Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
“You dared mess with me? Upset now?”
In such a noisy night, the man’s scornful and gloating voice was like a sharp knife, lancing Lin Qian’s eardrum. Her acrimony was like a wild animal trapped inside her body, about to burst at any moment.
But she held it in.
When your enemy has just beat you, but you can’t retaliate, what should you do?
At the very least, don’t give him the impression that he has successfully gotten to you.
Lin Qian stayed silent while holding the phone.
…
On the other end of the line, Chen Zheng was surrounded by debauchery, gripping his phone and smirking.
He was really looking forward to Lin Qian’s reaction.
Unexpectedly, the other end remained silent. Not even the noise of breathing could be heard.
Suddenly, he heard the sound of a chuckle. The tone was very light, as though someone was sneering.
And then she hung up the phone.
Women around Chen Zheng started to give him a toast, but Chen pushed them away. He put down the phone and took a sip of his drink, feeling bitter and bored.
He had specially asked those people to slap her—not too harshly, but enough to give her a warning.
And then he had just waited there in satisfaction after phoning her. Tears? Fear? Maybe even some exasperation and shouting? All the different reactions he had expected.
But none of them happened.
This woman always knew how to make him feel uncomfortable.
…
Lin Qian sat in the chair on the balcony with her arms around her knees. She could still feel the burning sensation on her face and the tears that fell on the back of her hand. She stared at the dim starry sky; memories flooded her vision.
She remembered first coming to Aida for an interview; the company had been thriving and the people there had all been inspiring. And she had held so much faith in this new job back then.
She also recalled the day when the crisis public relations conference had been successfully held. In the frigid winter air, Li Zhicheng had carried her on his back, striding across one puddle after another, and then gave her a lukewarm glance. “When did I say that I was the security manager?”
The day when Li Zhicheng had taken office with a high profile often came to her mind. When they had gotten the request for the tender document, she remembered how Li Zhicheng, who was always silent, had sternly said, “If we can get this project, we can catch a break and prepare for future battles.” Everyone on the scene, including her, had been emboldened by his speech.
She thought about the focused days everyone had intensely concentrated on preparing the bidding document. One time, as she walked out of the project team office, the two newly-graduated women from the manager’s office had asked her, “Ms. Lin, what are our chances?” Their eyes had been full of hope but their voices full of dismay.
She had nodded her head, beaming, “Highly likely.”
Lin Qian had once heard that an army burning with righteous indignation was bound to win, but they had just suffered a crushing defeat.
And with this thought, she burst into tears. After crying for a while, she looked down at her phone and became furious.
She yelled at her phone, “Go to hell, Chen Zheng!”
But she decided that was not enough, and then she went on shouting, “Revenge is a dish best served cold! Just wait for it, Chen Zheng! I’ll have my revenge at all costs!” Only after lashing out she could finally calm herself down. She put her phone down, turned her head, and saw a silhouette standing at the entrance of the balcony. He looked very indifferent, and it seemed he had been gazing at her for a long time.
Lin Qian had already cried herself into a complete mess. Upon seeing him, she hastily turned her back and wipe her tears with some tissues. Then she stood up like nothing had happened.
“How’s everything, Mr. Li?” she asked.
Li’s coat had at some point been taken off, and he was now only wearing a shirt with the sleeves rolled up and suit pants. He looked a bit sloppy. He stared at her. But instead of answering her question directly, he went over and sat in the chair beside her, eyelids appearing heavy.
Lin Qian followed Li and also sat down.
“Everything’s been taken care of,” he responded calmly. “Some got away but most of them were captured. The police have also arrived. Gao Lang and his fellows were slightly wounded.”
Lin Qian let out a sigh of relief, but she still felt a sense of heaviness.
Neither of them said anything for a moment. Rather, they looked at the scenery of the night and its endless horizon.
After a while, Lin Qian peeked at him out of the corner of her eyes, noticing he’d lowered his head and was staring at the floor of the balcony.
Lin Qian was a bit rattled by the vast amount of tissues that littered the area.
“I’ll wipe the floor later,” she whispered. But he’d already raised his head, looking away.
“Lin Qian,” he said slowly, “I’ll remember these tears.”
Lin Qian had already recovered from her emotional breakdown, but what he had just said made her want to weep again.
Just try to hold it.
She turned and stared at his sculpted profile.
Li Zhicheng, please don’t say anything like that. You’re just making me more upset.
Lin Qian adjusted her breathing. When she spoke out again, she was calm, but still sounded a little hoarse.
“Mr. Li, I’m sure that SMQ secretly planned this. But, given that they have the guts to do something like this, they basically have nothing to fear. And even if those men are taken to the police station, they won’t confess anything.
“But this move of theirs will cost us greatly. It will make our people more sluggish, and those who don’t know the truth will start to question the board of directors and start to question you. We’ve already lost the Ming Sheng project and the company is in turmoil. What they just did is deadly.
“But we can’t raise the white flag yet. Mr. Li, everyone is expecting something from you right now. I think the most important job for you is to make the people in Aida a team again before continuing our business. We must figure out how to let all the staff know your perseverance. Or… We can organize some inspirational CEO activities and get sentimental when necessary. We can definitely move most people by doing this…” She trailed off, because Li Zhicheng, who had been looking ahead of himself, turned his head abruptly. He looked at her, quietly but fiercely.
“What is it?” she tried to ask.
All of a sudden, he reached out his hands to her.
Before Lin Qian could react, he had already put his hands on her slightly-swollen cheeks. Lin Qian’s heart skipped a beat, thinking he might just want to check the condition of the injury.
She turned her head, trying to pull away from him.
“Nothing serious, it doesn’t hurt anymore,” she said.
Without letting her finish, he bent down, and suddenly his beautiful face was attached to hers. Lin Qian was astounded. She stared into his deep and dark eyes, which resembled two black holes. She could see her reflection inside them.
His soft and cold lips covered hers.
Lin Qian was completely stunned and bewildered.
She instantly realized what was happening. Li Zhicheng’s face was touching hers, pressing against her lips; and his tongue slipped into her mouth, exploring. His fresh scent seemed to be mixed with his masculine temperature, and both of them washed over her body.
Lin Qian was heated. Moaning, she tried to back off. However, she was sitting right next to him. His left hand was on the armrest of her chair, while his right hand was holding her face, and his black eyes stared at her from no distance. She was almost completely trapped by him and there was no way she could escape.
There was only one thought in Lin Qian’s head, and she was extremely confused.
Li Zhicheng is kissing me! He is actually kissing me!
Was he falling in love her because she was the first friend he had made? Because she was one of the few women he had trusted and learned from after finishing his military service and taking on the difficult task of running Aida?
As she was still trying to wrap her head around what was happening, he loosened his grip and slowly moved his face away, ending the sudden kiss.
“You don’t need to mention that anymore.” He was still gazing at her with his dark eyes. “I know.”
Lin Qian remained silent.
At the same time, Li Zhicheng stood up, unconcerned and tranquil, like nothing had happened. But Lin Qian’s could see that his lips were a bit moist. He turned back and started to walk out with his hands in his pockets.
Lin Qian sat there, staring at his back.
When he reached the door, he suddenly stopped.
“Lin Qian,” he said without looking up, “tomorrow is a brand new day. Everything is going to be fine.”
…
It was late at night and the city had fallen into darkness. Nearby was Aida Group, which seemed to have resumed its peacefulness.
Lin Qian lied on the bed, staring at the ceiling blankly.
The pain on her cheek didn’t matter anymore. What really matter… She touched her lips.
Up until now she had remained completely calm, and she thought there were two explanations.
First, Li Zhicheng might really be into her. But they were not fit for each other. Li Zhicheng was not her cup of tea, not to mention she always disdained workplace romance.
She closed her eyes and contemplated what type of men she really liked: strong, mature, and intense. Although she planned to be an office lady in the future, she still wanted a man who could easily capture her heart.
But Li Zhicheng was the complete opposite case of that… It was she who had conquered him.
Suddenly, Lin Qian thought back to the kiss, and his cool eyes, tall nose, high cheekbones and moist lips.
Lin Qian’s heart skipped a beat before hastening.
Well, while working together he had certainly impressed her—he was, after all, a charismatic man with a handsome face.
But that isn’t supposed to be love.
Lin Qian was disoriented. This kiss had just made things completely awkward between them. If he really wanted to pursue her, she would definitely reject him. But she couldn’t bear being so cruel. He was neither a shameless, spoiled guy like Chen Zheng, nor a college brat who was pursuing her. He was principled and moral… What girl in the world could possibly break his heart?
Or maybe there was another possibility?
Lin Qian got up, walked over and looked into the mirror.
Everyone knew that the sparks happening between two people were highly susceptible to their environment, and sometimes it was difficult for a person to control his or her impulses.
Li Zhicheng was a man who, in his prime, had never dated anyone, so he was probably hormonal. And tonight was a stressful, special night: his company had been severely struck and his assistant had sobbed in front of him. Could it be that when Li Zhicheng saw her, he had felt so empathetic that he kissed her? Then it would just be his stress and mutual consolation, which didn’t mean anything else.
But… she looked at her slightly swollen face, red eyes and nose, and her messy hair.
She didn’t think it looked like a face that a man would want to touch or protect.
…
Just as Lin Qian had said, after what happened, everything looked to Li Zhicheng for their future plan. But Li Zhicheng seemed much calmer than others expected he would be.
In the murky night, he had returned to his office, sat in his chair on the balcony and looked over some of Aida’s building from a distance; a cup of hot tea was in his hands and a lamp hung above his head.
When Gu Yanzhi returned from the police station, it was already eleven o’clock. He was also disoriented by what had happened. Walking up to the balcony, he sat down beside Li Zhicheng.
“Chen Zheng’s such a rat bastard,” he growled. “How dare he do something so filthy! The police said the leads are all just no-name rioters and they will be in jail for a couple of months. But they are all saying they did this because they hate Aida, and that no one is behind this. There’s no point in us trying to get to the bottom of it.”
“Okay.” Li Zhicheng nodded his head mildly.
Gu Yanzhi patted Li’s shoulders after staying silent for a while and said, “I have faith in you.”
Li Zhicheng didn’t say anything.
Gu Yanzhi went on saying, “I heard Lin Qian was slapped. Is she okay?”
Li Zhicheng responded, “Yes. Her face is swollen.”
Gu Yanzhi chuckled, glanced at him and said, “You really care about her, don’t you?”
Li Zhicheng didn’t answer him. After a while, he suddenly turned his head towards Gu and said, “Yanzhi, you told me before that the market is like a war zone. Everyone racks their brains to destroy others and it’s a matter of life and death.”
Gu Yanzhi was dazed. This was exactly what he had said to Li Zhicheng when Li decided to retire from the military. He nodded his head. “Yes, I said that. What’s on your mind?”
“Nothing,” Li Zhicheng said mildly. Then he turned to look at the night in front of him, muted.
Nothing indeed.
But such a cunning lady is willing to treat me so sincerely—just like the image of this night, so within reach, pure and crystal-clear.
…
Lin Qian rested at home for a whole day.
Li Zhicheng’s instruction was for her to take two days off actually, but there was no way Lin Qian could rest assured. Hence she went directly to Human Resources to cancel her sick leave when the swelling had reduced.
Her heart started to beat faster when she went returned and looked at the president’s office. When she approached the office, she noticed that Li Zhicheng was not inside. Somehow, she felt relieved.
The phone rang after she had been sitting for a short while.
It was Yang Xiru from the general manager’s office, who was also her confidant now.
Yang Xiru started the conversation by asking how her recovery was going, and suddenly changed the topic and said, “Do you why we lost the bid, Ms. Lin? It’s because there is a spy in our company.”
Lin Qian was shocked, and whispered, “A spy?”
“Yes,” Yang Xiru said. “There was information leaked by someone from Ming Sheng. All the conditions SMQ offered were in line with ours, but every condition was slightly more appealing. This is how they won the bidding, by sneaking a peek at our bidding document. I heard that Mr. Kang’s secretary from Ming Sheng called Mr. Li after the bidding and told him Mr. Kang was really disappointed.”
“How do you know this?” Lin Qian interrupted.
“People have been spreading the word since yesterday.” Yang Xiru answered with hesitation.
“I see,” said Lin Qian. “Then who’s the spy?”
“They said it was Ge Songzhi, the technician, who also served as a member of the project team twice,” said Yang Xiru. “He was taken into custody in this morning. Mr. Gu and Mr. Liu also went along. Apparently some evidence has been found, some CCTV videos and his email records.”
Lin Qian fell into a contemplative state after hanging up the phone.
She had sensed that something was weird after they lost the bid. But she hadn’t actually foreseen a spy scandal coming.
She suddenly remembered how during their preparations for the crisis public relations conference, she and Li Zhicheng had seen the silhouette of someone in the corridor. Was that Ge Songzhi? It was terrifying to imagine such a disingenuous person, a spy from SMQ, hanging around them all the time.
However, if she was guessing correctly, it was definitely Gu Yanzhi and his fellows who had leaked the spy scandal.
Did Li Zhicheng take my advice?
She smiled faintly. People at the company were lost and confused. A spy scandal could inspire the staff to stand in solidarity with them.
The phone rang when she was still pondering the possible results of what had just happened.
It was the general accounting office. “Ms. Lin, the thirty-million-yuan transfer is complete. Please notify Mr. Li once you see him.”
“Thirty million?” Lin Qian was a bit baffled.
The person from general accounting office lowered his voice and said, “Yes. Mr. Li pledged part of the assets from the second manufacturing factory as a mortgage to the bank to get the loan.”
Lin Qian felt heavy after hanging up the phone.
Absent for one day, and the breaking pieces of news came one after another.
Li Zhicheng had to resort to selling property? They had been standing at the edge of a bottomless pit—were they already falling in?
A tall, familiar man walked in with a mild and handsome face. He was wearing a newly-ironed suit. Holding a folder in his hands, he seemed to have just finished a meeting.
Li Qian stood up immediately, stared at the button of his suit to evade looking at him directly, and said, “Good morning, Mr. Li.”
“Oh,” Li replied calmly. “Come in.”
Lin Qian’s heartbeat paused for a second, and then she hurriedly followed him into his office.
“Your face has recovered already?” Li Zhicheng sat on the couch and looked up at her.
“Yes. Thanks for asking, Mr. Li.” Lin Qian continued staring at the suit button. But she could clearly feel him giving her a cold stare.
“There was a call from the general accounting office and they said the 30 million yuan has been transferred.”
“Okay,” he responded. “Pay the wages first, and then put the rest into our account.”
“Sure.”
Then, as usual, he briefed her on the tasks that needed to be completed, such as meetings, reports, and following up on the spy scandal. Lin Qian grabbed a pen and notebook to marked down everything he mentioned. While taking notes, she became flustered. She stole a glimpse at him, then looked down again at her notebook.
He was acting like nothing had happened, but he had definitely kissed her the other day. Why wouldn’t he say anything about it? Did he not care about it at all?
As she was secretly contemplating this, he stood up.
Lin Qian lifted her head and her eyes met his.
“Lin Qian,” he murmured.
Lin Qian’s heart skipped a beat.
It’s finally coming!
She lowered her head to avoid looking at him, her face red.
I’m going to reject him now…
But after she waited for a while with her heart pounding, she heard his mild and calm, even seemingly amused voice.
“I have had a plan,” he said slowly. “I’ll outflank SMQ.”
