Chapter 995 - 868: Before the Arrangement

A siheyuan courtyard in Beijing looked no different from usual. Every office and courtyard was still in perfect order, everyone quietly busy with their own official duties.

In the last office, Shi Dashen finished reading the application in his hand and once again swept a cool glance at the junior in front of him who had completely won his respect.

Zhou Jiao’s expression was steady and even relaxed, not the least bit restrained. But at this very moment, she was already grumbling to herself: What are you looking at? She was definitely going to get those years of military service—this had to do with a bigger game.

"Come on, tell your uncle, are you being bullied in the unit?"

Zhou Jiao shook her head. "No, everyone is focused on work, no one’s idle enough to pick a fight."

"There has to be some reason, right?"

Zhou Jiao blinked and smiled lightly. "Uncle Shi, I like the new military uniform."

As if Shi Dashen would believe that! He glanced at Zhou Jiao and teased, "Got sick of working at the Planning Commission and want to switch again? This time Old Jin and the others won’t let you go."

Zhou Jiao stared at him in a daze with her big eyes full of grievance. A lot of things hadn’t even started yet—she’d have to be out of her mind to change units now.

—What she wanted was the resume, a real, solid work history, a perfectly smooth employment track in the future. She’d barely worked here any time at all, what job was there to change!

Seeing this, Shi Dashen couldn’t help but burst out laughing. The cold, stern authority he’d carried for years suddenly dissipated completely.

"Uncle Shi, don’t you think the new uniform looks especially imposing on you, full of honor? And I don’t like that ’cadre’ status in my personal file. Look, I’m a bona fide soldier with a little booklet."

Zhou Jiao deliberately took out the little book and waved it at him.

"You could have just gone to your dad for this, couldn’t you?"

Zhou Jiao immediately stood up, went to the door and craned her neck to look outside, then ran back to the desk and gave Shi Dashen a conspiratorial smile.

Shi Dashen watched, amused, at this rare display of girlishness from her.

"Uncle Shi, you have to keep this secret for me. You’re the top leader; you have to withstand the pressure and absolutely must not leak any hints. My dad will laugh at me for fussing over nothing."

Knowing how to be just right, Zhou Jiao wasn’t simply putting on the act of a daughter or a junior from an old family friendship; what she wanted was to bring the two families even closer.

"Two bridges are easy to cross, a single-log bridge is hard." Especially since the other party’s character matched that of her and her father; with an ally, only by uniting could they create a win–win situation.

Besides, every time she made a layout, the first thing she considered was whether the final result would negatively impact her dad and Zhang Guoqing. Even just to avoid suspicion, she had to go to Shi Dashen.

"Alright, alright... isn’t it just an application?" Shi Dashen didn’t make things hard for her. Just in time to take this opportunity to have the higher-ups adjust this kid’s salary—she couldn’t keep doing two people’s work for one person’s pay.

Aside from a bit of bonus money and verbal commendations each time, Shi Dashen really did feel they’d shortchanged Zhou Jiao. Not for anything else, but every task he’d given her had been completed over and above expectations.

He couldn’t let someone who had contributed meritoriously grow cold-hearted.

Jokes aside, this time Shi Dashen was quite solemn as he used his fountain pen to write one stroke at a time on the application: Read. Approved.

Then he took out letterhead from the drawer, not avoiding anything, and wrote directly, right in front of Zhou Jiao, a report detailing the contributions she’d made over the past five years.

As Zhou Jiao fixed her eyes on the words "re-examine administrative grade" on it, a complicated look flashed in her gaze toward Shi Dashen bent over his desk.

Once again she’d measured a gentleman’s heart with a petty mind!

These procedures would be handled by the staff in charge of transfers; it wasn’t Zhou Jiao’s place to appear. After she said goodbye to him and walked out of the unit, the muggy air outside felt even more irritating.

Standing at the main gate, Zhou Jiao let out a long, turbid breath. She made up her mind that next time Shi Dashen issued her a task, she’d put in even more effort to complete it.

Now that her personal files had been consolidated, she no longer worried about whether her dossier would be properly encrypted in the future, or whether those hidden moves she’d left would be useless at some critical moment.

She, Zhou Jiao, didn’t provoke others, but outsiders could forget about touching a single hair on her head. Thinking of this, a dark light flashed in her eyes, and she resolutely mounted her bicycle and rode off.

Time was a bit tight. When she arrived at the five-courtyard siheyuan, Lei Tianming had already been waiting there for quite a while. The moment he saw her, his eyes lit up; he was just short of sprouting a tail and wagging it.

"Sister Jiao Jiao, slow down."

"Have you been here long? You’re drenched in sweat—why didn’t you go in and sit a while? You know Sister-in-law Dong and the others, don’t you? Still putting on that fake politeness?"

How could Lei Tianming explain that every time those army wives ran into him, they’d start talking about introducing him to a wife? The aunties meant well, but he really didn’t want to settle down so early.

Just like Brother Xiao Wu had said: life is already tiring enough as it is; you have to at least find a woman you truly like to spend it with. With coarse tea and plain meals, you savor the finest love in the world.

That’s a life without regrets.

They could shoot the breeze about this among the men, but he had no intention of telling Zhou Jiao even half a word of it. Even if he couldn’t find someone like the woman before his eyes, he’d look for someone with his own mother’s gentle, virtuous qualities.

"Sis, Xiao Wu and I have already secretly gone through and cleaned the two courtyards. What are you still worried about?"

Zhou Jiao furrowed her brows and shook her head. "Things are a bit complicated. From now on at the unit, you need to keep your eyes open too. Don’t rush to the front in every little matter."

Hearing this, Lei Tianming nodded solemnly.

"Of course, and if something does happen, don’t be scared. Remember to call me. I’m either at the unit or at home; if you really can’t reach me or your brother-in-law, then call Ping’an."

Hearing her say that, Lei Tianming’s nose stung; he lowered his head and chuckled. "Okay."

Zhou Jiao wasn’t this enthusiastic or trusting with just anyone. But Lei Tianming was different. If her guess was right, this kid should be related to her by blood.

Yes—ever since he’d confessed his real background, Zhou Jiao had had a strange premonition.

When she received another small box from the Miao Family this year, especially the letter asking her family to look after this flesh-and-blood relative, Lei Tianming, she understood that after circling around, it was family again.

To this day she still didn’t know how this child had ended up outside, but she could more or less guess that something big must have happened to the overseas Miao Family before they withdrew from across the strait and emigrated abroad.

Maybe, just as her father had said, after the Miao Family found her mother, they’d picked up this lost child in the course of their investigation.

Right now the situation was not good and very complicated. Apart from Miao Lishan, only she, her father, and Zhang Guoqing knew about this, and they could only keep it from him for now.

Entangled and messy, this was something that could only be left until the day the Miao Family and Lei Tianming finally acknowledged each other. They’d talk then.

With her thoughts surging, Zhou Jiao patted him and smiled. "Come on, walk another round with me. We’ll pick some fruit to take back for Xiao Hui and the others."

Thinking of his own little sister, Lei Tianming’s face broke into a grin. "Sis, Xiao Hui can already cook now. She told me that if I get the chance to run into you, I should ask you to bring Ping’an and the others over. She wants to show off her skills for you."

"Alright, once your brother-in-law is back, we’ll pick a weekend and go to your place."