Chapter Thirty-Four: Son of a bitch!

  After an unknown period of time, they looked at each other and said in unison: "Actually... hehe, you go first."

  "You go first, Sister Xu," Zhang Ziheng said with a smile.

  Director Xu smiled and nodded, saying: "Actually, Ziheng, I understand your feelings. You're still young and haven't met many people, let alone women. So when you see me, it's natural to feel a little surprised or fond of me. This is a normal thing, I was the same when I was young. But now I understand that it's just admiration in my heart, not romantic feelings between men and women. Ziheng, you're a good kid, kind and honest, whether it's towards friends or family, you're a great person to have around. I'm happy to be friends with you, I hope we can maintain this relationship, and I'll treat you like my own younger brother."

  After hearing what Xu said, Zhang Ziheng felt a little downhearted. She was obviously saying this to prevent him from thinking wildly, but only he himself knew how he really thought in his heart.

  "Xu jie, I understand what you're saying. Maybe my feelings for you are just admiration after all. Honestly, you're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen so far, and I'm not just talking about your appearance, but also your inner beauty. I still remember when I first saw you, I was deeply attracted to your charming personality. Since breaking up with my first girlfriend, you're the first woman who makes my heart skip a beat. I don't know if it's love or some other feeling, but every time I think of you, I really want to see you and make you smile. When you're happy, I'm happy; when you're not, I won't be either - that's just how simple it is. Maybe you think I'm still young and don't understand what love is, but I can responsibly tell you that all I want is to make you happy, let you be joyful, and see your smile. These are my true feelings, and I know it's not right for me to say this since I have a girlfriend now, but every time I see you, I just can't help myself - I really want to tell you, Xu jie..."

  "Alright, don't say anything more." Xu Zong felt more and more that something was off, just like she had said herself, now she was a mature woman who could understand the mind of a young person. Everything Zhang Ziheng had said were thoughts of someone in love, which meant he really liked her. Thinking of this, Xu Zong couldn't help but glance at the anklet on her left ankle, thinking to herself that perhaps from then on, he had already been subtly hinting at his feelings.

  Seeing Xu Jie's head bowed as if in thought, combined with her slightly red face, Zhang Ziheng found her more and more beautiful, more and more lovely. He didn't know why, but he raised his hand uncontrollably and touched Xu Zong's face.

  Xu was so frightened that she hastily retreated, nervously staring at Zhang Ziheng, her heart beating faster and faster, her breathing also a bit urgent. What is he going to do? I already made it very clear just now, doesn't he understand? Xu couldn't figure out why, but instead of questioning Zhang Ziheng, she stared at him tensely.

  Seeing Xu Jie's tense appearance and the fluctuating chest caused by her rapid breathing, Zhang Ziheng's mind suddenly went blank, not knowing what to think. At this moment, he suddenly made a move that surprised both of them.

  Zhang Ziheng suddenly leaned forward, his arms wrapped around Xu's waist, holding her in his embrace. He whispered softly into her ear: "Xu Jie, I...I like you, I really like you, I love you."

  Xu was stunned, she became flustered and for a moment, she had no way out. She never thought that Zhang Ziheng would make such a bold move, if it were someone else and somewhere else, she might have pushed the person away and then slapped them hard. But now, not only did she not do so, but she also remained motionless, allowing Zhang Ziheng to hold her, in her opinion, this...this was simply too illogical.

  He finally spoke out his mind, and Zhang Ziheng suddenly felt a lot lighter. Holding Xu's soft body, smelling the fragrance emanating from her, he slowly closed his eyes, as if savoring this wonderful moment.

  After a while, Director Xu finally reacted and hurriedly pushed Zhang Ziheng away with force, his face full of embarrassment, like a child who had done something wrong.

  "What... what are you doing?! Ah, Zi Heng, your audacity is getting bigger and bigger!" Xu Zong said with a somewhat unhappy tone.

  Seeing Xu like this, Zhang Ziheng was actually very happy. "Sorry, Xu Jie, but I really couldn't help it. The words I said earlier had been buried in my heart for a long time, and even I didn't know about them myself. Until today when I said them out loud, I finally understood that I had been deceiving myself all along. Xu Jie, no matter how you look at me, the words I said earlier were true, I really like you."

  "Alright, don't say anything more. Zi Heng, I'm very unhappy with you, do you know that? You already have Wang Xue now, she's your girlfriend, not me. I'm just your superior, colleague, friend, and at most, your sister. We're absolutely impossible." Xu Zong said with a sigh.

  "Why? Why can't we be together? Don't you have any feelings for me at all, Xu Jie? Not even a little bit?" Zhang Ziheng asked with some reluctance.

  "Zi Heng, I'm already 31 years old this year, and I've even been divorced. What about you? You're still young, it's the time for a man to strive, you should put all your thoughts on your career. Thinking of romantic relationships is already not right, let alone with me... Alas, Zi Heng, let me tell you clearly, we are simply not compatible." Xu Zong shook his head and said.

  Zhang Ziheng looked at her with a puzzled expression and said, "Who said that? Who made the rules? Who says that in a couple, the man must be older than the woman? Can't the woman be older than the man? I think true love knows no age, nationality, or even gender. As long as two people truly love each other, they have the right to be together and don't need to care about what others think."

  Director Xu shook his head, looking at him with a sorrowful expression and said: "Ziheng, you're still young now, there are some things you don't understand. Sometimes, this emotional thing, it's not something that one person can decide on their own, when you grow up you'll understand."

  "What's going on? Why do you always treat me like a kid? I'm not little anymore, I've grown up. Now I have my own job, my own friends, and my own ideals. Most importantly, I have my own thoughts, no matter what I do, it's all my own business, I can make my own decisions. When I was at home, my mom always treated me like a kid, why now that I'm out on my own, you're doing the same?" Zhang Ziheng said angrily and loudly.

  "Zi Heng, you don't understand, I'm doing all this for your own good. I don't want to harm you, I don't want you to regret it later." Xu Zong said with a heavy heart.

  "Regret? How could I regret? I want a home, a home of my own, I want someone I truly like, I want that person to be with me, to accompany me, is this also wrong?" Zhang Ziheng asked in confusion.

  Xu shook his head and said: "You're right, you're not wrong, the mistake is that you didn't find the right person. The one who can stay by your side can be anyone, but it's absolutely not me."

  "Xu Jie, I don't want to know anything else right now. I just want to know if you like me, if you have any feelings for me, even if it's just a little bit." Zhang Ziheng said seriously.

  Xu Zong was taken aback for a moment, she knew that her answer was very important and once spoken could not be changed, so she had to think carefully.

  "Sorry, Zi Heng, I've never had any feelings for you." Xu said, lowering his head, but in his heart, he felt extremely uncomfortable.

  "No way, it's impossible, Sister Xu, you're deceiving me, I can tell, you're deceiving me." Zhang Ziheng shook his head and said, at the same time he hugged Xu Zong tightly in his arms again, holding her tightly no matter how she struggled, he wouldn't let go.

  Xu looked at him struggling to break free and said: "Ziheng, don't be like this, accept reality."

  Zhang Ziheng shook his head, and suddenly he held Xu's face in his hands and kissed him. It was really unknown where he got the courage to do this, and he even learned how to French kiss.

  Xu Zong was scared again, she pushed Zhang Zi Heng away while trying to twist her head, gritting her teeth, wanting to break free. But how could she have the strength of Zhang Zi Heng? After struggling for a long time, she couldn't break free and instead became weaker, her lips uncontrollably opening. Zhang Zi Heng took advantage of the opportunity, using his tongue to pry open her teeth, and the two tongues entwined together.

  This isn't real, none of this is real, Xu thought to herself as she kissed Zhang Ziheng. Although her heart was unwilling a hundred times over, her body had surrendered, and she no longer struggled, instead lightly wrapping her arms around Zhang Ziheng and meeting his kiss.

  The two kissed more and more passionately, slowly falling onto the bed, as if they had forgotten time, forgotten place, forgotten everything, with only the two of them, nothing else. Just as Zhang Ziheng's hand was caressing Xu's body, a ringtone came from the phone, breaking the quiet atmosphere.

  The two of them stopped in perfect sync, gazing at each other with tender eyes, their expressions hinting that there was more to be said. The phone rang on, and Zhang Ziheng let out a sigh as he pulled it out from his pocket, only to find that the call was from Wang Xue.

  Xu also saw it, but from her eyes, it can be seen that she was somewhat unhappy. "Take it," Xu said lightly.

  Zhang Ziheng nodded, got up from Xu's body, sat on the edge of the bed and answered the phone. "Hello, Xue'er."

  "Hey, where are you? You're not going to stay out just because I scolded you a few times, are you? Are you angry? Sorry about that, it was my fault for hitting you. Maybe my head wasn't clear this afternoon and I didn't mean to do that. Can I apologize to you? Please come back quickly, I miss you." He thought he would be met with Wang Xue's harsh scolding, but unexpectedly she apologized so gently, leaving Zhang Ziheng truly surprised for a moment.

  He then thought about what he had just done and suddenly felt a sense of guilt, feeling that he was a total idiot.

  "Wait for me, I'll be right back." Zhang Ziheng said.

  "Uh, then hurry up, I'm waiting for you." After finishing speaking, Wang Xue happily hung up the phone.

  "Get up and go back, let's just forget what happened today, okay?"

  Zhang Ziheng turned his head to look at Xu Jie, thinking to himself how could he possibly forget. Today was a day that would stay with him until the day he died, and yet, at the same time, he couldn't help but despise himself. Thinking about what he had done and said earlier, he felt deeply sorry for Wang Xue, and thought of himself as a complete scumbag, an unfaithful scumbag.

  "Sorry, Sister Xue," Zhang Ziheng said, getting up and taking his clothes and briefcase to leave.

  Watching Zhang Ziheng leave, President Xu's heart was like a knife cut, she really didn't want him to go, she wanted him to stay with her for a while. As she thought about it, President Xu actually shed tears.