Chapter 48 Chapter 48 There are many men chasing me.
Lu Lijuan has lived for more than 40 years, and this is the first time she has left Yanping.
She heard from her coworkers that many high-end restaurants in big cities have waiters standing at the tables while cooking, so she was nervous for a while after entering the restaurant.
Fortunately, this uncomfortable thing did not happen. After the waiter brought their orders, he did not come close to disturb them.
Lu Lijuan breathed a sigh of relief, and said embarrassedly: "Xiao Ji, did it affect you and your friends going out to play?"
"No, he had something to do and just borrowed my car today." Ji Qian had already discussed a countermeasure with Chi Ke.
Lu Lijuan couldn't help but think of the man in the co-pilot seat again. She felt he was very familiar when they met last time.
...It must be just an illusion.
It is impossible for that child to be so elegant and oppressive, because the person sleeping in the passenger seat didn't dare to say a word on the road just now. She just lay there with her arms folded, which made people very nervous.
Lu Lijuan put aside her suspicion and thanked him sincerely: "Xiao Ji, I really troubled you today."
"Auntie? I called you here to play, so of course I should treat you well." Ji Qian asked Chi Yuanfan for a set of children's tableware, "In the past two years, there have been a lot of tourists."
He was smiling all the time and his attitude was warm. Lu Lijuan's tense nerves relaxed unconsciously and she gradually opened up: "Who doesn't know S City? It's as famous as the capital. Isn't the riverside here beautiful at night?"
Ji Qian was surprised: "Auntie came prepared?"
Lu Lijuan quickly waved her hands: "I just heard a few words from others."
Ji Qian said apologetically: "So you have acquaintances here. I hope I didn't delay your trip?"
"No, of course not." Lu Lijuan twisted her fingers together, her face looking a little unhappy. After a while, she spoke with difficulty, "My son works here."
"I remember now. I heard you say before that he must be very good! I didn't expect that he also works here by chance." Ji Qian spoke as if he was chatting with his family. "Where did you go to play before you came here?"
Lu Lijuan's lips were pale and she shook her head awkwardly: "This is my first time."
Ji Qian paused, and put down his chopsticks with great guilt: "I'm sorry."
"It's okay. I haven't contacted my son for a long time."
When people hold it in for too long, the desire to talk can often be turned on with just a switch. Maybe it was because Ji Qian made people feel too comfortable. In any case, after saying this, Lu Lijuan couldn't stop.
Ji Qian immediately patted Chi Yuanfan on the back. Chi Yuanfan sensibly put down his chopsticks and went to find the waiter to go to the children's park where Ji Qian could see it with his naked eyes.
…
When Lu Lijuan was seven years old, her parents divorced. Neither of them wanted her, and they left her to her grandparents before leaving. They never heard from her again.
Her grandparents passed away when she was fourteen years old. Lu Lijuan dropped out of school before finishing junior high school and worked outside to earn money to support herself.
But she is not a very smart or perceptive person. She is not talkative and her personality is not likable. She is bullied by her boss and colleagues at work, and pointed at and laughed at by her former classmates and neighbors in her daily life.
She had just entered society and suffered a lot, so Chi Zhengbing just helped her casually, and she took the bait and was deceived. It was not until Chi Zhengbing disappeared that she realized the seriousness of the matter.
The time when Lu Lijuan was pregnant with her eldest son is the time she least wants to recall.
Yanping is not big, and the news of Chi Zhengbing's disappearance quickly spread to everyone. After that, wherever she went, people would look at her belly and talk about it.
The rumor changed as it spread. One time, a child pointed at her nose and said, "Your husband ran away with someone else." She was so angry that she trembled all over. After that, until her child was born, she never traveled far.
Lu Lijuan hated Chi Zhengbing very much, and also hated the child in her belly who came at an inopportune time.
It’s not that she hadn’t tried to have an abortion, but she didn’t notice it when the pregnancy was too early, and it was difficult to do it when the pregnancy was too late. She didn’t dare go to the hospital for fear of being laughed at the next day. After fiddling with it at home for a while, she failed to get rid of the baby, and instead tortured herself to the point where she was almost sent to the hospital for gastric lavage.
After her son was born, Lu Lijuan tried to secretly throw him away.
The child was thrown into the garbage station. She went home and took a nap, thinking that whether the child was picked up and raised or sold, it was the child's fate.
But when I went to check the next day, the child was still there, but he was freezing and dying. His whole body was burning and he was about to die.
Lu Lijuan really thought about turning a blind eye.
But in the end, I couldn't bear to send him to the hospital. I spent a lot of money on medical expenses and barely saved the child's life.
During those days, she sat in the stairwell of the hospital, knitting sweaters with tears in her eyes every day.
Because she knew that she would be inseparable from the child in the future.
Day after day, year after year, Lu Lijuan loved and hated her son.
She knew very well that this child was a well-behaved one among millions. While other children were still lying on the ground and throwing tantrums to ask for toys, her own child had already collected the plastic bottles at home and was waiting to sell them to the scrap yard.
He seldom cries and never makes a fuss, and is as well-behaved as a tomboy.
From this point of view, Lu Lijuan liked him, but every time she saw him, she would think of the rumors and gossip from other people, the man who cruelly played missing, and the huge amount of real money he spent on the children. Lu Lijuan couldn't help but hate him and didn't dare to take him out.
After Chi Zhengbing was captured, he saw that she had given birth to a son. Although he was reluctant, he still reluctantly agreed to get married.
Lu Lijuan agreed almost immediately.
No matter what this man is like, at least I won’t have to be the topic of conversation after dinner because of raising a child alone.
At that time, her network was very small, so small that everyone's thinking was very feudal, and no one thought anything was wrong.
They acknowledge that divorce is shameful and dishonorable, but they don't think that having a scumbag husband is any more miserable.
This idea took root in Lu Lijuan's mind and she has not been able to change it until now.
After getting married, her son became more sensible.
She doesn’t cry or make a fuss, she studies hard, learns to do housework clumsily, and knows how to please her dad, because when her dad is happy he will be nicer to her mom.
Chi Zhengbing was really gentle and family-oriented for a while. Although he still quarreled with Lu Lijuan, he worked diligently outside, brought home the money he earned, and took them out for a good meal on weekends.
At that time, Lu Lijuan only felt that her husband had some feelings for her, and she was completely unaware of the role the child played in it. She thought she was not so unlucky.
But gradually, Chi Zhengbing's temper began to get bad.
Because his son, who was already in elementary school, was seen picking up cardboard outside by an acquaintance, word spread quickly, and everyone was saying that he was a useless father, couldn't make any money, and brought bad luck to his family.
The richest thing Chi Zhengbing has in his life is his face.
It would be a miracle if he could endure being ridiculed like that. When he heard this, he wanted to make money and get rich more than anyone else. He went around the city every day, trying to come across a business or opportunity to make a fortune.
Not for his children or his wife, he wants to make money just for his ridiculous self-esteem.
Unfortunately, no boss was willing to give him a chance.
After repeated setbacks, Chi Zhengbing would take his anger out on his wife and children when he got home. Once, when he was drunk, he came back and pointed at Lu Lijuan's nose and scolded her for not parenting her son well. If she hadn't raised her son like a beggar, how could he be laughed at like that?
No matter how patient Lu Lijuan was, she could no longer bear it after hearing this and had a big quarrel with him.
But how could she surpass a 1.8-meter-tall man?
When her ears were ringing from the slap she received, she turned her head and saw her frightened son standing at the door.
She didn't know why, but at that moment, she hated the child.
If I hadn't been pregnant, I wouldn't have been laughed at. If I hadn't given birth to him, I wouldn't have remarried Chi Zhengbing. If it weren't for him...
Lu Lijuan took her anger out on her innocent son.
Since she couldn't bring herself to hit her own son, she resorted to cold violence, cooking for him, paying his tuition, and buying him clothes, but she just ignored him. I don't know who she was torturing.
But the person who took on all this had no complaints.
I would give her gifts on Mother's Day, help her with all the housework, and give her all the money I earned outside.
Slowly, Lu Lijuan's anger dissipated, and the guilt surged into her heart again.
But the mother-son relationship has been delicate for so long, it cannot be repaired overnight.
Just when their relationship was gradually improving, Chi Zhengbing suddenly started to do big business and took all the money in the family. He was so crazy that no one could persuade him.
The son finally couldn't stand it anymore and proposed divorce to his mother.
It was difficult for Lu Lijuan to describe the extreme disappointment she felt when she heard him say divorce.
At that time, the word divorce did not exist in her outlook on life. In her view, this suggestion was nothing more than her son being childish, willful and selfish, pushing her into the fire without considering her feelings, and forcing her to face the same situation of being criticized by everyone again.
This emotion reached its peak after he drugged Chi Zhengbing.
That was the first time Lu Lijuan got really angry, and the words she said were extremely hurtful.
"I beg you! I beg you to leave me alone, okay?! I provide you with good food and drink, you just need to live your life, why do you have to cause me this kind of trouble? Don't you think this family is not chaotic enough? Do you have to force me to be the mother of a murderer and become a joke in other people's mouths? You are not the one being scolded, so of course you can say it doesn't matter, but what do you know about what I have suffered because of you?!"
After hearing those words, this child who had always been sensible still did not make a fuss, said nothing, or get angry, and just obediently accepted the beating.
But after that day, he never spoke a word to his family again. He took care of everything at home in silence and accepted the birth of his younger brother in silence.
Later, he didn't know how he went to school outside. Before leaving, Lu Lijuan gave him a thick stack of money for tuition and living expenses. After he left, he found that the money was left at the entrance of the hall and not a single cent was taken away.
Later on, she even lost her son's contact information and could only receive regular monthly payments and cash sent by someone else, but no messages.
If the account name was not "Chi Ke", Lu Lijuan would have been in a trance and thought that she had never had this son.
She did not receive any transfers in November and December last year. At that moment, she really thought she would lose contact with the other party completely.
Fortunately, someone came to deliver cash in January. Lu Lijuan breathed a sigh of relief when she learned that the other party was safe. She cried all night on the day she received the money.
As she grew older, she had already accepted this kind of life. Her longing and guilt for her son far outweighed her resentment. She did not ask for a loving mother or a filial son, but only hoped that the other party was safe and sound.
…
After hearing this, Ji Qian didn't know what to say.
Lu Lijuan's words were too sincere and genuine. She spoke frankly about the wrong things she had done without any embellishment, which made it difficult for people to find comfort.
After knowing the whole story, Ji Qian's first reaction was heartache and anger, but strangely, these emotions were not too strong because these feelings were suppressed by a strange intuition.
How could Chi Ke, with his personality, have such an experience?
According to that ancestor's temper, it would be a miracle if Chi Zhengbing lived one more day. Even if we put his temper aside, just looking at his eloquence, he was more than capable of brainwashing Lu Lijuan. He shouldn't have left in such a desolate way. If he didn't make a big fuss and end both sides, he wouldn't be named Chi. How could he let things develop into the irreversible situation they are now?
The logic doesn't make sense at all.
Ji Qian held his forehead and sighed calmly. His mood was extremely complicated, but he was still calm.
[What she said is probably true, but it's not completely correct, at least it's not me. Turn off your messy imagination, it's over after you finish listening, it's best to forget it, but if you can't forget it, it's best to pretend you haven't heard it, understand? ]
Chi Ke said these inexplicable words before setting off. He didn't understand what they meant at the time, but now he finally understood what their purpose was.
Although he was still confused, he believed in Chi Ke.
Chi Ke said not to worry and he wouldn't think too much about it.
"How are you?"
A calm question came from the headset.
"If you're okay, just cough. If you feel like you can't control your emotions, go out and find a place to video chat with me."
Ji Qian cleared his throat in a low voice.
There was a chuckle from the other end: "Yeah, good boy."
Ji Qian's breathing was slightly choked, and after adjusting himself, he rubbed his ears vigorously.
Chi Ke spoke these two words very softly, as if whispering in his ear.
Ji Qian really couldn't think of anything this time. His mind was full of the laugh just now. His spine was numb and his brain was in a mess. He could only mechanically comfort the woman in front of him who was about to cry based on his upbringing and etiquette.
"Their hotel is right next to us. After you drop them off, park your car in the underground garage and come to the mall's South Gate 2 to find me. I've called a car and a driver. Mr. Bai from next door just came to S City and is having dinner with me. It's not appropriate to turn him down directly. You can go with me to go through the formalities. We may have a couple of drinks. I'll hang up now."
After basically understanding the situation, Chi Ke immediately ended his regency.
"The videos and information you want are all here." Li Xiuming pushed a small USB drive over. "What do you want to do next?"
In the original owner's suicide note, the only person he was concerned about was his younger brother, and he didn't mention his mother. It seemed that he was extremely disappointed and had neither forgiven nor intended to forgive.
Chi Ke would not help the other party to repair their relationship. Now that he knew the ins and outs of the matter, he would not have too much contact with Lu Lijuan.
The original owner couldn't bear to send Chi Zhengbing in because of his biological mother, but he would not be reluctant to do so. Every one of these people should pay off their debts.
He didn't care about these people's tragic past or the reasons why they had to do what they did. He only looked at the result. Since the original owner was the victim of this incident, the perpetrator would not have an easy time.
However, if Chi Zhengbing is going to go in, Xu Pei will definitely be investigated and sent in as well.
He had to find a way to deal with Leng Yunting and Xu Lemian and not let anyone save Xu Pei.
There are only a few suitors who are willing to protect Xu Lemian.
Leng Yunting is still okay, Sima Yichen will definitely cause trouble, Li Xiuming...
Chi Ke looked at the man opposite him who was concentrating on eating.
He looks tougher than Leng Yunting and more refreshing than Sima Yichen. He has a calm and patient temper, and his work style is just what he likes.
If you don't like Xu Lemian, it's actually still worth making friends with him.
"Let's take it one step at a time." Chi Ke, who had already decided what to do, said casually.
Of course he couldn't tell the truth. What if this kid investigated secretly and found out that Xu Lemian's mother was involved and went against him?
Li Xiuming finished his pasta, looked up at him, and said, "Boss Chi doesn't trust me."
Chi Ke raised his chin with interest: "We are just employers and employees who have known each other for a short time. It is not normal for us to trust each other."
Li Xiuming has good table manners. He doesn't talk while eating, and doesn't hold cutlery while talking. Hearing this, he sat up straight and clasped his hands on the table. "I have no ill will towards Mr. Chi. On the contrary, I admire him very much."
Chi Ke was not proud of being praised, and said "Hmm" as usual: "Mr. Li, if you have any ideas, just tell me directly."
Li Xiuming: "Boss Chi should know that I don't have a good relationship with the Li family. I am an illegitimate child and have no right to inherit the family business, and I don't intend to fight for it. I now have an Internet company that my mother left to me. I believe you have already found out the specific situation. I know Boss Chi's ability. If possible, I hope we can have the opportunity to cooperate in the future."
"Of course I won't refuse a win-win opportunity." Chi Ke said politely, looking at him with heavy eyes, and asked, "Mr. Li, do you have anything else to say?"
"Nothing can be hidden from President Chi." Li Xiuming bent his lips and looked at him expectantly. "To be honest, I felt like I had seen President Chi before the first time I met him..."
Chi Ke: “.”
Ji Qian has already used this tactic before. Can he try another way to get closer to him?
Li Xiuming continued to talk to himself: "Have we met before?"
Chi Ke was about to say "no" when he suddenly remembered something and stopped abruptly: "... Mr. Li, where have you seen him?"
Li Xiuming stared at him intently and uttered two words: "Yanping."
Did the original owner have any connection with Li Xiuming?
Chi Ke lowered his eyes, and was truly surprised: "I'm sorry, Mr. Li, I can't remember many things clearly, so I can't give you a clear answer."
"It's okay." Li Xiuming couldn't hide his disappointment. "Although it's not a big deal, Mr. Chi can think about it carefully. If you think of anything... please feel free to contact me."
"Okay." Chi Ke tapped his thighs regularly with his fingers and said bluntly, "Boss Li, do you know Xu Lemian?"
Li Xiuming was honest: "I know him."
"Do you have a good relationship with him?" Chi Ke asked.
"He doesn't know me, so it's hard to say whether I'm good or not." After Chi Ke asked this, even if Li Xiuming didn't know what he was going to do specifically, he guessed a little bit, "Okay, I admit that I was responsible for suppressing his trending search so quickly last night, but don't worry, Mr. Chi, as long as you don't do anything to him, I won't ask about other people. If you..."
Li Xiuming didn't finish his words and looked at him with complicated eyes.
Chi Ke allowed him to look at him calmly: "I feel relieved with what Mr. Li said. I have already bought the order and paid the balance to Mr. Li. Is that all for today?"
"Okay." Li Xiuming retracted his gaze. "Mr. Chi, are you going to get busy now? If it's convenient, can you help me pick out a birthday present for my cousin? I really don't understand what these fifteen or sixteen-year-old girls like."
Chi Ke actually didn’t understand either.
But Ji Qian won't be here for a while, and since he has nothing to do, it's not a problem for him to help out.
By the way, you can also get some words from the other person.
The two began to attack the mall with a strong purpose.
They found a convenient spot to survey the store from where they could get a bird's eye view.
Li Xiuming: "How about the shoes in front?"
Chi Ke: "Can she wear high heels to school?"
Li Xiuming: "Which necklace?"
Chi Ke: "It's all fancy."
Li Xiuming: "Where's the coat hanging by the door?"
Chi Ke: "Too popular."
…
Ten minutes later, the two scanned the entire first and second floors, drew conclusions about the pros and cons, and then attacked the two stores directly, taking down three gift bags quickly and accurately.
"It's a great experience to go shopping with Mr. Chi." Li Xiuming praised sincerely.
No need to walk too much, high efficiency, good results, it’s really a pleasure.
"Mr. Li is also very straightforward." Chi Ke is most happy to deal with people who are organized and obedient, and can give suggestions and are willing to listen to advice.
Li Xiuming laughed, and when he saw some foam crumbs on his shoulder, he reached out to help him brush them off.
Before Chi Ke could dodge, his waist suddenly felt tight.
"Are you waiting impatiently?"
Ji Qian put one arm around his waist and a smiling voice came from his ear.
Chi Ke released his tense strength and said, "No."
He noticed Ji Qian when he came over, so he didn't dodge, but he didn't expect this man to attack him directly.
"Yeah, that's right. I have someone to keep me company. I won't be bored." Ji Qian looked at Li Xiuming with his eyes bent. "Did Mr. Li enjoy chatting with our teacher Chi?"
Li Xiuming looked at his hand on Chi Ke's waist and fell silent.
He is not a fool, how could he not hear the sarcasm?
So he nodded and said sincerely, "I'm happy. Mr. Chi and I hit it off right away."
Ji Qian: “…”
Why does this word sound so familiar?
The corners of his mouth drooped, and the smile did not reach his eyes: "Boss Li has been much freer than I thought recently. Eh? That's not right, I heard that your father is going to acquire your company, right? Boss Li, if you take a break here and go shopping, won't it affect your work?"
Li Xiuming: “.”
Just at this moment, Li Xiuming's car arrived.
Before leaving, he said with a dark face, "President Ji, don't worry about my work. But President Ji, when we were playing games in the bar before, didn't you say you were a straight man after you drew the truth?"
Okay, okay!
Is it a subtle hint that he is a playboy who likes to hang out in bars?
Ji Qian would never fall into the trap of self-proof. He narrowed his eyes and said, "It's hard for the experienced Li to remember the only time I participated in an event and to be so concerned about my orientation. So what about me?"
"Not much." Li Xiuming gave Chi Ke a teasing look, got into the car and left. "President Ji, take care of yourself."
Chi Ke: “.”
"Wow, what do you mean by that I should take care of myself?" Ji Qian laughed angrily, "What do you mean? I..."
“Bang!”
The hands on his waist were knocked off.
Ji Qian held his hands in the air in a daze and looked at the people around him.
In fact, Chi Ke waited until Li Xiuming left before knocking his hand away, which was already very considerate of him.
He almost laughed speechlessly, without even looking at anyone, and said, "Straight man?"
Ji Qian had never felt so helpless.
It should not be, and it should not be either.
An SUV stopped in front of the two of them. The driver got out respectfully and opened the door. Chi Ke grabbed Ji Qian by the collar and threw him in.
After getting in the car, he raised the partition between the front and rear seats and leaned back with his eyes closed.
Ji Qian had been waiting for him to speak.
But he didn't move, Ji Qian became more and more panicked, stiffening his neck to explain to himself: "I didn't mean to do that, he wanted to touch you——"
"What does this have to do with you?" Chi Ke opened his eyes. "He just touched me. Do you have to care about this?"
Li Xiuming was just there to watch the fun. He obviously saw everything, but still had to make up an excuse for him.
Chi Ke didn't think of using this method at first, but Li Xiuming was willing to offer himself up as a tool, wouldn't it be a pity to waste it?
However, Chi Ke also admitted that he was a little annoyed by the word "straight man".
"Ji Qian, have you crossed too many boundaries?"
He deliberately closed his eyes, not wanting to look at the pitiful expression of a certain straight man, and said this sentence lightly and cruelly.
He thought Ji Qian would rush to find excuses for himself, but after waiting for a long time, the other party said nothing.
Just as he was wondering, the center armrest in the back row was lifted up.
Then, he fell into a hot embrace.
Chi Ke opened his eyes and saw his head buried in his neck and shoulders rubbing against him.
"It was you who allowed me to cross the line." Ji Qian hugged him, his voice muffled and aggrieved, "Now you are blaming me again."
Chi Ke: “…let go.”
It's unreasonable to put the blame on someone else.
"No, you forced me to do it." Ji Qian hugged him tighter, his lips pressed against the delicate and smooth skin of his neck, and whispered, "Chi Ke, is it possible for a straight man to want to take a bite like this?"
Chi Ke made a "tsk" sound, grabbed the hair at the back of his head and lifted his head up forcefully, then met Ji Qian's complaining yet dependent gaze.
Ji Qian's ears turned red, and he raised his head, but his hands still didn't let go: "I don't want to do that, but I just... can't control it."
Chi Ke raised his eyebrows and smiled in a good mood.
Ji Qian had a bad feeling.
Sure enough, Chi Ke said seriously: "It's okay, Ji Qian, this is normal, it doesn't prevent you from being a straight man at all."
Ji Qian: “……?”
Ji Qian: "I am a straight man??"
"I know, you don't have to stress."
Chi Ke was in a playful and extremely vicious mood and deliberately misunderstood his question as a statement. Under his shocked gaze, he ruthlessly and firmly untied the arms from his waist.
"There are many men chasing after me," Chi Ke touched his cheek affectionately and said with a smile, "This is not the first time I've heard you say this."
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