Don't measure your own worth by the way others treat you.
That, too, is a form of bullying.
It was only later that Xu Tingyu realized that she had been bullied within her family.
Zhang Qiu had always been trying to manipulate her.
It just hadn't been too obvious before the Xu family went bankrupt.
But now, she wouldn't be manipulated anymore.
She was no longer a delicate flower that couldn't even protect herself in the storm.
She had grown into a towering tree that could shield herself from the wind and rain.
So after saying that, she turned around and walked out of the ward.
Zhang Qiu's plan "miscarried". She seemed to have had all her bones and muscles pulled out. Sitting on the sofa, she couldn't even stand up.
She could only stare blankly as Xu Tingyu left.
Xu Tingyu didn't go back to the hotel. Instead, she went to a coffee shop.
She didn't expect to get much information from Zhang Qiu, so she had also made an appointment with Secretary Qian.
Logically speaking, she should have met Secretary Qian as soon as she returned to the country.
But Secretary Qian had moved in with his son's family a year ago.
Xu Tingyu had invited his whole family to watch a show in Kyoto, but unfortunately, it conflicted with their already - planned round - the - world trip.
Of course, there was no reason to ask them to change their plan.
So the two of them had made an appointment to meet after Secretary Qian's trip.
It happened to be today.
When Xu Tingyu went to see Zhang Qiu, she didn't bring any food or drinks.
She only left that bag when she was leaving.
Actually, it was originally bought for Zhang Qiu.
It was a birthday gift for her 50th birthday.
But now, when going to meet Secretary Qian, she had a whole trunk full of gifts.
She had even prepared a gift for his little grandson.
When she arrived at the coffee shop, Secretary Qian was already there.
Compared with four years ago, he hadn't changed much. He was still as steady and energetic as ever.
The moment he saw Xu Tingyu, he stood up.
"Miss, over here."
He stubbornly called her Miss, and Xu Tingyu no longer corrected him.
"Uncle Qian, long time no see. You still look so young."
She greeted him with a smile, but couldn't help but think of the old days.
Back then, Secretary Qian always followed her father around. He was quiet, but he would give her lollipops and play with her.
He only had a son, about the same age as Xu Tingyu, so he had always liked her.
Now seeing Xu Tingyu, Secretary Qian's face was full of kindness. He looked at her carefully from head to toe before sighing.
"Tingyu, you're really amazing."
He wasn't very good at expressing himself. This sentence meant that he was praising her for getting out of the trough and taking good care of herself.
Back then, as soon as the Xu family had an accident, the person he worried about most was Xu Tingyu.
As an outsider, he could tell that she wasn't valued in the Qi family, and Zhang Qiu was a very fragile person.
He had once thought that this delicate flower of hers was probably going to wither in the storm.
But unexpectedly, she had bloomed the most brilliant flowers and borne the best fruits in the thorns and mud.
Xu Tingyu also knew what he meant. She showed a gentle smile and asked, "Uncle Qian, how have you been these years?"
At first, when she went abroad, she didn't dare to contact Secretary Qian and the others for fear that they would be implicated by Old Master Qi.
It was only after she gradually got a foothold that she re - established contact with them.
The last time when Zhang Qiu was transferred to another hospital, she had asked Secretary Qian to help with it.
"I'm doing pretty well. I retired a long time ago. My son and daughter - in - law treat me well. My wife and I just help them take care of the kids."
Secretary Qian was also deeply affected after Xu Jianmin jumped off the building.
Especially seeing what happened to Xu Tingyu later, and not being able to do much to help, he felt full of guilt.
So later, he refused the invitations from other enterprises and directly retired.
Now, enjoying life and playing with his grandson, he was quite at ease.
After the two of them exchanged some pleasantries, Xu Tingyu got to the point.
"Uncle Qian, I'm still investigating my father's cause of death back then. On the day he passed away, besides Qi Shifeng, did he really not meet anyone else?"
Secretary Qian had always known about her pursuit of the truth about that year.
So he wasn't surprised by her question. "I wasn't in the company that day. I went to the bank to consult about loans. But as far as I know, that's the case."
During that period, Xu Jianmin was at the end of his rope. Even the bank had been chasing after him for debt repayment.
It wasn't hard to understand that he finally chose a desperate path.
The problem was that he made this choice before he even got Qi Shifeng's final reply. It was really sudden.
Hearing this answer that she had heard many times, Xu Tingyu was silent for a moment.
"Do you know who my father was still in contact with in the end?"
Xu Jianmin had quite a few friends.
Although none of them came to help after the family went bankrupt, before that, he was a well - known Confucian businessman, and many people admired him.
Secretary Qian was almost always by his side, so he must know.
Sure enough, after a moment of deep thought, Secretary Qian reported a long list of names.
They were all prominent figures in Kyoto even now.
"Miss, why are you asking about these? Do you suspect that there's a hidden story behind what happened that year?"
Secretary Qian realized what was going on and looked at her worriedly.
It was right for her to pursue the truth about that year, but it also meant that she would have to pay a great price.
"Uncle Qian, I won't hide it from you. I used to think that my father's bankruptcy that year was due to a wrong decision."
"But he had been in business for many years. How could he have made mistakes again and again? And why did he get involved in gambling? He didn't even play cards before."
"I always cared about why Qi Shifeng didn't save my father back then, but I ignored why my father ended up in such a situation."
"Could it really be something that a person like Cai Lan could achieve? I've investigated for a long time and found that the Qi family wasn't involved at that time."
No matter how she investigated, she couldn't find any evidence of Qi Shifeng's direct involvement that year.
In the end, Cai Lan got so many benefits, which also seemed too reasonable.
It was as if everything was just for her to see.
But what was Qi Shifeng's reason for doing this?
Even if he didn't like her and wanted to take revenge on her for insisting on marrying him, after he succeeded, why didn't he just go public with Xie Yu?
But he didn't do that.
Moreover, during the years of their marriage, he had never mentioned divorce.
All of this was full of irrationality. So on the surface, she hated Qi Shifeng extremely, but in private, she had been investigating other possibilities.
Secretary Qian stared at Xu Tingyu for a long time. Finally, his face suddenly became solemn as he spoke.
"Actually, I've been hiding something. I originally thought it was unnecessary to say it, but since you haven't given up on the investigation, I'll tell you."
After saying this, he was silent for a long time again, as if he was organizing his words or considering how to start.
Xu Tingyu didn't urge him. She just calmly sipped her coffee.
But her heart was already in her throat. If you looked closely, you could even see that her hand holding the coffee cup was slightly shaking.
"Actually, Mr. Xu had a secret back then. He had someone outside and even had a child."