Chapter 22
Zhuang Yazhi is independent, self-reliant, proud, and intelligent.
But there's one thing they lack: they can't pretend to be ignorant.
After what happened during the day, Zhuang Haiming became completely wary of Zhuang Yazhi. He waited in the living room for Zhuang Yazhi to come home.
A few lamps, layers of sandalwood incense, and the dim light enveloped a lonely figure. Zhuang Haiming hunched over, his weary figure revealing his haggard appearance.
The smoke rings around his lips shrouded his hazy eyes in a misty haze, but when he sensed someone entering through the door, a wary glint suddenly flashed in his eyes.
"You're back." Zhuang Haiming stood up to greet him.
Zhuang Yazhi asked indifferently, "Why aren't you asleep yet so late?"
Perhaps it was because it was night, but he seemed less aggressive, and his reserved greeting even had a hint of ingratiation: "I think there might be some misunderstanding between us about what happened during the day, and Dad would like to talk to you about it."
He was still thinking about what happened during the day.
Zhuang Yazhi, on the other hand, was indifferent and particularly magnanimous: "You're overthinking it. Those reporters outside are opportunistic. They seize on any unfounded news and exaggerate it. They're obviously trying to use us to create some buzz during the day. Just get used to it and ignore them."
Zhuang Haiming was still thinking of finding an excuse to get by, but before he could even open his mouth, he heard Zhuang Yazhi say this and suddenly felt that he was in the right position. He was afraid that Zhuang Yazhi would realize that he had bribed the reporter to say those coded words.
He breathed a long sigh of relief, finishing every last drop of tea.
“Those reporters are so mean, trying to sow discord between us. I’m afraid you’ll misunderstand your father, Yazhi. It would be such a shame if we had a fight because of this.”
"How could that be?" Zhuang Yazhi smiled meaningfully.
How could I be wronged? It's the truth.
Watching him sweat profusely just to put on a fake show of fatherly love, Zhuang Yazhi found it more and more interesting. She wanted to applaud him, but was also afraid that he would become arrogant.
"Yes, it's enough for my daughter and me to know. We don't need to care what others say." Zhuang Haiming's heart was pounding nervously as he smiled insincerely, but in reality, he was a little afraid of Zhuang Yazhi's direct scrutiny and being exposed.
He laughed, his steps unsteady, using cheerfulness to mask his guilty conscience, turning back every step of the way to say goodnight and go to sleep early, until his figure disappeared around the corner of the second-floor staircase.
Zhuang Yazhi gazed at him from afar, his bright eyes, like a cat's, shining in the dim nightlight, arrogantly taking in all the false acting, waiting to ponder.
It has to be this kind of smooth and cunning person that's fun, entertaining, and can help her learn the skill of pretending to be innocent little by little.
Take your time.
She is now the chairperson of the Zhuang Group and the highest decision-maker.
On his second day in office, he exercised his power to uproot all the remaining shareholders and reshuffle the board.
“Zhuang Yazhi, we are long-time employees of Zhuang’s who have worked for more than ten years. You said yesterday that you would treat us well, but today you came back and kicked us out. You are a hypocrite to the extreme.”
"That's right, without us old employees, could your Zhuang family have gotten this done? You ungrateful bastards."
With so many complaints to express, Zhuang Yazhi reluctantly sat down and had a good chat with them.
“Manager Gao, if you can negotiate the price down from 90 yuan to 80 yuan, I’ll turn a blind eye and let you make the remaining 10 yuan. But it’s unethical for you to report 100 yuan to the company.”
"Chen Bang, being the head of the production department must be tough. You not only have to be busy with production, but also with increasing your personal wealth. How much of the workers' welfare have you embezzled over the years? I'll settle that score with you later."
"As for you, Luo Zhonglang, you led workplace bullying and sexual harassment. How can someone like you even have a job?"
Zhuang Yazhi called out names one by one, and more and more people came. The files in his hands piled up like a small mountain, and it took a lot of time to sort out their criminal acts.
"You're talking nonsense, I didn't."
The evidence is right in front of them, but they remain shameless and unrepentant.
"Li Si, call the police and send all these bastards to jail."
If you're not going to leave when you should, then you can forget about leaving.
Seeing that Zhuang Yazhi was serious, they immediately backed down and begged for forgiveness and another chance.
"President Zhuang, President Zhuang, please forgive us this time, considering we've worked at Zhuang's for over a decade. We'll never dare to do it again."
"Yes, people inevitably make mistakes, but our inner nature is still kind."
Zhuang Yazhi was pondering.
"In that case..."
"We really can't let it go."
It wouldn't have mattered if they had just admitted their mistake sooner.
They're definitely going to the police station.
When pleading and begging didn't work, they completely lost it and started throwing a tantrum on the ground.
"You ignorant fool! Without our hard work over the past ten years, would the Zhuang family be where it is today?"
"You were born into a slightly better family than us, so why are you so arrogant? You don't understand workplace rules at all. The Zhuang family will be finished sooner or later in your hands."
Before they could finish speaking, they were dragged out, their cries of agony echoing throughout the hall.
But they are right about one thing: a company cannot achieve great success without the hard work of its employees.
"Li Si, draft a notice that anyone who has worked for the Zhuang family for more than three years will have their salary doubled and their year-end bonus tripled, effective immediately."
Zhuang Yazhi understood the principle that you have to feed a horse before you can make it run.
The news of the layoffs reached Qianhai Technology the very next second. Coincidentally, one of the layoffs was a long-time subordinate of Cai Xincheng.
"Chairman Cai, you really have to help me now. My whole family depends on this salary. Now that she doesn't want me anymore, my whole family will starve to death."
"You're a director here now, so it shouldn't be too difficult for you to assign me a position."
“No, that won’t do,” Cai Xincheng said with difficulty. “Now, all the company’s hiring decisions have to go through President Shen. I can’t make that decision myself.”
"Then lend me some money."
Cai Xincheng retreated half a step in defense, which made things even worse.
“When we joined, we signed a new contract with Boss Zhuang. Each shareholder has a base salary of 5,000 yuan, and profit sharing will only be calculated after there are performance results. I'm really broke right now…”
The blame still lies with Zhuang Haiming for being stingy. He used the excuse of being a startup company to keep all salaries and benefits tightly controlled, not giving a single penny more than 5,000 yuan per month.
I occasionally give my daughter a little extra, and then there's nothing left.
"You should leave now."
Even being blocked from the window prevents him from getting enough air.
Chen Bang immediately turned hostile when he couldn't get the money. He refused to leave and threw a tantrum on the ground, yelling, "Give me the money, give me the money, I want the money!" He cried as he shouted, and he was so angry he could barely breathe.
The key point is that this commotion was quite significant, immediately attracting people from other departments in the company.
"Security, security!" Cai Xincheng was also stunned and quickly requested backup.
The public relations department was not far away, and Cai Siyue rushed over when she heard the commotion. Seeing her father being harassed, she instinctively called the police.
"Hello, is this a police officer? Someone is touching my dad inappropriately."
"It wasn't indecent assault..."
It took nearly an hour to bring the situation under control. Cai Xincheng's hair was all messed up from being pulled, and he sat down, panting and gulping down water.
However, he was not able to relax completely, especially after learning that Chen Bang had been fired by Zhuang Yazhi, he had even more things to worry about.
He was still uneasy and asked cautiously, "Has Miss Zhuang contacted you recently?"
“No,” Cai Siyue replied immediately.
After chatting for a while and listening to her father give her several more instructions, Cai Siyue finally left the office. The chat screen lit up the moment she closed the door.
The two made plans to have dinner together that evening.
7 p.m., private restaurant
Zhuang Yazhi ordered the food and waited for Cai Siyue to arrive.
She came in with a light step, her two dimples on her pink lips beaming with a smile.
"Let me tell you, my mom has been taking extra good care of me these past few days. She brings me snacks while I'm at work, teaches me how to make business plans, and teaches me a lot of new knowledge that I've never encountered before."
Whenever Cai Siyue recalls Shen Qianli's focused and earnest teaching, she becomes fascinated, and the sense of admiration hidden deep in her heart soars.
"That's really good," Zhuang Yazhi listened attentively and sincerely echoed the praise.
After several interactions, Zhuang Yazhi found Cai Siyue quite adorable, especially when she talked about her mother, her bright, sparkling eyes seemed to ignite a longing for warmth within her.
After finishing her own story, Cai Siyue turned to Zhuang Yazhi and asked, "And you? How have you been lately? Zhuang Haiming went too far yesterday. He didn't even speak up for you when you were misunderstood by the reporters. How can someone have such a father?"
"By the way, I heard this morning that someone was causing trouble at the Zhuang family's place. This person is notoriously unreasonable, so we must do a good job with public relations."
She spoke tirelessly, every word sincere and heartfelt, her care revealed in the smallest details.
Zhuang Yazhi saw this and his heart was filled with a thousand waves of emotion.
"It's alright, it's been taken care of."
Zhuang Yazhi indicated to Cai Siyue that she didn't need to worry.
But perhaps due to her professional habits, Cai Siyue always felt that Zhuang Yazhi was somewhat affected, to the point that she didn't have much of an appetite for eating.
"In the next two or three days, those people will desperately dig up dirt on you and then buy publicity to slander you."
"But you don't need to worry about that. I have some connections in this area. Alright, leave this to me. You can focus on managing the Zhuang family business."
Zhuang Yazhi smiled gently and said, "Okay, I'll listen to you."
This PR manager is quite good; we can plan to poach him later.
After we started chatting, there was more laughter at the table, the food tasted even better, and we ate a very satisfying meal.
It was getting late, and after a satisfying meal, Cai Siyue went home first.
Outside was the riverside avenue. Zhuang Ya walked absentmindedly, letting the evening breeze blow her hair and brush against her slightly reddened temples.
A deserted street, a lonely figure, only one to ease his sorrow.
During the meal, Cai Siyue kept replying to messages, and it seemed like she and Cai Xincheng had endless topics to talk about.
Cai Siyue said the juice was delicious and she wanted to take some back to Cai Xincheng.
Cai Xincheng said, "Thank you, my darling daughter is the best."
He was worried that Cai Siyue would be in danger outside alone at night, so he insisted on picking her up even after being refused several times. He was particularly persistent in taking his daughter home.
As she left, Zhuang Yazhi jokingly remarked in a lighthearted manner, "Your father is really nice."
Cai Siyue didn't deny it, and said with great pride, "Of course."
She said her dad is the best dad in the world.
Zhuang Yazhi agreed.
It's really good, at least she thinks it's good too.
After parting ways, she and Cai Siyue drove in opposite directions, each alone.
On one side, neon streetlights blaze brightly, while on the other side, the sea and sky meet in the night, the calm surface of the sea without a single ripple.
The sound of gentle lapping waves came from not far away, while nearby, only a conflicted and struggling heart beat, unable to calm down amidst the noise in my mind.
"Yazhi."
A deep, magnetic male voice came from behind her, and Zhuang Yazhi thought she had misheard.
Until I heard the second and third sounds.
The noise in his mind vanished instantly, leaving only the echo of Shen Yiheng's breathing.
Shen Yiheng followed and accompanied them the entire way, starting before dinner.
Until Zhuang Yazhi lay quietly on the beach, curled up on his side with his head buried in the sand, he could no longer stand idly by.
No matter how much she hates him, Shen Yiheng has to show up.
Zhuang Yazhi raised her head, her cheeks flushed, her eyes blurry, and she spoke in a low, slow voice, panting: "How did you end up in my dream?"
Shen Yiheng helped the person up, and the strong smell of alcohol wafted into his chest through the gap in his clothes, burning like fire.
He then realized that Zhuang Yazhi was drunk.
Zhuang Yazhi was restless in her sleep, constantly muttering that she was cold, her eyes slightly narrowed and her eyelashes glistening with tears.
She touched a piece of comfortable fabric, warm and soft, which felt especially nice to the touch.
Just as Shen Yiheng was about to pick the person up, a sudden, forceful pull came from below, tugging at his shirt and coat. In an instant, he lost his weight and collapsed downwards, unintentionally assaulting his soft flesh.
Red lips, like cherries stained with honey, collide in softness and moisture, and after a few seconds of sticking together, their entanglement deepens.
It was sweet and very thirst-quenching. In his drunken state, Zhuang Yazhi felt as if he had touched a sweet spring and uncontrollably sucked on it.
In the blink of an eye, Shen Yiheng's ears and neck turned bright red. His hands, like willow branches, gently brushed against his warm skin, leaving faint itchy marks.
"Zhuang Yazhi," Shen Yiheng's voice ripped out.
Here we go again, resorting to the drunken act once more.
Every deep breath is an attempt to suppress the urges, but none of them are under control; instead, they drive one into endless madness.
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