149. Report or Keep Silent
The next day, Ling Ling slept very late and woke up. She came to the living room and found a neatly arranged cardboard box in the middle of the coffee table. Inside it were the things she had left at Mingtong's place. She glanced at her phone and saw a long message from Mingtong in the early morning: "Lingling, I'm sending my parents back to their hometown this afternoon and will be with them for a week. I had originally planned to travel with you during this anniversary holiday, once you're done with your work, but I didn't expect it to become a period of healing after our separation. I've packed up all my things from your house and returned the things you left with me. I'm sorry, I didn't dare say goodbye to you. I'm a coward and don't want to be apart, but I don't have the courage to continue with you. I'm so grateful you didn't say the word 'break up'. I just think of our meeting as a beautiful dream, a dream I can play out in my mind forever. Thank you for letting me experience so many possibilities I never thought possible. I hope my future will be different because of this. I love you for the last time. Goodbye, Lingling." Lingling hadn't cried so hard in a long time. Numbly commuting every day, working feverishly, and focusing on squeezing through the cracks of survival, she had forgotten her right to feel pain. She felt so sad now. Indeed, she had chosen what she considered a freer lifestyle, but at the same time, she had also given up on a man who might have been willing to stay by her side for the rest of his life. This was a permanent loss; in the future, there would no longer be a man in white, waiting for her in the purest corner of her heart. *~*~*~*~*~*~ After breaking up with Mingtong, Ling Ling once again fell into a workaholic mode. Gu Chuqi and the others immediately noticed: the director had been disappointed in love again. If she could finish the manuscript before midnight, Ling Ling would stay at the hotel next door to the company. If she had to pull an all-nighter, she wouldn't waste the money and would simply make do on the folding bed in the office. Qiao Xi from Yunshang had been communicating with her quite frequently lately, harping on things like her boyfriend seemed to be having problems, the dos and don'ts of meeting parents, and the difficulties of getting along with peers. She would constantly ramble on about everything. Serving the client was never just about the business side of things, and Ling Ling naturally understood that having a personal relationship with a client was a great asset for a salesperson. "Hey, Ling'er, what are you thinking? Design a piece of clothing with us!" Qiao Xi had just finished complaining about her boss during the video call and was now urging Ling'er. She had mentioned this to Ling'er several times, but Ling'er had always been hesitant: "Honey, I'm just an advertising copywriter, how can I possibly design clothes?"
The next day, Ling Ling slept very late and woke up. She came to the living room and found a neatly arranged cardboard box in the middle of the coffee table. Inside it were the things she had left at Mingtong's place.
She glanced at her phone and saw a long message from Mingtong in the early morning:
"Lingling, I'm sending my parents back to their hometown this afternoon and will be staying with them for a week. I had originally planned to travel with you during this anniversary holiday after you were done with your work, but I didn't expect it to become a healing period for us after we separated.
I packed up all my stuff from your house and returned the things you left at my place. I'm sorry, I didn't dare say goodbye. Being a coward, I didn't want to be apart, but I didn't have the courage to continue with you. I'm so grateful you didn't say the word break up. I just think of our meeting as a beautiful dream, a dream I can live in forever. Thank you for letting me experience so many possibilities I never imagined. I hope my future will be different because of this.
Saying I love you for the last time, goodbye, Lingling."
Ling Ling hadn't cried so hard in ages. Numbly commuting, frantically working, and single-mindedly squeezing through the cracks of survival, she'd forgotten her right to suffer. She felt so broken. True, she'd chosen what she considered a freer lifestyle, but at the same time, she'd also given up on a man who might have been willing to stay by her side for the rest of his life. This was a permanent loss. In the future, there would no longer be a man in white waiting in the purest corner of her heart.
*~*~*~*~*~*~
After breaking up with Mingtong, Lingling once again entered a state of working desperately. Gu Chuqi and others immediately noticed that the director had failed in love again.
If she could finish the manuscript before midnight, Ling Ling would stay in the hotel next to the company; if she had to stay up all night, she would not waste the money and would just sleep on the folding bed in the office.
Qiao Xi from Yunshang had been communicating with her quite frequently lately, complaining about things like her boyfriend seemed to be having issues, the dos and don'ts of meeting parents, and the difficulties of getting along with peers. She'd ramble on about everything, no matter the circumstances. Serving the client was never just about business, and Ling Ling naturally understood that having a personal relationship with a client was a huge advantage for a salesperson.
"Hey, Ling'er, what are you thinking? Why don't you design a piece of clothing with us?" Qiao Xi had just finished complaining about his boss in the video call and urged Ling Ling again.
She had mentioned this to Ling Ling several times, but Ling Ling had never dared to agree: "Dear, I'm just an advertising copywriter, how can I have the talent for fashion design? Your brand is very popular now, don't let it end up being the result of your success or failure? Besides, when they do a collaboration, they want to leverage the momentum of the other brands. At least one party needs a super IP. I'm just a behind-the-scenes hero at best. I can't help you at all."
As Qiao Xi applied a facial mask, she said, "Oh, every girl, no matter what her taste, dreams of becoming a fashion designer. It's because our boss constantly pressures me to find a top-tier IP to sign a collaboration. It's not that easy these days. Everyone's playing with traffic, but how many actually bring in traffic? They're all just gimmicks with extremely low cost-performance. You're different. That first nasal mask ad you did, and your unconventional performance at the Golden Seal Awards a while ago, went viral online. You're a super IP yourself! And best of all, you're cheap."
Ling Ling didn't know whether to laugh or cry, so she could only thank her for the compliment. Then she adopted a stalling tactic and said, "Then I'll report to my boss tomorrow."
After hanging up the phone, Ling Ling devoted herself to Xijing's new product planning. Both Zhang Fangjie and Qiao Xi were masters and she had to serve them carefully.
Just after midnight, she finally sent the plan that she had discussed with Zhang Fangjie during the day into the mailbox. She hoped that such sincerity from the second party would not only shock the difficult party A with her professional level tomorrow, but also give her some sympathy and touch.
She yawned, stretched, unbuttoned her long hair that had been tied tightly all day and the first two buttons of her shirt, and collapsed on the swivel chair with her eyes closed to rest.
She suddenly felt someone behind her. When she opened her eyes, she suddenly saw a man's shadow reflected on the glass. She was immediately frightened and screamed suddenly.
"Don't be afraid, Lingling, it's me." This hoarse and soft voice came from Wen Ruier. He leaned forward and patted Lingling's shoulder.
Ling Ling was still in shock, but she did not let her guard down when she saw it was him, because he smelled strongly of alcohol and cigars, a smell she hated. She never thought cigars were noble, but rather low-class. She hated even more the clumsy way that the smell of cigarettes on men was portrayed as sexy in pedantic youth literature.
"Mr. Wen, why are you suddenly coming to the company so late?" Ling Ling took two steps back, keeping a safe distance from him.
Wen Ruier took two steps closer to her and said, "I just finished a dinner party and I guess you're still at the company, so I came to see you. Actually, with your relationship with Mr. Fang, you don't have to work so hard."
Wen Ruier smiled lewdly, his eyes fixed on Ling Ling's chest. Ling Ling felt nauseous and quickly buttoned the two buttons she had just unbuttoned. "Mr. Wen, you misunderstood. Mr. Fang has been nurturing and supporting me all along, so I should be working harder. It doesn't matter what people outside the company say. You've already become Vice President, so you should understand Mr. Fang and me."
Wen Ruier laughed dryly and said, "It is precisely because I understand you two that I am sure that you have a special relationship. But, Lingling, if you can follow me, your future will be limitless." He staggered forward and put his arm around Lingling's waist. She was so scared that she immediately ran to the corner.
Ling Ling propped up her arms and warned him seriously, "Mr. Wen, please don't use alcohol as an excuse to do something wrong. We've all been drunk before, and being drunk isn't an excuse to get away with something."
"I admit I'm quite sober now. Otherwise, why wouldn't I just find a random woman, but come back to you specifically? You have such a great figure, flirting around in front of me every day, trying every way to please me. And you and Fang Tuowu are already having an affair, and you've been eyeing my position. If we were to have an affair in the office, would others think you were being forced, or would you be looking for an opportunity to take advantage of your boss being drunk and seek benefits for yourself?"
When Ling Ling heard him say this, she glared at him and called him a bastard.
Wen Ruier grabbed her hand and roughly pulled her into his arms. His tall body pinned her down, squeezing her body with the corner of the desk, clamping his hands around her waist and forcing a kiss. Ling Ling struggled and cried for help, realizing that the Muay Thai she had practiced was no match for a man with such a huge power difference.
In extreme panic, Ling Ling groped quickly with her back to the desk. She finally touched a paper cutter and without thinking, she slashed at his arm.
Following Wen Ruier's shrill scream, the glaring blood instantly stained his shiny and high-quality silk shirt red.
"Fuck you!" Wen Ruier covered his bleeding arm and became furious.
Ling Ling gasped for breath, not bothering to straighten her clothes. She clutched the paper cutter tightly and pointed it at him, saying, "Even if I kill you now, it would be self-defense. If America hasn't taught you how to be a law-abiding citizen, it won't be too late for you to learn it in prison back home!"
Seeing her aggressiveness, Wen Ruier retreated. He had been in the business for so many years, and he always succeeded easily. He had never encountered such a difficult situation. He had no choice but to soften his tone and said, "I was just joking with you. We often joke around. You hurt me so badly with that knife, so I won't bother with you. But you should also be careful. If you report me, it will be a headline tomorrow. I, Wen Ruier, am not important, but Tuo Wu's name will definitely appear in front of mine. What will Fang Tuo Wu think? Everything you fought so hard for will be gone in an instant."
"Get out!" Ling Ling roared with tears in her eyes.
He cursed and retreated, rushing to the hospital to heal his wounds.
Ling Ling rushed to the glass door of the office with rapid breathing, locked it, and then pushed the sofa against the door with all her strength to hold it tightly. She wrapped her clothes tightly and huddled in the corner, sobbing.
Once, she had Yu Chuanbei and Zhong Mingtong to turn to, or even Hao Shengnan and Long Jia, but now, after scrolling through her phone's contacts, she had no one to turn to. She felt that no matter how dire the future, no one on this planet would be able to help her. She was left alone, and now she had no choice but to make it herself: call the police or remain silent.
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