Chapter 21: Heartbreak
After greeting Shen Ci, Han Yunyun said "oh" obediently and picked up the box: "Then senior brother, I will move the things over first."
Shen Ci nodded and said goodbye politely: “It’s getting dark, be careful when you move things…”
As he spoke, his eyes inadvertently swept across Han Yunyun's desk and suddenly stopped.
Han Yunyun followed his gaze and saw nothing wrong: "Senior Brother?"
Shen Ci pursed his lips slightly.
On Han Yunyun's desk, there was a porcelain vase. The double-petaled lilies in it had long since withered, and the scorched yellow leaves drooped weakly, drooping on the table, lifeless.
Shen Ci retracted his gaze and continued to read the documents, and asked calmly, "Aren't you going to take the porcelain bottle on the table?"
"Oh, this one." Han Yunyun was stunned for a moment: "Don't take it. This vase is so old. There is a layer of scale on the bottom. It is hard to clean. This time I changed offices, so I got a new one. I am going to throw away the old one."
“…”
An indescribable difficulty spread to his chest, and his ribs ached dully. Shen Ci could hardly maintain his expression.
After a long silence, he silently pinched his palm, his nails digging into the flesh, and then forced a smile: "Don't you like it?"
Han Yunyun also laughed: "I liked it when I first bought it, but I've been using it for too long and I'm a little tired of it."
She leaned over and pulled out the lilies from the vase, then threw them into the trash can. "Besides, this vase isn't expensive, only a dozen or twenty bucks, so I won't feel bad about replacing it."
Shen Ci said nothing.
With the screen blocking his view, he lowered his brows, and his fingertips hidden in his sleeves trembled slightly.
Don't you feel bad after changing it?
Shen Ci silently curled the corners of his lips and thought to himself, “That’s true.”
For Han Yunyun, a dozen or twenty yuan is just a cup of milk tea, which can be changed or thrown away as needed. For Master Xie, Shen Ci will not be more expensive than any luxury item he casually discards.
There are as many people like him as you want, they can be called upon and dismissed at will. Jiang Cheng is tired of this one, so after landing abroad, he can turn around and find a second one.
Xie Yu is a playboy, he has always been like this, Shen Ci understands.
Within the scope of the agreement, Xie Yu never made things difficult, but instead protected him everywhere, and Shen Ci was grateful.
He just couldn't understand how Xie Yu could break up so cleanly, so neatly, and so heartlessly. There was not even time to buffer. The day before, they were still clinging to each other, wearing the same scarf. Xie Yu reached out and held him in his arms, his chin against his hair, like protecting the closest lover.
But just one day later, Xie Yu went to another country, his whereabouts were unknown, and even his contact information was changed. He simply cut off all ties with her, erasing all traces from Shen Ci's life, completely.
It's like... he is an insignificant pet. No consent is required when purchasing him, and no notification is required when abandoning him. It all depends on the owner's will.
Shen Ci lowered his eyes. The computer in front of him was turned off. His face was reflected in the dark screen. He looked dull and haggard. Compared with the boy Xie Yu had liked before, he had no outstanding features.
He thought: Maybe it's not like that, he is just an insignificant pet.
While he was stunned, Han Yunyun swiped her card and went out with her suitcase, waving through the glass door: "Brother, see you tomorrow."
Shen Ci: “…See you tomorrow.”
Han Yunyun then walked out, and when she reached the end of the corridor, she turned back for some reason, and saw Shen Ci sitting alone in the laboratory. The electronic screen cast different shades of light on his eyelashes, and the white spots of light reflected in his pupils looked like a layer of frost.
It’s so cold that it’s freezing.
*
At ten o'clock in the evening, Shen Ci turned off the computer on time.
As the New Year was approaching, most of the students had gone home. The experimental area was empty with only a few lights left on. The corridors were also deserted and as quiet as a horror movie.
Shen Ci walked around the experimental building and left the school from the south gate. He walked into the coffee shop facing the road and sat down in the booth by the window. Under the dim light, someone was already waiting.
Lin Yinxin had her hair permed into big waves, and she pinched a strand of hair and wrapped it around her fingertips. She pushed the menu to Shen Ci: "What would you like to drink?"
Shen Ci: “No, I drink plain water.”
Lin Yin sighed: "Assistant Professor Shen, with your poor and miserable appearance, who would believe you if you said you followed Young Master Xie?"
She pointed at his earlobe meaningfully and said, "If you sell that earring, you can buy this cafe."
Shen Ci’s face was calm: “I don’t have such plans.”
Lin Yin shrugged: "When I met you, I thought we were both smart people. Who knew that I would get out of it safely now, but you got stuck in it."
Shen Ci: “Let’s talk business.”
Lin Yin: "Wait for me to order a drink."
After that, she called the waiter over, casually pointed at two drinks, and then lowered her voice: "I did as you said, and got in touch with Luo Shao. He is indeed interested in He Zhiyuan's information."
Luo Shao is also a rich second generation. In Jiangcheng, the rich second generations are divided into gangs. Xie Yu is one gang, and Luo Shao is another. There are many conflicts in their business dealings.
Shen Ci: “It depends on you. If you are satisfied with the price, just give it to me.”
He Zhiyuan had a lot of information. He played lavishly and many underage people were involved. Later, they were all settled with money.
Lin Yin took a sip of coffee and said, "Luo Shao also said that he is also interested in Xie Yu's information. If you are willing to give it to him, he will pay double."
Shen Ci said calmly: “I don’t have any information about Xie Yu.”
During the few months he and Xie Yu were together, Xie Yu was as innocent as could be, and his words and actions did not seem like those of a rich second-generation and the person they had an agreement with, but rather like a real couple.
Lin Yin muttered: "Sometimes I really don't know what you are thinking..."
She picked up her bag and prepared to pay the bill: "By the way, Shen Ci, I got the news from Luo Shao that He Zhiyuan went to Jiangcheng a while ago. He was drinking in a bar with his new girlfriend. He got drunk and threatened to get you."
Shen Ci paused when drinking water.
"But, but!" Lin Yin continued, "Zhou Yang returned to the capital and met with the old man of the He family. I don't know what he said, and I don't know if it has anything to do with you. The old man took He Zhiyuan away, so you are safe now."
Shen Ci nodded.
They exchanged information with each other, and before leaving, Shen Ci stopped Lin Yin and pushed a piece of paper over: "Help me check this."
It's an irregular string of numbers.
Lin Yin: "Bank account?"
Shen Ci: "My grandma was seriously ill a few days ago and needed money for surgery. The next day I received the donation. A charity fund said I was eligible and transferred the money directly to my account."
Lin Yin chuckled, "I thought the money was transferred from your account. Isn't it a good thing to give you the money? I guess it's just luck. Do you have to check this?"
Shen Ci laughed: “But I have never encountered such a good thing in the first twenty years of my life.”
Shen Ci never believed in free lunches. He had experienced so many misfortunes in the first twenty years of his life. His parents passed away one after another, and his relatives were diagnosed with serious illnesses. He was desperate again and again. At that time, fate had never been so kind to him.
Now that I am about to graduate, and although I am short of money, I have things to sell and my life will be much better. Why is this financial aid coming to me so impartially?
Shen Ci added: “This foundation has never made a payment before, and there is no beneficiary. I am the first one, and I can’t find any information, so I want you to help try.”
Lin Yin unfolded the paper: "I have never transferred money before and I don't have a sponsor... I'll ask Luo Shao and let him take a look."
As she spoke, she opened the communication interface, sent Luo Shao the number, and motioned Shen Ci to sit down first: “Wait a minute, their registered funds are all on record, I’ll ask him to help you check it out.”
Shen Ci nodded and drank the water in front of him quietly. He had an absurd premonition in his heart, which was vaguely unconfirmed but could not be ignored.
In fact, fate had been kind to him. Someone gave him everything he needed without asking for anything in return.
Half an hour later, Lin Yin's phone dinged, and she slid open the interface: "Well, it seems that you are really lucky. We don't know the name of the sponsor of this foundation. He is not someone in the circle."
Shen Ci breathed a sigh of relief, and it was hard to tell whether he was disappointed or relieved. He asked, "Who is it?"
Lin Yin: "He's a psychiatrist who runs a mental hospital. His name is Xu Qingshan... Hey, what's wrong with you? Are you okay?"
Shen Ci accidentally knocked over the glass in front of him, and the glass rolled to the ground and broke into pieces.
Xu Qingshan.
Shen Ci silently recited the name.
He didn't know the relationship between Xu Qingshan and Xie Yu, but he knew that Xie Yu had appeared in Xu Qingshan's office, and Xu Qingshan was holding Xie Yu's medical records with an intimate look.
There is no such coincidence in the world. Xu Qingshan happened to be Xie Yu's doctor, and he also happened to sponsor someone who was Xie Yu's former lover.
But why...
Why did you send this financial aid after you left?
Why, after discarding his old toys, did he start thinking about his seriously ill grandmother?
Why is there no news, why do you not care, why...
Why was she so nice to him and yet made him so sad?
Shen Ci's breathing was rapid and his thoughts were confused. He bent down to cover his face and picked up the glass fragments on the ground. His fingers touched the sharp edge and cut a bloody wound.
Lin Yin exclaimed, "What are you picking up?" She pulled out the stool and stood up, "Is the waiter here? Do you have a broom?"
"It's okay." Shen Ci suppressed his trembling hands. The sharp pain in his fingertips calmed him down. He managed to remain calm and smiled, "I was distracted. Sorry."
Lin Yin was speechless: "You really are... Never mind. It's over. Let's go."
After they exchanged information, they stood up and left through the front and back doors of the cafe. The New Year's bell rang, and Shen Ci walked through the wet long street and disappeared into the snow.
*
Time passed like water. It took Xie Yu three years to complete the required credits. He had nothing to do in the remaining two years. In addition to traveling around, he also pursued a double degree.
He chose literature for his second degree, without any utilitarianism mixed in, just for fun.
The silver-haired old professor was talking on the podium, spitting loudly, from Homer to Camus. Xie Yu was flipping through a book leisurely below, occasionally sleeping and taking notes from time to time.
The days of studying abroad were a bit boring. Xie Yu traveled from south to north, from Ethiopia to Reykjavik, and spent the rest of his time staying in the small apartment. His cooking skills improved by leaps and bounds, and he became the favorite person for free meals among his classmates.
The system often hacked into the forum and introduced things about Jiangcheng to Xie Yu, such as He Zhiyuan getting into trouble again and being beaten by his father; Zhou Yang officially inherited the family and became the helmsman of the Zhou family; Xie Yu's father Xie Yuanshan couldn't stand steadily one day and fell at the shareholders' meeting, and... Chen Ci.
After graduation, Shen Ci joined Xie's rival company and worked under Luo Shao. It was said that he had strong professional skills and decisive and beautiful methods, which won Luo Shao's appreciation. In just a few years, he had achieved a very high position.
Now, his annual salary was enough to cover his medical expenses for many years, and he no longer needed Xie Yu's secret help. Xu Qingshan also stopped providing financial support. The charity account only made one payment, and then it became completely silent and disappeared.
At this time, it had been less than half a month since Xie Yuanshan died suddenly of cerebral hemorrhage, Uncle Xie Yu took over the Xie family, and Xie Yu returned to China to attend the funeral.
Xie Yu spent the past half month saying goodbye to his friends at school one by one, and received a bag of farewell cards. At the farewell party, Xie Yu cooked for them himself, and his friends drank from his pot and cried bitterly.
"Oh wow, now that you're gone, I can't eat authentic beef stew with potatoes anymore!"
"Tomato and Egg Scrambled Eggs, Please Don't Return to China!"
Xie Yu's face was filled with black lines, and his friends were reluctant to let him go: "Hey, little Xie, wait for me to return to China to find you."
Xie Yu snatched the pot back and said to the drunkards in silence, "Go back to the mental hospital and find me."
*
December 21st, sunny.
On this day, Xie Yuanshan, chairman of the Xie Group, suffered a sudden cerebral hemorrhage and died despite rescue efforts.
Xie Yuanhai convened a shareholders' meeting with swift and resolute action and took over the group.
That afternoon, he sent a message to editor Xie Yu, asking him to express his condolences and return home to attend the funeral.
The two of them pretended to mourn for a few words in silence, and no one felt sad for Xie Yuanshan. After Xie Yu perfunctorily responded, he immediately bought a plane ticket to return home and landed at Jiangcheng Airport that night.
He dragged his suitcase out of the airport. At the end of the year, there was a heavy snowfall in Jiangcheng. Everywhere you looked, it was white. The north wind blew the snow on his face, and it hurt like a knife.
One day after Xie Yuanhai took office, he replaced all the old employees in the company, even the drivers. When Xie Yu got in the car, there was a stranger in front of him.
The driver turned the steering wheel and merged into the traffic. Not long after, he got off the ring road. Xie Yu stared at the navigation for a while: "Where are you taking me?"
This is not the way back to the Xie family.
The driver was also used to changing his attitude according to the situation. He saw that Young Master Xie Yu was not worthy of his reputation and it was not his turn to be in charge of the Xie family. He laughed and said bluntly: "The chairman's coffin is parked at home. Someone came to pay his respects. Your uncle is entertaining guests. There is a lot of noise at home. I am afraid that it will disturb your rest, so I asked me to take you to the hotel."
Xie Yu showed no expression: "Okay."
He knew in his heart that after Xie Yuanshan's death, no one would sincerely express their condolences. Only old customers would come to visit him, and Xie Yuanshan's funeral was the best place for socializing, where he could expand his network of contacts. Xie Yuanhai didn't want to leave any chance to his nephew.
Xie Yu didn't care. He was going to be admitted to a mental hospital anyway, so he didn't care about it.
But the car swayed and drove into a village in the main city that had not been demolished. There were spider webs and wires everywhere. The driver braked in front of a small guesthouse and said, "Master Xie, this is it."
Xie Yu’s brows jumped.
This area is notoriously dirty and messy. It was said to be demolished a few years ago, but later the land prices soared and they couldn't afford it. It then became one of the bases of local thugs, and it is a mixed bag.
This hotel is shabby, probably a guesthouse from the last century. There is a neon sign in front of the door and the front desk can be barely considered clean. It costs about a hundred yuan a night.
He frowned slightly. The original article said that Xie Yuanhai was the most stingy and petty. Xie Yu had never met him, so he was not sure. Now he saw that it was indeed true. His brother's body was still warm. After all, Xie Yu was Xie Yuanshan's only son. He was thrown here by him, and it was not even a chain hotel. It was really shabby.
System: "Shall we change to another one?"
Xie Yu has money and can afford to live in a good place.
"No need." Xie Yu went in with his bag, "Just make do for two days."
He took the key and entered the room. A musty smell hit him in the face. Xie Yu frowned and opened the window. His eyes inadvertently swept across the street and he was slightly stunned.
There was a man with a long-handled black umbrella.
He was wearing a gray windbreaker, and his figure was thin and slender. He stood quietly on the street, as handsome as a nobleman holding an ironwood black umbrella in the Middle Ages. People were coming and going on the street, splashing melted snow water. In the shadow of the noisy neon lights, this man just stood quietly, like a postmodern painting with a splash of ink landscape, or a piece of classical piano mixed into rock music, which was out of place.
Xie Yu noticed that the hem of his clothes was wet, and he didn't know how long he had been standing there.
He closed the window and thought to himself, "What a weird guy."
The author has something to say:
(づ￣3￣)づ╭～
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
