Chapter 43 [VIP]
Chapter summary: "Let's get a divorce."
On her way back, Ni Zhenzhen saw a photo posted by her colleague on WeChat Moments and exclaimed in surprise, "My colleague also bought a house!"
Where did you buy it?
Ni Zhenzhen was also very curious. She had never heard her colleagues mention it before. Otherwise, they could have exchanged information about different housing developments and maybe even become neighbors.
This section of road is full of potholes, and dump trucks frequently roar past, kicking up clouds of dust.
Ni Zhenzhen carefully opened the photo amidst the bumpy ride, zoomed in, and slowly read, "Lilan Garden."
Xu Tianzhou blurted out, "A villa?"
"You actually knew that?"
Xu Tianzhou smiled without saying a word.
Two days ago, when the topic of buying a house came up, Su Wenjin immediately asked him if he wanted to buy Lilan Garden.
"What is that?" Xu Tianzhou asked.
"Villas, detached houses with gardens, hot springs, golf courses, and equestrian clubs are all available. Many people are buying them."
"That sounds good."
Su Wenjin thought he was interested and was about to talk to him more, but Xu Tianzhou smiled and shook his head, "But I can't afford it."
Su Wenjin laughed and said, "You can't afford it? You're so rich." Su Wenjin took it as a joke.
Xu Tianzhou did not explain that it was his parents who were rich, not him.
He simply explained his plans to Su Wenjin: one was that the rocket transportation project was related to the company's future and must be carried out; the other was that the staff at the rice noodle shop could not be moved unless they left on their own.
Su Wenjin didn't know why he would say that. After a moment of surprise, he teased, "To be honest, what you're doing is a lot like..."
"Making arrangements for your funeral?" Xu Tianzhou smiled faintly. "That's called being prepared for any eventuality."
He was indeed making his final arrangements, but what he was about to face was not death, but a new beginning.
He has a new home, a tiny 40-square-meter apartment, a world apart from the detached villas that are currently selling like hotcakes.
After the red light, the car drove onto a straight and wide avenue, with shady trees on both sides and small purple flowers blooming in the flower beds in the middle. This must be the most beautiful season in the city, and the well-designed villa area is even more captivating.
Xu Tianzhou asked, "Are you envious?" Her colleague bought a villa.
“A little bit,” Ni Zhenzhen said truthfully.
She wanted to buy a piano, get a golden retriever, decorate a study with bookshelves all over the walls, and leave a playroom for her child with a slide, swing and treehouse, just like she did when she was a child. Unfortunately, these things didn't fit into her 40-square-meter space.
But this is only temporary.
“I did the math. At the rate we’re making money now, we can afford a 100-square-meter apartment by the time we’re forty. After we retire, we can sell the apartment, move to a city with cheaper housing, and it’s not impossible to buy a villa with a garden.” Ni Zhenzhen said confidently. “This doesn’t even include the salary increase. Otherwise, we might be able to achieve it even earlier.”
Xu Tianzhou chuckled softly, "You've certainly thought ahead."
"Hehe." Ni Zhenzhen laughed foolishly.
Actually, there's something else she didn't say: the most important thing is that they're together. Otherwise, even the biggest house is just a house, not a home.
On the surface, Xu Tianzhou appeared calm and composed, but inwardly he had already become one with the vibrant world around him. This boundless ease softened his resolve and strengthened his gentleness.
It turns out that her plan included not only him, but also their entire lives.
While waiting at a red light, Ni Zhenzhen noticed a dog in the car next to her—the golden retriever of her dreams. The golden retriever, tongue lolling out, poked its head out of the half-open window and looked back at her as if she were looking at it.
Just as Ni Zhenzhen was about to call Xu Tianzhou over, her hand, which was resting on her lap, was suddenly grabbed.
"What's wrong?"
Xu Tianzhou smiled and casually mentioned a decision that would affect his entire life, "I want to change jobs."
Ni Zhenzhen was quite surprised, "Why? Isn't a rice noodle shop good?"
"I'm a bit tired of this and want a change of scenery." He turned his head and patted her head, as if joking, but also as if making a promise, "and also so that we can buy a villa sooner."
In the days that followed, the two of them were like tireless swallows, shuttling back and forth between the rented apartment and their new home whenever they had free time, moving things, cleaning, and installing chandeliers and faucets.
To save money, I have to do everything myself.
When Ni Zhenzhen heard Xu Tianzhou say that he would even install the chandelier himself, she immediately gave him a skeptical look, "Are you sure you can do it?"
Saving money is important, but life is even more important.
Xu Tianzhou dismissed it, "What's the big deal?"
He stood on a ladder borrowed from the property management, connecting wires while directing Ni Zhenzhen to hand him tools or control the switch of the meter box.
Ni Zhenzhen was like a soldier entrusted with an important task, cautious yet at a loss, checking several times before each switch.
She was terrified that something might happen to Xu Tianzhou, and she was on tenterhooks the whole time. Xu Tianzhou, on the other hand, was very calm and composed. His movements were clean and efficient, and his instructions were clear and steady. Even though it was his first time, he acted like a veteran.
At his command, Ni Zhenzhen pressed the chandelier switch.
The moment the chandelier lit up, Ni Zhenzhen could hardly believe her eyes. "Wow, you're amazing!"
Xu Tianzhou looked down at her, his gaze seemingly smug. "You underestimate me too much."
Installing the faucet later proved to be quite troublesome, but thanks to Xu Tianzhou's tireless efforts, it was finally done.
The renovation of the new home is now complete.
Ni Zhenzhen had imagined what her new home would look like; she even saved a lot of interior design pictures. However, they wouldn't be of any use for it in the short term. They didn't have money for renovations or furniture, and they would have to sleep on the floor for a long time.
Ni Zhenzhen calls this a Japanese-themed room.
They set a date for their official move and even joked that they would hold a grand housewarming ceremony on that day.
"What are you going to eat for your first meal in the new house?" Ni Zhenzhen asked.
"Let's have hot pot."
"Great, may it be prosperous and thriving."
Ni Zhenzhen was immersed in the joy of moving all day long, and was still communicating with the landlord about the details of terminating the lease when she and her colleagues got into the car.
The car belonged to a ride-hailing company, and the driver was dressed in formal attire, confirming his information with them according to procedure.
“That’s right,” my colleague replied.
At the same time, Ni Zhenzhen raised her head, her eyes filled with overwhelming emotions, and she called out in a trembling voice, "Dad..."
"Dad?" The colleague was surprised, and after a long while, she realized that her "Dad" sounded awkward. She looked at Ni Zhenzhen and asked in a low voice, "Is he really your dad?"
Ni Zhenzhen nodded.
The driver said, "You've mistaken me for someone else."
The voice was icy cold to the point of being heartless.
Tears streamed down her face, blurring Ni Zhenzhen's vision. Yet, even though she was blind, she could still recognize the voice as that of her father.
How could she possibly admit her mistake?
When she was little, she insisted on climbing a mountain, but once she got up there, she couldn't walk anymore. Her father didn't blame her and carried her down the mountain in one go.
When we reached the bottom of the mountain, Dad said with a smile, "It's a good thing you're still young. In a few years, I won't be able to carry you anymore."
Ni Zhenzhen said, "Then I'll carry Dad on my back."
From that day on, her father's back was deeply imprinted in her heart. Even as time passed and her father developed wrinkles and gray hair, she could never mistake him for someone else.
But why?
Why did my father become a ride-hailing driver?
After their separation, Ni Zhenzhen never expected that they would meet again under such circumstances, with her father becoming a full-time driver for a ride-hailing company.
Ni Zhenzhen called out again, this time with a voice more resolute than a rock, "Dad."
Unlike Ni Zhenzhen, Ni's father had fantasized countless times that the next passenger might be his daughter, but he had already come up with a solution: to pretend he didn't know her.
After all, they have severed ties.
This was the best decision Mr. Ni ever made in his life.
There are many noteworthy things about his life. For example, he ran a ticket agency business in his early years, and at his peak, he opened more than 20 ticket offices throughout the city. He was also a guest of honor for regional managers of airlines.
He believed he could provide his daughter with a life free from want, and that she would be happy forever.
Unfortunately, with the advent of the internet economy, he not only failed to adapt to the times and transform in time, but also mistakenly attributed the decline in performance to insufficient marketing. As a result, he risked everything by increasing advertising investment, which not only failed to save the business, but also accelerated the break of the capital chain. In the end, he had no choice but to sell the house to pay the rent for the store and the wages of the employees.
After their business failed, the couple considered leaving.
They said to Ni Zhenzhen in a consultative tone, "We're moving."
"Where to move to?" Ni Zhenzhen, who was still in elementary school, was completely unaware of the major changes that had occurred in her family and was still preparing for her upcoming play performance.
"A very far place."
"Then... what about going to school?"
The two remained silent for a long time, seemingly unsure how to answer. "So we need to change schools."
"What?" Ni Zhenzhen immediately burst into tears. "Does that mean I'll never see them again?"
She couldn't bear to part with her teachers and her childhood friends. They had made a promise to take a cruise together during the summer vacation, so how could she break her promise?
"Can we not leave?" Ni Zhenzhen pleaded with her parents, crying. "I promise I'll never eat chocolate again..."
Ni Zhenzhen's parents couldn't bear to see their child sad, and they didn't want to ruin her future.
Whether transferring to a public school will allow one to adapt is another matter, and the difficulty of the Gaokao (National College Entrance Examination) and studying abroad are not on the same level. After all, someone who can apply to a top 50 US university may not necessarily get into a university of equivalent global ranking through the Gaokao. Moreover, the experience and insights gained from studying abroad are completely different.
From then on, Ni's father made up his mind.
He stopped mentioning moving and instead carefully managed his money, making occasional investments and using his existing network to connect people with others.
He ran a consulting firm with only one person. During the day, he would pick up and drop off his children at school, and at night, he would attend various dinner parties, trying to earn some kickbacks whenever he could.
This business is not easy to do. It's like going six months without a sale, and then making enough to last six months. Sometimes, even after finally making a sale, you still have to face the risk of being cheated out of your business.
On one occasion, he had just used the "consulting fee" he received to pay his daughter's tuition when the client came knocking on his door. It turned out that the two, who were originally strangers, had become very close, and the client felt that he had taken the money for nothing and insisted that he return it.
Mr. Ni had no choice but to mortgage the house he was living in at the time in order to get a partial refund.
In order to gain the trust of his clients, he had to maintain a seemingly extravagant lifestyle. In addition, his daughter's expenses increased significantly after she went abroad. Forced by circumstances, Ni's father had no choice but to borrow money to make ends meet, resulting in his debts piling up. So when Ni Zhenzhen said that she and her boyfriend had obtained a marriage certificate abroad, their first reaction was that they could use this as an excuse to break off their relationship with her.
After Ni Zhenzhen left, they also left their original place of residence, which made the creditors realize the fact that Ni's father was a fake tycoon.
To avoid debt, the couple moved frequently. The new home Ni Zhenzhen saw was a bungalow in the countryside. The room was very simple, with some parts even showing exposed red bricks. There was no kitchen or toilet in the room; it was just enough to keep them occupied.
When she entered, Ni's mother was doing bookkeeping under a dim desk lamp. She seemed like a frightened bird, instinctively wanting to find a place to hide when she saw someone coming.
An even stranger sight was a cotton quilt hanging on the opposite window.
"That's so that the debt collectors won't find someone in the room," Mr. Ni explained expressionlessly.
Even in such a simple living environment, Ni Zhenzhen was surprised to find a well-packaged piano in the room.
Why not sell it?
“These are your things,” Ni Zhenzhen’s mother said. “How could we possibly sell them?”
Not only the piano, but also the certificates and trophies she won in competitions, the various plush toys that had accompanied her, and the textbooks with notes in them—all these things were carefully preserved when the couple was struggling to make ends meet.
Ni Zhenzhen could no longer hold back, but she didn't have time to burst into tears.
She took out her phone and called Xu Tianzhou. "Let's get a divorce."
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