If she liked it, then she could have it whenever she wanted. Her every bill would be sent his way.
He had lavished her without Song Qingchun even realizing it. Even without her thanks or appreciation, he still felt quite blissful.
He had thought he could finally have a Christmas that he would remember with a smile, but in the end, the way the day had ended was still so painstakingly harsh.
It had been at least five years since Su Zhinian had touched alcohol.
The last time he drank was when he'd stumbled across that secret five years ago. He had spent seven days and seven nights submerged in a state of inebriation. The time before that when he drank was also five years ago on his birthday… That time, he made the mistake that had inextricably linked them together.
Five years later, he had gotten drunk again.
When he left the bar, morning had already broken. With faltering steps, he walked to his car. He tried many times before his hand landed on the car door. He collapsed into the car with the world still spinning. After a short nap in the back of the car, he pulled out his phone from his pocket and called his driver.
About half an hour later, someone knocked on the car window. After the person opened the lock and got in, he realized it was not the driver but his secretary, Cheng Qingchong.
Before she got in, she grabbed a bottle of water from the trunk. She twisted the cap open and passed it to Su Zhinian.
After gulping two mouthfuls, Su Zhinian tossed the bottle back at Cheng Qingchong. He asked tonelessly, "Why are you here?"
"Mr. Zhang, the driver is not in Beijing, he just called me," Cheng Qingchong answered truthfully. She twisted the cap back on and placed the bottle back on the passenger seat. It was then that she saw the exquisitely wrapped present.
Christmas is already over… but the present is still here in Big Boss' car? This is the first time I've seen Big Boss so drunk. Could it be that there was some altercation between Big Boss and "the person hiding in his memory" on Christmas?
Cheng Qingchong took the driver's seat and turned back wordlessly to stare at Su Zhinian. After she put on the seatbelt, she asked, "CEO Su, where to?"
Su Zhinian uttered with his eyes shut, "Company."
His tone was too quiet, and his words were too jumbled for Cheng Qingchong to hear him clearly. She asked again, "I'm sorry but where?"
This time, there was no answer.
Cheng Qingchong stared at Su Zhinian in the backseat through the rear-view mirror. She noticed his lack of reaction and added after some thought, "Shall we go home?"
Su Zhinian frowned when he heard the word "home". A hue of darkness rose between his brows. He opened his eyes slowly, as if he was remembering something. The eyes that looked out the window were lost, and the words tumbled quietly out of his mouth. "Home? Home…"
Then, a layer of self-deprecation and mocking covered his eyes, as he continued. "No, don't go home, nobody cares whether I go home or not…"
Then his eyelids dropped.
Cheng Qingchong could still hear him when he began, but the volume slowly petered off. In the end, Cheng Qingchong only managed to catch the words 'go home' twice. The rest was incoherent mumbling to her ears.
If not for the fact she could see his lips move through the rear-view mirror, she wouldn't have known that he was even speaking.
The expression on Su Zhinian's face was so relaxed that Cheng Qingchong thought he was asleep. After some short hesitation, Cheng Qingchong started the engine and headed in the direction of his home.