0128 137 Impossible to guard against
Pei Zhiyu called Zhou Xiye all night, but she didn't answer. In the study, only the blue light from the computer screen shone on his face. The video playing on repeat in front of him was of Zhou Xiye at the provincial symposium, of her being criticized, of her lowering her head and remaining silent.
But her back remained very straight.
Pei Zhiyu gripped her phone, her eyes deep and unfathomable. The Yunnan Provincial Party Committee said Zhou Xiye had been released and would be reinstated once the investigation results were released. Ding Xiangyang also said that Zhou Xiye's special approval document came from the central government. In Yunnan Province, there was only one person who could reach the central government.
Commands must be obeyed.
Suddenly, a clap of thunder sounded outside the window, and Pei Zhiyu seemed to wake up. He moved the mouse, hesitated for a long time over a software on the desktop, and finally clicked on it. It showed the situation at Zhou Xiye's house: a man's shirt hanging on the back of the empty sofa in the dead of night.
Pei Zhiyu rewound the surveillance footage to several hours earlier, watching frame by frame of Zhou Xiye and Ling Xingzhi arguing, fighting, and being intimate. As if possessed, Pei Zhiyu repeatedly zoomed in to watch the scenes of Ling Xingzhi kissing her, and Zhou Xiye's expression when Ling Xingzhi was sucking on her nipple. He wanted to know if Zhou Xiye acted like this with every man.
Was she happy because a man was drinking her milk, or because that man was Ling Xingzhi?
In the darkness, the image of Ling Xingzhi and Pei Zhiyu was reflected in his eyes, igniting his anger. Thunder rumbled outside the window, illuminating the night sky, and the silent city was shrouded in mist from the torrential rain.
The nanny rolled over; the thunder was so loud it had woken her several times. Just as she closed her eyes, another loud sound rang out, "Boom—boom—boom—" not quite thunder, but still incredibly powerful. After listening with her eyes closed for a few seconds, the nanny suddenly sat up and nudged the person next to her. "Has someone broken into the house? Mayor Pei is upstairs!"
After saying that, the nanny and her husband rushed out, ran upstairs, turned on the light, and after a few steps, they saw Pei Zhiyu come out of the study with blood on her hands.
"Mayor Pei, what's wrong! Is there a thief? Should we call the police?" The nanny and her husband rushed over. Pei Zhiyu turned to look at them, and they stopped ten meters away from him.
Blood flowed down the back of his hand to his fingertips, then fell from the air and disappeared into the blanket.
Pei Zhiyu looked at them expressionlessly, said "Nobody's here," and then turned and left. The couple looked at Pei Zhiyu, at a loss, and after exchanging a glance, they waited until Pei Zhiyu returned to her room before daring to take a few steps forward and peek into the study.
The study was a mess, with books piled up on the floor, the computer in a terrible state, and the glass on the bookshelf smashed.
The window was still open, and the wind and rain stirred the curtains into a fluttering motion.
In the early morning, amidst the birdsong and fragrant flowers, Zhou Xiye slowly opened her eyes. It took her a long time to realize that she had returned home. Staring blankly, she went over the events of the past two days from head to toe before slowly sitting up. Ling Xingzhi was still asleep, lying flat on her back with her head turned to the side, her sleeping posture elegant.
Zhou Xiye, still in her pajamas, tiptoed out of bed, left the bedroom, and closed the door behind her. Her phone was on the coffee table; she picked it up and sat on the sofa to check her messages. Pei Zhiyu had been calling all night; the other messages weren't important—they were all just inquiries—and she didn't intend to reply.
The call went through, and Pei Zhiyu immediately became conflicted, "Up so early?"
Zhou Xiye noticed the coldness in Pei Zhiyu's voice and smiled, "Yes, I went to bed early yesterday... I came out, and they gave me special permission to wait for the results at home. Everything is fine on my end."
"Okay, I'm glad you're safe. What are your plans for the future?"
Zhou Xiye sighed slightly, "Let's wait and see. Once the results are out and the human trafficking and prostitution case is thoroughly investigated, everything will be settled."
Pei Zhiyu sighed, "Have you found out who's targeting you?"
"I have a few people in my heart, but I haven't decided yet. I can barely take care of myself, so I'll get through this first."
Pei Zhiyu looked at Zhou Xiye on the computer screen, taking in all her expressions. "Okay, take your time, no rush."
After hanging up the phone, Pei Zhiyu put away her laptop. Footsteps sounded outside the door. Pei Zhiyu stood up and, seeing who entered, said, "Secretary Liangyou, long time no see. Zhou Xiye is here; she must have caused you a lot of trouble. I apologize on her behalf..."
Zhou Xiye put down her phone and looked out the window. A few seconds later, Ling Xingzhi's reflection appeared in the glass. She didn't turn around. Ling Xingzhi walked forward, then gently hugged her waist from behind. "Why didn't you call me when you got up?"
Zhou Xiye turned around and pushed Ling Xingzhi away. "You should go back first. We need to avoid suspicion between us. You are the mayor, and I am the party secretary. I haven't washed the mud off myself yet, so it's not convenient for you to come over."
Ling Xingzhi smiled, bent one leg on the sofa, bent over and reached out to tidy Zhou Xiye's hair, "I don't mind the dirt, I'll wash it for you..." As he spoke, he sat down, put his arm around Zhou Xiye's waist, and looked like a playful man, "Hey, I washed it for you last night when you were asleep. Practice makes perfect, I can clean even the dirtiest water for you now."
Zhou Xiye felt somewhat relaxed listening to Ling Xingzhi's teasing and seeing his unserious demeanor, but he still felt a lot of pressure.
"I'm not joking with you. You can go now. I can handle things here myself."
Ling Xingzhi held Zhou Xiye's hand with a smile on his face, "What is it that I can't help you with? Just tell me, this time when you got out of there, wasn't it because I helped you smooth things over?"
Zhou Xiye turned to look at him, and Ling Xingzhi had a smug smile on his face. "You don't need to thank me, and please don't scold me like you did yesterday. Just praise me."
"Praise you?" Zhou Xiye chuckled, pulled his hand out of Ling Xingzhi's grasp, and patted Ling Xingzhi's face. "Praise you for what? Praise you for being superfluous and adding unnecessary details? I already said yesterday that even if you didn't save me, I could get out of there on my own."
Ling Xingzhi took a deep breath, turned around and leaned back on the sofa. "Zhou Xiye, you really can't tell right from wrong. Don't you know what kind of life is in there? You've already lost a lot of weight in just two days. If you wait for the results, you'll be skinned alive!"
At this point, he sneered, "It's good to be skinned alive. Don't wait until you get out and admit to everything, and then the most exercise you'll do for the rest of your life will be doing calisthenics in Qincheng Prison."
Zhou Xiye lowered his eyes, "I can handle it."
"Do you think I'm meddling?"
"I think you should distance yourself from me and not get involved."
“It’s like my sincerity was wasted,” Ling Xingzhi laughed self-deprecatingly. “Zhou Xiye, from the moment I dialed my father’s number for you, I stopped caring. To put it bluntly, my dad will cover for me if anything happens, so you don’t need to worry about my life or death.”
“I’m not worried about whether you live or die, I just think you’re in my way.”
What does that mean? The flames suddenly flared up on his head. To control his emotions, Ling Xingzhi let out a long sigh, his hands clenched into fists. "Me? Me? Am I in the way?" Ling Xingzhi really wanted to laugh. "Zhou Xiye, am I in the way? I did all these things for you and didn't get any benefits in return. Instead, you scolded me, calling me stupid and saying I'm in the way?"
He was speechless. Ling Xingzhi felt he had done everything in his power, standing up for her and releasing information to make his stance clear to everyone, all so that Zhou Xiye could have an easier time. But now? She didn't appreciate it.
Ling Xingzhi raised his hand and smoothed his hair, then touched his face. "I don't know, I don't know what to do." He turned to look at Zhou Xiye. "Tell me, what should I do now?"
"Get dressed and leave my house."
Ling Xingzhi nodded, stood up, went back into the house, quietly dressed, and then came out, standing still at the door.
“Stop talking,” Zhou Xiye said, knowing he was waiting for her to say something. “When you helped me, was it out of genuine altruism, or did you want something from me? You know best what you’re thinking.”
"What can I get from you?" Ling Xingzhi turned to look at her. "I've found that you're impossible to warm up. Is your heart harder than a rock? A stinking rock in a latrine, and I'm treating it like a treasure! If you keep acting like a jerk, I'll change my surname to yours!"
After saying that, Ling Xingzhi turned his head and slowly opened the door. He was holding his anger in, thinking that he couldn't be so angry that he couldn't open the door like yesterday. His anger had to erupt like a volcano. He stepped out with one foot, followed by the other, and slammed the door shut with all his might.
Unexpectedly, as soon as he stepped outside, he ran into the family of three from next door who had just returned from walking their dog. They greeted Ling Xingzhi with smiles, "Mayor Ling, good morning!"
Ling Xingzhi nodded with a smile, "Good morning! Have you eaten?" As he spoke, he gently closed the door.
"I've eaten, I've eaten. What about you, Mayor?"
"We're going out to get something to eat."
Well, I'm being subservient again.
Once inside the car, Ling Xingzhi lit a cigarette. He couldn't understand why he would do so much for Zhou Xiye. The two of them had just argued and drawn lines between themselves, so how could he have been so bewitched as to help her to this extent?
Zhou Xiye was right. Being detained in the procuratorate waiting for the results, enduring the long wait, wasn't a problem. As someone who had been to the front lines, she could definitely handle it. If he hadn't interfered, Zhou Xiye herself would have been fine.
He barged in... Ling Xingzhi took a drag of his cigarette, and now he was in the open.
The enemy couldn't see it, which instead revealed their position.
Ling Xingzhi suddenly realized he'd been a bit foolish. There were many ways to help Zhou Xiye, definitely not just this one—making enemies and backing her up. Heh, if that's the case, does Zhou Xiye really think they're in cahoots?
Ling Xingzhi narrowed his eyes, stubbed out his cigarette, and now he wanted to slap himself.
But then he thought about it again and realized that this might be a case of lust clouding one's judgment. Ling Xingzhi lowered his head and smiled. So this was a situation that happened to him too.
Sitting in the front row, Li Qingshan watched Ling Xingzhi's initially worried face turn into a silly grin as he lowered his head. He coughed lightly and asked, "Mayor, where are we going?"
Ling Xingzhi snapped out of his daze. "Wait a minute, I'll make a phone call."
The call was made to Shen Yuhe, but neither Shen Yuhe nor Xu Jiaojiao answered. This was Shen Yuhe's private number; if someone else answered, it was clear Shen Yuhe didn't want to answer. Ling Xingzhi lowered his tone, "Okay, where are you busy? Tell me, I'll order food and send it over… How could I? It's a treat for you, not for Team Leader Shen…"
Having obtained Shen Yuhe's address, Ling Xingzhi told Li Qingshan, "Let's go to the tax bureau to find Team Leader Shen."
Upon arriving at the tax bureau, Ling Xingzhi came under the guise of an inspection, catching them completely off guard. Only the working group knew he was coming and continued with their work as usual. Ling Xingzhi had no interest in observing the tax work of other departments within the tax bureau; after a brief greeting, he went straight to the working group.
As soon as they arrived at the conference room door, they encountered Shen Yuhe, who obediently blocked them at the door.
Ling Xingzhi smiled first, "Team Leader Shen? Thank you for your hard work. I had my secretary order a working meal. Let's all eat together later."
Shen Yuhe also smiled, but it was a forced smile. "Mayor Ling must be very busy these past two days."
Ling Xingzhi understood the veiled meaning in the words. He walked into the conference room with his hands behind his back, saying as he went, "Busy work, all busy work, unlike Team Leader Shen, who does real work for the country."
Shen Yuhe followed behind Ling Xingzhi, smiling but saying nothing.
Ling Xingzhi looked around and finally stopped. "Team Leader Shen, if you have any problems with your work, just tell me. I will definitely help you solve them. Please don't be afraid to bother me."
“My work won’t bother anyone,” Shen Yu said.
Ling Xingzhi smiled upon hearing this, "In that case, I'd like to trouble Team Leader Shen to have lunch with me."
"As long as it's not a trap."
How about I plead guilty with a bundle of thorns on my back?
Shen Yu smiled; she still had to give Ling Xingzhi face.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
