Chapter Forty-Two: The Little Heartless One

Seeing that it was almost time, the waiter led the group into the venue.

Yan was the first to present his bid, and Su Xiao followed him to the waiting area.

Just entered the door.

Su Xiao, with her sharp eyes, noticed that the large screen that had been lit up was playing Yan Shi's presentation slides.

The content was exactly the same as hers.

Su Xiao froze on the spot, feeling as if all the blood in her body had turned cold in an instant.

Upon closer inspection, the design concepts are exactly the same, and even the prices are almost identical.

How could that be?

She had clearly already instructed people to be wary of Zhang Lei.

Why did her work still end up in Xia Zhi's hands?

Xia Zhi, standing on the stage, gave her a provocative look.

The Yan team was experienced, and Xia Zhi's proposal was both meticulous and innovative.

Even Zhou Moqing, who was not initially optimistic about her, nodded in agreement, which was quite rare.

Su Xiao looked at Lin Xi beside her.

She handled all the project proposals in her department, but she only gave the PowerPoint presentation to Lin Xi; even Qin Yun hadn't seen the complete version.

How could Xia Zhi have it?

Have you let anyone else touch your computer these past few days?

"No."

Lin Xi frowned, seemingly trying to recall something very seriously.

“Just last weekend, Zhang Lei came to me to check the plan. There was a discrepancy in the data, so I went to the printing room to reprint it.”

"How is that possible..."

Su Xiao lowered her eyes and went over the plan in her mind.

The original plan is definitely no longer usable.

While she was still in a daze, she saw Meng Jin waving at her from outside the venue.

Su Xiao told Qin Yun and then quietly left the house.

"What's wrong?"

Meng Jin didn't say anything, but silently gave up his seat.

Behind him, Xu Bozhou leaned leisurely against the wall of the corridor and raised an eyebrow at her.

*

As Xia Zhi walked off the stage, she bumped hard into Su Xiao's shoulder as they passed each other.

"I knew I was going to win this time."

Looking at the smugness on her face, Su Xiao suddenly said, "Being too confident is not a good thing."

Lin Xi's expression changed slightly.

But then Su Xiao slowly walked onto the stage.

She took a deep breath because the background of the PowerPoint presentation only showed the Xu family logo.

"Sorry, there was a sudden problem with the PowerPoint presentation. Hello everyone, I'm S from Xu's team."

Her words caused an uproar.

She was young when she started working at Dongfang Moyun, and her father told her not to be too high-profile.

So only pseudonyms were used.

Now it's time to take it out and put it to use.

The revised plan she presented was not only stunning, but also more than half the price of the original plan.

"Can it really be made at such a low price?"

The judges sitting at the head of the table had sharp eyes.

He was sent by the Xia family, so naturally he wouldn't let Su Xiao off so easily.

Do you know the pricing for Oriental Ink Charm?

Su Xiao smiled slightly; haggling was her specialty.

Under the spotlight in the center of the venue, Su Xiao stood there, confident and assertive, engaging in a back-and-forth battle with the judging panel.

The Xu family quickly won the bid with an overwhelming number of votes.

Xia Zhi angrily slammed down the cup in her hand, turned around and left the venue.

Su Xiao looked at the water stains on the ground, bent down to pick up the glass, and casually threw it into the trash can next to her.

"So cool, Xiaoxiao!" Qin Yun excitedly put her arm around Su Xiao's shoulder.

"I'll treat you to a big meal tonight!"

"Then I'm going to have to make a killing."

Su Xiao couldn't help but laugh.

Regardless, she won this round.

Pushing open the door of the clubhouse, they found Xu Bozhou still waiting there.

The man wore a suit vest, which made his shoulders appear even broader and his waist even narrower.

Just standing there attracts attention for no reason.

"Well, I suddenly have something urgent to attend to, so let's do it tomorrow."

Lin Xi glanced at Su Xiao, then pulled Qin Yun away.

"Are you done with work?"

The man raised an eyebrow, his beautiful fox-like eyes particularly alluring in the sunlight.

"Miss Su, how do you plan to thank me?"

"Let me treat you to dinner."

Su Xiao looked at him, and her tone softened for a moment.

If he hadn't gone to the project team to discuss the PPT issue at the last minute, and hadn't driven over specifically to help her adjust her mindset...

This bidding process may not be as smooth as it seems.

"Let's do it now."

Xu Bozhou glanced at his watch and smiled.

"My flight is in three hours; I have to go on a business trip."

"With such a tight schedule, why are you waiting for me?"

Su Xiao lowered her head.

The atmosphere was unusually enchanting.

"I'm afraid you'll mess it up."

He turned and led Meng Jin out the door, the gentle sunlight casting a warm glow on his back.

Su Xiao quickly followed behind him.

The two went to a private restaurant, but Meng Jin didn't come in.

There were only the two of them in the room.

After Xu Bozhou ordered the food, his gaze remained fixed on Su Xiao's face.

"Are you going to renovate that new villa in the Second Ring Road? Aren't you going home?"

His tone was tentative.

Su Xiao knew what he was asking, so she simply shook her head: "I won't reply."

Xu Bozhou rested his chin on his hand, and it was clear that he was in a much better mood.

"You don't like him anymore?"

He asked questions in a persuasive and guiding manner.

"What does this have to do with you?"

Su Xiao's words were barbed again.

She took a sip of water as a cover-up, clearly not wanting to answer the question.

What does that mean? Does he want a chance or does he want to mock her for entrusting herself to the wrong person?

He couldn't give an answer to either of them.

"Never mind if you don't want to talk about it."

He was in a good mood today and didn't want to argue with her.

Xu Bozhou did not ask any further questions.

Instead, he lowered his eyes and poured her a glass of warm water.

He was always like this, ruthless in his actions, yet gentle only towards her.

Who wouldn't like someone like that?

Xu Bozhou paused slightly as he looked at the girl who was lost in her memories again.

She was dressed formally today, with her shirt neatly buttoned up to the top button.

Her hair, which was usually tied up, was now loose and neatly styled over her shoulders.

It looks flamboyant and dazzling.

He thought that maybe it was like this in college, when he bewitched Yan Mingshen and was determined to win him over.

But now that they have the moon in the sky, they don't know how to cherish it.

He never felt fortunate, only heartbroken.

"I have half an hour left."

Xu Bozhou picked up a piece of food for her.

"Nothing to say?"

"No."

Su Xiao avoided his gaze, and the crisp sound of the bone china spoon hitting the rim of the bowl stopped abruptly.

Xu Bozhou didn't give Su Xiao any room to react. He grabbed her waist with his knuckles, his force so strong that she couldn't break free, and pulled her forward.

The edge of the table pressed against her lower back, forcing her to look up at him.

"Never mind."

His voice was cold, but his thumb pressed hard against the soft flesh of her wrist bone, as if he were engraving a mark on her.

Su Xiao subconsciously raised her hand to push his chest, but as soon as her fingertips touched the fabric of his suit, he grabbed her wrist.

It was pressed tightly against my lower back, leaving no room to back away.

“Xu Bozhou…”

She frowned and struggled, but he pressed her even tighter, her nose almost brushing against his jawline.

His warm breath brushed against her face, making her tremble, but the hand on her waist didn't loosen; instead, it pressed down even more.

He completely confined her to the small space between the dining table and himself.

"You heartless little brat."