Chapter 26: Chapter 14 (part 2)

So as it turns out, this was what Ning Wan was talking about when she accused him of lying... It looked like his fake persona was still intact, but somehow, Fu Zheng couldn't feel happy about it at all...

"I didn't..." he tried to refute her.

"You just shut up," Ning Wan interrupted. "You have no right to speak right now. I let you stay at my house, but it seems you can't take a little suffering! You lied to me about going to a relatives' house, but what do you actually do? Check into a five-star hotel with Gao Yuan! You disappoint me!"

"..." Fu Zheng felt like he was just as disappointed in himself. What sins must he have committed in his previous life to deserve being caught red-handed by Ning Wan in the lobby?

Ning Wan misinterpreted the despair on his face. Furious, she demanded, "Tell me in your own words. Did Gao Yuan contact and coerce you? Or did you make the first move to contact him and surrender because you couldn't stand some hardship?”

Seeing the fire apparently die out in Fu Zheng's heart put Ning Wan into a slightly better mood. Highly likely that he had just been momentarily possessed, but he was finally looking sober again. At least he still had some sense of shame and was able to realize that he had done something wrong.

After apparently struggling for a long time, Fu Zheng finally spoke. "Gao Yuan contacted me."

Thank goodness! At least he didn't offer himself up of his own accord!

Ning Wan's expression eased. She held out her hand to Fu Zheng and said, "Give it to me."

"What?" Fu Zheng frowned, puzzled.

"Your phone!" Ning Wan ordered.

She was no longer hesitant around Fu Zheng. Plucking the cell phone from his hand, she quickly and neatly pulled up his call logs. Indeed, there she found the call between Fu Zheng and Gao Yuan. Ning Wan tapped on it, cut the cord, and returned the phone to Fu Zheng. "Here, fixed for now."

"What did you do?" Fu Zheng asked, frowning at his phone.

"I blocked Gao Yuan for you," Ning Wan smiled. "That way, he won't harass you again in the future, and you won't be tempted to do something stupid again like today."

“……”

She patted him on the shoulder enthusiastically. "You've still got a long road ahead of you. You don't need to sell your body."

“……”

"And even if you one day find yourself in a situation where you must, you must be wise about it. With a face like yours, you should have no problem picking up some rich middle-aged widow or divorcee. Not only would you not be a homewrecker, but you also won't be burdened with that occupational disease!"

"Occupational disease?"

"That one, that one," Ning Wan winked.

Fu Zheng was puzzled. "Which one?"

"Have you ever heard ? That."

Fu Zheng was completely lost. "You're all over the place," he frowned. "What does this have to do with Jay Chou's songs?"

Ning Wan glared at him grumpily and had to sing: "Wilted chrysanthemums strewn across the floor; even your smile has yellowed with age..."

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“……”

Fu Zheng felt that his smile had gone straight past yellow to black...

Ning Wan didn't seem to notice. She made her point implicitly through the song, then gazed at Fu Zheng sympathetically. "You silly man, do I have to explain everything to you? If you go to a five-star hotel with Gao Yuan, you'll have committed yourself. You can't be so naïve as to not even understand the implications. If you give in to him once, you'll be entangled with him for years. Don't you think you'll eventually catch this occupational disease?"

"But why must it be me on the bottom?" Fu Zheng choked out.

Ning Wan's eyes widened. "If you're on the bottom, you could at least lie back and think of England! If you were on top, you and Gao Yuan... could you even get it up?"

“……”

Although she had been furious with Fu Zheng's renegade behavior, Ning Wan felt some sympathy for him when she saw how gloomy his expression was. Look at the poor thing. He must have had a horrid shock after she had carefully laid it all out for him. He looked like he regretted his decisions so much that he might soon ascend to heaven. Didn't that mean he was ready to turn over a new leaf?

If so, she didn't want to prod further at his wounds. She patted him on the shoulder. "It's fine, let's go. A five-star hotel might be fancy, but it isn't home. Come back with me and sleep comfortably on the floor with peace of mind."

"Apparently it's going to be colder today," she added, taking pity on him. "I've prepared an extra quilt for you, and a slightly fancier meal for tonight. Come on."

Perhaps since he was so embarrassed at having almost done something so stupid, Fu Zheng had been looking like he had completely lost heart for a while now. Now he was pressing his lips together and trudging silently behind her, as if finally ready to turn over a new leaf.

I never expected my coincidental presence to save the future of a young man about to stumble!

Ning Wan was filled with emotion. "Tell the truth, Fu Zheng, aren't you a little bit scared right about now? If I hadn't bumped into you right then, you might have ruined your own life. Be honest, don't you feel particularly grateful?"

Perhaps being on the other end of a life-saving friendship was just too overwhelming, as it looked like Fu Zheng didn't quite know what to say. After a long moment of silence, Ning Wan heard a dry 'thanks' coming from behind.

"No need to thank me. Just remember that you have a great future in front of you, and when you've made it, you can repay me then." Having saved him, Ning Wan was in a good mood. "You have a good education and no problems with your resume. True, you're a little old to have no work experience, but it's not the end of the world. In the future, don't think about taking a shortcut again. Stay here in the community law office, and I'll take you along and teach you everything I can. When you've got some experience of your own, you can apply to a different team at the firm. Gao Yuan's team isn't the only one there is, after all!"

"With no work experience and a gap in your resume, it might be difficult to find a job if you leave. All you can do is stay here at Zhengyuan a little longer and amass some experience. That way, even if you won't be able to find a good team in this firm, you can still always switch jobs."

She even felt a little envious when this topic came around. "Honestly, even though having experience is crucial in this business, competition is pretty fierce nowadays. The first thing companies see when screening a resume is academic background. In that sense, you're still better off than me. Your future is bright, so don't be discouraged."

This fact always evoked a sense of grief within Ning Wan. Frankly, her own career path was more difficult than Fu Zheng's. She had graduated from a second-rate school, and although she had ample experience working with the common people, it was merely grassroots experience in the end. Add that to the fact that women were at an innate disadvantage in the workplace, and in a few years, she was afraid that no one would want her even if she wanted to change jobs. After all, a new boss had to take into account a possible marriage and pregnancy...

Ning Wan brought Fu Zheng back home once again, and laid a second quilt down on the floor. It felt strangely like adding more hay into a pigsty. When this was done, she went back to her room, mulled over the situation, and decided to send another email to the new senior partner. After all, a woman who knows her own situation yet doesn't work hard can only blame herself in the end. She resolved to do her best to save herself.

Ning Wan racked her brains for the right words, chewed the end of her pen, and finally wrote solemnly—

"Dear boss..."

She had no idea that her dear boss was currently lying on the floor of her living room, staring at the ceiling and pondering how he had been reduced to this miserable life.