Chapter 43 The middle period

is of course different. It’s not about mutual affection, but an alliance of interests.

Jibe suddenly shrugged his shoulders, his dark grey eyes dimmed slightly, an inexplicable light flashed, like a meteor brightening the dark night sky, and then it was extinguished. He only raised his eyebrows and said coldly: "So this is what you think."

You Ji slightly side-glanced, and looked at his indistinguishable expression with the corner of her eyes. She was actually a little flustered for some unknown reason. She simply turned her eyes away, broke free from his hand and tried to get upstairs, but he tightened his arm in an instant and pulled her into his arms. She was startled, and before she could say anything, he had tightened his waist from behind, his pointed chin pressed against her shoulder, and her whole body was locked in his shackles. The domineering and perverse aura filled the surroundings. She couldn’t see his eyes, but she could clearly feel his anger. She was slightly horrified in her heart, and only squeezed out a few words from between her teeth.

"You...let me go."

"Let you go?" He sneered, "Unless I die!"

"Atobe!" Youji

was slightly startled. The violent aura in Atobe's eyes surged for a moment, but gradually subsided. His purple-gray hair fell into his eyelids. As if sighing, his voice slowed down: "Letting go of the woman you love personally will make both of you regret for the rest of your life. I will never do such an unglamorous thing."

"Atobe..."

"Why are you still so stubborn and stubborn today? Is it so difficult to trust me and rely on me with all your heart?"

He whispered in her ears, his warm breath close at hand. The noble man who was usually proud and flamboyant said these words with gritted teeth. Hearing this, she felt a little sad.

Youji was stunned for a long time, and crystal liquid overflowed from the corners of her eyes, flowing down her cheeks and dripping between their clasped fingers.

"What can I do?" She curved her lips with a bitter smile, and said in a low voice, "You are in the treacherous business world. When you have no choice, will you give up your ambition because of me? You said that you want me to trust you and rely on you, but how dare I? Without expectations, at least I won't be hurt when I am disappointed. Whether it's edges or sharpness, disguising myself and facing everything strongly, this is my only way of survival for more than 20 years. You say I am stubborn and stubborn, but if one day, I shed all the thorns on my body, become well-behaved and gentle, and become the canary you raise in the cage, how much attachment will you still have to me?"

Her tears slowly flowed down her cheeks, fell into the socket of his shoulder, and touched his chin, which actually felt a little burning.

It's not unwilling, nor does it mean that I don't want to, but I don't dare.

She closed her eyes and stopped talking, letting her tears wet each other's lapels.

She didn't want to say this, but she couldn't help it.

Love between men and women is like a game in the business world. If you expose your weaknesses to the other party, you have already lost the initiative.

Atobe was stunned for a moment and did not speak for a long time.

The insecure woman armed herself in front of others to be invulnerable, but in her heart she had unknown fear and anxiety.

But she was insightful about the world and made it impossible to refute.

He did not know how to react for a moment. He loosened his arms around her, turned sideways to look into her eyes, and wanted to reach out to wipe away the tears on her face, but she dodged him calmly.

Atobe sighed slightly and stopped talking. He took a step forward, leaned down with his height, and gently kissed the corners of her wet eyes, then walked down the road tenderly and quietly covered the corners of her cold lips.

The woman in his arms suddenly froze, as if she wanted to struggle, but he held her firmly against his chest, unable to move. He was still full of irresistible force, but it was very different from his usual domineering. He only pecked the tip of her lips wet with tears, with a bit of pity, tenderness and lingering, and hesitated for a long time before he turned deep, and the warm breath filled her mouth.

So her tears flowed more fiercely, as if she had given up, no longer struggling, letting him hold her in his arms, and kissing her densely.

It snowed heavily in the middle of the night, silver decorated the whole world, and the dim skylight seeped in from the gaps in the curtains, with a slightly sad color.

Since the last miscarriage, he had never been close to her again. Now this lovemaking was extremely tender and gentle, but neither of them spoke again, but just hugged each other tightly in the dark to absorb the warmth from each other, to vent the inexplicable fear and anxiety, and to comfort each other's turbulent hearts.

By the time he regained consciousness, it was already midnight. The snow outside the window had stopped falling without him noticing. The night was as cool as water, and it was quiet and peaceful. As he leaned against the bed, he could hear the sound of snow breaking branches and falling down.

Atobe put on his clothes and leaned against the bed. He looked down at the woman in his arms, and his slender fingertips gently stroked her wet tears: "Does it hurt?"

Youji was stunned for a moment, then shook his head.

So he just curled his lips, said no more, and stretched out his hand to hold her close to him. The two leaned against each other, looking at the dim dome quietly in the pale skylight.

There was a long silence for a while.

"The family gave us life, wealth and glory, and we must also take on the family's responsibilities for this." After a long while, he finally broke the silence and said slowly, "We have been educated like this since we were very young, me, Oshitari, and our fathers are all like this. You can do whatever you want before the age of eighteen, but you must take on your own responsibilities after the age of eighteen. I started playing tennis in elementary school and was invincible in the entire middle school tennis world, but I had to give up in the end. At that time, those reporters were crazy about Tezuka Kunimitsu, Echizen Ryoma, and Sanada Genichirō, but rarely mentioned Atobe Keigo, because everyone knew that the heir of the Atobe family was destined not to continue on this path." "

The same is true for marriage. We have long been aware of the policy of marriage. We don't need a charming woman or an unforgettable love. As long as it can bring the greatest benefit to our ambitions, it's enough. This is the world we live in. Everything around us is a bargaining chip, including our own feelings. If there is an accident, it is just a luxury in life." His voice was low and slow, flowing slowly like water, and there was a sense of loneliness in this quiet night. "But even if it is a luxury, I will not let it go easily."

He slightly propped himself up and looked at the woman. The pale face and dark grey eyes of Zi Zi were bottomless: "If you don't believe me, then all my promises are in vain. But Youji, you should understand that I, Keigo Atobe, am very capable and decisive in the business world, but I can always protect my wife, the woman I love."

When he said this, his eyes were clear, and the mole at the corner of his eye was faintly visible in the dim skylight. He was serious, but confident. She stared at him blankly, and a desolate warmth rose in her heart. She only slightly curved the corners of her mouth, stopped arguing, and changed the subject calmly.

"Will there be major changes in the GS branch after this incident?"

"In the recent tug-of-war, Lane Lindsay did not try his best. If the headquarters is dissatisfied with this, it is not impossible to take this opportunity to give him a warning."

She was silent for a while, thinking of the conversation at that time, she felt disappointed.

"So, what about the consortium's board of directors?"

"Don't worry, I can handle it." Atobe only slightly raised his lip, and suddenly his smile deepened, "Or are you worried?"

She was just stunned and looked away.

He was in a good mood, leaning down to kiss the corner of her lips, wrapping his arms around her slender waist, and groping her, which seemed ambiguous and blurred.

"Atobe..."

She spoke subconsciously, but he stopped and frowned at her, with a slight upward sound at the end of the tone, which was very noticeable: "Hmm?"

She could only sigh helplessly and squeezed out two syllables: "k...keigo"

He turned away before he finished speaking, but he raised the corners of his mouth as if he had succeeded, looked at her carefully for a long time, and then kissed her softly, scattered on the neck and hair, and then wandered all the way, gradually becoming hot.

"keigo..."

"You Ji."

He stopped moving, with a slight emotion in his eyes, but still clear, reaching out and sinking into her messy hair, breathing close to each other: "Let's...have another child."

She listened to him speaking in a low voice, her body stiffened slightly, and the not-so-good memory of the previous time made her subconsciously a little afraid.

"Don't be afraid, nothing will happen."

He seemed to have seen through her thoughts, hugged her again, and kissed her lightly at the corner of her eyes. The woman paused for a moment, and finally closed her eyes, letting his kiss fall densely. Their breaths intertwined, disappearing in the low humming that they tried their best to suppress.

Scattered snowflakes floated outside the window again, floating in the air for a long time without support, and finally drowned in the black earth.

Until the end of the year, the media still did not let go of this old story, and insisted on digging out the details of every smile of that year, adding one or two far-fetched speculations and comments, and not forgetting to find every opportunity to verify with the parties involved, forcing Keigo Atobe to use means to put pressure on major media, but all kinds of speculations and rumors are still circulating in the market.

It is not only the speculation and curiosity about the lingering love story of that year, but also the complicated relationship between the parties involved at that time.

At this time when the Atobe Zaibatsu and GS Bank were at loggerheads, the daughter of the president of GS Japan Branch was the daughter-in-law of the Atobe family. What's more, the chairman of the Atobe Zaibatsu actually had an unforgettable past with the mother of the other party. Countless people opened their eyes wide, waiting to see how this good show would end.

On the eve of New Year's Day, the GS Japan Branch held a shareholders' meeting. After the meeting, the news that the president, Lane Lindsay, resigned due to poor health came out, causing an uproar in the industry.

Some people speculated that Lane Lindsay's recent conservative tactics in market expansion could not satisfy the GS headquarters, and the revelation of his personal relationship with the president of the business rival Atobe Zaibatsu greatly aroused the headquarters' distrust of this Japanese executive. The impeachment of shareholders forced the president, who had taken over the Japanese branch for less than a year, to resign.

Of course, this is just speculation. At the subsequent press conference, the former president was still well-mannered in his black suit, and he apologized deeply for his resignation due to poor health. Neither the GS executives nor he himself mentioned any other reasons.

Of course, the nosy reporters took this opportunity to verify the rumors that had been circulating a few days ago with Lane Lindsay. This elite man who was well-versed in the business world was only slightly startled for a moment, and then he returned to his usual calmness. Only his usually sharp and deep eyes became soft and soothing, and he only said lightly:

"I didn't say it before because I felt it was unnecessary, but Youji is my daughter, and I will never deny this. We have been separated for many years. It was when I returned to Japan this time that I found my daughter again. At that time, I found that she had not only grown up and become an excellent lawyer, but also had her own family. I am ashamed that I was unable to fulfill my father's responsibilities during her growth, but in the days to come, I hope to make up for it as much as possible. To be honest, I am not very satisfied with the man she chose. President Keigo Atobe is a rare business genius, but he is too strong. I am worried that my daughter will be bullied by him, but since she has made her choice, then no matter what, I will respect her decision and bless her..."

The man spoke in front of the camera, his pupils were deep, and the spotlight hit the corner of his eyes, and it was frozen in an instant.

So the troubles before the New Year finally came to an end.

On New Year's Eve, Lane Lindsay packed up his things and officially left the GS branch building. He walked out of the revolving glass door with a simple suitcase, walked down the steps, and found his black Porsche in the parking lot. Just as he was about to open the door, he saw a woman in a black coat standing in the shadow opposite. Her face was calm and she just bowed her head and bowed deeply. It

had snowed a little in the evening, and there was still some snow on the street that had not been cleared in time. It was glowing warmly under the dim street lights. Avoiding the busy streets, he found a shop selling oden in a secluded corner and ordered a pot of warm wine and noodle soup. The two stood side by side, and the steam from the food blurred their vision in this cold night.

"Is it really a physical problem?"

"It's just an excuse to save face for each other." The tall man in a suit lowered his head and sipped his wine, "There's nothing to worry about."

"So, is it because of me?" Youji just held the cup quietly, feeling the temperature of the liquid, without looking up, his eyes calm.

"I said, not entirely." Lan En shook his head slightly, "This is at most just a fuse, so you don't have to think so."

"That's..."

"This time I will be the president of the Japanese branch, and not everyone in the top management is satisfied with this decision. GS is eager to open up the market in Japan and expand aggressively, but I don't think it's appropriate to do so at this time. I have always intended to slow down the pace of GS's investment and expansion, and plan to steadily advance after the foundation is solid, but the headquarters is not satisfied with such results and keeps putting pressure on me. This accident just gave them an excuse to change people directly."

"I have been thinking that the stalemate between GS and the Atobe Zaibatsu seems to be neither side giving in, but neither side seems to have tried their best."

"Because it is not appropriate to do so at this time." Lane Lindsay glanced sideways and took a deep breath: "Wall Street now looks prosperous, and the major investment banks GS, DT, and MG are in a strong momentum, but in fact it is just a bubble. Those private non-performing loans have accumulated to the limit. Once that link is broken, the entire stock market will collapse. The financial sector in the United States appears to be prosperous on the surface, and it is even less felt in Japan, but once a crisis occurs, it will be as difficult to resist as a tsunami..."

Youji was stunned for a long time, his face slightly stiff: "So, aggressive expansion at this time is undoubtedly a dead end?"

"Remind Atobe if you have a chance." Lane nodded, but laughed again, "No, if it were him, he would probably have felt it." What

Atobe Keigo is most proud of is his amazing insight.

Youji was stunned for a moment, lowered his head and thought about it, then curled the corners of his lips in relief.