Please, mature women, have some self-respect. I just want a raise and a promotion.

Upon hearing Lin Xiaoyu's words, Lin Zheng's mind went blank, his body stiffened, and he hugged her tightly.

Lin Xiaoyu also trembled and clung tightly to Lin Zheng.

At this moment, she wished she could melt into Lin Zheng's arms and feel that amazing warmth.

A few minutes later, the two slowly separated and collapsed onto the carpet.

Lin Xiaoyu lay in his arms, drawing circles on his chest with her fingers.

"Lin Zheng, tell me... what if I really get pregnant with your child?"

Lin Zheng lit a cigarette and took a deep drag: "Then let's have it."

"Aren't you afraid?"

"What are you afraid of?"

"I'm afraid Old Zhang will find out, I'm afraid of being discovered."

"Then don't let him know."

Lin Xiaoyu laughed, looked up at him, and said, "You're incredibly audacious."

"How can you accomplish great things if you don't have the guts?"

Lin Xiaoyu kissed him: "I love your courage."

"Then next time I'll really get you pregnant with a baby."

After a short while of tenderness, Lin Xiaoyu got up and dressed.

"You should go now, otherwise if Old Zhang wakes up later, he'll start to suspect me again."

Lin Zheng nodded and got dressed.

As he reached the door, Lin Xiaoyu suddenly grabbed him.

"Lin Zheng, is what you just said true?"

"What?"

"You said you wanted me to have your child."

Lin Zheng looked at her, and Lin Xiaoyu's eyes were full of expectation.

"Really." He thought for a moment and nodded.

Lin Xiaoyu smiled, her eyes reddening.

In fact, she doesn't dare to actually get pregnant with Lin Zheng's child, at least not yet.

But Lin Zheng's attitude made her very satisfied.

After kissing for a while, Lin Zhengcai left Zhang Wanquan's house.

As he left the residential area, he lit a cigarette and took a deep drag, his mind filled with the scene from earlier.

Lin Xiaoyu's madness in the wedding photos, and the words she said.

"I want to have your child."

This woman is no longer satisfied with just having affairs.

She wanted to take it a step further, to completely bind him to her.

...............

The next morning, at the temporary office of the Lin administration, Chen Li and Yang Zhian were notified to attend a meeting.

Once everyone had arrived, Lin Zheng got straight to the point, bringing up Ma Cuihua's pressure tactics.

After hearing this, Chen Li frowned, opened her mouth, but swallowed back the words she was about to say.

At this point, she couldn't help, and saying more would only add to Lin Zheng's troubles.

Yang Zhian suggested that the only option was to file a lawsuit.

Lin Zheng smiled but didn't say anything; he had already thought of what Yang Zhian could think of.

After instructing Chen Li to continue taking Yang Zhian to the village for research, Lin Zheng went to the village committee office.

In the village committee office, Deng Hong was reading documents.

When Lin Zheng came in, she put down her pen.

"How is it?"

"Did you get any information from Ma Cuihua?"

Lin Zheng lit a cigarette, took a few deep drags, then pulled out a chair and sat down opposite Deng Hong, briefly recounting what had happened yesterday.

Deng Hong's face turned ashen after hearing this.

"A month? Isn't that forcing you to leave?"

"So we need to hurry."

"We can't wait any longer with Li Ting."

"Go to Tianlong Company again tomorrow and tell him that if the money doesn't arrive in five days, then we'll see him in court."

Deng Hong nodded: "Okay, I'll go tomorrow."

"As for the project permits, give Yang Wanshan a call and ask him to help coordinate them."

"Also, regarding the demolition compensation, go talk to those households and see if they can give you a portion first, with the rest paid in installments."

Deng Hong nodded and wrote down everything Lin Zheng had told her.

After Lin Zheng finished speaking, he paused and said, "There's one more thing I need you to do."

"What is it?"

"Help me investigate Zhou Hailong; he's Ma Cuihua's assistant."

"I checked, he had an affair with Liu Shanhai."

"He used to gamble with Liu Shanhai and his group, and he has accumulated a lot of gambling debts."

"You're familiar with this area, so discreetly find out which villages nearby have casinos."

"Where has Zhou Hailong gambled, and who does he owe money to?"

Deng Hong was taken aback and asked, "Lin Zheng, why are you investigating him?"

Lin Zheng exhaled a puff of cigarette smoke: "Set him up."

"Let him owe even more and lose even more miserably."

Deng Hong was stunned for a moment, then realized what Lin Zheng wanted to do.

"I'll get on it right now."

After Deng Hong finished speaking, she stood up, walked to Lin Zheng, and reached out to stroke his face.

"Lin Zheng, you've lost weight recently."

Lin Zheng stubbed out his cigarette and said, "The pressure is too great. If we don't break through this situation soon, I'll be packing my bags and leaving."

"Then get some rest and don't push yourself too hard."

As Deng Hong spoke, she stood on tiptoe and kissed him on the lips.

Lin Zheng put his arm around her waist and deepened the kiss.

Deng Hong responded enthusiastically, wrapping her arms around his neck.

The two kissed for a while, then Deng Hong pushed him away.

"Stop messing around, this is an office, someone will see us."

"What are you afraid of? You're the Party Secretary, who dares to say anything out of line?"

"You're getting more and more irresponsible."

Lin Zheng pointed to Deng Hong's ample buttocks.

"Indecent?"

"Without me, how could it have this elasticity?"

"You're so bad."

Deng Hong blushed, kissed Lin Zheng, and straightened her clothes.

"Let's get down to business. What are your plans regarding Zhou Hailong's matter?"

"First find his creditors, then have them put pressure on him."

"He owes money and can't pay it back, he'll definitely find a way."

"Then we'll throw out the bait and get him hooked."

"What bait?"

"A chance for him to pay off his gambling debts."

"What opportunity?"

Lin Zheng smiled and said, "Ma Cuihua's secret."

Deng Hong was taken aback: "You want him to use Ma Cuihua's secret to exchange for money?"

"That's right."

"Zhou Hailong's relationship with Ma Cuihua is unusual; he knows many of Ma Cuihua's secrets."

"As long as he's willing to talk, we can get Ma Cuihua under our control."

"Then things will be much easier to handle regarding the project."

Deng Hong thought for a moment and said, "This is a good idea, but it's very risky."

"If Zhou Hailong and Ma Cuihua are on the same side, we'll be exposed."

"Therefore, we can't go directly to him; we need to find a middleman."

"Who?"

"Lin Xiaoyu".

"She and Zhou Hailong were classmates and had a good relationship."

"If she comes forward, Zhou Hailong won't suspect anything."

Deng Hong frowned: "Is Lin Xiaoyu reliable?"

"Reliable." Lin Zheng didn't say more.

Deng Hong didn't ask any more questions.

The two discussed it for a while longer, until noon when they finally finished.

In the afternoon, Lin Zheng returned to the hotel and called Lin Xiaoyu, briefly explaining his plan.

After listening, Lin Xiaoyu remained silent for a moment: "You want me to talk to Zhou Hailong?"

"Yes, you're classmates, so he trusts you more."

"But I don't know his secret."

"You don't need to know. You just need to arrange to meet him, and I'll handle the rest."

Lin Xiaoyu thought for a moment and said, "Okay, you get ready then, and I'll give it a try."

"However, Zhou Hailong is a very cautious person, and he may not necessarily take the bait."

"Wait for my news. Once I've sorted things out on my end, you can make plans with him again."

"Just tell him it's been a long time since we last met, and that we're old classmates, so let's catch up."

"Okay," Lin Xiaoyu readily agreed.

After hanging up the phone, Lin Zheng leaned back in his chair and rubbed his temples.

The next few days are crucial; the money from Tianlong Engineering Company is critical for starting construction and must be recovered.

The project permits also need to be completed before Li Ting takes action.

If we fail to take down Zhou Hailong, we will lose everything.