Chapter 70 Love is love, hate is also...

After the list of shortlisted exhibitors was released, they quickly entered the formal work rhythm. According to Huanye's requirements, each company usually completes its own exhibition content independently, but needs to align the progress every week to control the overall progress of the work.

But this time, the general manager is no longer Jacob. It is rumored that he seems to have been temporarily transferred to Fiji for unknown reasons.

At the first meeting, the representatives of the participating companies were talking about it, but Zhao Manzhi was the only one who was not surprised. Zhuang Youkai can't tolerate any sand in his eyes. Vice presidents who are much higher than Jacob in rank will be demoted if they make such a mistake, not to mention that Jacob is just a department director, and it is even easier to throw him into any corner and turn a blind eye to him.

"Jacob is easy to talk to, and he makes sincere suggestions. It would be terrible if the new person in charge is difficult to deal with."

"He hasn't shown up yet. Even if he's not difficult to deal with, he's probably not easy to get along with."

"Could he have gotten in through the back door? He was parachuted in to squeeze out Jacob. This joint exhibition is a good job. I'm afraid it won't be a good opportunity..."

Next to Zhao Manzhi was the representative of Fuming Group, also from the mainland, named Yu Lili, and her English name is also easy to remember, Lily. Listening to the others' excited discussions, Yu Lili couldn't get a word in, but she couldn't help but gossip with Zhao Manzhi, "Hey, do you know anyone from Huanye? Is this news true or not? If he is really related, I'm afraid he is not capable enough, and our expectations are in vain."

How to say it, she does have connections with Huanye, but she can't afford to bother with this connection. Zhao Manzhi took a sip of coffee. The flat white she bought today had milk foam on the edge of her lips. After she finished drinking, she took a tissue to wipe it off and pretended to be busy, just avoiding the question. 

Fortunately, Lily didn't have much hope for her, and turned to discuss with the local boy sitting next to her. Zhao Manzhi wiped her mouth absentmindedly, took out a small makeup mirror and touched up her lipstick, trying not to participate in the discussion of this topic. 

It seemed that in an instant, the noisy discussions suddenly disappeared, and the conference room was so quiet that you could hear a pin drop. Zhao Manzhi had just used a lip gloss brush to draw a satisfactory arc on her lower lip, and when she looked up again, everyone's eyes were on her. 

Of course, the most frightening thing was the one in the chairman's seat in the conference room, cold, arrogant, and with amber pupils - she was like a student who was caught truant, and could only hurriedly stuff the makeup mirror and lipstick into her bag, her head buzzing. If she remembered correctly, this was just a director-level meeting, so what was this person doing...? 

Fortunately, Zhuang Youkai didn't say anything, but just looked away calmly and spoke the opening remarks, neatly and without nonsense. 

"Hello everyone, I am Raymond, the general manager of this exhibition. I will take over Jacob's job. In the next two months, I will work together with everyone present. Please bear with me and give me your advice." 

He is young and has been living a secluded life in recent years. People who don't pay special attention to Hong Kong media gossip hardly know that he is the youngest son of the Zhuang family, and they will not associate him with the title of "Chairman of Huanye Group" which is full of age. 

Although his aura is still so strong that the air forgets to flow, his "humble" introduction also convinced most people present that he is just Raymond, an ordinary director except for his good-looking face. 

After all, no one questioned it, and everyone even applauded enthusiastically. 

Zhao Manzhi also clapped a few times along with the applause. 

Zhuang Youkai took the opportunity to look around and took another deep look at her. The girl's delicate eyebrows were slightly frowned, just like when she encountered information that she couldn't find and theories that she couldn't understand when she was writing papers next to him. 

She hasn't changed much. 

Even though she looked more mature and her temperament became more smooth, she was still the same Zhao Manzhi, and still his little girl. 

After the meeting, someone suggested that the project team create a WhatsApp group to facilitate communication and understand each other's work progress. Zhuang Youkai had no objection. 

Under the organization of the proposer, they reported their phone numbers and quickly created a group. 

She looked carefully and found that Zhuang Youkai's account was his work number. 

It was no longer possible to obtain his personal contact information. 

"Mandy, let's exchange contact information too. Fuming and Guangyi's booths are close, so we can consider some linkage." Yu Lili suggested. 

Zhao Manzhi nodded readily and took out her mobile phone, "Okay, WeChat or WhatsApp?" " 

All right, I'll scan you." 

They were not the only ones who added contact information on the spot, but most people still gathered around Zhuang Youkai more warmly. He was very patient and added them one by one. He also responded to those greetings politely. It seemed that he played the role of Director Raymond effortlessly. 

Zhao Manzhi just wanted to take advantage of the chaos to escape. 

She packed up her computer and documents, stuffed them into her large tote bag for commuting, slung it over her shoulder and walked towards the door. 

However, even though she was hiding behind everyone, he still saw through her and called her. 

"Representative of Guangyi, it seems that we haven't saved your number yet." 

Zhuang Youkai walked up to her, raised his hand, and motioned her to exchange mobile phones. 

Several companies present, except Guangyi, were large companies, but no one had the honor to let Raymond add their contact information in person. She felt like she was almost dying under the scorching eyes. They would work together for another two months in the future, and it would be hypocritical to refuse at this time. 

Zhao Manzhi curled her lips and pretended to be stupid, "I thought about the work when I go back, and I forgot to contact you." 

She entered her number on Zhuang Youkai's mobile phone interface. After going to Singapore, her previous Hong Kong number was deactivated. After returning, she found that the original number could still be activated. Out of habit, she still used the old number. 

As soon as she finished entering, the contact information of Zhuang Youkai's phone popped up in the address book, with the note Dear Mandy. 

Zhao Manzhi was stunned for a moment, then she laughed very softly. 

Zhuang Youkai also returned the phone to her, "What's wrong?" 

"Nothing." Zhao Manzhi felt her heart twitching suddenly, and she couldn't say whether she was happy or sad, but she still pretended to be fine, "Okay, keep in touch." 

She fled the venue like a fly, and when she reached the elevator, she gasped as if she had survived a disaster. 

Dear Mandy, was it intentional, or has he kept it like this for so many years? 

It was obviously a trace of the initial competition between each other, but now it has become a proof of love. 

Just like she couldn't remember her English name, after arriving in Singapore, when others asked her what to call her, she subconsciously said, Mandy. 

No one has forgotten that memory. 

She really wanted to ask Zhuang Youkai what he meant. He provoked her innocence at the beginning, and what is he doing now? Is he going back to his old ways? 

Almost overwhelmed by emotions, rationality disappeared without a trace. She was driven by impulse to click on the account of Zhuang Youkai in the WhatsApp friends she had just added, and typed a long paragraph of questions. When she was about to click send, she suddenly realized something was wrong. 

This was not the cold and impersonal work account in the group. 

It was his personal account. 

Zhao Manzhi didn't see it at first because she remembered that Zhuang Youkai's profile picture on all social platforms was the skiing photo of him when he was young. It almost became a personal mark. When looking for him in the address book, she would get used to looking for the blue sky and the snow.

But now, the profile picture of this account has become a landscape picture, without the protagonist in the photo.

It can be seen that it is still in the Alps, with dark rocks, white pines and snow, and a deep blue sky.

Without his youthful arrogance, the profile picture and this contact account seem cold, like an unreachable dream.

In fact, she got an offer from Lausanne, but she was too determined at the time. Seeing Lausanne inevitably reminded her of his recommendation letter, so she chose Singapore instead.

This is not her dream school, but just a backup application, and Zhuang Youkai didn't even know it.

She wanted to hide in a place where she couldn't see him, but after coming here, she found that this place is very similar to Hong Kong.

The same hot and humid weather, the wind carries a faint smell of seawater, but the difference is that Singapore is like this all year round, so there is no need to go back to that nightmare, foggy spring night, and no need to think about the day they parted ways.

Zhao Manzhi pressed her chest, wanting it to beat less fast, but it backfired, and she couldn't help herself in the waves of memories.

"Baby, love is not adaptation, not habit, but you can feel your heart beating, whether it is up or down, it is alive because of one person, that's right."

"Love is love, hate is also love."

It turned out that her psychologist really said something accurate.

She can't deceive herself anymore.

Zhao Manzhi deleted the long paragraph with trembling hands, switched to WeChat, and clicked on the top Yu Hansong's avatar.

When she looked up, she saw the birthday number after the note, and slowly calmed down.

It's his birthday in a few days. Isn't it too inhumane to break up on the eve of his birthday?

Besides, in this relationship, Yu Hansong has always paid more. Just like Ms. Ding said, he loves her more, so she doesn't feel regret for paying.

Zhao Manzhi is a vested interest, enjoying his kindness, she can't just take advantage of him and kick him away.

Under the condemnation of her conscience, she regretted her impulsiveness. It was Zhuang Youkai who rejected her back then, but now she can't wait to stick to him just because he sends a little bit of flattering signal. What's the difference between her and Pavlov's dog?

The first effort is strong, the second is weak, and the third is exhausted. After several internal struggles, Zhao Manzhi finally gave up.

Today is not peaceful, as if all the problems have come to her at the same time.

As soon as she got home, Ding Qingzi called and said that she had asked a master to look at the date and next month is suitable for engagement. It doesn't matter if Zhao Manzhi and her family are busy with work. Ding Qingzi and Zhao Zhiwu can come to Hong Kong with Yu Hansong's parents to witness.

She hesitated, "Mom, we are both busy with big projects recently, I'm afraid we don't have much time."

"You don't have to worry, just nod, mom and dad can take care of

it." After calculation, Zhao Manzhi is 26 years old this year. If ideal, she can give birth to her first child before 30. Ms. Ding and Zhao Zhiwu have the energy to help take care of the child, and her body will recover quickly, so the marriage cannot be delayed.

Hearing that her life was arranged so fully by them, Zhao Manzhi felt a little rebellious, "Oh, it takes seven years to get permanent residency here, why are you thinking about having children so early?" "

What, are you really planning to stay in Hong Kong?" Ding Qingzi was anxious, "Didn't you say before that you would find a job and come back?"

"Han Song and I both have good jobs now, and we don't want to go back and forth, and Hong Kong is pretty good, I'm used to it."

"Nannan, don't be so willful." The person on the other end of the phone suddenly became serious, "You two have been in love for more than two years, it's almost time to settle down. It's not good to be in a relationship for too long, and it's easy to break up."

Zhao Manzhi found it funny, "Aren't there two outcomes of being in a relationship, getting married and breaking up? What kind of theory is this? Many people are forced to get married when they are in the honeymoon period, and they don't end up well in the end."

"I can't argue with you, but you have to think about this matter carefully. A girl's youth is valuable, and it's not good for you to keep dragging it on."

She was a little annoyed, and responded with "hmm" and "ah" before hanging up the phone.

In fact, Zhao Manzhi wanted to say that her relationship with Yu Hansong didn't seem to have reached that stage.

In the eyes of adults, being well-matched is the most important thing. As long as two people get along with each other and treat each other with respect, it is enough to send them to the marriage hall. But Zhao Manzhi knew in her heart that the reason why she and Yu Hansong had no quarrels and disagreements was not because they were so in sync, but because he was always tolerant, so she responded with tolerance.

Sometimes she would think that it was good to be able to quarrel, at least it showed that there were still surging feelings between each other, not a stagnant pool of water that could not be stirred up even by struggle.

Unexpectedly, her words came true, and the first big quarrel between them came very quickly.

On Yu Hansong's birthday, Zhao Manzhi deliberately finished work early, ordered a cake and a restaurant, and went to pick out a belt for him, carefully packaged it, as a birthday gift.

The atmosphere during the meal was also very good, and they even talked about many topics that they had neglected recently due to their busy work. The Burgundy red wine tasted great. The two of them went home in a slightly tipsy state. As soon as they entered the door, Yu Hansong took advantage of the alcohol and pushed her against the wall to kiss her.

Zhao Manzhi was a little uncomfortable at first, but as his kiss deepened, the alcohol took over her and she slowly relaxed.

Everything seemed to be going at the right pace, except -

"Hansong, I, I still can't do it..."

She didn't want to ruin the atmosphere of the night, and kept forcing herself to get involved in the intimacy, but at the last moment she still showed her fear and pushed him away.

But this time, Yu Hansong didn't get up and take a shower as usual to eliminate his desire. Instead, he pulled away and looked at her coldly, "What should I do, you help me?"

Zhao Manzhi didn't believe her ears, "What?"

"Hands or mouth, one of them will work." The pillow person who accompanied her day and night was so unfamiliar that she was scared at this moment. It turned out that Yu Hansong, who was so gentle, could also say such explicit and contemptuous words.

Zhao Manzhi pulled the quilt to cover herself and slowly curled up, "I don't know how."

"It's okay, I'll teach you."

As he said that, he was about to hold Zhao Manzhi's hand, but the moment their fingertips touched, she quickly shook him off.

Yu Hansong sneered, "Manman, you can't or don't want to? Are you unwilling to do it with me or even your ex-boyfriend?"

She was shocked, her lips and teeth trembling, "Why do you bring this up?"

"Nothing." His eyes were gloomy, revealing his unwillingness, "I don't mind your past, but you can't be treated like a fool. How far have you gone with him? You won't let him touch you? Are you also cautious when asking for sex? Then how could he spend so much money on you?"

"Yu Hansong, what are you talking about?" Zhao Manzhi said, "What do you mean he spent so much money on me?"

The air was silent for a long time, and Yu Hansong spoke again, "Chen Muchuan, do you know this person?"

Zhao Manzhi's face turned pale, "Undergraduate classmate."

"Then it can't be wrong." He pinched his eyebrows and said self-deprecatingly, "He is the head of the startup company of the project I am currently working on. When we chatted that day, he said he knew you, you..."

At that time, Chen Muchuan saw the photo on his phone lock screen and said he knew Zhao Manzhi.

He also said that Zhao Manzhi's lover during undergraduate studies was a group prince.

"To put it nicely, this kind of relationship is a love affair, to put it bluntly, it's a kept woman. Anyway, it was a big deal at the time and a lot of people knew about it. You can go and ask around."

"She didn't tell you? Brother, that's miserable."

Yu Hansong narrated word by word and questioned her, "So, are you in that kind of relationship?"

Zhao Manzhi pinched the corner of the quilt, her tone as calm as the sea before a storm, "No."

"You went to bed, didn't you?"

He stared at her with deep eyes, but he didn't really want to ask a yes or no. As long as she shook her head, he would be willing to believe it and then reconcile as before.

But Zhao Manzhi nodded, "Yes."

Yu Hansong sneered very lightly.

"Am I not good enough to you? Putting my self-esteem under my feet and rushing to please you, isn't that enough?"

His emotions were almost out of control. From Zhao Manzhi's perspective, his face was tilted, his expression was hidden in the dark, and it was not clear.

"Yu Hansong, listen to me." She took a deep breath and tried not to get impatient. "It's true that Chen Muchuan was my undergraduate classmate, but we have a deep grudge. I admit what he said, and I can't be wronged if it's false. My friend committed suicide because of his PUA, and she even died with Chen Muchuan's child in her belly."

The old account from that year was finally settled today. After

Fang Ling's death, Zhao Manzhi wrote a letter of complaint and sent it to the recruitment emails of major investment banks. She also posted the matter on the walls of various college students and social platforms for a long time, which had a great impact.

Perhaps because he was afraid of the impact of the incident, or because he couldn't accept the moral stain of his employees, Chen Muchuan got nothing in the campus recruitment that year, and the company that had offered him the job also took it back.

He must hate her more than anyone else.

It's reasonable for her to gossip about him.

Yu Hansong couldn't listen to these. His mind was as messy as paste. What he remembered most clearly was the fact that he was not favored.

Finally, he put on his clothes and stood up, "Let's all calm down."

This calmness lasted for more than a week.

Yu Hansong slept on the sofa, went out early and came back late, trying not to meet her. There were several times when Zhao Manzhi wanted to talk to him seriously, but was rejected as if she had hit a soft nail.

Fortunately, he failed in love but succeeded in his career. The work of the joint exhibition was progressing smoothly.

Under the leadership of Director Raymond, the people in the project team had unprecedented enthusiasm, especially the girls headed by Yu Lili, who often complained why the weekly meeting could not be changed to once a day.

"If it doesn't work, once every half a week is also fine. Raymond is so handsome, looking at handsome guys can help prolong your life."

"And his physique is simply a fairy product, and he looks very capable at first glance."

"Hey, tell me clearly, which one is capable? Capable at work or..."

"Hehe, it's good to know. It's a pity that I don't know if he has a girlfriend. I really want to ask if he is as capable as he looks."

The person with the most say at the scene said nothing, but just kept typing on the keyboard.

"Hey Mandy, there's plenty of time to do work, let's chat first." Yu Lili forced her into the topic, "You can still be calm when you see Raymond around you every day, is your boyfriend more handsome than him?"

"No, I have a lot of things to do and I'm afraid I can't finish them."

"Just do as much as you can for your salary, there's nothing wrong with chatting."

Zhao Manzhi smiled reluctantly.

How to chat, let me tell you that he is really capable and can work all night without stopping? Don't ask, if you ask, I'll tell you that I've experienced it myself.

They will definitely attack her in groups, and she won't be able to stay in this group in the future.

Speak of the devil, and Zhuang Youkai will come into the meeting room amid the chattering.

The women who were still discussing what his chest muscles felt like in the last second, immediately became quiet and didn't say a word.

Although they are unrestrained in private, they are all social people who have been in the workplace for some time, and they can quickly adjust to work when they get serious.

The content of the meeting itself was not interesting. It was just a weekly meeting. Zhao Manzhi was calculating the time. According to the price Zhuang Youkai quoted five years ago, it was millions per minute. Wouldn't a one-hour meeting cost tens of millions?

She shuddered. It was so expensive to hold a meeting. If they really had to hold it every day, they would have to work since the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period just to pay for his lost wages.

"Guangyi."

"Guangyi Group, do you have any objections?"

Zhao Manzhi was obviously absent-minded, so when Zhuang Youkai pointed at her twice at the meeting, everyone in the audience glanced over, and even Lily nudged her with her elbow, "Mandy, I'm calling you!"

"...Ah?" She looked down at the topic and couldn't find where it was. She simply said, "No, Guangyi has no objection."

Zhuang Youkai nodded, "Okay, next part."

After this incident, Zhao Manzhi no longer dared to be distracted and listened more seriously than anyone else.

Then she found out that Zhuang Youkai did it on purpose.

Regardless of whether the topic was related to her or not, he would ask if he had any opinions, as if deliberately reminding a student who was not paying attention.

She did not dare to question him in person, but she was so angry that she had to go back and find his WhatsApp to complain.

Zhao Manzhi: Director Zhuang, please don't be so mean next time.

Zhao Manzhi: I mean don't always click on me during meetings, people will misunderstand.

After a while, the other party sent a message back.

Raymond Chong: Is it reasonable for me to be distracted?

Zhao Manzhi: But why do they have to ask Guangyi's opinion when reporting their work?

Raymond Chong: Follow the procedures.

Zhao Manzhi: There is no such procedure.

Raymond Chong: I am happy to.

... It's unreasonable.

Zhao Manzhi didn't even want to reply to this message, so she didn't click on it, leaving the unread bubble hanging there.

She didn't have that much time to deal with this young master.

It stayed there for several days, until it was almost time for the next regular meeting, when she had a question to ask Zhuang Youkai, she found the chat box, but found that the unread bubble was gone.

Zhao Manzhi stood there for a long time, thinking back, making sure that she really hadn't opened the message. How could the unread reminder disappear?

Only she and Yu Hansong knew her mobile phone password.

A bad premonition quickly emerged in her mind, but she really didn't want to think about it.

Once it was confirmed that Yu Hansong did it, the trust between them would completely collapse.

But once the doubt arises, you can't feel at ease without verifying the truth. Zhao Manzhi could hardly control her fingers. She trembled and clicked on the screen usage time, turning forward day by day, and the more she looked, the more shocking it became.

It turned out that on countless nights when she was sleeping soundly, he had unlocked it and looked through her social software, photo albums, shopping software, and even taxi and takeout.

Maybe Yu Hansong just accidentally forgot to mark the message to Zhuang Youkai as unread, which made Zhao Manzhi discover this long-hidden secret.

Separated by a wall, their hearts have long been drifting apart. Speculations and suspicions use the most hurtful way to torture the remaining feelings.

"Yu Hansong." Zhao Manzhi walked in front of him and slammed her phone on the table. "You look at my phone?"

As if he had expected this day, Yu Hansong didn't even want to pretend to be flustered, and looked at her calmly, "Yes. Why, you can't look at it?"

"You don't believe me." Obviously at the beginning, they agreed to be honest with each other forever and say anything directly, "If you have any doubts, ask me. It's not that I won't tell you."

"If I ask you who Raymond is, will you tell me?" Yu Hansong stood up from the chair and looked down at her, "Zhao Manzhi, I like you, but that doesn't mean I want to be treated like a fool. Wasn't it because of him that we quarreled last time? You haven't broken up with me yet, but you're busy hooking up with him. Are you so impatient?" 

She realized for the first time that even though he was not as tall as Zhuang Youkai, and his fitness signs were not more obvious than his, it did not prevent an adult male from having a huge physique disparity with hers. If Yu Hansong wanted to do something, she would hardly be able to fight back. 

Zhao Manzhi took a few steps back, put her hands behind her back, and grabbed a glass from the sideboard. 

"Since you have read our chat history, you know that there is nothing between him and me." The self-defense gave her courage, and her voice was firmer. "Yu Hansong, I did love him, but I accepted you because I like you. Even at this stage, I care about you more than he does. Isn't that enough?" 

Yu Hansong took off his glasses, his hair hanging down, casting a small shadow. "Okay, then prove it to me." 

With a "click", the gold-rimmed glasses were thrown aside. He tore off his tie and approached step by step. "Go to bed with me now, and I will believe you." 

"Calm down--" 

"How do you want me to calm down?!" Yu Hansong raised his voice and shouted, "You. Fuck. You've been avoiding me all the time, but you're still connected with him. How can I calm down? If I had known you were in this kind of relationship, I wouldn't have taken his plane when I came back from Singapore. I think it's dirty!" 

The tear that was about to fall from the corner of his eye finally rolled down at the moment his heart died. 

Zhao Manzhi pursed her lips and smiled sadly, "I agreed to take his flight because you didn't want to delay the interview. Yu Hansong, you are really good at putting the 

blame on someone else." At this point, there was nothing but resentment between them. Zhao Manzhi had nothing to say and turned around to go back to the bedroom. 

However, the next second, the man's powerful hands grabbed her neck from behind and pulled her back. Zhao Manzhi even felt her hair breaking in the pulling, but Yu Hansong, who once respected her, ignored her screams and pushed her to the ground. Her forehead hit the low cabinet, and she was so painful that she saw stars. 

Then, the citrus scent she loved pressed down like a mountain, buried in her body and crawled. The acetate skirt that she had to be careful not to wrinkle when putting it in the suitcase before was completely shattered under his hands.