Chapter 132

Chapter 132

Tang Yue's scream was so piercing and shocking that even Qin Jianhe couldn't help but raise his eyes slightly to glance at the hospital bed.

Though his face was covered by his hands, and the movement of lifting his eyes was so brief, somehow Tang Yue seemed to see every detail clearly.

Because in that brief moment, the fear in Tang Yue's scream intensified, like a knife scraping over glass, unbearable to hear.

"Le Le, Le Le..." Seeing this, Tang Yue's mother immediately rushed forward, panic-stricken, reaching out to press the call button by the bed.

At almost the same time, Ye Zhiqiu had already extended his hand, placing his palm into Qin Jianhe's warm hand.

"Let's go," he said, without sparing another glance at Tang Yue.

Seeing them about to leave, Tang Yue's father's gaze darkened as it lingered on Ye Zhiqiu.

In a hurry, he raised his hands slightly, as if trying to grab or stop Ye Zhiqiu.

However, before his hands could fully rise, they met Qin Jianhe's stern, dark phoenix eyes.

A chill ran through him, and Tang Yue's father froze in place. By the time he came to his senses, the two had already left together.

The previously quiet corridor now bustled with hurried footsteps as medical staff rushed to Tang Yue's room.

Qin Jianhe, holding Ye Zhiqiu's hand, stepped aside against the wall to let the medical team pass.

Once everyone had gone, they silently made their way to the elevator.

Whether it was due to sedatives or because they had left, Tang Yue's screams gradually diminished. By the time they entered the elevator, the sound was completely gone.

"Do you want to know why he reacted so intensely to you?" Ye Zhiqiu turned his head to look at Qin Jianhe as Wei Jie pressed the button for the ground floor.

Qin Jianhe, in fact, had a bit of a psychological aversion.

So, he never intended to let him know about Tang Yue's little secrets.

This was one of the main reasons he didn't want him to accompany him into the ward today.

Another reason was that he didn't plan to use emotions to torment Tang Yue.

Tang Yue was different from Jiang Nan. In the previous life, Jiang Nan used emotions as a tool to continuously torture him mentally.

Therefore, he repaid him in kind according to his principles.

But even so, after recognizing his true feelings, he no longer used Qin Jianhe as a weapon to hurt others.

He cherished him and naturally wanted to keep him close.

As for Tang Yue, he had already settled all the dark schemes and despicable harm from both lives in his own way.

Even the leg of Jin Baobao, which he thought he could never make right, found balance through various circumstances.

Time is long, and for the rest of his life, he would need to continually pay the price he owed.

For Ye Zhiqiu, this was enough.

In the previous life, he never had the chance to truly live well.

So this time, he wanted to spend more time on himself and Qin Jianhe, enjoying life properly.

Not wasting it all on people who weren't worth it again.

The only reason he agreed to see Tang Yue again was to finally settle things and draw a clear line.

In fact, their conversation this time was not long.

Without the pretense and probing of the past, each word was direct and to the point. From start to finish, their talk lasted less than ten minutes.

But plans often don't go as expected. He didn't anticipate that Tang Yue's parents would return so quickly.

And Tang Yue's reaction was even more intense.

Such an abnormal reaction would inevitably raise doubts in anyone who saw it.

But Qin Jianhe only tightened his grip on the hand he held.

"I'm not interested," he said indifferently, "and I don't want to know."

Feeling a slight relief, Ye Zhiqiu pursed his lips, a smile slowly spreading across his face.

It wasn't until the three of them boarded the elevator that his thoughts finally turned to Tang Yue's parents.

From previous signs, Tang Yue's father clearly intended to use this incident to extort a significant amount from the Ye family.

But now, they must have realized that Ye Zhixia and Tao Ruoqing were already struggling and had no ability to offer any compensation.

However, he was different; he had plenty of money.

Ye Zhixia's true identity had not been publicly disclosed, even Tang Yue didn't know.

So in the eyes of his parents, he was still a member of the Ye family.

Given Tang Yue's father's character, how could he easily let him, this so-called "Ye family member," off without mentioning compensation?

Ye Zhiqiu frowned slightly, sensing something was amiss, when the elevator stopped at the tenth floor, and the doors slowly opened.

"Tao Ruoqing, Ye Zheng, and Uncle Wang are here today," Wei Jie said, interrupting his thoughts. "But Ye Zhixia doesn't want to see Uncle Wang, so most of the time, Ye Zheng is taking care of him."

"Um." Ye Zhiqiu nodded.

As they spoke, the group had already stepped out of the elevator.

From a distance, Ye Zhiqiu immediately spotted Uncle Wang's figure.

He sat slumped in front of a ward, and even from afar, one could sense the dejection emanating from him.

Beside him sat a young police officer in uniform.

"That’s Officer Li from the nearby police station," Wei Jie said. "He was one of the officers who handled the accident scene on the day of the crash."

As Wei Jie finished speaking, the group had also arrived at the ward.

"Officer Li," Wei Jie approached politely, "this is Teacher Xiao Ye, our company's designer, and also a relative of the patient inside."

The phrase "a relative of the patient" sounded a bit odd, but for Officer Li, who had been following this case from the beginning, it was not hard to understand.

Hearing this, Officer Li nodded, but before he could say anything, Uncle Wang had already stood up.

"Young Master." The turmoil had aged Uncle Wang considerably, his face etched with weariness and hardship.

He dared not look at Ye Zhiqiu, keeping his head down, "Could you please not go in right now? Xia Xia... I'm afraid he might get agitated if he sees you."

"Don't worry, I don't plan to see Ye Zhixia," Ye Zhiqiu smiled, without any intention of making things difficult for him. "I just want to have a word with Ye Zheng."

Uncle Wang lifted his face, his eyes filled with uncertainty. After a moment, he finally seemed to believe Ye Zhiqiu.

He confirmed that Ye Zhiqiu was neither targeting Ye Zhixia nor him.

"I'll call him for you," he said.

Ye Zhiqiu nodded.

The door to the ward was opened slightly, but Uncle Wang did not dare to enter. He leaned against the door frame and called out softly.

A moment later, the door opened, and Tao Ruoqing and Ye Zheng walked out, one after the other.

Seeing Ye Zhiqiu and Qin Jianhe, Tao Ruoqing's expression darkened. She pressed her lips together, suppressing the turbulent emotions within her.

"Ye Zheng," Ye Zhiqiu didn't look at her, calling Ye Zheng's name directly, "can we talk for a moment?"

"What's there to talk about?" Tao Ruoqing pulled Ye Zheng behind her, "aren't you just here to mock us?"

"Mom." Ye Zheng tugged at Tao Ruoqing, then raised his eyes to look at Ye Zhiqiu.

His gaze swept over the hands clasped between Ye Zhiqiu and Qin Jianhe, and his voice was tinged with deep bitterness.

"Xiao Qiu, do you really have to be like this?" he whispered, "Now, you won't even call me brother?"

"Do you know Zhou Jiao from Ye Ding's finance department?" Qin Jianhe spoke for the first time, his voice calm but striking Ye Zheng and Tao Ruoqing like a thunderclap.

Their faces paled simultaneously, and after a while, Ye Zheng nodded.

Tao Ruoqing, who had been resistant and resentful, now bit her lip and suddenly knelt down in front of Ye Zhiqiu, remaining silent due to the presence of the police officer.

"Comrade Xiao Ye," Officer Li, sensing something amiss, stood up, "we can't resort to threats or coercion here."

He added, "If there's any criminal activity, we should report it to the police."

"There's no criminal activity," Tao Ruoqing immediately looked up, forcefully pulling away from Ye Zheng's hand, and stared straight at Officer Li, "Comrade Police Officer, this is our family matter. I'm a bad stepmother who has done wrong. Kneeling to apologize to him is what I deserve."

For some reason, at this moment, Ye Zhiqiu thought of the desperate cries of Tang Yue's mother downstairs earlier.

Mothers love their children.

Only he had been without a mother since infancy.

"There's a coffee shop outside the hospital," Ye Zheng held back his emotions, closing his eyes briefly, "can we talk there?"

Ye Zhiqiu nodded, saying nothing, and led the way out.

"You can't go," Tao Ruoqing stood up, blocking Ye Zheng, shouting, "anything he did, I made him do it. If you have to come after anyone, come after me."

The coffee shop was not far from the hospital. From the main gate, one could see the sign at the alley entrance.

Ye Zhiqiu and Qin Jianhe went together, finding a quiet spot to sit and wait.

In about five minutes, Ye Zheng appeared at the shop entrance.

The wind chime on the door jingled as he entered and took a seat opposite them.

Just then, three cups of coffee were ready, and the waiter brought them over, placing a latte in front of Ye Zheng.

A sudden warmth flooded Ye Zheng's heart as he looked at Ye Zhiqiu.

So, he still remembered his preferences.

Ye Zheng reached out and tightly gripped the coffee cup in his palm.

"Zhou Jiao was my classmate in college and a very close friend," he looked at Ye Zhiqiu, his expression now calm, "she may have done wrong, but she was under my coercion."

He paused, "I will take full responsibility for everything."

Ye Zhiqiu nodded, lowered his eyes, and took a file folder from his bag, pushing it across the table to Ye Zheng.

Zhou Jiao was always meticulous and thorough, and Ye Zhiqiu had never paid attention to Ye Ding's operations. Before flipping through the folder filled with various pieces of evidence, Ye Zheng had thought Ye Zhiqiu might have only caught a glimpse of the surface.

But as he turned page after page, each neatly organized, Ye Zheng's face grew increasingly pale.

The warmth of the coffee cup in his palm gradually faded, becoming cold. Finally, Ye Zheng reached the last page.

"Do you want to send me in personally?" he asked.

"I can also give you a way out," Ye Zhiqiu met his gaze calmly and put forward his own request, "either you publicly sever ties with Tao Ruoqing and live abroad, never to contact her again, or..."

Ye Zhiqiu looked at the folder under his hand: "A particularly huge corporate corruption case could result in a sentence of more than ten years in prison, or even life imprisonment."

Hearing this, Ye Zheng laughed, and after a while, his Adam's apple moved as he whispered, "What should I do then?"

Tao Ruoqing was his mother; he couldn't betray her.

But for so many years, it was precisely because of the word "mother" that he had never lived his own life.

He had lived for over twenty years, but upon reflection, it seemed he had never truly lived.

"What should I do?" He looked at Ye Zhiqiu, "If I draw a line with my mother at this moment, in your eyes, I will forever be a coward. But if I take that step, my future will be gone."

"Forget it," Ye Zheng smiled and lifted his eyes, "compared to being a coward in your eyes, I'd rather have no future."

There was a moment of silence in the air, and beneath the table, Qin Jianhe silently tightened his grip on Ye Zhiqiu's hand.

Ye Zhiqiu lowered his eyes, suppressing the slight ripple of emotion in his heart.

"Alright, I'll give you some time to see Ye Zhixia recover and resolve her issues," he pressed his lips together and finally said, "use this time to find a good lawyer."

*

On the way back, Ye Zhiqiu truthfully reported Tang Yue's current situation to Jin Baobao and Li Shaojun in the group chat.

At the same time, he extracted the few minutes of recorded conversation with Tang Yue from his phone and sent it to the group.

Li Shaojun, who always had a zero-tolerance policy for injustice, immediately spoke up after listening.

"Li Shao: Just as I said, nature is hard to change."

Jin Baobao took a while to reply.

"Jin Baobao: I was wrong, I swear, I won't misuse my sympathy anymore."

Seeing that Jin Baobao understood, Ye Zhiqiu felt relieved.

He closed his eyes and leaned back into the seat, feeling a bit tired.

His phone vibrated once, twice.

Ye Zhiqiu opened his eyes and unlocked the screen, seeing the concern of the two people.

"Li Shao: But, don't you really need the evidence of what Tao Ruoqing did to you?"

"Jin Baobao: Yes, we know what you've suffered, but the outside world doesn't. I'm afraid there will be nasty rumors when you drive them out of the Ye family."

"Li Shao: I'll get someone to hack Tang Yue's email and computer."

Amused by this, Ye Zhiqiu chuckled and replied.

"Ye Zhiqiu: Don't worry, Tang Yue wants Ye Zhixia dead; how could he keep these things hidden for Tao Ruoqing and her son?"

"Ye Zhiqiu: The police haven't found any reasonable motive for Ye Zhixia to deliberately hit Tang Yue. These things, Tang Yue wants to expose even more than I do."

"Ye Zhiqiu: He provided evidence to me just to make me and Tao Ruoqing's family turn against each other, and then use this favor to get me to help him arrange a job."

"Ye Zhiqiu: Since I didn't fall for it, he will naturally act on his own."

"Li Shao: Damn, he's already hurt like that, yet he still has so many schemes. @Jin Baobao, Brother Baobao, aren't you walking into the tiger's mouth, ready to be devoured?"

Jin Baobao was also a bit scared and timidly replied.

"Jin Baobao: He's our age, right? How can he have such deep scheming?"

"Ye Zhiqiu: In the future, don't have any contact with him. On this matter, both of you listen to me."

"Li Shao: I'll follow Lord Qiu."

"Jin Baobao: Me too."

Seeing that Jin Baobao and Li Shaojun were enlightened, Ye Zhiqiu turned off the screen and leaned back into the seat again.

Today, he had met with Tang Yue and Ye Zheng one after another. Although on the surface, he held an absolute advantage.

However, he was human, and he had feelings.

Moreover, those people were once friends and family he had cared about and trusted deeply.

To say he felt nothing was absolutely impossible.

Even just replaying Tang Yue's schemes in his mind made him feel extremely weary and annoyed.

"Not going back to the company today," seeing him finish, Qin Jianhe placed one hand on the steering wheel and reached over to gently rub his soft hair, speaking warmly, "I'll go home and rest with you."

"Is that okay?" Ye Zhiqiu didn't open his eyes, but his voice was exceptionally gentle, "You're so busy."

"You're more important." Qin Jianhe said.

The heavy emotions in his heart slowly dissipated, and the corners of Ye Zhiqiu's lips curled up slightly.

It was like a machine that was about to shut down due to low battery being recharged and infused with energy again.

He slowly opened his eyes and smiled at Qin Jianhe.

Qin Jianhe also smiled but didn't speak further, only his well-defined hands gripped the steering wheel and turned onto the road leading home.

Ye Zhiqiu glanced at him sideways, and after a while, he suddenly remembered something and tilted his head to ask, "Isn't the list supposed to be announced at the business exchange today?"

"Hmm." Qin Jianhe glanced at the time, "It seems to be getting close."

At exactly noon, as the two men returned home, the organizers of the business exchange formally announced several key attendees.

Among them were Qin Jianhe and Ye Zhiqiu's names, prominently listed.

Instantly, the entire business world began to stir with undercurrents.

Anyone who had attended such conferences knew that the process and content were often the most tedious.

There weren't no good topics or directions for discussion, but they were few and far between.

Thus, unless absolutely necessary, the young heirs and second generations in the circle mostly avoided these events like the plague.

However, this time, with the young and low-profile leader of Q.L making his first appearance at such a large public event,

Not only did the elders from various families and companies see an opportunity, but even those young people who had no interest in it started scrambling to prepare themselves hastily.

They actively studied business management concepts, sought out stylists to customize their outfits, or carefully selected their attire from major brands.

They worked hard to package themselves as both knowledgeable and attractive.

After all, almost no one was unaware of how significant Q.L's influence was in the fashion industry.

Not to mention, Qin Jianhe also had the ambition behind him that had propelled Nie Fengjun to the position of "richest person."

With two top figures in hand, the future commercial landscape could very well be reshaped by this young man's hands.

Given the rare chance to meet him in person, who wouldn't want to seize the opportunity to build a connection?

And if fortunate enough, if the young people in their families could gain the favor of this future richest person, then perhaps the fate of their entire family would change.

The elders saw wealth, status, and symbols of identity...

In contrast, besides the allure of immense wealth, the young people were more captivated by Qin Jianhe's character and appearance.

Almost as soon as the list was released, the small circles of the second generations erupted into excitement.

Of course, among them were many who also wanted to take the opportunity to meet Ye Zhiqiu.

Although Yunkai held two major events this year, it still fell short compared to Ruiyi and Q.L, and Ye Zhiqiu came from a relatively humble background...

Therefore, most of these people were infatuated with Ye Zhiqiu's beauty.

In fact, not only the stakeholders,

But even ordinary netizens discussed the matter enthusiastically after the list was released.

For a time, those who wanted to see Qin Jianhe's photos, those who wanted to see Ye Zhiqiu's beauty, and those who wanted to ship the two as a couple, all vied with each other, instantly pushing several hot search topics.

Such hot searches naturally did not escape Jiang Nan's notice.

This year, things had not gone smoothly, and due to Jiang Nan's immaturity in dealing with matters, Jiang Baichuan had previously considered taking him to the conference.

To use the opportunity to introduce him to industry veterans and pave the way for his future.

He wasn't young anymore, and he didn't know how much longer he could hold his position, so he was determined to train Jiang Nan more and temper his character.

Only then could he truly rest assured when Jiang Nan took over the company on his own.

Unfortunately, because of his disfigurement, Jiang Nan refused to go at all costs.

He didn't want to become a laughingstock, nor did he want to be pointed at and gossiped about.

That was more unbearable to him than death itself.

Yet, this time, Qin Jianhe was actually going to attend.

And he was going with Ye Zhiqiu.

Looking at the two names standing side by side on the screen, Jiang Nan's jaw clenched involuntarily.

His fingers tightened and loosened around his phone, tightening and loosening again. After a while, his eyes, which exuded a chilling coldness, finally narrowed.

In this moment of inner struggle, he finally realized that this conference might be his only chance to change his fate.

In broad daylight, under the watchful eyes of many, and all of them influential figures in China's business circle...

If his plan succeeded, Qin Jianhe would have no choice but to acknowledge it.

The blood that had long since turned cold in his veins slowly began to boil again, and sparks of excitement flashed in Jiang Nan's eyes.

Such a rare opportunity, he absolutely, absolutely could not miss.