Chapter 54 I Am His Partner

In the West Courtyard.

Lin Shaowen was studying the architectural blueprint he had fished out today. After using it, he immediately understood its function.

It could add an extra layer to a house.

The size and specifications would remain identical.

"Adding a layer of architecture out of thin air on the ground would scare the living daylights out of people."

Lin Shaowen pondered for a moment, and an idea suddenly flashed through his mind.

If it works above ground, what about underground?

He immediately manipulated the model and extended it downward.

"It really works."

Lin Shaowen was overjoyed.

He immediately placed the alternative layer of architecture underground, though he hesitated for a long time over where to place the entrance, ultimately choosing Qin Huairu's house.

In case anything happened, someone might stumble into his own home and discover it.

There were quite a few people who hated him.

Qin Huairu's house wasn't entirely safe either, so he set the entrance behind the wardrobe in her bedroom.

Although it was called an underground building, when he ran down to take a look at the basement, he was somewhat dumbfounded. The ventilation was decent, with quite a few vents opening up into the corners of the courtyard and along the perimeter walls.

He ran back home to fetch a flashlight and illuminated the entire basement.

It was very spacious, roughly over two hundred square meters.

It shared the same three-room layout, but was completely empty, with only the sewage pipes and electrical wiring pre-installed. In other words, it was a bare shell, and everything else would need to be installed manually.

"Tch, so it's a bare-bones version."

Lin Shaowen instantly lost interest in the courtyard, returned indoors, and started tinkering in the kitchen. He still had a refrigerator that needed dealing with.

After pondering for quite a while, he finally decided to build a custom cabinet in the kitchen specifically to house the refrigerator.

No sooner said than done. Taking advantage of the early hour, he pushed his bicycle to the secondhand market, selected a few pieces of timber, and raced back.

"Director Lin, what are you up to?"

Yan Bugui looked curiously at Lin Shaowen, who was laden with several wooden boards.

"There are mice and cockroaches at home, so I want to build a cupboard," Lin Shaowen replied evasively.

"It's great to have such craftsmanship," Yan Bugui sighed with admiration.

"Carry on with your day."

When Lin Shaowen returned to the courtyard, he discovered that Qin Huairu had already arrived and was inspecting the refrigerator in the kitchen.

"Shaowen, what is this thing?"

"A refrigerator."

"What does it do?"

"It's a machine that can make ice. Don't go spreading this around; it was given to me by a patient," Lin Shaowen said, pointing at the refrigerator. "The top layer can freeze things, keeping meat fresh without spoiling, and the bottom layer is for preservation, where leftover food and fruit can be stored."

"My, this is a real treasure," Qin Huairu's eyes instantly lit up.

"Mhm, but we can't let word get out. I need to build a cabinet to conceal it."

Lin Shaowen gave her a smiling hug, fetched his carpentry tools, and began planing the wood.

"I'll help you."

Qin Huairu hurried over to pitch in.

Building a cabinet was child's play for someone with Lu Ban-level craftsmanship. Before dusk even fell, the cabinet was completed.

Unconvinced it was secure enough, Lin Shaowen went so far as to install a double-layered defense mechanism.

Anyone unfamiliar with the trick would only see a wooden board upon opening the cabinet doors, completely oblivious to the fact that something lay hidden behind it.

Happily, Qin Huairu placed the leftover food inside, frequently opening the door to touch the interior, feeling the chill, and smiling like a child.

The next day.

When Lin Shaowen pushed open the door to the infirmary, he was startled to find that Lou Xiaoe was already cleaning up.

"Well, aren't you an early bird?"

"Not particularly."

Lou Xiaoe swept a stray lock of hair behind her ears and said with a smile, "I brought you some fruit. It's on the desk."

Lin Shaowen looked at the two bright red apples on the desk and couldn't help a wry smile.

It seemed this young lady had really latched onto him.

With one at home and another at the factory, he wouldn't even have time to go fishing anymore.

"What do you usually do while at work?"

Lou Xiaoe placed the mop outside and sat down beside Lin Shaowen.

"Read books, ponder, and then sleep," Lin Shaowen shrugged.

"Aren't you busy?" Lou Xiaoe asked in surprise.

"Touch wood, touch wood! You shouldn't say things like that in an infirmary..."

Before Lin Shaowen finished speaking, a few workers supported a pale-faced man through the door. Protruding directly from his thigh was a steel rod.

"What happened?"

"The machine jammed, and he tried to clear it with a steel rod. Who knew the machine had so much power and suddenly flicked the rod back..." a worker said with a bitter smile.

"I can only stop the pain for you; the rest has to be handled at the hospital."

Lin Shaowen produced a set of silver needles and inserted them into the man's thigh.

The pale-faced man's expression instantly relaxed considerably.

"I have a car; I'll drive him to the hospital," Lou Xiaoe offered.

"Quiet."

After turning his head to scold her, Lin Shaowen instructed the workers, "Have the factory's vehicle dispatch team send him to Peking Union Medical College Hospital. I'll write you a slip."

"Many thanks, Director Lin," the injured man said gratefully.

The vehicle dispatch team wasn't something just anyone could mobilize.

"Director Lin, this is..." a worker asked curiously.

"I'm his partner."

The words slipped out before Lou Xiaoe could stop them, and her face instantly flushed red.

"Ah?"

The workers' eyes went wide with astonishment.

In many people's eyes, Director Lin was the ultimate catch. In such a massive steel rolling mill, there were plenty of officials, and everyone wanted to marry their daughters off to Lin Shaowen. Had news of Lin Shaowen fiercely chewing out Yang Weiguo not spread far and wide previously, his infirmary would have already turned into a bustling vegetable market.

Lin Shaowen glanced at Lou Xiaoe, who kept her head lowered, his lips parting slightly, but he ultimately remained silent.

"Keep the silver needles steady and hurry along."

"Thanks, Director Lin."

The workers departed, but before leaving, many of them cast deep, lingering glances at Lou Xiaoe, as if committing her appearance to memory.

"I'm sorry, I seem to have caused you trouble," Lou Xiaoe whispered softly.

"You did it on purpose." Lin Shaowen glared at her.

Lou Xiaoe might be naive, but she wasn't stupid.

What she had just done was entirely deliberate.

Just wait; by noon, the news that he was spoken for would likely have swept through the entire rolling mill.

"Yes, I did it on purpose. What are you going to do about it?"

Lou Xiaoe lifted her chin, completely shedding her previous shyness.

"Sigh, how did I fall into your trap?" Lin Shaowen massaged his temples. "Did Lou Ban-City give you this idea?"

"No," Lou Xiaoe shook her head.

"Then your mother gave you the idea."

"I'm not telling you."

"That means it is."

Lin Shaowen sighed.

Though Lou's mother always presented herself as a refined lady of good breeding, she possessed plenty of cunning.

She probably knew that Lin Shaowen's reputation in the rolling mill was stellar, so even if he and Lou Xiaoe were a single man and woman sharing a room alone, it would at most spark a few gossipy whispers—though nobody working hard shifts would really care.

Making a public scene like this, however, changed everything. Lin Shaowen wouldn't be able to clear his name even with eight mouths.

"Let me tell you, my reputation has been ruined by you, so you have to take responsibility for me," Lou Xiaoe said with a wronged expression.

"My dear girl, can you reverse that statement and have it make sense?" Lin Shaowen smiled bitterly.

"Then I'll take responsibility for you instead." Lou Xiaoe's face instantly lit up with a joyful smile.

"Ah, what a misfortune."

Lin Shaowen let out a long sigh.

Sure enough.

When he took Lou Xiaoe to the cafeteria for lunch at noon, the entire main cafeteria erupted into a buzz.

"Director Lin, bringing the missus over for lunch?" Wang Kuirong was the first to step forward and greet them.

Lin Shaowen glanced at the blushing Lou Xiaoe and could only manage a grunt of assent.

"Go to the small dining room; the factory directors have all arrived," Wang Kuirong said with a smile.

"Let's go." Lin Shaowen sighed once more.

Watching Lou Xiaoe trail closely behind Lin Shaowen, Qin Huairu instantly felt a pang of anxious insecurity.