sjar Chapter 106 Reunion is still with strangers
Chapter 106 Reunion is still with strangers
Li Tingze's hand trembled slightly, and when he tried to help Lin Zhi up again, he was stopped.
Jiang Nan gently shook her head at him.
Her eyes conveyed a message urging him not to provoke Lin Zhi.
Li Tingze withdrew his hand, staring at Lin Zhi's dark eyes with a hint of melancholy.
Lin Wanxin was pampered in her youth, but was hurt and driven out of the Lin family by Wen Rongbin halfway through her life. Since then, she has been plagued by illness and has never had a happy day.
Lin Zhi didn't want Lin Wanxin to leave in such a desolate way, so she was willing to spend everything to give Lin Wanxin a grand and lively funeral.
The funeral will be held at the largest funeral home in northern Beijing.
She did not stop him, allowing Li Tingze to attend as his son-in-law.
Given Li Tingze's prestigious status, it was natural that the powerful and influential people of Beijing would come uninvited to see Lin Wanxin off.
When one group of the honor guard or the mourning troupe got tired of playing their instruments and crying, another group would take their place, rotating without interruption.
Inside the crystal coffin, Lin Wanxin was wearing her favorite plain-colored Chinese-style long dress and simple makeup. Her hands were folded in front of her chest, and she looked peaceful. However, Lin Zhi couldn't help but cry when she saw her.
She knelt before the coffin, gazing at Lin Wanxin's final remains, the memories of the mother and daughter together vivid in her mind.
Lin Wanxin had never been harsh with her; though she was worried, she only spoke gently.
Give her enough maternal love so that she doesn't lose herself during adolescence.
In the end, she was so grief-stricken that she could no longer shed tears.
Red-rimmed eyes, a pale face, and a fragile body that could be blown away by a gust of wind.
Li Tingze saw all of this and felt deeply pained.
He knelt beside her, wanting to hold her tightly in his arms and tell her that he was there to accompany her through the rest of her life.
However, he couldn't bring himself to say these words.
He was afraid that if he told her, Lin Zhi would be greatly upset.
Jiang Nan is already considered a member of the Li family, and as the younger brother-in-law, helping to arrange Lin Wanxin's funeral will not give others cause for gossip.
Before he arrived, Jiang Anran kept calling to stop him, but he was determined.
Shen Mubai could only attend the memorial ceremony as a friend.
He longed to kneel beside Lin Zhi before Lin Wanxin's coffin.
Unfortunately, he didn't have Li Tingze's identity.
According to the funeral customs in northern Beijing, the process usually lasts for three days. On the first day, the family keeps vigil. On the second day, friends and relatives come to pay their respects. On the evening of the second day, a ritual for the deceased is performed. On the morning of the third day, the body is sent off and cremated.
On the night of the memorial service, Lin Zhi personally knelt in front of the mourning hall and burned paper money for the deceased Lin Wanxin.
The monks were chanting jargon she couldn't understand, and she couldn't hear the sounds of gongs, drums, or suonas. All she could hear were the kind words Lin Wanxin had given her.
At midnight, the lights in the mourning hall went out instantly.
A gust of wind blew, causing the candle to sway.
Lin Zhi looked up and, in the shimmering light, seemed to see Lin Wanxin's beautiful appearance in her youth.
Back then, Lin Wanxin's face was always filled with a happy smile.
Just like when she was ten years old, standing in the garden picking camellias she had planted herself, Lin Wanxin smiled brightly at her after hearing her call and gently called her name.
A bright light suddenly appeared.
The funeral hall was lit up again.
When Lin Zhi looked up again, everything had returned to normal.
Next came the sealing ceremony.
She took one last look at Lin Wanxin's remains, and no matter how much reluctance she felt, she could only keep it in her heart.
When the red cloth was placed over the coffin, Lin Zhi burst into tears again.
That one glance was a final farewell.
Early in the morning, before the sun had even risen, the farewell ceremony had already begun.
Lin Zhi held Lin Wanxin's portrait in her arms and followed behind the hearse. With each step she took, her heart ached more.
When entering the cremation process.
Her mindset underwent a tremendous change.
Her only close relative in the world has passed away, and she can no longer live as she used to.
Since you've made up your mind to live your own life.
Then she would have to completely break off her relationship with Li Tingze.
The lingering connection not only indirectly led to her mother's death, but could also potentially kill her unborn baby in the future.
Li Tingze chose the best burial plot for Lin Wanxin in northern Beijing.
Lin Zhi refused his offer.
Li Tingze knew what she was worried about, and said in a hoarse voice, "Just think of it as the last thing I did for Mom. I think she definitely wouldn't refuse."
Lin Zhi sneered and looked up at Li Tingze.
His voice was cold: "Li Tingze, it was my mother who died, it has nothing to do with you."
Li Tingze felt a sudden pang of pain in his heart and asked, "What do you mean by that?"
Lin Zhi stared straight ahead, facing the wind, and said coldly, "Li Tingze, it's time for us to truly end things. Either I jump off this building right now and you collect my body, or we go to the Civil Affairs Bureau and get a divorce certificate right now. I don't want any of the benefits you promised me. I only ask that from now on, there will be no more contact between us."
Li Tingze stood there staring at her for a long time.
He saw a coldness in her eyes he had never seen before.
This was more resolute than any other time she had mentioned wanting a divorce.
Their marriage was already broken, and he still clung to the hope that they could reconcile even without a divorce certificate. Now, he has finally tasted the bitterness of despair.
Li Tingze couldn't bear to say a harsh word to Lin Zhi at this moment.
She went to the Civil Affairs Bureau to obtain a divorce certificate as she requested.
When Li Tingze received the divorce certificate, he felt the book was burning hot.
He had intended to tell Lin Zhi that the conditions promised in the agreement would allow his assistant to expedite the property transfer for her, but he didn't expect that she would leave the Civil Affairs Bureau without looking back.
Li Tingze stood in the corridor, watching her resolute departure.
Instead of the intense emotions I had imagined, I gave a self-deprecating sneer.
This time, it was truly over between him and Lin Zhi.
At this moment of ending, we were both surprisingly at peace.
……
When Shen Mubai picked up Lin Zhi, he felt a pang of heartache looking at the divorce certificate in her hand.
He could tell that Lin Zhi did not feel relieved because of this.
The somber expression on her face reflected the deep reluctance in her heart.
He didn't say much, but instead sent Lin Zhi back to Tianfu Jiangnan.
After working for three days and three nights, she needed to give her body a good rest.
Lin Zhi did not get out of the car, but instead asked Shen Mubai to drive the car back to the studio.
As she got out of the car, Shen Mubai said with concern, "Zhi'er, you're already exhausted enough. If you keep going like this, I'm afraid you'll ruin your health. Even if you don't care about yourself, you should at least care about the baby in your belly. Do you really want the baby to suffer along with you? You can handle it, but can the baby?"
The words of concern left Lin Zhi somewhat dazed.
It was as if Lin Wanxin's words were still ringing in her ears.
She forced a smile and said bitterly, "I'm going back to rest now. Li Tingze and I are divorced, and it's not appropriate for me to stay in his house any longer."
Shen Mubai thought for a moment and said, "I was afraid you would mind, so I didn't dare to mention it before. Actually, I have an apartment nearby that you can live in. Although it's not as big as the apartment in Tianfu Jiangnan, it's enough for you. If you really feel bad, you can pay me the rent at market price every month."
Lin Zhi hesitated for a moment, then nodded in agreement.
Anyway, she was planning to rent a house anyway. Whether she rented from someone else or rented from Shen Mubai, it was still renting.
Since it was rented to her at market price, there's no question of owing her a favor.
The next few days.
Lin Zhi stayed in the house sleeping, unable to muster any enthusiasm for anything.
I spend all my time sleeping except for eating.
This peaceful life was forced to end when Jiang Nan came knocking on his door.
Lin Zhi handed Jiang Nan a cup of tea and said softly, "I'm sorry, I haven't gone shopping yet, so I only have tea."
Jiang Nan smiled slightly: "Ms. Lin, how have you considered the cooperation?"
Lin Zhi was slightly taken aback when she heard the words "Miss Lin".
Jiang Nan quickly explained, "You and Tingze have already obtained a divorce certificate, so it's not appropriate for me to call you sister-in-law anymore."
Lin Zhi smiled faintly.
She recalled Jiang Nan's pure intentions when he found Lin Wanxin for her, and her impression of him changed significantly.
Perhaps he wasn't as cunning as Jiang Anran.
She readily agreed, saying, "Okay, I agree to cooperate with you. However, I think we need to discuss the contract details further. I'll come to see you in person after I've sorted things out in a couple of days."
Lin Zhi's agreement was undoubtedly great news for Jiang Nan.
He didn't dare to bother Lin Zhi any longer and left in a hurry.
Lin Zhi didn't let herself dwell in grief for too long.
She thought that Lin Wanxin wouldn't want to see her so downcast.
……
Jiang Nan arranged for the meeting to be held in the largest conference hall of Li's Marketing Department.
When Lin Zhi arrived at the foot of the Li family's building, she looked up at the towering skyscrapers, but couldn't describe her feelings.
Even though it wasn't rush hour, there were still many people waiting for the elevator.
To avoid being crowded with others, Lin Zhi chose the elevator furthest inside.
Just as she was wondering what was going on, the elevator doors opened.
The first thing she saw was Li Tingze, dressed in a dark brown suit. His assistant, who was standing next to him, blurted out when he saw her, "Madam, what are you doing here?"
The air condensed instantly.
Lin Zhi suddenly realized why no one was standing this way when waiting for the elevator; it turned out that this elevator was Li Tingze's private elevator.
She took a step back and said calmly, "I'm sorry, I didn't know this was your private elevator."
The assistant was about to say it was nothing and come in to go upstairs together.
But seeing Li Tingze's extremely cold expression, he swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue.
Li Tingze's cold eyes had been fixed on Lin Zhi ever since he saw her, never looking away for a moment.
Faced with Lin Zhiru's tone as if she were a stranger.
His heart did not ache as he had expected.
Instead, they seemed somewhat indifferent.
He said coldly, "Jiang Nan works on the 27th floor. This elevator doesn't stop here."
Lin Zhi said "Oh" and took another step back.
The elevator door slowly closed.
They were separated into two worlds once again.
Inside the elevator, the assistant could feel the suffocating oppression emanating from Li Tingze.
He finally couldn't hold back and said, "President Li, you could have reached the 27th floor, so why..."
Li Tingze's eyes flickered slightly, and he spoke in a hoarse voice, "In the past, I never did anything for her in time, and I broke her heart. Now, the only thing I can do is to keep my last promise."
The assistant didn't dare to respond.
But deep down, she thought that Li Tingze ultimately loved Lin Zhi.
only……