Sex and the City Contract

Gabriel ran away desperately.

escape.run away.run away.

These words flashed through Gabriel's mind continuously and repeatedly, like a marquee subtitle.

He didn't know how far and how long he ran, and he didn't know where he was at all, he just kept running away subconsciously.

It wasn't until there was a pain in the soles of his feet that he fell forward and fell down.Lifting his feet slowly, he saw that a piece of glass had pierced into his sole; not only that, his bare feet were also covered with mud, gravel, and there were scraped skin wounds and bloodstains everywhere.

Gabriel jumped on one foot to a sheltered place like a culvert, trying to sit down and pull out the broken glass.

As a result, as soon as he stopped, someone yelled, "Damn! This is my territory, get out of the way and take shelter from the rain! Damn boy."

It was a homeless man with a big beard, and Gabriel could still clearly smell the stench of that man when he was more than five meters away.

But apart from the beard, Gabriel knew he looked just like the dude now, and he was going to stink just as soon.Gabriel lowered his head and limped out of the culvert.

It was still raining, and Gabriel was soaking wet—the advantage of getting wet was that he didn't have to look for shelter, he thought, it was already like this anyway.A gust of wind blew, and he couldn't help shivering. After all, he only had a shirt and jeans on him.

Gabriel remembered the Chinese proverb that his grandfather had said: A house leak happens to rain all night.What a leaky house, he doesn't even have a house now.

Before he knew it, Gabriel came to what looked like a pier or embankment, for there was a pool of water in front of him.

Looking at the water swollen by the rain, Gabriel felt a little dizzy, so he squatted down, hugged his legs with his hands, and rested his head on his knees.

Losing his father, going bankrupt, and having that kind of thing, and now he is homeless... The successive bad luck has exceeded the range that Gabriel can bear; he feels like a malfunctioning machine, but there is no machine around him Without a teacher and no instruction manual, I can only try to repair myself alone.Although he is in New York City with 800 million residents, he feels more lonely than Robinson drifting on a desert island.

Robinson later found at least Friday, and he had none.

"...I live such a lonely life with no one to really talk to..."

Gabriel's mother would read "The Little Prince" to him when he was a child.

Gabriel actually didn't like this story. The little prince was too lonely and melancholy, which made him feel very sad; moreover, he didn't know why he started to feel a little worried.So, one day he made an agreement with his mother; no matter where she went, she would take him with her and never leave him.

At that time, Camille showed a gentle smile, hugged Gabriel tightly in her arms, assured him that she would never leave him, and asked him not to worry.

Looking back on Gabriel now, his mother's smile was weak.

Gabriel just squatted there, in a daze, and he didn't know how long it had been.In a trance, he seemed to see light, "Is it dawn?"

He was a little puzzled, raised his head with difficulty, and saw a circle of light shining on him.Gabriel squinted his eyes involuntarily, and found a figure in front of him that seemed to be talking to him.

Gabriel was very surprised.

After adapting to the light, Gabriel recognized that it was a man in a leather coat. The man's mouth opened and closed as if he was saying something, but he couldn't hear what the man said.

Seeing that Gabriel didn't respond for a long time, the man stopped, and then stretched out his left hand in front of Gabriel, as if he wanted to shake hands with him.

Gabriel was puzzled.He didn't even know who this man was, why did he shake hands?

Gabriel looked first at the man, then at his hands, and noticed that the man was wearing an IWC Antoine de Saint Exupéry watch on his wrist.

"So it's you..." Gabriel smiled, it turned out to be a pilot.The pilot who met the little prince in the desert.

Gabriel then took the hand and threw himself on top of him. "...Will you draw me a sheep?" Gabriel murmured in a daze.

After sending Archer back to his residence, Lawrence immediately drove to the place agreed with Nelson.

Ten minutes ago, Nelson called him to tell him about Gabriel's whereabouts, and explained: In the afternoon, the apartment manager saw Gabriel stumbling out of the apartment, thinking he was going out in a hurry, and didn't care at that time until nightfall Before seeing him return to the apartment, the administrator realized that something was wrong and called to notify him. Nelson then asked the private guards to come out to find someone.

"Why didn't you call the police?" Lawrence asked immediately.

"This is actually Ma'am, Ms. Jin Jie's meaning." Nelson said, "She said: Isn't the recent image of the Gusman family not bad enough? Do you still want to let this kind of scandal be reported as a joke?"

Lawrence took a deep breath, "I see."

"You know, she's... very demanding in terms of PR packaging and public image."

"If this is the starting point, I also agree with her opinion. It is indeed better not to spread this kind of negative news."

Lawrence scratched his head, this incident gave him a bad feeling.According to the intelligence of the market research department, Jin Jie is currently planning to use the assets she inherited to start a business.

While it's uncertain what the venture will be, Lawrence also doesn't want this to be an excuse for free advertising or any side effects.

"After you find someone, call the guards back." Lawrence said. Nelson on the other end of the phone was silent for a while, as if he didn't agree.

"We'll pick him up ourselves. Be careful, never let anyone know, including Lawyer Mel, and Jin Jie—especially her."

"Mr Broadys, I'm here."

Seeing Nelson standing on the side of the road with an umbrella and waving to him, Lawrence immediately drove the car over.

After getting in the car, Nelson first apologized for troubling the boss to drive, and Lawrence waved his hand to ask him not to mind.

At this moment, Nelson should be very nervous, Lawrence thought, but the expression on Nelson's face was still meticulous and professional, and there was no trace of impatience.

Lawrence sprinted near the edge of speed to where Gabriel was hiding: a muddy spot next to a bridge pier on the east bank.Nelson got out of the car first and walked quickly.

"How did you run to such a place?" Lawrence murmured in his heart, opened the car door, stepped out, but stepped into a puddle of water.Lawrence clicked his tongue in annoyance, damn it, he was wearing suede lace-up shoes today, and the suede would be ruined when he touched the water.

What is "back"?Lawrence thought.Shaking his head, he still held an umbrella and came to Nelson's side.

"Master, master." Nelson was shining a flashlight on Gabriel.With the light on, Lawrence saw that Gabriel was sitting higher than the two of them, squatting there with his whole body dripping wet, a little dazed, and his mind seemed unclear.

"No response?" Lawrence asked.

Nelson shook his head and frowned. "You have to bring the young master down."

Lawrence noticed for the first time that anxiety was evident on Nelson's face.

There was a pool of water between them and Gabriel, about ankle deep.When Nelson was about to go forward, Lawrence held his shoulders and handed him the umbrella in his hand, "I'm taller, let me go."

"Mr. Brodys..." Nelson was about to say something, but Lawrence stopped him with a wave of his hand, and walked forward into the stagnant water.

"Damn boy? Bastard boy...Little Mr. Gussman! Gabriel!" No matter what Lawrence called, Gabriel remained stunned and did not respond.He was silent for a moment, then stretched out his hand and called out, "Qiqi."

Gabriel finally looked at him with some doubts in his eyes.

"Kiki, come here." Lawrence continued calling Gabriel by his nickname.

Gabriel looked at his face, then at his hands, and after a while, he smiled, took his hand, and threw himself down.

Lawrence caught Gabriel, seeing him in thin clothes and in a mess, he couldn't help but shook his head, feeling a little bit unbearable.What happened to this kid, how did he become like this?

"..." Gabriel murmured something unconsciously, so Lawrence listened closely, "...will you draw me a sheep?"

"Sheep?" Lawrence looked astonished, and at the same time thought to himself, it would be nice if he didn't ask the kid to pay for a pair of suede shoes, but he still has the face to ask for a sheep?Nasty brat!

Lawrence sat in the back seat with Gabriel in his arms, and Nelson drove instead.He told Nelson that in Gabriel's condition, it was best to go to the hospital first. "Does Mr. Gussman know any private hospitals?" Lawrence asked.

"Yes." Nelson said immediately, "but the lady and the doctor are also 'very' familiar."

"I understand." Lawrence sighed, "...Well, I have acquaintances."

Jesse Campbell stood up from the examination table, went to the computer and pressed a button. Within a few seconds, a prescription slip was spit out from the laser printer.After signing, Jessie handed the prescription to Lawrence and said with a smile, "Dude, I'm not R1 in the emergency room. You have to wait in line to make an appointment. You can't pick up any homeless patients and throw them at I."

"This is 'Campbell Medical Center', isn't it? You are the person in charge. Usually, the person in charge is in charge of everything from surgery to cleaning the toilets. Those who can do more work." Lawrence patted the other person on the shoulder and grinned, "Otherwise , next time I play, I'll let you have a game."

"Let me? It's clearly my defeated opponent who is still talking big?" Jie Xi said with his eyes wide open, deliberately exaggerating.

"It's a tie! Last time I hit him absent-mindedly." Lawrence said, "I'm not joking. Is this kid okay?"

Jie Xi shook his head, "According to the prescription, take the medicine, rest for a few days and you'll be fine. But the wound on the bottom of the foot should be careful, the glass punctures a bit deep, try not to use force these days to avoid stretching the stitches. Come back to remove the stitches in a week later." He looked at Gabriel, who was still lying on the treatment table, and said, "I heard about old Gussman... Please convey my regrets. I hope he cheers up a bit. He is so young, and he still has a long way to go."

"Yeah." Lawrence said helplessly, "If he doesn't cheer up a bit, I'll be miserable."

"Why?" Jesse asked curiously.

Lawrence shook his head. He had never mentioned to anyone else about the property rights of the house or the end-of-life entrustment to the old Gusman. "nothing."

"It's fine. Don't make yourself too tired." Jiexi looked at his watch: "It will take about half an hour, and I can take him back after the drip is finished. Also, there are 24-hour prescriptions on the first basement floor. You can go buy medicine first..." He yawned, "...But, I'm afraid I can't continue to accompany you, I'm sorry."

Lawrence felt a little guilty.In fact, Jie Xi had just opened the knife for a few hours, and he was temporarily found by him while he was resting.He sincerely thanked the other party with a serious face: "Jessie, you helped me a lot. Really, thank you very, very much."

Jessie patted Lawrence's arm and said with a smile, "What are you talking about, old friend."

After seeing off Jiexi, Lawrence also walked out of the consulting room.He handed over the prescription to Nelson, and Nelson immediately went to the pharmacy on the first basement floor to buy the medicine.

The clinic in the middle of the night was very deserted, only the lights of the on-duty nursing station were on.Lawrence was pacing casually in the waiting room and corridors boredly, and came to the stairs by accident, where there were several vending machines.In addition to machines for coffee drinks and snacks, there are even machines for selling flowers.Lawrence raised his eyebrows lightly. These days, even bouquets for visits can be sold automatically, and instant greetings. When caring becomes convenient and fast, how much is the value of emotion?Five dollars, seven dollars, it all depends on the price tag.

Turning around, he saw another vending machine: the light blue shell was printed with small flowers, and there were various plush dolls, dolls and other small toys inside, which seemed to be designed for visiting children and patients.

He sighed boredly, and when he was about to walk away, a certain image suddenly caught his attention - there was a sheep in the small grid at the farthest corner of the machine.The space is a bit small, making the fluffy and fat sheep look aggrieved and crowded.Lawrence shook his head, took out the money, and slowly stuffed it into the cash drawer.

Gabriel opened his eyes, and was surprised to find that he was eye-to-eye with a winking sheep.

He was lying upright, with the stuffed sheep lying face to face on his chest.The sheep are not delicately made. Against the background of the fat body, the limbs look particularly thin; the face is like an omelette, with two thick black embroidery threads as eyes, and a very exaggerated curved mouth, which makes the sheep see It looked like he was grimacing or laughing at Gabriel.

This sheep is too ugly, Gabriel thought.

He vaguely remembered that he had a dream.As if watching a film going back in time, he returned to his mother's studio when he was a child, and saw his mother and him sitting side by side on the rattan double chair in the small garden, reading "The Little Prince" to him .

Seeing this sight, Gabriel couldn't stop crying.

Gabriel blinked, the corners of his eyes were still moist.He moved a bit, trying to get the ugly sheep off his chest, but he felt that his limbs couldn't move, as if his consciousness had awakened, but his body was still asleep.

Turning his eyes slightly, he found that the furnishings in the room were both familiar and unfamiliar: the writing desk, wardrobe, and chairs from the Regency period, so he was not in the rented apartment room, but in his "own" home.

His memory rewinds slowly, first recalling his aimless running across the road, before that he rushed out the door in fright, before that, the conversation between Michele and those people in the apartment, and before that , Before... He couldn't help but gasped.

"Master, good afternoon."

With three light knocks on the door, the door opened, and with his usual professional smile, Nelson pushed a food cart into the room.

"Did you sleep well?" Nelson asked, walking to draw the curtains.The sudden sunlight from outside made Gabriel squint his eyes involuntarily.

"It's okay..." Gabriel nodded.Nelson went to the bed, put the sheep next to Gabriel's pillow, and helped him to sit up. "How long have I been asleep?" Gabriel asked.

"A day and a half." Nelson put the silver tray on the trolley on the foot stand, and Gabriel ate in bed. "Master, we..."

Before Nelson could finish speaking, Gabriel said slowly, "I'm sorry for making you worry."

"No." Nelson showed a gratified and caring smile, "As long as the young master is fine, that's enough."

"Thank you."

"In fact, I should thank Mr. Broadis more." Nelson said, "Mr. Broadis will be back on time tonight. She hopes to have dinner with the young master and have a good talk."

Gabriel looked up at Nelson nervously, "Do you have to?"

Nelson just smiled and avoided answering. "Don't bother me, please take your time." Then Nelson walked out of the room.

Looking at the omelett on the tray, and then at the sheep sitting by the pillow, Gabriel hung his head and sighed.

After dinner, Gabriel got out of bed and stretched his stiff muscles.Because the gauze-wrapped left foot was still slightly swollen, he could only walk slowly in the room with a cane.

As he walked further, Gabriel began to hear a series of construction knocking sounds.The carpets that were originally laid on the ground were rolled aside or disappeared, replaced by pieces of plastic cloth or white cotton cloth, with remnants of paint or whitewash dripping everywhere. %|,h"G(q7Y4L

He walked slowly, crutches creaking on the plastic sheeting.The decoration workers looked at this unfamiliar face with a cane in doubt, but Gabriel didn't take it seriously.When he came to the entrance of the hall, he found that the oil painting and the large and useless fireplace that had occupied the most prominent position were gone, and the four walls were no longer the cold white, but painted apricot yellow, and the upper and lower sides were matched with neo-classical Bas-relief paneling in a socialist style.

The environment was much more pleasing to the eye than before, but Gabriel's heart became angry.

He didn't care at all that Jin Jie's gaudy furniture was completely replaced. On the contrary, he was very happy that his eyes would no longer be damaged by that horrific huge oil painting.But Gabriel really hates people tampering with things in the house without his permission, which is a violation of his sovereignty in this house.

This is where he grew up, what does that guy think he is?

"I heard that interior design is a science that reveals beauty in the eye of the beholder. Everyone has their own preferences—the so-called 'taste'."

Gabriel suddenly heard a sweet female voice.He frowned, looked in the direction of the voice, and saw Jin Jie wearing a Jacqueline suit and carrying a HERMS Kelly bag, with a bright and pretentious smile on her face, and pretending to say kindly: "I always thought it was like A yuppie of Lawrence’s worth should like futuristic or minimalist decorations, but he turned out to be an antique collector. Hey, maybe I should ask him for tips on investing in antiques.”

Gabriel subconsciously took precautions. He knew that Jin Jie was definitely a weasel wishing a chicken a new year, so he was uneasy and kind. "Jin Jie, what do you want to do?"

"Thank you for your greeting. You look good too." Jin Jie said as if singing a one-man show.After looking around, she sarcastically said, "It's strange, when did the servants of Gusman's family become so impolite, seeing that the mistress didn't even come to say hello."

"What mistress?" Gabriel said through gritted teeth, "This is my home, and I am the master."

"As far as I know, you are not the owner of this house, at least not the 'only' owner." Jin Jie sneered, "Actually, Lawrence has invited me for several days, but I have never had time, and today just happened Take some time to come over and have a look—by the way, visit my ex-husband’s stupid son. Gabriel, how did your foot hurt? You didn’t do something stupid, did you?”

"My foot injury is none of your business." Gabriel almost shouted, "You have nothing to do with this family. You are not welcome here, please get out!"

"You're still as kind as ever." Jin Jie said sarcastically, "I've heard some rumors about your mental condition... You know, our group of afternoon tea ladies are very enthusiastic about the social underprivileged recently."

Gabriel frowned and stared at Jin Jie, not knowing what she wanted to say.

"I was told in a nursing home that depression is hereditary, and it seems to be true."

Gabriel's stomach suddenly cramped, "You..."

"Ma'am, it's been a long time. This is your Darjeeling black tea."

Just as Gabriel was about to rush forward, Nelson and two maids came over with silver trays and interrupted Gabriel. "Please understand the chaos caused by the decoration in the room. This way please." He led Jin Jie to the small reception room next to him and sat down. "The young master accidentally injured his foot when he went downstairs."

"Nelson, when I need your opinion, I will naturally ask you." Jin Jie said coldly.

"I made a slip of the tongue, please forgive me." Nelson bowed respectfully, "Madam, young master, please take your time. We won't bother you anymore." After speaking, he left with the two maids.

When passing Gabriel who was still staring at Jin Jie with resentful eyes, Nelson secretly tapped Gabriel on the back with his elbow.Gabriel then took a deep breath, walked over to Jin Jie and sat down.

"I fell down the stairs? Is that right?" Jin Jie added milk to the teacup, picked up a silver teaspoon and stirred it slowly, "The day before yesterday...Nelson contacted me and said you lost contact, and originally wanted to call the police."

She put down the silver teaspoon, looked at Gabriel with wide eyes, and asked tentatively, "Is it really just a fall?"

Gabriel put a slice of lemon in his teacup, "I'm really in a bad mood recently." He opened the silver cup with chocolate, "...truffle chocolate?"

"Swiss handmade, of course." Jin Jie took one with a smile, and Gabriel took one and put it in his mouth, and continued nonchalantly, "So, I decided to climb the Statue of Liberty to relax. Next I accidentally twisted my foot while going upstairs, that’s all.”

"It's a ridiculous story——" Jin Jie frowned quickly, and then said deliberately half-sarcastically, "It just fits your weird style."

Gabriel shrugged, looking indifferent.Jin Jie looked at his aloof attitude, deliberately took a sip of tea slowly, then picked up the saucer under the teacup, turned it to the bottom, looked at the inscription formed by two crossed Western swords and a star, inadvertently He asked casually, "Whose porcelain group is this?"

"Meissen around [-]??, something passed down from my grandfather's family." Gabriel quickly retorted at the other party, "Didn't my dad explain the collection at home to you?"

Jin Jie showed another sweet smile, "Then, is this group of porcelain yours now, or Lawrence's?"

Gabriel's face fell.

"There are some things you will never think of." She slowly put down her teacup, "After more than five years of marriage... I expected that the person next to my pillow should be [-]% sincere before wearing a wedding ring, and even signed a prenuptial agreement; However, as a wife, I only found out after my husband passed away, and half of the residence was under the name of his ex-wife... You can imagine the sadness and shock of this widow.”

"So that's why you're here?" Gabriel said dryly, "You want a piece of the house too?"

Jin Jie laughed out loud, "I'm not as greedy as you, and I'm not so stupid. The property rights of this house are messy enough, and I don't want to get involved in the muddy water."

Gabriel squinted at Jin Jie, trying to figure out the purpose of this woman's provocation.

"After sitting for so long, I should go, so as not to delay the rest of the trip." After a while, Jin Jie stood up, "Gabriel, I have a piece of advice: take care of yourself, don't be like your mother—" She smiled sweeter, "You know, the CEO of the bank can't let a person with mental exhaustion issues deal with equity."

"I warn you to be careful what you say, Jin Jie." Gabriel glared at Jin Jie angrily, his voice trembling with anger, and even the veins on his forehead popped, "My mother has no mental problems."

Jin Jie covered her mouth pretending to be elegant, and sneered a few times, "Little Gabriel, be good, don't get excited. If you don't want your bank shares to be frozen by the executive committee for an extended period of time, you'd better learn more self-control."