Financial Workplace Survival Guide – CH 094

Chapter 94 ☆, The Chapter Has Been Turned.

What kind of experiences did couples need to go through to make their relationship stable?

Xin Xin’s understanding of this matter was that by learning the other party’s deepest and darkest secrets, she had even become an accomplice. To bear the secrets meant to bear the other party’s most painful past.

After their conversation, the two lived peacefully, continuing their ordinary lives. Xin Xin neither blamed Zheng Zaochuan nor became closer to him, treating him like a lukewarm roommate.

Zheng Zaochuan couldn’t figure her out. After half a month, he finally couldn’t help but ask her, “Even if you knew everything, would you still always choose me?”

Xin Xin wasn’t fooled and instead turned the tables on him, “Why should I accept an unequal treaty? You’re so unpredictable; today you act like you can’t live without me, but tomorrow you might just disappear without a trace.”

Zheng Zaochuan’s eyes widened. “You’ve uncovered so many of my secrets; shouldn’t you be deciding to use your feelings to heal me at a time like this?”

Xin Xin laughed. “Zheng Zaochuan, it’s irresponsible to hand over your tragic past to someone and then endlessly exploit their emotions. You’re just testing how far I can tolerate you with your unreasonable behavior.”

Perhaps because she was too familiar with Zheng Zaochuan, Xin Xin knew clearly over the years that this was Zheng Zaochuan’s usual attitude towards relationships.

Approach you, push you away, hurt you, test you. Over and over again, until the other person was exhausted.

Then he would reveal a cynical smile, “Just as I thought.”

Maintaining the ability to leave at any time within a close relationship was his comfort zone.

Xin Xin loved him, but she was also tired of him.

If the problem couldn’t be solved, the same scenario would play out countless times in the future until the two hated each other.

Xin Xin didn’t want things to come to a point where they hated each other, but she also found it difficult to completely say goodbye to Zheng Zaochuan. Her forte was clarifying the scope of cooperation and defining the boundaries of responsibilities when projects stalled.

“Since you can think of using money to solve our problems, then if I ask you to use money to solve the problems between Xibei and your mother, can you do that?”

Zheng Zaochuan looked at Xin Xin, whose expression didn’t seem like she was joking.

In these two family relationships, Zheng Zaochuan had been tormented by a confusing mess for many years.

He had thought about calculating the consequences countless times, but every time he faced threats, he would still choose to pay them off. Even now, he clearly understood that both of them had the same goal: to keep him under their control forever.

He was a good ATM, and they had no intention of giving him away easily.

Xin Xin rationally offered Zheng Zaochuan a solution: “You set up a fund, sign the contracts and agreements, and then we’re done. Can you do that?”

Zheng Zaochuan pondered for a moment, “I’m not sure if they will sign.”

Xin Xin looked up. “If this can’t be resolved, let’s break up now.”

Zheng Zaochuan got anxious. “Stop it. Why do you threaten people all the time?” As he spoke, he still looked at the written proposal that Xin Xin had brought, muttering as he read, “You don’t love me at all anymore; you’re just like an accountant I hired.”

Xin Xin spoke in a businesslike manner, saying, “I can’t continue our relationship until these issues are resolved. It’s your choice; if you choose to go back to being friends, I will not hold a grudge.”

“I don’t want to!” he blurted out instinctively, then looked at her cautiously. “And what about us now? Are we still lovers?”

Xin Xin smiled, “We are Schrödinger’s lovers now. Whether we can become lovers is still hidden in the box.”

Zheng Zaochuan was taken aback for a moment, then smiled wryly and said, “You’re really strict and upright. Money can’t buy you at all.”

A toxic parent-child relationship was like a chronic, intractable disease that couldn’t be cured overnight.

Xin Xin fully understood how troublesome it was to be entangled in this kind of relationship.

Money and economic behavior could be subject to legal constraints, but could emotions always be subject to legal constraints?

If it were someone else’s problem, she would offer advice without hesitation.

“Cut it off.”

If a company’s due diligence resulted in this way, she would absolutely believe it wasn’t worth investing in, and there would inevitably be incalculable losses in the future.

But she always handled everything irrationally when it came to Zheng Zaochuan.

On one side was his family, and on the other was Xin Xin; the scales ultimately tipped in Xin Xin’s favor.

Zheng Zaochuan finally began to deal with the problems with his family.

It started with Xibei frantically calling Xin Xin, followed by Zheng Zaochuan’s mother. The initial outbursts of anger and insults gradually escalated into a barrage of verbal attacks.

Xin Xin was attacked by phone and text messages every day, but the content was nothing more than a few repetitive sentences, which could be summarized as her disregard for human ethics and that she would be punished by heaven sooner or later.

If Xin Xin was already in such a predicament, she guessed that Zheng Zaochuan must be facing even greater pressure.

But recently he had been acting as usual, even apologizing very well as her driver and cooking her four dishes and a soup as usual.

For the first time in a long time, Xin Xin no longer worried about Zheng Zaochuan. She mentally drew a red thread, a decision she hadn’t told Zheng Zaochuan, but one she had made up her mind about. If another uncontrollable situation arose, she would pack all her bags without hesitation and leave Zheng Zaochuan.

Zhao Xi also subtly noticed her change. “You’ve made up?”

Xin Xin admitted, “We’ve made up, but not completely.”

Zhao Xi smiled and said, “That’s great.” Then, as if explaining something, he said abruptly, “Maybe I should go meet the blind date that someone introduced me to.”

Xin Xin smiled and said, “Go ahead; you have such a wonderful youth, why waste it on work?”

The workplace was like a battlefield; all the fighting was just about moving from a small fish tank to a larger one. She made a name for herself in one battle and established herself in the head office.

Recalling the tense atmosphere on the river and sea back then, she now felt as if she had already sailed past countless mountains.

Neither the workplace nor life was a continuous drama; it lacked logic and was even absurd.

Zhao Xi was at the height of his power, and Xin Xin, taking advantage of his influence, seemed to have returned to their days in Jianghai, where the two worked together with great tacit understanding.

Zheng Zaochuan came to pick up Xin Xin after she got off work and happened to run into Zhao Xi and Xin Xin entering the underground parking garage together.

The two seemed to be discussing business, listening intently to each other as they drew closer and closer until their heads were almost touching, appearing quite intimate.

Zheng Zaochuan felt a sour feeling rise in his eyes. He had seen this scene countless times, and there were even times when he had to admit to himself how well-matched and perfect they were.

They had none of those upsetting issues or complicated pasts. They were like any perfect couple in the city.

However, it was only for a moment. Soon, Zheng Zaochuan took the initiative to drive over, rolled down the window, and interrupted the two of them without any politeness, “Mr. Zhao, don’t exploit my girlfriend. This counts as overtime.”

Zhao Xi and Zheng Zaochuan hadn’t seen each other for a long time, so Zhao Xi wasn’t in a hurry to leave. He stood up politely and greeted him, “Mr. Zheng, how have you been? It’s been a long time since I’ve seen you. I almost thought you two had broken up.”

“We are getting married; we won’t break up.” These words slipped out in a fit of pique, and Zheng Zaochuan immediately glanced at Xin Xin.

Xin Xin remained calm and greeted Zhao Xi, “Bye-bye, see you tomorrow.”

Zheng Zaochuan drove off in a flash.

“You agreed?”

Xin Xin pretended not to understand. “What are you talking about?”

Zheng Zaochuan, like a child showing off a treasure, said, “I’ve resolved everything. I’ve had my lawyer finalize the plan you mentioned, and everything’s been signed. The past is the past, and I will not look back.”

Xin Xin was taken aback. Thinking about it, it had indeed been a few days since she had received any phone calls from Xibei and his mother. Things had calmed down considerably, and she hadn’t expected the matter to be resolved so smoothly.

“They’ve always been like this? Every time you’re in a relationship, they pull this stunt? Why didn’t you deal with it sooner?”

Zheng Zaochuan paused for a moment. “It doesn’t have to come to that. They just need to grab me.”

“If it’s about my past, I’ll compromise. They know; who would want to be with a potential murderer?”

A wave of bittersweet emotion welled up in Xin Xin’s throat, and tears instantly filled her eyes. After a long while, she said, “If it weren’t for that person at the wedding, would you have told me all this?”

“No,” Zheng Zaochuan said firmly. “I would’ve done everything in my power to conceal everything.”

“Why?”

“Xin Xin, I still can’t believe you will accept me. I keep imagining that one day you’ll be afraid of me. I don’t even dare to hand you a pair of scissors, because I’m afraid that after you know this story, you’ll start to doubt and be wary of me.”

Xin Xin barely suppressed her sadness. “Zheng Zaochuan, I’ve never thought of you as a so-called murderer. The fault doesn’t lie with you.”

When you loved someone, you’d say, “It was not their fault.” When you no longer loved them, you’d say, “You really do have that kind of gene.”

Perhaps it was the phrase “family origin” that bound these wounded souls.

Zheng Zaochuan pulled one hand away, not looking at her, and hooked his little finger with hers, saying, “It’s a promise; don’t give up on me.”

Xin Xin didn’t speak. Zheng Zaochuan released her hand and placed a ring box in her palm.

It was a very simple gold ring.

Xin Xin took it out and put it on her wrist; the size was just right.

“When did you take your measurements?”

Zheng Zaochuan casually tied his apron and began to process a fish, his eyes not looking at Xin Xin, but his expression already revealed a hint of shyness.

“I’ve already measured it out, so you don’t need to give me an answer. I’ll buy you one every now and then; consider it an investment. If you ever decide on something, just give me a gift in return.”

Xin Xin smiled, put the ring away, and then tied her hair up to help with the cooking.

All the twists and turns eventually turned into a hot meal.

It felt like an eternity before they finally sat together again, watching a boring TV drama while eating. Many years ago, Zheng Zaochuan’s vision of home was simply “eating together.”

Xin Xin didn’t try to heal him; she simply glossed over his past with a light touch. There was no sympathy, sadness, inquiry, or suspicion, as if she were listening to a trivial story.

And so, that chapter was turned.

T/N: I’m glad Xin Xin didn’t turn out to be someone who wants to heal the broken man.