Chapter 135 His Bottom Line (1)
The phone by the head of the bed buzzed. Su Ziyue shifted and burrowed herself into Qin Muchen’s embrace, covering up her ears. Clearly, she didn’t want to be disturbed by the phone.
Qin Muchen stroked her hair, pulling the covers over her before reaching out a long arm to pick up the phone on the bedside cabinet. Su Ziyue’s phone was buzzing.
Qin Muchen took the phone, his eyes narrowing after a single glance, because there was a single name displayed on the screen: Shichu. Qin Muchen tapped at the screen a few times before accepting the call. Before Lu Shichu could speak, Qin Muchen beat him to the punch. “She’s sleeping.”
Qin Muchen had lowered his voice because his wife was still lying asleep in his embrace, but his words still audibly made it to Lu Shichu’s ears.
The hand around Lu Shichu’s phone tightened momentarily before loosening. His voice was icier than it typically was as he said, “Sorry for the disturbance.”
He then hung up.
He looked at the screen of his phone. It was three in the afternoon. This hour was more for tea time, not for afternoon naps. Lu Shichu easily understood the implied meaning radiating from Qin Muchen’s mention of ‘she is sleeping’.
He put down his phone and shifted his gaze to the computer monitor before him. When he refreshed the page, Lu Shichu saw an interview from a business channel. The guest this time was the general manager of LK’s Yunzhou City branch. He was a solemn middle-aged man.
Lu Shichu quickly clicked on the video and heard the manager say, “What made a deep impression on me was Miss Su of the Su Group. She is humble and eager to learn, a very fine young woman.”
Qin Muchen had practically hung up at the same time as Lu Shichu. He half-leaned against the headboard of the bed and placed her phone back before lowering his head to observe Su Ziyue, who was sleeping against his chest.
Her little face was slightly reddened from being smothered by the heat under the covers, her crimson lips gently parting and closing. She had a hand on his waist, while her other hand was pressed under her own body. She looked unguarded, like a child.
She was younger than him by a whole five years. When he could begin to remember his childhood, she was still an infant who didn’t know anything at all.
The corners of Qin Muchen’s lips quirked up. He pulled out her trapped arm and shifted her to a more comfortable position, letting her sleep to the side of the bed. He then got up and put on his clothes before returning to the bed to bend down and kiss her. After he put her phone on silent, he took his own phone and left.
When he walked out of the bedroom, the tenderness on his face slowly faded. As he continued to walk out, he dialed a number. By the time he reached the company, the others were already there waiting for him.
The moment he entered the meeting room, the higher-ups all quietened down immediately, having been eyeing each other before this.
Qin Muchen stepped in with a cold aura radiating from him. He sat in the head seat, and after a moment of silence, he asked, “I am sure you all know of Su Yuanming of the Su Group?”
“Yes…” The rest of the higher-ups nodded.
Qin Muchen grunted in satisfaction before continuing, “I do not really wish to see Su Yuanming take on any projects.”
The moment those words left him, everyone’s heart skipped a beat. Someone then tentatively asked Qin Muchen, “What you mean to say, Chairman, is that we have to snatch any contract that Su Yuanming wants to get?”
Qin Muchen raised an eyebrow. “You could say that.”
At any rate, he just needed to make sure that Su Yuanming wouldn’t be able to conduct his business and get his hands on any project.
Another higher-up said in disagreement, “Chairman, isn’t this a little too underhanded?”
“You can also choose to do this in a more open manner.” Qin Muchen leaned back, his face devoid of emotion as his eyes grew darker.
As long as he reached his goal, the methods to do so were unimportant to him.
Whenever someone crossed his bottom line, the cruelty and viciousness hidden within him would make a clear appearance of its own accord. For example, injecting Su Yige with drugs and retaliating with violence was never something that was right. However, he couldn’t possibly pay Su Yige back in a roundabout fashion after seeing how much Su Ziyue was suffering.
So, he chose the most direct and effective way.
He had never been a kind person. Being able to make it through the business world for over ten years with his current status, he had done several things that regular people would never be able to understand.
It was already evening when Su Ziyue woke up.
The rays of light in the room were dim, and the temperature was just right, making Su Ziyue feel like falling asleep once again. She reached out to grope at the space next to her, only to realize that the person there had left already. It was only then that she sat up abruptly.
When she picked up her phone, she saw that it was nearly five.
She felt a little chilly, and lowered her head to find that she didn’t have any clothes on. She quickly pulled the covers up, the events in the dining room rushing into her mind. Su Ziyue blushed. Once she had ascertained that she was the only one left in the room, she got up to the changing room to put on her clothes. Once she was dressed, she went to the study and found that Qin Muchen wasn’t there.
“Qin Muchen.” She called his name, and realized that there still wasn’t anyone there.
Right then, a sound came from the kitchen. She headed toward the source of the sound and found Beef. The moment Beef caught sight of Su Ziyue, he dashed over and rubbed himself all over her, before circling her while hopping and barking. Su Ziyue suddenly remembered that border collies were very active dogs. Beef probably wanted her to take him for a walk.
“I’ll bring you out soon.” Su Ziyue placated Beef gently with her foot, pressing the dog to the ground so that his legs were up in the air. He quickly leaped up and ran out as though he understood her.
Su Ziyue followed after him. When she passed the dining room, her gaze couldn’t help but land on the dining table. She took a few more steps forward before retreating to look for a towel and wiping away the suspicious stains on the table. She didn’t dare to look at the table throughout the entire process. She would probably never be able to look directly at the dining table from now on.
She looked for Beef’s leash and hooked it onto him. As she led him out, she dialed Qin Muchen’s number. The phone had only rang twice when he picked up her call.
Qin Muchen’s voice was low and pleasant. “You’re awake?”
“Where did you go?” Su Ziyue heard some noise from his end and could vaguely guess his whereabouts. She asked him, “At the market?”
“Yes,” Qin Muchen replied noncommitedly. Then, he quickly added, “I’ll be back soon.”
Su Ziyue’s mind quickly conjured a picture of Qin Muchen buying groceries at the market while in his suit, and she pressed her lips together into a smile.
After she hung up, she took Beef out of the house.
The moment they left the door, Beef charged madly like a patient that had just been released from a mental hospital, his ears flapping up from the wind. Su Ziyue was afraid that a car would come, and she was also afraid of Beef running off, so she held his leash and ran after him.
Without being aware of it, she and Beef had run a fair distance. Beef suddenly stopped as though he was finally tired, sitting motionless on the spot.
Su Ziyue sat down in front of the dog and poked him. “Just keep running! Go on if you can! Goodness, I’m so tired.”
Beef looked at her innocently and licked her hand in a friendly manner. Su Ziyue was stunned by Beef’s cuteness, and she giggled while stroking its head.
Honk!
A car stopped by the side. Su Ziyue lifted her head to see Qin Muchen getting out of the car.
