CH 124

Chapter 124 – Wei Hua’s Secret

In the southern hemisphere, in the country of Australia, XN City was the largest city, serving as the economic and cultural center of the country and a popular tourist destination. Wei Chen and Chen Li chose this city as their travel destination.

Located in the southern hemisphere, while the capital city was still covered in heavy snow, this region enjoyed bright sunshine, shorter nights, and earlier daylight.

Wei Chen and Chen Li checked into a hotel with a sea view. When they opened the window, they could see the vast blue sea and almost pristine white sandy beaches.

After a day of travel, Chen Li fell asleep not long after arriving at the hotel, feeling completely at ease with Wei Chen’s presence beside him. Wei Chen, on the other hand, stayed up late into the night. Before going to bed, he opened his computer to check the online opinions about the Dream Cup incident. Everything was within his expectations, and it wasn’t until he received the file sent by Cookie that he finally went to sleep.

In the morning, bright sunlight streamed in through the window, shining on the bed. Chen Li was still fast asleep, basking in the warm, golden light, looking almost holy.

Wei Chen finished freshening up in the bathroom and came out to find Chen Li still sound asleep, cocooned in the blanket. Not wanting to wake him up, Wei Chen let him continue sleeping and sat down on a chair, opening his computer. A message came in immediately.

[Cookie: These are the new IP addresses of the water army. Unlike last night, who attacked Chen Li, today they are targeting you. They are active on Weibo, especially on Changfeng Group’s official account.] [Images] [Images]

Cookie sent several screenshots, capturing comments from Weibo. There were endless insults, and most of them were hoping Changfeng Group would punish Wei Chen.

In their eyes, Wei Chen’s “threats” to protect the plagiarizer and threaten the original author of “Yearning for Rebirth” were extremely despicable. It brought too much negative energy to society. They felt he was using his power for personal gain, thinking he could act recklessly just because he held some authority. Some even demanded that Changfeng Group’s disciplinary committee thoroughly investigate Wei Chen’s background, as he might have done even more unreasonable things. The craziest comments on the official account were those that asked Changfeng Group to punish Wei Chen and set an example.

Some time ago, Wei Chen gained popularity due to the business magazine, with many marketing accounts sharing the magazine’s cover and tagging him as “Mr. Perfect,” “Top Student,” “Domineering CEO,” and so on, which attracted a lot of attention. Even some reputable media praised Wei Chen on Weibo, making him a true internet celebrity.

However, now that this incident had emerged, the marketing accounts began to set the tone, not just smearing Wei Chen, but also piling on various baseless accusations to attract attention.

Previously, due to Wei Chen’s popularity, the way they praised him when reposting was now turned into insults and slander. Rumors spread easily, and this was an era where people didn’t have to take responsibility for what they typed. Some individuals hired these water armies behind the scenes, and they could attract attention by doing so. It was a win-win situation for them.

It didn’t take long, not even half a day, for Wei Chen’s reputation to become infamous online. The water army and those misled netizens used Wei Chen’s notorious image to leave comments on Changfeng Group’s official account, demanding that he be fired. How could such a person hold an important position in a state-owned enterprise? They insisted on strict punishment for Wei Chen.

When Cookie showed these screenshots to Wei Chen, he finally understood that he was now seen as someone who “frequents nightclubs, changes models by the day, and even drives under the influence and escapes from accidents.” He felt somewhat speechless. But despite this, he had already anticipated such a scenario.

During the morning meeting, Zhou Tongpeng couldn’t do anything to him in front of Sheng Jiaqi. So, he took this opportunity to smear himself online, allowing public opinion to manipulate him and use external pressure on Changfeng Group to have them dismiss him. However, Wei Chen now felt that he had overestimated Zhou Tongpeng. He overestimated his character and methods. These despicable tactics could only be thought of by Zhou Tongpeng.

[Wei Chen: Thank you.] Wei Chen replied to Cookie’s message with a deep gaze, his slender fingers tapping on the keyboard in gratitude.

[Cookie: No need to thank me.]

[Wei Chen: Wei Hua is afraid of mice, oh yes, even hamsters.]

This was Wei Chen’s little thank-you gift. Since Cookie was willing to help because of Wei Hua, he felt he should return the favor and reveal some of Wei Hua’s little secrets. As for how the two of them would develop further, Wei Chen wasn’t too concerned. That was a matter between Wei Hua and Cookie.

Back in Beijing, when Cookie saw Wei Chen’s message, he nearly spit out the water he was drinking. Afraid of mice? He’s even scared of hamsters?

After swallowing the water, Cookie couldn’t help but find it amusing.

“Daddy, daddy!” A soft, sweet voice came from behind Cookie, and he immediately turned around and hugged the little biscuit that was rushing towards him.

“Biscuit, why are you awake? It’s still early in the morning.” Due to the time zone difference, the time in the capital city was two hours behind XN City. Moreover, it was currently deep in winter, and even though it was already past 6 am, it was still dim outside.

“I woke up because I didn’t see Daddy when I opened my eyes,” Biscuit said with a smile, hugging Cookie’s neck.

“You like sleeping with Daddy so much?” Cookie kissed Biscuit’s forehead, feeling very happy, both because of Biscuit and because of the little secret he just found out.

“Daddy is very happy today?” Biscuit understood Cookie well.

Cookie nodded, “Didn’t you say you wanted to have a pet before? Daddy promised you today!”

Biscuit’s eyes immediately lit up, “Really? Daddy, you’re so nice!” With that, he gave a big smooch on Cookie’s face, then frowned with concern, “But Daddy, what should we get as a pet? Biscuit wants to have everything, but Biscuit can’t be too greedy.”

“How about getting a small hamster?” Cookie suggested.

“Great! I’ll listen to Daddy. Hamsters are cute too!” Biscuit agreed right away.

Cookie and Biscuit laughed together, revealing a hint of cunning between their eyebrows and eyes. “Daddy, if we have a little hamster, can we let Uncle Wei come to see it?” Biscuit looked at Cookie and asked.

“Sure.” Among the various questions related to Wei Hua, this was the only one that Cookie answered without hesitation.

Having obtained Daddy’s permission, Biscuit was delighted and couldn’t wait to bring the little hamster home and show it to Uncle Wei.

“Does Biscuit like Uncle Wei very much?” Cookie sensed Biscuit’s emotions and asked.

“Mhmm!” Biscuit nodded repeatedly and replied with a sweet and sticky voice, “Like!”

Looking at Biscuit’s eyebrows and eyes, which resembled Wei Hua’s, Cookie didn’t say anything but had a slightly evasive gaze.

*

On the bed, a person turned over and then opened their eyes, but the scorching sunlight made them close their eyes again. After raising their hand to block the sunlight, they opened their eyes again.

Hearing the movement, Wei Chen walked to the bedside, blocking the sunlight that fell on Chen Li’s face, and then smiled, saying, “Morning, Li Li.” Actually, it wasn’t morning anymore; the time in XN City was almost 10 o’clock.

Chen Li stayed stunned for a while before remembering that he was on a trip with Wei Chen. He was currently in a place called XN, where it was summer, hot, and sunny.

“Achen, morning,” Chen Li rubbed his eyes and finally got up from the bed. Next to the bed, Wei Chen had already prepared slippers for Chen Li. The position of the slippers seemed to have been carefully calculated. Still feeling a bit dazed, Chen Li put his feet down from the bed and precisely landed on the slippers.

Chen Li put on the slippers and was about to go to the bathroom, but because the room was unfamiliar, he felt a bit disoriented. After spinning around in place, he finally found the bathroom with Wei Chen’s guidance.

After Chen Li finished washing up and came out, Wei Chen had already prepared the clothes he was going to wear today and breakfast. Although the hotel provided breakfast, Wei Chen was used to preparing it for Chen Li. Now, they could have breakfast as soon as Chen Li got dressed.

Whole-grain bread, milk, and a sunny-side-up egg—a simple breakfast that Chen Li enjoyed.

Wei Chen rubbed Chen Li’s head, cleaned up the dishes in the kitchen, and then prepared some other things before holding Chen Li’s hand, ready to go out.

Since they were here for a trip, there was no reason to stay in the hotel all the time.

Wei Chen didn’t plan on renting a car; instead, he casually boarded a bus with Chen Li. His eyes fell on the bus stop, and he chose a destination that seemed attractive.

XN City was not only the economic and cultural center of Australia but also a city with a flourishing tourism industry. No matter where they went, there would be something interesting to see, so Wei Chen wasn’t worried that this method would lead to a wasted trip.

Of course, even if they ended up going for nothing, it didn’t matter. They could always come back and do the same thing again.

As long as Chen Li was by his side, it didn’t really matter where they went.

On this day, Wei Chen and Chen Li wandered the streets of XN City in this carefree manner, paying no attention to the increasingly intense situation back in China. They were truly carefree and at ease.