Chapter 104 Qin Tian, I Liked Him
He stood up too, but he didn't take the glass. He blocked the man's glass.
"She can't drink anymore," he said.
The man was stunned. Someone came over to pull him and whispered in his ear that it was a specially invited leader. The man raised the cup to Qin Tian again and said something with a smile. Qin Tian stood up in a daze, stumbled, and used his hands to steady himself.
He pushed aside the person who was pulling him, walked over to her, took her cup, and filled it up. He toasted to the leader.
"I'll drink it for her."
He downed the glass of wine in one gulp. The leader's face suddenly turned grim, and everyone at the table fell silent. Someone stepped forward to smooth things over, jokingly saying, "Xiao Tang, you're breaking the rules. You're blocking the drink for a beautiful woman. One drink is worth three."
Without even looking at him, he filled his empty glass, drank it, filled it again, and drank it again. He did this five times in a row. As he took the last sip, he pressed the glass down on the table and looked at his leader, whose face was ashen.
"Six cups enough?"
The atmosphere couldn't be colder, not just at this table, but in the entire place. However, someone was unwilling to believe in this and wanted to save the leader's face at this time, so they came over to help.
"I understand, I understand. When your leader serves you food, you turn the table. When your leader toasts you, you block the drink, right? Hahahahahahaha, young people nowadays are very humorous. Come on, Xiao Qin, give me some face and have a drink."
Qin Tian was stunned for a while, then lowered his head and reached for the cup he had just put down. The frozen atmosphere began to loosen.
He looked at her in disbelief, his anger rising. He had been blocking her drink for half a day, offending everyone, and she was too embarrassed to say goodbye.
Qin Tian picked up the cup, but didn't pour any wine into it. With a casual wave of her hand, a streak of white light flew out of her hand, and the cup traced a parabola in the air before crashing to the ground with a bang, sending shattered fragments flying everywhere, shocking the entire audience.
Afterwards, he helped her leave. They stumbled and laughed as they walked back to the Express Inn. They laughed at the leader who had been humiliated, at the fool who had tried to smooth things over, and at everyone present.
The next day, she sobered up and felt incredibly guilty. She said, "You've offended your boss, the auction house, the painters, and the calligraphers. They've all seen it. What will you do if you can't fit in later?"
He said he didn't care about that kind of success. I don't rely on them for my livelihood, so if they offended me, then so be it.
She looked at him with clear eyes, and her eyes were different from then on. She made him a promise.
I'll help you in the future, I promise.
Late at night in late autumn in a five-star hotel in Beijing, standing in front of debris and reeking of alcohol, he finally remembered.
, she liked the him who was ignorant of the times and had nothing.
The fireworks had long since ended, leaving only a few wisps of smoke in the night sky. Most of the people who had left had already left, including Tong Zhongyuan. Just ten minutes ago, she had thought he was reluctant to leave her, that he didn't want to go just yet. She had tried to get him to stay in China for another six months, but after she said that, he looked like he didn't want to spend even a minute with her.
He walked very fast, and she pushed through the crowd and ran. She shouted after him, "Tong Zhongyuan, I don't think of you as a tool. I just think that restoring Yuan blue and white porcelain is an opportunity that can't be missed."
He'd heard it, and originally, he didn't want to say anything. He didn't want to argue with her; saying anything more would be like fawning. He'd already heard her answer, so what else could he say? But he couldn't control himself. He suddenly turned around in the crowd and said proudly, "I don't need it."
"I didn't force you. If you don't want to, then don't. I said the wrong thing. I shouldn't have asked you to stay. I apologize. I'm sorry." She grabbed his sleeve and said anxiously.
No apology had ever humiliated him, reminded him of his own selfishness, and brought him to ruin.
He pulled her hand away and left without a word. She ran up again and grabbed the corner of his clothes again.
"Really not, I didn't treat you as a tool. I shouldn't have forced you. I swear, I just did it on impulse. By the way!"
She hurriedly took off her bag, there was one thing that could prove her innocence. She took out the Apple watch she bought that morning and handed it to him.
"I bought this this morning and wanted to give it to you at lunch. I know I was wrong before. Your mother didn't do anything wrong to Shangbo, and you don't owe Shangbo anything. I was too selfish. This time I just want to say goodbye to you properly. I really... really didn't mean to... I didn't mean to ask you to stay."
It really wasn't intentional, she misunderstood. She thought that he didn't mention a return date, she thought that he brought her to Disneyland to send a signal - he liked her, he wanted to stay for a while. And the best excuse she could think of to keep him in China was to repair Yuan blue and white porcelain. She had already made up her mind before asking. He might hesitate, he would most likely say let me think about it. She thought this was a tacit test. If he was willing to stay, it meant that he also wanted to give it a try with her. If he finally refused, then she would have nothing to regret. She definitely didn't expect his reaction now. How else could she explain it? To be honest, she wanted to fall in love with him, so she made up such an excuse. She couldn't do it! She liked him, even fell in love with him. But she would never give her heart to an uncertain relationship without reservation again.
In her hand she held the watch that Niya had left for her. She had returned it to him intact, without any debt owed, as his parting gift.
Every word she spoke pierced her heart; the hand she raised was not holding a gift, but a dagger.
He forced himself to reach out and take the watch. His fingers gripped the watch box tightly, as if grasping the sharp edge of a dagger. The box gradually twisted and deformed in his hand, and the pain in his palm was not even a ten-thousandth of the pain in his heart. How could he have let her hurt him so much?
"Thank you for your parting gift." His voice was indifferent and slow.
He walked past the crowd to the nearest trash can and threw the gift she had given him into it.
"Tong Zhongyuan!"
He disappeared into the hustle and bustle without looking back.
She stood where she was and didn't chase after him.
In the silent night, the soul has nowhere to go.
Tang Zhixu opened his phone and bought a plane ticket back to Shanghai for tomorrow morning. He set the alarm. This time, he wouldn't be late again.
Qin Tian sat alone in the dark living room without turning on the lights. It was midnight, and the magic had worn off. This dream, even before the sun rose, had already vanished. She pulled a long, wrinkled box from her pocket and opened it. It was a brand new Apple Watch.
Tong Zhongyuan's phone buzzed with an incoming email. He dried his hair with a towel and picked up the phone. It was from Cullinan, the American and newly appointed director of the British Museum. He quickly scanned it. The last few words read: "I hope you will reconsider your decision to resign. I look forward to your reply. Your loyal friend, Nicholas."
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