Yonghe Road

Chapter 27 Insomnia
Lin Yingying asked Zhong Ziqi to take a photo of herself, deliberately capturing her pregnant belly and the amber silver bracelet on her wrist, and sent it to Zhong Ziwang.

It was not until midnight that Zhong Ziwang finally replied to the WeChat message.

Lin Yingying was delighted and sat up from the wedding bed.

"Honey, are you off work?"

"Ah."

It seems that Zhong Ziwang is working the first half of the night shift tonight. This is good because he doesn't have to sleep soundly in the middle of the night and then be woken up by the alarm clock to go to work in the tunnel.

Although Zhong Ziwang seldom took photos of his work environment or himself working on the construction site and sent them to Lin Yingying, Lin Yingying could imagine how hard Zhong Ziwang worked.

Zhong Ziwang said he earned a very high salary, potentially 100,000 to 200,000 yuan a year, but his boss withheld his salary until the Lunar New Year. Without the intense workload and harsh working conditions, manual laborers like Zhong Ziwang wouldn't have been able to earn such high salaries.

Fearing that Lin Yingying would be distressed, Zhong Ziwang always reported good news on the phone, never bad news. Lin Yingying also knew that Zhong Ziwang feared her heartbreak, so she kept her mouth shut. Thousands of miles apart, the newlyweds, as usual, shared their safety and hopes for their unborn child.

Finally, Zhong Ziwang noticed the amber silver bracelet on Lin Yingying's wrist through the video call. Lin Yingying happily raised her wrist and showed it to him: "Zi Qi gave it to me. He said it was our family heirloom. My grandmother passed it to my mother when she married into the family. Now it should be passed to me because I am the daughter-in-law of our Zhong family."

"Zi Qi has grown up." Zhong Ziwang was quite touched by his brother's behavior.

"Yes, during the time you were away from home, it was all thanks to Ziqi who supported the family..." Lin Yingying was also generous in praising her brother-in-law.

Zhong Ziwang thought that it would take several months before the Chinese New Year and he would not be able to get his salary to go home for a reunion. He felt guilty towards Lin Yingying because he could not be with his wife who was pregnant. Lin Yingying was also filled with sadness and longing because she would not be able to see Zhong Ziwang for a long time.

Zhong Ziwang comforted Lin Yingying, saying that as long as they could endure the next year or two and pay off their debts, they would no longer have to live apart and suffer the torment of longing. Then, he, her, and their child would be together day and night, enjoying the joy of family life. No matter what, the days were full of hope. Hope was like the blazing sun; as long as they could endure the night, they would see it.

Lin Yingying fell asleep sweetly with her husband's expectations.

Zhong Ziqi tossed and turned that night.

An Hongdou blocked him, which was tantamount to breaking up with him abruptly. He didn't even have a buffer period and entered the torment of heartbreak.

Every day from their acquaintance to their love, every heartwarming detail of their time together, every smile and frown, replayed in Zhong Ziqi's mind. He questioned An Hongdou in his heart: Why? How could you do that? An Hongdou, do you have a heart? Have you ever loved me? Being blocked by An Hongdou made Zhong Ziqi almost angry and humiliated, burning with anger in his heart.

Zhong Ziqi couldn't sleep because of Xie Anmin.

Spending Xie Anmin's money and signing my name on Xie Anmin's IOU was like handing a time bomb to Xie Anmin. I always felt that Xie Anmin could blow me up at any time, so I was very nervous and uneasy.

Just at this time, I received a WeChat message from Wang Zian: Where have you been today?
Zhong Ziqi couldn't tell anyone about the trip he and Xie Anmin had taken to Hanyang to repair the amber and silver bracelet, let alone say that he had spent Xie Anmin's money and even written him an IOU. It would be embarrassing to tell anyone about it.

I can't say that An Hongdou dumped me or blocked me. That would be even more embarrassing.

"You're only caring about me now. I'd be dead anyway." Zhong Ziqi replied to Wang Zian, each word tinged with grievance. He vented his anger, which he couldn't direct at An Hongdou, and his anger, which he didn't dare direct at Xie Anmin, all towards Wang Zian. Ultimately, it was Wang Zian who bore the brunt of it all.

Wang Zian wanted to say to Zhong Ziqi, "How dare you say that? Do you know how busy the tea factory is? Aren't you a shareholder? Does the tea factory belong to me alone? Besides the tea factory, there's also the basketball team. Organizing the Baile Village basketball team is a heavy responsibility entrusted to you by Director Mei Wending..." But Wang Zian couldn't utter a single complaint. In the end, he just asked, "Ziqi, what happened to you?"

Zhong Ziqi suddenly wanted to cry, wanted to burst into tears, with tears pouring down like rain, but he was a man.

"Wang Boya, I miss you." "Zi Qi, do you want to come to my house and sleep?"

Thinking that the new villa area was so far away, Zhong Ziqi gave up.

"It's too far, and my electric donkey is out of battery."

"Then I'll come over to your house and sleep?"

"It's so far, you will be tired and I will feel bad."

Wang Zian frowned on the other end of the phone. This was the unfinished love message from An Hongdou. Should he share a few words with him?
"Okay, Ziqi, go to bed early. We'll talk tomorrow if there's anything."

"Good night, Wang Boya."

"Good night, Ziqi."

The moment he put down his phone, Zhong Ziqi felt much clearer. After all, he, Zhong Ziqi, still had the best brother in the world, didn't he?

I can finally fall asleep tonight.

The next day, Zhong Ziqi got up early and rushed to the tea factory. Wang Zian was even earlier and already busy at the factory.

Luo Youcai helped "Zhiyin White Tea House" to get several orders, and Wang Zian was directing the workers to prepare the goods.

"That Mr. Cai is really courageous." Zhong Ziqi couldn't help but praise him while working together.

"Although his tea shop is not a leading enterprise in the local area, it is also a well-established small and medium-sized enterprise. He is willing to lead our 'Zhiyin White Tea Shop'. At least he eats meat and we can also drink some soup." Wang Zian said.

It is precisely because Luo Youcai's tea company is only a small and medium-sized tea company that has been dealing in mid- and low-end white tea, while "Zhiyin White Tea House" is positioned in the high-end white tea business, the two just complement each other.

Zhong Ziqi deeply admired Wang Zian. The expansion of Zhiyin White Tea House into high-end white tea was due to Wang Zian's stockpile of aged white tea. This practice likely began during Wang Zian's military service, or even during his university years. Back then, Wang Zian was still young and financially strapped, but Secretary Wang Kai helped him save his scholarship and military pay, and he gradually purchased high-quality aged white tea as an investment.

All of this is inseparable from Secretary Wang Kai’s connections and financial support.

Having a good father is very important for children.

Wang Zian couldn't talk too much with Zhong Ziqi, fearing that if he did, it would bring back Zhong Ziqi's sad memories. After all, as a child who lost his father at a young age, Zhong Ziqi looked carefree, but in fact he was sensitive and fragile.

Wang Zian changed the subject and told Zhong Ziqi, "Brother Cai is not only brave and courageous, but also very capable. He can be of great help in forming our basketball team."

Zhong Ziqi's eyes lit up: "Have all twelve basketball players gathered?"

"We've even found a coach for you." Wang Zian said with a smile.

(End of this chapter)