Chapter 21 Snowman

It was a show of love that couldn't be more hasty.

In the corner of other people's wedding reception, there are no roses, no candlelight, no surprises and no careful planning.

It was even interrupted halfway through.

Zhao Chen came over to look for Ren Zhaoyuan, and only after calling out loudly did he realize that the atmosphere was wrong: "What's the matter, I'll come back later, you guys talk?"

Ren Zhaoyuan said "No," and hurriedly left Tan Zheng with a "sorry" before leaving with Zhao Chen.

This apology is complicated and simple, and Tan Zheng was not sure whether he should attribute it to a response of affection or to be a bit more affectionate, thinking it was just a polite apology for the interruption of the conversation.

He could sense that Ren Zhaoyuan had no idea of ​​developing a relationship with anyone, so even if his mind was already clear, he had not spoken out for a long time. Now that he said it suddenly, there is no reason to have no support, even if Ren Zhaoyuan did not hesitate. Give him a word of wishful thinking and he will not be surprised.

However, no.

What really surprised Tan Zheng was Ren Zhaoyuan's evasive gaze and the vague rejection at the end.

At least as far as he understands, Ren Zhaoyuan should be used to seeing all kinds of confessions, and he has never been a person who will be slow when dealing with feelings.

You can, you can, and you can't.

It was the first time that he expressed his love, but in his heart, where no one else was, he had already said it thousands of times, and every time he responded with a disgusted expression and a cold refusal.

After the sudden surge of emotions gradually dissipated, Tan Zheng recalled every inch and analyzed every action, expression, and sentence of Ren Zhaoyuan just now.

Tan Zheng turned and stood outside where Ren Zhaoyuan had just been, his hands were clenched and loosened on the railing, and finally he let out a deep breath, and the corners of his lips curved slightly.

Halfway through the reception, Zhao Chen came over and handed Tan Zheng a glass of wine.

As soon as he approached Tan Zheng, he smelled that the cup was Absinthe with the highest degree of alcohol on site. The place where it was placed had a basic introduction and a sign of [Alcohol degree 52.0%], and there was a dedicated service staff nearby to remind you to taste it carefully.

Generally, the banquet will not prepare high-quality wine, let alone such unbrewed and bitter wine. Today, it is specially placed because the two newlyweds who get married are attached to it. The meaning is only for commemoration, and few people take it.

Tan Zheng took it, and immediately a waiter with a tray stepped forward to pick up the original champagne.

Zhao Chen raised his glass with a smile, and tilted the glass slightly higher than Tan Zheng's wine glass and touched it with a crisp sound: "Mr. Tan, I have long admired your name."

"Mr. Zhao," Tan Zheng also said, "I've admired it for a long time."

This is the third friend of Ren Zhaoyuan that Tan Zheng has met, which is different from Tongzhou and Yao Qiming.

He easily felt a few hints of targeting from Zhao Chen, but he didn't show it.

Absinthe's unique bitterness and the pungent numbingness of high alcohol filled his mouth, and Tan Zheng took a full sip without noticing it.

Zhao Chen saw that he swallowed like champagne, raised his eyebrows and smiled: "You know me?"

"I know," Tan Zheng looked as usual, "I heard Brother Zhaoyuan and Brother Yao talk about it."

"Then you shouldn't call me President Zhao if you talk about it like that.

Tan Zheng is neither humble nor arrogant: "I'm young, so I should call you brother, it's fine if brother Zhao doesn't mind."

"I don't mind," Zhao Chen shook his glass, "I've been uncomfortable with the surname Zhao recently."

"Brother Chen." Tan Zheng took it one by one and changed his words calmly.

Zhao Chen really laughed: "You call it that, then I have to give you a gift."

A real estate project invested by Tan Zheng has already signed a contract, but because Zhao Yuanqing intervened, rumors about black-box bidding were flying all over the sky, and the excessive reporting alarmed the relevant departments, and the building materials business was also involved in an old lawsuit.

Now all progress is forced to be suspended, and one more day of delay is one more day's worth of money.

This investment is Tan Zheng's company's largest project in the near future, and the prospects are promising.

The re-examination process is complicated. If you want to start from a certain link and make the bidding document void and start over, it is too easy for Tan Zheng to guard against it.

Once the bid is invalid, Tan Zheng's project will be over, and he doesn't know how many lawsuits will be involved in the later stage.

Coincidentally, this project was located in J City, where Zhao Chen had been staying for many years. His influence and contacts were all there, regardless of whether Zhao Yuanqing or Tan Zheng, in J City, no one would be more effective than him.

"My younger brother is young, and his eyes are very sharp," Zhao Chen and Tan Zheng exchanged a cup of tea. "There will be many benefits in the future."

Tan Zheng didn't understand Zhao Chen's specific meaning for a while, but even if Zhao Chen didn't help him, just because he was a friend admitted by Ren Zhaoyuan, there was nothing he couldn't drink.

"Hey," Zhao Chen remembered after seeing Tan Zheng take another sip, "I forgot, don't drink this, let Zhaoyuan blame me for bullying him when he sees it..."

"Zhao Chen."

As soon as Ren Zhaoyuan's voice appeared, Zhao Chen lighted a stick of incense in his heart.

He found that he was a very wicked person. When he wanted to do something good, no one would eavesdrop, but anyone who did something bad would definitely be caught.

Sure enough, as soon as Ren Zhaoyuan came over, he found Tan Zheng holding a wine glass specially made for Absinthe.

"You gave it to him?"

Zhao Chen's lifeless expression: "Ah, I gave it."

Ren Zhaoyuan frowned slightly: "Why don't you drink it yourself?"

Originally, Tan Zheng and Zhao Chen were standing face to face at a distance, but now Ren Zhaoyuan came over and stood beside them, Zhao Chen took another step back, the three were roughly an obtuse triangle, and Ren Zhaoyuan blocked Tan Zheng a little.

Tan Zheng lowered his eyes and looked at Ren Zhaoyuan's shoulders with his back turned to him. For a moment, he had the illusion that he was being protected behind him: "Brother Zhaoyuan, it's alright..."

"If he gives you a drink?" Ren Zhaoyuan didn't know what to say, so he beckoned to be removed.

After turning around and saying a word, Zhao Chen was long gone.

As the reception drew to a close, many guests said goodbye to the Kang family one after another and left. Tongzhou, Zhao Chen and Ren Zhaoyuan were not on their way. Tongzhou had already left. If he hadn't suddenly seen Zhao Chen on Tan Zheng's side, Ren Zhaoyuan would have also left.

Only the two of them were left facing each other in this area, and the air became thicker and thicker.

"Zhao Chen he..." Ren Zhaoyuan sighed lightly and said to Tan Zheng, "I apologize to you on his behalf, it will not be like this in the future."

Tan Zheng looked straight at him: "You don't need to apologize to me, it's nothing."

"No matter what happens, you don't have to apologize to me."

Ren Zhaoyuan lowered his eyes: "Don't do this, Tan Zheng, you don't need to be in front of anyone because of me..."

"Zhaoyuan!" Zhao Yuanqing shouted and strode closer, "You are here, let me find it."

A little earlier, he had promised to find a place to talk after the wedding banquet. Ren Zhaoyuan was not surprised that he came over, and just about to speak, Zhao Yuanqing said, "The bar we used to go to has been refurbished, let's go and sit together? It's the uncle who manages it. ."

"Well," Ren Zhaoyuan didn't say much, "I'm going to say goodbye to President Kang."

Zhao Yuanqing nodded with a smile, watched Ren Zhaoyuan walk away and turned to Tan Zheng, with undisguised triumph of the winner in his eyes.

Tan Zheng said something that Zhao Yuanqing couldn't think of: "Mr. Zhao, he has a bad stomach and can't drink. He has already drank a lot today, so don't go to the bar again."

"That's where we met for the first time. If we want to see things and think about things, we have to get the approval of President Tan?" At this moment, there is no one around, so Zhao Yuanqing doesn't have to pretend to be friendly, "Besides, even if President Tan is jealous, he can find a good excuse, does he have a good stomach? Well, I know better than you."

Tan Zheng looked back coldly and said no more. He took out his mobile phone and clicked a few times and showed Zhao Yuanqing the report in the album: "Chronic gastritis is accompanied by erosion. If you really care, at least don't let him spoil his stomach."

Zhao Yuanqing was stunned for a while, and after looking at it, he wanted to reach out and take it, but Tan Zheng had already put it away.

"He didn't have stomach problems before.."

Tan Zheng couldn't help clenching his hand holding the phone when he heard the words.

He remembered that when the doctor asked when he felt stomach pain, Ren Zhaoyuan said that last year, heavy smoking and alcohol were also last year.

It was all because of Zhao Yuanqing, and Zhao Yuanqing didn't know, and was still saying that Ren Zhaoyuan had no stomach problems before.

Nothing to explain.

Tan Zheng said indifferently, "You know, that was the past."

Zhao Yuanqing turned his head and saw that Ren Zhaoyuan was already coming this way.

The fact that Tan Zheng's phone had Ren Zhaoyuan's report and Tan Zheng's "that was before" was enough to make Zhao Yuanqing annoyed, and Ren Zhaoyuan's insistence not to ride in the same car with him was even worse.

The two still went to the bar.

When it was time to order the wine, Zhao Yuanqing calmed down and said to Ren Zhaoyuan, "There are a few new fruit drinks here. I drank a lot of wine today, so why don't I order wine."

Ren Zhaoyuan ordered a cup for himself, Zhao Yuanqing was dumbfounded for a while.

That was the drink they ordered most often, only this bar had it.

"I want the same."

After Zhao Yuanqing placed the order, he turned to look at the person on the opposite side. It seemed that he had not changed for so many years.

He is always gentle and polite when dealing with people, and he has a coldness and arrogance in his bones. He is the most easy-going and the most stubborn.

"Zhaoyuan, you all remember, right?"

"Remember."

Zhao Yuanqing straightened her waist, moved her lips, and laughed a little overwhelmed: "I knew... Zhaoyuan, is it because of the wedding? As long as you nod, we will have a bigger wedding, I promise. Also, You didn't want the key to you before, I have already arranged it, and it's all you like. Haven't you always wanted to be a place for communication and learning? I have already bought the place you said was good, and I want to get it I'll tell you later..."

Ren Zhaoyuan sat there motionless, without interruption, until Zhao Yuanqing realized that something was wrong and called out his name tentatively after he finished speaking.

"What you do has nothing to do with me."

"Zhaoyuan?"

Downstairs there was a group of children celebrating the bar mitzvah. Two people were hugged and hugged in the roar, and one of them blushed and shouted: "Ifor the rest of my life! Love you forever"

Ren Zhaoyuan looked sideways and smiled lightly.

really weird.

People say forever at eighteen, and then at eighty.

"Zhao Yuanqing, I am here today, not to recall the past."

"I want to make a break."

"Totally and utterly."

"I don't need to explain to you who loves me, how long I have loved me, and what I have done. It has nothing to do with you who I love, how many people I love, or whether I love anyone."

"I've heard enough of this kind of questioning. You are the most unqualified person to question me."

"There is no possibility between you and me. You threw away those ten years with your own hands. It has nothing to do with anyone but you. But if you must say that it is because of others, it is better to shirk the responsibility and reduce the guilt. It's okay, whatever you think is up to you, it has nothing to do with me."

"What happened in the first place, alcohol, love drugs, impulsiveness, it doesn't matter, it happens, it happens, and it's a fact that the derailment lasted for half a year."

"I don't want to take out those evidences, I don't want to lose all my dignity in those years, and I don't want to entangle with you anymore, but if you must continue to do these meaningless things, I don't mind being ugly."

The wine he ordered was delivered, and Ren Zhaoyuan drank half a glass of water, but he couldn't feel what attracted him before.

Zhao Yuanqing clenched his teeth and spoke after a long while, "Why? Agree to come out with me, come to this bar, order this drink, and say these words, why? For his Tan Zheng!"

"If you have to say this, well, it's for Tan Zheng."

"Before today, I want to negotiate with you and convince you to stop. Now I just want to tell you that he has invested five million in me before. If you continue to fight, I can invest fifty million in him, or five Billion, you can do whatever you want."

A group of people downstairs suddenly burst into laughter, and the loud laughter and cheerful music blended together to create another world.

"Zhao Yuanqing, it's not an opportunity to start over after everything has been settled."

"You have countless opportunities. Every day, every second, every little bit of panic and guilt since you have an idea is an opportunity. You don't want it yourself, and you destroy countless opportunities yourself."

"No is no more, lost is lost."

"Last time, goodbye."

What Zhao Yuanqing said again, Ren Zhaoyuan didn't listen.

Another glass of wine was slammed off the table, and it shattered all over the floor with a "crash", and Ren Zhaoyuan didn't even look at it.

He drank the rest of the wine, put on his coat, and left.

It's snowing again outside.

Cousin Wen Gu called to ask him when he was going home. Ren Zhaoyuan said that he had something to do and would not go back tonight.

He hates snow.

The car was thrown outside the bar, and Ren Zhaoyuan didn't ask for a chauffeur, and walked along the road alone.

He himself didn't know how long he had walked, but he felt that the whiteness under his feet was getting darker and darker, and the darkness of the night seemed to be endless.

A child with a snowman on the road laughed at him like a snowman.

Ren Zhaoyuan hates snowmen.

Snow is endless.

The shadow under the light was short and long, long and short, Ren Zhaoyuan finally walked downstairs, and when he looked up, he saw another snowman in a trance.

"...Tan Zheng?"

The author has said:

Thank you very much for your support, I will continue to work hard!