Chapter 265 Can I still take leave to visit your wife?

The next day, Lu Weidong returned to the camp first, and he strode towards the office.

"Hmm?" He paused, his brows furrowing.

There were some medicines and a brown paper envelope piled up at the entrance.

He bent down to pick it up, opened the envelope, and glanced at the contents of the letter.

His eyes twitched, his mouth twitched, and his face visibly darkened.

He took two steps and banged on the door of Su Feng's office.

The sound of a chair being moved came from inside, and then the door was suddenly pulled open.

Su Feng appeared at the door with a cold face. The moment he saw Lu Weidong and the letter in his hand, he couldn't control his expression for a second and pursed his lips tightly.

"Oh, you're back?" he asked, feigning nonchalance.

Lu Weidong tossed the letter into his arms.

"Huh?" Su Feng caught it, glanced down at it, and then laughed.

"Oh my, so affectionate, Chief of Staff Lu, you've been married for so long and you're still so attractive?"

"roll!"

"Bang—" Lu Weidong slammed his door shut, making the walls shake.

"Are you sure you want to leave this letter with me?" Su Feng asked unhurriedly.

Sure enough, after he finished speaking, footsteps came from next door. Lu Weidong suddenly opened the door and turned back.

Lu Weidong walked up to Su Feng and snatched the letter back from his hand.

With a few swishes, it was torn to shreds.

"Take the medicine that someone gave you from my doorway." After saying this, Lu Weidong slammed the door shut.

"I need to go back to Harbin for a few days." Su Feng changed the subject without responding.

Lu Weidong walked halfway, then turned back.

"Where are you going?" He was a little wary.

"I need to take care of something." Su Feng said without looking up, tidying up the things on the table.

"What's up?"

"Family matters," Su Feng said sparingly.

"How many days?"

"Maybe three days, maybe two days."

"When are you coming back?"

"Hiss..." Su Feng finally looked up, hands on her hips, and stared at him. "Why do I feel like something's off about you?"

"Ah..." Su Feng's lips twitched, "Did you come back by yourself? Is your spouse in Harbin?"

Su Feng almost laughed out of anger.

Lu Weidong was momentarily at a loss for words and couldn't keep up.

"Hey? Are you being defensive towards me?" Su Feng, hands on her hips, retorted defiantly, "I've discovered you're really sick! Do you think I'd take time off to visit your wife?"

Lu Weidong's eyes flickered, and he changed the subject:

"Bullshit! You asked for leave but didn't explain it clearly."

Su Feng frowned and stared at him, then took a step forward.

"Hey? Don't play dumb with me! I'm asking you for leave, you know. I'm informing you."

"It's none of your business to approve my leave request. Don't try to put on airs with me."

Su Feng is right; the two of them have no administrative subordinate relationship.

The research lab is a collaborative project. He holds the title of deputy director, and Lu Weidong holds the title of director. These are virtual titles, limited to coordinating work within the research lab, and do not involve administrative affiliation.

The moment Lu Weidong heard that Su Feng was going back to Harbin, he subconsciously thought of Ye Wenxi.

He suppressed the thought, stubbornly refusing to admit that he had been alert for a moment just now.

Lu Weidong waved his hand:

"Go and come back quickly. There are many experiences to discuss in Yunnan that are suitable for your special operations in forest warfare, and they can't be conducted without you."

"Okay—" Su Feng said deliberately, drawing out the last syllable.

Lu Weidong genuinely disliked Su Feng, a complex person, yet he also felt a certain degree of undeniable admiration and recognition for him.

He hated that this person was always competing with him, hated that he couldn't hide his concern for Ye Wenxi, but he had to admit and admire Su Feng's purity, integrity, and his indomitable spirit.

However, although he disliked Su Feng, based on his understanding of Su Feng's character...

Inviting Ye Wenxi to dance at the ball was the most "outrageous" thing he had ever done in his life.

His integrity will not allow him to take another step forward.

That's why Lu Weidong was able to continue working with him.

Otherwise, given Lu Weidong's love and possessiveness towards Ye Wenxi, he would have already fought him to the death.

Lu Weidong returned to his office, sat down in his chair, and tapped the table with his fingers idly.

She remembered what Ye Wenxi had said last night, and the frown on her brow.

He picked up the phone and dialed the switchboard.

"Hello, this is Lu Weidong. Please transfer me to Director Zhou Xuchen's office landline."

Zhou Xuchen answered quickly.

After exchanging a few pleasantries and discussing some work-related matters, they finally got down to business.

"Director Zhou, would it be convenient for us to have lunch together?"

Zhou Xuchen readily agreed.

At noon, Lu Weidong waited for Zhou Xuchen at the entrance of the cafeteria.

After the two got their food, Lu Weidong looked around, chose a quiet corner, and then naturally brought up the matter.

"To be honest, there's something I'd like to ask Director Zhou about on behalf of my wife."

"Your spouse? Comrade Ye?" Zhou Xuchen paused, a little surprised.

"Come on, let's eat and talk."

Lu Weidong explained in detail the problems Ye Wenxi was currently facing.

"What is certain is that those clothes were definitely not made by them."

"I just don't know if this is an isolated case or part of an organized effort."

He paused, looking at Zhou Xuchen:

"So I would like to ask Director Zhou if you have encountered similar experiences regarding the protection of intellectual property in your scientific research work, and if you could share them."

Zhou Xuchen understood.

Ye Wenxi has encountered a complicated problem, involving plagiarism and possibly extortion.

This is an inevitable stage in the development of Ye Wenxi and her team. Those who take the lead are destined to be imitated by those who follow.

In the past, they were all state-owned factories, and everyone was pretty much the same. Now, with the government supporting economic development, more people are flocking in and starting to do things more freely.

They just didn't know what to do, so they looked at who did it well and learned from them, and did it the same way.

Ye Wenxi ran too fast, and naturally became a target for imitation.

Zhou Xuchen pondered for a moment:

"Comrade Ye is on the right track."

"The current focus should not be on those people's motives and origins. If we put all our energy into chasing after them, they will remain passive."

"We should focus our efforts on proactive measures, such as building a protective network and establishing rules, so that no matter who comes, they can be kept out."

"However, we still need to discuss the specifics with her in person."

"Yes, but she's still in Harbin right now and might not be back for a few days," Lu Weidong explained.

"Let's talk about it in detail when we meet," Zhou Xuchen nodded.

......

That evening, as soon as Lu Weidong got home from work, he called Ye Wenxi.

Tell her about Zhou Xuchen's feedback.

Ye Wenxi knew that the direction was right, but he didn't know which specific steps he could take, or which ones could be implemented in this era without going too far or being abrupt.

Time is of the essence; it will be almost another week before she gets back, and who knows what new trouble someone might cause.

She decided to talk to Zhou Xuchen as soon as possible, so she got his office phone number.

The next morning, Zhou Xuchen was hunched over his desk writing a report.

Ring ring ring—

The landline on the desk rang.

"Feed? Hello." Zhou Xuchen answered the phone.

"Is this Director Zhou Xuchen?" a female voice asked on the phone.

"Comrade Ye?" Zhou Xuchen recognized the voice immediately and a smile appeared on his lips.