Chapter 114: Chapter 114

Shen Jianian never expected that the dream she had twice would actually come true. The only difference is probably that, in reality, Pei Che got into a car accident and fell into the sea, while in her dream, Pei Che jumped into the sea himself.

That’s a worse ending than the dream.

"Jianian." Bai Changxia gently called her on the phone.

Shen Jianian couldn’t snap back to reality for a long time; her heart was racing more urgently than ever.

Bai Changxia knew she heard it, but the silence was probably because she couldn’t accept it. For a moment, she didn’t know if it was good or bad to call Jianian.

Her band had an event today, so she got up early. When she saw the news, she panicked, and her first thought was to call Jianian.

She met Pei Che through Jianian and was a rather good friend of his.

Since Pei Che returned to the country, she understood the grudges between Shen Jianian and the Pei Family, and didn’t know how to face Pei Che, so they gradually lost contact.

However, no matter what, a friend who once got along well suddenly brings such bad news; no one can remain calm.

She was already heartbroken and sad, let alone Shen Jianian, who had grown up with Pei Che, always close and inseparable.

"Xiaxia, did you know? He called me last night." After a long time, Shen Jianian finally found her voice. She couldn’t talk to anyone else about it; she could only tell Bai Changxia.

Bai Changxia guessed who this "he" referred to and asked, "What did he say to you?"

Shen Jianian was silent for a moment before slowly speaking: "He said..." Her voice paused, her throat felt choked and uncomfortable, and her tone carried a hint of sobbing, "He said he loves me."

Bai Changxia’s breath stopped for a second.

With their current situation, talking about "love" was no less than a soul-challenge.

One carrying hatred, surrounded by others, and the other living in guilt and self-blame, forever mourning the past. How can such two people love each other?

Shen Jianian covered her eyes, tears leaking through her fingers, her voice broken and trembling: "I could tell something was off with his voice when he said he loves me—it sounded like he was saying goodbye as if he were talking about reuniting in the next life... When I realized that, I called him back, and his phone was off. Xiaxia, it was deliberate."

"Jianian, don’t cry yet." Bai Changxia panicked hearing her sobs, hurriedly comforting her, "Things might not be as you think. Maybe, maybe this was just an accident. I heard that place is very dangerous, and the odds of a car accident..."

Indeed, everyone knew it was a dangerous place; why did Pei Che go there?

Even Bai Changxia could not fool herself with her words; how could she comfort Jianian?

Shen Jianian shook her head; from the other side, she couldn’t see it as she cried and said: "He told me he wanted to trade his life for mine because his family caused me to lose my parents, so he’s paying his life for me. But I don’t want his life; I just want him to live well, even if we can never be together."

That was Ah Che, who had protected her since childhood.

On her first day of school at kindergarten, when she didn’t know anyone, it was Ah Che who held her hand and didn’t leave her side, telling her not to be afraid because he’d protect her; when she first lost a baby tooth, crying out in fear, it was Ah Che who put it in a small bottle, comforting her that a new tooth would grow soon; when she first had her period, feeling both embarrassed and nervous, it was Ah Che who took off his school uniform to tie around her waist, skipped class to buy sanitary products and pants, waiting outside the restroom with reddened ears to ask if she knew how to use them...

The first time she liked someone, all her eyes saw was him.

Bai Changxia couldn’t find any more words to comfort her and could only call her name, telling her she’s still there: "Jianian."

"Why was he so foolish, why wouldn’t he let himself go, he doesn’t owe me anything."

Shen Jianian couldn’t hold on; she squatted on the ground, tears blurring her vision completely.

Fu Jichen sat in his car, and on the seat was a newspaper from that day. After reading the finance section, he was caught by a piece of news on another page.

Pei Family’s only son, Pei Che, had a car accident in the early hours last night at Ling City’s "Eye of Death." The car crashed through the roadside railings and fell into the sea. The best local team had been dispatched for salvage, along with dozens of firefighters.

The incident from the early hours was reported by morning, indicating that there were many witnesses at the time, and the news spread quickly.

Fu Jichen folded the newspaper, put it aside, and his fingers paused suddenly, his mind flashing back to Shen Jianian’s absent-minded look last night when she said she had a nightmare.

He wondered whether it was related to this incident.

Sometimes men’s intuition is very keen and frighteningly accurate.

He took his phone from his pants pocket and hesitated on whether to call her, but first received a work-related call from Song Fang.

Once the call was over, the car stopped downstairs at Junshan Group.

Fu Jichen straightened his jacket, pushed open the car door, stepped out with long legs, and walked into the skyscraper.

Employees passing by in the lobby kept glancing at this formidable boss who had recently returned, subconsciously holding their breaths and flashing formal smiles to greet him.

These little-known figures could only talk to the president under circumstances , attempting to get some face time with him. But for him, time is money; he barely has time to respond, his eyes straight ahead, striding quickly to the exclusive elevator, occasionally nodding at someone as a kind gesture.

Fu Jichen entered the elevator, turned around, and Song Fang, who followed him in, stepped forward to press the floor button and close the door, then stepped back behind him.

The elevator door slowly closed, and everyone watched as the man’s rugged and deep face disappeared behind the metal doors, taking back their gazes long after, still savoring his powerful and intimidating aura as he passed through the lobby.

Compared to other members of the Fu Family, this one was indeed more profound and dignified, making him hard to read.

As the elevator ascended, Fu Jichen checked his watch and said in a low voice: "Prepare for the meeting in half an hour. Arrange dinner with the City Construction Bureau tonight; choose a quiet and elegant place, not too flashy."

Song Fang nodded: "Understood."

With a "ding," the elevator arrived at the 36th floor, and Fu Jichen adjusted his cuff as he stepped out.

After entering the office, the secretary soon brought in a cup of coffee.

Fu Jichen picked up his phone and walked to the floor-to-ceiling window; the foggy weather had low visibility, and as he raised his eyes to look out, all he could see was the blurry outlines of the concrete jungle.

With a cigarette on his lips, he lit it with a lighter, took a puff, removed it from his fingers, and called Shen Jianian.

After ringing for a while, it was answered; he coughed lightly and asked: "Are you up?"

Shen Jianian’s voice was a bit hoarse, even though she tried hard to conceal it, saying just one word, Fu Jichen still heard it, almost without thinking; he confirmed she knew about the news.

Fu Jichen held the phone to his ear with one hand, while the other, clutching a cigarette, hung at his side. He turned around, walked to the desk, and flicked the ash at the edge of the ashtray.

After a long time, he finally asked: "Did you see the news?"

There was nothing to hide; when he called her, it was to ask about this.

After more than ten seconds, Shen Jianian still didn’t speak. Fu Jichen suddenly felt it was futile. Such feelings of a childhood shared over two decades, couldn’t be severed just like that.

Fu Jichen forcefully extinguished the cigarette butt in the ashtray, his expression somewhat dark: "If you don’t want to talk, forget it."

He hung up the call, and before he could think about anything else, Song Fang came knocking, reminding him that the meeting time was near.

Fu Jichen placed the phone on the desk, picked up a file and a USB drive, and went out.

Just now, when Fu Jichen called, Shen Jianian was holding her phone, searching for real-time news online. Her mind was too cluttered to know how to respond to his question.

Worrying he might get angry, she instinctively avoided it.

Yet, the result of her silence was the same—she still made him angry.

Shen Jianian looked at the smartphone screen. After the call ended, the interface returned to the news she had just read. The latest report mentioned the salvage team and local firefighters had found the wrecked sports car and the victim’s clothing.

The phone, stuck in the gap inside the car, was also found.

But there was no news of the victim himself.

According to relevant analysts, there’s likely no chance of survival.