After Trying To Pursue The Cold, Elegant Beauty. I Ended Up Being Flirted With Instead - Chapter 33

“Why don’t you come with me?”

Back in her B&B room, Wen Zhu leaned against the door, her heart still beating rapidly.

Dong, dong, dong, pounding against her eardrums.

Was it her imagination?

Why did she always feel like Li Zhiyun seemed to be flirting with her?

The thought caused Wen Zhu’s cheeks to flush.

Perhaps she was overthinking it.

Maybe this was just how Li Zhiyun interacted with people?

For so many years, Wen Zhu’s world had consisted almost entirely of Pei Xiubai and her work.

It seemed she had forgotten how to interact normally with a woman she wasn’t very familiar with.

Especially when the other person exuded such a strong, indescribable attraction.

Wen Zhu’s thoughts became increasingly muddled, so much so that she didn’t even have time to feel sad about Pei Xiubai.

She shook her head and started checking the emails her assistant had sent her.

Before she knew it, she was busy until the evening.

At nine o’clock, her phone screen suddenly lit up.

She opened it to see a message from Jiang Xinxin: [Sister Wen Zhu, President Pei… she’s drunk. She keeps clamoring for the snow pear soup you cook.]

[Could you possibly come over and check on her?]

Wen Zhu gripped her phone, her fingertips turning slightly white.

She was silent for a few seconds before finally replying: [Sorry, I’m very busy right now and can’t get away.]

[Please take good care of President Pei.]

After sending it, she casually found a recipe for snow pear soup online and sent the link over.

She placed her phone back on the desk with a soft thud.

Silence returned to the room.

Wen Zhu’s eyes were vacant, lost in thought.

After a long while, she opened her computer again.

Unknowingly, ten days had passed since she arrived in Tongcheng.

One-third of the planned month was already over.

She opened a job search website and updated her resume.

Click, send.

Days went by.

A week later, an unfamiliar number called.

Wen Zhu was busy and answered immediately without checking the number: “Hello?”

A female voice, cheerful and carrying a hint of familiarity, came through the phone: “It’s me, Xiao Zhu.”

Wen Zhu paused for a second.

This voice…

She asked: “President Yan?”

“It’s me,” the other party chuckled, “Looks like Xiao Zhu hasn’t forgotten me.”

Wen Zhu smiled, “How could I forget you?”

The daughter of the Yan Group, Yan Tingyu.

She was Pei Xiubai’s childhood friend who had gone abroad in junior high and only returned to take over the family business after graduating from university.

Since Yu Pei Group and the Yan Group had a lot of business dealings, Wen Zhu, as Pei Xiubai’s secretary, had interacted with Yan Tingyu quite a bit.

Their relationship wasn’t particularly close, but they maintained a surface level of courtesy and harmony.

She put down the document in her hand, “Miss Yan, long time no see. Is there something I can help you with?”

Yan Tingyu’s voice came through the earpiece, “One of the young ladies in our company’s HR department said she saw your job application information on a recruitment website. So, you’ve finally come to your senses and decided to leave that crooked tree, Pei Xiubai?”

She got straight to the point: “Xiao Zhu, consider coming to work for me? My secretary just resigned, and I think you’re a perfect fit. With your abilities and skill, as soon as you join, I can offer you five times your current salary.”

Five times.

Wen Zhu quickly calculated in her mind.

She would be earning a very substantial annual salary.

It was impossible to say she wasn’t tempted.

However…

Wen Zhu chose her words carefully: “Miss Yan, thank you very much for your kind invitation, but I am already in contact with a few companies for initial interviews”

“Xiao Zhu,” Yan Tingyu interrupted her, her tone still smiling, but with an added element of undeniable assertiveness, “You don’t have to lie to me. If you had found a company, your job application wouldn’t still be posted on the website now.”

“I know you’re worried about my relationship with Pei Xiubai.”

Yan Tingyu changed the subject, “How about this, I happen to be in Tongcheng today. Why don’t you come pick me up at the airport, and then we’ll find a place for dinner and talk things over?

“Given our years of acquaintance, you shouldn’t refuse this small request, right?”

When submitting her resume, Wen Zhu had made up her mind not to look for any job related to Yu Pei.

But she also knew that to survive in this industry, one must always leave room for maneuver.

Offending Yan Tingyu was clearly not a wise move.

Wen Zhu silently took a breath: “Alright. What time is your flight? I’ll come pick you up.”

After work, Wen Zhu borrowed a car and went to the airport to pick up Yan Tingyu.

As soon as she saw Wen Zhu, Yan Tingyu’s gaze fixed on her, “Xiao Zhu, long time no see, you’ve become even prettier. It seems Pei Xiubai really is cursed for you.”

Wen Zhu didn’t dare to respond to that, merely replying, “Thank you.”

Once in the car, Yan Tingyu rummaged for something nearby and said, “No need to go out for dinner, I have a formal dinner party tonight. Let’s go to Maple Mountain Manor.”

After speaking, she took out an exquisitely packaged dress box and handed it to Wen Zhu, “Change into this, Xiao Zhu.”

The smile on Wen Zhu’s face froze.

She had even prepared the dress, which meant Yan Tingyu probably never intended to have dinner, but had wanted Wen Zhu to be her female companion all along.

With the person already in the car, it was impossible to find an excuse to leave now.

After arriving at the manor, she changed into the dress inside the car.

When she stepped out, Yan Tingyu’s eyes instantly burned with desire.

The dress was a new style from this year’s Paris Fashion Week, demanding an extremely high standard for the figure.

It looked surprisingly perfect on Wen Zhu.

The gown perfectly outlined Wen Zhu’s figure, making her look fair-skinned and beautiful, like a fairy stepping out of a painting.

It made people unable to look away.

“You look so beautiful in this,” Yan Tingyu couldn’t resist stepping forward and wrapping her arm around Wen Zhu’s waist.

The side of the dress was cut out. Wen Zhu felt her fingertips and subtly shifted, avoiding the intense touch.

She forced a smile, “It’s all thanks to President Yan’s good taste.”

Yan Tingyu noticed Wen Zhu’s aloofness, smiled, and said nothing more, leading her into the ballroom.

Tonight was a very traditional business social event, a scene Wen Zhu was completely adept at handling.

She linked arms with Yan Tingyu and chatted with several business tycoons.

Feeling tired halfway through, Wen Zhu sat on a sofa. Yan Tingyu brought over a glass of champagne and said with a smile, “You really are amazing. No wonder Pei Xiubai hasn’t let you go all these years.”

With Wen Zhu by her side, she hardly had to think about anything.

Yan Tingyu had mentioned Pei Xiubai a bit too often tonight.

Wen Zhu took the champagne, her smile fading slightly, and decided to be direct: “President Yan, in the future, if there are social events like this, please notify me in advance.”

She hadn’t eaten dinner tonight, only to come and drink so much with Yan Tingyu.

Her stomach was starting to ache faintly.

But she didn’t expect Yan Tingyu to completely ignore her words.

She looked deeply at Wen Zhu for a moment, then sat down next to her, her gaze intense and burning, “Xiao Zhu, why don’t you come with me?”

Wen Zhu’s mind exploded with sudden thoughts.

What had she just heard?

Yan Tingyu, however, seemed to enjoy seeing Wen Zhu’s shocked expression.

“You know that the Pei family will never agree to someone of your background marrying into their family. If you stay with Pei Xiubai, your life will be stuck like this.”

She raised her hand and gently stroked Wen Zhu’s jaw, continuing, “But if you come with me, I promise, I will definitely treat you better than Pei Xiubai ever could.”