Chapter 20
The sun is scorching.
Zheng Juyong, new and inexperienced, assumed the market would be all indoors with air conditioning, so he foolishly dressed for the market. Upon arrival, he discovered the market was a massive logistics and trade hub, with five intertwined areas: commerce, warehousing, processing, business services, and living. Yet, the flow of people, vehicles, and goods flowed independently. He wanted to visit each of the clients listed on the business cards Jiawei had previously scouted, but the process involved circling back and forth, searching for them all. Within half a day, he was dizzy, thirsty, and sweating.
Back home, even when he'd worked the steel mill with Zheng Dongfang, it was just a boring day sitting in an office. How could he have endured such hardship? To avoid heatstroke, he walked to a shady area in the cargo yard. Finally, he couldn't stand it anymore. He sat down, opened a bottle of mineral water, and doused himself in it. His pristine white shirt was already stained with sweat, and the water clung to his body even more, making him look completely unpresentable. He lowered his head to relax for a moment before deciding to go back.
Sitting in the air-conditioned taxi, Zheng Juyong sneezed several times. When he returned to the dormitory, he felt exhausted and collapsed on the sofa.
When I opened my eyes again, it was dark. The whole afternoon had passed in a daze. When I sat up, I felt weak all over. I touched my forehead and realized I had a fever. I pushed myself up, found some antipyretic medicine, and drank it all in one gulp with the leftover health porridge from the morning.
People are naturally vulnerable when they have a headache or fever, let alone when they're out in the world with no one to turn to. Zheng Juyong leaned against the living room window, looking at the road, and finally, with a cowardly urge to go home! He wanted to cry, missing his nanny, Aunt Lin, his parents, and Qiao Qi!
Perhaps it is because of the bond between mother and child that Mrs. Zheng called just at that moment.
"Son, are you home yet? Oh, your dad was so happy last night, telling me all night about how promising you are! I wanted to call you during the day, but I was afraid I'd interrupt your work. I finally waited until now. I've been looking forward to this day! Hahaha, how are you? Are you tired? Have you eaten?"
After many days, Zheng Juyong finally heard his mother's voice. He suddenly felt as sad as if he was three years old again. His voice was trembling and snot bubbles were coming out of his nose. "Mom...are you feeling better?"
He tried his best to act normal, but he couldn't hide it from his own mother. Mrs. Zheng heard something strange in the voice and pulled the phone away from her ear. She turned to look at Zheng Dongfang blankly, "Eh? I hear that voice over there, and it sounds like... crying?"
Even after growing up, their son has never cried in front of them. This is not normal.
Zheng Dongfang had been reading documents by the bed when he suddenly remembered something and scooted over to his wife. "I was thinking I'd forgotten something! This kid... I just got on the phone yesterday and I knew something was wrong. He must have gotten in trouble again! Hey, they're both so old, how come they're still fighting when they're together? This, this, this... I just said he's making progress, and he can't stand the compliments!"
Zheng Dongfang remembered his son as a well-behaved child. He never got into fights or caused trouble outside, and certainly never came home crying. If he did cry, it was probably because he had offended Guan Ying. Although he felt sorry for his son, he had no choice but to sternly lecture him: "It's a shame for a man to cry. Don't cry!"
Mrs. Zheng thought seriously, "That's impossible. After Guan Guan started high school, he hasn't hit your son again! You're saying this as if someone is willing to be the bad guy and take care of your child for you... Oh, was I too harsh on Ju Yong a while ago? Did I scare the child?"
Zheng Dongfang nodded: "That's true... You got so angry that even I was scared."
Mrs. Zheng frowned, then changed her mind and slapped her husband on the back. "It's enough for me to lose my son's temper. Why did you kick him too? You hit him so hard with every slap! Didn't we agree that you weren't allowed to hit the child? You just played the good guy. Look how scared you made the child!"
Zheng Dongfang stroked his red back, but didn't dare to hide. He laughed and said, "Hey, your son is almost thirty years old. I just kicked him lightly. It's not that serious, not that serious..."
Even though his mother had pulled the phone far away, Zheng Juyong could still hear it clearly from the other side. He blew his nose and said helplessly, "Mom! Next time you two are whispering behind my back, can you please mute it?"
I heard Zheng Dongfang anxiously dodging on the other end of the phone: "Look at you, why did you forget to press the button again!" Then, there was a "bang" sound of the bedroom door closing, and Old Zheng hid out.
"I'm not crying! I didn't provoke Guan Ying! I just have a cold and my voice is a little nasal!"
"That's good, that's good... Oh, that's not good, that's not good. It's so hot out here, son, how come you caught a cold? You should take care of yourself. Fortunately, your sister Guan Guan is here with you. You have a companion... Oh, where is your sister Guan Guan?"
"Ah? She, she had something to do today and went to Dubai. My case is not serious. I took some medicine and it's fine."
"Oh, then I'd better call your caregiver, Sister Guanguan. You've got bronchitis from this cold, and it's going to be really hard to take care of you."
Zheng Juyong became anxious when he heard this. Not to mention that he thought Guan Ying was with her boyfriend Xiao Weiyan at the time and couldn't take care of him at all; his mother always relied on Guan Ying to take care of herself. This old habit should be changed. After all, he already had Qiao Qi!
For the time being, he didn't dare mention Qiao Qi to his mother, but he still had to put an end to it: "Mom! Guan Ying is busy, don't disturb her, I can take care of myself! Don't you think about it, Guan Ying is a girl, she has been out alone for so many years, all the headaches and fevers, she has to rely on herself. I am still a man, don't make me so hypocritical!"
Although he wanted to stop his mother, when he said these words in a hurry, he was stunned himself.
"..." Mrs. Zheng heard her son's transformation clearly, and she felt distressed, happy and satisfied. "Son, you have grown up and understand other people's difficulties. Mom is so happy." Her son did not cry, but as a mother, she was so happy that she shed two strings of tears.
After hanging up the phone, Zheng Juyong began to worry about Guan Ying. When she first came to the UAE, she seemed to be even younger than him. How had she managed to survive all these years? During the holidays when the two families gathered together, he never heard Uncle Guan or Aunt Guan mention the hardships Guan Ying had endured outside. Now that he thought about it, Guan Ying was probably the same person, only reporting good news and not bad news, perhaps even worse than him, not even mentioning a headache or fever.
I tried to call Guan Ying, but still no one answered.
Forget it, let her be at ease for a few days. Tomorrow, he still has to go to the market!
......
Xiao Weiyan was working overtime in the office of the Dubai branch, and Jiawei took a large bag of lunch boxes from the elevator and brought it in.
"Brother Yan, was it Guan Guan's phone that rang just now?"
"Yeah, it rang twice and then cut off. I had an email I needed to reply to urgently, so I didn't have time to answer it."
Jiawei spread out her lunch boxes beside her desk, pushed his favorite grilled eel closer to him, and set the chopsticks and spoon aside for him before going to take care of her own meal. As she did all this, she bent down to check Guan Ying's phone screen and saw that the caller was Zheng Juyong. She hesitantly looked up, glancing at Xiao Weiyan's solemn and calm expression behind the computer screen. She smiled wryly and pretended nothing was wrong.
"Let's eat first. The fish won't taste good if it's cold."
"You eat first, don't worry about me."
"..." Jiawei didn't dare to make any sound while eating. She just took small bites and swallowed gently with a spoon.
Xiao Weiyan finally finished replying to the email, slid his chair gently to the corner of the table, and picked up the box of eel rice.
"Can I heat it up in the microwave for you?"
"It's okay, I'm used to it! After we finish eating, we'll leave." Xiao Weiyan wanted to go to the police station since morning, but Jiawei took the opportunity to stop him. Coincidentally, his boss Eric also came to him to inquire about the development of the incident, and talked about the follow-up of his request for promotion yesterday. Xiao Weiyan was busy in the law firm all day and postponed the matter of visiting Guan Ying until the evening.
Jiawei didn't sleep all night and was uneasy that day. She never told Guan Ying what she wanted to say about breaking up. She was really confused and couldn't bear it. She had no idea what to do for the time being and just wanted to drag it out.
"Um...Brother Yan, I went to see Guan Ying during the day. The three weirdos who were in there last night have all been taken away. It seems a new thief has come today. He doesn't look tall, so he probably won't dare to bully Guan Guan anymore. Guan Guan seems to be in better condition than yesterday."
"Alas, she's just afraid that you'll worry! Look at your face, you didn't sleep last night, did you?" Ever since that drunken and ridiculous night, when she took the initiative to pretend nothing had happened, Xiao Weiyan had intentionally distanced himself from her. When they had to meet, he was even more polite and distant to her, and he never cared about her like this again.
"Oh... After all, I'm worried about Guan Guan being there."
"Don't worry, I prepared all the POA documents last night, and Eric signed them this morning. You also delivered them to the police station for me today. There will be no problem."
Jiawei nodded: "It's been 24 hours. Will I be able to come out tomorrow?"
Xiao Weiyan picked off a piece of fish bone and said, "Next, we'll see how the queue is at the police station. It involves foreigners, and we don't want to leave any stains. We may have to be patient."
"So it's more than 48 hours?" "We can still delay it for another day." Jiawei's tone seemed relieved, making Xiao Weiyan confused for a moment whether she wanted Guan Ying to come out sooner or later. Jiawei also realized her own gaffe and contradiction and racked her brains to change the subject. "Guan Guan said she just needs to avoid Daniel. I've never been here before, and I've never met Daniel. What kind of person is he? Is he scary?"
"Haha, actually you all misunderstood him. If I speak up for Daniel, would you think I'm weird?" Xiao Weiyan finished eating the eel first before eating the rice.
Jiawei considerately pushed the wasabi squid and tempura toward him. "I only know that it was Daniel who introduced you to Guan Guan. You even said you owed Daniel an apology."
"Well, after all, anyone would think I stole his girlfriend," Xiao Weiyan said, unceremoniously picking up the largest piece of tempura. "Actually, at first, I didn't understand why he'd transfer Guan Guan's case to me, with so many people in the law firm, and asked me to help take care of Guan Guan. I thought the only possibility was because I'm also Chinese. It wasn't until yesterday when I received the partner invitation letter he drafted for that established Vancouver law firm that I realized he might really be optimistic about my abilities. He probably chose me because of Guan Guan's lawsuit against Sabur, after all, I'm definitely good at that. So, from this point of view, Daniel really wants Guan Guan well. Even after breaking up, he's still making arrangements for her. I don't know many foreigners who are so considerate. What's so scary about that?"
He spoke with great confidence, and his arguments were well-reasoned and logical. Even Jiawei nodded in agreement with her predecessor, Daniel, who was quite remarkable.
Yesterday, Xiao Weiyan, using Daniel's invitation letter, had asked his boss, Eric, for a promotion. He had good reason to do so. In the legal world, Daniel's status was incredibly high, and a letter of recommendation from him was like a ticket to any major law firm. Furthermore, it wasn't just a letter of recommendation; Daniel had directly persuaded the firm's boss to issue an invitation letter for an internal position, waiving the test and exam requirements—the equivalent of a direct offer letter. Daniel's approval of him, Xiao Weiyan, was self-evident. Not only had Xiao Weiyan not offended Daniel because of Guan Ying, but he had actually accepted such a significant favor. Naturally, he was filled with gratitude and admiration, and felt that Daniel's current position in the industry was well-deserved.
Moreover, it wasn't just him who understood this; Eric knew it too, hence the unpleasant negotiation with Eric in the conference room yesterday. Although he'd subsequently relinquished his promotion request due to Guan Ying, Eric had still considered it carefully, not wanting to delay. After a night of wrangling with the New York headquarters, a decision had been reached this morning. While it wasn't feasible to promote him to partner, the salary and bonus adjustments had effectively met his demands, effectively allowing him to move through the night in a state of formality. The condition was that he quickly decline the Vancouver law firm's offer. He had just been carefully crafting his refusal letter, so much so that when Guan Ying's phone rang, he didn't dare to be distracted.
He is very successful in both career and love, and he wants to thank Daniel. Even if he says "I'm sorry" to Daniel in person, he feels very sorry.
Xiao Weiyan didn't want to go into too much detail with Jiawei, but he was worried that Jiawei still couldn't understand his gratitude, admiration, and apology for his ex, Daniel, so he further explained himself: "Guan Guan said she was avoiding Daniel to save my face, but I'm actually not that petty. I've known about Hassan and Daniel's relationship for a long time. When have you ever seen me stop her? I think Daniel, like me, wouldn't mind."
Jiawei was filled with sorrow and put down her chopsticks.
"Are you full? Then let's go now." Xiao Weiyan only ate half a box of lunch, put it down in a hurry, picked up his clothes and got up. He was eager to share the good news from the law firm with Guan Ying.
Jiawei couldn't think of a better excuse, so she blurted out, "Brother Yan, I actually have something to discuss with you!"
Xiao Weiyan had already packed up and was walking ahead: "Okay, let's talk while we walk! The company just allocated me a car today, and it's a good opportunity for you to recognize the license plate number."
Jiawei's mind was full of Guan Ying's words. She hurriedly followed him into the car, sweat breaking out on her forehead.
Xiao Weiyan closed the door of the business car for her and glanced at her: "What's wrong with you? You're sweating after just such a short walk? There are some drinks here, would you like some?"
The law firm's business car was thoughtfully stocked with high-end liquor and coffee, and of course, a special Chinese tea was prepared for him. He handed the bottle of tea to Jiawei and opened a bottle of coffee himself. "By the way, what did you want to tell me just now?"
Jiawei held the ice-cold tea drink in her hand and suddenly had an idea: "Ah! I mean, I bought a lot of things yesterday and left them in the storage box at the hospital. I'm worried that the password will be invalid after 24 hours, and I don't have a car..."
Xiao Weiyan raised his hand and looked at his watch: "It's okay, I thought it was something serious. I happen to have a car, so I'll tell the driver and we'll go to the hospital first."
"That's great, thank you Brother Yan, this car is quite spacious, hehe..." Jiawei quickly calculated in her mind. As long as she was lucky enough and there was a traffic jam on the road, and then she could get to the hospital, she could delay the matter of the password for a long time, and she would definitely be able to delay it until the visiting time at the police station tonight. She couldn't think of a better way, so she just wanted to delay it for a while.
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