Zhao Chenlin’s return to the company seemed to signal the end of Zhou Cheng’s era and the return of Young Master Zhao’s. Employees thought it was a shame. Young Master Zhou had treated people well. Compared with Zhao, he was practically an angel.
They braced themselves for Zhao Chenlin to behave as he had before, but to their surprise he acted very differently.
He worked like an enthusiastic new university graduate joining a major firm. He no longer put on airs, arrived early and left late, was diligent, and greeted colleagues politely. It was as though he had turned over a new leaf.
The shrewder employees weren’t surprised. Zhao had lost his greatest competitor and was trying to impress the chairman. Few believed he could maintain the act.
Someone raised with servants attending to his every need was unlikely to have great perseverance. Privately, he had probably reverted to his old self. A close look at his eyes might reveal how impatient he felt.
During his lunch break, Zhang Wu went to the rooftop and called Wang Cheng to report this. Since Wang Cheng had recommended him to headquarters, Zhang Wu had been labeled as his man. Even after Wang Cheng lost his position, that perception remained.
Wang Cheng was distracted by his grandfather’s demand. One day of the three-day period had already passed, seemingly in a blink. Hearing about Zhao Chenlin brought him a little out of his gloom.
“That idiot? Ignore him. Don’t worry about him targeting you. He’s too busy impressing Grandfather to cause trouble for you. Unless he wants to ruin himself, he won’t dare. Just work as you always do. What doesn’t belong to them won’t become theirs, no matter how badly they want it.”
A sharp glint appeared in Zhang Wu’s eyes. “Understood, Young Master Zhou.”
Others might think Zhou Shichang had rejected Wang Cheng permanently, but Zhang Wu had never believed it. Hearing Wang Cheng speak like that confirmed his guess.
After ending the call, Zhang Wu came down from the rooftop and encountered Zhao Chenlin flirting with two female colleagues. Zhao’s cold smile vanished at the sight of him, replaced by friendly cheer. He dismissed the women and approached.
“So it’s Assistant Zhang. My parents mention you often. I hear you got your position as General Manager Feng’s assistant through Zhou Cheng’s connections.”
“Same to you,” Zhang Wu replied impassively.
Hearing the implied mockery, Zhao Chenlin’s smile vanished. “You’d better pray you can keep that job. Without Zhou Cheng to support you, let’s see how long you last.”
“No need to worry on my account. It’ll be much longer than you expect.” Zhang Wu walked past him.
Zhao Chenlin stood there for a long moment, his face shifting. When he returned to work, he had put his smiling mask back on. Despite trying hard to look friendly, few people genuinely warmed to him. Those crowding around merely wanted his favor.
Zhang Wu knocked on Feng Yifan’s door and entered. “General Manager Feng, did you want me?”
“This is a report from the branch office. Take it to the chairman.” Feng Yifan handed him the file he’d just finished reading.
“Yes. Anything else?” Zhang Wu asked.
“No, go ahead.”
Outside, Zhang Wu glanced at the report. It should concern the branch managed by Xie Wenzhi and was probably the June monthly summary. June had been managed jointly by Young Master Zhou and Xie. Ordinarily this summary wouldn’t go directly to the chairman. Did Feng Yifan have a particular reason for sending it?
When Zhang Wu delivered the report, he watched Zhou Shichang’s face but couldn’t discern anything.
After Zhang Wu left, Zhou Shichang opened it. As he read, his calm expression changed slightly. Moments later, he sighed.
The report was indeed the June summary. Britain and Italy had delivered the best performance and fastest growth. Given Aimer’s presence, Italy was no surprise, but Britain had exceeded expectations. Some executives had opposed expansion there. The final comments credited Wang Cheng. According to the hotel’s manager, influential guests chose Jinding Hotel because of Wang Cheng’s connections.
Zhou Shichang studied the report, then forced the thought it inspired from his mind.
Chu Yifeng came back to the apartment and found Wang Cheng sitting cross-legged on the drawing-room floor. His shirt was decorated with Luffy’s toothy grin on the front and Zoro carrying three swords on the back. He wore black knee-length shorts. He’d purchased this playful summer outfit at the mall and only wore it at home. He had even bought Chu Yifeng a matching set, though Chu Yifeng had yet to wear it.
The room was air-conditioned. Chu Yifeng changed into comfortable clothes and sat beside him. Wang Cheng had his laptop open and was browsing a website, but hurriedly closed the page when he noticed Chu Yifeng.
“What were you looking at?”
“Nothing.” Wang Cheng pretended to be calm.
Chu Yifeng reached as though to reopen the page, and Wang Cheng immediately caught his hand. “What are you doing?”
“Tell me the truth. What was it?”
Knowing Chu Yifeng had probably already seen the screen, Wang Cheng released his hand and glared. “I was reading about the symptoms of pregnancy. Satisfied?”
Chu Yifeng put an arm around his shoulders.
Wang Cheng pulled the arm away, only for it to settle around his waist instead. He struggled for a while, then gave up. “Don’t get the wrong idea. I was just looking. It doesn’t mean I’ve agreed to anything.”
“I know.” But researching it meant the idea was on his mind. Chu Yifeng couldn’t resist kissing him. Their kiss deepened, and the atmosphere grew intimate.
About five minutes later, Wang Cheng pushed him back, breathless. “Enough. I need to make dinner.” If this continued, they would never eat. He was already physically aroused from Chu Yifeng’s wandering hands, and the air conditioning was a welcome relief.
Chu Yifeng held him close, burying his face against Wang Cheng’s neck. He didn’t let go for a long time. At last he said, “If you truly don’t want to do it, you don’t have to.”
At first Wang Cheng thought he meant cooking. Then he realized he was talking about the other decision. Wang Cheng himself still couldn’t sort out his feelings. He neither especially liked nor disliked children, but couldn’t quite imagine himself carrying a pregnancy.
“By the way, there’s something I should tell you.”
“What is it?”
As Chu Yifeng smoothed Wang Cheng’s disheveled hair, he said, “Grandma wants us to stay at the Chu residence for a few days.”
Wang Cheng looked up. “Why so suddenly?”
“Wenting has taken extended leave. He and Shen Qing are going on their postponed honeymoon. Normally Shen Qing keeps Grandma company, and with her away, there won’t be many people at home.”
“What about your second and third aunts?”
“My second aunt? Grandma doesn’t much like her behavior. She knows it and doesn’t spend time with her. My third aunt happens to have something to do tomorrow,” Chu Yifeng explained. “You’re good with elderly people, and you don’t have to work every day now. You can chat with Grandpa and Grandma when you’re free.”
“All right. When are we going?” Many young people lacked patience with older people, but Wang Cheng was different. The old monk himself had been elderly, and in his final years he spent time with a group of old people down the mountain. Wang Cheng often went looking for him and became familiar with them.
“Whenever you like.”
Wang Cheng finally had something to look forward to and immediately went to cook. Bored earlier that day, he’d prepared braised food in several flavors: cumin, savory, spicy, and mildly sweet. Both men preferred robust flavors, so he’d made the spicy version in the greatest quantity. Were it not for health considerations, Wang Cheng would have made every dish spicy. The aroma brought Chu Yifeng to the kitchen, and Wang Cheng asked him to carry the finished dishes out.
“Why so much food today?”
“I had nothing else to do. Braised food was one of the old monk’s favorites. I’ve improved my recipe recently, so it should taste even better.” Wang Cheng served the braised mushrooms onto a plate.
Chu Yifeng smelled them, growing hungrier. “What a coincidence. Grandpa loves braised food too. I hear he couldn’t get enough of it when he was young. He can’t manage much spice now, though.”
“That’s perfect. We’ll bring some to the Chu residence tomorrow.” Wang Cheng sounded delighted.
“Good.” Chu Yifeng smiled.