Argue for her
At noon, Zuo Xiao walked out of the office building and Zhuang Jinghao held his arm from behind.
"Xiaoxiao baby, are you cosplaying as a plainclothes officer or a paparazzi today?" Zhuang Jinghao said with a giggle.
"She has a cold." Zhan Jiaxin answered for her, "She coughed several times this morning!"
"Ah?" As she spoke, her tender little white hand touched Zuo Xiao's forehead, "Thank God you don't have a fever! Have you taken your medicine? I have some cold medicine!"
"It's nothing. I drank too much yesterday." Zuo Xiao explained hoarsely, "I got home late at night and caught a bit of a cold."
Zhuang Jing was pleased to hear this and shook her head repeatedly: "You drank without me, is this karma?"
"Take you?" Zuo Xiao scoffed. This little wimp, he spoke fearlessly but acted so timidly. They rarely had lunch together, so she only dared to meet him downstairs, afraid of being seen.
"Do you dare to come out if I ask you to?" she challenged. Zhuang Jinghao raised her head and said, "Humph, what's there to be afraid of?" But her momentum weakened a little.
The three of them walked into the spicy hot pot restaurant. While Zhan Jiaxin was choosing the dishes, Zuo Xiao took off his mask and whispered to the little coward: "I met your brother in the elevator this morning."
Unsurprisingly, he saw a shocked face. Zhuang Jing looked as if she had been caught in an affair, her face pale with fear. Zuo Xiao just found it funny: This guy is so contradictory. He has the guts to do it, but not the guts to admit it?
"And then?" His T-shirt was tightly grasped. Zuo Xiao smiled slyly: "Don't worry, he didn't recognize me. And even if he did, didn't you say that you and Luffy would protect me?"
Zhuang Jinghao breathed a sigh of relief and thought silently: It would be great if Zuo Xiao would wear a mask at work in the future...
In the afternoon, Mao Jiadong suddenly announced that the meeting to report on the brand's official website renovation project had been moved forward from tomorrow morning to today due to a schedule change for Luffy, who was to receive the report. Fortunately, Mao Jiadong, always cautious, had already had his subordinates prepare the plan, so they weren't caught off guard.
He had already selected three of the five proposals submitted by his subordinates, two of which were written by Zuo Xiao and one by Li Shuang. As a boss who was willing to give his subordinates opportunities to perform, he asked the two girls to report their proposals to Luffy separately.
After listening to the report, Luffy immediately chose the plan planned by Zuo Xiao with the kitten Duoduo as the protagonist, and asked about details such as the construction period and estimated cost. Zuo Xiao answered fluently.
After the meeting, Mao Jiadong kept Zuo Xiao and told her that from today on she would be the person in charge of the official website renewal project and would report directly to Luffy in the project.
Like most client-side companies, conference rooms are this company's most scarce resource. The conference room the brand department secured today was incredibly far from their workstations, requiring them to pass through several different departmental areas. On the way there, Zuo Xiao coughed twice and put on her mask. But she had left her hat at her workstation before the meeting. After all, when presenting to her immediate superior, a little greasy hair is fine; it's better to be polite than wearing a red hat.
Suddenly, Mao Jiadong, who was walking ahead, stopped and noticeably straightened his shoulders. Zuo Xiao looked in the direction he turned his head and was momentarily startled.
Zuo Xiao didn't know why he lowered his head. A tall, oppressive figure passed by, and Mao Jiadong respectfully called out, "Mr. Zhuang."
After the boss walked away, Mao Jiadong turned to look at her, a tolerant smile in his eyes. He thought that this new girl usually looked bold and free-spirited, and had just spoken eloquently to Luffy, but she was still a little timid when facing the big boss. She still needed experience.
Zuo Xiao touched her mask and thought as she walked: I'm wearing a mask and my outfit is very different from before. That guy probably didn't recognize me, right? Well, he didn't react at all just now, so he probably didn't recognize me.
Although she had long wanted to witness the siblings' quarrel, her ideal scenario would be when she and Zhuang Jinghao were enjoying a sweet moment together and ran into her brother. Then, like the villains in TV dramas, she would raise her chin slightly, offer a contemptuous and provocative smile, and watch him shatter before her very eyes. Instead of being like today, when she hadn't even washed her hair...
Ten meters away, Zhuang Yu'an stopped and turned to look at the back of the subordinate who had just passed by.
A white T-shirt, a white mask, wide-leg jeans, thin shoulders and back, and a slim figure... Zhuang Yu'an recognized the girl almost at first sight: she was the Little Red Riding Hood from the morning, except that she had no hat on her head.
His eyes met hers for a moment. Beneath a fair, full forehead and delicate, mountain-like brows, his eyes were dark and clear, as if shimmering with water. At first glance, they looked as pure and lively as a fawn, yet concealed within them the arrogance and cunning of a little fox.
What was even more concerning was that his eyebrows and eyes looked familiar, as if he had seen them somewhere before...
Even after he entered the meeting room, the girl's features were still lingering in his mind.
Zhuang Yu'an sat down as his subordinates began to report: "This year's first wave of 618 pre-sales, we achieved record-breaking results in major e-commerce channels..."
At this moment, a face suddenly popped into his mind. Zhuang Yu'an's pupils widened, he took a deep breath, and his fingers on the armrest of the chair clenched unconsciously.
The subordinates fell silent and looked at him in panic. This usually steady, serious, and perceptive boss, for some reason, now had wide eyes, a hint of surprise in his slightly frozen gaze. Was there something wrong with the sales data presented on the PowerPoint presentation?
Zhuang Yu'an came back to his senses and raised his hand: "Continue."
After the meeting, he asked Chen Quan to get a list of all new employees who had joined the company in the past month, and also to provide a separate list of employees in the brand department.
He saw a common name on the two documents.
"Did you get Zuo Xiao into the company?" Zhuang Yu'an asked his sister ten minutes later.
As expected, my sister was so flustered that even her facial features were out of control. After a while, as if making a desperate move, she raised her head and admitted, "Yes!"
Zhuang Yu'an felt his temples throbbing as he watched her confidently speak. He raised his hand and pressed it, saying, "If you insist on having a private relationship with her, I have no objection. But you've crossed the line by bringing someone into the company! This is the workplace, not your playground!"
Faced with her brother's harsh rebuke, the courage she had so hard-won suddenly vanished. Zhuang Jinghao tightened her fingers on her knees and, pulling out her long-prepared defense, said, "I just recommended someone to the company. How could that be... crossing the line? The branding department was looking for a designer. I didn't force her in..."
Zhuang Yu'an persisted: "How dare you say that without your help, she could have come in?"
"She can!" Zhuang Jinghao argued, "Brother Luffy also said that she has strong professional ability! Even without my recommendation, she is a talent that the company urgently needs!"
Luffy? Zhuang Yu'an was stunned for a moment, then raised his voice and said, "You are still instigating Luffy to open a backdoor for her? You are simply..."
Suddenly, the rumor he'd heard at the elevator entrance that night flashed through his mind: "She's Luffy's woman." Then, thinking of Luffy's recent lack of smoking and his heightened emotions, Zhuang Yu'an lost his voice. He felt a surge of intense resentment in his chest, like food being poured into a wok and crackling.
Zhuang Jinghao saw that his brother's teeth were clenched tightly, his eyes seemed to be burning with fire, and his whole body exuded a terrifying aura. He was immediately frightened and countless thoughts flashed through his mind.
"There was no backdoor!" She stubbornly denied it. "If you don't believe me, ask Brother Luffy! Zuo Xiao not only did well in the interview, but her performance since joining us has also been fantastic! She's a nugget of gold. If we don't want her, other companies will be vying for her!"
The more she argued, the angrier Zhuang Yu'an became. Before his rationality could break, he pointed to the door and said, "Get out."
Zhuang Jinghao pushed open the door and felt a chorus of inquiring gazes fixed on her. Her brother had never summoned her to his office before, but this was a new occasion, and she had a bad feeling the moment she entered. Sure enough, her brother had discovered Zuo Xiao's employment, and, furious, he hadn't bothered to avoid suspicion and confronted her directly.
She had originally thought that even if her brother knew about this, he would at most say a few words to her, have a quarrel with her, and then it would be over. But she had never expected him to be so angry.
In the past, even during the most heated arguments, the brother always controlled his emotions, constantly watching his words, tone, and expression. At most, he would sigh in frustration to express his disappointment in his sister. He had never scolded her with such harsh words and tone, or glared at her with such anger, or even kicked her out, as he did today.
Her brother was really angry with her...but she obviously didn't do anything wrong, how could he be so mean...Thinking of this, Zhuang Jinghao's eyes reddened.
As he walked, his expression suddenly changed: Oh no! My brother will definitely kick Zuo Xiao out!
Zhuang Jinghao walked to a corner and called Lu Fei. At this moment, if there was anyone who could turn the tide and protect Zuo Xiao, it must be him!
She met him in Luffy's office. Facing his concerned eyes, the grievance in her heart was magnified many times. Her mouth pursed and she cried, "My brother found out about Zuo Xiao's employment. He's so angry... What should I do, Brother Luffy? He will definitely fire her!"
Luffy frowned, and after a moment asked, "What's the problem between your brother and Zuo Xiao?"
Zhuang Jing thought about it and told him everything about how she was addicted to the online romance novels written by Zuo Xiao, and how her brother always thought they were rubbish, and was therefore full of hostility towards Zuo Xiao and even wanted to have a meeting with him.
"That's it?" Luffy laughed. "Isn't your brother making a big deal out of nothing?"
Zhuang Jinghao was slightly taken aback. "Making a mountain out of a molehill" seemed to be a perfect way to describe her brother's overly intense reaction to the whole thing...
She tried to rationalize her brother's behavior: "He thinks I'm wasting precious time reading novels, and he's worried I'll imitate the plots in the novels... And there's a brother in the novel who's exactly like him, always restricting his sister's freedom. Maybe he feels he's been targeted and is upset? In short, he thinks Zuo Xiao will lead me astray, and he doesn't want me to get close to her."
"Hmm..." Luffy pondered for a moment, "Maybe he sees Zuo Xiao as a threat."
"threaten?"
"Yes. He thinks you will be influenced by Zuo Xiao and gradually distance yourself from him. Your brother is afraid that you will be snatched away."
"Ah?" Zhuang Jing was surprised. "Brother is family, Zuo Xiao is a friend, what's there to fight over?"
Luffy smiled meaningfully and said, "For a serious sister complex, threats are regardless of gender or source. In short, I think I understand why your brother reacted so strongly. However, I still think he is making a big deal out of nothing."
"Brother Luffy..." Zhuang Jinghao said as tactfully as possible, "You said you would protect Zuo Xiao..."
"Don't worry." Luffy was confident, "Your brother can't touch her."
Zhuang Jinghao looked up at Luffy with his eyes narrowed and determined to win, and for the first time he felt that he was so manly!
Time flew by. As Zhuang Yu'an finished his day's meetings, he felt dizzy and overwhelmed.
He'd always been a regular gym rat, maintaining a strong physique and exceptional energy, rarely feeling exhausted from work. Speaking of which, today's unusual behavior was all due to his sister's reckless behavior. And Luffy! Not only had he been playing along with her, but he'd also likely become obsessed with her and done something ridiculous! The thought of this made him feel distraught.
No, I have to talk to Luffy.
Zhuang Yu'an walked towards Luffy's office. As a co-founder, Luffy always liked to mingle with the employees. He was also good at marketing and brand communication. Several related departments were directly under his direct management. His office was close to these departments' work areas, completely different from Zhuang Yu'an's office.
It was just time to get off work. Several employees had already stood up from their office chairs, but when they saw him coming, they sat back down silently.
There is only one exception.
Zhuang Yu'an's gaze focused on the arrogant Little Red Riding Hood. Apparently, she had noticed him too, a provocative smile flickering in her bright black eyes. Then, she grabbed her bag and swaggered past him.
Zhuang Yu'an's heart was choked, and he instantly had the urge to pull her over and question her. However, in front of everyone, what could he do to her, an ordinary employee?
Anger began to crackle in his chest again. Zhuang Yu'an bit his cheek and walked to Luffy's office door, knocking politely instead of kicking it open.
"Jinghao told me all about the conflict between you and Zuo Xiao," Luffy said preemptively with a smile, "To be fair and objective, I think you, as the older brother, are making a big deal out of nothing. It's not a big deal. It's just a novel. I haven't seen anyone rebelling after reading Water Margin, right?"
Zhuang Yu'an frowned: "It's okay for her to read novels in private, but she shouldn't bring people into the company. And you, why are you fooling around with her?"
"What's going on?" Luffy and Zhuang Jinghao said in unison, "The brand department is looking for someone, and Zuo Xiao is a good fit. We're going through the normal recruitment process."
Zhuang Yu'an wasn't buying it. "She only had one interview, and the salary she was offered was significantly higher than the standard for the position, 20% higher than another designer of the same level in the same department, and 14 times her salary. How do you explain that?"
Facing the question, Luffy was at ease: "This is called using talents in an unconventional way. Besides, her ability is worthy of the price."
Zhuang Yu'an sneered: "That's right, you are her immediate superior, you have the final say on her abilities."
"Hey, that's where you're wrong!" Luffy said half-jokingly, "We were just discussing the matter rationally, but why did you get so emotional? That's not like you."
"I'm not emotional." Zhuang Yu'an's brows knitted together. "I think you've been too indulgent towards Jing Hao, leading to irrational and unfair decisions."
He was so serious, but Luffy burst out laughing. "Don't deny it, you're just emotional! You're protecting your food. You're afraid Jinghao will alienate you because of Zuo Xiao, so you want to break them up. Alas, there's a kind of love called letting go. You've been obsessed with your sister for so many years, isn't it time for you to let go?"
Zhuang Yu'an was immediately furious. After a moment's pause, he said in a deep voice, "I thought I was discussing business with you. Also, I'm not a sister-con."
"He's not a sister-con, yet he treats a cute girl like this..." Luffy pinched his chin, pretending to be thoughtful, "There's only one possibility..."
He raised his eyes and smiled:
"You like Zuo Xiao. Out of some kind of emotional defense mechanism, the more you like him, the more you resist him."
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