When Chu Ge pushed the door open and entered, a few girls who were engrossed in their work turned their heads to look over, but were stunned upon seeing him.

Chu Ge's discharge from the hospital wasn't openly announced, so his colleagues didn't know about it yet. Seeing him appear all cheerful as if nothing had happened, they naturally felt surprised.

Their Vice Minister Chu is really something, getting discharged so quickly? He must not have been severely injured while putting out the fire, which means he's truly blessed and highly skilled.

When Chu Ge put on the manner of a grand landlord, coughed twice, he drew everyone's attention. The girls, who were just a bit dazed, came back to their senses and broke into surprised smiles.

Seeing everyone smiling in surprise made Chu Ge feel very happy as well, which showed their relationships were improving.

"Vice Minister Chu?"

"Yeah, I'm doing a surprise inspection to see if any of you are slacking off while I'm away."

Chu Ge smiled and nodded, closing the door behind him as he entered the room.

Hearing this, everyone in the room laughed even more happily, especially Feifei, who giggled while pretending to be aggrieved, saying, "Vice Minister Chu, saying that really breaks my heart. Are we the kind of people who would slack off at work?"

Looking at Feifei, as if she had been gravely wronged, Chu Ge found it both amusing and speechless.

"Others might not, but you... you can even nap during work hours right in front of me. Who knows what other outrageous things you might do when I'm not around?"

"Oh, Vice Minister Chu, you're so annoying. Don't bring up the past, okay? Besides, napping during the day that time was only because I didn't sleep well the night before."

Shooting Feifei an amused glance, Chu Ge walked over to Mo Xiaoran and placed the little bear lunchbox on her desk.

"Xiaoran, the food was delicious, thank you."

"You're welcome, I'm glad you liked it."

Accepting the lunchbox, Mo Xiaoran said shyly.

"You guys keep busy, I'm going to see Minister Ji."

After putting down the lunchbox, Chu Ge said to his colleagues before heading to Ji Songtao's minister's office.

Just as he was about to knock, before his hand was even raised, the door swung open from the inside. Hearing the noise outside, Ji Songtao came out with a smile, giving the impression that Chu Ge was his superior.

Smiling at Ji Songtao and calling out "Minister Ji," Chu Ge followed him into the minister's office.

Compared to the outside office, Ji Songtao's minister's office was less affected by the fire. Besides the walls being replastered, everything else was pretty much unchanged.

As soon as Chu Ge entered, Ji Songtao politely invited him to the sofa, made him tea while saying with a laugh, "Chu Ge, your injuries aren't even healed yet you still care so much about work. I really ought to learn from you."

"Minister Ji, I'm not as noble as you say. I just couldn't stay in the hospital, decided to come out for a walk, see you guys, and then I'll head back."

Accepting the tea from Ji Songtao, Chu Ge said with a smile.

Unsure whether Chu Ge appreciated the flattery, Ji Songtao didn't say much more on the matter. Picking up a sheet of printed paper from the table, he handed it to Chu Ge with a smile, "Chu Ge, take a look at this. It's about the company sports event. We were just discussing which event to enter you in, want to decide yourself?"

Just as Chu Ge was about to take the paper, his phone rang in his pocket. Seeing it was Tong Yaqi calling.

Even though Chu Ge didn't answer, he could guess what Tong Yaqi wanted to say. Considering Ji Songtao was still there, Chu Ge decisively chose not to answer and stood up from the sofa.

"Minister Ji, you guys go ahead and choose an event for me. I've got some things to do, so I won't disturb you any longer."

"Oh, alright, let me see you off."

Ji Songtao put the printed paper back on the table, got up to open the door for Chu Ge, and escorted him to the entrance of the Operation Management Department. Recognizing that Chu Ge needed to make a call, after exchanging a few pleasantries, he returned to his office.

Once Ji Songtao had shut the door to the Operation Management Department, Chu Ge took out his phone and called back Tong Yaqi.

"Chu Ge, you went back to the office? I think I heard someone in the corridor saying they saw you."

"Mm-hmm."

"Then… can you come to my office for a bit?"

"Sure."

Thinking about the awkward scene from last night, Chu Ge scratched his head, walked over to Tong Yaqi's office door, and pretending to be on official business, knocked on the door.

"Come in." Tong Yaqi's voice came from behind the door. Although it was just two words, it sounded a bit less composed than usual.

Chu Ge pushed the door open and walked in, and saw Tong Yaqi dressed in standard office attire. Although she wore makeup for work, traces of dark circles could be faintly seen, indicating that she hadn't slept well last night, or perhaps not at all.

Smiling at Tong Yaqi, Chu Ge locked the door without needing her to say anything.

"Dear concubine, do you have anything to report to me?" Chu Ge said teasingly, wearing his signature smile.

"Keep your voice down! At a time like this, you still have the mood to play the emperor with me?"

Although Chu Ge's voice wasn't loud at all, and even if someone pressed against the door to eavesdrop, they might not hear him, but due to Tong Yaqi's nervousness, she felt that the voice was particularly loud.

Chu Ge touched his nose and laughed, "I'm just happy to see you."

Tong Yaqi rubbed her forehead, "I'm surprised you can still laugh. What's really going on between you and the chairman?"

Wiping the smile off his face, Chu Ge lit a cigarette with a troubled look, took a deep sigh first, then furrowed his brows and took a heavy drag.

Seeing Chu Ge in this state, Tong Yaqi became even more nervous and urged, "Stop keeping me in suspense, just tell me what's going on, will you?"

After keeping Tong Yaqi on edge, Chu Ge suddenly burst out laughing, "Look at you being all tense for nothing, I'm just teasing you. Relax, there's nothing between us at all."

Chu Ge's laugh startled Tong Yaqi, then she furrowed her brows again, agitated, and said, "Nothing at all? Chu Ge, aren't we friends? Could you at least tell me the truth?"

Chu Ge shrugged and said, "I really am telling the truth. You're so nice to me, how could I bear to lie to you?"

"If there's nothing between you two, why would the chairman bring bedding to your hospital room in the middle of the night?"

"What's so surprising about that? It doesn't prove there's something between us, maybe, at most, it shows that our chairman is considerate and down-to-earth. Because I got injured on duty, she might have been worried the hospital sheets weren't clean. She came at night to avoid being seen, considering her status."

Though Chu Ge's explanation seemed reasonable, Tong Yaqi's eyebrows remained furrowed as she continued.

"What about the bruises on the chairman's knees? How do you explain that? Last night, I clearly heard in the restroom that the chairman said her knees were that way because of you."

Chu Ge broke out in a sweat; he didn't expect Tong Yaqi to have such good hearing, hearing that even through a restroom door.

"That's really nothing. She slipped and fell while visiting me in the hospital, and bruised her knees."

Looking at Chu Ge with suspicion, Tong Yaqi asked uncertainly, "Is it really that simple?"

"Yeah, it's really that simple. Do you think, given the chairman's status, looks, and demeanor, she would be interested in someone like me with no money, no house, and no car?"

Meeting Chu Ge's open and amused gaze, Tong Yaqi finally relaxed her furrowed brows and let out a sigh of relief.

"Yeah, the chairman is certainly not going to be interested in you. The gap between you two is too wide."

Chu Ge spread his hands speechlessly, "Come on, I'm not that bad, am I? And there's quite a gap between us too. When we're together, didn't you call me 'emperor' all the time?"

"Get out of here, can you even compare me with the chairman? If the gap between us is ten, then between you and the chairman, it's tens of thousands! There's not the slightest chance between you and the chairman."

Tong Yaqi rolled her eyes at Chu Ge and said generously, when mentioning Qin Ruojing, there was almost worship and awe in her eyes.

Chu Ge didn't respond verbally, but found it amusing. Is Qin Ruojing that impressive? In a sense, yes, but when it comes to personal achievements, there are plenty who surpass her.

Besides being amused, Chu Ge felt quite proud; after all, a usually cold woman revealing her real self jokingly with him is something any man would find gratifying.

With the matter troubling Tong Yaqi finally resolved, a smile appeared on her face. If it wasn't for the possibility of someone knocking at any moment, she might have wanted to chat with Chu Ge a bit more.

After sitting in Tong Yaqi's office for a while, although it was just a short time, they had a delightful conversation and felt very cheerful.

Before realizing it, more than ten minutes passed, and Chu Ge got up from the sofa still reluctant and said his goodbyes to Tong Yaqi.

After all, even if his colleagues in the Operation Management Department might think he and Tong Yaqi are involved, others in the company do not. Staying too long could attract unwanted attention.

Meanwhile, as Chu Ge left Tianjiao Group, in the Operation Management Department office, a group of girls led by Feifei had signed him up for the company event.

Also, the six girls, each with her own agenda, exchanged glances because all of them wanted to join Chu Ge in one of the fun events.

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