Chapter 234

The assistant, out of breath and unwilling to speak, was truly shocked and immediately reported to Chairman Xu Dongzhang.

Xu Guanshan flicked off a bit of ash, which accidentally landed on his pants; he brushed it away with the back of his hand and said, 'Same name and surname, or……'

He didn't finish the sentence; if it were merely the same name, the assistant wouldn't have rushed to tell him.

'It's that Miss Xia Xi, the Young Master's former girlfriend.' The assistant said smoothly, 'When I first heard the name I also thought it was a namesake, but after checking her age and background everything matched. Miss Xia Xi indeed studied at the University of London, majoring in architectural design and manufacture. After that I stopped following her movements.'

Xu Guanshan fell silent.

The assistant knew what Chairman Xu Dongzhang was thinking: 'The Xu Clan and Broad and Elegant are cooperating; Miss Xia Xi is the person in charge of Broad and Elegant, so she will inevitably have dealings with the Young Master. Once their contact increases, we cannot guarantee the Young Master won't rekindle his old feelings for her.'

His words struck Xu Guanshan right in the heart.

Xu Guanshan stubbed out the cigarette, pressed his fingers between his brows; six years have passed, nearing the seventh, and Xu Yanfeng still hasn't started a family—something he hadn't expected at the outset.

Over these years he has frequently tried to set Xu Yanfeng up with the Ling family girl, thinking the two young people were dating, but later discovered it was not so at all—it was the Ling family girl unilaterally revolving around Xu Yanfeng, which he never accepted from beginning to end.

His son is very shrewd; knowing that without Ling Yan other women would be pushed onto him, he simply used Ling Yan as a smokescreen to confuse the elders of both families, enjoying a few years of peace.

Even he was deceived; only recently did he notice something amiss, because whenever the engagement was mentioned Xu Yanfeng would make all kinds of excuses and refuse to comply, as he never had that intention.

Xu Guanshan said, 'Find a time; I want to meet her.'

This 'her' refers to Xia Xi.

Back then he meticulously arranged for Xia Xi to put on that show for Xu Yanfeng, in order to eliminate future trouble forever; how could he allow the now‑back‑on‑track Xu Yanfeng to possibly deviate again?

The assistant understood: 'I'll arrange it.'

Xu Guanshan felt uneasy, raised his hand to stop the assistant from leaving, and said, 'Don't bother looking for a time—just tomorrow, I want to see her.' If it weren't already dark, he would have seen her today.

As the saying goes, long nights bring many dreams; delaying invites mishaps. He has always been decisive in handling affairs, disliking procrastination.

The next day, Xia Xi was working from home when the bell rang; she moved her hand from the mouse, picked up her phone, and while the computer screen displayed the layout plan for Jingyu Yuan, which she was refining, her eyes lingered reluctantly on the phone.

An unknown number called.

It was either a sales ad or a telecom scam; Xia Xi had encountered many such calls and ignored them.

Only when the phone rang a second time did she frown impatiently and answer.

A gentle, polite voice came from the earpiece: 'Miss Xia, hello.'

Xia Xi's pupils contracted; she recognized the voice instantly, though the last time she had spoken to this person was years ago, yet strangely she remembered it vividly.

She had never realized her memory was this good.

Xia Xi moved her lips and said 'hello' in a dry, curt tone.

The other party thought she had forgotten, so first identified himself: 'I am Chairman Xu Dongzhang's assistant; we have met before.'

Xia Xi: 'I know.'

The assistant paused, then got straight to the point: 'Chairman Xu Dongzhang wants to see you; let me know if it's convenient for you to tell me where you live so I can pick you up.'

It was the same old line from back then, sounding polite but actually giving her no chance to refuse—he didn't even ask if she wanted to meet.

Xia Xi had grown; she was no longer anxiously nervous as before. She smiled, calmly said: 'No need to pick me up; just give me the address and I'll go myself. Is it today at noon? I'll set out shortly.'

The assistant seemed a bit surprised, paused, then replied: 'Okay.'

Xia Xi hung up; moments later a text arrived with the meeting location sent by the assistant.

Her gaze fixed on the screen; after a few seconds she silently smiled— not only was the wording the same, but the place was also the same: still that teahouse.

Xia Xi saved the image on her computer, picked out a proper outfit from the wardrobe, sat at the dressing table, applied a little makeup, and called Zhou Du.

It rang a few times; Zhou Du answered, his voice lazy and sleepy—one could tell he was asleep and her call woke him. Xia Xi glanced at the time: 9:40. She had been working at the computer for over an hour, but for someone with an extremely irregular schedule like a self‑media person, he might have just fallen asleep.

'Sorry for disturbing your rest,' Xia Xi apologized.

'Just say what you need,' Zhou Du said without pleasantries; they didn't need them.

'I want to borrow money from you,' Xia Xi said, glancing at herself in the makeup mirror. Thinking of borrowing money, her first choice was Zhou Du—a top‑tier internet celebrity earning over a hundred million a year, for whom money is never lacking.

Zhou Du is generous with friends, and even more so with Xia Xi; he didn't ask what she needed the money for, just asked: 'How much?'

Xia Xi stated a figure and subconsciously held her breath.

Zhou Du didn't hesitate: 'Send me your account number; I'll transfer it shortly.'

Xia Xi thought he would be shocked and then interrogate her about why she needed the money, but his reaction was so calm. No wonder he's a big internet celebrity—rich and loose‑with‑cash, even seven‑figure sums don't faze him.

'I don't have much liquid cash on hand; once the returns from my next few investments come in, I'll repay you,' she said.

When she first returned to China she spent a lot; she now lives in rented housing, fortunate she didn't buy a property, which left her some cash—otherwise she'd have to borrow even more from Zhou Du.

Zhou Du was so drowsy his upper and lower lids were almost sticking together; he hummed twice as a response.

Xia Xi said no more: 'Thanks, go back to sleep.'

'Just a moment.' After a rustle, Zhou Du sat up, slapped his face to wake himself, and said: 'No rush to repay the money. Are you dealing with something? Buying a house?'

Such a large sum, he thought he should still ask about the purpose, in case she ran into trouble so he could find out early.

Xia Xi scratched the edge of the dressing table with her fingernail: 'Just pretend I'm buying a house.'

Zhou Du: 'Don't fool me—what do you mean by 'pretend I'm buying a house'?'

'Don't ask—I haven't run into any trouble, it's just a small matter.' Xia Xi didn't want to tell him for now: 'Go back to sleep; if I really run into trouble I'll come to you. Bye, bro—remember to send the money.'

Zhou Du: '……'

Not long after, Xia Xi received a bank text, checked it, put her phone in her bag, and before leaving kissed her two treasures.

The teahouse hadn't changed at all, but Xia Xi had; stepping inside again, her mindset was completely different from before, giving her a sense of 'things remain, people are gone.'

Xia Xi was led by a server through the pastry corridor and, outside a tea room, saw Xu Guanshan's assistant.

The assistant's hair had whitened considerably, his facial wrinkles deeper—all traces of time. He smiled at her, slid open the tea room's door, and invited her in.

Xia Xi stepped into the tea room, saw Xu Guanshan seated behind the desk, and memory and reality overlapped, as if she had passed through a temporal doorway.

Xia Xi approached and, at Xu Guanshan's gesture, took her seat.

The assistant then entered and poured tea for Xia Xi.

'Chairman Xu Dongzhang, long time no see.' Xia Xi appeared overly calm, as if meeting an old friend of vastly different age.

Xu Guanshan sized her up just as he had when they first met—her face was the same, hardly changed, but her demeanor had shifted greatly; compared to before, she had lost her sharpness, become mature and steady, possessed scheming depth, and was even more aloof.

In a daze, he saw Xu Yanfeng's shadow in her.

Xia Xi took a sip of hot tea, then leisurely unfastened the metal clasp of her satchel, drew out a bank card from its inner pocket and placed it on the desk, pushing it forward with her finger toward Xu Guanshan.

She decided to strike first, before Xu Guanshan could open his mouth to state his intent.

Xu Guanshan was indeed led by her actions, temporarily suppressing what he wanted to say, his brows knitting together, his expression stern without anger: "What does this mean?"