Yuan Haolang parked his sports car beneath the Tianhai Building. Standing at the entrance, he looked up at the towering skyscraper, slowly pushing his sunglasses up onto his hair. A flicker of displeasure flashed in his eyes.

He had heard of Zang Ling—the heiress of the Tianhai Group, famously known as the “Ice Queen.” Upon learning that she might become his future wife, he had conducted a thorough investigation into her.

When he discovered that she had never been in a relationship before, he subconsciously nodded in approval. Not bad, at least she was still clean.

It was just a pity that she wasn’t his type—cold, distant, and utterly devoid of warmth. Besides, his heart had long been occupied by someone else.

Thinking of Han Lanmeng, Yuan Haolang couldn’t help but smile. She was the purest, kindest girl he had ever met. If it weren’t for his family’s disapproval, he would have married her already.

As he pondered, he rubbed his temples. Xiaomeng still didn’t know about his arranged marriage. He needed to keep it from her for now; otherwise, she would definitely make a fuss. He figured he could pacify her once everything was settled. She would understand him eventually.

But for now, he was here to cause trouble.

Who did Zang Ling think she was, standing him up like that? So what if she was the CEO? No matter how capable she was, she would still submit to him in marriage at the end.

——

The news of a super handsome guy joining the secretary department had already spread like wildfire throughout the company. Zhou Si, keeping her head down, was urging her colleagues in their group chat to send photos of him. Supposedly, every non-believer who laid eyes on him ultimately admitted defeat.

Zhou Si was extremely curious but, since she was still on the clock, she had to restrain herself. She couldn’t just skip work to see him, could she?

Just then, a deep, magnetic voice called out from above her.

“Hey.”

Zhou Si looked up in confusion, and her eyes instantly lit up.

Even though she hadn’t seen the new secretary’s face yet, the man standing before her was gorgeous. His sharp features, high nose bridge, and thin lips gave him the perfect cool guy look.

She quickly put on a sweet smile. “Hello, sir. How may I assist you?”

The handsome man said, “Tell your CEO to come down to welcome me.”

Zhou Si’s smile froze. Did she just hear that correctly?

“You mean… you want Chairman Zang to come down here to welcome you?”

Yuan Haolang’s impatience showed. “Yeah, I mean Zang Ling. Hurry up and call her down, I don’t have time to waste!”

“Do you have an appointment?”

“No. Stop talking nonsense and just tell her to come down!”

Zhou Si was speechless. No matter how attractive a man was, if he had a bad attitude, all of his charm instantly vanished.

Who does he think he is, acting like he has a chance with Chairman Zang? And speaking to her like that?

“I’m sorry, sir. Without an appointment, you cannot meet with Chairman Zang.”

For the first time, Yuan Haolang actually looked at her directly, his voice turning cold. “What kind of people does Tianhai even hire? If you delay my business, you better be prepared to take responsibility.”

Seeing how confident he seemed, Zhou Si hesitated. Maybe he really did have urgent matters to discuss with Chairman Zang?

Holding back her frustration, she reluctantly said, “Please wait a moment.”

Yuan Haolang scoffed and strode over to the lounge area, sitting down on one of the sofas. He then locked eyes on Zhou Si, as if determined to make sure she actually called.

Zhou Si had never encountered such an arrogant man before. Internally, she cursed him eight hundred times over. Stupid jerk.

Still, she forced a polite smile as she dialed the phone.

“Hello, this is Yan Wenshu from the Secretary’s Office. How can I help you?”

“Hello, this is Zhou Si from the Administrative Department. There’s a man here requesting to see President Zang. He doesn’t have an appointment, so I was going to turn him away, but he seems very insistent… Could you ask Chairman Zang for her decision?”

“What’s his name?”

“One moment.” Zhou Si realized she hadn’t even asked. Covering the receiver, she turned to Yuan Haolang. “Sir, may I have your name?”

“Yuan Haolang,” he said impatiently.

What a terrible attitude, Zhou Si thought, gritting her teeth but keeping her smile as she repeated his name into the phone. “He said his name is Yuan Haolang.”

“…Understood. I’ll inform Chairman Zang,” Yan Wenshu replied.

“Thank you, I appreciate it.”

After hanging up, Zhou Si let out a small sigh of relief. She had done her job; what happened next was no longer her concern.

Though… Why did the name “Yuan Haolang” sound so familiar? It felt like she had heard it somewhere before.

——

[Host, what should we do? The male lead is coming!] the system said anxiously. It knew the deep grudge between Yan Wenshu and the others, so it warned, [When you see him, you must stay calm. Don’t act rashly.]

[I know,] Yan Wenshu replied.

He paused, then added, […Thanks.]

[No problem.] The system was surprised. Yan Wenshu rarely showed it any kindness. Most of the time, he wore a cold, gloomy expression when no one was around, and the system never dared to provoke him.

[But host, are you really going to tell Zang Ling about Yuan Haolang’s arrival?] The system hesitated. [In the original timeline, shortly after their meeting, the Yuan and Tianhai families announced their engagement. What will you do then?]

What will I do?

Yan Wenshu let out a faint, icy smile. [That was in the past. But now that I’m here, do you really think Zang Ling will still choose Yuan Haolang?]

[As long as they’re not married, I have a chance. And besides…] His gaze darkened. [Zang Ling was never the one Yuan Haolang truly wanted.]

The system listened to the host’s mocking tone and sighed. The reason the host had become like this was that he had been hurt too badly by the male and female leads in his past life.

Just because he was the female lead’s lingering “childhood sweetheart,” the male lead had used him as a tool to threaten her, ultimately ruining his entire life.

If the system were in his place, it would also develop a twisted personality.

Zang Ling looked up and saw Yan Wenshu push the door open and walk in. She curved her lips into a smile and said, “You came at just the right time. I want to expand the cafeteria and add a few more snack stalls, so I need to survey the employees’ food preferences. I just finished drafting a form. What’s your WeChat? I’ll send it to you, and then I’ll need you to print it out and distribute it to each department.”

Yan Wenshu had just responded with an “okay” when Zang Ling handed him a pen and a piece of paper. His gaze paused for a moment before he naturally took them and wrote down his WeChat ID.

The system commented strangely, [She must have prepared this in advance. She really wants your WeChat, huh?]

It hit the nail on the head. Yan Wenshu didn’t react much and only mentioned, “Chairman Zhang, this is also my phone number.”

Zang Ling controlled the curve of her lips and pretended to be indifferent. “Mhm, got it. Just leave it there.”

Hahahahahaha! Got his contact information!

The system reported in real-time like a broadcaster, [Host, Zang Ling is mentally screaming with laughter right now. That kind of laugh, you know? Ah, it’s so loud. My ears are about to go deaf.]

Yan Wenshu curiously glanced at Zang Ling. From her appearance alone, he couldn’t tell that she had such a rich inner world.

Zang Ling met his gaze and asked without a hint of guilt, “What’s wrong?”

A trace of amusement flickered through Yan Wenshu’s eyes. Just as he was about to say “nothing,” he suddenly remembered that a certain man was still waiting downstairs. The smile in his eyes quickly disappeared.

He said, “A man named Yuan Haolang is asking you to go down and welcome him. Do you want to go?”

Zang Ling had never heard of that name. She shook her head and said, “No. Tell him to leave. If he doesn’t, call security.”

Just any random stray cat or dog wants to see me? I don’t have time for that.

Hearing this answer, Yan Wenshu couldn’t help but smile.

“Understood, President Zang.”

“Oh, and Secretary Yan, you can call me Zang Ling in private.” Zang Ling openly expressed her thoughts. “Since you don’t want to date me, we can at least be friends, right?”

As soon as she finished speaking, Yan Wenshu panicked and lowered his head to avoid her gaze, revealing his fair and slender neck…

Zang Ling thought, I wonder what it feels like to touch?

Yan Wenshu’s lips twitched as he calmly told the system, [Stop telling me Zang Ling’s inner thoughts.]

[Why? Doesn’t this help you understand her better?]

[Wait a moment, she’s speaking again.] The system grew excited. [What… “I kind of want to lick it and see?” What does she want to lick?]

Yan Wenshu was dumbfounded, “…”

[Stop it.]

Hearing Yan Wenshu’s embarrassed and angry tone, the system was baffled. It didn’t understand what had upset him this time. But after this incident, it had no choice but to regretfully turn off the function monitoring Zang Ling’s inner thoughts.

Sigh, this was obviously beneficial for the host. Why doesn’t he want to use it?

Zang Ling noticed Yan Wenshu’s silence but didn’t rush him for an answer. After all, his expression had already given him away.

He was shy.

What a cutie.

“—Wenshu,” Zang Ling softly pronounced his name, looking at him seriously. “Your name sounds nice too.”

Yan Wenshu’s long eyelashes trembled slightly. He lifted his gaze and smiled at her. “Thank you.”

“You can go back now. If you have any work-related questions, come ask me. Of course, if you have any other questions… you’re welcome to come in anytime.” Zang Ling sincerely suggested, secretly hoping he would always come to her so she could keep seeing him.

As expected, she saw Yan Wenshu’s face flush again. Unable to resist, she praised, “You’re really good-looking.”

Yan Wenshu’s voice softened. “Thank you… You look good too.”

The system glanced at its host, then at Zang Ling, nearly crashing from excitement. So sweet!

As long as the host doesn’t reveal his true nature in front of Zang Ling, they’re the sweetest couple ever!

However, the commotion outside soon disturbed the two in the office. Zang Ling frowned. What’s going on out there?

“Chairman Zang, I’ll go check.”

“We’ll go together.” Zang Ling seemed to hear someone calling her name outside. Who is it?

“Zang Ling, come out here!” Yuan Haolang shouted impatiently, struggling against security’s restraint. “Zang Ling, do you not want to cooperate with the Yuan Corporation anymore? How dare you humiliate me like this!”

Yuan Haolang was tall and strong, but even he couldn’t fend off a dozen security guards. In the scuffle, he suddenly shoved one of them aside and charged forward.

“Zang Ling, come out! Is the great president of Tianhai Group actually a coward?”

As soon as he finished speaking, a door suddenly opened beside him, and out walked a strikingly handsome man and a stunning woman.

Yuan Haolang abruptly stopped in his tracks, folded his arms, and sneered. “Oh, I see. No wonder you didn’t come see me. You’ve got yourself a pretty little boy to keep you company. Zang Ling, I never thought you were that type of person.”

“But let me be clear, before we get married, you can’t give away your ‘first time’. Our family is quite traditional.”

The next second, the gorgeous woman looked at him with extreme coldness and said—

“Who are you?”

Huh?