Chapter 81: Chapter 39 (part 1)

Fu Zheng was feeling rather puzzled. He had no idea what was going on with this Chen Shuo guy. The man had attacked his age several times now, and whenever they met, his eyes brimmed with hostility. Unless Ning Wan was around, his manner even seemed as though he was anxious to pick a fight.

They had never met, and there was no enmity between them, so what was the reason for such hatred?

But despite his confusion, Fu Zheng made his way to the factory in which Yao Kang had worked to investigate and collect evidence. Proof of work-related injuries first required a labor contract, but even if Yao Kang had had such a thing in the first place, it was obviously gone by now. Since this black factory didn't insure its employees, evidence could only be obtained on-site, like witness testimony, work orders signed by Yao Kang, work uniforms, and so on. Afterward, he returned to the police station and signed a contract with Fei Fei, who had already been told about his father, and his mother. Once all the evidence was put in order, he would be in a good position to negotiate with the factory.

Fu Zheng was very comfortable with such negotiations. He felt quite confident about the case.

The only thing on his mind was Chen Shuo.

A superior must be tolerant and generous to his subordinates and know when to turn a blind eye. Even when encountering coworkers who were particularly incompetent,  Fu Zheng had always been able to keep calm, not responding to their attacks or spitting at their backs. But every time Chen Shuo provoked him, for whatever reason he couldn't help but fight back.

Fu Zheng considered it carefully and felt like this couldn't go on. The two of them might have to work together for a long time, and nothing was as important as harmony. He had to take the initiative to resolve this hostility.

'If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles'once said Sun Tzu. Calling up Gao Yuan, he asked, "Is Chen Shuo a bad person? Is he fond of squeezing out members of a team and infighting?"

But Gao Yuan's answer was quite different from what he had expected. "Not at all. He has quite a good reputation. He's young and promising, hard-working, enthusiastic, handsome, and overall very popular in the firm."

Fu Zheng paused. "Does he not get along with members of the same sex?"

"Nope. He's quite close to several other male lawyers at the firm. They usually play ball together on weekends. He's very good at saying the right thing at the right time. Chen Shuo can cut a deal with even with the most difficult clients. The inside joke is that whoever can't get along with him must be the one with the problem!"

"..." Fu Zheng, the one with the problem, sneered, "Why did he get sent to the community? Are you suspicious that I, a senior partner, might run into problems while sitting out here in the community guarding it?"

"How could I possibly doubt your ability?!" Gao Yuan, wanting to survive, quickly explained, "I sent him out to the community just so he could realize his dream!"

Fu Zheng frowned. "What?"

"As you know, Chen Shuo applied for your position before you started here. He didn't get to go because of you, but let's be honest, what's so good about the community? It's a fringe business at best. No one from the office would normally want to go. Chen Shuo especially is in a good team and there's absolutely nothing he gains from being transferred there, yet he has repeatedly applied to go. Why do you think?"

"To get some experience working with ordinary people?"

"He's not some high-ranking guy like you! Young lawyers like him are already plenty active at the grassroots level. Why on earth would he need any more experience? " Gao Yuan exclaimed, speechless. "Chen Shuo is obviously there with ulterior motives!"

"What motives?" Fu Zheng inquired, his mouth feeling dry.

"You already knew that Chen Shuo and Ning Wan went to school together, didn't you?  Out of all the employers in the world, why did he choose our firm? The answer is two words - 'Ning Wan'. He's here for Ning Wan! Haven't you noticed that Chen Shuo looks at Ning Wan differently? She's obviously the object of his secret, unrequited love!"

"Think about it," Gao Yuan tsked. "Here I am, watching a real-life fairytale unfold. Who am I to stand in their way? You said yourself that you weren't interested in Ning Wan, while Chen Shuo is infatuated with her, so of course I gladly played matchmaker! Besides, Chen Shuo and Ning Wan together are 'a talented man and a beautiful woman', a picture-perfect couple. Hasn't he been applying repeatedly to be transferred to the community just so he can come into contact with her and pursue her?"

Fu Zheng paused. Then he refuted calmly, "But isn't Chen Shuo Ning Wan's junior? Younger, naïve, immature, what good comes out of a relationship with a younger man?"

"Oh stop, you just don't understand! Older woman-younger man love is popular nowadays. So are little wolfhoundsAn arrogant, manly young man/boy and little puppiesA clingy, devoted young man/boy, sometimes translated as 'little milk dog'.!"

"A little wolfhound?! More like a rabid dog." For no reason at all, Fu Zheng was feeling a bit vexed. Upon recalling Chen Shuo's inexplicable hostility, he suddenly felt like it was even more hateful than before and became even more put out. "Only mature men have charm. Chen Shuo doesn't match well with Ning Wan at all..."

"Oh you, get out of here with 'a mature man is charming'! Do you know what they call people our age online? 'Old dogs'!"

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"..." Fu Zheng was rendered speechless for a long time before he finally choked out a few words. "How rude!"

"But why are you suddenly so interested in Chen Shuo?" Gao Yuan was a bright man. When he put the questions into context, he came to a sudden realization. "Is he not very pleasant to you?"

"Mmn."

"You'll have to cut him some slack, I'm afraid. It's probably hormones. He's competing against another male in his territory, just like what you see in nature. Chen Shuo is still young, it's hard to avoid him being a little hostile to you." After this initial sally, Gao Yuan softened his words with some flattery. "Anyway if you think about it, his hostility is a disguised affirmation of you. If you were a fat, bald dude, would he regard you as a threat? It's because you're excellent that that child Chen Shuo is getting impatient."

Fu Zheng calmed down. He felt like Gao Yuan was probably right.

"But if, let's say, they do end up together," Gao Yuan continued encouragingly, "It could actually be quite good for you! A husband and wife make a stable unit. You could pull them both into your team. Since you witnessed how they fell in love, you're half their matchmaker. Your team will surely have strong bonds in the future!"

Fu Zheng didn't want to listen anymore. Just thinking about Chen Shuo's face made him uncomfortable. Wouldn't he just be looking to upset himself by bringing the guy into his own team?

Even if Chen Shuo was courting Ning Wan, he shouldn't be emitting hostility left and right. It was just love, that was all! There was something wrong with being so possessive and jealous. Moreover, Ning Wan hardly even talked to the boy! With he, Fu Zheng, around as comparison, was it even possible that Ning Wan would ever look his way?

Ha.

"Well forget it, I've got to go, I'm busy."

Gao Yuan obviously wasn't done chatting yet. "Wait, wait, wait. Are we done talking? Don't you have anything else to ask? "

Fu Zheng paused, thought for a moment, and felt like there was one more question that he did indeed care about. "I do have one more question."

Gao Ting perked up. "What?" he asked enthusiastically.

"Do you think Chen Shuo is handsome?"

"Yes indeed, an outstanding and spirited young fellow."

"What about in comparison with me?"

? ? ?

Gao Yuan hesitated. Why was Fu Zheng's tone somehow sounding like he was fighting  with Chen Shuo over Gao Yuan's own affections? Could it be that he had overexaggerated Chen Shuo's good looks and this fellow was jealous? It was said that some people were also possessive of their close friends. How unexpected for Fu Zheng to value him so much that he wouldn't even allow him to look at another man!

For a moment he felt a little moved. "ZhengHe skips out on calling Fu Zheng with his last name here, which indicates closeness, you're still the handsomest one in my heart…"

But before he could finish speaking, he heard Fu Zheng's disgusted voice coming from the other side. "Gross. Hang up and don't call me again for awhile."

“……”

Gao Yuan felt quite wronged. This phone call had been made by Fu Zheng himself, and that question had also been asked by Fu Zheng himself! And on top of that, he had obviously said that he would ask only one question, and then asked two!