The warmed milk was placed on the table, the fried eggs and bacon were neatly arranged on a plate, and even the toast had its crusts cut off. Shu Yi'an hurriedly ran upstairs to get her bag, and seeing Chu Mu still fast asleep, she couldn't help but angrily kick him.
"Hmm..." Chu Mu turned over, his gaze a little unfocused from just waking up. "Where are you going, all dressed up like this?"
Shu Yi'an knew that this guy had forgotten about her going to work. "I'm going to work. I've made breakfast and put it on the table downstairs. Remember to eat it."
Chu Mu gave a lazy reply, then looked up and asked, "Have you had breakfast?" Shu Yi'an only realized at his question that she had been so focused on making his portion that she had forgotten she hadn't eaten. "I forgot..."
Chu Mu knew she would do this. He turned his head and loosely draped the blanket around his waist. The curve of his back looked very sexy in the sunlight. His voice sounded husky and pleasant in the morning, "Go and eat. I'm not hungry."
Shu Yi'an shoved the keys, mirror, and lipstick from the dressing table into her bag, then kicked him a few times to make sure he didn't have time. "It's seven o'clock, don't oversleep. I'll just buy something on the way. I'm leaving."
Listening to the clattering sounds and the car starting outside the window, Chu Mu opened his eyes and thought for a while before suddenly grinning silently.
The name Shu Yi'an... these three words, filled with endless tenderness, were silently passed through Chu Mu's mind.
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The new company was nearly half an hour's drive from Lake Garden Villa, and with traffic jams, Shu Yi'an rushed and finally arrived at her office floor two minutes before work started. Julie was already standing at the office door with her personnel file, waiting. When she saw Shu Yi'an arrive, she raised her hand and glanced at her watch with some displeasure.
"You're almost late, Ms. Shu. Your sense of time is very precise."
Shu Yi'an realized she had been impolite; she should have arrived earlier on her first day of work. She quickly apologized to Julie, "I'm sorry, it's my fault, the traffic was just too bad."
Julie, clad in her high heels, led her confidently toward the translation team, giving her instructions and reminders. "The translation team consists of six people, including you. I remember your file says you're responsible for document translation, so from today onwards you'll be handling contract translations. Unlike Anya'er, we don't require hand-translation here, unless there are special circumstances I'll have my secretary inform you. The salary and benefits are the same as stated in the contract. I hope you'll work diligently in this new position."
Shu Yi'an followed closely behind Julie, her attitude neither humble nor arrogant. "Okay, I will."
"By the way," Julie suddenly stopped and leaned down slightly to ask her a personal question in a low voice, "Are you married? Do you plan to have children?"
Shu Yi'an knew that such a question was not unreasonable in foreign companies; many companies hired unmarried young people or those who did not plan to have children because they had enough energy and time. However, Shu Yi'an did not intend to hide it, after all, honesty was the best way to maintain a long-term job.
"I'm married. As for the child..." Shu Yi'an silently recalled Mr. Chu's recent nighttime behavior, her face slightly embarrassed. "Let nature take its course, but I have no intention of not having a baby."
Julie looked at Shu Yi'an's youthful face with slight surprise, "You look very young. Your resume says you're only twenty-four. You're married so soon?" Shu Yi'an immediately meowed, thinking to herself, "I got married at twenty-two, okay...?"
“It’s okay.” Julie pursed her lips. “Our company’s boss is different from other foreign companies. She’s also Chinese and a mother. Even if you need to take maternity leave in the future, she will give you leave. Female colleagues have a certain advantage in terms of benefits. The translation team’s office is just ahead. Let’s go in.”
The opening remarks were nothing more than Julie introducing herself and asking for everyone's help, a brief introduction to each other. The older team leader was over 40, with a child preparing for the college entrance exam, and seemed like a particularly meticulous and serious older sister. The other two were both experienced professionals with several years of work experience. One was Zhou Hui, a year older than her, already married, and very easygoing and gentle. The other was Bai Xinyue, three years older than her, who nodded somewhat arrogantly to Shu Yi'an and then remained silent.
Shu Yi'an found her own cubicle and began to familiarize herself with the work. During this time, two male colleagues brought her drinks and snacks and tried to strike up a conversation, but she avoided them with various excuses. Before she knew it, it was lunchtime.
Author's Note:
Chapter 36 Extreme Intelligence Can Lead to Harm
Zhou Hui took Shu Yi'an to lunch in the staff canteen. During the meal, many male colleagues gathered around and showed their concern for the newcomer, sitting down in front of them with their trays.
Zhou Hui tapped her chopsticks on the plate of one of the eager male colleagues, speaking in a thick Beijing accent. "Well, well, our new colleague says she's already taken. All of you, married or single, should just step aside and leave."
"Oh dear, why is our company so inconsiderate of our male colleagues..." A marketing manager slapped his thigh with a regretful expression. "We finally got a nice girl, but she's not single. Otherwise, there's always a vixen like Julie left. Sigh... I'm leaving."
Shu Yi'an felt a little awkward looking at her male colleague who had left looking dejected. Zhou Hui, afraid that she would feel uncomfortable, quickly comforted her. "Don't mind them. They're just fooling around with everyone. They're not bad people, and their character is very good. Let me tell you a funny story. When Julie first joined the company, these clueless guys thought she was a new girl from some department and harassed her a lot during lunch. But when the boss announced at the afternoon meeting that she was the new vice president, the rest of the staff turned green with shock."
Shu Yi'an, imagining Julie's poker-faced expression, couldn't help but burst out laughing. Her squinting, grinning face looked especially adorable. Zhou Hui laughed along with her, "Newcomers always need a few days to adjust, right? The work atmosphere in our company is quite relaxed. By the way, I heard you switched jobs from Anya'er?"
Job hopping? Shu Yi'an wasn't sure if she had changed jobs, so she could only nod ambiguously, "I guess... I guess so."
Although Zhou Hui was slightly older than Shu Yi'an, her gossipy nature in the cubicle remained unchanged. She mysteriously peeked out and told Shu Yi'an some secrets that weren't exactly secrets in any company. "Let me tell you," she said, "Julie jumped ship from Anya'er. Apparently, she couldn't stand the CEO's insane demands there, so the boss here really values her. He says Anya'er's employees are very capable. Maybe you two are kindred spirits, and she'll take better care of you in the future."
Shu Yi'an hadn't expected that Julie had previously worked for the same company as her. According to Zhou Hui, Julie should both be under Xiao Ke's jurisdiction...
"It's not that I need to be extra considerate of you, I just hope you won't cause me any trouble."
During lunch, Zhou Hui told Shu Yi'an a lot of gossip. In the afternoon, while organizing documents, Shu Yi'an kept thinking about the company secrets Zhou Hui had told her, occasionally tapping on the keyboard and imagining the scenarios she described. Time flew by. Before she knew it, it was 4:30, time to leave work on time.
The team leader had to leave work early, and Zhou Hui was in a hurry to catch the subway. After learning that Shu Yi'an was not going the same way as her, she packed up and left with others. Bai Xinyue also said goodbye to Shu Yi'an in a less than enthusiastic manner and then left with a male colleague from the same team. In the end, Shu Yi'an was left alone.
She quickly tidied her desk, turned off the lights, and made sure everything was in order before heading towards the elevator. She greeted several colleagues with nods and smiles along the way. Just as she was about to enter the elevator, her phone beeped twice. The words "Chu Daguai" flashed on the screen.
"Are you off work yet?"
As Shu Yi'an entered the elevator and took advantage of the descent to secretly smile and reply to someone's text message: "On my way home."
She remembered a long time ago, when she was still working at Anyaer Group, he sent her a message out of the blue, with the same content and tone, but it resulted in her walking back from the platform to work overtime for a full hour. Just because he suddenly decided to pick her up from get off work that day.
"I'm not coming home for dinner tonight. Go to bed early and don't wait up for me."
"Drink less alcohol, eat more food, there's no late-night snack at home~"
Chu Mu has a bad habit: every time he comes home after a social engagement, he says he's hungry. Around one or two in the morning, when Shu Yi'an is sound asleep, he wakes her up to make her a midnight snack. Sometimes, when she's really sleepy, Shu Yi'an closes her eyes tightly, pretending not to hear. Chu Mu, however, isn't in a hurry. He slowly unbuckles his belt, deliberately making a loud, drawn-out sound. Then comes the rustling of him unbuttoning his shirt. Usually, at this point, Miss Shu jumps out of bed to make him something to eat, afraid that he might suddenly become a beast, which would be more than just a simple meal…
Sitting in the car, Chu Mu's lips curled into a slight smile as he quickly typed four words: "With you, everything is fine."
"That's killing two birds with one stone!" Shu Yi'an blushed as she looked at his blatant lewdness, replying to his messages as she walked out, so focused that she didn't even notice the flashy car parked outside the company gate.
In less than a minute, Julie, dressed in a crisp white shirt and black wide-leg trousers, carrying a classic seashell bag, emerged from the office building and dazzlingly got into the eye-catching car. The driver's eyes remained fixed on the slender figure, completely oblivious to the opening of the car door and the beautiful woman sitting in the passenger seat.
Julie followed his gaze and saw Shu Yi'an with a smile on his lips and gentle eyes.
Xiao Ke watched her intently as she emerged from the building, diligently replying to messages; watched her smilingly get into her car and start the engine; watched her skillfully steer the car home; watching a Shu Yi'an he had never met before, his eyes darkened. Julie smiled knowingly, a hint of bitterness on her lips, but when she spoke again, it was devoid of emotion, even tinged with mockery.
"Senior brother, you invited me to dinner today, but I'm afraid your real intentions are not what they seem."
Xiao Ke snapped out of his reverie, subtly concealing the emotions in his eyes, and reverting to his usual aloof and indifferent demeanor. "It's been so long since I've seen you. Let me treat you to a meal. What? You don't want to?"