Chapter 1397
Unrequited Love 51
Chapter 1397 Unrequited Love 51
Xu Yanzhen looked down and fiddled with his cufflinks: "Well, Li Daoming and his ex-wife have three sons. They hate Song Shuyue, so naturally they have no good feelings towards me, their burden."
“From the moment I entered the Li family, they have been targeting me, both openly and secretly. Especially the youngest, Li Jiahao, who is only two years older than me. Their methods are even more... despicable.”
"Including but not limited to putting all kinds of insects and rats in my room, and even snakes."
Seeing Zhou Jinxu remain silent, Xu Yanzhen smiled and comforted him, "I'm not afraid of snakes. I killed that snake in the end."
Zhou Jinxu felt a pang of sadness; even the sight of a snake made him physically uncomfortable. How could Xu Yanzhen be so nonchalant? What terrible things had she endured in her youth?
"Clauscia...what is it?" Zhou Jinxu asked with difficulty, his voice hoarse.
Xu Yanzhen trembled slightly, and Zhou Jinxu hugged her tightly, stroking the back of her hand repeatedly, as if trying to soothe her unease in this way.
Xu Yanzhen took a deep breath: "My father died suddenly from a cerebral infarction. He slept one night and never woke up again the next day."
"I was a little afraid of the dark back then."
"Later, when I went to the Li family, Li Jiahao discovered my weakness and would find all sorts of reasons to lock me in a dark room. On his 16th birthday, at the instigation of his friends, he locked me in the basement of his older brother's villa."
"Then he went out to celebrate his birthday with his friends, and I was locked up in that basement for five days." Xu Yanzhen said casually, as if she were telling someone else's story.
"Later, it was Li Jiajun's aunt who went to do her routine cleaning and found me locked in the basement."
"Later, I moved out."
Zhou Jinxu pressed Xu Yanzhen against his chest, his right hand gently stroking her long hair. Where Xu Yanzhen couldn't see, his gaze gradually hardened.
Since the Li family dared to bully Xu Yanzhen like this, he naturally wouldn't let it go.
Tan You: "He even had the idea of killing the Li family."
As Xu Yanzhen listened to Zhou Jinxu's heartbeat, a sly glint flashed in her eyes: "I'm only happy that he's willing to cause trouble for the Li family for my sake. In fact, I'd be happier if the Li family suffered."
"To be honest, I hope the Li family doesn't have a good life. I also have a dark side and I'm not a good person either."
"It was only because I was too weak to deal with the Li family before."
Tan You chuckled softly, so she really did like Xu Yanzhen. She would never deny her dark side, even if it damaged her image in other people's eyes.
Xu Yanzhen suddenly sat up in Zhou Jinxu's arms: "We've gone off on a tangent. We were talking about Song Shuyue."
“She’s not one to give up easily,” Xu Yanzhen reminded Zhou Jinxu, recalling Song Shuyue’s actions of going to Jin He and Shi Cheng after being rejected by her. “She will definitely come looking for you. Give me a call then, and I’ll handle her.”
Zhou Jinxu chuckled, deliberately trying to ease the tension: "Are you worried I won't be able to handle it?"
Xu Yanzhen was very honest: "It's not that I'm afraid you can't handle it, it's because she's a stain on my reputation. If possible, I never want you to know that I have such a stain. Suddenly, I feel like I've become much less impressive." Zhou Jinxu understood Xu Yanzhen's thoughts, and he persuaded her from a different angle: "She is your mother. From the perspective of responsibility, she has the obligation to raise you."
“She had an obligation to support you until you came of age. But she abandoned you and your father, and you are also a victim.”
“You were just a child back then, and you couldn’t control her behavior. Even if what she did wasn’t honorable, she was her, and you are you. I will never look down on you because of her.”
I know you're in pain too.
Now Zhou Jinxu understood why a girl as outstanding as Xu Yanzhen had remained single until now, only experiencing her first love. It was because her moral standards were too high; having witnessed the worst of people, she was exceptionally demanding in relationships.
Xu Yanzhen's eyelashes trembled, and tears gradually welled up in her eyes. She had never imagined that Zhou Jinxu would understand her pain. This was the first time someone had stood in her shoes and said that Song Shuyue's involvement in Li Daoming's marriage was not her fault.
Her tears welled up in her eyes, threatening to fall, which made her eyes appear even clearer, like obsidian washed clean.
Zhou Jinxu kissed the corner of her eye tenderly: "Yan Yan, it's not your fault. From beginning to end, you are the most innocent."
Xu Yanzhen buried her face in Zhou Jinxu's shoulder, and soon Zhou Jinxu felt a dampness on his shoulder. He stroked Xu Yanzhen's long hair, his heart aching with unbearable sorrow.
Since he met Xu Yanzhen, he has never seen her cry, except for certain times.
Late at night, Zhou Jinxu got up quietly. He went to his study and made a phone call: "Assistant Liu, go and collect information on Li Daoming and his children. I need to see them no later than tomorrow before the end of the workday."
Awakened in the middle of the night, Assistant Liu respectfully replied, "Yes, President."
He wasn't angry at all when the club president assigned him a task in the middle of the night!
Really!
Just as Xu Yanzhen said, Song Shuyue was a persistent person. In the morning, Zhou Jinxu arrived at the office and was about to look at the Li family's information when the receptionist received a phone call saying that he had a visitor named Song Shuyue.
Zhou Jinxu looked down at Song Shuyue's information and narrowed his eyes: "Take her to the conference room first, I'll see her again in half an hour."
After agreeing the day before yesterday, I glanced at Song Shuyue curiously and guessed her identity from her resemblance to Xu Yanzhen. I respectfully led Song Shuyue to the meeting room, served her coffee and snacks, and then quickly went back to chatting in the group.
The main topic is gossip: what exactly did Xu Yanzhen's mother want from Zhou Jinxu? It couldn't be to force him into marriage, could it?
When it comes to marriage, I guess the president of the club is the one who's more anxious, right? Everyone wants to be with a fairy like Teacher Xu forever.
Zhou Jinxu quickly went through the information of Li Daoming and his four sons in his office. All four of his sons were married, including Li Daoming and Song Shuyue's youngest son, who was already a father of two.
After Song Shuyue had drunk two cups of coffee, Zhou Jinxu finally arrived late. He was very polite as he entered: "I'm sorry, I had an impromptu meeting. I apologize for keeping you waiting."
Song Shuyue smiled calmly: "It was my presumptuousness to disturb you. I hope I haven't disturbed President Zhou's work."
Her smile resembled Xu Yanzhen's, but Xu Yanzhen's eyes were calm, carrying a sense of serenity born from experience. Song Shuyue, on the other hand, had her brows constantly furrowed, clearly indicating inner turmoil.
Zhou Jinxu had no intention of comforting Song Shuyue. He simply bent down and added some coffee to Song Shuyue's cup: "Did you come to see me today because you have something to tell me?"