Chapter 22 Chapter 22 Before the End
Shen Yanfeng was pushed back half a step, but there was no anger on his face. He just raised his eyes slightly and looked at Wen Li from head to toe with a scrutinizing and contemptuous look.
That look was as if he was looking at something worthless.
Likewise, Wen Li responded without flinching, his eyes filled with suppressed anger and contempt.
In his eyes, Shen Yanfeng at this moment is a complete scumbag.
The two of them didn't say a word, but the air seemed to be frozen, and a tense atmosphere quickly spread in the silence.
This was clearly their first meeting, but the hatred they felt for each other seemed to have accumulated over many years, so thick that it was choking and suffocating.
In short, each of them has their own reasons for hating the other.
Guan Mi secretly broke into a cold sweat, wanting only to quickly escape from this suffocating scene.
She gently tugged at the corner of Wen Li's clothes with her free hand, but before she could open her mouth, she felt a cold gaze piercing her hand like an icicle.
“Mr. Shen…” The driver finally noticed the movement behind the car and hurried over.
Shen Yanfeng didn't say anything, his eyes still fixed on Guan Mi.
Obvious possessiveness appeared in his eyes.
Wen Li suppressed his anger and said in a deep voice, "Mi Mi, let's go."
Who knew that just as he took a step, Shen Yanfeng moved sideways to block his way.
"What does Mr. Shen mean by this?" Wen Li's voice was already gritting his teeth, and his body blocked the barrier even more tightly.
Shen Yanfeng's tone was surprisingly calm: "It's nothing special, I just want to confirm something with you."
Guan Mi frowned, feeling inexplicably nervous.
She knew Shen Yanfeng's current temperament too well. The calmer he was, the more likely he was to be hiding disturbing thoughts.
Wen Li wanted to know how shameless a person could be.
"I'm all ears."
Chen Yanfeng glanced at Guan Mi first, then spoke slowly: "Can you promise me that you won't let Guan Mi suffer any injustice here with you tonight? If you can, I will give up my seat immediately."
When these words came out, Guan Mi was stunned.
His tone was so natural, as if he was the one who should protect her, and Wen Li beside him had become an outsider.
Wen Li's back teeth ached from gritting their teeth. He didn't want Guan Mi to see him losing control of his emotions, so he endured it with all his might. "Why should I promise you? Mr. Shen, are you really not aware of your status here?"
Chen Yanfeng laughed, his laughter carrying an indescribable casualness and confidence: "Isn't it easy to get identity?"
He added meaningfully, "It depends on whether people are willing to give it."
Guan Mi couldn't bear it any longer. Even if she owed this man a favor, she had to say that his face was really thicker than a city wall!
"Boss Shen, please don't say any more!"
She grabbed Wen Li and turned away in a hurry, not paying any attention to the two boxes of mung bean cakes in the car that Qiao Qiuying had given her.
The door of the apartment building locked automatically with a "click".
Chen Yanfeng stood there, watching the lights in the stairwell light up and dim one by one, and saw the two hurried figures appear and disappear, until the lights were no longer on and the people were gone.
Guan Mi took Wen Li directly into the room. Without saying anything, she took out her cell phone from her bag and sent messages to her two roommates.
He is here temporarily and will not stay overnight.
After sending the message, she lowered her hand, the phone still clenched in her palm, and stared at Wen Li silently, the air filled with an indescribable awkwardness.
After a long while, she felt a tightness in her chest and turned to the window and opened it.
As the cold night wind blew in, a warm body covered her back. Wen Li hugged her tightly from behind, his voice filled with unconcealable sadness: "I just want to hear your explanation."
Guan Mi lowered his head, his palm gently placed on his arm that was wrapped around him, "There's nothing going on between Mr. Shen and me."
She didn't know what else she could say, and how much Wen Li would believe.
"What if I don't come tonight?"
Guan Mi turned his head to look at him, "If you hadn't come, nothing would have changed."
Wen Li's smile turned bitter, "But do you think he thinks the same way?"
Guan Mi was speechless for a moment.
Her silence was like a thorn, piercing Wen Li's heart again and again.
Wen Li hugged her even tighter, suppressing the pain that was almost suffocating him, and said in a low voice: "Mimi, speak."
Guan Mi turned around with difficulty and looked up at him, his eyes full of honesty: "From the beginning to the end, you are the only one in my heart. What Chen Yanfeng thinks is his business, I can't stop him, nor can I control him."
Wen Li's expression remained tense, his Adam's apple rolling as he finally asked the question hidden deep in his heart: "Then tell me, why did you accept the gift from him?"
When Wen's mother sent the photo, Wen Li could guess who made the bag.
He had been deliberately avoiding thinking about it these past two days. Whenever he saw the picture, he would remember that the most expensive gift he had ever given Guan Mi was just a necklace worth more than 5,000 yuan on her birthday, and the bag that Chen Yanfeng casually gave her was something he couldn't afford even if he spent all his existing savings.
Guan Mi frowned: "I accepted his things?"
Wen Li said, "Package."
After hearing this answer, she suddenly realized and said, "I didn't take it. I have already returned it to him."
She asked, understandingly, "Did your mother tell you?"
It was that day that Wen's mother must have seen the orange box she placed in the cabinet.
Wen Li was completely stunned, and the questioning in his eyes disappeared in an instant, leaving only guilt and humility.
He whispered, "I didn't know you didn't take it... I'm sorry, I didn't ask clearly..."
Guan Mi looked at his thin face, his heart softened, and his voice became much softer: "I don't blame you, this kind of thing can easily lead to misunderstandings, just say it out."
Wen Li lowered his head and hugged her tightly. After a long while, he said, "After we quit, let's stay away from this person."
Guan Mi's heart skipped a beat, and his hands around Wen Li's waist stiffened unconsciously.
I have changed my mind about resigning, but when the words come to my lips, I just can't say them.
"What's wrong?" Wen Li noticed that something was wrong with her and looked down at her with confusion in his eyes.
Guan Mi pursed his lips and finally said softly: "I... don't plan to resign."
The moment the words came out of her mouth, she clearly felt his body stiffen.
Wen Li's hand suddenly loosened, "Why?"
Guan Mi was silent.
She struggled badly.
Should she tell Wen Li that it was Shen Yanfeng who helped his family? But she was afraid that after Wen Li knew about it, he would mind that she was involved with Shen Yanfeng, and she was even more afraid that his self-esteem would be affected.
The air was silent for a few seconds, and Wen Li's voice became deeper: "Is it Chen Yanfeng who won't let you go?"
"No." Guan Mi raised his head and said directly, "I asked him for help with your family's affairs."
She looked at Wen Li and said, "If it weren't for him, Uncle Wen wouldn't have been able to get out so easily."
Wen Li seemed to be nailed to the spot, his pupils suddenly contracted, and most of the blood color on his face faded away in an instant.
He opened his mouth, but no sound came out for a long time. Only his Adam's apple rolled hard in his neck, and the disbelief in his eyes almost overflowed.
He had only suspected that day whether this was Shen Yanfeng's doing, but he did not expect that his father could be released so smoothly and quickly, and it was his help behind the scenes.
It took him a while to find his voice again, "But...why, why did you look for him?"
Guan Mi's back was pressed against the window's security net. She said calmly, "Among the people around me, he's the only one who can solve this problem."
"Shouldn't you have discussed this with me in advance?" Wen Li's face was filled with pain, his lips trembling slightly. "Mi Mi, you really don't have to go look for him. I was almost there, just a little slower. Why are you more anxious than me?"
"Because I can't bear to see you continue to be depressed! I don't want you to be under tremendous pressure every day, not eating well, not sleeping well. I call you every day, and you just say you're fine, but you don't tell me the progress of your investigation." Guan Mi turned his face away, his vision blurred by tears. "I didn't plan to tell you, because I knew you would react like this after I told you... I'm sorry, just think of it as my own wishful thinking."
Wen Li watched her tears rolling down his face and subconsciously wanted to reach out and wipe them away, but he quickly forced himself to pull back.
"That night, you didn't answer my call. Were you with him?"
Guan Mi raised his hand and wiped away his tears, "Yes, I was looking for him for help at that time."
"You know best what Chen Yanfeng is thinking of you. You asked him for help," Wen Li paused, his fingertips clenched so hard they ached. "Have you ever thought about the price you'll have to pay? He's a businessman, calculating is in his bones. How could he help someone for no reason?"
"I've thought about it." She hugged her arms, which were blown by the cold wind. "But as long as this matter can be resolved, I will accept this so-called price. But he didn't ask me to do anything. I took the initiative to withdraw my resignation letter because I don't want to owe him a favor for the rest of my life."
Wen Li was speechless for a moment.
After a brief silence, he forced himself to calm down, put his arm over Guan Mi's ear, closed the window, then picked up the tissue and handed it to her, his voice much calmer: "I'm sorry, I spoke too impulsively just now. Anyway, this matter is still thanks to you... Thank you."
Guan Mi ignored his paper, walked past him, and picked up the water bottle on the bedside table.
Just then, Wen Li's phone rang. He glanced at the caller and quickly picked up the phone: "Mom? Okay, got it. I'll be right back."
Guan Mi paused while drinking water.
Wen Li put the phone in his pocket and walked to Guan Mi, "Mi Mi, grandpa is awake, I have to rush back to Jiangcheng now."
"Oh, I'm glad you woke up." She put down the water and calmly picked up the key. "I'll take you downstairs."
The two of them walked downstairs in silence.
After the door opened, Guan Mi watched Wen Li walk out, looked at the back of his head, and said slowly, "Be careful on the road."
Wen Li turned around and looked at her deeply for a long time, "Okay."
After a while, the iron gate was locked with a crisp sound.
Guan Mi turned around and walked back, going up the stairs without stopping.
After returning to the room, she wiped the tears from her face with the back of her hand and picked up the phone that was ringing on the bed.
She thought it was Wen Li, but the person shown on the screen was Shen Yanfeng.
She stared at the screen in disappointment and didn't answer the call.
After the call was automatically hung up, his WeChat message popped up immediately.
Chen Yanfeng: [He's so overbearing? He doesn't allow you to answer the phone even after he's gone?]
Just as I finished reading this line, he called again.
Guan Mi closed his sore eyes and answered the call: "Hello."
There was no sound from the other end. After a moment, he spoke: "Wen Li made you cry again."
Her voice was so nasal that she couldn't hide it at all.
She did not respond, but let her body slowly slide down the edge of the bed, finally sitting on the cold floor with her knees bent, her back against the bed legs, and her whole body curled up into a ball.
"Guan Mi, I can't wait any longer."
"What?"
"I regret it." He spoke each word clearly, not giving her much time to react.
Guan Mi's expression froze on his face.
"Break up with Wen Li." Shen Yanfeng said, "This is the only condition for me to help you."
Before she could speak, he continued, "I won't force you. I'll give you one night to think about it."
"Of course, you can cross the river and burn the bridge," the sound of a lighter came from the other end of the phone, followed by a low chuckle after taking a deep puff of cigarette, "but you have to understand one thing. If I can rescue the Wen family, I can find a way to plunge them back into a desperate situation with no chance of recovery."
Guan Mi buried his face in his knees and laughed when he heard this. His laughter was filled with bitterness and sarcasm: "You said you wouldn't force me, and now you threaten me."
She didn't continue the call and chose to hang up and turn off the phone.
An autumn rain fell on Sunday morning and the temperature suddenly dropped several degrees.
Guan Mi's phone was not turned on all morning, and WeChat was logged in on the computer. Only Chen Yanfeng sent two annoying messages that were not related to work.
In the afternoon, she and her two roommates went to visit the Summer Palace.
She sat alone on a bench watching the sunset, while her roommates took pictures of each other not far away.
Around the end of November, the lake will be covered with thick ice and many people will come to skate.
Wen Li and I had been here once before we started dating. We had a blast and even agreed to come back next winter. But winter after winter has passed, so why hasn't he come yet?
In fact, from the first time he went to Wen Li's house, Guan Mi knew in his heart that it might be really difficult for their relationship to continue.
He is the only son who is highly regarded by the whole family, and she is the eldest daughter who has to shoulder family responsibilities early on. Both of them carry too many expectations and responsibilities on their shoulders.
Over the years, we have been able to keep going only because of the love we have for each other.
I used to think that only when love disappeared would one be unable to move forward, but I never thought that love alone is not enough to withstand the many difficulties of reality.
But she couldn't bear to let go, she really couldn't bear to let go. It was too difficult to let go of a relationship that had lasted for more than four years.
She took out her cell phone from her bag, pressed the power button, and after waiting for more than ten seconds, several missed calls popped up on the screen.
There are Qiao Qiuying's, Guan Tang's, Wen Li's, and Shen Yanfeng's.
Guan Mi first called her mother and Guan Tang back. Fortunately, there was nothing important, they just wanted to talk to her when they were free.
Wen Li's...
As for the remaining one, she only took a look and didn't want to reply. But Shen Yanfeng seemed to have installed a surveillance system on her phone, and the call came back immediately.
He said he only gave her one night to think about it, but now several hours have passed and she has not given him any news.
As soon as the phone was connected, his cold voice came:
"Secretary Guan, you might as well just throw this phone away."
"Sorry, I just recharged my battery," she replied.
Chen Yanfeng was too lazy to expose her clumsy lie, "So, Wen Li is already her ex-boyfriend, right?"
"He's still my boyfriend." Guan Mi lowered his eyes. "Four years of relationship can't be decided in one night. You haven't been in love before, so you won't understand."
"Are you really not afraid that I will attack the Wen family?"
"I'm afraid."
"If you are afraid, why don't you obey?"
"Breaking up with Wen Li is a very difficult thing for me..."
"Do you make it so difficult to open your mouth?"
Guan Mi clenched his phone and retorted softly: "If you have this experience, you will understand."
There was a moment of silence on the other end of the line, and then the voice that came back had an inexplicable meaning: "You're really good at mocking me with your mouth."
"You should know how much patience I have."
After saying that, he hung up the phone.
"Guan Mi, look here!" Zhuang Shuimo held up her newly bought camera and snapped several photos at her. "Yes, just like that. No need to force any expression. Wow, your photos really capture the atmosphere of autumn."
"What is the autumn atmosphere?" Yu Tongtong asked with a smile.
"It's just... she just exuded a quiet melancholy, her eyes filled with unspoken pain." Zhuang Shuimo looked at the viewfinder, her tone unconsciously filled with admiration and a hint of pity. Alas, a beautiful woman is a beautiful woman. Even her expression is so pitiful. Her boyfriend is really lucky.
Yu Tongtong took a quick glance before Guan Mi lowered his head.
What kind of melancholy, what kind of worries, those eyes are clearly still red and swollen.
She was really sad and must have cried. No wonder she went out with them today.
Guan Mi didn't say anything, but buried her face in the scarf. She thought of Shen Yanfeng's last words, his threats, and Wen Li's warm embrace.
The current situation should have been anticipated when she decided to ask Shen Yanfeng for help.
But she naively thought that he really had no other intentions.
In the evening, the three of them went out for a big meal, swallowing all their worries and pains along with the food.
When I came out of the subway, I spent nearly 100 yuan at a braised pork restaurant on the street, and then went home satisfied.
Yu Tongtong spotted the car parked downstairs. She lowered her voice and exclaimed to the other two, "What kind of person would park a Bentley worth over six million yuan in this place?"
Guan Mi's heart skipped a beat when she heard this. She raised her eyes and looked ahead. It was indeed a license plate she was familiar with.
She subconsciously stopped, and when Zhuang Shuimo turned around and called her to leave, she immediately hushed her voice, indicating that it was late and she should keep her voice down.
Then the three of them lowered their footsteps at the same time, passed by the car in silence, and entered the building smoothly.
It was not until he walked into the corridor that Guan Mi breathed a sigh of relief.
Just at that moment, cold sweat almost broke out on her back.
When she climbed to the fourth floor, Guan Mi stretched her neck to glance downstairs, but happened to see Shen Yanfeng leaning against the car with his arms folded, and his eyes accurately caught her gaze.
She was startled, shrank back in a hurry, and sighed speechlessly.
The next second, the phone rang.
You know who it is without even looking.
Shen Yanfeng: [Come down.]
[Or do you want the whole neighborhood to stay awake tonight?]
Guan Mi's scalp felt numb.
With the way he does things now, he can definitely do it.
She returned to her room, sat at the table, and stared at herself in the mirror in a daze.
She couldn't figure out what she had done to make Shen Yanfeng, as if he had been suddenly bewitched, become obsessed with her.
Was it a new habit of his to break up couples? Or was he simply attracted to women with boyfriends? Or was it because he was forced by family pressure to accept an arranged marriage that he couldn't stand seeing others fall in love?
“Beep—”
A not-so-sharp car horn suddenly reached his ears. Although it was much quieter than the one on the road that night, it still startled Guan Mi so much that he jumped up from his chair.
She didn't dare to hesitate any longer, grabbed the key and rushed out.
"Are you going out?" Zhuang Shuimo, who had just come out of the bathroom, asked curiously when she saw Guan Mi walking towards the door.
Guan Mi said, "I have something urgent to do."
Chen Yanfeng raised his head and watched the lights in the corridor light up one by one. Knowing that the figure slowly descending with the light was coming for him, he couldn't help but curl the corners of his lips.
Now there is only one last step left.
Originally, his plan was to make Guan Mi come over willingly.
But he underestimated her feelings for Wen Li.
When she came to him about the Wen family's affairs that day, he was furious. Was Wen Li really worth her efforts? Did she think that if she helped the Wen family, they would truly accept her?
Secretary Guan, who he saw as intelligent and calm, would actually lose his mind when he fell in love.
He couldn't bear to see her like this, and he couldn't bear to see her being made to cry by another man.
The car door was closed with a bit of frustration after Guan Mi hesitated between wanting to slam it hard and finally not daring to do so.
She didn't go to the passenger seat, but sat in the back, looking at Chen Yanfeng, and asked calmly, "What's the matter?" However, the only response she got was the sound of the car door locking.
She was startled and almost instinctively reached for the car door handle, but the door was locked.
Shen Yanfeng watched her through the rearview mirror, then said slowly, "I'll take you somewhere."
Guan Mi frowned: "Where are you going? I didn't bring my phone with me."
"We'll be there after a good night's sleep." He tossed me a cell phone. "You can use mine. The password is 12252010."
Perhaps they had anticipated that she would not go to the passenger seat, so they prepared a blanket and some fruit snacks in the back seat.
Guan Mi had no mood to eat, let alone touch his phone. It was getting colder and colder. She hugged her arms and endured it for a long time, then went to get a blanket and wrapped herself in it.
The car was already on the highway, and she already guessed where they were going and what they were going to do.
She leaned her head against the back of her chair, looking out the window with an unfocused gaze.
I didn't know when I fell asleep, and when I woke up it was already daybreak.
Guan Mi was lying on the car seat, covered not only with a blanket but also a black coat.
She was the only one in the car. She sat up suddenly and her first reaction was to push the door.
It's still locked.
She stared out the window. This was the city she was familiar with, and Jiangcheng Hospital was across the street.
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