Zhu Wendong finally managed to escape.
As he left, he didn't ask Zhu Wenjing for money, nor did he dare to ask Cheng Minglang for any medical expenses. He left, covered in injuries.
After Zhu Wendong left, Zhu Wenjing sat helplessly on the curb, hugging her knees and burying her head in them as she cried.
Cheng Minglang, catching his breath, said in a deep voice, "Stop crying! We've agreed to your request!"
The moment they heard this, Zhu Wenjing and I both looked up at Cheng Minglang simultaneously.
Unlike Zhu Wenjing's surprise and joy, I looked at Cheng Minglang in confusion, wondering what had gotten into him today.
If he wanted to play the hero and save the damsel, he should have just said so, why drag us into it?
Honestly, even though Zhu Wenjing's situation was indeed pitiable, I hadn't planned to help her.
The act of roaring against injustice when you see it is only for simple favors; going out of your way to help is truly unnecessary.
Nine out of ten injustices in the world, even a saint couldn't manage them all!
But now...
Since Cheng Minglang had already agreed, I had to put aside the matter with Yu Shuang for now and help Zhu Wenjing deal with Xiang Tianhua first!
My original plan was to exchange contact information with Zhu Wenjing after settling the bill and then arrange a time to meet tomorrow.
After all, it was already dark.
Xiang Tianhua wasn't in his own territory, so finding him would take time and effort.
What I didn't expect was that Cheng Minglang, for some unknown reason, insisted on taking Zhu Wenjing with us and said he would completely resolve the matter of the IOUs and Zhu Wendong for her.
So, after settling the bill, I had Han Jinlun drive Zhu Wenjing to Junlai Hotel...
That night, after settling Zhu Wenjing in, Cheng Minglang found me and explained why he had become so impulsive and irritable that evening.
Cheng Minglang said he knew exactly what it felt like to have a gambling addict as a relative, and it could be summarized in four words:
Life is worse than death!
After learning the real reason for Cheng Minglang's sudden change in temperament that afternoon, I no longer felt resistant to the situation Zhu Wenjing had created.
This was because the taciturn Cheng Minglang said something to me.
"Helping Zhu Wenjing is actually helping me! It's helping me to mend those deep regrets within my heart!"
I understood that Cheng Minglang's words meant that Zhu Wenjing's experience reminded him of his past self.
Therefore, by helping Zhu Wenjing, I was helping the past Cheng Minglang, to mend his childhood regrets.
...
That night, as I was about to go to sleep after taking a shower, I suddenly heard a knock on my room door.
When I opened it, I saw Cheng Minglang with Zhu Wenjing.
For some reason, seeing this scene, I suddenly felt a strange sensation.
I always felt that besides empathizing with her due to his childhood experiences, Cheng Minglang's unreserved help for Zhu Wenjing seemed to... also involve some inexplicable factors.
As for what these unknown factors were, that remained to be seen.
I had planned to sleep, but seeing Cheng Minglang so attentive to a girl, my sleepiness completely vanished.
As I invited them into the room, I also lit a cigarette to stay alert.
Cheng Minglang was someone who habitually displayed his emotions on his face, so as soon as he sat down, he directly revealed the purpose of bringing Zhu Wenjing here so late.
The purpose was simple.
He wanted me to take Zhu Wenjing in and have her work with us.
Having followed me from Anhai all the way to Wenzhou, Cheng Minglang could directly bypass me and make decisions on minor matters, but...
When it came to major issues involving principles, he would always consult me first and then strictly follow my decisions.
Therefore, he did not overstep his bounds when it came to adding manpower to the team.
After hearing Cheng Minglang's request, I didn't give a direct answer immediately. Instead, I looked at him and asked, "Why?"
Upon hearing this, Cheng Minglang replied coldly, "Because I know very well what kind of people gamblers are!"
"When I was a child, whenever my mother, unable to tolerate my father's gambling, asked relatives and friends to persuade him to quit, he would beat her badly afterward!"
"Helping Zhu Wenjing get back the IOU is treating the symptoms, not the root cause. Only by completely separating herself from Zhu Wendong can she regain a new life!"
Seeing my silence, Cheng Minglang suddenly looked at me with an extremely serious tone and said, "Chen Xiang, I have never asked you for anything."
"Today, I want to ask you to help Zhu Wenjing!"
"In a word, can she stay?"
Hearing this, I sighed helplessly, "Let me state clearly, it's not that I don't want to help you, nor do I not want her to stay, but the two of them are blood-related siblings!"
"Moreover, this kind of situation cannot be resolved simply by not seeing or not hearing about it."
Before Cheng Minglang could speak, I continued, "If, I mean, if..."
"If Zhu Wendong gets into trouble later, and the loan sharks call Zhu Wenjing, and Zhu Wenjing asks you for help, will you help or not?"
As soon as I finished speaking, Zhu Wenjing, who had been silent beside us, immediately replied, "No."
Hearing this, I turned to look at Zhu Wenjing.
With her eyes red and swollen from crying, Zhu Wenjing said in a slightly hoarse voice, "I've had enough of being chased by loan sharks and living on the run with him!"
"What happened this afternoon made me see him clearly!"
"In his eyes, there is no longer a sister like me! The only use for my existence is to be mortgaged to those loan sharks when he is desperate and cannot borrow money!"
"Therefore, I will not help him anymore, I want to live for myself!"
Zhu Wenjing's words made my eyes light up.
After carefully observing her for a moment, I asked, "If your brother comes looking for you again, but doesn't explicitly state his purpose, what will you do?"
Hearing my words, Zhu Wenjing did not answer immediately. Instead, she lowered her head slightly, her eyes lost in thought.
After an unknown amount of time...
As she raised her head, a look of determination flashed in her eyes, and Zhu Wenjing gritted her teeth and replied, "No matter what he comes to me for, I will only say one thing to him."
"I have no money, but I have my life!"
Hearing this, I said lightly, "Congratulations, you got it right! From now on, you will start working with me!"
I agreed to let Zhu Wenjing stay, not out of consideration for Cheng Minglang, but because her answer gave me confidence.
As the saying goes: heaven helps those who help themselves!
If you have a gambler at home, never treat the gambler as a normal person, nor try to persuade or help them.
The correct approach is: ignore them, and do not get involved!
If you can't harden your heart, there is only one outcome.
A good family will be dragged down and destroyed!