Chapter 42 Happiness: "You Deserve It."
The sky outside the window was already ablaze with dusk, like a soft-boiled egg with runny yolk. Zhang Minglang and Tang Yi sat side by side on the sofa.
Zhang Minglang cleared his throat and asked somewhat embarrassedly, "How did you know my birthday?"
Tang Yiyang waved her phone: "October 1st, National Day. I've booked so many train tickets, I could practically recite your ID number."
She paused after speaking, her voice tinged with amusement, and asked, "Why don't you call me Zhang Guoqing?"
Zhang Minglang didn't say anything, just sighed comfortably, and leaned back in a good mood, sinking his whole body into the soft sofa.
His arm rested gently on the back of Tang Yi's chair, restraining himself from reaching out to embrace her.
From his perspective, he could see Tang Yirou's long, flowing black hair that reached her waist and her slender waist.
Zhang Minglang's Adam's apple bobbed as he hurriedly looked away, his gaze falling on the tie in his hand.
He stroked the smooth fabric of the tie with obvious delight, his tone revealing his pleasure: "And this one, when did you buy it?"
Tang Yi glanced back at the tie in his hand, then casually turned her head back: "I just bought it on a whim."
“Oh, I just bought it on a whim,” he said, suppressing a laugh, “and I also just wrote a greeting card and left it on my office sofa.”
Tang Yi glared at him, and he immediately raised his hands in surrender: "I won't say anything more."
The scene fell silent for a moment, and the faint sound of the humidifier spraying water mist was particularly clear in the office.
Zhang Minglang looked up at the window, and when he spoke again, his voice was more serious: "Now that you're here, I have something I want to say to you."
“I have one too, but you go first.” Tang Yi looked at him earnestly.
Zhang Minglang lowered his eyelashes: "I'm sorry, that was my fault. I should have asked for your opinion more often instead of making the decision to investigate you on my own."
He looked up, his eyes filled with pity and relief: "I won't force you anymore. You can say it whenever you want, or it's okay if you don't want to. I respect all your choices."
Tang Yi paused for a moment, then lowered her head and chuckled softly.
Under Zhang Minglang's bewildered gaze, she stretched out her palm towards him, in which lay a small silver USB flash drive.
Tang Yi seemed to have finally mustered up her courage and, word by word, uttered the words she had held back for two whole years.
"I want to file a formal complaint against Zhao Linrui, the former vice president of Junmao Group, for attempted sexual assault against the company's chief secretary two years ago."
Two years ago, I imagined and rehearsed countless times in my mind, and finally, two years later, I was able to overcome all psychological obstacles and tell the whole story.
These words seemed to weigh a ton, and her tense shoulders suddenly relaxed, revealing a completely relieved smile that she hadn't shown in two years.
“I never thought I’d have the chance to say these words in my life,” Tang Yi said, looking at the man beside her who was gazing intently at her. “But thank you, and thank you to my…”
Before she could finish speaking, she suddenly felt a tightness around her.
Without warning, Tang Yi fell into a warm and firm embrace, letting all the unspoken words melt into this silent embrace.
Just as he had imagined a thousand times before, Zhang Minglang gently embraced her. His burning arms pressed against her thin back through the fabric of her clothes, like a glass of cool water mixed with boiling water.
He buried his chin boldly in her shoulder almost without hesitation.
The sudden closeness sent shivers down Tang Yi's spine. Her hands froze on the man's broad back, unsure whether she should hug him back.
“I should be thanking you,” he said, his voice muffled, “thank you for your courage.”
Tang Yi was slightly taken aback.
She smiled secretly, her eyes crinkling, from an angle he couldn't see.
Tang Yi reached out and silently hugged his back, resting her chin lightly on his shoulder. His body trembled very slightly upon feeling her movement.
She smiled again.
The two embraced for a while until Tang Yichi felt a little embarrassed and patted his shoulder to signal him to let go. Only then did Zhang Minglang reluctantly release her.
"I will have my department do its best to check the surveillance footage. Although a long time has passed, I will do everything I can to find as much evidence as possible."
Tang Yi shook her head after hearing this: "It can't be found out. There was a power outage that day."
Zhang Minglang looked up in surprise, his expression instantly turning somber.
Afraid that his negative emotions would affect her, he quickly forced a smile: "It's okay, you can't walk on the shore without getting your shoes wet. We'll definitely find out, it'll just be a bit troublesome."
Tang Yi shook her head again: "It's no trouble."
She handed him the USB drive she had been holding for a long time: "There are recordings on this."
Zhang Minglang was completely stunned. He glanced at the USB drive, then looked up at her, his eyes questioning.
“I felt something was wrong that night, so I recorded a conversation before I went inside.”
After saying that, Tang Yi refused to say anything more.
Because it was a recording she hadn't dared to press play again, a scar she'd kept buried for two years.
After Tang Yihe left, Zhang Minglang got up and sat in the boss's chair, inserted the USB drive into the computer, put on his headphones, and clicked the mouse.
The recording, which was only about twenty minutes long, felt to him like it had lasted an eternity.
He experienced the same rain she had been caught in two years later.
The progress bar relentlessly and slowly slid to the end. He yanked off the headphone cord, as if he had personally torn off the last bone supporting his body.
Almost instantly, he stood up abruptly, strode to the door, and pushed it open.
The workstation was empty, leaving only Tang Yi sitting quietly. Hearing a noise, she looked up from her computer and glanced at him.
He watched as an unnatural smile slowly spread across her pale face, and his heart ached terribly.
My dear Tangyi, how far have you walked alone?
He walked to her workstation, knelt down on one knee, and Tang Yi was so startled that she forgot everything else and turned to look around to see if anyone was there.
"What are you doing? Get up!"
She reached out to pull him up, but his broad, dry hand gripped hers tightly.
"You're really great, Tangyi."
His resolute tone stopped Tang Yi from instinctively shaking her head.
"You were really great to remain calm and record the conversation as evidence in that situation."
"You didn't give up on yourself or quit your job because of that scumbag. On the contrary, you used your years of hard work to accumulate skills and proved them wrong with your abilities. You are really great."
Zhang Minglang looked up and stared directly into Tang Yi's stunned eyes: "It's not your fault at all. You've done the best you could. Don't be so hard on yourself anymore, okay?"
Tang Yi smiled, but it was more like a forced cry. She didn't know how to respond, so she could only smile and say, "Have you memorized the dictionary? You're always using different words to praise me."
You deserve it.
Zhang Minglang's voice was incredibly gentle and soft. He held her soft yet cold hand, his thumb gently stroking it to bring her some warmth.
She still felt a little shy and turned her head away to smile secretly.
Suddenly, Tang Yi caught a glimpse of a dark figure flashing past outside the work area. Without thinking, she almost instantly pulled her hand away.
While Zhang Minglang was still looking at her with a puzzled expression, Tang Yi tugged at the hem of her shirt, cleared her throat, and raised her voice: "Mr. Zhang, don't pick it up, I'll pick it up."
Hearing this irrelevant remark, he turned to look at the door, where Assistant Zhou was standing.
It's him again.
He was so speechless he wanted to roll his eyes.
"President Zhang, Secretary Tang! You two are still working overtime here? You're so hardworking!" Assistant Zhou's innocent and naive voice rang out. "Hey, what are you looking for? Let me help you!"
"No need!" Tang Yi quickly stopped her. With a wave of her hand, she knocked a hair clip from the table to the ground.
"Found it."
She bent down, and Zhang Minglang, as if playing a trick, deliberately reached for the clip at the same time.
Their hands touched as Zhang Minglang had hoped.
Before Tang Yi could shake off, Zhang Minglang grabbed her.
He looked up and raised an eyebrow at her. Under the table, where Assistant Zhou couldn't see, he tightened his grip and gently squeezed her hand.
Under Tang Yi's warning gaze, Zhang Minglang knew when to stop. He stood up, waved the clip in his hand at Assistant Zhou, and then turned around and stuffed it into Tang Yi's hand.
His fingertips tickled her palm, seemingly unintentionally. Whether it was the cool texture of the metal clips or something else, Tang Yi felt a shiver run through her body.
When she came to her senses and looked up again, all she could see was Zhang Minglang's unhurried figure walking out the door and disappearing into the distance.
On the afternoon of the following weekday, Junmao Group simultaneously released a statement on its official website and WeChat account.
"Recently, our group received an internal report alleging that Vice President Zhao Linrui is suspected of serious violations of laws and regulations. It has now been verified that Zhao committed the following serious misconduct..."
Tang Jiaxin craned her neck, staring at the computer screen, her voice growing softer and softer as she read.
Li Da skimmed through the text, then looked up and exclaimed, "My God, I never would have guessed that President Zhao was this kind of person!"
"Back then, everyone was saying that he and Secretary Tang..."
"Shh!"
"We can't..."
Tang Yi walked in slowly from outside. She went to the tea room first, so her colleagues didn't notice her.
She bent down, fiddling with the coffee machine, and then tore open a small packet of sugar. Her hair fell beside her face, shielding her right cheek from the sunlight streaming through the window.
She could actually have predicted this outcome.
Tang Yi may have felt powerless in the past, but now she has enough courage to face all the consequences.
Tang Jiaxin couldn't stand it anymore. She stood up abruptly and said righteously to her colleagues who had been gossiping, "Believe the company's statement! Don't spread rumors any further!"
Li Da immediately chimed in: "Exactly! Tang Mi's excellence is undeniable, there's nothing to refute about that, right?"
Several other colleagues who were not familiar with Tang Yi seemed encouraged and echoed her sentiments.
"Yes, Secretary Tang is so nice. Although she's usually aloof, she patiently answers even the most ridiculous questions I ask her."
"She was the one who miraculously fixed the printer last time I broke it, otherwise I would have been scolded to death."
"And that contract from last week..."
The 16th floor turned into a fan meeting for Tang Yi, with everyone racking their brains to proclaim how wonderful Tang Yi was.
Standing in the break room waiting for coffee, Tang Yi listened to the sounds of her colleagues outside, but suddenly recalled yesterday afternoon.
Zhang Minglang half-squatted in front of her, holding her hands.
He looked at her with his sincere and bright eyes.
He said, "You deserve it."
Today is the first time Tang Yi has believed this statement.
At least everyone's reactions told her that she hadn't done anything wrong.
She did nothing wrong by working hard to improve her skills, and she did nothing wrong by choosing to keep things quiet and work hard to mature. Now that she has finally accumulated enough confidence and strength to speak out her demands and make everything public, she is even more correct.
Everything she did at each stage was for the sake of herself at that stage.
Concealing is not cowardice, and exposing is not recklessness.
"I knew you'd be here, and I was right."
The man's chuckled voice sounded from behind, pulling Tang Yi back to reality.
The sound of brown liquid flowing from the coffee machine stopped, and Tang Yi casually picked up the handle of the ceramic cup and handed the coffee to the man.
Zhang Minglang took it, and their fingers, one cold and one hot, inevitably touched.
He glanced at her thoughtfully: "On purpose?"
Tang Yi was used to his constant rambling.
Looking at her smile, Zhang Minglang felt incredibly fulfilled. But he still remembered that he had come to discuss serious business.
He swiped around on his phone a few times and then turned the screen towards her.
"Your friend, she's helping you too."
Tang Yi's heart skipped a beat. She turned to look at his smiling face, then looked at his phone.
"Shortly after Junmao issued its statement, Xu's Group's official Weibo account reposted it, and its media outlets came forward to support it."
Zhang Minglang paused, met her gaze, and said in an extremely gentle voice, "You see, Tang Yi, I told you, you deserve it."
Tang Yi opened her mouth as if to say something, but her phone suddenly rang in her pocket.
"Yiyi, congratulations! I told you I'd get my dad to help you! Don't be too touched~"
Xu Xiaoxiao's lively voice came through the microphone, making Tang Yi's ears ring.
I could hear my best friend's heartfelt congratulations in my ears;
Before me is the cherished smile of my beloved;
Outside the door, a group of lovely colleagues were showering her with praise.
Tang Yi had never felt so happy.
Author's Note: Tangtang [crying] You deserve all good things, waaaaaah!
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