Just as Hua Zheng was complaining, Wen Tang happened to walk in from outside.
As for why Wen Tang was so angry, it was simply because of that exposé post that appeared online. She had deliberately cultivated an image of herself as a conscientious journalist, but it collapsed in less than a day.
Not to mention the merciless ridicule from netizens online, even many of her colleagues at the newspaper were laughing at her.
After all, although Wen Tang was arrogant and high-profile in the past, he still had some strength and his abilities were indeed strong among the reporters in the newspaper.
But this time she stole Ni Jingxi's credit. Others may not know, but don't the people in the newspaper know?
Her colleague had just had an accident, and she couldn't wait to pick fruit; that's quite despicable.
Everyone who saw it felt disheartened and disgusted.
Wen Tang glanced at Ni Jingxi, her eyes sweeping over her face. She had previously asked Lao Zhang and heard that Ni Jingxi's injuries were serious. Originally, she had even thought that it would be so serious that Ni Jingxi would never be able to return to the newspaper again.
Now, not only has the person returned, but they also seem to be fine.
She snorted coldly and swayed back to her desk.
Hua Zheng leaned closer to Ni Jingxi and whispered, "Jingxi, you need to be careful. Wen Tang actually told others that you were deliberately smearing her in that exposé post."
When Wen Tang saw that post, she was so angry that she almost fainted.
Even though she kept complaining and contacting the other party via private message, she received no response. Moreover, since the other party neither spread rumors nor used insults, the post simply couldn't be deleted.
It's still online now.
Wen Tang naturally assumed that Ni Jingxi was deliberately setting her up behind her back, since Ni Jingxi was the one who benefited the most from this.
As for Ni Jingxi, she didn't feel slandered at all when she heard what Hua Zheng said.
Because this was indeed something Huo Shenyan ordered someone to do, what difference is there between what he ordered someone to do and what she did?
If Wen Tang really asked her, Ni Jingxi really wouldn't deny it.
A short while later, the editor-in-chief convened a meeting. This time, it wasn't a group meeting, but a large meeting held in the newspaper's largest conference room. The quarterly summary and awards ceremony hadn't been held since the end of the previous quarter.
Who knew that Ni Jingxi would open the car as soon as she returned.
On the way there, Hua Zheng asked in a low voice, "You said the editor-in-chief hadn't mentioned the meeting before, but you called a meeting as soon as you got back. You're not going to win the Outstanding Employee Award this season, are you?"
The newspaper holds an awards ceremony every quarter, and most employees receive an encouragement award at most.
However, this outstanding employee award is the grand prize, which is awarded to reporters who have made outstanding contributions in the quarter.
The reason Wen Tang was so arrogant at the newspaper was simply because she had won this award for four consecutive quarters, which was a real reward.
Given the large number of long-time employees at the newspaper, her continued success is indeed related to her own abilities.
The sudden meeting at this moment inevitably makes people think of Ni Jingxi.
In the workplace, no one is a fool.
Even Wen Tang seemed a little uneasy. She had defeated her seniors to get this reward and then won it for four consecutive quarters, making her the most popular person around.
If Ni Jingxi gets it this time...
So the meeting went on in a daze, until the final award ceremony.
Everyone suddenly perked up.
There were also small awards, such as the Model Worker Award for not being late or leaving early for three consecutive months without taking any sick leave or personal leave, and the Outstanding Progress Award.
The amount of money wasn't actually that much; it was just a form of encouragement.
The person who received the award was still very happy.
Hua Zheng received an award for outstanding progress. When she received it, she said excitedly, "Lord Ni, I'll treat you to crayfish tonight!"
Towards the end, everyone felt like they were holding their breath.
Everyone's eyes were fixed on the editor-in-chief; even the editor-in-chief could feel that this was the first time everyone in his meeting had been so focused.
Until the editor-in-chief smiled and said, "Now let's congratulate..."
Everyone was on tenterhooks, but the editor-in-chief actually paused, as if he thought he was doing a TV program.
Fortunately, he gave his name the next second.
"Ni Jingxi".
Immediately, thunderous applause filled the huge conference room, creating a sense of a change of dynasty, with the old forces being overthrown and a new force rising.
Everyone was quite into their roles.
*
After Ni Jingxi received the bonus, no one in her group made a fuss, but people from other groups asked her to treat them to a meal.
Ni Jingxi naturally nodded in agreement, but Old Zhang stepped forward and said, "Aren't you guys being shameless? This young lady worked so hard to earn such a small bonus. She'll treat you all to a meal later. Don't make sure it's not enough and you have to make up the difference yourself."
Old Zhang is very sympathetic to the people in his own group.
However, Ni Jingxi didn't mind and said she could treat everyone. Those who had been egging her on felt embarrassed.
In the end, Ni Jingxi decided to use the money, even though it was only eight thousand. But the moment she received it, she had already decided how to use it.
When she got home that evening, Huo Shenyan still hadn't returned.
She carried the things she had bought and wandered around the room several times, wondering whether it was better to put them on the bedside table so he would find them by chance, or to put them under the covers so he could see them as soon as he lifted them.
After thinking about it for a long time, she decided to keep it by her side.
Perhaps because she especially hoped that Huo Shenyan would come back early tonight, she didn't hear the door open until after 11 p.m.
When Huo Shenyan, looking exhausted, pushed open the door, he saw that the bedside lamp was still on. He glanced at the person sitting on the bed and said gently, "Why aren't you asleep yet? Are you waiting for me?"
“Mm.” Ni Jingxi nodded.
Huo Shenyan had a banquet today, so he still smelled a bit of alcohol. Although no one would dare to force him to drink, it wouldn't be polite to refuse if someone offered him a drink.
Huo Shenyan: "I'm going to take a shower outside first."
He didn't even go into the room, afraid of bringing the smell of alcohol back with him.
But Ni Jingxi suddenly panicked, turned over and knelt up from under the covers, and shouted, "Come here first."
Huo Shenyan turned his head, his dark eyes filled with a thin layer of red blood vessels, a truly heartbreaking sight. Ni Jingxi glanced at him and said, "Come over here first."
She reached out and patted the edge of the bed.
Huo Shenyan smiled, and walked over in a good-natured manner, sitting down on the edge of the bed and looking at her leisurely: "What's wrong?"
Ni Jingxi didn't feel embarrassed when she bought it, but now that she has to give it to him, she has an indescribable feeling.
However, she hesitated for only a second before taking out a red box from behind her.
“I got a bonus from the newspaper today, so I bought this…” Ni Jingxi opened the box with a crisp click, and Huo Shenyan’s eyes fell into the box.
These are a pair of plain white platinum rings, without any decoration.
It's a pair of wedding rings from a major brand.
Huo Shenyan stared at the ring for a long time, remaining silent.
Instead, Ni Jingxi bit her lip and explained, "The rings you bought me before were all too expensive, and they weren't suitable for wearing to work. So this time when I got my bonus, I wanted to buy us a pair of matching rings, the kind that we can wear every day."
Indeed, the ring Huo Shenyan bought was either bad or too expensive.
She can't just wear a ring worth millions on her hand like that.
Suddenly, Ni Jingxi thought of Huo Shenyan's identity. His every move would be watched by the media. If he suddenly wore a wedding ring, would it attract attention?
She considered herself a pretty smart person, but it seemed that she always did some stupid things when she was with him.
She was about to put the ring box back when Huo Shenyan suddenly pressed it down. He looked up at her and said, "If it wasn't bought for me, why aren't you putting it on me?"
His voice sounded unusually strained.
Ni Jingxi blinked, but the next second she seriously picked up the ring and slowly put it on his finger.
Reliving the ceremony I had done in church before still makes my heart feel like it's going to jump out of my mouth.
The thumping sounds never stopped.
Just as Ni Jingxi put the ring on his finger, Huo Shenyan reached out and picked up the other women's ring, slowly slipping it onto her long, slender, white finger.
After putting it on, he looked down and said in a very low voice, "This time, no one is allowed to take it off."
*
The next day, Tang Mian came to pick up Huo Shenyan for work. Ni Jingxi had already driven away from home, so when Tang Mian arrived, only Huo Shenyan was at the villa entrance.
After Tang Mian got out of the car and opened the door for him, the man, who was supposed to bend down and get in, suddenly put his hand on the car door and asked, "What's the itinerary for today?"
Tang Mian was taken aback. Huo Shenyan would occasionally ask about the itinerary, but it was always in the car.
It wasn't until he looked down and noticed the plain white ring on his ring finger that he realized Huo Shenyan was familiar with Huo Shenyan's usual attire. Tang Mian, who was by his side every day, had never seen this ring before this morning.
So he cautiously asked, "Mr. Huo, your ring?"
Huo Shenyan glanced down at the ring on his finger and finally smiled: "Oh, Jingxi bought it for me specially. It's a pair with hers."
Author's Note:
Shenyan: My wife bought it for me [specially]. I'm absolutely not showing off.
Tang Mian: ?
Jingxi really surprised everyone this time, it's what you all wanted to see...
Chapter 38
After Ni Jingxi arrived at the company, she had just clocked in and walked to her desk when the receptionist came to find her, saying that another concerned citizen had called the front desk wanting to speak with her.
The DaDiKang incident has yielded initial results, with sixteen senior executives of the company being detained.
Not only Dadikang, but many health product companies have also begun to undergo rectification.
As a result, Ni Jingxi's popularity remained high, and many people would send her tips through the newspaper's official Weibo account or hotline. However, since Ni Jingxi wasn't at the newspaper office before, many of the tips were taken over by other reporters.
Even the editor-in-chief praised the newspaper, saying that it had lost its previous stagnant atmosphere and instead had been infused with fresh vitality.
Although no one praised Ni Jingxi, everyone knew that this change was brought about by Ni Jingxi.