The morning sunlight finally broke through after days of heavy fog.
Fu Haoyan, dressed in a black cashmere coat over a matching suit, walked into the Fu Corporation building hand in hand with Lei Shaoxin. Both of them were tall and striking, drawing envious glances from employees along the way—something Lei Shaoxin still wasn’t quite used to.
The documents had already been neatly arranged by the assistant and placed at the center of the desk. Fu Haoyan picked them up, skimmed through briefly, then handed them to her.
“Thanks, Boss Fu,” Lei Shaoxin said, slipping the documents into a folder before striding out of the office in her heels.
She brought Ye Shiyao with her to Lei Jiu’s office. After the secretary served coffee, they were told he was still in a meeting, so they waited in the reception room.
During the wait, Lei Shaoxin asked, “Shiyao, have you thought about what I mentioned last time?”
She was referring to the offer she had made earlier—working at Lei Corporation while still being paid by Fu Corporation, essentially earning double salaries.
Ye Shiyao nodded firmly. “I’m in.”
At that moment, the secretary returned and opened the door. “Miss Lei, Mr. Lei has finished his meeting.”
The two of them entered the office.
“Well, well. What brings you here?” Lei Jiu said sarcastically.
“No need to be so hostile,” Lei Shaoxin replied calmly. “I came with a sincere offer.”
She placed a document folder on the desk. “Plot No. 9.”
Lei Jiu’s eyes flickered slightly as he looked at it. “What are your terms?”
“You’re straightforward, so I’ll be too,” she said. “I want Zhuosheng Group out of this project.”
Lei Jiu looked up sharply, anger flashing in his eyes. “What are you scheming this time?”
Lei Shaoxin let out a soft, mocking laugh. “Think it over and call me.”
With that, she turned and walked out, the sharp clicks of her heels echoing through the spacious office.
After she left, Lei Jiu opened the folder and studied the documents related to Plot No. 9, deep in thought. Then he picked up his phone and made a call.
“Zhuosheng, come to Lei Corporation when you’re free.”
Afterward, Lei Shaoxin sent Ah Feng and Ye Shiyao back to Fu Corporation.
She stood outside the Lei Corporation building, turned around, and looked up at it. Shielding her eyes from the sunlight, she closed them briefly and took a deep breath.
Then she turned away, hailed a taxi, and went to meet Hu Wenwen.
When she arrived at the boutique, she was about to walk in when a bodyguard at the entrance blocked her path. She clicked her tongue in annoyance and was about to leave when another guard recognized her, quickly apologized, and ushered her inside.
As soon as she stepped in, she spotted a familiar silver-haired figure and teased, “I thought some nouveau riche had booked the whole place.”
Li Mingxian turned at the sound of her voice. “Shaoxin!”
She smirked. “You’re everywhere, aren’t you?”
Hu Wenwen had already tried on several dresses and was clearly exhausted, slumped on the sofa in frustration. Li Mingxian wasn’t satisfied with any of them—either the back was too revealing or the slit was too high.
“Shaoxin, come here,” Hu Wenwen called out in a whining tone. “His taste is terrible.”
Lei Shaoxin glanced at the three dresses laid out and pointed to one. “That one.”
Before Hu Wenwen could respond, Li Mingxian objected, “The back is way too exposed. It doesn’t look good.”
Hu Wenwen rolled her eyes. “What do you know?”
“Shaoxin, I’ll try it on again for you,” she said, heading back into the fitting room.
When she came out wearing the dress and spun around, Lei Shaoxin nodded. It suited her perfectly.
“I’ll take this one,” Hu Wenwen told the sales assistant.
Li Mingxian casually added, “Show me a tie in the same color.”
Then he leaned closer to Hu Wenwen and whispered, “So we can match as a couple.”
Hu Wenwen ignored him and pulled Lei Shaoxin toward the women’s shoe section.
Meanwhile, the sales assistant quickly brought out four matching bow ties for Li Mingxian to choose from.
The two girls sat side by side as another assistant crouched down to help Hu Wenwen try on heels.
Leaning closer, Lei Shaoxin whispered, “So… what’s going on between you two?”
Hu Wenwen scoffed. “Nothing. He’s just like a stubborn piece of gum—impossible to shake off.”
Lei Shaoxin chuckled and didn’t press further. “You keep trying. I’ll go check out the accessories.”
Hu Wenwen nodded.
Hearing that, a sales assistant immediately followed Lei Shaoxin.
At the accessories section, Lei Shaoxin scanned the display before pointing at a case. “Could you show me that one?”
The assistant carefully took out a pair of silver cufflinks, rimmed with small diamonds that shimmered under the light, and placed them on a velvet tray.
Lei Shaoxin picked them up, examined them briefly, then said, “I’ll take these.”
By the time the three of them stepped out of the store, dusk had already fallen. The Li family’s driver was waiting with the car parked at the entrance.
Hu Wenwen had clearly shopped well—bags in hand, the staff followed behind, loading everything neatly into the trunk.
Ah Feng had parked just behind Li Mingxian’s car, the two vehicles lined up at the curb. He leaned casually against the car until he spotted Lei Shaoxin coming out.
He stepped forward, opened the rear door, and took the shopping bags from the assistant before she got in.
The moment Lei Shaoxin stepped into the house, she froze.
“Dingding, come here,” Fu Haoyan called out with a wave.
The entire living room looked like a fashion showroom—gowns, high heels, jewelry, and designer bags were spread everywhere.
Lei Shaoxin casually set her shopping bag down by the shoe cabinet, changed into slippers, and walked closer. Only then did she notice the eight boxes of jewelry on the table—each piece clearly worth a fortune.
“What is this? Putting on an exhibition?” she said dryly.
“Miss Lei, hello,” the designer and stylist greeted in unison.
She nodded politely. “Hello.”
Fu Haoyan, looking even more excited than she was, explained, “These are for the annual gala. They’re the designer and stylist.”
He picked up a jewelry box and urged, “Come on, try them.”
As she flipped through the dresses, she muttered, “Is this really necessary?”
“Absolutely.”
She selected four gowns and tried them on one by one. In the end, she chose a navy blue backless dress.
The designer adjusted the dress on her, occasionally jotting down notes.
Meanwhile, Fu Haoyan picked up a sapphire necklace, gently brushed her hair aside, and carefully fastened it around her neck.
Since Lei Shaoxin didn’t have pierced ears, she skipped the earrings and only wore the necklace and bracelet.
The stylist picked out a matching pair of heels, knelt down to help her put them on, then handed her a clutch.
The overall look came together perfectly—elegant and balanced.
After changing out of the gown, Lei Shaoxin handed it back to the designer.
“It should be ready in about three days,” the designer said.
“Thank you,” she replied.
The stylist turned to Fu Haoyan. “If there’s nothing else, we’ll take our leave.”
He nodded.
The team waiting outside came in and packed up all the gowns, shoes, and bags, leaving the living room suddenly empty.
Lei Shaoxin glanced at the table full of jewelry, then down at the sapphire necklace still around her neck. She reached behind her, intending to take it off.
Noticing her movement, Fu Haoyan gently moved her hair aside.
With a soft click, she removed the necklace and placed it back into its velvet box.
“Not going to try the others? They’re all yours,” he said casually, picking up a yellow gemstone bracelet.
Lei Shaoxin inhaled sharply, her eyes widening. “When did you buy all these?”
“A few days ago,” he replied with a slight grin.
She took off the sapphire bracelet as well, returning it to its box, then began closing each velvet case one by one.
“I got you something too,” she said suddenly, running to the shoe cabinet to grab the shopping bag she had left there earlier.
She handed it to him.