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I think I spent too much time with Yang Wei. When I came back, I saw that they were all looking at me strangely as soon as I entered the room.
Especially Qiaoqiao. She darted in front of me in a flash, staring at me intently with her glasses, as if trying to see right through me.
I was feeling down and didn't feel like saying anything to them, so I forced a smile and said, "Aren't you going to eat? Oh, I've already eaten."
After saying that, I walked around Qiaoqiao and went inside. Aze seemed to want to say something, but Mu Tou sighed and gently tugged at his sleeve.
Qiaoqiao followed me all the way up to my room. When we reached the door, I turned around and whispered, "Qiaoqiao... I... I'm very tired. I want to rest first. You guys..."
Seeing that I was feeling down, Qiaoqiao couldn't help but be much gentler with me, and asked softly, "Xiao Wu, what's wrong?"
"It's nothing," I said with a wry smile. "I just drank a lot of cold water, and now I really need to go to the toilet."
On any other day, Qiaoqiao might have laughed and joked with me, but today, she clearly noticed that I looked unwell. Qiaoqiao moved closer, gently hugged my arm, and said softly, "Xiao Wu, what's wrong? Is it Yang Wei...?"
I shook my head: "It's nothing now. Oh, Yang Wei called me over because of something else. She helped me find Xiao Xuan, the girl who saved me yesterday. I'll have Hammer and the others send someone to pick her up. Then I'm thinking of arranging for her to go to Canada."
"No, something must be wrong." Qiaoqiao knew me so well; she leaned closer, gently took my arm, and whispered, "You..."
Suddenly, her gaze fell on my lips. She looked at the wound on my lips, with a row of fine teeth marks on it.
Qiao Qiao's expression immediately changed, and she abruptly took two steps back, angrily saying, "I thought something had happened to you... Hmph, so you went to meet Yang Wei! You..."
After saying this, Qiaoqiao gritted her teeth, stomped her foot, and turned to leave.
At that moment, I really didn't have the energy to explain much, so I didn't call out to Qiaoqiao. Instead, I gave a wry smile and turned to go into the room.
When you're in a good mood, time always seems to fly by. But when you're feeling down, you'll find that every minute drags on and feels unbearable!
I sat alone in my room, naturally unable to sleep. As I thought about it, I couldn't help but recall every little detail of Yang Wei and me from the moment we first met until now.
Suddenly, a somewhat absurd thought popped into my head... Does this count as heartbreak?
Haha! I couldn't help but laugh.
Someone like me, who already has a wife, is still indulging in fantasies about other women. I guess I'm pretty shameless, right?
Hmm... that's shameless.
I couldn't help but slap myself.
When people are unhappy, they always try to do something to cheer themselves up, especially when they are alone.
So, in the middle of the night, I suddenly felt a strong urge to go out and get some fresh air. I couldn't help but come up with a strange idea, and once it popped into my head, I didn't want to suppress it anymore.
I opened the window and climbed out. With my agility, I managed to climb to the rooftop with my bare hands.
The three-story villa wasn't very tall; the European-style building had a pointed roof. I sat on the edge, my legs dangling and swinging back and forth. I looked up at the sky for a while. But to my disappointment, although this was the suburbs, it was still Shanghai. In this metropolis full of nightlife and industry, the air pollution made the night sky a hazy gray.
Without bright stars and moonlight, nothing can be seen.
I felt like a young boy, quietly wallowing in melancholy. Hmm, isn't this how most heartbroken people are? If you add a bit of drinking to that, the drama would probably be even more intense.
I'm forcing a smile.
It was very late—it must have been very late. I wasn't wearing a watch, so I didn't know the time. But just as I was feeling a chill, I suddenly heard footsteps behind me.
I turned my head and saw Qiaoqiao wearing pajamas and a blanket draped over her shoulders, clumsily walking towards me on the roof, carrying a bottle of wine in her hand.
I sighed. After all, this was the rooftop, and I was afraid she would fall, so I quickly went over to help her up, and then we sat down side by side.
"Why aren't you asleep?" I asked her.
Qiaoqiao squinted and smiled. She smiled like a cat: "I heard noises on the roof, so I guessed that someone was not sleeping at night but came up to the roof to play the role of a mouse."
Looking into Qiaoqiao's eyes, I was suddenly moved: "Thank you, Qiaoqiao."
Qiaoqiao, however, was quite carefree. She brought the bottle to her lips, bit off the cap with a strong bite, and then spat it downstairs without any decorum. She giggled and asked, "What are you thanking me for?"
“So many.” I sighed.
Qiaoqiao didn't say anything, but pressed her body tightly against me, leaning her head slightly against my shoulder. We each took a sip of wine, and at first neither of us spoke, just drinking quietly.
Perhaps that's really the case. I was feeling down, but with Qiaoqiao by my side, leaning against me like that, it seemed to bring a touch of brightness, gently taking away my melancholy.
Or perhaps, when you have a girl like Qiaoqiao by your side, even if you want to be sad, you probably won't be able to.
In early autumn in Shanghai, the nights were still a bit chilly. I noticed that Qiaoqiao seemed a little cold, so I reached out and put my arm around her. Qiaoqiao didn't hold back and simply snuggled into my arms, finding the most comfortable position and curling up like a cat.
I have to say, the way Qiaoqiao nestled in my arms, occasionally squinting her eyes and pouting as she drank, was truly captivating.
After a long time, when the bottle was half empty, I suddenly looked down and said, "Qiaoqiao, am I a really jerk?"
"Huh? What?"
I chuckled and said to myself, "I feel like such a jerk. I'm already married, but I still have so many women around me—you, Yang Wei, Fang… Sigh, and every single one of them is so outstanding. If I were a good man, I would be grateful to God for any one of them being with me. But I seem to be insatiably greedy, as if I want to possess them all before I'm satisfied."
I looked down at Qiaoqiao: "Actually, given my current situation, it's normal for you to leave me. Leaving me is the right thing to do. It's me who's forcing you to stay by my side, which is an excessive request, right?"
Hearing this, Qiaoqiao suddenly sat up straight. She stared at me for a moment, a warm smile in her eyes, but then deliberately put on a stern face, pinched me hard, and deliberately cursed, "Kid! Are you trying to break up with me? Let me tell you! No way! Damn it! I'm such a beautiful woman, and you've kissed me, hugged me, and even touched me. Now you want to leave me? Humph! Let me tell you, kid! If you dare mention breaking up again, I'll..."
After she finished speaking, she raised her palm and made a classic "Ikkyu-san" gesture.
I laughed, I really laughed. Seeing Qiaoqiao's deliberately serious face, I couldn't help but hug her.
"Thank you, thank you so much, Qiaoqiao... It's so good to have you."
Part Three: The Pinnacle, Chapter Seventy-Two: Fighting Poison with Poison
Or, when someone has emotional problems, they really need someone to help them heal.
Last night, Qiaoqiao and I sat on the rooftop until dawn. We drank a whole bottle of wine…
Who says Qiaoqiao is a violent woman? Last night, Qiaoqiao gave me almost all her tenderness. She leaned against me, talked to me, and drank with me. We talked about a lot of things, about all the funny things that happened when we hung out in Nanjing, about the embarrassing things that happened when we lived together in a car repair shop in Canada... everything.
I suddenly realized that Qiaoqiao's memory is so good. There are many details of the things we spent together in the past that I have forgotten, but Qiaoqiao seems to remember them so clearly!
Of course, there was one thing: Qiao Qiao was very careful not to mention Yang Wei all night.
Of course I understand her good intentions.
When I saw Qiaoqiao's dark circles under her eyes at dawn, I was deeply moved. I carried her downstairs, back to my room, put her on my bed, covered her with a blanket, and coaxed her to sleep.
It's a strange feeling... I didn't sleep all night, but I feel much more energetic.
Perhaps, having a confidante like Qiaoqiao is a blessing from God.
Of course, drinking all night still had some effect on me, even though I had taken a shower. But when I went outside, people could still smell the alcohol on me if they got close.
When I got to the lobby, Aze and Mutou were already having breakfast. Seeing me come downstairs, Aze chuckled and said, "Huh? Seeing how defeated you looked last night, I thought you'd sleep until noon. Looks like you're full of energy."
I smiled. Indeed, it seemed that Qiaoqiao's vitality had soothed my soul to some extent, and now I felt much more relaxed.
Walking up to them, I didn't waste any words and directly took Aze's knife and fork. I snatched a fried egg from his plate first, and Aze couldn't help but sigh, "I thought you had changed your ways, but it turns out you've turned your grief into food. But don't steal my breakfast."
Wood smiled slightly: "Wrong, it's not about turning grief and anger into appetite, but rather into drinking capacity."
Aze leaned closer and sniffed me carefully, then laughed, "Sure enough, this guy must have drunk quite a bit last night."
"And they were drinking on the rooftop... Hmm. They say men can't live without wine and women, so with fine wine, there's probably a beautiful woman to keep them company." Mu Tou said leisurely, "Didn't you hear any noises last night? It sounded like there were rats on the roof of our building in the middle of the night."
I ignored their back-and-forth banter and just devoured their breakfast, then patted my stomach and said, "Done!"
Now that we've eaten and drunk our fill, it's time to get to work. Although I'm a capitalist now, I can't just eat, drink, and have fun without working. Besides, I also feel that I've been too lazy these past few days.
Oh, right, there's another saying: "Career is the best way for a man to heal from heartbreak."
I was preparing to leave the club. I sent someone to invite Old Man Qiao, but he didn't have time to see me. He just sent word that I could leave, as things outside were mostly settled. However, he stipulated that I should still come back to stay here every day. Finally, he added that he had something to discuss with me in a few days.
Led by a large group, we headed straight for the Shanghai Huaxing branch. Sun Wendi was waiting to discuss something with me. He reported that he planned to depart soon for Country G in Africa to meet General Kunta, and then begin our evil monopoly capital business, determined to squeeze every last drop of profit out of the Country G government. I immediately nodded. I had originally planned to write a personal letter to Kunta, but after thinking about it, I decided against it. I changed my mind and decided to have Sun Wendi take some gifts with him.
As for gifts...
Yeah, last time I came back, that old scoundrel Kunta gave me a whole truckload of those aphrodisiac drugs from his tribe. As the old saying goes, "It's only polite to reciprocate."
I immediately asked, "What Chinese medicines are considered aphrodisiacs?"
Sun Wendi looked embarrassed: "This... Boss, I don't know much about this, but I seem to have heard of a medicinal herb called Epimedium... I think..."
"Okay, send someone to purchase it, buy one ton first..."
Sun Wendi almost fell to the ground: "One, one ton?"
Sigh... It seems that the revolutionary friendship between me and that old rogue Kunta is something that others can't understand. I won't explain, I just waved my hand and let Sun Wendi go down first.
Work! Work! I need to work! I need to find something to do!
I felt like a hungry wolf... but after walking around the company, I realized with dismay that I was really superfluous.
There was almost nothing I could interfere with at Huaxing Company. Everything was done step by step, with self-contained procedures, and I wasn't good at the details of business and trade. My previous job was to set a general direction, then distribute the money and let Sun Wendi and his cronies make money for me. I only needed to come to the company occasionally to sign some documents.
Fortunately, I received a call from Ning Yan at that moment, which immediately cheered me up!
Ning Yan called to ask if we had arrived at the villa in Lushan. But after contacting Jenny, she found out that I hadn't gone with them, and even Hammer, who was originally supposed to accompany Jenny and the others to Lushan, had been called back halfway.
Ning Yan thought something had happened to me, so she called to check on me.
I could tell Ning Yan sounded tired on the phone, and a thought struck me: "Hasn't the media issue been resolved yet?"
Ning Yan hesitated for a moment: "This matter is a bit troublesome."
Without hesitation, I replied, "We'll talk about it when we meet."
Deep Blue Entertainment doesn't have a branch office in Shanghai, only a small liaison office that handles minor business related to Deep Blue's commercial performances. Furthermore, since Jenny's scandal broke, that Shanghai office has become a prime target for media attention and surveillance.
I might as well have Ning Yan bring her people to Huaxing Company.
Snap!
I threw the newspaper I was holding onto the table, cursing, "Damn it! Is this never going to end?!"
The newspaper lay quietly on the table, its entertainment headline reading, "Former courtesan, now a superstar."
Needless to say, this is yet another piece of negative news targeting Jenny.
Faced with this troublesome problem that was giving me a headache, I suddenly, almost inexplicably, had a thought that surprised even myself:
Perhaps, if Yang Wei were still by my side, that would be great. With her intelligence, she could definitely help me solve this problem...
I shook my head vigorously while rubbing my temples hard.
You idiot! Chen Yang, what are you thinking?!