Even Ni Jingqiu never expected that the situation would develop in this manner. She initially only intended to alert Kohei Koizumi of an abnormal relations.h.i.+p between Arisuke Watanabe and the Ultimate Media to stop the investment.

However, she never expected that Arisuke Watanabe would actually injure someone in the hotel, nor did she expect that Arisuke Watanabe would be beaten up by Su Tao.

In the end, the plan never came as fast as the change, but the outcome was clear as this situation was to her advantage.

Kohei Koizumi was an intelligent person, so even if he knew that she might have something to do with this plan, it"s ultimately still because of a problem in Arisuke Watanabe"s character.

He had considered Arisuke Watanabe as his successor and even loosened up his authorities a little, so Arisuke Watanabe had been fis.h.i.+ng for money.

He"s actually not friendly towards China, as was rumoured. He just did not decide on any political stance, in which he was tagged by the party hostile to China as such.

In life, there were many times when statuses are forced upon you when you maintain a neutral position.

After a long call with Kenji Inada, the latter decided to silently handle this matter. After all, Arisuke Watanabe humiliated an entire race, and if this matter was known to the media, it would definitely cause quite a bit of trouble.

In the end, Mr. Wu was sent to the hospital while Du Jing and Mr. Lei both felt ashamed as they silently left. After all, no one was willing to be called a traitor.

Under Ni Jingqiu"s company, Kohei Koizumi returned to his car. But just when he was about to board his vehicle, he suddenly turned around to look at Ni Jingqiu and said in a grave tone, "Ms. Ni, I initially intended to resign upon my return, but it seems now that I can"t do that. As for that Newlight Media"s project, I will do my best to facilitate it while I"m still in this position."

Listening to Kohei Koizumi"s declaration, Ni Jingqiu was a little shocked before she calmly said, "If the Fuji Group is willing to invest in Newlight Media, I believe that we will definitely bring you ample profits."

After taking a deep glance at Su Tao, Kohei Koizumi smiled as he entered the vehicle.

Sitting beside him, Asaka Ochi held onto his hand and sounded her concern, "Didn"t we agree that you will resign upon your return and that we would travel around the world to enjoy life?"

Showing a deep look towards Asaka Ochi, Kohei Koizumi said with guilt in his tone, "Ochi, I"m sorry. I can"t leave with such a mess behind. After all, the Fuji Group is my blood and life, so I can"t watch it being ruined by the likes of Watanabe Arisuke."

"I knew that I couldn"t stop you, but what can you do about it?" Asaka Ochi bitterly smiled.

With resolution flickering in his eyes, Kohei Koizumi replied, "Watanabe Arisuke represented an interest group, and I want to uproot them while I"m still around. Otherwise, I will feel guilty for everything that the Fuji Group has given me."

Asaka Ochi knew that she couldn"t change Kohei Koizumi"s decision and recalled Su Tao"s warning for Kohei Koizumi to maintain a positive outlook. If her husband goes back into the hoodwinking business industry, wouldn"t it mean that he would suffer an outbreak sooner?

Seeing her concern, Kohei Koizumi softly said, "Please allow me to be selfish. I might have a longer life if I were to ignore everything, but how would I be any different from a zombie?"

As Asaka Ochi"s eyes turned watery, she lightly nodded her head. "I will respect your decision!"

"So, how are you going to repay me when I"ve helped you with such a big favour?" Su Tao looked at Ni Jingqiu as he asked, looking somewhat unhappy.

"We"re friends, so why are you making such a big fuss?" Ni Jingqiu casually patted Su Tao"s shoulder.

"It appears to me that you still do not understand the meaning of friends.h.i.+p!" Su Tao sourly replied.

"Why don"t you explain it to me, then?" Ni Jingqiu asked, baffled

Wearing a solemn expression, Su Tao lectured, "True friends.h.i.+ps are not meant to be made use of. Why do you think there"s a saying that a hedge between keeps friends.h.i.+p green?

"Friends can be considered as luxury goods, and it"s sufficient to have a rapport between your mentalities. But nowadays, people are treating friends as a tool to use when you need them and forget about them when you do not need them. This shouldn"t be the standard of friends.h.i.+p as it should not be meant to be used. Friends.h.i.+p is also the same as a relations.h.i.+p; it should be sparkling and translucent without any impurities."

Listening to Su Tao"s explanation, Ni Jingqiu fell into a brief silence before she shook her head and smiled. "You"re truly blessed with eloquence. But I feel that although friends shouldn"t be used, occasional uses can allow each other to keep in touch and also increase our understanding with each other. Furthermore, contacting Kohei Koizumi is also beneficial to you. If the TCM cultural project kickstarts, it will benefit you greatly."

"Thank you for your honesty!" Su Tao sighed.

As a smile rose on her lips, Ni Jingqiu replied, "Well, we"re not only friends but also partners. Thus, we shouldn"t make use of each other, and at the same time, make use of each other."

Teased by her, Su Tao sighed and chuckled, "You"re actually a dominant woman."

After interacting with Ni Jingqiu for such a long time, he felt that there were many times he fell into her trap, moving according to her plans.

There were different types of people, just like tea. Some teas were refres.h.i.+ng and light, while some tea had a heavy taste. Ni Jingqiu belonged to the latter, and teas like her had to be tasted with care to get a true taste of her. Her character shared a resemblance to her father; they"re both astute and circ.u.mspect. But at the same time, she was also meticulous and had a keen sense as a woman.

Letting out a sigh, Ni Jingqiu responded, "Being dominant is needed for survival. If you don"t show sufficient charm, your subordinates won"t listen to your instructions, and at the same time, the elders will also think that you"re not up to the task; your parents will think that you"re too weak…"

Nodding his head, Su Tao smiled. "Alright. I"ll forgive you for making use of me!"

"I"m not making use of you, but we"re cooperating for a better future." Ni Jingqiu emphasised.

Looking at Ni Jingqiu"s genuine gaze, Su Tao"s heart fluttered. All of a sudden, he felt that the TCM cultural project might genuinely succeed.

"The National Healer Selection has already ended, and I will be leaving Beijing soon." Su Tao announced with a depressed mood. Although he did not stay in Beijing for a long time, too many things took place for the past three months.

"You"re not going to wait for your branch in Beijing to open?" Ni Jingqiu asked in perplexion.

"I won"t be waiting for it! There are still many things that await me." Su Tao smiled as he continued, "But I will be coming to Beijing often in the future, so don"t forget about me!"

"You can be a.s.sured that I won"t forget about you. When are you planning on leaving? I"ll send you off!" Ni Jingqiu wryly smiled.

"I"ll be leaving in a few days." Su Tao answered after a brief pondering.

"Then, let"s leave that for another time. For now, let me bring you somewhere!" Ni Jingqiu smiled.

This time, Ni Jingqiu did not allow the chauffeur to follow as she drove her BMW Z4. As Su Tao sat in the front pa.s.senger seat, Ni Jingqiu handed him a pair of sungla.s.ses. When he wore them, he felt pretty good when he sensed the surrounding gazes directed over. At this moment, he knew why so many youngsters were fond of driving sports cars. After all, it"s also an enjoyment to have envious gazes directed at them.

Half an hour later, Ni Jingqiu brought Su Tao to a deserted park, where she pointed at an old-style building and explained, "This is where I grew up!"

Nodding his head, Su Tao commented, "Located beneath the forbidden city, the Feng Shui here is pretty good!"

Waving her hand to Su Tao for him to follow up, Ni Jingqiu stood under an old locust tree a few minutes later. All of a sudden, she squatted down and started digging on the ground. Looking at her perky b.u.t.t, Su Tao wondered why this successful woman was not paying any attention to her image.

"Why are you standing here? Come and help me!" Ni Jingqiu turned around and glared at Su Tao.

Showing a helpless smile, Su Tao first looked around to make sure that there"s no one around before he squatted down as well and helped her. If someone looked at them from the rear, the two of them would look like a pair of groundhogs.

"What"s in here?" Su Tao asked curiously.

"You"ll know after we dig it out! The earth here is really hard, and my hands are hurting!" Ni Jingqiu complained. She did not have a habit of growing her nails like other women since it would hinder her work, but her soft hands were akin to an egg smas.h.i.+ng against the rock compared to the firm ground.

At this moment, Su Tao felt that Ni Jingqiu was really not treating him as an outsider to actually show such a pampered side of her. Seeing two thick branches lying nearby, Su Tao went over and broke one of them off into a fork shape and said, "Mankind is known as an intelligent lifeform because they know how to make use of tools."

Ni Jingqiu knew that Su Tao was ridiculing her for digging up the earth with her hands. She took the tree branch over and continued digging.

When Su Tao found another branch, he took it and continued to help her with digging up the earth. A few minutes later, a delighted smile rose on Ni Jingqiu"s lips despite the fact that she was gasping for breath.

"It"s actually still here! Lucky!"

Beneath the tree buried a corroded and old pencil case with a h.e.l.lo Kitty design on it.

Opening up the case, Ni Jingqiu looked at the neatly arranged fruit-shaped erasers and smiled while reminiscing. After that, she took an orange-shaped eraser and handed it to Su Tao.

"Here, a gift for you!"

"We did all that just for you to give me an eraser?" Su Tao asked, frozen.

Solemnly nodding her head, Ni Jingqiu smiled. "This was a precious pencil case of mine when I was in the third grade of elementary school. These erasers were my treasures, and I swore to open it when I encountered someone important to me in the future. Since you were talking to me so seriously about friends.h.i.+p today, I feel that there"s a need for me to prove it!"

Her words naturally left Su Tao frozen. He did not expect that Ni Jingqiu would have such a childish side to her. However, he ultimately accepted it.

"Alright, I"ll take it!"

After all, there"s no reason for him to refuse to have a gorgeous woman sharing the secret hidden in the depths of her heart.