After being reborn, the aloof female CEO became a paranoid.

That day, Zhou Ze sat at his workstation early, glancing at the wall clock from time to time.

Around noon, he suddenly stood up and hurried to the president's office on the top floor of the company.

But when he pushed open the heavy door, he found the office empty except for his assistant, Lin Yu, who was standing in front of the desk, burying himself in organizing documents.

"Hey, Assistant Lin, busy?" Zhou Ze smiled, but his eyes betrayed a hint of urgency. "Where's President Xu? Didn't she come today?"

Lin Yu raised his head and said with a serious expression, "President Xu hasn't been feeling well lately and hasn't been to the company for several days."

Upon hearing this, Zhou Ze couldn't help but sneer inwardly. What illness? It's all because of that damned Zhou Yu! Even after he's dead, his ghost still haunts Xu Xinran.

An unnamed fire burned fiercely in his heart, and he secretly vowed to make Xu Xinran emerge from the shadow of that dead man and fall into his arms.

Thinking of this, he could no longer sit still. He made up an excuse to ask Lin Yu for leave and then went straight to Xu Xinran's villa.

Throughout the journey, his aunt and cousin's words kept echoing in his mind: "As long as you take the initiative and show your thoughtfulness and care, Xu Xinran will definitely be attracted to you."

He nodded secretly, having already made up his mind that he would do anything to make Xu Xinran see his good qualities and make her forget the dead Zhou Yu!

Upon arriving at the villa's entrance, he took a deep breath, straightened his clothes, and then gently rang the doorbell.

The door opened quickly, and the servant, seeing it was him, did not stop him and let him in.

Upon entering, the scene before him made Zhou Ze's heart tighten.

Xu Xinran looked haggard, huddled on the sofa with several empty wine bottles scattered around her. The woman who was usually so radiant was now so dejected and miserable.

"Mr. Xu, are you... alright?"

Zhou Ze spoke tentatively, his voice tinged with caution.

Xu Xinran slightly raised her eyelids, her empty gaze seemingly piercing through Zhou Ze. For a fleeting moment, she seemed to see Zhou Yu's figure.

"Zhou Yu..." she murmured to herself, her voice barely audible.

Zhou Ze didn't hear him clearly and asked nervously, "What did you say?"

These words seemed to touch a nerve in Xu Xinran, and she suddenly came to her senses. The man in front of her was not Zhou Yu, but Zhou Ze.

A flash of disgust crossed her eyes. "Who allowed you in? Get out."

Although her tone wasn't harsh, her imposing aura sent a shiver down Zhou Ze's spine.

He thought Xu Xinran was just in a bad mood, so he mustered up his courage and went up to her, gently comforting her:

"Xinran, don't be sad. Your brother should be doing well in another world now. You should cheer up and live a good life, okay?"

Before he could finish speaking, an empty wine bottle came hurtling over and smashed at Zhou Ze's feet.

Glass shards flew everywhere, and Zhou Ze was so frightened that he retreated repeatedly.

"I'm saying this one last time, get out, and don't let me see you again!"

Xu Xinran's voice was as cold as ice, and every word seemed to be squeezed out from between her teeth.

Zhou Ze's heart sank. In Xu Xinran's icy gaze, he seemed to see again the chilling coldness in her eyes that day at the hospital.

He dared not linger for another second and fled the place in a sorry state.

……

Xu Xinran locked herself in her house for a whole week, and no one, including her closest friend Jiang Qi, could persuade her to leave.

During this week, besides drowning her sorrows in alcohol, she clung tightly to the things Zhou Yu used to use, trying to find a trace of his presence in those items.

However, time is merciless. More than twenty days have passed, and everything has vanished without a trace, including him, who has left her forever.

Isn't it said that it takes twenty-one days to form a habit? But now, she finds that she simply cannot accept, much less get used to, Zhou Yu's departure.

She had fantasized countless times about going with him, but her mother, her brother, and the responsibilities on her shoulders prevented her from abandoning everything and doing whatever she wanted.

She felt her heart growing numb little by little, and perhaps, one day, that pain would completely disappear. But that day might not come until the day she died.

During her period of depression, those restless individuals within the group began to take advantage of the situation and attempt to oust her from her position as president.

Xu Xinran knew perfectly well that these people were a bunch of insatiable ingrates. In her previous life, with Zhou Yu around, they were somewhat restrained, but now that Zhou Yu was gone, they thought they could act with impunity.

But Xu Xinran was no pushover either; the experience and skills she had accumulated in her previous life were not just for show.

Suppressing her grief, she quickly composed herself and swiftly dealt with the troublemakers. Peace was restored within the group.

After dealing with all of this, she stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, overlooking the bustling city street scene, but a feeling of indescribable sorrow welled up in her heart.

It seems that the trajectory of everything is similar to that of the previous life, but the only difference is that Zhou Yu passed away several years earlier than in the previous life.

She will endure an even longer period of loneliness and suffering than in her previous life.

Perhaps, what she owes him is something she can never repay...

At that moment, Xu's mother, carrying a freshly cooked soup, gently pushed open the office door.

Upon seeing Xu Xinran's lonely figure, I felt a pang in my heart, and my eyes involuntarily welled up with tears.

"Xinran, listen to your mother's advice, stop torturing yourself like this. Seeing you like this is more painful than a knife to my heart."

Xu's mother's voice was choked with sobs, and before she could finish speaking, tears were already welling up in her eyes.

Xu Xinran's depression not only made her despondent, but also made her younger brother become taciturn.

She then noticed that her mother had aged considerably recently; her once well-maintained face was now filled with fatigue, and her black hair had turned quite gray. Her mother had endured a lot during this time.

Xu Xinran stared blankly into the distance, her heart filled with mixed emotions.

She had thought about letting go, but it was easier said than done.

Whenever the night is quiet, the guilt and longing for Zhou Yu surge up like a tide, suffocating her.

However, at this moment, she had truly reached the brink of collapse.

The string in my heart, after countless moments of tension and struggle, finally snapped completely at this moment.

She understood that in this life, she could no longer make up for what she owed Zhou Yu, so she chose to wait.

No matter how many times she reincarnates, no matter where she is, she will follow in his footsteps, even if it's just for that faint hope, she is willing to give everything.

I only hope that one day in the future I will have the chance to meet him again and rekindle our romance...