Chapter 14

On Thursday morning, there was a morning meeting. On the way to the conference room, they passed by the director’s office.

“Morning, President Yu.”

“Morning, Director.”

Suddenly hearing the people ahead greeting in unison, Fang Nianchen slowly raised her head, just in time to see Yu Wan coming out of the office.

Her right hand holding a laptop, the hazy blue suit sharp and professional, standing out conspicuously among the crowd in short sleeves.

Yu Wan nodded slightly. “Morning.”

It seemed because they saw her, the people who had been chatting in small groups all fell silent, walking quietly toward the conference room like a procession of a hundred ghosts at night.

Once inside the conference room with the door closed, the suffocating atmosphere grew even thicker. Fang Nianchen sat in a chair at the back of the crowd, at an angle directly facing Yu Wan.

She silently watched Yu Wan, but Yu Wan was focused on organizing her documents, oblivious, not even glancing her way once.

She didn’t seem any different. Fang Nianchen forced herself not to think about what Qiao Yan had said that day.

“The new employee training plan should have been on my desk this morning. Where is it?” Yu Wan cut straight to the chase without mincing words. Though polite in phrasing, her tone was so cold and harsh that everyone in the room drew in a sharp breath.

The group leader in charge of drafting the plan hurriedly stood up. “It’s done, but I haven’t had time to print it yet. Right away…”

“Send it to my email now.” Yu Wan’s tone brooked no argument.

The group leader glanced at Yu Wan, panic on her face, but she gritted her teeth and agreed. “Okay.”

Unexpectedly, Yu Wan opened it right there in front of everyone, projecting it onto the conference room screen, every punctuation mark in the plan crystal clear.

Yu Wan skimmed through it quickly, flipping straight to the last page. Seeing the budget section at the end left blank, her mouse cursor hovered over the empty field.

She stared silently at the Group One Leader, her expression darkening with every blink of the cursor.

“Planning to leave it for me to fill in myself, are you?” Yu Wan’s tone was even more severe than usual, as if suppressing her anger, each word sharp-edged.

“Sorry, President Yu, it was just a little bit left. I’ll definitely get it to you this morning.” The Group One Leader’s face flushed red, mortified by the public scolding.

“Decide for yourself.” Yu Wan said lightly, switching the screen to another page.

The half-hour morning meeting ended, and half the attendees filed out looking ashen-faced.

After Director Yu’s “reckoning,” no one was in a good mood. Hearing her point out every single flaw in their work one by one had everyone on edge.

Of course, amid the fear, they couldn’t help but marvel: How did she have time for all this? Reviewing every submitted file so meticulously?

Work officially started at 9:30. After the meeting, Fang Nianchen went to the break room to brew a cup of coffee. When she returned, there was a breakfast box on her desk.

“What’s this?” Fang Nianchen didn’t dare touch it.

“Director Yu got breakfast for everyone.” Qiao Yan, having experienced Yu Wan’s prowess on her first day, was working with 100% more focus. Lucky not to get called out, she was suddenly in high spirits. “These leaders really know how to control people—slap on one side, offer a date on the other. Leaves you fuming but unable to vent.”

Fang Nianchen thought Qiao Yan was being sarcastic and shot back, “Then why are you eating it so happily?”

“She didn’t scold me, so my impression of President Yu is pretty good now.” Qiao Yan was pragmatic; Yu Wan being stern didn’t stop her from seeing her as a normal leader.

At least the issues Yu Wan pointed out always seemed reasonable to her, not nitpicking. And that time Yu Bodhisattva spoke up for her and Fang Nianchen—the merits outweighed the flaws.

Fang Nianchen quietly opened the box. Her breakfast was a sandwich, specially noted on the box: “No tomatoes.”

Holding the sandwich, she asked, “Was this distributed randomly?”

“I guess so? I didn’t see, it was just there when I got back. What’s up?”

“Nothing.” Fang Nianchen started despising herself for overthinking. When had she become so narcissistic? As if hoping it was specially bought for her?

Fang Nianchen had no appetite, eating mechanically without tasting it.

After Yu Wan’s “kill the chicken to warn the monkeys” at the morning meeting, the HR department staff clearly behaved themselves. Even the usual chit-chat and gossip died down—everyone was actually heads-down working for once.

Yu Wan seemed extremely busy that morning, going in and out of her office, walking with purpose.

At this pace, Fang Nianchen guessed she definitely wouldn’t make it to lunch on time—and sure enough, when they got to the cafeteria, Yu Wan was nowhere in sight.

“Who are you looking for?” Seeing someone who usually wanted to bury her head in the ground now craning her neck high, Qiao Yan couldn’t help but find it odd.

“No one.” Fang Nianchen withdrew her gaze and served herself rice.

“Why hide it from me? You’re young; it’s normal to feel the urge to date. Spill—who’ve you got your eye on? Your sis will help you out.”

Qiao Yan thought Fang Nianchen was too chill, obsessed only with cats and dogs, seeming utterly uninterested in humans.

If not for knowing she’d once crushed on that straight Senior, she’d suspect some weird fetish.

Seeing her unusual behavior today, plus what she’d said yesterday, Qiao Yan had reason to suspect Fang Nianchen had fallen for some colleague at the company.

Fang Nianchen pretended nothing was up, brushing it off. “Really nothing. Neck hurts from looking down too long.”

“Fine, fine, nothing.” Qiao Yan raised an eyebrow. “You’d better hide it well, kid, or I’ll catch you.”

Fang Nianchen just smiled at the threat, ignoring it.

Lunch was nearly finished, still no sign of Yu Wan. Unsure if she’d eaten, Fang Nianchen thought it over and sent her a message:

[What do you want for lunch? I can bring it from the cafeteria.]

After sending, Fang Nianchen felt it was just like five years ago.

Back then, undergrads and grads from the business school shared the same building. After every class, she’d wait for Yu Wan to go to the cafeteria together.

Sometimes Yu Wan had projects and couldn’t eat on time; Fang Nianchen would offer to bring her food.

Of course, Yu Wan never lacked people to fetch meals for her. A few rejections would leave Fang Nianchen sulking all day.

The message sat there a long time with no reply from Yu Wan.

Fang Nianchen finished eating and asked Qiao Yan, “Any recommended dishes?”

She thought maybe Yu Wan was too busy to check her phone.

She’d bring something for her—even if she refused later, she could toss it.

Anything so Yu Wan wouldn’t go hungry.

Qiao Yan swallowed her food. “Why? Bringing food for someone?”

Fang Nianchen nodded. “For a friend. She’s busy.”

Qiao Yan had no idea Fang Nianchen had any “friends” at the company. She wished everyone would steer clear of her, let alone make friends.

Fang Nianchen’s friendly smiles were just for surface relations.

She wouldn’t befriend colleagues—unless…

“Today’s cilantro beef is great, really tender. Want to get her some?” Qiao Yan gave a knowing look, seeing her hesitate, and suggested.

“She doesn’t eat cilantro.” Fang Nianchen shot it down immediately. “It’s fine, I know what to get.”

She packed the food at the counter, said goodbye to Qiao Yan, and headed upstairs. The hallway was empty; seizing the moment with no one around, she hurried to the director’s office.

Only when standing at the door did she realize she’d come on too impulsively.

Footsteps approached from behind—Yu Wan hurrying her way, looking serious.

Seeing her, Fang Nianchen’s inner turmoil vanished. She just wanted to go with the flow and “care” for her this time—not using Xiao Ning’an as an excuse, but willingly.

But before she could speak, Yu Wan brushed right past her into the office.

Without even glancing her way.

Fang Nianchen stood there with the still-warm lunch box, staring at the closed door for a long while, realizing how ridiculous she looked.

She gave a self-mocking smile, as if to say: See? This is what you get for meddling.

Whether Yu Wan ate or not… had nothing to do with her, really.

Fang Nianchen looked at the food in her hands, lips pressed, sighing.

She should take back those pointless feelings, along with everyone else’s unfounded guesses about Yu Wan.

But Fang Nianchen found herself more vindictive than expected. After work, reaching the building entrance, she spotted Yu Wan’s figure and instinctively turned to hide—better wait till she left.

“Fang Nianchen.” Yu Wan seemed to be waiting for her on purpose, immediately spotting her attempt to dodge.

Fang Nianchen thought, damn, of all the luck. She really didn’t want to see her right now.

But no choice—she stopped, reluctantly waiting for Yu Wan to approach.

Unexpectedly, when she got close, Yu Wan actually apologized. “Sorry.”

The sudden apology left Fang Nianchen stunned. “What?”

“I didn’t see your message at noon and didn’t reply in time.” Yu Wan had shed her workplace dominance, even sounding a bit anxious. “Someone was waiting in the office then, so I didn’t…”

Last month’s attendance records had an issue, and the accountant came knocking directly. Payday wasn’t far off, and the situation had been too urgent at the time—Yu Wan had no attention to spare for anything else, her mind clouded by anxiety.

Only after sending the accountant away did she suddenly remember spotting Fang Nianchen at the door earlier.

She had initially thought Fang Nianchen was just passing by. But after opening WeChat and seeing the message from Fang Nianchen, she realized she might have missed out on something important.

It wasn’t just about a meal; what Yu Wan feared more was wasting her feelings.

“You don’t need to apologize.” Fang Nianchen cut her off with a nonchalant smile. “I get it.”

She understood not only that Yu Wan had been busy, but also that all of this was her own one-sided wishful thinking. What had Yu Wan done wrong?

She wouldn’t take it out on an innocent person. She only blamed herself for intruding without permission.

Fang Nianchen glanced at her watch. She had to go pick up Christmas today and didn’t have much time to dawdle.

After a moment’s thought, she moved to say goodbye to Yu Wan. “I have something to take care of first, so I’ll head out.”

Fang Nianchen turned to leave, never imagining Yu Wan would reach out and tug at the corner of her sleeve.

“Don’t be mad at me, okay?” Yu Wan looked more vulnerable than ever.

Her sharp brows and eyes softened gradually in the sunset glow, serene amid the golden afterlight.

Yu Wan’s voice was captivating, like a soft plea murmured on her own behalf.

“I’m really not mad—my temper isn’t that bad.” Fang Nianchen stubbornly denied it verbally, but she was still holding a grudge. Yet the instant Yu Wan’s hand brushed the cuff of her sleeve, the stuffiness in her chest vanished.

In its place rose a flicker of doubt: Did Yu Wan actually care about her mood?

The mere thought was like bubbles bursting through the water’s surface, sending shallow ripples spreading beneath.

Fang Nianchen knew empty words wouldn’t convince her. Whether it was an illusion or not, she hadn’t seen Yu Wan’s usual confident poise lately when they were alone. In her silences or words, Fang Nianchen could faintly sense her unease.

She didn’t want to embarrass Yu Wan too much, much less let her carry that anxiety through the day—or longer.

“Senior.” Fang Nianchen called the title with a hint of nervousness. “I swear I’m not mad at you. Don’t overthink it. If you don’t believe me, I promise—if I’m ever upset because of you, I’ll definitely tell you straight up, okay?”

Hearing this, Yu Wan’s expression eased, and she loosened her grip on Fang Nianchen’s hand. “Okay.”

A faint smile curved her lips as she gazed at Fang Nianchen’s earnest, obedient look and called, “Fang Nianchen.”

“Hm?”

“I like your personality.”

Yu Wan’s sudden words made Fang Nianchen’s heart clench—especially at those three words, “I like,” which sent her pulse racing.

“Oh…” But if it was only her personality… Fang Nianchen deflated instantly.

Yu Wan saw right through her thoughts, her smile deepening. “And other things too. I’ll tell you bit by bit.”

She figured it wouldn’t take too long.