Chapter 18: Slap People in the Face_1

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Since Xu Wenjun decided to spend the night in a bed-shaking adventure, the others felt it inappropriate to disturb him and let him be.

Chen Hao's home was nothing but a ten-square-meter rental room, with all his belongings contained within this tiny space. He would eat out, buying whatever he felt like, since there was no kitchen, and the bathroom was shared among more than ten people.

When Chen Hao got home, he flopped down on the only worn sofa in the room, lit a cigarette, and watched the smoke rise sparsely then slowly disperse.

After a while, he opened a small leather suitcase hidden under the bed and, in a very concealed spot at the bottom, he found a half-torn photo.

The expression on his face grew desolate as he looked at the half-photo.

In the photo, there was a girl standing sideways. Though her face was not visible, judging by her posture and clothes, one could tell she was outdoors, highly focused on something. Off in the distance, there was a wide river, and her head was intently staring across it.

The girl was slender and not very tall, but from her silhouette, her figure was quite perfect. Though she didn't look like a lady from a well-off family, possibly due to spending a lot of time outside, her skin was surprisingly fair, shimmering with a crystal-clear luster under the sunlight.

From the side of her face that was visible, you could see almost perfect contours. If she had turned around, one would believe she was definitely a top-tier beauty. Naturally, this made one even more curious about what she actually looked like.

However, strangely enough, there was a man's hand gently resting on the girl's shoulder. It could have been a casual touch or perhaps a comforting one.

Regrettably, the other half of the photo was missing, but one could guess there was a man standing beside the girl, one whom she trusted immensely.

Otherwise, she wouldn't have so casually exposed her entire back to him in such a tense environment. This man must have been very important to her.

Chen Hao stared at the photo for a long time, heaved a sigh, and then silently put it back, gently pressed it down, and returned the suitcase to its original spot with the utmost care, as if the suitcase were his lover.

With the deep moonlight, Chen Hao lay quietly in bed, no different from any ordinary person.

The next morning, a noisy ring of the phone woke him.

According to Chen Hao's work schedule—work ended at midnight and started again at noon the next day. Yet, this call roused him at six in the morning.

Being woken from sleep, Chen Hao was naturally very displeased and answered the phone, "Who's this? It's the crack of dawn, can't a person get some sleep?"

"Get up, go to work," came the curt reply. Fully awakened by the brief command, Chen Hao recognized the voice immediately.

Wasn't that Li Bingshuang?

He rubbed his eyes and checked the time carefully, realizing it indeed was 6:30, far from noon. Annoyed, he said, "I start work at noon, it's still early, hours away, I'm not going!"

"I'm talking about coming to work for me," Li Bingshuang said, seemingly ignoring his protest, continuing her end of the phone conversation.

Chen Hao was taken aback and promptly declined, "Work for you? Sorry, I already have a job."

On the other end of the phone, Li Bingshuang was stunned herself. So many people were dying to get into her company, and here she was, the CEO, personally asking someone to come work, yet they had the nerve to refuse?

She didn't know whether to cry or laugh. After a moment's pause, she said, "Come work for me, I'll pay you double your current salary."

Huh? That's a bit tempting...

"Let me think about it," Chen Hao replied and then hung up the phone.

He could almost imagine Li Bingshuang's expression after being hung up on. Of course, he hoped nobody was around her at the moment, otherwise, the fallout might be unpleasant...

Chen Hao glanced out the window. It was already broad daylight, and with the summer sun rising especially early, he could faintly hear the sound of people talking and various vehicles outside. He turned over and continued to sleep.

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This time, although he was disturbed, for some reason, he never fell asleep and hours passed by, so he decided to get up and go to work.

On the way, he bought two buns and a cup of soy milk, eating while driving, and when he arrived at the company, he realized something was different from usual.

At this time before, those twittering young wives would probably have been waiting at the door, but today, it was strange that not a single one could be seen.

Chen Hao got out of the car, but before he could even enter, he heard constant scolding coming from inside.

"Look at you all, what have you turned this break room into? A mess of smoke and haze! Clean it up immediately! If I come back in ten minutes and smell anything, you won't get a penny of your bonus this month!"

"And you, Zhong Ping! How long has it been since you washed those clothes? I can smell the stink from far away! You're a driver, can passengers in the backseat stand it? Fine, 200!"

"Xu Wenjun, you still have sleep in your eyes! Did you wash your face this morning? If passengers see that, will they still ride in your car? Do you know how much loss you've caused the company? Fine, 200!"

"And you! Huang Jian, are you allowed to smoke in the break room? Fine, 200!"

"Captain Sun, if I say you've got earwax, does that mean a fine of 400?"

Naturally, the one shouting in the break room was Sun Zihan.

Yesterday, he'd returned home filled with joy, bringing along a lady he fancied, preparing for a rollicking good time, but unexpectedly, it turned into a huge joke along the way.

The woman didn't work out, and he returned with a belly full of anger, still unresolved. Early this morning, he came here and started looking for fault, and it was at the peak of his bullying that a challenging voice rose up behind him.

Right now, Sun Zihan was especially domineering, hands on his hips, spittle flying as he spoke, as if he wished to spray it directly onto others' faces. At such a moment, to have someone dare speak to him like this, he whipped around so fast that Chen Hao behind him was taken aback.

Can a fat man really be this agile?

"Chen Hao, repeat what you just said!" The person behind him, unexpectedly Chen Hao, filled Sun Zihan with such rage he could hardly contain it. Although yesterday's incident was caused by Xu Wenjun, Chen Hao was the ringleader here, so he naturally transferred all his anger onto Chen Hao. His eyes widened furiously as he spoke.

Being at the company, Sun Zihan naturally straightened his back proudly—this was his domain where his word was law!

"I said you have earwax, with such an image, how can you be a leader in our company? Shouldn't you go home and clean it out properly?" Chen Hao completely disregarded his gaze, smiling askew.

Sun Zihan glared at him, nearly jumping up in anger!

Who doesn't have earwax?

But Sun Zihan couldn't immediately find a fitting retort, while the others were barely holding back their laughter, causing his face to turn alternately green and white, unsure what to say.

Suddenly, he pointed to a bit of skin showing at the collar of Chen Hao's shirt and almost roared, "Chen Hao, as an employee of the company, to have a tattoo on your body, fine, 200!"

"Which law says you can't have tattoos?" Chen Hao slapped Sun Zihan's face with the back of his hand, the sound crisp and clear.

"Yes, it's company policy!" Sun Zihan never expected Chen Hao to actually strike him. He had been at the company for so many years and yet no subordinate had ever dared to hit him!

He covered his face, feeling the burning pain, still stubbornly spoke, wanting to retaliate, but there were four people in front of him. Let alone four people, he couldn't beat any one of them.

"If the law doesn't stipulate it, what does company policy count for? Are you saying company policy is above the law?" Chen Hao scoffed and asked.

"You, I... I..." Sun Zihan opened his mouth but couldn't utter half a sentence.