Gu Boyun put down the chess piece and leaned back in his armchair. "Xiao Yan, how about we stop playing?"
Gu Yan nodded silently.
The chessboard was a mess. Gu Yan would occasionally use her horse to capture Gu Boyun's king, and Gu Boyun would defend against it with a mix of amusement and exasperation.
"Tell Dad, what trouble has your sister given you this time?" His youngest daughter, though somewhat lonely with her mother, had never suffered any hardship. After coming to live with him, the family was harmonious and happy. Later, when she was with Liang Feifan, she was even more unruly, and no one dared to give her the slightest bit of trouble. Apart from Gu Mingzhu, probably no one dared to mess with her.
“You’re doing great, sister,” Gu Yan said, nestled in the armchair. “I just joined the company and there’s a lot to learn. I’m not used to it yet, but it’s okay.”
Gu Boyun could tell from her listless appearance that it wasn't as easy as she made it sound. "Don't listen to your sister in everything. If you don't want to stay at the company, then don't. Go out and wander around, find something you're interested in doing."
Gu Yan sighed, "Dad, how can a person do whatever they want!"
She laughed at herself after saying that. It seemed like she had always done whatever she wanted, but now that things weren't going her way, her father had to come and comfort her.
Her feigned mature sigh made Gu Boyun laugh heartily.
In the courtyard, where flowers bloomed and willows swayed, a kind, white-haired old man and a languidly beautiful young woman sat facing each other, tea in hand, a game of chess at hand, chatting happily. Gu Mingzhu stood at the door for a long time, unable to bear to go over and disrupt this beautiful scene.
"Dad." She walked over anyway. Yes, how can a person do whatever they want?
"Sister—" The person who skipped work lowered their head guiltily.
Gu Mingzhu sighed, "Gu Yan, have you finished reading the tender documents?"
Gu Yan looked up at her face, then at her father, and nodded.
"Then please attend the pre-bid meeting next week, I have something to attend to."
Gu Boyun frowned. "Mingzhu, don't push her too hard. Teach her slowly."
"There's nothing to teach her; she just needs to do whatever I say. I can accept a 20% discount."
Gu Mingzhu shrugged casually and tossed her something, "The keys. The car's right outside; you can drive it from now on. Now go back to the company and discuss tomorrow's bidding meeting process with Jessica and the others. We'll have dinner together tonight."
Gu Yan took the car keys, said goodbye to her father, and left reluctantly.
As soon as she walked away, Gu Boyun's face darkened as he said to Gu Mingzhu, "How much of what I said did you actually listen to?!"
“All of it. But I have no intention of obeying.” Gu Mingzhu set up the chessboard and made the first move. “Dad, this is no longer your world. Gu Yan has grown up and has her own responsibilities to bear.”
After pondering for a while, Gu Boyun finally made a move on the chessboard. "Mingzhu, she is, after all, your sister."
"If she weren't my sister, I wouldn't bother with her at all." Gu Mingzhu's chess style was as decisive and efficient as her personality.
Gu Boyun was cornered by her in just a few moves. He smiled bitterly and threw down the chess piece. He was really getting old. Oh well, his children and grandchildren would have their own blessings.
Gu Mingzhu poured herself a cup of tea, took a relaxed sip, and knew from the start that she was destined to win this game.
Gu Yan couldn't understand the issue they were arguing about at all. She knew Jessica had tried her best to explain it in a simple and easy-to-understand way, but as a liberal arts student, how could she possibly understand these complex calculation formulas and compound interest in just a few months, let alone go to the table to negotiate with others?
"Miss Gu, what do you think?" Lin Yuan stopped the escalating argument between the two groups and asked Gu Yan for her opinion.
Gu Yan secretly groaned, "I think... it would be better if everyone communicated properly and didn't argue... hehe." After saying that, she felt like dying, because the crowd who had just been blushing had turned green after hearing her words.
"Um... how about I treat everyone to lunch, and we can chat while we eat?" She wanted to save face.
The boss is treating us to dinner, which is great, of course. A group of elites sat down at the table, but they were just ordinary people wolfing down their food.
After eating and drinking their fill, everyone had put their earlier animosity behind them. Jessica, burping, started gossiping: "Vice President, are you single now?" They were all privately curious; how come the Vice President, so young, was rumored to be entangled with the president of Liang's Group?
Gu Yan sipped her sweet iced orange juice, her smile exceptionally sweet. "Yes, I was dumped by a jerk last week."
A group of people, disregarding the fact that they were in the hall, started clapping loudly.
Lin Yuan led the cheers: "Miss Gu, thank goodness that bastard had no taste; he's brought good fortune to everyone!"
Gu Yan watched them clink glasses, as if it were truly something to celebrate. The sadness of the past two days seemed to have lessened a bit. Saying it like this, half-jokingly and half-seriously, made her realize that it wasn't such a big deal after all.
However, I really was dumped by that bastard Liang Feifan.
LA, the only foreigner in the team, wasn't very fluent in Chinese. He pulled the person next to him aside and asked what Gu had said that made them so happy. After the explanation, his blue eyes immediately filled with tears of excitement. He stood up, cleared his throat, and raised his glass to Gu Yan with dramatic intonation, "Gu! Can I pursue you now?"
Everyone egged her on, and Gu Yan joined in the joke, deliberately putting on a serious face: "LA, Web International English doesn't allow office romances. If you pursue me, I'll fire you!"
LA was stunned, and after a moment muttered in a perfect Beijing accent, "What's going on here?"
Another burst of laughter followed, and the atmosphere at the table became completely harmonious and joyful.
Imperceptibly, Gu Yan sighed. She was truly exhausted...
We're going to the Liang family's place today.
Gu Yan got up early, washed up and changed her clothes, but then felt that the suit she had been choosing for a long time last night was not dignified enough, so she immediately took it off, put on her underwear, and ran next door to knock on Gu Mingzhu's door.
"What's wrong with you! What time is it?!" Gu Mingzhu's morning grumpiness was extremely severe.
Gu Yan stuck out her tongue and followed her sister into the room, opening the wardrobe to pick out clothes.
When Gu Mingzhu came out of the bathroom, her wardrobe had been ransacked. Gu Yan was holding three sets of clothes and trying them on in front of the mirror.
Gu Mingzhu rolled her eyes, walked over, grabbed a random set of clothes, and changed into them.
"The white one," she suggested to Gu Yan.
Gu Yan tossed the other two outfits onto the dressing table, picked up the white one and started changing, asking as she did so, "Hmm, but I think the black one is more formal."
"Who wants to see you being dignified?" Gu Mingzhu coldly retorted, tossed her hair, and went downstairs.
Gu Yan dared not speak her anger and watched her leave.
Upon entering the conference room, Gu Yan breathed a sigh of relief. She had thought she would have to face Liang Feifan today, but thankfully, Rong Yan was the one presiding over the meeting.
Wei Bo arrived last. By the time Gu Yan came in, everyone was already in their places, even the meeting host was sitting upright in his seat.
Upon seeing her enter, Rong Yan instinctively stood up to greet her. Several CEOs sitting around him looked at him in surprise before he realized what was happening. He coughed awkwardly and sat down.
Servility! Rong Yan wept inwardly. Why did his legs tremble just seeing this woman?
Gu Yan found it strange to see everyone in the room staring at her. They had agreed to start at 9:30, but it was only 9:20. Why were they all glaring at her?
Jessica whispered a reminder to her to apologize.
Jessica was Gu Mingzhu's special assistant, sent specifically to teach Gu Yan. Her words were equivalent to Gu Mingzhu's imperial edict.
"I'm sorry I'm late," Gu Yan apologized to everyone with a smile.
Huang Yi, the CEO of Yaolin, gave a cold snort. Immediately, some sycophants from smaller companies understood and shouted in a strange voice, "It's okay, Web International English is a big company, it's only right that we wait."
This put Rong Yan in an awkward position. If he didn't react, he would lose face for the Liang family, but if he had to teach Gu Yan a lesson, wouldn't that be too difficult for him?
He once again wept silently, cursing Chen Yubai a hundred times over.
"Please take your seats," he said indifferently. He reminded himself not to stand up and pull out a chair for Gu Yan—such servility…
What's there to discuss at a conference? It's all just self-promotion, with everyone boasting that their company could build houses on the moon without any problems.
When it was Gu Yan's turn, she walked to the projector and explained Web International English's advantages and its determination to bid based on the image data.
She didn't understand these things, but she memorized them and gave a fluent explanation. As she stepped off the stage, Jessica secretly gave her a thumbs-up, and she calmly smiled slightly, even though her back was sweating.
It would take a whole day to visit more than a dozen companies. At noon, Rong Yan called a halt, saying that the Liang family would treat everyone to a simple meal.
People from various families who were acquainted with Rong Yan came over to curry favor, saying, "How could we let Young Master Rong spend money? Of course, we'll treat you to lunch!"
With a chorus of agreement, Rong Yan reluctantly agreed. After all, this kind of bidding wasn't just about comparing the hardware of each company. They could all build houses, and if they were evenly matched, it was ultimately up to him, the Second Young Master Rong, to decide. Who else would they flatter if not him?
Upon entering the hotel, each company's CEO sat in a private room, while their subordinates sat in the lobby.
Jessica grabbed Gu Yan with some concern and gave him a few instructions about who didn't get along with Weber and who liked to team up with others. Gu Yan patted her hand to comfort her: "Don't worry, I can handle it."
Jessica forced a smile. Gu Mingzhu described Gu Yan to her as follows: average intelligence, low emotional intelligence, willful, ignorant, and a spoiled little girl.
Seeing that he seemed to be deep in thought, Gu Yan didn't mind, tidied her hair, and went inside.
Rong Yan and Huang Yi were joking and looking at the menu when they saw Gu Yan come in. They subconsciously stopped laughing and asked her almost respectfully, "What would you like to eat, Ms. Gu?"
The other executives exchanged glances.
"Whatever." Gu Yanyun replied casually and matter-of-factly.
Rong Yan quickly ordered a menu, focusing on light dishes. When it came to drinks, he faced a dilemma. Sister Yan didn't drink, but with so many people at the table, it wouldn't be right not to serve her drinks. What if they offered her drinks? If she actually drank, his older brother would probably skin him alive when they got home…
"Third brother! I hate you!" He cursed in his heart as Chen Yubai took his wife to the south to live a carefree life.
Rong Yan pondered for a moment, then handed the wine list to Mr. Li next to him, saying, "I'm not drinking today, just give me some juice or something. You all can do as you please."
However, since Young Master Rong doesn't drink, how dare they act casually?
So, all the men at the table started drinking the colorful fruit juices.
These are all seasoned business veterans, so they naturally noticed Rong Yan's repeated loss of composure today. Coupled with the recent rumors about this Miss Gu and the president of Liang's Group, they were all worried. If it were true, what good would be the bidding process? They might as well just give it to Wei Bo.
Just as everyone was enjoying their meal, someone couldn't contain themselves any longer and raised their cute orange juice glass to toast Gu Yan from afar, saying, "Miss Gu, you're so young! I heard you only recently joined Web International English?"
Gu Yan returned his toast, took a sip, and then slowly replied, "It's not about joining the franchise. I'm a member of the Gu family, so it's only right that I go back to help."
"For such a large project, President Gu is willing to entrust a novice like you with it. It truly shows that the younger generation is surpassing the older." Huang Yi interjected.
Gu Yan had heard of Huang Yi's name for a long time. Huang Yi and the Liang family were also very close. He and Gu Mingzhu had always been locked in a fierce battle. Gu Mingzhu would grit her teeth whenever she mentioned him.
Gu Yan remained calm and asked him in return, "So, Mr. Huang is from the older generation?"
Then you might as well die on the beach!
Huang Yi was caught off guard by Gu Yan's sudden attack and was dumbfounded. Seeing that everyone else was secretly laughing, he was annoyed, but he couldn't really hold a grudge against a girl. He couldn't help but remember this.
Rong Yan lowered his head while eating, secretly laughing at Huang Yi for overestimating himself. Huang Yi was the kind of person who could make Liang's extraordinary president furious. How dare you, a little guy, run into the line of fire?
childish
The meeting continued in the afternoon. Gu Yan tried to stay alert, listening to and watching things that she wasn't interested in at all. She would drift off from time to time, but then quickly bring herself back to reality and doodle in her notebook.
By the time it finally ended, it was already dark.
Huang Yi and the others insisted that Rong Yan go to dinner with them, but Gu Yan was really nauseous about lunch and felt dizzy, so she asked Jessica if she could skip it. Jessica knew that she was exhausted today, so she asked Lin Yuan to go in her place and let her go.
Gu Yan breathed a sigh of relief and pressed the elevator button to go down and get her car.
It was past closing time, and the elevator was empty. Gu Yan pressed the button and leaned against the elevator wall, closing her eyes to rest. She hated science subjects when she was in school; even hearing about them would make her impatient. Now, being forced to deal with these digital designs was truly exhausting.
But after a busy day like this, she gradually felt a sense of fulfillment in her life. Before, when she had nothing to do every day, time seemed to stand still. Now, she truly felt that she was a twenty-six-year-old woman, that youth was fleeting and time was long.
Gu Yan was thinking about trivial matters when she suddenly felt something was off. Why hadn't the elevator arrived yet? It seemed to be going up instead. She opened her eyes and saw that it really was going up.