Wife Takes the Reins: The Calm CEO

Chapter 7: Deliberately Making Things Difficult

Inside the run-down rental apartment. “Xiaowan, what do you think we should do? Should we call the police?” Qi Xin'er was still shaken by the ordeal, her voice trembling as she spoke. “Xin'er, it’s okay. I don’t think calling the police would do any good for them, anyway. Besides, they didn’t do anything too extreme. Just make sure to keep your distance from people like that in the future.” Li Xiaowan thought it over carefully. She knew full well that Feng Lingzheng had merely been toying with her. Someone as arrogant and aloof as him would never stoop to doing anything out of line to a lowly nobody like her. However, one thing puzzled her: she seemed to have glimpsed a deep hatred in Feng Lingzheng’s eyes. Could she have misread it? “That’s true, Xiaowan. I’ve come to terms with it. Let’s just treat everything that’s happened these past two days as a bad dream. Once tonight is over, it’ll be a brand-new day. Let’s do our best together and strive for a better tomorrow.” Qi Xin'er was, after all, a person of deep feeling. “That’s right. We’ll definitely live our lives to the fullest. Let’s just let those annoying people blow away with the wind!” Li Xiaowan was also slowly beginning to let go. “Xin'er, starting tomorrow, let’s get up early and go for a run!” Li Xiaowan continued, not even knowing what had come over her—she’d never been one for exercise before. “Whoa! Xiaowan, do you have a fever? Or is the Sun rising in the west?” Qi Xin'er really wondered if she was hearing things. “I’m serious. Just tell me—will you run with me? Come on, dear!” Li Xiaowan said in a playful, pleading tone. “Ugh! I’ve got goosebumps all over. Sorry, dear, but you know as well as I do—I just can’t get up that early,” Qi Xin'er said helplessly. “Okay, I won’t force you. After our run, I’ll pick up breakfast on my way back. From now on, I’ll take care of breakfast!” Li Xiaowan said earnestly. “Okay, Xiaowan, I love you.” Qi Xin'er danced around happily, putting on a convincing act. With her back to Li Xiaowan, she dabbed a bit of saliva on her finger, casually smeared it on the corner of her eye, then turned to face Li Xiaowan and said, “Xiaowan, look—I’m so moved by your heartwarming breakfast that I’m crying.” “Get away from me—don’t get your drool on me!” Li Xiaowan said, feigning disgust. Naturally, the two got into another pillow fight. Fortunately, the building was old and no one lived above or below them; otherwise, they would surely have been reported for disturbing the neighbors. Perhaps because they’d played too wildly and were too exhausted, they both fell fast asleep without even eating dinner. At 5:30 a. m. , Li Xiaowan woke up on her own. True to her word, she quickly freshened up and headed straight out the door. She ran a long loop through the residential neighborhood. Since it was still quite cold, many people were still fast asleep and reluctant to wake up, so the streets were bustling with pedestrians and vehicles—exactly what Li Xiaowan had hoped for. She listened to music as she ran and didn’t feel particularly tired. Afterward, Li Xiaowan and Qi Xin'er left the house right on time at 6:40 a. m. to catch the bus. There was a bus that departed at 6:50 a. m. , and most importantly, it passed right by the Company building. That’s why they had to leave at this exact time every day; otherwise, if they missed it, they would definitely be late by the time the next bus arrived. “Good morning, everyone!” Li Xiaowan had just finished mopping the floor in the director’s office when she saw many colleagues from the administrative department arriving for work one after another. She greeted them warmly, but was met with looks of disdain. “Look at how tacky she is—and that Qi Xin'er who joined the Company with her. She paints her face like an opera actress all day long; I wonder who she’s trying to seduce,” whispered a colleague named Xiao Mei into the ear of another colleague named Zhenzhen. “Yeah, Qi Xin'er’s actually the better of the two, but she’s always buzzing around the office like a fly. And look at Li Xiaowan—I doubt anyone would take the bait even if she tried to seduce them. I wonder if the Human Resources Office was blind to hire these two ‘gems.’ ”” Zhenzhen said, looking at Xiao Mei. Afterward, she couldn’t resist glancing twice in the direction where Li Xiaowan was standing, her face full of disdain. Whether they meant for Li Xiaowan to hear it or not, she heard every word clearly. She’d wanted to rush over and defend herself, but then thought, “I’d better just let it go! People have a right to say whatever they want!” But to her surprise, they only went even further, getting more and more carried away as they spoke. and in an instant, several more people gathered around. The crowd chattered away, generally claiming that she and Qi Xin'er had poor academic credentials and lacked ability. They even resorted to personal attacks—leaving her aside, they went so far as to say that Qi Xin'er must have used her looks to seduce Director Xu, and was only recruited as an exception after sleeping with him. Everyone knew that although Director Xu was extremely capable at his job, he was also quite a womanizer. Even in a multinational Company, as long as someone isn’t caught red-handed, they wouldn’t be disciplined lightly—especially since everyone was just gossiping about Director Xu behind his back. But Li Xiaowan couldn’t understand why they were dragging Qi Xin'er into it. She simply couldn’t take it anymore, and since she couldn’t take it anymore, there was no need to put up with it any longer. Li Xiaowan wasn’t the type to take things lying down. If Qi Xin'er hadn’t gone to deliver documents early that morning, she probably would have already gotten into a huge argument with them. “Are you done yet?” Li Xiaowan said loudly, then ignored the glares from the others and walked straight up to them. “Oh my, look at that—someone’s getting flustered. Does it really matter to you whether we’re done talking or not?” Zhenzhen crossed her arms over her chest and asked defiantly. “What right do you have to talk about me and my friend? We were both hired through formal assessments—it’s nothing as sleazy as you’re making it out to be! Besides, Director Xu is the Director of Sales; we rarely even get to see him. What you’re saying is completely baseless and utterly outrageous!” Li Xiaowan raised her voice. “Is that so? Well, we’ll never know for sure, right, Xiao Mei?” Zhenzhen completely ignored what Li Xiaowan had said. “Exactly! This kind of thing is definitely done on the sly behind closed doors. Who would ever admit to it openly? And transferring the two of you to the Administration Department might just be a cover-up,” Xiao Mei said, immediately catching on to the look Zhenzhen gave her. “Xiao Mei, your analysis is spot-on. Maybe in another two months, someone’s belly will start to show, and then everyone will see right through it. But then again, she might sneak off to the hospital to get rid of it—who knows for sure!” Zhenzhen said, adding fuel to the fire. Smack! A loud slap rang out across Zhenzhen’s face, startling everyone present. Just then, Lin Yuantao, the Director of the Human Resources Department, walked in. He happened to be Zhenzhen’s father’s younger brother—Zhenzhen’s uncle—and was likely there to check on her. Seeing Lin Yuantao enter, Zhenzhen immediately covered half her face and ran over to him, crying out, ““Director Lin, I was just making a couple of comments to Li Xiaowan—saying she only mops the office of our Administration Department Director, not our outer Administrative Office—when she stormed over to me and said the Administrative Office was none of her business. Then, when I casually mentioned I was going to file a complaint against her, she slapped me hard across the face.” After finishing her story, Zhenzhen covered her face and burst into tears, looking utterly wronged. Xiao Mei, who had been echoing Zhenzhen’s words moments earlier, as well as the few others standing by watching the spectacle, were all well aware of the relationship between Zhenzhen and Lin Yuantao. Naturally, they wouldn’t—and didn’t dare—say much. Besides, they already disliked Li Xiaowan; who would want to take her side anyway? “Li Xiaowan, is what Lin Zhenzhen said true? Although the Administration Department isn’t under my direct supervision, I will not tolerate such misconduct within the Company, nor will I allow it to spread,” Lin Yuantao said sternly. “Director Lin, things aren’t exactly as she described them. They were the ones who started talking about me and Qi Xin'er first. I only lashed out because I’d had enough—and I admit it was wrong of me to do so.” Li Xiaowan would never hide the mistakes she knew she’d made, but she also wouldn’t let anyone frame her for something she didn’t do. “Tell me, what exactly happened?” Lin Yuantao completely ignored Li Xiaowan’s defense and turned the question to the others. Naturally, without exception, they all sided with Lin Zhenzhen. “All right, everyone’s accounts match. Li Xiaowan, do you have anything else to say?” Lin Yuantao was quite satisfied with the others’ responses. Anyone who dared to upset his own niece would have to expect him to show no mercy. “Director Lin, your behavior amounts to confusing right and wrong and aiding the wicked. Isn’t there surveillance in the office? Let the facts captured on camera speak for themselves.” Li Xiaowan was now in a position where she couldn’t defend herself, but fortunately, in her desperation, she thought of the surveillance footage and could only pin her last hope on it. However, to her surprise, the surveillance had already been turned off by someone with ulterior motives the moment they entered the office to discuss the matter. Such was the cruel reality of the office survival struggle. “Since there’s no video evidence, we’ll rely on witness testimony. Li Xiaowan, if even one of them had contradicted Lin Zhenzhen’s account earlier, I wouldn’t have believed them—but they’re all saying the same thing. At this point, do you still think everyone is wronging you?” Lin Yuantao said expressionlessly. Li Xiaowan retorted just as defiantly, “Director Lin, I’ll admit to what I’ve done, but I absolutely refuse to admit to anything I haven’t done.” “Fine, very well! In that case, you’re on your own!” Lin Yuantao paid no further attention to Li Xiaowan’s defense, walked straight out of the Administrative Office, returned to his own office, and dialed the phone on his desk. Li Xiaowan stood in front of the printer, a sense of foreboding weighing on her heart. She feared the outcome would likely be dire, but she was prepared to face whatever came her way. No matter what, she would never let anyone force a false accusation onto her. Even if she was at fault for hitting someone, any punishment she received had to be fair and transparent. “Xiaowan, what on earth happened? I was only gone for a moment, but when I came back, I heard a lot of people whispering about you,” Qi Xin'er said as she rushed over in a fluster. “Did you finish delivering the documents? It’s fine—let them gossip all they want!” Li Xiaowan said, her face betraying not a trace of distress. “Xiaowan, how can you still be so calm? Hurry up and tell me what happened. I know you must be wrongly accused—they’ve had it in for the two of us for a long time,” Qi Xin'er said urgently. “Xin'er, it’s really nothing! Go back to work. And if I get fired because of this, you have to keep doing your job well—it’s really not easy to find a job like this,” Li Xiaowan reminded her. “Xiaowan, what are you saying! If you really get fired, I’ll quit too,” Qi Xin'er said excitedly. “Xin'er, don’t do anything foolish. Don’t worry—even if I get fired, I’ll do everything in my power to make sure they understand exactly why I was let go,” Li Xiaowan said with unwavering determination. What the two of them didn’t know was that just outside the print room, someone was quietly eavesdropping. All morning, Li Xiaowan had been diligently working on the task the director had assigned her before leaving. Even though the director was on leave, she couldn’t afford to be careless. The morning passed quickly, and everything remained calm. In the employee cafeteria.