Chapter 338: Unease

The return flight to Zhonghai was direct this time. Yang Chen finally managed to book a business class seat, a decision made by himself rather than the company. This was the second time flying with Anxin, but she wasn't a flight attendant this time; instead, she was peacefully sleeping in his arms, unconcerned about the curious glances from others.

Yang Chen looked at the sumptuous food in the business class and sighed inwardly. With Anxin lying on him, he couldn't even find a moment to eat. If the male passengers around him knew his thoughts, they would probably gladly trade their lunches for a chance to be in his place.

Several hours later, they arrived back in Zhonghai, just after noon due to the time difference. Neither of them had much luggage. Arriving at the airport exit, Yang Chen, who had come by bus to the airport, needed to take a taxi to retrieve his car. He asked Anxin, "How about taking a taxi with me, and then I can drive you home?"

Anxin shook her head. "No, I can take care of myself. I know you must be starving after the plane ride. You should go and eat something quickly."

"You're awake after all," Yang Chen said in frustration. "I thought I could avoid a scolding."

Pouting, Anxin replied, "Since we're parting ways, who knows when you heartless man will be willing to play with me again? Of course, I want to lie on you a bit longer."

Yang Chen was speechless. He was almost tempted to take this girl home, but it would definitely provoke a certain icy person, so he gave up on the idea.

After a tender embrace with Anxin, they each got into separate taxis and left the airport. Yang Chen arrived at Yulei's parking garage, retrieved his car, and headed straight for Longjing Garden's villa.

Earlier at the airport, he hadn't felt much, but now, stepping onto the road home, Yang Chen felt an urgent desire to enter his house. The mixture of longing and joy was so intense that Yang Chen pressed harder on the accelerator.

Finally, Yang Chen realized that he truly regarded that place as his home. Subconsciously, he already considered the two women at home as his family.

Thinking back to over half a month ago, when he had stubbornly told Lin Ruoxi he wanted a divorce, Yang Chen now had no such thoughts at all.

During the trip to Japan, at the moment he had slain the false "Seventeen," Yang Chen finally understood that the dead cannot be brought back to life. And that slap from Jian, accompanied by tears of anger and sadness, made him realize that he should not be stubbornly holding onto past sorrow.

Since it was difficult for him to let go of that person in his heart, why should he give up for an unpredictable future?

However, the immediate problem in front of him was clear—how could he take back what he had said and calm Lin Ruoxi's anger? That girl was clearly someone who wouldn't relent until she saw it through to the end. Getting her to accept him seemed even more challenging than before.

Ignoring so many phone calls, wasn't that essentially agreeing to sever all ties with him?

Thinking about these troublesome issues, Yang Chen's car had already returned to the outside of Longjing Garden's villa.

As soon as Yang Chen got out of the car, he swiftly unlocked the door with his keys and entered the living room in a blink of an eye. Although he had informed them of his arrival today, the sudden return startled the two women watching TV at home.

However, Lin Ruoxi wasn't among them. Instead, it was Huilin and Wang Mama, who were watching Peking Opera together. Wang Mama, with a mischievous smile, followed the tune by humming along. Seeing Yang Chen burst in unexpectedly, Huilin took it in stride, but Wang Mama, fully immersed in the drama, playfully scolded, "Brother-in-law, you're too dramatic. Coming home like Sun Wukong causing havoc in the heavens."

This comparison from Wang Mama made Yang Chen sweat a bit. He glanced around and asked, "Where's Ruoxi? She should have been back by now, still on vacation, right? She didn't go back to work, did she?"

Finding it odd that Yang Chen was immediately asking about Lin Ruoxi upon returning, Huilin explained, "She went to inspect a factory in a small town. There were rumors of worker unrest."

Frowning, Yang Chen thought, a factory? Worker unrest?

Wang Mama sighed, "She left less than an hour ago. If you had come home a bit earlier, you would have seen her."

Yang Chen felt something was amiss. Yulei International, which produced various goods, naturally had many factories. But why would Lin Ruoxi, the CEO, need to personally inspect a lower-level factory?

"Tell me more, Wang Mama," Yang Chen asked.

Wang Mama nodded and explained the situation. It turned out that nearing the Lunar New Year, one of Yulei's garment factories had encountered issues with delayed wages. The factory claimed financial difficulties due to losses that year, but the workers were skeptical. They began to protest, surrounding the factory manager and some officials, causing headaches for local township officials.

Most of these workers were migrant laborers from outside, working in Zhonghai to earn money to bring back home for the New Year. With only a month left, not receiving their year's wages had left them unwilling to compromise.

Normally, such matters wouldn't require Lin Ruoxi's attention as CEO, but Yulei's headquarters had begun their annual rotation for holidays and travels. Key personnel from HR and marketing departments were absent or lacked the necessary qualifications to handle the situation.

Eventually, the issue reached Lin Ruoxi's ears, and after some consideration, she decided to personally go and resolve the matter.

"Actually, Miss Qianyi had planned to go, but she said she didn't want to stay home all the time, so she insisted on going," Wang Mama added with some resignation.

Didn't want to stay home?

Yang Chen sighed bitterly. Wasn't it just because she didn't want to see him and was deliberately finding excuses to avoid being at home? Plus, with these days off work, she could easily find reasons to stay away from home and not meet him.

"Is she going alone?" Yang Chen asked.

"Who else could go with her? Miss Qianyi said she can handle it, so the other executives at the company dare not cross her," Wang Mama explained.

Yang Chen felt increasingly anxious. His concern for Lin Ruoxi far exceeded his own expectations, making him unable to sit still. Facing the anger of hundreds of low-level workers at the lowest level factory—this was not a problem a young woman could handle. These workers weren't intellectuals looking for reasoning; they wanted their money, and all other theories were meaningless without it. If it were such an easy matter to resolve, the local authorities would have handled it long ago without needing headquarters to send someone over.

Moreover, while Lin Ruoxi was astute in business matters, her emotional intelligence was noticeably lacking. Otherwise, she wouldn't always wear a cold expression, delegate social functions to the PR department, and have only a handful of friends. Asking her to deal with a group of rough workers and shrewd local officials was harder than climbing the heavens.

The more Yang Chen thought about it, the more unsettled he became. So he asked Wang Mama, "Which town did Ruoxi go to?"