Chapter 62
The clerk saw a man behaving strangely from the surveillance camera. He was squatting next to the canned cat food shelf, looking suspicious. Suspecting that he was trying to steal something, the clerk finally couldn't help but walk over.
The clerk asked politely, "Sir, what do you need while you're squatting here?"
Kang Qiqiao raised his head suddenly, the fear in his eyes almost overflowing.
The clerk was stunned for a moment.
The man who was about to leave the store stepped back after hearing this question, and looked inside through the glass door with deep eyes.
Under the man's gaze, Shen Tingzhou calmly opened the shop door.
"Didn't I tell you that our orange cat is too fat, so we can't buy it this kind of snacks anymore."
Shen Tingzhou's words were tinged with helplessness as he walked towards the young man hiding beside the shelf.
The clerk knew Shen Tingzhou. Although he was confused, he didn't ask any more questions. He just smiled and said:
"Nine out of ten orange cats are fat, and one is particularly fat. You can take a box of this to promote gastrointestinal motility and help digestion."
Shen Tingzhou declined, "I bought two boxes some time ago, and I haven't finished them yet."
As he said this, he lowered his head and pulled Kang Qiqiao, "Let's go, we can't eat these big oranges."
Kang Qiqiao looked up at Shen Tingzhou, his eyes steaming with mist, and he moved his body and really wanted to stand up.
Shen Tingzhou shook his head at him, and Kang Qiqiao maintained his original posture, as if he understood.
After hearing this conversation, the man hesitated for a moment, but finally left.
Shen Tingzhou then pulled the man up and asked, "Are you okay?"
Kang Qiqiao shook his head and whispered, "Thank you."
Shen Tingzhou glanced at the time. It was still early for his scheduled death. He looked up at the obviously frightened young man and said, "I'll take you back."
Kang Qiqiao buried half of her face in her scarf, seeming a little hesitant.
Shen Tingzhou added, "It's a good opportunity for me to come and see the progress of my home renovation and take you back on the way."
When he heard that it was on his way, Kang Qiqiao said awkwardly, "Thank you for your help."
Shen Tingzhou went out to take a look first, and when he didn't see any trace of the man, he called Kang Qiqiao out.
Neither of them spoke on the way, and Shen Tingzhou didn't ask any more questions.
After arriving at the place, Kang Qiqiao looked at Shen Tingzhou nervously, "Can you please... wait for a moment?"
Shen Tingzhou was puzzled, and the other party did not explain. He quickly walked out of the elevator and returned to his home. When he came out again, he was holding a bag of fruit.
Kang Qiqiao ran over, his breath a little unsteady, and he struggled to organize his words, "Take these, I... thank you."
Shen Tingzhou didn't refuse and took it. "I was planning to buy some fruit. I want to go upstairs and share half with the workers. Is that okay?"
Kang Qiqiao nodded hurriedly, "There are more at home."
Shen Tingzhou smiled and said, "That's enough."
Shen Tingzhou took the elevator back to his home and saw the busy decoration workers. He gave some of the fruit to them and then took the rest to Xu Xun's company.
-
The board meeting lasted from 9:00 a.m. to 11:40 p.m.
At the meeting, one of Xu Zhiming's close confidants in the company was constantly squeezed and suppressed by his nephew Xu Xun, which made him lose face.
After the meeting, Xu Zhiming angrily chased after Xu Xun, hoping to save some face in his grade.
Before Xu Zhiming could speak, a gentle and smiling handsome man walked up to him.
Seeing his appearance clearly, Xu Zhiming felt a little weird in his heart.
"Mr. Xu." Shen Tingzhou thought that he was Xu Xun's uncle after all, so he took the initiative to greet him, "Are you feeling better?"
Xu Zhiming's eyes suddenly bulged.
What does it mean to ask him about his health right away? Are you saying that he is old and useless like that little bastard Xu Xun? Or are you mocking him for having a bad kidney?
What’s even more infuriating is that Shen Tingzhou’s tone is gentle and his smile is so genuine that it’s hard to find any fault with him.
Yes, how can someone who can be friends with this wolf cub Xu Xun be a good person!
Other people in the conference room came out one after another. Xu Zhiming did not dare to confront Shen Tingzhou and left angrily.
Shen Tingzhou was puzzled, "What happened to Mr. Xu?"
Xu Xun didn't take Xu Zhiming seriously at all, "Ignore him, what do you want to eat for lunch?"
Shen Tingzhou immediately put this episode behind him and said, "I see there is a Fujian restaurant downstairs."
Xu Xun said, "Okay, I'll have someone locate it."
During the meal, Shen Tingzhou and Xu Xun followed the restaurant waiters to their seats.
When passing by a private room, the waiter carrying the dishes opened the door of the room, and Shen Tingzhou looked over subconsciously.
There were only two people in the box, one was Xu Zhiming who I had just met, and the other was the man who was looking for the downstairs resident in front of the pet supplies store that morning.
The other party seemed to notice Shen Tingzhou's gaze and looked up.
Shen Tingzhou's eyes met his, but he was pulled away by Xu Xun the next moment.
After finding a seat by the window, Xu Xun flipped through the menu and suddenly asked, "Do you know Yanxun?"
Shen Tingzhou came back to his senses and took a few seconds to realize who he was talking about. "The person who had dinner with your uncle is called Yan Xun?"
Xu Xun closed the menu and looked at Shen Tingzhou.
Shen Tingzhou said, "I don't know him, I just happened to meet him this morning."
Xu Xun continued to look through the menu. "He's so handsome, it's normal that I remembered him after just one meeting."
Shen Tingzhou, smelling jealous, quickly explained, "It's not because of his looks."
He told Xu Xun the whole story of his encounter with Yan Xun.
Xu Xun's attention had already shifted from Yan Xun to another person. He said in a casual tone, "So you sent him home? He must be very grateful to you. Did he invite you for a cup of tea?"
Xu Xun's tone was too deceptive, but Shen Tingzhou, who had raised the alarm, still sensed something was wrong.
"No, he is a person with severe social anxiety. And I came to see you. I didn't even say a few words. I just sent him home and came here."
This successfully appeased Xu Xun, and he revealed some gossip he knew to Shen Tingzhou, "Yan Xun was married, and his partner died in the sea half a year ago."
Shen Tingzhou was shocked. "How could such an accident happen? Is he definitely dead?"
Xu Xun said, "I heard that the accident was caused by the motorboat spontaneously catching fire and exploding. The body has not been found yet."
explode?
Shen Tingzhou remembered the scar on the young man's neck. Could he be Yan Xun's partner?
The body has not been found yet, and as long as the body is not found, death cannot be confirmed. After all, his second employer survived a plane crash.
But if the young man was really looking for a partner, why did he avoid him in the morning?
Before Shen Tingzhou could think deeply about it, Xu Xun reached out and tapped on the back of his hand.
Shen Tingzhou looked over and heard Xu Xun ask, "When are you free recently?"
Shen Tingzhou was slightly stunned, "What's wrong?"
"If you're not busy, let's go on vacation." Xu Xun paused, "Just the two of us."
Under Xu Xun's sticky gaze, Shen Tingzhou's heart skipped a beat, then he nodded slightly, "It should be fine to go for four or five days."
Xu Xun showed a satisfied smile and handed the menu to Shen Tingzhou, "Then take a four or five-day vacation."
Shen Tingzhou: "Okay."
-
After finishing their meal, Shen Tingzhou and his friends got up and walked out. Xu Zhiming and Yan Xun also came out of the box at the same time.
Seeing Shen Tingzhou and Xu Xun being intimate, Xu Zhiming was confused at first, then shocked, and finally he couldn't help but feel gratified.
He spoke to Xu Xun in an elder's tone, "Xiao Xun, I'm not saying anything bad about you, but when did you fall in love with men? Not only does it get hard when you touch it, but you can't even have a child."
The partner, who is also a man, frowned, revealing a bit of displeasure.
But Xu Zhiming did not notice his companions' unhappiness and continued to act weird.
Xu Xunxian said sarcastically, "Uncle, you should take care of your kidneys first."
Xu Zhiming was furious, "You are talking nonsense..."
Shen Tingzhou suddenly interrupted him, "Mr. Xu, do you want to step aside for a moment?"
Xu Zhiming had long disliked Shen Tingzhou, "We are talking, uncle and nephew, is it your turn to interrupt?"
As soon as he finished speaking, a sneer sounded, "Are you trying to be a father here again?"
Xu Zhiming turned around and saw a familiar face. The corners of his mouth twitched uncontrollably.
Shen Tingzhou shook his head, and he asked Xu Zhiming to step aside.
Four months ago, at a family gathering at Xu’s house, the female companion who slapped Xu Zhiming several times and threatened to chop him up if they met again came over.
She is no longer an actress and has switched to live streaming to sell goods. She also occasionally does live broadcasts to talk and complain to her fans about the various chaos in the entertainment industry.
Curse the producers, curse the directors, curse the actors who only get paid but have no acting skills.
Her live broadcast clips have been trending on the Internet several times, and now each of her live broadcasts has hundreds of thousands of views.
After her wallet became bulging, she was no longer afraid of Xu Zhiming and took a look at his lower abdomen.
Xu Zhiming's buttocks suddenly tightened and he took two steps back.
A man like him who is rich and values life is indeed a bit annoyed by this crazy woman.
The female companion chuckled, "You really should become a lesbian, because you really are not hard when you touch me. If you are so soft, you can just lie on the bed and enjoy everything."
Shen Tingzhou: No wonder you became famous for your mouth, your words are so spicy.
Xu Xun disagreed, "We are not a recycling station."
Shen Tingzhou looked at Xu Xun suddenly: Xiao Xu, why are you...
The female companion nodded, "That's true."
Xu Zhiming looked unhappy as Xu Xun and his female companion kept teasing each other, but he was very proud and didn't want to embarrass himself in public.
He swallowed his anger and said to Yan Xun beside him, "Mr. Yan, let's go. There's nothing to say to these lunatics."
Yan Xun distanced himself from Xu Zhiming and said coldly, "My partner is also a man, so he may not be in Mr. Xu's eyes. Let's talk about cooperation later."
After saying that, he walked out of the restaurant.
Xu Zhiming was completely dumbfounded.
The female companion sighed and said, "No wonder your father didn't choose you to inherit the company. You have no ability at all."
Xu Zhiming was so angry that he raised his hand and slapped her.
The female companion was prepared. She turned her head to avoid the attack, and then slapped Xu Zhiming twice on the face with her backhand.
許殉牽起沈亭州的手離開了。
走到門口時，沈亭州回頭看了一眼，女伴脫下高跟鞋正要往許至銘身上砸，但被同伴阻攔了。
許至銘也被餐廳服務生拉住，兩個人隔空對罵。
一個只會罵你這個瘋女人，另一個嘴皮子利落，出口一分多鐘，沒一個字是重複的，怼得許至銘面色漲紅。
當天晚上，女伴就把這件事編成段子，在她的直播間說給十幾萬觀衆聽。
直播間人氣最高的時候，居然沖破了四十三萬人。
無所不能的廣大網友，迅速扒出了許至銘的身份，連帶着許家，乃至旗下公司都非常不滿。
最後還是許殉出面敲板兒，讓這位女伴代言了公司名下某一款産品，産品廣告都變成——
【甩掉渣男，做自信女王。】
許殉将這個全民笑料，變成一場非常優秀的緊急公關。
-
周日早上，沈亭州接到周子探的電話。
電話裏的周子探東拉西扯，說着很多語句不通的話。沈亭州雲裏霧裏，不知道他要幹什麽。
五分鐘後，周子探還不進入主題，沈亭州終于忍不住問，“有什麽事嗎？”
周子探頓住，隔了一會兒總算說了實話，“我想去醫院看我哥。”
沈亭州好笑道：“那就去看啊。”
周子探扣着牆皮，悶悶地說，“他不讓我去，平時我都是跟我媽一塊，今天她去教堂做禮拜了。”
沈亭州聽懂了周子探難得的彎彎繞，“行吧，我現在正好有空，先陪你去醫院。”
他的房子已經裝修好了，下午沈亭州還要去驗收。
沈亭州提着水果跟周子探到醫院病房，聽到裏面的交談聲，總算明白賀延庭為什麽三令五申地警告周子探別來醫院了。
周子探對江寄的聲音很敏感，一聽他在裏面，瞬間炸毛。
沈亭州扣住周子探的雙肩，往下一摁，“不想你哥生氣，你就別進去。”
周子探雙眸充滿不甘。
沈亭州趕緊念緊箍，“你不想要家庭和睦了？”
周子探慢慢洩了力道，但臉色仍舊陰沉，然後把耳朵貼到病房門板，“我倒是要聽聽，他用的什麽妖言蠱惑我哥。”
有沒有一種可能性，是你哥想用妖言蠱惑人家江寄？
沈亭州看着周子探搖搖頭，幾秒鐘後他也把耳朵側了過去。
隔着一層門板，江寄的聲音傳出來。
原本清冷的嗓音有一絲苦澀，“說實話賀延庭，我直到現在也不明白你為什麽會喜歡我？”
賀延庭的視線黏在江寄身上，光影切割在他身上，冷峻的五官都顯得柔和。
他說，“沒有為什麽。”
江寄擡頭看過來，“其實你自己也說不出來吧？”
賀延庭皺了一下眉，似乎要說什麽，江寄卻沖他搖了一下頭。
“跟你相處的那些日子，我焦慮、敏感、易怒。”江寄神色恍惚，語氣很輕。
“你喜歡的是這樣的江寄嗎？可那不是真正的我，那只是在極端處境下，一個極端瘋狂的人。所以我真的不知道你喜歡我什麽，我感覺你的愛像空中樓閣。”
這種不真切讓他沒辦法融入，賀延庭制造的“很愛他”的氛圍裏。
賀延庭不喜歡江寄對自我的否定，“我對你的了解遠比你想象得多，包括你的口味、喜好，人生經歷，我也不覺得我們相處時，你有你說的那麽神經質。”
門外的沈亭州忍不住吐槽。
你不覺得，那可能是因為你自己就比較……
江寄露出疲憊之色，“或許吧，或許你很了解我，或許你也很愛我，但這些都不是我想要的。”
賀延庭眸色沉下來，“那你想要什麽？”
江寄看着床頭櫃那束百合，昨夜還閉合的花骨朵，在水的滋養下已經綻放。
他告訴賀延庭，也說給自己聽，“我想好好生活，把自己的專業拾起來。”
賀延庭妥協，“我不會再把你關到家裏，你可以做你自己想做的事。”
江寄搖搖頭，“不一樣的。”
賀延庭頰齒鼓了鼓，“你說這麽多就是想告訴我，你的未來沒有我，也不會有我。”
沈亭州緊張起來，怕賀延庭會用強硬的手段逼迫江寄。
身旁的周子探磨牙，“我就知道他是綠茶。”
沈亭州摁下他的腦袋，你一個熊孩子，你知道什麽是綠茶！
江寄掀眸，那雙眼睛已經沒了先前的彷徨，清明澄澈，是賀延庭最初見到他的樣子。
江寄直視着賀延庭，“我們打一個賭吧。”
賀延庭望着他的眼睛沒有說話。
江寄說，“我們給彼此五年的時間，如果你五年後還像現在這麽喜歡我，我願意放下對你的偏見，以及過去的傷害，嘗試着接納你。”
商人的思維就是讨價還價，賀延庭否定，“五年時間太長，兩年。”
江寄一步也不退，“五年。”
賀延庭：“三年。”
江寄仍舊堅持，“五年。”
賀延庭不滿，“你不能一點發言權都不給我，三年是我的極限。”
江寄沒有生氣，平和道：“我不知道你是怎麽看我的，但賀延庭，我是一個男人，對一個男人來說，五年的打拼期并不長。”
賀延庭沒有說話，坐在床上陰晴不定地看着江寄。
江寄：“五年也是我的底線。還有明天我不會再來醫院了，我要備考。”
聽到這句話，沈亭州神經一跳，拽上周子探，飛快躲到安全通道。
江寄沒立即出來，兩分鐘後他才走出病房。
被沈亭州領着衣領的周子探，仿佛是一條真正的惡犬，對着江寄的背影龇牙咧嘴，一副随時沖上去撲咬的模樣。
沈亭州只能緊緊地拽着他，等人走了，他才放開了周子探。
沈亭州認真囑咐：“你也聽到了，江先生要離開你哥，別去找他麻煩。”
周子探悶聲不吭地整理衣領，沈亭州又叫了一遍他的名字，他才說，“你關心他，比關心我還多。”
沈亭州：……這是拈酸吃醋的事嗎？
“我不是關心他，我是擔心你出事。”沈亭州跟他講事實，擺道理，“而且你找他麻煩了，你哥肯定會生氣，到時候他倆又會折騰到一起，你想這樣？”
周子探當然不想，他既讨厭江寄，又不能理解江寄。
他哥這麽好的人，為什麽江寄會不喜歡，是在欲擒故縱嗎？
不知道周子探又往什麽歪地方想了，沈亭州趕緊轉移話題，“走吧，去看你哥。”
聽到這話，周子探反而猶豫。
“我哥現在心情肯定不好，看到我又過去了，肯定就更不好了。沈醫生你一個人進去吧，我知道他沒事就好了。”
要是周子探把對賀延庭的關愛分給這個世界一點，那該有多好？
沈亭州對周子探的無奈以及怒其不争，宛如一個操碎心的老父親。
他進去看了看賀延庭，對方心情的确不怎麽好。
沈亭州沒有多待，檢查了一下賀延庭傷口的恢複程度，然後就離開了。
周子探蹲在安全通道，像一朵雨霧天縮起來的蘑菇。
沈亭州拍了拍他的肩，“走了。”
周子探站起來，乖乖跟在沈亭州身後。
坐進車的副駕駛座上，周子探又開始說奇怪的話，“如果江寄是傀儡娃娃就好了，那我就可以操縱他哄我哥開心。”
沈亭州眼皮一跳，“你怎麽不說你哥是一個傀儡娃娃？到時候你讓他想笑他就笑。”
周子探一臉坦然，“小時候想過，想過我媽是娃娃，我哥是娃娃，我……”
沈亭州看到他的口型“爸”，他想說周之衷，最後又把話咽了回去。
周子探：“晚上我就可以把他們放在枕邊，我會給他們講故事，給他們唱歌，如果他們能說話，他們也可以給我講故事唱歌。”
周子探的形容溫馨又詭異。
沈亭州啓動引擎，“現在有定制這種人偶娃娃的，你可以定制一套。”
周子探立刻說，“我有，有好多呢，我還定制了你的。”
沈亭州沒有半分驚訝，開車駛出醫院的車庫，玩笑道：“那你還得多加一個人。”
周子探困惑，“加誰？”
沈亭州心道，加上小許，不能你們一家人整整齊齊，就我一個人孤孤單單吧？
-
下午沈亭州跟許殉一塊去驗收房子。
等電梯的時候，很巧合地遇見了那個熱心腸又話痨的房東。
房東認出了沈亭州，驚喜道：“小沈是吧？你這臉俊得吼，我一眼認出來了。呦呦，朋友都俊得很嘞，個子還高高的，臉還冷冷的，是面癱臉帥哥嘞。”
聽房東說許殉是面癱臉帥哥，沈亭州笑了。
不過小許在外面确實挺高冷，不怪人家會這麽說他。
許殉臉上沒太大反應，但偷偷掐了一下沈亭州的手心。
看見沈亭州笑了，房東也笑，“我跟你們講吼，我天天上網沖浪，你們年輕人的時髦詞我都知道，什麽ddys，恐龍抗狼抗狼，我都懂嘞。”
沈亭州誇贊道：“您心态真年輕。”
房東驕傲：“那是嘞。”
沈亭州有些納悶，“您怎麽過來了？”
The landlord's face suddenly changed and he complained to Shen Tingzhou.
"Stop talking, Xiaokang. It's my tenant. I don't know who has offended him. He calls me every few days about Xiaokang. It's so annoying. I came here today to see who is harassing me."
Shen Tingzhou and Xu Xun looked at each other, then asked the landlord, "Is that person coming over?"
Landlord: "I'm here. I heard from the security guard that he blocks Xiaokang's door every day. Is he bullying the sick kid because he's so sick? I won't stand for that. I have to stand up for Xiaokang."
"Don't look at me because I'm over 60 years old. When I was young, I practiced both southern boxing and northern kicking. Young guys like you can't easily get close to me."
Shen Tingzhou wanted to laugh, but was afraid that she would suffer a loss.
The elevator arrived, and the landlord came down and said to the tall figure in the corridor, "Back, back, back!"
Shen Tingzhou: ...
The landlord said angrily, "What are you doing? You make seven or eight phone calls a day and block Xiaokang's door. I tell you, I am not afraid of trouble. I have practiced both southern boxing and northern kicking."
Shen Tingzhou looked out of the elevator.
Xu Xun took his hand and walked out of the elevator, standing behind the landlady openly.
Shen Tingzhou: ...
The person blocking the door was not Yan Xun, but a man with a pair of fox eyes and a friendly smile.
He made the old lady happy with just a few words, but when he saw Shen Tingzhou and Xu Xun behind her, there was a hint of coldness in the corners of his eyes.
"Who are you? Are you here to see our Xiaokang as well?"
Before Shen Tingzhou could say anything, the elevator door opened and Yan Xun walked out.
Seeing Yan Xun, Fox Eyes' mouth curled up into a mocking arc, "You still have the nerve to come?"
Yan Xun also retorted coldly, "Aren't you the same?"
Shen Tingzhou: Why is it another messy love triangle?
The elevator dinged again.
Hearing the steel door open, Yan Xun and Fox Eyes immediately looked over with a common hatred for the enemy.
Shen Tingzhou was shocked. Could there be a third person?