He was alone wherever he went, so it made no difference whether he returned early or late; his residence was always cold and desolate.
As he drove out of the underground parking lot, he noticed it had started to rain heavily. Passing the main entrance of the group's building, he saw a girl standing by the door.
The girl was gazing at the heavy rain, seemingly contemplating whether to dash into it.
He recognized the girl as the cleaner named Xi Xianya. Remembering he had a spare umbrella in his car, he stopped.
He got out, retrieved an umbrella from the trunk, and walked towards Xi Xianya. "Here, for you."
Xi Xianya was slightly taken aback. She also saw Ai Yifeng and did not take the umbrella.
Ai Yifeng pushed the umbrella into her hand, saying, "Take it. I don't need it for driving." He then returned to his car and drove away.
Xi Xianya clutched the umbrella tightly, a flicker of warmth in her heart.
This was the first man who had genuinely cared for her since her family's troubles began.
Previously, she had been like a proud little princess. Many boys had pursued her in college.
But she had looked down on all of them, rejecting them outright or toying with them.
Since her family's misfortune, no boys had pursued her at school. Those who had pursued her before now kicked her when she was down, even colluding with other classmates to mock her.
She bore the brunt of everything that followed her family's downfall alone.
In the past, if a boy had offered her an umbrella, she would have dismissed it as a cheap trick to win her over and would have sneered.
But Ai Yifeng's gesture tonight moved her slightly.
She opened the umbrella and walked into the heavy rain, hailed a taxi, and headed to the bar for her performance.
...
In his study, Tianyi opened his computer, which displayed the remote monitoring system for his office.
Upon opening it, he saw Xi Xianya taking the preliminary proposal from his office desk drawer.
In the surveillance video, as she photographed the document with her phone, the flash illuminated her face clearly.
Tianyi saved all of this, knowing it would be crucial evidence later.
Just then, Susu arrived in the study. He closed the monitoring video on his computer.
He feared that if Susu knew, she might soften and sympathize with Xi Xianya. If Susu were to intervene and try to persuade Xi Xianya, he would lose a pawn in his strategy to understand Zhao Jianhua's intentions.
Susu leaned beside the computer and hooked her arm around his shoulder. "What are you busy with? We just finished dinner, why aren't you going to the garden for some exercise?"
"Oh, just some unfinished business from the company. It's all handled now. Let's go to the garden."
They spent a wonderful evening with the children. As they were about to retire to their rooms, Tianyi scooped her up in his arms, carrying her all the way to the bedroom, where they spent another night of passionate intimacy.
...
Xi Xianya finished her singing at the bar, and it was already two in the morning.
When she returned to her rented apartment, her mother, who had already fallen asleep, coughed twice upon hearing the movement and got out of bed. "Xiaoya, you're back."
"Mom, you go back to sleep. Don't worry about me." Xi Xianya entered, putting down her belongings.
"I wake up easily at night. It's fine." Her mother went to the kitchen and brought out a bowl of sweet soup that had been kept warm. "You work two jobs, day and night, you must be exhausted. Drink this hot soup before you sleep."
Xi Xianya and her mother sat at the table. Holding the still-warm soup, she said, "Mom, the doctor said you need to rest more. Don't do these things for me anymore. I get food at my workplaces."
Her mother said, "Drink it quickly, don't let it get cold. Resting won't help my illness. It would have been better if I had died with your father."
"Mom, what are you talking about?" Xi Xianya nervously held her mother's hand and said, "I've already lost my father. I can't lose you too."
Her mother patted her hand. "Mom will try her best to live well for you. Drink slowly, I'm going to sleep now."
With that, her mother slowly got up and walked back into the small bedroom.
Xi Xianya looked at her mother's back, which had become so much thinner, and felt an indescribable sadness.
Her mother hadn't been like this before; she was much more robust and her life was full of color.
After her father's accident, her mother's entire world collapsed in an instant, and she was hospitalized due to excessive grief.
Initially, the doctor said her mother's dizziness and headaches were likely caused by extreme emotional fluctuations, leading to unstable blood pressure and blood sugar.
However, after further comprehensive examinations at the hospital, they discovered a tumor in her mother's brain. Fortunately, it was benign.
But the doctor said it still needed to be surgically removed, otherwise, it would pose a risk.
At that time, they were penniless and did not have enough money for the surgery, so they opted for medication to control it.
Even her desperate singing at the bar was not enough to cover her mother's monthly medication costs, and her father's former creditors were coming to demand payment.
Gathering the surgical fees seemed almost impossible. She had asked for money from her parents' friends and relatives, but the amount she borrowed was meager, like a drop in the bucket.
Many people refused to lend them money, making excuses to turn her away.
When she approached Zhao Jianhua, he was the only one who was very enthusiastic, inviting her into his office and reminiscing with her.
She remembered Zhao Jianhua smiling and saying, "I've always liked you every time I saw you. I have two sons, and my only regret is not having a daughter."
She, being quick-witted, immediately called out, "Godfather! If you don't mind, I'm willing to be your goddaughter. My father often mentioned you, saying you were kind-hearted."
Zhao Jianhua was surprised that she had so readily accepted him as her godfather. He paused for a moment, then said to her, "Alright, my good daughter."
That time, Zhao Jianhua provided them with some money, saying he would cover her mother's medication expenses from then on.
However, later on, he would give the medication money sporadically, always citing his group's tight financial situation.
She also saw through Zhao Jianhua's true intentions, but due to the godfather-goddaughter relationship, he didn't force himself upon her, though his intentions were quite clear.
Zhao Jianhua actually wanted to take advantage of her misfortune.
Recalling this, she remembered the documents she had photographed in Qin Tianyi's office that evening and sent them to Zhao Jianhua.
After she sent them, Zhao Jianhua did not reply for a long time, suggesting he had already gone to sleep.
Exhausted, she set up a folding bed in the living room and fell asleep as soon as she lay down.
The next morning, she didn't rush to get up for work at Aoxiang Group, thinking that after Zhao Jianhua saw the documents she sent, he would be able to provide her with the necessary surgical fees and also tell her the reason for her father's company's bankruptcy.
In that case, she wouldn't need to continue working at Aoxiang.
When she woke up naturally, she found her mother already up and making breakfast in the kitchen.
Seeing her awake, her mother asked from the kitchen, "Xiaoya, aren't you going to your internship company today?"
She lied, "Mom, I'm off today."
Saying this, she got up, put away the folding bed, and glanced at her phone on the table, noticing Zhao Jianhua still hadn't replied.
As she was about to call Zhao Jianhua directly, her gaze fell upon the umbrella left by the door when she entered last night.
She wondered if she should go to the group again and whether she should submit her resignation letter. She could return the umbrella to Ai Yifeng then.