Chapter 56

I nodded. Leonard had mentioned this a few days ago when he came to the hospital.

"So she needs to stay out of this case, or her dad will have my head," Howard snorted.

I heard from Zoey that Howard and her dad were college buddies. Zoey's dad worked in law enforcement and had helped Howard a lot when he was starting Silverlight City Legal Journal.

"Zoey never mentioned my connection with her dad?" Howard looked at me, a bit surprised.

"She mentioned it briefly. I didn't pry since it's her family business," I replied.

"It's no big deal. Ronald Carter and I were roommates at law school in Silverpeak City. After graduation, I became a lawyer and later started my own business. Ronald, on the other hand, joined the police department. He's quite capable and lucky. Every boss he had appreciated him, and he climbed up to become the deputy captain of the criminal investigation team at the state police department. Pretty impressive," Howard said.

"Zoey doesn't share her father's last name?" It was the first time I knew Zoey's dad's last name was Carter.

"Yeah, Zoey took her mom's last name. Her mom is Erica Taylor. They divorced early on. Ronald was so busy he couldn't take care of the family. Erica wasn't the type to tolerate that, so they split. Honestly, both of them had their issues. They were both career-driven and neither wanted to compromise. They didn't even have time to pick up Zoey from school when she was little," Howard snorted angrily.

"So, they had you pick her up?" I asked.

Even though Howard was a businessman, this showed he valued relationships and friends deeply. Because of this, he made many friends in the business world.

"Exactly. I was just a small-time lawyer back then, with plenty of free time. They asked me to pick her up. Both of them were workaholics, one always on business trips, the other always working overtime. Eventually, Zoey stayed at my place after school and spent her vacations with Erica. When she started middle school, they realized I was an outsider and had Zoey live at school. Can you believe such parents exist?" Howard complained, but there was a smile on his face.

It was clear he considered Zoey as his daughter. I remembered he was in his fifties and had never married.

"When Zoey graduated from college, I called Ronald and Erica to ask about her plans. Erica wanted Zoey to work at her company, and Ronald wanted her to join the legal system. I told them to forget it. Zoey never mentioned any of this. She said she wanted to work out of town," Howard continued.

"And Howard, you didn't want Zoey to go out of town alone, so you had her come to your company?" I smiled. Zoey had mentioned that Howard called her dad to arrange it.

"That's right. I watched Zoey grow up. How could I let her go out of town alone? Anyway, Silverlight City has me, and I'll protect her. I called Ronald and said, 'Since she doesn't want to go to either of you, she might as well come to me. I've already found a mentor for her.'" Howard glanced at me and raised his eyebrows.

He continued, "Of course, I also considered their father-daughter relationship. I had Ronald call Zoey and say it was his idea, not to mention me. How about that? Thoughtful, right?"

Zoey only mentioned that Howard and her dad were college classmates. She never told me about her relationship with Howard, which was almost like father and daughter. She probably didn't want me to know about it, fearing I might have other thoughts.

"Zoey knows. She said you suggested she come to the company. Don't worry, she remembers." I patted Howard's shoulder.

"She... Since we're talking about this, let me tell you my thoughts," Howard said.

Howard was driving, and after a moment of contemplation, he smiled. "It's nothing much. Silverlight City Legal Journal was my first entrepreneurial project. Before you came, it didn't have much success. Over the years, I had other businesses and didn't pay much attention to it. After you came, Silverlight City Legal Journal gradually improved. You know the achievements of the past few years."

"Just hear me out; no need to say no right away," Howard said, like he already knew what I was going to say. He paused, then continued slowly, "After we sort out Alan's case, I'm stepping back from the company. I'll leave it to you and Zoey. I'll keep 40% of the shares, you get 30%, and Zoey gets 30%. You'll be the one mainly in charge. And don't tell Zoey about the shares. She's still young and inexperienced. When she gets married in a few years, it'll be my gift to her. What do you think?"

"I refuse," I said.

I didn't even think about it and just declined. Even though this newspaper wasn't huge, it was still valuable, especially with Howard's plan to collaborate with foreign newspapers starting this year. The 30% shares were invaluable. I'd only been here for a few years, and this was too much for me to accept.

Plus, I had my own plans. After Alan's case was resolved, I would find a good time to tell my dad everything. We'd leave this city together.

My dad had mentioned wanting to retire in the South. Alan and I opposed it because it would be inconvenient for him to be alone in another place. Now that Alan was gone, I would accompany him.

This would take a year or two. During this time, I would train Zoey to be a key player. I was confident in this and wouldn't let Howard down.

"Leaving a place doesn't mean saying goodbye to the past or letting go. On the contrary, you might get more entangled. Think about it carefully. Life is long," Howard said.

He seemed to have anticipated my response and didn't say anything more. The car fell into a brief silence.

"Do you know why I've been helping you so much since Alan's accident? It's not just because of your ability, your contributions, your character, and so on... There's something more important," Howard suddenly brought up this question after a while.

"What?" I asked.

I had thought about this question, but all the reasons I came up with were already mentioned by Howard.

"Because I can relate..." He sighed deeply. "Everyone in the company says I'm unmarried. Actually, I was married, two years before Erica and Ronald. She was my college classmate, from a very well-off family. After graduation, her family opposed our relationship. But she insisted on being with me, saying life would get better, even if we were poor... What a silly woman."

"When I was a small-time lawyer, I had no clients and was often idle. She earned much more than I did. To be honest, during that time, she almost supported me. Oh, she really liked Zoey and thought about having a son in the future and making Zoey our daughter-in-law," Howard continued.

The car slowed down. Howard smiled, his dry eyes filled with light. "As a man, I couldn't let a woman support me. When I couldn't make it as a lawyer, I decided to change careers. By chance, I founded Silverlight City Legal Journal. Later, the business gradually expanded, and life got better."

"One day, she said she wanted to travel abroad and bring back the sunshine from Dreamscape Sea, coffee beans from Astoria, and pebbles from Blue Moon Creek... The plane never reached its destination. When I saw the news, my world collapsed."

Howard rubbed his eyes and smiled bitterly. "As a man, I cried day and night. It was too hard. No matter how much money I made, it was useless. All these years, I haven't remarried. I won't meet another woman like her. But I have to live, or how could I face her? If I told her I couldn't live without her, she'd scold me."

"I dreamed of her a few days ago. When I woke up, I suddenly remembered a poem. How did it go? Doing business and dealing with money all the time, I forgot these things... Oh, right..."

"Ten years, two lives, in the vastness of life and death,

How many partings and meetings have we experienced?

The hair has turned white, the face is no longer the same,

But the heart still holds the same feelings."