FIO CH12

Chapter 12: Surprise!

Perhaps preoccupied with something on his mind, Lu Fangchi didn’t sleep soundly. He woke up abruptly with a shiver.

Upon opening his eyes, he was met with a broad back. The movement of waking up caused the person to turn around, and Zhou Zheng’s deep voice sounded: “Awake? Do you want to sleep more?”

Not in the mood to question why he was still there, Lu Fangchi shook his drowsy head and slowly sat up. Likely due to poor sleep, he felt a splitting headache. Instinctively, he reached for his pack of cigarettes, only to find it empty.

Forgot, they were gone already.

Lu Fangchi furrowed his brows slightly, feeling a bit annoyed as he leaned back on the sofa and looked out the floor-to-ceiling window. The fiery orange afterglow of the sunset painted a magnificent oil painting; the sun had set already.

Zhou Zheng got up, went to the water dispenser, poured a cup of water, and handed it to Lu Fangchi. He took it, tilted his head back, and took a couple of sips. The warm water soothed his throat, easing some of the grogginess from just waking up.

After another three or four minutes, Lu Fangchi finally got over his morning grumpiness and said to Zhou Zheng, who was sitting in front of him again and typing away on the keyboard, “What are you typing?”

Zhou Zheng didn’t respond at first, continued to type furiously for a while, and then stopped, turning sideways to Lu Fangchi and saying, “Take a look.”

The alpha’s back was to the setting sun, and the rosy light cast a soft halo on his sharp features, with his almond-shaped eyes twinkling with stars.

Lu Fangchi’s heartbeat skipped half a beat. He quietly averted his gaze, looked down, and said, “What?”

Unaware of the effect he had, Zhou Zheng, focused on the programming, pressed the run button. The animation on the screen was smooth and detailed.

Lu Fangchi’s expression shifted from initial indifference to rapt attention. He recognized these as the graphic programming he had been working on. But while he had only completed a third of it before going to sleep, the remaining two-thirds were now finished and enhanced with many unexpected details that Lu Fangchi hadn’t thought of.

It wasn’t about superiority or inferiority; it was just a different focus. But the admiration that rose in Lu Fangchi’s eyes showed his satisfaction.

“You…” Lu Fangchi pursed his lips, seemingly unsure of what to say, and finally managed to utter just one word.

Even though they used to dislike each other, Lu Fangchi had never doubted Zhou Zheng’s professionalism. However, the contrast after losing his memory was too great; he seemed naive now.

“Memory loss just means you can’t remember things, right? Your basic abilities shouldn’t be lost, and you shouldn’t be that bad,” Zhou Zheng said, scratching his head and glancing at Lu Fangchi’s face, trying to read his expression for any useful information.

Seeing that he didn’t respond for a long time, Zhou Zheng’s expression became visibly flustered. “I just tried randomly, messed around. The original file is still there…” He reached out to revert the changes.

Lu Fangchi stopped him with a hand. “Do you still stand by what you said earlier?”

“Huh?” Zhou Zheng blinked, not understanding the meaning of the question for a moment.

“Help me,” Lu Fangchi said, his narrow eyes filled with earnestness as he stared at Zhou Zheng.

Unable to resist, without even a bargaining process, the alpha nodded eagerly and offered his services for free: “Always on standby.”

“A thousand is an underestimate. Three thousand is the starting point, and it can increase depending on the quality,” Lu Fangchi didn’t give Zhou Zheng a chance to refuse. He got up, walked to the desk, and made an internal call: “Secretary Li, please order a new desk and computer, with the same configuration as mine.”

“Yes, put it in my office, and make it as soon as possible,” he said before hanging up. Only then did Lu Fangchi remember to seek Zhou Zheng’s opinion: “Share an office with me, no problem?”

There wasn’t an idle spot available right away, and if Zhou Zheng didn’t agree, they would have to think of another solution.

Zhou Zheng was more than happy and quickly nodded: “No problem, it’s fine.”

With Zhou Zheng’s high value added, Lu Fangchi’s burden was significantly reduced. Although still busy, he no longer had to pull all-nighters constantly.

He glanced at the schedule; they could finish today and make it to the New Year’s Eve celebration in the evening.

After testing the last string, Lu Fangchi finally relaxed, twisted his neck from side to side, producing a “cracking” sound, feeling much more comfortable.

The final shift was finally over. He glanced at the bottom right corner of the computer screen; it was eight o’clock in the evening.

Not too late.

Lu Fangchi looked at Zhou Zheng, who was two meters away, and suggested, “Let’s go grab something to eat?”

Zhou Zheng, staring intently at the computer screen in contemplation, seemed not to hear and didn’t respond for a while.

Lu Fangchi got up, walked over to him, and patted his shoulder.

This action startled Zhou Zheng, who hastily closed the computer webpage, looking back guiltily, “What’s up?”

Lu Fangchi: ? It felt a bit odd.

Respecting personal privacy, Lu Fangchi didn’t press further but repeated, “Let’s go get something to eat. Are you hungry?”

The shopping mall was right next to the office building. Zhou Zheng thought for a moment and nodded in agreement: “Sure.”

The meal didn’t go smoothly. Halfway through, Lu Fangchi was called back to a meeting by a phone call. Before leaving, he said apologetically, “I’ll treat you to a better meal next time.”

Zhou Zheng didn’t mind at all, waving his hand, “You go ahead. I’ll go back by myself after I finish eating.”

“Alright,” Lu Fangchi said, grabbing his coat and quickly heading out.

After watching Lu Fangchi leave the restaurant, Zhou Zheng waited another ten minutes to make sure he was far enough away before getting up and slipping out as well.

Instead of going back, he walked to the second-floor luxury boutique, where the dazzling display cases were overwhelming.

The sales associate immediately came forward to serve him: “Hello, sir. What can I do for you?”

“I’d like to buy a bracelet, as a gift,” Zhou Zheng said concisely.

The associate understood and smiled, “For an omega, right? These styles are great, all new releases this year,” pointing to several bracelets, all of which were adorned with sparkling diamonds.

Too ostentatious, not fitting Lu Fangchi’s temperament.

Zhou Zheng shook his head, “For an alpha, something simple, not too complicated.”

“Sure thing,” the associate agreed, leading Zhou Zheng to another display case, “How about these?”

An hour later, Zhou Zheng left the boutique with a jewelry bag in hand, striding quickly back to the company.

He had to hurry, to beat Lu Fangchi’s meeting.

It took Zhou Zheng ten minutes to return to the office and another five or six minutes tapping away on Lu Fangchi’s computer before finally placing the jewelry bag on his desk.

The bag contained two boxes, and Zhou Zheng frowned again, torn. The second hand moved from 59 to 00, signaling ten o’clock sharp.

No way, if he dawdled any longer, Lu Fangchi’s meeting would be over.

Going against his instincts, Zhou Zheng left the jewelry box that better matched Lu Fangchi’s style.

Once everything was ready, Zhou Zheng finally felt the urge to urinate. It wouldn’t take long; he could spare a few minutes to use the restroom.

“Zzz…” Zhou Zheng zipped up, walked to the sink to wash his hands, looked up at the mirror, wet his hands, and combed his hair with water, making sure his appearance was impeccable before turning to leave.

He walked to the office door, reached out, and pushed it open. Someone was sitting at the desk; he was back?

Zhou Zheng’s eyes softened, but as the person in the chair turned to face him and said “Surprise!” first, the smile on the alpha’s lips froze. It wasn’t Lu Fangchi; it was a completely unfamiliar face.