Chapter 48 Thorough in Every Aspect

The Gu Group is located in Central.

After exiting the parking lot, walk straight along the main road, and after passing several traffic lights, turn into the entrance of a building.

Gu Zhaoqian did not drive into the parking lot, but stopped directly outside the main entrance of the building.

Through the glass, He Peiru saw two or three men in suits standing with security guards not far away, and they seemed to be looking in their direction.

Most of the staff were waiting for Gu Zhaoqian downstairs.

However, after turning off the engine, Gu Zhaoqian did not rush to get out of the car. Instead, he said to her slowly, "If you feel bored, I can have someone accompany you for a walk around the area?"

She shook her head and refused, saying, "No need, I'll wait for you in the lounge."

Having already browsed the electronics store extensively, she wanted to rest for a while and didn't want to trouble him to arrange these things separately.

“Okay.” Gu Zhaoqian didn’t intend to force her to do anything, especially since she had said it herself, so he continued, “Let’s get out of the car first.”

They had barely opened the car door when the men who had been keeping a close eye on things immediately stepped forward and said in unison, "Mr. Gu, Ms. He."

Gu Zhaoqian replied, "Yes, is everything ready?"

He Peiru was surprised that they actually recognized her. After a fleeting moment of astonishment, she calmly nodded to them.

One of them replied, "Ready."

Then another person skillfully took the keys from the man's hand: "I'll go park the car first."

Gu Zhaoqian nodded, then suddenly turned to her and said, "Let's go upstairs."

He Peiru followed him toward the group's lobby, curious about the interior decor, but she could feel the subtle gazes falling on her from all sides.

She was afraid that she might inadvertently make eye contact with one of Gu's employees while looking around, so she lost the courage to look around.

However, it was obvious that this was indeed a workplace; the atmosphere was completely different once you walked in, and even the voices were deliberately lowered.

Gu Zhaoqian's office is on the top floor, accessible by elevator.

He Peiru followed them out of the elevator, where the space and view were much more open. There weren't many employees on the top floor, but most of those sitting there were core members who had earned Gu Zhaoqian's trust.

The commotion didn't bother them at all; they all kept their heads down and focused on their work.

The person who had been standing beside Gu Zhaoqian from the beginning, giving instructions, spoke up again: "Mr. Gu, the guest is in the reception room. Someone has gone to bring him over."

"Okay, take Aru to the lounge."

He quickly got into work mode, but didn't forget to give instructions to the person in front of him, saying to He Peiru, "He's my assistant, his name is A-Qiang. If you need anything or want to do anything later, just tell him directly, don't be shy."

Ah Qiang immediately chimed in, "Yes, just tell me what to do."

After saying that, Gu Zhaoqian pushed open the door and went into his office.

Ah Qiang stopped where he was, keeping a proper distance from her, and politely said, "Hello, Miss He, I am Li Haoqiang. You can call me Ah Qiang."

"Now I'll take you to the lounge."

"OK, thanks."

The lounge was right next to Gu Zhaoqian's office. After Li Haoqiang opened the door, she casually found a spot on the sofa and sat down.

Li Haoqiang did not come in, but remained standing by the door, and continued, "Miss He, what kind of drink would you like? We have coffee, various teas, and juices."

She replied, "Black tea, please."

As the door closed from the outside, He Peiru relaxed completely on the sofa, noticing that both the lounge and the office area outside had a minimalist style.

She guessed that Gu Zhaoqian's office was similar.

He Peiru tried to suppress these restless thoughts and just took out her phone to find something to do when she heard someone knocking on the door of the lounge.

She looked up and saw that it was Li Haoqiang who walked in, followed by a group of people. He was carrying a cup of black tea with ice, while the others were carrying paper boxes of different sizes.

He Peiru looked closely and found that it contained all kinds of desserts, including sliced ​​cakes and Western pastries of different flavors.

After they put them down, they left, leaving only Li Haoqiang, who said, "Miss He, please try these and see if they suit your taste."

"Thank you." The variety of options surprised her, and she asked, "Is this how you usually arrange your afternoon tea?"

It was so generous that she felt it would be tempting if it were a company benefit.

“It’s not usually like this,” Li Haoqiang denied repeatedly, explaining, “Miss He has someone else to thank; I was just doing what Mr. Gu instructed.”

Despite his subtle way of speaking, He Peiru instantly understood the meaning behind his words. After a moment of surprise, she nodded knowingly and said, "I see."

Li Haoqiang smiled. Since he had achieved his goal, he was no longer needed here. He said tactfully, "Then I won't bother Miss He any longer. If you need anything, you can call me directly by pressing the number zero on the phone next to me."

"good."

After Li Haoqiang left, He Peiru looked at the table full of desserts but didn't know where to start.

While in the car, she assumed Gu Zhaoqian's attention was entirely focused on the phone call, but she didn't expect him to still hear what she said under those circumstances.

According to Li Haoqiang's account, these desserts obviously couldn't have been prepared after she arrived. So what did she miss while she was in the car?

He Peiru tried to recall the scene inside the car.

Could it be that Gu Zhaoqian arranged all this just before setting off, while he was picking up his phone?

Otherwise, she couldn't think of any other possibilities.

He Peiru once again experienced a man's thoughtfulness.

Fortunately, upon closer inspection, she realized that not too many desserts had been prepared. She was especially worried that she wouldn't be able to finish them and would waste them, and besides, she didn't want to miss dinner.

She took a picture of the untouched desserts and sent it to her two girlfriends in a group chat.

He Peiru: [Guess where I am right now.]

She picked out a piece of cake that she liked and started eating it.

Feng Shiqi couldn't guess it, but Fang Xiaoxin was different.

Fang Xiaoxin: [You actually went to Gu's? I saw the logo in the corner.]

Fang Xiaoxin: [Is this the company's afternoon tea? Can I sneak in through the back door and just have afternoon tea?]

He Peiru: [Something came up at his company... I heard the dessert was prepared separately.]

Fang Xiaoxin: [I knew capitalists wouldn't be that kind.]

...

She can be so ruthless that she even curses herself.

He Peiru couldn't help but laugh, but Feng Shiqi noticed the key point.

Feng Shiqi: [They even prepared these desserts for you when something came up unexpectedly? That's so thoughtful!]

He Peiru: [I'm in the lounge now, and I don't know how I'm going to face him later.]

Besides saying thank you, she couldn't think of anything else to do.

Fang Xiaoxin made the suggestion as always.

Fang Xiaoxin: [I already told you to be cute and affectionate! Be bold and charming!]

He Peiru continued to eat dessert while chatting with them.

Time passed by unnoticed, and the door to the lounge was knocked on again, followed by someone pushing the door open and coming in.

Before He Peiru could even retract the smile on her lips, she turned her head to see who had entered.

-

After finishing his business negotiations with his partners, Gu Zhaoqian glanced at the pile of documents on the side and immediately went out into the break room next door.

He softened his knocking and, not wanting to concern himself with formalities, simply opened the door without waiting for He Peiru's response.

Unexpectedly, what came into view was He Peiru's sweet smile, and from this angle, her eyes were sparkling, making it impossible for him to look away.

The scene he captured by chance made him relax his brows and eyes, and the boredom brought on by work was soothed.

Gu Zhaoqian instantly felt that bringing her to the company was the right choice.

He Peiru blinked and asked, "Are you done with your work?"

"Not yet," Gu Zhaoqian replied honestly, then asked, "How are these desserts?"

She replied, "It's delicious! But I think there's still a bit too much..."

In the end, we still couldn't finish it all.

Gu Zhaoqian did not deny it, but frankly said, "I wasn't sure if you would like these flavors, so I prepared more than usual."

He Peiru said softly, "Actually, I like all of these. You really don't need to prepare so many next time..."

next time?

Perhaps it was just her unintentional polite wording, but her gentle and obedient tone touched the softest spot in his heart.

Gu Zhaoqian wanted to reach out and touch her head, but reason prevailed and he restrained the thought.

He slowly exhaled and said, "Go to my office, I still have some documents to process."

She added, "Or should I arrange a driver to take you back?"

He figured he might as well go all the way; given He Peiru's dislike of troubling people, she would most likely just reject his proposal.

This way, Gu Zhaoqian would have a legitimate reason to keep He Peiru here. He never intended to let her go home early.

really.

He Peiru gave him the answer he wanted: "Just stay in your office, no need for all that trouble."

"Okay." Gu Zhaoqian was even more pleased. "Should we take these desserts over?"

The strategy of retreating to advance can be considered a success.

She shook her head and replied, "No need, I'm a little full..."

-

He Peiru tried her best to appear calm on the surface, but in reality, she was barely able to contain her excitement.

However, Gu Zhaoqian was overly considerate of her, and before she even entered the office, he instructed her, "If you feel bored, you can browse through the books and magazines inside as you like."

No matter how bored she was, she didn't intend to do anything that might interfere with Gu Zhaoqian's work, so she replied, "I can chat with Xin Xin and the others on my phone, so don't worry."

"That's good, since we can talk about all sorts of things normally?"

He asked the question in a relaxed tone, as if it were a casual remark.

He Peiru seemed to be touched by the question and blurted out, "...I can't tell you."

Gu Zhaoqian found her reaction amusing and didn't continue the topic: "Then pick a comfortable spot to sit."

He Peiru sank into the sofa, trying to focus all her attention on her phone.

Feng Shiqi: [What's the situation with Aru right now?]

Upon seeing the message, she unconsciously stole a glance at Gu Zhaoqian before boldly replying.

He Peiru: [Entered his office.]

Fang Xiaoxin: [Wow? Shouldn't there be some new developments?]

He Peiru instantly understood what she meant, and while blushing uncontrollably, she frantically tapped the screen.

He Peiru: [Stop talking! Quickly put away your messy thoughts...]

He kept his head down, thankful that Gu Zhaoqian was too busy with work to pay attention to her.

He finally breathed a sigh of relief.

But before she could fully calm down, Li Haoqiang, who had entered with Gu Zhaoqian's permission, was clearly unaware that there was another person in the office. As he put down the documents in his hand, he asked in a low voice, "Should we prepare some tea for Miss He?"

Without hesitation, she replied, "No need."

Gu Zhaoqian seemed to disagree, saying, "Make her another cup of black tea."

"Okay." After receiving the instructions, Li Haoqiang quickly left.

What he was asked to do was secondary; all he knew was that he couldn't stay in the office and get in the way.

Gu Zhaoqian looked up from the pile of documents and asked her, "What are we having for dinner?"

"Hmm?" She didn't quite grasp the meaning behind the man's words and muttered, "I wonder what my sister at home will prepare."

Seeing her completely unaware look, Gu Zhaoqian chuckled and told her, "Uncle Jiang told me that no one was home at dinner time."

"Huh?" She was immediately stunned. "Why do you know more than I do...?"

"I just contacted Uncle Jiang about work-related matters, and he told me about it."

"As for how he knew, it's probably because the Filipino maid from the Jiang family saw you leave in the afternoon and told him."

Gu Zhaoqian spoke in a nonchalant tone, as if he were recounting something completely ordinary.