Chapter 162 Denial
I held my scalded hand and saw Qian Xiaolei hurriedly running into the room with a towel in her hand. When she saw the broken thermos on the floor and the redness on my hand, she immediately realized that I was scalded by the boiling water. She immediately ran back to the bathroom and got a toothpaste and said to me, "Quick! Apply toothpaste on your hand, otherwise your skin will blister."
I took the toothpaste, endured the pain, and asked Qian Xiaolei in surprise: "Why are you here too? What's going on with Mr. Fan?"
Qian Xiaolei reached out to help me unscrew the cap of the toothpaste and said, "Zhang Lanlan, Zhou Suya, I were responsible for sending you and Ms. Fan home, but when we arrived at Ms. Fan's door, we couldn't find her house key, and Ms. Fan was really drunk and unconscious. We had no choice but to temporarily move you and her to your house. Zhang Lanlan and Zhou Suya went back first, and I was worried, so I stayed behind."
I said "Oh" and squeezed out the toothpaste to apply on my hand. A cool feeling came from the place where I applied it, and the pain was immediately reduced. And my mouth was still thirsty, and my hand was injured and it was inconvenient to move, so I said, "It's good for you to be here, go and get me a glass of water, I'm very thirsty."
Qian Xiaolei responded and hurried to pour some water. I noticed that there were a few wet spots on her shoulders, arms and chest. It looked like they were stuck to her by me or Fan Yunting. She was in the bathroom just now, probably wiping her clothes?
Qian Xiaolei poured me a cup of boiling water. Although it was very hot, I blew on it and drank it down in gulps. She then began to pick up the broken pieces of the thermos on the ground.
After drinking a glass of water, I felt much better. But I was still drunk and still felt dizzy and uncomfortable in my chest. I sat back on the bed and watched Fan Yunting sleeping as sweetly as a baby, or as unconscious as a dead pig.
As soon as the coolness wore off, my hands started to hurt again. I applied another layer of toothpaste, hoping to relieve the burning pain. After a while, Qian Xiaolei came back after cleaning up, and I said, "Xiaolei, you should go back. I'll take care of Mr. Fan!"
I was sympathizing with her and couldn't bear to see her taking care of us so late at night. But Qian Xiaolei refused immediately and said, "No! I have to stay here!"
I looked up at the alarm clock on the bedside table. It was already past ten o'clock. So I said, "It's so late, and you still have children at home who need your care. You should go back. There shouldn't be any problems here, so don't worry!"
When Qian Xiaolei heard that I was going to chase her away, she became anxious and shouted, "Don't worry... I don't think so! How can I feel at ease if Mr. Fan stays at your house?"
I laughed when I heard that, stroked my hand, and said, "We have been classmates for so many years, and now we are colleagues. Don't you know me well? Do you think I would take advantage of the opportunity to do something bad to Mr. Fan?"
Qian Xiaolei was a little embarrassed when I revealed her thoughts, but her expression was firm. She said, "Of course I know what kind of person you are, but I can't say anything good about your behavior after drinking. Just in case, I'd better stay here!"
I wondered, "What's wrong with my character? Could it be that I would have sex after drinking?"
Qian Xiaolei blushed, knowing she had said something wrong, and turned away. I felt dizzy again, and wanted to lie down and close my eyes. So I leaned my head against the headboard and closed my eyes to rest.
After a while, I was about to fall asleep, but the burning pain in my hand still made me feel a little bit. Suddenly, I heard Qian Xiaolei sigh and said, "Tang Qian, Jie Qin is really going to get married after the New Year, did you know that?"
I suddenly came to my senses, opened my eyes and asked, "Really? When?"
Qian Xiaolei looked at me and said angrily, "You still care about her? Have you ever thought about her in all these days?"
I knew I was in the wrong, so I lowered my head and said helplessly, "I am sorry for her. If she can find her home, it will be a relief for me!"
Qian Xiaolei sneered and said contemptuously: "Can it be over? How dare you say such a thing. Vice President Tang, you are the most heartless man I have ever met. Jie Qin was so infatuated with you, but what did you get in return? Do you understand her pain? Do you know how deeply you hurt her?"
I was speechless and could only express my deepest apologies. I really had let Qiu Jieqin down too much.
Qian Xiaolei couldn't stop talking after she started. She continued, "In fact, for so many years, I have been persuading Jie Qin to forget you. But love is really a deadly thing. The more I persuade her, the more she can't forget you. I really don't know what is so worthy of love about you, do you know? Jie Qin cried for several days after she knew that you and Hua Jingjing were engaged. Sun Li and I were afraid that she would be upset, so we took turns to accompany her for more than a week. You are happy, and you found a young, beautiful and rich wife. But have you ever thought about Jie Qin's pain? Why does she love you so much, but you can't love her in return?"
I sighed sadly and said, "Stop talking! Anyway, I am sorry for her. If possible, I will find a way to make it up to her."
"Compensation?" Qian Xiaolei sneered and said, "How do you compensate? Cancel the engagement with Hua Jingjing and then go find her? It's no longer necessary. Jie Qin has found a man who loves her, and she will be very happy. Being with you, what else can Jie Qin get except pain and hurt?"
Facing Qian Xiaolei's continuous questioning, I had nothing to say, but I still couldn't help getting angry. If these words were said to me by Qiu Jieqin, I could accept them. But who is she? She is just a classmate of Qiu Jieqin and me, and I am her boss in the company. What qualifications does she have to scold me here?
I became annoyed and said, "Qian Xiaolei! There is nothing for you to do here. Do you want to leave?"
"Hmph! Can't stand what I said? Even if you can't stand it, I have to say it too. I just can't stand the way you flirt with others and have no feelings. Don't think too highly of yourself. Do you think I can't see the ambiguity between you and Mr. Fan? If you are really only sincere to Hua Jingjing, I have nothing to say, but you should know what kind of person you really are, so I don't need to say more, right?"
I was really angry and said angrily, "There is nothing wrong between me and Ms. Fan. How did you see me being intimate with her? Qian Xiaolei, we have known each other for so many years, and I didn't know you were such a gossip. No wonder your husband doesn't want you!"
As soon as I said this, I knew it was going to hurt her. As expected, Qian Xiaolei was stunned for a moment, and then her eyes were immediately filled with tears. She bit her lower lip tightly with her teeth, and was so angry that she trembled all over.
I regretted it. No matter what, I couldn't expose someone's scars. Although what she said before was equivalent to exposing my scars. I hurriedly said, "Qian Xiaolei... That's not what I meant. Don't take it to heart!"
Qian Xiaolei's tears finally fell, and she bit her lower lip even tighter. She turned around and wiped her tears, saying, "Men are not good people. Two years ago, I made up my mind to divorce, but I endured it for the sake of my children. But no matter how much I talk, I have never done anything to let my husband down. What about you men? When you eat what's in the bowl and look at what's in the pot, and spend money outside, have you ever thought about the feelings of your women?"
I looked at her petite back and understood why she wanted to get a divorce and why she couldn't stand me. I stood up from the bed and wanted to say something to comfort her. But I didn't know to say, so I just reached out and patted her shoulder, sighing, "I didn't mean it, you...don't mind it!"
Qian Xiaolei turned around, glaring at me with red eyes, and said, "If you are really a man, go and get Jie Qin back and treat her well for the rest of your life! Otherwise... I look down on you!"
I was speechless. I knew that I couldn't do this. Jie Qin and I could never be together again. Facing Qian Xiaolei's gaze, I had nothing to say and could only sigh.
Seeing me like this, Qian Xiaolei was disappointed and scolded me again: "You... are really a heartless person! I bet that you and Hua Jingjing won't last long."
I retorted unconvincedly : "What a joke! How can you..." Suddenly, I noticed a row of faint teeth marks on her lower lip. It was because she bit it just now, so it was not strange. The strange thing was that the arrangement of the teeth marks seemed familiar to me. I immediately remembered the bite marks on my lips that inexplicably appeared last summer. I also remembered that she was the one who sent me home that night. Could it be...
I immediately started sweating and forgot what I had just said. I stared at her lips blankly, and after a long while I said with difficulty: "Qian Xiaolei, you...bit me, didn't you?"
Qian Xiaolei subconsciously touched her lips, and her face quickly turned red. She immediately denied it in panic: "What do you mean I bit you? I don't understand!"
But I knew she understood, because I had asked her about this. Seeing her panic, I became even more suspicious. I continued, "Have you forgotten? In the summer, my lip was bitten by someone, and you sent me home that night. I clearly remember that I was fine when Qiu Jieqin left, but I had it when I woke up the next morning. If it wasn't you, who could it be?"
Qian Xiaolei was obviously even more panicked. She straightened her clothes and said, "I don't know what you are talking about. I... I'm leaving. Mr. Fan, it should be okay for you to stay here, right?"
I remembered what she had just said about my behavior after drinking, and the fact that she was leaving all of a sudden made me more certain. I saw her hurriedly walk out of the room, grab her purse on the sofa in the living room and was about to leave. I followed her out and asked her nervously, "Qian Xiaolei, tell me, what did I do to you when I was drunk that night?"
Qian Xiaolei opened the door, turned back and said to me impatiently: "I told you I don't know what you are talking about. Why are you asking such a nonsense question? Why would I bite you for no reason? You're crazy!" After that, she slammed the door and walked out.
I stood in front of the door, not knowing for a moment whether what Qian Xiaolei said was true. Normally, she wouldn't bite me, but I was really drunk that night, so could I say that I did something to let her down?
I was thinking anxiously when I heard someone stumbling out from behind me. I turned around and saw Fan Yunting holding onto the wall, looking at me in surprise.
I said, "Mr. Fan, are you awake?"
Fan Yunting asked: "Tang Qian? Is this your home?"
I nodded and said, "Yeah! Are you feeling better?"
Fan Yunting said "hmm", then asked anxiously: "Where is your bathroom?"
