TSMLI Chapter 34

Shen Zhongxun, who was on the other end of the phone, could tell she was in a bad mood and asked, “Did something happen?”

Lin Chu snapped out of her daze. “It’s nothing!” She twisted her fingers, unsure whether she should tell Shen Zhongxun about it. Suddenly Yang Chunbei’s words echoed in her mind. “You still have Manager Shen from Min’an to protect you. He’s President Shen’s son.” If she told him, would he stand up for her?

But this would confirm Yang Chunbei’s words, as if Lin Chu had found a real backer, and more rumors would spread throughout the unit afterward.

But if she kept it a secret from Shen Zhongxun and endured this grievance alone Lin Chu felt it was unnecessary. Since she had agreed to the relationship with Shen Zhongxun, why not let him share her troubles? Even if he was a powerful backer, so what? She had never been a proud person, so why should she pretend to be proud? But what if Shen Zhongxun thought badly of her?

Just as she was hesitating Shen Zhongxun said, “Here’s what we’ll do. Call me when you get to the city, and I’ll come pick you up. I have something to do, so I’ll hang up now.”

Lin Chu opened her mouth, but before she could say anything more all that was left was a hurried busy tone on the other end. She could not help but breathe a sigh of relief, as she still had enough time to come up with a solution.

Twelve hours have passed since the incident last night, and the rumors have only spread to the few dozen people in the team. The leaders are suppressing the discussions, but those gossipy women seem to be on steroids. Lin Chu smacked them on the back of the head and finally selected two targets.

Shen Zhongxun hung up Lin Chu’s call, picked up another office phone, immediately answered, and respectfully said, “Uncle Xue.”

Old Xue laughed and said a few words, then added, “The two months are almost over, and I’m thinking of changing my son’s workplace again. That good-for-nothing, if we don’t take care of him, he’ll be lawless all day long, and he even said he wants to participate in a talent show and become a star!”

Shen Zhongxun smiled and said, “It’s good that young people have dreams. Don’t worry!” He thought for a moment and then asked, “Which department does Xue Quan work in now?”

Old Xue recited the list, and Shen Zhongxun raised an eyebrow, immediately remembering that a new male colleague had joined Lin Chu’s department. It turned out to be Xue Quan. He smiled and said, “Alright, I’ll see where he’d be suitable. With a few more years of training, he’ll mature!”

Old Xue sighed, praised him and Jiang Jin, then scolded his son for being disappointing, and finally said, “By the way, wasn’t there a seminar last night? Something happened afterward. Is your girlfriend named Lin…?”

Shen Zhongxun sat up straighter. “Lin Chu.”

Old Xue smiled and said, “Yes, yes, it’s Lin Chu.”

He gave a rough account of what happened last night. Shen Zhongxun remained silent, but his face grew increasingly dark. It was not until Old Xue said, “I only heard about it from someone else. I don’t know the specifics, but it must have affected the girl’s reputation. Old Zhang has always been a bold man. That hotel is supposed to be a conference hotel, and he just happens to be staying here in the Nanjiang area.”

Shen Zhongxun said thank you in a deep voice, and after saying a few more words he hung up the phone.

The bus arrived in the city, and colleagues got off one after another. Lin Chu chose a stop closer to her home and got off. Shen Zhongxun had already arrived nearby.

After waiting a while Shen Zhongxun’s car drove up in the distance. Lin Chu got into the car and chatted with Shen Zhongxun for a few words as if nothing had happened. Shen Zhongxun’s voice was still a little hoarse as he asked, “I didn’t have time to finish talking to you on the phone earlier. I noticed you weren’t in a good mood. Did you get criticized?”

Lin Chu pursed her lips and said slowly, “Something happened last night.”

Shen Zhongxun glanced at her sideways and listened quietly as Lin Chu recounted what he already knew.

“I’ve been with Xiangyang the whole time, and Yang Chunbei refuses to admit it, which is tantamount to proving that I did this!”

Shen Zhongxun frowned, tightening his grip slightly, trying to ignore the words “Xiangyang,” and pondered, “Didn’t any of you call the police?”

Lin Chu nodded. “No one’s here. The situation is too obvious. We can’t call the police.”

Shen Zhongxun smiled knowingly. Lin Chu said nervously, “Although it’s not a big deal, I still feel uneasy. Look…” She took out her phone, turned to the “recording” function, and played the conversation, which was Yang Chunbei’s words that she had personally admitted to that morning. “I recorded this on purpose. What do you think I should do?” As she spoke she turned her head to look at Shen Zhongxun.

Shen Zhongxun seemed to see Lin Chu again on the day of the performance at Nanhu Lake, openly mocking him, shamelessly fearing death, yet rushing out without hesitation at the crucial moment, using his cleverness to coax him, and finally running away like a coward.

Lin Chu should have already made up her mind before recording this. Her purpose in seeking Shen Zhongxun’s opinion was simply to find a backer. If she angered the leader someone would naturally take care of her. That little girl is too cunning and utterly wicked.

Shen Zhongxun, however, liked her this way and willingly pretended to take the bait. “Do whatever you want. Don’t worry. Your colleagues don’t know about our relationship, but the leaders are aware of it. Even if they don’t care about the monk, they’ll still care about the Buddha.”

Lin Chu was satisfied, and a smile finally appeared in her eyes.

Since they both had a rare day off Shen Zhongxun took Lin Chu to see a movie. After the movie they went to a nearby restaurant for dinner. During the meal Shen Zhongxun ate by himself and did not serve Lin Chu any food, worried that he might infect her with his lingering cold.

Lin Chu finally noticed and asked while biting her chopsticks, “Do you have a cold? Your voice doesn’t sound right.”

Shen Zhongxun had more than just a cold. He had been hospitalized with a high fever a few days ago and had become a fellow patient with Jiang Jin. He had been on IV drips for three days before he felt a little better. “It’s just a minor cold, almost completely gone!” he said, then added some details about Jiang Jin’s recent condition.

Jiang Jin’s health is gradually recovering, and the news is gradually subsiding, but work is still a source of distress.

After dinner Lin Chu returned to Guanjin Garden. Upon entering the house, without even resting, she immediately turned on her computer, copied the recording from her phone, and downloaded an app to extract the first half of the conversation. Finally she breathed a sigh of relief.

The company gave them a day off, and Lin Chu used that day to clean her bedroom, wash clothes and sheets, and busily waited for the day she had to go back to work.

How fast do rumors spread?

If a statement is spoken and heard the time required must include the brain’s reaction time. But for rumors this already extremely short reaction time can be eliminated. Rumors stop with the wise and spread among the foolish, who vividly and embellish them without ever using their brains.

Lin Chu bit her water glass, hiding the smile on her lips.

Three women were gathered around the desk diagonally behind her, whispering among themselves before glancing at Lin Chu. Their conversation was completely inaudible, and if Lin Chu had not had eyes in the back of her head she would have had no idea that she had become the focus of office gossip.

She adjusted the small mirror next to her computer and continued staring at the people reflected in it. Suddenly the image flashed, and Xue Quan, who had entered through the back door, grinned, raised an eyebrow at the mirror, and strolled forward leisurely. Lin Chu slammed the mirror shut and nonchalantly went about her work.

All day long the matter was being discussed in every corner. Some people did not know who the female lead was, some thought it was a hoax and did not believe it at all, and the rest successfully put Lin Chu in the most embarrassing position, which Lin Chu was happy to see.

After a tough day the rumors were spreading wider and wider. When Lin Chu got off work she received a call from Ye Jing. After listening to a few words she asked in surprise, “How did you know?”

“Never mind how I know!” Ye Jing retorted angrily. “Tell me what happened! You would do such a thing? I don’t believe it even if you beat me to death! Just kill me already!”

Lin Chu could not help but chuckle. She drew the curtains on the bus and, hiding in the shadows, recounted the events once more. Ye Jing was furious. “Which bitch? I’ll come to your workplace tomorrow and beat her to a pulp!” She was also angry at his lack of self-respect. “And you, you idiot, are you just going to suffer in silence? Have you gone mad from working in this state-owned enterprise? Or does she have some kind of background that you’re afraid to expose!”

Lin Chu gave a helpless, bitter smile and said earnestly, “This matter was suppressed by the leadership. If we really told the truth, wouldn’t we have to put it on the news headline of ‘Attempted Adultery, Malicious Injury’? Everyone wants to downplay the incident. Even when that Zhang guy had his head broken, no one pursued the matter. I told them the facts myself, but they didn’t believe me, which I can understand. If I were a bystander I wouldn’t believe it either. I even wanted to go and get the hotel’s surveillance footage, but if I went to get it it would definitely alert the leadership, and in the end I would be the one who suffers!”

But Lin Chu would not let it go so easily. If she delayed even a day and the rumors became common knowledge she would ruthlessly shatter them.

The next day at noon Lin Chu went to the cafeteria for lunch and, as expected, saw Xiao Hui and the others eating together, but Yang Chunbei was not there.

She took her tray and sat down at the next table. The chatter from the group subsided somewhat, and they nodded in greeting. Lin Chu smiled back. After eating for a while, still feeling unsatisfied, she got up and left.

After she left the group resumed their discussion. They had only exchanged a few words when suddenly a phone rang. “Whose phone is that? Answer it!”

Everyone shook their heads. Suddenly someone noticed a lit-up phone lying on the plastic chair at the next table. They quickly went over, picked it up, swiped a button, and said, “It’s an alarm clock. This isn’t Lin Chu’s…” Suddenly her eyes widened as she stared at the recording title. The keywords were the gossip they had been discussing for the past two days. She exclaimed excitedly, “Come here, come here! Lin Chu recorded something!”

She said “come here,” but instead ran back and immediately played the recording.

“Tell me what really happened! Do you know that if this gets out I’ll be the one to take the blame? How will I ever face anyone again?!”

“I really didn’t mean to. I didn’t know he was that kind of person. He just said he would take me back, but I didn’t expect him to… to do that. I was so scared after I smashed it that I ran away!”

“Lin Chu, things have already come to this. It’s my fault. I didn’t have the courage to say it!”

The recording ended there, leaving everyone stunned. Just as they were about to express their opinions Lin Chu rushed back from outside, heading straight to the next table and looking down to search for something. The person there said dryly, “Lin Chu, is this your phone? I left it on the chair!”

Lin Chu breathed a sigh of relief and accepted the gift with a smile. “Thank you so much. Thank goodness you found it!” She swiped the screen and saw the recording playing. Her expression changed, and she asked nervously, “You listened to it?”

The group nodded awkwardly, and Lin Chu quickly said, “Don’t tell anyone!” Seeing their confusion she added, “I really wanted to tell others about this, and I’ve been hesitant to bring up this evidence, but things have already turned out this way. I have a good relationship with Yang Chunbei, and I don’t want to make things awkward for everyone.”

Upon hearing this someone said indignantly, “We thought that was really the case, but it turns out it wasn’t. Yang Chunbei still has the nerve to play the victim. Why didn’t you say so earlier!”

Immediately someone chimed in. “Exactly! Even though we’re all friends, you’re so naive. You actually admitted to something like this yourself. You have no idea what people are saying about you now, while Yang Chunbei acts like nothing happened!”

Lin Chu chuckled inwardly at herself for ever admitting it, but said with a pained expression, “It’s really okay. Please stop talking. I’m not good either. I shouldn’t have recorded this kind of thing!”

Everyone just thought she was a bit dim-witted and indignantly defended her, especially Xiaohui, who said, “I told you, I clearly saw you leaving with a guy that day. How could you suddenly be with…” She gave a dry laugh and asked, “Hey, is that guy your boyfriend?”

Lin Chu replied, “No, we’re just ordinary friends.”

Those people automatically filled in the blanks in their minds. Meeting in a neighboring city from so far away, how could they be just ordinary friends?

Just a day and a half later the situation developed like a drama, with astonishing twists and turns. The discussions among people became increasingly heated. Some said that Lin Chu was scheming and had recorded such a conversation, but in the end they also felt that she was innocent and deserved sympathy no matter how scheming she was.

When public opinion turned in favor of Lin Chu Shen Zhongxun had already received the news. He thanked the person on the other end of the phone, who laughed and said, “Manager Shen, you’re too kind. Lin Chu is my subordinate after all. It’s a pity I didn’t go with her to the seminar those few days, so I had no idea what happened. I just finished eating and then I heard about this again!”

Shen Zhongxun satisfied Lin Chu’s desire for revenge, ensuring her efforts were not in vain. After waiting two days he finally witnessed Lin Chu’s actions. He curled his lips into a smile, hung up the phone, and immediately retrieved a video from his computer files, uploading it to a video website to coordinate with Lin Chu, achieving twice the result with half the effort.

Meanwhile several anonymous letters were also sent to the municipal discipline inspection commission, detailing bribery, real estate and vehicles, multiple mistresses, and the hospitalization incident of the previous two days.

After getting off work Lin Chu was reading in her room when she suddenly received a call from Ye Jing. “Is your computer on? Hurry up and check it. Look at the top five keywords on Weibo!”

Lin Chu, biting her ballpoint pen, asked, “What?”

Ye Jing said excitedly, “You’ll see when you go look! I was just scrolling through Weibo out of boredom, and that’s when I found this!”

Lin Chu was puzzled and clicked on Weibo. Following Ye Jing’s instructions she searched for keywords and was stunned when she saw a title. Her heart was pounding.

The video was uploaded to a well-known website and received over ten thousand views in just one afternoon. The background of the video is clearly the hotel in the neighboring city. The main characters are standing intimately together, waiting for and taking the elevator. When they reach the door of their room their faces are shown several times. Finally the female protagonist runs out in a panic, and the video ends there.

Lin Chu was dumbfounded, only to hear Ye Jing laugh loudly. “It was so satisfying to watch! Who do you think did this? They must have a grudge against this fat old man!”

Lin Chu nodded, her mouth agape, and said, “I hope the leader won’t think I did it!”

The leadership had no time to pay attention to her, and the situation spiraled out of control. The power of public opinion far outweighed that of the small state-owned enterprise. In just one night the female protagonist in the video was found online, and a huge headline was prominently displayed. The company also suffered. Some busybodies began to seriously expose the unspoken rules of state-owned enterprises. After digging deeper some people saw through the trickery. An employee of a certain unit who claimed to know the truth even revealed that the male protagonist had been assaulted and pressured.

Shortly afterward a netizen posted on a well-known forum that a certain leader surnamed Zhang was under investigation by the Discipline Inspection Commission, but the relevant departments were slow to issue a statement. The topic of corruption and keeping mistresses once again became the focus of discussion among netizens.

Lin Chu took a bite of the biscuit and stared blankly at the ever-increasing number of discussion posts on the topic. In just a few days everything seemed to have changed dramatically. Even the temperature had plummeted, and she was finally wearing a new dress that cost over a thousand yuan. When biscuit crumbs fell down Lin Chu finally snapped out of her daze and quickly dusted them off.

Yang Chunbei has not been to work for two days. After the incident Lin Chu only caught a glimpse of her briefly when she left work. After that she took sick leave, and no one knows her whereabouts.

When Lin Chu spoke to Ye Jing on the phone her tone revealed a hint of reluctance, which earned her a harsh scolding from Ye Jing. “I think you’ve really gone mad from staying in this state-owned enterprise. Quit, quit immediately! I don’t want to say anything more about this kind of woman except that she deserves it!”

Lin Chu was speechless. After her tutoring session on Saturday she called Shen Zhongxun and said, “I also want to skin her alive, but I also understand a principle. No matter what you do, you should leave some room for others. Unless it’s a national or family feud, there’s no need to go to extremes. Ye Jing is despicable, but she didn’t even blur my face in the video. To be honest, apart from her framing me, she and that person didn’t have any real relationship at all. In fact there was no progress at all, yet she was labeled a ‘mistress’!”

She sighed. “It’s not that I feel sorry for her, but I’ve done everything I could. She’s lost her reputation at work, and her colleagues are all on my side now, which is basically isolating her.” She kicked her leg while waiting for the bus. “Oh well, she should have considered the potential consequences of her actions before she did them. Everyone has to be responsible for themselves, right?”

Shen Zhongxun finally had a chance to speak, and chuckled softly. “Yes!” He then coughed a few times.

Lin Chu asked, “Have you caught a cold again?”

Shen Zhongxun said in a hoarse voice, “No. Did you get on the bus?” His voice was weak and feeble. “I didn’t pick you up today. Could you have come back by yourself?”

Lin Chu smiled and said, “Of course I can come back!”

Lin Chu was in a hurry to catch the bus, so she did not chat with Shen Zhongxun any longer and hung up the phone after saying a few words.

After taking a relaxing shower at home Lin Chu listened to her mother say while drying her hair, “Your Aunt Xiang is so worried she’s going crazy! Xiangyang actually said he doesn’t want to get married anymore. I think he’s gone mad!” After hesitating for a while she said, “You’re close to Xiangyang. Try to persuade him, or find out if he still has feelings for Xin Xin!”

Lin Chu clicked her tongue. “It’s best for others not to interfere in matters of the heart!”

Lin’s mother slapped her on the head. “Do you think I want to get involved? It’s only because of his parents. They doted on you so much when you were little. When you were weaned you had to ask Auntie to take you home. Otherwise you would never have been able to wean!”

Lin Chu was unwilling to listen any further and repeatedly agreed.

The next day she obeyed and arranged to meet Xiangyang for a heart-to-heart talk. After thinking about it she decided to choose her grandparents’ house as the address. She bought a lot of fruit and brought it with her, but left out a portion of it separately. Her grandmother asked, “Aren’t you going to give us this?”

Lin Chu smiled and shook her head. “No!”

Xiangyang arrived at noon, and the group chatted over lunch. Lin Chu subtly steered the conversation toward Xiangyang’s personal life, and Grandma chimed in, emphasizing the importance of one’s partner. After lunch the two elders went for a nap, and Xiangyang finally pulled Lin Chu to his side. “Are you crazy?”

Lin Chu laughed and said, “Big brother, you’re thirty-six years old this year, and you’ll be forty in the blink of an eye. A man is in his prime at thirty, but by forty he might be balding and have a big belly. You can’t live alone for the rest of your life. Are you still thinking about Sister Xin Xin?”

Xiangyang remained silent, only nudging her head. Lin Chu understood his meaning, and for some reason her heart grew heavy.

The two went out and walked downstairs. Lin Chu stopped dwelling on the previous topic. “You go back. I have something to do!”

Seeing her stop on the second floor Xiangyang laughed and said, “You didn’t ask me out. You have another purpose!”

Lin Chu waved the bag in her hand to shoo him away, pressed the doorbell, and soon Shen Zhongxun opened the door. Upon seeing her he asked in surprise, “Why are you here?”

Lin Chu changed her shoes and went inside, handing the fruit to Shen Zhongxun. “I come here every time I come back!”

Shen Zhongxun thought to himself that she only ever went to the third floor. After thinking for a moment he did not say anything. He just hurriedly took the fruit, looking a little flustered. “Please sit down first. I’ll get you some water!”

He ran into the kitchen and put down the fruit. Just as he was about to go to the refrigerator he heard the sound of an engine coming from downstairs.

He was the only resident in the old building with a car. Shen Zhongxun could not help but glance downstairs and saw the car he had only met once slowly move out of its parking space and drive toward the exit. Shen Zhongxun’s face darkened.

Lin Chu stood at the kitchen door and called out a few times. “Shen Zhongxun?”

Shen Zhongxun turned around, took a bottle of drink from the refrigerator, and said in a low voice, “Drink up!” He then asked, “Did you come alone?”

Lin Chu nodded, took a few sips of her drink, and then said, “I had lunch at my grandparents’ house. Did you catch a cold again?”

Shen Zhongxun coughed. His previous cold had not fully healed, and the change in temperature had brought it back. He did not know when he had started coughing again. He walked silently to the living room, sat down, and asked, “Going back again this afternoon? No one’s taking you?”

Lin Chu shook her head in surprise, then saw him beckon. “Come here!”

Lin Chu took a few steps closer and was about to sit down when Shen Zhongxun pulled her over and made her sit halfway on his lap. Her lips felt hot as Shen Zhongxun immediately probed inside her. She leaned back instinctively, but Shen Zhongxun immediately supported the back of her head and began to suckle her hard.

Shen Zhongxun’s kiss was much stronger than before. Lin Chu could not withstand his kiss and slapped him hard. Shen Zhongxun then slowed down a bit, but still held her face in his hands, not letting her escape.

Shen Zhongxun only let go of Lin Chu when she was blushing and getting hotter and hotter. He kissed her face a few more times, making Lin Chu feel ticklish.

Shen Zhongxun said in a hoarse voice, “I’m sorry. I still have a cold!”

Lin Chu blushed and tried to get off his lap. She had just opened her mouth when Shen Zhongxun suddenly pressed against her neck. The warm touch on her sensitive neck startled Lin Chu, who cried out, “Shen Zhongxun!”

Shen Zhongxun took a spot in his mouth and sucked on it several times. Lin Chu immediately felt a tingling sensation all over her body, and a strange and unfamiliar feeling enveloped her. She pushed Shen Zhongxun’s head and shouted, “Shen Zhongxun, what are you doing!”

Shen Zhongxun kissed her chin slowly, his eyes bloodshot, perhaps due to a cold, with a few faint dark circles under his eyes. He said in a muffled voice, “I’m sick. I went to a neighboring city a few days ago and got someone to get the hotel’s surveillance footage. Later I cooperated with someone else…” He did not want to tell Lin Chu certain things, such as how Old Zhang was initially being targeted by Old Xue, how Old Xue’s side reported the incident to the police, how he used Shen Zhongxun to obtain the surveillance footage as evidence, and how he used Shen Zhongxun to release the video to the public. Shen Zhongxun was willing to be used.

His eyes seemed to redden again. Shen Zhongxun said in a low voice, “What have you been doing these past few days while I’ve been so busy? You went to the neighboring city. How come you were with Xiangyang? And why did you ‘casually’ come to see me today?”

Lin Chu froze, hot breath spraying onto her neck, making her feel as if her back had lost its support, and she slumped down. She stammered, “You… you should speak properly!”