54. President Xi learned of the pregnancy.
Just then, her phone rang. Worried about missing any possible interview opportunities, Wen Xueyan quickly answered the call.
"Xueyan? This is Zhang Xinya." A gentle and familiar voice came from the receiver; it was her advisor from her master's studies in China.
"Professor Zhang, hello." Wen Xueyan was a little surprised and quickly replied.
"Did I disturb you? So, have you been thinking about changing jobs lately?" Professor Zhang got straight to the point. "One of your seniors from the previous year, a rich kid, whose grades weren't as good as yours back then, is doing quite well in his career now. He saw your previously published papers and patents and specifically contacted me, hoping to poach you."
Wen Xueyan's heart skipped a beat; it was like a ray of light breaking through the gloom of the past few days. "Thank you, teacher. May I ask which company it is?"
“I’ll send their contact information to you on WeChat. You young people can communicate directly,” Professor Zhang said, his tone conveying care and encouragement for his students.
After hanging up the phone, Wen Xueyan quickly received a number. She dialed it. The moment the call connected, a voice with a hint of mockery came from the other end, making her freeze in shock.
"Engineer Wen, it seems I still need to go through Professor Zhang to get you to agree to this."
It is Xi Mingyuan.
"President Xi? How could it be you?" Wen Xueyan had indeed submitted her resume to Xi Mingyuan's company, but it was like throwing a stone into the ocean.
“If I directly recruited you, you might not be willing to come, so I had to take a roundabout approach,” Xi Mingyuan said casually. “As for the resume you mentioned you submitted, I haven’t received it. I’m thinking of reorganizing the HR department; it’s inefficient and the screening mechanism is rigid.”
"You flatter me too much," Wen Xueyan said calmly.
“No need to be so modest. When can you start work?” Xi Mingyuan asked. “If you’re willing to come readily, I wouldn’t have had to go through all that trouble to have someone leak the blueprints and go through all that trouble. I’m your senior, but you have better grades, while I’m the type who occasionally slacks off. Are you free tonight? Perhaps we can meet and discuss this in detail.”
"Meeting tonight? So soon?" Wen Xueyan was somewhat surprised.
Xi Mingyuan chuckled on the other end of the phone, "Don't worry, I have no intention of going beyond work. Since I contacted you through Professor Zhang, if I did anything improper, your supervisor would be the first to punish me. You choose the location."
"I've thought it over and will call you back," Wen Xueyan replied.
Wen Xueyan thought the job opportunity was good, since it was related to her major, but she wanted to tell Cheng Boyan about her pregnancy as soon as possible tonight, even though she hadn't figured out what to do next.
Hanging up the phone and putting down her cell phone, dusk was falling as the taxi weaved through the traffic. The car radio was playing financial news, and the driver idly flipped through the channels. Suddenly, the words "Cheng Group," "Qiao Lanyue," and "police" reached Wen Xueyan's ears.
Wen Xueyan sensed something was wrong. She quickly searched the local news and saw that "Cheng Boyan, chairman of Cheng's Group, and his secretary Qiao Lanyue have been taken away by the police for investigation on suspicion of insider trading..."
The neon lights outside the car window suddenly blurred. She gripped her phone tightly, the cold metal casing digging into her palm.
It seems I won't be able to call Cheng Boyan tonight at least.
At that moment, she instinctively touched her lower abdomen. The news she had been brewing all the way, the news she wanted to tell him in person, could only be buried deeper now. In this turbulent time, the news of her pregnancy could not be known to the outside world, lest it become a weapon to attack him.
Meanwhile, the atmosphere was equally somber inside the Royal Garden villas in the west of the city.
Holding her phone, Xu Junxian paced anxiously in the spacious living room. Finally, she couldn't hold back any longer and turned to Xu Junheng, who sat on the sofa with a furrowed brow. Her voice was filled with suppressed resentment and panic: "Brother, what exactly happened? We agreed that we would only find a way to get Qiao Lanyue away from Cheng's Group and away from Bo Yan. How could it be that Bo Yan has been dragged into this? Insider trading? What will we do if this charge is proven true?"
Xu Junheng stubbed out his cigarette and rubbed his temples. "Junxian, things got a bit out of control. I really just wanted to use this as an excuse to create some trouble by using some vague information that Qiao Lanyue had handled, so that she would resign and you would have more opportunities to get close to Boyan. But I didn't expect that the China Securities Regulatory Commission and the police would get involved, and it's no longer something we can easily stop."
"Out of control? Is 'out of control' all it takes?" Xu Junxian's voice was choked with sobs. "What I want is to save my marriage, not to destroy my husband! Quickly, contact Attorney Zhang. Do everything you can to get him out on bail!"
She frantically grabbed her phone to find a lawyer's number, her fingertips trembling. This was never the outcome she wanted.
Those concerns hidden behind jealousy and resentment, concerns that she herself was unwilling to admit, were now laid bare.
The line between love and hate can sometimes be so blurred that it's frightening.
*
An hour later, Xi Mingyuan sat in a quiet coffee shop near Wen Xueyan's apartment. He was wearing a dark gray cashmere cardigan, looking less sharp and more casual than his daytime business acumen, but his eyes remained shrewd.
He ordered a cup of hot milk for Wen Xueyan.
“Hot milk is good,” Xi Mingyuan pushed the cup in front of her, his gaze lingering on her face for a moment, his tone calm but firm, “I think you might need this, especially if you might be pregnant.”
Wen Xueyan did not admit to being pregnant: "What do you mean?"
Xi Mingyuan shrugged, as if it were a matter of course: "I don't have many hobbies, but I do love gossip and have pretty keen observation skills." He lowered his voice, "So, why would I hire a pregnant employee?"
Before Wen Xueyan could answer, he continued, "What I value is your ability, Wen Xueyan. I've also heard about the Guko bombing. Your professional dedication and foresight on the GP project prove your worth. Secondly, I need to cultivate a team that truly belongs to me. Many of the so-called veterans in the company are actually people placed there by my grandfather. I need fresh blood, people who share my vision and can work together to achieve great things." His gaze was sharp, as if he were assessing a highly promising investment.
Wen Xueyan remained silent, processing his words. His words sounded reasonable, even conveying a sincere intention to recognize and utilize talent.
"Then why does your HR department never notify me of interviews through normal channels?" Wen Xueyan asked, still avoiding the topic of pregnancy.
“Those people in the HR department aren’t my people. There’s internal strife within the company, so I don’t receive many suitable resumes, including yours. It’s a long story, but in short, I need to cultivate my own trusted confidants.”
Wen Xueyan listened quietly.
However, Xi Mingyuan's next words made her even more nervous: "Also, this child of yours, is it Cheng Boyan's?"
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Announcement: Dear readers, there will be another chapter tonight. It's finished and currently being revised and improved. It's expected to be released in 2-3 hours. In the next chapter, Xueyan will go to see President Cheng and finally have a chance to meet him.
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If President Xi knows, will President Cheng be far behind?
Mr. Xi has such a keen sense of smell.
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