After numerous candidate interviews, Bùi Chí Viễn placed the five applications he was most satisfied with on his desk. He had spent the entire day reviewing those applications, and his eyes were so tired he could barely keep them open. However, his superior had informed him that he needed to arrange for a "special individual" to join the company. Bùi Chí Viễn detested people who got into the company through connections. He himself had never brought a close friend or classmate with any personal connection to him into the company; aside from not wanting to invite gossip, this was also a result of General Manager Dèng Jǐngnán's careful guidance. But this time, it was someone Dèng Jǐngnán himself was pushing in. If it were anyone other than Dèng Jǐngnán, he would dare to refuse. Ugh, he could even refuse Dèng Jǐngnán, provided he was willing to live on thin air. Thus, he had to steel his heart and eliminate one of the five candidates. To eliminate someone he had painstakingly selected all day left a bitter taste in his mouth. But there was too much injustice in the world; perhaps seeing enough of it would make it seem fair.
As soon as Jiāng Yíng joined the company, she noticed her superior seemed to have an issue with her. She thought she deserved it. After learning that a candidate had lost their job opportunity because of her, she kindly went to Bùi Chí Viễn and asked him to give that candidate a normal offer. Eliminating one of the five was to prevent people from knowing that she, Jiāng Yíng, had gotten in through connections. Only five people were being hired this time; adding one more would inevitably lead to gossip. But she wasn't afraid in the slightest. Thus, on her very first day, she offended her superior.
Humans, indeed, are not ordinary animals; they conceal themselves. After Jiāng Yíng started working, rumors gradually began to surface, but the rumors were quite beneficial, with no malicious intent to harm her. Everyone said Jiāng Yíng was Dèng Jǐngnán's fiancée and was only at the company to pass the time. Everyone was very polite to her, so polite that they didn't assign her any work. She was so idle that she truly was just coming to the company to pass the time. But Bùi Chí Viễn always hinted at this and that, as if a mere soldier like her wouldn't be qualified to be there unless she did a bit more work. For better or worse, she was a returning overseas student who had graduated from a prestigious university, and her degree sounded quite impressive—even though she had only studied abroad just so it would sound impressive.
Jiāng Yíng didn't think she was stupid. Most of the work came from practical experience, so it was perfectly normal for her not to know.
Jiāng Yíng picked up a stack of documents and walked to a spot not far from her. "Excuse me, what does this part mean? Could you explain it to me?"
The girl in front of Jiāng Yíng was highly regarded by Bùi Chí Viễn. It wasn't hard to tell if someone's attitude towards another was good or bad; one could deduce it from their gestures, tone of voice, or even their gaze. Based on her judgment, Bùi Chí Viễn greatly admired this girl. As for the extent of his admiration, she couldn't easily gauge it.
As she listened to the girl in front of her explain in detail, she also thought about what she had observed over the past few days.
She admitted she was very bored. If she said she joined the company because of the girl in front of her, she wondered if anyone would believe it. In any case, there was still a bit of calculation involved in her coming here. Perhaps if her parents thought she was interested in Dèng Jǐngnán, they wouldn't pressure her daily to "go meet the young master from this family, or that family that's less wealthy now." Blind dates were the most boring game for a beautiful, young girl like her. Don't be disgusted; she had already disgusted herself first.
The girl before her was named Tô Bách Lục. It was said she had worked at Cảnh Á for over a year, and her work performance during that time was quite good, yet a promotion had never come her way. The reason seemed to be some family matter, or a strange agreement with the company, as she had never worked overtime, even when the company was swamped. No one knew why, but everyone assumed it had something to do with her family background, and no one deliberately made things difficult for her.
When working, Tô Bách Lục was very serious. She wouldn't slack off during breaks like other colleagues, nor would she participate in the endless gossip of those around her. When colleagues argued, with neither side willing to back down, they would usually pull Tô Bách Lục in to arbitrate fairly and decide who was right. She would then tactfully express her thoughts, but if no one pulled her in, she would absolutely not open her mouth. Tô Bách Lục was the least competitive among her colleagues. Everyone was very tolerant of her and didn't mind her attitude; they were usually very amiable with each other. The only thing that didn't quite fit with everyone else was her refusal to attend any gatherings. No matter how skillfully someone tried to persuade her, she would absolutely not compromise. Gradually, even those who casually invited her out stopped doing so.
Giang Doanh sighed, meticulously observing Tô Bách Lục's face. This face couldn't really be called 'country-toppling and city-toppling,' yet it possessed a lovely, gentle charm, like clear water. Her skin was strangely beautiful, very soft and smooth, making people doubt her true age. Giang Doanh secretly felt a pang of inferiority, thinking it was unfair that Tô Bách Lục, who was only two months younger than her, looked so good.
"Is there anything else you don't understand?" Tô Bách Lục looked up, smiling gently.
Giang Doanh often heard people say that the smiles of high-ranking leaders never reached their eyes. Now, looking at Tô Bách Lục, she finally understood what that feeling was – an outer barrier, unapproachable, polite yet distant.
"Ah, I understand now." Giang Doanh took the documents. "Thank you."
"You're welcome." She went back to work.
Giang Doanh walked a few steps, then felt unwilling to give up. She turned back and asked with a smile, "I'm treating everyone to a meal today. Will you come too?"
"Thank you, but there's no need." Still smiling amiably.
She really wanted to retort, "Are you trying to make me lose face?", but she didn't want to make things difficult for this girl, simply because she felt a certain fondness for her.
Giang Doanh sighed, returned to her seat, and occasionally observed Tô Bách Lục.
She went to the water cooler twice a day, getting two cups of water. She never drank all of it; there was always a little left at the bottom of the cup. It seemed she didn't like drinking water much, only ever taking sips to moisten her lips. She went to the restroom many times and washed her hands an extreme number of times. She was very picky about food. She didn't eat pork, whether lean or fatty, but she liked beef – how strange. She spoke softly and gently, very mild-mannered. She never turned anyone away, but if it was something she didn't want to do, she would simply ignore it. She never got angry at others; no matter how annoying the other person was, she could always maintain the attitude of a bystander.
Giang Doanh felt as if she was becoming obsessed, constantly paying attention to Tô Bách Lục. In this state, she even began to question her own sexual orientation.
She ran to Bùi Chí Viễn's office. "What do you mean by this?"
“Huh?” Bùi Chí Viễn didn’t have a good impression of this employee who got into the company through connections with the boss, but it seemed he didn’t dislike her much either.
“All day, I’m only given this little bit of work. I’m bored to death. Everyone else is so busy, why am I given such special treatment?”
“Someone who got into the company through special treatment, what kind of treatment should they expect?” Bùi Chí Viễn didn’t even bother to lift his head.
“Anyway, please assign me some work.”
“Tell me, what can you do?”
“I can do anything!”
After that boast, Giang Doanh had a very hard time.
But everyone else was doing well; if she complained about being tired, it would be too pretentious. With nowhere to vent, surely it was okay for her to look at handsome men and swoon over them a little, right?
She pushed open Đặng Cảnh Nam’s office door. “Cảnh Nam, I’m so tired.”
Đặng Cảnh Nam lifted his head from a pile of documents, his eyes slowly sweeping over her face.
Her expression stiffened slightly. “General Manager, it’s time for lunch.”
The man buried in documents lifted his chin, satisfied. “How’s work?”
“Very good, I’m doing great!” She patted her chest, dead tired. She was afraid that if she opened her mouth, Đặng Cảnh Nam would fire her on the spot, which would be even more miserable. “Don’t you even see who I am?”
Đặng Cảnh Nam chuckled lightly. Mr. and Mrs. Giang had called earlier, ostensibly concerned about the company’s recent business, but implicitly hinting for him to arrange some lighter work for Giang Doanh.
Forgive her, she had committed the crime of swooning over handsome men. How could this person be so handsome when he smiled?
There was no justice! How irritating!
To cheer herself up with a funny thought, wasn’t this person’s only flaw being a little too handsome, a little too rich, and having a slightly too good family background?
“Hmm, not bad,” Đặng Cảnh Nam nodded.
“Shall we go eat together?” Giang Doanh couldn’t forget this idea. “My treat.”
Giang Doanh followed behind Đặng Cảnh Nam. In boring days, should one find a little joy? Of course, so she had to make herself happy.
Earlier, she had seen that fearless Bùi Chí Viễn actually dare to invite Tô Bách Lục to lunch. Since it was lunchtime, Tô Bách Lục couldn’t conveniently refuse and went along.
Giang Doanh imagined the scene she was about to witness, truly excited. “Let’s go that way, that way!”
Đặng Cảnh Nam looked at her suspiciously. “Does eating need to be so exciting?”
“The food here is delicious! Cảnh Nam, you not only manage the company well, but even the company cafeteria. The food is truly excellent.”
“Oh.” Đặng Cảnh Nam glanced at her. “This cafeteria is contracted by the Lu family.”
Giang Doanh immediately shut her mouth.
After walking a few more steps, sure enough, she saw Bùi Chí Viễn and Tô Bách Lục sitting near the window, chatting quite happily.
Đặng Cảnh Nam stopped in his tracks, looking at the pair. No matter how he looked, they were an eyesore.
He walked towards them without hesitation.
Giang Doanh immediately followed Đặng Cảnh Nam, thinking, *Don’t fight, okay?*
Reality proved her imagination was too vivid.
“You two are eating here too? What a coincidence.” Đặng Cảnh Nam smiled, his gaze fixed on Bùi Chí Viễn, seemingly unfamiliar with Tô Bách Lục.
“It’s rare for the General Manager to eat here too. I wonder if the chef will improve the food after knowing this.” Bùi Chí Viễn smiled casually; his relationship with Đặng Cảnh Nam seemed quite good.
“Is that a complaint about the food?”
“I’m complimenting your refined taste.” Bùi Chí Viễn didn’t mind.
From beginning to end, Tô Bách Lục didn’t say a word.
Giang Doanh didn’t get to see any drama unfold.
She had tried so hard, yet still failed to notice anything illicit between those two. What a failure.
But she was wrong. If she had observed more carefully, she would have noticed Tô Bách Lục's head was bowed deeper.
She would have noticed Đặng Cảnh Nam's hand subtly clenching.
She would have noticed Đặng Cảnh Nam sending a message before he had even eaten.
After receiving the message, Tô Bách Lục subtly frowned. The message read: "Wait for me today, we'll head back together."