Plunder
Chapter 89 - 89 89 Does Mr. Zhou Want It

Chapter 89: Chapter 89: Does Mr. Zhou Want It? Chapter 89: Chapter 89: Does Mr. Zhou Want It? Zhou Jin’an took the mobile phone, opened the WeChat conversation, and messages from An Kexin popped up one after another.

“Secretary Qiao, I know you’re in a dilemma right now, but we’re all doing this for Ah Ge’s good, so please think it over carefully and don’t refuse. I’ll wait for your response,”

“Secretary Qiao, Ah Ge can’t lose Nanchen, and you don’t want to see him lose everything, right? If you love him, help him this once, okay?”

“Secretary Qiao, I can compensate you. Whatever you want, just name it, and I’ll agree to anything.”

…

Her messages appeared both humble and sincere.

Zhou Jin’an’s long fingers scrolled through quickly, and he finished reading those messages before handing the phone back to Qiao En.

“What does she want you to do?”

Zhou Jin’an’s eyebrows knitted into a frown.

She was flying the flag of wanting to help him, to do what was best for him, but every word and sentence was a threat to Qiao En.

“She’s begging me to have a child with you,”

Qiao En didn’t hide it.

She took a slight breath of relief and looked calmly at Zhou Jin’an.

An Kexin had overstepped in his absence, pulling strings and stirring up quite a few things behind his back—some he knew of, some he did not.

Having a child was a big deal, and she wanted to see Zhou Jin’an’s reaction.

However, she was disappointed.

Zhou Jin’an was neither shocked nor angry.

He took out a cigarette and lighter from his pocket, put a cigarette between his lips, flicked the lighter, and took a hard drag.

Less than a meter apart, Qiao En looked up into his eyes. His eyes were still deep and inscrutable pools, less visible in the swirling smoke.

He lifted the corners of his mouth slightly, his gaze settling on her clear, delicate face, the emotions in his eyes ambiguous, “Are you willing?”

Qiao En was taken aback.

Then she curved her lips in response, counterasking, “Does Mr. Zhou want to?”

He didn’t reply.

The mobile phone suddenly rang at this moment.

Zhou Jin’an glanced at it, answered the call, and walked a short distance away quickly.

Whatever was said on the other end of the line, his face grew increasingly ugly.

“I have something to handle, I’ll be going first, and I’ll contact you later,”

After hanging up the phone, Zhou Jin’an left hastily.

Qiao En stood there, momentarily stupefied, then suddenly laughed.

Zhou Jin’an hadn’t replied, but it was as good as an answer.

How could he want a child born of a substitute?

Just like that, in the blink of an eye, Qiao En made a decision—she would terminate the pregnancy.

Her status was awkward; she could not let the child in her womb follow in her footsteps.

Qiao En hailed a taxi at the entrance of the residential area and headed straight for Central Hospital.

She chose to proceed with the abortion, whether or not someone else had made the appointment for her.

Two o’clock in the afternoon.

A nurse came over to call for Qiao En.

She changed her shoes and followed the nurse inside.

Lying on the operating table, Qiao En’s mind was exceptionally clear.

The anesthesiologist came in, and a nurse asked Qiao En some basic questions as a matter of routine.

Finally, holding Qiao En’s medical report, she said, “The fetus is developing very well, many people can’t even have children when they wish to. Are you sure you don’t want to reconsider?”

Qiao En shook her head firmly.

The nurse left, and only the anesthesiologist remained in the room.

As the drug was injected into Qiao En’s arm, she quickly lost consciousness.

In a daze, Qiao En seemed to hear a voice hovering in her ear.

“You’re so foolish, being a substitute and still wanting to bear his child!”

She really wanted to open her eyes to see the person speaking to her, but her eyelids felt like they weighed a ton; she couldn’t open them no matter how hard she tried.

When Qiao En woke up, she was surprised to find Ding Hao keeping vigil by her hospital bed.

“Why are you here?”

Qiao En shook her groggy head, trying to become more alert.

She asked an obvious question.

Ding Hao walked over to her and, seeing her attempting to get up, reached out to help.

“You forgot, I’m a doctor here. Come on, I’ll take you home.”

“Thank you, I can manage on my own.”

Qiao En pushed him away and supported herself up from the bed.

Before the surgery, Qiao En had looked up information online and knew that there would be dull pain in the lower abdomen after a painless abortion.

But strangely, she didn’t feel anything at all.

As she reached to touch her lower abdomen, Ding Hao saw this and his gaze darkened slightly, “The child is still there, it wasn’t taken out.”

“What did you say?”

Qiao En’s eyes widened, her gaze steadily fixed on Ding Hao.

Ding Hao paused for a moment, moved a bit closer to Qiao En, and said, “En’en, have the child, I’ll raise it with you.”

Qiao En’s eyelids drooped slightly, her mind a bit in disarray.

“Mr. Ding, thank you for your kindness, but this child has nothing to do with you. I will handle it myself, please don’t interfere anymore.”

After Qiao En spoke, she walked towards the exit, and Ding Hao followed her out.

“Qiao En.” He reached out and grabbed her arm.

“Don’t you want to know the story of Su Nian and Zhou Jin’an? I can tell you. Listen and then decide if you still want to be with Zhou Jin’an.”

Qiao En looked up at Ding Hao, her heart pounding incessantly.

“Speak.”

“Su Nian was the girlfriend Zhou Jin’an met while studying abroad. I’m not exactly sure how they met, but I heard they were very much in love. One New Year’s, Zhou Jin’an brought her here once, apparently planning to marry her. However, for some reason, they broke up soon after.”

The story was brief, a love affair in a foreign land that sounded quite poetic.

Zhou Jin’an had considered marrying her, which meant he had already accepted that woman in his heart.

“Why did they break up?”

Qiao En asked curiously.

Ding Hao shrugged his shoulders, “I’m not sure of the details, I was in a different country at the time, and only found out after they separated.”

“What about afterwards?” Qiao En asked further.

“After that, Zhou Jin’an returned to China, but he never dated again, until he met you.”

But that wasn’t what Qiao En wanted to know, “I meant, what about Su Nian?”

Ding Hao’s eyes darkened, a subtle emotion flashing through them.

“Dead, in a plane crash.”

With those four words, he closed the topic of Su Nian.

“Qiao En, that woman is dead, but she lives on in Zhou Jin’an’s heart forever. You can’t replace her, don’t waste your efforts,” he said seriously while looking into Qiao En’s eyes.

Qiao En took a sharp breath, somewhat in disbelief.

If Su Nian was really dead, how could she possibly reappear in Rong City after five years?

“She’s not dead, I’ve seen her.”

She had many encounters with that woman in real life.

Although one was concealed and the other out in the open, Qiao En was convinced that Su Nian was still alive.

Ding Hao seemed unwilling to engage in this debate, exhaling deeply.

“The dead don’t come back to life, Qiao En. Stop deceiving yourself. Zhou Jin’an doesn’t love you. You’re so suspicious because deep down, you already know the answer.”

“By the way, Su Nian’s ashes are buried in Rong City. If you don’t believe me, you can ask Zhou Jin’an to take you there.”

These words set off an uproar in Qiao En’s heart.

She had never imagined that the truth she had been searching for could turn out like this.

The woman was dead—that seemed to be an ironclad fact.

But if the person she saw wasn’t Su Nian, then who was it?