Chapter 49

Chapter 49

Huanhai Electronics is a huge company, and in the eyes of others, every employee's attire represents the company's spirit and image. Therefore, the company's rules and regulations have always required all employees to wear formal attire to work, without exception.

Nan Liujing called his assistant to have a set of size L suit delivered to Shen Gali.

A black suit with a white inner shirt and lining. To avoid looking too dull, subtle dark gray pinstripes on the black fabric. The navy blue tie was accented with small white circular polka dots, a safe suit style that’s not too stiff.

This was Shen Gali's first time wearing a suit. One cuff alone had four buttons designed into it. A major reason he disliked formal wear was the buttons—just buttoning those complicated buttons was enough to drain all his patience.

He thought again, "Do I really have to do this job?"

He decided not to bother buttoning it up, leaving even the inner vest open, and planned to head out like that.

Nan Liujing pulled him back, tapped his arms to make him stand up straight, then helped him button up, one button at a time, put on his tie and clipped the tie clip, and finally smoothed out all the wrinkles in the fabric.

Shen Gali was certainly thin, but he was a natural clotheshorse—his build was long and well-proportioned, with broad shoulders and a slim but strong waist. Even in a standard size, the suit looked tailor-made. With the fine stitching characteristic of high-end suits, once he put it on, he looked like some elegant noble from a novel—elegant and refined, earning praise from Assistant Lin on the side.

"I've never seen anyone but President Nan wear a suit with as much style as Mr. Shen."

Nan Liujing glanced at his watch and said flatly, "Enough with the flattery. Let's go."

But to Shen Gali, the perfectly fitted suit felt like a yoke around his neck. Even a slightly bigger movement made him feel constricted. Luckily, he wasn't one to move around much, but he still felt uncomfortable all over.

Before getting out of the car, Nan Liujing put on a mask and sunglasses, as if still afraid to show his true face. Shen Gali watched him, feeling exhausted just looking at him.

Today, Nan Liujing didn't enter the company through the back door. Probably wanting to deliberately show off to others, he brought Shen Gali through the main entrance.

As a giant corporation that dominates the country, Huanhai Electronics only hired employees who graduated from top universities and who had good grades and national awards from school. They were considered the cream of the crop in knowledge and character.

Plus, Huanhai had extremely high interview standards. They usually didn't hire fresh grads without experience, considering them a headache and not adaptable enough—liable to screw up at any time. But this year, after Nan Liujing took over, he overruled everyone and held the company's first campus recruitment. As a young person himself, he believed the company also needed this kind of vibrant, youthful energy.

The front desk receptionists saw them coming and immediately stood up, bowing and greeting.

After they walked away, they dared to gather and whisper.

"Wow, who's that new guy next to President Nan? He's really hot."

"You don't know him? He's President Nan's partner... Shen, Shen Gali? That's the name, I think."

"Am I out of the loop? I've never heard of him."

"That's normal. I heard President Nan wasn't very satisfied with him at first. They didn't bother with a big wedding, so people in the company haven't seen him."

"But he's gorgeous, like a celebrity. Now I actually want to come to work."

"What are you thinking? He's married. Remember the 'ten thousand paper cranes' thing? President Nan did that to make his hubby happy."

"I'm just admiring. I don't have any other intentions."

Walking beside Nan Liujing, Shen Gali felt awkward. It made him look like Nan Liujing's sidekick or something, so he subtly moved to the side, deliberately keeping distance.

Along the way, Shen Gali heard "Good morning, President Nan" too many times. At first he instinctively avoided eye contact, but soon he became numb to it.

They were waiting for the elevator when the door of the adjacent elevator suddenly opened, revealing a bald middle-aged man in a suit, looking important. He was accompanied by several male employees and a young female employee in a professional skirt set, with a face full of naive innocence.

The middle-aged man's expression was clearly impatient, while the female employee cowered helplessly, tears welling up in her eyes as she bowed and trotted after him.

"Director Yu, please give me another chance. I beg you. I really can't lose this job. My mother is about to have surgery, and everything, big and small, costs money. I promise I'll work hard to repay you in the future. Please, give me another chance."

The middle-aged man sighed heavily, his face practically screaming 'what a hassle.' His tone was harsh: "You college kids, what do you think this company is? You ask for leave on your first day? If I make an exception for you, everyone will come asking for leave. Then what kind of company are we running? A charity?"

The female employee sobbed, choking out her words: "My grandpa suddenly passed away from a heart attack. I have no choice. Our family situation is special. My grandfather raised me. I can't even go back to see him one last time when he passes away."

The middle-aged man turned and snapped: "Do you think you're the only one with a grandfather? Stop causing a scene. Rules are rules. If you don't like it, go talk to the president or the chairman. Leave now. If you don't, I'll call the police."

As he turned, he happened to spot Nan Liujing and the others.

Shen Gali had been watching the scene unfold. That bald guy looked familiar. After a moment's thought, he remembered—wasn't he the sugar daddy of that little celebrity?

Yu Jinzhu saw them and smiled wide: "President Nan, speak of the devil. I was just talking about you."

Nan Liujing didn't look at him, instead staring at the elevator numbers: "What's with all the noise out here?"

Yu Jinzhu glanced at the still-crying female employee, his tone dismissive: "It's all because of President Nan's decision. You said we needed young blood, so we hired a bunch of brainless, irresponsible college kids. This secretary of mine wants to take leave for a funeral on her first day, and for a whole week. Does she think this is a supermarket she can just come and go as she pleases? How many people are dying for this job? Why should everyone else pick up her slack?"

What he said made sense, especially in a big company like Huanhai, where everyone's duties were significant. If one person took leave, their colleagues would have to share the extra workload.

Yu Jinzhu then looked at Shen Gali and laughed even more smugly: "President Nan really has a thing for college boys, huh? Another one shows up."

A lot of employees were watching, and everyone could see Yu Jinzhu was clearly passing the buck to Nan Liujing. If Nan Liujing was lenient and kept her, he'd be undermining his own rules. If he followed the rules and fired her, he would only earn a reputation as a "slave driver" or "cold-blooded vampire." Either way, he was in a no-win situation.

The female employee, meeting her top boss for the first time, was so scared she even forgot to cry, shrinking like a quail on the side, trembling.

Just then, the elevator arrived.

If Nan Liujing planned to pretend nothing happened and leave, people would still mock him behind his back as a coward, questioning his management ability.

But Nan Liujing still stepped into the elevator.

Only just before the elevator doors closed, they heard him say coldly:

"The company's regulations do not prohibit taking leave, but they also clearly state that new employees are given a half-month preparation period before starting. During that time, they must handle all personal matters, otherwise, they will be terminated according to the rules."

The female employee took a deep breath and closed her eyes in despair.

She had already lost her beloved grandfather. Now only her mother and she were left to rely on each other. If she lost this job and couldn't afford her mother's medical treatment, then this job would truly be meaningless.

"But funerals are force majeure. That said, the company won't hold your spot. We need to find a replacement right away."

As he said this, the elevator doors were about to close.

But Shen Gali felt that Nan Liujing hadn't finished speaking. He reached out and blocked the elevator doors, which reopened.

Nan Liujing spoke softly: "Go deal with your family matters. Once it's all taken care of, send your resume to my personal email."

He said this to the female employee, then looked at Yu Jinzhu. His eyes, hidden behind the sunglasses, were unreadable, but his tone was calm:

"Director Yu, as you said, one person taking leave means others have to pick up the slack. But you and some of the management are barely ever here. Ever think that maybe I'm the one covering for you? With such a heavy workload, having two secretaries is really not enough for me. If you're willing, you can transfer the secretary you just fired to my office. But of course, she needs to resubmit her resume and go through the interview—we'll follow the proper procedures."

He deliberately emphasized the words "proper procedures."

At that moment, Shen Gali withdrew his hand.

As the elevator doors closed, they saw Yu Jinzhu's furious, snarling face and the female employee crying tears of joy while bowing repeatedly.

Yu Jinzhu's cheeks trembled with rage because he heard the murmurs from the surrounding employees watching:

"Wow, I always thought President Nan Liujing was a living devil—I was blind. High EQ and IQ, absolutely brilliant."

"Everyone has emergencies sometimes; it's just bad luck. Following the rules to fire someone while still giving them a chance, and his reasoning was solid. President Nan needs a secretary—I give this move full marks."

"Is that person next to President Nan his husband? He's so adorable, even reaching out to hold the door so President Nan could finish speaking."

"Heh, he wants his husband to see his gentle side. Tsk, President Nan is just an ordinary man too."

In the elevator, Nan Liujing looked at Shen Gali, who was leaning against the wall without any grace, and chuckled softly before turning his face away.

He had always hated meaningless tears. The company wasn’t a place to vent emotions—cry at home if you need to. Whatever the reason, red or white events, sudden situations, if you can’t do the job, you’re useless. A little severance pay to let you go is good for both sides—that had always been his management philosophy.

But after seeing Shen Gali's tears last time, he understood: everyone has emotions, moments they can’t control, and their own difficulties. He finally realized:

Normal, mentally stable people aren’t born that way; they’re in a relaxed, stress-free environment. Throw them into a high-pressure situation, and how many of them would still be normal?

And how many people in this world are like Shen Gali, graduating straight into a big company, protected by his husband, pulling in a million a year without breaking a sweat? Yet he’s not out of touch. He doesn’t think this small matter has nothing to do with him. By reaching out to block the elevator door, he was actually giving Nan Liujing a chance. After all, once the door closed, the world beyond it was none of his concern—he could still go back to his comfortable life. But he chose to listen to the voices of ordinary people—

Chose to be someone with warmth.

After that, no one mentioned the incident again, tacitly understanding.

Nan Liujing handed Shen Gali a stack of documents and told him that was his work for the day—just read until it was time to go home.

Compared to the other secretaries busy liaising with various companies, drafting meeting agendas, he had it really easy.

But not that easy either. Wearing a restrictive suit, staring at incomprehensible financial terms, sitting beside Nan Liujing in silence while the latter’s fingers flew across the keyboard like lightning.

Just as Nan Liujing said, he didn’t need to see anyone—just stay by Nan Liujing’s side like a spoiled canary in a gilded cage.

Yeah, but this canary also had to read documents.

That’s weird. Nan Liujing said he was a personal assistant—since when does a personal assistant need to see confidential company files?

Maybe it’s just human nature to want to learn. After a while, Shen Gali actually started finding the boring documents interesting—they kept feeding him knowledge he didn’t have before.

If only the suit wasn’t so suffocating.

At noon, after the morning’s work ended, Secretary Yan asked if they needed help ordering lunch. Nan Liujing said, “Today, Shen Gali will eat with me in the employee cafeteria.”

Shen Gali said, “I don’t feel like eating. This is fun—let me keep reading.”

Nan Liujing grabbed his hand firmly and said, no room for debate, “Eat.”

Arriving at the cafeteria, there were many employees. Seeing the top boss appear here for the first time, everyone stood up and bowed to greet him.

And in turn, they greeted Shen Gali.

This might’ve been the first time Shen Gali felt genuine warmth from people. When he was in school, classmates always avoided him because of his health problems, treating him like a virus. But these employees were different—they came up warmly to ask what Shen Gali wanted to eat, offered to get him drinks, and cleaned his table.

Shen Gali knew this treatment came from Nan Liujing.

Nan Liujing still had his mask and sunglasses on. He didn’t eat, just sat silently beside Shen Gali, watching him eat.

Strangely enough, Shen Gali didn’t find them annoying. Last time at Shen Lanqing’s birthday party, he had met many people, but he found them annoying—they only asked pointless questions like “Why are you dressed like that?”

But these employees asked him:

“Does the President’s husband usually travel?”

Shen Gali answered honestly, “No, I’m not in great health.”

He regretted it as soon as he said it, afraid they would treat him like a time bomb and avoid him.

But an employee said, “Medical tech is super advanced now. No matter how rare the illness, with regular treatment and a healthy diet, you’ll recover. Then you and President Nan can travel and have a great time.”

“Yes, yes, I recommend South America—Chile, Peru, Bolivia as an itinerary. The scenery is great, really unique. And the five Nordic countries—great time to go now.”

“After the Nordic countries, you could also go to the UK and watch the sunset at Tower Bridge.”

They kept going on and on, leaving Shen Gali completely overwhelmed.

Although the employees of Huanhai Electronics were highly educated and high-caliber, gossip is human nature. In just one morning, the story of Shen Gali holding the door to save an employee’s job spread all over the company. Everyone thought he was different from those arrogant rich socialites. When they saw him in person—his good looks and slow, sincere manner—their affection skyrocketed. They adored him.

In fact, Shen Gali was secretly hoping they would ask him more questions. But Nan Liujing cut in: “Alright, everyone. Lunch break is short. Let my husband finish eating and rest, okay?”

The employees then realized they had overstepped their bounds, quickly got up, and said they wouldn’t disturb.

Shen Gali’s face fell. Nan Liujing, who had been on par with the plunger, dropped below it again.

Seeing the employees leave, Nan Liujing let out a relieved sigh. Finally, after the whole morning, he got a chance to talk to Shen Gali.

Noticing the leftover green peppers in his tray, Nan Liujing asked, “Are you like Shin-chan? You don’t eat green peppers either?”

Shen Gali: “Mm-hmm.”

He didn’t force Shen Gali to eat them. Instead, he said, “Tomorrow I’ll tell the cafeteria not to make green peppers.”

“Hmm.”

“Besides ‘hmm,’ don’t you plan to say thank you?”

“Why should I say thank you? I didn’t ask you to.”

“Hmm, right. Then how about green pepper stuffed with meat is tastier than green pepper shredded meat, and stir-fried green pepper is tastier than green pepper stuffed with meat. Green pepper juice...”

Shen Gali interrupted him: “Thank you.”

A smug smile curled the corner of Nan Liujing’s lips. “Can’t I deal with you?”

As they were eating, a commotion suddenly broke out at the entrance.

The crowd looked curiously. Several police officers entered, scanned the room, and then walked straight to Shen Gali.

The sudden scene shocked everyone. They stopped eating and turned to watch.

The leading officer pulled out his badge and said in a serious tone, “Hello, Mr. Shen. We are from the Special Investigation Division of the Criminal Investigation Bureau. Regarding two recent personal injury cases, we hope you can come with us to the bureau to be questioned.”

The officer’s voice was loud and clear, echoing through the large cafeteria.

Upon hearing this, everyone immediately understood it was the recent case of a male college student being knocked unconscious, stripped, and tied to a pillar. Regardless of the truth, the police coming to Shen Gali and asking him to cooperate with the investigation made things subtle.

The once noisy cafeteria fell into dead silence. Some employees even imagined Shen Gali knocking someone unconscious and stripping them.

But others thought it must be a misunderstanding, that Shen Gali was just being questioned—anyone here could be, which was understandable.

Shen Gali knew about this case. It was only last night.

He certainly didn't want to go, finding the ill-intentioned questioning annoying, but he was sensible enough—at least he wouldn't obstruct law enforcement.

In that moment, his mind was racing—what if the real culprit wasn't caught, and the authorities, to appease public sentiment, pinned it on a scapegoat with a bad reputation, leaving him unable to clear his name.

After that, he'd be stuck in the precinct operating a sewing machine to make those Paradise umbrellas, enduring political education, and waking up early every day.

His mood soured.

Nan Liujing, however, found it utterly absurd. Even if it was just routine questioning, it was still absurd—how did Shen Gali get tied up in this? He stays home 24/7; how could he possibly be involved? It was baffling.

He could have gone full CEO—roaring at the cops to get lost, leveraging his wealth and connections to overhaul the entire bureau, so Shen Gali wouldn’t even have to go to the station and could just eat in peace.

If he wanted, the employees wouldn't dare gossip behind his back; he could shut down the rumors at the source.

But he chose to trust law enforcement and protect their credibility.

"We'll go right now. I want to accompany my partner, and I insist the final investigation results be published on the website."

Only the police’s findings carried real weight.

As they stepped out, they ran into Yu Jinzhu returning from lunch. Seeing Shen Gali flanked by cops, he grinned.

Playing the fox, he asked with fake concern: "What's this? Everything was fine this morning, and now you've brought the police?"

No one acknowledged him, not even the cops.

Bored with the silence, Yu Jinzhu called a reporter he knew: "Criminal Investigation Bureau, Shen Gali—you've got a hot tip!"

Hell yeah! Let’s see how Nan Liujing keeps acting high and mighty now. You embarrassed me in public and made me a laughingstock, huh? We’ll see who ends up the bigger laughingstock.

#ShenGaliTakenByPolice#

#ShenGaliClothesRippingCase#

Shen Gali was still on his way to the police station, but he was already all over the trending topics.

Netizens were diving into the gossip, going at it online.

"I heard both victims sent Shen Gali scary pictures in their DMs. Only Shen Gali himself knew about it. Read between the lines."

"If you ask me, neither of them are saints—one sends scary pics, the other retaliates with humiliation. Dogs biting dogs."

"No official result yet, and you're already slapping a criminal suspect tag on Shen Gali."

"What, is the person above questioning the credibility of law enforcement?"

"Don’t twist my words. Is it that hard to wait for a result? Watch your mouth, you know? Use your brain next time you go online."

"Come on, is anyone actually changing their opinion of SJL over a sad frog? His old dirt is still out there. I wouldn't be surprised if he did this. When's the court date for this criminal? I want to sit in."

"Don't celebrate too soon. With Huanhai Electronics' money, springing him is a piece of cake, right?"

"OMG. He’s only being questioned, not convicted yet. Mindless netizens are already conjuring up enemies out of thin air."

"Wait for the result, okay? Can't you all hold your horses? You're so impatient."

"Fine, fine, wait for the result. Waiting for them to be proven wrong."

Entertainment reporters, always looking for drama, released a few more photos, claiming they caught Shen Gali going in and out of Bai Wei’s place last night. Combined with Shen Gali snatching the endorsement, the story got even spicier.

"Gross! I’m gonna throw up. Does Shen Gali have no shame? A woman in her forties, seriously?"

"Are they feeding us sh*t in broad daylight? So that’s why Shen Gali wormed his way into showbiz—Bai Wei's backing him, a shameless cradle robber."

"I'm heartbroken. I really liked Bai Wei..."

"I bet Bai Wei is in on it too. Her little lover gets insulted, so the big sister comes to teach a lesson. Birds of a feather flock together..."

"Got it. SJL wants to break into entertainment, clings to Bai Wei's coattails. The twenty-year age gap almost makes them seem like mother and son, which triggers Bai Wei's maternal instincts. Someone insults SJL, Bai Wei can't stand it and hires thugs to get revenge."

Soon, another trending topic appeared:

#ShenGaliBaiWeiSecretRelationship#

Nan Feng was playing golf with some friends when his secretary called, saying Shen Gali was trending. He hurriedly checked his phone and panicked, telling his secretary to prepare money for bail.

Yu Huaisu grabbed him: "Are you crazy? Bailing him out in the middle of a storm? If my daughter-in-law really did it, he deserves legal punishment. Making a move like this will only ruin our Huanhai Group's reputation. Don't panic. Let me dig deeper."

Nan Feng clutched his head in pain: "Impossible. Li Li isn't like that. I'm just worried about him. What if they force a confession? Li Li can't take hardship. If he goes in, I'll be heartbroken!"

Yu Huaisu rolled her eyes.

Pathetic. That useless old man. She'd rather let Shen Gali rot in jail and let the old man die of heartbreak, then she could smoothly take over the chairman position.

The rumors kept escalating, becoming more and more absurd. Netizens, bored with their daily lives, needed topics like this for entertainment. Truth? Facts? Who cares? They only believe what they want to believe.

Now, Shen Gali was completely labeled as a scumbag who kept an older woman as a lover and retaliated with crimes.

Despite many rational voices urging calm and waiting for results, they were quickly drowned out by malicious ones.

Meanwhile, Bai Wei was filming in another city when her assistant came crying with her phone.

She calmly read through all the trending topics and comments, expressionless no matter how harsh the remarks.

After reading, she greeted the director and told her assistant: "Pack up. Leak to reporters that I'm returning to Jinhai now and arriving at five o'clock sharp."

*

At the Jinhai City Criminal Investigation Bureau.

Nan Liujing gently stroked Shen Gali's back: "It's okay. I'll be waiting outside. Just say what you know. Don't admit to anything you haven't done."

He reasonably suspected that Shen Gali, with his aversion to trouble, might fall into the police's interrogation trap. The case was causing public panic, and if they couldn't catch the real culprit, they might scapegoat someone to close the case quickly.

He wasn't questioning the police per se, but in his high position, he'd seen this happen many times.

Shen Gali sat in the interrogation room, the narrow table and stiff suit constraining him.

The police first gave a simple case statement, then asked where he was at the time of the incidents.

Shen Gali: "At the Changteng Entertainment studio and in a ride-hailing car."

"For the second incident at midnight last night, you took a ride-hailing car from WD Mansion to Jinhai University, departing at 11:30 PM. According to the ride-hailing records, you arrived at Jinhai University at 11:45 PM, right near the crime scene. May I ask why you went there since the university gates close and lights go out at 11 PM?"

Shen Gali succinctly: "Going home."

"Do you live at Jinhai University?"

"Nearby."

"Then why not go straight home?"

Shen Gali sighed: "I can't remember my home address, so I walk back when I'm near the university."

The police couldn't believe it: as an adult with normal intelligence, how could he not remember his home address? It seemed suspicious—maybe a lie.

Okay, even if he wasn't lying, the investigation into the victims' social circles showed that only Shen Gali had a grudge against them. Although Shen Gali appeared thin and had a history of heart disease, that didn't mean he couldn't have hired someone to commit murder.

"You've seen the scary pictures sent to you by the two victims, right?"

Shen Gali didn't know what "scary pictures" he was talking about: "I haven't seen them."

"We've checked your Weibo direct messages; you indeed saw their messages. If you hadn't, there would be a red notification dot."

Shen Gali reiterated: "I haven't seen them. I'm too lazy—I never read or reply to messages, it's too much hassle."

The police officer looked down at his other apps and indeed, each app had over a thousand unread red notification badges, and his phone didn't even have a passcode lock.

Could it be someone close to him?

His husband couldn't be the one; he had been in a wheelchair for over ten years, and a large conglomerate wouldn't resort to such underhanded tactics to handle this—they could make someone kneel and apologize in an instant.

And there were too many people who had close contact with him and could get his phone: the youngest son of the Shen Group, the heiress of a media company, the British guy from the Rosander Family, and so on. Any of them could be responsible.

Of course, it could also be one of Shen Gali's fans; after all, although he wasn't a celebrity, his fan base was not to be underestimated. The suspects weren't necessarily the ones who'd seen his DMs—these two "victims" had made a lot of reckless comments online, and many people were watching them.

Based on statements from the ride-share company and Changteng Entertainment, Shen Gali's timeline of activities did not match the time of the incident at all, confirming that he indeed had nothing to do with it. The police planned to keep his phone for further investigation into other possibilities.

Finally, the officers thanked Shen Gali, expressed their appreciation for his cooperation, and respectfully escorted him out of the interrogation room.