Chapter 1644
The next day, early in the morning.
While Dong Xuebing in the west room was still half-asleep, he heard someone brus.h.i.+ng their teeth outside. Snore, snore, snore, snore. He woke up.
"Sister Su."
"Mmm."
"Ah, you"re up so early."
"Yeah, I have to leave."
"Is there a car to the TV station? Otherwise, I can drive you."
"No need. You also have to go to work. I"ll take a taxi."
After exchanging a few words with the person outside, Dong Xuebing rubbed his eyes and yawned as he got out of bed. After quickly getting dressed, he washed his face with cold water, instantly feeling more awake. Seeing the north room door open, he guessed that Sister Su had returned to tidy up, so he started to freshen up himself.
Around seven o"clock.
He was also ready to leave. After being late so many times, Dong Xuebing felt embarra.s.sed to arrive at the office late again. Today, he decided to go a bit earlier.
"Xiao Bing." Suddenly, Su Jia"s voice came from inside the room.
"I"m here." Dong Xuebing put down his toothbrush. "What"s up, Sister Su?"
The woman inside the room said, "Does your house have any small pliers or something?"
"Huh?" Dong Xuebing was puzzled. It seems like we do, but I"m not sure. I"ve only been here for a few days; I"ll have to look for them. What do you need pliers for?"
Su Jia paused for a moment. "My clothes are broken."
"Clothes?" Dong Xuebing was curious. "If a b.u.t.ton falls off, you can use a needle and thread. Where would you need pliers? Can they even hold b.u.t.tons?"
Su Jia sighed helplessly. "It"s for my bra."
Dong Xuebing felt a bit awkward. "Oh, the clasp is broken?"
Su Jia responded, "Just now, while I was folding the quilt, I bent over, and it snapped. Can you find some pliers? I didn"t bring any other clothes; my luggage is still at your villa. I can"t just go out like this; it would be embarra.s.sing. Today is also an interview at CCTV, which is quite important."
"Is it difficult to fix?" Dong Xuebing asked. "Otherwise, I can go out and buy you a new set. But it"s early morning, and the shops aren"t open yet. Alright, I"ll find the pliers, don"t worry." Dong Xuebing went to the east room to search but found nothing. Finally, he went to the kitchen in the south room and found pliers and other tools in a cabinet underneath. He brought the toolbox to the north room.
Inside the room, Su Jia struggled with the clasp of a blue bra. The metal ring of the back clasp seemed bent and crooked, making it impossible to fasten.
"I"ve brought them." Dong Xuebing"s face reddened as he handed the tools to her.
Su Jia"s expression wasn"t too natural either. "Okay, give them to me."
After Dong Xuebing handed her the tools, he pretended to go out to pour some tea, avoiding the awkwardness. But Su Jia seemed somewhat clumsy with her hands, maybe because she was used to being pampered. After several minutes of Dong Xuebing pouring the tea and returning, she still struggled with the bed clasp. Her handling of the pliers seemed unfamiliar, giving the impression of being clumsy.
Su Jia was becoming impatient. "This d.a.m.n thing."
Dong Xuebing blinked. "Do you want me to try?"
Su Jia looked up at him. "It"s pretty damaged. Can you handle it?"
"I"ll give it a try." Dong Xuebing didn"t know if he could fix it, but he knew he couldn"t let Su Jia go to CCTV with her bra broken.
Su Jia hesitated for a moment. "Alright, you can try." She handed him the bra and the pliers, looking a bit embarra.s.sed.
"Let me handle it." Dong Xuebing"s face felt hot the whole time. After all, it was a woman"s intimate garment, and it felt a bit awkward. Dong Xuebing held Su Jia"s bra, and he could feel its warmth. It had been taken off not long ago, still warm, and occasionally, a hint of a woman"s fragrance would waft into his nose, softening his gaze. The scent was pleasant.
One clasp snapped.
A squeeze with the pliers.
A final twist.
In just a few seconds, Dong Xuebing fixed it. After securing the two clasps, he gently tugged at them, and they didn"t come loose. Okay.
Su Jia smiled. "You"re quite skilled."
Dong Xuebing smiled bitterly but couldn"t help showing off a bit. "You know, our family wasn"t wealthy before. I"ve repaired our TV and air conditioner. This is nothing. It"s just that a bit of wire came out; it"s done after tucking it back in. You can try it."
Su Jia nodded, looking at him.
Dong Xuebing suddenly realized, "I"ll go out."
As he was leaving, Dong Xuebing couldn"t help but glance at her bra, which was now empty. Although the sweater looked thin and didn"t seem much different from yesterday, the psychological feeling was different because he knew it was bare inside.
A few minutes pa.s.sed.
Su Jia came out of the north room. "All set, thank you."
Dong Xuebing smiled. "You"re welcome. Let me send you."
Su Jia waved her hand. "Go to work. It"s quite a distance to the office."
Calculating the time, there would be traffic at this hour. If Dong Xuebing sent her, he would probably be late for work again, so he didn"t insist. "Alright, then. Let"s stay in touch."
Su Jia smiled. "I"ll live in Beijing more often now, so we"ll surely meet again."
Dong Xuebing escorted Su Jia out, hailed a taxi by the roadside, and watched her leave before returning to the courtyard to collect his things, lock the door, and drive out of the alley in his Land Rover. He hadn"t driven this car for a long time, but it seemed that Su Jia had washed it yesterday when she arrived. Now, it looked particularly s.h.i.+ny and beautiful. Holding the steering wheel of the Land Rover, Dong Xuebing felt extremely relieved. That old Xiali had caused him trouble. The brakes were sluggish, the throttle was obstructed, the suspension was poor, and it squeaked constantly. It even scratched people"s clothes with its seats. It was just unbearable. His own Land Rover was much better; it had top-notch configurations in all aspects.
It had been a long time since he had experienced this driving pleasure. Dong Xuebing saw it was still early, so he took a detour and drove for half an hour before arriving at the office compound.
It was almost nine o"clock.
The government offices were about to start working.
Dong Xuebing had been driving leisurely, even humming a tune along the way. However, when the car was still far away, he suddenly saw a car not far away, the Audi A4 he had just crashed into yesterday. The license plate belonged to Yang Zhen. Perhaps the parts hadn"t arrived yet, so Yang Zhen drove the car today instead of leaving it at the 4S shop for repairs. Therefore, Dong Xuebing recognized it at a glance.
What a coincidence.
Reencountering him.
He was about to drive into the office compound because Yang Zhen hadn"t noticed him. Dong Xuebing"s eyes narrowed, and he stepped on the accelerator.
Whoosh.
The engine roared.
Dong Xuebing drove his Land Rover and rushed out. Although the Audi was almost at the gate, its performance couldn"t compare to this fully equipped Land Rover. The price difference was more than ten times. Dong Xuebing even intentionally stepped up, finding a shortcut and accelerating.
Ten meters.
Fifty meters.
Yang Zhen finally noticed a Land Rover trying to squeeze into the compound with him and was startled. He cursed and stepped on the gas pedal.
Dong Xuebing didn"t release the accelerator; he just kept going forward without blinking.
The two cars would collide at the gate if they continued like this. But when it came to courage, Dong Xuebing had never been afraid of anyone.
Sure enough, Yang Zhen was also intimidated by the Land Rover"s momentum. Upon closer inspection, this was a top-of-the-line Land Rover worth four million, much more expensive than his car. The psychological pressure softened, and with a screech, he stepped on the brakes and retreated.
Dong Xuebing couldn"t help but swagger past, driving straight into the compound.
Many people were watching, unable to help but point and talk about the Land Rover.
"Whose car is that?"
"I don"t know, I"ve never seen it before."
"Why is he driving so recklessly?"
"Yeah, isn"t he just forcing his way through?"
But Dong Xuebing was completely oblivious. Yang Zhen had s.n.a.t.c.hed his road with his Audi yesterday. It was only fair for Dong Xuebing to retaliate. Despite having already given Yang Zhen a hard time yesterday, cras.h.i.+ng into his car and even hitting him, Dong Xuebing was a vengeful rascal sometimes. How could he let others bully him without retaliating? His way of thinking differed from others, leading to today"s scene.
Yang Zhen rolled down his window and yelled, "What are you doing?"
When Dong Xuebing stopped the car, he turned his head and poked his head out. "Who are you talking to? This is just how I drive. What"s wrong?" He added a few more words in his mind: "You b.a.s.t.a.r.d."
"Huh?"
"Director Dong!"
"Isn"t that Dong Xuebing from the Second Office?"
Everyone suddenly realized, shocked.
Yang Zhen was also stunned, never expecting it to be him. He became even more annoyed. "Can"t you drive properly?"
Dong Xuebing sneered. "I really can"t. Can you teach me how to drive?"
Yang Zhen and Dong Xuebing argued for a while before Dong Xuebing drove away in the Land Rover, feeling even better. This guy couldn"t go a day without causing trouble; it was just his nature. If it were someone else, after humiliating Yang Zhen yesterday, they would have been low-key today after winning. The victor was always magnanimous. But Dong Xuebing"s way of doing things was incomprehensible to everyone else. He acted according to his nature most of the time.
Yang Zhen was furious.
Others looked at each other, never having seen such a discipline inspection official. He won yesterday, yet today, he still had to disgust people to death.
Sweat.
They were in awe of Dong Xuebing.
"By the way, that car is a Land Rover, right?"
"Not just any Land Rover, it"s a Range Rover, the top model."
"Yeah, I remember seeing it before. This car is worth at least four million."
"What? That expensive? Wasn"t Director Dong driving a Xiali before?"
"Who knows, maybe he got a bit low-key after taking office and got himself a Xiali."
"A four million RMB car? Even our Discipline Inspection Secretary doesn"t drive such an expensive car. Director Dong from the Second Office is really rich."