Du Haoqi hesitated for a while. Could Lu Chen have already told her sister something? So quickly? Thinking this, a hint of resentment suddenly welled up inside her. She still answered the phone.
Lingling spoke on the other end, her tone cheerful.
"Sister, will you come home for dinner tonight? I just called Brother Chen and asked him to come over and make us some porridge. He agreed. I'd like the three of us to have dinner together."
"Just now?" Du Haoqi was startled. "When was 'just now'?"
Only then did she realize how unpleasant her voice was, extremely hoarse, as if something was stuck in her throat and nostrils.
Lingling heard her too. "Sister, what's wrong? Why does your voice sound like that?"
Du Haoqi quickly coughed twice. "Nothing, just a bit of a cold. Tell me, when was 'just now'?"
She spoke with a hint of nervousness.
Lingling calculated for a moment and said, "Just now, a few minutes ago, I called Brother Chen, and he agreed to call you right away."
Needless to say, Du Haoqi was stunned. A few minutes ago? At this time, Lu Chen should be in the middle of a terrible ordeal. How could he have the mood to agree to make porridge for Lingling? And why didn't he tell her what happened earlier?
She asked anxiously, "Didn't Lu Chen say anything else?"
Lingling was puzzled: "Something else? What else?"
Du Haoqi quickly composed herself and said quietly, "Nothing...nothing else. Okay, I'll go home tonight."
Lingling nodded in satisfaction: "Good, then I don't need to call Brother Chen again to tell him not to make you work overtime. Oh, by the way, do you want me to ask Brother Chen to drive you home? Or you can just tell him I asked him to drive you."
Her words conveyed a message that Lu Chen listened to her.
Du Haoqi smiled bitterly to herself. If only Ouyang Bihua hadn't caused this trouble. Seeing how close Lu Chen and her sister were made her happy. At least her sister seemed much more cheerful.
She said, "No need, I'll go back by myself, maybe a little late."
After hanging up, Du Haoqi was stunned for a moment. Suddenly, her phone rang again. This time, it was a second-level assistant from the Vitality Dragon Liquid project team.
The assistant asked urgently on the other end of the line, "Dr. Du, where are you? How's Director Lu's taste of our upgraded Golden Vitality Dragon Liquid? If the effects are suitable, we'll issue the production report. Everyone's waiting!"
Du Haoqi couldn't help but be a little surprised. At a time like this, she still had time to think about Vitality Dragon Liquid?
She cleared her throat, reverting to her usual demeanor, and said coldly, "Why the rush? I'm not feeling well right now and am resting in my dorm. If you have anything to say, just report it to Dr. Ouyang."
There was a moment of silence on the other end, followed by a bitter laugh: "Dr. Du, so...you didn't attend that management meeting earlier?"
This management meeting was the one Shangguan Bei had convened earlier, the one that had ousted Ouyang Bihua.
Du Haoqi was a supervisor and was supposed to attend, but she was exhausted and had gone back to her dorm to rest, so she didn't even know about the meeting. Hearing this, she was not only more surprised but also a little impatient: "What happened?"
The voice on the other end sounded timid: "At that meeting, Dr. Ouyang made a serious mistake and was fired by the general manager. And...and immediately, he's no longer with the company."
"What?" Du Haoqi couldn't believe her ears.
What on earth happened?
The second-level assistant was just a low-level manager and wasn't qualified to attend the meeting, and the meeting's content had been censored. Therefore, no one outside knew that Du Haoqi had been used by Ouyang Bihua to frame Lu Chen. Even the serious mistake Ouyang Bihua had made was only speculated upon by his subordinates, possibly related to embezzlement.
In fact, as a pharmaceutical research company, Feiying Biotechnology had always maintained excellent confidentiality. Every employee was well aware of the legal consequences of leaking information. Extending this further, Shangguan Bei had sternly demanded that this matter not be leaked at all after the meeting, so no one dared to mention it; the confidentiality was excellent.
Therefore, the second-level assistant's explanation was very vague.
However, Du Haoqi at least knew one thing: Lu Chen was fine, completely unharmed! As for Ouyang Bihua, his time at Feiying Biotechnology had ended; he had left without even packing his bags.
After hanging up the phone, Du Haoqi immediately dialed Ouyang Bihua's mobile phone. However, she couldn't get through. Finally, she received a very brief text message: "Stay at Feiying Biotechnology, wait for me to contact you."
Du Haoqi dejectedly put down her phone.
She gritted her teeth, washed her face with cold water, and tidied herself up for a while. Then, mustering unprecedented courage, she went to Lu Chen's office, determined to find out the tasting results of the upgraded Golden Dragon Elixir sample. Furthermore, she needed to understand what was going on.
It was ironic, really. Just over an hour ago, she'd been thoroughly "bullied" by that man, and now she had to consult him about work. To Du Haoqi's disappointment, but also relief, Lu Chen wasn't in his office.
Only a director's assistant was there.
The director's assistant said that Director Lu had gone to talk to the young lady, and then gave Du Haoqi a document.
This document, personally drafted by Lu Chen and bearing Shangguan Bei's signature, proved that the upgraded Golden Dragon Elixir had met the standards, and production could begin once all the formalities were completed.
The assistant director added, "Miss and Director Lu have passed a resolution: after Ouyang Bihua's departure, you will temporarily act as the team leader of the Vital Dragon Liquid project. Dr. Du, do your best!"
This likely meant a promotion soon, but Du Haoqi felt no excitement, only surprise.
Why was Ouyang Bihua expelled, while she remained unscathed?
Returning to the research hall with the document, the Vital Dragon Liquid project team members had already heard the news and were all calling her Team Leader Du. Several supervisors and managers looked at her strangely, making her extremely uncomfortable.
Finally, Du Haoqi found a female lab technician with whom she had the best relationship and who was qualified to attend the meeting. After some questioning, the lab technician, seeing that she was the person involved, reluctantly told her the truth.
Knowing all this, Du Haoqi felt as if she had fallen into an ice cave.
So that's how it was. Shangguan Bei had already dug a huge pit for Ouyang Bihua, but due to various concerns, she hadn't let him fall in. And Ouyang Bihua, by framing Lu Chen, had willingly jumped into that pit. "Miss's scheming is indeed extraordinary! And her feelings for Lu Chen are far deeper than Ouyang Bihua imagined.
Because I'm just a tool being manipulated, they're not doing anything to me?
Du Haoqi smiled bitterly. How could that be? Lu Chen must be keeping me here."
Thinking about it, Du Haoqi didn't know whether to feel relieved or uneasy. Of course, she knew Lu Chen's intentions towards her; he always looked at her with lustful eyes. Who knew what he was planning to do by keeping her here?
However, Du Haoqi quickly realized that she didn't seem to feel any aversion to this kind of thing, a kind of "whatever" attitude. Could it be because… she'd already been with him anyway?
Du Haoqi was, after all, Du Haoqi, an ice queen with a strong mind, and quickly threw herself into her work.
Meanwhile, in Shangguan Bei's office, her conversation with Lu Chen was taking place in a slightly unusual way.
Lu Chen lay sprawled on the carpeted floor, limbs outstretched, while Shangguan Bei, barefoot and with her snow-white feet, massaged his broad back, occasionally pressing acupoints with her toes.
Lu Chen hummed contentedly.
"My concern now is that if Ouyang Bihua is malicious, he'll definitely record some of the project data he's in charge of. If he uses that data to start his own business or join another biotech company, our losses will be significant," Lu Chen said with a hint of worry, enjoying Shangguan Bei's back massage.
Shangguan Bei sighed softly, "This is one of the reasons why I don't easily touch him, even though he embezzled so much money from the company. Although only I know the core data of any project he controls, including the 'Living Dragon Liquid,' he's very clever. He can do quite a lot with that data."
Lu Chen nodded slightly, "Although there's a confidentiality agreement in the contract, it's illegal if he uses this data to give to other companies or invest in production himself. However, this constraint is too weak. If he changes his identity, it's difficult for us to catch him. And this guy will most likely do that."
Shangguan Bei gently squatted down, then stretched out her body, leaning against Lu Chen's back with irresistible charm. She said, "During this time, I'll have someone monitor Du Haoqi. I suspect Ouyang Bihua still has some things he hasn't taken from the company, and he'll let Du Haoqi take them. So, we have to keep an eye on her."
"I understand," Lu Chen nodded.
After a slight hesitation, Shangguan Bei said, "Actually, I'm worried about something else."
Lu Chen said, "You're worried that Du Haoqi will be called away by Ouyang Bihua. After all, she's a rare talent in our company. I also know that Ouyang Bihua's great achievements are inseparable from Du Haoqi's hard work. That silly woman, Du Haoqi, gives all her achievements to Ouyang Bihua so he can reap the rewards. And what about her…?"
He sounded a bit exasperated. Shangguan Bei gently nibbled on the back of Lu Chen's neck: "Brother Chen, you're so smart, you actually saw through it all. So, I'm giving you a task. Ouyang Bihua is gone, but Du Haoqi absolutely can't leave. I need you to seduce her and get her to stay at Flying Eagle Biotechnology and serve us!"
Lu Chen twisted his neck hard and glared at Shangguan Bei: "How dare you say such a lame trick! You might as well just go to her and offer her better treatment, including salary and position. It's not like you don't know how deeply she loves Ouyang Bihua. Seduce her? I can't complete this task."