Volume One, Chapter 11: It Was Not Intentional

The man's voice was one Shen Qingqing had never heard before.

Out of caution toward a stranger, Shen Qingqing did not answer directly. "Mei Mei, the signal here is bad. Let's talk when I get back."

Before she could hang up, Mo Lingcheng suddenly pressed the accelerator.

Shen Qingqing cried out in surprise, losing her balance and hitting her head against the driver's seat.

Mo Lingcheng cast a disdainful glance at her through the rearview mirror.

Shen Qingqing was lying again, hiding the truth.

What was there to be ashamed of about being saved by him?

“Miss Shen, is the signal really bad here?” Mo Lingcheng asked deliberately.

“Maybe it’s my phone,” Shen Qingqing replied, lowering her head and rubbing her forehead, embarrassed.

It was just an excuse she had made offhandedly, but he insisted on following up.

Was he meticulous or simply trying to make things difficult?

“Miss Shen, it seems not only your phone is having issues, but your legs aren’t very nimble either,” Mo Lingcheng pressed, deliberately bringing up the injury on her foot.

Shen Qingqing realized this was intentional harassment.

Reflecting on the past two days, she had indeed caused quite a few troubles in front of this special assistant.

He clearly didn’t have a good impression of her, and she understood that.

She glanced down at her ankle.

After being pushed down by Xu Mingxuan yesterday and walking quite a bit today, her ankle was indeed badly swollen.

Since that was the case, she answered honestly to both address his question and ease the awkwardness:

“Yes, I injured it some time ago and it hasn’t fully healed yet.”

Mo Lingcheng’s expression darkened even further upon hearing her answer.

Quickly, Shen Qingqing tried to ingratiate herself: “Luckily, Special Assistant Zhou appeared just in time today, or I really wouldn’t have known what to do. If Special Assistant Zhou ever needs my help, just say the word.”

Mo Lingcheng snorted coldly and ignored her.

He had no interest in pleasantries.

Shen Qingqing pouted slightly and sat obediently.

Though the start hadn’t been great, she still hoped to leave a good impression on this special assistant.

After all, she was still intent on clinging to the president’s favor.

The SUV sped down the provincial road as if venting its driver’s anger.

Covering fifty kilometers in less than half an hour, they arrived at the hotel entrance.

Shen Qingqing saw through the car window that Xiao Meimei and a tall, slender man were already waiting there.

---

Mo Lingcheng quickly got out and walked straight toward the hotel entrance, seemingly forgetting there was someone still in the car.

Zhou Cong, standing at the door, glanced at the backseat, then at Xiao Meimei, and followed Mo Lingcheng into the hotel.

Xiao Meimei, catching Zhou Cong’s signal, strode over to the SUV and opened the rear door.

When she saw Shen Qingqing, her expression was complex.

First joy and relief, then surprise and puzzlement.

Suppressing her curiosity, Xiao Meimei helped Shen Qingqing back to the room.

Once the door was closed, she began to question her:

“Did you know Special Assistant Zhou before?”

“No,” Shen Qingqing answered decisively, sitting on the bed.

“He seems to be paying you a lot of attention for someone you just met,” Xiao Meimei sat beside her, thoughtful. “Could it be that he’s captivated by your looks?”

Shen Qingqing raised an eyebrow and smiled. “How could that be? What kind of woman hasn’t he seen?”

Xiao Meimei agreed wholeheartedly.

Mo Lingcheng had been navigating the Beijing social circle for years, had seen countless beauties, and no one had ever heard of him lingering to look twice at anyone.

Yet after a moment’s pause, Xiao Meimei still felt something was off: “Then tell me, why didn’t you come back with everyone else? Special Assistant Zhou noticed right away.”

Shen Qingqing’s brow arched as she looked skeptically at Xiao Meimei.

Xiao Meimei looked serious: “Really, he even came over to ask me why you didn’t come back.

At the time, I thought you must have been busy with work or didn’t want to be with everyone because of yesterday’s incident.” She looked apologetic.

“I didn’t think otherwise...”

“I’m fine!” Shen Qingqing nudged Xiao Meimei’s waist gently with her elbow, smiling reassuringly.

Xiao Meimei pursed her lips and continued: “Fortunately, he went looking for you.”

For a brief moment, Shen Qingqing’s heart softened but quickly abandoned the feeling.

She smiled faintly: “He probably didn’t go out of his way to find me. Maybe it was just a coincidence...”

Xiao Meimei interrupted immediately: “Impossible. If it were work-related, he wouldn’t have left Xiao Cong behind.”

“Xiao Cong?” Shen Qingqing caught a new name.

Xiao Meimei chuckled nervously, avoiding her gaze: “Oh, that tall, slender colleague earlier? He’s... Special Assistant Zhou’s little sidekick.”

Shen Qingqing smiled and nodded: “Quite a distinctive name. Are you close with him?”

Xiao Meimei blushed and glared at her: “Don’t change the subject.”

Shen Qingqing laughed and returned to the main point: “I think Special Assistant Zhou... feels that such a clumsy prank shouldn’t happen in the Mo Corporation.”

Recalling how she had been locked in the showroom, Xiao Meimei’s anger flared up: “It really shouldn’t! Who locked you in there?”

---

“Who else could it be?” Shen Qingqing lowered her head, gently massaging her ankle.

Since the encounter with Xu Minyu and Xu Mingxuan at the exhibition hall, Xu Minyu had stopped pretending around her.

In just a few days, she had launched one attack after another.

Shen Qingqing had originally wanted to focus on passing the assessment, but Xu Minyu was too impatient.

If that was the case, she had no reason to hold back.

If Xu Minyu wanted to drive her crazy, then she would show her madness.

At nine o’clock that night, the Human Resources Department suddenly called an emergency meeting.

When Shen Qingqing and Xiao Meimei arrived at the conference room, several probationary employees were already there.

Mo Lingcheng was absent; the head of HR sat angrily at the head of the table.

Once everyone was present, he remained silent, delaying the start of the meeting.

The probationary employees whispered among themselves:

“Such a late meeting, must be something urgent.”

“I heard it’s about Shen Qingqing...”

“What now? She’s only been here two days, and already causing a fuss.”

“She was locked in the showroom today; Special Assistant Zhou personally went to get her!”

Hearing this, everyone looked at Xu Minyu and Shen Qingqing.

Xiao Meimei was surprised: “Where did this news come from?”

Shen Qingqing rubbed her forehead—did it really need spreading?

The SUV was parked conspicuously at the hotel entrance.

So many eyes had seen her get out of the car...

She comforted herself helplessly: Special Assistant Zhou surely didn’t do it on purpose.

Wang Ying sat beside Xu Minyu, calm on the surface but uneasy inside.

“The surveillance footage has been deleted, right?” Wang Ying confirmed in a low voice.

Xu Minyu adjusted her clothes, calm: “Don’t worry.”

When she left the cultural relics museum, she had arranged for all the surveillance data to be wiped clean.

Xu Minyu was always cautious and careful; she wouldn’t do anything without certainty.

Just then, Zhou Cong pushed open the door and entered.