When they came out of the audition earlier, Chen Xiaoruo had asked who Mr. Xie was. Ling Wei briefly told her about how she had “flirted” with Xie Qingyan at the banquet. In her previous life, the only person who had truly treated her well was Chen Xiaoruo. Ling Wei trusted her and did not want to hide anything from her, and this life was no exception.
Chen Xiaoruo was so shocked she almost lost her soul. Still, she was only a small assistant. Even if she felt the whole thing was unreliable, she did not dare criticize Ling Wei. She only said timidly, “Someone that powerful, if you accidentally offend him, it’ll be trouble.”
“Can’t you hope for something good? I’m not swindling him for money or seducing him. We don’t even interact much. How could I offend him?”
“You never know. It’s not about the ten thousand possibilities, it’s about that one chance,” Chen Xiaoruo sighed. Her worry only made Ling Wei laugh and call her overly anxious.
Yet not long after that conversation, Ling Wei was by the roadside, chewing on skewers while blatantly lying to Boss Xie, and doing it with complete confidence and a straight face. Chen Xiaoruo broke out in a cold sweat watching her.
“If Mr. Xie finds out you lied to him, will he fall out with you?”
Ling Wei took the last bite of gluten from her skewer, wiped her hands with a napkin, and said, “Relax. Mr. Xie isn’t some terrifying monster. He’s quite sincere. Besides, we’re only putting on a show. He needs a beautiful lover to silence the people around him, and I need to borrow his reputation to silence Zhao Ruyi. To be precise, it’s an equal partnership, mutually beneficial. It doesn’t involve personal feelings, and we won’t interfere in each other’s lives. So telling an occasional lie is harmless. After all, I can’t let my image as a flawless decorative lover collapse.”
After listening to her long speech, Chen Xiaoruo hurriedly stuffed a few pieces of fish tofu into her mouth to calm herself down.
In the end, she still said worriedly, “Sister Wei, don’t force yourself with this. You just broke up with that scumbag Ye. I’m afraid you’re not thinking clearly.”
Ling Wei smiled lightly. “I’m not forcing myself at all. I actually think this was pretty clever of me. Besides, leaving Ye Zichu is the only way I can live better.”
She had already lost her life once because of Ye Zichu. In this life, she only wanted to live well for herself.
The next day, Ling Wei got up early. With her long hair messy like dry straw, she sat cross legged on the floor in front of her open wardrobe, seriously considering her look for the day.
Should she go for pure and sweet, or noble and aloof?
Half an hour later, Ling Wei concluded that it did not matter which style she chose. As long as she was beautiful enough, eye catching enough, and had enough presence, that would be enough. After all, her persona in front of Mr. Xie was that of a perfect, flawless decorative lover.
In the end, she chose a simply tailored sapphire blue short dress. The color made her fair skin look even more luminous. The deep V neckline on top highlighted her delicate collarbones and revealed just a hint of cleavage, enough to spark imagination. The skirt fell to her knees, perfectly accentuating her long, slender legs.
After picking her outfit, she hesitated between wearing her hair down or tying it up. She ultimately chose to let her long hair fall over her shoulders.
Because of her profession, Ling Wei usually had to maintain a perfect image in public. Exquisite makeup and fashionable clothing were the bare minimum. But in private, she did not like wearing makeup and preferred comfortable clothing. She was rather casual. Dressing up like this, carefully choosing clothes and applying makeup, meant she was in work mode.
There was nothing wrong with that. She had made an agreement with Xie Qingyan to pretend to be his lover. Playing the role of a decorative lover well was indeed her job. Most people only saw her beauty. In truth, acting was her strongest skill.
By the time she had transformed herself into a flawless beauty, it was almost nine o’clock, the time Lao Zhang was supposed to pick her up. She did not even have time to eat. Grabbing her handbag, she hurried downstairs.
Lao Zhang had parked the black Bentley at the entrance of her apartment building and was waiting beside the car. When he saw her come out, he smiled warmly and opened the door for her. “Good morning, Miss Ling.”
“Good morning, Lao Zhang.” Although they had only met a few times, Ling Wei had a good impression of him. He was an easygoing elder.
Once she was seated, Lao Zhang handed her a paper bag. Inside were still warm bread and milk. “Miss Ling, have this to fill your stomach first. Mr. Xie said he’ll take you somewhere nice for lunch.”
Ling Wei smiled her thanks and did not stand on ceremony. She took out the bread and milk and began eating.
By now, the morning rush hour had passed, and the car drove smoothly all the way to the Xie Corporation office building. As the car passed the front of the building, Ling Wei gazed quietly out the window. The towering structure before her was a landmark in the area. Several bus stops and subway exits were named after it. As a local, she passed by often and was very familiar with it. Yet she had never imagined that one day she would cross paths with the owner of this building.
The car bypassed the main entrance and entered the underground parking garage through a side entrance. As the light shifted from bright to dim, Ling Wei’s breathing gradually tightened. She could almost hear her own heartbeat pounding.
Previously, her interactions with Xie Qingyan had taken place in relatively comfortable settings, so she had not felt intimidated. But now, alone in his commercial empire, the sense of being at a disadvantage in someone else’s domain became instantly apparent, making her so nervous she felt like shaking her leg.
Ling Wei suddenly felt a little uncertain. Had her proposal back then been too rash?
But things had already progressed to this point, and there was no room for hesitation or retreat. Besides, for someone like Xie Qingyan, there was really nothing about her worth scheming for. If there was anything at all, it would only be her looks.
Lost in her thoughts, Ling Wei followed Lao Zhang into the elevator. When she saw him press the button for the 45th floor, she could not help swallowing. She was a little afraid of heights.
They rode up to the 45th floor in silence. As soon as the elevator doors opened, a woman in a professional suit with exquisite makeup stepped forward, greeting Ling Wei with a perfectly measured smile. “Miss Ling, President Xie is in a meeting at the moment. He asked me to take you to his office first.”
The entire floor was extremely spacious, divided into several sections. As a newcomer, Ling Wei did not dare look around too much and simply followed closely behind the woman. As they walked down the corridor and passed a glass wall, Ling Wei unexpectedly caught sight of Xie Qingyan in advance.
It was an open conference room, with the wall facing the corridor replaced by glass, making everything inside clearly visible from outside. Several people were seated around a table in discussion. Xie Qingyan sat at the head, his expression cold, brows tightly furrowed as he listened to his subordinates’ reports. The others looked as though they were facing a formidable enemy.
As Ling Wei passed by, no one inside dared glance around casually. Only Xie Qingyan cast a brief look her way and gave her a slight nod in greeting.
Ling Wei nodded back and unconsciously quickened her pace as she left the conference room. Seeing Xie Qingyan in work mode so suddenly had truly surprised her. He looked extremely stern, like a great villain, completely different from how he had been at the banquet.
If he had worn that expression at the banquet that day, she probably would not have dared to speak to him, let alone try to flirt with him.
Well, since she was here, she might as well take things as they came.
Xie Qingyan’s office was very spacious, probably one or two hundred square meters, yet the decor was understated and simple, entirely different from the luxurious atmosphere outside.
After the woman led her in, she left. Ling Wei stood there for a few seconds before deciding to find a chair and sit down.
After a while, another woman came in to serve her tea, fragrant jasmine tea. A little later, someone else came in to bring her pastries.
As Ling Wei’s nervousness gradually faded, she began to find it amusing. Were these people taking turns finding excuses to come in and have a look at her?
To distract herself, Ling Wei took out her phone. She scrolled through Weibo, browsed entertainment news, and then suddenly remembered that after adding Xie Qingyan on WeChat, she had not yet checked his Moments. Curious, she opened it eagerly, only to discover that his Moments were restricted and she could not view them.
About half an hour later, the office door opened again. This time, it was Xie Qingyan himself.
As he walked in, he casually unbuttoned the top two buttons of his shirt and smiled at her. “Sorry to keep you waiting.”
Just moments ago in the conference room, he had seemed like the depths of winter. Now that he smiled, it felt like spring had arrived.
This man was truly unpredictable.
Ling Wei secretly let out a breath of relief and joked, “It’s fine. If you hadn’t come back soon, even the cleaning lady might have found an excuse to come in and take a look at me.”
Xie Qingyan raised an eyebrow. “Who told you to be so different? You look especially beautiful today. When I caught a glimpse of you in the meeting room just now, I almost lost focus on work.”
Ling Wei pressed her lips together in a small smile. The slightly roguish playboy from before seemed to have returned. She was more used to dealing with this version of him.
“Thank you for the compliment. So, can I see the agreement now?”
Xie Qingyan nodded and walked over to his desk. “It’s ready. Take a look. If you have any objections, you can raise them.”
Ling Wei stood up, walked over, and took the agreement from his hand. It was only two A4 sheets, with not many clauses, outlining their agreed terms and a few additional notes.
For example, the agreement was a voluntary, unpaid cooperation between both parties. During the period, neither party could demand money or material compensation from the other.
Another clause stated that neither party would interfere in the other’s personal life. If either party developed a romantic relationship with someone else, the agreement would automatically terminate.
The issues Ling Wei had previously worried about were all addressed. Then there were the obligations of both sides, such as attending various events, gatherings with friends, and family occasions together under the guise of being a couple. When necessary, they would need to display intimate gestures.
Ling Wei understood and found these terms reasonable. However, one particular requirement made her speak up. “Every night, the woman must send the man a fixed coquettish text message, and the content must not be repeated? Mr. Xie, could you explain this?”