Qiao Xi gritted her teeth and rechecked the report twice until 9:30 PM.
She finally finished reviewing the report.
There wasn't a single mistake.
She picked up the report and walked back to the President's Office.
She resubmitted the report.
Shang Beichen said nonchalantly, "I apologize, Secretary Qiao, perhaps I misread it."
"It's late, I'll take you home."
"No need, I have a car. I'll head back now."
After Qiao Xi finished speaking, she ran off.
At exactly 10 PM, Qiao Xi, wearing high heels, walked into a high-end bar by the river.
The bar had soft lighting and a tranquil atmosphere.
At a window seat sat her blind date, a man dressed in a suit and leather shoes, wearing gold-rimmed glasses, exuding a gentle and refined aura.
"Are you Mr. Chen? I apologize for the delay, I had something to attend to tonight." Qiao Xi offered him a proper smile.
"Miss Qiao, please sit." Chen Jin stood up and gentlemanly helped her with the chair, "I guessed you might be hungry, so I pre-ordered a bowl of mushroom soup and some small bread."
As soon as he finished speaking, the waiter brought over the warm soup and bread.
He then handed her the menu, "Take a look and order whatever you'd like to eat."
Qiao Xi took the menu and casually ordered a few of her favorite dishes.
She sipped the rich mushroom soup, the warmth sliding down her esophagus into her stomach, and silently added points to the man's thoughtfulness in her heart.
They chatted casually.
Qiao Xi discovered that this man was not only good-looking but also quite knowledgeable and eloquent.
Just as the atmosphere was perfect, a shadow with a powerful aura loomed over them.
A deep male voice sounded.
"Secretary Qiao."
Qiao Xi's hand, holding the spoon, stiffened. She looked up.
"President Shang."
She suddenly stood up, her heart skipping a beat.
Why was he here?
Shang Beichen didn't look at her, merely slowly adjusted the cuffs of his expensive suit, which were adorned with sapphire cufflinks.
Five years ago, she had saved up four months' salary to buy him a similar pair.
But Shang Beichen had never worn them back then, likely finding them too cheap.
"I have a business entertainment engagement soon, you're coming with me." His tone was not to be questioned.
"President Shang, it's after work hours now." Qiao Xi reminded him.
"Article 7, Clause 2 of the Chief Secretary's Regulations states that the secretary gets off work when the boss gets off work." He finally looked up, his gaze as cold as ice, "Do I need to review it for you?"
Qiao Xi bit her lower lip tightly, her lips turning white.
She turned her head and looked at Mr. Chen with deep apology, "Mr. Chen, I'm truly sorry..."
Before she could finish, she let out a startled cry.
The world spun, and he unceremoniously slung her over his shoulder.
His strong shoulder dug into her, causing pain.
"What are you doing! Put me down, Shang Beichen!" Qiao Xi's face instantly turned red, her legs flailing in the air.
Chen Jin froze on the spot. It wasn't until he heard the name that he jolted.
Shang Beichen.
He was the legendary financial shark of Country A, a man who controlled hundreds of billions in assets.
Qiao Xi struggled all the way, her high heels almost flying off, until he carried her into an empty observation deck.
"Behave yourself," his deep warning echoed in her ear.
He gave her butt a light pat with his large hand before carefully setting her down.
Qiao Xi was furious. She pushed aside the messy strands of hair from her face and yelled at him.
"Shang Beichen, what exactly do you want? You're doing this on purpose, aren't you?"
Shang Beichen looked down at her from a height, his handsome face expressionless.
"I'm saving you. That man just now, he's not suitable for you."
"What does it have to do with you whether he's suitable or not? You're just my superior. My personal matters don't require your concern."
He declared domineeringly, "If I don't like it, you can't marry him."
Shang Beichen couldn't stand seeing her so smug right after he acquired Tianyu Group.
He really was lucky for his ex-wife.
Back then, she was the one who wanted a divorce, saying she didn't love him anymore, and then heartlessly threw him away.
He absolutely wouldn't let her have it so easy.
Qiao Xi cursed inwardly, "You're allowed to get married gloriously, but others have to remain widows for your sake?"
"President Shang, I'm tired. I can't work right now. If you're unhappy, fire me tomorrow."
She spat out the words fiercely, pushing him away with all her might.
Then, she left without looking back.
The night wind tousled her long hair, and her heart as well.
She still remembered that the sky was overcast the day he left.
He left her a bank card with 3.09 million and a 120-square-meter apartment; that was all their property at the time.
When she woke up, there was an agate bracelet on her wrist, something he never took off, half pure white and half crimson.
She lay under the ginkgo tree and cried her heart out. The autumn wind swirled fallen leaves, as if burying her.
She desperately wanted to chase after him, but her body ached too much to even get up.
She knew he wouldn't be back.
Later, she returned home and burned for two days and nights, almost losing half her life.
Four years of passionate love in university and two years of marriage thus ended hastily.
Shang's mother had repeatedly pressured her to divorce, saying that if he entered into a marriage alliance with Bai Wei, the daughter of the Bai family, the Bai family could help his career soar.
But she refused.
Until that day, when her father was critically ill, he was unreachable for three days and nights while out of town.
She received a photo on her phone: he was lying on a luxurious bed, eyes closed, with a pair of white high heels by the bedside.
She felt he had cheated and was no longer clean.
When he returned, he only said he was busy with work, offering no other explanation. That's when she proposed divorce, telling him she no longer loved him.
Her eye sockets turned terribly red. Gritting her teeth, she managed to prevent tears from falling.
If only she hadn't liked Shang Beichen.
The next day, as soon as Qiao Xi arrived at the office, she was summoned by Shang Beichen.
She knocked on the door.
Behind the desk, the man's features were even more defined and sharp.
The expensive suit enveloped his broad shoulders and lean waist.
He leaned back in his chair, his posture relaxed, yet an oppressive aura emanated from him.
He finally spoke, his tone flat, devoid of any warmth.
"Starting today, your position is changed to my Chief Secretary."
"On call 24 hours."
What was this?
A show of force?
Qiao Xi pulled at the corner of her mouth, forcing a smile.
"President Shang is truly generous. Are you planning to pay me three times my salary?"
He placed his clasped hands on the table, tapping his fingers casually.
"Not satisfied?"
"Four years apart, your skills haven't improved, but you've learned to haggle with your boss."
"I wouldn't dare." Qiao Xi gave him a professional fake smile.
"I'm just curious, is President Shang seeking personal revenge, or has life become so unmanageable without me?"
The corner of his lips curved into a very faint arc, with a hint of playfulness.
"You call this personal revenge?"
He pushed his chair back and stood up.
He walked around the desk and approached her step by step.
"I call this making the best use of everything."
He stopped in front of her, that familiar, crisp citrus scent aggressively invading her senses.
Qiao Xi let out a cold laugh, took off her work ID from her neck, and placed it heavily on the desk.
"Shang Beichen, I quit."
"I can't serve you."
I can avoid you!
She finished speaking and turned to leave.
"Stop."
Shang Beichen's voice was not loud, but it carried an irresistible command.
He took a document from the drawer and threw it in front of her, "Take a good look."
Qiao Xi picked it up and flipped through it. Her head buzzed, exploding.
Damn it!
I've boarded a pirate ship.
Qiao Xi's anger surged to the top of her head.
"Evil capitalist!"
Shang Beichen smiled smugly.
She stared intently at the enlarged handsome face before her, wishing she could pounce and bite him.
Finally, she turned around huffily and bumped her head into the glass door.
"Bang!"
Shang Beichen was startled and rushed over, his warm hand gently pressing her reddened forehead.
"Xi Bao," he blurted out.
Qiao Xi froze on the spot.
Xi Bao my foot!
"Stay away from me." Qiao Xi pushed him away and left the office.
This man must be deliberately humiliating her.
When they were dating, Shang Beichen always called her Xi Bao.
Now that he was so successful, he was using such things to tease her!
In the afternoon, a new message popped up in the work group.
It was sent by Shang Beichen, and he had also @-mentioned her.
An address and a contact number.
Concise and to the point, not a single extra word.
Qiao Xi resignedly grabbed her bag and took a taxi straight to the address.
In the car, her mind was still buzzing. She hadn't expected that the contract she renewed six months ago contained a non-compete clause.
If she resigned unilaterally, she would have to pay the company twenty million, that's seven zeros.
She was extremely depressed now.
After much effort, she arrived at the Suli Auction House.
Just hearing the name made it sound prohibitively expensive.
The delivery process was simpler than she imagined, but also more deadly than she imagined.
The staff, wearing white gloves, pushed a velvet box towards her.
"Miss Qiao, please sign here."
Her gaze fell on the end of the handover form.
The auction price column, a string of zeros made her eyes blur.
Ones, tens, hundreds, thousands, ten thousands...
52 million.
Qiao Xi's heart clenched fiercely, almost causing her to have a cardiac arrest on the spot.
Her hand, holding the pen, was trembling.
If anything went wrong on the way, she could directly reincarnate and become a beast of burden in her next life.
She carefully took the box, holding it tightly with both hands, as if holding a peerless treasure.
No, this was a peerless treasure.
She was afraid that if she wasn't careful, she would lose the freedom of the rest of her life.
Sitting in the car back to the company, Qiao Xi held the box in her arms, her body ramrod straight.
Her mind was a mess.
Such an expensive necklace must be something Shang Beichen gave to some woman.
The world of the rich played by different rules; they spent 52 million with a single move!
She suddenly remembered the past.
When they were still poor, the gifts he gave her were small items worth a few thousand.
The most expensive wedding ring, he saved for a long time to buy, and it only cost 160,000.
On the day of their divorce, she threw that ring into the flowerbed downstairs of the apartment building right in front of him.
Her actions were decisive, her posture elegant.
But later, she still ungracefully went back to look for it.
She dug through all the soil but found nothing.
Now... all she had left was the half-red, half-white agate bracelet he left behind when he departed.
She didn't know how much that thing was worth.
But the bracelet had a life-saving connection with her, and she wouldn't return it to him.
It was the only thing related to him that she had left, and it had accompanied her through the most difficult four years.
In this lifetime, she would never return it.
It was already 5:30 PM when she returned to the company. Qiao Xi took a deep breath and adjusted her expression.
She walked to Shang Beichen's desk.
The man was still handling official business, his profile appearing particularly stern under the light.
"President Shang, here is the necklace you requested." She gently placed the heavy velvet box in front of him.
Mission accomplished.
"Tonight, you will accompany me to a banquet." He looked up and said indifferently.
He added, "Go back and change into something, something sexy."
Sexy? Selling myself?
Shang Beichen seemed to read her mind, "Not selling yourself, you're not worth that much."
Qiao Xi: !!!
She instantly felt an urge to poison him into silence!
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