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The Countdown Of Our Love
Novelix
Completed
"Ever since I was little, I could see the expiration date of love. The moment two people became a couple, a countdown would appear between them. When my aunt caught her husband in bed with another woman, the number above them dropped from thirty days to zero. When my father died, the number above my mother changed from fifty-five years to an infinity symbol. Every day, I watched those numbers shift and flicker above other people’s relationships. Some were long. Some were short. Some lasted only a single night. Gradually, I stopped believing in love. So when the company my mother left behind was on the verge of bankruptcy, and I took the initiative to propose a business engagement to Julian Shaw, I did not care whether he loved me. But why, from the first moment he saw me, did the number above him keep going up?"
Chapters (3)
第1章
Ever since I was little, I could see the expiration date of love.
The moment two people became a couple, a countdown would appear between them.
When my aunt caught her husband in bed with another woman, the number above them dropped from thirty days to zero.
When my father died, the number above my mother changed from fifty-five years to an infinity symbol.
Every day, I watched those numbers shift and flicker above other people’s relationships.
Some were long. Some were short. Some lasted only a single night.
Gradually, I stopped believing in love.
So when the company my mother left behind was on the verge of bankruptcy, and I took the initiative to propose a business engagement to Julian Shaw, I did not care whether he loved me.
But why, from the first moment he saw me, did the number above him keep going up?
…
The news that the bank had pulled our credit line came while I was looking through my mother’s old design drafts.
The CFO placed a stack of documents on my desk.
“Ms. Hart, the cash on our books won’t last until next month. Also, one of our key debts has been acquired by Sterling Capital.”
The name stamped on the acquisition documents was Julian Shaw.
That afternoon, my uncle, Martin Hart, brought several shareholders with him and forced his way into my office, demanding that I surrender management control.
“Isabella Hart, the bank is calling in its loans, and Sterling can file for asset preservation at any time. How long do you think you can keep holding on?”
He pushed a draft resolution toward me.
He had even prepared the pen for my signature.
I did not take it.
“Give me one day,” I said. “I’ll present a solution.”
At eight o’clock that evening, I met Julian Shaw.
He did not make things difficult for me. He simply handed me a debt restructuring proposal.
The debt would be extended for twelve months. For the first six months, we would pay interest only. Sterling would also provide a dedicated working capital facility.
Zinnia would have to accept capital supervision, but we would not have to surrender the brand or management rights.
The terms were far more generous than I had expected.
“This proposal needs board approval,” he said.
I closed the file.
My uncle wanted me removed. He would not easily let me catch my breath.
Even if the restructuring succeeded, Zinnia’s falling stock price could not wait.
“Mr. Shaw,” I said, “I also need a message strong enough to make the market believe Sterling won’t abandon Zinnia.”
He looked at me.
I tightened my grip on the edge of my jacket and spoke carefully.
“You’re not currently engaged, are you?”
The office fell silent.
“We can enter into a business engagement.”
“Separate assets. No interference in each other’s private lives.”
“An engagement would stabilize the stock price and make the board reconsider whether to support the restructuring.”
Julian remained silent for a long time.
“If there were no company,” he asked, “would you still propose an engagement?”
I could have said something graceful.
In the end, I answered honestly.
“No.”
His fingers paused against the edge of the file.
I thought he was about to refuse and awkwardly tried to salvage the situation.
“If this proposal offends you—”
“It doesn’t,” he interrupted. “I agree.”
When the lawyers drafted the agreement, he added one more clause.
Isabella Hart may terminate the engagement at any time without penalty.
The debt restructuring agreement shall remain independently enforceable and unaffected.
I looked up at him.
“What protection does that give you?”
Julian handed me the pen.
“I suppose I choose to trust your integrity, Miss Hart.”
I held the pen for a moment, then signed my name.
The next day, my uncle still opposed the restructuring plan.
Until I placed the draft engagement announcement in front of the shareholders.
Someone immediately called Sterling to confirm it.
Once Sterling confirmed the news, two previously undecided shareholders voted in favor.
The proposal passed.
The engagement announcement was released. Zinnia’s stock price finally stopped falling, and suppliers began restoring our payment terms.
The engagement party was scheduled for three days later.
At the party, my uncle raised his glass to congratulate me, his smile stiff.
After I finished making polite conversation with the guests, Julian handed me a glass of warm water.
“You barely ate tonight.”
He gently straightened the lily-of-the-valley brooch on my chest.
It was the first piece I had ever made based on one of my mother’s designs.
The host invited us onto the stage.
I took Julian’s arm.
As the lights fell over us, I saw a clear string of numbers appear above him.
Seven days and six hours.
My steps faltered.
“What’s wrong?” Julian asked quietly.
“Nothing.”
For a loveless engagement, seven days was already more than I had expected.
The host asked Julian whether he was willing to enter into this engagement with me.
“I am,” he said.
The number flickered.
Seven days, six hours, and one minute.
I froze.
When it was my turn, I looked at him and gave the answer I was supposed to give.
“I am.”
Julian smiled.
The number shifted again.
Seven days, six hours, and two minutes.
He picked up the ring and asked softly, “May I?”
I extended my hand and watched the ring slide onto my finger.
The countdown gained another minute.
I stared in disbelief.
From the moment we met, Julian Shaw’s number had been rising.
But I had already told him clearly.
If not for the company, I would never have chosen him.
第2章
After the engagement party, I moved into Julian’s apartment.
Zinnia’s stock had only just stabilized, and the public was still watching us closely.
Temporarily living together was the easiest solution we had agreed upon.
He gave me the primary bedroom and took the guest room for himself.
“If anything feels uncomfortable, tell me.”
I had thought there would be many things I could not get used to.
But the slippers in the entryway were exactly my size.
The pajamas in the bathroom were the soft cotton style I usually wore.
Even the toothbrush was the brand I used at home.
The mattress was just the right firmness, almost identical to the one in my own bedroom.
When I opened the refrigerator, I found milk, eggs, and neatly portioned ingredients. There was no shrimp, no crab, no shellfish of any kind.
On the refrigerator door was a sticky note.
Seafood allergy. Do not store.
I turned to look at Julian.
“Did you investigate me?”
He was pouring water. His movement paused for the briefest moment.
“We’ll be living together. It’s only practical to prepare in advance.”
He said it so naturally that I found it difficult to question him.
Then I opened the bedside drawer and saw a box of stomach medication.
It was the brand I had taken for years. Not especially common.
I took the box out to the living room.
Julian glanced at it.
“The first-aid kit is in the same drawer. If there’s anything else you need, let me know.”
I swallowed my questions.
It was not difficult for Sterling to investigate a company.
It probably wasn’t difficult to learn the habits of a fiancée either.
Still, that level of thoughtfulness had already gone beyond what our agreement required.
The next afternoon, we attended the financing press conference together.
The debt restructuring was only the first step. Zinnia still needed new capital to restart production.
I had prepared all night for that event.
The first half went smoothly.
Then, during the question segment, a reporter stood up.
“Ms. Hart, Zinnia previously struggled to secure financing. After your engagement to Mr. Shaw, Sterling announced its investment.”
“Can this be understood as you exchanging marriage for funding?”
The room went quiet.
I gripped the microphone.
“Zinnia’s operating data and restructuring plan have already—”
“I’ll answer that.”
Julian pressed the button on his microphone.
“Sterling began due diligence on Zinnia before the engagement.”
“Our investment decision is based on its brand value, orders, and post-restructuring repayment ability. All relevant information will be disclosed in accordance with regulations.”
The reporter pressed further.
“But your personal relationship with Ms. Hart had no influence at all?”
Julian’s voice was not loud, but it left no room for insinuation.
“Sterling’s investment judgment is independent of my personal feelings.”
“Ms. Hart is here today as Zinnia’s operator. Please direct your questions to her business plan.”
He turned slightly and gave the floor back to me.
I looked at him gratefully.
Then I opened my materials and answered the remaining questions.
Orders.
Capital usage.
My mother’s design team.
When the event ended, the reporter from earlier had already put away his microphone.
I released the pen I had been gripping all afternoon.
My palm was damp with sweat.
Julian handed me a bottle of warm water.
“You did very well just now.”
My hand paused on the bottle cap.
He took it from me, opened it, and placed it back in my hand.
It was at that moment that I saw the number between us again.
Nine days.
I instinctively checked the date on my phone.
I had not misread it.
Yesterday, it had been seven days.
After one night, it had grown by two.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”
I took a sip of water, but for the first time, an inappropriate thought rose in my mind.
Maybe this engagement could last longer than seven days.
That night, Julian cooked noodles in the kitchen.
I sat at the dining table and watched him put chopped scallions into a separate little dish.
I did not like scallions in soup, though sometimes I would mix in a little on the side.
He knew even that?
第3章
I could not help speaking.
“Julian?”
“Yes?”
“The press conference went smoothly today. Once the funding arrives and production resumes, Zinnia should stabilize.”
He placed the bowl of noodles in front of me.
“We still need to watch your uncle.”
“I know.”
I paused.
“But once the company stabilizes, there’s no need for us to keep living together.”
His hand stopped beside the bowl.
I stared at the number above him and continued.
“The engagement can also end. You help me get through this crisis, I repay according to the agreement, and then we owe each other nothing.”
Nine days flickered.
Six days.
I sat up sharply.
There had been no argument.
No betrayal.
Not even a harsh tone.
Just that one sentence, and the number above him had dropped by three days.
Julian withdrew his hand.
“All right,” he said quietly. “When the time comes, we’ll follow your arrangement.”
I looked at him.
What I wanted to ask had nothing to do with the engagement.
The numbers, apparently, did not simply decrease day by day.
When he stood by me, the date grew.
But when I said we owed each other nothing, it fell.
I did not understand what Julian’s countdown was measuring.
“The noodles will get cold,” Julian reminded me.
I lowered my head and picked up my chopsticks.
Then a sudden cramp twisted through my stomach.
I had been busy checking documents for the press conference that afternoon and had skipped lunch.
I hadn’t felt it earlier, but now the pain surged up all at once, making me curl forward.
My chopsticks hit the edge of the table and fell.
Julian immediately crouched beside me.
“Stomach pain?”
I nodded, pressing my fingers against my upper abdomen.
He stood and quickly went into the bedroom.
When he returned, he was holding the stomach medication I always took.
He placed warm water beside me and had already separated the exact dose I usually needed.
“Take this first. Rest for a while. If it gets worse, we’ll go to the hospital.”
The movements were so practiced that it was as though he had done them many times before.
I took the pills.
Before I could speak, he frowned and said, “You used to forget meals all the time.”
I looked up.
“Used to?”
Julian’s hand froze in midair.
I endured the pain and slowly tightened my grip around the glass.
“Julian Shaw, did we know each other before?”
“Did we know each other before?”
I stared at him, almost forgetting the ache in my stomach.
He pushed the water closer.
“I read your medical report. It mentioned long-term irregular eating.”
The explanation barely held.
It was not unusual to review a fiancée’s health status before an engagement.
I still wanted to press him, but another spasm twisted through my stomach.
Julian steadied my arm.
“Take the medicine first. Ask whatever you want once it stops hurting.”
By the time I recovered, he had gone to the guest room to take a call.
The question of why he knew me so well was left unresolved.
Three days later, there was a problem at Zinnia’s new collection preview.
Two hours before the media arrived, the designer in charge of the setup called me.
“Ms. Hart, something is wrong with the lily-of-the-valley pieces.”
When I arrived at the exhibition hall, she was standing in front of the glass display case with a magnifying lens in her hand, her face pale.
The lily-of-the-valley brooch my mother had left behind was the centerpiece of the preview.
The piece now lying on the velvet cushion looked almost identical from a distance, but the inner petals did not carry Zinnia’s signature craftsmanship marks.
The main stone was fake too.
I ordered the team to check everything.
All six key pieces had been switched.
On the media list were several major jewelry industry publications.
If the counterfeit pieces appeared on display, the financing confidence Zinnia had just rebuilt would collapse.
“Do not make this public yet,” I said, taking a deep breath.
“Seal the cases. Preserve the surveillance footage and transfer records. Everyone stays in place.”
The designer nodded, eyes red.
I stepped into the hallway and called the head of security.
My fingers trembled so badly that I pressed the wrong number several times.
At that exact moment, Julian called.
“How is the preview preparation going?”
I was silent for two seconds.
“The pieces were switched.”
