My cousin-in-law helped me achieve my ambitions.

Zhuang Rong's face flushed instantly, a deeper and hotter blush than before, as if a string in her heart had been gently plucked. She gave a bitter laugh, lowered her eyes, and said with a hint of self-mockery in her voice, "But I felt like you didn't react to me at all just now."

Su Ming was startled again. Seeing his expression, Zhuang Rong loosened the iron gate, took a step forward, and glanced at him up and down with a complex and ambiguous look. Then, she gently brushed a strand of her long hair over her shoulder with a finger, and said in a light voice, "Alright, I'm leaving. You... take care."

She turned the latch, the sound of her high heels clicking crisply and rapidly on the concrete floor, like a series of ellipses fading into the distance. The iron gate slowly closed behind her, the light from the skylight casting a bright line across the floor as the door gap widened, before finally clicking shut.

Su Ming stared at the iron gate that had closed tightly again. The sweet scent of Zhuang Rong's perfume seemed to linger on his nose, and the warmth of her touch still clung to his shirt. He lowered his head, brushed away imaginary dust from his chest, sighed helplessly, and muttered to himself, "Who says I didn't feel anything? I was just consciously restraining myself."

As he was muttering to himself, the iron door to the scrap yard was suddenly pushed open from the outside with a creak. Su Ming looked up and was so startled he almost swallowed his breath. Standing in the doorway was Yang Tian. She held a blue folder in her hand, wore her plain white work clothes, her name tag hanging neatly on her chest, and her high ponytail swayed gently behind her. She clearly hadn't expected Su Ming to be there either; she paused at the doorway, a fleeting look of surprise and panic crossing her face, like a deer that had strayed into forbidden territory, almost turning to run away.

Su Ming's eyes lit up instantly, his expression shifting from surprise to genuine joy. He immediately straightened up and rushed towards Yang Tian, ​​his tone as warm as if he were seeing a long-lost relative: "Tian Tian, ​​what brings you here?"

Yang Tian hurriedly looked away from Su Ming, lowered her eyes, and pretended to look down at the folder in her hand. She cleared her throat and said quickly in a businesslike, cold tone, "I'm just doing a routine check, it's none of your business." After saying that, she turned to leave.

Su Ming wasn't about to let her go. He caught up with her in two strides and grabbed Yang Tian's fair wrist. Her wrist was slender and soft, feeling like a warm jade bracelet in his palm.

Yang Tian struggled but couldn't break free. She turned her head and glared at him, her cheeks already flushed red: "Let go! What are you doing!"

Su Ming pulled her into his arms, one hand gripping her lower back, drawing her completely into his embrace. Yang Tian, ​​caught off guard, bumped into his chest, nearly dropping the folder in her hand. She hurriedly braced herself against his shoulder with her other hand, scolding him with a mixture of embarrassment and anger, "You scoundrel, what are you doing? This is a warehouse!"

Su Ming acted as if he hadn't heard her, instead tightening his arms around her, lowering his head to whisper in her ear, his voice incredibly soft: "Sweetie, I missed you."

Yang Tian turned her face away from him, blushing as she protested softly, "We're at work right now."

"I don't care." Su Ming freed one hand and gently held her cheek, slowly turning her face back. Looking into her watery eyes, the seriousness in his voice was almost overflowing. "You haven't talked to me for so many days, I really missed you so much."

Yang Tian's eyelashes trembled slightly, the coldness in her eyes like thin ice meeting spring water, about to melt away. Her lips parted slightly, as if she wanted to say something more, but Su Ming lowered his head and blocked her words. He kissed her, at first cautiously pressing his lips against hers, as if testing the waters. Yang Tian's body stiffened for a moment, her hands pressing against his chest, as if trying to push him away. But after only a few seconds, that stubbornness and reserve crumbled little by little in his warm breath, her fingers slowly curled up, gripping his clothes tightly, then her whole body went limp, leaning into his embrace, beginning to respond to him awkwardly and clumsily.

Su Ming's hand slowly moved up from her lower back, his knuckles sliding across the fabric of her work clothes, landing on her chest, deftly unbuttoning the first button under her collar. Yang Tian felt a chill on her chest, regaining some of her senses, and quickly reached out, nervously grabbing his fingers as he unbuttoned the second button, pressing his hand firmly down.

Her face was burning hot, and her voice trembled slightly with breathlessness: "Don't... I'm at work right now. If you really miss me, tonight... let's go to a hotel tonight!"

Su Ming smiled, his fingers loosening their grip on her collar. He then took her hand, which was resting on the back of his, and gently pinched her cheek, his tone filled with undisguised joy at his victory, yet still tender: "You finally agreed to go to a hotel with me. You... missed me, didn't you?"

Yang Tian's pretty face flushed red, her eyes sparkling like spring water. She rolled her eyes at him resentfully, but couldn't hide the sweet mix of shyness and annoyance in her voice: "You were kissing and hugging me all the time, how could I not want to! It's all your fault!"

As she spoke, she gently punched his chest.

Su Ming chuckled and pulled her back into his arms, resting his chin on the top of her head. His voice deepened, tinged with a mischievous grin: "How about we go to the very back of the junkyard? Let's take care of this now, and then go out and have a good night's rest tonight."

Yang Tian quickly broke free from his embrace, one hand bracing against his chest, the other rapidly refastening the buttons he had just undone, her fingers knotted in her haste.

She said in a low voice, looking nervous, "Stop it! If our manager finds out, she'll definitely fire me. She specifically arranged for me to check up on things in the warehouse today, and I ran into you as soon as I came in... Do you know I've been avoiding you the whole way here?"

Su Ming's smile froze slightly. He understood the key point of her words: "She specifically arranged for me to come to the warehouse to check on things."

Yang Tian does have the authority to check on employees in the personnel department, but she rarely comes to the warehouse. This must be because she was instructed by Zhao Fang.

Su Ming's heart sank slightly, and he sneered inwardly: Zhao Fang, that woman, is quick on her feet. Last night, she was waiting for him in the coffee shop, shaking his hand and saying, "Manager Su is young and promising," and this morning she had already made her move without making a sound. Arranging for Yang Tian to check on things in the warehouse, ostensibly a normal work procedure, was actually a test, a warning.

This woman wants Su Ming to know that if she wants, she can extend her reach into the warehouse area at any time, and even use Yang Tian, ​​the card he cares about most.