Chapter 155: I'm Sorry!

It is quite difficult to imagine what a news anchor, usually so dignified, elegant, and poised on television, looks like when her eyes are wide open with fury, her cheeks puffed up in anger, and every single hair on her body stands on end.

Yet Wang Zheng could not only imagine it, but he could actually see it right before his eyes. Could this be considered a stroke of luck? It certainly should be, at least as far as Wang Zheng felt, and he considered himself both fortunate and deeply honored.

"Famous Jinghua news anchor Zhang Qianqian caught speeding at midnight, intercepted by traffic police, fined, and subjected to traffic safety education. Let's make this the lead story for tomorrow's news broadcast; I bet the ratings will soar!" Wang Zheng declared with a provocative look at Zhang Qianqian standing before him, then pulled Liao Tong close and asked intimately, "Don't you agree?"

"Let's go with that then!" Liao Tong replied with a straight face, playing along perfectly with Wang Zheng. But as soon as the words left her mouth, a smile broke across her face. "Stop teasing her, isn't all of this because of you?" With that, Liao Tong gently nudged Wang Zheng out of the news department area, stopping only when they reached her private office. She planted a soft kiss on his cheek and whispered, "Give me ten minutes, I'll be right back."

"Okay!" Wang Zheng agreed. In his mind, the image of Zhang Qianqian's angry expression from moments ago still lingered—it really was quite a pleasing sight. Wang Zheng walked over to Liao Tong's desk and sat down. The desk and chair felt so nostalgic, and looking at them brought a sense of familiarity, especially since this place held the lingering traces of the love shared between him and Liao Tong...!

Ah, he truly wished they could experience that again!

Temporarily with nothing to do, Wang Zheng turned on the computer and browsed through online gossip. Yesterday, so-and-so accompanied so-and-so for dinner; today, so-and-so took photos of so-and-so; another so-called expert failed to focus on proper academic research and popped up only to get heavily criticized by the public... The entire internet seemed flooded with such trivial news, making Wang Zheng instantly lose his appetite.

Fortunately, time flew by, and the ten minutes passed in the blink of an eye. Liao Tong returned to the office.

"Alright, I'm ready to leave work!"

"Leaving so early? Will that be alright?" Wang Zheng asked, looking up as he shut down the computer. As far as he knew, before he and Liao Tong became intimate, she used to work until nine o'clock every night, or even later, before leaving the television station. Now, however, she was leaving earlier day by day.

Knowing what Wang Zheng was getting at, Liao Tong replied, "It's fine. Before, I stayed late because I was alone. Now that I have you, of course I don't need to work overtime anymore!"

Hearing this, Wang Zheng said nothing more. Leaving the station a bit early was fine too; after all, the two of them still had many things to discuss, and the television station wasn't a convenient place for that.

When Wang Zheng and Liao Tong reached the parking lot, the red Accord from earlier was nowhere to be seen. Wang Zheng smiled inwardly—it seemed Zhang Qianqian had learned her lesson. Moreover, over the course of the day, she must have learned from her colleagues about the relationship between Wang Zheng and Liao Tong, and was no longer as curious as she had been the day before.

The car slowly rolled out of the parking lot and left the television station. It was at this moment that Liao Tong finally brought up the question that had been weighing heavily on her mind, her expression turning serious.

"How is it? Did they catch that person?"

"No, the culprit is extremely cunning!" Wang Zheng shook his head. Hearing this, Liao Tong's expression shifted, looking rather nervous. Wang Zheng reached out and tightly grasped her hand in a gesture of comfort. Then, with a reassuring smile, he said, "Although they haven't been caught yet, one thing I can be certain of is that this person lives in the same building as you—perhaps right above or below you. So for the next few nights, I will likely stay at your place. I won't leave until you receive their next instruction. This... is primarily for your safety; it's better to be safe than sorry. Besides, I need a few things, and I've already sent someone to prepare them. It should take about a day. You don't need to worry or be nervous. Just act as you normally would. You trust me, don't you?"

Liao Tong nodded upon hearing this, gripping Wang Zheng's hand tightly as she said with deep emotion, "I trust you!"

At this moment, Liao Tong had entirely surrendered herself to Wang Zheng. Perhaps her initial approach to him carried a certain agenda, but as Wang Zheng repeatedly stimulated her senses, brought her thrills, spoke deeply moving words on the rooftop, and shared these past few days of cohabitation, that purposeful approach had gradually transformed into genuine love. She knew Wang Zheng was doing this for her safety, and she was willing to entrust her entire self to him. She trusted Wang Zheng—she had never trusted a man this deeply before! Being by his side was the safest place; his embrace was the warmest refuge. She had no idea what would become of her life if Wang Zheng were to disappear one day; perhaps it would feel as though the sky were falling. Liao Tong could no longer leave Wang Zheng, just as a fish could not live without water!

As for Wang Zheng's attitude toward Liao Tong, fondness was a given, but as for love... if ten points represented a full score, Wang Zheng probably held about five points of love for her, and this affection would gradually deepen with time. Wang Zheng's initial approach to Liao Tong had also carried a purpose. How should he put it? The bitter sea has no bounds, turn back and the shore is at hand! Putting it that way sounded a bit too severe, but it could be seen as a form of guidance for her. During the process of offering this guidance, Wang Zheng, who already held a very favorable impression of her, saw his fondness transform into love as things progressed step by step. However, under the current circumstances, it was not yet enough for Wang Zheng to love her with his entire being. Five points of it were love, and the other five points stemmed from a desire to protect her; Wang Zheng did not wish for the first woman who came into his life after returning to the country to die before his eyes. Furthermore, he had promised to protect her, and that was a promise a man must keep.

He drove Liao Tong on a detour around the city before heading home. Originally, Wang Zheng had planned to take Liao Tong out for a stroll; after all, her status as a public figure meant she hadn't been able to shop like a normal woman for a long time. In the past, she had been lonely, but now she had found something to lean on and discovered her own happiness. However, Liao Tong seemed much more eager to get home as quickly as possible. If she had been seeking excitement earlier, now she seemed to crave tenderness and warmth even more.

That night, Liao Tong curled up entirely within Wang Zheng's embrace, wrapping her arms tightly around him as if she wanted to melt herself into his very body. Wang Zheng held her slender waist with one arm while gently stroking her long hair with the other. He knew what was running through Liao Tong's mind; at this moment, she needed a warm embrace above all else, and that was something he could provide.

Early the next morning, the very first thing Liao Tong did upon waking was to open the front door and check if there was an envelope outside. When she saw that there was nothing there, a wave of relief washed over her. Last night, Wang Zheng had offered his entire chest to her and used every possible means to soothe her anxiety, and in the end, it had worked to some extent—at least Liao Tong was no longer as burdened with worries as she had been the day before, even if she still retained a trace of nervousness.

Yet this vulnerable expression seemed reserved exclusively for Wang Zheng; the moment she stepped out the door, Liao Tong reverted to being that mature, steady, dignified, and elegant woman. This made Wang Zheng realize that his earlier worries had been completely unnecessary.

He dropped Liao Tong off at the television station, met up with Su Xue—who had arrived early—for a brief tactical meeting, and then left for his own company.

By pure coincidence, today Wang Zheng ran straight into the young courier responsible for delivering the red roses. The blazing red bouquet was already sitting inside Lin Xiaolei's office, a sight Wang Zheng had long grown accustomed to. He knew Zhang Fan stood no chance, and sending roses was now the only way he could manage to attract Lin Xiaolei's attention. Before Lin Xiaolei arrived, Wang Zheng instructed the courier to move the flowers down to the lobby reception desk under the guise of upper management; the reception area also handled incoming packages and deliveries.

A thousand red roses decorated the lobby of the Yong'an Building, making it look exceptionally festive. If they were to hang up a few red silk banners, roll out a red carpet, and paste up some double-happiness characters, it would be virtually indistinguishable from a wedding venue.

Having delegated the flower-handling task to the familiar receptionists downstairs, Wang Zheng finally returned to the office. As soon as he stepped inside, the first thing that caught his eye was Bai Bing's aggrieved expression, her bloodshot eyes, and dark circles that left her face looking rather pale, devoid of its usual energy and vitality!

"You didn't go home last night!" Bai Bing stood up from her chair, looking at Wang Zheng with a gaze that carried an indescribable resentment, resembling an abandoned woman waiting in deep seclusion!

"Yeah, so what?" Wang Zheng replied with complete indifference, walking over to his desk and taking a seat.

"I waited for you all night!"

"Is that so? Hehe, then you really had a hard time!" Wang Zheng gave a cold, dry laugh. No wonder her eyes were bloodshot and she had panda eyes; it seemed she hadn't slept a single wink. He might have casually dropped those words the previous night just to brush her off, but given his frame of mind back then, did she really think he would go home? He hadn't expected Bai Bing to take him seriously and wait the entire night—wasn't she a textbook fool? He wondered if that kind of foolishness was contagious.

Hearing this, Bai Bing's eyes seemed to shimmer with unshed tears. She bit her lower lip, stared at Wang Zheng, and asked, "Do you have time right now? I want to talk to you!"

Still hasn't given up? Everything Wang Zheng had done clearly signaled that he had nothing to say to her, yet Bai Bing persisted. What was there to talk about? Weren't you tired? What was even left to discuss? Where was this persistence before?

Wang Zheng turned on the computer. While it booted up, he casually poked his ear with a finger and said, "This computer takes twenty seconds to start up. Five seconds have already passed, leaving you with fifteen seconds. Talk!"

Faced with Wang Zheng's harsh and cutting words, Bai Bing walked up to his desk, her tear-reddened eyes fixed on him. Her tender lips had been bitten raw at some point, and a trickle of blood had run down to the corner of her mouth.

"Ten seconds left!" Wang Zheng announced loudly, treating the countdown like the launch of a rocket. "Ten... nine..."

Wang Zheng counted down second by second, yet Bai Bing still remained silent. As the seconds ticked away, the time left for her grew increasingly scarce. Wang Zheng maintained his cold expression, turning a blind eye to Bai Bing's pitiful and aggrieved look, relentlessly continuing his merciless countdown.

"I'm sorry!"