Unbearable pain
The call was from Qin Enyu. Chen Nanxing breathed a sigh of relief and walked aside with his phone to answer it.
The main purpose of Qin Enyu's call was to inquire about Chen Nanxing's current situation. She also explained that the reason she called to express her condolences three days after Chen Nanxing posted the video was because Jiang Shiyu was hospitalized with influenza in the past two days.
Chen Nanxing first expressed concern for Jiang Shiyu's health. After receiving the reply that everything was fine, she immediately said that she was fine. She had successfully divorced Lin Shanglu, and the relevant procedures had been handed over to professionals. She would return to Zhaofeng from City B today and would live in Zhaofeng permanently in the future.
Although Chen Nanxing and Qin Enyu had known each other for a short time, they hit it off right away and often contacted each other on WeChat when they had nothing to do. Therefore, Qin Enyu also knew that Chen Nanxing went to Zhaofeng to help girls in the mountains go to school.
Before that series of supernatural and bizarre events happened, Qin Enyu was a glorious people's teacher. She understood the importance of teaching and educating people, so Qin Enyu said without hesitation that if Chen Nanxing needed her help, he could just ask.
The two of them had a great conversation, like old friends who hadn't seen each other for years, with endless topics to talk about.
The call finally ended when Chu Zhenghe on the other end of the phone reminded Qin Enyu that it was early morning and time to go to bed. The two of them hung up the phone reluctantly.
The call lasted for more than an hour. With the buffer of time, the atmosphere that had lingered between Chen Nanxing and Ji Chuan just now disappeared completely.
Chen Nanxing wanted to pretend that nothing had happened and asked Ji Chuan about his next itinerary as if nothing had happened.
"Xiao Ji, what are you doing next?"
The atmosphere had dissipated, and Chen Nanxing obviously didn't want to continue that topic. Ji Chuan followed Chen Nanxing's suggestion and turned the page, saying:
"I'm going to Mega Feng too."
Chen Nanxing nodded. City B had too many memories in it, and she couldn't stay there any longer. She set off with Ji Chuan that day. By evening, she had already appeared in the residential building where she rented in Zhaofeng.
In City B, Lin Shanglu, tired after a whole day's work, pushed open the door of his home in Yongjing Mansion and unexpectedly found that the house was brightly lit.
He stood in a daze at the entrance, watching several strangers walking back and forth in his house, while his former assistant Qi Feng, who had just completed the resignation procedures with him today, was standing in the middle of the living room giving orders.
"This coat is in that box, yes, that one."
Qi Feng pointed at a beige windbreaker on the sofa and said, then he froze when he turned around and saw Lin Shanglu.
"Lin, General Lin..."
Lin Shanglu's face darkened instantly: "Qi Feng, what are you doing?"
He glanced around the living room and found that many of Chen Nanxing's personal belongings had been packed into cartons: the books she often placed on the coffee table, her collection of scented candles, and several of her favorite art pieces...
Looking around, a large area of the living room was empty.
Qi Feng stepped forward nervously. "Mr. Lin, my wife asked me to come here. She asked me to sort out all her personal belongings, sell everything that can be sold, and throw away everything that can't be sold."
Lin Shanglu's chest tightened, and he strode towards the bedroom. Qi Feng followed closely behind him and tried to explain.
The scene in the bedroom was even more shocking. The door to the closet was wide open, and Chen Nanxing's clothes had been almost completely cleared out, leaving only a few empty hangers. Her skincare and makeup products were gone from the dressing table, leaving only the couple's rings he gave her every birthday.
There were exactly twelve pairs, placed one after another on the dressing table.
"Why don't you accept this?" Lin Shanglu picked up an empty box closest to him, his fingertips trembling slightly.
"My wife said that the wedding ring is a part of you, so leave it here." Qi Feng answered in a low voice.
Because of him, you don't want anything anymore, right?
Lin Shanglu turned around abruptly, anger burning in his eyes: "Who allowed you to come in? This is my home!"
Chen Nanxing was grateful to Qi Feng for his help, so Qi Feng had to help him:
"Mr. Lin, my wife has the key here, and she has entrusted a lawyer to handle the relevant procedures. Legally speaking..."
Lin Shanglu couldn't listen to these words at all. Veins on his forehead bulged and he almost shouted:
"Get out of my house!"
The workers were just hired to do the work and knew nothing. After hearing Lin Shanglu's shout, they stopped what they were doing and looked at Qi Feng in confusion.
Qi Feng took a deep breath and took out a document from his briefcase:
"Mr. Lin, this is the power of attorney signed by my wife, which clearly authorizes me to handle all of her personal belongings in Yongjing Mansion. If you have any objections, you can contact her attorney."
Lin Shanglu snatched the document and quickly scanned the familiar signature—Chen Nanxing's handwriting, crisp and clear, without any hesitation. His fingers gripped the edge of the paper tightly, nearly breaking it.
"Is she really... going to go this far?" His voice suddenly dropped, and his whole body deflated like a popped balloon. He stood there dejectedly, tears gathering in his eyes.
Qi Feng winked at the workers, and they quietly left the bedroom, leaving the two of them alone.
"That's my wife's personality. She said since it's over, it should be over completely." Qi Feng whispered.
Lin Shanglu slowly sat down beside the bed, his eyes scanning the space that was once filled with Chen Nanxing's aura with empty eyes.
The sleeping mask she always wore on the bedside table was gone, the bedtime reading material she placed on his side was gone, and even her toothbrush, her towels, and her bottles and jars in the bathroom were all cleared away.
This home is being systematically erased of all traces of Chen Nanxing's existence.
"This, is she going to sell it too?" Lin Shanglu asked, pointing to an inconspicuous box in the corner of the cloakroom.
Qi Feng walked over and opened the box. Inside were all kinds of travel souvenirs that Chen Nanxing had collected—masks, souvenirs, and even photos of them piled up in one corner...
Most of them were worthless things. Qi Feng shook his head:
"No, my wife said to just throw these things away."
Lin Shanglu suddenly stood up and walked quickly to the study. The situation in the study was equally heartbreaking - Chen Nanxing's favorite books, her collection of vinyl records, and the shawls and blankets she had knitted herself were all gone.
There was only a photo frame in the corner of the desk, which contained a photo of them taken at the beach on their third wedding anniversary. Lin Shanglu reached out to pick up the frame, but found that the photo inside had been removed. He suddenly realized that it seemed that all their photos had been put away.
He could no longer hold on, so he held on to the edge of the desk and slowly slid down to the ground.
"How can you be so decisive and leave me nothing?" He muttered to himself in a hoarse voice.
Qi Feng stood at the door of the study, silently watching the man who had once been a powerful figure in the business world. Now he was curled up on the ground, his shoulders beginning to tremble slightly.
At first, it was just a few suppressed sobs, then it turned into uncontrollable sobs. Lin Shanglu buried his face in his palms, tears seeping through his fingers. He cried like a lost child, in this half-emptied home, for the woman who had resolutely walked out of his life.
Qi Feng stood at the door of the study, listening to the suppressed crying from inside. Finally, he sighed silently and gently closed the door completely, isolating the two worlds inside and outside.
Chen Nanxing was very kind to him, and Lin Shanglu was the boss he had followed for so many years, so Qi Feng had to give him the proper respect.
He turned around, waved to the bewildered workers in the living room, and whispered:
"Let's stop here for today and talk about the rest tomorrow. You guys go back first."
The workers felt as if they had been granted amnesty and quickly and quietly left this oppressive and suffocating place.
Qi Feng did not leave immediately. He stood in the much more spacious living room for a while. He could still vaguely hear the broken sobs coming from the study.
He had followed Lin Shanglu for many years. He had seen him strategize at the negotiation table and get furious when a project failed, but he had never seen him so fragile and vulnerable as he was at this moment.
If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have done it in the first place.
Qi Feng didn't know how to judge their relationship.
After a long time, the crying in the study gradually subsided, leaving only dead silence.
Qi Feng went to the kitchen to pour a glass of warm water, knocked gently on the study door, and then pushed it open and walked in.
Lin Shanglu was still sitting on the floor, his back against the desk, his head tilted back, his eyes closed, tears still lingering in the corners of his eyes. He looked as if all his strength had been drained away, revealing a deep sense of fatigue and decadence.
"Mr. Lin, have some water." Qi Feng placed the cup of water next to him.
Lin Shanglu didn't open his eyes, but his Adam's apple rolled, and his voice was very hoarse: "What else did she say?"
Qi Feng was silent for a moment, then told the truth: "My wife only said that all her personal belongings should be cleared out and sold, and the cash proceeds should be directly deposited into the account she designated. There is nothing else."
"No more..." Lin Shanglu muttered these three words, a smile uglier than crying appeared on the corner of his mouth. "That's her style of doing things. She leaves as soon as she says she will, clean and neat."
He opened his eyes and looked around the space that was once filled with memories of the two of them, now roughly half-erased. The figure always curled up on the sofa reading, the back of her making soup for him in the kitchen, the silhouette of her tending to the flowers on the balcony... It seemed as if they were all before him, yet out of reach, and being completely erased bit by bit.
If Lin Shanglu wants to stay, he has to stay too.
"Qi Feng." Lin Shanglu's voice was heavily nasal, but his tone was almost numb and calm. "I'll bring someone to her house tomorrow for an appraisal. I'll buy all her things."
Qi Feng was a little embarrassed: "Mr. Lin, my wife said she won't sell it to you."
As expected of the person who knows him best, Lin Shanglu smiled bitterly and covered his face with his hands: "Okay, I'll bring someone else to buy it."
Both of them were hopelessly stubborn. After Qi Feng finished his internal complaints, he nodded and said, "Yes, Mr. Lin."
Lin Shanglu's nose was red, and he waved his hand to send the person away: "Go out, I want to be alone for a while."
Qi Feng followed his instructions and left, gently closing the door again.
Lin Shanglu was the only one left in the huge house. He held onto the desk, staggered to his feet, and walked to the window.
Outside the window were the bright lights of the city. They lived on the top floor and had a great view.
In the past, Chen Nanxing always liked to pull him to stand here to watch the night view, saying that the lights here were like stars.
But now, the stars have fallen, and he is completely black.
Lin Shanglu slowly slid down to sit on the floor, his back against the cold glass window, looking at this home that had lost the aura of its hostess and had become empty and cold.
Without her belongings, without her presence, this place is just a lifeless building.
Knowing that she can't tolerate any grain of sand in her eyes, why did she take that step in the first place?
Tears silently slid down his face again. This time, there was no hysteria, only endless regret and loneliness deep in his bones, which completely swallowed him up in the silent night.
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