Chapter 273 - I have a nice boss

Xiao Lei wrapped her arms around herself, near the waist, as she glared at Han Ye. "What the hell was that for?!" she snapped. 

To her annoyance, instead of feeling guilty, Han Ye was wearing a carefree smile. "I told you, I won't let you cry." 

"It's not funny. Stop it," she said. When she relaxed her arms and looked at her old unit, letting the memories assault her mind... Suddenly, she felt something was about to touch her, and she turned only to see one of Han Ye's hands stopping near her waist. 

"You!" she snapped and glared at him. 

Unfortunately for her, Han Ye did not intend to stop. He continued to "assault" her by tickling her all over. Xiao Lei kept shrieking, "Stop! Stop it! I'm not crying!" 

"You were about to!" 

"I'm not!" she begged and laughed as she tried to catch his hands. But his hands were moving so fast, and she could not stop herself from laughing to see clearly. "I'm not crying! Really!" 

She was laughing so hard from being tickled that tears were welling up in her eyes. 

"Oh no..." Han Ye suddenly stopped when he noticed the tears. "I failed?"

She glared at him as she wiped the tears with the back of her hands. "YOU made me cry!" 

Han Ye pulled his hands back with a guilty expression. He then scratched the back of his head as he tried to think of ways to make her smile again. 

Looking at his guilty expression, Xiao Lei could not help but chuckle. She then slapped him on the arm before saying, "I'm crying from laughing too hard, not because I'm sad... Well, I was sad earlier, but not now..."

"Oh..." Han Ye smiled and said, "Are you feeling better now?" 

She nodded. "Those weren't sad memories, so I shouldn't cry. They were beautiful memories. Of me and Yunjie. Our memories. As such, I shouldn't be crying over them."

She placed a hand over her chest, where it was still aching from the pain of losing her husband. She then looked at Han Ye and asked in a soft voice, "The pain will always be there, right?"

Han Ye looked at her, and for a split second, he considered lying to her so that she would be able to feel better. But in the end, he decided to tell the truth.

"Yeah... Always," he replied in a soft voice. Looking into her eyes, he then added, "It will never ever be fully gone, but it will be less painful over time... Trust me."

Looking at his clear eyes, Xiao Lei felt as if she could really trust his words, and she nodded. She then said, "Han Ye..."

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

Han Ye chuckled. "You're welcome."

They then drove around the neighborhood. Whenever they passed by a place that was familiar to Xiao Lei, Han Ye would stop the car so that she could relive the memories that she with Xiao Yunjie. Even though it was painful to relive them, but Xiao Lei felt that, with time, she might be able to slowly let her husband go. 

After a while, they started to drive back to Imperial City. As they were leaving the small town, Xiao Lei looked at the rearview mirror. For a split second, she thought that she saw her husband standing on a street and waving at her, as if he were telling her goodbye. 

A memory of her walking down the street with Xiao Yunjie popped up in her mind. It was a memory from when she was around 13 or 14 years old, which wasn't that long since she started living with him.

At that time, Xiao Yunjie said to her, "If there comes a day where I'm no longer by your side, you must learn how to be brave. Fight back. Fight like a madwoman. And remember that you're never alone..." 

Xiao Lei smiled at that memory. "I'll be brave, and I'll take good care of Zhihao," she mumbled under her breath as she looked at the image of her husband that was slowly disappearing.

"Did you say something, Xiao Lei?" Han Ye asked before taking a brief glance at her. He could hear her mumbling something, but it was too faint for him to hear, especially since he was focusing on the road earlier.  

"Nothing," she said with a soft smile. "Just thinking out loud."

....

When they got back to Du Corporation building, where Xiao Lei's driver was waiting, Han Ye quickly parked the car at the side of the road. Since there was still some time, they decided to take a brisk walk around the area to clear up their minds.

While they were walking, Xiao Lei suddenly looked at Han Ye and said, "Han Ye, I think I can start working tomorrow."

"Are you sure? Take a few more days," he said in a concerned tone. He was worried that she might be trying to push herself again. 

She shook her head. "I've rested long enough. And I know that you've postponed a lot of things so that you can hang out with me."

"I don't mind," Han Ye said as he placed his hands into his pant pockets so as to keep them from doing anything inapropriate. "I need a break anyway." 

Xiao Lei chuckled. "Well, I don't. I'm actually feeling a lot better after the last couple of days, and I'd really like to work again. An Xin has been texting me every day, and I think she's worried about me." 

An Xin was at the funeral ceremony as well, but they didn't really talk much as Xiao Lei wasn't really in the right mood to chat with anyone then. And after the funeral ceremony ended, An Xin chose to leave first, and at that time, she told Xiao Lei that she would be there for her if she needed a friend to talk to. 

Xiao Lei didn't see her since then because she had been on a sudden holiday. An Xin texted her to let her know that she would like to visit her, but Lu Ziyan told her not now, as Xiao Lei needed some alone time instead of being overwhelmed by well-meaning friends. And Xiao Lei was thankful for Lu Ziyan as well, for being understanding. 

However, Xiao Lei still texted An Xin back to let her know that she was fine and that she would see her in the office in a couple of days. 

"I don't mind you coming back to work, but only if you're really up to it. Your work is not that urgent," Han Ye said. He then grinned and added, "I'm sure your boss wouldn't mind."

To which, Xiao Lei grinned as well, "I'm sure. He's such a pushover, you know."

"He's just a kind person who cares for you," Han Ye corrected her. 

"Fine..." Xiao Lei nodded. "He's the kindest person in the world now. So, Mr. Kind Boss Han Ye, can I come back to work tomorrow?" 

With a reluctant sigh, he nodded. "You must be the only employee in the entire building who chose work over paid holidays." 

"That's because I have a nice boss," she said with a bright smile; the first bright smile she had in the last couple of days.