She slowly shifted downward, kneeling and sitting back on her heels. With a look of resignation, she closed her eyes and parted her red lips slightly.
“I washed it several times,” Zhou Yinghuai said, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he defended himself—and it—with a hint of grievance.
Realizing her dislike had been exposed, Cheng Fangqiu paused in her movements. Finally, she stopped dawdling, and her mouth was instantly filled with the faint scent of soap, accompanied by a slight saltiness.
Above her, the man’s breathing grew heavier. He reached out to gather her long, flowing hair, his knuckles tightening involuntarily as she moved, but he quickly loosened his grip, afraid of pulling her scalp.
He leaned back, his other hand caressing her neck. Once she had adjusted somewhat, he couldn’t help but take control, but when she whimpered softly, he immediately eased up.
Cheng Fangqiu slightly lifted her eyelashes and saw him covered in a thin layer of sweat.
Bringing trouble upon oneself.
These four words suddenly flashed through her mind, and Cheng Fangqiu guiltily swallowed the deliberate soft whimpers she had been making.
Of course, in the end, this method didn’t allow Zhou Yinghuai to finish as comfortably as she had.
Cheng Fangqiu blinked her watery peach-blossom eyes, nestled in Zhou Yinghuai’s arms, watching him lose control. Suddenly, a memory flashed through her mind of a sunset some time ago, when he had let himself go in front of her just like this.
After what felt like an eternity, he leaned in to kiss her, his voice unbearably hoarse. “Wife, I love you.”
His usually cool eyes now burned with passion.
Feeling like she hadn’t contributed much, Cheng Fangqiu smiled and wrapped her arms around his neck, deepening the kiss.
—
For once, they managed to sleep well, staying in bed until the afternoon. If it weren’t for the fact that they were starving, Cheng Fangqiu might not have urged Zhou Yinghuai to get up and cook.
There were some leftover ingredients from the wedding banquet yesterday. Adhering to the principle of not wasting food, after sharing some with Xu Qiqi and the others, they had brought the rest home. Now, their kitchen was fully stocked with everything they needed.
“What do you want to eat?” Zhou Yinghuai got out of bed and rummaged through the wardrobe for a pair of underwear while asking her.
He wasn’t wearing anything, and his lean figure was on full display right in front of her eyes. Cheng Fangqiu lay on the pillow, catching a glimpse of the long scratch marks and the reddish-purple “strawberries” on his back. Feeling a bit embarrassed, she averted her gaze.
“I want green beans, tomato and egg stir-fry, and beef with cilantro.”
“Alright, I’ll call you to get up and wash up when the food is almost ready.” Zhou Yinghuai pulled on his underwear and left the room.
Cheng Fangqiu lay in bed for a while, but once he was gone, she couldn’t fall back asleep. Thinking about the mess in the living room, she decided to get up and help.
The two of them worked together and quickly tidied up the house. The meal was almost ready, but just as they were halfway through eating, there was a knock at the door. The person outside seemed frantic, knocking repeatedly.
“Brother Huai! Brother Huai!”
Recognizing Zhao Zhigao’s voice, Cheng Fangqiu quickly motioned for Zhou Yinghuai to answer the door.
Seeing Zhao Zhigao, drenched in sweat, standing outside, Zhou Yinghuai was momentarily stunned. He frowned and asked, “What’s wrong?”
Although Zhao Zhigao was usually loud and boisterous, he wasn’t the type to overstep boundaries. Normally, knowing that Zhou Yinghuai had taken time off for the wedding, he wouldn’t have come to disturb him. But now, not only had he come, he was in such a hurry—something big must have happened.
Sure enough, the next second, Zhao Zhigao urgently explained, “Brother Huai, today Director Lei publicly praised Hu Pingsheng, saying he independently completed a research project that could change the entire trajectory of the machinery factory’s development. The higher-ups not only plan to promote Hu Pingsheng and give him a raise, but they’re also inviting reporters to interview him and publish an article.”
The more Zhou Yinghuai listened, the darker his expression became. It wasn’t that he was jealous of Hu Pingsheng’s achievement, but there were too many suspicious points in this situation.
First, based on Hu Pingsheng’s personality, if he had made such a significant research breakthrough, he wouldn’t have kept it quiet until the last moment. He would have made sure everyone knew.
Second, everyone was aware of his capabilities. It was highly unlikely that he could independently complete such an impressive research project.
Zhou Yinghuai frowned deeply, pondered for a moment, and then asked, “Has the content of his research been disclosed?”
Zhao Zhigao shook his head. “It hasn’t been disclosed, but I secretly inquired about it. Hu Pingsheng’s research report is almost identical to the one you lost.”
That’s why he had rushed over in such a panic.
Having his suspicions confirmed, Zhou Yinghuai was furious but let out a bitter laugh. His hand, hanging by his side, clenched into a fist, and the veins on his forehead bulged.
“Brother Huai, let’s go to Director Lei and explain the situation,” Zhao Zhigao said, equally furious. He gritted his teeth and cursed, “That bastard Hu Pingsheng! He’s always been provoking and picking fights, but now he’s gone and done something like this!”
After a pause, as if remembering something, he added, “Was it also him who sabotaged our technical department last time? No, wait—did he instruct Ma Changjun to do it?”
The thought of all the overtime their entire department had put in because of that incident made Zhao Zhigao wish he could storm into Hu Pingsheng’s office and kill him right now!
“Going now won’t help,” Zhou Yinghuai said, much calmer compared to Zhao Zhigao’s agitation.
“Why won’t it help? Brother Huai, that’s your hard work! Your research! Your report! If we explain it clearly to Director Lei, he’ll definitely stand up for you,” Zhao Zhigao said, looking at Zhou Yinghuai in confusion.
“Because it’s a trap, and they’re waiting for you to jump right into it,” Cheng Fangqiu, who had been listening nearby, finally understood the whole story. She bit her lower lip and comfortingly patted Zhou Yinghuai’s shoulder. “Why didn’t you tell me about this?”
Zhou Yinghuai let out a bitter laugh. “I didn’t expect something like this to happen either.”
He had been careless.
But now wasn’t the time for regret. The most urgent matter was to come up with a solution.
Zhao Zhigao, however, was still confused. “He stole someone else’s research achievement and claimed it as his own. If we go to Director Lei to seek justice, shouldn’t he be the one panicking?”
“Think about it carefully. Normally, such confidential documents wouldn’t be easily accessible to anyone before the higher-ups officially announce them. Yet, you managed to find out without any effort. Doesn’t that seem strange?”
Hearing this, Zhao Zhigao’s eyes flickered. Indeed, rather than him finding out the information, it seemed more like the information had been handed to him on a silver platter.
The other party’s intentions were also crystal clear. Brother Huai was on leave at home and wouldn’t be able to find out about this news, but since Zhao Zhigao was close to him, he would definitely inform him immediately.
In a fit of anger, it would be easy to rush to Director Lei to seek justice.
This would play right into their hands. In such a situation, without strong evidence, it would be easy to be turned against, especially since the relationship between the two was already strained. If word got out, who knows what kind of slander would be spread.
For example, people might say Zhou Yinghuai was jealous of Hu Pingsheng’s talent and falsely accused him of stealing his research.
Or that Zhou Yinghuai, being less skilled, couldn’t stand Hu Pingsheng’s success and would resort to any underhanded tactics.
…
The technical department was a place where people made their living based on their skills. Now that Hu Pingsheng had suddenly risen to prominence, many people would likely switch sides and support him. Given their current isolated and unsupported situation, they couldn’t afford to lose their composure. They needed to carefully think of a strategy.
“Hu Pingsheng is really despicable, deliberately causing trouble right when Brother Huai is hosting the wedding banquet,” Zhao Zhigao said, seething with anger.
Hearing this, Zhou Yinghuai didn’t respond, but a scene from a few days ago flashed through his mind—Hu Pingsheng smugly making sarcastic remarks in front of him. It seemed this was all part of his plan to provoke him. Unfortunately for Hu Pingsheng, he had miscalculated.
Zhou Yinghuai would make sure he understood the consequences of messing with his things.
“What should we do now? It’s been so long since the incident. He must have thoroughly studied all your research and data by now. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be so brazen,” Cheng Fangqiu said, her face scrunched up in worry. Although she didn’t understand the technical aspects of the machinery factory, she had grasped how important this report was.
A promotion, a raise, and a newspaper interview—these honors should have belonged to her husband! But they had been stolen by Hu Pingsheng!
How could anyone not be furious?
“Don’t worry,” Zhou Yinghuai said, seeing how anxious Cheng Fangqiu and Zhao Zhigao were. He quickly reassured them.
“Do you have a plan?”
Cheng Fangqiu and Zhao Zhigao exchanged a glance, noticing Zhou Yinghuai’s confidence. Their hearts gradually settled.
“Yes.” When doing research, how could he not have left himself a backup plan? Moreover, the report Hu Pingsheng had stolen wasn’t the final version. At the time, some details were still incomplete, and then it was lost.
If Hu Pingsheng had been studying and analyzing his report for so many days and still hadn’t noticed those flaws, submitting an incomplete version that caused significant losses and a huge embarrassment for the factory, how could he possibly stay in the technical department?
And the losses the technical department suffered because of that incident should be borne by the real culprit—himself. Bringing trouble upon oneself couldn’t be more fitting.
The only question was whether Ma Changjun was involved in this.
Zhou Yinghuai narrowed his eyes, a sharp glint flashing in them.
“Why didn’t you say so earlier? You had me worried for so long,” Cheng Fangqiu said, patting her chest and giving Zhou Yinghuai a coquettish glare.
Zhao Zhigao felt the same way, but he didn’t dare say it out loud. He could only grumble internally.
“Since Brother Huai has a plan, I won’t disturb you and sister-in-law any longer.”
“Hey, your Brother Huai just cooked. Don’t you want to stay and eat a bit before leaving?” Cheng Fangqiu politely offered.
Zhao Zhigao waved his hands repeatedly. “No, no, I made an excuse to come out. I still have to go back to work.”
With that, he dashed down the stairs and disappeared from sight in an instant.