"Aunt is aunt. No matter what others say about her, it's their own foul mouths. How could you believe them?"
"Go apologize to your aunt and ask her to forgive you. She'll help you more at work in the future. If you act out of line and talk nonsense again, even if Aunt doesn't hold it against you, I won't spare you."
Just like that, Pei Zongrui was pushed out as cannon fodder.
He was very displeased but didn't dare to say much.
He sat down insincerely and offered Pei Kexin an apology.
"I'm sorry. I was in a bad mood just now and my brain short-circuited, causing me to talk back to you. You're a generous aunt, please don't take it to heart."
His apology was reluctant, and Pei Kexin was equally reluctant to forgive him.
She ignored him and turned to pat her husband's face.
"Do you want to go up and sleep? You took care of Dad alone in the hospital during the day and still had to accompany me to entertain clients at night. You must be exhausted."
"After entertaining clients late at night, you still had to accompany me to be scolded. You've worked hard, my dear husband."
Zhan Jingchen, who had enjoyed watching her scold her nephew, was in a good mood and smiled at her cooperatively.
"It's not as hard as you. You're busy with work day and night, and you still have to teach the younger generation a lesson when you get home. Look how thin you've become. It truly breaks my heart, my love."
Everyone else, "..."
Pei Kexin playfully hit him, and after making Pei Zongrui wait long enough, she continued.
"Zongrui is not young anymore. Since he knows he will eventually take over the company, he should seize the time to learn some real skills, so he won't be embarrassed when he has to take the reins himself."
"You chose to join the technical department yourself. It's been several months, and you can't just talk the talk. You need to get your hands dirty."
"Coincidentally, the company recently received a batch of customer complaints, dnh190. Due to the climate in Harbin, a technician is needed to visit the site for after-sales service."
"No matter who the technical department sends this time, you'll go along. Besides you, everyone else in the technical department is an old-timer. Going out with them to gain experience will be beneficial for you."
"dnh190? I wasn't involved in the design. Why should I be sent for after-sales service when there's a problem? And Harbin? That godforsaken place..."
As soon as Pei Zongrui heard the name, his face clearly showed his displeasure.
He turned to his father to complain.
"Dad, she might as well fire me directly. She says she's arranging work for me, but what kind of work is this? She's clearly trying to make things difficult for me!"
"Harbin's average altitude is five thousand meters. With that climate, won't the altitude sickness drive me crazy? And they actually want me to do after-sales service for someone else's product..."
Pei Kexin didn't want to listen to his complaints. She pushed Zhan Jingchen and tilted her chin towards the stairs, signaling him to go to bed.
Zhan Jingchen stood up, and Pei Kexin followed, interrupting Pei Zongrui's lament.
"Alright, it's getting late. We have to work tomorrow, so don't overthink it. Go rest first."
"Don't think of yourself as too weak, and don't think of me, your aunt, as too wicked. Discuss with your parents whether you want this training or not, and give me your answer at the company tomorrow."
With that, she didn't bother to look at anyone else's expression and walked away with Zhan Jingchen.
Back in the room, Pei Kexin kicked off her shoes, tossed aside Gu Wei's suit jacket, and tugged at her damaged evening gown. She lazily sat on the sofa and asked Zhan Jingchen.
"Are you tired?"
The bedroom door was broken, and the second bedroom had no bed. It seemed the two of them would have to share a room again tonight.
Zhan Jingchen looked at her fair skin and couldn't help but have some illicit thoughts.
"What's wrong?"
"If you're not tired, come over and do something for me."
There was a laptop on the coffee table, which Pei Kexin usually used for watching dramas. It had no password. She turned the screen towards Zhan Jingchen.
"Open it."
Zhan Jingchen looked puzzled. Why open a computer in the middle of the night?
Pei Kexin, like a boss ordering a subordinate, leaned back on the opposite sofa and watched him open it.
"Can you make spreadsheets?"
Zhan Jingchen: "?"
"It doesn't have to be too advanced, just the most common type."
"...I think so."
"Then I'll tell you, and you'll do it according to my requirements. The first row, center the title, merge the cells, and the title will be 'Outing Application Form'."
"??"
"The second row, divide it into three cells and fill in the basic information: Name, Age, and Occupation."
"..."
"Are you done? If so, continue. The third row, reason for application and supplementary information. You can make the length a bit longer, widen it, and use it horizontally or vertically as you see fit."
Zhan Jingchen's hands stopped unconsciously, and he looked at her with a bewildered expression.
Pei Kexin continued to instruct, "Don't stop, keep going..."
Zhan Jingchen simply pushed the computer away. "Why is it that how it's used horizontally or vertically is up to me? Ms. Pei, I have to submit a form to you just to go out? Am I sold to you?"
Seeing that he had objections and didn't want to do it, Pei Kexin glanced at him and pulled the computer back herself.
As she typed furiously, she explained.
"There's something going on at the company, and I might have to go on a business trip soon. When I'm gone, your role in this family will be fully realized."
"Everything I can't do in front of Dad, you must do for me. If you have private matters to attend to during this time, you need to ask for my leave in advance. This form is for you to request leave."
"Once it's filled out, you can send it to my email or WeChat. Only if I approve it can you leave the sanatorium. If I don't approve and you dare to leave without permission, our contract will be voided at any time."
Zhan Jingchen listened to these troublesome, overbearing terms.
"Can't I just tell you directly if I need to take leave? I still have to fill out a form, isn't that troublesome?"
Pei Kexin: "It's not troublesome. If you just tell me, what if I'm busy and can't answer the phone? If you just leave, what about Dad? You must report in advance and develop the habit of planning your time reasonably. Otherwise, don't even think about asking for leave."
"..."
Zhan Jingchen couldn't help but curse her in his heart, calling her Huang Shiren, too ruthless and inhuman. No wonder Pei Zongrui was annoyed with her.
"When do you plan to go on your business trip?"
"It's not certain. It could be tomorrow, or the day after. I'll notify you when the plan is finalized."
"Where are you going?"
"Harbin."
"The place you just sent Pei Zongrui to? Are you going with him?"
"Don't inquire about my work. Take care of yourself."
She refused to mention anything more about her work, but Zhan Jingchen knew that no matter how much she disliked Pei Zongrui, she would still help him for the sake of their grandfather's wishes.
He didn't know what to say to her.
Pitiable, she brought it upon herself. She had the ability but didn't go out and start her own business, instead staying in their house and enduring their mistreatment every day.
Hateful, yet she was also loyal and righteous. Filial piety was paramount. Perhaps only when the old man truly passed away would she be able to truly let go.
"But I have something to do tomorrow, and I need to take leave now."
Pei Kexin: "You've only been married to me for two days, and you already need to take leave?"
Married to her?
Zhan Jingchen savored the three words and found it a bit amusing.
"That can't be helped. I'm human too, and I have emergencies. You wouldn't be so heartless as to not let me go home when there's something important happening, would you?"
Pei Kexin had a hunch that it wasn't anything major and glanced at him. "What are you up to?"