Chapter 2284: Comfort

By the time Zhao Fusheng arrived in Italy, Li Yuan's condition had stabilized.

"You scared me to death."

Fan Baobao hugged Zhao Fusheng, sobbing quietly.

She had grown up relying solely on her mother; Fan Beibei was still young then, and her father was away from home. Her mother was her everything.

Now that life had finally changed for the better, her mother fell ill—it was truly hard for Fan Baobao to accept.

"It's okay, it's okay."

Zhao Fusheng held her, comforting his wife.

At this moment, that was all he could say.

Though in truth, Zhao Fusheng knew that human birth, aging, sickness, and death were inevitable.

Not to mention Li Yuan—even his own parents were gradually aging day by day.

In this world, there had never been an immortal.

Eventually, the day would come when we must face the departure of our loved ones and the fact that we ourselves become alone.

"Mommy, don't cry."

At that moment, the two children, Zhao Feng and Zhao Xue, came over and said to their mother in childish voices.

They were still young and didn't understand why their mother was crying; all they could do was try their best to comfort her.

Hearing her children's words, Fan Baobao looked up and quickly wiped away her tears: "Be good, Mommy isn't crying. It's just the wind."

Women are made of water, but no matter what kind of woman, once she becomes a mother, she becomes especially strong. This was particularly evident in Fan Baobao.

Just like now, even though she was heartbroken, she still soothed her children.

Zhao's mother came over at that moment and comforted the two children along with Fan Baobao.

Meanwhile, Zhao Fusheng quietly walked into the hospital room.

"Mom."

Approaching the bed, Zhao Fusheng sat down in front of Li Yuan.

This was one of the best hospitals in Italy. Zhao Fusheng had specially arranged a private room for Li Yuan and invited the most outstanding experts in this field to treat her.

As he said to Fan Baobao: "They say money can make the devil turn the millstone. Let's try—make these foreigners give it their all and see if they can find a way out for our mom!"

As it turned out, heavy rewards brought out brave men.

Tempted by Zhao Fusheng's one million US dollars, someone soon stepped forward to solve the problem.

The surgery was successful, and Li Yuan's vital signs returned to normal.

But she was still very weak.

According to the doctors, with proper rest, she might live for about ten more years.

Ten years sounded like a lot, but for any normal person, who wouldn't want to live longer?

To put it bluntly, in ten years, Fan Beibei might not even be married yet.

For a mother, this was undoubtedly very cruel.

"You've worked hard again."

Li Yuan's face was pale. Lying there, she saw Zhao Fusheng and gave a bitter smile.

"Don't say that. We're family—there's no such thing as hard work."

Zhao Fusheng laughed, shook his head, and comforted her: "The surgery was successful. Don't worry, I've already arranged it. From now on, there will be dedicated doctors by your side."

Then he smiled and said: "Beibei is grown up now. You have to see her get married and have children. And those two grandchildren of yours—if you're not around, they'll drive me and Baobao crazy."

For a patient, giving them hope to live was the most important thing.

Sure enough, when Li Yuan heard Zhao Fusheng mention her daughter and grandchildren, her pale face immediately flushed with color.

As Zhao Fusheng said, this was her greatest concern now.

After chatting with Li Yuan for a while longer, Zhao Fusheng left the room, entrusting her to the medical staff.

"Chairman, everything is arranged."

Liu Yiming walked over and said quietly to Zhao Fusheng.

"The vacation villa in Switzerland has been finalized. We can go whenever you want."

This was part of Zhao Fusheng's earlier plan—he had specifically arranged to buy a villa in a resort area so that Li Yuan could recuperate.

"We'll see."

Zhao Fusheng said to Liu Yiming seriously: "Ask the doctor whether my mother-in-law is better off resting on the island or staying at a health resort. Also, cancel all my appointments for the next month. I'm staying here with the family."

"Don't worry, I know what to do."

Liu Yiming quickly nodded.

He knew Zhao Fusheng's temper well—once he made a decision, he rarely changed it.

Just then, Zhao Fusheng's private phone rang. Glancing at the caller ID, he answered.

"How's your mother-in-law?"

Tan Kaixuan's voice came from the other end.

"Just had surgery. No major issues for now."

Zhao Fusheng asked him: "How did you know?"

"When you left the US, I was just arriving. Dong Chenxi told me." Tan Kaixuan said to Zhao Fusheng: "Need any help?"

"Not yet. If I do, I'll call you."

Zhao Fusheng said seriously.

Between the two of them, there was no need for polite words.

...

...

In fact, not only Tan Kaixuan, but also Zheng Yao, Dong Chenxi, and others called to ask about Li Yuan's condition.

After all, their relationship with Zhao Fusheng was not just that of boss and subsidiary heads, but also longtime friends.

Taking advantage of a business trip, Dong Chenxi even came to visit.

Back in China, Zhang Qian also sent his wife Yang Panpan to Italy.

As he put it, it was reassuring to have someone close by at a time like this.

In comparison, Zhao Fusheng was quite calm.

Perhaps because of his mental age, although he was also sad and anxious inside, he didn't show it as obviously.

In fact, he seemed much calmer than Fan Baobao.

Men and women, after all, are different.

As a husband, a son-in-law, and a father, Zhao Fusheng perfectly embodied what it meant to be the pillar of the family.

He handled everything in an orderly manner.

He didn't even disturb Fan Beibei, who was studying in London.

Instead, he called Dong Chenxi and asked her to pick up Fan Beibei and take her to New York, letting her enjoy her summer vacation.

As for the excuse, he said Dong Chenxi was bored alone in New York.

Fan Beibei didn't suspect anything. Although her mother hadn't called, Fan Baobao and Zhao Fusheng had both called. Besides, she had known Dong Chenxi since childhood. Back in China, when Zhao Fusheng was too busy, he would let her stay at Dong Chenxi and Zheng Yao's place on weekends.

And so, this matter was quietly kept under wraps.

Then came the long recovery period.

According to the doctors, Li Yuan's weak constitution caused poor immunity, so she needed rest and recuperation in a very comfortable environment.

For Zhao Fusheng, this was no problem at all.

As a man with the power of money, he declared that any problem that could be solved with money was not a problem.

Liu Yiming deeply agreed.

He had only now come to appreciate the chairman's domineering style.

To provide the best treatment for Li Yuan, Zhao Fusheng simply bought a hospital in Italy, purchased a large amount of medical equipment, hired the most famous doctors, and formed a medical team that lived on the island.

Of course, they were responsible not only for Li Yuan's health care but also for the health of Zhao Fusheng's entire family.

Even so, Liu Yiming felt that his chairman was simply too cool!

...

...

Time passed quickly. In the blink of an eye, a month and a half had gone by.

Li Yuan could now walk on the ground. According to the medical team, her recovery was quite good.

This was partly due to medication and partly due to her mood.

Of course, in Liu Yiming's view, the most important reason was that Zhao Fusheng was willing to spend money.

An expenditure of nearly ten million US dollars was astonishing just to think about.

"Chairman, this is the listing status of Jingdong Mall. Would you like to take a look?"

One day, Liu Yiming walked up to Zhao Fusheng with a report and handed it to him.

Zhao Fusheng took it and glanced at it, then a smile spread across his face.

Jingdong Group had finally successfully listed on NASDAQ. The opening price was $22, up nearly 15% from the issue price of $19.

More importantly, at this price, Jingdong Group's market value exceeded $30 billion.

Even more importantly, Zhao Fusheng knew that Jingdong's oversubscription ratio in the US had reached about 15 times. Before the listing, the stock prices of many newly listed companies had fallen sharply in recent weeks, following the broad sell-off in the tech sector.

Jingdong's growth, however, was against the trend, which was quite surprising.

"Not bad."

After reading the report, Zhao Fusheng said with a faint smile.

So far, Future Investment held about 30% of Jingdong Group's shares. That meant Zhao Fusheng's investment in this project had appreciated to nearly $9 billion.

Thinking of this, Liu Yiming looked at Zhao Fusheng with eyes full of admiration!

Truly remarkable!

As Zhao Fusheng's secretary, he naturally knew how much the group had invested in this project in total.

In comparison, it was a business with huge profits!

Moreover, Liu Yiming knew that when Zhao Fusheng first invested in Jingdong Mall, the company was just a newly established, low-value ordinary company.

But now, who could have imagined that this company had become a giant in the e-commerce field, with hopes of catching up to Alibaba?

Yes.

After the successful listing, Liu Qiangdong publicly stated that Jingdong Mall aimed to be the number one e-commerce platform in China.

This statement was interpreted by the media as his target being Ma Xiaoyun.

Of course, more people thought he was encouraged by Tencent Technology.

After all, everyone knew that besides Future Investment, which always treated investment as business, Jingdong Mall's largest shareholder was Ma Huateng.

Some reporters interviewed Dong Chenxi, CEO of Future Investment, about this.

In response, Dong Chenxi said that investment was investment, business was business. Whether it was Alibaba, Tencent Technology, or Jingdong Group, they were just companies in which her boss held shares.

As an investor, Future Investment would not interfere in the management or operation of any company. This was a rule set as an iron law by Chairman Zhao Fusheng at the founding of Future Investment.

Therefore, she really couldn't give an answer to the reporter's question.

...

...

Recently, it had been raining continuously in Italy, until even the sea seemed soaked.

Endless rain, thick and sticky, poured down from the seemingly never-dry sky toward the bay. The sea, like a gray, soft sponge, swelled in the misty bay.

But in the persistent rain, the water's surface seemed motionless.

Only a faint, broad swell far away stirred a hazy mist over the sea, drifting toward the port surrounded by wet forests.

The city itself also rose a mist, sweeping over the drenched city walls to meet the sea mist.

No matter which direction one faced, the air seemed to be water, as if it could be drunk.

Zhao Fusheng loved to take walks in such rainy weather. He walked ahead, with Liu Yiming holding an umbrella beside him.

Standing at the edge of the cliff, he gazed at the distant sea.

The cliff, now stained by the endless rain into the same gray-blue as the sea, stretched into the bay like an arm. During the dry Mediterranean summer, Zhao Fusheng had brought Fan Beibei here to play.

They had fished among the reefs below the cliff or searched for various shells and oysters.

But now, nothing could be seen clearly here.

"Yiming, do you know why I like this kind of weather?"

Zhao Fusheng suddenly asked Liu Yiming.

"Well, I really don't know."

Liu Yiming was startled, then shook his head and said: "Is it because it's quiet at this time?"

After all, at this moment, nothing could be heard except the rain.

"I just feel that at this time, it's the only time that belongs to me."

Zhao Fusheng laughed self-deprecatingly and said to Liu Yiming.

He couldn't tell Liu Yiming that these were just some occasional sentimental thoughts of his.

Having lived a second life for so many years, he could now be said to have achieved success and fame.

But the problem was that Zhao Fusheng had never felt secure.

It was something very ethereal.

Because Zhao Fusheng couldn't be sure whether everything he had now was real or just a beautiful dream.

Or, as written in some novels, a game played by some unknown entity.

If there really were so-called higher-dimensional beings, then what was all this he had experienced?

Some things couldn't be thought about too carefully, because the more you pondered, the more painful it became.

So Zhao Fusheng could only choose to look at the sea in such weather, letting the negative emotions in his mind drift away with the ocean.

This was also a way for him to relieve stress.