Chapter 8 The Reason "But why... is it me?"...
It wasn't until she saw the smug and arrogant look on Wen Hong's face that Qiao Yunzheng's mind cleared up a bit. She replied dryly, "It's alright."
Wen Hong waved the insulated food container she was carrying at her: "Are you hungry? Want to eat something with me?" Then, without waiting for her response, she walked straight past her toward the restaurant.
Qiao Yunzheng opened her mouth, but even if she refused, he probably wouldn't listen.
Having traveled all the way from Kunming yesterday, Qiao Yunzheng hadn't had a proper meal, and was indeed hungry. So she didn't stand on ceremony, quickly washed up, and obediently sat down at the dining table.
Wen Hong was already sitting at the dining table, placing the breakfast from the food box onto the table.
Soup dumplings, shumai, pumpkin pancakes, steamed eggs, eight-treasure porridge, and even a bottle of fresh milk and a box of sandwiches.
"Which one do you want to eat?" Wen Hong asked casually, without even looking up as she busied herself unpacking the takeout box.
Qiao Yunzheng hesitated for a moment, knowing that staying here had already caused him trouble, so she felt embarrassed to trouble him to serve her rice again.
"I'll do it myself."
Not wanting to be too impolite, she reached into the cupboard to get bowls and chopsticks to serve porridge, so she reached for the bottle of milk and sandwiches that were placed in the corner.
Unexpectedly, before her hand even touched the milk bottle, Wen Hong, who had just returned with a bowl, saw her.
He strode back to the dining table in two long strides, snatched the bottle of milk away, and raised his eyebrows high: "Are you crazy?"
Qiao Yunzheng's hand suddenly felt empty, and she was somewhat confused: "What's wrong...?"
He was the one who asked her what she wanted to eat; there's no need for him to play such a childish trick on her.
But Wen Hong said, "Don't you know you're allergic to milk?"
His tone wasn't exactly friendly when he said this, but it stirred a strange feeling in Qiao Yunzheng's heart—a bittersweet feeling, she couldn't quite put her finger on whether it was gratitude or something else.
"It's over." She muttered very softly.
"What?" Wen Hong seemed not to have heard clearly, but still casually put the milk on the kitchen counter further away, and then ladled out a bowl of eight-treasure porridge and pushed it in front of Qiao Yunzheng.
"I mean, I can drink milk now. I've been gradually getting used to it, and it's much better now."
Since taking over the mess that Qiao's family had left, Qiao Yunzheng often had to squeeze every minute into two, leaving her with very little time. Naturally, she couldn't be as meticulous in her daily life as before.
At first, I would always have allergic reactions, so I carried medicine with me 24 hours a day. Later, I don't know if I became numb to it, but the reactions were not as severe.
These minute details were rarely noticed even by Uncle Zhang and his mother.
Qiao Yunzheng pursed her lips, lowered her head, took the sandwich in her hand, unwrapped it, and began to eat it slowly.
It's not that she particularly likes it, but over the years, she has become accustomed to this fast-paced dining style.
After hearing her words, Wen Hong stopped serving the porridge.
He didn't say anything more, just looked at her quietly.
She had been gone for five years and seemed to have gotten thinner. He even suspected that he could crush her shoulders with just a little force.
He watched her silently finish the sandwich, bit by bit, and then, seemingly sensing something was wrong, she looked up at him.
"Why are you looking at me like that?" Qiao Yunzheng asked, puzzled.
Wen Hong casually looked away, his face expressionless: "Ah, I wasn't looking at you, I was looking at..." He pointed to the sandwich she was holding, now just its packaging, "it."
Qiao Yunzheng was even more puzzled.
Just listen to Wen Hong say slowly and with great regret: "This and that bottle of milk were originally meant to be brought to Song Nanchen..." As he said this, he said "tsk" with great regret, "What a pity."
Qiao Yunzheng: "..."
After breakfast, Wen Hong lazily sat down on the sofa, turned on the TV, and looked completely idle. He didn't go to the law firm as he had said he would.
The bottle of milk that was supposed to be given to Song Nanchen remained quietly lying in the corner, untouched by anyone.
Qiao Yunzheng obediently cleared the table before walking to the sofa and sitting down an arm's length away from him: "Wen Hong, let's talk."
Wen Hong pressed the remote control, changing more than a dozen channels in a row, and only after much difficulty did he manage to spare a glance at her: "You say it."
explain?
He already knows all of this, so why does she need to say anything more?
Qiao Yunzheng took a deep breath and tried to speak in a calm tone: "Can we discuss the cooperation between the Wen family and Qiao Zhenhuai?"
Wen Hong lowered her eyes: "What makes you think I'm the one pulling the strings behind the scenes? Just because my surname is Wen?"
Qiao Yunzheng had also asked herself this question, but everything happened too coincidentally, and she couldn't find a reason to convince herself.
Without her saying anything, Wen Hong had already read the answer from her expression.
Wen Hong gave a self-deprecating chuckle, shifted his body, and leaned back on the sofa: "Fine, we can discuss it. But you know, I'm a lawyer, not a philanthropist. I don't do deals that lose money."
Qiao Yunzheng naturally knew what Wen Hong was referring to.
But she didn't understand why.
"Wen Hong, I understand if you want shares in the Qiao Group, or... more money, but why... me?"
She seemed to have said something she found difficult to say, and a strange color flashed across her fair cheeks.
The television programs switched at an even faster pace, with different sounds flashing by in succession: exciting, sad, happy, and indifferent...
The television screen froze the moment Qiao Yunzheng finished speaking.
With a broken face and a mixture of struggle and pity, the male protagonist said to the female protagonist, "I want you to remember me forever, even if it's with hatred."
A moment of silence.
After a moment of silence, Wen Hong suddenly turned off the TV in frustration, and the background noise stopped abruptly.
But the melancholy atmosphere seemed contagious, leaving both of them feeling somewhat lost.
"Who knows!" Wen Hong's expression was inscrutable. "But you don't need to worry about these things. You just need to keep your promise and stay by my side. I will also keep my promise and protect the Qiao family for you."
Qiao Yunzheng didn't know why she had agreed so inexplicably.
So when Su Ran asked her worriedly, "Qiao Qiao, what are your plans for next week's shareholders' meeting? Have you contacted that big lawyer? Does he have any suggestions or solutions?"
"I think there shouldn't be any problems..." Qiao Yunzheng didn't know how to tell Su Ran about his relationship with Wen Hong, so he could only give a vague answer.
Upon hearing this news, Su Ran's voice immediately rose eight octaves: "Really?! That's wonderful! Was it the work of that lawyer surnamed Wen?"
"Yes." Qiao Yunzheng was infected by her high spirits, and her mood improved as well.
"A true expert indeed! You're amazing!" Su Ran was genuinely happy because she had gone to great lengths to find out about that incredibly capable lawyer. She couldn't help but ask curiously, "I heard that lawyer is quite good-looking, is that true? What's he like?"
Qiao Yunzheng thought for a moment and said quite frankly, "It's... alright!"
"Ah..." Su Ran screamed, "What an amazing guy! He's handsome and incredibly talented! Qiao Qiao, you absolutely have to introduce him to me!"
Qiao Yunzheng's brow twitched a few times. Remembering Wen Hong's bad temper, she hesitated for a moment, but still didn't immediately expose his misdeeds in front of her friend. She only said, "Maybe when there's a chance!"
Wen Hong didn't tell Qiao Yunzheng what to do in detail. He only told her, "The only thing you can do is keep your promise and wait for me here, okay?"
This wait lasted for two days.
She didn't know where Wen Hong had gone or what he had done; all she knew was that he hadn't been home for two days and hadn't sent her a single message.
Suddenly having so much free time, Qiao Yunzheng felt a little disoriented.
Out of sheer boredom, she tidied up the entire apartment, inside and out, though, to be honest, there wasn't much to tidy up.
When the refrigerator door was opened, the large double-door refrigerator was empty, which made the cake placed on the crisper drawer look lonely and particularly conspicuous.
Qiao Yunzheng paused for a moment, then took the cake out.
The transparent plastic shell of the cake hadn't been removed yet. Right in the center of the cake, a string of English words was clearly engraved: Happy birthday. There was no signature or special mention. I don't know if it was a gift from someone else or if he just bought it on a whim.
Qiao Yunzheng hesitated for a few seconds whether to throw it away or not, but in the end, she put it back untouched.
She went to the supermarket, bought some fresh ingredients to replenish the refrigerator, and also purchased some daily necessities.
The two days she stayed here were extremely quiet; no one came by, and she only received two phone calls during that time.
One of them was Uncle Zhang, who asked her where she had been these past two days. He said Yao Jing was very worried about her. She had come to Shencheng on a whim without informing Yao Jing and Uncle Zhang beforehand.
After much deliberation, Qiao Yunzheng decided to keep the current situation a secret: "Uncle Zhang, I might be staying in Shencheng for a few months and won't be going back to Kuncheng as often. Tell her not to worry about the company; there's already a solution."
Another unexpected call came from Qiao Zhenhuai. The moment the call connected, Qiao Zhenhuai abandoned all pretense of being a loving elder and immediately demanded angrily, "Qiao Yunzheng! What have you done?!"
Qiao Yunzheng probably guessed what was going on, and asked innocently, "What's wrong, Uncle Huai?"
"Don't try to act with me! I knew it was you! Otherwise, why would the Wen family withdraw their investment when everything was going so well?! You little bastard..." Qiao Zhenhuai was furious and started to speak recklessly.
Qiao Yunzheng frowned unhappily and retorted with his words from that day: "Uncle Huai, are you mistaken? You also said that the least likely family in the world to stand by my side is the Wen family."
Qiao Zhenhuai gritted his teeth: "That would be best!"
After the call ended, the smile on Qiao Yunzheng's face vanished instantly.
She picked up her phone to text Wen Hong to ask something, but then felt it was unnecessary.
In any case, the Qiao family's affairs can give her a temporary respite.
Wen Hong still hadn't come home, so Qiao Yunzheng washed up early and crawled into bed.
The quiet of the night made all sounds seem particularly abrupt.
Despite Wen Hong's careful closing of the door, she still woke Qiao Yunzheng from her sleep.
The footsteps paused briefly in the living room, followed by the faint electronic sound of the refrigerator door opening and closing. Then, the previously slow footsteps suddenly quickened.
Qiao Yunzheng could feel his footsteps stop beside her door.
As if after a long period of thought, a gentle knock sounded on the door.
For some inexplicable reason, Qiao Yunzheng, even though she was awake, kept her eyes closed and pretended to be asleep, without responding.
She was waiting for him to come back, and the door wasn't locked, so Wen Hong easily turned the doorknob open.
He didn't turn on the light, but instead used the dim light from his phone screen to look at the bed. Only when he saw the vaguely curled-up figure on the bed did he quietly breathe a sigh of relief.
Wen Hong slowly stepped out of the room, just as she was about to close the door behind her.
The light turned on with a "click".
Qiao Yunzheng had already pressed the switch.
Unexpectedly, their eyes met.
Qiao Yunzheng immediately noticed the obvious bruises on Wen Hong's face and asked in surprise, "What happened to your face?"
A note from the author:
Thank you "Sunshine" for the nutrient solution! *chugs* *sweats ...
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