The Cannon Fodder Female Supporting Character Alpha Decides to Go On Strike (GL) - Chapter 29.1

Spontaneous action isn’t difficult; the hard part is truly carrying out an impulse to the very end.

When Su Li opened her travel app and saw there was one business class seat left on the next high-speed rail to the neighboring province, she completed the purchase without a second thought.

When she arrived at the platform, the night wind “whooshed” past her, traveling over the empty, desolate field. A chill climbed up from her feet. She looked down at the simple luggage in her hand and suddenly smiled.

Her body felt cold, but her heart started to beat with a fervent “thump-thump.”

After a journey of over two hours, she successfully arrived in the city where Shen Mo was and took a taxi to the hotel where the other woman was staying.

Standing outside Shen Mo’s door, Su Li hadn’t expected she’d actually be bold enough to rush over like this.

The top floor corridor was very quiet; only one presidential suite was booked at this hour. The sound-activated sensor light had extinguished after a long silence. Standing alone before the door, she thought of her lover just a wall away, and the corners of her mouth curved up involuntarily.

But for some unknown reason, despite having reached the final step, Su Li delayed her next action.

She thought of many things.

They were both mature and rational adults. If Shen Mo opened the door and saw her, what would she think?

Would someone as earnest and proper as President Shen understand her feelings? Would she, like Su Li, feel anxious and sentimental just because they hadn’t seen each other for two days?

Su Li shook her head, tossing the chaotic thoughts out of her mind.

“Since I’m already here…” she mumbled in a low voice, “I can’t just turn around and go back now, can I?”

Thinking this, she gently knocked on the door.

“Knock, knock, knock—”

Shen Mo’s voice came from inside, her tone very cool.

She asked: “Who is it?”

Su Li glanced at her phone. It was almost 11 p.m.

This was certainly not a suitable time for a visit.

She cleared her throat, and at the last moment before announcing herself, she changed her mind, speaking in a pinched voice: “Room service.”

Judging by the footsteps, Shen Mo had already reached the entryway.

She said: “I don’t need room service.”

Su Li looked through the peephole and deliberately hid in the blind spot.

She continued: “Miss Su arranged it for you.”

“Which Miss Su?”

Su Li couldn’t help but reach out and tap the door panel: “Su Li, Miss Su.”

The next moment, the tightly locked door opened, and Shen Mo appeared behind it.

“What do you…?” Confusion still clouded her face, but her slightly furrowed brows relaxed when she saw Su Li. Finally, she broke into a grin and exclaimed: “Su Li?!”

Su Li’s heart settled back into her chest.

She dropped the luggage in her hand, wrapped her arms around Shen Mo’s waist, picked her up, and spun her around once.

“Is President Shen satisfied with this room service?”

Shen Mo was still a little dazed and too excited to speak.

She cupped Su Li’s face, as if checking to see if she was real.

Finally, all her confusion vanished, and she nodded vigorously: “Satisfied!”

With that, she leaned down on her own accord and kissed Su Li on the lips: “You actually came…”

Su Li smiled and hummed an affirmation.

There was surveillance in the corridor, so it wasn’t wise to linger. She picked up her lightweight luggage bag, put an arm around Shen Mo, and guided her into the room.

Once the door was shut, she no longer needed to restrain herself. She tossed her designer bag aside and immediately scooped Shen Mo up by the waist.

Too impatient to wait for the bedroom, she sat down on the wide single sofa in the living room and settled Shen Mo on her lap.

The full weight of her lover was on her body. This feeling of solidity was no burden at all, only bringing a sense of complete fulfillment.

Su Li bounced her gently and asked: “Have you lost weight?”

She pinched Shen Mo’s waist, starting to measure: “Why do you feel lighter?”

Shen Mo leaned in close, rubbing her cheek against Su Li’s.

Su Li chuckled and tried to dodge: “Don’t.”

She cleared her throat and explained: “I touched up my makeup on the train. You’ll get it all over your face.”

Unlike Su Li, Shen Mo had already washed up, and her face was clean, with only the refreshing scent of skincare lotion.

“Why touch up your makeup so late?” Shen Mo asked in confusion.

Su Li coughed, giving her a playful look: “To see President Shen, of course I have to look beautiful.”

Shen Mo cupped her face and said earnestly: “You’re beautiful even without makeup.”

Su Li pouted and carefully kissed her on the corner of the mouth: “Our President Shen has the sweetest mouth.”

“Is it sweet?” Shen Mo stuck out her small tongue and licked her own lips. “I don’t think so?”

She moved closer to Su Li until they were close enough to feel each other’s breath: “Do you want to taste?”

“Mmm…” Su Li took a deep breath.

She was rarely teased by Shen Mo to the point of a racing heart and flushed cheeks. She pressed against Shen Mo’s shoulder and said: “I’m going to take a shower first.”

After the taxi and the high-speed rail journey, she was worried she didn’t smell good.

Shen Mo’s hand lingered at her collar: “If you’re just tasting, why shower first?”

“Because after tasting the appetizer, we still have the main course.” Su Li lifted her, stepped away from the sofa, and placed the soft, fragrant Shen Mo back onto the seat.

She began to take off her jewelry: “Where do you keep your storage box?”

Shen Mo pointed towards the bedroom: “Over there, in the cabinet.”

“Okay.” Su Li nodded and walked towards the bedroom.

Just as she picked up the thin bag, she heard footsteps behind her—Shen Mo had followed her.

Su Li smiled and went back to the entryway to retrieve her luggage bag.

“…I left in a hurry and didn’t bring a toothbrush or a towel.”

“There are disposable toothbrushes, and you can use my towel,” Shen Mo suggested obediently. “If you don’t like the disposable ones, we can buy some at the supermarket tomorrow.”

“Disposable is fine.” Su Li took out her pajamas from the luggage bag.

She started walking toward the bathroom, only to find Shen Mo “pitter-pattering” close behind her again.

Su Li laughed softly, turning to look at her: “What’s wrong?”

Shen Mo shook her head.

She said: “Su Li, I saw a cloud today that looked a little like your face.”

Su Li was surprised: “A cloud?”

She couldn’t imagine what a cloud that looked like her would be like.

“Mm.” As she spoke, Shen Mo had followed her to the bathroom door. “I wanted to take a picture to show you, but the car was going too fast, and the angle was all wrong.”

“That’s a real shame.” Su Li turned back, blocking the bathroom door. “Do you want to come in with me?”

Shen Mo glanced inside, nodding expectantly.

Su Li laughed softly and shook her head, refusing: “No.”

If they were home, she wouldn’t hesitate, but she wasn’t sure how clean the hotel bathroom was, and she didn’t want to make Shen Mo uncomfortable.

Shen Mo pouted but didn’t ask why, obediently listening to her words.

“…Oh.”

“Good girl, wait for me. I’ll be quick.” Su Li reached out and stroked the top of her head.

“Mm.” Shen Mo nodded, but showed no signs of leaving.

Su Li asked: “Will you wait for me on the bed?”

This time, Shen Mo shook her head.

She urged: “You go in. I’ll wait for you here.”

“Pfft.” Su Li grinned and tapped her on the nose again. “Only two days apart, and how did our President Shen turn into a little shadow?”

Shen Mo blinked, didn’t refute, and called her name again.

“Su Li…”

Su Li’s breath caught. Not daring to delay, she closed the door and retreated into the bathroom.

She tried to be as fast as possible, but it still took nearly twenty minutes to get everything done and emerge.

Shen Mo was still standing outside the door. When she saw Su Li come out, her eyes instantly lit up, like countless stars across the universe igniting at the same moment.

Su Li led her back to the bed. Su Li sat on the edge of the bed, and Shen Mo knelt on the bed to help blow-dry her hair.

“Why did you suddenly come here?”

Over the “whooshing” sound of the hairdryer, Su Li thought for a moment before answering: “I’m not exactly sure.

“But by the time I realized what I had done, I was already at the high-speed rail station.”

She curved her lips and turned her head slightly to speak to Shen Mo: “The high-speed rail station at night still had many people. As I brushed past them, I could see the smiles on their faces.

“At that moment, I wondered how many of them were traveling to see their beloved, just like me?”

Shen Mo gently stroked her hair.

“But I quickly realized that people like me, who embark on a trip on a whim without any plan or preparation, must be a minority,” Su Li said with some emotion. “Perhaps I was the outlier among the crowd.”

Shen Mo suddenly asked: “So, were you afraid?”

Su Li was surprised that Shen Mo could detect the subtle emotions hidden in her words.

She smiled, softening her voice: “A little… but the desire to see you and the joy of the impending meeting quickly overshadowed that insignificant feeling.”

Her hair was about seventy to eighty percent dry. Shen Mo turned off the hairdryer and rested her head on Su Li’s shoulder from behind.

“There was a little girl sitting next to me, and she kept watching me while I was drawing my eyeliner,” Su Li recalled a little anecdote from the journey. “When I looked up, she didn’t even flinch and asked if I was going to see my lover.”

Shen Mo hugged her waist tightly: “What did you say?”

“Of course I said no.” Su Li covered Shen Mo’s hand with hers. “I said I was going to see my wife.”

She flashed the diamond ring on her hand: “I’m already married to my little sweetheart!”

Shen Mo laughed, her warm breath caressing Su Li’s neck and shoulder.

Su Li turned around, and they lay down on the bed together.

A dim, yellow nightlight illuminated a corner of the bedside, with the rest of the room shrouded in deep darkness.

Su Li had a strange feeling, as if everything and everyone else in the world had gone to sleep, and only the space where she and Shen Mo lay was floating in the sea of time.

Shen Mo nestled in her arms, rubbing her face affectionately against Su Li’s soft skin.

Su Li lowered her head and placed a kiss on her hair.

There was no lust; the interaction between the two of them revealed only the most natural intimacy and affection, simple and warm.

“I originally wanted to fly over, so we could see the same scenery along the way,” Su Li said, holding her. “Unfortunately, the earliest flight here was tomorrow morning, and I knew I simply couldn’t wait.”

“There’s not much to see on a plane,” Shen Mo said. “The city looks small, and you feel untethered, not knowing when you’ll land.”

She looked up and asked: “What did you see on your journey?”

“The night was dark, and I could only see distant lights, which quickly sped past,” Su Li recalled the scenery along the route. “But fortunately, another sea of lights would soon appear, one after another, like guiding beacons.”

Shen Mo smiled: “I’ll have Shengxiao cancel the plane ticket. We’ll take the high-speed rail on the way back, okay?”

“It’s over two hours,” Su Li confirmed. “Can you handle it?”

“I’ve experienced longer journeys,” Shen Mo yawned lazily. “But it should be different now than before…”

Su Li smiled and deliberately asked: “How is it different?”

“With you accompanying me…” Shen Mo adjusted her posture to lie more comfortably. “It shouldn’t be boring.”

Su Li’s eyes curved in a smile.

She leaned down and kissed Shen Mo’s forehead: “Sleep now.”

Hearing this, Shen Mo tried to lift her head.

Su Li understood and gave her a kiss on the lips: “Good girl, sleep.”

Shen Mo hummed in affirmation, mumbled something else, and quickly closed her eyes, her breathing becoming even as she fell asleep.

Su Li slowly let out a breath.

She hadn’t expected that on the night she impulsively came to see Shen Mo, they would end up doing nothing. Sometimes, a simple hug could make one feel the other’s love far more intensely than making love.

Just like now. As Shen Mo slept soundly and defenselessly in her arms, the sense of contentment in her heart was beyond words.

“Goodnight, Shen Mo.” After whispering this, Su Li also closed her eyes, following Shen Mo into sweet dreams.

That night, after the torment of two days apart, they both slept soundly and deeply.

---

The next day, Yu Shengxiao knocked on the door as usual to usher Shen Mo out to work, but the person who opened the door for her was a languid-looking Su Li.

Yu Shengxiao was startled for two seconds, then quickly returned to her professional demeanor: “Uh, President Su, is President Shen awake?

“The car is waiting downstairs.”

Su Li looked back, nodded: “Wait a moment. We’ll be down in five minutes.”

Yu Shengxiao nodded, very understandingly saying: “Then I’ll wait downstairs.”

With that, she turned and left efficiently.

Su Li closed the door and returned inside, seeing Shen Mo putting on her jacket.

Shen Mo remembered something and asked her: “Is everything alright with your company?”

“Mm, it’s fine,” Su Li replied. “I made arrangements before I came. We just signed a large order, so the next period will be relatively relaxed.”

With that, she smiled slyly: “Besides, if there really is something, don’t I have my dad to hold down the fort? Let the old man worry about it.”

Shen Mo looked at her thoughtfully: “Does your father help share your burden?”

“Of course,” Su Li nodded.

She suddenly remembered something, narrowed her eyes, and counter-asked: “Does Director Shen only know how to exploit you?”

Since that last phone call, her goodwill toward Shen Zhong had plummeted—anyone who bullies her darling wife deserves to die!

Shen Mo shrugged: “It doesn’t matter.”

She didn’t deny it, simply saying “it doesn’t matter” with a look of someone who was accustomed to it.

Su Li saw this, and a surge of emotions welled up in her heart. Something was stuck in her throat, unable to be swallowed or spat out.

“…Your father is going too far. When he needs you to work, he exploits you relentlessly, and when he doesn’t, he wants you to quickly sign a document to give the subsidiary to Zhou Muxin.”

She pouted: “That’s a loud calculation. Where in the world can you find such a good deal?”

Shen Mo adjusted her cuffs and responded indifferently: “It’s just the nature of a businessman.”

Su Li walked over to her: “I don’t want you to be too busy and pour all your energy into work. But on the other hand, I don’t want you to yield to someone like Zhou Muxin. If she gains power, who knows how she’ll deal with you.”

She sighed at this point: “President Shen, what do you think we should do?”

Shen Mo raised her eyes to look at her: “Don’t sigh.”

She curved one corner of her mouth, as if no problem worried her: “The transfer of power takes time. There are plenty of people in this world with better abilities and integrity than Zhou Muxin.

“I’m already planning to delegate authority; it just needs to be done gradually.”

Su Li’s eyes lit up: “Really?”

Shen Mo smiled and nodded: “I won’t lie to you.”

Su Li hugged her and gave her a rare, affectionate peck: “I knew our President Shen was the best!”

Shen Mo was ready to go out. She looked at Su Li, who was also dressed neatly: “Do you want to come along?”

Su Li countered: “Is that convenient?”

Shen Mo nodded: “Of course.”

Su Li then smiled enchantingly.

Her hand wrapped around Shen Mo’s neck: “Then today, I’m the newly appointed ‘Assistant Su’ by President Shen’s side.

“President Shen, please be gentle with me.”

Shen Mo looked at her, surprised, sizing her up from head to toe.

Su Li let her look unapologetically: “How is it? Are you satisfied?”

“Very satisfied,” Shen Mo evaluated.

Su Li lowered her head, unable to resist giving her multiple kisses on her cheek and the corner of her lips.

Seeing that the time agreed with Yu Shengxiao was approaching, she took a deep breath to calm her racing heart and said to Shen Mo: “…Let’s go downstairs. The driver and Assistant Yu are waiting.”

“Okay.” Shen Mo licked her lower lip, still wanting more.

---

The day’s plan was for Shen Mo to visit the factory and inspect the specific production process of the Xin Mu product.

“It’s now confirmed that the substandard batch of goods was contaminated because the raw materials were stored with other chemicals after being delivered to the factory.”

In the car, Yu Shengxiao placed the latest inspection report in Shen Mo’s hand: “Regarding why different materials were stored together, the warehouse’s explanation is that it was caused by a new worker’s operational error.”

“Operational error?” Shen Mo narrowed her eyes. “A production accident this big wasn’t discovered at any point during the entire production process, and only came to light when the final product was tested as substandard?”

Yu Shengxiao: “I also believe there’s a serious problem here.”

She paused, then added: “I met with the various project managers at the factory yesterday. Except for the warehouse, everyone was passing the buck.

“What’s worse is that the employee rumored to have caused the operational error resigned two months ago. This means that, for now, there’s basically no one who can be held accountable for this.”

This was an internal matter for S.G., and Su Li felt she shouldn’t interrupt.

But just sitting there and listening to their conversation, a fire began to burn in her heart. She instinctively felt there had to be something fishy going on.

Soon, the driver brought them to the cosmetics production base in the suburbs.

Li Dongliang, the general manager of the base, and several other management personnel came out to greet Shen Mo, bowing and nodding incessantly from the moment they stepped out of the car. But when Shen Mo asked about the specifics of the production accident, they all started to look confused.

“It really was just an accident. The new worker was careless and put the materials together,” a fat, middle-aged man named Zhou Yaming scratched his head. “President Shen, hasn’t this matter already been closed? Why are we still investigating?”

Su Li looked up, noting that this man, Zhou Yaming, was the supervisor of Production Line 1.

The problematic batch of cosmetics was produced by Line 1.

“An accident of this kind during the production process exposes many issues. The involved employee has resigned, but that doesn’t mean similar incidents won’t happen again,” Shen Mo said coolly.

Hearing this, Zhou Yaming retreated sullenly into the crowd.

That day, Shen Mo and her group of three toured the factory’s production line under the guidance of the plant manager.

For some reason, even though it was their first visit to this place, Su Li felt a strange hostility from the factory workers towards them—

She often felt someone staring at her from behind. But when she turned around, the employees in their work uniforms were all diligently focused on their tasks.

She didn’t think it was her imagination. The only explanation was that something was definitely wrong with the factory.

After completing the tour and listening to the plant manager boast about the modern management and large-scale equipment, Su Li’s head was spinning a little.

Seeing that they were about to return to the office to discuss important matters, Su Li gave Shen Mo a look and stayed outside instead of following them in.

Shen Mo nodded, indicating without a word that she was free to move around.

With the previous events on her mind, Su Li was naturally not planning to rest.

After thinking for a moment, she deliberately walked toward areas they hadn’t toured before.

Away from the plant manager and Shen Mo, the hostile glances completely disappeared. Even when Su Li deliberately lingered near the workers, she only received curious looks.

“Young lady, which department are you from?”

Today, Su Li was dressed very much like an office worker, and with her young, beautiful face, it wouldn’t be a problem for her to claim to be a fresh graduate just starting out.

“Auntie, I’m new. My office is… over there.”

“Oh my, you work in the office. What are you doing on the production line?” the auntie asked with a smile.

Su Li casually brushed her off: “My boss said not to always sit inside. Even clerical staff need to understand our production situation.”

“Is that so?” The auntie and a few of her co-workers were very kind. “Then look around as you like, but just don’t touch the machinery.”

Su Li nodded.

She realized this was a good opportunity and started making small talk with the aunties. After barely becoming acquainted, Su Li intentionally said: “Sigh, I don’t know what’s going on, but my superior is in a very bad mood today. It feels like she’s angry.”

She looked at the others: “The factory is running smoothly today, isn’t it? Why is she so upset?”

“Psh, everyone’s like that,” the auntie replied, pursing her lips.

“Everyone’s like that?” Su Li was puzzled.

“You don’t know?” The auntie glanced at her. “Oh, you’re new. Did no one tell you?

“The head office is sending people to inspect today.”

“So what if they’re inspecting? Our production line has no problems. What’s there to be afraid of?” Su Li helped her organize a few small cosmetic boxes.

“Hey, you’re new, you don’t know.”

The auntie lowered her voice, speaking mysteriously: “Not long ago, a batch of the company’s products failed inspection and were all sent back, causing a huge loss of money!”

Su Li feigned surprise: “That happened? How could our products fail inspection?”

“The warehouse hired a new employee who wasn’t trained and didn’t know better, so they stored things together, and some impurities got mixed in,” the auntie recounted vividly.

This was basically consistent with the information Su Li had: “And then?”

“You’d think this is, at most, the warehouse worker’s fault, right?” The auntie spread her hands. “But that person ran off a long time ago, and now the people from the head office are planning to pin the blame on us and lay off all the workers on Production Line 1!”

Hearing this, Su Li’s eyes widened: “The head office is going to lay off the workers on Production Line 1?

“How come I didn’t hear about this?”

“You work in the office, a university student, so you won’t be laid off,” the auntie said with a dark expression. “People like us are different. They can fire and replace us whenever they like.”

The other co-workers nearby also sighed upon hearing this.

“Those people from the head office are terrible!”

“If I lose this job, where am I going to make a living?”

“The matter clearly has nothing to do with us, but they want us to take the blame. Who can we talk to about this injustice?”

“…”