Upon hearing Qin Yue’s words, Tang Yang’s expression gradually froze.
After a long pause, she replied with profound meaning, “Perhaps…”
Tang Yang’s lips twitched, but her eyes held no mirth.
If at first, Tang Yang’s attitude towards Fan Linlang was that of a fresh graduate admiring an experienced office worker, and she even considered Fan Linlang a friend in the literal sense, then later, after the Ecological Kingdom incident and hearing Zhou Mo speak of Xu Shanshan, when Jiang Shiyan first felt sympathy for a man, Tang Yang understood that Zhou Mo would not let Fan Linlang off easily.
Tang Yang had always despised being used or threatened. Oddly enough, she didn’t mind becoming the knife Zhou Mo borrowed to move against Fan Linlang.
—
In late July, Tang Yang completed a 29-page analysis report on Jiujiang and Huishang’s records. She printed it out and mailed copies to both the Disciplinary Committee and Zhou Mo.
In early August, Tang Yang returned to Huishang to resume her position after her vacation ended.
Although Huishang’s top executives were under investigation, they still held their positions.
Having not seen each other for over ten days, Zhou Zixing appeared to have aged considerably.
He used to enjoy giving Tang Yang many pieces of advice as an elder, but this time he didn’t. He simply signed Tang Yang’s reinstatement application and smiled at her. His forehead wrinkles were deep, and his smile contained an emotion akin to gratification.
Tang Yang didn’t leave immediately. She gazed at Zhou Zixing for a moment, then frowned, “Zhou Xing, are you feeling unwell? Should you go to the hospital for a check-up?”
Zhou Zixing waved his hand dismissively. Then, remembering something, he asked, “I heard you’re pregnant?”
Tang Yang thought he was going to mention how it might affect her promotion, and the concern faded from her face. She was about to say goodbye and leave when she heard Zhou Zixing’s voice from behind the desk: “You and Jiang Shiyan aren’t getting any younger. It’s about time you had a child.”
Tang Yang’s steps faltered, and she looked up at him slightly surprised.
Zhou Zixing’s eyes were full of kindness: “My wife and I never had children, so I can’t give you any advice in that area. Just follow your plans. What’s meant to be will be, and what’s yours will always be yours. But do take care of yourself in all aspects.”
Tang Yang’s lips moved, but she couldn’t organize her thoughts into words.
Zhou Zixing smiled and waved his hand: “You may go now.”
Tang Yang hesitated for a moment, then nodded slightly: “Mm.”
She felt that something about Zhou Zixing was different from before, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.
Tang Yang entered the Credit Review Department, just in time to run into Fan Linlang on her way out.
The two crossed paths and Tang Yang gave her a questioning look.
Fan Linlang’s gaze fell on Tang Yang’s abdomen, showing a moment of discomfort: “I’m going to the Secretary’s office to request some time off.”
Tang Yang guessed where Fan Linlang was heading but didn’t show it on her face.
Five minutes later, Fan Linlang hurriedly walked from the Huishang building towards the parking area, unlocked her car, and started the engine.
On this sweltering summer morning, the sunlight was abundant, casting white reflections off the angles of the skyscrapers.
Tang Yang, wearing a sleeveless black shirt dress, stood gracefully by the office window holding a glass of milk.
She watched Fan Linlang’s car turn and merge into traffic with the utmost calmness, then dialed the Disciplinary Committee’s number, reported the time and location, responded with a few “MMS,” and hung up.
Tang Yang wasn’t someone with grand ambitions, but now that the truth was in her hands, she felt both responsible and obligated to push it toward its rightful destination…
Meanwhile, in the South District Prison of A City, over a hundred inmates lined up in the rest area, waiting for their bi-weekly family visitation.
The prison guards blew whistles every fifteen minutes, ushering out the previous batch of phone callers and guiding the next group in an orderly fashion.
About twenty windows were arranged in a row, with nominal partitions between each window.
Gan Yiming was directed to the farthest window, where he saw Fan Linlang waiting on the other side of the glass.
She had dressed up carefully, with a silk scarf tied into a pretty bow.
As voices rose from other windows, Fan Linlang stared intently at Gan Yiming. He had lost weight, his cheekbones more prominent. He was also looking at her…
It wasn’t until a guard came to hurry them that Fan Linlang seemed to snap out of her trance. She pretended to wipe her eyes and sat down.
“Are you… doing alright?” Gan Yiming hesitated.
“Mm,” Fan Linlang responded softly, “Was it really useful to spread the word everywhere? Qin Yue seems to have a very negative opinion of me. I don’t know if she knows about us, after all, she’s been in the Credit Review Department for so long.” Fan Linlang paused for a few seconds, then looked inside with apparent distress, “Yiming, I’m a bit scared.”
Gan Yiming remained relatively calm: “After the Disciplinary Committee’s interview, there’s usually a week of monitoring and colleague follow-ups. What you’re doing is safer.”
The Disciplinary Committee only interviewed party members and officials of certain ranks. Fan Linlang’s boasting after her interview was partly to show off her recent promotion and partly to display the small-town mentality of someone new to high society. It served as both a cover-up and aligned with Gan Yiming’s deep understanding of Fan Linlang’s narrow-mindedness.
Gan Yiming brought his thoughts back to the present and looked at Fan Linlang with affection: “So, have you taken care of the money in the Swiss bank account?”
Fan Linlang nodded.
Gan Yiming: “Did you sell the several properties and dozen or so shops we put under your grandmother’s name a few years ago?”
Fan Linlang nodded: “It was all taken care of gradually over the past two months, but one property won’t complete the transfer until the middle of this month. I thought if we really can’t make it in time, we’ll just have to let it go since our side is more important.”
Gan Yiming agreed and once again reassured her about her concerns.
He said, “You’re just an insignificant pawn to the higher-ups at Huishang and Jiujiang. No matter how much they’re involved, they won’t care about you.” Gan Yiming continued, “Once the Jiujiang affair blows over, resign immediately and go to Morocco. I’ll expose Wei Changqiu here to reduce my sentence.”
The prison visitation phones were monitored, but with so many people coming through each day, Gan Yiming didn’t think the guards would bother listening to each conversation.
A flash of malice crossed his eyes: “I’ll try to say as much as I can. After all, Jiujiang is already thoroughly tainted, and Wei Changqiu is dead and can’t refute anything.”
Fan Linlang called out to him: “Yiming.”
Gan Yiming’s expression softened again: “I’ll try to get my sentence reduced to three years,” he reached through the narrow window to hold Fan Linlang’s outstretched hand, “As soon as the three years are up, I’ll come find you in Morocco. By then, no one will be able to control us. We’ll have so much money, we can buy several estates.”
Fan Linlang was moved.
Gan Yiming, unsure whether he was looking at Fan Linlang or envisioning the enormous fortune he had hidden away from various parties, continued: “Then we’ll get married, have children, grow old together…”
Fan Linlang closed her eyes, and Gan Yiming’s voice trailed off—
Because he saw five members of the Disciplinary Committee, wearing armbands, standing behind Fan Linlang.
His grip on Fan Linlang’s hand suddenly tightened. Fan Linlang followed Gan Yiming’s gaze and turned around, her pupils dilating in shock.
The leader of the Disciplinary Committee made a gesture, and several people stepped forward.
—
Three days later, an announcement was posted on Huishang’s official website.
No one had expected that the first case to go to trial in the “721 Jiujiang Major Case” would not be Huishang’s top executives or Jiujiang’s leadership, but rather an obscure figure from the Credit Review Department—Fan Linlang.
She was indicted on charges of using illegal means to conduct commercial espionage activities between Jiujiang and Huishang, collaborating with Gan Yiming, the former head of Huishang A City branch’s Credit Review Department, to handle cash proceeds of crime, laundering money through Wei Changqiu’s副卡 (supplementary card), and misappropriating Jiujiang’s public funds.
In addition to some materials provided by Zhou Mo from Jiujiang’s perspective, the evidence received by the court included proof of properties under Fan Linlang’s grandmother’s name, photos of rubies and pink diamonds that Fan Linlang wore daily but were extremely inconsistent with her income, with a total estimated value of 900 million yuan.
The money Gan Yiming had amassed from Wei Changqiu was already of dubious origin, and even if Jiujiang had discovered it, they wouldn’t have dared to expose it themselves.
As the first case in the entire “721 Special Case,” Fan Linlang’s trial was live-streamed nationwide. Gan Yiming watched the screen intently, praying that Fan Linlang would steadfastly deny any wrongdoing. He thought about trying to contact Wei Changqiu’s former housekeeper, hoping to offer some benefits that might still turn things around.
But two things happened that were completely unexpected—
First, with Wei Changqiu’s death, Jiujiang’s power had waned significantly. Even veterans like He Zheng were seeking to confess and render meritorious service in hopes of a reduced sentence. Wei Changqiu’s housekeeper, as a tainted witness, stood opposite Fan Linlang.
Second, Qin Qiao served as the plaintiff’s attorney, presenting arguments with measured pacing and composure.
In the gallery sat Huishang’s colleagues, media representatives, and big shots that Fan Linlang had only ever seen in newspapers before.
The last line of defense in her heart had probably been breached three days ago. She admitted to every word Qin Qiao and the judge said without reservation. As the judge’s gavel fell, Gan Yiming’s mind buzzed with “It’s over, everything’s over,” and he blacked out in front of the screen.
On the other side of the screen, at the trial venue.
Fan Linlang left early, but before getting into the car, she requested to see Tang Yang one last time.
The back corridor of the court was quite spacious. Fan Linlang wore a yellow vest and handcuffs, with two armed police officers behind her.
Tang Yang stood about a meter away from Fan Linlang, one arm linked with Jiang Shiyan, the other holding her handbag.
Perhaps due to her short stature, Tang Yang always maintained a straight back and relaxed shoulders. She liked wearing knee-length skirts that revealed half of her slender calves. Her demeanor was calm, exuding her usual poise and grace that Fan Linlang had always envied.
There was a time when “swan neck” was popular online, and Fan Linlang would diligently stretch her neck during exercises. Later, she realized that the term suited people like Tang Yang—gentle in nature, born with it.
Fan Linlang’s reason for wanting to see Tang Yang was simple: those Credit Review Department daily photos highlighting the jewelry came from Tang Yang’s or Ao Siqie’s perspective, and Ao Siqie was also Tang Yang’s person.
Fan Linlang’s lips twitched: “When did you realize that I might be with him…”
Tang Yang was frank: “When you were promoted to Deputy Director.”
It was when Fan Linlang was promoted to Deputy Director due to various reasons, including Gan Yiming, despite their improper relationship and Gan Yiming’s imprisonment.
“Couldn’t stand seeing me succeed?” Fan Linlang’s hands, clasped in front of her, twisted together, her tone mocking, “I thought Deputy Director Tang was above such things, but it turns out you also care about these trivial matters of promotion…”
Tang Yang didn’t deny it: “When ability and position don’t match—”
Fan Linlang’s eyes reddened as she saw Tang Yang’s face as calm as still water: “When Yiming used to be biased against you, I spoke up for you in front of him. When other colleagues gossiped about you, I defended you. I admit I was jealous when you first came, but ask yourself, wasn’t I good to you? Even when Puxi offered a hundred million for me to jump ship with all of Xiantongxin’s initial data, I refused without hesitation. I just wanted to stay quietly until the end of the year and then leave, not getting in Wei Changqiu’s way or yours. But what about you, Tang Yang?”
Fan Linlang sneered, stepping closer: “You suspected me, guarded against me, monitored me. I was sincere to you, but you played me like a fool, even praising me… Is this who you are, Tang Yang?!”
When Fan Linlang was promoted to Deputy Director, both Tang Yang and Qin Yue reviewed Fan Linlang’s file. Fan Linlang’s childhood family structure was dysfunctional, which Tang Yang hadn’t paid attention to at the time. Thinking about it now, this was probably why Fan Linlang could love Gan Yiming and help him book hotel rooms. She easily developed distorted emotions from small details.
Just as Tang Yang didn’t consider introducing takeout or having afternoon tea together as friendship, nor did she see not participating in gossip as being protective. Not to mention that comment about “if it weren’t for Jiang Shiyan, she would be the second Xu Shanshan.”
As for Fan Linlang rejecting Puxi’s offer of a hundred million…
Tang Yang felt like laughing.
Was Puxi’s hundred million offer for Fan Linlang herself, or Xiantongxin?
But in the end, Tang Yang didn’t laugh. She only said mildly: “There may be room for human sentiment, but the law cannot be touched.”
She was holding back anger on behalf of Zhou Mo and Xu Shanshan, unable to say anything more to Fan Linlang.
In Fan Linlang’s eyes…
How could Tang Yang be so nonchalant? How could she stab someone in the back and still maintain such a high and mighty attitude? How could she always effortlessly get everything?
The more Fan Linlang thought about it, the more she fell into a mental dead end. In a moment of heated impulse, she lunged at Tang Yang.
However, before she could reach Tang Yang, Jiang Shiyan turned and shielded Tang Yang in his arms.
At the same time, the armed police moved forward to restrain Fan Linlang.
The Fan Linlang case was like a spark igniting a fuse.
As media reports shifted from describing A City’s weather as hot enough to fry eggs on the sidewalk to grilling steaks, the Jiujiang case continued to progress. As the tangled web of group relationships was unraveled, it naturally revealed that there had been money-for-power transactions between Jiujiang’s top executives and Huishang’s leadership since the inception of the Jiujiang consortium.
Initially, the chairman of Jiujiang’s board of directors was Wei Xianyong, the father of the four Wei siblings including Wei Changchun. Following Wei Xianyong’s death due to illness last year, the collusive relationship between Huishang’s top executives and Jiujiang shifted to Wei Changchun, the newly appointed chairman of Jiujiang.
Of the five presidents of Huishang’s A City branch—one chief and four deputies—all except the youngest, who frequently traveled, were removed from their positions.
On the day the Disciplinary Committee came to take people away, three official vehicles with flashing lights were parked outside Huishang’s building, and dense crowds of people pressed against the windows on each floor.
Zhou Zixing and the others were directly handcuffed and escorted down from the top floor.
Huishang’s security center refused media filming to control the scene.
The distance from Huishang’s main entrance to the parking area was only about ten meters, but amidst the commotion, colleagues felt that it took an exceptionally long time for the bank presidents to walk that distance—
“I can believe it about the other three, but President Zhou is truly a good person. It doesn’t seem like him.”
“President Tu’s children are in school, and school district housing costs 100,000 yuan per square meter. He bought three units. President Tang is the same. I heard his wife’s diamond necklace alone costs over a million. I didn’t dare say it before… But President Zhou I’ve seen that tie he wears for ten years. He always drives a Passat. His wife used to be a university teacher, with an excellent reputation. The old couple still lives in university housing, extremely frugal.”
“Exactly, and President Zhou doesn’t even have children. How could a bribery charge stick to him? What would he gain from it?”
“…”
As colleagues discussed among themselves, the executives ducked into the cars. Disciplinary Committee members closed the doors behind them, dispatched the vehicles, and sirens wailed.
Zhou Zixing had been in his position for over a decade, with an excellent reputation and extensive connections.
Almost as soon as he and several other executives were taken away in the morning, colleagues initiated a thousand-person petition requesting the Disciplinary Committee to reinvestigate the “collusion between Zhou Zixing and Jiujiang’s top executives and acceptance of bribes.”
Half of the sun had already sunk below the horizon, while the other half painted the city’s concrete jungle in grand, magnificent orange hues.
When the petition reached Tang Yang, she gazed at the sunset and pressed her lips together without saying a word.
After a long while, she didn’t sign but pushed the paper and pen back to her colleague.
The colleague immediately slammed the table in anger: “Deputy Director Tang, President Zhou has always treated you well. Now that he’s in trouble, the whole bank is concerned about him. What do you mean by this—”
“It’s supposed to be voluntary, and I didn’t sign either,” Ao Siqie, seeing Tang Yang’s bad mood, stood up to chase away that colleague.
The colleague cursed and held onto the door, unwilling to leave. Ao Siqie pushed him out forcefully.
Usually, Tang Yang would apologize to the colleague and scold Ao Siqie to “be polite” while doting on him.
But today, she didn’t want to talk and couldn’t even make a sound.
“Click,” the door closed.
The room was left in silence.
The wide leather chair faced away from the door. Tang Yang leaned her head against the backrest, watching the sunset gradually sink.
Zhou Mo… Xu Shanshan… ZM… XSS… The initials are ZX…
President Zhou… Zhou Zixing… ZZX… The initial of his given name is X…
Every word Zhou Zixing had said to her in the top floor office echoed in her ears, about mercy, about human nature, about the workplace, about marriage…
He seemed like a kind old man, but Tang Yang had never liked him then. He would squint his eyes, smile, and formally address her as “Tang Yang,” “Deputy Tang,” “Director Tang”…
Tang Yang hadn’t blinked for too long, and her eyes felt slightly sore.
Tang Yang forcefully and painfully closed her eyes. The last inch of sunset sank below the horizon, the sky turned gray and black, a vast expanse of darkness.
That night, before the Huishang colleagues’ petition could be submitted, all four presidents, including Zhou Zixing, collectively confessed to their crimes.
Because compared to certain charges, accepting bribes seemed minor.
Before the case entered the trial stage, the Disciplinary Committee’s official Weibo didn’t release any related statement.
However, not long after, at midnight that same night, Huishang’s headquarters released specific data on the bribes accepted by Zhou Zixing and other executive-level leaders on the intranet. Below the announcement were also several department heads and section chiefs who hadn’t been publicly taken away during the day.
With nearly half of the middle and senior management falling, Huishang was suddenly in turmoil.
Zhou Zixing and the others were taken away on Monday.
On Tuesday, there was no appointment announcement on the intranet.
On Wednesday, there was still no appointment announcement on the intranet.
Thursday.
“Director Tang is clean?”
“Is Director Tang really from a wealthy family and not involved in any shady dealings?”
“Think about who Director Tang’s boyfriend is. How could she not have money?”
“That day, Xiao Wang said he went up to find Director Tang, and she didn’t sign the petition. Could it be that Director Tang knew early on that this wave would go straight up to the branch president?”
“…”
Just as such comments were reaching a crescendo, the long-awaited appointment notice finally came out.
Fan Sheng, the president of the B City branch, was urgently transferred to serve as the acting president of the A City branch. Tang Yang, the director of the A City Credit Review Department, was temporarily put in charge of the top floor secretariat in addition to her original position. Several people were transferred from C City to fill the vacancies at the department and section levels in the A City branch.
Logically, the secretariat should have been managed by President Fan along with his other duties, but the headquarters specifically assigned it to Tang Yang separately.
The position of secretary has always been sensitive. Allowing the secretary to arrange and handle everything for the main position often means that when the main position becomes vacant, the secretary is most likely to be promoted.
Now, Tang Yang was only a director, but she was given control of the entire secretariat of Huishang’s A City branch.
What did this mean, what did this represent…
These days, internal discussions at Huishang reached an unprecedented peak. Even the cleaning ladies were discussing keywords like “high-level restructuring,” “who will take the position between President Fan and Director Tang,” and “Director Tang is not even thirty, at least she’ll be vice president this time, so impressive.”
These days, Tang Yang diligently handled her double workload.
These days, Jiang Shiyan wrote pregnancy diaries for Yang Yang every night, often unable to help throwing down his pen as he wrote. Yang Yang’s waistline was expanding by millimeters, but her weight was decreasing.
Of course, Jiang Shiyan was well aware of the situation at Huishang. On one hand, he was angry that such a large bank couldn’t find anyone else; on the other hand, he knew it was because Yang Yang was excellent, and this might be a good springboard and opportunity for her.
Little Jiang was not even four months along, and for several nights, Tang Yang only called him to pick her up at around 8 p.m. After getting home, she would quickly eat a few bites downstairs and then hurry to the study to work.
Jiang Shiyan was worried about her but didn’t dare to disturb her, so he curled up on the small sofa next to the study, quietly typing on his computer.
Several times, he heard her keyboard sounds stop abruptly. When he peeked in, he found that Yang Yang had indeed fallen asleep, and slumped over her desk from exhaustion.
What angered Jiang Shiyan the most was Yang Yang’s considerateness. She knew she had to think about Little Jiang, so she ate a lot during the day, especially at breakfast.
Occasionally, when Jiang Shiyan brought up a late-night snack, the slight sound of the plate touching the desk would wake her up. She would rub her eyes and hug him.
Jiang Shiyan would ask, “Are you tired?”
She would nod, “A little.” Then she would hold the bowl and drink the nutritious but disliked broth.
Tang Yang drank in big gulps, the bowl nearly covering her already small face.
Jiang Shiyan gently stroked her hair, listening to her soft swallowing sounds, his heart twisting in pain like a wrung-out towel.
Fortunately, President Fan had worked at the A City branch before and was familiar with both Zhou Zixing and Tang Yang.
Two weeks passed, and the remaining three vice president positions at Huishang’s A City branch were gradually filled by transfers from other cities. Positions were meshing like gears.
Colleagues at the A City branch again started gossiping behind closed doors: “Why wasn’t Director Tang promoted?” “There’s a lot of controversy about Tang Yang, but her work efficiency and ability are undeniable, her educational background is solid, it’s such a pity she wasn’t promoted this time”…
Some were gloating, some were simply surprised. Overall, aside from the pending trials of the former presidents, everything at Huishang seemed to be getting back on track.
In late August came the “End of Heat” solar term.
Except for being marked in red on the calendar, this day seemed no different from any other.
Colleagues squeezed into swaying subways or braved the rush hour traffic to come to work, tiredly made it through the morning, ordered takeout for lunch, and played with their phones. Tang Yang had slightly more free time than before.
A subsidiary of Yixiu had a “Three-line Love Message” marketing account that posted content punctually at noon every day. Netizens thought it was just a regular marketing account, but when Tang Yang saw the little Yang bear image accompanying the final “Like + Follow” text, she understood it was Jiang Shiyan’s little surprise for her.
Since Jiang Shiyan didn’t mention it, she pretended not to know.
The marketing account used to post thoughtful and romantic content, but perhaps because the “End of Heat” solar term was relatively irritable, today there were just eight characters—
Miss you.
Miss you.
That’s it, nothing more.
Tang Yang stared at the screen for a while, then burst into laughter with a “pfft.”
With some time left before the end of the lunch break, she picked up her car keys and walked out while calling Jiang Shiyan, her voice soft and fine: “You’re being so perfunctory today.”
On the other end of the phone, Jiang Shiyan exclaimed happily, “Wow! Have I finally caught Director Tang’s attention? You do prefer innocent pretty boys over seductive bad boys!”
“What are you even talking about,” Tang Yang couldn’t help but laugh. “Are you in your office? I’m coming over to see you.”
She walked to the stairwell and pressed the elevator button.
Jiang Shiyan made an “Oh” sound: “Very unfortunately,” his voice was filled with a smile, carrying a hint of pride that it was finally his turn to be busy, “I’m about to meet a very important person.”
Although they hadn’t had a wedding ceremony or gotten their marriage certificate yet, Tang Yang and Jiang Shiyan were already in an old married couple mode.
Hearing this, Tang Yang naturally assumed he was going to meet a big client. While chiding him to “tone down the flirtatiousness,” she pressed the elevator button again to cancel the downward command.
The elevator numbers were still going up.
Jiang Shiyan gloated: “You don’t have any meetings this morning or afternoon, so I guessed you were already standing at the elevator ready to come find me.”
“Do I seem like such an impatient person?” Tang Yang let out a light laugh. “To be honest, I was just giving you a call. If you were available, I might have hesitated for three seconds, looked for my car keys, and then slowly got up—”
“Ding dong,” the elevator arrived.
Tang Yang was still standing next to the elevator, not having moved. Hearing the sound, she instinctively looked up and, both expectedly and unexpectedly, saw Jiang Shiyan standing in the elevator with his hands full of things. He gazed at her with eyes full of tenderness, the slightly upturned corners of his thin lips seeming to chatter: Weren’t you supposed to be in the office? Weren’t you supposed to be moving slowly? I knew it!
Caught in her lie, the tips of Tang Yang’s ears turned red, and her first reaction was to turn and flee.
Jiang Shiyan quickly stepped out of the elevator and, despite his full hands, pulled her into his embrace: “You are a little liar!”
“Liar, my foot.” Tang Yang lightly pushed him.
“Ya Nan is in England, alright, alright.” The more Jiang Shiyan looked at Yang Yang, the cuter he found her. He tilted his head to kiss her hot ear and hugged her as they entered the Credit Review Department.
Tang Yang let out a soft “mm” sound, slightly lowering her head, her face red.
My colleagues in the Credit Review Department were already familiar with Jiang Shiyan. Seeing President Jiang come in carrying things, they unhesitatingly surrounded him to take the items.
They didn’t rush to send in the few documents that needed Tang Yang’s attention. The young couple rarely had time to talk during lunch break, so they wanted to facilitate that.
Some colleagues ate snacks and some played games. Tang Yang hadn’t closed her office door. Jiang Shiyan sat on the small sofa for visitors, with Tang Yang leaning in his arms, chatting with him on and off. Jiang Shiyan told her to sleep for a while leaning against him.
Outside the window, air conditioners hummed, and cicadas chirped noisily. Inside the Credit Review Department, the atmosphere was harmonious, with both laughter and warmth.
It was in this situation that a bombshell piece of news, like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, instantly stirred up a thousand ripples!