Chapter 87 My Life, Are You Satisfied With It?
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Zhou Zhou didn't tell Wen Luo about Ye Qisheng contacting him. In his view, the two were already exes. He often saw this kind of relationship when he was in college. When his roommate's ex-girlfriend came to ask him to get back together, another roommate even advised her that a proper ex should peacefully exist in the past.
Zhou Zhou couldn't understand it then, but now he suddenly understands.
Because of the rain and overcast weather, it was completely dark when I drove home, with dark clouds looming overhead, which looked quite frightening.
Zhou Zhou parked the car in the garage. As soon as he got out, he suddenly felt a jolt and looked behind him, but there was nothing there.
It was a cold, rainy day. A draft blew into the garage, and the lights above flickered slightly. In this environment, Zhou Zhou swallowed hard, pulled his coat tighter, grabbed his keys, and jogged toward the front door. The road was slippery from the rain, and he was running so fast that he tripped and fell on the first step before reaching the front door.
"Hiss..." His knee hit the edge of the steps, and the pain made him gasp. He moved a few steps up to the eaves where the rain could be sheltered, and examined his injury by the light from the doorway. He was wearing long pants in the afternoon, and the bruise on the surface of the pants did not seem to be a big problem. He lifted the cuff of his pants down to his thigh and saw that the spot where his knee had hit was bruised and broken, with blood seeping through the wound and slowly flowing down.
Is this some kind of indirect attack? His pants are fine, but his leg is torn; should he praise the quality of those pants? Since transmigrating into the book, he's been plagued by minor injuries and troubles. Zhou Zhou's bold imagination as an author has started working again, and he even suspects that this is proof that the world in the book is ostracizing him, this outsider soul.
The strange feeling of being spied on was still there, but it disappeared after he fell. Zhou Zhou didn't care about that now. Blood had already soaked into his socks, which were white, making it look rather eerie. Zhou Zhou didn't pull his trousers down, and with his wound exposed, he limped up the stairs and opened the front door.
The first-aid kit was probably in the cabinet under the TV in the living room. Zhou Zhou went in and squatted down in the living room to look for the first-aid kit, thinking of finding a band-aid to put on.
"Oh dear! What happened?!"
"The road was slippery, and I slipped and fell." Zhou Zhou looked at Aunt Feng, who walked into the living room with a nervous expression, and laughed awkwardly. "It's okay, I'll just find a band-aid to put it on."
"That won't do, it needs to be disinfected!" Aunt Feng hurriedly came over to help Zhou Zhou up and sit him on the sofa. She then took a transparent medicine box from the cabinet next to the TV.
"Hey, I can do it myself." Zhou Zhou quickly stopped Aunt Feng, who was about to use an alcohol swab to clean his wound, and took the swab from her to clean the wound himself.
A burning, stinging pain spread from the wound on his knee. Zhou Zhou wiped it clean in one go, then took out a band-aid from the first-aid kit and applied it.
"Oh dear, don't put this on, it's not breathable. Let me get some gauze to bandage it for you." Aunt Feng said, reaching for the gauze again, but Zhou Zhou stopped her once more.
"It's alright, Auntie, it's just a minor injury. It'll probably heal on its own soon."
“Nonsense.” Aunt Feng scolded him with a disapproving look, but her tone was full of love. “You’re such a grown man, why are you still so clumsy like you were when you were a child?”
"I was trying to get home quickly, so I ran a little fast." Zhou Zhou rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, then noticed a canvas bag next to Aunt Feng and asked in confusion, "Aunt Feng, are you going out?"
Zhou Zhou looked at the dark sky outside. Aunt Feng usually didn't go out to buy things at this time.
"Yes, I was just about to call you and tell you, and you're back." Aunt Feng said, "The old lady and the old man are coming tomorrow. They don't have a caregiver at the old house. The two old people are getting on in years. My wife just called me and asked me to go over and help them out."
Indeed, it's a bit of a waste of talent for Aunt Feng, a seasoned nanny who has spent most of her life in the Fu family, to be taking care of him and young people like Fu Hengzhi. Zhou Zhou recalled a late-night chat where Fu Hengzhi told him that Aunt Feng should retire after a while, since she's getting old and it's not sustainable for her to keep taking care of people all the time; she should enjoy her retirement. However, this matter hasn't been discussed with Aunt Feng herself yet.
“Okay, Aunt Feng, you can go to my mom’s.” Zhou Zhou continued, “It’s dark and the roads are slippery outside, I’ll call a driver to take you there.”
Zhou Zhou knew that Aunt Feng didn't like to trouble the Fu family's driver to pick her up and drop her off. She always felt that it was inappropriate for a nanny like herself to ride in her employer's luxury car. The electric scooter in the corner of the garage was one that Aunt Feng had bought with her own salary.
As expected, Aunt Feng subconsciously waved her hand in refusal when she heard the other party say that.
"Why would you send me there? I didn't bring any luggage. I just wore a raincoat and rode there." Aunt Feng used to live in the old house. She had a room in the old house where some of her clothes were stored. She took a canvas bag with some toiletries inside.
"In that case, I'll take you there. Driving is faster, and riding an electric bike will only get you wet in the rain." Zhou Zhou said, rolling up his trouser leg and grabbing Aunt Feng's canvas bag without another word, ready to leave.
"Oh dear, how can you drive with that leg? Stop fooling around and put it down for me." Aunt Feng reached out to take the bag from Zhou Zhou's hand, but the other girl held it above her head, looking at her with a childish, defiant expression. Aunt Feng was both annoyed and amused. Knowing that the other girl cared about her, she stopped arguing and said, "I'll take the car, okay?"
“Okay then.” Zhou Zhou handed the bag to the other person, but with a second thought, he took off the electric scooter key clipped to the strap and stuffed it into his pocket. “Auntie, here’s your bag back.”
"You're so old, yet you're still like a child!" Aunt Feng complained, but her tone was smiling. Looking at Zhou Zhou in front of her, her eyes inexplicably welled up with tears.
"What's wrong, Auntie?" Zhou Zhou, like a child who had done something wrong, hurriedly hung the keys from her pocket back on the other person's bag. Worried that the other person might cry, she also took two tissues from the drawer on the table.
"Auntie is just happy." Aunt Feng's eyes welled up with tears, but she couldn't let them fall.
Upon hearing this, Zhou Zhou's throat suddenly tightened, and he didn't know what to say. He remembered that Fu Hengzhi had told him about Aunt Feng before.
Before Aunt Feng came to the Fu family as a nanny, she lived in the countryside. She was hardworking and could occasionally do odd jobs in town after finishing her farm work. Her husband was responsible for taking care of their son at home. One day, after Aunt Feng finished helping someone move goods in town, she found a group of people gathered at the village entrance, and some people were crying. Aunt Feng went over out of curiosity, and almost fainted after just one glance.
A child lay pale as a ghost on a stone bench, and the person crying was the child's father, her husband. It was said that after Aunt Feng went to town, someone from the neighboring village invited her husband to drink and gamble. Her husband was tempted, but carrying the child would be distracting, so he sent the child to his grandmother's house, promising to buy him eight-treasure candy if he won money. When they arrived, his grandmother was busy doing needlework inside, leaving him to play in the yard. The three-year-old, not understanding anything, got tired and wanted the candy, so he waddled out. He loved playing in the water, and when he passed the stream, he splashed around on the bank, lost his footing, and drowned. Aunt Feng divorced him because of this.
When Zhou Zhou heard this, she felt terrible. He was such a young child, and he was gone just like that.
The fact that the other party is so moved now is most likely because they are thinking of their son.
"Auntie, don't cry. It hurts me every time I see you cry." A memory suddenly became clear in Zhou Zhou's mind, and she comforted her, "When my parents and I visited the old house, you would always give me cookies and potato chips. Sometimes you would give me more than you gave Hengzhi. You loved me so much. I often told Fu Hengzhi that when you get old and retire, you should continue to live here. I have no parents, so I will take care of you in your old age."
"Your aunt doesn't need to support her. She's saved up some money over the years, and she has nephews and nieces in the countryside. She's got them all." Aunt Feng laughed and tapped his head, saying, "I give you more snacks because you love them. Hengzhi eats fewer snacks. Don't make it sound like your aunt is being biased."
"Ah—" Zhou Zhou pouted, feeling wronged, "So this wasn't favoritism after all."
"Alright, alright, stop teasing me." Aunt Feng knew the other person didn't want her to feel bad, so she cheered up and said, "Am I not favoring you enough? I'm cooking four dishes and a soup now, and all four dishes are your favorites."
“Yes, yes, yes.” Zhou Zhou laughed, “My aunt is so good to me, I will take care of her in her old age.”
"go."
The call had already been made to the driver. Zhou Zhou chatted with Aunt Feng for a while, and then helped her into the car when it arrived.
After seeing Aunt Feng off, Zhou Zhou went into the villa and went to the bedroom. She changed out of her clothes and put on some loungewear. She glanced at the time. Usually, Fu Hengzhi would be back around this time. Zhou Zhou thought for a moment and decided to call him to say hello and add some sweetness to their relationship.
Zhou Zhou took out his phone, skillfully found the contact information for Fu Hengzhi, and before he could press the green call button, he heard a knock on the door.
The sound came from the main entrance, one after another, in waves. Zhou Zhou quickly ran downstairs, calling out as he went, "Coming, coming!"
Just as Zhou Zhou reached the entrance and touched the doorknob, he froze instantly, his movements stiffening as if time itself had stopped.
That's not right.
Zhou Zhou stared at the doorknob, slowly moved her hand away, and stood there, frozen in place.
For safety reasons, the smart lock on the door needs to have its password changed every now and then. At first, he thought that Aunt Feng had forgotten something and returned, but now that he thought about it, the other party had the key and fingerprint and knew the password, so it was obviously impossible for her to knock on the door. Moreover, the security in this residential area is strict, and strangers cannot easily enter.
Maybe they're neighbors?
'Gurgle'
Zhou Zhou swallowed hard and looked out through the electronic screen next to him.
There was no one at the entrance.
Holy crap, holy crap, holy crap.
A sense of unease arose spontaneously, and Zhou Zhou got goosebumps.
Maybe someone knocked on the door, found no one answering, and went back inside?
Zhou Zhou turned around to go back to his bedroom, comforting himself. "How many supernatural things are you going to stumble upon? You're a man with plenty of yang energy, what are you afraid of?"
Zhou Zhou thought about it and it made more and more sense. He turned on the main light switch and looked at the brightly lit villa. He felt a sense of security immediately.
'Bang bang bang'
Just as I took a step out, there was another knock on the door behind me.
Zhou Zhou: "..."
Zhou Zhou: "...Who is it!"
Zhou Zhou panicked a little and quickly moved to the door, grabbed the doorknob, and looked out through the peephole, but there was still nothing there.
The knocking continued, and Zhou Zhou was almost in tears.
"Who is it? Can you at least give us a heads-up, are you a person or a ghost?!"
"Let me tell you, I'm not afraid of you. It's not like everyone hasn't died before!"
Zhou Zhou shouted twice, and the last sentence seemed to trigger something in him, causing his courage to surge up instantly.
Yeah, who hasn't died before? If it really is that thing outside, we might not be able to beat it.
Zhou Zhou gripped the doorknob and then released it, gripped it again and then released it again. After a complicated mental process, he finally gripped the doorknob and pressed it down.
"Who is it!"
"hello."
The person outside smiled when he opened the door and said softly, "Are you satisfied with my life?"
Author's Note: !!!
By the way, there might be a little bit of angst later on, is that okay with that? QWQ It'll only be a tiny bit, it'll be bittersweet after all~~~】
Chapter Eighty-Eight: Dad? What dad?
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The French windows rattled and pattered from the wind and rain. The sky was completely dark and the rain showed no sign of stopping. He Qingqing organized the documents and handed them to the president in front of her. The person in charge of the project had been busy all day and had finally resolved the issues with the project.
"President, the manager in charge went to negotiate today, and Hongyun is willing to lower the price by another two percentage points." He Qingqing pushed up her silver-rimmed glasses, flipped directly to the most prominent page of the contract, handed it to the president, and offered her opinion, "After dragging it out until now, the funds Hongyun has invested in this project have already affected their main cash flow. If they refuse to budge, this project will have no choice but to declare bankruptcy. They really can't gamble on a scorched-earth scenario."
“Shen Shuo doesn’t have his father’s decisiveness.” Fu Hengzhi examined the contract in front of him. The terms were not much different from what he had expected. He simply signed his name in the lower right corner, stamped it, and handed it to He Qingqing.
With a 'thud,' the CEO's office was on a very high floor, and a strong wind blew open a window that wasn't fully closed, letting in raindrops that fell onto the floor.
He Qingqing was about to put the contract down to wipe away the water stains.
"Never mind, you can go home now." Fu Hengzhi looked at the not-so-good weather outside. As far as he knew, his secretary was still taking the subway to work. After a while, he added, "Have the finance department reimburse you for transportation expenses at the end of the month."
This was to give her a ride home. He Qingqing bowed to thank him, but Fu Hengzhi waved her away.
I went to the bathroom to get a mop and cleaned the floor. I closed the window, locked the door before leaving the office, got into the driver's seat in the underground parking lot, rubbed my aching temples, took out my phone to check the time, and wondered what my partner at home was doing at this time.
Creating content? Playing games?
It should be the former. Recently, he didn't know what the other party was busy with, and he played games less often. Fu Hengzhi didn't ask the other party too much about work. In his opinion, the other party should be free no matter what profession he was engaged in. Moreover, when he returned to the gentle home, President Fu would not have the mind to focus on those laborious and tiring jobs.
The phone screen showed a picture of Zhou Zhou sleeping, taken early in the morning. A beam of light from the window shone on his collarbone. President Fu was immediately captivated and saved the picture as his lock screen wallpaper.
Fu Hengzhi skillfully dialed the phone. It was the latest he had gotten home today, so he wanted to call and hear the other person's voice first.
The phone beeped a few times, then automatically disconnected because no one answered.
Fu Hengzhi thought the other party was busy, so he didn't call back. He started the car and drove towards home. Seeing a living person was more important than hearing their voice.
Even before the car entered the courtyard, Fu Hengzhi could see his own house brightly lit, shining like a giant light bulb, even from several houses away.
"?" Fu Hengzhi didn't understand why Aunt Feng turned on all the lights. In his opinion, Zhou Zhou didn't seem to be involved in this matter.
With a sense of doubt, I parked the car and opened the door. The house seemed unusually quiet today, which didn't match the bright lights.
"Aunt Feng?" Fu Hengzhi stepped into the living room, which was empty. The sofa cushions were neatly arranged. He went to the kitchen, but he didn't see Aunt Feng busy at all. There wasn't even a trace of food in the air.
Fu Hengzhi had a bad feeling. Instead of knocking on Aunt Feng's door, he put his briefcase on the dining table and went straight upstairs. When he got to the bedroom, he pushed the door open and went in without even knocking.
The bedroom lights, large and small, were on under the control of the main light switch, but apart from the brightness, there was no other sign of human presence.