Qiao Zhen looked up and saw Gu Xijue standing beside him with concern.

For some reason, Qiao Zhen's nose suddenly felt sore.

"I'm fine, actually..."

only.

It felt like being treated as a commodity.

Having witnessed Lu Zheng's treatment of him so many times before, he had long since resigned himself to this fact.

"Did Lu Zheng bully you again?"

Gu Xijue's voice was tinged with anger as he continued, "I knew he had no good intentions all along. He deliberately told me not to meet him before, and we thought he would treat you well, but I didn't expect..."

Qiao Zhen waved her hand, signaling him not to continue.

After all, with such a stark contrast between Gu Xijue and Lu Zheng, and Qiao Zhen having to stay by Lu Zheng's side, it was truly heartbreaking.

"Let me help you," Gu Xijue said with a frown and great concern.

"No need," Qiao Zhen immediately refused.

She didn't want Gu Xijue to get involved in this matter, and besides, he had already been troubled enough.

“But you are like this…” Gu Xijue hesitated, unable to bear seeing Qiao Zhen being mistreated by Lu Zheng.

"It's nothing." Qiao Zhen smiled slightly. She had suffered all kinds of hardships and was used to being humiliated.

However, she was fine despite her injury, and she didn't want to cause harm to those around her because of her.

"I will handle these things."

After saying that, she gave Gu Xijue a reassuring smile, waved goodbye to him, and went back.

It's not difficult for him to feign compliance with these people, so he doesn't need to take it so seriously.

After thinking it over, she took a deep breath and rejoined the others at the banquet.

"Where were you just now?"

Taking advantage of the moment when no one was talking, Lu Zheng grabbed Qiao Zhen's arm and whispered in his ear.

"I went to the restroom." Qiao Zhen pursed her lips.

He probably didn't see me talking to Gu Xijue just now, right?

After saying that, Qiao Zhen felt a little guilty and didn't dare to look up at Lu Zheng, so she just kept her head down.

Coincidentally, Lu Zheng didn't make things difficult for him; he simply turned around and greeted others.

Qiao Zhen thought the matter would be over, but the increased force and depth of the man's thrusts that night forced him to acknowledge a fact.

Yes, Lu Zheng holds grudges.

The next day, when Qiao Zhen woke up again, it was already lunchtime.

Qiao Zhen gritted her teeth and got out of bed, leaving only a note from Lu Zheng reminding her to eat breakfast, as she had already asked for a day off for him.

He had no choice but to eat a quick and easy breakfast before heading to the company.

It was lunchtime, and there weren't many people in the company. Qiao Zhen put down her bag and started working, as she had left early and hadn't finished a few tasks.

As she watched the clock hands point to twelve, she became extremely hungry, but she still endured the hunger and continued working.

"Director Qiao, you work so hard! You've really put in a lot of effort."

Just as Qiao Zhen was writing furiously, Tang Yue suddenly appeared out of nowhere and affectionately hugged Qiao Zhen's neck.

"Thank you." Qiao Zhen didn't even glance at him, only responding coldly, and continued to busy herself with her work.

Tang Yue was furious at her cold attitude, but since this was in the company, she couldn't show her anger. She could only smile and say, "Since you work so hard, why don't you take care of these tasks as well?"

"If I remember correctly, these are your responsibilities."

Qiao Zhen tilted her head slightly, looked at the plan signed by Tang Yue, and frowned.

Isn't this making things difficult for myself a bit too obvious?

Before, Tang Yue didn't like him, but she at least pretended. Now, why doesn't she even pretend anymore?

Tang Yue wasn't ashamed at all; on the contrary, she became even more confident: "Yes, Brother Lu Zheng specially assigned me this task to train myself, but I think Director Qiao needs more training than I do, so I'm generously giving it to you."

After she finished speaking, she winked, as if to say, "See how kind-hearted I am?"

Qiao Zhen sneered and resignedly accepted her mission.

Tang Yue and Lu Zheng had a good relationship, and he didn't want to cause himself any more trouble.

After all, he had known his childhood sweetheart for a long time, and he felt that Lu Zheng could clearly distinguish between them.

She silently placed the document in her hand. Seeing this, Tang Yue left satisfied, stepping into her high heels.

After a long day of work, Qiao Zhen was so tired that she could barely straighten her back. She could only hold her bag and endure the pain in her back as she walked to the parking lot.

By sheer coincidence, she ran into Lu Zheng.

Qiao Zhen paused for a moment, then walked away as if she hadn't seen anyone.

For some reason, Lu Zheng frowned, feeling that Qiao Zhen was becoming even colder towards him.

Watching Qiao Zhen's departing figure, Lu Zheng was somewhat displeased, but he still started the car as usual.

In the shadows, Tang Yue smiled with delight.

That's exactly the effect she wanted.

Qiao Zhen's assigned tasks were resolved one by one through her efforts, but the air conditioner order remained a hot potato.

There was no other way; given the pressure Tang Yue was putting on her, she had to complete all the tasks.

The project manager for that order was known as Boss Wang. He frequented nightclubs, so Qiao Zhen had no choice but to wear a dance dress and dance with him.

Although he was already the most dressed among them, he still aroused Mr. Wang's interest.

"Director Qiao, it's really unfair to ask you to dance with me, especially dressed up like this. Are you being too formal with me? Are you afraid I'll take advantage of you? Hahaha."

As he spoke, Mr. Wang's hand kept wandering lightly over Qiao Zhen's shoulder.

Qiao Zhen felt nauseous, but she endured it because President Wang did not do anything drastic.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!