Chapter Fifty-Seven: This Fraud

The moon shone brightly against a sparse backdrop of stars, and the night was deep and tranquil. It was already late; Ruan Mianmian reminded Jiang Ce to go to bed early and then returned to her own room.

Her phone screen was flooded with messages and missed calls from Jian Yanzhi. Ruan Mianmian glanced at them and replied with a brief message.

"I'm fine. Thank you for today."

Not long after she sent the message, her phone rang again—it was Jian Yanzhi.

"Hello?"

Ruan Mianmian answered.

Jian Yanzhi sounded flustered and annoyed.

"Ruan Mianmian, you just left like that? Abandoned me there?"

"You're a grown man, can't you go home by yourself?" Ruan Mianmian was no fool. There was no way Jian Yanzhi would have waited there all night; he must have gone home already.

"I really got myself into trouble!" Jian Yanzhi said loudly. "By the way, you haven't explained yet—what exactly happened between you and Shen Ting?"

Ruan Mianmian hesitated, her thoughts stirring. She asked,

"Jian Yanzhi, we're friends, aren't we?"

After all, they had grown up together.

Jian Yanzhi didn't hesitate. "Of course, we're childhood friends, right? What's this, do you not see me as a friend anymore?"

"Fine. Since we're friends, I'd like to ask you for a favor."

Ruan Mianmian started setting the trap, and Jian Yanzhi caught on, teasing her.

"You wouldn't be asking me to help you deal with Shen Ting, would you?"

Ruan Mianmian laughed softly, "What, are you reluctant?"

"You!" Jian Yanzhi complained, but then his tone became more serious.

"If you're being bullied, I’ll help you for sure, but if there’s no good reason, I can’t just target my own employee. Besides, Shen Ting is a senior manager, one of the company’s pillars—it wouldn’t be right to go too far."

Ruan Mianmian didn't respond. Although Jian Yanzhi said he'd help her, his words clearly showed his support for Shen Ting.

True enough—from Jian Yanzhi's perspective, Shen Ting was a manager who had poured her heart into the company, and even if her achievements weren’t outstanding, her hard work counted. Compared to Ruan Mianmian, Shen Ting was far more valuable.

But what Jian Yanzhi didn't know was that Shen Ting was never truly on his side.

"Alright then," Ruan Mianmian smiled indifferently. "Since that’s the case, I won’t trouble you, Director Jian. Just do as you see fit."

"You sound as if something really big and unpleasant happened between you and Shen Ting," Jian Yanzhi probed.

"Tch!" Ruan Mianmian rolled her eyes, her tone turning cold. "No need to pretend—you know perfectly well how she and her group treated me before."

"Well..." Jian Yanzhi fell silent on the other end.

Ruan Mianmian didn’t continue the topic; instead, she said with a laugh, "Alright, we have work tomorrow. Go to bed early. I’m hanging up."

With that, she ended the call.

She had never expected Jian Yanzhi to help her deal with Shen Ting. In the end, she'd have to rely on herself.

But then she wondered—Shen Ting was Jiang Ce’s informant in Hanhai. If she got rid of Shen Ting, would it affect Jiang Ce?

Ruan Mianmian was troubled.

Yet if she didn’t vent her frustration, she’d feel suffocated.

With her mind in turmoil, Ruan Mianmian drifted uneasily into sleep.

The next morning, Ruan Mianmian got up as usual and headed to Hanhai Company. But today, the atmosphere in the villa was strange, making her uncomfortable.

Early in the morning, there was no movement from Jiang Ce’s room.

While eating breakfast, Ruan Mianmian noticed that Old Zhang wasn’t there either, and realized something was amiss.

"Ah Kuan, where’s your boss? And Old Zhang, why isn’t he here?"

Ah Kuan looked troubled, hemming and hawing, unable to give a clear answer.

Seeing his demeanor, Ruan Mianmian guessed—it must have something to do with last night.

"Ruan, just eat your breakfast. You don’t need to worry about the boss," Ah Kuan urged.

Ruan Mianmian nodded. She didn’t know what Jiang Ce was up to, but sensed that something needed his attention.

"Has Shen Qing come back?" she asked, thinking of him.

Ah Kuan shook his head, replying, "After leaving with the boss last night, he hasn’t returned. Later in the night, the boss went out too. Neither of them have come back yet."

"What?" Ruan Mianmian hadn’t expected Jiang Ce to go out again!

That liar!

"The boss said he had something to handle and didn’t want to disturb your rest, so we didn’t tell you," Ah Kuan explained.

Ruan Mianmian’s face darkened. Saying it was to keep her from worrying—he just wanted to keep things from her!

Infuriating.

"Whatever," Ruan Mianmian said dismissively. She ate a few bites of breakfast, then took Ah Kuan to the Hanhai building.

She hadn’t expected that, at this hour, the office would still be in chaos.

Ruan Mianmian was used to arriving late, and usually at her arrival, all departments would be in their morning meetings. But today, everyone was still around.

"Why is it so messy? Is the morning meeting happening today?" Ruan Mianmian, feigning authority, called over a supervisor to ask.

The supervisor, Guo Xianchun, was a rare, steady, mature type who never joined in gossip, so his presence in the office was usually low-key. But Ruan Mianmian liked him.

Guo Xianchun replied calmly, "Director, the morning meetings are normally hosted by Manager Shen, but today, for some reason, she hasn’t come to work and didn’t apply for leave."

Shen Ting didn’t come?

Ruan Mianmian nodded knowingly. So her nerves weren’t so strong after all.

Just last night’s incident, and she didn’t dare come to work!

Ruan Mianmian laughed coldly and looked at Guo Xianchun. "Since she’s not here, you’ll take over her role and host the daily morning meeting."

Guo Xianchun’s eyes lit up with surprise, and he nodded quickly, "Yes! Thank you, Director!"

"Do your best. I see great potential in you," Ruan Mianmian gave him a meaningful look, causing others nearby to gaze at him with envy.

Xiang Jie, hiding behind others, looked helpless. Previously, when Shen Ting was absent, she would host the morning meetings. But since she had helped Shen Ting offend Ruan Mianmian, after Ruan Mianmian became Director, Xiang Jie had to keep a low profile to keep her job.

The office quickly emptied as everyone headed to the meeting room.

Ruan Mianmian strolled leisurely into her own office and dialed the HR department.

Her calls were now handled directly by HR Manager Zhou Miao, so the phone was picked up promptly.

"Good morning, Director. What can I do for you?"

Ruan Mianmian switched on the speaker, placed her phone on the desk, and relaxed into her chair.

"I’d like to hire an assistant. Bring me the resumes of suitable candidates who have applied recently, so I can take a look."

Zhou Miao sounded astonished, "Director, you need an assistant as well?"