Xu Yanwan felt her heart sink once again. She was extremely displeased with what she had heard. During the whole time that Han Qing was speaking, he repeatedly referred to the friendship between the two families with no mention of personal relations whatsoever.
She even concluded that the only reason he was sitting here was because of her surname.
These realizations caused Xu Yanwan to carve a forced smile beneath the agony she was feeling.
“Had I not carried the Xu Family’s name, would you have even come to see me here?”
Han Qing did not respond to her.
“This here is exactly why I am unwilling to accept help. Xu is my family name; there is no denying that. My father may have bridged a friendship with the Han Family but that has got nothing to do with me. Does that make you feel better? You can just ignore me.”
Han Qing looked at her helplessly, probably because he did not see this coming from Xu Yanwan.
Nevertheless, she was after all the eldest daughter of the Xu Family. Being cultivated with a well-educated background, she always spoke very diplomatically, being careful not to step on any toes. But today, she set the record straight between the two of them.
After a long pause, Han Qing replied to her by asking, “Now that you have said this, do you need me to remind you that we both grew up together?”
Xu Yanwan’s eyes welled up as she listened to what he said. Do you still remember that we grew up together? she said in her heart.
“The Han and Xu Family have always been on good terms. You and I grew up together, Yanwan. Now that the Xu Family is no longer in power, it is my responsibility to be there for you as an elder brother seeing that you’re younger than me.”
Elder brother!
Xu Yanwan once again felt like her heart was ripped out of her chest. She had loved Han Qing for many years now; how could she possibly digest the fact that he just addressed himself as her brother? How could she settle with being a sister to him?
She then felt that he might as well have left this unspoken.
Replaying this in her mind with both eyes closed, Xu Yanwan uttered, “I think you’ve said enough. I don’t want to accept your help. Is it your girlfriend who brought me to the hospital today? Thank her for me, and consider it that I owe her a favor. Should the opportunity present itself for me to return this favor, I definitely will.”
She did not want to be indebted to anyone, more so to Han Qing’s girlfriend.
Han Qing’s face lightened upon hearing Yan’s name being brought up. He then replied to Xu Yanwan, “Your emotions are rather unstable. Don’t go to the company for the time being. I will notify the department to give you paid leave.”
Xu Yanwan looked up to Han Qing almost immediately and responded, “No! I don’t need a break. I want to get back to work.”
Paid Vacation? I’m not one to enjoy that!
“Han Qing, let’s get one thing clear; I do not need your pitiful gestures.”
“This is not an act out of pity, Yanwan,” explained Han Qing. He then stood up, his tall body towering over Xu Yanwan. With a stern voice, he insisted, “You are now an employee of the Han Group. Seeing that you had fainted on the job due to fatigue, the Han Group takes full responsibility for your welfare and well being.”
Xu Yanwan had yet to process what she had just heard when a knock at the door distracted her.
“President Han.”
It was Su Jiu. She had rushed over after receiving the call from Han Qing.
“Secretary Su, your task hereon is to keep an eye on her. Please take care of her, and don’t let her run around,” Han Qing instructed her.
Upon hearing the task she was assigned with, Su Jiu couldn’t help but raise her eyebrows. Nevertheless, she complied and echoed after him, “Gotcha, President Han! I will see to it that Miss Xu is well taken care of.”
With that, she looked over at Xu Yanwan and her lips curved into a smile ever so lightly.
“Hello Miss Xu, I am President Han’s secretary, Su Jiu.”
However, Xu Yanwan remained silent. He is sending someone to accompany me? What about him?
Han Qing left soon after giving instructions to Su Jiu, who then closed the door behind him and looked back at Xu Yanwan who seemed rather peculiar.
Sometime later, she asked Xu Yanwan, “Would you like a glass of water, Miss Xu?”
“No,” replied Xu Yanwan who then pressed on. “Where is Mr. Han?”
Sure enough, just as Su Jiu had expected, she was asked about President Han. “Mr. Han’s girlfriend is still waiting for him outside. He is most likely about to send her home.”
About to send his girlfriend home?
Xu Yanwan lowered her eyes in astonishment.
As it turns out, he did not send his girlfriend away earlier. Instead, he merely had her waiting outside her hospital ward. He is going to send her home now while his secretary stays here to watch over me.
From what it seemed, the treatment she received was a world apart from the treatment Han Jing’s girlfriend received.
Regardless of the reality of her situation, Xu Yanwan still had unrealistic fantasies of what could happen.
She closed her eyes, trying hard to swallow the lump in her throat.
You are so stupid… to be sitting here fantasizing about someone who already has a girlfriend.
A silence bestowed upon the ward as no one spoke thereafter.
Meanwhile, Yan waited for quite a while before Han Qing showed up.
Seeing the look on his face, a curious Yan asked, “How is your friend?”
When Han Qing noticed that she only had one layer of clothing on her, he unbuttoned his jacket and put it over her shoulders.
“You’re only wearing that? Aren’t you feeling cold?”
As soon as Yan had the jacket on her, she felt the warmth of the clothing. Slightly stunned, she responded by saying, “I’m not feeling cold as I have been running around quite a bit.” Yan did not realize how her words came out till it was too late. She quickly attempted to correct herself from what she had uttered anxiously. “I didn’t mean it that way; I just wanted to say that…”
“There is no need to explain yourself to me, silly,” Han Qing said as he lightly caressed Yan’s nose. “You can say things just the way they are with me.”
“Okay!” exclaimed a rather touched Yan. She wrapped her arms around his and leaned on his shoulders ever so lightly as they walked hand in hand. “How did you and Miss Xu meet?”
asked Yan who had been holding herself back from asking this question any sooner. Her curiosity had gotten the best of her when she noticed how anxious Han Qing had become when he learned that Xu Yanwan had been in an accident. She was after all, a woman too.
This was the first time Yan was seeing Han Qing in this state.
She had always thought that Han Qing was cold and detached; never did she expect that he would have this side to his character. After that, Han Qing sent them to the hospital and then went to get the procedures sorted out.
It was also during this time that Yan came to find out that the woman’s name was Xu Yanwan.
However, Yan did not know this person, nor did she know what the relationship between Han Qing and this woman was, although she was quite certain that there was more to them than just being a boss and his subordinate.
This was what drove Yan to ask about how they met.
Han Qing, having been able to read Yan like the back of his hand, playfully asked, “ Why do you ask? Are you jealous?”
Yan blushed red upon hearing this and rebutted his question, “Why would I be jealous? I merely asked who she is…”
“Isn’t that jealousy right there?”
“I’m really not…”
“The Xu and Han Family had a very good relationship in the past. Our families were friends. Xu Yanwan returned to China some time ago, and that is when I came to know that the Xu Family was in trouble. Her parents had passed away but she was unwilling to accept help.”
Yan was taken aback when she heard about the passing of Xu Yanwan’s parents. “Oh, dear!” How could this be? Her life must have been torturous.
