Chapter 6

Jiang Caifu finally stepped into the elevator.

It wasn’t a big deal—avoiding him on purpose would only make it seem like she was afraid of him.

She drank her coffee expressionlessly, and once inside, she glanced at the man standing behind Qiao Yu-Mian.

He, too, didn’t seem afraid of the cold, dressed in a sharp black suit. He stood tall, and the frameless glasses perched on his nose gave him a vibe of a highly capable professional.

She hadn’t gotten a good look at his face when Qiao Yu-Mian subtly shifted aside, blocking her view.

…Was that intentional?

The shock and accusation in her eyes seemed almost tangible, but Qiao Yu-Mian averted his gaze nonchalantly, avoiding any possibility of meeting her eyes.

It was definitely intentional.

Jiang Caifu turned her gaze away, pressed the button for her floor, and asked her question, “So… you work here too?”

Qiao Yu-Mian looked at the changing floor numbers and gave a casual “Mm,” confirming, “The branch office is located here.”

Jiang Caifu let out a sound of acknowledgment, then paused for a moment, suddenly realizing something was off. She turned sharply, “Branch office? Didn’t your company go bankrupt a long time ago? Where did this branch office come from?”

She still remembered that during their senior year, after his family went bankrupt, he spent his days dealing with shareholders and employees, then went to the hospital to visit his sick father, only to come home at night and cry on her shoulder about his troubles.

Jiang Caifu genuinely sympathized with his misfortune back then, but she had been busy with her internship, working long hours. By the time she could unwind after work, she had to come up with sweet words to comfort him. The dual pressure of work and her relationship had suffocated her, and she had finally had enough. Once graduation came, she couldn’t wait to quit her job and break up with him, buying a train ticket home and spending nearly half a month recovering her mental health.

Looking back on that time now, she couldn’t help but shake her head and sigh.

Qiao Yu-Mian tilted his head slightly after hearing her question, his gaze focusing on her dark eyes, which glistened like fresh ink.

“Is it so hard to make a comeback?” He raised an eyebrow, his smirk showing pride, as if he had been waiting for her to ask that very question.

Jiang Caifu: “……”

Damn it, he really did manage to impress her.

“Mm, mm, mm.” She turned her head, staring at the elevator door and mentally urging it to go up faster. “Impressive, impressive, impressive. Who could possibly be more impressive than you?”

She knew how to spoil the mood. Her uninterested expression, coupled with her half-hearted compliment, instantly deflated Qiao Yu-Mian’s ego.

“What’s that reaction?” His face turned bright red.

Her lackluster response made Qiao Yu-Mian feel that his earlier act was laughable. No matter how polished the exterior, once she peeled away the surface, all that remained was a ridiculous red nose.

Jiang Caifu had long seen through his bluster. She couldn’t hold back her laughter, “What reaction? Wasn’t I complimenting you?”

As she said this, the elevator doors opened.

Jiang Caifu let out a breath of relief, immediately rushing out of the elevator like the wind.

Qiao Yu-Mian was so frustrated that he almost chased after her to demand an explanation. But then he remembered that his assistant was still there, so he pretended nothing had happened, pressing the close-door button twice. He then casually turned to look behind him.

Assistant Han immediately put on a professional smile and said, “I didn’t see anything, I didn’t hear anything.”

Qiao Yu-Mian raised his eyebrow slightly, giving a brief, wordless “Mm.”

Assistant Han somehow interpreted that as “good job for being wise.”

It really is hard to earn money and eat properly, he thought with a silent smile.

However, Qiao Yu-Mian didn’t hurry to look away. Instead, his gaze shifted into something more evaluative, as he studied his assistant from top to bottom.

This made Assistant Han feel uneasy.

He awkwardly adjusted his glasses and cleared his throat, “Is it my outfit? Is it not appropriate?”

Qiao Yu-Mian shook his head, giving a simple “It’s nothing.”

Surely his taste hadn’t deteriorated to this extent?

He withdrew his gaze, and the feeling of deflated arrogance from earlier began to surge back.

Behind him, Assistant Han was still replaying the last look Qiao Yu-Mian had given him before turning away. Although he hadn’t said anything, Assistant Han still felt a sense of disdain.

As a competent office worker, he kept his composure on the outside, but inside, he was already wailing:

Please, don’t tell me you were thinking something impolite!

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Jiang Caifu arrived at the office an hour late, naturally drawing attention from her colleagues.

When asked about her tardiness, she awkwardly smiled and explained that there was a traffic jam that left her unable to move.

“You have a car?” Qi Miaona gave her a thumbs-up and feigned crying. “So impressive!”

Jiang Caifu chuckled, “A car, my foot. The traffic was so bad that I couldn’t even get on the subway.”

Qi Miaona quickly shifted from worry to joy. While her own poverty was bad, seeing a colleague’s wealth was even more gut-wrenching.

“Morning rush hour is like that.”

“Yeah, I’ve finally experienced it.”

Jiang Caifu put her bag down, opened her computer, and sighed.

Next month is Christmas, and to make the most of this massive sales event, she had been selecting products and stocking up for the past two months. Recently, she had also started adjusting links, running ads, setting up coupons, and preparing for products for the Chinese New Year and New Year’s Day…

The workload piled up, but Jiang Caifu seemed…

There was no sense of urgency at all. She hadn’t started any of the tasks she was supposed to do and instead was browsing the new product rankings.

While browsing the list, she got distracted and chatted with a colleague.

“I heard the company is organizing a social event, and each department has to send someone. Are you going?” Qi Miaona asked.

Jiang Caifu shook her head. “If I had that kind of free time, I’d rather stay home and catch up on sleep.”

Qi Miaona playfully whistled. “The admin department will be so disappointed. You’re so popular, and if you’re on the list, I’m sure many people will attend just to see you.”

Jiang Caifu let out an emotionless laugh. “That’s an exaggeration.”

“It’s not an exaggeration. You’re the face of our operations department. I remember when you first joined, people from other departments came to our office just to see you,” Qi Miaona teased.

She had joined the company six months before Jiang Caifu and still remembered when HR suddenly announced that they had hired a stunning new colleague who would be the brightest person in the office.

Before meeting her, Qi Miaona thought HR’s description was overly dramatic. But a week later, HR brought the new hire to sit at the desk next to hers.

There was no exaggeration—when she first saw Jiang Caifu, Qi Miaona felt like the dull office suddenly became brighter.

It was summer when Jiang Caifu joined, and she wore a vintage rainbow-colored A-line puff dress, her face adorned with delicate makeup, paired with bold blue and green eye makeup. It perfectly matched the “color” in her name. No matter how vibrant or saturated the colors, she made them look stunning instead of tacky.

Her supervisor had asked Qi Miaona to help the newcomer, so she spent the day showing Jiang Caifu the ropes. During lunch, Jiang Caifu even treated her to bubble tea.

“Should I call you Qi Jie or Nana Jie?”

Her voice was crisp, and when she leaned in, Qi Miaona could smell the sweet fragrance of her perfume, making her feel like the office’s usual scent had disappeared.

“Just call me Nana, no need to be so formal.”

Qi Miaona tried to maintain the composure of a senior, but inside, she was thinking: The company better keep her! She’s so easy on my eyes!

During Jiang Caifu’s two-month probation, Qi Miaona took extra care to help her. Of course, Jiang Caifu didn’t disappoint her. She quickly got the hang of the job, was humble, polite, and always respectful to her superiors. Even when some colleagues made sarcastic remarks, she never showed anger, always smiling sweetly.

Two months later, Jiang Caifu officially became a full-time employee.

Qi Miaona breathed a sigh of relief, thinking she had found the perfect partner for slacking off and having lunch—someone beautiful and sweet. However, things changed more quickly than she expected.

She never imagined that Jiang Caifu would undergo such a dramatic personality shift the day after becoming a permanent employee!

It was as if she had instantly transformed from a fresh newbie to a seasoned worker. From that day on, she showed up exactly on time, left faster than anyone else, and didn’t smile at anyone. She always looked tired, as though she hadn’t slept enough.

When colleagues with more experience spoke rudely to her, she didn’t tolerate it anymore. Her sharp retorts and dramatic eye rolls made Qi Miaona’s jaw drop.

How can someone fake being sweet so well?!

How can someone change so drastically without any transition?!

So, the lively Jiang Caifu was just a “new graduate” version, huh?

Recalling those brief but happy times, Qi Miaona sighed. “I really miss when you used to call me Nana Jie in such a sweet voice. Now, you just call me Nana with such indifference.”

Jiang Caifu looked confused. “Isn’t calling you Nana more youthful?”

“It’s not about the title, it’s the tone! The tone!” Qi Miaona said, angrily typing on her keyboard. “You say Nana with no emotion!”

Jiang Caifu: “……”

She glanced at her screen and redirected the conversation. “So, are you going to this social event?”

“No, who would be interested in coworkers?” Qi Miaona was resolute in her stance against office romance and didn’t understand why anyone would.

“Do people really find a partner at these things? I’ve been to so many, and I’ve never heard of anyone actually making it work.”

“It can work,” Jiang Caifu casually said. “I met my ex-boyfriend at one of those events.”

Qi Miaona: “…Is that true?”

“Yep.” Perhaps because she had just seen Qiao Yu-Mian that morning, Jiang Caifu suddenly remembered their first meeting when the topic came up.

“It was during our freshman year, at a club social event.”