Chapter 77: Poetic Meaning

“Fuck your mom’s quality! Lawyers are a bunch of dogs! They look down on others! You low-tier lawyers are even worse than dogs!” Lü Yang finally exploded, slapping the table and pointing at Zeng Jie’s nose as he cursed loudly.

“You dare call me a dog? That’s slander! Go home and wait for the court summons! Security guards! Security guards! Come here! Throw him out!” Zeng Jie shouted loudly. Teli Law Firm had strong backing and wasn’t afraid of anyone causing trouble.

Several security guards immediately rushed over. Lü Yang leaped onto the table, pointing at their noses and yelling, “I’d like to see who dares touch me!”

“What’s going on here?” A woman in her thirties who had just entered through the main door walked over. Her face was flushed, as if she had been drinking.

“Director Zhang!” Zeng Jie and the security guards immediately stood aside respectfully, greeting the woman.

“I heard that Zhang Min, a lawyer at your firm, is very good at handling cases, so I came all the way here to discuss my case with her. But these people look down on others and deliberately make things difficult! Whether I can meet Lawyer Zhang is one thing, but they won’t even give me an appointment form! What kind of attitude is that?” Lü Yang was very angry and almost got into a fight, but since a supervisor had shown up—a beautiful woman at that—he toned down his language out of politeness.

“He… he cursed at us…” Zeng Jie quickly tried to explain.

“Who told you to speak!?” Before Zeng Jie could finish, Zhang Min scolded him sharply.

Zeng Jie didn’t dare say another word, looking aggrieved. Although he had a lot to say, he didn’t dare utter a word. Zhang Min was not only his idol and boss but also had deep connections in official circles, far beyond what he could imagine or challenge.

Zhang Min then looked up at Lü Yang but remained silent for a long time.

“Are you in charge here? Even if I can’t hire Lawyer Zhang, can’t I at least make an appointment? Is it going to kill anyone to give me an appointment form to fill out?” Lü Yang grew annoyed at the woman’s prolonged silence and questioned her.

“I am Zhang Min. Come with me upstairs.” Zhang Min finally spoke and turned to walk toward the elevator.

Lü Yang glanced around, looking somewhat surprised, but he got off the table and followed Zhang Min to the elevator. Lü Yang had seen Zhang Min’s photo online but had focused more on her case records and hadn’t paid much attention to her appearance. Earlier, he had been too emotional to recognize her clearly.

As Lü Yang followed, the elevator door opened. Zhang Min gestured for him to enter. Lü Yang didn’t hesitate and stepped inside, followed by Zhang Min.

“What’s wrong with the boss today?”

“Yeah! Why is she being so polite to this guy?”

“Didn’t she always say we should never bother her with cases from people like him?”

“Sigh… I don’t get it.”

“Hmph! I think the boss has been in a bad mood these past few days. She probably wants to lure him upstairs and then have him beaten up, so he learns that not just anyone can come here!” Zeng Jie glared resentfully at the elevator. He had been at Teli for so long but had never been to Zhang Min’s office. He never expected this country bumpkin to be personally “invited” upstairs by Zhang Min.

“Right! Beat him up and throw him off the building! We can just say he jumped. Our boss never loses a case anyway.” A security guard said this to flatter Zeng Jie.

“Haha.” Zeng Jie finally felt a bit better.

…

“May I ask your surname?”

After entering the elevator, Zhang Min selected the floor and leaned against the wall, asking Lü Yang.

“I…” Lü Yang thought for a moment and decided to use a fake name, claiming to be Sister Mei’s distant cousin. “My surname is Mei.”

“Surname Mei? That’s a very poetic surname… What’s your name?” Zhang Min continued, examining him up and down. Having drunk too much, she seemed less reserved at the moment.

“My… my name…” Lü Yang hadn’t prepared for this and, under Zhang Min’s persistent questioning, had to make one up on the spot: “My name is Mei Sannong.”

Because his surname was Mei and Zhang Min said it was poetic, he unconsciously thought of “Three Variations of the Plum Blossom.” But “Plum Blossom” wouldn’t work for a man, so he dropped the “Blossom” and came up with “Mei Sannong.”

“Mei Sannong?” Zhang Min froze for a moment, then burst out laughing. “Sannong? How do you do it? Standing? Sitting? Or… lying down?”

After laughing, Zhang Min instinctively covered her mouth. What did she just ask? How could she joke like that with a stranger?

How embarrassing! She had been drinking with Chu Xuan earlier and had been speaking freely, but now she was facing a stranger, and a man at that.

“Any way is fine.” Lü Yang, having made up the name, was already flustered. After Zhang Min’s laughter, he didn’t quite grasp the meaning of her words and just replied casually.

Hearing Lü Yang’s response, Zhang Min couldn’t help laughing again, her laughter carrying a hint of ambiguity…

She had returned to the office just to quickly handle some daytime matters before resting in the lounge. But then she heard the commotion on the first floor, encountered the situation, and, for some reason, ended up bringing Lü Yang along.

Lü Yang then realized that something about their conversation seemed off…

Just then, the elevator door opened on the fifth floor. The entrance led directly to a small lobby facing Zhang Min’s office door. The entire fifth floor housed only Zhang Min’s office.

Zhang Min hadn’t felt too drunk earlier, but after laughing, the alcohol suddenly hit her. As she stepped out of the elevator, she stumbled, her high-heeled shoes twisting, and she sprained her ankle, falling toward the ground.

Zhang Min cried out in surprise. Fortunately, Lü Yang, who was behind her, was quick to react. He instantly caught her and helped her up.

“Ah… it hurts so much!” Zhang Min’s ankle was sprained. Wearing high-heeled shoes and having drunk too much, she couldn’t stand and had to lean into Lü Yang’s arms.

Two female staff members hurried over, standing nervously beside Zhang Min and Lü Yang. “Director Zhang, what happened to you?” they asked timidly.

“Can’t you see I sprained my ankle? Go call a doctor!” Zhang Min’s ankle hurt badly, so she continued leaning on Lü Yang while scolding the staff.

“A sprained ankle is a small problem. Let me take a look. I learned how to set bones and treat injuries from someone before.” Lü Yang scooped Zhang Min up in his arms, carried her straight to the sofa in her office, and gently laid her down.

Zhang Min stared blankly at Lü Yang. It was the first time she had been carried like this by a stranger—or even by any man. Although she wasn’t very heavy, Li Guoqing’s weak physique could never carry her, not even during their wedding when he was supposed to carry her out of the car and upstairs.

This young man was strong… He looked stylish and very manly…

Recalling the drunken talk she had with Chu Xuan while drinking, Zhang Min’s heart raced, and her face flushed. Luckily, her face was already red from drinking, so no one could tell.