Financial Workplace Survival Guide – CH 057

Chapter 57 ☆, If I Were To Continue…

When Xin Xin and Fu Meng were on a business trip to Jin City, the schedule was so tight that Xin Xin and most people couldn’t keep in touch every day. But there was one exception.

Even when she was most busy, Xin Xin would always contact the other party to ask about the situation.

This person was Wang Zhuo.

Before she left, she entrusted all the information to Zhang Qiao so that she could keep track of Su Chengjie’s movements at any time.

Even when faced with danger, Xin Xin immediately messaged Wang Zhuo. They had agreed on a code word so he could tell she wasn’t being impersonated.

Moreover, since this matter originated with Wang Zhuo, he had no reason to betray her to Su Chengjie.

But once the seed of doubt was planted, it would take root and sprout. After she returned, many colleagues who weren’t very familiar with her paid attention to her movements and either called her or sent her messages. But Wang Zhuo disappeared without a trace, liked a drop of water vanished into the ocean.

Xin Xin was eager to discuss this matter with Zheng Zaochuan, a feeling that even overshadowed her previous anger towards him.

However, before she could take the initiative to shake hands and make peace with Zheng Zaochuan.

On that very day, an announcement regarding changes in HanHai’s equity structure and senior management was posted.

Zheng Zaochuan stepped down as CEO, and a man named Qin Tian took over the position. Su Chengjie became the largest shareholder of Hanhai and had actual control.

He succeeded.

Xin Xin had a terrible suspicion: perhaps this was the price Zheng Zaochuan paid to save her.

She called Zheng Zaochuan, and he answered quickly.

“Zheng Zaochuan.”

Zheng Zaochuan’s voice was light and cheerful, but there was a hint of barely perceptible caution in it. “You’re not angry with me anymore?”

Xin Xin said seriously, “Did you resign because of me?”

“Victory and defeat are common occurrences in war. Su Chengjie won, and I lost.”

Zheng Zaochuan avoided answering Xin Xin’s question, but Xin Xin interpreted this as a tacit agreement.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

Zheng Zaochuan pretended to be relaxed. “What should I tell you? Why would I tell you something as shameful as losing?”

Xin Xin couldn’t figure out Zheng Zaochuan’s attitude. If Zheng Zaochuan and Su Chengjie went head-to-head, Zheng Zaochuan might not necessarily lose. Although Su Chengjie was one of the earliest investors in Hanhai, the company was ultimately founded by Zheng Zaochuan, and the earliest employees were Zheng Zaochuan’s people.

Although Zheng Zaochuan was somewhat ambiguous in his love life, he was always fair in rewarding and punishing people at work. The earliest batch of veterans was all in the middle and senior management of the company, and there had been no news of him having any conflicts with anyone.

When Su Chengjie tried to force Zheng Zaochuan out, he was secretly acquiring shares; there was no mention of him using his connections to get rid of Zheng Zaochuan. The board members and the company’s main management were generally on Zheng Zaochuan’s side; otherwise, the stalemate wouldn’t have lasted so long.

Moreover, when he gave her the phone, he specifically asked her to call Zheng Zaochuan.

This already spoke volumes.

Besides Su Chengjie, who else would use her to deal with Zheng Zaochuan?

“Zheng Zaochuan, did you save me by resigning?” Xin Xin asked again.

This time, Zheng Zaochuan remained silent. After a long while, he spoke, “Are you coming home for dinner tonight? I’ll cook for you.”

The question had never been answered.

Xin Xin thought this was narcissistic. After all, how important would she have to be for Zheng Zaochuan to willingly and easily hand over his empire?

But this outcome left her no choice but to think this way.

“I’m going back to eat.”

Sure enough, when Xin Xin returned home, Zheng Zaochuan had already prepared four dishes and a soup for her.

This was the first time they sat down to eat together face-to-face since returning from Jin City.

Zheng Zaochuan looked completely different from his haggard appearance in Jin City. He was dressed comfortably in his home clothes, and his hair was messy and spread across his forehead. He casually wiped the sweat from his forehead with his hand, and his face showed a childlike innocence that was not in line with his age.

“Take a bite. I say my dish today is a stroke of genius.”

Xin Xin obediently took a bite and praised him, “Master chef level!”

Zheng Zaochuan smiled and said, “I’ll consider it when I’m looking for a new job.”

Xin Xin froze, and she stopped asking about the truth while eating. However, as she ate, her throat tightened, her nose stung, and tears welled up uncontrollably in her eyes.

Zheng Zaochuan put down his chopsticks and hurriedly wiped away her tears, asking, “Why are you crying all of a sudden?”

Xin Xin didn’t know why she was crying.

But in that instant, she suddenly recalled the unknown fear she had felt in the no-man’s-land a few days earlier. At one point, she even thought she would never come back and would never be able to return to a normal life.

Cheap bread and fast food, dough so hard it clumped together, and water laced with drugs. Endless highways, cars constantly speeding by.

These things embodied her fear of death.

“At that time, I really thought I would never be able to come back.”

Xin Xin struggled to say those words, and Zheng Zaochuan silently pulled her into his arms, just like Fu Meng had once patted her shoulder. Zheng Zaochuan patted Xin Xin’s shoulder gently, like he was coaxing a child.

“No. Never again. I won’t let you be in such danger.”

Xin Xin wiped her tears recklessly on Zheng Zaochuan’s shoulder. Suddenly, she remembered that during the most dangerous moment, she had thought that if she could do it all over again, she would take the initiative to confess to Zheng Zaochuan and ask him if he would like to be with her.

Unfortunately, she backed down at this crucial juncture.

To prevent Zheng Zaochuan from coldly rejecting her, Xin Xin decided to go straight to the point and take the initiative.

“Did you make some kind of deal with Su Chengjie for me? Do you really like me?”

Zheng Zaochuan looked at Xin Xin’s red nose and wet eyes, lowered his gaze slightly, and admitted the matter with little confidence.

“Actually, even without you, Su Chengjie would definitely have found other ways to deal with me. But since you insisted on investigating him, he certainly wouldn’t let it go. So he told me that as long as I resigned, he would guarantee your safety. I didn’t refuse, but it has nothing to do with you… I might not win even if you weren’t a factor.”

Xin Xin felt as if an effervescent tablet had been placed in her heart, causing many bubbles to rise rapidly. These bubbles rose from her stomach and gradually flooded into her brain.

Almost impatiently, Xin Xin suddenly asked, “Zheng Zaochuan, do you want to date me?”

In countless moments of excitement and ambiguous atmosphere, Xin Xin longed to say those words. But an inexplicable competitive spirit and insecurity prevented her from bravely revealing herself to Zheng Zaochuan.

Xin Xin liked Zheng Zaochuan and trusted him. This trust, built up over many years, almost gave her the illusion of true love. But she lacked confidence; she lacked confidence that the two of them could maintain a healthy and stable relationship beyond friendship.

But at this moment, perhaps it was because the interrogation had yielded the result they wanted.

Xin Xin proved her place in Zheng Zaochuan’s heart.

Unexpectedly, Zheng Zaochuan quickly pushed Xin Xin away after hearing those words.

Zheng Zaochuan looked at her seriously. “Xin Xin, I’ve said before, this has nothing to do with you. That’s why I didn’t want to tell you about it. You don’t need to try to win me over with your body.”

Xin Xin’s heart sank to the bottom. “What do you mean?”

“My struggle with Su Chengjie was bound to come to this sooner or later. You will never understand how guilty I felt when I knew you were in danger. If it weren’t for me, you wouldn’t have encountered any of this. Even if I had talked things out properly with Su Chengjie, you wouldn’t have been dragged into this.”

Zheng Zaochuan rarely had such a serious expression, and Xin Xin tried to discern his true attitude from it. But at this moment, his eyes were firm, his attitude resolute, showing no mercy whatsoever.

Xin Xin calmed down and suddenly understood Zheng Zaochuan’s logic.

In her world, Zheng Zaochuan would go to such lengths to save her because he liked her. But in Zheng Zaochuan’s world, he felt he had dragged her down and that he saved her out of a sense of responsibility.

He told her it had nothing to do with her.

Xin Xin initially thought that Zheng Zaochuan was being considerate in keeping it from her because he was afraid she would feel guilty if she knew. But in that instant, Xin Xin realized that Zheng Zaochuan was completely open and honest, genuinely believing that this matter had nothing to do with her.

“I understand.” Xin Xin had never felt so awkward; she wasn’t good at taking the initiative to extend an olive branch.

Asking Zheng Zaochuan to be her boyfriend was the best Xin Xin could do. But now, Zheng Zaochuan’s reaction hurt her pride; she had clearly been rejected.

At this moment, she felt like crying but had no tears left. If she had the courage to continue, she would almost have questioned him.

If you don’t like me, why did you watch the stars with me? Why did you pick me up from work? Why did you help me when I was in trouble? Why did you invite me to stay at your house? Why did you go to all this way to pick me up? And why did you mind me being with other people?

But as these questions and emotions rushed into her mind, Xin Xin quickly recalled the emotional troubles Zheng Zaochuan had told her when she first met him.

He said innocently, “I don’t understand why a girl would fall in love with me just because I’m nice to her. And after I rejected her, she thinks I’m a jerk? But during this process, I clearly didn’t make any promises and tried my best to be good to her. What did I do wrong?”

At that time, Xin Xin was stunned by Zheng Zaochuan’s scumbag behavior. But later, she also thought about Zheng Zaochuan’s problem; yes, he had some unnecessary ambiguity and feelings for every woman. But he…

He didn’t deceive anyone, made no promises to anyone, was generous, and helped every woman as much as possible. What did he do wrong?

Xin Xin’s tears fell uncontrollably, one after another. She frantically wiped them away, realizing at that moment that even though she thought she was clear-headed and calm, she was no different from any other woman around Zheng Zaochuan. In the end, she had inevitably fallen in love with Zheng Zaochuan.

He was genuinely good to her and treated her with sincerity. Aside from not being able to give her the most ordinary, one-on-one, mundane love, he was good enough to her. For so many years, Xin Xin believed they maintained the most amicable, undefined relationship.

But in reality, it was because Zheng Zaochuan didn’t want to define it.

Seeing Xin Xin’s heartbroken state, Zheng Zaochuan struggled to restrain himself from pulling her into his arms again. But he couldn’t do that; he couldn’t take advantage of Xin Xin’s sense of responsibility and exploit her vulnerability at this critical moment.