0088 97 Why seek out cranes when you're on a pleasant journey?
Upon hearing this, Ling Xingzhi slowly opened his eyes and looked up at Ling Qingyun.
The jawline and neck form a fragile yet stubborn line.
"Besides this, what else can you do?"
Suddenly, a hard, heavy slap landed on Ling Xingzhi's face. Because he was being held down, only his head was turned to one side.
"You want to rebel?"
The taste of rust spread in his mouth, and the moment the slap landed on his face, everything went blank.
In the quiet night, hurried footsteps sounded, the door was pushed open, and Guo Huaisheng walked in. Seeing the scene before him, his expression tightened. "Qingyun, what happened? Don't fight, let's talk it out."
Ling Xingzhi turned his head away. Because of the slap, the flesh on his cheek had hit his teeth, and blood was seeping out. There was also a crack at the corner of his mouth. He chuckled, a look of despair in his eyes. "I don't dare. Everything I have is given to me by you. Do you want to lock me up or punish me? Don't say those things that damage my self-esteem. I'm tired of hearing them."
Ling Qingyun gritted his teeth and stared at him, his breathing becoming increasingly rapid. Guo Huaisheng walked over and patted his arm, "Don't be angry, can't you talk things out instead of making a scene like this..."
"Never mind that, get out."
Guo Huaisheng was stunned. Ling Qingyun pushed her away, took a few steps toward Ling Xingzhi, lowered her head, raised her hand and rolled up her sleeves. "What did I tell you? About Zhou Xiye? If she didn't choose us, let her die. And you? You knew she wouldn't side with us, but instead you helped her cover for us."
Ling Qingyun rolled up one sleeve, then the other, and said slowly, "Delivering the painting, meeting at the teahouse, trying to pretend the two have a good relationship." Ling Qingyun raised his head and reached out, and someone next to him handed him a whip.
"I almost fell for your trick. If I hadn't met her, I wouldn't have known you were just putting on an act for me... What? Is she your sweetheart now?"
Ling Xingzhi's face was ashen. "She did nothing wrong by not choosing us, and there's no reason to harm her. Besides, didn't she make a deal with you?"
Ling Qingyun laughed wildly and eerily, but the next second his expression suddenly changed. The wrinkles and lines on his face became ferocious, and the years had added not only aging to him, but also cruelty and ruthlessness. He swung his whip and lashed it at Ling Xingzhi. The sound of the whip hitting the air was sharp, and bloodstains immediately appeared on Ling Xingzhi's body.
Ling Xingzhi endured the pain, beads of sweat streaming down his face.
“Apologize to your father, Xingzhi, and this matter will be over!” Guo Huaisheng interjected.
"She's an enemy! What did I teach you? You have to be ruthless when facing an enemy. Don't let your guard down just because she's a woman. Nothing is more poisonous than a woman's heart. You're digging your own grave!" Ling Qingyun asked loudly, panting.
Ling Xingzhi lowered his head and said, "I'll do whatever you want with me. Zhou Xiye and I have no connection whatsoever except for what happened in bed."
The second lash landed on him, and Ling Xingzhi bit his lip, closed his eyes, and trembled from the pain.
Guo Huaisheng watched Ling Qingyun discipline Ling Xingzhi. Although she knew Ling Qingyun's temper well, she still felt lingering fear every time she witnessed the punishment. If she couldn't stop her, then she would leave. She left the room, went outside, and told the nanny to call the doctor to prepare the medicine. She stood outside the door, listening to the sound of the whip striking flesh.
What's the difference between beating a son and beating a prostitute? Guo Huaisheng looked up at the stars and gave a mocking smile.
Not long after, the bodyguard ran out and called the doctor in. When Ling Qingyun lost his temper, he could terrify anyone. Women had died under his hand before—either from sexual asphyxiation or from being severely whipped. Thinking of his own situation, Guo Huaisheng couldn't help but feel a pang of pity for Ling Xingzhi.
Ling Qingyun came out of the house, holding her phone, and quickly walked down the stairs. She kept her eyes straight ahead, not giving Guo Huaisheng a second glance, and said, "Yes... that's right, his position as Secretary of the Beijing Municipal Committee is no longer secure. I have other arrangements..."
Guo Huaisheng stood at the door watching Ling Qingyun's departing figure, hesitated for a moment, then turned and went into the house.
The smell of disinfectant hit her, and she paused, but still went inside. Ling Xingzhi took off his clothes, and the doctor was cleaning his wounds.
"Is there anything else that's bothering you?" she asked.
Ling Xingzhi's gaze drifted over, and he gave a mocking smile. "What do you want to ask?"
Guo Huaisheng pursed his lips, knowing he had asked too much. Even if she genuinely meant well and cared about him, he would misunderstand. So he changed the subject, "Xiao Wei is abroad. How long has he been gone? Isn't he coming back yet?"
Ling Xingzhi looked at her, then glanced at Guo Huaisheng's face, and gave a weak smile. "We had agreed to go out with her during the New Year, but we didn't go. She was being a little temperamental with me. She'll come back once she calms down."
Guo Huaisheng was at a loss for words. He sighed and said, "It's time to have a child. Putting everything else aside, your father wants a grandson to cultivate talent and pave the way for future generations while they are in power."
Ling Xingzhi nodded, "Okay, I won't be too busy afterward, so I should have time to have a child."
"It's her who's pregnant, not you who's giving birth, so it won't cause any problems."
He maintained a polite smile.
After the wound was treated, Guo Huaisheng and the doctor left, leaving him alone in the room. His smile vanished, he pulled out a pack of cigarettes from his pocket, lit one, and took a deep drag. Instead of the expected refreshment, he was choked, coughing incessantly until tears streamed down his face.
The hand holding the cigarette was like a bare branch in winter, fragile and powerless.
He ordered his subordinates to stub out the cigarette in the ashtray.
The room was quiet for only a few minutes when Li Qingshan rushed in, holding his phone. "Secretary, it's the phone number of Li Lin, the real estate developer that Lao Du mentioned before."
Ling Xingzhi nodded, took the phone, and the person on the other end spoke a few words, loud and urgent. Ling Xingzhi sighed, but his face showed no emotion. "Old Du didn't tell me about this... Yes, he's my driver, but he's just a driver. What power does he have? He's acting according to the rules, the laws are written in black and white. He still dared to do this. I can only say he's audacious... Since you're willing to trust him and entrust the matter to him, then go find him. This has nothing to do with me."
After speaking, he turned off his phone.
Looking at the bloodstains on Ling Xingzhi's cheek, Li Qingshan's eyes showed no trace of sadness or hurt; instead, there was a hint of bloodlust. "Old Du has been using your name to go through a lot of trouble with the Land Resources Bureau, the Ecology Bureau, and the Carbon Emission Management Bureau. He thought things would work out, but it's still stuck..."
Ling Xingzhi grunted in agreement and didn't continue the topic. "Find me a new driver. Don't worry about Lao Du. If there's anything, have him come to me."
"good."
Ling Xingzhi stood up and took a few steps, then suddenly stopped. "Where's Chen Ran? I haven't seen him lately."
Li Qingshan also shook his head, "It seems to be about Committee Member Ling."
Ling Xingzhi thought for a moment. What could Ling Qingyun possibly want? He didn't know the answer, but could only say, "Yes, I understand."
On Friday, Pei Zhiyu picked up Zhou Xiye after work to go to a classmate reunion. This time, the reunion wasn't at Wangyue Villa, but at Qinglong Hotel, formerly known as Yingshanhong Hotel. This hotel has a long history, having started operating since the founding of the People's Republic of China. It has grown from a small roadside workshop into a large hotel. Star ratings cannot accurately reflect the hotel's reputation; only the rank of its leaders can be used to assess it.
When they arrived at the private room, Xu Min, Zhong Lingxi and her group were already there. When they saw Zhou Xiye and Pei Zhiyu come in together, they all stood up to welcome them.
Pei Zhiyu revealed a haughty smile, pulled Zhou Xiye beside her (everyone present knew about their relationship), and the two sat down next to each other in the guest of honor's seats. Zhong Lingxi looked on with envy, while Xu Min snorted coldly, picked up her wine glass and took a sip, "Indeed, clever people have extraordinary methods."
Zhou Xiye wasn't in the mood to argue with her, so he pretended not to hear and checked his phone. Pei Zhiyu was in a good mood, laughing and joking with them. Zhou Xiye casually opened his chat with Ye Rouxin, thinking of the wedding gift he had sent him, and typed a few words, "How are you? When are you coming back?"
After sending the message, someone said something, and everyone stood up and raised their glasses. Zhou Xiye also stood up, took his glass, and drank it all with them. He put down his glass, touched his phone, and it vibrated. He opened it and saw it was a call from Ye Rouxin.
Zhou Xiye held up his phone. "I'm going to answer a call."
After saying that, she walked out. Pei Zhiyu watched her retreating figure, his grip on his wine glass tightening. Hearing someone call him, he turned around and came back to his senses. "District Chief Pei, I didn't realize you liked Zhou Xiye so much."
Pei Zhiyu chuckled softly, her eyes sparkling under the lamplight, revealing a myriad of emotions.
Zhou Xiye closed the door to shut out the noise and answered the phone.
"I'm in Spain, and I'll be going back to China the day after tomorrow."
After a few seconds of silence, Zhou Xiye decided to cut to the chase, "I saw your gift. Are you out of your mind to do this?"
Ye Rouxin smiled indifferently, amidst the background noise, "My informant said that the old man contacted you a couple of days ago? What did he say to you?"
“Answer my question first,” Zhou Xiye took a deep breath, “Where are you going to find judges for what you’re doing? Once you step outside this circle, your things will be useless to them, and will only bring you trouble.”
“Some things don’t need a judge. I just want to reveal the truth and give it to you. Use it wisely,” Ye Rouxin smiled. “By the way, why didn’t you use Wei Luochen’s involvement in Ling Xingzhi’s murder to threaten Ling Qingyun?”
Zhou Xiye rolled her eyes. "I'm afraid of dragging you into this."
He fell silent for a few seconds, then became serious, "What you're saying makes me feel like you still love me. Between your husband and me, who would you choose?"
Just as Zhou Xiye was about to speak, someone came in from behind. She moved aside, but the person seemed oblivious and squeezed in again. She turned around impatiently, "You..."
The words were stuck in my throat; I couldn't spit them out, and I couldn't swallow them down.
Shang Heming looked at her, chuckled softly, his dark eyes filled with desire, devoid of lust.
Ye Rouxin waited for a long time but couldn't hear Zhou Xiye's voice. "You chose me? You really chose me? I'm so touched. It seems you really care about me..."
Zhou Xiye took a step back, his waist braced against the wall.
Shang Heming smiled knowingly, stepped forward, took the phone from her hand, and said to the person on the other end of the phone, "Sorry, she's talking to me."
After speaking, he hung up the phone, and almost touching Zhou Xiye's body, he opened Zhou Xiye's pocket and put the phone inside.
Then, he leaned against the wall, the muscles in his sleeves clearly visible. He bent down to meet Zhou Xiye's gaze, a knowing smile playing on his lips, like a cheetah eyeing its prey. After a few seconds, he slowly asked, "Why aren't you saying anything? Nervous?"
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