Inside the president's office.
Lu Nianxin casually tossed her bag onto the sofa, came over to Pei Heyan with a pout, and complained, "You didn't even ask who upset me, you don't care at all."
Pei Heyan replied to the message with a single word, indifferent, "Who."
Lu Nianxin pursed her lips, "Who else but Wen Tang!"
Pei Heyan's typing paused for a moment, "She upset you?"
Feeling like she had found someone to confide in, Nianxin said confidently, "You didn't see how she bullied me in the elevator just now."
"She let the others get into the elevator first, and then deliberately made me ride alone with her, completely disregarding my face in front of everyone. And she even blatantly bullied me by exploiting your favoritism towards her, speaking in a way that always put me down."
Pei Heyan withdrew his arms, favoritism?
"Nianxin, you shouldn't speak carelessly," he warned.
Realizing her mistake, Lu Nianxin quickly changed her tune, "I meant that she takes advantage of the esteem you hold for her in the company to do whatever she wants, and even dreams of stepping on me."
"There's no such secretary," he commented.
After taking a sip of coffee, Pei Heyan said, "Work comes first."
Seeing that Pei Heyan wasn't taking her seriously after all her complaints, Nianxin asked, "Brother He Yan, in your eyes, Secretary Wen is just a secretary, right?"
Pei Heyan lifted his gaze to her, while Lu Nianxin averted her eyes, mumbling, "I just feel like there's no need for you to visit her at the hospital."
"That's right," Nianxin picked up her spirits, "I forgot to mention something."
"I'm planning to take some time off to focus on being with you, to strengthen our relationship. Consider it preparation for our upcoming marriage."
"Hmm," Pei Heyan's expression remained inscrutable, and even upon hearing the word 'marriage,' he was unfazed.
----
At the secretaries' area.
Jiang Qingqing brought a beautifully wrapped gift to Wen Tang.
"Sister Tang, thank you," she said with appreciation.
Wen Tang smiled and pushed the gift back towards her, "Take this back."
"I don't accept gifts, you know that."
If she wanted to, just accepting the gifts from small companies wishing to cooperate with the Pei Family would tire her hands from holding too many.
"But it's a token of my gratitude, you must accept it," insisted Jiang Qingqing, "If it wasn't for your good word in front of President Pei, I might only have two choices now."
"Either returning to my hometown or finding another job within a month. But who would dare to hire someone laid off from Pei Group?" she said, smiling subtly with a hint of sorrow, "Luckily, all that is behind me now."
Wen Tang still held her ground, "Sending gifts again would hurt our relationship."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Qingqing didn't dare to leave the gift, and instead, continued to speak cheerfully, "Sister Tang, you're blunt but kind-hearted."
Without refuting, Wen Tang had other things to attend to, beyond responding to Qingqing's words. She needed to work.
"By the way, do your homework in your own time," Wen Tang advised as she typed away at her computer, "Pei Group doesn't employ people who lounge around. Your entry was purely coincidental. Make sure to build relationships even off the clock, you never know when you'll need them."
Jiang Qingqing smiled, her eyes shaping like crescents, almost bowing to Wen Tang, "Thank you for the reminder, Sister Tang."
Click—
The office door was twisted open.
Jiang Qingqing looked over, and Wen Tang shifted her focus away from the computer.
Lu Nianxin approached the two and gave Jiang Qingqing a quick up-and-down look before her gaze fell on the work card pinned to her chest, scaring Jiang Qingqing into continuously backing away.
"Are you Jiang Qingqing?"
Jiang Qingqing nodded, "Yes." She mustered up the courage to ask, "Miss Lu, do you need any help?"
"Or something I can do."
Lu Nianxin crossed her arms and let out a cold laugh, "You really think you got back into the company because of Secretary Wen's credit?"
Jiang Qingqing dared not speak, her hands already beginning to fumble nervously, clutching her clothes tightly.
"In fact, the person you should be most thankful to is Pei Heyan." She reached out to straighten Jiang Qingqing's clothes.
Jiang Qingqing didn't dare to move.
"If it wasn't for him loosening up yesterday, Secretary Wen wouldn't have had the authority to let you return to the Pei Family." After saying this, Lu Nianxin placed a hand on her shoulder.
Looking down on her from above.
"Then, thank you, President Pei," Jiang Qingqing said with a trembling voice, "and thank you, Miss Lu."
Lu Nianxin withdrew her arm and gave her a disdainful glance before turning to Wen Tang, "Go downstairs and fetch something for me, my lipstick is in the passenger seat." She placed the car keys on the desk.
Wen Tang stood up, leaning on her arm to support herself.
Seeing this, Jiang Qingqing remembered that Wen Tang's leg was injured and out of gratitude, she said, "Miss Lu, let me go instead."
She was just about to take the car keys from Wen Tang's hand when Lu Nianxin grabbed her wrist, "Just got back to Pei Group and you're already bouncing around?"
"Or maybe you've never cleared up your position, forgetting how much you weigh." She leaned in close to Jiang Qingqing, "Don't forget, you are just an inconsequential employee within the Pei Group, and I have the right to fire you on the spot."
Jiang Qingqing's eyes brimmed with fear and helplessness, "I..."
"But since you're so eager to help, then I'll find something for you to do." Lu Nianxin seated herself at an empty workstation, crossing her legs, "My shoes are dirty, give them a clean for me."
Jiang Qingqing crouched down, stifling her anger and humiliation, and started to wipe Lu Nianxin's shoe with a tissue, her face flushed red.
Lu Nianxin glanced down, "That's not right, do you know what material these shoes are made of?"
Jiang Qingqing paused, and Lu Nianxin bent down to examine her high heels, which weren't damaged, "These shoes are made of crocodile skin, they're extremely delicate. Could you afford to pay for them if they got damaged?"
"I..." Jiang Qingqing was nearly brought to tears by the difficulty.
The department was silent, and the employees only dared to sneak peeks in private.
Not daring to even breathe.
"Little girl, you need to use a cloth to wipe it clean properly," Lu Nianxin extended her shoe towards Jiang Qingqing.
Trembling, she raised her arm to wipe it, but Wen Tang grabbed her wrist and said, "It's just about going downstairs to fetch a lipstick, Miss Lu, I'll go get it."
"Qingqing is new and unaware, I hope you can overlook her naivety."
Lu Nianxin's eyes flickered, "Should have done that earlier."
"But," she looked at Jiang Qingqing, "she is her, and you are you, make sure to clean it thoroughly."
Wen Tang's heart clenched, "Let me do it."
She wanted to take Jiang Qingqing's place; the young girl was caught off guard, her eyes glistening with tears.
"Sister Tang, how could I let you do it yourself." It was her own blunder that had led to this problem.
Struggling, Wen Tang half squatted down.
One foot bracing herself, the injured leg kneeling on the ground.