A Twisted Love Affair
Chapter 35: Slept in during the day, so I can only have meetings at night_1

Chapter 35: Slept in during the day, so I can only have meetings at night_1

Zhou Luchen was remarkably calm. "You understand me very well?"

In the silence, Lu Siyuan had a realization, recalling Zhou Luchen’s past manipulations. This matter... it wasn’t entirely for Shen Jing. Definitely not. But as to why he took action, Lu Siyuan couldn’t guess the commercial secrets involved; he loved to play schemes in the shadows.

The driver glanced at the rearview mirror. "Miss Lu, where would you like to alight? The Second Young Master is on his way to a meeting."

"I..." Lu Siyuan looked at Zhou Luchen and gently held his arm. "I want to be with you, is that okay?"

But what Zhou Luchen said next made her heart turn cold.

"Deleting the Weibo post won’t help."

Lu Siyuan’s palm froze. It turned out Zhou Luchen knew all about the comments she vented online.

Lu Siyuan’s voice became even weaker. "You know everything. Do you blame me?"

Looking at him again, his expression was still nonchalant and indifferent. "Don’t do it again."

As long as he didn’t blame her. Lu Siyuan breathed a sigh of relief. "If I hadn’t posted, the person brought by the boss to Ao City to talk business wouldn’t have been Shen Jing, right?"

Zhou Luchen said nothing. He sipped his iced water, his slender, sharp-ridged fingers tapping on the computer keyboard, clearly not in the mood to discuss these things with Lu Siyuan.

At the intersection, the driver stopped the car.

Lu Siyuan waved goodbye. "Smoke less, Zhou Luchen. Don’t stay up so late."

The driver thought that no matter how gentle and warm her words, they couldn’t warm the Second Young Master’s heart. Just as Miss Shen said, he didn’t lack love at all.

「That night.」

The president of A-Fang Wing watched Zhao Zhiqiang, his dress shoes grinding mercilessly into Zhao Zhiqiang’s left hand, continuing to rub, embedding the wedding ring into his flesh.

"Your hands, they’re not honest. Getting cocky with a little money, huh? If you don’t know the meaning of ’low-key,’ I can teach you."

"Zhao Zhiqiang, go and turn yourself in. Write a letter of guarantee that you’ll no longer grope women. When you get out, I’ll give you five million."

Only five million. Zhao Zhiqiang didn’t want to ruin his reputation. "You’re condoning Zhou Luchen! He was after A-Fang Wing, not me. I even kicked him. This matter has been settled."

But then, the police suddenly came knocking on Zhao Zhiqiang’s door.

"You’re being brought in for questioning regarding harassment of women. Come make a statement."

The president of A-Fang Wing looked at Zhao Zhiqiang. "See? I told you to turn yourself in, but you wouldn’t. You had to wait for the police to show up. Now you won’t even get the five million."

No evidence? But there was a witness. Director Sun insisted he saw it. He absolutely saw Zhao Zhiqiang’s "dog paws" groping; he’d stake his entire fortune on it. And he had indeed seen it.

From beginning to end, aside from that one kick, Zhou Luchen hadn’t personally intervened.

Only Chen Yao had told Zhao Zhiqiang, "We’re targeting Wing, not you. Wing insists you take the fall. So, will you take it?"

At the station, resentful that Wing had abandoned him, Zhao Zhiqiang directly exposed Wing’s shady accounts. A dog biting its master.

Zhao Zhiqiang told the Securities Regulatory Commission, "Yes, I know what Wing used those funds for..."

A-Fang Wing’s shady accounts were exposed, and its shareholders threatened to withdraw their investments en masse.

Only then did the president of A-Fang Wing belatedly realize he’d been caught in Zhou Luchen’s scheme. One plot linked to another. He’d been played.

The gray-haired president of A-Fang Wing’s hand trembled as he smoked. "This younger generation of the Zhou Family... he truly knows how to play the game of instigating defection. He watched me injure Zhao Zhiqiang’s hand, then turned Zhao Zhiqiang around to betray me. His methods are truly vicious."

「Late that night」

The president of A-Fang Wing came to visit Zhou Luchen.

Zhou Luchen was in a meeting. He only held meetings in the evening.

Tsk.

Zhou Luchen offered a faint smile. "I overslept during the day, so I can only hold meetings at night."

The president of A-Fang Wing said, "My people were in the wrong, I admit. But for you to cause Wing’s shareholders to collectively withdraw their capital—that’s not right. One shouldn’t be so ruthless as to damage their karmic virtue in their dealings."

Zhou Luchen leisurely poured tea, filling the cup seventy percent, and said, "A fine bird chooses a sturdy tree to nest in. What does the friendship between aristocratic families count for in the face of power and profit? The one on good terms with you is my father, not me."

The president of A-Fang Wing picked up his teacup. "Has Wing offended you?"

Zhou Luchen said, "As long as Wing exists, the Hong Kong district market will eventually be suppressed. I am the largest shareholder; my priority is to protect my own interests."

The president of A-Fang Wing proposed, "Let’s not be adversaries. In that case, I’ll enter the Hong Kong district market."

"You’ve decided a bit too late," Zhou Luchen replied, remarkably calm. "The shareholders’ meeting for the Hong Kong district market unanimously chose Sun’s Fund, not Wing. You’ll have to deal with your own bad debts."

The president of A-Fang Wing turned to look at Director Sun. So, he’s directly intercepting the deal, is he?

The president of A-Fang Wing looked at Zhou Luchen. "I have no grudge against you. Are you targeting me just because of a woman?"

Zhou Luchen raised his cup, clinking it against the other man’s in a slow, deliberate manner. "Drink your tea."

"..."

He was completely using a woman’s misfortune as a pretext to openly and righteously deal with Wing, to deal with Party A. And he had successfully sent Zhao Zhiqiang to jail. All in a single day. It was even said that he had spent the day carousing at a hotel.

That’s how others saw the Second Young Master Zhou: "A tempest of fury for a fair lady."

In reality, he was clearly only concerned about his own interests in the Hong Kong district market.

Chen Yao couldn’t see through him. "If Shen Jing hadn’t gotten into trouble, would you have been so harsh on Wing?"

Zhou Luchen was exceptionally calm as he replied, "I would have."

With or without Shen Jing, he would have done it. Chen Yao suddenly remarked, "That habitual offender Zhao Zhiqiang... I told him not to be so stubborn, but he wouldn’t listen. When I saw him being taken away for investigation, his left hand was completely mangled."

Zhou Luchen sneered, looking down at his watch.

Tonight’s events weren’t merely for Shen Jing’s sake; they were more about suppressing Wing’s momentum. A-Fang Wing had escalated the matter to his father, playing that card. Given Zhou Luchen’s temperament, he couldn’t possibly let that slide. This was an opportunity to thoroughly dismantle A-Fang Wing. Two birds with one stone. For the profit-driven Zhou Luchen, it wasn’t a losing proposition. Of course, Shen Jing had cried so pitifully before him. That lecherous old hand that had touched his woman couldn’t be spared either. It was just a matter of protecting her a little, ensuring she wasn’t wronged for nothing by staying with him.

「Early the next morning」

Zhou Luchen returned to the hotel.

The lights were on; it was exceptionally quiet.

Shen Jing wasn’t there.

She hadn’t taken any of the clothes the brand had sent for her to change into. Only the black, gold-embossed cheongsam she had worn that day was missing.

A pink hair tie and a note were left on the bedside table: "I have things to do. Stay here by yourself."

He didn’t have her phone number.

When Chen Yao met Zhou Luchen’s gaze, he immediately shrugged. "I don’t know."

Chen Yao really didn’t know Shen Jing had left; she wasn’t his woman, after all. He had assumed she was sleeping in the room. Shen Jing had indeed seemed physically drained and fatigued these past few days, yawning even during meals, and appearing listless and weak in everything she did. He hadn’t seen the two of them argue, so perhaps she had gone out somewhere to have fun.

Thinking of something, Chen Yao took out his phone. "I’ll send you her contact information."

"No need," Zhou Luchen said, his voice cold.

Chen Yao’s hand slipped; he had already sent it.

Zhou Luchen lowered his gaze, glanced at his phone, exited the message, and tossed the device onto the sofa.

He didn’t call.

Chen Yao looked around the opulent, spacious presidential suite. Housekeeping had already cleaned it; it was empty. The white bedspread was neatly made, and even sandalwood incense had been lit.

He really couldn’t make sense of the situation. That young woman... she seemed rather extraordinary.