Chapter 14 Hypocrisy
A few days later would be the anniversary of Lan Wangshu's death, and Xu Jialan returned to Beijing ahead of time.
However, he did not go home, but instead checked into a hotel.
During this time, Xu Qingbang called him once, but he didn't answer.
On the anniversary of Lan Wangshu's death, Xu Jialan bought a bunch of lilies of the valley and went to her grave. These were her favorite flowers.
The cemetery is on a mountain, and there are hardly any people in sight. The flowers placed in front of the graves have withered and rotted, lifeless.
Xu Jialan, holding a bouquet of lilies of the valley, arrived at Lan Wangshu's tomb.
He stared blankly at Lan Wangshu's photo for a while, then placed the flowers under the tombstone.
In his memory, Lan Wangshu rarely smiled, and the photo on his tombstone also showed that although he was smiling, there was always a sense of sorrow between his brows.
Does Xu Jialan not know what to say to her, or how to share his life?
However, he felt that his life had nothing worth sharing; it was monotonous and lacked any novelty.
However, he then thought of Dai County and Chen Yao'an.
He sat down on the ground in front of the tombstone and began to tell his story.
"I recently went to a place called Dai County. It's a small county town with a backward economy. Not many people know about it, but the nights there are very quiet, and you can see the clear blue sky when you look up."
He smiled as he said this.
"Oh, and I also met an interesting and very pretty girl there, she..."
His voice suddenly stopped.
He actually saw Xu Qingbang here, with Liu Minggan following behind him.
He remained seated, waiting for Xu Qingbang to come over.
Xu Qingbang walked up to Lan Wangshu's grave. Xu Jialan stared at him intently, her eyes unfriendly. "What are you doing here?"
Xu Qingbang glanced at the tombstone behind him. "I've come to see your mother."
Xu Jialan stood up from the ground, sneered, and said with a sarcastic tone, "I remember you've never come to see her before."
Xu Qingbang's eyes flickered for a moment, then quickly returned to normal.
He changed the subject: "You're back, why don't you go home to stay?"
Sure enough, she came specifically to see him.
Xu Jialan's sarcasm deepened. "Why should I go back? If you're not here to pay respects to my mother today, then get out!"
"How dare you talk to me like that! But seriously, I did come here today to pay respects to your mother."
Xu Qingbang pretended to turn to Lan Wangshu's tombstone, his voice tinged with sorrow, "Wangshu, I've come to see you. I don't know if you're doing well over there. I'll take good care of our son."
They came to pay their respects empty-handed.
Xu Qingbang's hypocrisy disgusted him!
"Is the performance over? If it's over, then get out!"
Xu Qingbang really didn't have much patience. "Do you really have to talk to me like that?!"
"Then how should I talk to you? Treat you like the chairman of the board and be extremely respectful to you? Do you deserve that?"
Xu Jialan's disdain infuriated Xu Qingbang. "You bastard! Are you trying to drive me crazy?"
Xu Jialan chuckled, seemingly unconcerned, "It's good that he's dead."
"...You!" Xu Qingbang clutched his heart with one hand and pointed at him with the other, "You unfilial son!"
Xu Jialan remained unmoved by his curses, her tone nonchalant: "Is this the first day you've heard of this?"
Xu Qingbang was so angry that he clutched his heart and gasped for a long time before he could calm down. Liu Minggan supported him from the side.
"Everything I do is for your own good, and this is how you treat me?"
He then turned to Lan Wangshu's tombstone and said with deep sorrow, "You've been gone for so many years, and it's my fault for not raising our children well."
"Your mother entrusted you with the task of learning how to manage the company, but now you're just idling around all day!"
"Really? I've never heard my mom mention that."
Xu Jialan had had enough of his pretentious and disgusting act. "Get out of here right now, or don't blame me for kicking you out!"
Xu Qingbang stared at him for a long time, his face full of disappointment, and finally he could only leave dejectedly.
Xu Jialan's gaze fell on the tomb of Lan Wangshu.
Xu Qingbang had his driver bring the car up, and the car was parked next to the cemetery.
As Xu Qingbang came down from the mountain, a woman in a sexy red dress immediately got out of the car, ran over and considerately took his arm, and the two got into the car together.
Xu Jialan seemed to suddenly sense something and glanced in Xu Qingbang's direction, just in time to see a red skirt hem disappearing into the car.
He frowned; he knew it was Xu Qingbang's car.
After the anniversary of Lan Wangshu's death, Xu Jialan did not rush back to Dai County. During that time, he went home to pick up some things.
He heard that Xu Qingbang had been unwell recently and had been resting at home.
As soon as he entered the house, he noticed the woman sitting in the living room.
The woman wore a long halter dress and had sexy chestnut-colored wavy hair; she looked to be in her thirties.
Xu Jialan frowned deeply, her tone extremely unfriendly: "Who are you?"
The woman stood up from the sofa, looked at him, and introduced herself: "I am your father's family doctor, my name is Xiang Wan."
Knowing his identity, and that he seemed quite familiar with their family, Xu Jialan didn't hesitate to look her up and down without any hesitation.
"Family doctor?"
"That's right."
Xu Jialan laughed out of the blue. "This is the first time I've ever seen a family doctor dressed like this. Role-playing? You really like to give yourself a noble profession."
Xu Jialan's contempt was undisguised; she looked at Xiang Wan as if she were a prostitute. Xiang Wan's face turned pale and then red.
At this moment, Xu Qingbang entered the living room. He had obviously heard Xu Jialan's words earlier, and his tone was very unpleasant, "Xu Jialan, how dare you speak to Dr. Xiang like that?"
Xu Jialan glanced at Xiang Wan again, her disdain undisguised. "If this is the kind of doctor you've found, I suggest you find another one as soon as possible."
Xu Qingbang didn't intend to get entangled with him about this. "Why did you come back?"
"Don't worry, I'll just grab my things and leave."
Xu Jialan went upstairs by himself. He first went to Lan Wangshu's old room and sat there for a while.
This room was forcibly preserved by Lan Wangshu after his death, but Xu Qingbang didn't care and never touched it.
When he comes back, he will definitely move everything out of here.
After packing a few clothes for herself in her room, Xu Jialan went downstairs and left without even saying goodbye.
Xu Qingbang stared at the tightly closed door, feeling a sense of disappointment and frustration. How could he have given birth to such a good-for-nothing son!
Does his company really need to rely on him?
Xu Jialan did not stay in Beijing any longer and returned directly to Dai County the next day.
On the third day after he returned, he received Lan Wangshu's belongings sent by Xu Qingbang.
He opened the box and took a look. Inside were some things that Lan Wangshu used to use, an envelope, and several photos of the three of them as a family.
It's clearly Xu Qingbang's masterpiece.
Xu Jialan found it ironic that ever since Xu Qingbang's health deteriorated, he had gone from ignoring him to deliberately trying to please him, hoping that he would inherit his company, fearing that someone else would benefit from it.
He casually tossed the photos back into the box, then tucked the box away in the corner of the cabinet, not wanting to look at it again.
-
Since Xu Jialan left her last time, Chen Yaoan has never seen him or contacted him again.
After that last time, she felt that this was exactly what she wanted.
Time flies, but some things and some people are just unavoidable.
That day, she bumped into Xu Jialan at the Silver Field Bar.
Shi Xinyu's clothes were finished, and since the two hadn't seen each other for a long time, they arranged to meet, and she helped her bring the clothes over.
When Chen Yaoan arrived at Yinye Bar, it wasn't late, but there were already a few scattered tables of customers. In one of the booths, Xu Jialan and his friends were sitting, one of whom she had seen before at the police station.
Xu Jialan sank into the sofa, holding a glass of wine in his hand, a smile on his lips. The people around him were chatting and laughing, and he blended in with them, yet remained detached from them.
However, his eyes were frighteningly calm.
He wasn't in a good state the day he left.
What happened?
Just as she was lost in thought, Shi Xinyu called her name.
She came to her senses and realized that this was none of her business.
She handed the clothes in her hand to Shi Xinyu, "Go try them on."
"Then let's go to the lounge."
The two went into the lounge together. Shi Xinyu changed her clothes and was extremely satisfied with the dress. She stood in front of the mirror, striking poses.
“The size is just right.” She shrugged, her chest subtly visible, but not exaggeratedly so. “I’ll wear it to entertain the guests tonight.”
Chen Yao'an smiled, quite satisfied with herself.
"I'm going to the restroom."
Shi Xinyu was too busy admiring her own figure to turn her head, and simply said, "Mm."
When Chen Yao'an came out of the bathroom, she bumped into Xu Jialan's friend, who was looking around suspiciously.
He turned to look in Chen Yao'an's direction, but Chen Yao'an continued walking forward as if nothing had happened.
After walking a short distance, I felt uneasy and couldn't put my mind at ease.
After hesitating for a moment, she turned back and went in the direction Ma Qi had gone.
This road leads to the back gate of Yinye, and Chen Yaoan stood inside the gate without going out.
Soon, voices could be heard outside. The first to speak was Xu Jialan's friend.
Did you bring your things?
"You brought it? Do you need this much this time?"
"My friend has been in a bad mood these past few days, so he's eating something to relax."
Friend? Could he be referring to Xu Jialan?
Also, what did he buy? Chen Yaoan had a feeling it wasn't anything good.
She gripped the doorknob; the metal handle was cool, but her palms were sweaty.
With her heart pounding, she gently opened the door a crack.
The two were making a transaction, while another man with messy hair and a thuggish appearance was present.
Xu Jialan's friend handed the man a wad of cash, and then the man handed him a bag containing what appeared to be medicine.
Shi Xinyu runs a bar and has come into contact with all sorts of people. She had heard her mention before that some people secretly trade drugs that can give people a sense of pleasure.
Chen Yao'an's heart was pounding wildly.
Could it be Xu Jialan...?
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