FMTL~Chapter 166: A Happy Ending~Part 4

 

Chapter 166: A Happy Ending~Part 4

The newspapers over the past two days have all been telling the same story: Zhou Han loved Ling Ran so much that he even gave up his long-time friend for her, only to end up like this. It's truly hard to accept.

When Su Yicheng arrived at the bar at the private club where they often met, Ye Ziwen had already left. Zhou Han was still sitting at the bar, pouring wine from a bottle. Several bottles on the table were already empty. It was obvious that Zhou Han had drunk quite a bit and was almost at his limit.

Frowning, he walked over, briefcase in hand, and sat down next to him. Zhou Han, his eyes bleary from the alcohol, didn't recognize Su Yicheng at all. Someone sat down next to him, reeking of alcohol, "Don't, don't sit here. Hiccup—here, this is my friend's seat. Hiccup—he'll be here soon!"

Su Yicheng turned to the bartender and asked, "How much has he had?"

The bartender glanced at Zhou Han, pointed to the two empty bottles on the bar, and exaggeratedly gestured with his hands. "Including the ones on the table, that's more than five."

Su Yicheng nodded, set his briefcase on the bar, reached out to take the bottle from Zhou Han, and said calmly, "That's enough. Stop drinking."

His drink was snatched away, and Zhou Han instinctively reached for it, still mumbling drunkenly, "Give it to me, give it to me, I want more..."

Su Yicheng set his drink aside, grabbed his hand, and, with a serious expression, said, "Enough, Zhou Han!"

Zhou Han seemed to finally recognize his voice. He looked up through hazy eyes, staring at him intently for a long moment before nodding and chuckling, "Ah, Ah Cheng!" Pointing at him, he smiled blankly and said, "Yes, yes, you're Ah Cheng, Ah Cheng!"

Su Yicheng sighed and turned to the bartender at the bar, saying, "Can you give me a sugar water, please?" He looked completely unconscious, even the most basic conversation was a problem.

The bartender nodded, turned, and sent someone to the kitchen.

Zhou Han was completely unconscious. He watched Su Yicheng stagger, his hand still reaching forward, and he kept shouting for a drink.

The waiter quickly returned from the kitchen with a glass of sugar water. Su Yicheng handed it to Zhou Han. Zhou Han tried to open the glass, but Su Yicheng dodged. As he held it back, Zhou Han knocked it away, sending the glass and its contents crashing to the ground, shattering into the air.

Su Yicheng turned and addressed the bartender again, "Give me a glass of ice water."

The bartender nodded and poured him a glass of ice water. Su Yicheng took it, but instead of drinking, he poured the contents directly into Zhou Han's face.

It was as if time had suddenly stopped. Zhou Han froze in his tracks, and even the bar staff were stunned, unable to react.

Placing the glass back on the counter, Su Yicheng looked at Zhou Han coldly and said, "Are you awake?" His voice was cold and emotionless, devoid of even a hint of emotion.

Zhou Han finally came to his senses, the alcohol having mostly sobered up. He stared at him intently, his hands clenched tightly on the bar.

Su Yicheng simply stared at him. Neither of them spoke, and the atmosphere suddenly grew tense.

The two stared at each other in silence for a long moment. Suddenly, Zhou Han raised his fist and punched Su Yicheng in the face. Su Yicheng was born into a military family and had grown up in a military compound. His father and grandfather had given him a military-style education, and his skills were no less impressive than those of the soldiers under his father's command.

He ducked his head to avoid Zhou Han's incoming punch, but Zhou Han seemed serious, following with another. Su Yicheng raised his hand to intercept it mid-air, looking at Zhou Han coldly and saying, "You really want to fight?"

Zhou Han said nothing, but continued to punch him fiercely. Zhou Han was quite skilled. To be honest, he, Zhou Han, and Ye Ziwen had known each other since childhood, and their skills were similar, practically on par.

Zhou Han, drunk, now possessed a brute force. His punches were powerful and accurate. Su Yicheng remained unscathed, but was hit in the stomach and groaned in pain.

When Zhou Han came for another blow, he dodged and clamped him down from behind, then angrily said, "You really want to fight, don't you?"

Zhou Han struggled free, staring intently at him, and shouted, "Yes!"

"Okay!" Su Yicheng responded loudly, his expression more furious than ever. He turned to the waiter and said, "Get us a private room." If he didn't mind a fight, then find a place for a good fight!

The bartender and waiter at the bar were a bit startled by the display. They'd thought it was a joke, but the noise didn't seem to indicate any mercy.

"Su, Mayor Su, this, this isn't good, is it?" the waiter said with a slightly quizzical expression.

"Do you want us to fight here?" Su Yicheng glanced at the tables and chairs around him. The bar wasn't crowded today, just one or two people enjoying a drink in the booths. They weren't curious about the commotion and remained seated, sipping their drinks.

It was clear they weren't joking. To avoid unnecessary damage to the bar, the waiter considered opening a private room for them. After they entered, he called the club's manager. Due to Su Yicheng's special status, the matter had to be handled by higher-ups.

When the club's manager rushed back from outside, Su Yicheng and Zhou Han had already opened the door, and only the sound of crackling could be heard from inside.

Hearing the commotion inside, Manager Tang of the club turned to the waiter who had been standing nearby with a frown on his face, asking, "How long have they been in there?"

"Almost 10 minutes," the waiter replied truthfully. The supervisor had told him to stand by the door as soon as they entered, so that if anything went wrong, he could immediately call the police or an ambulance. "Manager, do you want to call the police?"

Manager Tang rolled his eyes at him and said, "Why call the police? Don't you know who the two people in there are?" One is the mayor, the other the CEO of a major company. Neither of them could afford to offend!

The waiter hushed, saying nothing more.

Just as the two men waited anxiously outside, the sound from the private room suddenly fell silent.

The two glanced at each other, and the waiter couldn't help but ask, somewhat worriedly, "Is something wrong?"

Manager Tang, also worried, turned and knocked gently on the door, calling inside with a smile, "Mayor Su, President Zhou?"

There was no response; silence was total.

Hearing no echo, Manager Tang leaned against the door panel to listen. Still no sound, as if the previous commotion hadn't occurred, as if the room had never been occupied to begin with.

"Why is there no sound?" Manager Tang muttered softly, his brow furrowed in confusion.

"Could something have happened?" the waiter speculated.

After hearing this, Manager Tang couldn't help but worry. If something had really happened here, and the two people inside were both prominent figures, he couldn't bear the responsibility. He turned and hurriedly called to the waiter beside him, "Open the door, open the door! Quickly open the door!"

"No, I don't have a key," the waiter, a little frightened by the scene, said timidly. "Hurry and get it!" Manager Tang said anxiously.

"Oh, oh." The waiter finally realized what was happening and hurried out to find the bartender and get the key to the private room from him.

After taking the key, Manager Tang was about to open the door when it swung open with a bang.

Su Yicheng emerged, holding his shirt in one hand and rubbing his mouth with the other. His white shirt was wrinkled from the fight and even ripped under his armpits.

Zhou Han followed him out, also holding his shirt and throwing it over his shoulders. He had a bruise at the corner of his eye. His dark blue shirt had been unbuttoned, and now his chest was exposed. From the front, he could see he had a nice physique and six-pack abs, clearly a martial artist.

Inside the private room, the coffee table had been pushed to the far corner, shattering glass all over the floor. Even the LCD monitor hanging on the wall was affected, its screen cracked.

Manager Tang and the waiter subconsciously made way for the two men, still a bit stunned.

Su Yicheng rubbed his lips and headed towards the bar lobby. Without turning back, he said, "The bill for the drinks and any damage inside will all be charged to Ye Ziwen." He then went to the bar counter, picked up his briefcase, and picked up the one Zhou Han had left behind, tossing it to him. Then, without a word, the two of them left the club.

In the parking lot, Zhou Han headed straight for his car, but Su Yicheng stopped him from behind, "Do you want to report the DUI?"

Zhou Han stopped his hand on the car door handle and turned to look at Su Yicheng intently.

Su Yicheng glanced at him and said, "Let's go. We've had enough of the fight. Let's find a place to talk." With that, he opened the door and got into his car.

Zhou Han said nothing, but eventually, he grabbed his briefcase and got into Su Yicheng's car.

Su Yicheng drove directly to the riverbank, turned off the engine, and got out, standing on the embankment. The night breeze tangled his already messy hair even further. Zhou Han also got out of the car and stood beside him.

Without turning to look at him, Su Yicheng simply said, "It's about the newspaper."

"Hehe." Zhou Han smiled bitterly, his smile as bitter as if he had swallowed a yellow pill.

He didn't answer, and Su Yicheng didn't ask any more questions. The two of them stood on the embankment for a long time. When he felt the smell of alcohol on him was almost dissipated by the river breeze, Su Yicheng turned around and prepared to return to the car.

Just as Su Yicheng turned around, Zhou Han, who had been silent until then, suddenly spoke up. "It wasn't until I saw that post that I realized she had so many men before."

Su Yicheng stopped and turned to look at him from behind. He knew who she was referring to.

Zhou Han spoke slowly, his tone tinged with self-mockery, "We divorced because she cheated on me. During the divorce, she accused me of not having time to spend with her or care about her, that I was all about work. For a while, I always thought I wasn't doing enough, that I neglected her feelings, that she had no friends in America, and that she was too lonely. I divorced her because I couldn't accept it, but I never hated her."

Su Yicheng remained silent. Only now did he realize how deeply Zhou Han loved Ling Ran. He even began to understand why he was willing to give up the brotherhood they had known for just over a decade to be with her. But he hid it so well at the time that he and Ye Ziwen didn't even notice, so they couldn't accept his sudden betrayal.

After a pause, Zhou Han suppressed his emotions and said with some pain, "Actually, I've known for a long time that Xiaobin isn't my son." As soon as he finished speaking, he punched the embankment guardrail hard.

Su Yicheng was stunned, looking at him speechless. "Hehe." Zhou Han lowered his head and smiled a little sadly. "One time, my child was in a car accident. I took him to the hospital, and the doctor said he needed a blood transfusion. That's when I realized he wasn't my son at all!" His voice was suppressed, tinged with unspeakable pain.

Slowly turning his head, he looked at him and said, "My first reaction was to say the child was yours, but then I thought, that's impossible. You weren't together during that time, so the child couldn't be yours. That's when I realized the girl I'd always loved wasn't the person I knew. I didn't even know which side of her was the real her." He looked at Su Yicheng with a wry smile and asked, "Do you think this is retribution?"

"You—" Su Yicheng wanted to say something, but for a moment he didn't know what to say.

Zhou Han turned his head with a wry smile, looked up at the endless night sky, and laughed, but that smile was tinged with lingering bitterness.

Su Yicheng looked at him, stepped forward, and opened his mouth to say something, but he inadvertently noticed the shimmering moonlight on his cheeks. He paused, then couldn't take another step. This was the first time he'd seen Zhou Han cry.