“Is that what you call an apology? Would it kill you to say sorry properly?”
Jiang Nan Fang stood up angrily.
Afraid she would turn and leave, Zhan Bei Jue dragged out his words, “Fine, fine, I’ll say it.”
“I’m s-o-r-r-y—”
“No sincerity.”
“Jiang Nan Fang, don’t push your luck!”
Jiang Nan Fang’s eyebrows twitched. “Then should I leave?”
“I’m sorry!”
Seeing him so obedient and sensible for the first time, Jiang Nan Fang was finally satisfied.
She sat back down and took a bun, stuffing it into her mouth.
As soon as she took a bite, the phone on the nightstand rang.
She grabbed it and saw it was Ke Teng calling.
Ke Teng had called her multiple times and sent many WeChat messages over the past few days, but Jiang Nan Fang hadn’t replied.
This couldn’t go on forever.
So she decided to take her phone outside to answer.
However, the moment she moved, Zhan Bei Jue grabbed her wrist.
“Who is it? Why can’t you answer it in front of me? Answer it right here.”
There was nothing shameful about it, so she might as well answer it here.
Jiang Nan Fang sat back down.
Ke Teng’s voice quickly came through.
“What are you doing? I came to your place, but you weren’t there. You don’t answer calls, don’t reply to messages, have you just vanished?”
“Is it that hard to ask you to go out? Do you hate seeing me that much?”
Zhan Bei Jue stared at her intently.
Feeling strange talking on the phone while being watched, Jiang Nan Fang didn’t answer his question directly and instead said,
“The New Year is coming soon. Shouldn’t you go back and spend time with your father instead of running around outside?”
“I’m not in the mood to travel. Stop calling me.”
As she was about to hang up, Ke Teng quickly stopped her.
“Don’t! Even if you don’t want to go out, don’t hang up so quickly. Just talk to me for a bit.”
“…”
“Where are you now? What are you doing? Are you that impatient to answer my call?”
She knew that giving him an inch would lead him to take a mile. Jiang Nan Fang didn’t want to answer his questions.
Ke Teng continued to persuade her.
“You were so sick back then. You stayed home for two months without going out. I almost thought you were becoming depressed…”
“What’s the point of living like this, just working? You can’t earn all the money in the world. Take advantage of these days off and go out for a bit.”
“If you don’t want to travel long distances, we can stay in China. How about Sanya? I have a house there. The air is good, the temperature is suitable, it’s perfect for a vacation.”
Zhan Bei Jue’s face was filled with displeasure. He looked like he was about to snatch the phone and hang up for Jiang Nan Fang.
Seeing how much he disliked Ke Teng, Jiang Nan Fang felt a sense of defiance. She originally didn’t want to say anything, but she deliberately added,
“You have a house in Sanya? Can you see the sea from there?”
“Of course. It’s a super-duper sea-view room. How about it, want to take a look?”
Not to mention she had already promised Zhan Bei Jue she would take care of him in the hospital for a week, so she didn’t have time.
Even if she did, Jiang Nan Fang didn’t have the mood to go out and play.
Just as she was about to refuse, Zhan Bei Jue suddenly snatched the phone and hung up for her.
“You were sick recently? You were sick for two months and didn’t go out, and you almost became depressed?”
How dare he ask.
If it weren’t for him causing trouble with the children, would Jiang Nan Fang have been half-dead?
Mentioning this made Jiang Nan Fang want to ask him why he wasn’t the one who died back then.
But the words changed on her lips.
“What does it have to do with you? Why did you hang up my phone?”
Zhan Bei Jue seemed to be thinking about something, staring into her eyes for a few seconds before calmly handing the phone back to her.
“I’ll have Ah Zhong transfer the remaining 5 million to your account immediately. You finally have a few days off, go out and relax.”
He actually wanted her to go out and relax?
Was he that generous?
Did he feel guilty because she had been sick?
Jiang Nan Fang didn’t believe him. “Are you joking again?”
Zhan Bei Jue closed his eyes and leaned back against the headboard with a dejected expression.
“If I tell you to go, then go. Stop talking nonsense.”
“There are plenty of people willing to serve me. Do you think I actually need you?”
Very good. There were plenty of people willing to serve him, so he didn’t need her here.
Fine. She would leave.
Jiang Nan Fang stuffed the bun back into the bag, took out a tissue to wipe her hands, and then grabbed her bag.
“You said it yourself. I won’t come back after taking the money, don’t regret it.”
Jiang Nan Fang did go to Sanya with Ke Teng.
Sanya was truly a beautiful place.
The sun was warm, the temperature suitable, the air fresh, and the sea cool.
Sitting by his enormous floor-to-ceiling window, looking at the turquoise waves and leisurely tourists outside, she felt incredibly relaxed.
Unfortunately, Jiang Nan Fang couldn’t feel happy at all.
She was lost and couldn’t find the meaning of life.
Sometimes she wanted to destroy Zhan Bei Jue, to crush his business empire, to see the once-proud him become powerless because of her, infuriated, and get revenge for the children.
But sometimes…
She admitted she wasn’t ruthless enough, not resolute enough.
She hated Zhan Bei Jue to death when she was alone, but the moment she saw him…
Other than keeping herself busy and filling her mind with other things to avoid overthinking, she felt helpless against herself.
When one is not in the mood to sightsee, even the most beautiful scenery will not catch their eye.
After spending only half a day by the sea, she took out her laptop again.
The bidding was about to enter its final, most crucial stage, and she needed to seize the opportunity to optimize the bid documents again.
She was determined to win the South-to-North Water Diversion project this time.
Only if Huatai performed exceptionally in this project could it hope to rival Zhan Shi in the future.
At present, this was the only way she could think of to get revenge on Zhan Bei Jue.
Ke Teng saw her wearing a beautiful white dress but not wanting to go out and play, instead sitting in the room writing and drawing. He came to persuade her.
“It’s the New Year, and my father isn’t forcing you to achieve any results. Why are you being so hard on yourself?”
“Let’s go, let’s go out and play for a couple of days. We can work on the project when you get back to the office.”
Jiang Nan Fang said she didn’t want to go.
“I don’t want to talk either. If you truly care about me, please stay away from me and give me some peace and quiet.”
“If I can’t do my work well, it’s worse than dying. Please don’t try to persuade me anymore.”
After spending a few months together, Ke Teng had gotten to know some of her temper.
Seeing her so resolute, he didn’t dare to persuade her further and could only go out to play with his assistant.
As long as he could see her every day and know that she was quietly by his side, Ke Teng was content for now.
Three days passed quickly.
In the blink of an eye, it was New Year’s Eve.
Ke Teng said he wanted Ke Jing Yu to come over too, so the three of them could spend a quiet New Year in Sanya.
Jiang Nan Fang had no relatives or friends, and she would be alone if she went back to Nancheng. She thought it would be fine to stay like this for a few days, so she didn’t refuse.
However, as soon as she agreed to Ke Teng, Ah Zhong called her.
“Miss Jiang, where are you now? Could you please come to the hospital?”
“What’s wrong?”
Thinking of Zhan Bei Jue in the hospital, Jiang Nan Fang’s heart suddenly pounded.
Ah Zhong’s tone was heavy, “Since you left, President Zhan has been running a fever these past few days.”