The elevator was crowded. If Su Banxia called out now, not only would Pei Shaoze not be affected, but she would instead be labeled as someone trying to seduce the CEO. If she didn’t call out, she was genuinely afraid this man might...
"Ding..."
The elevator doors opened.
Su Banxia breathed a sigh of relief as the people inside filed out one by one.
Pei Shaoze reverted to his usual cold demeanor, hands in his pockets. "Coming to the company today—does that mean you've already accepted being with me from now on?"
Su Banxia lifted her gaze, neither humble nor arrogant. "President Pei, I came to Dingsheng for work, with no ulterior motives. I believe that someone who can run Dingsheng so successfully must be an upright and fair leader. Such a leader naturally wouldn't let personal reasons affect how he treats me, right?"
She spoke with such conviction.
Pei Shaoze looked at her, curling his lips into a cold smile. "You certainly have a sharp tongue."
"I wouldn't dare!"
She lowered her head, appearing completely submissive.
Pei Shaoze watched her, his eyes narrowing slightly, as if lost in thought.
After a long moment, he finally spoke. "In a few days, there's an industry exchange event. Prepare well. If you want to stay at Dingsheng, you'd better bring something to the table. Otherwise, Dingsheng doesn't keep vases."
Su Banxia: "..."
A vase? Was he kidding? Didn't Dingsheng already have plenty of vases?
Staring at his retreating back, Su Banxia was fuming with anger.
The company had been busy lately, and after a full day of work, Su Banxia felt like her bones were falling apart. It was also June, the rainy season. Just as she clocked out and walked to the company entrance, a downpour started.
She hadn't brought an umbrella, and there wasn't one at the office, so she had no choice but to wait under the awning for the rain to stop.
The rain poured relentlessly on the street. A red BMW pulled up outside the Dingsheng building, catching the attention of many employees still in the lobby.
Su Banxia wasn't blind, so she saw it too. But Yanshi was a commercial hub, full of wealthy people. A red BMW sports car wasn't that eye-catching.
What was eye-catching was the woman who stepped out of the car.
With just one look, Su Banxia recognized her.
Gu Feifei.
As expected, you can't escape fate's encounters.
Gu Feifei wore a provocative red bodycon dress, her makeup heavy and alluring. She'd probably touched up her lipstick before getting out—a blood-red shade on her wide mouth. That color was honestly... a bit frightening.
Though she had no idea why this woman was at Dingsheng, Su Banxia chose to avoid a confrontation. Not out of fear, but because it simply wasn't necessary.
Just as she turned to leave, a shout rang out behind her. "Su Banxia!"
A million curses raced through her mind.
This woman really was... a persistent ghost!
Not wanting to seem petty, Su Banxia looked up at her and offered a polite, slightly awkward smile. "Miss Gu, what a coincidence!"
Gu Feifei had already strutted over in her ten-centimeter heels. "So you really do work at Dingsheng?"
In Gu Feifei's worldview, a beautiful and flashy woman like Su Banxia belonged in a nightclub as a hostess. After all, she was pretty, came from a poor family, and had managed to latch onto Pei Shaoze. In Gu Feifei's subjective mind, Su Banxia was only fit to be a bar girl.
To her question, Su Banxia just smiled faintly and nodded.
Her work badge was still clipped to her chest. Unless Gu Feifei was blind, she couldn't miss it, so Su Banxia didn't want to waste words.
Gu Feifei spotted the badge—"Executive Secretary"—and the words stung her eyes.
She snorted. "Sleep with someone for one night, and you land an executive secretary position. Su Banxia, you've really put in the work in bed over the years, haven't you?"
She was spouting nonsense.
Su Banxia normally wouldn't care, but the problem was that when Gu Feifei said this, plenty of Dingsheng employees were at the entrance—mostly flashy women.
Such baseless accusations spread like wildfire.
Seeing people around her pointing fingers, Su Banxia's face darkened. She glared coldly at Gu Feifei. "Miss Gu, you can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want. You like to talk nonsense, but that doesn't give you the right to slander me. That's defamation, and in this country, defamation can land you in jail!"
"Su Banxia, don't try to scare me. If you were innocent, why would you be so worried? It's obvious you're guilty."
Gu Feifei wasn't afraid of Su Banxia suing her; she was afraid of her gossiping to Pei Shaoze.
She knew she shouldn't provoke Su Banxia, but Gu Feifei couldn't help herself—she just wanted to get a verbal jab in.
Gu Feifei's words didn't hurt Su Banxia, but if they reached Pei Shaoze's ears, who knew what trouble might arise.
The rain outside was letting up. Su Banxia shot Gu Feifei a warning look and started walking out of the company.
But she hadn't taken a few steps before Gu Feifei blocked her.
"Su Banxia, what are you running from? Feeling guilty now?"
Looking up at the woman in front of her, Su Banxia narrowed her dark eyes, lowered her voice, and leaned close to her ear. "Miss Gu, next time you speak, go home and rinse your mouth first. You don't realize it, but your breath was so bad just now, I could barely stand to talk to you."
"You—"
Gu Feifei's eyes reddened with rage. "Su Banxia, you're lying!"
"Am I lying? You know the truth yourself!"
Su Banxia really didn't have the energy to argue with her and tried to walk past her.
But Gu Feifei, still fuming, wasn't about to let her go.
She chased after Su Banxia in her heels, reaching out to grab her.
Su Banxia hated being touched, so the moment Gu Feifei tugged at her clothes, she yanked her arm away hard.
Caught off guard, Gu Feifei's heel twisted, and she tumbled sideways.
The ground was slick from the rain, and she never expected to fall.
She hit the pavement hard, her cheek scraping against the wall. It looked like a nasty fall—blood was even trickling from her mouth.
Su Banxia hadn't meant for that to happen.
Seeing Gu Feifei on the ground, she instinctively moved to help her up. But before she could even reach out, a strong force yanked her back.
She lost her balance and stumbled.
Suddenly, a powerful grip seized her, pulling her up and into an embrace.
It all happened in seconds—from being pushed to being pulled up.
Without even looking at who was holding her, Su Banxia focused on Ren Yuan, who was lifting Gu Feifei up.
Gu Feifei was badly hurt. Half her face was swollen, blood mixed with her bright red lipstick, creating a gruesome sight.
The moment she saw Ren Yuan, Gu Feifei burst into loud sobs.
Her cries echoed down the street.