Chapter 47 [VIP]
Chapter summary: "Even if you gave it to me, I could only sell it."
While Li Xiang was planning how to leverage the airshow to acquire more customer resources, Cinda Group was also preparing to participate in the airshow.
In the conference room, Su Wenjin introduced the company's booth design, construction progress, daily activities, and an unprecedented highlight to Xu Tianzhou: "This time, it coincides with the delivery of the forty-fifth aircraft, and the aircraft manufacturer will also be exhibiting, so we will jointly hold an aircraft delivery ceremony..."
This delivery ceremony is not only an important event for Cinda Group and the aircraft manufacturer, but also a highlight of the airshow. Many high-ranking leaders will attend, so it is highly valued from top to bottom. Even Su Wenjin has to be extra careful in handling it.
But at this crucial moment, Xu Tianzhou interrupted him.
Su Wenjin thought there was something wrong and looked over in confusion.
Xu Tianzhou didn't comment on what they were talking about. Instead, he frowned and hurriedly said, "I'm sorry."
Su Wenjin then noticed his deathly pale face, his lips drained of color from being tightly pressed together. He was probably in extreme pain; even though he was alone, he seemed to be silently fighting against another person, causing his whole body to tremble slightly.
Su Wenjin was terrified and asked worriedly, "What's wrong?"
Xu Tianzhou didn't have time to answer. He had been holding back for a long time, and now he finally couldn't take it anymore. Every nerve in his head was screaming hysterically, so intensely that it didn't stop for a moment, as if it could tear him apart.
Xu Tianzhou gritted his teeth, quickly took out the pills, and swallowed them haphazardly.
After taking the medicine, the pain in his head didn't lessen, but he did feel a little more relaxed. Xu Tianzhou closed his eyes, tilted his head back, and rested one arm across his forehead.
Su Wenjin suddenly understood.
In the past few days, Xu Tianzhou would often suddenly leave during meetings, sometimes for half an hour at a time. When he came back, he would not say what he had done. Now that I think about it, he probably had a terrible headache and was hiding from them to take his medicine. But this time the attack was so sudden and severe that they couldn't bother to avoid him.
Su Wenjin gestured to her secretary to turn off the video that was playing so that the room would be absolutely quiet.
Su Wenjin waited quietly until Xu Tianzhou gradually relaxed and seemed to be feeling better, then cautiously asked, "Have you been to the hospital?"
Xu Tianzhou kept his eyes closed, his voice weary, "I looked at it, but I couldn't find out what the problem was."
Xu Tianzhou was extremely disappointed at the thought of this outcome.
Why isn't it a terminal illness?
In that case, everyone would indulge him because he was about to die. Xu's mother wouldn't force him to divorce, and Ni Zhenzhen wouldn't leave. All the problems would be solved, and he would no longer have to search for a way out in the thorny night. Even being ruthlessly sentenced to death would be a hundred times better than enduring endless torment like this.
Xu Tianzhou gave a bitter smile.
Thinking about it this way, it turns out he was the one who was superfluous.
Xu Tianzhou lowered his eyes, his expression a mixture of a sigh and a sigh, "I don't know what to do."
Su Wenjin was taken aback.
This is something Xu Tianzhou would never say. No matter how difficult the situation, he would only act nonchalant in front of a group of senior executives, at most saying "I'll think about it some more" without any expression, instead of "I don't know what to do."
Even Su Wenjin, who serves as an advisor, found it difficult to offer advice on this issue.
Xu Tianzhou has set himself into a dead end; taking one step forward means death, and taking one step back means the same fate.
Xu Tianzhou didn't know how he had ended up like this.
Ever since Ni Zhenzhen took the initiative to talk to him in his second year of high school, Xu Tianzhou had always maintained a cold and indifferent attitude.
But Ni Zhenzhen was just too good, so good that she always made him let go of reality and fall into a beautiful dream where there was no difference in status. He had to remind himself countless times that she was faking it and that sooner or later she would be unable to keep up the act.
He didn't believe Ni Zhenzhen would accept his confession, but she stood on tiptoe and kissed his lips in the dark classroom.
He didn't believe Ni Zhenzhen would marry him, but she excitedly dragged him to the municipal government to register their marriage.
He didn't believe she would stay with him. All her colleagues and friends had cars and houses, while her husband was so mediocre.
This time, he finally won his gamble. They got divorced, but not for the reasons he had thought. It was because she didn't want to drag him down with her.
He longed to abandon everything and be with her, but she didn't want him anymore.
He desperately wanted to tell her that a few million wasn't a big deal, but if he touched that money, he wouldn't be able to sever ties with his family of origin. As for Ni Zhenzhen, if she knew the truth, would she calmly accept it, or would she begin to hate him?
Xu Tianzhou couldn't imagine it.
The nerves in his head were throbbing again, and Xu Tianzhou swallowed another pill, barely managing to hold on until the end.
After the meeting ended, Su Wenjin, worried about Xu Tianzhou's health, said, "Why don't you not drive? I'll have the driver take you home."
Xu Tianzhou shook his head, politely declining Su Wenjin's suggestion.
Since Ni Zhenzhen left, Xu Tianzhou has been coming home later and later every day. He doesn't know when he'll be home again today, so why should he drag someone who's in a hurry to get home with him?
Actually, he didn't have anything special going on; he was just wandering aimlessly through the streets, stopping his car when he got tired—sometimes on a mountaintop, sometimes by a river, sometimes...
Although he was trying his best to avoid it, he would still unknowingly end up in front of a building, which was the company where Ni Zhenzhen worked.
Xu Tianzhou couldn't help but marvel at the power of habit; it must have been because he had come here so many times that he was so familiar with the place.
At that time, Xu Tianzhou told her many times to wait upstairs until he arrived before coming down.
Ni Zhenzhen disagreed, saying, "It's because I want to see you sooner."
He can still remember what she looked like. She was standing by a flower bed full of small purple flowers, looking around. Her brows, which were slightly furrowed, relaxed instantly when she saw him, and her eyes lit up like shooting stars. Before the car even stopped, she skipped over and got in the car. She hugged him and gave him a kiss, then complained, "Why did you take so long?"
Her voice is soft and sweet, and she's especially adorable.
Now, wherever he goes, no one complains to him anymore, "Why did you take so long to arrive?"
Xu Tianzhou parked his car on the side of the road again, just like before, but this time, the person he was waiting for did not come.
Xu Tianzhou took out his phone and stared blankly at the red dot on the screen until the battery was critically low and the screen went completely black.
Recently, Ni Zhenzhen has been working overtime until very late every day, and sometimes she even stays at the company, so Xu Tianzhou's wish to catch a glimpse of her from afar has been dashed.
In fact, Ni Zhenzhen wasn't as busy as Xu Tianzhou imagined. She wasn't at the company to work overtime; she just stayed there because it had internet, coffee, and instant noodles, which saved her some money.
All of this was done in secret.
Ni Zhenzhen didn't want to make things difficult for her colleagues, so as soon as it was time to leave work, she would pack up her things and hide in the stairwell. After everyone left, she would sneak back and do some work such as translating papers and providing study abroad consulting to earn some extra money.
That night, Xu Tianzhou was once again agitated by a sudden headache. He went home early, took his medicine, and went to bed.
Xu Tianzhou didn't sleep soundly. The little boy next door was practicing the piano diligently. Later, the piano music stopped, and then his phone rang.
Xu Tianzhou glanced at his phone in a half-awake state; the screen read "Little Fairy".
There won't be another fairy in his phone.
Xu Tianzhou instantly snapped out of his daze. He could hardly believe his eyes. That was the nickname Ni Zhenzhen had given him. Why would she call him?
Xu Tianzhou quickly answered the call, and sure enough, a completely unfamiliar female voice came from the other end.
The man said that Ni Zhenzhen was drunk and they wanted to take her to her room to rest, but she clung to the chair and wouldn't let go, no matter who tried to persuade her.
"She insists on waiting for her husband to pick her up and take her home. We have no choice but to call you."
Before the man could give the address, Xu Tianzhou said in a deep voice, "I'll go right away."
When Xu Tianzhou arrived, Ni Zhenzhen was still kneeling on the ground, her upper body slumped on the chair, her face buried in her arms, muttering something that was not very clear.
The private room was a mess, with leftover food piled on the table. Xu Tianzhou glanced at it and understood immediately.
There was a very expensive bottle of wine on the table, not the kind of wine you'd drink at a regular colleague's gathering. Besides, Ni Zhenzhen was dressed... very specially, not in her usual clothes, but in a performance costume.
Coincidentally, Xu Tianzhou had seen that outfit before. It was a white dress adorned with light blue cloud patterns, the very one Ni Zhenzhen wore when she performed her dance at the annual party. This outfit, which Ni Zhenzhen described as "ethereal," did indeed make her look like a fairy, albeit a utterly down-on-her-luck one.
The private room was as bright as day, and the light hurt his eyes.
Xu Tianzhou slowly walked over, the pungent smell of alcohol hitting him like a poison, gripping his throat. He couldn't imagine what she had been through, because someone nudged Ni Zhenzhen, telling her that Xu Tianzhou had arrived.
Ni Zhenzhen stubbornly avoided that hand, hugging the chair even tighter.
Xu Tianzhou didn't dare get too close. He deliberately kept some distance, as if afraid of disturbing her, and softly called out, "Zhenzhen?"
Ni Zhenzhen froze abruptly, and only after a long while did she raise her head. The bells hanging from her head made a pleasant sound with this movement.
Her eyes showed a slight confusion, but it was only temporary, because she quickly recognized him.
“Husband…” Ni Zhenzhen sat on the ground, looked up at him, and called out as if she had been relieved.
She noticed his serious expression, as if he was unhappy. The slight ease he had shown earlier was gone. She sighed sadly, "Honey, did I make you angry again?"
"I'm sorry." She leaned on his shoulder, sobbing like a child, "Please don't blame me..."
Xu Tianzhou patted her back and said softly, "I don't blame you."
“You’re blaming me. You slammed the door shut with so much force that day, and I…” Ni Zhenzhen’s voice was full of grievance as she spoke intermittently, “I really felt so bad.”
She was referring to the day she moved out of the rented apartment, when she insisted on returning the bracelet to him.
Xu Tianzhou not only refused to accept it, but also seemed to be angered by her, coldly and defiantly saying, "How can you take back something you've already given away?"
Ni Zhenzhen felt guilty, and because she was eager to sever ties with him, she deliberately said, "If you give it to me, I can only sell it."
"Then sell it."
Xu Tianzhou slammed the door shut after speaking, the sound so loud it hurt Ni Zhenzhen's eardrums. Tears welled up in her eyes at that moment; she still remembered his angry expression.
"I'm not angry," Xu Tianzhou said calmly.
He was indeed angry. She wanted to sell the house, the bracelet he had given her, and everything related to him, showing no regard for their past relationship. How could he not be angry?
But that anger had dissipated during those long, lonely nights. In her current situation, survival was the most important thing.
Xu Tianzhou apologized to her, "It was my fault."
Ni Zhenzhen hugged him even tighter and rubbed against him forcefully, not caring whether her tears and lipstick would stain his clothes.
"I didn't sell the bracelet, my bracelet, the bracelet..."
Ni Zhenzhen couldn't wait to prove it to Xu Tianzhou. She raised her arm and tore open the sleeve covering it, revealing a section of her fair, jade-like wrist in an instant. However, it was empty; there was nothing there.
Ni Zhenzhen panicked. She instinctively searched her body, and when she couldn't find it, she groped on the ground.
Ni Zhenzhen completely forgot that she had put the bracelet away earlier. She thought the bracelet was missing and couldn't help but burst into tears, "What should I do? I lost my bracelet..."
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