Life and Death Insurance – CH 013

Chapter 13

The snow had stopped. Stepping out of the steaming restaurant, the air outside felt refreshingly crisp.

The two walked slowly through the snow. Although it was nearly midnight, cheerful Christmas music still drifted from afar. Christmas trees decorated outside shops twinkled with colorful lights, reflecting off the snow in vibrant hues.

“Let’s take a taxi back. Where do you live?” Ling Zhengzhong asked.

“My apartment isn’t far from here, just a twenty-minute walk. Zheng…Zhong, it’s easy to hail a taxi at the square ahead. Let’s walk there together.”

Clearly, Xiang Tian wasn’t quite used to calling Ling Zhengzhong by his name yet and seemed a little awkward each time.

“Okay.”

For some reason, Ling Zhengzhong found chatting with this little hamster quite enjoyable. For the first time, he contradicted his usual argument—that chatting was an extremely time-consuming and foolish thing.

The two quickly arrived near the square. To Ling Zhengzhong’s surprise, the square was crowded with people, mostly couples. Noticing his confusion, Xiang Tian explained, “It’s Christmas today, and many young people stay up all night.”

It seemed he really was out of touch with the times. Ling Zhengzhong felt a little dejected. He would be twenty-nine in a few months. He had always considered himself young, but now he felt like he had been relegated to the older generation.

“Excuse me, if it weren’t for me, you would be spending Christmas with your girlfriend, right?”

Only now did Ling Zhengzhong belatedly realize this question.

Xiang Tian coughed awkwardly. “I don’t have a girlfriend yet.”

“Oh…”

Ling Zhengzhong was about to speak again when he suddenly heard the distant chimes. He looked at the clock tower in the square; the hands were pointing to twelve. A new day was about to begin.

Suddenly remembering his belated greeting, Ling Zhengzhong smiled and turned to Xiang Tian.

“Merry Christmas!”

The other smiled back.

“Merry Christmas!”

Although this Christmas weekend was the most thrilling one he’d had in his twenty-eight years, the ever-easygoing man quickly put the unpleasantness behind him. After all, Shen Meimei was just an ex-girlfriend who had dumped him; whether her matter was an incident or an accident, he’d leave that to that eccentric policeman to worry about—it had nothing to do with him, Ling Zhengzhong.

So, early Monday morning, Ling Zhengzhong arrived at the company refreshed and ready to begin his workday.

His secretary, Le Hua, poured the brewed coffee into a cup and placed it on Ling Zhengzhong’s desk, as usual.

“Le Hua, you’re five months pregnant now; you shouldn’t be doing these things.”

Ling Zhengzhong didn’t even look up; he knew who it was. He stopped typing and looked up at Le Hua.

Le Hua had been with him for over three years, not only a highly competent secretary but also a rare and invaluable friend. In Ling Zhengzhong’s eyes, Lehua was practically the embodiment of perfection. This wasn’t just referring to her outstanding appearance and figure, but more importantly, her work ethic. From handling crucial tasks to dealing with the smallest details, Lehua was meticulous and thoughtful, never making a single mistake.

Ling Zhengzhong personally believed that the only major blunder this beautiful woman had made was marrying a man more than ten years her senior. Initially, he was uneasy, secretly speculating whether this was because he had rejected Le Hua’s affections, leading her to marry so hastily. But it didn’t seem like that. The couple were inseparable, constantly talking on the phone, and Le Hua was about to become a mother.

That day, he rejected the beautiful woman’s advances without a second thought, leaving Le Hua heartbroken for a long time. For a considerable period afterward, Le Hua complained that Ling Zhengzhong had rejected her without even giving a reason, leaving Ling Zhengzhong with a difficult situation. The reason was actually quite simple, but he couldn’t bring himself to say it: Le Hua was too perfect, so perfect that it made him feel overwhelmed. He wanted a perfect secretary but not a perfect wife, as that would require him to constantly maintain his perfect image—sigh, that would be exhausting; just thinking about it was tiring.

“Pouring coffee is nothing; it’s a small thing. The doctor said that moderate activity helps the fetus develop normally,” Le Hua smiled dismissively.

Even so, it wasn’t good to have a pregnant woman serving him, but Ling Zhengzhong was completely helpless against this elegant but somewhat stubborn secretary.

“If you really care about me, hire a new secretary quickly, so I don’t have to do all this work every day.”

Faced with Le Hua’s criticism, Ling Zhengzhong couldn’t help but sigh.

He really wanted to hire someone new; he couldn’t let Le Hua work until she went into labor. But look at the kind of people applying! Those girls were all pretty and well-educated, but when it came to work, they all fell short. He needed a well-rounded, capable worker, not just a pretty face.

“Is it that they aren’t good enough, or are your standards too high? I’ve looked at some of the girls’ resumes, and they are all quite good. They just lack some practical work experience, but that’s not a problem at all.”

“It’s not that they aren’t good enough; it’s that you’re too good, Le Hua. With a perfect secretary like you, how can I possibly adapt to anyone else?” Ling Zhengzhong grumbled, but he immediately added, “Don’t worry. I’ll hire someone new as soon as possible, but you have to promise me you’ll come back to help me as soon as the baby is born.”

“Understood, Manager Ling,” Le Hua replied with a smile.

“Hey, Manager Ling, you look pretty good.”

A provocative voice came from the doorway. Ling Zhengzhong scoffed. This person, needless to say, was his nemesis—Yu Shenglin.

“Manager Yu, you look quite good too, actually finding time to come and visit me.”

Yu Shenglin was about the same age as Ling Zhengzhong, tall but thin, appearing somewhat frail, yet his eyes always gleamed with arrogance. He bossed people around the company all day, his self-important demeanor making Ling Zhengzhong want to punch him every time he saw him.