Wife slave
At 7:15 a.m., Xu Ying hummed a song softly in the kitchen, where freshly cut ribs were neatly arranged on the cutting board. Sunlight streamed in through the floor-to-ceiling windows, casting a soft, warm glow on her profile. She reached up and tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, the silver bracelet on her wrist swaying gently with the movement—a gift Zong Heng had brought her from his business trip the previous week.
"Sizzle—" The marinated ribs slid into the hot oil, instantly releasing an enticing aroma. Xu Ying skillfully flipped the spatula, when suddenly she felt a tightness around her waist. The familiar scent of cedar enveloped her, and Zong Heng's chin rested on her shoulder, his voice still hoarse from morning: "Why are you up so early?"
"You stayed up late again last night." Xu Ying turned to look at him; there were still faint dark circles under his eyes. She reached out and gently touched his brow. "I'll make you sweet and sour pork ribs, your favorite."
Zong Heng chuckled softly, his warm hand resting on the back of hers: "There's an international conference today, I might..."
"Okay, busy man," Xu Ying deliberately tapped his hand lightly with the spatula, "So I'll bring it over to you when I'm done."
Zong Heng raised an eyebrow, about to say something, when his phone suddenly rang.
Xu Ying looked at his profile, which instantly turned cold and stern when he answered the phone, and couldn't help but recall how he had been working at his desk last night—the cold light from the computer screen reflecting on his sharply defined face, his slightly furrowed brows revealing a hint of fatigue. She had quietly stood at the study door for a long time then, ultimately only warming a cup of milk and placing it beside him.
At 8:30, Xu Ying stood in the entryway, adjusting Zong Heng's tie. The man was wearing a dark gray suit today, which accentuated his prominent shoulders. Her fingertips lightly brushed his Adam's apple when she suddenly felt her wrist grasped.
"Stop fooling around." Zong Heng's voice was deep, but he placed a kiss on her palm. "I'll try to come back as soon as possible."
Xu Ying blushed and pulled her hand away: "Who wants to wait for you? I have to go to the studio this afternoon."
After seeing Zong Heng off, Xu Ying returned to the kitchen to continue preparing lunch. She specially chose a double-layered insulated lunchbox, with rice in the bottom layer and three compartments on top—sweet and sour pork ribs, stir-fried asparagus, and a small portion of cold wood ear mushroom salad. These were all her signature dishes, which she had learned from her mother, and Zong Heng always said were even better than those in Michelin-starred restaurants.
She hesitated for a moment while packing the rice balls, then took out the mold and made a few more bear-shaped rice balls. This was something she had recently learned to make. Although the shapes were still a bit crooked, she couldn't help but smile when she thought of Zong Heng's expression when he saw them.
At 11:40, Xu Ying stood in front of the walk-in closet, facing a dilemma. She had originally planned to wear a simple cardigan, but looking at her bare face in the mirror, she felt it wasn't appropriate. In the end, she chose a mauve fitted dress, paired with the bracelet Zong Heng had given her, and even wore some lipstick for the first time ever.
"It's not like I'm going on a date..." she muttered to herself in front of the mirror, but still carefully tidied her hair. Half a year ago, her father handed the company over to him, and since Zong Heng took over the family business, she hadn't been to his company in a long time. The last time she went was half a year ago, and the way the receptionist looked at her made her feel very uncomfortable.
When the taxi stopped in front of the Zongshi Technology Building, Xu Ying's heart suddenly raced. The modern building with its glass curtain wall gleamed in the sunlight, its imposing presence awe-inspiring. She took a deep breath, picked up her insulated bag, and walked towards the revolving door.
The lobby was quite air-conditioned, and Xu Ying unconsciously touched her bare arm. The receptionist was on the phone and looked up at her, clearly startled.
"Hello, I'm looking for Zong Heng," Xu Ying said softly.
"Do you have an appointment?" the receptionist asked in a formulaic manner, but her gaze lingered on the insulated bag in her hand for a few seconds.
Just as Xu Ying was about to answer, another older woman quickly approached: "Miss Xu?" She smiled warmly, "I'm Secretary Lin. President Zong instructed that you can go directly upstairs."
Inside the elevator, Xu Ying watched the constantly changing floor numbers and suddenly recalled her first visit here. Zong Heng had just taken over the company, and she had come to deliver important documents she'd left at home. Everyone in the elevator stared at her with scrutinizing eyes until Zong Heng personally came to the elevator to greet her; only then did those gazes turn to surprise and awe.
"We've reached the 32nd floor." The electronic female voice interrupted her reverie.
As soon as the elevator doors opened, Xu Ying sensed an unusually busy atmosphere. In the open-plan office area, employees moved back and forth nervously, some even running past carrying thick stacks of documents. She instinctively moved closer to the wall, afraid of disturbing others.
"Ms. Xu?" A young woman wearing glasses greeted her in surprise. "What brings you here? Mr. Zong is holding his quarterly report meeting."
Xu Ying held up the insulated bag in her hand: "I've brought lunch. Which conference room is he in? I can wait for him."
"Conference room A3 is at the end of the corridor." The girl hesitated for a moment. "Should I inform General Manager Zong?"
"No need, no need," Xu Ying quickly shook her head. "I'll just wait outside."
The corridor was carpeted thickly, completely absorbing the sound of footsteps. Xu Ying tiptoed to the conference room door, and could vaguely see figures inside through the frosted glass. She hesitated, wondering whether to find a place to sit down, when her phone suddenly vibrated.
It was a message from Zong Heng: "There's an important meeting today, so I might not have time for lunch."
Xu Ying's lips unconsciously curved upwards, and she quickly replied: 【That's perfect, I'll supervise your meals.】
Xu Ying's fingertips had just touched the conference room doorknob when she heard a deep reporting voice coming from inside. She hesitated for half a second, wondering whether to wait until the meeting was over before going in, but the food in the insulated bag was slowly getting cold. She took a deep breath and gently pushed open the door—
"Excuse me, I can..."
The words came to an abrupt halt.
More than twenty pairs of eyes in the conference room turned to look at her. At the end of the long table, Zong Heng sat upright in the main seat, the documents spread out in front of him gleaming in the light of the projector. On the large screen behind him, the message she had just sent was clearly displayed: [Yeah, just arrived on the 32nd floor, waiting for you outside the conference room.]
Xu Ying's ears instantly burned.
She then noticed that Zong Heng's phone was connected to the conference room's projection system. Worse still, everyone had seen the message, including Zong Heng's recent reply: "Don't wait outside, just come in."
The air froze for three seconds.
"I'm so sorry!" Xu Ying hurriedly backed away, "I didn't know you were in a meeting..."
"come over."
Zong Heng's voice wasn't loud, but it silenced the entire conference room. He put down his pen and extended his hand to her. Xu Ying recognized the pen—it was the graduation gift she had given him five years ago.
The marketing director's report was interrupted halfway through; he stood there, mouth agape, stunned. The finance director's glasses had slipped down to the tip of his nose, and he'd forgotten to push them up. Everyone seemed to be frozen in time, their gazes darting back and forth between Zong Heng and Xu Ying.
Xu Ying froze on the spot, feeling the insulated bag in her hand suddenly become incredibly heavy. She subconsciously looked around and found that each executive had the same meeting materials in front of them—the cover of which read "Zongshi Technology Quarterly Strategic Meeting".
This is clearly an important meeting.
"I...I'll still wait outside..."
"Xu Ying." Zong Heng's voice deepened, and he beckoned slightly with his finger in the air. "Come here."
This action elicited a few soft gasps in the conference room. Xu Ying saw the vice president sitting to Zong Heng's right choke suddenly and quickly picked up her water glass to cover it up.
She forced herself to walk forward, her high heels clicking crisply on the marble floor. With each step, she felt more astonished gazes fall upon her. As she passed the marketing director, she heard him mutter softly, "So it really is true..."
Zong Heng had already stood up. As he took the insulated bag from her, his fingertips inadvertently brushed against the back of her hand. This subtle gesture made Xu Ying's heart skip a beat, and it also made all the executives present widen their eyes.
"What did you do?" Zong Heng asked in a low voice, his fingers already unfastening the clasp of the insulated bag.
"Sweet and sour pork ribs, and..." Xu Ying's voice trailed off, "...and your favorite stir-fried asparagus..."
Before she could finish speaking, a "thud" came from the other end of the conference room—the HR director's folder had fallen to the floor. This usually decisive and efficient businesswoman was now staring intently at them, her mouth slightly agape.
Zong Heng, seemingly oblivious to the commotion around him, untied the lid of the insulated food container with his slender fingers. The rich aroma of food immediately filled the conference room. He picked up his chopsticks, took a bite, and his brow relaxed: "An improvement over last time."
"Really?" Xu Ying's eyes lit up, but then she realized the situation was inappropriate and quickly lowered her voice, "You go ahead with the meeting, I..."
"The meeting is paused for ten minutes."
Zong Heng's words were like a bomb dropped into the conference room. He naturally took Xu Ying's hand and led her to the adjacent lounge area under the gaze of more than twenty executives. Xu Ying felt everyone's eyes were glued to their clasped hands, burning so intensely it felt like it was going to scald her skin.
After the glass door to the lounge area closed, a suppressed commotion immediately erupted in the conference room outside.
"Is that CEO Zong's girlfriend?"
"Didn't you see the look in his eyes just now? It was like he wanted to devour you."
"In my three years with the company, this is the first time I've seen General Manager Zong interrupt his speech during a meeting..."
Through the glass wall, Xu Ying saw several executives secretly peeking in their direction. Feeling extremely uncomfortable, she protested in a low voice, "Are you crazy? This is an important meeting!"
Zong Heng had already opened his lunchbox and slowly picked up a piece of pork rib: "How can we have a meeting on an empty stomach?"
"That can't be..." Xu Ying said, but a piece of pork rib was suddenly brought to her mouth.
"Try it." Zong Heng's chopsticks stopped steadily in front of her lips.
Xu Ying's eyes widened, and she instinctively leaned back: "Stop it, everyone outside is watching!"
Zong Heng raised an eyebrow, not only not withdrawing his hand, but also pushing the ribs forward further: "Didn't you say it was too salty last time? Let's see how it is this time."
Outside the glass wall, the marketing director suddenly covered his mouth, while the finance director next to him kept pushing up his glasses. Xu Ying even saw someone secretly raise their phone.
Her face flushed, she quickly took a bite, then gasped, scalding it: "Okay, okay, you eat now..."
"Hot?" Zong Heng put down his chopsticks, picked up his water glass, and handed it to her. "Take it easy."
This action completely ignited the conference room outside. Xu Ying clearly heard a suppressed scream, followed by a chorus of coughs—clearly everyone was pretending to choke.
"Zong Heng!" Xu Ying cried out, both embarrassed and anxious, her voice barely audible. "You did this on purpose!"
Zong Heng finally chuckled softly, gently wiping the sauce from the corner of her mouth with his finger: "Hmm, on purpose."
"you......"
"Let them see clearly," Zong Heng's voice suddenly turned cold, his thumb gently stroking her lips, "whose person are you?"
These words made Xu Ying's heart skip a beat. Only then did she notice that although Zong Heng's tone was relaxed, his eyes were frighteningly dark—those were the possessive eyes she knew well.
Outside the glass wall, the vice president was desperately pulling at the marketing director who wanted to take a picture, while the finance director had already pulled out his phone and started typing frantically. The entire conference room was in complete chaos, a far cry from the image of elite executives.
Zong Heng, however, acted as if he hadn't seen her, and picked up another slice of asparagus, feeding it to her lips: "Have another bite."
"I don't......"
"obedient."
The two words were spoken in a low, heavy voice, carrying an undeniable air of refusal. Xu Ying opened her mouth as if possessed, and by the time she realized what was happening, she heard a collective gasp of astonishment outside.
She discovered with despair that at least five cell phones were blatantly pointed at them.
"It's over..." Xu Ying covered her face, "The whole company will know tomorrow..."
Zong Heng finally put down his chopsticks, gently lifting her chin with his fingers: "What do you know?"
"Knowing that the CEO of Zongshi Technology is at an important meeting..." Xu Ying's voice trailed off, "feeding his girlfriend..."
Zong Heng chuckled softly, then suddenly leaned close to her ear: "To correct you, it's fiancée."
Xu Ying blushed and slapped his hand away: "Ten minutes are up!" She quickly packed up the insulated bag and fled towards the door, but stopped in front of it and turned back to add softly: "Don't work too late tonight."
Zong Heng looked at her flushed earlobes and suddenly felt a strong urge to pull her back and kiss her. But considering that teasing her any longer might lead to her quitting in embarrassment, he simply nodded: "Have the driver take you home."
As the conference room door finally closed and Zong Heng turned around, twenty-three pairs of eyes simultaneously avoided his gaze. He walked back to his seat without changing expression, tapping his pen lightly on the table.
Where were we?
Li Yan frantically searched for the documents, only to hear the CEO add, "Today's content is not to be shared."
Everyone nodded vigorously, but they silently made a mental note: from now on, when they see Designer Xu, they must be even more respectful than when they see President Zong.
Xu Ying practically fled into the elevator, her cheeks burning hot. She stared intently at the elevator buttons, wishing she could teleport to the first floor instantly. Her phone vibrated incessantly in her pocket; she pulled it out and looked—
Zong Heng: Why are you running?
Her fingertips trembled as she replied: 【How dare you ask! The whole company saw it!】
Feeling unsatisfied after posting that, he added another message: 【Sleeping in the study tonight!】
As soon as the elevator doors opened, she strode towards the building entrance, only to bump into Zong Heng's assistant, Lin Chen.
"Miss Xu!" Lin Chen's eyes lit up, and he quickly walked over. "You're leaving already? President Zong asked me to see you off."
"No need!" Xu Ying waved her hands repeatedly, wishing she could disappear into a crack in the ground. "I...I'll take a taxi myself."
Lin Chen gave a knowing smile: "Don't be embarrassed, what happened on the 32nd floor has already spread throughout the entire company."
Xu Ying stumbled, exclaiming, "What?!"
"Xiao Wang from the tech department posted photos of the scene in the group chat," Lin Chen said, suppressing a laugh. "Now the whole company is talking about how President Zong fed you."
Xu Ying covered her face in despair. It's over, she really can't face anyone now.
Meanwhile, in the conference room on the 32nd floor, the atmosphere was eerily suffocating.
The marketing director continued his report nervously, occasionally stealing glances at Zong Heng at the head of the table. This usually decisive and efficient CEO was now casually twirling a pen, his gaze fixed on his phone, a faint smile playing on his lips.
"So...the growth rate for Q2 is expected to be around 15%..." The marketing director's voice trailed off.
Zong Heng didn't even look up: "Okay, continue."
The CFO mustered his courage and interjected, "Mr. Zong, um... should we turn off the screen mirroring first?"
Zong Heng then looked up, glanced at the still-connected large screen, and calmly pressed a button on the remote control. The screen flashed and returned to the PowerPoint presentation.
Everyone in the conference room breathed a sigh of relief.
"Where were we?" Zong Heng asked, his tone returning to its usual coldness.
"Q2 growth forecast..." the marketing director quickly interjected.
"Increase it by another 5 percentage points," Zong Heng interrupted him. "Also, next week's client meeting will be moved to Wednesday."
"But Wednesday is already scheduled..."
"Adjustments." Zong Heng closed the folder. "Meeting adjourned."
The executives, feeling as if they'd been granted a pardon, quickly rose to leave. The head of the technical department, walking last, hesitated for a moment before turning back to ask, "Mr. Zong, um...should we...post it in the company group chat...?"
Zong Heng raised an eyebrow: "What's wrong with the group chat?"
The head of the technical department swallowed hard: "It's just...everyone's been circulating photos of you and Ms. Xu..."
Zong Heng picked up his phone and opened the long-dormant company group chat. The latest message was still the HR director's "Received, Mr. Zong," but there were already 99+ private messages below.
He scoffed and tapped the screen twice with his finger.
The next second, all the employees' phones vibrated simultaneously—
Zong Heng has activated a complete mute feature.
Then another one:
[Zong Heng: If I see anyone discussing my wife again, my year-end bonus is canceled.]
The group was completely silent.
Three seconds later, the HR director nervously sent a "Received" emoji.
Zong Heng put away his phone with satisfaction and got up to walk towards his office. As he passed the secretariat, several female secretaries immediately lowered their heads and pretended to be working diligently, but their bright red ears betrayed them.
"Lisa." Zong Heng suddenly stopped in his tracks.
"Here!" The chief secretary jumped up, scattering the documents in his hands all over the floor.
"Postpone the afternoon meeting by half an hour."
"Yes, Mr. Zong!" Lisa hurriedly picked up the documents. "Is there anything I need to prepare?"
Zong Heng's lips curled into a slight smile: "No need, I need to go and appease my wife."
The secretariat fell into an instant silence so profound you could hear a pin drop.
As soon as Zong Heng's figure disappeared into the elevator, the entire floor erupted in chaos.
"My God! Did you hear that?! Mr. Zong said he's going to appease his wife!"
"This is the first time in my five years with the company that I've seen General Manager Zong smile!"
"What happened in the conference room just now was even more exaggerated. President Zong personally fed Miss Xu, and the way he looked at her was so tender..."
"Wasn't it said that President Zong was indifferent to women? This isn't indifference; he's clearly a doting husband!"
In the underground parking lot, Xu Ying was frantically trying to flag down a taxi. Her phone vibrated again, and she answered without even looking at it: "I told you I don't need a ride!"
A low chuckle came from the other end of the phone: "So angry?"
Xu Ying paused, "You...why did you call? Is the meeting over?"
"Hmm." Zong Heng's voice carried a hint of amusement. "Turn around."
Xu Ying turned around and saw Zong Heng leaning against the black Maybach, his suit jacket draped over his arm, his tie slightly loose, smiling at her.
"You...how did you get down here?" she stammered.
"Come and appease your wife." Zong Heng strode over and, without a word, put his arm around her waist. "Didn't you say I'd sleep in the study?"
Xu Ying punched him angrily, "You still dare to say that! The whole company knows!"
"What do you know?" Zong Heng leaned close to her ear, "Do you know I like to feed my wife?"
"Zong Heng!" Xu Ying's ears turned bright red. "You...you've completely abandoned your image?"
Zong Heng chuckled and led her to the car: "You're all I need."
The car slowly drove out of the underground parking garage. Xu Ying buried her face in her hands: "How am I supposed to come to your company again..."
Zong Heng held the steering wheel with one hand and her hand with the other: "Come anytime, preferably every day."
"Dream on!" Xu Ying glared at him. "I'm never coming again!"
"Really not coming?" Zong Heng raised an eyebrow. "Then I'll just have to go to your company every day."
"You dare!"
"Want to give it a try?" Zong Heng smirked. "It'll be a good opportunity for everyone to know that Designer Xu is my wife."
Xu Ying was furious. She turned to look out the window, but saw her own upturned lips reflected in the glass.
Meanwhile, Zongshi Technology's internal forum went completely wild. A post titled "The Daily Life of a Cold CEO Pampering His Wife" was pushed to the front page, instantly garnering over a thousand views.
[OP: Frontline report! CEO Zong left work early to coax his wife!]
[1L: I can testify! The sisters in the secretariat said that President Zong personally said he wanted to appease his wife!]
[2L: The tech department sent their congratulations. Just now, General Manager Zong muted everyone.]
[3L: The marketing department said that in the conference room, President Zong's gaze while looking at his phone was so gentle it could melt hearts.]
[4L: Requesting photos of Miss Xu! What kind of celestial beauty could turn President Zong into a devoted husband?!]
[5L: Be careful with your year-end bonus upstairs]
[6L: Screenshot sent to HR]
[7L: Holy crap, the person upstairs is awesome!]
The post's popularity continued to rise until an hour later when it suddenly displayed "This post has been deleted by the administrator".
Everyone knew in their hearts that this was absolutely at the behest of President Zong.
But it was too late. The image of Zongshi Technology's CEO as a doting husband was firmly established in people's minds that day.
At 8 p.m., Xu Ying was curled up on the sofa scrolling through her phone when she suddenly screamed.
"What's wrong?" Zong Heng peeked out from the study.
Xu Ying held up her phone: "Someone posted photos of us from high school on your company forum!"
When Zong Heng walked over, he saw them on the screen—young Xu Ying standing in front of the teaching building, and Zong Heng, wearing a basketball uniform, bending down to tie her shoelaces.
Caption: An archaeological discovery! A school bully senior versus a top student junior—what an amazing love story!
Zong Heng chuckled: "Well done."
"You're still laughing!" Xu Ying exclaimed in frustration. "This happened so many years ago, how did they find it?!"
Zong Heng took her phone and pulled her into his arms: "That means we're a match made in heaven."
Xu Ying looked up at him and glared: "Did you have someone send this?"
"I'd like to," Zong Heng kissed the top of her head, "but I also want this photo."
That evening, Zong Heng updated his WeChat Moments, a post he hadn't made in five years.
There is only one photo: a boy in a school uniform is squatting down to tie a girl's shoelaces.
Caption: [It's always been her.]
Three seconds later, the executives of Zongshi Technology all gave it a thumbs up, but no one dared to comment.
Only Xu Ying replied below: 【Childish brat!】
Zong Heng smiled as he locked the screen and hugged his protesting wife even tighter.
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