May 16, 2023, Tuesday, cloudy, 22~35℃.

At Yan Jing Huating.

The morning sun shone through the floor-to-ceiling windows, illuminating the spacious bedroom.

Pleasant music began to play.

Tian Jing, wearing a pink pajama set, turned over and sat up in bed.

After a moment of daze, she gradually woke up.

She had chatted late into the night with Qingqing and the others in their group, leaving her a bit sluggish this morning.

The developments from yesterday were quite convoluted.

During the quarrel between the lawyer Qingqing and her CEO boyfriend, the furious CEO directly took action against her law firm.

At that moment, a devoted male second lead suddenly appeared.

This was the first time she had learned about other boys from Qingqing, and the group members naturally exploded with excitement.

The male second lead was a college alum of Qingqing, who had secretly had a crush on her but had never dared to confess due to his perceived lack of excellence.

Now, he had a stunning turnaround, becoming a sunny, handsome, and promising young man, a high-level executive in a multinational capital firm in Greater China.

His appearance helped Qingqing through her crisis.

To provoke her CEO boyfriend, Qingqing agreed to go on a date with the male second lead at the country’s top restaurant.

Most importantly, this male second lead also had “Heartthrob’s Hands,” which according to Qingqing, were very beautiful.

Cold and domineering CEO vs. devoted and accomplished warm man.

The story reached another climax, with group members eagerly offering suggestions.

Some supported the CEO, while others encouraged Qingqing to decisively break up and throw herself into the arms of the male second lead.

Tian Jing, however, was indecisive, torn between the two.

If only this CEO had a pair of beautiful hands and was a little gentler!

Already deeply immersed in the story, Tian Jing couldn’t help but shake her head, feeling troubled for Qingqing.

“Buzz buzz buzz—”

She picked up her phone to check.

[Song: “Little Jing, I’m going to Jinxiu Commerce this morning. How about lunch together?”]

Seeing the message, Tian Jing immediately smiled and replied, “Sure! What do you like to eat? I’ll make a reservation.”

“I’m fine with anything; just choose based on your taste.”

After a brief chat and settling on a restaurant, Tian Jing hummed a song as she changed into a short sports outfit. She watched an anime while exercising on the elliptical machine and treadmill for half an hour.

Afterward, she had breakfast, took a shower, did her skincare, and applied some makeup…

Looking at the weather, she changed into a light summer outfit in the dressing room and sprayed sunscreen on her exposed skin.

She had naturally fair skin, which didn’t tan easily but could get red or sunburned.

After arranging her hairstyle, she stood in front of the mirror, satisfied with her appearance.

At her father’s request, her work attire wasn’t overly bold.

Now that she had become the salary supervisor, she needed to pay more attention to her impact.

Thinking about it, she also pulled out a Bulgari ceramic ring from her jewelry cabinet and put it on.

Grabbing her bag and car keys, she was just about to head out when her father, Tian Chengye, walked in.

“Daddy, I’m off to work! Bye-bye,” she sweetly waved.

“Wait a moment, Jingjing.” Tian Chengye looked at his daughter, his tone gentle. “How’s it going with Yufan lately?”

“What’s there to say? It’s just normal.”

“You two have known each other for quite a while. Why not have dinner or catch a movie together to communicate more? Although Yufan has a rich romantic history, he’s a good guy and quite capable.”

Tian Jing’s eyes widened, “Dad, what do you mean? Are you sacrificing your precious daughter for your own benefit?”

Tian Chengye hurriedly reassured her, “That’s not it! Your Uncle Liang and I are old friends, and now Yufan is your colleague. I just hope he can take care of you more at work.”

Tian Jing retorted angrily, “I don’t need it! I’m not a child; I can take care of myself.”

She knew she didn’t like Liang Yufan, but he was still being forced upon her at the company.

“Don’t be mad, Jingjing. I was just suggesting.” Tian Chengye quickly soothed her. “I arranged for Yufan to be in the Investment Relations Department mainly to get more interaction with Smile Capital; it’s not that I’m trying to set you two up.”

“I don’t care about those messy matters. I have no interest in him.”

“What about others? There are so many excellent young people who have joined the company recently. Are there any you’re interested in?”

Hearing this, Tian Jing blinked and blurted out, “Actually, there is!”

“Who?” Tian Chengye perked up.

His precious daughter was already 22 and had never been in a relationship. She was always immersed in the 2D world and had odd ways of speaking.

He feared that his daughter might have issues in her heart, so he arranged for her to work at the company, hoping she would meet more people.

Tian Jing smiled brightly, “That tech consultant, Tang Song, is quite nice. We have a good relationship, and I’m having lunch with him today.”

“Tang Song?” Tian Chengye frowned slightly.

He had heard this name a lot lately.

Fan Wenzen from Smile Capital praised him highly, and he was nominated as CTO at a board meeting, only to discover he had already left.

As the company’s supervisor, he naturally knew the details.

With Fan Wenzen’s support, and Tang Song’s own determination, the leadership eventually compromised and hired him as a tech consultant.

From the information received, he didn’t have a very good impression of Tang Song; he was indeed a capable young man but had a bit of arrogance.

However, without interaction, he wouldn’t easily jump to conclusions.

Thinking for a moment, he directly asked, “Jingjing, do you like him?”

Tian Jing stuck out her pink tongue and made a face at him, “Perhaps? I don’t really know. Anyway, it’s my business; you can’t meddle. Alright, I have to go to work now. Bye!”

“Bang!” The door was slammed shut.

Soon, the pink Audi A5 drove onto the main road.

At Linjin Tower.

After parking the car, Tian Jing hummed a song as she took the elevator up, feeling great.

She would see Tang Song soon, and they could study palmistry together.

After all, looking at photos all the time could get dull; it would be nice to occasionally touch and squeeze a bit.

“Ding——” The elevator stopped on the first floor, and several people entered.

“Jingjing, good morning!” A cool-looking boy waved at her, holding a motorcycle helmet.

It was Li Junyi from the Strategic Planning Department.

“Good morning, Junyi.” Tian Jing smiled and nodded.

They chatted for a moment, and the elevator arrived at the 20th floor.

“Good morning.”

“Morning, Supervisor Tian, Supervisor Li.”

“Good morning.”

Walking into the Jinxiu Commerce main entrance, colleagues often greeted her with smiles.

As the work start time approached, the office area was bustling with people, and there were many new faces.

Since Jinxiu Commerce received investment from Smile Capital, it had expanded significantly.

The company was negotiating with Linjin Tower’s property to rent the 19th floor as well.

In addition, various shareholders, directors, and executives had sent many excellent young relatives to the company.

There were suddenly many high-quality young people, and the overall atmosphere changed dramatically.

Li Junyi was one of them.

Handsome, sociable, generous, and a prestigious school graduate, he was very popular in the company.

Zhao Yue, who had been paying attention to the entrance, quickly got up and handed him an iced drink.

With a playful tone, she said, “Junyi, riding your motorcycle to work again? It’s hot out; drink something cold.”

“Thanks, Yueyue. I was just a bit thirsty.” Li Junyi casually accepted the drink and continued chatting with Tian Jing about his weekend travels.

Watching the two leave, Zhao Yue bit her lip.

It was Tian Jing again! It seemed like everyone was eager to flatter her!

Her mood had been fluctuating lately.

After failing to pursue Tang Song, combined with his remark, “Do you know what Tian Jing particularly likes?” she felt deeply hurt.

It took her a long time to recover, and she had decided to find a more outstanding boyfriend to prove herself right.

Then, the company brought in several young and wealthy handsome men, which delighted her.

For example, Li Junyi, with his social media filled with luxury cars, mansions, and high-end goods, constantly stimulated Zhao Yue's nerves.

Moreover, he was related to some big leaders in the company.

Compared to him, Tang Song seemed insignificant; this was the real quality target.

So Zhao Yue immediately made him her new target, dressing up extravagantly every day and occasionally finding opportunities to chat with him.

Their relationship was decent, and he often replied to her messages at night.

But as soon as she was with Tian Jing, she immediately became a dispensable bystander.

What was so great about Tian Jing? Wasn’t it just because she had a good background?

“Xiao Yue!”

Suddenly, someone patted her shoulder, startling Zhao Yue.

“What are you daydreaming

about?” Hu Mingli sat down beside her.

“Nothing, just thinking about work issues.”

“You’re so diligent! Keep it up! The company is growing rapidly, and there will be many promotion opportunities in the future.” Hu Mingli smiled encouragingly, feeling great.

Almost 28 years old, she had finally welcomed her benefactor.

With Tang Song as her strong backing, layoffs would have nothing to do with her, and she could steadily rise to a management position.

Transitioning from a technical executor to a team leader would expose her to higher-level people, which was extremely beneficial for her future development.

“Hey Mingli, I heard from Huihui in HR that Director Tang is coming to the company today. Is that true?” a colleague suddenly asked cautiously.

Hearing Tang Song’s name, Zhao Yue bit her lip, mentally reassuring herself, “It’s nothing; he’s just the CTO. In the end, he’s still working; who knows when he might be laid off.”

Everyone else perked up immediately. ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ novel-fire.net

“I heard that too; it seems he hasn’t signed a contract yet.”

“Then will there be a big adjustment in our department?”

Guo Peng was taken aback and shook his head, “I don’t know; I haven’t heard Director… Tang say anything about it.”

He wasn’t the type to be ambitious.

Although he had a good relationship with Tang Song before, the huge gap in their current identities made him unsure of how to interact with him, so he hadn’t reached out actively.

Hu Mingli raised her eyebrows and said, “Everyone, get ready; Director Tang will be here soon, and then we’ll have a meeting together.”

Colleagues subconsciously straightened up.

Many felt uneasy, regretting their earlier decisions.

When Tang Song left, he had invited them for a meal, but fearing that Director Chen might have opinions about them affecting their job promotions, they had found various excuses to decline.

Now that he was back, they were unsure how he would treat them, the old colleagues.