Chapter 55

Fang Langxi drove over.

He called Zhao Pingjin: “Where are you?”

Zhao Pingjin glanced around at the towering buildings and the neon signs flickering in front of him. The familiar roads of Beijing felt unrecognizable at this moment. He had driven around several subway entrances on Jianguomen Outer Street for a few laps and said, “Around the middle section of the East Third Ring.”

Fang Langxi responded, “Your mom called me. I’m nearby. She wants me to come and talk to you. I know you, so I’ll help you look for her.”

Zhao Pingjin replied briefly, “Okay.”

Fang Langxi continued, “Let’s split up and search. It’ll be fine. She knows to stay safe.”

These comforting words did nothing to ease Zhao Pingjin. He parked on the side of the road and called Huang Xitang’s assistant, Xiao Ning. Xiao Ning answered, “She hasn’t come back.”

Zhao Pingjin tossed his phone aside and gripped the steering wheel tightly, his face darkening further.

Zhao Pingjin and Fang Langxi split up, driving along the main roads in the east-west direction, then circling back a few times. Zhao Pingjin got out of the car and walked along the sidewalk, checking one restaurant, bar, and shop after another.

After running down several streets, he bumped into Fang Langxi on a small road in Yong’an Dongli.

Fang Langxi didn’t find her either.

It was past two in the morning. The cold wind howled, biting into their necks. The snow gradually stopped, and the streets in the narrow alleys were eerily silent. Young men and women, having just come out of nightclubs, passed by, laughing and shouting. A small noodle shop at the street corner was closing with a quiet thud, while the neon lights of distant skyscrapers seemed like faint ghostly fires. The city remained brightly lit, but it felt as if only desolation remained between the sky and the earth.

Zhao Pingjin wore a coat, and the light snow had settled on his black short hair. His shirt beneath was soaked with sweat and melted snow, as he had been running around for so long.

His nerves were too tense and agitated, and he felt a dull pain beginning to spread in his stomach.

Zhao Pingjin had no choice but to call Ni Kailun.

Ni Kailun had accompanied Xitang to a commercial event in the afternoon, and her flight back to Shanghai had just landed. She was still having dinner when she received the news and was shocked. “What’s going on? She starts causing trouble as soon as I leave!”

Zhao Pingjin pleaded, “Can you try contacting her?”

Ni Kailun asked several questions, typing away rapidly on the other end.

Zhao Pingjin furrowed his brows, answering her one question after another.

“She didn’t bring anything with her.”

“The phone is in the pocket of my coat.”

“We just went out for a walk, she didn’t bring a bag.”

After hearing this, Ni Kailun coldly responded, “Don’t worry about her, she’ll find her way back.”

Zhao Pingjin felt the last bit of hope he had left vanish with her words. In his panic, he shouted at Ni Kailun, “You’re her manager, she’s a public figure, she just became famous, the roads are slippery, and it’s snowing so heavily…”

On the other end, Ni Kailun paused for two seconds, then there was a loud bang as a door slammed shut. The phone’s volume suddenly increased, and she angrily shouted in a high-pitched voice, “You know the outside isn’t safe? How could you let her go out? How did you let her leave when you were with her? She should just die out there for all I care!”

Zhao Pingjin was silent.

He didn’t provoke her, but once she was angry, Ni Kailun exploded like a hornet’s nest being stirred.

“I don’t need to ask anymore. Didn’t your mom go looking for her?”

“Or did you two have another fight?”

“Always fighting. Why haven’t you two broken up yet?”

“Huang Xitang is really stupid.”

“You two are totally unsuitable. Your family doesn’t like her at all. Why are you still clinging to her? Isn’t she already suffering enough? I absolutely do not approve of you two being involved like this. She wouldn’t listen to my advice, and I’m telling you Zhao Pingjin, if she dies out there tonight, it’s her own fault! The company doesn’t need to take responsibility!”

Zhao Pingjin couldn’t say anything in reply. Everything she said was the truth, and what could he say? Her words lashed at his heart like a whip. Each word echoed in his mind, and he silently endured her scolding with his head lowered.

Fang Langxi, standing not far away, hadn’t been out running at night like this in years. He had already been running for quite a while tonight. At first, he saw Zhao Pingjin on the phone, so he sat down on the steps by the side of the road to take a break. He hadn’t finished a cigarette when he looked up and saw Zhao Pingjin, with his back turned, standing at the edge of the road. One hand was holding the phone, while the other was pressed against his abdomen. Zhao Pingjin suddenly started to bend forward slowly. Fang Langxi instinctively felt something was wrong, so he stood up and called out, “Zhouzi?”

Before Fang Langxi’s words had finished, he saw Zhao Pingjin’s body sway, and then he crouched down.

Fang Langxi threw away his cigarette, leapt off the steps, and rushed over to support Zhao Pingjin’s body. “Zhou Zhou!”

Zhao Pingjin was covered in cold sweat, the pain was so intense that his whole body was trembling. The agony nearly caused him to faint, and he staggered backward.

Fang Langxi helped him walk a few steps toward the side of the road. Zhao Pingjin gritted his teeth and forced himself to move, but the world spun around him, and a mist clouded his vision. His legs gave way, and he knelt on the steps of a nearby shop. Fang Langxi quickly held him up, turned him around, and saw that Zhao Pingjin was gritting his teeth, but had passed out.

Fang Langxi laid him flat, quickly slapped his face, and shouted his name. But Zhao Pingjin had lost consciousness.

Fang Langxi panicked. He quickly removed his coat and wrapped it around Zhao Pingjin. Then, he pulled out his phone and called his driver.

The driver arrived and took Zhao Pingjin to the hospital.

Zhao Pingjin woke up in the hospital.

He saw Shen Min sitting beside the emergency room bed.

When Shen Min saw him open his eyes, she said, “Langxi went back.”

Zhao Pingjin tried to move, but he had no strength. “How did you come back?”

Shen Min held him down gently. “I came back to handle some matters. Yesterday you weren’t at the company, so I handed over the work to Mr. Li and didn’t want to disturb you. I originally planned to return tomorrow morning.”

Zhao Pingjin glanced at her.

Shen Min understood his thoughts. “I’ve already spoken to her assistant and manager, but there’s still no news.”

Zhao Pingjin furrowed his brows in pain.

Shen Min said, “Liu Shifu is waiting to check the building’s surveillance footage. I’ve also sent two drivers to search the area, and we’re checking nearby hotels and 24-hour restaurants. The Chaoyang Police Station has been notified, and we’ll know as soon as there’s any news.”

Zhao Pingjin weakly asked, “Can I go out?”

Shen Min shook her head. “You should rest for a while.”

Shen Min was always steady when handling his affairs. “Mrs. Zhou just called. I answered and told her you went home to rest.”

Zhao Pingjin looked at the ceiling, lost in thought, and nodded.

Shen Min continued to report to him calmly. “There are no available beds in the ward for now, so the nurse arranged for you to stay here temporarily. I didn’t inform the hospital staff because I didn’t want to alert your family. You can rest here for now, and we’ll transfer you to another ward when the sun rises.”

Zhao Pingjin woke up, but he couldn’t fall back to sleep. He lay motionless in the emergency room.

Shen Min saw his face pale and ashen, his hand still pressing against his stomach. The painkillers had been administered at the highest dose, and she couldn’t help but quietly remind him, “You should rest a bit. I’ll wake you up when there’s news.”

Zhao Pingjin lowered his gaze, saying nothing.

After a long while, Zhao Pingjin, staring at the white ceiling above him, suddenly weakly said, “Xiao Min, do you think I’m a total jerk?”

Shen Min didn’t dare to answer, only offering a soft suggestion, “She might just have sat somewhere for a while. Don’t worry too much.”

Zhao Pingjin spoke softly, “Teacher Zhou has never liked her. Tonight, even Yingzi saw her. She’s not with me, and I’m really afraid…”

His voice trembled but quickly regained composure.

Neither of them could sleep. They lay wide-eyed, waiting.

Around 3 a.m., Ni Kailun called: “She’s back at the company hotel.”

“I don’t know where she was before. She took a cab back.”

“I don’t know if anything happened. She didn’t say anything, but she seems fine.”

Zhao Pingjin’s anxious heart slowly began to calm. He exchanged a few words with Ni Kailun, but his stomach hurt in sharp bursts. He couldn’t hold the phone steady and was about to end the call.

“Zhao Pingjin,” Ni Kailun’s voice stopped him.

Zhao Pingjin had no choice but to steady himself: “Is there something else?”

Ni Kailun said, “I’ll be in Beijing tomorrow. Arrange for Mr. Shen to come and clear up that external contract with Xitang.”

Zhao Pingjin’s heart skipped a beat again. He exhaled softly, “I don’t agree.”

Ni Kailun’s tone was firm: “Whether you agree or not, you have to. Tonight was a fluke. If something like this happens again, can you guarantee nothing will go wrong?”

Zhao Pingjin couldn’t respond, and he gradually couldn’t hear her voice clearly anymore. His vision blurred, and he couldn’t care about anything else. He weakly pressed the end call button and hunched over, pressing his hand to his stomach.

Shen Min peeked inside the room, not feeling at ease. She walked in, asking softly, “Boss?”

Zhao Pingjin remained silent.

Shen Min supported his shoulder, worried it might affect his rest, and gently asked, “Brother, are you feeling worse?”

Zhao Pingjin lay on his side, his hand pressed against his upper abdomen. His whole body felt like a taut string stretched to its limit. The hand attached to the IV began to spill dark blood.

“Zhouzhou?” Shen Min turned him over. His eyes were tightly shut, his face deathly pale. Sweat beaded on his forehead, and his entire back felt ice-cold to the touch.

Shen Min rushed to press the emergency bell: “Nurse!”

Around 4 p.m., the apartment hotel was quiet. Though the hotel was a bit old, its maintenance was still of a high standard. The carpet in the hallway was clean and soft, and the radiator at the end of the hall hummed softly.

Zhao Pingjin walked down the corridor to the hotel room where Huang Xitang was staying and heard familiar voices coming from inside.

This hotel was older, and the soundproofing was poor. He could hear Ni Kailun and Huang Xitang arguing inside.

Zhao Pingjin raised his hand to knock but stopped when he realized they were both speaking loudly, apparently in the middle of an argument.

He lowered his hand.

He heard Ni Kailun’s disgruntled voice from inside: “What’s this? You’re going through my phone, and you think you’re in the right?”

Huang Xitang’s tone was also displeased: “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Ni Kailun was furious, having just taken an early flight to resolve the issues between her and Zhao Pingjin. To her surprise, Huang Xitang had used her phone to call her mother to report in, and somehow stumbled upon the call history. Seeing the call from her university teacher, she immediately blew up. Ignoring the real issues, she started picking at trivial matters. Ni Kailun couldn’t help but snap: “It’s the agent’s job to handle work arrangements. What does it have to do with you?”

But Huang Xitang refused to back down: “I don’t mind if others contact me, but this is my professional course teacher!”

Ni Kailun, now impatient, shouted: “It doesn’t matter if I told you or not! The work can’t be taken on, so what difference does it make whether I tell you or not?”

Huang Xitang shouted angrily: “Whether I take on this job is negotiable, but you can’t hide things from me!”

Ni Kailun crossed her arms and sneered: “Huang Xitang, stop pretending with me. What’s this nonsense about repaying a teacher’s kindness? You think I don’t know you? You just want to stay in Beijing, don’t you? Don’t pretend you don’t know. Let me make it clear to you — I went out to eat two weeks ago, and the Beijing circle already started talking. The Zhao family has already sent out wedding invitations!”

At that moment, Xitang’s face turned bright red, like a cat scalded by boiling water, and she shrieked, “What does that have to do with me?”

Ni Kailun, seeing she had hit a sore spot, curled her lips into a mocking smile and returned to her usual sharp tone: “It has nothing to do with you, as long as you remember that. Stop dreaming of staying in Beijing. I’m telling you, go back to Hengdian, make some money, and only work will secure your future!”

Huang Xitang quickly regained her composure: “Ni Kailun, stop trying to lead me into a trap. What does hiding work from me have to do with me staying in Beijing? Fine, you want me to take on something in Shanghai? Then I’ll do a play!”

Ni Kailun, now fuming, snapped: “Fine, go ahead and do it! If you’re so capable, then don’t expect me to handle you. Go find your own agent if you want to do a play!”

Huang Xitang stubbornly replied: “I’ll manage myself.”

Ni Kailun coldly retorted: “Fine, that’s best. You’ve grown wings, and now you’re so capable.”

As soon as she finished speaking, Ni Kailun grabbed her bag, turned around, and opened the door. The culprit stood right there outside.

As soon as Ni Kailun saw Zhao Pingjin, she pointed at him and yelled, “What are you here for? Since you can’t have a future with her, you should let her give up already! I’ve been cursed for eight lifetimes to end up with such a useless, penniless artist like her!”

Zhao Pingjin’s face remained calm, and he didn’t respond. He stepped aside and made way for her.

Ni Kailun stormed off in anger.

Zhao Pingjin entered the room and closed the door behind him. Huang Xitang stood dazed in the middle of the room.

When she heard the door, she slowly lifted her head to look at him, her big eyes filled with tears.

Zhao Pingjin placed her bag, which she had left at the Park Hyatt, to the side, then turned and helped her sit on the sofa.

Xitang cried.

Zhao Pingjin extended his arm and pulled her onto his lap, letting her lean against his chest.

Huang Xitang must have suffered a lot over the years, but she always appeared so quiet on the outside. When facing the people closest to her, she was completely different from how she appeared to others. Zhao Pingjin had slowly begun to understand that her true emotional outlets were her mother and Ni Kailun.

He spoke gently, “Don’t worry. Once she’s calmed down, give her a call.”

Xitang lay quietly on his shoulder, silently crying.

Zhao Pingjin’s phone rang in his pocket. He took it out, pressed the decline button, and tossed it on the sofa. His phone kept flashing with notifications.

Xitang moved slightly, sat up from his lap, and with an expression of deep calm on her face, said, “You go ahead and take care of your work.”