She suddenly realized something, turned around and looked at Qi Zhicheng. Only after confirming that Sheng Yan was not in the room did she ask him,
"Did you see the gossip about Sheng Qingran yesterday?"
"You already know about it?"
Feng Qing was stunned. Her thinking was obviously dulled, but she still slowly sensed something unusual. Qi Zhicheng's words implied that she should know more.
"What do you mean?"
Seeing her somewhat dazed look, Qi Zhicheng instantly felt a bit remorseful. He didn't know whether he should say some things or not.
He hesitated for a while, struggling in his heart on how to break the news to Feng Qing in a more acceptable way, but found that he couldn't come up with a more euphemistic method. Maybe the ordeal for Feng Qing had just begun today.
"I think there are some things you shouldn't find it too hard to accept. After all, the chairman has been raising you alone since you were a child. It was only after he sent you abroad five years ago that he truly spent a few years alone."
"The position of the madam in the chairman's heart is irreplaceable, but I think you should understand that a middle - aged man needs companionship. The chairman once had a girlfriend."
Feng Qing didn't think this was something unacceptable. Before, she only thought she was alone abroad, but forgot that her father was also alone in the country.
At least she 'got married' to Lawrence when she was abroad, while her father had been single for so many years.
It was good that he had a companion. At least in the years when she wasn't by her father's side, there was someone with him.
Feng Qing noticed that Qi Zhicheng had been looking at her. It took her several minutes to finally react.
"You mean that woman was Dad's girlfriend?"
Qi Zhicheng suddenly couldn't look into Feng Qing's eyes. She looked so pitiful now. He saw a sense of fragility in her for the first time, like a dying struggle after all her shields were shattered. She clearly didn't want to lose, but had to accept the failure.
He shifted his gaze elsewhere before he could speak normally. "She used to be."
Feng Qing suddenly grabbed Qi Zhicheng and asked eagerly, "You mean that woman was arranged by Sheng Qingran?"
Before Qi Zhicheng could answer, the ward door was pushed open again. When Sheng Yan appeared at the door, he saw Feng Qing holding Qi Zhicheng's arm. Both of them looked a bit dazed when he showed up.
Although he didn't want to interrupt their conversation, he came to deliver breakfast. If they didn't eat it now, it would get cold soon.
"Let's have breakfast first," he could only walk to the hospital bed with his head down, raise the table and put down the breakfast.
Even though he tried not to look at Qi Zhicheng and Feng Qing on purpose, he still saw in his peripheral vision that Qi Zhicheng gently patted Feng Qing's hand.
Sheng Yan knew he shouldn't think too much at this moment, but the question of when they had become so intimate kept lingering in his mind.
Could it be that Qi Zhicheng really had feelings for Feng Qing?
It was true that he had been jealous of Qi Zhicheng before, but at that time, it was Feng Qing who was more dependent on Qi Zhicheng, and Qi Zhicheng himself had always maintained a proper distance.
His inappropriate speculation made him extremely agitated, especially when Qi Zhicheng pulled Feng Qing over to have breakfast. He was on the verge of losing his mind.
Feng Qing also returned to normal after talking to Qi Zhicheng. Her father's death was unclear. As his only daughter, she had to seek justice for him.
***
Feng Shengyang's funeral was held three days after his death. Everything was kept simple.
Many uncles who had not been on good terms with each other before came to persuade Feng Qing to be strong. Feng Qing forced a smile and thanked them for their concern.
The cold wind unique to the deep winter made everyone shiver, and Feng Qing was no exception. She kept trembling, but still straightened her back.
Her back looked so thin, yet so powerful.
Qi Zhicheng stood behind her on the right side. He was both relieved and heart - broken about her growth in such a short period of time.
It seemed that God had never favored Feng Qing.
Everyone knew that Feng Qing was the only daughter of Fengxing Group. She had been born with a silver spoon in her mouth. She was beautiful and had excellent academic performance since childhood. Although her character was a bit arrogant, it was never a big deal.
However, most people would selectively ignore that she had lost her mother since childhood. All the things she was criticized for now were because fatherly love couldn't completely replace motherly love. There were always some corners that could only be illuminated by motherly love and would be left behind. Even if Feng Shengyang had done his best, there were still things beyond his reach.
And now this girl was suffering the pain of losing her only relative.
No one knew what her mood was really like, how deep her sorrow was, or how intense her hatred was.
All they could feel was the pain on the surface.
After the funeral, Feng Qing asked for leave from Sheng Yan and went back home. It was a home she hadn't been to for five years and had rarely visited since she returned to the country.
Many things at home were still the same as in her childhood memories. Almost nothing had changed.
And in the room where her mother's photo was placed, there was now one more photo.
"Dad, Mom, I hope you are still happy and in love there. I hope you still have me. I hope that I must be more sensible and worthy of your love than I am now."
Feng Qing knelt in front of the photos of her parents, already in tears.
Her memory of her mother had become blurred, and her guilt towards her father made her dare not look directly at his photo.
Feng Qing had thought about running away and letting everything fade away. She wanted to go directly in front of her father to repent for what she had done wrong to him.
But Qi Zhicheng was right. She should be what her father hoped her to be.
"Dad, Mom, don't worry. I will live well. Please must choose me as your daughter in the next life."
After saying that, Feng Qing broke down in sobs. She lay on the ground and cried for a long time until she was so tired that she retched and could no longer shed a single tear. Then she slowly curled up her body and lay on the ground, hugging herself. It was as if her parents were still by her side.
Many of the servants at home had been dismissed by her father when she went abroad. Now, when it was Feng Qing's turn to deal with it, there weren't many left for her to send away.
After thinking for a while, she decided to keep them all.
Staying here would only make her sad, but there had to be someone to take care of the house. After all, this was her parents' home, and she didn't want it to become a desolate and abandoned house.
"I'll leave the house to you from now on. Even if I don't come back often, I hope you can take good care of yourselves."
Before leaving, Feng Qing pulled the older servants aside to talk to them. After giving them instructions, she left.
As soon as she got back to her small house and hadn't had a chance to rest, she received a call from Lawrence.
Lawrence didn't know what had happened to Feng Qing in the country. He just called to tell her his good news.
"Joy has agreed to my proposal. I hope you can share this joy with us."
"Congratulations, Lawrence. This is one of the few good news I've had recently."
"Thank you. You must come to our wedding."
Feng Qing smiled faintly and then remembered something very important that she hadn't done yet. "Before that, I think we need to get divorced first."