The pushover offended a top-tier boss

Ye Zhenzhen stood there, stunned.

Zhou Huaijin glanced at her again.

"Sit down and eat."

She then realized that breakfast had been delivered sometime earlier. The table was piled high with food.

There is porridge, side dishes, steamed buns, fried eggs, as well as sandwiches, bacon and milk, etc.

Ye Zhenzhen glanced at it and then realized that her stomach was a little empty.

She was really hungry because she had exercised too much yesterday.

But, at such an awkward moment...

Secretary Lin stood up shrewdly:

"Sir, I'll wait for you in the car."

"Okay," Zhou Huaijin replied.

The door closed.

Only two people remained in the living room.

Ye Zhenzhen obediently walked over, sat down opposite him, picked up a spoon, and took a sip of porridge.

The atmosphere was quiet.

Zhou Huaijin ate his meal calmly.

It was as if nothing had happened last night; they were still in a normal superior-subordinate relationship.

"Does it still hurt?" he suddenly asked her.

Ye Zhenzhen coughed a few times suddenly, her face instantly turning bright red.

She remembered last night—no, it was early this morning.

She begged him many times, and finally he let her go only after she said it hurt.

She was so exhausted that she was completely limp, and he carried her to the bathroom to wash up.

At that moment, Ye Zhenzhen just wanted to disappear into the ground. She lowered her head, burying her face so low that only her bright red ears were visible.

"No...it doesn't hurt anymore..."

She quickly finished the porridge in her bowl and said, "Boss, I'm full. You...you're busy. I...I'm going home."

She stood up, ready to make her escape.

He stood up and picked up his coat from the sofa: "I'll go back with you."

Ye Zhenzhen stood there, stunned.

ha? ? ?

We don't have the custom of bringing your sexual partner home to meet your parents here...

"I need to find out some information about the situation in Nanjing County from the local people." He had already put on his coat. "It's convenient that you live here."

Ye Zhenzhen opened her mouth, wanting to say "It's inconvenient," but looking at his serious face, she swallowed her words back.

She had no choice but to follow behind, and slowly made her way out the door.

The black Hongqi was parked downstairs. Lin Rui saw the leader come out, got out of the car, and opened the door.

When Ye Zhenzhen bent down to sit inside, she found that Lin Rui was the only person in the car.

"Where's Chen Zheng?" she blurted out.

"You seem to care about him." Zhou Huaijin said in a deep voice.

Ye Zhenzhen felt a chill on the back of her head.

"Is he... alright?" she quickly explained. "Chen Zheng saved me yesterday, and I haven't thanked him yet."

"He saved you?" Zhou Huaijin turned his head and glanced at her.

"Uh, of course, it's mainly because of you, boss..." Ye Zhenzhen chuckled dryly, "But Chen Zheng was really amazing yesterday, taking on six people all by himself—"

She was halfway through her sentence when she noticed Zhou Huaijin's brow twitch slightly, so she quickly shut up.

She was terrified yesterday, but looking back now, Chen Zheng was incredibly cool at that moment. The swiftness with which he punched and kicked, taking down enemies one by one, was just like a protagonist in an action movie.

"How are you going to thank him?" Zhou Huaijin leaned back in his chair, his tone casual.

Ye Zhenzhen's face flushed slightly.

This is definitely not how I'm thanking you...

"I...I'll treat him to dinner..." she whispered, her gaze drifting out the window.

Zhou Huaijin didn't say anything more, but the corners of his mouth seemed to curve slightly.

It was Secretary Lin's words that put Ye Zhenzhen at ease:

"Don't worry, Teacher Ye. Chen Zheng will handle what happened yesterday."

"He'll be back in a bit."

"That's good."

Ye Zhenzhen was relieved.

Without her saying the address, Lin Rui drove straight to her doorstep.

Secretary Lin really does know everything.

To her even greater surprise, Secretary Lin took out several gift boxes from the trunk, containing nutritional supplements, fruits, and tea, which looked quite expensive.

"Secretary Lin, you've gone to too much trouble..." Ye Zhenzhen said somewhat embarrassed.

"Of course." Lin Rui smiled and didn't explain further.

He thought to himself, "It's not like I'm the one who's spending the money."

The Ye couple were sitting in their small shop on the first floor, picking vegetables, when they saw their daughter get out of the car, followed by two well-dressed, distinguished men. They almost dropped the vegetables in their hands.

"Mom and Dad, this is Secretary Zhou, and this is Secretary Lin," Ye Zhenzhen introduced.

"Uncle and Aunt, I'm sorry to bother you." Zhou Huaijin's voice was much gentler than usual.

Mr. and Mrs. Ye had never seen such a high-ranking leader before, and they were a little at a loss for words.

"Oh dear, Secretary Zhou..."

"Thank you so much, leader, for saving my daughter! If it weren't for you, our Zhenzhen..."

Zhou Huaijin smiled and said, "She works for me, so naturally I should be responsible for her safety."

Overwhelmed with emotion, Ye's mother burst into tears: "My Zhenzhen is so lucky to have a leader like you..."

Ye Zhenzhen silently grumbled to herself, thinking to herself that she was starting to not want this good fortune anymore...

Lin Rui quickly handed over the gift bag in his hand:

"We came in a hurry; this was prepared by the Party Secretary for the two elders."

Upon seeing this, Ye's mother panicked again: "Oh dear, you've come all this way, why did you bring so much stuff? It makes us feel so embarrassed..."

"This is for the two elders, and this is for Teacher Ye." Lin Rui carefully separated the bags.

"There's also Zhenzhen's?" Ye's mother paused for a moment, then looked down at a small package peeking out from a bag.

The bags of Chinese medicine were neatly stacked.

"Yes, Teacher Ye left it in the office. The leader specifically instructed me to bring it over."

Ye Zhenzhen was stunned.

She looked at the large bag of Chinese medicine and felt terrible.

Why is she so persistent? She thought she wouldn't have to drink anymore once she escaped back to her hometown, but why is she still chasing her all the way to her doorstep!

"Xiao Ye wasn't feeling well a few days ago. The traditional Chinese medicine doctor said her endocrine system wasn't working properly and she needed to recuperate for a while," Zhou Huaijin continued. "This medicine was prescribed by an expert from the Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, so it should be quite effective."

Upon hearing this, Ye's mother immediately turned to look at Ye Zhenzhen: "This child, she must have been staying up late playing on her phone again! How many times have I told you to go to bed early, go to bed early, but you just won't listen!"

Ye Zhenzhen was speechless with grievances.

"By the way, this medicine is one packet a day, and it costs eighty yuan a packet. You still need to take it on time," Zhou Huaijin added.

Mother Ye immediately grasped the key point: "My goodness, eighty yuan a bag?"

She immediately turned to Ye Zhenzhen, her tone escalating from a "reminder" to a "command": "Zhenzhen, how could you forget to bring back such expensive medicine? It's eighty yuan a bag, you can't miss a single day!"

The word "expensive" gave her mother complete control.

She gave Zhou Huaijin a resentful look. He was standing beside her, his expression indifferent, but the corners of his mouth were slightly curved.

He definitely did it on purpose!

Several people sat down in the living room. Mother Ye was busy pouring tea and serving fruit, while Father Ye sat to the side, rubbing his hands, unsure of what to say.

Zhou Huaijin spoke first, in a gentle tone: "Uncle and Aunt, we came here for two reasons: first, to visit you, and second, to learn about the situation in Nanjing County from you."

Upon hearing this, Mr. Ye straightened his back with righteous indignation: "Secretary, Your Honor, you must stand up for us ordinary people!"

Ye Zhenzhen, listening from the side, felt embarrassed. "Dad, where did you learn those lines from?"

Father Ye's emotions rose, and his voice became louder: "This Brother Long from Nanjing County has been running rampant for years! We small shop owners have to pay him tribute every year; if we don't, he smashes our shops. He even forces women into prostitution; he's the local tyrant of Nanjing!"

"Other departments too—" Ye's father paused, lowering his voice as if afraid of being overheard, "even the police have been bribed by them."

Zhou Huaijin nodded, his expression remaining calm and composed.

This person seems to never show his emotions.

Only when I fell into the ice hole did I see his anxious look, and yesterday, at the Platinum Palace, he…

No, no, I shouldn't be presumptuous.

In that situation, anyone would be anxious.

"How's your business going these days?" Secretary Lin asked.

Mr. Ye sighed, "We run a barbecue restaurant here, but recently they've been talking about creating a civilized and hygienic city, and leaders from higher up are coming to inspect. They've made us all close down. They won't even let us put up a sign in front of the store, saying it affects the city's appearance."

Zhou Huaijin frowned slightly: "So you're not allowed to operate because the leaders are coming to inspect?"

Ye Zhenzhen suddenly realized that the lousy boss she had been cursing a few days ago was probably him...

"Oh dear, they always pull this stunt before the leaders come," Ye's mother sighed helplessly. "Just to make the leaders see how glamorous things are on the surface. The truth is, this place is incredibly poor. All the young people have gone out to work, and the local wages are too low. Who would want to stay?"

Zhou Huaijin didn't speak, but his brows furrowed slightly, as if he was processing what he was saying.

Suddenly remembering something, Ye's mother stood up and walked towards the kitchen: "Oh dear, I was so busy talking that I haven't taken my medicine yet."

She handed Ye Zhenzhen a steaming bowl of traditional Chinese medicine, saying, "Drink it quickly, while it's hot."

Ye Zhenzhen looked at the bowl of dark, murky medicine and picked it up with a pained expression.

"There's still a bottom line, don't leave anything behind, it's eighty!" Mother Ye said, her tone leaving no room for argument.

Ye Zhenzhen pinched her nose, tilted her head back, and gulped it down in one go.

It was so bitter that tears almost welled up in her eyes.

Ye Zhenzhen wanted to cry...

Zhou Huaijin sat opposite her, looking at her expression of being worse than dead, and curled the corners of his lips.

"This house looks quite old." He turned his gaze away and looked around.

"Yes, it's even older than Zhenzhen," said Mr. Ye. "They run a business on the first floor and live on the second. The plaster on the walls has peeled off several times; they've patched it up, it peels off again, and they've patched it up again."

"May I have a look around?" Zhou Huaijin stood up, his tone polite and natural.

"Of course, of course, please feel free to look around!" Mr. Ye quickly stood up.

"Zhenzhen, take the secretary upstairs and have a look," Ye's mother nudged Ye Zhenzhen. "Your father and I will prepare lunch for you."

Lin Rui also stood up, smiling, and said, "Uncle and Aunt, let me help."

Ye Zhenzhen had no choice but to bite the bullet and walk ahead, leading Zhou Huaijin upstairs.

The stairs were narrow, made of old-fashioned cement steps.

"Be careful, the stairs are a bit steep." Ye Zhenzhen walked ahead.

Upstairs was a small two-bedroom apartment, about 70 square meters, but it was kept very clean by Ye's mother.

The windows weren't big, but the lighting was decent; the afternoon sun shone through the glass windows, casting warm yellow patches of light on the floor.

"This is the living room, this is the bedroom, and this is the bathroom."

Ye Zhenzhen introduced them one by one, while Zhou Huaijin's gaze slowly swept across the room.

"You're staying in this room?" He stopped at the door of the master bedroom and glanced inside.

"Mm." Ye Zhenzhen nodded and stood at the door.

Zhou Huaijin walked in and couldn't help but frown.

The room was indeed small, with a 1.5-meter bed placed against the wall, and several dolls piled up at the head of the bed, crammed together in a crooked manner. The bed sheet was light pink with small floral prints.

Next to the pillow were a lazy person's chair stand and a charging cable. On the bedside table were a half-eaten bag of potato chips, a pack of tissues, a bottle of hand cream, and a mug with a cartoon design.

What made Ye Zhenzhen even more embarrassed was...

On the bed were her underwear that she had changed out of yesterday and forgotten to put away.

It was white with lace trim; it was the set he bought for her in Jingxian.

Ye Zhenzhen's face flushed red instantly. She quickly walked over, pulled the underwear out from under the blanket, and quietly stuffed it under her pillow.

But Zhou Huaijin still saw it.

He stood behind her, his gaze sweeping over the piece of white lace.

I inexplicably recalled that night in Jing County, when she had a fever and took off her clothes in the middle of the night—her "heroic act."

I recalled last night, that smooth touch and sweet scent.

His Adam's apple bobbed as he tried to suppress the rising heat within him.

"Ye Zhenzhen," he called her name.