Mocking a Man When He Was Down

Yang Qintian was packing up to leave, and rumors had already spread through the office. His secretary, Zhang Jing, came over to see for herself.

"Mr. Yang, you're leaving?" Zhang Jing took some satisfaction in seeing him pack. She hadn't been the one who offended him last night, yet he had slapped her anyway.

As news of Yang Qintian's departure spread, many of his colleagues—especially his subordinates—were delighted.

Yang Qintian recognized Zhang Jing's voice. He looked up at her, furious. "Happy now?"

Zhang Jing wasn't the kind of secretary everyone imagined. She admitted she was materialistic and vain, but she wasn't a woman who would casually offer herself to a man. If Yang Qintian hadn't bullied her, she never would have given in.

She was already angry about last night. His response only made her blood boil. Yang Qintian had no power over her now.

"Very," Zhang Jing answered honestly.

Even a lowly secretary had come to mock him. Yang Qintian, accustomed to flattery, turned purple with rage.

Unable to contain himself, he lunged toward Zhang Jing and raised his hand.

"Go on, hit me. You don't work here anymore, and you're not my boss. Lay a hand on me, and I'll have security throw you out in seconds." Zhang Jing lifted her chin and thrust her face toward him.

Yang Qintian froze. Things weren't like they used to be. He held back and reluctantly lowered his hand.

"So get lost, you bastard! Goodbye! No, I hope I never see you again," Zhang Jing said.

Clutching his things, Yang Qintian slunk into the elevator.

Even a fallen man could still have influence. Though Yang Qintian had been fired, someone was still willing to curry favor with him. Just as the elevator doors were closing, a former colleague squeezed inside.

"Mr. Yang, I hear someone set you up. Secretary Zhang got hold of a phone number—the number that made the call. Trace it, and you can find out who's behind this."

It was an important lead. Zhang Xuanyi had deliberately leaked it and given Yang Qintian the number. With both sides investigating, it would be easier to get to the bottom of it.

Ding.

The elevator doors slid open. Cheng Dongxue looked up and saw Yang Qintian emerge carrying a storage box. It seemed he had left the company.

"Cheng Dongxue..." Yang Qintian's mouth twitched. Yesterday, he had been lusting after her and boasting about his wealth and status. Today, he was a man brought low.

Cheng Dongxue knew about the call, but she still couldn't understand how one call and one video from Zhang Yang could have done so much. It had even happened exactly when he said it would: Yang Qintian had been fired before the afternoon shift.

"Mr. Yang, moving on to bigger and better things?" Cheng Dongxue asked, knowing full well what had happened. She wanted to needle the arrogant man.

"Just wait, Cheng Dongxue. I'll be back sooner or later, and sooner or later you'll be in my arms, mine to do with as I please." It sounded like a defeated man's attempt to save face as he fled.

"Is that so? I guarantee your wife, Cheng Li, will end up serving someone else." Zhang Yang had appeared again, having come specifically to see Yang Qintian brought low.

"You—"

Yang Qintian flared with anger, but security guards were everywhere. This was no place to cause trouble, so he stormed off.

"I'll see you off here. Go on up to work." Zhang Yang smiled at Cheng Dongxue.

At Elegant Residence last night, Cheng Dongxue had seen how much Lin Dongqiang respected Zhang Yang. He had even stood up for Zhang Yang and thrown Yang Qintian, a Platinum Member, out.

Cheng Dongxue had questions, but Zhang Yang brushed them off.

"Zhang Yang, why did Lin Dongqiang do you a favor and stand up for you last night? And how did one phone call from you get Zhang Xuanyi to fire Yang Qintian today?"

He would have to answer those questions sooner or later. Rather than tell her the truth, Zhang Yang decided to make up a more convincing lie.

"All right, I won't hide it anymore. I'm a multimillionaire," Zhang Yang said with a sly smile.

Cheng Dongxue stared at him. She would never believe he had that kind of money. She knew what he did every day. Where could he possibly have earned it?

"Zhang Yang, you shouldn't lie," Cheng Dongxue said, a little reproachfully.

"Fine. The truth is, I've been doing business with the Lin Family. I come up with ideas, and they do the legwork, so I've made quite a bit of money. Once I had money, I had status too. Things aren't like they used to be. The Lin Family made money alongside me and now sees me as their lucky charm. Of course they treat me with respect. It's not just Lin Dongqiang—even Lin Cheng is courteous to me."

Zhang Yang went on at length, but to Cheng Dongxue, it all sounded made up. When had he picked up this habit?

It was almost time to work, and Cheng Dongxue didn't want to argue. "Take care of yourself, Zhang Yang."

"I always do!" Zhang Yang waved goodbye to his wife.

The elevator doors closed, and it slowly ascended. Zhang Yang turned and left.

Zhang Yang wandered around outside. It was too early to go home; looking for work ought to take time. Besides, he didn't want to go home. He kept wandering until Cheng Dongxue finished work.

He tossed his cigarette butt into a trash can and walked toward her.

"Was there much work this afternoon?" he asked.

Cheng Dongxue shook her head. "Half as much as this morning. No pressure at all—I finished it easily."

Cheng Dongxue was capable at her job, a workaholic through and through.

"Tomorrow's the weekend. I'll take you to buy some clothes. It's my mom's birthday, and she's invited a lot of people. That necklace for tomorrow night is actually a gift she bought herself." Cheng Dongxue walked up and took his arm.

"Her birthday? Another birthday? And who buys herself such an expensive birthday present?" Zhang Yang was dismayed. He hated these celebrations. For years, every such gathering had felt like a trap to him.

At gatherings like that, he was mocked and bullied, the clown his wife's relatives and friends laughed at.

"That's why you need to dress properly. I'll buy a birthday present for you to give her." Cheng Dongxue knew he didn't like it, but they couldn't avoid it. They could at least make a decent appearance.

"Can I skip it?" Zhang Yang asked with a grin. He knew he couldn't; he was only joking.

"What do you think?"

"Probably not!"

Cheng Dongxue dragged Zhang Yang to the mall and picked out a new suit. He didn't like wearing suits, but his wife had bought it. If Cheng Dongxue said it looked good, he would wear it.

At the mall, Zhang Yang's mind wasn't on the clothes. He was thinking about how to handle tomorrow's birthday banquet.

He had been to several of these banquets. Everyone else had enjoyed themselves while he had been miserable. He always ended up the center of attention, but never in a way he wanted.