BACK TO THE PRESENT
Over the night, rumors regarding the incident that happened at the construction site had quickly spread like a wildfire across the whole country. And on hearing the news, Huang Zhenjun had immediately ordered for a statement to be released concerning the incident, announcing that Feng Tian will be staying at Royals hospital for the main time to recuperate.
Which was why the sudden appearance of Feng Tian at the company that morning had proven to be quite a shock to the sea of reporters with cameras and microphones who were gathered in front of Royals, hungry for any new information or statement, and Huang Zhenjun who had personally decided to confirm the rumors himself, believing that the incident was a God-given chance for him to restore his foothold in the company. Even Qi Yan was not left out, he was quite surprised when he heard the news, he had actually thought she was going to be staying in the hospital for some time like how every ordinary person would, but who was he even kidding, the woman had not failed to surprise him since the moment he laid his eyes on her.
"Director Huang, I must say, I'm impressed." Feng Tian said, the moment she stepped out of the car, her graceful yet determined demeanor exuding power.
"Y-young Miss, you are here, why did you leave the hospital?" Huang Zhenjun inquired, visibly flustered by her sudden appearance.
"Oh, I wasn't in the hospital from the start, as you can see, I'm perfectly fine, Director Huang must have forgotten to check with me before ordering for a statement to be released, besides I haven't even received flowers from you yet." Feng Tian said, muttering out the last sentence a little louder to indicate he hasn't even visited her.
On hearing Feng Tian's statement, the reporters gathered began to murmur amidst themselves, their confusion and intrigue growing as they wondered about the circumstances of her unexpected arrival.
"W-what does this mean?"
"Did the director not check on her before releasing the statement?"
"What is he trying to do?"
Immediately, they all turn toward the director, who awkwardly cleared his throat before walking away from the scene in shame.
Feng Tian tsked as she watched Huang Zhenjun retreat before ordering Li Wei to disperse the reporters and make sure they didn't publish any news about Huang Zhenjun,
"Take care of it, if the people find out about the company's internal affairs, it will be bad for the company." Feng Tian muttered before making her way into the company.
The rest of the day was spent preparing the presentation and due to Li Wei's absence, Feng Tian had not even realized it was late until Ye Shouyi entered into her office to inform her that he and the team preparing for the presentation were retiring for the day. Slightly nodding towards him, Feng Tian sighed as she watched the door close before deciding to also wrap up her work for the day, gently grabbing her coat and her bag, she immediately picks up her phone to call Ah Bao before making her way out of the office.
The moment Feng Tian arrived at the company's entrance, her eyes landed on Qi Yan who was leaning by his car, looking breathtaking as ever while waiting for her,
"Where is Ah Bao?" Feng Tian asked as she walked toward him,
"How long have you been waiting here?"
"About an hour, Ah Bao won't be coming." Qi Yan replied and shrugged as he made his way towards his side of the car causing her to shake her head at him. She was about to pull the car door open when suddenly she remembered she had yet to thank him for saving her, summoning the little courage she needed, she slowly walked towards him, lightly closing the gap between them before placing a kiss on Qi Yan cheeks much to his astonishment.
"Thank you, for saving me." Feng Tian whispered in his ears before walking towards her side of the car with a huge smile on her face.
The week finally came to an end and the news of Samuel's arrival had quickly spread through the country, companies all over the country immediately began to make preparations to welcome him, even Royals and YM corporation were not left out.
It was finally the day for the presentation, Feng Tian, Qi Yan, Li Wei, Xiaorui, and Ye Shouyi had arrived at the conference hall just in time for their turn. They were immediately ushered in by a man who later introduced himself as Samuel's assistant and the person who will be representing him at the meeting. After saying their goodbyes to Xiaorui and Qi Yan who were to wait with Ah Bao by the car until they were done, Feng Tian, Li Wei, and Ye Shouyi made their way into the hall.
Exactly an hour later, they stepped out of the hall, the moment they got to the lobby, Ye Shouyi who had been nervous the whole time sighed in relief, Feng Tian was about to compliment him for working hard when suddenly she froze,
"Beautiful with an aura of elegance and power, you must be the CEO of Royals."
Feng Tian heard the voice which had been endlessly haunting her in her dreams for the past five years, her emotions churning like a tempest within as she slowly turned and her gaze locked onto Wang Hai's form. The unexpected sight of the man who had inflicted immeasurable pain and suffering upon her in the past sent shivers down her spine, threatening to destabilize her calm exterior.
"I don't think we've met, I'm Wang Hai." He said, smirking as he slowly reaches for her hand and placed a kiss on it.
The greeting, although formal were like an eerie echo of a time long past, a time when she had been a different person, naive and in love. Her throat tightened, and she had to forcibly suppress the overwhelming desire to unleash her anger and pain.
Though she fought to maintain her composure, her fingers clenched into fists at her sides, her nails digging into her palms. Her eyes, usually a reflection of her confident and steely persona, betrayed hints of vulnerability and rage as they bore into Wang Hai's face.
Feng Tian's exterior remained poised and collected, but her inner turmoil raged, slowly she retracted her hand from his hold and spoke,
"And Mr Wang is as charming as the people say." Feng Tian said with an exceptionally calm expression which Wang Hai had mistaken for something else, even though he had heard that the CEO of Royals was a rare beauty, he didn't count much to it until he had seen her.
Slightly shifting towards the woman standing beside him, Feng Tian smirked,
"Ah, let me introduce you, this is director Cheng Rou Ling."
"Pleasure to meet you." Cheng Rou Ling said before extending her hands to Feng Tian who stared at it briefly before shifting her gaze towards Qi Yan who was standing behind them, immediately turning to look back, Wang Hai gasped as his eyes landed on Qi Yan,
"Oh, Is that you? Qi Yan, wow! How many years has it been?" Wang Hai said as he moved towards Qi Yan who briefly turn to face Cheng Rou Ling before shifting his gaze towards Feng Tian,
"Miss Feng, shall we go?"
"You are still the same as ever, but I heard you've joined the police force, it must be true, but it's such a shame, with your look, I thought you would have joined the entertainment industry."
"But seriously I haven't seen you since Qi Sheng's accident, I still can't believe somebody as kind as Qi Sheng will murder his boss and disappear, you must be going true a lot." Wang Hai added before smirking as he noticed Qi Yan's tensed jaw and clenched fist, they were suddenly cut off by Feng Tian who slowly move towards Qi Yan,
"Mr Wang, if there is nothing else, detective Qi and I will be taking our leave, we still have a lot of work to do." Feng Tian said before proceeding to take her leave, Li Wei and Ye Shouyi on her tail.
"Qi Yan, wait." Wang Hai called out before pulling Cheng Rou Ling to his side,
"I haven't introduced our director to you yet, this is Cheng Rou Ling." Wang Hai said,
"Ah, right, I must be getting old, I forgot Miss Cheng told me you guys knew each other, well, I understand, things happen, so I will be giving you two some time alone, you know, to catch up." Wang Hai said before walking off with Li Bin.
Cheng Rou Ling stood in front of Qi Yan in silence with her face down, eventually swallowing, she slowly lifted her gaze,
"Qi Yan I-l…" Cheng Rou Ling began, but her attempt to address Qi Yan was met with his abrupt departure.
Meanwhile, unbeknownst to them, a man dressed in a casual outfit had been sitting in the lobby listening to their conversation, lightly adjusting his glasses, the man sighed as he watched Feng Tian leave.
'Interesting woman' he thought to himself, he had certainly heard of Feng Tian, and he couldn't help to wonder who she really was behind her mask. Slightly turning, his eyes landed on the familiar pair of shoes,
"Mr Samuel, it's time we leave."
"Haoran, did you make sure our guests leave alright?"
"Yes, but…"
"Then that's settled, come on, let's go get something to eat, I haven't had a Chinese meal in a long time."