Before she could speak, Tang Lanlan spoke first.

"Well done, I understand. You don't need to report to me anymore. Go find Manager Ji."

She is always decisive and efficient in her speech and actions, never doing anything useless or saying anything meaningless. After a few days, Song Mai had gotten used to her way of speaking.

"good."

Seeing that Tang Lanlan was busy with her work and didn't even look up, Song Mai didn't bother her any longer and quietly left her office.

As she was closing the door, she inadvertently caught a glimpse of Ji Fenghe returning, so she simply stepped into his office.

Song Mai went straight to the point and described how things had unfolded. Ji Fenghe stared at her intently, his eyes filled with scrutiny, until she finished her report, at which point he looked away.

Just as Song Mai was bracing herself for him to find fault with her, Ji Fenghe, unusually, didn't say anything. Instead, he pushed a document on the table toward her, indicating that she should take it.

“Everyone has important projects to work on. Since you were involved in today’s events, and there just happens to be a new project about Dayue 2, I’ll put you in charge of it.”

Song Mai had no idea what Ji Feng was up to; was he proactively arranging projects for her?

He even put her in charge of this project independently. Doesn't that mean he doesn't trust her abilities?

She opened the document, which was a land acquisition plan, except that the acquisition location was in Dezhou, in the West.

"This is?"

"The surge in orders on Day 2 has made it impossible for the company's existing production lines to meet market demand. Therefore, the company has decided to purchase land in the West to set up a factory, expand production lines, and increase sales. This will also save on transportation costs when selling products to the West and surrounding countries, and further open up overseas markets. This land purchase plan was decided by Mr. Yun and other senior executives of the company after a meeting. It is estimated that negotiations with the West will be initiated soon. This project is entrusted to you. Do a good job."

The man spoke the last three words so lightly that Song Mai almost thought she had misheard.

Is this really what Ji Fenghe said?

Seeing that she didn't respond for a while, Ji Fenghe looked up at her again.

"If you want others to recognize your abilities, you can't just talk about it; doing a good job is more effective than saying a lot of words."

It was clear that Ji Fenghe was responding to what she had said that morning.

Before Song Mai could speak, he continued, "Also, you've been at Xunyi for so many years, hasn't anyone taught you how to treat your superiors? Based on what you said to me this morning and your attitude, if I wanted to hold a grudge against you, I could easily make you leave Yunxing without a sound."

Song Mai closed the document and looked at him calmly.

"I understand this principle perfectly well. I didn't need Manager Ji to remind me. I was just betting that someone who could hold a managerial position at Yunxing wouldn't be a petty person. Besides, Manager Ji did have some issues. If you feel that my well-intentioned reminder offended you and you hold a grudge against me, then it seems you are even more petty than I thought."

Upon hearing her words, Ji Fenghe smiled instead of getting angry, the smile reaching his eyes, seemingly from the bottom of his heart, though whether his true thoughts were good or bad remained unknown.

"You don't need to follow up on Tang Lanlan's project anymore; I'll talk to her about it."

"Okay, sure."

The moment the office door closed, Ji Fenghe let out a soft chuckle, his eyes as warm as a spring breeze. But the smile only lingered in his eyes for a second before vanishing, replaced by a chilling coldness that condensed into ice.

"That's interesting."

When Song Mai returned to her workstation, it was already time to leave work. It had been a fulfilling day. She stuffed the documents Ji Feng had given her into her bag and left work on time.

As soon as the new product launch ended, everyone in the group seemed to be on vacation. Everyone was much more relaxed and there was less tension than before. Even workaholics like Tang Lanlan from the translation department didn't work overtime.

Song Mai was in a good mood and texted Chu Xing to ask if he was free to go out for dinner together, but the man was working overtime as usual.

Looking at the man's messages on her phone, Song Mai sighed helplessly.

Never mind, I'll just ask Lin Ran if she's free.

Lin Ran was fine; she accepted Song Mai's invitation as soon as it was made.

The two chose a newly opened Western restaurant, and as soon as they sat down, Lin Ran looked at Song Mai with a curious expression.

"Did you have a fight with your husband? Why have you been asking me out so often lately?"

While ordering food, Song Mai casually replied, "No, he's quite busy; you never see him all day."

What has he been busy with lately?

Song Mai ordered a few simple dishes and then pushed the menu to Lin Ran.

"have no idea."

Where is his company located?

"He gave me a general direction, but I don't know the exact location."

Seeing that Song Mai knew nothing about it, Lin Ran felt a sense of disappointment: "You're his wife, how come you don't know anything? A man like him is handsome, and now that he's starting his own business, he comes into contact with a lot of people. You can't not keep an eye on him, what if he's not honest..."

However, as soon as she said that, Lin Ran realized that her worries seemed to be somewhat unnecessary.

"Oh, I forgot, he's no good, so it seems there's no need to worry about him."

Song Mai: "..."

But then, as if she had just thought of something, she suddenly remembered something else.

"You have to be careful. Just signing it isn't enough; otherwise, it'll still be a mess."

Song Mai was speechless.

"What are you thinking about? Hurry up and order the food."

Lin Ran pouted: "You don't know anything about him and you don't pay attention to him. I'm just worried that you'll be deceived by men. When men are scheming, women can't compare."

"actually……"

After thinking for a while, Song Mai carefully chose her words and told her about her arranged marriage with Chu Xing.

Lin Ran's eyes widened, and she couldn't say a word for a long time.

"Are you kidding me?"

"Of course not."

"You're really bold. You dared to marry him even though he has nothing. Even if he is Old Master Chu's grandson, you should still be careful. After all, you're a girl. What if you get taken advantage of?"

Song Mai smiled helplessly, her smile tinged with bitterness.

"There was no other way. My parents kept forcing me to marry Liu Weiqiang. You know the situation back then. What other choice did I have? I'm already very grateful that someone who is even slightly reliable is willing to have a marriage of convenience with me."

Lin Ran was well aware of Song Mai's situation at the time, so she didn't say anything more, but said with a hint of reproach, "Then you shouldn't have kept it from me. Aren't I your best friend?"

“I know I was wrong. I was overwhelmed with family problems at the time. My mother would bring people to my door every few days to threaten me. I just wanted to get things over with as soon as possible. Besides, it was a marriage of convenience, and we would get divorced when the agreement expired in a year. It wasn't something to be proud of, so…”