Zhou Congli asked Lin Zhi why she had gone to the clubhouse. Lin Zhi explained that she had been looking for the person in charge, only to be told he was there. Then she asked, "Why were you there too?"
"I was discussing business at the teahouse across the street. Assistant Zhang saw you go in and called you, but you didn't answer."
Lin Zhi remembered the call. "I saw it was an unknown number, so I hung up."
Zhou Congli glanced at her, recalling the chaotic scene he had just witnessed. "Did they hurt you?"
Lin Zhi quickly shook her head and held up her bag, eager to claim credit. "I smashed that waiter with my bag and ran out of the room, and I hit President Zhang, too. When he tried to grab me, you arrived, President Zhou." She looked a bit worried. "Will we be in trouble for beating him up? Will there be a lawsuit? What if he sues us?"
Assistant Zhang and the others had fought fiercely just now. The three business partners were especially ruthless; President Zhang had even gotten his head busted open.
A bystander, afraid things would get out of hand, had called the police, so they were currently sitting in a car heading to the station.
Zhou Congli remained his usual calm self. "Don't worry. He wouldn't dare."
Seeing his confident demeanor, Lin Zhi immediately felt reassured. She knew it wasn't a matter of whether President Zhang would sue, but rather that he simply wouldn't dare to cross Zhou Congli.
Sure enough, upon arriving at the police station, President Zhang didn't dare utter a single peep. He admitted his mistake with lightning speed, claiming he had been confused and had deliberately made things difficult for a junior employee. He acknowledged his wrongdoing and expressed his willingness to apologize to Lin Zhi, compensate her for emotional distress, and accept any other penalties. He appeared incredibly sincere.
Seeing this, the police asked for Lin Zhi's opinion. Lin Zhi suggested detaining him for a few days.
After all, President Zhang was the one who was most severely injured. If they really pursued the matter, the three business partners and Assistant Zhang would be considered the perpetrators, and she had to take them into consideration.
On the spot, President Zhang transferred two hundred thousand yuan to Lin Zhi as compensation for emotional distress.
Lin Zhi quickly looked at Zhou Congli.
"Take it," Zhou Congli said simply.
Lin Zhi accepted the money, leaving the police station staff staring in amazement. Two hundred thousand for a single apology!
Once the matter was settled and everyone prepared to leave, Zhou Congli turned to the three business partners. "Go back and draft a proposal for that project. I'll send someone over later to discuss the specific details of our cooperation."
The three men were instantly ecstatic and nodded continuously. "Thank you, President Zhou! We will definitely work hard on it!"
The looks they gave Lin Zhi were full of gratitude. Thank goodness this little beauty was by President Zhou's side. Originally, after reviewing their project, President Zhou hadn't shown any particular intention to collaborate, and they had been disappointed, assuming they had failed once again.
But because of today's incident, they had put on a desperate show of effort, and sure enough, President Zhou had agreed to work with them!
The men left in high spirits.
Lin Zhi and the others returned to the hotel as well. Because today's events had been rather disturbing, she headed straight back to her room to take a shower and wash away the bad luck.
While she was drying her hair, a hotel staff member knocked on the door to deliver lunch. "Hello, a Mr. Zhou ordered food for you."
The tray held several small, exquisite dishes—both meat and vegetables—along with a glass of juice. It looked incredibly nutritious.
Her eyes flickered slightly as she took it. "Thank you for the trouble."
After placing the tray on the dining table, she hesitated for a moment before picking up her chopsticks and tentatively tasting a piece of meat. To her surprise, there was absolutely no gamey smell. The braised pork was tender, melt-in-the-mouth, and so delicious she couldn't stop eating.
She ended up polishing off every single dish.
That afternoon.
Lin Zhi decided to make another trip to the food factory. Now that President Zhang had met his downfall, the factory staff probably wouldn't make things difficult for her anymore. However, as she went downstairs, she spotted Zhou Congli sitting in the hotel lobby.
She hesitated for a moment before walking over to thank him for the lunch.
"Was it to your taste?" Zhou Congli asked.
Lin Zhi smiled and nodded. "It was incredibly delicious. I finished every last bite."
Zhou Congli fell silent. He had specifically instructed the hotel chef to prepare a meal suitable for a pregnant woman, particularly one suffering from morning sickness. Given her reaction, it was obvious she was truly pregnant.
His mood suddenly became complicated. Given Zhou Ye's personality—and the fact that he had no feelings for her—would he be willing to take responsibility?
Moreover, he knew his parents well. Casual dating was fine, but they would never allow their son to marry a girl with such an ordinary family background. If they found out, they might just give her a sum of money and order her to abort the child.
Abort it? For some reason, the mere thought of this made his chest feel tight.
He looked at the smiling woman across from him. "I'm glad you liked it. I'll have the hotel make another portion for dinner."
Lin Zhi was delighted. "Okay, thank you, President Zhou!" She checked the time. "Then I won't bother you while you're busy. I'm going out for a bit."
Remembering that she was pregnant, Zhou Congli stood up. "Where are you going? I'll give you a ride."
Lin Zhi was a little surprised but told him she was heading to the food factory.
Hearing this, Zhou Congli shook his head. "There's no need. Assistant Zhang has already gone. Moreover, there seems to be a problem with their accounts that can't be resolved anytime soon.
"You don't need to be in charge of this anymore. I'll speak with the finance department. Just rest for the night and go back tomorrow."
Lin Zhi was slightly stunned. She hesitated for a long time before saying, "T-then, alright. But this was my first business trip, and I didn't even complete the task..."
"It has nothing to do with you," Zhou Congli assured her. "In fact, if you hadn't come here, and if I hadn't bumped into you and sent Assistant Zhang to investigate, we wouldn't have discovered that Zhang Wenhua had been covering up the accounts for the past few years. Furthermore, it seems he has ties with someone at the head office..." He paused and looked at her. "None of this concerns you. Just get some good rest."
Lin Zhi had no choice but to agree. She returned to her room and distractedly binge-watched some TV shows out of boredom.
Zhou Congli also returned to his room. Sitting at the desk, he took out his phone and dialed Zhou Ye's number, but no one answered for a long time.
Expressionless, he dialed again. This time, after more than ten seconds, the call finally connected. "Bro? What's up? If it's nothing, I'm hanging up. I'm busy over here!"
"Where are you?" Zhou Congli demanded.
"Hanging out with some friends," Zhou Ye replied nonchalantly. "Big bro, are you not at work today? You actually have time to monitor me."
Zhou Congli's brows furrowed tightly. "What are you doing with those people again? You idle around all day." Suddenly, he heard a woman's muffled moan. His expression changed instantly. "Zhou Ye, who are you with?"
Zhou Ye covered Li Ruoyao's mouth with his hand and chuckled. "My girlfriend, of course. Alright, bro, I'll let you get back to work. I'm hanging up. Bye!"
Putting down the phone, he gripped Li Ruoyao and thrust into her forcefully. "Couldn't hold back after hearing my big brother's voice, huh?"
Li Ruoyao couldn't suppress the moan escaping her lips. "Mm, slow... slow down."
Zhou Congli stared at his phone, his face livid with anger. That Zhou Ye! He clearly had a girlfriend, yet he was still fooling around on the side!
The next day.
They returned to A City. Since Assistant Zhang had to stay behind to keep an eye on the food factory's affairs, Lin Zhi and Zhou Congli took the flight back together. However, she couldn't shake the feeling that Zhou Congli was looking at her strangely.
Unable to help it, she touched her face. "President Zhou, is something wrong?"
Zhou Congli averted his gaze. "It's nothing."
Thinking of Zhou Ye's actions, he couldn't help but want to sigh.
Lin Zhi let out an "oh" and closed her eyes to sleep. Perhaps because of her pregnancy, she had been especially prone to drowsiness lately.
Seeing this, Zhou Congli took out a blanket and draped it over her. Lin Zhi's eyes snapped open, and she looked at him in surprise.
Zhou Congli paused for a moment. "The temperature on the plane is low. Be careful not to catch a cold."