N.S Building.
Meng Xiyue, who was processing documents, heard her phone ring.
Her hand paused mid-signature, leaving a slightly heavier mark at the end. Meng Xiyue looked at the somewhat abrupt stroke, her beautiful eyes showing a faint emotion. She lowered her gaze and put down the pen.
She picked up the phone beside her, her long, fair fingers tapping to open the message.
“Meng Xiyue, let’s have lunch together this afternoon.”
The previous message from half an hour ago was: “Sure.”
It was clear that the person sending the message was in a cheerful mood.
She glanced at her schedule, her fingertip tapping on the phone screen. Her lowered face appeared gentle as she replied, “Okay.”
As soon as Secretary Gao entered, he saw his boss just putting down her phone. Was she slacking off during work hours?
Her calm eyes still carried a hint of gentleness.
He was surprised but didn’t show it, dutifully reporting, “President, Tianyu’s major shareholder with 15% has offered a price nearly double our estimate. Should we continue the acquisition?”
Meng Xiyue’s expression remained unchanged, “No need, start with the scattered shares first.”
N.S now holds 12% of Tianyu’s shares, enough to attend Tianyu’s shareholders’ meeting.
Currently, the Li family of Tianyu holds 60% of the shares, maintaining absolute control. This amount of shares is still insufficient for her future plans.
Secretary Gao: “Understood, President.”
He added, “President Hua has arrived.”
Meng Xiyue nodded, “Please escort President Hua to the reception room. I’ll be there shortly.”
“Yes.” Secretary Gao took the signed documents and left. As he reviewed the documents outside, he noticed the heavy mark and adjusted his glasses.
After Secretary Gao left, Meng Xiyue’s long, fair fingers gently pressed on the document.
On the surface, it was found that the Hua’s had already acquired 8% of Tianyu’s shares. It’s unknown how much more they have acquired secretly.
Meng Xiyue lowered her eyes and capped her pen.
She stood up.
＊
In the nanny van, Xia Yuan looked at the message Meng Xiyue had sent and happily put her phone back in her bag.
It’s work hours now.
And yet, the other party replied instantly.
She really cares about her.
Zhong Le, seeing Xia Yuan’s cheerful demeanor after checking her phone, couldn’t help but ask, “Sister Xia, was that a message from President Meng?”
Xia Yuan flicked her hair, her eyes showing a lazy yet proud look, “Yes, even during work hours, she’s messaging me.”
She had seen President Meng from afar, elegant and indifferent, never expecting her to be so clingy in a relationship.
Zhong Le couldn’t resist gossiping, “Sister Xia, how did you two get together?”
Xia Yuan glanced at the obviously excited Zhong Le and then at the equally thrilled Lin Qi, and hummed twice, “Meng Xiyue had a crush on me first, and then we got together.”
A crush?
Zhong Le and Lin Qi felt like their minds had been struck, unable to imagine the aloof Meng Xiyue having a crush on someone.
However, seeing Xia Yuan’s proud and flamboyant expression, it didn’t seem so unbelievable.
Soon, they arrived at the company building. As they entered, Xia Yuan’s manager greeted her with a smile, “Xia Yuan, do you remember the martial arts drama you auditioned for last time?”
“The director called and wants you to play the role of the Demon Sect Saintess.”
Xia Yuan recalled for a moment, finally pulling the memory from a corner of her mind. It was the audition for the frail and short-lived junior sister.
She remembered that the Demon Sect Saintess had a lot of lines.
Without much thought, Xia Yuan directly refused, “No, I’m not going.”
Lin Xin had no complaints. This young lady had entered the entertainment industry just for fun. Hearing the rejection, she wasn’t surprised at all. If it were any other new actor, they would probably be too excited to know what to say.
After all, the director of this wuxia drama was known for producing high-quality shows. The role of the Demon Sect Saintess had a lot of screen time and was a very complex character. It might even win an award and add some prestige.
She said, “Alright, I’ll decline it then.”
“This is the script you requested. Not many lines, it’s a Miaojiang Witch.”
Xia Yuan took it and glanced at it.
It was a male-centric movie. The male lead, while evading his enemies, accidentally enters an ancient Miao village.
The Miaojiang Witch appears five times in total, with not many lines.
Xia Yuan was satisfied and slightly raised her chin, “I’ll take it.”
Lin Xin nodded and continued, “You haven’t had any projects recently, and your popularity has dropped. Do you need the company to help boost your profile?”
Xia Yuan smiled brightly, her eyes dazzling, “Not convenient.” With that, she walked away gracefully, holding the script.
Lin Xin: “???”
Lin Qi saw Zhong Le had already caught up and quickly explained to her cousin Lin Xin, “Sister Xia is in a relationship.”
After saying that, she jogged to catch up with Xia Yuan.
Lin Xin: “…”
Indeed, being in a relationship isn’t suitable for boosting popularity. If she becomes famous, there will be more paparazzi, affecting her dates.
Feeling inexplicably fed up with this display of affection, Lin Xin felt a bit overwhelmed.
The filming for this movie was set to start in three days.
Xia Yuan was heading to the set of “The Harem” because the director said they needed to reshoot a scene.
It was the male actor in the drama who insisted on it.
Xia Yuan’s character, Empress Jiayue, falls while shielding the emperor from a sword. The male actor felt his micro-expressions weren’t perfect and decided to reshoot after some thought.
Director Chen Qin is a perfectionist, so he immediately agreed.
When Xia Yuan was getting her makeup done in the dressing room, Xu Chuchu, who came to touch up her own makeup, saw Xia Yuan with her eyes half-closed. Her face stiffened. Last time, she had intended to give Xia Yuan a hard time, but ended up being trampled by her instead.
What was even more infuriating was that when she spread rumors about the newcomer acting like a diva, it didn’t cause any stir at all.
This could only mean that Xia Yuan’s background was even more formidable than she had imagined. She had even tried to subtly inquire about Xia Yuan’s identity from the director.
All she got was: “Don’t provoke her.”
Xu Chuchu knew then that Xia Yuan was someone she couldn’t afford to mess with. Seeing Xia Yuan now made her feel guilty.
Even though she knew her own scenes had been cut, she didn’t dare to confront Xia Yuan. The fact that Xia Yuan hadn’t replaced her as the female lead was already a mercy.
She obediently moved to the side and quietly let the makeup artist touch up her makeup.
Xia Yuan, once her makeup was done, didn’t even glance at Xu Chuchu. She got up and headed to the filming set.
She arrived early, and they were still preparing to shoot other people’s scenes. She grabbed a chair and sat in a corner.
Quietly, she scrolled through her phone, occasionally sending messages to bother Meng Xiyue.
However, this time, Meng Xiyue didn’t reply immediately.
Knowing that Meng Xiyue was at work, Xia Yuan still felt a bit unhappy.
She lost interest in her phone and, just as she put it down, she overheard some crew members talking softly behind her.
“Yezi, did you really get your crush?”
“Yeah, I can’t believe he likes me too. I’m so happy.”
“Haha, I knew he was into you.”
“Yeah, he said he’s actually had a crush on me for a long time.”
At this point, Xia Yuan perked up her ears. No reason, it just sounded too much like her own situation.
Except, in her case, she was the one being pursued.
The conversation continued.
“So, Yezi, how far have you two gotten?”
“We just got together yesterday, there’s no ‘further’ yet.” The voice carried a hint of regret.
“Not even a kiss?”
This time, the response was hesitant: “There… there was.”
“Wow, I didn’t expect your male god to be so proactive.”
“No, no, it was me. I stole a kiss when he wasn’t paying attention.”
“Yezi, you’re something else.”
Hearing this, Xia Yuan rubbed her chin, her expression thoughtful.
＊
Six o’clock in the afternoon.
Xia Yuan arrived at the N.S building right on time.
The receptionist who had greeted Xia Yuan last time didn’t stop her this time. When Xia Yuan reached Meng Xiyue’s office floor, she was informed by the secretary that Meng Xiyue was still in a meeting.
Xia Yuan had no choice but to wait.
She ended up waiting for over an hour.
When Meng Xiyue finally finished the meeting and saw that it was already dark outside, she instinctively checked the time.
19:03.
It was quite late.
She pressed her lips together, her eyelashes fluttered lightly, and she got up and walked out in a bit of a hurry.
Assistant Li: “President?” This was the first time Assistant Li had seen Meng Xiyue so flustered.
Exchanging a glance with Secretary Gao, the two quickly followed.
As soon as Meng Xiyue opened the office door, she saw Xia Yuan lounging on the sofa, playing with her phone. She lowered her eyes and closed the door.
Secretary Gao and Assistant Li, who were following behind, only managed to catch a glimpse of Xia Yuan before the door shut in their faces.
Seeing Meng Xiyue, Xia Yuan turned off her phone, tossed it onto the sofa, and snorted, crossing her arms with an indifferent expression.
Meng Xiyue stood not far from her, her delicate features like a painting, lips lightly pressed together, her half-lowered eyes filled with uncertainty.
“Sorry.”
The meeting had been more complicated than expected, extending over half an hour longer.
Xia Yuan’s ears perked up, and she relaxed her arms a bit. “Meng Xiyue, don’t do this again next time. I waited so long, I got hungry.”
“Okay.”
Hearing Meng Xiyue’s promise, Xia Yuan smiled, stood up, and naturally wrapped her arm around Meng Xiyue’s. “Let’s go eat then.”
Meng Xiyue’s eyes, clear as the moon, fell on their intertwined arms. Her eyelashes fluttered slightly, and a faint blush appeared on her cheeks as she softly replied, “Okay.”
Picking up her phone from the table, the screen lit up, revealing three missed calls, the latest at 18:46, all from the same person.
Seeing Meng Xiyue with her phone, Xia Yuan pouted and made a demand, “From now on, don’t leave your phone behind. Otherwise, I won’t be able to find you.”
Meng Xiyue promised, “Mm, it won’t happen again.”
Xia Yuan saw the gentle light in Meng Xiyue’s eyes, shadows playing beneath her thick lashes.
Feeling embarrassed, she averted her gaze but held onto Meng Xiyue’s arm tightly, her face slightly flushed. “I won’t disturb you during work hours.”
Meng Xiyue thought of the dozen messages Xia Yuan had sent her that afternoon and fell silent.
When the office door opened again, Assistant Li and Secretary Gao saw their boss being led by Miss Xia, seemingly discussing what to eat. Miss Xia’s smile was both beautiful and dazzling, while the boss, with a slight tilt of her head and gentle eyes, walked unhurriedly, looking at Miss Xia.
Then they left together.
Assistant Li was slightly taken aback: “Was the CEO in such a hurry just now because of Miss Xia?”
Secretary Gao smiled: “Yes.”
Assistant Li: “It’s the first time I’ve seen the CEO so flustered. I thought something major had happened. My heart almost stopped.”
He sighed: “Now I finally understand how much the CEO values Miss Xia.”
Secretary Gao: “You’re not wrong.”
…
After dinner, Meng Xiyue drove Xia Yuan back to the Xia residence.
As soon as Xia Yuan opened the car door, a light snowflake drifted down.
She exclaimed in delight: “Meng Xiyue, it’s snowing.”
Meng Xiyue’s gaze fell outside the window. The fine, fluffy snowflakes were sparsely falling, and the air seemed to carry a chill.
Xia Yuan patted the car door, “Meng Xiyue, come out and see the snow. It’s the first snow.”
“Alright.”
Xia Yuan looked up at the falling snowflakes for a while, then turned to Meng Xiyue, who was watching her with a focused and gentle gaze.
“Meng Xiyue?”
“Yes.”
“I want to kiss you.”
“…”
Her expectant gaze, the snowflakes on her long eyelashes not yet melted, her eyes shimmering like starry diamonds. She asked again: “Meng Xiyue, I want to kiss you.”
Blunt and sincere.
Meng Xiyue’s breath hitched, her throat dry. She couldn’t help but look away, then back at Xia Yuan’s face, which looked especially enchanting in the snow. She lowered her eyes, her eyelashes trembling lightly.
Bending down, her long hair covered her reddened earlobes.
As they drew closer, both of their breaths momentarily lightened.
A shallow, feather-light kiss landed on Xia Yuan’s lips.
Two hearts, beating incessantly, suddenly synchronized.
＊
Xia Yuan returned home in a daze, her heart bubbling with joy.
Next time, next time they could have a deeper kiss.
Meng Xiyue was too restrained, only willing to touch lightly. She knew that if they kissed more deeply, Meng Xiyue, who liked her so much, wouldn’t be able to hold back.
Actually… the car would have been fine too.
“Yuan’er, you’re back.”
A sudden voice interrupted Xia Yuan’s thoughts. She looked up to see Li Ting’s parents and her brother sitting on the sofa.
The atmosphere seemed tense.
She set aside her thoughts and walked over, sitting next to her brother. “Uncle Li, Aunt Li, you’re here.”
Yan Jing smiled and said, “Yes, we came to apologize for Li Ting.”
Xia Yuan’s gaze fell on the gift box on the table. After thinking for a moment, she said, “Auntie, there’s no need to apologize. I don’t care about him anymore.”
Even though they were her elders, Xia Yuan spoke frankly. She truly didn’t want to have any connection with Li Ting now.
After all, she had her own family now.
Xia Ke, sitting beside her, maintained a faint smile. Hearing Xia Yuan’s words, his smile deepened.
However, Li Ting’s parents’ faces darkened.
Seeing that the two elders still wanted to say something, Xia Yuan quickly said, “It’s getting late. I have work tomorrow, so I’ll go rest first.”
“Uncle, Aunt, you and Brother can discuss business first.”
After saying that, she got up and left.
Marrying Li Ting? That’s never going to happen in this lifetime.
