Old Deng awakens: He starts by eliminating the yoga pants in the county town!

"It seems Director Chen kept it a secret quite well."

Lin Dawei's eyelids were half-closed, and he casually wiped his palm on his trouser leg.

Chen Jianjun tried to swallow to moisten his parched throat, but found his mouth dry and bitter, unable to utter a single word.

"You're not going to tell her, are you?"

Lin Dawei withdrew his gaze and slowly took out a cigarette from his pocket.

"Okay, then it doesn't matter."

A crisp "click" sounded, and a cluster of pale blue flames illuminated Lin Dawei's facial features.

He took a deep breath and exhaled a thick cloud of smoke.

The smoke hit Chen Jianjun squarely in the face, choking him and causing him to cough in a stuffy, suffocating way.

"However, Chen Jianjun, I have to remind you to make sure your muddled brain recognizes the current situation."

Lin Dawei casually raised the finger holding the cigarette and pointed at Li Ying, who was still in a daze, his eyes showing no trace of his usual concession.

"Do you think that by bringing this woman into the picture, you can teach me a lesson like you used to?"

"What do you think she is in my eyes now?"

Lin Dawei's voice was deep and tinged with contempt.

"Get her to stand up for you? It's useless."

These words were like a slap in the face to Li Ying's self-important self.

Li Ying was stunned for a full two seconds, and then, a feeling of humiliation at being ignored surged up instantly.

She had grown accustomed to Lin Dawei's subservient attitude towards her for the past ten years, and to using her superior position to bestow favors upon him.

But now, they actually dare to treat her like she's nothing!

"Lin Dawei! Have you taken the wrong medicine?!"

Li Ying was so angry that she trembled all over, her chest heaving violently beneath her silk shirt.

She took two sudden steps forward.

"Who do you think you are? You really think you're someone important? Jianjun is about to be promoted to director at Hongyun Factory, what right do you have to talk to him like that!"

Li Ying raised her hand, even wanting to slap the man across the face.

Lin Dawei didn't even try to dodge.

He merely turned his head slightly, his sharp gaze meeting Li Ying's eyes.

Li Ying's hand, which was suspended in mid-air, suddenly froze.

She felt a chill, and all her anger got stuck in her throat, causing her to take two steps back.

Lin Dawei didn't even bother with any extra expressions, completely ignoring Li Ying as if she were invisible.

He stepped forward, his tall frame almost touching Chen Jianjun's.

"Jianjun, actually, we can be considered 'like-minded'."

Lin Dawei deliberately emphasized those four words.

His gaze, filled with undisguised aggression, swept over Li Ying's tightly wrapped lower body in her suit trousers, before unleashing a wicked, mocking smile.

"After all, we've been on the same path...we've been through it all, haven't we?"

The air fell into a deathly silence.

Li Ying was stunned for a moment.

When she realized the vulgar meaning behind the words, her fair face instantly turned blood red, and then turned ashen!

"Lin Dawei! You...you're disgusting! You shameless bastard!"

Li Ying was filled with shame and indignation.

She never imagined that the honest and unassuming man from before would dare to make such a lewd joke in front of his current girlfriend!

Chen Jianjun felt even more humiliated!

However, Chen Jianjun's feet seemed to be rooted to the spot, stuck in place.

He was so angry that his face turned red and his neck bulged, and he didn't dare to utter a single fart.

Lin Dawei looked at Chen Jianjun's cowardly and pathetic appearance, and the contempt in his eyes was almost overflowing.

"For the sake of our shared goals, I'll give you another chance."

Lin Dawei straightened up, flicked the ash from his cigarette at his fingertips, and spoke casually.

Whether you can seize the opportunity depends on yourself.

Chen Jianjun felt a jolt.

"Big...Big Wei...Brother!"

Chen Jianjun's tongue was tied in knots, and his voice was trembling; he had completely lost the air of a leader he had before.

"Please speak! Please speak!"

Lin Dawei looked at him. "Didn't you want to keep your position as deputy director?"

"Even if you want to remove the 'deputy' title and become a full-fledged employee directly, that's not impossible."

Lin Dawei exhaled a smoke ring.

The sound wasn't loud, but it exploded like a thunderclap in Chen Jianjun's mind!

In a close-knit community like a county town, being the workshop director in a large electronics factory is a truly lucrative job!

Holding the power of scheduling, quotas, and personnel is the position Chen Jianjun dreams of climbing to!

He had already been ordered to be fired by the factory manager today; the sky had fallen.

But now, with just one word from Lin Dawei, he could not only be reinstated to his original position, but also promoted to a higher rank?

Chen Jianjun's breathing became heavy and his eyes turned bloodshot.

"What...what opportunity?"

Lin Dawei smiled coldly.

"The conditions are very simple."

"Let Li Ying come and beg me herself."

"How you beg, and what approach you take, is up to you. Just make sure I'm satisfied."

boom!

Li Ying felt as if she had been hit on the head with a blunt object!

Her eyes widened as if she were seeing the most absurd thing in the world.

This piece of trash who used to be too afraid to even breathe loudly now actually dares to make her beg him?

She's expected to abandon all her dignity and pride to beg?!

"Lin Dawei! Are you still dreaming?"

Li Ying completely broke down, her voice almost cracking as she screamed like a madwoman.

"You want me to beg you? You don't deserve it! Who do you think you are! Let me tell you, we'll figure out Jianjun's job ourselves! At worst, I'll give gifts and pull strings!"

"You're delusional! I'd rather die than beg a single word from a piece of trash like you!"

"Yingying! Shut up!"

A sudden shout abruptly interrupted Li Ying's hysterical outburst.

Li Ying was suddenly stunned.

She turned her head in disbelief to look at the man who was yelling at her.

Chen Jianjun completely ignored Li Ying's shocked expression.

He hastily wiped the sweat from his forehead, forcing an extremely obsequious, even somewhat disgusting smile onto his stiff face.

"Yingying, what do you know, you woman! Don't talk to Brother Dawei like that..."

After reprimanding Li Ying, Chen Jianjun immediately turned around and looked at Lin Dawei with eager and ingratiating eyes.

"Brother Dawei, I think... what you just said wasn't entirely unreasonable."

Chen Jianjun rubbed his hands together, his tone humble to the point of being mundane.

"This matter... is still worth discussing, very much worth discussing!"

Dead silence.

Only the faint chirping of summer insects remained in the surrounding area.

Li Ying stood frozen in place, like a puppet whose soul had been ripped out.

Her mouth was agape, her lips trembling and turning blue, as she looked at the man in front of her who, for the sake of his future, had unhesitatingly pushed her out as a bargaining chip.

"Chen Jianjun... what did you just say?"

Li Ying's voice trembled, and her eyes were filled with a profound sense of absurdity.

"You call him Brother Dawei? You want me to beg him?!"

Is this still the same successful man who used to boss her around and say that Lin Dawei wasn't even worthy of carrying his shoes?!

Chen Jianjun didn't dare to look at Li Ying's murderous gaze.

He kept his head down, pretending to be deaf and dumb.

Compared to the workshop director's real power and a lifetime of wealth and honor, what is a woman's self-respect worth!

As long as Lin Dawei can show leniency, he would be willing to let Chen Jianjun become a cuckold!

Lin Dawei looked at the couple who had just been swaggering in front of him, but now seemed ready to fight like dogs, and couldn't help but sneer.

It's already collapsed?

He couldn't be bothered to watch this disgusting farce anymore.

Lin Dawei flicked the cigarette butt onto the cement ground and then crushed it out heavily with the sole of his leather shoe.

"Alright, stop putting on this act in front of me."

He put one hand back into his suit trouser pocket, turned around, and didn't give them even a second glance.

"I've laid out the terms; you can think them through yourselves."

Lin Dawei strode into the dimly lit stairwell of the old residential area.

The sound of leather shoes stepping on the cement steps was steady and powerful, fading away with each step.

Only Li Ying and Chen Jianjun remained, facing each other awkwardly and embarrassingly in the cold night wind.

Lin Dawei wasn't in a hurry at all.

The bait is already on the hook.

Chen Jianjun, a greedy and despicable man, would stop at nothing to climb the social ladder and force her to bow down.

Li Ying was used to depending on men and enjoying vanity. Once she lost Chen Jianjun, her only supporter, she simply couldn't bear the fall back to the bottom.

All he needs to do is brew a pot of hot tea and wait quietly.