Chapter 85: My Poor Back Has Been Worked Over
Li Meiqing and Huo Chengzhang returned empty-handed, but Lin Huaizhi could no longer sleep.
He knew that since he had chosen to be with Huo Chen, a confrontation with these two was inevitable sooner or later. He just hadn’t expected the day to come so soon.
He certainly hadn’t expected their attitude to be so atrocious. They turned a blind eye to the years of abuse Huo Chen had endured and even believed they were doing it for his sake, attributing all his success to their oppressive education.
It was truly revolting!
Lin Huaizhi considered his own childhood bitter, but at the very least, that foolish woman had protected him occasionally. Even if she didn’t understand much, he had felt that trace of maternal love emanating from her bones.
But Huo Chen had nothing.
Huo Chen was born into a wealthy family, never lacking for food or clothes, but no one protected him.
The more Lin Huaizhi thought about it, the more his heart ached. He sat on the bed, picked up his phone, and called Huo Chen.
Zheng Xiuâangâs head was spinning.
Because the group was growing larger by the day, one assistant simply wasn’t enough. Six months ago, he had started looking for a candidate for Huo Chenâs second assistant.
The person had been chosen.
They had already started handling some of the companyâs affairs.
For this business trip, it was the newly promoted assistant who had accompanied Huo Chen, while Zheng Xiuâang stayed in Longcheng to keep an eye on Lin Huaizhi and the movements of his bossâs two crazy parents.
Zheng Xiuâang wasn’t bragging.
Over the years, as Huo Chenâs assistant, he had been an all-rounder. He did everything and did everything well.
One could say that as long as a task was handed to him, there would be no problems.
But today!
Today, he had finally become unreliable!!
It happened like this: because of the massive temperature fluctuations between morning and night in Longcheng over the past two days, he had accidentally caught a cold. He developed a fever last night and took some medicine. Before sleeping, he even set several alarms to make sure he wouldn’t oversleep.
But as fate would have it, the very thing he feared happened!
Thinking about not oversleeping, he ended up sleeping until 10:00 AM with a heavy head and leaden feet!
Zheng Xiuâang comforted himselfâit was only a few hours. Nothing major could happen. If he overslept, he overslept. He wasn’t a machine, after all; he couldn’t be perfect.
But!
But when he checked, he realized the sky had fallen!
Those two elders of the Huo family chose to go precisely during the few hours he was offline to find trouble for Lin Huaizhi!!
He rushed as fast as he could, barely reaching Lin Huaizhiâs place in time, but he still couldn’t stop them from picking a fight!!
Zheng Xiuâang hid around the corner of the stairs and listened to the whole exchange, even recording a video. After Huo Chengzhang and Li Meiqing left, he also sent the video to Huo Chen and explained the sequence of events.
Zheng Xiuâang had been Huo Chenâs assistant for nearly ten years. One could say that since Huo Chen entered the Huo familyâs company, he had been following him. He had been through the lows and the peaks with him.
For all these years, he had always completed the tasks Huo Chen assigned him perfectly, living up to Huo Chenâs regard and his seven-figure annual salary.
But this time, he had indeed failed his duty.
Because what Huo Chen had assigned him wasn’t even a business proposal or anything difficult; it was just to keep an eye on Huo Chengzhang and Li Meiqing and deliver meals to Lin Huaizhi.
“Boss, I couldn’t even handle such a simple task. Itâs a serious dereliction of duty. You can punish me however you like.”
“Iâll take any beating or scolding, and Iâll accept any penalty.”
Zheng Xiuâangâs heart was in his throat, and his breath was hot. He waited nervously for Huo Chenâs reply.
“Failing to handle such a small matter is indeed your fault. Your year-end bonus will be halved.”
Zheng Xiuâang instantly breathed a sigh of relief.
Working with Huo Chen for so many years, he knew his high standards and had seen him fire erring subordinates without hesitation. A half-bonus penalty was actually a bargain.
“Is your fever gone?”
Zheng Xiuâang was stunned. When he realized what Huo Chen was asking, his eyes suddenly grew hot.
He wasn’t from Longcheng; his family was in a southern city. He was here building a life on his own. When he got sick, he usually just powered through it. Hearing a word of concern from Huo Chen moved him deeply.
“Itâs gone.”
Zheng Xiuâang took a deep breath.
“Boss, does President Lin need any compensation?”
Huo Chen stood in front of the bathroom mirror, holding the phone against his shoulder with his ear as he washed his hands under the faucet.
“You don’t need to worry about him. I’ll coax him myself.” The man pulled a paper towel to dry his hands, his voice sounding casual. “You haven’t had much leave this year. Take two days off and get some rest.”
Zheng Xiuâangâs nose felt stuffy.
Huo Chen hadn’t said much in the way of comfort, appearing as if he didn’t care if he was sick or not, yet now he was giving him time off to rest.
Zheng Xiuâang knew how busy the company was.
The new assistant hadn’t fully adapted to the high-intensity work yet, and their abilities still needed honing. If he took a break, almost everything would fall on Huo Chenâs shoulders.
“Boss, Iâm mostly better. I don’t need a break.”
Huo Chen didn’t like sentimental talk; it made him feel awkward and unaccustomed. But to him, Zheng Xiuâang was indeed a qualified and excellent assistant.
Moreover, as a boss, he had an obligation to care for his subordinateâs health.
It was just that, for a cold person, even words of concern couldn’t be spoken in a soft tone.
“I don’t like people questioning me. Besides, giving you two days to rest is so you can work more efficiently in the future.”
“Thatâs enough. Go see a doctor and rest. Send the bill for the visit and medicine directly to the finance department for reimbursement.”
Huo Chen didn’t waste any more words and hung up. He was about to enter the conference room when the phone in his pocket began to vibrate again.
This time, it was Lin Huaizhi.
Huo Chen called over the new assistant. “Send out a notice. The meeting will continue this afternoon. Everyone should go get lunch.”
The new assistant had some understanding of Huo Chen, mainly because Zheng Xiuâang had trained him, emphasizing Huo Chenâs temper and noting that he generally meant what he said.
Although the new assistant was surprisedâsince the boss had previously said the meeting would resume after a ten-minute breakâhe knew a qualified assistant shouldn’t ask ‘why’ and should only focus on execution.
“Understood, Boss.”
After handling the meeting matters, Huo Chen walked toward the rooftop while answering Lin Huaizhiâs call.
“Hello?”
“Hello.” Hearing the manâs voice, the corners of Lin Huaizhiâs mouth curled up unconsciously. “Am I interrupting you?”
Huo Chen lit a cigarette.
“No, I was just getting ready for lunch.”
“Have you eaten?”
Lin Huaizhi shook his head. As soon as he spoke, he was flirting: “I just woke up. My poor back is practically broken after how you worked me over last night. How could I have the strength to eat?”
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