No reconciliation, no forgiveness! Mr. Pei leaves with nothing.

Pei Zhan: No, I've been dealing with company matters lately.

"Shut up! Don't mention this to me." As soon as Pei Zhan finished explaining, Jiang Hua interrupted him. It would have been better if she hadn't said anything, but now that she brought it up, she was even angrier. She felt a lump in her throat, unable to calm down. "You still have the nerve to mention company matters in front of me."

"If you hadn't brought Song Qingran to my house, would I have been entangled with her over a broken necklace? Would my dad and I have had to suffer this kind of grievance?" Jiang Hua angrily closed the mirror lid, her eyes filled with resentment. "All of this is your fault."

"Fine, just pull over and drop me off. I'll take a taxi back to school myself. Seeing you... will only make me die faster!"

Jiang Hua rubbed her temples with her eyes closed, her temples throbbing with anger.

Pei Zhan glanced at Jiang Hua's condition, his thin lips pressed into a sharp line, "Not feeling well? There's medicine in the car."

"I want you to stop the car!"

Pei Zhan explained, "It's not safe to park here."

Jiang Hua didn't want to waste any more words with him. She was now eager to fly to France to study and take his medicine. Who knew if his medicine was poisoned?

Pei Zhan parked the car near the subway and bus stop signs.

Jiang Hua got out of the car without saying a word, hailed a taxi on the roadside, got in, and drove away.

A moment later, Pei Zhan's phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID on the screen and hesitated before answering.

On the phone, Song Qingran stammered, "Mr. Pei... are you alright? I know everything, are you alright?"

“I went to see Sister Zhou yesterday, and she promised me that she wouldn’t hold this against me anymore. I…I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

Pei Zhan: "Don't worry, everything's fine now. Focus on your studies."

In the last second before Pei Zhan hung up the phone, Song Qingran asked, "Mr. Pei, don't worry, everything will be alright. Make sure you eat on time and get enough sleep..."

Pei Zhan lowered his deep eyes, revealing little emotion. "Mm," he responded.

She made that call secretly by herself in the break room.

She is currently rehearsing for the school anniversary program. Song Qingran signed up for the program because it would earn her extra credits. During this time, she has been practicing advanced classical dance. Dancing has been her hobby since childhood, and she would learn it in front of the TV whenever she had free time.

Later, when she no longer had time to practice those dances, she would usually practice some yoga to maintain her flexibility.

She has some dance background, and with her flexible body, backbends and splits are no problem for her.

"Anything else?"

In the lounge, Song Qingran stared blankly at the potted green leaves in front of her, her heart pounding with anxiety. She clenched her fists, as if she were going all out, and asked with her eyes closed, "Mr. Pei, next week is the school anniversary. Will you come to the school to watch our performance?"

Pei Zhan: "Have you signed up?"

Hearing his voice, Song Qingran felt her heart pounding in her chest. She nodded vigorously, "Mmm."

So... will you come?

Pei Zhan, "You want me to go?"

"Yes! And my sister... I also hope she can come with you."

"Besides my mom and... my brother, you are the most important people to me. You have been very good to me in every aspect of my life, both at the company and in my personal life."

“I used to think of you as a bad person, but later I realized that Mr. Pei is a good person.”

"I misunderstood everything before... I apologize for my bad attitude towards you before."

Pei Zhan: "I'll consider it."

A smile bloomed on Song Qingran's face, as warm as the winter sun, capable of melting the ice of everything in the world. "Mm."

After hanging up the phone, Pei Zhan drove to a building in a dilapidated residential area.

Stepping onto the stairs where the cement has crumbled, this building is already considered a dangerous structure, but many people still live here, and the top floor is deserted.

In one of the rooms, the scent of incense, candles, and sandalwood wafted in, along with... the smell of burning paper.

The man's eyes dimmed slightly as he pushed open the door and entered, only to find... there was already someone in the room.

Paper money was burning in the brazier, and the fire was raging.

At first glance, the house exuded an eerie atmosphere, with copper coins and talismans hanging around...

Zhou Yan knelt on the ground, her eyes slightly red, clearly showing signs of crying. "...You clearly didn't bury A-Xu, why didn't you tell me?"

"Are you afraid of me for something?"

Pei Zhan stepped forward, familiarly took out three incense sticks, lit them with a metal lighter, and then stuck them into the incense burner.

Pei Zhan explained, "...We couldn't find a suitable time."

Zhou Yan couldn't tell if it was bitterness or sadness. She forced a smile, "You're lying. You clearly can't bear to part with her. You and I both know A-Xu; she's afraid of being all alone, and she's afraid of the dark..."

"So that's why you left her here, right?"

After Pei Zhan finished doing all this, his deep gaze fell upon the black and white photograph placed on the table. The girl in the photo was not very old... only about thirteen or fourteen years old, with long, dark hair, delicate features, and clear eyes. When she smiled, there were faint dimples at the corners of her mouth. This photo... was taken by Zhou Yan. Little did he expect... it would become her only photo from now on, and also her funeral portrait...

Pei Zhan didn't answer her question. His dark eyes were fixed on the photo, because at this moment... he didn't even know what he was thinking.

He came only to find himself another answer that even he couldn't understand.

He used to approach the Jiang family with all sorts of ulterior motives, all to avenge the girl he deeply loved.

A series of unexpected events led her to the Zhou family, where she was raised and given opportunities... a debt he felt compelled to repay...

And what about Jiang Hua...?

When Pei Zhan was eleven or twelve years old, he met a six-year-old girl who had been kidnapped and imprisoned. He never imagined that she would be... Jiang Hua!

She simply said, "I'm afraid of the dark."

Pei Zhan spent all his savings on her to buy a crystal ball that could illuminate the world.

This money... was his only hope of leaving that place and surviving.

Because the little girl said she wanted to take him home and keep him like a dog... so that she could fight back against anyone who bullied her...

Pei Zhan wavered at the time and wanted to go with her.

When she was abducted, she was wearing an expensive princess dress, and Pei Zhan knew that she was a rich girl from a wealthy family.

Since he had no parents and was an orphan, even filling his stomach was extremely difficult for Pei Zhan at that time.

One winter night... he almost starved to death on the street...

At that moment, when he was about to spend all his savings, Pei Zhan... came to a realization: as long as he could survive, he would be a dog, at least he wouldn't go hungry anymore.

After nearly three months of being together day and night, aside from her sharp tongue, Pei Zhan could sense that she wasn't a bad person at heart...

I am willing to leave with her.

To say I was willing... is less accurate than saying I had ulterior motives...