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"What should we do now? Deng Xiaomei is with Huang Zhang again, and Lu Ming is still with them. Should we go over?"
If we go over, we would have to run into Deng Xiaomei. If she figures out our intentions and prepares in advance, it would be even more troublesome.
"Let's not go over for now. If anything changes, Lu Ming will likely find a chance to notify us. Let's just hang around here. Even if we run into Deng Xiaomei, we won't mention that we came with Lu Ming; we need to avoid raising her suspicions."
"Alright, let's wait a bit."
After some effort, I managed to catch a glimpse of Lu Ming and Huang Zhang through the crowd. Deng Xiaomei was too short to see easily, but from the smile on Huang Zhang's face, it was clear that their conversation with Lu Ming was quite pleasant.
I felt a bit anxious, wondering if Huang Zhang would tell Deng Xiaomei about our encounter. Miao Miao said he probably wouldn't; Huang Zhang hadn't had the time to inform her yet. Yes, it was just a matter of time.
For now, I could only linger here with Miao Miao, planning to find another opportunity to meet Lu Ming. Before we could approach him, Lu Ming came over alone. Miao Miao and I stepped forward and couldn't help but ask, "What were Huang Zhang and Deng Xiaomei looking for you about earlier?"
Lu Ming calmly replied with a question of his own: "What do they have to do with you?"
His gaze shifted from Miao Miao to me, and neither of us answered.
At this point, I didn't intend to hide anything from Lu Ming. I told him everything about Deng Xiaomei and Huang Zhang. Throughout my explanation, Lu Ming remained silent and listened. I wasn't sure how much he absorbed; I just wanted to finish my part since I needed his help. Being honest might not be a bad thing.
Once I finished speaking, Lu Ming stated, "You want to ask Huang Zhang for the voice recorder back to discuss the divorce?"
I nodded; that was indeed the case.
"Huang Zhang should still have it."
Lu Ming's words hit me like a bombshell, obliterating all my worries and confusion. I was completely stunned. Looking at Miao Miao, she seemed just as bewildered.
"What do you mean, Lu Ge? Are you saying that the voice recorder from that day is still with Huang Zhang? Did you see it?" Miao Miao asked excitedly, but the likelihood of that was extremely low; how could Lu Ming have seen it?
He shook his head.
"Huang Zhang has a habit of keeping these things. He is a meticulous person who once used small details to bring down a competitor, which has become a well-known story in the industry. It is very likely that he kept the voice recorder."
"But this voice recorder is very unfavorable evidence for Deng Xiaomei. If he didn't destroy it immediately and instead kept it in his possession, doesn't that imply that Huang Zhang actually intended to target Deng Xiaomei?"
"Yes," Lu Ming replied, "it could be used as leverage, a backup plan for himself."
This made perfect sense. It clarified why Huang Zhang brought Deng Xiaomei to such an important occasion. If the voice recorder was indeed left by Huang Zhang, it was very likely that he would agree to help us.
Lu Ming's few words greatly encouraged me. Miao Miao looked at Lu Ming happily and said, "Thank you so much, Lu Ge. You know it's not easy for two powerless women like us to get something done. Zhuang Jun has really suffered too much; how can she just swallow this? Now Zhuang Jun's situation is all because of this woman. If you think we are wrong, we won't trouble you again in the future."
Miao Miao spoke sincerely, throwing the choice back to Lu Ming. We hadn't told Lu Ming our intentions before and had him bring us here; now we clearly informed him of our purpose. I was a bit nervous about how Lu Ming would choose.
After a few seconds, Lu Ming nodded. "I'll have Attorney Jin contact you tomorrow. It's late; you should go back and rest."
Lu Ming's response puzzled me. Suddenly mentioning Attorney Jin made me wonder if he knew about tonight's discussion with Huang Zhang. Did that mean he wasn't planning to help?
I glanced at Miao Miao, who looked at me with the same puzzled expression, but we chose not to ask Lu Ming any further questions. Since he had already asked us to go back, we felt it was best not to say much more. After leaving the venue, I asked Miao Miao what she thought about the situation, but she shook her head.
"I feel like Lu Ming is hiding something from us, but it shouldn't be anything detrimental to us. Let's just wait and see," Miao Miao said, feeling reassured about Lu Ming. I felt the same way; even if Lu Ming didn't help, I didn't think he would do anything bad.
The next day, Attorney Jin arrived as arranged by Lu Ming. I discussed the recent situation with Attorney Jin, who said that if we could really obtain the voice recorder, it could have a significant reversing effect before the divorce agreement was reviewed. The key issue was whether we could retrieve that voice recorder.
"I believe since Mr. Lu has agreed to help Miss Zhuang, there shouldn't be any major problems. So Miss Zhuang can rest assured and wait," Attorney Jin's confidence in Lu Ming provided me with some comfort; we would just have to wait and see.
After meeting with Attorney Jin in the morning, I received a call from Miao Miao at noon. She sounded very anxious and asked if I knew what Lu Ming had been doing last night.
Her anxiety startled me, and I quickly replied, "Of course I don't know! I've been with you all along; I only met with Attorney Jin this morning and didn't see Lu Ming at all. What happened? Please tell me!"
"Hey, wasn't it Huang Zhang who introduced Deng Xiaomei to Lu Ming yesterday? In the end, Deng Xiaomei didn't even go back with Huang Zhang at night; she spent the night with Lu Ming!"
I was taken aback. The thought of Deng Xiaomei spending the night with Lu Ming spun around in my mind, and I couldn't picture that scenario at all. How could that be possible?
"It's true, don't doubt it. Later, I asked Gu Xiang, and Gu Xiang said that Lu Ming booked a room at a nearby hotel for two people, and one of them must be Deng Xiaomei. There's no escaping that."
"Are you saying that Lu Ming slept with Deng Xiaomei? Why?"
Of course, Lu Ming is a man; I can understand his physiological needs. However, it's hard not to wonder why he would spend an entire night alone with Deng Xiaomei. Gu Xiang had mentioned before that Lu Ming is a bit of a neat freak and doesn't like to get involved with questionable women. So did Lu Ming really sleep with Deng Xiaomei?
"Do you think Lu Ming might be trying to help us? After all, I heard from Wang Nan that Lu Ming doesn't seem like the type to sleep around. If he really did sleep with Deng Xiaomei for your sake, isn't that... a bit much?"
Not just a bit much; I found it hard to comprehend. When I initially wanted to pull in Lu Ming, it was purely to show off to Huang Zhang, not to drag him into this mess.
I couldn't afford such "excessive" help.
"Then I'll ask Lu Ming first. Let's clarify things before jumping to conclusions."
"Yeah, yeah, ask him first. This whole situation with Lu Ming and his previous involvement with Qin Yi is something else. If Qin Yi finds out about him sleeping with Deng Xiaomei, it would be disastrous!"
Right, and then there's the matter of Qin Yi. After hanging up, I called Lu Ming to arrange a meeting. He readily agreed and said he'd let me know during dinner. When evening came, Lu Ming arrived alone without bringing Lu Shuang. It seemed likely that she was with Qin Yi, so I didn't pry further.
However, I was still anxious about last night’s events. The dishes hadn't arrived yet when I hurriedly asked, "Were you with Deng Xiaomei last night? Did you two go into a room together and... sleep?"
It felt awkward to bring up such a sensitive topic. Just asking made me uncomfortable; if Lu Ming confirmed it, I wouldn't even know how to respond—should I thank him for sacrificing so much for me?
"You seem well-informed," Lu Ming remarked approvingly.
I pressed on anxiously, "What time is it? Just tell me if you were with Deng Xiaomei! Did you spend the night together?"
Lu Ming raised an eyebrow, "Are you nervous?"
"Of course. If you really slept with Deng Xiaomei because of this, how could I repay that favor? I already felt bad asking you to help us get over there. If it really turns out like this, I would only feel pressure in my heart, not anything to be happy about."
I explained, but Lu Ming seemed increasingly displeased. Finally, he coldly replied that he had not been with Deng Xiaomei last night.
His answer finally made me breathe a sigh of relief; thank goodness they hadn't been together.
"Then how did you end up in a room with her? If you didn't want to be with Deng Xiaomei, you could have just refused." Bringing Deng Xiaomei to the room was just for show for Huang Zhang, right? If Lu Ming didn't sleep with Deng Xiaomei, then wouldn't she just tell Huang Zhang about it?
Lu Ming replied coldly, "She was drunk. The person in the room wasn't me."
I was shocked and asked again, "Are you saying you found another man to sleep with Deng Xiaomei? Are you serious?"
Lu Ming pressed his lips together and didn't answer directly. I was stunned for a long time before finally hearing Lu Ming ask, "Isn't this what you wanted?"
"What?"
"To inflict harm on those who hurt you."
Yes, Lu Ming was right; this was exactly what I wanted. Both Deng Xiaomei and Huang Zhang thought that Deng Xiaomei had slept with Lu Ming, but it wasn't actually him. With an explanation on Huang Zhang's side, Deng Xiaomei would also face consequences.
"But maybe Deng Xiaomei thinks anyone will do; what if she enjoys it?" I said bleakly. Deep down, I understood that Deng Xiaomei had already thrown herself into things for Huang Zhang. Even if it wasn't Lu Ming, so what? She had been with Wang Xu, so anyone could do.
Lu Ming looked at me deeply before picking up the phone and dialing a number. He pressed the speakerphone button and placed the phone on the table, letting it ring clearly.
After a few rings, the other party picked up, and the familiar voice of Huang Zhang came through.
"Hello, is this Lu Zong? What's up?" His tone was still hearty yet somewhat flattering; it seemed that Huang Zhang held some respect for Lu Ming.
"Last night's arrangement was good," Lu Ming praised coldly, making it hard to tell what was good about it.
"Ah," Huang Zhang's voice trembled on the other end, "that was a little gift specially prepared for you, of course I hope you like it. It's an honor for me, Huang, that you are willing to accept it. As long as you are satisfied, that's enough."
"Well, let's continue today," Lu Ming replied.
Suddenly, there was silence on the other end of the line. I was taken aback; what did Lu Ming mean? Was he going to look for Deng Xiaomei again tonight?
"Oh dear, if you really like it, I'll arrange it immediately. You can choose the place; I'll have someone deliver it to you later. What do you think? We are partners now; we shouldn't let small matters get in the way," Huang Zhang said, unusually flustered. Was he referring to Deng Xiaomei?
Lu Ming chuckled coldly, "No need for that. This one is fine. If President Huang feels sorry about it, let's just look forward to our next collaboration."
"Wait, wait! If you really like it, I’ll arrange it right away. Just say where you want it delivered! We’re partners now; we shouldn’t let small losses affect us."
Huang Zhang kept trying to persuade Lu Ming. Once Lu Ming agreed, Huang Zhang sighed in relief. It wasn't until Lu Ming hung up that I dared to ask him, "What exactly is going on? What happened to Deng Xiaomei?"
From Huang Zhang's tone, it seemed something had occurred.
"My substitute has some personal preferences and needs a bit of tolerance; perhaps she lacks experience, which led to a bad situation," Lu Ming said vaguely.
I understood what he meant; he was implying that Deng Xiaomei had some issues with the substitute he found for her.
My goodness, I stared at Lu Ming in shock. He didn’t elaborate further, so it must be true. If that’s the case…
"Are we still going to get Deng Xiaomei drunk tonight?"
"Of course. It won't work if she's sober; there will be medication involved later so she won't recognize anyone."
"Then you'll still use your identity? Aren't you afraid Huang Zhang will spread rumors about you being... a pervert?"
Thinking about how others talk behind Lu Ming's back, calling him a pervert, I suddenly felt a bit embarrassed. After all this, wouldn't Lu Ming's reputation be tarnished?
Compared to my nervousness, Lu Ming seemed indifferent: "I don't care about Huang Zhang's opinion of me. Besides, that's just how everyone handles sexual AI differently. There's no real threat to life; it's just a matter of mutual needs. I don't think it's that bad."
That makes sense, but discussing such topics openly feels quite inappropriate. The reason I came to see Lu Ming today was to find out what happened between him and Deng Xiaomei last night. Instead, I ended up hearing this, and Lu Ming even added another night to prove himself.
I quietly lowered my head, picked up the chicken from the plate in front of me, and under Lu Ming's gaze, placed it into his bowl.
"Thank you so much for everything during this time."
"You're welcome. By the way, I don't have that kind of preference."
I blushed and looked down before replying, "Alright, I know."
Why did I catch a glimpse of a smile on Lu Ming's face?
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