Chapter 48 Shameful Affection
But he didn't even roll down the window; the car had already started, and the engine was humming softly.
The car window slowly rolled down, revealing his sharply defined face.
He stared straight ahead, his voice indifferent.
"If you run faster now, you can still make it to clock in if you take the bus."
Song Zhiwei: "..."
She stood there, her fingers still gripping the bag strap, silently rolling her eyes in her mind.
Well, she really overestimated this boss's conscience.
When she arrived at the company, she had just sat down when Xie Yi quickly walked over and handed her a stack of papers.
"Zhiwei, I need you to translate these documents. The client needs feedback this afternoon. There are a lot of foreign-related clauses, and you're the only one who knows them best."
Because Song Zhiwei had studied abroad and worked in a law firm for a while.
He has a solid foundation in English and is also familiar with legal terminology.
She's more adept at handling these international cases, and everyone is used to assigning her these kinds of tasks.
She didn't refuse, took the document, flipped through it casually, and asked, "When do you need it?"
"Can it be done before tomorrow night?"
Xie Yi rubbed his hands together, looking expectant.
She flipped through the materials, skimming through a few pages.
The dense technical jargon and English contract clauses are dizzying to read.
But she nodded anyway.
"Okay, I'll get to it quickly and try to get the first draft out tonight."
As a result, this stack of things took up her entire morning.
He typed rapidly on the keyboard, his eyes glued to the screen, barely looking away.
When her colleagues passed by her workstation, they saw her with a furrowed brow and incredibly fast typing speed, and none of them dared to disturb her.
I finally made it to noon.
Just as she was about to stand up and stretch her stiff shoulders, Xu Xiaoting peeked out from the next table and asked with a smile, "Zhiwei, want to go eat together? It's that newly opened Japanese restaurant; I heard the salmon is really fresh."
She was about to agree, and had just opened her mouth, when her phone suddenly rang.
The ringtone abruptly broke the silence of the office, and an unfamiliar number popped up on the screen.
She answered the phone, her fingertips lightly swiping across the screen, and asked softly, "Hello?"
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone.
Then a familiar yet long-lost voice came: "Zhiwei, can we meet and talk?"
Song Zhiwei's expression suddenly froze.
Her fingers unconsciously tightened around the edge of her phone.
"I have a lot of things to take care of... I might not be able to come today."
There was a pause on the other end of the phone, followed by Qiao Yiqing's gentle voice.
"It'll only be ten minutes, it really won't be long. Zhiwei, there are some things I've been wanting to tell you in person."
Song Zhiwei bit her lower lip, her Adam's apple bobbing slightly.
She knew that if she kept avoiding certain things, they would only become heavier and heavier, like a stone weighing on her heart.
Finally, she let out a soft sigh and said in a low voice, "Okay... then you can choose a place."
The coffee shop downstairs from the law firm.
The floor-to-ceiling windows reflected the afternoon sunlight.
Song Zhiwei pushed open the glass door, and the wind chimes rang crisply.
She looked around and her gaze quickly settled on the seat by the window.
Qiao Yiqing was already there, wearing a light beige trench coat.
As soon as he saw her come in, he immediately stood up and quickly went to greet her.
"Zhiwei, you've arrived."
Song Zhiwei forced a smile, revealing a faint one.
"Auntie."
The words had barely left her mouth when her heart skipped a beat.
Suddenly, the words Xie Lingling had casually mentioned a few days ago came to mind.
The way this title was uttered at this moment seemed particularly inappropriate.
Her heart tightened, and her face instantly flushed.
Qiao Yiqing didn't blame her; instead, she smiled gently.
This smile was different from before; it lacked the polite distance that often accompanied it.
“Zhiwei,” she said, taking Song Zhiwei’s hand and gently squeezing it in her palm, “I came to see you today because I wanted to apologize to you in person.”
Song Zhiwei was completely stunned. Her pupils trembled slightly, and her brows furrowed involuntarily.
"I'm sorry? Why? Auntie, you... have nothing to apologize for."
Her tone was full of doubt.
Qiao Yiqing took a deep breath and gently stroked the rim of the coffee cup with her fingers.
"That night, you called Zhiwei, and coincidentally... I answered the phone."
In an instant, Song Zhiwei tensed up, her back went cold, and her palms instantly broke out in a fine sweat.
"Is he... unhappy?"
She spoke almost instinctively, her voice trembling slightly.
This sounds really strange. The Line of Fire.
She hurriedly shook her head, desperately trying to explain.
“Auntie, Uncle isn’t that kind of person. He…he’s always been very respectful and considerate towards you. How could he…”
She couldn't continue.
She had personally witnessed how much Zhou Zhiwei cared for Qiao Yiqing.
“I used to think so too. But that night… he really broke up with me in person, and the reason was this phone call.”
The air seemed to freeze for a moment.
Song Zhiwei held her breath, her heart racing.
Qiao Yiqing raised her head, her eyes filled with a hint of grievance.
"I really didn't mean to. My phone was ringing on the bedside table. He was taking a shower, and the door was closed. I couldn't possibly knock and disturb him. The phone kept ringing, so I just picked it up. When I saw it was you, I answered it."
Her voice grew softer and softer, almost a whisper.
“I really didn’t mean to upset you, and I never expected... it would turn out like this.”
Upon hearing this, Song Zhiwei suddenly felt a tightness in her chest.
She lowered her head, her fingers trembling slightly, her lips moved, and finally she whispered, "Auntie, you've really misunderstood. I'm not that important."
That night was a memory from a long time ago.
She hid in her room, staring at the ceiling all night long.
But as the days went by, she gradually came to understand.
Some things should never have existed.
Some feelings are destined to be buried deep.
So she learned to let go, to suppress her emotions, to smile in front of others, and to hide all her feelings deep inside.
Over time, he truly let go of that matter.
Unexpectedly, Qiao Yiqing suddenly smiled, the curve of her lips seemingly gentle.
But the smile didn't reach his eyes.
"Zhiwei, I've always known in my heart that you like your uncle."
In that instant, it felt as if her internal organs had been shaken out of place.
Her ears were ringing, and the world seemed to collapse before her eyes.
She froze, as if her limbs and bones were frozen in ice.
She wanted to refute, to deny.
But it felt like something was tightly choking my throat, and I couldn't make a sound.
At that moment, she felt as if all her coverings had been stripped away, leaving her standing naked in the middle of the crowd.
She wanted to escape, to hide, to find a crack in the ground to crawl into.
But his feet seemed to be nailed to the ground, unable to move.
She clenched her fist so hard that her nails dug deep into her flesh.
She gritted her teeth and tried to keep her voice steady.
But the voice still trembled uncontrollably: "Auntie, you're overthinking it."
Qiao Yiqing, however, continued to stare into her eyes.
"Zhiwei, we're all women, there are some things you can't hide from me."
"It's not wrong for you to like Zhiwei."
She paused, her voice still gentle.
“You two are not related by blood at all, and he is such a good person—outstanding in appearance, character, and ability. You spend every day together, day and night, so it’s normal for feelings to develop over time.”
"Stop talking!"
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