Chapter 5

Shen Min suddenly slammed on the brakes, and the car stopped at the entrance of the alley. With a neutral expression, he said, “We’re here. You can get out now.”

Shen Min slowly backed the car out of the alley. His phone, which had been resting next to the driver’s seat, started ringing. He glanced at the screen and saw it was Zhao Pingjin’s secretary.

Shen Min reached over and answered the call.

After speaking on the phone for two minutes, Shen Min ended the call and drove toward his own home.

He drove along the main road for two streets, then entered the third ring road. The lights on the elevated highway flickered endlessly as he drove. His mind was preoccupied with his thoughts. After getting off the highway, Shen Min suddenly jerked the steering wheel, pulling over to the side of the road.

He took a deep breath, collected his thoughts, and then reached for his phone to dial.

The call went through, but no one picked up.

Shen Min stared at the glowing screen of his phone, motionless, waiting. It wasn’t until the last moment that a soft, melodious female voice came through on the other end. “Hello.”

Shen Min instantly recognized her voice and softly said, “Xi Tang?”

On the other end, Huang Xi Tang politely responded, “Shen Min, it’s me.”

Since she had left Beijing, Zhao Pingjin’s friends, including the invitation to the Qingqing Hundred-Day Banquet, had all been routed through her agent, and no one had called her personal number again.

She knew that Shen Min was not the type to act frivolously.

Shen Min’s voice was polite on the other end of the phone. “Are you in Beijing?”

Xi Tang responded softly, “Yes, how did you know?”

Shen Min glanced at the LCD screen in front of him. It was past 11 p.m., a little late. He said, “I just came from Langxi’s banquet. I saw your agent there.”

Xi Tang didn’t want to ask too many questions, so she simply replied, “I see.”

“Are you busy?”

“Not too bad. Why?”

Shen Min didn’t beat around the bush and asked directly, “Xi Tang, may I ask you for a favor?”

The next morning, Shen Min was at work promptly at 8 a.m.

The office building of Zhongyuan Group’s headquarters stood in the Chaoyangmen area of Beijing, imposing and stern. From a distance, all that could be seen was a massive gray building with sentries standing guard at the entrance, and visitors weren’t allowed near.

Shen Min’s car drove into the garage, and he noticed Zhao Pingjin’s large black car was already parked in its designated spot.

He went upstairs to the office, where Zhao Pingjin had two meetings scheduled for the morning. The first was with the management department to review a new project on civil explosive devices. For meetings like this, Shen Min sometimes helped him with speaking, but Zhao Pingjin generally didn’t say much—he would listen, then make his decision.

At 10 a.m., the meeting ended. Zhao Pingjin had another high-level board meeting to attend. Such meetings were attended by the board members and included a close secretary to take minutes. Zhao Pingjin would discuss salary assessments, which had been pending for over half a month. Every time he went to negotiate with the old board members, it was always a tough discussion.

As expected, Zhao Pingjin didn’t come down from the boardroom until later. He went straight back to his office.

The secretary knocked on the door from outside and dutifully reminded him, “Mr. Zhao, it’s 1 p.m., remember to eat.”

Zhao Pingjin lay on the couch with his eyes closed, and upon hearing this, he slightly turned his head and hoarsely replied, “I know.”

He kept his eyes closed, waiting for the dizziness to pass, then lay there for a bit longer before sitting up. He opened the insulated lunch box on the coffee table.

Inside was a bowl of soft, fragrant white porridge, steaming, and another box with several small side dishes.

The bright green vegetables, a portion of steamed eggs, and a plate of pickled radishes.

The lunch that the secretary arranged today was quite delicate.

Zhao Pingjin picked up the spoon next to him and absentmindedly scooped a mouthful of porridge into his mouth.

The porridge was perfectly cooked—soft and thick, the warmth spread down his throat, immediately warming his stomach and making him feel very comfortable.

Zhao Pingjin held the spoon and paused for a moment, lost in thought.

The next second, he propped himself up with the armrest of the sofa, stood up, and walked to the desk to press the internal phone.

The secretary immediately picked up the phone.

Zhao Pingjin spoke in a deep voice, “Have Shen Min come in.”

After a while, Shen Min knocked on the door and entered. “You called for me?”

Zhao Pingjin gestured for him to sit.

Shen Min sat across from him.

However, Zhao Pingjin did not speak. Instead, he stared at the bowl of white porridge in front of him, slightly furrowing his brows, and kept pressing the soft rice grains with the spoon.

Shen Min couldn’t sit still and cleared his throat. “Zhouzi…”

Hearing Shen Min, Zhao Pingjin looked up at him and quietly asked, “Did you meet her?”

Shen Min’s heart skipped a beat. He thought that Zhao Pingjin might at least have some suspicion, but to his surprise, Zhao Pingjin didn’t even ask—he knew immediately.

Shen Min feigned ignorance, replying, “What?”

Zhao Pingjin lowered his gaze for a moment, then raised his eyes to look at him. His expression was calm, and there was no hint of emotion in his gaze. “Huang Xi Tang.”

He spoke so calmly and directly that Shen Min, for no reason, felt a slight fear. He knew he couldn’t hide it, so he nodded.

“She’s in Beijing?”

Shen Min nodded again.

Zhao Pingjin was silent for a while. His expression was unreadable, and Shen Min thought he was about to be scolded. However, Zhao Pingjin sighed deeply, his tone carrying a hint of sadness. “Don’t trouble her like this in the future.”

Shen Min dared not make a sound.

Zhao Pingjin sat down at the coffee table and slowly began eating his porridge.

Shen Min sat to the side, texting on his phone.

At that moment, Zhao Pingjin’s phone, which was on the desk, rang.

Shen Min glanced at his expression, saw that he had no objection, and walked over to pass the phone to him.

The screen displayed the name “Yu Xiaoying.”

Zhao Pingjin took the phone but didn’t answer it. He quietly set the spoon down.

It seemed as though the phone rang in calculated intervals, ringing over and over again. After the fourth ring, Zhao Pingjin finally picked up the phone.

Yu Xiaoying’s gentle voice came from the other end. “Have you had lunch?”

Zhao Pingjin answered, “Yes.”

Yu Xiaoying continued, “Mom’s back in Beijing today. She wants you to come home for dinner tonight.”

Zhao Pingjin replied, “Okay. Did you drive? Do you need a driver to pick you up?”

...

Shen Min turned his head and typed a few lines on his phone. When he looked back, he noticed that Zhao Pingjin had already hung up the phone.

During the call, Zhao Pingjin unconsciously pressed his hand to his stomach. Now that he had lowered it, his face was growing pale, and beads of sweat formed on his forehead.

Shen Min stood up and handed him some medicine and a glass of water.

He took it nonchalantly and said, “Alright, I won’t keep you. Aren’t you supposed to have lunch with Ms. Tan?”

Recently, Shen Min had been dating a girl introduced by Mrs. Zhou’s secretary. Zhao Pingjin knew about this. It was not entirely Mrs. Zhou’s idea, but since Shen Min had not rejected the arrangement, Zhao Pingjin let it go. He knew that while Mrs. Zhou was strong-willed, she cared deeply for her children. The girls she had vetted were always refined in both appearance and family background. This particular girl was a Chinese teacher at a key middle school near Zhugan Hutong, not far from Chaoyangmen. When her work wasn’t too busy, they occasionally had lunch together, and Shen Min would then take her back to school.

Shen Min spoke slowly, “It’s not urgent. Please take your medicine first.”

Zhao Pingjin took the medicine and leaned back on the sofa to rest.

Shen Min tidied up some files for him, occasionally glancing over at him.

Zhao Pingjin remained silent, lying motionless, his discomfort evident. For some time now, he’d been like this—his stomach hurt after eating.

Shen Min moved a stool and sat beside the sofa.

Noticing that Shen Min was still there, Zhao Pingjin said, “I’m fine. You can go now.”

Shen Min couldn’t go along with him this time. He lowered his voice and said, “Lie down for a while, you don’t need to worry about me.”

Shen Min understood that the Zhao family had treated him well, like their own child. They asked for nothing in return, and since his own parents had passed away, the Zhao family had always looked out for him, especially Zhao Pingjin, the only son. The elder Zhao had hoped that Shen Min and Zhao Pingjin would look out for each other. The older generation couldn’t manage the affairs of the younger ones anymore. Shen Min had grown up with a pure and honest character, and now, working alongside Zhao Pingjin, he could provide some guidance.

However, when it came to making Zhao Pingjin pay attention to his health, it was a task that Shen Min found difficult to handle.

From last winter until now, after his marriage, a series of troubles had followed. Zhao Pingjin had been so busy that he barely had time to rest, and he had lost a lot of weight.

There had been the issue with his uncle before, which had caused great concern within the family. After over a year of struggling, they couldn’t save him, and the funeral was held with great ceremony. During this time, the elder Zhao had fallen seriously ill from the grief of losing his eldest son, and Zhao Pingjin had been busy organizing the funeral while coordinating with the medical team for the elder’s treatment. He was constantly running between the hospital and the family home.

His father, stationed at a military district, couldn’t return, and there were rumors that the elder Zhao was in critical condition. Only Zhao Pingjin, with his impassive expression, continued with his routine. Fortunately, his newlywed in-laws, the Yu family, visited the hospital from time to time, and with the efforts of Ms. Zhou, who was shuttling between Beijing and Shanghai, the situation gradually stabilized.

During the most tense period, which lasted more than a month, Shen Min suspected Zhao Pingjin hadn’t gotten a full night’s sleep. The hospital often called in the middle of the night, and Zhao Pingjin, who was concerned for his mother, knew that Ms. Zhou, being over sixty, couldn’t handle the stress of such sudden news. Zhao Pingjin had instructed that any change in the elder’s condition be reported to him first. After the elder had been hospitalized for two weeks and then spent more than forty days recuperating, Zhao Pingjin had managed to get through it.

On the day of his uncle’s funeral, it was held with great formality, and people from higher-ups came to offer their condolences.

That evening, while the family was having dinner, perhaps due to Zhao Pingjin’s pale complexion, even his father noticed.

Among the younger generation, those who went into the military were fine, but those with strong political backgrounds, like the Zhao family, generally spent their early thirties working in the border regions. Those who stayed in the capital and engaged in idle activities often had strained relationships with their families. Zhao Pingjin had always been intimidated by his father, General Zhao Zhuguo, who followed in his father’s footsteps, maintaining a strict military discipline. Zhao Pingjin had never received a warm welcome from him. On that rare occasion, during dinner, General Zhao said to his son, “Young people should pay more attention to their health.”

Zhao Pingjin quietly responded, “Okay.”

After the funeral, Zhao Pingjin was promoted to General Manager of Zhongyuan United Holdings Group. His work became busier, but his family life was harmonious, and everything seemed to return to normal.

But only Shen Min knew in his heart that Zhao Pingjin hadn’t improved. The work pressure remained high, his stomach and appetite continued to be problematic, and, most troubling of all, there were still things weighing heavily on Zhao Pingjin’s mind that Shen Min dared not speculate about.