HGG - 61

His secretary was very cold.

Even when two high-ranking officials from Chongming Culture headquarters visited, and her boss was still engrossed in bathing a cat, she remained unruffled, politely inviting the guests to wait in the reception room with impeccable manners.

Zhan Luo hadn’t been to this building since Chongyou acquired it, whereas An Siyue was familiar with the place and brazenly went on a tour of the office.

Song Yi meticulously handled the reception. After at least half an hour, Chi Zhao finally emerged from his office, his shirt sleeves rolled up.

“Honestly,” he said with an indifferent smile as he sat down, “the last time I saw you two in the same scene was probably the year before last.”

Zhan Luo maintained his smile, while An Siyue retorted, “Do you think I wanted to come? It’s just that your dad isn’t free.”

“Is there something you need?” Chi Zhao seemed disinclined to elaborate.

Just three days prior, Cui’s family and Chongming had reached an agreement, ultimately deciding to abandon their initial demands, opting instead for child support and further business cooperation between the two parties.

It was known that the other party had been pressing hard, even going so far as to have Cui Ting’ai herself negotiate with Chongming, which carried a certain intimidating and threatening air.

Now, a complete 180-degree turn.

Such an outcome did not come as a surprise to the people at Chongming Culture.

After all, no one in the world had yet managed to extort Chi Shuren. He was notorious for his brutal and direct approach, undoubtedly an iron-fisted figure in the industry. When Chongming first emerged, many opportunists who sought a share were ruthlessly sent back to where they came from by him.

However, during the formal signing, Cui Ting’ai, who was with her brother, changed her previously unstable demeanor and actively stepped forward to apologize to Zhan Luo, who was representing Chi Shuren.

“Regarding your father’s remote surveillance, after our discussion, we unanimously agreed that you might have done something to your high school classmate,” Zhan Luo said with a smile, spreading his hands.

After this matter concluded, Chi Zhao immediately resumed his position, returning to Chongming Games to continue “oppressing” his employees.

Hearing Zhan Luo’s words, Song Yi also subtly raised her eyes.

Chi Zhao had never mentioned this matter, only lightly dismissing it with a “no need to worry.”

What exactly happened?

Chi Zhao clasped his hands together, dressed in a black suit, and sat on a single sofa chair. He paused for a moment, then pulled out his phone, pressed it twice, and leaned forward to place it on the table.

“I sent her a recording,” he said.

Zhan Luo asked, “What is it?”

Chi Zhao lowered his eyes, a faint smile playing on his lips, and said unhurriedly, “Big Brother’s phone was handled by me before.”

An Siyue deliberately picked up the phone.

“I deleted one of his call records.”

As Chi Zhao’s words rang out, not only Song Yi, but also Zhan Luo and An Siyue looked over in surprise.

Zhan Luo looked at Song Yi, his expression still gentle, but his tone became stern: “Miss Song, would you mind stepping out for a moment...”

“It’s alright. It’s fine if Song Yi knows.” With that, Chi Zhao suddenly turned his head. He looked at Song Yi, his expression slightly cold, and said, “My elder brother had been secretly taking antidepressants from everyone before his death. He died of illness.”

Chi Chong had always suffered from depression.

He was perfect, or so he deeply believed, until he filled out questionnaire after questionnaire, underwent examination after examination. Then he realized that his heart had a huge void.

Everything fell apart because of this slight wavering. He no longer trusted himself, but still had to maintain the image of the perfect heir.

From beginning to end, for the sake of perfection, he never told anyone about this.

He committed suicide, but at the same time, he died of illness.

“We only found out after he died,” Chi Zhao continued calmly. “Cui Ting’ai also told Sanshima about her situation. So Sanshima told me. I guess Big Brother might not have had the confidence to be a father.”

She was in pain, and he was in pain too, but it wasn’t despair.

The only desperate thing was that it was their last conversation.

“I lied before when I said Big Brother didn’t answer my call.” Chi Zhao turned back around. This time, he frankly admitted to the two elders, “He answered the last one.

“Just in case, our phones automatically record calls. Because the content was a bit embarrassing, to be honest, I didn’t want anyone else to hear it. So, when submitting the phone, I deleted it.”

An Siyue handed the phone to Zhan Luo, who pressed the play button.

The call connected.

It was Chi Chong speaking.

“Chi Zhao, I only have Ting’ai! I love her, she’s the only one in the world who tolerates me!”

In just a few short words, it was clear that Chi Chong’s emotions were highly unstable at the time. Chi Zhao tried to interject but was immediately hung up on.

Before the call ended, the faint sound of a guardrail being struck could be heard.

That was the end. After a few seconds of recording, it immediately started over from the beginning due to automatic playback. Thus, the phrase “She’s the only one in the world who tolerates me” echoed repeatedly throughout the large room. No one spoke, only Chi Chong’s sorrowful low roar before his death resonated.

“Only one.”

With a few brief sentences, he isolated everyone who cared about him from his world before he died.

Song Yi felt her hands hanging by her sides go numb, and her spine chilled, making her tremble.

Someone turned off the recording. “So that’s how it is,” Zhan Luo replied with a faint smile.

“Nothing else?” Chi Zhao rubbed the armrest of the sofa, looking up with a slight smile.

“No, that’s all,” Zhan Luo said.

“That’s great,” Chi Zhao chuckled idly, “Honestly, it’s a bit terrifying when both of you come to find me.”

Even after hearing her own son’s final dying words, An Siyue’s expression remained perfectly composed. She stood up, pulling her shawl around her, and said coldly, “It’s meaningless. I’m going back.”

Zhan Luo stepped forward first, gentlemanly pushing open the door for her.

Before leaving, An Siyue turned back again: “If anything goes wrong, you’d better not follow your brother’s example. Your dad and I aren’t devils.”

Chi Zhao leaned against the wall, seeing her off, and now replied lazily with a smile, “Got it.”

“And,” An Siyue then looked at Song Yi, “you, remember to come home for dinner.”

Later, before Cui Ting’ai returned to Japan, they saw her one more time.

Song Yi sat in the passenger seat of Zhan Heqing’s car. In the car, he rambled on, “She doesn’t need to worry about Chi Chong’s shares, because even if they were converted to money, it wouldn’t reach her. Cui Ting’ai secretly gave a lot of money to the nursing home, supposedly to keep the child a secret from her family. But in the end, her father still found out.”

When they arrived, Chi Zhao was already talking to her. Cui Ting’ai held the child, with a small baby stroller beside her.

Returning to Japan was her own decision. Initially, both the Chi and Cui families disagreed, but she pleaded persistently, promising to return after recuperating and to always have at least three professionals with her. Eventually, the elders relented.

“Back in high school, Chi Zhao, I always thought you had a really bad personality, but you were still quite popular,” Cui Ting’ai said with a smile, then suddenly had an idea. “Would you like to hold her?”

“Eh?” Even Chi Zhao was momentarily stunned.

Then, a child was put into his arms.

Chi Zhao held the infant as if lifting a small animal, not forgetting to turn his face to scold Zhan Heqing: “Don’t laugh!”

“I’m not laughing,” Zhan Heqing pulled out the SLR camera he had bought earlier from his bag. “I’m just taking a few photos.”

The baby girl seemed to understand what they were saying and laughed. Chi Zhao couldn’t help but smile, looking at the small face and saying, “Lele, you have to work hard.”

Cui Ting’ai, who had been pulling out tissues, suddenly stopped. She looked up, her gaze hollow, and asked, “How did you know her name?”

“Eh? Is she really called ‘Lele’?” Chi Zhao said, “When I was little, my brother often told me things like ‘happiness is more important than success,’ and then he said that if he ever had a child, their name absolutely had to have the character ‘le’ (快樂, happiness) in it.”

Cui Ting’ai stood there blankly.

She had never heard Chi Chong say that before and had named her based solely on her own thoughts.

When naming Chi Lele, Cui Ting’ai thought that success was certainly important, but more than success, she hoped for her to be happy.

After seeing them off at the airport, only Chi Zhao, Song Yi, and Zhan Heqing remained.

Zhan Heqing suddenly handed them the car keys and said, “You two go back together.”

“But you don’t ride motorcycles, do you?” Chi Zhao, who had come on one, couldn’t help but ask.

“It’s fine,” Zhan Heqing, almost moved by his own thoughtfulness in giving them private time, said, “I’ll ride a shared bicycle back.”

He left with lightning speed, too fast for Song Yi to even remind him, “That’s an airport highway.”

Chi Zhao quickly grabbed her hand. As Song Yi turned around, he smiled and said, “Forget it. Let him go.”

The moment their hands clasped, her entire heart seemed to soak into sweet juice, instantly becoming soft and tender. Song Yi thought for a moment, then simply nodded, “Then so be it.”

After getting into the car, Song Yi began to doze off. While Chi Zhao was away, she and Xia Fan were both more exhausted than usual. Her head kept nodding, and she quickly fell asleep.

When she woke up, she found herself already in the underground parking garage of Chongming Games.

Chi Zhao remained silent, just like last time, waiting for her to wake up without doing anything.

Song Yi was too lazy to argue with him and quickly got out of the car. Just then, she noticed that during her earlier slumber, a ring had appeared on her finger. It was a diamond ring she hadn’t seen among the previous eleven.

The two walked together towards the elevator.

In the confined space, Song Yi stood by the buttons, while Chi Zhao looked down indifferently at the changing floor numbers. He suddenly said, “Song Yi.”

“Hmm?” she turned her head to look at him.

“I’m very childish, and it’s hard for me to get close to others,” he continued slowly, “I don’t really know how to express emotions, and I can’t even get along well with my family...”

The elevator ascended, and gravity subtly changed. Song Yi listened carefully to every word he spoke.

“But after knowing Song Yi, the troublesome things gradually became clear, and things I didn’t understand before now seem clear.” Chi Zhao said, “I love you. I’m sure it’s real.”

The heavy feeling dissipated. Song Yi didn’t speak.

“Please marry me,” Chi Zhao looked up, his handsome face gleaming under the dazzling fluorescent lights.

Song Yi still made no sound. After a long time, he turned his head and saw her tentative gaze.

They confronted each other in silence.

“In that case,” Song Yi said, “when I die, it must be me by your side.”

After saying that, she immediately smiled. Chi Zhao also gradually smiled back, extending his arms to pick her up. Song Yi felt her body lighten, and then, from above, she kissed him.

Just then, the elevator doors opened, revealing a crowd of employees gathered outside, ready for a planning meeting upstairs.

Everyone inside and outside the elevator stood motionless, quietly allowing the elevator doors to close.

Chi Zhao held Song Yi. She was pressed against him, hearing a roar of commotion from outside the doors.

Song Yi lowered her head and suddenly asked coldly, “Didn’t you say that, ‘under normal circumstances, office romances don’t end well’?”

Chi Zhao smiled and looked up: “We’re not normal circumstances.”

When you’re muddled, struggling, self-imprisoned, when you’re hurt again and again in endless escape, the world never loves you. The one who loves you is your soulmate.

The world is cruel.

But it also has its tenderness.

“Speaking of which, have you finished your previous artwork?” she wrapped her arms tightly around him and said.

“What? Do you want to start learning to paint again?”

“More than that, let’s get married first.”

Such fairy tales exist in the world.

The End.