Chapter 164

I quickly turned to look at Tang Yuan. “What did you remember?”

“My phone died, I need to call my girlfriend first.” Tang Yuan held up his phone, his face contorted with misery. “It just happened to be dead…”

Lin Gaofeng took out his phone. “Use mine to make the call first.”

“Thanks.”

I initially thought that Tang Yuan had come up with some evidence that would be in his favor, but now it seems that there are many doubts. Although I have some belief that Tang Yuan would not do anything to molest a girl, it is still unknown.

What if it really was a slanderous accusation by employees of Lanmei?

After Tang Yuan finished his call, I said to him, “You should focus on recovering. If it’s just a false accusation they made against you, I’ll handle it for you. But I’m not distrusting you because I’m sure you didn’t assault her, but I’m worried about whether you two had any conflicts before.”

Tang Yuan tilted his head and thought for a while before saying to me very seriously, “Boss Tang, I am very sure that I did not do anything wrong before. I even smoked outside, and there was no verbal conflict.”

“Okay, I understand. You should focus on recovering.”

After leaving the hospital, I sat in my car and smoked a cigarette. This whole thing was a bit beyond my expectations. I had thought that Tang Yuan had really molested the girl, and that I would just have to go there and sincerely apologize, and then have a good talk with Manager Guo. I figured there wouldn’t be any major problems.

But now it seems like it’s targeting our company. It’s strange, what’s going on?

However, I have to have dinner with Manager Guo tonight and don’t have time to spend with my cousin and Chen Yao, so I took out my phone and called my cousin.

“Sis, what are you busy with?”

“You’re resting at home,” my cousin asked softly. “Is there anything going on at work? Are you able to handle it?”

I smiled and said, “It’s nothing, just a small matter. Sis, I might not be home until late tonight, as I’m going out to dinner with a client.”

“I see.” My cousin thought for a moment before continuing, “Then you should tell Yao Yao so she won’t worry about you.”

“Okay, I’ll call her right away,” I nodded and said.

“Well, you should talk to her properly.” My cousin chuckled. “If I relay the message to her, she’ll get angry. It’s better if you talk to her yourself.”

With that, my cousin hung up the phone. I gave a wry smile. It seems Chen Yao really is a thorn in the side between my cousin and me. If it weren’t for her…

For some reason, the events in Tianjin kept popping into my head again. I absolutely cannot let Chen Yao know about what happened between Su Yue’e and me. Now that Chen Hui knows that I was drugged by Su Yue’e, she probably won’t tell Chen Yao about it.

Chen Yao, this somewhat naive and innocent girl, has actually earned a place in my heart, second only to my cousin.

Although I’ve never considered myself a good person, I feel this is somewhat unfair to my cousin. But if he breaks up with Chen Yao, it would be even more irresponsible towards her.

I couldn’t resist taking out another cigarette and lighting it. Lin Gaofeng, who was next to me, suddenly asked, “Boss Tang, is something on your mind?”

“What’s on my mind?” I laughed and scolded. “I’m just thinking about Tangyuan’s matter, Lao Lin. What do you think about it?”

Lin Gaofeng frowned and said, “I feel something is wrong with this. We all know Tang Yuan has a girlfriend. He shouldn’t do something like this. What if Lan Mei is framing us? I heard that people there are quite hostile towards us.”

“Hostility?” I asked suspiciously. “Who told you this?”

“It seems that all of them who went to pick up the goods have raised this issue.”

Lin Gaofeng thought for a moment, then said, “The main reason is that our inventory check is slow, which affects their ability to leave work, so they have a lot of complaints about us. Another reason is that we heard that their Manager Guo is interested in our Manager Chen and has asked him out several times, but he hasn’t agreed.”

After hearing what Lin Gaofeng said, I was both amused and exasperated. “What kind of excuse is that? Of course we need to count all the goods before loading them onto the truck. What if there’s a shortage of weight? Who are we supposed to complain to then?”

“As for whether she’s interested in Manager Chen, that’s not something we can discuss. Let’s stop gossiping, lest we upset Manager Chen later.”

Lin Gaofeng smiled and said, “We were just talking casually. We don’t really have anything to say. But Manager Chen is indeed very capable. Look, she’s only been here a few months, and our salaries have doubled. We’ve also received far fewer complaints. More importantly, we signed Lanmei as a client, and our monthly commissions are much higher than before.”

“I wonder if Manager Chen has a boyfriend, and I wonder what kind of person is good enough for her. If I weren’t married, I might even have to consider it.”

I said, somewhat speechless, “Old Lin, why do I feel like you’re just flattering me?”

Lin Gaofeng chuckled. “You’re a big shot in Manager Chen’s eyes. If this were ancient times, you’d be like a eunuch to the emperor. What if what I’m saying gets back to Manager Chen’s ears?”

“You’re the eunuch,” I said irritably. “I’ll take you home first.”

Lin Gaofeng shook his head. “No need. You’re treating Manager Guo to dinner tonight. Go and make a reservation first. I can go back by myself.”

What he said makes sense. If Manager Guo comes later and finds himself sitting in the lobby, he’ll probably be unhappy. I need to arrange a seat for him first.

So I said, “Okay, be careful then, I’ll go over there and reserve a spot first.”

Lin Gaofeng smiled

“Go ahead and laugh.”

He had just gotten out of the car when I realized I hadn’t called Chen Yao yet, so I quickly dialed her number.

The phone had barely rung when Chen Yao answered, “Hey Zheng, I heard you’re back.”

Hearing Chen Yao’s gentle voice, I felt a deep sense of guilt. What I did in Tianjin was indeed a betrayal of her. No wonder Chen Hui was so angry that she slapped me.

“Yeah, I just got back today.” I said with a smile. “I was planning to have dinner with you tonight, but something came up at work, so I came over to take care of it first.”

“I understand.” Chen Yao smiled. “It’s alright. You go and take care of things first, so my sister won’t scold you again. By the way, have you missed me?”

“Yes.” I said very seriously, “I really, really want to.”

“But I don’t miss you.” Chen Yao giggled. “I really don’t miss you at all.”

“No,” I said, feigning anger. “Then I’ll punish you tonight. If you don’t want me, do you think you can think of someone else?”

“Then come on then.” Chen Yao said with a grin, “I said last time that I would favor you, but I haven’t done so yet. Anyway, I’m going to take you down when I get back tonight.”

I broke out in a cold sweat. Are all young girls these days so bold? I wonder if Chen Yao blushed.

I couldn’t help but laugh and said, “Sure, let’s see who favors whom. When I get back tonight, you can’t beg for mercy.”

“No way,” Chen Yao said coquettishly. “Haven’t you heard that there are only oxen that die from exhaustion, not land that’s been over-plowed? If you’re so capable, then go ahead and show me. Okay, I won’t bother you anymore. I’ll be waiting for you to come back.”

After saying that, he hung up the phone.

I really didn’t expect her to tease me like that. Isn’t she afraid I’ll eat her up?

But if I really ate her, what if Chen Hui came back…?

Although I’m a little worried about what Chen Hui might do, as the ancients said, “Gather ye rosebuds while ye may.” Ever since Chen Yao and I started dating, it seems like all we’ve done is hold hands and kiss, nothing more.

The only time we almost did it, Chen Yao decided to give it to me on our wedding night.

What happened to her?

I found Chen Yao’s sudden action a bit puzzling, but I couldn’t figure out what was wrong with it. Oh well, I’d better deal with the dinner party tonight first.

I threw the cigarette butt out the car window and drove to Juweiyuan Restaurant to book a private room. Since I didn’t know how many people would come, I only booked enough for three or four people.

Around 7 p.m., I started waiting at the entrance of Juweiyuan Restaurant because I felt that if Manager Guo found me sitting in a private room, he might think I was being arrogant or something.

I took out a cigarette and smoked it right at the door.

Time flew by, and before long it was already seven o’clock.

Was Manager Guo late?

I took out my phone, thought about it, but still didn’t call him. What if he was on his way?

Around 7:10, I finally saw Manager Guo, along with a woman. I quickly threw away my cigarette butt and went to greet him, “Good evening, Manager Guo.”

“Xiao Tang, I’m sorry, we got stuck in traffic on the way.” Manager Guo smiled apologetically, then pointed to the woman beside him and said, “This is our warehouse supervisor, Ms. Huo.”

The woman was probably around 27 or 28 years old, about 1.6 meters tall, wearing high heels, and quite attractive.

I quickly smiled and said, “Good evening, Miss Huo. Please come in first.”

“Thank you for your trouble.” Miss Huo smiled slightly and nodded.

I led the two of them to a private room, and after asking about their preferences, I ordered two more dishes.

Then he personally poured tea for Manager Guo and Miss Huo, and said with a smile, “Manager Guo, Miss Huo, thank you both for taking time out of your busy schedules to have a meal together.”

“Xiao Tang, if I had known you were going to Tianjin this time, I would have asked you to bring back some food for me.” Manager Guo smiled. “Tianjin’s fried dough twists are a pretty famous snack.”

“Yeah, I think so too.”

The woman surnamed Huo chimed in, “However, most of the breakfasts there are jianbing guozi (Chinese crepes). It’s fine to eat it occasionally, but if you eat it often, it gets a bit cloying.”

“I haven’t been to Tianjin in a long time, and I really want to visit Tanggu Port.”

Manager Guo smiled slightly and said with a hint of reminiscence, “Moreover, the accent in Tianjin is very unique. I stayed there for several months and almost wanted to learn the Tianjin dialect from someone.”

Ms. Huo smiled slightly. “Manager Guo, I think if our company has a holiday, we should really go to Tianjin for a trip. I also think there are some pretty nice scenic spots there.”

Watching these two perform a crosstalk routine, I actually felt like I couldn’t join in.

Clearly, they were deliberately trying to intimidate me. My mind raced, trying to find a way to break through.

I chuckled, deliberately raising my voice slightly, “Manager Guo, Miss Huo, Tianjin certainly has some fun places, but how about we chat over drinks?”

Before they could speak, I continued, “Ever since my drinking contest with Manager Guo last time, I’ve noticed that my alcohol tolerance seems to have increased. In addition, there’s been a bit of a problem between our two companies, so tonight, I plan to apologize to you both. I’m sure with Manager Guo and Miss Huo’s magnanimity, we should be able to resolve this matter amicably.”