Chapter 77 Empty Chair, "Forgiveness," Where is he? Yuan Jianxing thought...
Yuan Jianxing felt a beam of light pour down from a crack, first illuminating half of his face and waking him up, then gently spreading outwards.
He was sitting in a chair, with another chair placed directly opposite him.
Empty.
The surrounding area stretches into the distance, with a dome of azure clouds above and a mirror-like surface of water below.
Here, even the sound of breathing seems to spread out without weakening, and like the ripples layered beneath one's feet, never to return.
Obviously, this is not a scenario that would exist in reality.
Is it a dream?
Yuan Jianxing thought this at first, but then found it strange.
He is actually a person who rarely dreams.
First, to ensure he gets enough rest, he forces himself to fall asleep even if his mind is full of upsetting things.
Secondly, he had almost no desires that he could not obtain and that needed to be realized through "dreams".
Thinking of this, Yuan Jianxing suddenly stopped, and then his gaze fell down to the empty chair opposite him.
Really...no?
Just as Yuan Jianxing had this thought, the sound of bare feet stepping on the water suddenly rang out in the empty space except for him.
The footsteps sounded very clear, but the rhythm was somewhat disordered, as if the person was seriously injured.
Yuan Jianxing's throat tightened, and he gently closed his eyes until the footsteps approached and stopped right in front of him before he opened them again.
A figure nimbly occupied the empty chair in front of him.
It's Fu Ze.
Because of the pool of blood that had been covering it up, Yuan Jianxing hadn't been able to see the fatal wound on Fu Ze's body, so Fu Ze, who was sitting opposite him at the moment, was completely unharmed.
It's also possible that because Yuan Jianxing hoped that Fu Ze was like this, his dream created such a Fu Ze.
Sitting opposite Yuan Jianxing, Fu Ze didn't speak. Instead, he bent one leg, crossed his hands in front of him, and rested his head on his knees, adopting a uniquely patient listening posture.
Yuan Jianxing vaguely sensed what the other party wanted to hear.
Or perhaps, he had something he wanted to say to Fu Ze.
But at this point, he still hadn't sorted out his own logic, so he still couldn't give the other party an answer.
Fortunately, in this dreamlike realm of Tianshui, time and light seemed to have vanished, and everything, including Fu Ze, was patiently waiting for Yuan Jianxing to come up with the answer.
After an unknown amount of time, Yuan Jianxing spoke up first: "I won't forgive."
Because Yuan Jianxing couldn't imagine how Fu Ze would react to this answer, Fu Ze across from him didn't change his expression at all, still maintaining that obedient and patient demeanor.
But it was precisely this "unchanging Fu Ze" that tragically revealed a truth that Yuan Jianxing was unwilling to face—
This Fu Ze was something he imagined.
He has lost the Fu Ze who would give him an unexpected response.
Yuan Jianxing suddenly stood up, took two big strides to Fu Ze, and grabbed the other's shoulders tightly with both hands.
In his excitement, Yuan Jianxing lost his strength, and Fu Ze, along with the chair he was sitting on, was also pulled backward.
As the two lost their balance, the two chairs in the space instantly vanished, transforming into tiny specks of light that supported the two in mid-air and gently placed them on the water's surface.
And so, the relationship between Yuan Jianxing and Fu Ze was once again transformed into the one they had in the VIP room of the ship.
Although he was supporting Fu Ze, Yuan Jianxing had no romantic intentions; he simply felt that it was one of the few times he and Fu Ze were truly honest with each other.
At that time, Fu Ze was completely focused on himself.
“I’m going to tell you why I choose not to forgive,” Yuan Jianxing said, her voice trembling.
Fu Ze lay there, listening quietly.
“Even if you say you didn’t kill Wan Chuanqiu, I know you’re telling the truth. But without a doubt, Wan Chuanqiu’s death is inextricably linked to you.”
"Whether I am an executive officer or not, as long as I hold the title of CEO, I must set an example and uphold the most primal order and justice."
"What is the most primal order and justice? It's very simple: a life for a life, a debt for a debt."
“If I compromise with you for emotional reasons, everything I have done in the past will become hypocritical, and it will be a complete trampling on the collective honor of the executives and my personal beliefs.”
“Although Wan Chuanqiu also killed someone, one thing is one thing. He should indeed pay the price for his actions, not be killed by you just because he learned about the [key].
This logic is very sound, and Fu Ze nodded in agreement.
However, in reality, no matter how arrogant Yuan Jianxing appeared, he was actually quite miserable inside.
The more refined and righteous his words were, the more they highlighted the bitterness in his heart.
Under a seemingly absolutely correct narrative, choosing to give up on someone can be such a difficult and painful thing.
Yuan Jianxing abruptly changed the subject, his speaking speed increasing:
“Although your name is Fu Ze, you are flamboyant and reckless, and you rarely take responsibility for cleaning up the mess. I, your mentor, always handle it for you.”
"You're lazy, you like to take shortcuts, and you absolutely love sleeping in. Sometimes I really wonder how you survived in the Executive Officer Selection Team."
"You're like a child. Even though you only say you hate fruit pie, there are actually a lot of other things you don't eat. You're incredibly picky about food."
Upon hearing Yuan Jianxing's merciless criticism, Fu Ze widened his eyes, frowned slightly, and adopted a standard expression of sullen amusement.
"But often, what executives really lack is your drive to think big and act boldly. In this respect, we are 'in cahoots' in terms of ideology and 'colluded' in terms of action."
"You never linger on important matters, and often you even deliver results that far exceed expectations."
"Although people are picky, they are surprisingly easy to fool. A bottle of ginger ale can make them happy for a while, and if it's ice-cold, it can make them happy for twice as long. Simple and straightforward."
The barrage of praise made Fu Ze feel embarrassed.
"All of the above, good and bad, constitute who you are."
One... you that I know.
One of you that I... like.
Even knowing full well that this was a dream, Yuan Jianxing couldn't bring himself to say those words easily.
He could only bend down and hug Fu Ze, showing his attitude through his actions.
So if I say 'forgive,' then I am deceiving you.
That would be betraying the loyalty you showed me, even though it has expired with your departure.
Fortunately, this Fu Ze was something he imagined. Even if Yuan Jianxing didn't say it, the other party could understand what he meant.
So Fu Ze raised his hand and lightly touched Yuan Jianxing's head.
He accepted this explanation.
Even if it's self-deception, at least Fu Ze, whom Yuan Jianxing had hoped would accept this explanation, would accept it.
Yuan Jianxing thought she would cry, but she didn't.
It seemed that simply saying those words had exhausted all his emotions.
At this moment, his chest felt empty, filled only with a parched, desolate, and silent landscape scorched by the blazing sun.
That's it. He doesn't want to do anything right now; he just wants to maintain this state.
However, Hara Mihoshi seemed to have forgotten that if it's a dream, then there will always be a time to wake up.
In a single instant, heaven and earth reversed each other, and the original star began to fall from the sky, which had been hanging high above, under an extremely heavy gravitational pull.
He instinctively reached out, his fingertips straining forward, trying to grab Fu Ze.
But in the blink of an eye, Fu Ze and the clear sky reflected in the water beneath him had already receded to the edge of Yuan Jianxing's field of vision.
The turbulent airflow tore at Yuan Jianxing's consciousness.
His vision blurred and went out of focus rapidly as he was jolted.
The surrounding daylight grew brighter and brighter, so bright it was blinding, and it devoured all shapes and colors in an unavoidable manner.
Finally, Yuan Jianxing's perception was also swallowed up.
-
Yuan Jianxing's senses were awakened once again, because a ray of light shone through the gap in the curtains next to him and hit his eyelids.
Unlike the eternal and cold daylight in his dream, the sunlight in reality, changing with the seasons and the rising and setting of the sun, was quite warm, scalding his vision with a crimson glow.
Yuan Jianxing subconsciously tried to sit up, but as soon as he moved, a dense, stinging pain instantly swept over his body, forcing him to lie back down.
It was only then that Yuan Jianxing realized that he was almost wrapped up like a thin, fragile mummy.
Seeing that he couldn't move his body for the time being, he could only settle for moving his eyes to carefully observe his current location.
Judging from the various expensive medical devices placed in the room, he is currently in a high-end single ward.
For VIP wards...
Yuan Jianxing strained to turn his neck and shift his gaze to the wall against which his bed was leaning.
Sure enough, there were numerous inspection reports posted there in chronological order.
After quickly reviewing the information, Yuan Jianxing had a general understanding of his physical condition.
In short, although on the surface his aircraft landing was a close call and he seemed to be able to move around without any problems, a subsequent examination revealed that he had a number of fractures of varying sizes.
In other words, when Yuan Jianxing was rescued from the cockpit, he was able to move on his own entirely because his spirit and adrenaline suppressed the pain in his body.
Fortunately, none of this damaged his internal organs or brain.
Fortunately, medical technology is now vastly different from what it used to be. After several days of intensive treatment, Yuan Jianxing's physical condition has almost fully recovered.
Upon detecting abnormalities in Yuan Jianxing's bodily signals, the hospital's monitoring system immediately sent a message to the on-duty medical staff.
First came a dense, drum-like sound of footsteps along the corridor outside the ward, then the automatic door began to slide to the side, and a large number of medical staff poured in as soon as the door opened.
They either checked the data indicators displayed on the instruments or asked Yuan Jianxing about his personal feelings.
Yuan Jianxing answered each question.
During this time, a figure dressed in an executive officer's uniform sneaked in unnoticed.
Yuan Jianxing, with his sharp eyes, immediately recognized the person as Mu Wangzhuo.
Now that V City has sent him here, I suppose I won't be staying in L City for much longer.
Mu Wangzhuo didn't try to steal the spotlight from the medical staff. He sat down casually in the caregiver's chair, put down the fruit basket he had bought from the supermarket downstairs in the hospital, and picked out a relatively round apple from it to peel.
Once the apples were almost completely peeled, the medical staff finished questioning and examining Yuan Jianxing and left.
“I asked the doctor beforehand, and now you can eat something mild and non-irritating.” Mu Wangzhuo cut a triangular piece off the apple with a knife, stood up, and used the tip of the knife to fork it up and put it to Yuan Jianxing’s mouth.
Yuan Jianxing did not accept the other party's kindness, but simply asked, "Where is he?"
Mu Wangzhuo seemed not to hear Yuan Jianxing's question, and exaggeratedly performed, "This apple is really an apple, and my knife skills are really superb. You must take a bite or you'll be disrespecting me."
Yuan Jianxing didn't bother arguing with him verbally. Instead, he swung his arm and slammed the cast around his arm against the bed railing.
"clang--!"
The loud noise from such close range startled Mu Wangzhuo.
"My brother, take it easy." He immediately checked the plaster cast and breathed a sigh of relief after finding no cracks. "Do you know that when your X-ray came out, it almost scared three orthopedic surgeons to death?"
"Where is he?" Yuan Jianxing repeated his question.
Seeing that he could no longer fool anyone, Mu Wangzhuo's expression became serious.
He stuffed the slightly yellowed apple stuck in the knife tip into his mouth and muttered, "Where else could it be? The funeral home."
Upon hearing the words "funeral home," Yuan Jianxing blinked slowly, then turned to get out of bed.
However, he managed to suppress the pain all over his body, and the instrument next to him beeped, indicating that a fluctuation had been detected.
Seeing this, Mu Wangzhuo also got angry.
He immediately plunged the knife into the apple, then placed the apple back on the table and sneered, "Fine! Sit up if you can!"
Before Mu Wangzhuo could finish speaking, Yuan Jianxing exerted all his strength in his waist and actually managed to sit up.
Deeply shocked, Mu Wangzhuo: ...
Just now, Yuan Jianxing's unusual sound of tapping the plaster on the fence and the alarm of the instrument caught the attention of a doctor.
She returned and witnessed Hara Mihoshi sitting up from his hospital bed.
Suppressing the urge to let out a sharp, explosive sound, the doctor tried to speak in a serious yet gentle tone: "This patient, your body still needs rest."
"Don't try to persuade him." Mu Wangzhuo plunged the knife into the tattered apple and said loudly, "Let him make a scene today."
The doctor wanted to reprimand this layman for talking nonsense, but when she saw the executive officer's badge on his collar, which was second only to the chief executive officer, she swallowed her words and decided to extricate herself from this mess.
"Don't rush off." Mu Wangzhuo called the man back, raised his chin, and said, "Take off all the plaster casts and braces, whatever you have. He'll smash them anyway."
The doctor was dumbfounded, his gaze shifting back and forth between Yuan Jianxing and Mu Wangzhuo, trying to figure out whether it was just an angry outburst or a serious statement.
Finally, Hara Kensei made the final decision: "Demolish."
After a great commotion, the plaster casts that had been attached to Yuan Jianxing's arms were cut off and thrown aside.
The weight that was previously distributed on the plaster cast was now entirely transferred to Yuan Jianxing's body.
The excruciating pain surged up like a tide, spreading subtly to every inch of his limbs.
Then these pains came together, enveloping his entire body like an ice shell, and finally turned into a persistent burning, numbness and aching.
Although he had never suffered such a serious injury before, Mu Wangzhuo could easily imagine how Yuan Jianxing felt at this moment.
So he chose to make sarcastic remarks with a forced smile, trying to discourage the other party: "If you want to go see it, then go by yourself. I want to see how determined you are."
What Mu Wangzhuo didn't know was that, thinking about the scene he was about to see, Yuan Jianxing only hoped that the pain would come even more intensely.
As if punishing himself, he once again granted Mu Wangzhuo's wish, and actually stood up and walked out of the ward step by step with a slight limp.
Stunned Mu Wangzhuo: …………
Watching Yuan Jianxing's slow but firm steps, Mu Wangzhuo suddenly felt that he had gone a bit too far.
At the same time, he felt as if he had met Hara Mihoshi all over again.
When Yuan Jianxing finally came downstairs, a car pulled up in front of him with a spectacular drift.
"Go stay in the passenger seat." Mu Wangzhuo rolled his eyes in the driver's seat. "I've taken care of the visitation procedures for you, and cleared out all the irrelevant people."
"The person... is waiting for you in room number one."
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