"Zhao Sister," Qiao Zhaoyue interrupted her gently, "Last week you asked me to review the base price document for the acquisition case with Huachen. I've crunched the numbers, and there were a few areas that didn't add up. After I revised it, I submitted it to President Fu, and it has already been approved."
Zhao Fang's complexion turned even uglier, "What do you mean by that?"
"Nothing much, just a reminder. Though the errors were minor and have since been corrected, had they gone unnoticed and been submitted, the company would have suffered a significant loss, a consequence neither you nor I could bear."
"Thank you for your makeup bag, I've finished with it," Qiao Zhaoyue patted Ye Xin's shoulder, "Your performance is good; I will present it to President Fu at the end of the month."
The implication was clear: Qiao Zhaoyue's rank was entirely above that of Zhao Fang, a veteran in the company.
Ye Xin excitedly winked at Qiao Zhaoyue, "Thank you, Secretary Qiao!"
"Work hard." Qiao Zhaoyue could guess how awful Zhao Fang's expression was without even looking back.
In the past, she might have tolerated it, not wanting President Fu to know about her conflicts with others.
But after making up her mind last night, she didn't want to put up with any more grievances.
There were only six months left. In six months, she would be as free as a bird in the sky or a fish in the ocean; nothing about Wansheng would be of her concern anymore. Why should she endure such treatment?
Zhao Fang, while outwardly strong, was hollow inside. Even knowing that Qiao Zhaoyue was doing it on purpose, she could at best indulge in a war of words. She didn't dare to complain, and she had to rein in her attitude towards Ye Xin.
Returning to her workstation, she became engrossed in her work without distractions; Fu Yuxiu might have been accompanied by Su Ruoyan, as he barely sought her out during the day.
In the afternoon, she felt a bit of pain in her stomach and went to the restroom, where Qiao Zhaoyue realized her period had started.
She was generally in good health, except when her "relative" visited, making her particularly weak and in so much pain that only painkillers could get her through.
While hesitating about whether to tell President Fu that she needed to go home to rest, she received a message from him. He said she didn't need to attend the dinner he had originally planned for her that evening. Qiao Zhaoyue guessed that Fu Yuxiu must want to take Su Ruoyan instead.
Since that was the case, she didn't push it and just lay down after packing her things.
She didn't sleep well last night and, after taking the medicine, felt drowsy and muzzy. Qiao Zhaoyue curled up in bed and fell straight to sleep.
At seven o'clock, Qiao Zhaoyue was woken up by her phone ringing.
On the other end, Su Ruoyan's voice was laced with a cry, "Sister Zhaoyue, do you have time right now?"
"What's happened?" Qiao Zhaoyue was instantly alert.
It was unlikely Su Ruoyan would call her without good reason.
Sure enough, the next second she heard Su Ruoyan say, "There's a report here for Huarui that Axiu needs to show to their CEO tonight, and I accidentally dropped it in water. Can you redo a new one within an hour and get it to me?"
A report typically requires a team to hustle back and forth for nearly half a month to produce complete data; its importance goes without saying, let alone Huarui's report.
Qiao Zhaoyue's tone immediately grew stern, "How on earth did you manage to drop it in water?"
Su Ruoyan sounded wronged, "It was just an accident, I didn't do it on purpose. Sister Zhaoyue, don't be cross with me, please think of a way to redo a new report within an hour and bring it over, Axiu is waiting for it. I haven't even told him about this yet."
Qiao Zhaoyue took a deep breath, "Su Ruoyan, redoing a report isn't as simple as you think. You better inform President Fu as soon as possible and think carefully about how to handle it."
Su Ruoyan was desperate; she had come to Qiao Zhaoyue because she didn't dare to tell Fu Yuxiu.
Although Fu Yuxiu treated her well, after more than half a year of Wansheng and Huarui working together, the importance of this report was there for all to see. Su Ruoyan didn't dare to gamble on the slim chance that just because of this report, Fu Yuxiu might start to dislike her...
If she had known, she would have had Qiao Zhaoyue come with her.
That way, if anything went wrong, it couldn't be blamed on her!
With this in mind, Su Ruoyan's voice carried a hint of resentment, "Sister Zhaoyue, aren't you Axiu's secretary? Now that there's a problem in his company, don't you think you should intervene?"
"Sister Zhaoyue, please, I really can't handle it..."
Qiao Zhaoyue suppressed the urge to curse.
Releasing emotions was not a way to solve problems. Qiao Zhaoyue had been involved with the report for nearly half a year. Even if she planned to leave Wansheng in the future, she didn't want to see her efforts go to waste.
"Send me the address. Wait for me at the entrance in half an hour."
Having said that, Qiao Zhaoyue hung up the phone; a wave of pain swept through her lower abdomen, turning her vision dark. She pinched off two ibuprofen tablets, swallowed them, and hurried out the door with her computer in tow, heading to the hotel address.
She wasn't sure if there was a backup on her computer. It was too late to go back to the company to make a new report. If she had no other choice, she would have to relate the concepts in the report on site to the Huarui CEO.
When Qiao Zhaoyue arrived, Su Ruoyan had already been waiting outside for a moment.
"Sister Zhaoyue," Su Ruoyan greeted her, looking like a savior had appeared, "How is it, have you prepared the report?"
She blinked her big eyes innocently towards Qiao Zhaoyue, full of a pitiable air.
Unfortunately for her, Qiao Zhaoyue was not buying it: "Where is Mr. Fu?"
Seeing Qiao Zhaoyue ask for Fu Yuxiu immediately, Su Ruoyan felt displeased and pouted, but since she was asking Qiao Zhaoyue for a favor, she could only explain reluctantly, "Axiu is inside talking to some people. I found an excuse to come out. Sister Zhaoyue, please give me the report to take back. It's too cold today, don't catch a chill."
Qiao Zhaoyue saw right through her ploy, which was nothing more than to get her hands on a new report to cover up this incident so that Fu Yuxiu wouldn't blame her.
"I don't have a backup on my computer," said Qiao Zhaoyue calmly, "Now take me inside to explain the ins and outs to Huarui's CEO, and there might still be a chance to salvage the situation."
"No way!" Su Ruoyan refused without even thinking, "Axiu would be unhappy if he found out."
"Miss Su, is it more important that Mr. Fu is unhappy about this incident or that the cooperation with Huarui falls through?" Seeing Su Ruoyan only looking out for herself, disappointment was hard to conceal in Qiao Zhaoyue's eyes, and she spoke with a heavier tone.
Sometimes, when looking at Su Ruoyan, she really questioned Fu Yuxiu's judgment.
She didn't insist on Su Ruoyan doing as she said immediately – after all, she now had only two choices in front of her.
Either tell Fu Yuxiu and have him solve it, or let her communicate with Huarui's people.
Sure enough, after a little while, Su Ruoyan spoke with a whine in her voice: "Then, Sister Zhaoyue, I'll sneak you in. After you talk to Huarui's people about this matter, please leave immediately without letting Axiu find out, alright?"
At the banquet, someone was conversing cheerfully with Fu Yuxiu.
"Axiu, why didn't you bring Secretary Qiao today? Looking for a change of pace?" Hu Peng teased with a glass of wine in hand.
Gou You picked up the conversation: "What Secretary Qiao? She's now officially Axiu's fiancée, soon to be his wife. Why would he want to parade her around? You wouldn't understand since you're a single dog!"
"I don't understand that, no," Hu Peng continued, "but if Axiu is bringing someone new, shouldn't he find someone who can match up to Secretary Qiao? The one he brought today, I've had a look, and she's quite the delicate flower. She's fine on her own and has a certain charm, but next to Secretary Qiao, she just doesn't compare."