Yanxi called him and said, "Dayi, I just ate pork rib noodles. It was the first meal I had with Aheng."
So many years have passed, what's wrong with your brain, remembering it so clearly.
In the blink of an eye, Hua'er was busy working on the company's business plan, head down, eyes slightly upturned, clear and bright. Just like the person he had seen many years ago named Rose.
Xin Dayi said, "Gods and Bodhisattvas, ancestors of time, I remember them all so clearly."
Oh, what a tragedy.
In 2006, he said, "Chen Juan, I'm going home for the Spring Festival to spend time with my grandfather."
Grandpa Xin is a stubborn old man.
The issue has always been Xin Dayi's career, even though she is already a small-time millionaire with assets of over 100 million.
But the old man always believed that after so many years of training, it was all wasted.
He asked, "Xin Dayi, when are you going to bring me a granddaughter-in-law? If you like Aheng, just say so! I'm telling you, if you're a man, go and fight Yan boy for her! Damn it, I don't believe that my Xin family can't beat the Yan family!"
Xin Dayi convulsed. She thought to herself, "Don't make things worse here. If Yan hope finds out, I'll be doomed. Lu Liu and the Wen family alone are enough to give him trouble."
Someone was knocking on the door.
It's a common practice; the fifth day of the Lunar New Year is a time for relatives and friends to visit each other. Although Grandpa Xin has retired, the Xin faction is still around, and since the first day of the Lunar New Year, there has been a constant stream of knocks on his door.
But this timing is wrong, it's the middle of the night.
Xin Dayi opened the door, frowning. It was Chen Juan.
He asked, "Why are you here?"
Chen Juan's face was very red, an eerie red, as if he were sick.
Old Xin was inside, shouting loudly who it was. Da Yi, heartless, pretended not to see and said, "I'll go back after the eighth day of the lunar month."
Chen Juan didn't say anything, but struggled to take a bag from his pocket and said, "I forgot your winter coat at home. I'm going to the hospital here to see a doctor for a cold, and I'll bring it to you on my way."
Xin Dayi's heart ached so much she was practically choking. "Chen Juan, you're really on the way here. There's a hospital right on your doorstep, and you walk thirty miles to come here to see a doctor."
Chen Juan looked exhausted and said, "I've been working on the planning these past two days and I'm really tired. Let me rest for a bit, I'll be leaving soon."
Xin Dayi felt uneasy, hugged Chen Juan, and remained silent.
Old Xin's legs and feet become weak in winter. Seeing that his grandson did not answer, he walked towards the entrance with his cane, but his mind suddenly exploded.
His beloved grandson was holding a big man at the door, hugging him just like he used to hug his wife.
The old man, having lived most of his life, knew all too well. He cursed the little beast and, leaning on his cane, began to strike his grandson and the disreputable man in his arms.
Da Yi shielded Chen Juan and said, "Grandpa, it's not what you think."
Old Xin was so angry that his veins were bulging. "Pah! You filthy thing, you little bastard! You've ruined my reputation for the rest of my life!"
He picked up his cane and began to beat the two men hard.
Chen Juan was working on design drawings at home and hadn't paid attention to his illness. He had been feeling dizzy and lightheaded for several days, and he stumbled and fell in the snow.
Xin Dayi panicked, "Grandpa, what are you doing?"
He snatched the old man's cane, threw it aside, picked up Chen Juan, and ran towards the hospital.
Old Master Xin's eyes were bloodshot, he was so angry that he was trembling all over and breathing heavily. "Xin Dayi, let me tell you, if you go with this man today, you will never be my grandson!"
Xin Dayi, who had always been stubborn, gritted her teeth and said, "No, it's not true! You've never respected me, and I've had enough of being your grandson!"
He thought that this time, even if Yan Xi and A Heng tried to persuade him together, or even if Lu Liu and Wen Siwan joined in, he wouldn't go home!
But no, he turned back one more time to look at Old Xin, who had fainted by the door from anger.
After Chen Juan received his injection, Xin Dayi received a call from her grandfather, who was taking care of Xiao Zhao, saying that Old Xin was being resuscitated.
Xin Dayi received the call at 2:03 a.m.
Mr. Xin passed away at 2:10.
He was still on the road at the time.
Okay, we don't have to be grandfather and grandson anymore.
Xin Dayi knelt in the ward, crying so hard it felt like blood was about to come out of her throat.
Touching Old Xin's hand, it was already starting to get cold.
He raised his grandson his whole life, and this is the only good grandson he has ever had.
Da Yi was heartbroken; the sky seemed to have fallen.
Grandpa, Grandpa, Grandpa!!!
He always held his hand, no matter how busy he was with work, he always held his hand when he was in kindergarten and elementary school. His grandfather, whose hands were calloused, had made him hats out of grass in the park and told him stories about the Vietnam War. When others said, "Xin Dayi, you are so much uglier than your brother," he would spit and curse, "Get the hell out of here! My grandson is the best looking. What are the Yan, Wen, and Lu families compared to me?"
He has no parents, only his grandfather.
Grandpa is like Mom and Dad, no, closer than anyone who exists or has passed away.
Xin Dayi fell seriously ill and nearly died.
When Old Master Yan heard of his old friend's death, he almost choked on his own breath. When he flew back, he saw his friend's portrait at the funeral hall and saw Yan Xi, who had stayed up for three days and three nights with Da Yi without eating or sleeping. He was furious and, in front of many Yan Party members and Xin faction members, slapped his grandson hard across the face. He said, "You little beast, did you corrupt Da Yi? Is your next move to make me die of anger?!"
His eyes then flashed with a sinister glare at the Lu family grandfather and grandson. The Lu family and the Yan faction were on the verge of conflict, ready to clash at any moment.
Behind Old Man Yan, accompanied by Staff Officer Zhang and his son, Zhang Ruo, with a subtle smile on her lips, coldly looked at Yan hope.
Standing behind Yan hope was Aheng. Aheng said, "Grandpa Yan, what are you doing?"
Old Man Yan looked into Aheng's eyes, which were unfathomable, like a bucket of ice water poured over her. He said, "Aheng, this has nothing to do with you."
Old Wen's gaze remained fixed, without any extra expression.
The group paid their respects to their friend and wept bitterly.
After helping Da Yi through the 57th day of the Xin family, Yan Lao took out a passport, threw it to Yan hope, and said, "Come with me, let's go back to America."
Yan hope shook her head and said very seriously, "I want to be with Aheng."
Old Man Yan was utterly disappointed. He said, "Are you still going to use Aheng as a cover?"
He said, "Yanxi, I've nurtured you my whole life, thinking you're intelligent and capable, and I wanted you to take over my business. But you've disappointed me so much because of a man."
Yan hope's eyes were clear. He said, "I want to be with Aheng. It has nothing to do with Lu Liu."
Yan Lao believed the words of his old subordinates and the rumors circulating in the upper echelons of the capital. Yan hope alone could not possibly withstand the overwhelming voice of gossip. As the saying goes, rumors can be harmful.
Old Master Yan sighed when he saw his grandson's ear. "Xiao hope, don't be the boy who cried wolf again. Even if it's Aheng, look at Wen Laosan's attitude. He clearly doesn't want to marry his granddaughter to you. Come back with Grandpa, okay? Grandpa will find you a good doctor to check your ear condition."
Yan hope shook his head and said, "I want to be with Aheng, I want to marry her, I want to have a home."
Old Master Yan hardened his heart and said in a deep voice, "Yan hope, I'm giving you two choices: one, come with me; two, sever all ties with the Yan family."
He considered it a deception by his grandson and absolutely could not allow him to be with a man, lest the Yan family become a laughingstock.
The successor he has been cultivating for so many years is not an actor.
Yan hope looked at the sky and suddenly smiled. "If there's no third option, I'll choose second. I want a home."
No longer lonely, no longer isolated, no longer let down, no longer abandoned, I have people to protect me and people I can protect.
Mr. Yan turned and left by plane, subsequently freezing all of Yan hope's credit cards.
The once powerful Yan family has no further connection with Yan hope.
When Aheng returned to school, he talked with his grandfather all night. The next day, when his family asked about it, Grandpa Wen was holding a birdcage and ignored them.
Aheng ranked first in the entire college in the exam and qualified to study in France.
She asked if she could bring her family members.
The hospital leaders said it was possible, but it had to be paid for by the patient themselves.
Ah Heng called and said, "I'm waiting for you in H City." Waiting for you, um, for three days, until the very last second before boarding the plane.
Yan hope smiled, a beautiful smile, like a child's. He said, "Okay."
On the first day, Dayi ran into trouble. They were placed on a list of companies accused of tax evasion amounting to tens of millions.
Before Xin Lao's body was even cold, Da Yi was taken to prison.
Yan hope asked him if this was true.
Da Yi shook his head and said that Chen Juan had always been in charge of the accounts.
When she found the rose, she was chatting and laughing with Lu Liu.
Yan hope knew what had happened. He found it absurd: "Are you in cahoots with Lu Liu? Is your relationship with Da Yi fake?"
Lu Liu smiled; the victor always has a superior air about him.
Chen Juan lowered his eyes, his voice bitter, and said, "Yes, it is me. You know, I've always liked Lu Liu."
Yan hope laughed and said, "That's a brilliant move. Even Grandpa Xin was part of your plan, wasn't he? You've dismantled the Xin family, and the Yan family is now infamous because of my stain, leaving only the Lu family unscathed. Brilliant, truly brilliant."
Lu Liu squinted and said to Yan hope, "I've said it before, I won't do the work for someone else."
Yan Xi lifted Chen Juan's chin, looking down at him with icy eyes and gritted teeth. "Chen Juan, are you deaf like me? Did you hear that? For someone like this, you harmed Xin Dayi, who had been by your side for eight years."
Lu Liu glanced at Chen Juan indifferently.
Chen Juan was still recovering from his illness when he started coughing violently. "Yes, what is Xin Dayi anyway? What does his death have to do with me?"
He gripped the corner of the table with his hand to steady himself.
Yan hope asked, "Lu Liu, what do you want?"
Lu Liu smiled and countered, "Yan hope, what do you have left that I would even look at? You've trampled on your own soul, filling the soul I've nurtured with half my life with someone else's—it's all useless now. And Wen Heng, I underestimated this woman; she ruined all my hard work. Didn't she say she wanted to be with you? I'll make sure you two aren't together."
Yan hope's eyes brightened, and she burst into laughter. "Lu Liu, when did you become so stupid that you can only come up with this kind of third-rate TV drama plot? It's just Wen Heng, what's so special about Wen Heng?"
He made a phone call in front of Lu Liu, his gaze intense and his back haughty, and said, "Wen Heng, you should leave. I love Lu Liu. Don't come back, and stop deceiving yourself. I've changed my mind. I won't go abroad with you."
Ah Heng remained silent for a long time, only breathing could be heard.
She said, "I understand."
The call was disconnected.
Two days left. Two days until the very last second before she boards the plane.
The next day, Xin Dayi's ten million was paid up, the case was dropped, and the prosecutor's office no longer filed a public prosecution.