Jiang Xiaoyi found it rather strange. Just a few days ago, Ye Zhen had been utterly resistant to working out after work, to the point of even ending up in the hospital over it. She’d actually planned to stop forcing him to work out every day—yet instead, Ye Zhen had gotten fired up about it.
Coming back from outside, looking travel-worn, this man had marched straight into the gym with a dark expression, and after an hour of continuous exercise, even Jiang Xiaoyi had tried to talk him into stopping and resting—yet Ye Zhen wouldn’t budge an inch.
While pedaling on the stepper, this man muttered to himself: “This world is too cruel. If a man doesn’t work hard, he’s only going to end up with a divorced middle-aged woman…”
“There’s a saying that goes, if you bloom, the breeze will come. I need to work hard on my fitness, become the best version of myself. Only if I’m good enough will I meet someone even better.”
What on earth was this even about??
Simply baffling.
But soon, Jiang Xiaoyi realized that Ye Zhen’s frenzied workout the previous night wasn’t even the most baffling part.
The next day, while riding the elevator, she overheard a few security guards chatting and picked up a piece of juicy gossip—
“That Ye Zhen from the Project Incubation Department, you know him? Pretty good-looking guy—apparently he’s gone after a sugar mama!”
“Really?!”
“A hundred percent true. I was on the early shift this morning, saw a rich middle-aged woman tangled up with him at the entrance. Aiyo, with looks like his, I figured he wouldn’t stay a working stiff here forever—bet he’ll marry into money and become a full-time husband soon. So jealous…”
Normally, Jiang Xiaoyi would have perked her ears right up to listen more closely, but today she was completely swamped with a headache of her own, with no mind to spare for Ye Zhen’s business, and hurried straight toward her office.
Ever since holding her first management meeting since being parachuted in, Jiang Xiaoyi had assumed that once she’d assigned every executive to the field they were best suited for, Ruiyi’s affairs would move forward much more smoothly. Yet barely one night had passed before problems came pouring in one after another.
First thing in the morning, Director Miao was already waiting at Jiang Xiaoyi’s villa gate, industry analysis in hand. The moment she stepped out the door, he handed her a partnership agreement—
“Boss Jiang, this is extremely urgent—you absolutely must sign this cooperation agreement today.”
Jiang Xiaoyi took the contract and looked it over—it concerned Ruiyi’s future industrial cooperation layout. She flipped through it: it was for the joint construction of an overseas cultural and entertainment industrial park, with total joint investment of 1.6 billion yuan. Once Ruiyi signed this contract, it would need to put in 800 million yuan in real cash.
“This contract involves a very large sum. I need to think it over.”
Unfortunately, Director Miao was rather forceful: “Boss Jiang, this concerns the future layout of our entire cultural and entertainment industry. The partner only notified me this morning, temporarily, and is demanding an immediate answer—otherwise they’ll go find our competitor to partner with instead.”
Even so, Jiang Xiaoyi still felt something was off: “But our domestic cultural and entertainment industrial park hasn’t even finished incubating yet—why are we already pushing overseas? And why Vietnam, of all places?”
“Going overseas is about staying ahead of the curve. The country is currently encouraging companies to expand abroad, spreading our advanced incubation experience abroad, achieving cultural export in the process—there’s quite a bit of policy support right now. As for why Vietnam, it’s because domestic labor costs in China are also rising, and Vietnam is still a relatively untapped area, plus, being part of the same Asian cultural sphere, the cultural resonance effect will also be stronger…”
…
Director Miao rambled on at length: “Boss Jiang, if you have any other considerations or questions, feel free to ask me anytime—I can answer immediately!”
Given Jiang Xiaoyi’s working experience at Ruiyi, while she did have some understanding of industrial layout, she was nowhere near the level of an expert like Director Miao. By the time he finished, all she could think was—no wonder he was Director Miao, he really did know so much.
“As you know, I’ve had over twenty years of experience analyzing industry trends. The successful project layouts I’ve overseen have already added up to nearly five billion yuan in cumulative funds…”
…
Because the final deadline for signing the contract was five o’clock that afternoon, though everything Director Miao said sounded perfectly reasonable, flawless even, Jiang Xiaoyi ultimately decided, under the pressure, to withstand it and think it over more carefully—she’d never handled that kind of money before, and having her sign off on a project worth several hundred million just like that made her hands shake a little; she needed to prepare herself mentally.
But no sooner had Director Miao left than a call from Director Li came in.
If Director Miao had at least come with a smile and a reasonably good attitude, Director Li was somewhat more forceful—he wasn’t there to negotiate, it seemed, but simply to inform Jiang Xiaoyi—
“Boss Jiang, we have a cultural creative project here with excellent prospects, valued at two billion yuan. Right now, relying on my personal relationship with the other company’s founder, we can secure an internal pre-IPO stock purchase. Once it goes public, the projected return on investment is around 220%. I’ve already initiated the contract process—please approve it on the internal OA system, Boss Jiang.”
“……”
Before Jiang Xiaoyi could even catch her breath, and had just settled into her office to properly study these two proposals, new problems arrived.
Mid-level managers from various departments came one after another, crying and complaining—
“Boss Jiang, Director Liu overstepped her authority. This is a project that should belong to our incubation department, but just because she’s a woman, she insisted on handling the merger and acquisition directly herself!”
“Boss Jiang, you need to give us justice. Director Zhang, relying on the fact that he understands planning, completely ignored the analysis our strategy department did. Clearly, based on the planning analysis, this decision doesn’t make sense, but Director Zhang insists on…”
…
Jiang Xiaoyi had no choice but to call these executives one by one to understand the situation, yet she found that despite the pleasant handshakes and courtesy at that meeting, once it came down to actual conflicts of interest in the real work, all these executives turned cunning and forceful.
Some pulled rank on seniority: “No, Little Jiang, you called me Uncle Zhang, and naturally I have to fulfill my duty as an uncle. You’re too young, you have no experience—listen to your uncle, you won’t go wrong. Your uncle’s an expert in this field.”
Some deflected smoothly: “Boss Jiang, this really isn’t me overstepping—it’s that the incubation department lacks foresight. Unless you can convince me otherwise on this front, I’ll stick to my position, for the sake of the company!”
Some issued veiled threats directly: “Little Boss Jiang, you’re still too young—running a company is complicated. Better not mess things up and turn the company into a muddled mess out of ignorance, or by then we won’t be so polite about it…”
…
Every one of these executives was an old hand at office politics, and each had been placed exactly where their strengths lay, so whether it came to business matters or interpersonal skills, Jiang Xiaoyi was simply no match for them. After going back and forth on call after call, her mouth practically worn out from talking, not a single problem had actually been resolved.
That crow’s-mouth Ye Zhen had really called it.
Her humility and deference truly hadn’t earned her equal treatment in return—quite the opposite. These executives seemed to have concluded from it that Jiang Xiaoyi was a soft persimmon, and now that actual interests were on the line, they were squeezing her for all she was worth.
But there was nothing Jiang Xiaoyi could do about it—this pack of old foxes seemed to have coordinated among themselves and were all pressuring her at once. Beyond the power struggles between departments that couldn’t be balanced, Director Miao and Director Li kept pushing her to hurry up and finalize both contracts…
Jiang Xiaoyi tugged at her hair, utterly swamped.
The image of a boss’s life she’d once had—playing golf, sipping coffee, reading the newspaper—had never arrived. All there was, was the helpless frustration and anxiety of being pressured from all sides.
Had that crow’s-mouth Ye Zhen really predicted all this?
Did he really have a way to handle it? Would she really have to go beg him?
No, no, absolutely not—Jiang Xiaoyi felt she could still hold out a while longer!
**
While Jiang Xiaoyi was in the middle of her headache, on the other side, Ye Zhen wasn’t faring much better either—
He never expected Li Yongli would actually come chasing him all the way to Ruiyi.
As if worried she wouldn’t draw enough attention, this woman had dressed up in bold red lipstick, and had even brought red roses with clearly suggestive intent—she’d even hung up banners at Ruiyi’s entrance for a dramatic public confession—
“Ye Zhen! From now on, you’re a man with a girlfriend!”
“Take my hand, and you’ll never be alone again—I’ll give you a shoulder to lean on!”
…
Just reading these lines on the banner made Ye Zhen’s whole face feel like it was about to catch fire.
Not from shyness—from fury.
When it came time to pay, Li Yongli had shown none of the domineering CEO flair, but when it came to staging this confession, she’d fully thrown herself into the role of a domineering female lead. These red-and-white banners, hung right along the path everyone at Ruiyi took to and from work, immediately drew a crowd of onlookers.
Seeing Ye Zhen come downstairs, this woman immediately rushed forward: “Zhenzhen, I’ve finally been waiting for you.”
Ignoring Ye Zhen’s face, which had gone dark as the bottom of a pot, Li Yongli’s expression was full of self-congratulation: “I went home last night and thought it over carefully, and decided I still needed to give you my answer.”
“For an ordinary man, I would never make this kind of concession, but for you, Zhenzhen, I’ve decided to make an exception this once!” Li Yongli declared, deeply moved by her own words. “I’ve decided to respect your decision! You want to be an independent man—I agree! After we’re married, you can keep working at Ruiyi! You don’t need to be a full-time husband taking care of the kids and housework at home! If you can’t manage tutoring my daughter’s schoolwork, that’s fine too! I can just pay a bit more and hire a tutor!”
Having said this, she thrust the red roses in her hand forcefully into Ye Zhen’s, saying with deep feeling: “Zhen, there will be no strings attached in our future—I really do mean this with a sincere heart. After love at first sight last night, I didn’t sleep a wink, and now I’ve thought it through. I know this is probably hard for you to believe, but I really am the kind of woman with such a big heart.”
“I think this must be exactly why you like mature women—because what you truly want, only a mature older woman like me can give you! Is willing to give you!”
“……”
Throughout his life, Ye Zhen had long grown used to being the center of attention wherever he went—he’d never once felt nervous about it, in fact he’d even felt a quiet sense of pride, because he was exactly the kind of man who drew eyes wherever he went.
Yet this time alone, the gazes of everyone around him nearly made Ye Zhen wish he could dig a hole in the ground and disappear on the spot.
“I don’t want the flowers! I don’t want a girlfriend either! Get out of here right now!”
He shoved the flowers back at Li Yongli and firmly, harshly voiced his refusal, but Li Yongli only looked back at him with confident understanding: “Zhen, are you worried I’m being too extravagant? A man as thrifty as you—no wonder I, Li Yongli, fell for you!”
…
Ye Zhen had never once felt helpless facing all sorts of business disputes and difficulties in the past, but this time, he genuinely felt something close to utter despair.
This Li Yongli lived entirely in her own world—no matter how Ye Zhen refused her, no matter how cold a face he showed her, she interpreted it all as coy reluctance, a bit of playful flirtation.
Now, with this all-encompassing, indulgent smile on her face, Ye Zhen genuinely wanted to just end it all on the spot.
Even as he kept refusing and trying to clarify, Li Yongli had already gone ahead and declared him her boyfriend outright—
“Anyway, it’s settled then—starting today, you’re no longer a lonely, pitiful man. You have me, a woman, to lean on now.”
Having said that, she shot Ye Zhen a flirtatious wink, then looked at his curious coworkers standing nearby, striking quite the pose of a lady of the house: “You must be our Ye Zhen’s coworkers, right? Our little Zhen here is still young—if there’s ever anything at work, please look out for him. Once we’re married, we’ll definitely invite you all to the wedding feast!”
“I have nothing to do with you!”
“I’ve already called the police!”
With Li Yongli refusing to let up, Ye Zhen, at the end of his patience, finally called the police—only for a couple of female officers to arrive and, instead of taking Li Yongli away, look at Ye Zhen with something bordering on reproach.
“Hey, young man, these banners are indeed affecting the neighborhood’s appearance, we’ll have her take them down, but her confessing to you isn’t against the law. We already talked to her—she says you were the one who showed interest and gave her signals first. Honestly, we can’t really sort out the specifics either, but this kind of romantic dispute of yours, don’t go calling the police over it in the future, all right? It’s a domestic matter, don’t waste police resources.”
Ye Zhen was practically boiling with rage—how was this a domestic matter?! This damned world offered absolutely no protection for men at all!
Meanwhile, Li Yongli, having collected her banners, blew Ye Zhen a kiss: “Zhenzhen, I’ll come pick you up after work tonight.” With that, she finally strutted off, thoroughly pleased with herself.
…
Ye Zhen had been infuriated to the point of numbness all morning, yet more infuriating things still awaited him.
Back at his desk, he’d no sooner sat down than Wang Yani sent him a link to a post on the company’s internal forum—
“A guy from the Project Incubation Department got a dramatic public confession from a woman, anyone else see this?”
Beneath the post, an anonymous coworker had posted a number of photos from the scene. Ye Zhen had assumed everyone would take his side, but the comments below left him utterly astonished—
“He is pretty good-looking. No wonder some woman went to such lengths to confess to him.”
“Sounds like he called the police, saying he was being harassed? Is that even true?”
“Definitely fake. Flies don’t gather around a good egg. He’s probably not innocent at all—likely some kind of gold-digger playing both sides, stringing her along while spending her money, all while looking for his next target.”
“And that woman looked a lot older than him too. Going after someone that age, he’s probably just looking for an easy ride.”
“Tsk tsk, didn’t expect our Ruiyi to have this kind of person. Really embarrassing for us independent men…”
…
Ye Zhen truly never imagined that, as the victim in all this, not only would he receive no sympathy, he’d instead be presumed guilty. He tried to clear his name anonymously, but his comments quickly got buried under everyone else’s mockery and gossip.
Not long after, Li You’ai, back from his spa treatment downstairs, called Ye Zhen into his office and, through a mix of hints and open suggestions, tried to do his “ideological work” on him—the gist being simple: if Ye Zhen went along with Li Yongli, that would make them family, and Li You’ai would treat him with great care from then on, and he’d have someone looking out for him at work.
But if Ye Zhen refused, then…
“You know how I am—I’ve always been strict with my subordinates. If we don’t have a deeper connection, then naturally I’ll hold you to an even higher standard, you get what I mean, right?”
Li You’ai’s expression was the picture of loving concern: “So, whether you want to be Tom or Little Ye, you’d better think it over carefully yourself. This is a lifelong matter! Young man, whatever you do, don’t take the wrong path!”
…
Ye Zhen walked out of Li You’ai’s office with an expressionless face, checked the time—still four hours until the end of the workday. Given how Li Yongli operated, she’d probably make good on her word and come besiege him at Ruiyi’s entrance again.
This couldn’t go on like this forever.
Ye Zhen was so furious he could die. That crow’s-mouth Jiang Xiaoyi—her bad predictions never failed to come true. Should he really go beg her to solve this for him?
No, absolutely not—a man cannot beg a woman!
Ye Zhen felt he could still hold out a while longer!