Chapter 7
After the cocktail party, there was a dinner party. As a spokesperson for other brands and a special guest, John also had a seat at the table.
Young, handsome, and charming with a sweet tongue, he was irresistible to both men and women, making everyone at the table smile.
As a guest representative, John had to toast everyone. When he came to Zhuang Yazhi, his bright smile was as radiant as ever. He kept a very humble attitude, and since everyone on the scene was older than him, he would politely and respectfully call everyone "sister".
She was the same when she came to Zhuang Yazhi, her eyes bright and sparkling, with a cute curve at the corners: "Sister, I'd like to toast you with this glass of wine."
Zhuang Yazhi slightly raised her wine glass, her posture haughty, her voice low and tinged with sarcasm: "Do you call everyone 'sister'?"
John's smile froze for a moment. He naturally understood what Zhuang Yazhi meant, but instead of being angry, his smile was tinged with shyness: "No, it's not that. If I meet someone particularly beautiful, I'll call her 'sister'."
Zhuang Yazhi grunted and finished her drink, then glared at John, seemingly confused.
Almost simultaneously, news from the party also reached Shen Yiheng.
"He calls her 'sister' and even acts cute."
"The two even drank from the same cup."
Shen Yiheng gripped the document tightly in the dark, causing the edges of the paper to crease noticeably.
Zhou Ying observed and sensed that the dark atmosphere in front of her was a bit off, so she quickly made an excuse about having work to do and ran away.
I already said I wouldn't say it, but you still get angry after I do, and you just keep bringing it up.
The bidding for the sinking project was brought forward, catching everyone off guard.
Fortunately, the Zhuang family had made thorough preparations beforehand, so they didn't panic like other companies when they heard the meeting was brought forward.
"Everyone, don't be nervous!"
Zhuang Haiming's hand trembled slightly; he was extremely nervous, as if he were about to receive the winning bid notification.
Even though he was determined to win, Zhuang Haiming had to keep a close eye on Zhuang Yazhi at all times to ensure that nothing went wrong, for fear that she might run off to some hidden corner if he wasn't watching her closely.
"The venue is crowded and chaotic, Ya Ya, you must stay close to your dad and not get lost like last time."
Zhuang Yazhi pretended to be obedient and replied, "Okay."
She couldn't walk an inch, and Zhuang Haiming kept a close watch on her, almost as if he wanted to tie her up with a rope.
As they approached the conference building, Zhuang Yazhi felt a slight headache. The more she didn't want to see him, the more persistent he became. Just then, she ran into the Zhuang family and Shen Yiheng, who had just gotten out of the car, at the entrance.
Zhuang Haiming's smile was practically reaching his temples. He kept calling Zhuang Yazhi "President Shen" with great enthusiasm, and then, not wanting to miss out on the fun, he kept pushing Zhuang Yazhi toward Shen Yiheng.
The two met eyes, each more composed than the last—or rather, indifferent.
Shen Yiheng was already angry, but seeing Zhuang Yazhi dodging and avoiding him to keep his distance made him even angrier. His anger was so intense that it made his heart pound.
Seeing this, Zhou Ying quickly opened the door, fearing that he might get so angry that he wouldn't see anything else and would recklessly crash into the wall, which would be terrifying.
The meeting will begin in thirty minutes.
Not far away, groups of three or five people were whispering and gossiping, all discussing the news about her and Shen Yiheng from a few days ago.
Some people come in with resentment, openly or secretly implying that there was something fishy going on, and sarcastically saying that they are just there to make up the numbers.
They might talk about it privately, but when they met eyes, they would still bow and greet each other, and Zhuang Yazhi would simply nod in response.
Zhuang Haiming was visibly nervous and excited. He had poured almost all his energy into the Shenhai project. Once he pulled off this job, he would be able to do whatever he wanted in Haicheng.
Looking at the project that was about to be in his hands, and then turning to look at his daughter Zhuang Yazhi who was waiting obediently beside him, Zhuang Haiming's ambition and desire were burning hot, making his blood boil. He couldn't help but lose himself in his fantasies, gradually becoming arrogant and standing out from the crowd, waiting for the sacred moment to arrive.
"It's unfair, there's something fishy going on."
Amidst the dazzling lights, the first voice of opposition arose from a corner.
The second and third tones followed immediately, each sentence a condemnation.
"The eldest daughter of the Zhuang family and President Shen have been secretly hooking up for a long time. He has already handed over the project in bed. Today's meeting is just a formality. We are the real fools, still playing along with them."
"We really have no other choice, and we really don't have time to play games with you. Please just do your business honestly."
Slanderous words came from all directions. When they first entered, the father and daughter stood in the center of the crowd, receiving insincere flattery from everyone. Now, everyone was gathered together, surrounding them and questioning them.
They had been dissatisfied for a long time, and this was a good opportunity to vent their frustrations.
Behind the lounge, Shen Yiheng watched the scene unfolding in the conference room through a large screen.
Shen Yiheng also wanted to.
He was expecting a response from Zhuang Yazhi, but her reaction was a little too calm.
Zhuang Yazhi was tired of hearing the same few sentences over and over again.
"Anything else? Tell me something new."
Everyone else was stunned, suddenly at a loss for words; even improvising wouldn't be this quick.
Time ticked by, and when the situation reached a stalemate, Zhou Ying appeared, with dozens of bodyguards clearing the way to suppress the unrest.
The moment Shen Yiheng appeared, everyone in the meeting room fell silent, lowered their heads, and bowed in submission. His imposing presence, though not angry, silently drew closer and intimidated everyone.
"The meeting has five minutes left. If you don't want to attend, you can leave."
Those who were just making a fuss were now still shaken, realizing that Shen Yiheng must be angry. To avoid being expelled from the meeting, they didn't dare to breathe loudly, exchanging glances and silently shirking responsibility.
But Shen Yiheng wasn't so easily appeased. With a glance, his bodyguards picked up the people and threw them out. They didn't even have time to cry out their innocence before they disappeared with a scream.
Nearly half of the people at the scene were thrown out.
The remaining people were trembling with fear, shrinking back and huddling together in a ball, afraid of being implicated.
Zhuang Yazhi stood in the center of the crowd from beginning to end, her demeanor unchanged. Especially when facing Shen Yiheng who was coming straight at her, her arrogant posture with her chin raised was even more overbearing.
At that time, his bodyguards also came over, a large, imposing group.
Judging from the current situation, after dealing with that group of people, it's her turn now.
Zhuang Yazhi was already reluctant to come, which gave her a chance to leave. But just as she was about to turn around, a strong arm blocked her way.
Shen Yiheng was being provocative; his desire for control only intensified whenever he was on his territory.
"The meeting is about to begin. Ms. Zhuang, please take a seat."
The conference room doors were closed almost simultaneously, and there was no way to leave before the meeting ended.
Zhuang Yazhi had no interest in playing with him, but given the current situation, she could only sit down. In her mind, Shen Yiheng was very cunning and she could never guess what trick he would play next.
During the long 45-minute meeting, Zhuang Yazhi felt extremely uncomfortable.
Shen Yiheng stared at her relentlessly, like an automatic aiming device, but Zhuang Yazhi was no different; once their eyes met, she would glare back.
Finally, the meeting ended, and just as he was about to leave, Shen Yiheng suddenly suggested that they could have another project discussion meeting.
"Manager Zhuang wasn't at the last meeting, so this is a good opportunity for us to discuss things together. I wonder if Manager Zhuang has any thoughts on this project?"
Everyone present looked on with amusement, except for Zhuang Haiming, who was extremely flustered, fearing that Zhuang Yazhi might say the wrong word and anger her, causing the project to fall through.
Zhuang Haiming spoke hesitantly: "President Shen, no one knows a daughter better than her father. May I answer for Ya Zhi?"
Shen Yiheng was displeased. He glanced at Zhuang Haiming coldly, not even looking at him directly, and emphasized in a low, muffled voice: "I'm asking about Manager Zhuang."
His gaze never left Zhuang Yazhi, and he used the pretext of the meeting to press her for answers.
The scene was eerily quiet, the air pressure was incredibly low, and everyone's hearts were in their throats as they awaited Zhuang Yazhi's reply.
He's always so assertive and direct; he won't give up until he gets what he wants or wants to know.
"No," Zhuang Yazhi replied firmly, her words cold and devoid of any emotion.
She wasn't interested and didn't want to participate.
"That's true. Manager Zhuang is busy with official duties every day. He would rather spend more time having dinner with a couple of clients than looking at project documents."
Zhuang Haiming's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, suddenly shattered. He felt like he was going to die. He was thinking of saying something to make amends, but the next second he saw Shen Yiheng flick his sleeves and walk away, leaving everyone with a fierce back view.
He was angry, very angry.
Zhuang Yazhi didn't care at all and happily went home from get off work.
Zhuang Haiming was still worried, so he quietly approached Zhou Ying and asked, "Secretary Zhou, my daughter isn't very good at speaking. I hope you can explain to President Shen so that he won't take it to heart."
Zhou Ying scratched his head, took a deep breath, and sighed silently, "This job is not easy."
"It's alright, it's alright, Mr. Zhuang, don't be nervous."
Although his boss is angry now, he'll be even angrier tomorrow, and he won't be able to appease him.
The meeting had barely ended when rumors began circulating about what had happened before it started, making outsiders even more curious about the relationship between Zhuang Yazhi and Shen Yiheng.
"What? She really has an affair with Shen Yiheng?" This trending news was undoubtedly a blow to Cai Siyue.
She initially took those photos only to damage Zhuang Yazhi's reputation, but now the situation has clearly spiraled out of her control.
“I’m not soap.” Cai Xincheng was clearly surprised as well, and a bad feeling popped into his mind. He didn’t want to offend Shen Yiheng.
But now the overwhelming news can no longer be suppressed. Anyone who is interested in investigating will definitely find that the photos on the rooftop were leaked by the father and daughter.
Cai Xincheng became increasingly panicked; he certainly didn't want to be thrown out of Haicheng by Shen Yiheng's bodyguards.
"What should I do, Dad? Will I still be able to get the public relations manager position?"
Cai Xincheng was both angry and helpless: "What time is it and you're still thinking about the PR manager position?"
But seeing his daughter's pitiful and helpless appearance, he couldn't bear to say anything harsh. Right now, he could only think of a solution as soon as possible.
"The current situation is out of control, so..."
Cai Xincheng, having gone this far, decided to escalate the situation.
Use trending topics to suppress trending topics, thus suppressing the previous trending topic.
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