Page 2 of After going bankrupt, my ex-boyfriend became the CEO

Hearing John's voice, I followed the path into the alley.

The scene before me nearly suffocated meseveral thugs were dragging John around, beating him with their fists and feet.

John struggled beneath them, his clothes disheveled, his legs dragging helplessly on the ground, his eyes filled with helplessness and despair.

Seeing this, my blood boiled. I grabbed a brick and charged forward.

When the thugs saw I was a woman, their faces twisted into vicious grins. They rubbed their hands together as they closed in on me, their eyes full of contempt and greed.

John cried out to me: "Ms. Bennet, this has nothing to do with you! Please leave!"

I looked at himhe hadn't shed a tear while being beaten, yet he was crying now that I was in danger.

In that moment, I suddenly realized I had completely fallen in love with this pure, kind-hearted boy.

Even knowing that once I left, he would be beaten to a pulp or even killed, he still wanted me to go.

When Colton arrived with backup, John had been beaten nearly to death, yet he still held me tightly in his arms.

When he woke up, I sat by his hospital bed with red-rimmed eyes.

Seeing me, a flash of relief crossed his eyes: "I'm glad you're okay."

Then he looked at me seriously and scolded: "You're a girldon't go sticking your neck out like that again. What if something had happened to you? I'm tough, I can handle it."

Looking at him, I suddenly spoke up: "John, I'm not some client representative. I'm the CEO of Bennet Group. If you're willing to be with me, I can help you get promoted, take care of your parents' gambling debts, and cure your mother's illness."

The Bennet family held a prestigious position, and I'd lived a wealthy life since childhood. No one had ever taught me how to confess to someone I loved.

So I had no idea what those words meant to him.

I only saw John's face turn deathly pale in an instant, the light in his eyes extinguished.

After a long while, he gritted his teeth and nodded.

I was overjoyed, shoving several bank cards into his hands and having Colton arrange new housing for him, getting him out of that run-down rental.

But I didn't realize that John's gaze had quietly taken on a tinge of disappointment.

After we got together, he became even more obedient and considerate.

But his spending became extravaganthe could withdraw millions of dollars from my account every day.

Colton looked at the bills with obvious hesitation. I knew what he wanted to say, but I didn't care.

The Bennet family wasn't short on money, and neither was I.

To me, as long as he stayed by my side, no amount of money mattered.

Perhaps fate wouldn't let me live too peacefully.

Bennet Group's confidential information was leaked, and our stock plummeted overnight.

While my father was running around trying to save the family business, he was killed in a car accident.

My mother couldn't bear the blow and slit her wrists one night, taking her own life.

The company collapsed. After Bennet Group went bankrupt, my enemies locked me in a run-down factory and broke both my legs.

I was luckyI still had a breath left in me.

With that breath, I crawled to John's place, only to see Riley excitedly gripping his hands, saying something to him.

Watching him and Riley smile at each other with tears in their eyes, I looked down at my crippled legs and smiled silently.

Bennet Group went completely bankrupt.

After liquidating all assets, I paid off every debt and severed all ties. With my last bit of money, I bought a train ticket to another city, living like a wounded rat, barely surviving in the shadows.

That Christmas, my leg didn't receive proper treatment, leaving me with serious complications.

The daily pain nearly drove me to the breaking point.

But over time, even that agony became numb.

I kept my eyes downcast, unconsciously touching the pocket over my chest.

Hidden inside was a hundred-dollar billthe same one John had once placed in that plastic bucket.

I couldn't bring myself to spend it, even though that hundred dollars could buy a week's worth of pain relief ointment.

Because it was the last connection I had to John.

From the moment I first met John, I knew he was an exceptional person.

Over these four years, even without a TV or phone, I could learn about John's life through passersby's conversations and public screens.

After leaving me, he thrived.

In just four years, he became the CEO of a publicly traded company, flaunting his romance with Riley, and their wedding was approaching.

I thought I'd spend the rest of my life only glimpsing John through TV screens and magazines.

Until a few days ago, when I encountered him again.

That moment of reunion after four years felt like stepping into a dream.

The instant I saw him, four years of suppressed longing came flooding out.

I missed him so much.

But then I looked down at my legs, then at the hot dog in front of me, and shook my head with a bitter smile.

I skillfully wrapped the hot dog in a bag and handed it to the customer.

The man took the bag, and his expression immediately darkened.

He said angrily, "Look at what you've made! It's completely burnt! How am I supposed to eat this!"

Before I could apologize, he threw the hot dog at my face and stormed off.

The scalding hot dog hit my face, burning painfully.

I felt the curious stares of passersby, but I just quietly looked down at the scattered hot dog on the ground, my heart aching.

I carefully bent down and struggled to pick up the hot dog from the ground, gently blowing away the dust.

Just as I was about to put it in my mouth, a hand suddenly knocked it to the ground.

I looked up to see John with tears in his eyes.

I don't know what I looked like that night when I appeared before John.

But I know that at this moment, sitting before him, he was like an angel illuminating my dark life.

And in his gaze, I saw my own wretched statesitting in a dirty wheelchair, wearing tattered clothes, hair disheveled like a bird's nest, reeking of cooking oil, utterly pathetic.

I instinctively wanted to turn and flee, forgetting that I was now disabled.

I fell heavily to the ground, the rough gravel cutting my palms, my legs trapped in the wheelchair, unable to move.

John wiped the tears from his eyes and helped me up.

I sat back in the wheelchair, keeping my head down, not daring to look at him.

His gaze felt tangible, pressing down on me, making me restless.

After a long silence, John sighed softly and said, "It's been four years. Come have coffee with me."