Chapter 204: 204 aning Chapter 204: 204 aning The rain had already stopped at so point, and the roads were still wet when Chen Xu left Bai Jinxuan’s place.
It was still Fangfang who escorted him down, all the way to the entrance of the residential complex.
“Mr. Chen, please take care,” Fangfang stood at the entrance, waving at him.
“Goodbye.”
Chen Xu turned back for a glance at the tall building and walked away.
He didn’t stay overnight because Shao Qing was there the whole ti, showing no signs of leaving. It was clear she wasn’t going to give him a chance.
After all, she was Jinxuan’s boss, and if she insisted on staying there like a third wheel, he was helpless. Seeing that it was getting late, he said goodbye to Bai Jinxuan and left.
Although Bai Jinxuan looked reluctant, she didn’t ask him to stay. After saying goodbye, she watched him leave.
It was already eleven o’clock, and he was walking alone on the rain-fresh streets. The area was deserted, and water droplets occasionally fell from the trees lining the pavent, landing on his head and clothes.
By the ti he reached the curb, his hair and clothes were already mostly wet.
After waiting a while, a car stopped in front of him, the ride-hailing car he had summoned.
Sitting in the car, he took out his phone and dialed Old Tang’s number, “I hope I didn’t wake you this late. Nothing much, just feeling a bit stifled and thought of having a few drinks with you. Great, let’s et at the barbecue place near your house. Yeah, I’ll be there in half an hour.”
“Driver, would you mind changing the destination…”
…
At Old Tang’s house, Old Tang was still working in the living room with his laptop open in front of him when Chen Xu called. He glanced at the ti and continued to busy himself with his computer.
His wife ca out from the room, gently closed the door, and asked, “Who was that on the phone just now?”
“It was Chen Xu. He seems to be in a bit of a bad mood and has asked to go out for a drink.”
“Aren’t you going to hurry up then?” His wife said urgently.
“He won’t be here for another half hour, there’s no rush.” Old Tang’s eyes didn’t leave the computer as he asked, “Is the baby asleep?”
“Fast asleep.”
His wife sat down next to him and said, “Husband, you’ve really got an eye for people, getting on Chen Xu’s good side so early. Your transfer to the electronics sales departnt and your recent promotion to deputy manager, it was all thanks to him.”
Old Tang sighed too, “Actually, I didn’t expect him to beco as successful as he is now. When I first t him, I just felt that he was a decent person and worth associating with.”
“I didn’t notice that before.”
“The thing about him is, if you’re good to him, he will treat you with the sa kindness. If you consider him a friend, he will also consider you one. He won’t stab you in the back, which makes him way better than those who are duplicitous.”
His wife comnted, “Honestly, I thought he was too aloof before and didn’t have a very good impression of him.”
“Actually, his character is sowhat like mine used to be. Seeing him is like looking at my forr self. Too proud, sensitive at heart, afraid of rejection, and cautiously dealing with the outside world, for fear of a warm face coming up against a cold butt. However, if soone takes the initiative to be kind to him, he will forge a friendship.”
His wife remarked, “The way you describe it, he sounds quite pitiable.”
“That was all in the past, though. He has changed a lot over the past year, almost like a completely different person.”
Old Tang mused, “It must have been around the ti the electronics sales departnt was established. He started to change, exuding a confidence that he never had before. Looking back, it must have been his dealings with Mr. Luo that caused this transformation. Indeed, only a woman can make a man grow up so quickly.”
His wife nodded in agreent, “That’s true. The last ti I saw him, I felt he was very different from before. How can I put it, he had the air of a successful person.”
Old Tang checked the ti and said, “He should be almost here; I’m heading down now.”
“Alright, don’t drink too much.”
“Okay. You should go to bed early.”
Old Tang grabbed his wallet and keys, put on his shoes, and left the house.
Not far from his ho, there was a barbecue restaurant he had visited with Chen Xu before. When he got to the restaurant, Chen Xu hadn’t arrived yet.
He ordered so food first and, after waiting a bit, saw Chen Xu push the door open and walk in, so he waved his hand and called out, “Over here.”
Chen Xu walked over and, sitting down, said, “I’m sorry for calling you out so late, did your wife say anything?”
“Going out with you, she’s very reassured; if it were soone else, I’m not so sure.” Old Tang called the waiter over to bring the beer, saying as he did, “It’s actually just right; I haven’t been out for a drink in a while. If you hadn’t called , I really wouldn’t have had the chance.”
While they talked, the waiter brought over the beer. He opened a bottle and poured two glasses, “Co on, let’s have one.”
After they downed a glass, the barbecue arrived.
The two of them chatted idly as they ate, and after a few words, Old Tang got to the point, “Out with it, what’s the matter? Did you have a fight?”
“A fight is a trivial matter.”
Chen Xu lifted his freshly filled glass, drank it all in one gulp, and said, “Tell , what are we living for?”
Without waiting for Old Tang to answer, he continued, “Before, I thought living was just that, living—eating, sleeping, working, having fun, and so on—until one day you can’t do it anymore, and then it’s all over.”
Old Tang knew that at this ti, Chen Xu only needed soone to listen; he didn’t interrupt but opened another bottle of beer and filled Chen Xu’s glass.
“Back then, in my world, there was only . I read novels, watched TV, and I was especially envious of those protagonists loved by so many people. I never felt like anyone loved .”
“My grandparents favored my cousin and my younger cousin more. My maternal grandparents doted on my older cousin and my younger cousin as well. As for my parents, maybe they cared about in their hearts, but from my point of view, they loved each other more. Since I was young, they left in the care of my grandparents…”
“As I grew up, I made so friends—so who took pleasure in mocking , others who just wanted to copy my howork.”
“I also had girlfriends, seemingly it was only because they were lonely or needed a boyfriend before they would accept . To be honest, when I kissed them, I couldn’t feel any love from them. It was like a routine.”
“I had resigned myself to thinking that this was what my life would be like. But when I think about it, it wasn’t much, and wasn’t I the sa? Only loving myself, when have I ever been selflessly kind to soone? Never—not once.”
“I’m just a selfish person. If you don’t treat well, why should I treat you well?”
By this ti, he’d already downed several bottles of beer.
“Until one day, an opportunity appeared. It was a chance to change my fate. Then, I couldn’t resist using this opportunity to see if I could have a real romance. Along the way, I almost screwed it up, thinking maybe with my personality, I’m not suited for dating.”
“Later, things turned around, and we got together.”
Chen Xu’s tone changed as he got to this point, “That period, I was genuinely happy, but sadly, it was too short. When it was about to end, I asked her, ‘Do you love ?’ She said she didn’t.”
“I really couldn’t accept it. Can you understand that feeling?”
“So, I gave up.”
“Later, another similar opportunity arose, but I couldn’t resist and made the sa choice again. She was a completely different girl, but we didn’t end up together because I was a bit afraid of her. She was too smart, easily seeing through my thoughts. I was afraid she’d play like a fiddle.”
“Then after that, she went out of her way to get close to , slowly breaking down my defenses. I thought, even if it’s just an act, I’d accept it; anyway, I’m not losing anything. Just like that, until one day, she said she was leaving and then vanished from the face of the earth. Although I was angry, I thought maybe she had her reasons, and I was determined to find her later on.”
This ti, Old Tang realized—he was talking about his previous girlfriend, that woman who was clearly not simple.
As for the first woman Chen Xu ntioned, it was probably Luo Xiyun.
“The third ti was completely unexpected. At that ti, I was only focused on making money and then going to find my ‘her.’ But Fate likes to play tricks on you. One day, she suddenly told she loved . I was surprised and a bit confused, why did she fall in love with ?”
“I didn’t accept her, and she called pretentious. Actually, I was just more guarded. Having been deceived once, I couldn’t easily trust won again.”
“Then later, I cleared up the misunderstanding with the first girl and truly got together. From that ti on, I felt that my life wasn’t just about anymore.”
“Next, the third girl appeared, and she made realize that in this world, soone was willing to give up everything for . She illuminated my world, and in that mont, I knew I could never lose her.”
Old Tang finally understood and nearly gasped in shock.
Chen Xu was actually thinking of two-timing?
PS: In the end, I’m imploring for monthly votes. After posting a chapter update in the morning, I found out I was overtaken by more than three hundred votes; I almost couldn’t catch my breath.
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