Chapter 36 Unraveling the Cocoon "I think we should be more careful in public areas..."
Upon seeing that it was Wen Hong who had arrived, Qiao Yunzheng seemed to regain her composure.
The next thought that came to her mind was that she couldn't put him in danger as well.
She wasn't sure if the person behind her was still there, and dared not let him know that she had discovered his presence.
She took Wen Hong's hand and answered his question almost mechanically: "Yes, I've been missing you madly."
Wen Hong was pulled around and obediently turned around. Hearing her blunt words, his eyebrows and eyes couldn't help but curve upwards.
The next moment, he realized that the little hand he was holding was frighteningly cold and was even trembling uncontrollably.
Wen Hong sensed something was wrong and stopped in her tracks: "What's wrong with you?"
Qiao Yunzheng was a little anxious, so she suddenly turned to the side and closed the distance between them.
Her hands were wrapped around his neck, which, from a distance, looked like an extremely intimate gesture.
Wen Hong lowered his eyes and stared at her. Her lips came closer and stopped very close to his. The panic in her eyes could not be hidden: "Someone is following me."
His brow furrowed.
"You're at two o'clock," Qiao Yunzheng felt a chill creep up her spine uncontrollably, "Is anyone there?"
Wen Hong looked up and saw a huge load-bearing column not far to her right, but it was in the shadow of the lamplight and could not be seen clearly.
He shook his head.
Qiao Yunzheng opened her lips and said softly, "Let's go back to the car first."
The two held hands and got into Qiao Yunzheng's car not far away as if nothing had happened.
Close the door and lock it.
Wen Hong sat in the driver's seat, started the engine, and began driving the car.
As the vehicle slowly drove along the guide line, it indeed caught a glimpse of a piece of clothing flashing in the shadow of the decorative pillar as it passed by.
As the car left the parking lot and entered the congested traffic, Qiao Yunzheng's hands and feet slowly warmed up.
"Do you know who it is?" Wen Hong asked, his hands on the steering wheel, his brows still furrowed.
Qiao Yunzheng shook her head: "I don't know." As she spoke, she suddenly remembered something, "In the morning, because of the traffic jam, I didn't let the driver take me to the underground parking lot. I walked a bit to the company and met a very strange person at the company entrance. I don't know if it's related to me."
Wen Hong: "A strange person?"
"Hmm," she thought, recalling the eyes that had been looking at her, and the strange feeling grew stronger. "I heard from people at the company that he's a homeless man who's been hanging around a lot lately..."
Wen Hong pondered for a moment and said, "Tell me more details."
Qiao Yunzheng tried hard to recall the scene: "His beard was very long, so I couldn't see his face clearly. He was hiding in the bushes, so I didn't get a good look at him, but the way he looked at people was very strange. My colleagues said that he hadn't done anything outrageous, and it didn't seem to be for begging or anything..."
She couldn't quite describe the feeling, but her intuition told her that there was no evil in those eyes; they seemed to be just eager to express something.
Instead of heading towards the Qiao residence, Wen Hong made several turns in the bustling city center and went to a nearby upscale residential area.
He thought for a moment and pinpointed the unusual aspect of the incident: "Let's break it down. This homeless man has only been spotted a few times near your company recently, and he doesn't seem to have any particular purpose in appearing; he just stays at a distance and watches passersby. He met you this morning, and then, unusually, appeared in the underground parking garage when he was leaving get off work."
As Qiao Yunzheng listened, she gradually realized what he meant: "You mean... his target is me?"
Wen Hong nodded with a solemn expression.
The car entered the parking lot and the engine was turned off.
Qiao Yunzheng had been thinking about what had just happened. Now that she had come to her senses, she asked the man who was unbuckling his seatbelt in surprise, "Where are we going?"
Wen Hong clicked open her seatbelt and replied matter-of-factly, "Our family."
Qiao Yunzheng caught the key words, and a strange feeling welled up in her heart: "Aren't you going to take me home?"
Wen Hong had already gotten out of the car and walked around to open the passenger door for her: "Let's go back after this is resolved! I can only feel at ease when you're by my side after something like this has happened."
Although the person didn't seem to have any ill intentions, Wen Hong didn't dare to gamble even if there was only a one in ten thousand chance.
The two chatted casually, gradually pulling themselves out of the tense atmosphere they had just been in.
As she walked, Qiao Yunzheng suddenly stopped, remembering something that had happened not long ago.
Wen Hong felt the grip on her hand tighten, and turned to look at her: "What's wrong?"
Qiao Yunzheng slowly met his gaze: "Wen Lu, didn't you tell me that you have nowhere to stay in Kuncheng?"
Wen Hong didn't react for a moment: "What?"
Recalling Wen Hong's words, Qiao Yunzheng repeated them word by word: "It was late at night, pitch black, and there was nowhere to stay."
She was referring to the first time they returned to Kunming to attend the shareholders' meeting, when he used the excuse of having nowhere to stay to move into one of her studio apartments in Jinheyuan.
Wen Hong coughed lightly, his face showing no embarrassment at being exposed, but rather frankly admitting, "If I don't do this... what if my wife runs off with someone else?"
He put his arm around her shoulder and whispered in her ear, "This is called, long-planned."
When she got home, Qiao Yunzheng called Yao Jing, omitting the fact that she had been followed, and told her that she wouldn't be going home for the next few days and would be staying near the company.
Yao Jing seemed about to say something, but after a few seconds of silence, she held back. In the end, she only offered a simple reminder to be careful.
When Wen Hong came out of the bathroom, she saw Qiao Yunzheng standing by the window, staring at her phone screen. She seemed to be thinking about something, and then she chuckled softly.
He walked up behind her, leaned in, and peeked at her: "What are you thinking about? Why are you so happy?"
The gloom that had been weighing on her heart all day vanished because of this phone call, and Qiao Yunzheng's eyes even held a smile: "I wanted to tell you about this this morning..."
Turning around, she was caught off guard by Wen Hong's half-naked chest.
His pajamas were untied, half-open, revealing glimpses of his muscular physique. His hair was damp and hung down, and his lips were slightly wet, perhaps due to the steam.
Qiao Yunzheng screamed in her heart that it was a foul.
Because of the height difference, whenever he got closer to her, the first thing she saw was always the lower half of his face and his Adam's apple.
Wen Hong, completely unaware of her rambling thoughts, was looking down at him, waiting for her answer: "What is it?"
Qiao Yunzheng almost subconsciously swallowed, her gaze slowly moving upwards to meet his probing eyes.
A wave of heat suddenly surged up, and she abruptly changed the subject: "Wen Hong, I think it's best to be mindful of your image in public areas."
Wen Hong looked bewildered, then looked down at herself before belatedly realizing what was going on.
A wicked thought suddenly occurred to him. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her into his arms, his chest trembling slightly from a restrained chuckle: "What image do I need in front of my wife?"
The perfect silhouette that had just been so alluring was now right in front of her, and Qiao Yunzheng felt her cheeks were about to burst with heat.
She forced herself to remain calm, pushed the person in front of her away slightly, waved her phone, deliberately frowned, and said in a helpless tone, "My mother said that you should come to my house whenever you have time."
Upon hearing this, Wen Hong froze.
After a moment, he chuckled softly, his tone teasing: "Let me think, Auntie might give me a card, or a check..."
Although he was smiling, Qiao Yunzheng could sense his nervousness, so she reached out and held his hand.
"And then, he tells me to take this million and leave my daughter?" Wen Hong shrugged. "That's how it's portrayed on TV."
Qiao Yunzheng could no longer hold back and burst out laughing.
Her smile made Wen Hong even more nervous, and he couldn't help but tighten his grip on her fingers.
Qiao Yunzheng suddenly found Wen Hong's forced composure quite endearing.
She tiptoed and gave him a light peck on the lips: "Whether you get a card, a check, or an admission ticket depends on Wen Lu's performance."
As if she hadn't immediately processed the information in her words, Wen Hong didn't react for a moment.
A moment later, he suddenly lifted her into the air and carried her away.
A dazzling light instantly shone in his deep eyes.
Wen Hong picked up and dropped off Qiao Yunzheng for two consecutive days, and did not see the homeless man who had followed Qiao Yunzheng that day again.
On the third day, after dropping Qiao Yunzheng off at her office, she remembered that she had left a document in the car and turned back to the underground parking garage.
Looking from a distance, a furtive figure could be seen lurking beside Qiao Yunzheng's car, peering through the glass.
His eyes suddenly turned cold.
Wen Hong walked over quickly and grabbed his collar before he could run away: "What are you doing?"
The man was very thin and light, and he was easily lifted up. He struggled in vain but could not break free.
Only then did Wen Hong see the man's true face.
His beard hadn't been cut in a long time, covering two-thirds of his face.
Because her collar was being held tight, her face was slightly flushed, and her eyes were fixed on Wen Hong with fear.
When Wen Hong met those eyes, she instantly felt a sense of familiarity, but couldn't remember where she had seen them before.
He glanced at the angle of the underground parking garage surveillance camera, then pulled him to a blind spot before letting him go.
The man collapsed to the ground, panting heavily.
Wen Hong lit a cigarette, half-squatted beside him, and looked down at him: "Speak! Who are you? Why are you following her?"
The man cowered, avoiding his gaze, and after a moment of huddling there, suddenly exerted his strength and lunged forward.
Wen Hong still had a cigarette between his fingers, and the smoke rings slowly drifted away.
As if he had expected this, he stretched out his long leg, and the man fell heavily to the ground, looking extremely disheveled.
In the dim air, the smoke rings drifted along without any obstruction.
The man writhed on the ground for a moment, then suddenly raised his face, his features contorted and grotesque, and began to mutter something incoherently.
If it were someone else, they would probably have been terrified.
But Wen Hong just watched coldly and slowly finished smoking the cigarette.
With a flick of the finger, ashes drifted down.
He tossed the still-sparkling cigarette butt with his toe, raising an eyebrow: "Pretending to be crazy?" He waved his bony fingers in front of the man's face. "It won't work."
He extended a finger and brushed aside the hair that clung to the man's forehead, his eyes deep and unfathomable: "I think I remember who you are."
-
When Qiao Yunzheng got off work, Wen Hong didn't show up; her phone only had one message from him:
Something urgent has come up; please be careful on your way home.
Qiao Yunzheng didn't think much of it and put her phone back in her pocket.
The homeless man hadn't shown up recently, and since he wasn't there, she drove back to the Qiao residence in the suburbs by herself.
Yao Jing was surprised when she suddenly returned, wearing an apron, gloves, and a hat.
Qiao Yunzheng looked at the storage boxes scattered all over the floor in the central hall on the first floor in surprise: "Mom, what's going on here?"
Yao Jing waved to her: "Go upstairs first, it's all dusty here. Come down after you've cleaned it up."
Qiao Yunzheng did not move immediately.
My gaze swept over the piles of junk on the ground.
The housekeeper usually does all the cleaning and tidying at home, so Yao Jing naturally wouldn't do these chores herself.
But when her gaze swept over a photograph on a box, Qiao Yunzheng suddenly understood.
That's a picture of my dad.
Yao Jing was probably sorting through some of her father's belongings.
She didn't reply. After taking off her coat, she silently squatted down and helped Yao Jing tidy up these old things.
Over the years, Yao Jing seems unable to face her husband's sudden death. She doesn't touch his things, doesn't go into his study, and keeps everything in the house the same as it was when he was alive.
It seemed that Qiao Zhende had never left her.
Qiao Yunzheng's words that night seemed to finally wake her up, and she finally faced the cruel reality.
Early in the morning, I moved out and tidied up some old things from Qiao Zhende's study and room.
Neither the mother nor the daughter spoke; they simply smiled at each other and then went about their work.
Qiao Yunzheng flipped through the piles of documents in the study one by one. Most of them were documents and information about past projects. Some had already been completed and put into production, while others had been shut down due to the expiration of their lifespan.
She categorized and organized the documents, put them into their respective boxes, locked them, and moved them into the storage room.
After finishing half of it, she stretched and sat down on a stool to rest.
Yao Jing brought out two glasses of water, handed one to her, and asked casually, "Have you been with that Wen Hong these past few days?"
Qiao Yunzheng paused for a moment, lowered her head and took a sip, then frankly admitted, "Mm."
Yao Jing's face showed no unusual expression, her brows remained relaxed, as if she were talking about something very ordinary: "Once the house is tidied up, bring him over!"
The warm liquid slid down her throat. Qiao Yunzheng held the glass, feeling the warmth seep into her body through her meridians. She smiled and said, "Okay."
After a short rest, she squatted down again and continued her work.
Open the next box.
He took out a stack of documents, clenched them in his hands, and shook off the dust.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw several documents, much smaller than A4 paper, fluttering to the ground.
Qiao Yunzheng reached out to pick it up, but stopped when she saw the contents of the document.
Those were a few somewhat wrinkled photos.
The old tank farm project in the north of the city before rectification.
Unlike the now brand-new main body of the spherical tank, the components in the photo are rusty and exude an air of decay.
Several photos are schematic diagrams of layouts with severe rust, and some areas are highlighted with a marker.
Qiao Yunzheng's hand trembled slightly as she held the photo.
Suddenly, she remembered the location the project manager in the northern part of the city had pointed out to her; it was there that her father had fallen.
She almost instinctively held her breath, her gaze sweeping over every tiny detail.
There were many marked rectification areas. She searched carefully and finally found a detailed picture that clearly showed the accident site.
Compared to the decaying traces elsewhere, the railings there, though not exactly intact, were quite strange.
Most of the other corrosion spots were scattered and irregular. However, the section of railing at the accident site, while generally intact, had rust concentrated mainly at the base.
That section of railing is the only way to get a clear view of the back of the spherical tank.
Qiao Yunzheng could barely breathe, her eyes fixed on that spot, her lips almost bleeding from being bitten.
She suddenly realized what was happening, and almost trembling, she rummaged through the pile of documents, finally finding a roster listing the functions of the staff.
One name was prominently listed:
Shen Xingduo, Director of the Mobility Department.
Qiao Yunzheng recalled the project manager's previous evaluation of this person: a very enthusiastic and responsible person.
“Shen Xingduo…” she murmured the name.
I finally remembered something she had overlooked before.
The two men who were talking in the restroom passage that I encountered when I was having a gathering with Su Ran and the others at the club that day.
One of them was named Shen Xingduo.
And his statement: If it weren't for Lao Tzu, would he, surnamed Wen, be where he is today?
Qiao Yunzheng suddenly stood up.
The sudden movement startled Yao Jing: "Xiao Zheng, what's wrong?"
Qiao Yunzheng bit her lip and said to her, "Mom, I suddenly remembered that I have something to do and I have to go back to the company."
I drove at high speed back to the Qiao family's place.
On the way, she called her assistant and asked for the electronic project files of everyone in the Chengbei project department.
The night sky was dark and gloomy, like a huge pot that had been turned upside down, making it hard to breathe.
Qiao Yunzheng sat at her desk with a cold face, rapidly moving the mouse, her icy eyes fixed on the jumping text.
I finally found the name among a bunch of text.
Shen Xingduo.
Project evaluation: Dedicated and responsible.
Even in the routine maintenance records of the equipment, his attendance rate as the department head was as high as 40%.
Qiao Yunzheng carefully reviewed the maintenance records and material requisition forms, leaving no stone unturned, down to a bottle of engine oil and a single screw.
Those scattered fragments of memory seem to be drawn together by an invisible thread, little by little, forming a hidden possibility.
Qiao Yunzheng could barely control her trembling hands.
The phone fell off the table several times before it finally got through to Wen Hong.
The phone went unanswered; all that came through was a emotionless, electronic female voice.
She jumped up, grabbed her car keys, and rushed straight to Wen Hong's house.
Qiao Yunzheng clutched her chest, her hand trembling as she pressed her fingerprint, and the electronic lock opened with a click.
The house was dark, with no lights on, as if no one had ever been back.
She leaned against the door, exhausted, and it took her a long time to recover.
She frantically dialed Wen Hong's number, but no one answered.
On her way back, Qiao Yunzheng passed by the Wen's Building.
She had passed by this building countless times, but never felt the urge to go inside.
Remembering what Shen Xingduo had said that she had overheard that day, she slammed on the brakes.
At 10 p.m., the entire building was dark except for one window on the first floor that was lit.
Qiao Yunzheng parked her car and went inside.
The security guard yawned and, as usual, stopped her: "Who are you looking for?"
Qiao Yunzheng forced herself to suppress her chaotic emotions, her face remaining calm and composed as she glanced at the lit window: "I have an appointment with President Wen."
The gatekeeper looked her up and down for a moment, seemingly hesitant, but fortunately he finally let her through.
In the stillness of the night, in this empty building, every sound of her footsteps seemed to pound on her heart.
After passing through the lobby, Qiao Yunzheng headed towards the brightly lit conference room.
Then, it suddenly stopped.
Surprisingly, I saw Wen Hong's back.
Opposite him was Wen Jinliang, who was smiling smugly.
Wen Jinliang seemed to be in a good mood, talking to Wen Hong.
Wen Hong was sitting with his back to her, so she couldn't see his expression.
All that could be seen at the end was Wen Jinliang pushing something that looked like a hard drive in front of Wen Hong.
Author's Note: 1. This is now a paid chapter. Chapters 16-34 are paid chapters, so please don't buy them again if you've already read them.
2. I will revise the text in the next two days and prepare for its uploading. Daily updates will resume starting Saturday.
3. Thank you to all the angel babies who have been with me and encouraged me. They gave me strength and the faith to keep me going until now.
4. We'll be holding a subscription rate giveaway later (those of you who have already read along, remember to leave a comment and we'll send you a bag separately, mwah!).
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