Thousands of miles away in S City, Secretary Zhou Mi is also having a hard time with his own boss. He left the company at midnight last night as they were in the middle of preparing for the company's 28th anniversary gala next month, but he had to come in at precisely 7 a.m. This was the time his boss came in for work no matter how late he left the company the previous night, and no employee dares to arrive after the CEO, especially him.
It was true that he was paid an exorbitant amount compared to other executive secretaries in the country, but Secretary Zhou hasn't slept a full eight hours in weeks and hasn't gone on vacation in two years.
But he can't even complain because his boss sleeps even less and has never gone on vacation since Zhou Mi started working for him.
The boss was only put in charge of ZG Entertainment, his grandmother's passion project after she retired as an actress, a year ago by his grandfather after successfully salvaging and managing the Zhang Group's previously failing insurance company for five years. The entertainment company hadn't been doing well after Zhang Yi Zhou's grandmother passed away due to mismanagement and the appearance of several rival companies over the years.
Secretary Zhou, who had started working for CEO Zhang while he was still managing the insurance company and followed him to the entertainment company last year, is one of the very few witnesses of how hard the boss works and how many sacrifices he has made. Some jealous people will claim that Zhang Yi Zhou has slept with this actress or that model and lets the board do all of the work while enjoying the benefits of being the heir of the Zhang Group. But while this might be true for other young men who stand to inherit a fortune out there, Secretary Zhou would be the first testify that there is no one who can claim to live a life as cleanly—and as boring—as his boss does.
His boss only attends parties if it is related to business and doesn't even drink to relieve his stress. At least Zhou Mi has gone on a few blind dates over the years; he has never even seen his boss being accompanied by a woman who wasn't blood-related to him.
What was the use of having handsome looks that could rival movie stars, billions of dollars and a guaranteed future position of chairman of the Zhang Group if you lived a life like this? This is why there is a ridiculous rumor going around that Zhang Yi Zhou is a work robot who was created only to make profits for the Zhang Group.
But that same CEO who is called a cold, heartless, perfectionist devil robot is currently doing something extremely terrifying that Secretary Zhou has never seen before...
He was smiling...smiling for real!
It is not the business smile he gives particularly annoying people whose deaths he is already picturing in his head, but a real, albeit amused, smile.
What could be making his boss smile at his phone like that? Could he be secretly watching funny videos of cats at work?
Not that he does that himself while working...
Zhou Mi is professional, however, and knows not to ask his boss about things he doesn't speak about first, no matter how curious he is about his personal life.
He is still extremely curious though as this is like the sighting of a thought-to-be-extinct animal that hasn't been seen in many decades. He wants to capture a photo of it, if only as proof that it happened in his lifetime.
"Zhou Mi." His boss' deep baritone voice jolts him out of his thoughts.
"Sir." He straightens his back subconsciously despite the CEO never taking his eyes off his phone.
"If a girl named Han Yu comes looking for me here, tell them to let her into my office, no matter what time it is. Inform me immediately and cancel whatever appointment I have."
"Sir?!"
He would feel mortified that his professional demeanor broke in the middle of work, but he is much too busy being shocked. No one has unconditional access to boss' office, not even the boss' own grandfather, Chairman Zhang. Not even him who works almost 24/7 with the CEO.
Zhang Yi Zhou only continues as if he didn't hear Secretary Zhou's question. "Make sure to tell security and the receptionists not to ask her any questions. As soon as she gives her name, just let her in and leave her alone. And stock the fridge with all brands of softdrinks and coffee."
Zhou Mi just nods silently, afraid he might accidentally start bombarding his boss with questions. This boss of his who maintains such a strict and healthy lifestyle that it almost makes one pity him and has never touched a drop of carbonated drink was asking him to put those kinds of unhealthy drinks in his office? Is he in some sort of parallel universe?
What kind of god-like person was this Han Yu that she has made the cold, untouchable and uncompromising CEO Zhang go to these lengths to accommodate her? Could she be a new actress?
But even one of the top actresses in the country right now, Liu Xinyue, whom the company went to incredible lengths to sign two months ago, cannot penetrate the boss' hard shell. Who could be so amazing that she can achieve what one of the four goddesses of C country cannot?
Even if he was the consummate professional in front of his boss, he now felt that if he didn't know the identity of this mysterious Ms. Han Yu, he would be in trouble in the future.
"Sir? Is Ms. Han Yu a relative of yours?" The secretary unknowingly holds his breath in anticipation for the answer.
But he was bound to be disappointed as his boss only answered cryptically, "It is true that she is a part of my family."
Secretary Zhou knows all the members of the Zhang family starting from boss' grandfather's generation, but he has never heard of a Han Yu. He already feels like he is being too impudent but he dares to ask, "Your cousin, sir?"
However, he immediately regrets asking when his boss finally looks up from his phone and narrows his eyes at him in a cold glare.
Secretary Zhou hurriedly changes the subject. "I will make sure to inform the receptionists and secretary department to accommodate Ms. Han Yu well."
CEO Zhang only gives him a look that seems to say "you had better do so or else" before focusing his attention on the device on his hand once more.
After leaving the boss' office as quickly as he can without outright running, Zhou Mi immediately called up his senior, Secretary Bai Li Wei, who has worked with CEO Zhang the longest and is currently helping boss oversee the insurance company, to ask about the mysterious Ms. Han Yu.
He doesn't even wait for the other person to say hello before blurting out, "Senior Bai, I need to ask you something!"
Secretary Bai only sighs in a way that conveys how disappointed he is with this troublesome junior. "If it's about the computer program again, I told you—"
"No, not that, senior. I need to ask you about Ms. Han Yu!"
A choking noise is the only sound Zhou Mi hears for several seconds, making him nervous. His senior was almost as unflappable as his boss, the last thing he expected was for him to be flustered by a name.
"Where did you hear that name?" Secretary Bai asks, a hint of panic in his voice.
"The boss, of course! Why would I ask you about anyone else's business, senior?" he grumbles. "Come on, who is she? The boss wouldn't tell, so I'm dying of curiosity."
He hears another deep sigh from the other end of the line, though this time it was tinged with relief.
"Listen, I'll only tell you the things that are known to the public. Ms. Han Yu is the chief creative director of Giacomo—yes, the same Giacomo that is one of the top luxury brands in the world—and has lived in Europe for years now. She rarely attends events and has never once sat down for an interview so you may not find recent photos of her, but she's said to be a beauty as well. "
Zhou Mi's eyes widened in surprise. "Wow, she's that great?"
"She's only 24, but her pieces have been worn by top celebrities from A Country and the royal family. Even the heiresses and socialites in our country can't wear her clothes. You tell me if she's great or not."
"Damn, she's amazing," Zhou Mi, whistling in appreciation. "But how does she know boss? He said she might come here to the company soon."
"What?!" Zhou Mi winced when he heard his senior shout directly into his ear. "She's coming back?! Oh wait, it's almost time for that—oh damn it, I'd completely forgotten!"
He has never heard Secretary Bai lose his composure before, and this is perhaps what convinced him that this Ms. Han Yu is indeed amazing.
"Uhm senior, could you please calm down—"
"OK, listen," Bai Li Wei cut in before he could continue. "The only thing you need to remember is that you cannot afford to offend Ms. Han Yu no matter what. If she gets even a little upset, the boss won't spare your little life so even if she asks you to bark like a dog, you do it, got it?"
"I—I got it, senior," he replied nervously, now imagining Ms. Han Yu to be a fierce madam who will demand impossible things from him. "But I don't understand senior, is she the boss' relative or something?"
"Let's just say, she is the most important woman in the boss' life," Bai Li Wei said. "I need to go back to work, but remember what I said."
In the end, Zhou Mi still had no idea who Ms. Han Yu is to the boss. 'Most important woman in the boss' life'? But his mother is still alive, how could that be? Unless, Ms. Han Yu really is his lover?
Impossible, he's been glued to his boss' side for the past two years. If he had a lover, he would definitely know or at least get a hint.
As he continued pondering over this mystery, little did Zhou Mi know that he would get a big shock less than a week later.