Chapter 72 Seduction
Pei Song responded drowsily and soon fell asleep.
Shi Yanchen lowered his head to look at his sleeping face, his eyes so gentle that they seemed to melt.
Pei Song's eyelashes are very long, casting a faint shadow under the light of the elevator.
His black hair fell softly on his forehead, and his brows were still slightly furrowed, as if he could not let go of his work even in a light sleep.
His lips were very light in color, slightly pursed, yet revealing a hint of stubbornness, and even at this moment he maintained this unconscious persistence.
The meticulous elite look at work has completely disappeared, replaced by a kind of almost innocent purity.
His breathing was very light, and he leaned towards Shi Yanchen unconsciously because he was too tired.
Occasionally, he would move unconsciously, as if looking for a more comfortable position.
This person who always deliberately keeps a distance from others on weekdays let down all his defenses in exhaustion.
"What a worrying guy." Shi Yanchen said softly, but his tone was full of doting.
As the elevator went down floor by floor, it seemed as if time had slowed down.
Arriving at the parking lot, Shi Yanchen opened the passenger door and carefully settled Pei Song, who was half asleep.
"Have a sleep, I'll call you when we get there." He said softly, helped Pei Song fasten his seat belt, and turned up the air conditioner temperature.
Pei Song hummed in a daze, curled up in his seat, and soon fell asleep.
After an unknown amount of time, the car stopped.
Pei Song was awakened by the sudden stillness, and when he opened his eyes he saw the familiar hotel lobby.
The memory of that night quickly came back to him, and he froze: "No, I want to go home..."
"I'm worried about your condition." Shi Yanchen said calmly, "This place is close to the company, so it will be convenient for me to go to work tomorrow."
"I don't want to live here." Pei Song's voice was low, but with a bit of stubbornness.
Every time he thought of that out-of-control night and his drunken indulgence, he felt ashamed.
Shi Yanchen saw his resistance and softened his voice unconsciously: "You can still stay in the original room. I promise not to disturb you."
Pei Song pursed his lips and said nothing.
"Or do you want me to take you home?" Shi Yanchen did not force him, but instead took a step back.
Seeing the concern that could not be hidden in his eyes, Pei Song finally compromised: "...I have to get up early tomorrow." This was considered an agreement.
The elevator stopped at the 42nd floor, and Shi Yanchen swiped his card to open the door.
The familiar layout of the suite made Pei Song feel a little dazed - the positions of the sofa, coffee table, and floor lamp, everything was the same as before.
Even his usual pair of slippers were neatly placed in the entrance.
"Go and have a rest." Shi Yanchen stood at the door of the second bedroom, with no intention of coming in. "Call me anytime if you need anything."
Pei Song walked quickly into the bedroom and breathed a sigh of relief when he heard the door close behind him.
After washing up and lying on the bed, he forced himself not to think about what happened that night.
The aches all over his body reminded him that he had been working for too long, and his eyelids were becoming heavier.
When I woke up the next day, Shi Yanchen had already left.
Pei Song saw a cup of warm water and a new set of clothes on the bedside table.
The breakfast on the table was still steaming - century egg and lean meat porridge, steamed dumplings, and salted duck eggs, all of which were his favorites.
The phone vibrated, and Shi Yanchen sent a message: "Have breakfast before going to work."
Pei Song looked at these careful arrangements and pursed his lips.
This person always manages to strike a perfect balance between strength and gentleness, making people afraid to get too close, yet reluctant to push away.
When I finished washing and was about to go out, I received another message: "Don't worry about the project. I'll take care of it if anything goes wrong."
Pei Song stood in front of the mirror, adjusting his tie, trying hard to ignore the strange feeling in his heart.
…
While Pei Song and his team were busy dealing with system risks, a bigger crisis quietly approached.
"Manager Pei, something big has happened." The technical director pushed open the door with a serious look, "Renhe Hospital has requested to terminate the cooperation."
Pei Song grabbed the document and frowned: "Why do you want to stop it suddenly?"
"They said it was due to risk factors," the technical director said with a bitter face, "but they didn't explain the specific reason."
Before Pei Song could recover, bad news came the next day.
The rehabilitation center that supports the project also sent a letter stating that it would re-evaluate the feasibility of the cooperation.
By the third day, the last medical institution also expressed its intention to terminate the cooperation agreement.
"This is not right." Pei Song sat in his office, carefully looking through the letters from the three institutions. "The wording is almost identical, as if it was discussed in advance."
Without the support of medical resources, the biggest advantage of "Happy Elderly Home" will disappear.
This is tantamount to cutting off the source of financial support for the entire project.
At the regular meeting on Friday, Pei Song truthfully reported the current predicament.
"Three important cooperative institutions have successively requested to terminate cooperation, which has a great impact on the project." He looked directly at Shi Yanchen and said in a steady voice, "But we have launched an emergency plan. On the one hand, we maintain communication with existing partners, and on the other hand, we are also contacting new medical resources."
After the meeting, Pei Song immediately organized the team to conduct a risk assessment.
He quickly listed three key points on the whiteboard: medical resource backup, system security risks, and project delivery schedule.
"We have two weeks left to deliver the first phase," he said to the team. "We must speed up the project while ensuring quality. System testing must be comprehensive and not a single bug should be left unchecked."
At one o'clock in the morning, the lights were still on in the meeting room of the demonstration unit.
Pei Song is connecting with the technical team far away in Singapore, keeping a close eye on a suspicious system vulnerability.
"There's something wrong with the code logic here," he said, pointing at the screen. "If there's data concurrency during peak hours, it's likely to cause monitoring failure."
The cell phone suddenly rang. It was Li Ming calling.
"Pei, Manager Pei..." A suppressed gasp came from the other end of the phone, "I'm in the B2 parking lot of Central Plaza, I seem to be followed..."
"What happened?" Pei Song sat up straight immediately.
"I...I got some key documents from Lawyer Zhang," Li Ming said softly, obviously trying to suppress his fear, "They are records of financial transactions between Zhiling Technology and the three medical institutions...but I found that someone has been following me..."
Pei Song immediately stood up: "Where are you now?"
"I was hiding behind a business car near the elevator entrance on the B2 floor. They..." Li Ming's voice suddenly stopped, followed by a burst of low footsteps, "Oh my God, Liu Yan and the others are here..."
There was a sound of rapid breathing coming from the phone, followed by the dull sound of metal colliding, and then a suppressed cry of pain.
The call came to an abrupt end.
Pei Song immediately called Shi Yanchen: "Li Ming may be in danger. He just said that he was in Central Plaza B2..."
"I'll send the security personnel over right away." Shi Yanchen interrupted him, his voice low, "Don't act rashly, just stay where you are and wait for news."
"No, Li Ming has important evidence." Pei Song walked out quickly, "I have to go and see."
"Stop right there!" Shi Yanchen's voice suddenly became stern. "People from the risk control department and the legal department will be here soon. Let them handle this matter."