Chapter 909 Thank you Mr. Qin for liking me
Xu Ying, always meticulous in her work, had Shi Rui's information already been sorted out. Any later, it would have been filed away in the archives. This information was then delivered to Qin Jixiu. It contained his resume, ID photo, interview scores, test results, and even his employment contract.
According to his resume, Shi Rui's birthday is September 15th, making him 24 years old this year. His hometown is Lincheng. After graduating from Lincheng No. 7 Middle School, he was admitted to N University's International Business School. Later, he went to the University of Chicago to study sculpture. When he was in college, he had a very high GPA and received numerous honors. Judging from his qualifications, he is indeed excellent.
After reading this, Qin Jixiu's eyes unconsciously fell on Shi Rui's mailing address. The fingertips on his hand, gripping the resume, turned white from the pressure. No. 16, Dianchang Road, Fumen Street, Shanglin District, Lincheng District, was right near the address Shi Rui had reluctantly given him.
"Ye Ting"'s birthday is August 7th, making him twenty-five years old. His hometown is Lincheng. He attended J University, which is very close to N University, and studied for his master's degree at Luo University, also in Country M. Although the information is half-hidden, the timeline completely overlaps.
Although he is reluctant to believe it, this intern "Shi Rui" and his former online love partner "Ye Ting" are almost identical in terms of their origin, appearance and life trajectory.
In other words, he left the interview room that day because of Shi Rui's coquettish behavior and made a few phone calls outside. By accident, he did not interview Shi Rui in person. But God had eyes and let this person who had hurt and deceived him fall into his hands, allowing him to deliberately retaliate or slowly torture him.
Qin Jixiu made a call, and as soon as the other end picked up, he said in an unyielding tone, "I want Shi Rui, the newcomer to your department."
The project manager, who had a good personal relationship with him, was surprised and puzzled when he heard this request: "Why, President Qin wants a male secretary?"
Qin Jixiu didn't want to talk more, and only said: "I have my own arrangements. Ask him to come to my office now."
Not long after, there were clear and rhythmic knocks on the heavy wooden door. Next to the door was a large glass window, allowing anyone outside to see him clearly just by tilting their head. Qin Jixiu deliberately left the other person alone for half a minute before saying, "Come in."
As soon as the door opened, the autumn wind rushed in from the half-open window on the south side, arrogantly seizing control of the door. The wooden door was closed with a loud "bang".
Qin Jixiu frowned, looked up when he heard the voice, and met Shi Rui's slightly surprised eyes.
"Sorry, the wind is so strong." Shi Rui hunched his back, took a few steps forward, and stood in a suitable position. He looked straight at Qin Jixiu, "Mr. Qin, are you looking for me?"
"Um."
Qin Jixiu turned his chair and faced him sideways, crossing his legs. Although his thighs were mostly hidden by the large desk, the exposed part still showed his slender figure. His black trousers were straight and crisp, and his leather shoes and black socks made him look steady and noble. He flipped through the documents in his hand casually and asked him for confirmation: "Are you from Lincheng?"
Hearing his question, Shi Rui slowly withdrew his gaze from the slender ankle, turned halfway, passed over the muscular calf, and finally fell on Qin Jixiu's angular profile.
"My hometown is Lincheng. I lived with my parents there before college. After finishing school, I thought about settling down in my hometown. But there are too few big companies there, and the salary is nothing compared to Zhengfeng, so I came out to give it a try."
Shi Rui was dressed in a formal suit, his attention to detail reflected in his clothes, even his cuffs were rolled up to the same height, and he looked neat and tidy, not like a young man entering the workplace. But his voice was bright and clear, and he couldn't hide the cheerfulness and cleverness of youth.
"Where do you live now?" Qin Jixiu regretted asking the question the moment he asked it. Don't take his questioning as concern.
Shi Rui didn't think the question was abrupt and answered seriously, "I share an apartment with my friend. It's near Beichen Road, a 40-minute drive from the company."
"What does your father do for a living?" Seeing that he was quite straightforward, Qin Jixiu got to the bottom of it.
Shi Rui's eyes rolled downward and to the left a few times, and he spoke slowly as he thought. "My father runs his own business in Lincheng, but it's all small business that wouldn't be of your liking. Jiangcheng is close to the sea and a major trading port. He wanted me to come to a big city to develop my career, so I came here."
"What are your hobbies?"
Shi Rui was about to answer when Qin Jixiu pointed at something on his resume: "Do you like driving? How many years have you been driving?"
Shi Rui said honestly, "Since I got my driver's license, six years."
"Well," Qin Jixiu finally turned his chair around, a particularly gentle smile on his face, showing that he was very good-tempered. "From today on, you don't have to stay in the project department anymore. Come here and be my assistant secretary."
Qin Jixiu deliberately emphasized the last four words. A top graduate from a prestigious university, from a humble background, had finally managed to squeeze into a Fortune 500 company after graduation, only to start in a position that, while challenging, required little technical skill.
Qin Jixiu didn't know that this opportunity was like a shortcut to heaven for some people.
Shi Rui nodded immediately, his expression could only be described as "gladly agreeing." His tone was light and innocent, and his words were very straightforward: "Thank you, Mr. Qin, for liking me."
"Who likes you?" Qin Jixiu scoffed. He couldn't stand the word "like" anymore; it gave him PTSD.
Shi Rui immediately changed his words: "I mean to appreciate——"
Qin Jixiu interrupted him with a wave of his hand: "Come up before lunch. You can ask Assistant Gu about your workstation and other details. I often need to go out during work hours, so you must be able to put aside all non-related matters at hand and be my driver at any time. The car is not easy to drive, so you should familiarize yourself with it in advance. Here are the car keys."
Qin Jixiu pushed a car key forward.
Shi Rui walked forward, his gaze lingering for a few seconds on Qin Jixiu's slender fingers tapping lightly on the table. He grabbed the key with discretion, not leaving any fingerprints on the clean table.
It was Shi Rui's first day on the job, so he didn't have many personal belongings and didn't have any work to hand over. He said goodbye to his boss, thought for a moment, then went downstairs to the cafeteria to buy a few cups of hot coffee. He went upstairs and distributed them to several assistants who also worked for Qin Jixiu.
"Sister, as Mr. Qin's driver and assistant secretary, is there anything I need to pay attention to?" He struck while the iron was hot and immediately took out a notebook and a pen with a humble attitude, just like a good student.
Such a young and handsome man, who had the tact to bring coffee upon arrival and gently called her "Sister", immediately opened up the conversation: "Boss Qin is quite particular about his lifestyle. He always makes a cup of black tea in the morning to nourish his spleen and stomach, and drinks green tea before work in the afternoon to refresh himself. He has several cars, and each one always has mints in it, and they must be the same brand. He has a rest room in his office, and you must never go in without his permission."
Shi Rui buried his head in writing on the paper.
"Boss Qin is very strict about his work. Any documents submitted to him, whether they're drafts or finished documents, must be paper clipped and stapled. Even the slightest crookedness is unacceptable. I used to be so annoyed by him, but now I'm used to it. But be prepared; Boss Qin isn't someone you can easily please."
Shi Rui thought back to the warm atmosphere in the office just now, but he didn't agree with it. "I think Boss Qin is very easy to talk to. He often smiles at us."
Assistant Director Gu shook his head. "No, he's very scary when he gets angry. He's even made me cry. You can't yell or curse... The things he says will make you feel so ashamed that you'll want to find a hole to crawl into, feeling like you're not worthy of being a smart animal with a brain. It's commonly known as being yin and yang."
Shi Rui nodded and asked if there was any more.
Assistant Gu took out a pink notebook from the table and handed it to him.
"This is my notebook from when I first started working. Take a look at it when you have time. Only read what is useful to you. Pretend you didn't see the words and drawings that secretly curse Mr. Qin."
Shi Rui took it gratefully.
The remaining two secretaries also generously shared their experiences with him.
Suddenly, the phone on Assistant Gu's desk rang. She immediately sat up, answered the phone, and said sweetly, "Boss Qin, what can I do for you?"
"Come here for a moment."
"I'll be right there."
Less than two minutes later, Assistant Gu emerged from Qin Jixiu's office. She winked at the two female assistants, who, having already formed a tacit understanding, met in the restroom one after another. After glancing around to make sure no one was around, Assistant Gu said, "Guess what President Qin told me to say?"
The two shook their heads.
"He said we're not allowed to go out to buy coffee during work hours," Assistant Director Gu whispered. "What do you think he meant? He doesn't usually drink coffee, so he's definitely not blaming Shi Rui for not bringing him some. Is he trying to pressure us because we're getting too close to the interns?"
The bespectacled secretary said, "If President Qin doesn't like this intern, why would he keep him under his watch? Out of sight, out of mind. There must be some other, hidden reason."
"You're right!" Assistant Gu said, "Let's go back and observe again."
As a result, the whole morning passed without President Qin giving them a single glance. When it was time for lunch, Assistant General Manager Gu wanted to ask Shi Rui to go to the company cafeteria together, but after thinking about it, he decided not to take the risk. They couldn't afford to offend President Qin.
Shi Rui quickly noticed something was amiss. The three cups of coffee they'd given them were left unconsumed. The three of them hadn't even politely invited him to join them when they went downstairs for dinner, even though he'd been so eager to share Mr. Qin's peculiarities with him moments earlier. He thought of the call from Qin Jixiu and glanced behind him through the glass.
Qin Jixiu was also on the phone at this moment. He didn't know what had gone wrong. His face was solemn, and his brows furrowed with every word he spoke. In the end, he even laughed out of anger.
Shi Rui just stared at him until their eyes met through the glass.
Qin Jixiu hung up the phone and pressed the phone next to him. The phone not far away immediately rang, and Shi Rui understood that it was for him to answer.
"Boss Qin."
Qin Jixiu said without any preamble, "Please help me get food from the cafeteria. White rice is the only staple food. I don't eat spicy or sour food, and I don't eat onions, ginger, or garlic. I only eat green vegetables. I don't want vegetables for meat dishes, and I don't want soup for soup dishes. If there's millet porridge, bring one portion. If not, forget it."
Shi Rui saw him raise his hand and look at his watch.
"I'll give you ten minutes, is that enough?" At first glance, the last sentence seemed to be asking for his opinion, but in fact, it didn't give him any chance to refuse.
"Ten minutes is enough." Shi Rui grabbed the meal card and ran out.
It's now three minutes past twelve.
Qin Jixiu roughly sorted through the documents on his desk and signed several of them with a casual air. The green plants by the window, tended by several secretaries, looked vibrant. Qin Jixiu stood up and watered them with a small spray bottle, like a careless pet owner who didn't want to bother with them and only wanted to play with them.
The window was on the south side of the building, letting in plenty of light. He stood in front of a row of green plants and closed his eyes slightly.
"Knock, knock, knock."
Hearing a knock on the door, Qin Jixiu slowly turned around. The clock on the wall next to the door showed twelve twelve.
Shi Rui pushed the door open and walked in. His aqua blue shirt was slightly disheveled, and he looked a bit disheveled. He took a few breaths before calming down. "Boss Qin, I brought the lunch you requested."
"Leave it there."
"Then I'll go downstairs and eat—"
"Wait a minute." Qin Jixiu suddenly changed his mind. He walked leisurely to the coffee table, sat down gracefully, and began to enjoy his lunch. Qin Jixiu ate slowly and steadily, his eating manners were very attractive. The lunch box contained a work lunch, but it was as elegant as if it were from a high-end Western restaurant. The food did not leave greasy stains on his lips, nor did it fall onto the table due to the clumsy use of chopsticks.
Shi Rui stood quietly by until he heard the next instruction. His eyes would often fall on the side faces of the people eating, and he would stare at them in a trance.
Qin Jixiu finished his meal until half past twelve. Then, as if he had just noticed Shi Rui standing next to him as punishment, he said apologetically, "I was a little distracted and forgot there were people around. Are you hungry? The cafeteria probably won't be serving food at this time. There's a store downstairs that sells alkaline bread. I wonder if you're used to it?"
Shi Rui quickly shook his head. To make his words more believable, he showed a well-behaved and friendly smile: "It's okay, Mr. Qin, I can eat anything."
Qin Jixiu forced a faint smile, but it seemed mostly perfunctory: "Accompany me to the sales floor in the afternoon, and leave from the gate on time at 1:30." The superficial concern was followed by work arrangements. Anyone who has worked knows that this is obviously the usual style of capitalists.
Shi Rui quickly calculated in his mind: he had to go downstairs to buy bread, then after lunch, he had to find Qin Jixiu's Mercedes, get familiar with the car, and drive it to the company gate before 1:30. This meant he had no time to rest at noon. However, he hadn't expected the person sitting in Qin Jixiu's position to be so hard-working. He was also required to go out to work immediately after work, just like everyone else. He felt relieved.
Shi Rui felt sympathy in his heart, and the emotion gradually spread to his eyes.
"?" Qin Jixiu felt extremely uncomfortable being stared at by him. What kind of compassionate look was this?
The author has something to say:
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I'll take a day off tomorrow and see you at the same time the day after tomorrow.
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