PB - Chapter 31

Chapter 31

Qiao Qi arrived at the office over half an hour later than usual. When Yao Qiu had called her twenty minutes earlier, she was halfway there. She told Yao Qiu to have Xu Yangpu come to her office at nine. Yao Qiu had initially thought she was late because she wasn’t feeling well, but hearing no abnormality in her tone, she was relieved.

But as soon as she hung up, she couldn’t help but wonder about the reason for Qiao Qi’s tardiness. In all the time she had worked for Qiao Qi, Qiao Qi had never been late, save for a few specific occasions. Her punctuality was practically a miracle at Ruifeng. Yao Qiu was dying to know why she was late this time.

Qiao Qi’s late arrival was witnessed by other tardy employees in the elevator. The few of them didn’t know whether to greet her or pretend they hadn’t seen her and wait for the next elevator. But Qiao Qi saw them and gave a slight smile, so they could no longer feign ignorance and had to enter the elevator, bracing themselves.

The drive from Qiao Qi’s home to Rongfang was shorter than to Ruifeng, cutting out a large portion of the ring road, so Gu Jianchu arrived at her office right on time. Sitting in her office, she recalled the morning’s events. It was the peak of the morning rush hour, and she wondered if Qiao Qi had reached Ruifeng yet. So she gave Qiao Qi a call. Coincidentally, the elevator doors at Ruifeng had just closed.

Inside the small, enclosed elevator car, several people stared at the floor, holding their breath. They tried to breathe less frequently and more shallowly to minimize their presence. When Qiao Qi’s phone rang, their first reaction was to pray it wasn’t theirs. After hearing Qiao Qi answer, they all quietly let out a sigh of relief.

Although they were all afraid of overhearing confidential information they shouldn’t, they still pricked up their ears, unwilling to miss this chance to eavesdrop. They didn’t dare look at Qiao Qi’s expression, but from her soft, gentle tone, they could sense that the person on the other end of the line was someone extremely close to her. Connecting this to the time someone had sent flowers to Vice President Qiao, a juicy rumor about her love life was born right there in the elevator.

By the time this piece of gossip, embellished through several layers of retelling, made its way back to the thirty-fourth floor, Qiao Qi’s mysterious lover had acquired a name and a face, and the reason for her tardiness that morning had been fabricated with convincing detail. Yao Qiu called the administration department downstairs, telling them to immediately handle the internal rumors about President Qiao and to investigate their source.

Qiao Qi, in a meeting with Xu Yangpu in her office, was completely unaware of all this. The other project lead appointed by U.E. was named Thomas. Although U.E. publicly claimed to have two main leads, it was clear that Thomas, who came later, was the more crucial one.

“President Qiao, the flight is scheduled for three in the afternoon. We still have a few hours. Would you like to rest for a bit?”

“No need. Go notify the supervisors from venture capital, marketing, and sales to come up for a meeting in half an hour. Also, have Yao Qiu come in.”

Yao Qiu knocked twice before opening the door and walking in. Inside, Qiao Qi was writing at her desk. Hearing her enter, she looked up and gestured for her to wait a moment. From her standing vantage point, Yao Qiu had a clear view of what Qiao Qi was sketching. Qiao Qi was designing a pair of earrings. Although it was just a simple preliminary sketch, the style was already vivid on the paper. She was now annotating her design ideas for the earrings on the side.

Yao Qiu was certain this wasn’t designed for herself. Having followed Qiao Qi for so many years, she knew all too well that Qiao Qi didn’t spend much thought on jewelry. Suddenly, she recalled the rumors that had spread like wildfire through the company that morning. But these earrings were clearly designed for a woman. For some reason, the person who popped into her mind was Gu Jianchu—that bright, captivating woman whom anyone would adore.

Qiao Qi habitually paused with force as she finished the last stroke. She checked the draft for any omissions before handing it to Yao Qiu. “Find a jewelry company and have them produce a prototype from this design.”

“Yes, President Qiao.”

Qiao Qi glanced at the time and said, “You can go out and call Yangpu and the others in.”

The meeting lasted until one-thirty in the afternoon. Yao Qiu had already ordered lunch for the executives, but Qiao Qi and Xu Yangpu didn’t have time to eat and could only grab sandwiches to go. Fortunately, there was no traffic, and they had a smooth ride to the airport.

The flight was over ten hours long, landing the following day in the local afternoon. Jin Zhiyu had arrived at the airport early to pick up Qiao Qi. She had called him before boarding and told him to accompany her throughout this trip to the United States. After hanging up, Jin Zhiyu rubbed his hands together, unable to hide his excitement.

Ever since being sent to the United States, he had been almost completely removed from all of Ruifeng’s work. Although he hadn’t been involved in the company’s affairs back in China either, he had at least always held a nominal position at Ruifeng and occasionally participated in the operation of some minor projects. After these privileges were abruptly taken away, he found himself constantly reminiscing about the past.

But despite his happiness, he didn’t take the initiative to mention this to his family. Qiao Qi’s relationship with the Jin family was complicated, and she had a direct conflict of interest with Jin Zhihuan. He had to learn to be patient.

When Qiao Qi saw him, she smiled first and asked, “Have you read all the materials I sent you?”

Jin Zhiyu lacked Jin Zhihuan’s gloominess. At twenty-five or twenty-six, he was still in a stage of growth, with a brilliant smile. “I’ve read them all. During this time, please guide me well, Sister Qiqi. I’ll definitely work hard and not let you down.”

Qiao Qi was amused. “Are you graduating this year?” Seeing Jin Zhiyu nod, she asked, “Are you ready to return to Ruifeng?”

Jin Zhiyu stood at attention and said, half-jokingly and half-seriously, “That will depend on President Qiao’s assessment of me over these next twenty days.”

“If there’s anything you don’t understand, just ask Yangpu.”

Xu Yangpu followed behind Qiao Qi, pushing the luggage cart with a deadpan expression. Jin Zhiyu turned back and familiarly slung an arm over his shoulders. “Special Assistant Xu, I’ll be counting on your guidance during this time.”

“You’re too kind, Young Master. I don’t have much to teach.”

“Don’t be so modest, Special Assistant Xu. Ruifeng’s Special Assistant Xu is a target that many companies would pay a fortune to poach. Even I want to steal you away from Sister Qiqi.”

Xu Yangpu shifted his shoulders to shrug off the arm Jin Zhiyu had draped over them, his expression unchanging. “Young Master, you can call me anytime you need anything.”

Xu Yangpu and Yao Qiu were Qiao Qi’s right and left hands, enviable and jealousy-inducing in terms of both their professional competence and their loyalty. At first, Jin Zhiyu hadn’t understood why these two were willing to toil alongside Qiao Qi before she had even risen to power. But now he understood. It was because Qiao Qi, as a person, was worth it.

Qiao Qi hadn’t come on this trip solely for the U.E. project. So, starting from the second day, she was almost always either in a meeting or on her way to one. It was the first time Jin Zhiyu had witnessed her in work mode. After more than ten consecutive days of this, he couldn’t help but marvel that ability was forged through hardship, and his Sister Qiqi was an even more extreme case.

That evening, there was a banquet hosted by overseas Chinese. He had managed to persuade Qiao Qi to come only after much pleading, under the pretext of expanding her network in America and relaxing a bit. Qiao Qi reluctantly agreed. She hadn’t dressed up intentionally, but the moment she appeared, she drew everyone’s attention. She was elegant and dignified, possessing the gentle grace of an Eastern woman. And this wasn’t China; there would be no rumors to affect her immense popularity.

Gu Fanchu had only caught a glimpse of Qiao Qi through a car window last time and didn’t have much of an impression. Seeing her again this time truly made his eyes light up. He had wanted to go over and strike up a conversation, but she was surrounded by an endless stream of men.

Qiao Qi was growing weary of the socializing. After whispering a few words in Jin Zhiyu’s ear, she left the banquet with Xu Yangpu. By the time Gu Fanchu excused himself from another circle to look for her, he found that her lovely figure was nowhere to be seen in the entire banquet hall. Gu Fanchu felt a sense of wistful loss and was annoyed with himself for not seizing the opportunity.

Not long after the banquet ended, Gu Jianchu happened to call him about something. After discussing work, he heard him ask, “Last time, you came to the exhibition with Miss Qiao from Ruifeng. Are you very familiar with her?”

Hearing Qiao Qi mentioned out of the blue, Gu Jianchu guessed that the two of them must have run into each other. “Is something the matter?”

“No, I just ran into her at the banquet earlier, and since you happened to call, I thought I’d ask.” Gu Fanchu quickly changed the subject. “I heard she’s also here for the U.E. project. And rumor has it she and Thomas are old acquaintances.” At this thought, Gu Fanchu’s flicker of enthusiasm was instantly extinguished. Right now, they were major competitors; it was not the time for romance.

Gu Jianchu’s brow furrowed. “I understand.”

“As long as you know. I just wanted to tell you about this, in case it causes unpleasantness between you two later.” He had already reached his car. He had never dared to offer Gu Jianchu advice, but this time, after much thought, he spoke up. “Jianchu, I think the most important thing for you back home is to win Grandpa Wu’s support.”

Gu Jianchu knew what she had to do. “I know how to handle it,” she said.

Gu Fanchu started the car. “If there’s nothing else, I’m heading back. Take care of yourself.”

After hanging up, Gu Jianchu pinched the bridge of her nose. Gu Mingyi had already sensed that she wanted to secure the partnership with U.E. She knew there was no such thing as a secret that could be kept forever. And now, with the unknown risks on U.E.’s side increasing and Gu Yong’s side having been alerted, she was suddenly caught in a dilemma. It was truly vexing.

Jin Zhihuan was feeling just as vexed. Although Qiao Qi was not physically in the Ruifeng building, the tasks she had assigned before leaving were all progressing in an orderly fashion. Every report from Zhao Xiangqian was undoubtedly adding fuel to the fire of his anxiety. Moreover, his grandfather’s attitude had become increasingly ambiguous over the past year, which made him even more uneasy.

Jin Zhilan, who had grown up with him, saw through his forced composure at a glance. “Still haven’t figured out what to do? If Qiao Qi actually manages to close the U.E. deal on this trip, the board of directors might stop backing you even without Grandpa’s say-so.”

Jin Zhihuan’s expression immediately turned cold. “I don’t need you to tell me that.”

Jin Zhilan was unfazed. “My dearest brother, U.E. is crucial. Are you really not going to make a move on this?”

After a long silence, Jin Zhihuan said, “U.E. can bring enormous profits to Ruifeng. If Grandpa finds out I disregarded the company’s interests for the sake of a power struggle, it will only lead to a worse outcome.”

“Then don’t let Grandpa find out.”

Jin Zhihuan looked at Jin Zhilan opposite him, his gaze seeming to pierce right through her. “It looks like you already have a plan.”

Jin Zhilan gave a cryptic smile. “Leak everything Ruifeng has on U.E. to Qi Simiao through Qi Er. Let her be the one to stick her neck out. If something really goes wrong, we can push all the blame onto Qi Er.”

“Qi Simiao?” Jin Zhihuan was puzzled. “What can she do?”

“Brother, you must never underestimate a woman’s jealousy.”

“What does she have to be jealous of? What does the Jin family have to do with her? Speaking of jealousy, shouldn’t you be the one more jealous of Qiao Qi?”

Having been unexpectedly insulted by Jin Zhihuan, Jin Zhilan shot him a fierce glare and said angrily, “She’s not jealous of our Jin family’s great wealth and power. She’s jealous that Gu Jianchu has taken a liking to Qiao Qi and not to her.”

Jin Zhihuan was even more incredulous. “You’re talking about Gu Jianchu and Qiao Qi?” Then he suddenly laughed. “Interesting. This is very interesting. If Qi Simiao can ruin her partnership with U.E., I’ll have a way to kick her out of Ruifeng.”

Jin Zhilan smiled smugly. “She definitely can.”

Get instant access to all the chapters now.

Previous Table of Contents Next