You and I are destined

Xia Ye enthusiastically handed the hand-grab pancake to Zhang Yan, who looked at Lin Yuan with an expression that suggested she had more to say.

Lin Yuan then pointed toward the kitchen. "The chili sauce is in there."

Zhang Yan pulled a long face, picked up the hand-grab pancake, and went into the kitchen.

Taking advantage of the moment Zhang Yan walked away, a look of worry immediately appeared on Xia Ye's face.

Lin Yuan understood her expression; she was worried about him, concerned that Zhang Yan had come to cause trouble again.

But in reality, Zhang Yan had come to ask Lin Yuan for help.

Zhang Yan's expression just now was entirely due to being annoyed with Lin Yuan over the hand-grab pancake, but in Xia Ye's eyes, it had turned into her own worry.

Lin Yuan pulled Xia Ye close and gently patted her back. "It's fine."

Clang. Zhang Yan deliberately rattled the kitchen's sliding door to signal that she, a third party, was still present.

Hearing the sound, Xia Ye immediately moved half a step away from Lin Yuan.

Lin Yuan looked at Zhang Yan with a dark expression, using his eyes to convey his speechlessness.

"Comrade Zhang, if you have any questions later, feel free to contact me at any time." Lin Yuan subtly issued a dismissal to Zhang Yan.

But Zhang Yan felt as if ten thousand ants were crawling on her heart; Lin Yuan's analysis had just reached the critical point when Xia Ye pushed the door open and interrupted.

It was just like the most detestable cliffhanger in a novel.

"Thanks for your cooperation." Zhang Yan looked at Lin Yuan with her head slightly raised, giving Lin Yuan a bad premonition.

"I will record every word of what you said. I believe you are innocent." Zhang Yan specifically emphasized the words "every word."

Lin Yuan cursed internally, 'Dammit, she was waiting for me here.'

After saying that, Zhang Yan said goodbye and left.

Lin Yuan was terrified that this blockhead would actually write his real analysis regarding Good Group into the official file; that would be a huge problem.

He had no choice but to say to Xia Ye, "She took good care of me when I was inside, so I'll go see her off."

This excuse was a bit far-fetched, but it was enough to satisfy Xia Ye.

Xia Ye immediately fetched Lin Yuan's coat and instructed, "You need to keep your temper in check."

Lin Yuan took the coat, patted the back of Xia Ye's hand, and then went out.

— —

"Wait, wait for me."

Lin Yuan walked down the stairs and happened to catch up with Zhang Yan, who was taking the elevator down.

Zhang Yan deliberately pretended not to hear and kept walking straight ahead.

"You're going too far. You just asked me for a favor, and this is how you treat your senior?"

"Weren't you in a rush to kick me out?"

"My place is too small; it can't accommodate three people."

"Who wanted to stay? But you couldn't wait to kick me out as soon as Xia Ye came back. Senior, is it because Xia Ye... is jealous?"

"That's not it. She wouldn't even know where to find a vinegar bottle."

The two chatted as they walked out of the residential complex.

"Then why do you always want to avoid suspicion? You mind if I sit too close to you, and you wanted to kick me out before I'd even had two bites of my hand-grab pancake." Zhang Yan said, feeling somewhat aggrieved.

Lin Yuan had a headache; he didn't know why she was obsessed with such boring points.

In his heart, he defined himself as a married man, so weren't these things just a matter of course? "Good conduct is the prerequisite for doing a good job."

"Pfft~~ Then you should transfer from GuoAn to the Discipline Inspection Commission. You iron-faced Judge Bao..."

"Alright, let's talk business."

"Don't worry. Do you really think I would write the content of your analysis into the report? Although my master often says I'm rash, I'm not stupid."

"That's good. If you need to, you can send it to me after you're done, and I'll take another look for you. I'm heading back now."

"Damn it," Zhang Yan stared at Lin Yuan with wide eyes, "You won't stay even for a second. Your junior sister here has many suitors; you're making me feel very frustrated."

"Comrade Zhang Yan. If this were the revolutionary war era, with your work attitude and professional level, ten Yu Zechengs wouldn't be enough to save you."

Only then did Zhang Yan put away her playful attitude. "Alright, I get it. Don't worry, I won't write your analysis regarding the financial investigation of Good Group into the report."

"But I still want to hear you explain why I can't write it into the report. Although I know this content is sensitive and I wouldn't be stupid enough to write it in without your permission, I'm just curious what your concerns actually are."

Lin Yuan let out a slight sigh of relief, thinking to himself, 'At least she's not that bad. She might be a bit slow and usually quite reckless, but at least she knows how to exercise restraint on critical matters.'

"Think about it. Once you write it in, the higher-ups will definitely pay attention because HK is also our territory. Although I don't know if this counts as stock manipulation, this kind of thing is obviously too eye-catching."

"Then the problem arises. If the leaders ask you to reproduce the analysis process, how would you answer?"

Zhang Yan didn't hesitate. "I'll just say you analyzed it. You might even get commended for it."

"How much is a commendation worth?"

"What?"

"I don't want to be commended. Furthermore, have you thought about why I didn't offer to help you write the report?"

"Because you're a jerk." Zhang Yan blurted out.

This time it was Lin Yuan's turn to say "Damn it." "Dammit, this report is a piece of cake for me. I even explained the analysis to you; do you think I'm afraid of writing the report for you?"

"Then go ahead and write it for me."

"Go ahead, my foot. What if I can't control the tone and write it too professionally? Wouldn't I just be exposing myself?"

"Oh~~" Zhang Yan drew out a long tail, "I get it..."

"Be serious. I really don't know why your master sent you to cooperate with our work."

Zhang Yan immediately resumed a serious demeanor. "Senior, are you afraid that I'll steal your credit?"

"Wrong. Senior doesn't have such high moral character; Senior just doesn't want to be in the spotlight. Do you understand?"

Zhang Yan thought for a moment. "I don't understand."

Lin Yuan didn't know how to explain it to her. How could he explain it without revealing his true intentions while still making this blockhead understand his desire to lie low?

In the end, Lin Yuan had no choice.

"Just now... I'll state this first, Senior isn't bringing it up on purpose; Senior is just giving an example."

"Mm, go ahead."

Lin Yuan looked around, and seeing no one nearby, he whispered, "You just said you wanted to borrow one million from Senior, and Senior didn't ask any questions, right?"

Zhang Yan immediately changed her expression. "Don't talk about that."

"Senior just wants to say, I'm really grateful for your good intentions. Senior believes in fate, believes in this 'birds of a feather' fate between you and me."

"What 'birds of a feather'? Why don't you just say we're 'colluding for evil'?"

Lin Yuan's eyes were sincere as he continued, "Because our respective masters are old acquaintances, we had the opportunity to work together, and it's rare that we are both in our early twenties and not yet set in our ways. Meeting in the prime of our youth, and it's rare that you insist on calling me Senior; this is the best interpretation of fate."

"You... what are you trying to say?" Zhang Yan lowered her head suddenly.

"Senior just wants to say..."

Zhang Yan stammered, "Fate? Your and my fate?"

"Yes."

"But... don't you already have Xia Ye?"

Lin Yuan heard this and immediately took two steps back. "What the hell?"

"What is it? You're clearly the one talking about fate." Zhang Yan looked at Lin Yuan with an angry face.

Lin Yuan paused for a moment before realizing. "My fault, my fault. I've been reading the I Ching lately, so I've been exposed to a lot of things written by the ancients. Actually, the word 'fate' should be used to describe friends. And in many poems written by the ancients, words like 'entanglement' or 'lingering' actually mostly refer to one's best bros."

"Holy crap!" If they weren't in public, Zhang Yan would have definitely attacked Lin Yuan. "So, you were trying to say: I am your best bro?"

"Yes."

"Then can't you speak like a normal person? You scared the hell out of me." Zhang Yan patted her chest.

Lin Yuan was also almost scared to death by her. "I won't quote literature anymore. Keep it simple; my way of speaking in the future will definitely be simple."

"Senior, you owe me a shoulder throw. You looked at me like that just now, like a pervert. What exactly do you want?"

"Uh... Senior wants to... make some extra money."

"What?"

"Senior wants to take the opportunity to buy the dip on Good Group stock and hopes you will stand in the position of a good bro and act like you don't know."

"You... you you you."