Chu Yang (revised)
Chu Yang didn't want Fang Yi to take her home from the bottom of her heart. The conspicuous car and the eye-catching person would surely cause trouble for her once they entered the compound. But she also knew that judging from Fang Yi's reaction when she said she wanted to change her clothes, if she brought up not wanting Fang Yi to take her home again, Fang Yi would probably want to strangle her.
Chu Yang recalled what his older sister Zhang Jingzhi had said: "You can't be too stubborn. What's wrong with taking a few steps back when you should give way? Even if you want to kick someone, you have to take a step back before you kick them hard, right?"
As Zhang Jingzhi said this, Xiao Xiao, with a menthol cigarette between her fingers, first smiled charmingly, then added, "A little stubbornness is good for the soul, too much stubbornness is bad for the body." Seeing Zhang Jingzhi and Chu Yang staring at her, she chuckled and explained, "Character, the 'character' in 'character'!"
To put it simply, it's about not taking unnecessary risks!
Chu Yang couldn't resist Fang Yi's strength, and his ankle was really hurting. Hopping on one leg wasn't a solution, so he had no choice but to let Fang Yi carry him out of the car. This time, Huang Fei was particularly sensible and obediently sat in the car waiting, without trying to curry favor.
He rang the doorbell, but to his surprise, it was Zhang Jingzhi's mother who answered the door. Chu Yang was also taken aback: "Aunt?"
Zhang Jingzhi's mother was taken aback when she saw Chu Yang being carried in a large man's arms, but then she laughed and quickly stepped aside to let them in. She turned and called out to the kitchen, "Chu Yang's mother, come out quickly, Chu Yang is back."
Before Chu Yang's mother had even finished cleaning up the kitchen, she heard her sister-in-law's voice trembling with excitement, repeatedly calling her to come out. She was puzzled; Chu Yang was back, so why was she so excited?
"What—" Chu Yang's mother asked as she walked out, but swallowed the word "what" back before she could finish. She stared blankly at Fang Yi and Chu Yang, stunned. When she caught a glimpse of her sister-in-law's gloating expression, Chu Yang's mother immediately regretted asking Zhang Jingzhi about being carried home by a strange man late at night in a sarcastic tone during dinner.
Actually, you can't entirely blame her. If anyone is to blame, it's that busybody Sister Ye. If she hadn't insisted on describing in detail what she saw that night, I wouldn't have asked my sister-in-law about it at the dinner table. Now look what's happened, karma has come back to bite me. Those who laugh at others will be laughed at in return!
Zhang Jingzhi's mother finally felt the pent-up anger she'd been holding in all night finally dissipate. What had she just said? Something about how young people these days are getting bolder and bolder, not knowing how to consider the consequences, and how she needed to be stricter with her daughter to avoid being laughed at. Zhang Jingzhi's mother was furious. What had she done to her daughter? She'd only been playfully tugging at her boyfriend—Zhang Jingzhi's mother had already automatically assumed Wang Yuhan was her daughter's boyfriend—downstairs, and he'd only hugged her once! Why were they making such a fuss? And now, not only had her daughter been hugged, but she'd been carried right into the house!
"Put me there!" Chu Yang pointed to the sofa and instructed Fang Yi. Fang Yi carried her over, carefully placed her on the sofa, then stood up and politely greeted Chu Yang's mother, "Auntie!"
Chu Yang's mother responded awkwardly, feeling a little uncomfortable. Although she usually made introducing a good man to her daughter her top priority in life, when a man actually appeared next to her daughter, she was really at a loss. Her first reaction was to slap her daughter on the head and scold her: "You brat, bringing someone home like this without even giving your old mother a heads-up!"
Zhang Jingzhi was watching her father and uncle play chess in the study when she heard the commotion outside. Unlike her father and uncle, she didn't have the same composure and came out to see what was going on. She was also surprised to see Fang Yi and wondered why Chu Yang had brought him home.
Fang Yi nodded to Zhang Jingzhi, which was considered a greeting.
Chu Yang's mother, still bewildered by Fang Yi's appearance, had always dreamed of her daughter finding a long-term meal ticket. Now, with this meal ticket suddenly appearing before her, she found herself unable to accept it. Although it was exquisitely crafted, bordering on luxurious, it seemed to be yellowed slightly. So, Chu Yang's mother just stared blankly, somewhat like the scene in *A Chinese Odyssey* where Ng Man-tat is holding a baby watching the Monkey King ascend to heaven, almost shouting, "Honey, come see God!"
Zhang Jingzhi remained relatively calm, thinking that Chu Yang wouldn't so openly bring Fang Yi home. Then, she noticed that Chu Yang was only wearing one shoe.
"What's wrong with your foot?" Zhang Jingzhi asked.
Only then did Chu Yang realize how incredibly kind and adorable her cousin was, and she quickly seized the opportunity to say, "I twisted my ankle! It hurts so much!" As she spoke, she kept sucking in cold air, while in her mind she was wondering how she should answer if her mother asked who Fang Yi was, and how Fang Yi would react if she introduced him as "Uncle Fang".
Only then did Chu Yang's mother notice that her daughter's ankle was swollen like a soaked pig's trotter—white and thick. She felt a sharp pain in her heart and rushed over to squat down beside her daughter, asking repeatedly, "What happened? Is the bone broken?"
"Mom, I'm fine. I've already seen a doctor," Chu Yang said.
Zhang Jingzhi's mother remained relatively calm and composed, warmly inviting Fang Yi to sit down. "Thank you for bringing Chu Yang back." She then poured Fang Yi a glass of water and asked, seemingly casually, "And you are?"
Chu Yang was startled, thinking to himself, "Why is it that what I feared most has come to pass?" He quickly called out, "Auntie, could you please get me a glass of water too?"
Fang Yi bowed slightly to take the water, said thank you, and then politely said, "My surname is Fang. Chu Yang is interning at my company. The company is having an annual celebration party, and Chu Yang twisted his ankle while helping to set up the venue last night. I feel very sorry."
As soon as he finished speaking, Chu Yang was stunned. He didn't expect Fang Yi to cooperate so well, and he also didn't expect him to be able to lie so quickly!
Zhang Jingzhi was also impressed, and couldn't help but look at Fang Yi with even greater admiration.
"Oh, is that so?" Zhang Jingzhi's mother couldn't hide her disappointment; her smile faded. Then, her spirits lifted, and she donned her "battle armor" again, saying in an unfriendly tone, "Mr. Fang, how can you treat Chu Yang, a young girl, like a man? Climbing ladders and doing all that climbing, and now she's injured her foot like this. If she's seriously injured later, will you take responsibility? Aren't interns human beings too? You're exploiting people too much!"
Fang Yi listened politely with a faint smile, nodding occasionally. Chu Yang's mother was too busy doting on her daughter to bother Fang Yi. Chu Yang rolled her eyes at her aunt and kept giving Zhang Jingzhi meaningful glances, urging her to get her aunt away.
"Mom!" Zhang Jingzhi called out, going over to grab her mother's arm. "Please don't say anything more, nobody wants anything to happen to them!"
Zhang Jingzhi's mother waved her hand at Zhang Jingzhi, signaling her not to interrupt, and then asked Fang Yi, "So tell me, our Chu Yang is injured like this, how are you going to compensate him? Medical expenses, lost wages, nutritional expenses, psychological compensation..."
Chu Yang stared blankly at his aunt, Zhang Jingzhi helplessly covered her face with her hands, and then heard his aunt add from behind, "Yes, you tell me how to compensate us!"
Hey! You two really are sisters-in-law!
Zhang Jingzhi (revised)
The next day, when Zhang Jingzhi told Xiao Xiao on the phone about her mother and aunt demanding compensation for emotional distress from Fang Yi, Xiao Xiao found it a bit unbelievable. She couldn't imagine what it would be like for someone as serious as Fang Yi to be confronted by two middle-aged women. She secretly glanced at Fang Yi's office in the distance and asked in a low voice, "What happened next? Don't tell me your mother actually got money out of his pocket!"
Zhang Jingzhi scoffed: "Them? They're only good at outsmarting old folks like my grandma. Do you think your boss is some kind of good person? He dismissed those two silly old ladies with just a few words. Those two silly old ladies thought they were casting a long line to catch a big fish, but little did they know that what they caught wasn't a fish at all, but a turtle that wouldn't let go once it took a bite!"
Zhang Jingzhi didn't have a good impression of Fang Yi, so she inevitably spoke harshly to him.
Xiao Xiao laughed, "You're still at work, aren't you? Be careful your colleagues don't hear you talking like that, or they'll expose you!"
Zhang Jingzhi laughed smugly, "Hehe, I'm in the restroom, nobody's here!"
"You went to the bathroom just to chat with me about this?" Xiao Xiao asked, glancing at her watch. This woman had been rambling on for almost twenty minutes. Although she didn't have much work today, it didn't mean she had so much free time to waste with Zhang Jingzhi!
When Xiao Xiao asked this question, Zhang Jingzhi's tone became agitated, "Of course not that, damn it, I'm so depressed, we've swapped heads."
"That perverted director of yours who can't get married?" Xiao Xiao asked.
"If only it were her! No, it's not her, it's someone above her!"
Xiao Xiao smiled maliciously, glanced around, and lowered her voice to say, "Why are you so excited about who's on top of her? Besides, based on your description, would any man dare to be on top of her?"
Zhang Jingzhi knew that Xiao Xiao was deliberately misinterpreting her words, and laughed and scolded, "I'm not talking about the man on her body, I'm talking about the man in her position! You brat, you're yellow inside and out! Aren't you really not surnamed Huang?"
"My surname really is Xiao!" Xiao Xiao said seriously, suppressing a laugh.
"Damn it, I'm not in the mood to banter with you. You'd never guess who's coming!" Zhang Jingzhi said resentfully.
Hearing Zhang Jingzhi's gritted teeth, Xiao Xiao couldn't help but want to laugh. She knew how hard it was for Zhang Jingzhi to pretend to be a lady at work and endure it. She guessed that Zhang Jingzhi could only be so uninhibited when talking to her. Xiao Xiao asked with a smile, "It can't be Wang Yuhan, can it?"
“You’re so smart I’m jealous!” Zhang Jingzhi said.
Xiao Xiao was also surprised to find it was Wang Yuhan. She casually remarked that she had actually guessed correctly. No wonder Zhang Jingzhi couldn't hold back her temper today!
"God bless you, kid!" Xiao Xiao laughed. "I really can't do anything more. I have to work. That turtle spirit needs my analysis later! Let's talk later." Then she hung up the phone.
"You're so disloyal!" Zhang Jingzhi said indignantly, turning to look at herself in the mirror. Her face was flushed and her eyes were sparkling. "Oh my god! Why do I feel a little excited?" Zhang Jingzhi muttered to herself, feeling like she was about to start a fight. Luckily, her hair was short, otherwise it would have stood on end, and she would have really looked like a fighting rooster!
It's just Wang Yuhan, is it really necessary to make such a fuss?
It's no wonder Zhang Jingzhi reacted so strongly, because she was completely unprepared. As soon as she arrived at work that morning, her deskmate, Xiao Wang, mysteriously told her that he had some fresh, hot-button-hot gossip: the head of the company had been replaced, and the higher-ups had poached him from outside with a high salary, supposedly a young talent from the financial sector!
Zhang Jingzhi also got excited when she heard this. Although she was just a small employee and it didn't matter much who her superiors were, Xiao Wang had praised the mysterious figure too highly, which made Zhang Jingzhi have some girlish fantasies. Although she already had Yang Lei as her goal, it didn't stop her from having other little idols!
They eagerly awaited the arrival of the promising young talent, and finally, just before noon, their department's "career woman" director swayed in, wearing five-inch stilettos. She clapped her hands twice and, in a sweet voice with three more pluses than usual, said, "Colleagues, let me introduce you. This is our department's new general manager..."
Zhang Jingzhi hurriedly stood up with everyone, put on a polite smile and looked at the man behind the "White Bone Demon". After just one glance, she felt as if the sky had suddenly darkened, the "White Bone Demon's" shrill voice disappeared, all the surrounding sounds disappeared, leaving only Wang Yuhan's smug face.
Wang Yuhan listened to the introductions of the "White Bone Demons" one by one with a faint smile on his face. He nodded slightly after each introduction. When he introduced Zhang Jingzhi, the corners of his mouth seemed to rise a little higher, and he nodded.
Zhang Jingzhi never imagined that the "young financial talent" she had been longing for would turn out to be such a disappointment! She felt not just disappointed, but also deeply deceived, as if Wang Yuhan had betrayed so many of her feelings!
"He did it on purpose, didn't he? Maybe he was just waiting to see me dumbfounded!" Zhang Jingzhi thought bitterly. After the robbery incident, her impression of him had improved considerably. She knew he could tell that her parents liked him, but he didn't take the opportunity to win their favor. She thought he had some manly spirit by not using any persistent or clingy methods. But she never expected that after only a few days of silence, he would suddenly give her such a "surprise"!
I splashed some cool water on my face to cool it down, and then my phone, which was on the sink, rang. I picked it up and saw it was Wang Yuhan's number. I hesitated for a moment, but then pressed the answer button.
Wang Yuhan's annoying voice came over, "Where have you been during work hours?"
"Boss, you can go to the restroom during work hours too!" Zhang Jingzhi said irritably.
"So long?"
Zhang Jingzhi rolled her eyes at the mirror, telling herself to calm down, calm down. She took a deep breath and then said softly in a gentle and pleasant voice, "Boss, I'm constipated, is that not allowed?"
Wang Yuhan's low laughter drifted over. Zhang Jingzhi held her phone away, pretending Wang Yuhan was right in front of her, and pretended to slap the phone a few times to vent her anger.
The bathroom door was pushed open, and a colleague came in. Zhang Jingzhi smiled and nodded to her colleague, then walked out with her phone between her legs.
"I tried calling you on your cell phone earlier but it was always busy. How long have you been talking on the phone?" Wang Yuhan asked with a light laugh.
Zhang Jingzhi walked back to her seat and glanced at the general manager's office. Behind the large glass window, Wang Yuhan was smiling contentedly at her while holding a phone. Startled, Zhang Jingzhi quickly turned back and looked guiltily at her colleagues. Fortunately, everyone was busy with their own tasks, and a few people were receiving clients, so she guessed that no one was paying attention to her.
"I tried calling you half an hour ago but couldn't get through. So you must have been talking for at least half an hour during work hours, right?"
Suppressing her anger, Zhang Jingzhi lowered her voice and said, "Is it any of your business?"
Wang Yuhan laughed: "You just called me 'leader,' so do you think it's any of my business?"
Zhang Jingzhi was furious, but dared not argue with him loudly. She could only roll her eyes and tell herself: Don't be angry, don't be angry. It's better than being scolded by the White Bone Demon!
“I just looked at the office rules, and it seems to clearly state that making personal calls during work hours will result in a fine!” Wang Yuhan said, and seeing Zhang Jingzhi turn to look at him, he waved the document in his hand at her and smiled, “But there’s one thing worth praising: you didn’t use the company phone, you knew to use your own cell phone!”
Seeing Wang Yuhan's smiling face from afar, Zhang Jingzhi really wanted to kick him a couple of times. If, just if, she had enough courage, she should rush forward, kick the glass partition of his office to pieces, stomp his hateful smile under her feet, and shout at him, "You, surnamed Wang! I quit! You know how to switch jobs? I'll switch jobs too!"
Unfortunately, she didn't dare. She didn't have the courage. If things went wrong, she might not only fail to change jobs but also end up in trouble. Sigh, these days, jobs are hard to find!
She really wanted to slam his phone, but since he was right under her nose, she didn't dare. Zhang Jingzhi angrily poked dots on the paper with her pen, imagining the blank paper as Wang Yuhan's face.
"Alright, I'm not teasing you anymore. How about we have dinner together tonight?" Wang Yuhan chuckled, finally ready to let Zhang Jingzhi off the hook.
Zhang Jingzhi adjusted her expression and said politely, "Thank you, but no need."
"real?"
"Yes!" Zhang Jingzhi nodded vigorously, as if afraid that her tone wasn't decisive enough!
Wang Yuhan laughed, "I'll think about it some more. If you agree, I'll do you a favor!"
"No need!"
"No regrets?"
Zhang Jingzhi was adamant: "No regrets!"
"Hehe, alright then, but there's something I have to tell you." Wang Yuhan chuckled softly, "Your director has been standing behind you for quite a while."
Zhang Jingzhi hurriedly turned around and came face to face with the "White Bone Demon's" exquisite makeup.
"Zhang Jingzhi, you've been making such a long personal phone call during work hours. Looks like you're very free!" The "White Bone Demon's" voice trailed off in a thin tone, and there was no friendly tone in it at all.
Zhang Jingzhi gave an awkward laugh, but before she could say anything, she heard the "White Bone Demon's" cold voice continue, "Chatting during work hours, 100 yuan deducted from your bonus!" After saying that, she walked away in her high heels without waiting for Zhang Jingzhi's response.
Zhang Jingzhi was a little stunned. Xiao Wang across the table looked at her sympathetically, glanced at the "White Bone Demon's" back, and whispered, "Sister, what's wrong with you today? I've been reminding you for ages, why didn't you even react?"
"Yeah, how come she didn't notice Xiao Wang's warning just now?" Zhang Jingzhi thought. "Besides, is this even considered chatting?" She felt something was off. Zhang Jingzhi turned her gaze to Wang Yuhan's office. Wang Yuhan seemed to sense Zhang Jingzhi's gaze, looked up and smiled at her, then lowered his head again to seriously look at the documents on the table.
"Damn it!" Zhang Jingzhi suddenly realized, why should she be punished for just talking on the phone, while he suffers no loss at all?! Is there no justice in this world?!
Zhang Jingzhi (revised)
Zhang Jingzhi never had the lofty ambition of working hard to get promoted. As soon as it was time to leave work, she packed her bags and left. She probably anticipated that Wang Yuhan might make things difficult for her, so she simply didn't give him the chance. So when Wang Yuhan looked up and scanned the lobby outside, Yiren's chair was already cold.
On the first day of the new official's term, in the huge office, men and women were all busy or pretending to be busy, but Zhang Jingzhi's seat was conspicuously empty.