Moreover, the Shen Group was now under Shen Yu's management. The mere thought of the second branch's faces gave An Ruo an instant headache; she didn't want to court trouble.
Seeing her reluctance, Chen Keqiao added, "How about you try the Lanzhen Group?"
An Ruo had originally planned on Lanzhen anyway. She'd heard that this business empire, which had only recently emerged, was growing at a visible pace day by day. Compared to the Shen Group, Lanzhen offered more room for development.
"I heard the CEO of Lanzhen Group is very young, and people online are especially curious about their mysterious chairman behind the scenes."
An Ruo smiled at her, expecting her to share some history about Lanzhen's growth, but she hadn't anticipated... she'd let her guard down.
"Some say the chairman is also young, a elusive handsome guy who appears and disappears like a dragon. So, are you more interested now?"
An Ruo tossed the vegetables into the pan. "I'm still more interested in the salary."
Chen Keqiao sighed in frustration. "With a face as gorgeous as yours, sis, you might catch Mr. Gu's eye at Lanzhen. Then who needs a salary? You'd jump straight to being Mrs. Gu—how awesome would that be!"
"..." An Ruo replied, "It's not even dark yet, and you're already dreaming."
Chen Keqiao: "..."
She bit into a meatball and shook her head. "You're a block of wood that can't be carved."
-
Following the date set by the school, An Ruo submitted her resume to Lanzhen Group online.
She'd thought she might be rejected, but she never expected fate to suddenly favor her—she was notified to come for an interview the very next day.
An Ruo woke up early. When she opened her eyes, the man was still asleep.
These past two days, every time she woke up, she found herself nestled in his arms. It seemed since the night of her period cramps, he'd been holding her while they slept.
An Ruo tiptoed to the bathroom to freshen up, put on appropriate clothes, and applied light makeup. She examined herself carefully in the mirror, found nothing amiss, then grabbed her bag and headed out.
Since she was up early, Butler Xu had just risen when she left.
"Madam, whatever it is, you should at least have breakfast first. It's cold today—shall I have the driver take you?"
"No need to trouble yourself, Butler Xu. I'll grab something to eat on the way." She slipped on her shoes, gave him a sweet smile, and waved. "I'm off."
These days, she and Shen Xiaoxing hadn't argued or fought; she'd been obedient and polite, and Butler Xu found himself liking her more and more.
After an hour and a half, An Ruo finally stood before a towering skyscraper. She looked up at the sunlit, gold-embossed LOGO and the bold letters reading "Lanzhen Group," which reflected a blinding glare.
She encouraged herself: "Go for it, An Ruo!"
A fashionably dressed woman walked by, casting a disdainful glance at An Ruo as she passed, a cold sneer escaping her lips. "Tasteless bumpkin."
Then, under An Ruo's stunned gaze, she strutted into the lobby on sky-high heels.
An Ruo checked her own outfit. Was she really that tacky?
She inquired about the interview at the front desk, only to run into that same "bumpkin"-calling woman in the elevator.
The woman gave her an arrogant look and waved her hand. "It's full. Wait for the next one."
An Ruo ignored her, stepped straight into the elevator, and stood beside her with her back straight and unyielding, immediately drawing a look of disgust from the woman.
She'd endured far worse malice than this. One more or one less made no difference to her; these things were trivial, so why make herself miserable over someone else's opinion?
-
The elevator went straight to the sixth floor. The interview hall was packed—some were crying from nerves, others craning their necks to ask who was next, and a few were silently praying like devotees hoping to pass.
An Ruo squeezed through the crowd and finally found an empty seat. Before she could sit, someone snatched it away, looking smugly at her.
It was that flashy, fashionable woman again.
"Sorry, I found this seat first. Please move."
The woman crossed her legs, her eyes full of arrogance. "Does it have your name on it?"
Well, no...
An Ruo could see she was deliberately antagonizing her and didn't want to make a scene in front of so many people. She simply walked off to rehearse her interview lines.
Everyone who went in for an interview mostly came out crying.
From the chatter of two girls nearby, she learned that the executive president of Lanzhen Group was a very strict person, so working under him required real skill—no bluffing your way through.
As the crowd in the hall thinned, An Ruo began to feel nervous.
A staff member called out from a report sheet: "An Ruo."
The girl, lost in worry, jolted at the sound, hastily gathered her resume, and followed her into the interview room.
At the door, An Ruo took a deep breath, gave herself a mental pep talk, and only pushed it open when she felt her nerves settle.
There were three interviewers. An Ruo greeted them gracefully and confidently, tackling each tough question they threw at her with ease. Gradually, her confidence returned.
"Congratulations, you're hired." A female interviewer smiled and handed her a contract. "Take a look—if anything doesn't meet your requirements, feel free to bring it up. If it's fine, just sign."
An Ruo hadn't expected to pass so easily. She secretly rejoiced while staying alert, carefully reading every clause in the contract. After confirming everything was in order, she signed and stamped it.
"Can you start tomorrow?"
"No problem."
The interviewer stood up and shook her hand. "Welcome to Lanzhen."
"Thank you, thank you..." An Ruo smiled and thanked each of them in turn.