

He remembered her helping out at the field hospital, her focused translation at the negotiating table, and her gentle demeanor as she taught local children to write Chinese characters…

Perhaps, what she wants is very simple.

She needs an environment where she can work with peace of mind.

She needs someone who can understand her choices.

I want a world where...her value isn't measured by money and profit.

And these are precisely the things that he—Huo Yanli, the helmsman of the Huo Group, the prince whom everyone in Beijing's elite circles reveres—finds hardest to give.

Because the world he lives in is one where everything is measured by money and profit.

Because he himself is the one who is best at measuring everything with money and interests.

The phone rang; it was Ji Yun.

Huo Yanli answered the call.

"Yanli, Mu Bai and Shen Yu are both at 'Cloud Top' tonight. Are you coming?"

Huo Yanli was silent for a few seconds: "I'm not going."

"Not going again?" Ji Yun asked, somewhat surprised. "What's wrong with you these past few days? You seem distracted."

"Something's come up," Huo Yanli said, pausing before adding, "I'm thinking about something."

"What are you thinking about? Company matters?"

"……no."

"That's...my sister-in-law's matter?"

Huo Yanli did not answer.

Ji Yun on the other end of the phone was silent. After a few seconds, he said, "Yanli, there are some things I don't know whether I should say or not."

"you say."

“I think…you’ve changed,” Ji Yun said cautiously. “Ever since my sister-in-law came back, it’s not that there are bad things, it’s just…you seem to have more worries on your mind.”

Huo Yanli held his phone, looking out the window: "Maybe."

"Is it because of your sister-in-law?"

"……possible."

Ji Yun was silent for a while, then said, "Yanli, as your brother, let me remind you. A woman like your sister-in-law, if you don't pay attention, you might miss out."

What would happen if I missed it?

“I missed out…” Ji Yun sighed, “You may never meet another person like him again.”

After hanging up the phone, Huo Yanli sat in his office for a very long time.

Outside the window, the sky gradually darkened. The city lights came on one by one; another night had begun.

He picked up his phone and opened his contacts. He found the number he had never dialed before.

He hesitated for a long time before typing a line:

"The remedy for stomach problems is very effective. Thank you."

send.

Then he put down his phone and looked out the window.

He is waiting.

Waiting for a reply that may never come.

I'm also waiting for the answer to the question in my heart:

What exactly should he do to get closer to that woman who seems so close but is actually so far away?

Only then could he let her know that he was starting to want to understand her.

I'm starting to want... change.

Night was falling.

The city remains bustling.

But in this top-floor office, Huo Yanli felt for the first time a silence that was more deafening than any noise.

That is inner peace.

It is the silence of someone who thinks they have everything, suddenly realizing they may have nothing at all.

This is also someone who is beginning to awaken, and is thinking seriously for the first time:

What is truly important?

Who is truly worth cherishing?

The answer might lie with the woman who never replies to his messages.

Right behind that hideous scar.

It was amidst the smoke and ruins.

In a world he had never truly understood, yet had begun to care about.

Huo Yanli stood up and walked to the French windows.

Outside the window, thousands of lights shine.

One of them belonged to Song Zhiyi.

Though faint, though distant.

But at this moment, it was brighter than any other light in his eyes.

Because he knew that the path illuminated by that lamp was a path he had never walked before, yet had begun to yearn for.

He wanted to see if he could keep up with her pace.

Even if it's just a small step.