The next day, Qin Tianyi had Xiao Anjing send people to check the passenger list of those who left Lancheng Airport yesterday. He went directly to Mishang Company and summoned Chang Qingchuan to his office.
As soon as Chang Qingchuan entered the CEO's office, he glanced dismissively at Qin Tianyi.
He had always looked down on these rich second-generation heirs who relied on their family background. He asked, "President Qin, do you need something from me?"
Qin Tianyi said coldly, "You asked the finance department for half a year's salary in advance? Why? You're a newcomer who just joined the company not long ago. On what grounds do you request half a year's salary in advance?"
Chang Qingchuan, not seeing Gu Susu in the office today, wondered if she had gone to the studio to design fashion again.
He had originally intended to speak to Gu Susu about this matter privately. It was just that his family had encountered an urgent situation. He hadn't expected Qin Tianyi to find out so quickly.
Looking at Qin Tianyi today, his gaze was sharp, and he no longer had that foolish look. He seemed like a changed person, which made Chang Qingchuan feel strange. However, he still replied, "Yes, something happened at home, and I urgently need a sum of money."
"What is it?"
Chang Qingchuan looked at Qin Tianyi, hesitating and unwilling to speak.
Qin Tianyi tugged at the corner of his lips and said, "If you don't tell me, I can't advance your salary."
"My mother fell seriously ill in my hometown and urgently needs money for treatment," Chang Qingchuan stated truthfully. "I only want to advance my salary. I will work hard and the profit I create for the company will definitely be more than the salary I'm advancing."
"You're quite confident," Qin Tianyi sneered. "But our company is not a charity. Who can guarantee the expected return you're talking about?"
"I've already explained why I need to advance my salary, but you still disagree?" Chang Qingchuan asked righteously.
Qin Tianyi's gaze deepened and he said, "It's not impossible to advance it to you, but it would be under my personal name. Never mind half a year's salary, I can advance a year's salary and bonuses to you. That way, your mother can be saved, right?"
A flicker of hope flashed in Chang Qingchuan's eyes. Of course, he hoped to have more salary advanced to him so that his mother could receive proper treatment. However, he also knew that Qin Tianyi would never be so kind.
"What do you want me to do? Is it related to Susu? I won't do anything to hurt her."
Qin Tianyi became even more certain that Chang Qingchuan and Gu Susu's relationship was unusual. But if Gu Susu had escaped, why didn't she elope with Chang Qingchuan?
Chang Qingchuan was still standing in front of him. Could it be because Chang Qingchuan's mother was ill that she didn't leave with Gu Susu?
"It is related to Gu Susu. You just need to answer a few questions truthfully, and I will give you enough money to treat your mother. As for how much profit you can create for the company later, it's not important. This deal is very worthwhile for you," Qin Tianyi negotiated with him in a shrewd businessman's tone.
Chang Qingchuan was naturally tempted. Answering a few questions about Gu Susu could raise money for his mother's treatment. Was it really that simple?
"She's married to you and became your wife. What else do you not know about her?"
"You don't need to worry about our marital affairs. You just need to answer whether you can answer my questions."
Chang Qingchuan hesitated for a moment, then nodded and said, "Ask away."
"How did you and Susu meet?"
"We studied at the same university before. She was a freshman when I was a junior. We met on campus."
Qin Tianyi was surprised to find out they had attended the same university.
"Did you study abroad?"
"No, the university we attended was the Lancheng Academy of Fine Arts."
"You are not just university alumni? You were also lovers and had a child? Is that child being raised in your hometown?" Qin Tianyi asked all his guesses in one breath, feeling extremely nervous. He wanted to know the answer but was afraid that Chang Qingchuan's answer would be the same as his guess.
Chang Qingchuan shook his head and said with a bitter smile, "I wish I could have been her lover, but she didn't agree. That child has nothing to do with me. She dropped out after her freshman year. Three years later, when I met her again, she had a child with her. A woman with a child, facing rejection everywhere when looking for a job, with no way out. I really couldn't bear to see it, so I helped her, so that she could at least support herself and her child."
Qin Tianyi couldn't believe that Gu Susu's child had nothing to do with Chang Qingchuan. Then the person in her heart was not Chang Qingchuan, but someone else!
"Why did she drop out of university?"
Regarding Gu Susu's past imprisonment, Chang Qingchuan didn't know whether to say it or not. After all, it was a stain on Gu Susu, and he couldn't expose her flaws.
"I'm not sure about that either. Perhaps something happened at home. I used to think she came from a poor family, which was why she dropped out. It wasn't until I knew she married you and joined the Qin family that I heard her say she was the daughter of the Ai Group. It seemed too unbelievable. You didn't see her when she was in college; she was no different from us poor students, eating the worst meals in the cafeteria and wanting to work to support herself..."
Qin Tianyi felt a strange heartache hearing this. He interrupted Chang Qingchuan, "When you helped her, did you notice if there was anyone else with her... any other men?"
"No, she was alone with her child," Chang Qingchuan said frankly, as he had already said so much and had nothing left to hide. "From when I first met her to when I met her again later, I always felt she was a girl who kept to herself. She wouldn't be someone who acted recklessly. I also wondered why she had a child with her. After thinking about it, there was only one possibility."
Chang Qingchuan paused as if wanting to say more. He took out his phone, found a photo of himself and Xiao Xingxing, and showed it to Qin Tianyi. He couldn't help but say again, "This is that child. She's beautiful and cute. Every time I see them, mother and son, I feel they should be cared for. I can't bear to see them struggling to survive..."
Qin Tianyi just stared at the child, not really listening to what Chang Qingchuan was saying afterward. He was even jealous that Chang Qingchuan had met Gu Susu before him.
And seeing the child in the photo, he didn't dislike him at all. Instead, he felt a sense of closeness, as if the child were his own.
No, had he gone mad? How could he mistake a child born to Gu Susu and another man as his own!
He took his gaze away from the photo and asked, "You said there was only one possibility. What possibility? Why didn't you finish?"
Chang Qingchuan lowered his head and stated his guess, "She was likely forced... forced into that kind of relationship, and that's how she got this child..."
"What did you say!" Qin Tianyi's eyes turned bloodshot upon hearing this. The thought of his woman having suffered such an experience made him unable to control his anger.