Finally, the light of day appeared.
Lin Tingyue listened quietly, gazing at the other person.
"You can continue working here even if you don't say anything."
Tears streamed down the assistant's face. "Sister Yue, I'm so sorry. I haven't been sleeping well these past few days. Seeing you and President Chi because of this... I just can't take it anymore. I can't face you, because you're such a good person, so..."
Lin Tingyue remained silent for a moment, then took out a document from the drawer.
"Actually, I already knew."
The assistant was stunned.
"That day I asked you to come back and copy the files, and you said you ran into Xiao Zhang. So I secretly checked the duty roster, but I've been waiting for you to say it out loud."
"Why...?"
"Because I wanted to know if you would take responsibility for this mistake." Lin Tingyue looked at her. "Now that you're here, that's good."
The assistant stood there, bewildered.
“If you want to leave, you can, but not now.” Lin Tingyue pushed the documents over. “I’ll give you a month to finish up the projects you’re working on and train the new people to take over. You have to take responsibility for your mistakes, but running away is not being responsible.”
The assistant stared at her blankly, then finally nodded emphatically.
“However, I need to correct one thing: my matter with Chi Zhuo has nothing to do with your matter, so you don’t need to blame yourself.”
The assistant nodded subconsciously, but couldn't help asking more questions.
"Sister Yue, did you two... have a fight?"
Lin Tingyue's eyes turned cold. "Go to work first. I'll call you if I need anything."
The assistant didn't dare say anything more and quickly left.
Chi Zhuo had warned her before, but she always thought that feelings could solve everything. Now it seems that rules are indeed more important than anything else.
"From the day I met you, all the scenery has gained meaning. No matter how many storms the future may bring, you are the only thing I am certain of in my heart..."
The sudden ringing of her phone pulled Lin Tingyue back to reality.
It had been a long time since anyone had called her; this was the first call of the year.
"Hello..." Her voice sounded weak.
"Tingyue, it's me! Chengji."
Lin Tingyue held her phone, her fingertips slightly cold. Cheng Ji's voice on the other end of the line was still cheerful, as if they had just met yesterday.
"What's the matter?"
Cheng Ji got straight to the point, "I know this may be a bit presumptuous, but I really do want to tell you something about Chi Zhuo today."
"Why did you contact me?" she asked softly.
“Because I can see that you are both very important to each other.” Cheng Ji said sincerely, “Sometimes, understanding a person’s past is the key to understanding their present.”
An hour later, Cheng Ji's car stopped downstairs at the company. Lin Tingyue hesitated for a moment, then opened the car door and got in.
The car drove out of the city and into the suburbs. As the scenery became increasingly desolate, Lin Tingyue's heart sank.
This place looked familiar to her; Chi Zhuo had brought her to this area before.
"This is it." Cheng Ji parked the car in front of an old residential area that was about to be demolished.
Lin Tingyue got out of the car and saw a dilapidated area of buildings with peeling paint, broken windows, and only a few families still living there.
Compared to the surrounding high-rise buildings, this place looks like an abandoned old site.
“Chi Zhuo lives on the second floor of that building,” Cheng Ji said, pointing to one of the oldest buildings. “He’s lived there for almost nine years.”
Cheng Ji led her up the creaking stairs to a rusty iron gate.
The door wasn't locked. Cheng Ji pushed it open and found the room empty except for dust and peeling paint.
However, it's clear that the house is fully equipped, with a kitchen, living room, and bathroom, but they are now abandoned.
Standing in the empty room, Lin Tingyue found it hard to imagine that Chi Zhuo, who was always neatly dressed and elegant, had spent his childhood here.
"Could you show me around?" she asked softly.
Cheng Ji nodded and led her around the small house, which was less than forty square meters.
A cramped kitchen, a drafty bathroom, and a small balcony that's the only place where the sun shines.
"What was Chi Zhuo like when he was a child?" Lin Tingyue couldn't help but ask.
Cheng Ji leaned against the window, his gaze distant.
"He mentioned that he used to be quiet and always read books on the balcony. His nanny was in poor health, so he learned to cook and do laundry at a very young age. Once, when he had a fever, he insisted on going to the market to pick up vegetable scraps because the vendors would discard the less fresh vegetables that day. Later, the nanny got old and quit her job. He was left alone at home with no one to take care of him, so he wandered around and barely survived thanks to the help of his neighbors and some street vendors."
Lin Tingyue's eyes were almost incredulous. "He...he's Old Master Chi's own grandson, and this is how they treat him?"
Cheng Ji sneered, "Tingyue, the Chi family is a family that doesn't care about feelings; only interests matter. When Chi Zhuo is no longer important to them, whether he lives or dies is none of their concern. Besides, Aunt Su had no feelings for Uncle Chi back then either. Who would care about a child born into such a family?"
At that moment, Lin Tingyue suddenly understood that what Chi Zhuo had said while cooking in the kitchen was actually based on his real experiences.
Did he have any friends at that time?
“Almost none.” Cheng Ji shook his head. “The children think he’s poor and won’t play with him. Behind his back, there’s a group of people who say he was born of a father but raised by no mother…”
"Do you know why he's so strict with his work?" Cheng Ji asked.
Lin Tingyue shook her head.
“Because he knew from a young age that there was no turning back. One mistake could mean going hungry. One moment of slack could mean losing your only chance.” Cheng Ji sighed. “So when he realized you were about to face danger, he chose to shield you from it all, so you wouldn’t end up in the same situation as him.”
Lin Tingyue suddenly realized that in Chi Zhuo's worldview, this might be a matter of life and death.
He wasn't cold-hearted, he just lived too cautiously.
"Why did you bring me here?" she asked Cheng Ji.
“Because Chi Zhuo will never tell you these things.” Cheng Ji looked directly into her eyes. “He hides all his vulnerability, just like when he was a child. But he needs to understand that now there is someone willing to accept everything about him, including the parts he is trying to hide.”
Lin Tingyue looked around this space filled with memories and suddenly noticed some scratches on the corner of the wall.
She went closer to take a closer look and found that there were several scratches of varying depths, with dates marked next to them, which were records of her height.
From age five to ten, year after year, this record documented a child's growth.
Next to the last scratch, there was a line of small, childishly carved words: "I will definitely become a very powerful person."
Lin Tingyue's tears finally fell.
She had always thought that Chi Zhuo's domineering and controlling nature was innate, but now she realized that it was the only way for a child who had to control his own destiny from a young age to survive.
He buried all his tenderness in this dilapidated old house, and entered her world with a hard shell.
"Thank you for bringing me here," Lin Tingyue said softly. "I finally understand."
Cheng Ji stood by the window, looking at the horizon, recounting the past of Chi Zhuo.
"When I first met Chi Zhuo, he was always cold and sarcastic, and he never spoke more than three sentences. But after spending more time with him, I realized that he was the one who was the most caring. It's just that he was good at hiding his emotions, and you were the one who could influence his emotions. Did you know that Chi Zhuo injured his leg because of you?"
"Because of me?"
Cheng Ji turned around and said, "Yes. Chi Zhuo didn't want me to tell you at first. We were skiing in Zurich when he saw your post online. He knew you were heartbroken and in great pain, so he was distracted and injured his wrist. After he recovered, he had someone check your address overnight and followed you on a plane abroad."
"What!"
Lin Tingyue was completely shocked at this moment.
"Lin Tingyue, don't tell me you can't tell that Chi Zhuo has always liked you?"
Lin Tingyue was shocked. She knew that Chi Zhuo liked her, but she didn't know it was at that time, when she hadn't even met Chi Zhuo yet.
Cheng Ji saw Lin Tingyue's expression and immediately guessed what was going on.
"Damn! Chi Zhuo actually kept it from you."
"What is he hiding from me?" Lin Tingyue could no longer hold back. Her eyes were brimming with tears as she desperately grabbed Cheng Ji. "Tell me quickly, what is he hiding from me?"
"Okay, okay, I'll tell you everything."
Looking at Lin Tingyue's anxious eyes, Cheng Ji sighed: "Actually, Chi Zhuo has known you for a long time, much longer than you think."
He took out his phone and found an old photo in his cloud storage album.
The photo shows a campus speech contest, where a girl with a ponytail is passionately presenting her views on stage. That girl is Lin Tingyue in her second year of high school.
“This is…” Lin Tingyue was stunned.
“You probably don’t even remember this photo from your second year of high school. Chi Zhuo keeps showing it off, and he often mentions what you looked like when he first saw you at school.”
"But while you were still studying, he quietly watched over you, not easily interfering in your life. Even after you went to university and got a boyfriend, he still didn't interfere too much. Because you felt you were free, you were a flower blooming brightly under the sun, while he had come out of the mud..."
Cheng Ji didn't say anything more.
"So, when he learned that you had been betrayed, he immediately went after you, but in the end you..."
Lin Tingyue burst into tears again. So, Chi Zhuo's appearance in Vishitand was not accidental; he came for her.
“After you left, he stayed in the hotel for another week, and only came back after he learned that you had returned to China,” Cheng Ji sighed. “But he was really heartbroken when he came back that time.”
Lin Tingyue suddenly realized that the methods Chi Zhuo used against her back then were probably his way of getting revenge on her, and he was telling her about his grievances.
Why didn't he tell me all this?
Cheng Ji smiled bitterly, "Do you think Chi Zhuo is the kind of person who would say anything? He would rather make sacrifices himself than use this kind of thing to blackmail you. He said that if you were sober that day, he would take you home, but in the end you ran away, and he doesn't blame you."
But when you came to him again for the sake of your family, he went completely mad. He hated that you had disregarded yourself for the sake of profit and become a puppet to be manipulated by others. So he struggled for a long time, drowning his sorrows in alcohol every day. When he was drunk at night, he would complain to me how much he wanted to lock you up so that you wouldn't be able to escape again.
But later, he gave up; he didn't want to treat you that way. However, you kept appearing, causing him both pain and inner turmoil. Finally, because of your father, he found an opportunity. He overruled everyone's objections, using a company project as leverage, and proposed a marriage alliance with your family.
Lin Tingyue seemed to wake from a dream, and she asked softly, "Where is he now? I want to see him."
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