Chapter 725

Zhao De's nervous heart relaxed a little, and he let out a long sigh, thinking that as long as Division Chief Lan didn't have any reaction, it meant she didn't think there was anything wrong with the message. Besides, it was actually quite normal for subordinates to send some funny messages to their superiors. Perhaps it was because Division Chief Lan always gave people an overly eerie and cold feeling that they were always so afraid of her. Thinking this, Zhao De's mood relaxed, and he began to put his fearful mind into the work Division Chief Lan had assigned him.

Xia Jian, who had been gloating on the side, waiting for Division Chief Lan to call Zhao De in for a lecture because of this dirty joke, saw that there was no movement from Lan Mei's side. He felt disappointed and happy for nothing, and he no longer secretly watched the door waiting for Division Chief Lan to come in.

Having spent the morning in peace, Zhao De finally felt completely relieved. It seemed that sending a dirty joke to Division Chief Lan was within her tolerance, and nothing happened. After feeling relieved, while eating in the cafeteria, he sat face-to-face with Zheng Ru and tried telling her some dirtier jokes to test her tolerance. Unexpectedly, after telling several yellow jokes, she was amused and laughed heartily, without any of a girl's reserve or shyness. Ever since the first day he met her, Zhao De had been eyeing her, having ideas about her tall and exquisite figure. Now, sitting face-to-face eating, his gaze would always pretend to be unintentional as he looked at her neckline. The patch of snow-white, translucent skin at the neckline of her white short-sleeved shirt, which had two buttons undone, made Zhao De very excited. A short, shallow cleavage, like a black hole leading to a dream world, radiated a strong attraction. Her full, firm breasts, which stretched the short-sleeved shirt, rose and fell slightly as she laughed heartily at his yellow jokes, bulging and heaving as if they were about to burst the clothes. That look of being about to pop out was truly enough to make one lose their mind.

Zhao De wanted to find an opportunity to be alone with her, and then create the illusion of getting drunk and losing control after drinking to possess her. Besides, girls usually took a conciliatory attitude toward such things, so he figured she wouldn't make a scene. After racking his brain and thinking about it, he had a flash of inspiration and found an excuse. "Oh, right, Zheng Ru, didn't you say yesterday that I lent you that thing to deal with Division Chief Lan, and you'd treat me to a meal? How about tonight?" Zhao De said. Considering that Sister Su had said when she went to work that she would be back very late, he wanted to seize this opportunity.

It would have been better if he hadn't mentioned it; as soon as he did, Zheng Ru got angry. She tapped her chopsticks on the plate twice, glared at him, and said angrily, "You still have the nerve to say that! It was because of the thing you sent me that the one surnamed Lan scolded me, saying I wasn't honest in my work and was playing tricks. If I had known, I should have just said I didn't write it myself. I wouldn't have been mocked by her like that. You still want to eat? Eat my ass. Just thinking about it makes me annoyed."

"That... that was out of good intentions to help you. As for being discovered by Division Chief Lan, you can't blame me for that." Having developed this idea, how could Zhao De easily let go of this rare opportunity? Usually, Sister Su would come back on time, unless someone above the level of a Provincial Standing Committee member invited her to dinner, in which case she would grace them with her presence. In general, she would decline those social engagements. If he missed this opportunity, he certainly wouldn't find another one in broad daylight.

"Blaming you or not, just mentioning this affects my mood, Sister. How could I have the heart to treat you to a meal!" Zheng Ru said unpleasantly.

Zhao De thought he might as well spend a little more money himself. As long as he could fulfill his pursuit, it would be worth it even if he spent a little more. In his desperation, he said, "Then I'll treat you to dinner tonight. You wouldn't refuse to give me face, would you? I happen to know you don't have a boyfriend yet." Liu Hai's mysterious look, combined with the rogue aura on him, made Zheng Ru have some wild thoughts for a moment. For some reason, her face flushed slightly, and she said with a shy tone, "You wouldn't... wouldn't be trying to chase... chase me, would you?"

Damn! Since I started working these past few years, I don't even know what "chasing" is. It's always been those women throwing themselves into my arms. "Chasing you? Haha, Zheng Ru, don't have wild thoughts. I mean you don't have a boyfriend, so you must be able to spare some time tonight to give me face. Look at you, overthinking again," Zhao De laughed heartily.

Zheng Ru's face turned red instantly. Her self-indulgent mentality made her look extremely embarrassed for a moment. She lowered her head and stammered, "Then... then why are you treating me to dinner?" After she finished, she suddenly raised her head and said with a mischievous smile, "Oh, I know. As the saying goes, 'no merit, no reward.' Is there something you want my dad to do for you, and you're too embarrassed to tell him yourself? That's why you want to treat me to dinner to bribe me, right?"

Zhao De put down his chopsticks and frowned, saying, "Look at you. I treat you to a meal, and you think of that. I just feel that since we both just started working at the Construction Committee this year, as new colleagues, I think it's necessary for us to have a meal together and chat, talk about our feelings about work recently. What do you think?"

"That's a legitimate reason," Zheng Ru also returned to a serious look and said, "Then we'll see after work. If I have nothing to do, we'll eat together. If I have something to do, that's another matter."

"That's fine," Zhao De said calmly, but secretly rejoiced in his heart, thinking that as long as she was willing to go to dinner tonight, it would be half the effort for twice the result, and he wouldn't be far from success. His eyes even became a bit lecherous as he looked at her, and a strange smile flashed across the corners of his mouth.

Just as he was secretly rejoicing for having moved Zheng Ru to go to dinner that night, Lan Mei passed by them and cast a glance at the lively Zhao De with a very eerie look.

After work in the afternoon, Lan Mei called Zhao De into her office. Zhao De had already forgotten about the morning's incident and thought Division Chief Lan was looking for him to ask how the work she had assigned him was coming along. So, he went over excitedly, knocked on Division Chief Lan's office door, and asked with a grin, "Division Chief Lan, are you looking for me?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhao De felt something was wrong. Division Chief Lan seemed not to have heard him speak. She leaned against her chair, holding her phone and looking at it for a long time, before slowly raising her face. Her gaze stared at him somewhat bewitchingly, and while flipping the phone in her hand, she said in a frivolous tone, "Zhao De, have you finished the work I assigned you? Are you bored at work today?"

Lan Mei's strange gaze and inexplicable words made Zhao De faintly sense that something was wrong. He pretended to be calm and laughed, saying, "Not... not finished yet." As he said this, seeing her arrogant demeanor, he became slightly nervous. He had also more or less guessed the real intention behind Division Chief Lan calling him over, and he couldn't help but lower his head, feeling guilty.

"Then what is the meaning of you sending me this kind of message during work hours?" Lan Mei straightened her waist, sat up straight, put her phone aside, and crossed her hands over her full, firm chest. Looking at him sideways, she appeared neither angry nor gentle; in short, it was an expression that made Zhao De feel terrified the moment he saw it. "Do you think you have ability? I praised you yesterday, and today you're so proud that you've raised your tail?"

Sigh! It seems this morning was a waste of joy. He thought that since Division Chief Lan had no reaction after he sent the message this morning, it meant she wouldn't pursue anything. How... how did she think of this matter again at this time? Because the message he sent her was a dirty one, Zhao De's expression became extremely embarrassed at this moment. He stammered and explained, "Division Chief Lan, I... I didn't mean that. I didn't intend to send it to you; I... I sent it to the wrong person."

"Is that so?" Lan Mei's tone was very frivolous. She looked at him with half-belief, a strange smile on the corners of her mouth, looking as if she had been waiting for him and was prepared to make things difficult for him. This made Zhao De worry inevitably. Seeing that his performance over the past week had almost eliminated her prejudice against him, he had inadvertently provoked this woman who was not to be trifled with again. Zhao De truly regretted it to the core. He really shouldn't have been so careless as to forward that kind of message to this "Lan the Extinguisher." He really didn't know how she would torture him next because of this matter.

Seeing that Division Chief Lan didn't believe his words at all, Zhao De said anxiously, "Really, Division Chief Lan, I really didn't intend to send it to you. It was... Xia Jian and the others saw that the message was funny on my phone and asked me to forward it to them. I was careless for a moment and forwarded it to everyone in the Planning Division. I really didn't do it on purpose."

"That said, if you didn't intend to send this kind of message and had no purpose, then that's fine. However, you can't play with your phones in the office during work hours. Pay attention in the future. Don't be distracted when working, otherwise, I won't let you off as easily as I did today." Lan Mei could see from his reaction that he didn't do it on purpose, so she didn't intend to punish him much. She just warned him, waved her hand, and said, "Alright, go out and work."

"Then... then I'll go out." Zhao De said in a low voice and turned to go out. Although Division Chief Lan unexpectedly didn't criticize him much, he couldn't fathom this woman's mind at all, and he still had no bottom line as to whether she would play dirty to plot against him.

After returning to the office and seeing his heavy-hearted look, Zheng Ru guessed what Division Chief Lan had called him over for. She leaned over and asked him, "Did the one surnamed Lan lecture you because of the message this morning?"

Zhao De nodded, his mood extremely low. His usual witty and humorous self was completely gone, and he was as wilted as an eggplant hit by frost. Zheng Ru said dismissively, "It's nothing. It's just a message. Besides, you didn't intend to send it to her. She won't do anything to you."

Xia Jian, who was nearby, leaned over and said mysteriously, in complete contrast, "You two just started working here and don't know our Division Chief Lan's character at all. She's very petty. I think, Xiao Zhao, you have to be careful. Maybe one day she'll stab you in the back." Zheng Ru glared at him with disgust and said, "Stop making things up out of thin air. It's such a trivial matter; the one surnamed Lan wouldn't go that far. Why are you, a man, so gossipy all day long!"

Xia Jian was left speechless by Zheng Ru. He looked at her with hatred, but because she was the daughter of the Construction Committee's number one, he couldn't say anything and slunk back to his seat.