Zhu Ran sincerely gave her a thumbs-up. “With a mindset like yours, you can succeed at anything.”
“Borrowing your good words.” Vivian burst out laughing and tossed the empty coffee cup into the trash bin.
Zhu Ran hurried to catch up. This wasn’t his style, but it didn’t stop him from admiring someone like her.
The taxi drove through the bustling streets of Central. Zhu Ran watched the familiar street scenes along the way and realized, almost unconsciously, that his feelings for this city were deepening bit by bit.
That Monday evening, Zhu Ran held back from contacting Huo Boyan.
He packed some clothes for staying overnight in advance. To cover for sleeping over elsewhere, he used the excuse of a short trip to the outlying islands. The reason was perfectly legitimate, and Wang Ruyun didn’t poke holes in it.
Zhu Ran finished packing his clothes and, to make the act complete, charged his camera and prepared to bring it along.
Just as he opened the camera’s dry box, someone knocked on the door.
Zhu Ran: “Come in.”
Wang Ruyun pushed the door open and walked in.
“Mom.” Zhu Ran instinctively straightened up, still feeling a bit instinctively tense. The mental pressure Wang Ruyun brought him couldn’t be easily dispelled in just a few days.
Wang Ruyun also seemed unaccustomed to such a scene. She glanced at the backpack on Zhu Ran’s bed and asked, “You’re leaving tomorrow evening?”
Zhu Ran nodded. “Yeah, then straight to the Art Gallery on Thursday.”
Wang Ruyun fell silent for a moment.
Zhu Ran held his breath and gripped the camera in his hands tightly. He couldn’t help but think, Could Mom be going back on it? Like before, keeping him home, not letting him go out, telling him everyone in the world except Mom was bad?
“Take this with you.” After a long silence, Wang Ruyun finally spoke. She handed him a tube of sunscreen and said coolly, “The sun’s strong outside. Don’t get sunburned.”
Zhu Ran looked up in disbelief, but she said nothing more, simply placing the sunscreen on his bed before turning and leaving.
Zhu Ran felt a mix of emotions in his heart, along with some guilt.
If Mom knew he was sneaking out to do this, she’d break his legs. But he couldn’t bear to part from Huo Boyan either. There weren’t many days left in summer vacation—would they end up long-distance? Zhu Ran didn’t dare think further. He chased to the door and shouted at Wang Ruyun, “Thanks, Mom.”
Wang Ruyun’s footsteps paused, then she gave a very soft mm before going upstairs.
At this point, Zhu Ran had cleared all potential crises. He held back from contacting Huo Boyan right away, not wanting to seem too eager.
He endured all the way to the next day, unable to stop the smile on his face even while working.
Vivian teased, “What happened to make you so happy?”
Zhu Ran had wanted to play it cool, but he ultimately cracked, curling his lips as he said, “Heh heh, yeah, something good.”
This light, dreamy feeling persisted all day until around 2 p.m., when Zhu Ran received a text from Huo Boyan.
[Huo Boyan]: I have something unexpected come up. Sorry, can we postpone the meeting?
Zhu Ran froze on the spot in an instant.
·
No one knew what was up with Huo Boyan, not even Chen Jiaming knew the details.
He only knew that Huo Boyan had held a secret meeting with Zhang Jinhua that morning, and his expression had been off afterward.
Huo Boyan’s parents had both died in a car accident, and Zhang Jinhua was a key witness from that crash. If they wanted to overturn the original investigation’s conclusions, her testimony as the truck driver’s daughter held great value. Logically, her willingness to come forward was good news in their favor, but Huo Boyan’s reaction made Chen Jiaming’s heart sink.
Chen Jiaming didn’t pry into the details of their meeting and instead broached the topic indirectly. “Boss, what’s our next step? Do we proceed with the original plan, or…”
The original plan was to gather enough human and physical evidence to reopen the investigation and unearth the mastermind behind the accident.
Fourteen years ago, Huo Boyan’s parents died in a car crash while he was still studying abroad.
That year, under Huo Tinghua’s leadership, the Huo Group had united everyone’s efforts and, after prolonged twists and turns, finally defeated the competitors to win a prime undeveloped plot in the Kowloon Core District.
Huo Tinghua and many of his children and executives all attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony. On the return trip, Huo Zhilang and his wife’s special car had been tampered with. Among the relatives present, Huo Zhilang had volunteered to ride with his second brother Huo Zhixiao.
Many people on site could testify that this request came from Huo Zhilang himself. Huo Zhixiao had even refused once, saying things weren’t stable around him and suggesting Huo Zhilang ride with their father Huo Tinghua instead. But for some reason, Huo Zhilang refused, and the couple got into Huo Zhixiao’s car together.
This became key evidence clearing Huo Zhixiao of suspicion.
On the return, Huo Zhixiao’s vehicle encountered the accident. The truck driver died at the scene.
Huo Zhilang and his wife were rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment—one died en route, the other on the operating table. Huo Zhixiao was also seriously injured and comatose, waking only after three days and nights.
The then 14-year-old Huo Boyan returned to the country to handle the aftermath, caring for the weeping Huo Junlin on one side while staying by the operating room without leaving until Huo Zhixiao awoke.
Three days later, Huo Zhixiao finally opened his eyes. The first thing he did was grab Huo Boyan’s cold hand and weep bitterly. “I’m sorry… Second Uncle couldn’t protect your parents…”
He cried so convincingly, coupled with his multiple fractures and having brushed death himself, that everyone believed him.
Huo Boyan watched this coldly. The pain of losing his parents poured out, crushing the boy’s spine. He finally broke down, grabbing Huo Zhixiao’s hand and sobbing aloud.
Cold tears splattered onto the VIP ward’s floor tiles. The 14-year-old Huo Boyan thought icily then: Huo Zhixiao, I’ll make you pay with your life.
A week later, the crash was ruled an accidental death. The truck driver had been fatigued driving, causing four deaths and one severe injury. As for the two involved vehicles, they had been disposed of cleanly before Huo Boyan returned—without a single trace left—handled personally by Huo Zhilang’s father, Huo Boyan’s grandfather.
