Chapter 11
For a moment, Song Ziyi wondered if he had fallen into a chicken coop, surrounded by the constant chirping of chickens.
Everyone surrounded Song Ziyi, chattering about what had just happened, but each was talking over their own words, leaving even the usually logically astute lawyer Song completely confused about what they were saying.
However, as the others described it, Song Ziyi gradually sorted out his thoughts and understood what they were saying.
Because he understood, Song Ziyi was as if struck by lightning, and couldn't recover for a long time.
He stood there, mouth slightly agape, trying to process the information that everyone had just transmitted to his head. It was no exaggeration to say that it felt a bit like a fantasy.
"You, you mean...you mean a beautiful woman came to see Tang Hui, or is it because...because of personal matters..." Song Ziyi finally found his voice and asked stammeringly.
He usually prides himself on being gentle and refined, and speaks as softly as possible, but this time he didn't even bother to pretend anymore and shouted in a loud voice.
Seeing Song Ziyi's reaction, everyone knew he didn't know about this either. They looked disappointed and collectively scoffed.
They thought that Song Ziyi, as Tang Hui's good friend, might have some exclusive inside information, but it turns out he knew less than they did.
Seeing that everyone was about to scatter like birds and beasts, Song Ziyi hurriedly grabbed the person closest to him and asked anxiously, "What exactly is going on? I have to figure this out today, otherwise none of you are allowed to go home after get off work. You'll all have to stay and work overtime."
"Brother Yi, you're shameless!" Several boys who usually hung out with Song Ziyi roared, showing no regard for Song Ziyi as their boss.
Song Ziyi let out a cold laugh, crossed his arms, and smugly surveyed the crowd, his smug look as if to say, "I mean what I say, now it's up to you to decide."
Actually, everyone was going to tell Song Ziyi anyway. But now, several people gathered around again and sent one of them, who had the best eloquence and the most logical thinking, to recount the whole story.
Occasionally, a few people nearby would add a comment or two.
However, because the beautiful girl's appearance was so brief, the crowd had little to say. After recounting the entire incident, all they could do was repeatedly praise how beautiful the girl was.
This is precisely the root cause of the uproar among the law firm's employees.
Tang Hui's appearance is too attractive, and he is a young upstart with a promising future.
So, although he was cold and indifferent, never showing any affection for any woman and not one to cherish women, some girls still flocked to him, only considering his physical attributes and ignoring everything else.
At first, the people at the law firm found it novel and often discussed privately how many women had come to see Tang Hui that day but were ignored. For a long time, Tang Hui's "scandalous affairs" were juicy gossip among the firm's employees.
But Tang Hui was indifferent to all the girls, and they seemed less attractive to him than the cold documents in court. Some people even doubted whether he had ever really seen what each girl looked like.
As time went by, everyone's curiosity and gossip faded, and they were no longer surprised when girls bothered Tang Hui.
As for Song Ziyi, he had known Tang Hui for so many years and knew his friend's character well. From the beginning, Tang Hui had always maintained a detached attitude of "I am the only one who is sober while everyone else is drunk" and never participated in any of the employees' discussions.
Sometimes when the employees got too excited talking, Song Ziyi would scoff, his face practically screaming, "You guys are so naive, what's there to gossip about?" He was such a show-off.
For all these reasons, Song Ziyi instinctively felt something was amiss when the employees suddenly became so curious about Tang Hui's "rumored love interest."
Experience told him that the girl who came this time was definitely extraordinary, otherwise the people in the law firm would not have cared about Tang Hui's love life again.
"What's wrong with you guys today? Haven't we gotten used to this already? Why are you suddenly paying so much attention to the girl who came to see Tang Hui? Similar things happen almost every day, but you guys seem unusually different today," Song Ziyi asked, voicing his doubts.
"Because it's so beautiful." The speaker was a young man wearing glasses named Yu Lei.
This Yu Lei is a law school graduate student who came to the law firm for his final semester internship. He has a rather comical appearance, and his way of speaking is even more comical.
He is from Jinshi, and he has the distinct characteristics of a Jinshi native—humor.
Yu Lei can make people burst into laughter as soon as he opens his mouth. Sometimes, when he's in a good mood, he'll even use the Tianjin dialect, which makes him even funnier.
He was the life of the party in the entire law firm; wherever he was, there was bound to be laughter. Almost all his colleagues liked him, and even the two old-fashioned and serious senior lawyers would jokingly tease him when they saw him.
"Yu Lei, when are you going to change your way of speaking? Lawyers need to be authoritative and have a commanding presence. You keep making jokes the moment you open your mouth. Are you planning to tell a stand-up comedy routine to liven up the atmosphere for the judge in court?"
After hearing Yu Lei's words, Song Ziyi didn't react immediately and subconsciously asked, "What?"
"That girl is so beautiful." Yu Lei rubbed his hands excitedly, and his excited smile and words made him look indescribably lewd. "Brother Yi, this is the first time in my life I've seen such a beautiful girl. That's why everyone is discussing it so intensely, right?"
As Yu Lei spoke, he didn't forget to adjust the atmosphere at any time. He turned his head and shouted something to everyone, as if he was looking for allies.
Everyone immediately chimed in, praising how beautiful the girl was.
Song Ziyi finally understood and teased, "So the reason you were talking so excitedly just now wasn't because a girl had something to discuss with Tang Hui, but because that girl is too pretty? Hey, hey, hey, how can you judge a book by its cover?"
As soon as he finished speaking, several boys booed in unison, and one even playfully threw a wad of toilet paper at Song Ziyi to show his contempt for him.
This guy is a total looks-obsessed person. His friends and girlfriends are all good-looking. He's also the most vain person, always boasting about his stunning looks. How could he have the nerve to say something as shameless as "How can you judge a book by its cover?"
Ye Zhongxuan's first job was at this law firm. He was Tang Hui's personal assistant and was considered a long-time employee who had been with the firm since its inception—although the firm had been established for almost a year.
He's always been thick-skinned and outgoing, even daring to put his arm around his boss. Of course, he only dares to put his arm around Song Ziyi, but when he sees Tang Hui, he's as docile as a little sparrow.
Ye Zhongxuan put his arm around Song Ziyi's shoulder, seemingly a little anxious about Song Ziyi's lack of romantic understanding, "Hey Yi-ge, someone as smart as you, did your IQ run away from home today? Why can't you get it? It's precisely because the girl who came to find you is a super beauty that we think this matter has potential. Maybe this one really is the real deal."
Song Ziyi finally understood what they meant and asked with a laugh, "You mean it's because a great beauty came this time, so the credibility of her having something going on with Tang Hui is higher?"
"Yes." Several people nodded in agreement at the same time.
"Superficial." Song Ziyi tapped Ye Zhongxuan on the head and said irritably, "If I were a womanizer, would I still be single? What beautiful woman couldn't I win over?"
Anyway, he had seen several beautiful women flirt with Tang Hui, the kind who were rich and beautiful, but Tang Hui was always clueless and oblivious to their charms.
Ye Zhongxuan seemed to agree. He rubbed the spot on his head where he had been hit and muttered, "But she's really good-looking and has great charisma. I think she and Brother Hui are a perfect match."
Then came another chorus of agreement.
Now it was Song Ziyi's turn to be curious. He stroked his chin and craned his neck to peer into the inner room. "Just how beautiful is it? What you've said makes me so eager to see it."
If this had happened to someone else, Song Ziyi, as the boss, would have already made up some excuse to go to the office and find out what was going on.
But if this happened to Tang Hui, to be honest, he wouldn't dare.
At this moment, Ye Zhongxuan stood next to Song Ziyi, craning his neck along with him, and muttered, "Brother Yi, you just wait here for the girl to come out eventually."
...
*
After standing up, Shen Bining smiled apologetically at Tang Hui again, "I'm sorry to have bothered you."
Seeing that Tang Hui was looking down and seemed to be thinking about something, neither looking up at her nor answering her, as if he hadn't heard her at all, she wondered if he was still angry.
Having received no response and feeling awkward, Shen Bining gave an embarrassed smile and turned to walk towards the door.
Just as Shen Bining's hand was about to touch the door lock, Tang Hui's voice suddenly came from behind her.
"Dr. Chen, please wait a moment." The voice trembled, sounding hollow, confused, and full of pain.
With a thought, Shen Bining immediately withdrew her hand from the door lock, turned around, and instantly met Tang Hui's gaze.
Tang Hui's eyes were filled with struggle, as if countless emotions were fighting in his mind at the same time, trying to take the lead, control this body, and then seize the right to speak.
Shen Bining thought to herself, "There's still hope," and immediately put on a professional smile, winking at Tang Hui and giving him an encouraging look.
Although she hasn't been working in the end-of-life care industry for very long, she has seen quite a few cases and is quite good at understanding people's hearts. In cases like Tang Hui's, she can probably guess what he is thinking.
All she wanted to do was find out about Zhou Nianhua's recent situation, but she was still dominated by hatred. At this moment, she was having an internal struggle, debating whether or not to ask that question.
In such situations, all you need to do is give the other person a way out and gradually guide them to do what they truly desire deep down.
Shen Bining looked at Tang Hui with gentle and encouraging eyes, and said softly, "Is there anything else, Tang Lv? If you need anything, just tell me and I'll see if I can help you."
This reassurance worked. Tang Hui closed his eyes tightly for a moment, and when he opened them again, there was no longer any confusion in his eyes, only a resolute determination to do whatever it took.
"Dr. Shen, I'd like to ask you something."
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