Chapter 561: Smiling contemptuously

Waiting for him to explain the reason for reaching out, the faint blush already on Bai Ling's cheeks instantly turned as red as a monkey's backside. She lowered her head in shyness, wishing she could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

Having just returned from the provincial capital, Xijing, there were still many resignation procedures to handle. As soon as he got off the car, he rushed to Bai Ling's home. He had already had his fun, and on top of that, he had made a grand promise to help Bai Ling deal with Zhang Da, so he had a lot on his plate. Not wanting to spend too much energy and time at Bai Ling's place, he straightforwardly told her the plan that had flashed into his mind while he was alone in the room, seeking her opinion.

Hearing this method of his, which was somewhat unreasonable and could even be called a bit lewd and despicable, Bai Ling arched her delicate brows slightly. Her bright, watery eyes widened, and she asked with a look of surprise: "This... is this okay?"

Zhao Desan chuckled and said: "With a win-win method like this, what could possibly be wrong with it?"

Bai Ling stammered: "But I'm afraid... afraid that Section Chief Zhang will call the police."

Hearing her concerns, Zhao Desan laughed and said: "How could he possibly call the police? He'd want a scandal like this resolved as quickly as possible. For one, it can deflate his arrogance and make him afraid to have any improper thoughts about you in the future. For another, it will get some pocket money for your family, Bai Bai Bai Jie, so you won't have to beg others when you suddenly need money."

Bai Ling glanced at him, then lowered her head again, lost in thought. She couldn't make up her mind for a long time. Seeing her hesitation, Zhao Desan didn't want to waste his own time, so he said: "Bai Bai Bai Jie, think about it carefully. Once you've decided, send me a message. I came straight to you as soon as I finished my business in Xijing and returned. I haven't even been to the bureau yet; I need to go back and report to the leaders, so I'll be heading off now."

Bai Ling looked up, stunned for a moment, and said: "Oh, then hurry to the unit and report in, don't let the leaders scold you." As she spoke, she opened the door for him and followed him all the way to the entrance to see him off.

After leaving Bai Ling's home, Zhao Desan hailed a taxi on the side of the road and headed straight for the Yuyang Coal Bureau. It was around eleven in the morning. After getting out of the car and walking through the main gate, the bureau courtyard was quiet. For some reason, although he had only been gone for a few days, he felt a sense of unfamiliarity the moment he stepped inside.

He stood in front of the comprehensive office building and looked up at Zhang Ailing's office on the third floor. He saw the curtains were drawn, but through the sunlight, he could vaguely see a silhouette inside. Knowing that Bureau Chief Zhang must be in her office, he walked into the office building with a heart determined to go down with her if necessary.

"Ouch!" Just as he walked into the stairwell, he bumped into a reckless person head-on. A familiar female voice cried out in pain and immediately cursed: "Who is it!"

Zhao Desan, seeing stars, was also prepared to retaliate. Covering his forehead, he steadied himself and looked. The person who had collided with him like Mars hitting Earth was Zhang Xiaoyan, who had already been promoted to Deputy Director of the Comprehensive Office by Deputy Bureau Chief Wang. At this moment, she was covering her forehead and glaring at Zhao Desan with a face full of anger.

"I was wondering who the reckless fool was; it turns out to be Section Chief Liu. What are you in such a hurry for?" Zhang Xiaoyan said with a contemptuous smile, looking arrogant and conceited.

Although Zhao Desan was lustful by nature and had used lewd means to force this beauty with a graceful figure and outstanding appearance into his arms, he had always been clear about his grudges and favors. He had never had any enmity with her, so he didn't feel angry at her expression. Instead, as usual, he chuckled and said: "I just got back and was preparing to go upstairs to report to the leaders. Where is Deputy Director Zhang heading?"

"Hmph." Zhang Xiaoyan gave a contemptuous smile, turned around, twisted her plump, alluring hips wrapped in a tube skirt, and walked upstairs, her high heels clicking loudly.

Zhao Desan's mouth hung open, confused. He looked at her back with an awkward expression, thinking to himself, when did this girl become so arrogant? Thinking back to when she first started working at the bureau, she was so graceful, quiet, and shy. It hadn't even been three years, and she was already this haughty. Now that she had used her youthful body to gain Wang Anguo's special favor and become the Deputy Director of the Office, she didn't even put him, the dignified Section Chief of the Safety and Quality Section, in her eyes?

Zhao Desan stood there, stunned for a while. When he was about to go upstairs, his peripheral vision inadvertently swept over the bureau's public affairs bulletin board on the first floor. Interested in seeing if anything had happened in the bureau over the past few days, he turned and walked over. He didn't know until he looked, but he was truly shocked when he did. No wonder Zhang Xiaoyan was so arrogant just now; it turned out that while he was away, she had been promoted to the full position of Director of the Comprehensive Office of the Coal Bureau. Surprise was surprise, but it wasn't all that shocking. Having been at the Coal Bureau for over three years, although his main work day in and day out was drinking tea, reading newspapers, and surfing the internet—making the bureau seem calm and eventless—there were actually undercurrents every day. With him gone for these few days, Zhang Xiaoyan being promoted was nothing to be surprised about. It was only when he went upstairs and thought about it carefully that Zhao Desan sensed the clues of the situation being unfavorable to him. Because in terms of the Coal Bureau's personnel system, the appointment of office department leaders, including deputy positions, usually required a meeting and vote by the bureau's leadership. If anyone objected, the appointment would generally be delayed. But he hadn't been there for these few days, and Zhang Xiaoyan had been promoted without anyone calling to tell him about it. From this, he could sense that Zhang Ailing and Wang Anguo had already joined forces, and he was the thorn in their side. This matched his predicted outcome. Ever since he had turned against the top two leaders of the bureau to help Ma Lan's coal enterprise develop, his official career had become fraught with danger. It could be said that it was almost impossible for him to develop further at the Coal Bureau.

This was just as well; he had already prepared a way out and paved the road for his future. Even if Zhang Ailing and Wang Anguo couldn't take him down for the time being, he didn't want to stay in this small place of Yuyang for the rest of his life. His ambitions were greater; he wanted to soar in the officialdom in a place with more prospects.

He went up to the third floor at a leisurely pace and arrived in front of the Bureau Chief's office. Just as he was about to reach out and knock on the door, he suddenly heard the faint, rhythmic gasping sounds that only women make during sex—sometimes rapid, sometimes slow. Feeling both curious and tense, he slowly lowered his hand, which was suspended in mid-air, and pricked up his ears to eavesdrop at the door. The sounds inside were very soft, with a man's heavy breathing and a woman's uninhibited moans. However, the sounds were extremely faint, and there was no conversation. He listened for a long time but couldn't clearly make out who was engaged in the illicit affair inside.

It shouldn't be Li Shanshan, right? He listened for a long time, then pulled his ear away from the door and began to speculate. In the entire Coal Bureau, besides Zhang Ailing, who would do this with him in the office, no other man caught Zhang Ailing's eye.

It seems this bitch Li Shanshan isn't such a good bird either. Taking advantage of the Bureau Chief's absence, she had actually learned to engage in illicit affairs in the office.

In order not to disturb the passionate show unfolding inside, he walked on tiptoe to the balcony, leaned against it, took a cigarette out of his pocket, lit it, and smoked leisurely, waiting for the show inside to end. He wanted to see the taste of this girl who had once almost made him fall for her—what kind of man she had found that she would bring him back to the office to vent her fire.

When he had smoked half the cigarette, the sound of messy footsteps came from the stairwell. He turned his head to look and discovered that the person appearing in the hallway was Li Shanshan. The two stared at each other in shock.

After a moment, Li Shanshan rolled her eyes at him, as if she hadn't seen him, turned around, and walked back downstairs.