Chapter 22 Secretary Liang is feeling aggrieved now
For the rest of the trip, Director Yan invited Mr. Chen to have tea at a private estate.

I have to say that the other party had done enough homework in advance for this trip to Lianwu Island.

They learned about Chen Jingyuan's personal preferences, including his food tastes and the types of white tea he usually drinks. They even heard that the man had been having trouble sleeping recently. Director Yan specially found a famous local pharmacist and prepared several Chinese herbal sachets with calming effects for him.

Liang Weining thought that as a local official, being able to do this showed his sincerity.

But what puzzled her was that despite such generous hospitality, her own boss seemed to have little reaction.

I thought the Lianwu Island project was a done deal, with only a piece of paper agreement missing.

Now it seems that is not entirely true.

Unconsciously, Liang Weining's old habit came back and she began to speculate about Chen Jingyuan's thoughts.

Alas, there is no hope.

The two important men drank tea and dismissed their attendants.

As secretary and special assistant, Liang Weining and Xu Zhou were naturally left idle.

Just now, as the car was driving past, she found a cosmetics store nearby. She said hello to Xu Zhou and said that she was going to buy something and would be back soon.

"Go ahead. Mr. is going to give you half a day off anyway. Don't worry. You can go shopping anywhere."

How dare she.

You must go and come back quickly.

After all, the boss hasn't agreed to the leave application I sent in the private message yet.

I arrived at the cosmetics store, found the brand I wanted, and went to the counter to pay, but was told that even more than 70% of the stores in Kirishima only accept cash.

why?
The clerk explained that many local islanders agree that electronic payments are unsafe due to risks and scams.

Liang Weining was stunned after hearing this.

She had no choice but to call Xu Zhou for help.

It's her habit to never carry cash when she goes out.

Fortunately, Special Assistant Xu is a cash control freak and has to put a few bills in his wallet every day, otherwise he will feel like he is running naked.

On the phone, Xu Zhou asked her to wait for a moment, as Mr. Chen's meeting had already finished and he would come over by car later.

Liang Weining was surprised. Was the discussion over so quickly?
Of course, it’s not good to ask too many questions.

Ten minutes later, a low-key business sedan slowly drove out of the private manor, turned left, bypassed the dock loop, merged into the commercial district and entered a narrow street. The driver pulled over at the entrance of the alley.

Xu Zhou got out from the passenger seat, closed the door, bent down to ask the man in the back seat for instructions, then took his briefcase to support Secretary Liang.

The two met soon in the cosmetics store.

After paying and walking out of the shop, I accidentally saw that the shop next door was selling accessories.

A retro-style beret was hung at the door. The red velvet was inlaid with a few white pearls and had big dark brown waves. It was a perfect match for Gu Yunzhen's head.

Buy it.

She looked at Xu Zhou and pleaded, "Can you help me pay another sum?"

The latter smiled helplessly and took out his wallet from his briefcase.

Liang Weining opened the APP, transferred the money for the two items to the other party, then turned off the phone and walked towards the parking spot with the shopping bag contentedly.

It was the first time that the subordinate went shopping and asked the boss to wait in the car.

She felt very ashamed.

So he consciously sat in the back seat and gave the front passenger seat to Special Assistant Xu.

Get in the car, say hello to the man, and sit up straight.

The car door closed and the street scene outside the window slowly receded.

Chen Jingyuan put down the tablet in his hand, looked to his side, glanced at the shopping bag on the girl's lap, and asked her: "How do you feel after shopping around?"

Just a moment ago, Liang Weining was still immersed in the regret of not bargaining with the owner of the jewelry store, and the next moment, a man's gentle and low voice came to her ears.

The feeling of disconnection that lasted just half a second forced her to return to work mode from her leisurely and relaxing thoughts.

She looked at the man politely and responded, "Thank you for your concern, Mr. Chen. My feet don't hurt."

"."

The air fell silent. Chen Jingyuan turned his head silently, speechless for a moment.

Realizing that the man's reaction was wrong, Liang Weining came back to her senses in a daze.

Is she being self-indulgent or something?
Terrible.

Liang Weining closed her eyes, and a blush appeared on her ears.

"I thought you were talking about high heels."

The girl's voice was so thin as a mosquito's foot that it sounded somewhat pitiful, causing Xu Zhou in the front seat to involuntarily glance at the rearview mirror.

Chen Jingyuan leaned back in his chair indifferently. From the side, his expression was as calm as usual, and it was impossible to discern any different emotions on his face.

After a moment of silence, he spoke in a low voice: "So my words led to misunderstanding. Secretary Liang is feeling very wronged now."

What is the boss talking about?

She wished she could find a hole to crawl into, yet she still dared to feel wronged.

"You're joking. I'm just slow-witted and don't understand it well."

After saying this, she immediately added to the topic: "Actually, I am deeply touched by your question just now. After half a day of traveling, I found a few strange phenomena. The most obvious one is that the residents on the island are generally less receptive to advanced and new things."

For example, cash only.

After recounting her previous shopping experience, she continued, "They seem to have a strong sense of homeland. Young people are reluctant to work outside. Often, a family of several people run a small shop and rely on the income from sporadic tourists to make a living."

Not only that, during our observations along the way, we found that most vendors prefer to run traditional businesses, and it is rare to see smart counters in either shops or shopping malls.

Liang Weining concluded: "It has the most unique natural scenery among the five outlying islands, but its tourism industry has always been at the bottom and lukewarm. It seems that human factors are the main reason for this result."

Xu Zhou in the front row expressed his agreement after listening.

Following Secretary Liang, he also expressed his own views.

The only difference is that Xu Zhou feels that compared to the islanders' stagnant thinking, Director Yan seems to be determined to make a drastic change to the status quo.

The atmosphere inside the car is very good.

The two subordinates were discussing official business, while Chen Jingyuan, the boss, sat quietly in the back row as a bystander. He did not say a word throughout the discussion, and his expression was naturally calm.

The harmonious scene ended when the driver suddenly braked.

Liang Weining forgot to fasten her seat belt and fell forward due to inertia, with her head almost hitting the front seat. In time, Chen Jingyuan grabbed her arm.

Through the clothes, the man's palms were warm and dry, and the strength of his wrist bones was strong but measured.

She felt no pain, just a quickening of the heartbeat.

It was a false alarm just now.

Also for these unexpected few brief seconds.

The car slowed down and Chen Jingyuan withdrew his hand. He heard the girl's soft thanks.

The driver tilted his head slightly and said, "Sorry, a child just crossed the road."

Mr. Chen will naturally not pursue the matter in the event of an emergency.

The car drove a distance away, and the person next to him seemed to still be in shock. Chen Jingyuan whispered to him, "Fasten your seat belts."

Liang Weining nodded and did as he was told.

The topic was dropped and never brought up again.

They arrived at the hotel in silence, but the boss did not get out of the car. After leaving Liang Weining alone in the underground garage, the car started again and drove away.

Xu Zhou sent a private message: [There is a dinner party tonight, sir, please have a good rest in the hotel. ]

Liang Weining lowered her head and looked at her slightly swollen heels, her cheeks feeling slightly hot.

Next, comes the second piece of content.

[There is a natural hot spring in the scenic area. If you state your identity directly, PR will lead you to the private hot spring pool in the name of our inspection team. ]

No matter how big or small the matter is, I would like to thank Xu for his special assistance.

Liang Weining typed: [Thank you. ]

(End of this chapter)