The director patted his protruding belly and smirked. "It's great of you to think so!" he praised. "Go
home and pack your stuff. You can leave for the airport later in the afternoon."
After packing up her clothes and toiletries, Rachel boarded the flight to the capital city. What she didn't
know that at the same time, Jack had just returned to her apartment. When he got to the bathroom, he
noticed that all of her things were gone.
The memories of what had happened three years ago resurfaced in his mind.
His shoulders shook faintly as he blinked rapidly. "No. It can't be," he murmured to himself.
'She wouldn't leave again, would she?'
His hands trembled as he picked up his phone and dialed her number, only to find that her phone was
powered off.
At that moment, Jack was overwhelmed with misery. His hair was a messed as he paced back and
forth across the living room. He dialed the number again and again. When the call was finally
connected, his eyes were moist and his voice was weak. "Where have you been?" he rasped out.
The airport was noisy, so she couldn't hear it clearly. She simply guessed what he was trying to say
and replied,
"I'm on a business trip. I'll be back the day after tomorrow."
Jack leaned against the wall as his shoulders sagged in relief. He could feel his heart rate slowing
down upon knowing where she was. "Why didn't you tell me?" he demanded shakily.
"I stuck a note on the fridge. Didn't you see it?"
He glanced at the piece of paper stuck on the fridge door. He flushed once she hung up on him. It
seemed that he had been so worried that he overlooked the paper on the fridge.
He called Austin and asked him to book him a flight to the capital city too.
Something rustled from the other end of the line. After a few minutes, Austin said awkwardly, "Mr. Fu,
you have dinner reservations to discuss the partnership Mr. the Zhang. If you aren't there, I'm afraid..."
Jack knew what he meant.
The dinner to be held tomorrow night was not only arranged for him and Mr. Zhang, but also for other
businessmen. If he wasn't there, the others might use the chance to poach his business partner.
He tightened his grip on his phone and closed his eyes. He took a deep breath and thought it over.
When he opened his eyes once again, the uneasiness in his gaze was gone.
"All right. Forget I said anything," he said calmly. "The schedule will go as planned."
His voice had changed in a few minutes that even Austin was surprised from the sudden calmness.
Most of the meetings Rachel had to attend were boring and tedious.
One of the meetings was held in a room that could accommodate three hundred people. From the
looks of it, the room wasn't even half full yet.
Rachel found a seat near the back. As soon as she sat down, a woman, who looked as if she was in
her fifties, walked up to her. She handed her a pen and a list of names. "Sign in, please."
The girl who had been assigned to the same room as Rachel was also one of the absent people today.
But before she left the hotel, she had asked Rachel to sign her in.
Therefore, after signing her name, Rachel scanned the paper, hoping to see the girl's name.
However, before she could, the woman grabbed the papers from her. "You only have one name right?
What else are you looking for?" Although her voice wasn't that loud, everyone could hear her.
The implication behind her words was obvious.
Rachel looked up. "My friend has gone to the bathroom so I'm simply helping her find her name. I don't
want to waste her time," she said quickly.
"Well, she can sign in when she comes back!" The woman didn't even bother to give her another
chance to respond as she walked out of her way.
The meeting was a little boring. Even Rachel couldn't help but scan around the empty room. From the
way the other guests were also looking around, she could guess that they were also bored from the
speech. After excusing herself to go to the bathroom, she walked out of the meeting room and intended
to go outside to get some fresh air.
It had just rained a few minutes ago.
As she stood by the door of the hotel,
she breathed in the refreshing air.
The
cool wind
brushed against her face,
refreshing
her almost immediately.
In MK Group Jack had been scanning the documents placed on his desk,
ignoring the guest waiting outside.
In the reception room of the MK Group,
however, Howard would pick up a teacup every now and then to take a sip. As each second passed,
his hands became even more clammy.
Earlier this morning, Austin had called him up to come here. He didn't give him any reason at all except
for the fact that Jack needed to talk to him.
Although Jack was around the same age as his son, Howard still couldn't help but feel flustered at the
thought of seeing him again.
Rubbing his hands against his trousers, he raised his head. "Is Mr. Fu still busy?" he asked the young
lady who had just walked in with a pitcher of water.
"Yes. He's still in his office." She smiled faintly. Before she could leave, he grabbed her arm.
"Do you know why he asked me to come here?"
She shook her head helplessly.
At that time, Jack slowly put his book back to his shelf. Standing next to him, Austin fidgeted. He had
opened his mouth several times, but he still couldn't find the words to talk to him. Finally, he gulped and
said, "Mr. Fu, Mr. Wu has been waiting in the reception room for half an hour. Aren't you going out to
meet him?"
"That long?" He raised his eyebrows slightly and returned to his seat. "I'll go there in a while."
Austin furrowed his eyebrows. "Mr. Fu, MK Group doesn't have any partnerships with Mr. Wu, right?
Why did you ask him to come over?"
The more he talked, the quieter his voice became. Upon seeing Jack's cold gaze, he realized that he
had asked too much questions. He bowed his head. "I still have something to deal with outside. I have
to go."
Jack lowered his head and tapped on the table. He didn't get up until he heard Howard's voice echoing
into his office.
The old man just couldn't wait any longer. He motioned to his watch. "Austin, why did Mr. Fu call me
here today?" he demanded. "I've been waiting here for half an hour!"
"Mr. Fu is still busy, Mr. Wu. Please wait in the reception room," he stated.
'Although my company isn't as big as MK Group, I'm still the CEO of hundreds of employees. There is
no way I'm going to get bullied by the young man!' Howard clenched his fists. "Well, if he's so busy, you
shouldn't have called me so early!" he snapped. "I still have plenty of things to fix up in my own
company. Do you know what I could've done within the hour that you've asked me to wait?"
The corners of Austin's lips twitched. He cursed his boss with all his heart before he plastered a smile
on his face. "Mr. Fu still has something urgent to deal with," he apologized. "He didn't expect that
something like this would come up."
As soon as he finished speaking, the door to Jack's office opened. With a hand in his pocket, Jack
walked out slowly. A faint smile threaded across his lips. "Mr. Wu," he greeted. "I'm sorry to keep you
waiting."
After seeing him, Howard swallowed his complaints. "It's really not that big of a deal."
While they were talking, Austin wiped the cold sweat that beaded down his forehead. He had to admire
Howard's fast reaction.
Jack didn't respond. Instead, he turned to his secretary. "Send two cups of tea to my office. I have
something to discuss with Mr. Wu."
A few days later, in the hospital, Rachel sneezed three times in a row. Glancing at the saliva that had
been sprayed all over the medical records in her hand, she quickly wiped it off with a tissue.
"Did you catch a cold?" Celia walked in, holding a medical record. "This is a new patient. The director
assigned him to you."
She threw the tissue and nodded. "I'll give it a look later."
"I'll go first. By the way, do you want me to bring some anti-cold drug to you?"
"I don't have a cold." Rachel waved her hand dismissively.
"Really?" Celia crossed her arms and gazed at her. Suddenly, a teasing smile threaded across her lips.
"You know, I heard from Mindy that if someone misses you, you'll sneeze three times," she joked.
"Maybe Jack misses you."
Rachel rolled her eyes and pretended to pick up her phone. "Mindy..."
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