The Secret of the Yoga Club: The Women's Identity is Not Simple

The next morning, Ma Qingqing woke up groggily, her head still a little dizzy, the aftereffects of the plum wine not yet completely worn off.

She rolled over, rubbed her eyes, and looked down to see herself wearing an unfamiliar light pink cotton pajama. She paused for a moment—it looked like Wang Yue's.

She then remembered that she had drunk herself into oblivion again last night. She threw off the covers, got out of bed, and walked barefoot into the living room, where she saw Wang Yue sitting on the sofa with a face mask on, scrolling through her phone.

"Minister Wang, I'm drunk again. I'm so sorry, I always cause you trouble when I come to your house. Did you help me change into these pajamas? Thank you." Ma Qingqing scratched the back of her head, her face showing a hint of hangover weariness and an embarrassed smile.

"Why are you being so polite with me? We're best friends. You drank more than two bottles last night and fell asleep on the sofa. I couldn't wake you up. It took me a lot of effort to get you to bed; your long legs are so heavy. Go wash up quickly. I've squeezed out your toothpaste for you, and the towel is on the shelf."

Wang Yue removed the face mask and gently patted the remaining essence on her cheeks with her fingers. She thought to herself that this girl was really carefree. She drank until she blacked out and didn't remember anything. Fortunately, last night she was just settled down to sleep and nothing went wrong.

Ma Qingqing went into the bathroom and, while squeezing toothpaste, glanced down at herself in the mirror and suddenly noticed a small, light red mark below her left collarbone.

I looked closely in the mirror and pressed it lightly with my finger. It didn't hurt or itch; it looked like a mark made by something pressing on it.

She didn't think much of it, since it was just her and Wang Yue last night, and there couldn't have been a third person. She just assumed that she had accidentally pressed on the buttons of her pajamas while sleeping, or that Wang Yue had accidentally brushed against them when helping her into the bedroom.

For some reason, she felt a little heavy, as if she hadn't fully recovered, but she just assumed it was a hangover. As she brushed her teeth, she silently resolved never to drink so much again. She felt so bad that Wang Yue always had to take care of her when she was drunk.

In fact, her body is naturally very sensitive.

It's often said that women are made of water, and that's certainly true for her.

She usually wears a work shirt and a tight-fitting short skirt at the company, covering herself up completely so that no one can tell she's there.

Only she knew that every time Wang Yue took her to the swimming pool, she would involuntarily tremble slightly when changing clothes in the locker room.

Last night, the alcohol completely numbed her senses, but her body's instincts still faithfully performed their duties while she slept, though she herself was completely unaware of it.

Of course, she never imagined that Lin Feng had come by last night when she was completely drunk and unconscious, and that there was even a segment about Yu the Great controlling the floods.

She knew nothing of this; she simply rubbed her temples in front of the mirror, attributing the "strange" feeling to the aftereffects of a hangover.

After getting ready, the two went to the company together. Not long after arriving at the office, Li Juan, the head of the Human Resources Department, approached them, holding a probationary period approval form and a personnel file, a professional smile on her face. She wore a dark blue business suit, her hair pulled back, and looked capable and efficient.

"Qingqing, congratulations. I received a call from General Manager Lin this morning. He personally instructed me to promote you to a permanent position ahead of schedule. Your base salary will be the same as that of a regular employee, and your position will still be Assistant to the Head of the Centralized Procurement Department, one level higher than others who joined at the same time. This is the approval form for your promotion. Please take a look and sign it if you think it's okay. The salary details are on the second page. All subsidies and the proportions of social security and housing provident fund are clearly listed. Please check if you have any questions."

Ma Qingqing took the approval form, her fingers trembling slightly. When she turned to the second page and saw the salary details, her eyes widened in shock. The base salary was more than double what she had expected—a full 15,000 yuan! With various subsidies and performance bonuses, plus sales commissions for the new product line, her monthly income was many times higher than when she interned at her previous trading company.

After signing the form, she walked out with it in her hand. In the corridor, she bumped into Wang Yue, who was just coming out of the break room. Wang Yue's expression was a mixture of excitement and disbelief. She lowered her voice, but couldn't hide her excitement: "Minister Wang! I've been promoted! Promoted ahead of schedule! My base salary has more than doubled, plus commissions and subsidies! Minister Li said it was General Manager Lin who personally called to instruct me. I thought I'd have to wait three months for probation, but I've been promoted in such a short time!"

"Congratulations, Qingqing! Your parents can finally relax. They were worried about you working hard on your own, but now you have a stable job and your income has increased. Keep up the good work, develop the new product line, and your commissions will be substantial. I've told you before, Mr. Lin always values ​​hardworking employees. Look at you now, from the moment you joined until now, you were first transferred directly to the centralized procurement department, then independently took charge of the new product line, and now you've been promoted ahead of schedule. Didn't you earn all of that through your own hard work? Mr. Lin simply values ​​talent and won't mistreat those who work diligently. That young man surnamed He in the sales department was the nephew of the deputy director of the Forestry Bureau; he wasn't ambitious and even harassed his colleagues. Mr. Lin fired him without hesitation, without giving him any face. So just relax and work hard. At Shuke, as long as you're willing to put in the effort, you'll definitely be rewarded."

Hearing Wang Yue's words, Ma Qingqing felt a surge of warmth in her heart and didn't think too deeply about it.

He took it as a sign of his supervisor's appreciation for his subordinate, nodded vigorously, and walked back to his workstation with the approval form for his permanent position. He placed the paper with the red stamp on the table, took out his phone, and sent a message to his mother, saying that he had been officially hired and could send more money home so that his grandmother could get dialysis at a better hospital.

After finishing, she leaned back in her chair, looking at the sunlight outside the window, filled with hope for the future.

……

Meanwhile, Lin Feng's car had already entered the city limits of Binzhou. The hilly terrain on both sides of the highway gradually became flatter, and the words "Binzhou City Area" appeared on the roadside signs.

Kui Zi sent her the location in advance: an inconspicuous hotel in a quiet alley in the old city of Binzhou.

Lin Feng parked the car in front of the hotel, where Kui Zi was already waiting on the steps. He was wearing a dark short-sleeved T-shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, and his expression was more serious than usual.

"Brother Lin, the rooms are all arranged. I've also found out some more information. Secretary Wang's full name is Wang Yuqing. She used to be a clerk in the Binzhou Municipal Government Office, and she was probably in her early twenties when she resigned. Her husband's surname is Li, and he runs a building materials wholesale business in Binzhou. After they got married, they moved to the south, but he doesn't know exactly where they went, only that it was somewhere in Guangdong. Also, about that Section Chief Jiang you mentioned, I had someone inquire about him discreetly. He worked in the Binzhou Human Resources Department for over ten years, and he was in the archives department when Wang Yuqing resigned, so he must have handled her resignation procedures. If we can invite him out for a meal, we might be able to find out a lot of information."

"I've already contacted Section Chief Jiang. Let's arrange dinner tomorrow night and see if we can get a copy of Wang Yuqing's file from back then. Also, have the men continue to inquire around the area, especially the old merchants who did business near the municipal government back then. They should remember Wang Yuqing's husband. The building materials wholesale circle isn't big. If that guy surnamed Li still has connections in Binzhou, we can definitely find out where he is now."

Kui Zi nodded. Lin Feng placed the briefcase on the bed, took out the marked highway project documents, and handed them to the other party.

"This is the provincial highway reconstruction project that Shanshui Group contracted five years ago. It collapsed less than a year after it was completed, and people even died. In the end, the matter was left unresolved. If this lead can be verified, it will be more direct than what Secretary Wang said. Have your men inquire around Binzhou to see if any of the families of the drivers who died in the accident are still living there. If we can find one or two of them and find out the specific circumstances of the accident and the subsequent handling process, we might be able to uncover more information."

Kui Zi took the documents and flipped through them, his brows furrowing deeper and deeper. He looked up at Lin Feng and said, "Brother Lin, this is going too far. Several lives were lost, and they just covered it up like that. I'll personally follow this lead. Have the men go to the labor market and see if they can find anyone who worked on the construction site back then. The migrant workers who build roads are very mobile, but there are always a few locals. If we can find just one, we can find out what happened during the construction."

He folded the documents and put them in his pocket, then stood up and straightened his clothes. "You rest first. I'll go out and make some arrangements. We'll all meet up tonight to further refine the division of labor for the past few days."

Lin Feng nodded, watched Kui Zi push the door open and leave, then leaned against the headboard and took out his phone.

Ye Qinghan sent him a message asking if he had arrived yet, and he replied, "Arrived, everything went smoothly." Shen Qianqian posted several photos of the Kyoto University Library, saying that she had audited a very meaningful class today and made some new friends.

He replied to each message, put his phone on the bedside table, and stood up to walk to the window.

Outside the window was the quiet night scene of Binzhou's old town, with dark clouds covering the sky, looking like it was about to rain.

He leaned against the window frame and lit a cigarette. Tomorrow night's dinner with Section Chief Jiang was a crucial step in this trip to Binzhou.

If we can get hold of Wang Yuqing's file from back then, and trace her household registration transfer records, it's only a matter of time before we find her.

If Kui Zi can find the family members of the driver who died in the accident or the migrant workers on the construction site, the problems with the construction quality of Shanshui Group can be confirmed.

If we advance along two lines simultaneously, we're sure we'll find some clues.