Yan Junye had already had the sense to move toward the edge of the table.
Hearing Chang Yu's furious shout, he scrambled to his feet, opened the door himself, and bolted out.
He really hadn't done it on purpose!
He kept having erotic dreams these past few days, and he couldn't control himself, especially his dreaming self.
Besides, he had already been doing his best to stay away from Chang Yu.
Who could have known Chang Yu would come to the conference room and say something that happened to match the scene in his dream?
Chang Yu didn't chase the fleeing dog.
Rubbing his brow, he went to his office to change his trousers. Once they got home, he would definitely make the culprit wash the pair he had taken off.
Yan Junye knew Chang Yu hadn't followed him.
By the time he reached the first floor, he felt hungry. A glance at the time showed it was almost twelve. Lunchtime had arrived.
But he had only just angered Chang Yu, so he didn't dare go back upstairs to find him yet.
Yan Junye swished his fluffy tail. He refused to believe no one would feed someone as adorable as him.
Before he could set off, the man in black-rimmed glasses came over, crouched down, and set a can of food before him.
Yan Junye batted the can away with one paw. These people had ulterior motives, and his canine life came first. He had better go upstairs to find Chang Yu.
After all, he couldn't find a new owner anytime soon or escape Chang Yu's clutches.
Before finding Chang Yu, he first ran to the company's snack cabinet to grab something to eat.
There wasn't much, really: assorted drinks, some bags of crispy rice and puffed rice. These were snacks at most and wouldn't fill his stomach at all.
Afraid he wouldn't get a meal, Yan Junye carried several bags of snacks in his mouth and went upstairs to scout things out.
Whenever employees saw him carrying food along the way, he pointed toward the second floor with his paw.
He was indicating that he wasn't eating them himself, but bringing them to Chang Yu.
"Mr. Chang's dog is so clever! He even brings his owner food! Still, I never thought Mr. Chang ate snacks too."
Faced with everyone's praise, Yan Junye, whose mouth was stuffed too full of snacks to make a sound, expressed, Exactly. I really am this smart and capable!
Inside the office, Chang Yu hadn't started eating yet when he caught sight of a furtive dog's head peering inside.
Chang Yu didn't intend to let too many people know that Xiaotu ate human food.
Walking to the door, he also saw those bulging canine cheeks. Who knew what was hidden in there?
He opened the office door and led Xiaotu to the conference room.
Without worrying about being bitten, he pried Xiaotu's mouth open and patted his head. "Spit it out. Don't you think that's dirty?"
Seeing two meals, Yan Junye pushed the snacks hidden in his mouth out. "Woof, woof, woof."
[I was just worried you wouldn't give me lunch.]
Chang Yu had no intention of abusing a dog.
Lunch consisted of healthy home-style dishes and rice.
As he ate, Yan Junye kept studying Chang Yu's expression. His anger seemed to have subsided somewhat, and he had changed his trousers too.
Usually, when he angered his parents, Yan Junye could volunteer to help with chores to earn a moment's peace.
With his current body, he couldn't do anything. After eating, he could only tilt his head and rely on his looks to act sweet and cute.
Passing employees saw what was happening inside, and some even spoke up for him:
"The dog is so cute. How could Mr. Chang bear to be angry with a big dog who doesn't understand anything? If it were me, I'd hug him and pet him like crazy."
"Mr. Chang's dog is actually really well-behaved. Mine isn't even a husky, but he still loves making a mess at home and eating random things outside. Vet visits cost a fortune too."
Praised so much that he couldn't stop his tail from wagging, Yan Junye even nodded along, as though saying:
"You're absolutely right!"
Chang Yu nearly laughed in exasperation. These people had no idea what this dog had done to him!
And he couldn't bring himself to say it.
Rather than stay in the office that afternoon, Chang Yu planned to visit the Ruan Family, the family of Gan Junda's wife, Yu Yan.
Before going, he conducted a series of investigations into Yu Yan.
Yu Yan's parents apparently kept dogs too.
To prevent Xiaotu from losing control after catching the scent of a female dog, he decided not to take him and had his assistant walk him somewhere with few people instead.
"If he refuses to walk, tell him there'll be no sleeping in or dinner from now on."
These two threats never got old, and they were perfectly in line with the doctor's instructions.
Yan Junye wanted to shut his eyes and simply pretend to faint.
Why was even being a dog so difficult?
He and Chang Yu weren't compatible at all.
Even if Chang Yu confessed to him and he accepted, the two would probably come to an unceremonious end.
Because Chang Yu didn't like lazy creatures with big appetites.
In other words, him.
He had better find a new owner as soon as possible, preferably someone who would laze around with him. That way, their lifestyles could stay in sync.
But resolving tonight's problem came first.
He ran over and began rubbing against Chang Yu's trouser leg, wrapping that tail no one could dislike around Chang Yu's calf as he barked ingratiatingly, "Woof, woof, woof."
[Are you really not taking me? I can understand dogs and pass any useful information I get on to you, just like last night.]
Pretending he hadn't understood a thing, Chang Yu handed the leash to his assistant.
Xiaotu could help him a great deal, but the circumstances were special right now.
If Xiaotu was affected by the scent of a female dog, he would only grow more desperate for release.
That wouldn't be good for either man or dog.
He could handle Gan Junda's affairs entirely on his own.
His attempt at acting cute having failed, Yan Junye was mercilessly dragged away by the assistant.
For the sake of dinner and sleeping in, he really did force himself to walk for half an hour.
As he walked, he angrily swore that when he found a boyfriend, he would never find a daddy-type boyfriend like Chang Yu.
He had to control everything. He wasn't at all friendly to someone who wanted to lie flat and slack off.
Thinking it over, Yan Junye pretended to trip and fall into the grass. That way, the clean freak would order him to get a bath.
Having a pretty young woman bathe him was much easier and more enjoyable than going for a walk.
He racked his brains and schemed every which way just to slack off. Every bit of cunning he possessed went into it.
Although Chang Yu was ten meters away from Xiaotu, when he received the assistant's call, he couldn't shake the feeling that Xiaotu had done it on purpose.
Unfortunately, he had no proof.
The driver parked, and Chang Yu had arrived at his destination.
The Chang Family and the Ruan Family had worked together before, so it wasn't out of place for Chang Yu to make an unannounced visit in the Chang Family's name.
More importantly, Gan Junda's wife, Yu Yan, had come back to visit her parents today and was home too.
Chang Yu hadn't come alone. He had brought Qi Lezhi, the man in black-rimmed glasses.
Throughout the journey, Qi Lezhi barely dared to breathe.
He began to suspect that Chang Yu had discovered something and deliberately brought him to the Ruan Family to see whether he would tip anyone off.
After arriving at the Ruan Family's home, Chang Yu first had tea and chatted with Ruan Si for a while.
As for Qi Lezhi, he sent him to play with the dogs in the yard, under the fine pretext:
"Since you're so keen on finding my dog a mate, go catch a female dog in the yard and bring her back. We'll see whether my dog likes her."
Qi Lezhi kept feeling that Chang Yu was taking a dig at him.
He went reluctantly.
After all, that black-hearted Chang Yu was his boss, and he hadn't yet dragged him down from on high into the mire.
But success was already close at hand.
Just look at Chang Yu, leisurely finding time to play with his dog every day, without the slightest vigilance, believing everything around him was calm.
In truth, it was all the prelude to a storm.
As a competitor, Gan Junda had disliked Chang Yu for a long time.
After all, backed by the Chang Family, Chang Yu had reached the same heights as Gan Junda in just three short years.
Gan Junda had bought him off a year ago, while Chang Yu had remained completely unaware and only recently noticed something.
Unfortunately, it was too late.
He had long since secretly told Gan Junda the internal pricing for the products the company planned to promote this year.
The fragrance of green tea filled the room. Young and less composed than her parents, Yu Yan asked discontentedly, "What are you doing here?"
Everyone knew that the company Chang Yu currently ran was a competitor of her husband's.
As Gan Junda's wife, she naturally had to take his side.
Chang Yu took out photographs of Gan Junda entering and leaving a club, his tone slightly grave, as though he was struggling over whether to produce them.
"Given our many years of friendship, after much consideration, I still felt I should tell you."
"Yu Yan is your only daughter. It would truly be a shame if such a fine young woman contracted an illness that couldn't be properly cured and subjected her to gossip."
"How could I possibly get sick?" Yu Yan had been married to Gan Junda for seven years, and she didn't consider herself a love-brained fool.
"He only goes to those clubs for business entertainment. No matter how late it runs, my husband comes home every night, and most of the time he's back before nine."
If he really were visiting prostitutes or finding women, he shouldn't have come home so early.
Besides, their married life was sweet and happy. They spent anniversaries and holidays enjoying romantic outings, much as they had while dating.
The people around her had even envied her for having such a sweet life after marriage.
Yu Yan's father, however, picked up the photographs and examined them carefully. Then his aged but shrewd eyes turned to Chang Yu. "I trust that if you dare say this, you have more than just this photograph."
"You're as astute as ever." Chang Yu took out the miniature camera and audio recorder he had bought beforehand. "If your daughter doesn't believe it, she can wear these and find out."
Yu Yan was utterly stunned. How could she not know what wearing them meant?
"When did he bring someone home? While I was home, too?!"
If that was the case, wasn't he far too bold?
Wasn't he afraid she might suddenly wake up and catch them in the act?
After demanding those answers, Yu Yan already had a vague suspicion.
A hired housekeeper was responsible for all the meals at home. She suspected someone might have put something in her daily food.
There might well be something illicit going on between the housekeeper and Gan Junda too.