Chapter 42 The CEO Isn't Working Overtime Today; He's Already Slept on the Bed. ...
Just a quarter past seven, Wen Qi came downstairs. The people in the president's office stared at each other, holding the newly printed documents. Someone couldn't help but ask, "Is today's meeting canceled?"
While skillfully tidying up the documents, Xiao Ao posted an urgent announcement in the company group: "The weather forecast warns of a blizzard tonight. If it gets any later, the roads will be icy, affecting traffic safety. President Wen specifically instructed everyone to go home early."
"President Wen's acting strange today. He didn't arrive at the company until 2 PM, and he's only been here for five hours." Someone finished timing him and then chimed in with gossip, "Ao Zi, has President Wen recently fallen into a honey trap?"
Xiao Ao remained expressionless: "President Wen said it's fine if you don't want to leave work, you can work on the proposal all night tonight."
As soon as the words were spoken, the people who had gathered around to gossip all dispersed.
At that moment, Wen Qi had just arrived at the Lu Corporation's underground parking lot when he saw Zhu Qingzhi carrying a bag and walking out of the elevator. As expected, she hadn't listened to him and waited for him to pick her up.
He naturally took the car keys from her hand: "I didn't drive, so I'll just take your car back."
Zhu Qingzhi looked at her empty hands and blinked twice. This brother hadn't given her any room to refuse!
As we drove out of the underground parking lot, the snow intensified, and the scattered snowflakes turned into heavy snowfall, cascading down. Visibility decreased rapidly, and vehicles on the street slowed down in unison.
Wen Qi was wearing Bluetooth headphones, his gaze focused, occasionally whispering a few words about work, seemingly dealing with urgent matters related to the real estate project in the north of the city.
Zhu Qingzhi sat quietly in the passenger seat, neither disturbing him nor looking at her phone, but simply keeping an eye on the road for him.
Snowflakes drifted down, scattering into the neon lights of the street. She suddenly thought of her first meeting with Wen Qi, also on a snowy day like this. Grand, tranquil, and gentle, with a sense of seclusion from the hustle and bustle of the world.
Actually, she never admitted it, but Wen Qi's hazy silhouette standing under the neon lights of Xisha was enough to make her heart flutter. She wasn't oblivious to his later kindness, especially since Wen Qi had made his intentions clear.
So, what should we do?
Zhu Qingzhi was busy picking petals in her mind, one of which was "Give it a try," and the other was "Forget it."
After an unknown amount of time, Wen Qi stepped on the brakes and asked her, "What are you thinking about?" The petal in Zhu Qingzhi's heart just happened to fall on "Let's give it a try."
"It'll be another half hour before I get home. If you're tired, take a nap first." His voice was very gentle.
"Well, I'll give it a try. It won't kill me." Zhu Qingzhi made up her mind and was about to speak when Wen Qi pressed the earpiece again.
The CEO is always at work. Fine, she decided to shut up.
When they arrived home, Wen Qi was still communicating with someone through his earpiece, so Zhu Qingzhi went back to her room to wash up first. Before she finished washing up, it was not even ten o'clock when Gu Qiao called her via video.
"I heard from Ji Cen that Xiao Tang's backer is Zhao Jianming?! That old man is almost seventy!" Gu Qiao's voice was so excited it almost pierced the receiver. "My God! Is this true?! Say something!"
Gu Qiao is always boisterous, and when she talks about gossip, she becomes completely oblivious to the world around her. Zhu Qingzhi lay down on the bed, her eyes almost too sleepy to keep open, but she still had to chat with this little devil: "How did Ji Cen find out?"
"That kid was in the Xisha Islands today, right in Zhao Zhixun's private room! I heard it with my own ears!"
You heard it with your own ears? Then it seems to be true.
"Go ask Wen Qi right now. Xisha is his property! He must have firsthand information."
Actually, that was the purpose of Gu Qiao's video call. Zhu Qingzhi rolled her eyes: "He's working overtime."
"Overtime! It's one thing for my brother to be single, but he's married and he's still working overtime?!" Gu Qiao complained. "Why don't you move in with us, and we can make do?"
Zhu Qingzhi went along with her joke: "Okay, Miss Gu, please prepare a room for me, and I'll move in right now."
"What are you moving?"
...Gu Qiao's cheerful face on the screen instantly froze, and then the screen went black. Good grief, she hung up.
Zhu Qingzhi blinked, her face reflected on the phone screen, equally stiff. If possible, she would like to move to outer space right now.
Wen Qi, still wearing headphones and holding an iPad in one hand, leaned against the door, watching her with a leisurely air.
The mistake was that she hadn't closed the door. Zhu Qingzhi touched her burning ears, sat up in bed, and deliberately ignored his question.
Wen Qi received no response and did not ask any further questions. He simply walked inside and considerately closed the door behind him.
Zhu Qingzhi bit her lower lip, not asking him why he was coming into her room so late. Anyway, they'd already slept in the same bed, so who would care how many times they'd slept together?
She lowered her head and began a fierce verbal battle with Gu Qiao using the keyboard.
Wen Qi turned off the iPad, took off her wristwatch, and placed it next to her jewelry. Through her earphones, Yang Qing was reporting on Chaoxing's emergency public relations efforts, while the iPad displayed the newly drafted statement.
"Send it." He gave the concise instruction and then took off his headphones.
He had unbuttoned two buttons on his black shirt and rolled up the cuffs to his elbows. The room was filled with a faint scent of shower gel. Wen Qi's gaze fell on the vanity mirror.
Her long, wavy hair, like seaweed, was tucked behind her ears. The warm yellow light enveloped her, making Zhu Qingzhi look like a piece of warm jade. She was scrolling through her phone, looking very focused, seemingly undisturbed by him.
He grabbed his change of clothes and went into the bathroom. As soon as the bathroom door closed, Zhu Qingzhi tossed her phone aside, ran her fingers through her hair, and silently threw a few punches on the bed.
Just then, Wen Qi's phone, which was on the dressing table, beeped several times, followed by a ringing phone. Zhu Qingzhi pursed her lips, got out of bed, and glanced at it. It was Ji Cen calling. Since it wasn't a work call, she wasn't in a hurry to call back.
As she turned around, her phone beeped. It was a WeChat message from Ji Cen: [Sister-in-law, is Brother Wen home?]
The sound of running water came from the bathroom. Zhu Qingzhi casually replied, "He's taking a shower. You can look for him later."
Okay, okay.
She didn't ask Ji Cen why he wanted to see Wen Qi, not because she didn't care, but because a message from Xiao Tang popped up on her phone: 【Shall we talk?】
"Heh, now you want to talk?" Zhu Qingzhi lay back down on the bed and replied to the message: "What do you want to talk about?"
The next second, a WeChat video call popped up. Zhu Qingzhi didn't stand on ceremony; she put on a cashmere shawl, walked to the balcony, and then pressed the answer button.
Xiao Tang was in a dimly lit space, and her face was almost invisible in the video, while Zhu Qingzhi pointed the camera at a pine tree outside the window.
Xiao Tang went straight to the point without beating around the bush: "Huang Shan said she saw Dani in Xisha."
"You'd better keep my affairs a secret."
Zhu Qingzhi pulled the cashmere shawl around her shoulders: "I'll say it again, whoever saw it, go find them."
“I know you have powerful backers. We’re all in the same circle, there’s no need to go to extremes.”
"Is that so?" Zhu Qingzhi's camera swayed slightly, her voice lazy and ordinary, "You do have someone backing you now."
Xiao Tang didn't expect Zhu Qingzhi to be so stubborn. Even though she had offered a way out, she choked for a moment. Just as she was about to speak, her shoulder was pulled back. Long, slender fingers held a lit cigarette between their fingers. The cigarette butt brushed against her cheek, making her shiver, but she endured it and didn't dare to move away.
"Miss Zhu." A deep male voice came.
Zhu Qingzhi looked at the hand in the camera lens. The shirt cufflinks were from LR's latest Obsidian collection, clearly belonging to a young man.
"Hello." She reached out and greeted the rear camera. "I don't know anything about Xiao Tang's affairs, and I don't want to get involved. As long as you can keep her from provoking me, I will definitely not provoke her." This statement made her stance clear.
"Given the competitive nature of the entertainment industry, how can you say she didn't provoke you?"
"Calculate it however you think it should be."
Xiao Tang was taken aback by Zhu Qingzhi's tone. Did she not care at all about the identity of the person beside her? Or was she playing hard to get, trying to attract attention with this kind of personality?
She bit her lip tightly, glancing at the man out of the corner of her eye. There was no smile on his lips; he seemed unmoved. She secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but then heard the man speak: "Please be patient, Miss Zhu. I can't control Xiao Tang's temper."
He can't control her? What does that mean? Has she been abandoned?
Xiao Tang's heart sank suddenly, and she could hardly sit still. She turned half of her body back, but the man pressed her down firmly.
The cigarette was broken, and the ash scattered on her snow-white fur coat. The cigarette butt burned a black line down her clothes. Xiao Tang dared not move, her eyes fixed on the pine tree on the screen.
Snowflakes were falling, obscuring the original color of the pine and cypress trees. The camera then panned to reveal Zhu Qingzhi's face on the screen; she laughed and said, "Then what right do you have to tell me what to do?"
Xiao Tang's entire body was trembling. Zhu Qingzhi's face was considered top-tier in the industry, but most of the time she was sexy and alluring.
Now, her long, wavy hair was draped down by a dark gray cashmere shawl, transforming into a playful collarbone-length style. Her face, free of makeup, had incredibly bright and expressive eyes, and her delicate and beautiful features made Xiao Tang feel ashamed of herself.
"I've read Chaoxing's statement. Miss Zhu, the people behind you are indeed very protective of you." The man's voice was devoid of emotion.
Has Chaoxing's statement been released yet? Zhu Qingzhi hasn't paid attention to this matter yet, but there's no need to panic because of just one sentence from the other party.
"I only have one condition: agree or it's a deal. If you don't agree, then forget it. And let me reiterate: I know nothing about Xiao Tang's affairs, nor am I interested in them."
Zhu Qingzhi is actually a very gossipy person, but she's not that curious about Xiao Tang's affairs. She just needs to know the details vaguely and in a daze.
The man opposite did not speak. Half of Xiao Tang's face was in the frame, and her eyes were faintly glistening with tears.
Suddenly the sliding door behind her opened, and she turned around to look. Wen Qi was standing on the other side and didn't come over.
"Okay, I understand." The other party spoke, giving their answer, and Zhu Qingzhi then ended the video call.
Wen Qi's hair was still dripping wet. The temperature on the balcony wasn't very high, and she was afraid he would catch a cold again, so she quickly went outside and closed the sliding door.
Seeing that Wen Qi's phone was still in the same place, she subconsciously relayed Ji Cen's message: "Ji Cen needs to talk to you."
Her phone screen had switched to social media, where Chaoxing's statement from fifteen minutes earlier was clearly visible. It was indeed very dignified, clear-headed, and watertight, explaining the whole story.
This statement is not just about the magazine incident, but a clarification of all the negative news surrounding her recently. The seemingly insignificant phrase, "We have retained evidence including multiple videos, audio recordings, and images," is rather trivial.
But Zhu Qingzhi knew that this was the reason Xiao Tang had made the call. She knew that Chao Xing had evidence of her being with a sugar daddy, which was why she had the sugar daddy put pressure on her.
However, what that man said earlier was indeed true. Chaoxing really dotes on her. For example, this time, he not only spent a lot of money to buy the last video, but also took care of her personal feelings and did not pursue Xiao Tang's responsibility.
You should know that most talent agencies, once they find a weakness in a competitor, will decisively take drastic measures and destroy that competitor.
Zhu Qingzhi blinked and suddenly looked at Wen Qi. He was looking down, probably replying to Ji Cen's message.
Xiao Tang's news originated from the Xisha Islands, which are Wen Qi's properties. Also, Yang Luo and Yang Qing share the same surname and bear some resemblance; could this be a coincidence?
-----------------------
Author's note: Kiyoshi [shy]: Okay.
Wen Qi [transformed]: ? ? ?
Ah Mei: That'll teach you not to open your mouth! [Milk tea emoji]
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
