Returning home, it was already nearing evening. Xia Wan’an personally cooked three dishes and a soup.
Even though she couldn’t eat this much, whenever she had time to cook, she would always make enough for two people.
Yes, that’s right, the extra portion was for him, even though she knew he wouldn’t come home to eat, nor would he dine with her. But every time, she stubbornly went ahead and prepared it.
Because only when she was at home alone did she dare to do things related to him.
After preparing the meal, Xia Wan’an would set two sets of bowls and chopsticks on the table, fill the one opposite her with soup, and then say, “Let’s eat.”
The response she received was the same quietness as always.
Unlike usual, this time she didn’t immediately start eating. Instead, she gazed at the empty chairs and table across from her for a while, as if he was really sitting there. In a hushed voice, she murmured, “Jingnian.”
God knows how many times she had silently called those two words in her heart.
She thought that he would never see the moments when she loved him. She dared to love him only when he was absent.
After finishing her words, Xia Wan’an didn’t dare to look at the other side too much. She lowered her head and began to drink the soup.
As she drank, she suddenly felt a lump in her throat. Then, she belatedly realized that the corners of her eyes seemed to be wet.
Clearly, she liked him a lot, but she always had to pretend to be indifferent to show the world that she had no connection with him.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to tell him that she liked him, but compared to not receiving his love, she was more afraid of losing him completely.
She had witnessed how he rejected a woman’s confession to him firsthand. He was so heartless, so ruthless, not leaving the slightest room for turning around. Therefore, she had always been cautious, locking her feelings deep inside, maintaining an appearance of not caring about him.
She knew he disdained her feelings; he only wanted a marriage, not entanglement. Although she didn’t understand and was curious why he wanted such a meaningless marriage.
…
Monday arrived, and Xia Wan’an went to work as usual.
She only joined the Han Corporation a year after marrying Han Jingnian. The reason she could enter the Han Corporation wasn’t closely related to Han Jingnian. It was purely due to his sister-in-law, Lan Yan’gui, who was also Han Zhiran’s mother’s intention.
Han Jingnian had two elder brothers. His eldest brother, Han Jingwen, was almost thirty years older than him, and his second elder brother, Han Jinglun, was eighteen years older. Even before Han Jingnian was born, his eldest brother, Han Jingwen, was already married. When Han Jingnian was three years old, his eldest brother met with an accident, leaving behind his pregnant wife. Shortly afterward, his mother, who was already in poor health, passed away due to excessive grief. Thankfully, Han Jingnian’s grandmother had a longer life. After his mother’s passing, his grandmother took on the responsibility of raising him.
Oddly enough, even though there were many males in the Han family, they didn’t live very long. Han Jingnian’s father passed away in his sixties, and his second elder brother, Han Jinglun, passed away at a young age. He died shortly after celebrating his thirtieth birthday. Out of the three brothers, only Han Jingnian remained. At the time, he was twelve years old, and Han Zhiran was nine. Therefore, the weight of the Han Corporation fell upon his grandmother and sister-in-law Lan Yan’gui. However, three years ago, Han Jingnian returned from abroad and entered the Han Corporation. His grandmother only held the CEO title and no longer handled day-to-day matters.
[Emphasis by the author]: The last part provides background information. For those who don’t understand, please read it multiple times. If it’s still hard to understand, there’s nothing I can do! Also, this is a normal novel, so please don’t interpret it in a superstitious or mystical way. The mention of not living long is fictional! Your creativity is quite impressive, I must say!
Even though Xia Wan’an was in the same company as Han Jingnian, they were in different departments on different floors, so the two of them had never crossed paths in the company.
Han Corporation was in the jewelry business, with a storied century-old brand of starlight jewelry stores across the country. Coincidentally, Xia Wan’an had studied jewelry design. However, it wasn’t because of Han Jingnian that she pursued this field, but because she had a genuine passion for it.
The process of work remained busy as usual. By the time Xia Wan’an finished her work, it was already three in the afternoon. Having forgotten to eat lunch, she ordered takeout. While waiting, she remembered that last week she needed to search for some items she had seen before in the warehouse. But because it was almost time to leave, the warehouse had been locked. So, taking advantage of the time, she went to the company’s basement warehouse.
The majority of items piled in the warehouse were outdated. She spent quite a while searching and finally found what she was looking for at the top of a cabinet.
Wearing high heels, she struggled to reach the box, stretching her hand to grab it for a while. She finally managed to pull the box down.
Hugging the box to her chest, she opened it and lowered her head to inspect its contents. Unaware of the damaged cabinet behind her, it was already unstable and, having been touched by her, it suddenly collapsed without warning. It smashed onto her back, causing her to collapse to the ground.
Xia Wan’an woke up in pain. She opened her eyes and saw a room full of white.
She wasn’t entirely sure where she was. Furrowing her brow, she looked around for several rounds before realizing she was in a hospital. Then, she recalled the events that had happened before she lost consciousness.
But who had brought her to the hospital? And where were the items she needed?
With this thought, Xia Wan’an slightly moved her body, and then her back started throbbing painfully.
In one second, she took in a sharp breath, and in the next, the door was pushed open, and a nurse entered.
Xia Wan’an hurriedly asked, “Um, who brought me here?”
“It was an ambulance called by a middle-aged man…”
Xia Wan’an thought that the nurse was referring to the person from the company who had been overseeing the warehouse.
She didn’t say anything further.
The nurse took her blood pressure and then said, “You still need to be observed in the hospital for a while. So, you should call your family to come to the hospital and take care of you.”
Xia Wan’an replied with an “okay.” After the nurse left, she picked up her phone.
She didn’t call her parents because she was afraid her parents would disturb Han Jingnian. So, she thought for a moment and only contacted Song Youman, stressing the need for secrecy.
After ending the call with Song Youman, she stared at the phone screen for a while and then dialed the landline number of Han Jingnian’s assistant’s office.
Whether she went home or not, Han Jingnian might not care. However, because on a previous occasion she didn’t return home and her mother couldn’t find him, her mother called him. In order to avoid her mother questioning whether something was wrong between them, whenever there was something, she would inform him… more precisely, she would inform his assistant.
Yes, over the years, even when she actively made a call to him, she only called his assistant.
After a while, the phone was answered. “Hello?”