My Childhood Friend, Who Is An Omega, Has Become My Personal Secretary - Chapter 21

Zhang Linen was a mess of tears and snot, her body shivering as she sobbed uncontrollably.

After hanging up the phone with Ji Zeyuan, Hua Jianjiu looked up at the computer screen. Zhang Linen was still connected with her on a voice call.

The sleepiness in Hua Jianjiu’s eyes had completely vanished. She swallowed nervously, terrified that Zhang Linen had been triggered by Ji Zeyuan’s final remark.

Calling at four in the morning and forcing her to call Ji Zeyuan showed just how desperate Zhang Linen was.

The silence lasted for dozens of seconds before Hua Jianjiu took the initiative to speak: “See? I told you, there’s no way the two of them are for real.”

Zhang Linen didn’t say a word. The silence on the other end was eerie; Hua Jianjiu didn’t even know if she was listening.

After a long quiet, just as Hua Jianjiu was about to speak again, a “beep” sounded. Without any warning, Zhang Linen disconnected the call.

The cold moonlight draped over the grey-white floor tiles like a gauze veil through the balcony’s floor-to-ceiling windows. Inside the living room, clothes were scattered in complete chaos: a coat was crumpled in a heap on the coffee table, and a pair of trousers had been kicked inside-out under the sofa.

Zhang Linen’s thin frame was clad only in one of Ji Zeyuan’s white shirts. She curled up on her side on the icy floor, the corners of her eyes flushed red, as she incessantly refreshed the trending topics page.

In truth, Zhang Linen had discovered during the day yesterday that Ji Zeyuan had lied to her. The name of the restaurant was written on the plates in the photo of the dishes Ji Zeyuan had sent her. Zhang Linen had visited that restaurant many times after Ji Zeyuan had left; the interior decorations in her memory were identical to those in Ji Zeyuan’s photo.

Just now, Ji Zeyuan’s words—”This has nothing to do with her”—pierced Zhang Linen’s heart like an icicle.

Zhang Linen was a mess of tears and snot, her body shivering as she sobbed. Her mouth moved constantly, whispering a soft, repetitive chant: “Ji Zeyuan, Ji Zeyuan, Ji Zeyuan…”

The next day, before heading to the office, Ji Zeyuan received a call from Ji Cheng.

“Is the thing between you and that influencer real or fake?” Ji Cheng asked directly, without beating around the bush.

Ji Zeyuan answered calmly, “It’s not real. The media just likes to chase shadows.”

“A romance rumor isn’t a big deal, but don’t let people with ulterior motives make an issue of it. Handle it clearly yourself. Don’t make low-level mistakes at such a critical juncture,” Ji Cheng said in a heavy voice.

“Mhm, I know.”

Ji Zeyuan reported the recent progress of several projects to Ji Cheng. Ji Cheng was quite satisfied with what he heard and hung up without further questioning.

Fans of Shen Jiuyue were gathered in a dense swarm beneath the Jixia Group headquarters building. It was a sea of people.

Looking at the bustling scene from afar through the car window, Ji Zeyuan pinched the bridge of her nose impatiently and said, “Go to the south entrance.”

The driver complied, but the situation at the south entrance was hardly any better.

Just as Ji Zeyuan took out her phone to call the security room, Zhang Linen’s call came through first.

In the past, Zhang Linen would always send a greeting text before Ji Zeyuan woke up, but there had been nothing this morning. This was abnormal, but considering the scandal between Ji Zeyuan and Shen Jiuyue, it was somewhat expected.

Now, with Zhang Linen calling proactively despite having no scheduled itinerary to discuss, Ji Zeyuan’s hand slipped, and she accidentally pressed the “end call” button.

Before she could call back, Zhang Linen called again. This time, she answered.

“Miss, have you arrived at the company?” Zhang Linen’s cold voice came through the phone. The subtle change in the way she addressed her made Ji Zeyuan’s heart sink.

Ji Zeyuan closed her eyes with a hint of melancholy: “I’ve arrived. I haven’t gone inside yet.”

Zhang Linen’s voice was exceptionally calm and methodical: “There are many people gathered downstairs. I’ve already instructed security to disperse them. You can wait in the car for a while.”

Ji Zeyuan gave a simple response: “Mhm.”

The two were silent for a moment, but neither hung up. After a short while, Ji Zeyuan spoke: “I’m hanging up now.”

Zhang Linen remained silent on the other end. Ji Zeyuan hesitated for a few seconds before pressing the end button.

Personnel from the security department arrived quickly and began setting up a cordon.

The fans, failing to see their idol and being warned, began to get emotional. Some even started throwing things at the security guards.

Ji Zeyuan frowned. Although she had anticipated such a situation, she hadn’t expected Shen Jiuyue’s fans to be so capable as to find the headquarters so quickly.

“Forget it, let’s go back for now,” Ji Zeyuan said, looking at the irritating scene.

As she spoke, she opened her phone and clicked on Zhang Linen’s chat window: “Push back today’s schedule.”

The message was marked as “read,” but Zhang Linen did not reply.

Zhang Linen slammed her phone face-down on the desk. The sudden loud bang caused Hua Jianjiu, who was standing in front of her, to jump in fright.

“Linen, don’t overthink it. Didn’t Zeyuan say there was nothing between her and Shen Jiuyue?” Hua Jianjiu tried to comfort her gently, but the chilling expression on Zhang Linen’s face didn’t soften in the slightest.

Even if there was nothing between Ji Zeyuan and Shen Jiuyue now, it didn’t mean there would never be.

At the very least, it seemed Shen Jiuyue’s persistence was working. In less than two months, she had managed to get the ice-cold Ji Zeyuan to go to an amusement park.

Ji Zeyuan must have known exactly how much trouble appearing in public with Shen Jiuyue would cause, yet she went anyway.

And now she wanted to push back the schedule—was she out with Shen Jiuyue again?

Zhang Linen fell into an endless loop of thought. She felt as if she were submerged in the deep sea, completely unable to hear any outside sounds.

Hua Jianjiu called her name several times without a response. Just then, the desk phone rang.

Zhang Linen didn’t react. Unable to watch any longer, Hua Jianjiu stepped forward and nudged her shoulder with her fingertip. Zhang Linen looked up as if waking from a dream.

“Linen, your phone,” Hua Jianjiu said softly.

Zhang Linen stared blankly at the ringing work phone. She took a deep breath, rubbed her brow with the heel of her palm, and switched back to her professional demeanor. She picked up the receiver and said steadily, “Hello.”

It was someone from the security department. He was shouting loudly over the noise of the fans downstairs: “Stop it! If you keep this up, we will call the police!”

The noise on the other end faded as he moved to a quieter spot.

“Secretary Zhang, a friend of President Ji is here to see her.”

Zhang Linen frowned slightly and asked, “Who?”

The security officer said, “It’s that person from last time who claimed to be President Ji’s university classmate.”

A flicker of disgust crossed Zhang Linen’s face. She replied, “Tell her President Ji isn’t here. Tell her not to come to the company looking for President Ji in the future.”

“Understood,” the security officer replied and hung up.

After hanging up, Zhang Linen suddenly thought of something and called back. The call was answered quickly.

“Let her in. Have someone take her to the meeting room,” Zhang Linen said firmly.

“Ah, okay.”

After hanging up again, Zhang Linen said to Hua Jianjiu: “I’ll finish reviewing the documents you gave me and give you feedback by this afternoon. You can go now.”

Hua Jianjiu was stunned. She was shocked by the sheer speed of Zhang Linen’s transformation.

She walked toward the office door, then hesitated and looked back as if wanting to say something. Noticing her hesitation, Zhang Linen said without looking up, “I’m fine. Go on.”

Hua Jianjiu lingered for a moment, then nodded and left.

Mia was fiddling with a hanging spider plant in the meeting room. When Zhang Linen pushed the door open, Mia hadn’t even moved her hand from the plant’s bright green leaves.

“Miss Mia,” Zhang Linen addressed her with formal politeness.

Mia turned around. A strange emotion flickered in her eyes when she saw Zhang Linen. She tilted her head to look behind Zhang Linen, then turned her gaze back, her tone still frivolous: “Miss Secretary, it’s you again.”

Zhang Linen pursed her lips into a faint smile and asked, “Miss Mia, what is the purpose of your visit this time?”

Mia arched an eyebrow and spread her hands: “Miss Secretary, don’t you know? You clearly said to call your number if I needed Jessica, but why did you block me?”

Zhang Linen blinked, providing a perfectly logical reason: “I follow President Ji’s orders.”

Mia choked on her words. She slumped like a deflated ball, looking frustrated. “Is Jessica that angry? Just because I took Shen Jiuyue’s contact info without asking?”

Zhang Linen remained unfazed, feigning ignorance: “You took Miss Shen’s contact information?”

As soon as she said this, Mia’s expression became visibly guilty.

“Sorry. I took Shen Jiuyue’s business card from your desk that day,” Mia confessed in a low voice. Zhang Linen sneered inwardly; she wasn’t surprised.

However, she maintained a look of appropriate surprise on her face: “Miss Mia, that was truly unethical. But…”

Zhang Linen paused and asked, “Does President Ji already know about this?”

Mia sighed dejectedly. “I’m sorry, you must have been dragged into this because of me. After Jessica blocked me that day, I asked my mother to check with friends in our circle. I found out that Shen Jiuyue apparently complained to Jessica.”

Zhang Linen fell silent, her brow furrowed. Mia continued to herself, “But Jessica gave me some dignity. She didn’t reveal the truth; she admitted that she was the one who gave me the contact information.”

“Sigh… I really know I was wrong this time. I’ve never begged my mother for anything before, but I made an exception this time just hoping Jessica would forgive me…”

“You said President Ji admitted she gave you the contact information herself?” Zhang Linen interrupted Mia’s monologue, sounding confused.

Mia paused, answering a bit slowly, “Yes. I even met Miss Shen in person through my mother’s friend to apologize.”

She then remembered something and added thoughtfully, “Though, she asked some very strange questions.”

Zhang Linen watched Mia in silence. Mia continued without being prompted.

“Shen Jiuyue asked if it was Secretary Zhang who gave me the contact info. I said no, and then she asked how I got it. She believed Jessica’s character was such that she wouldn’t do something like that.”

In a flash of realization, Zhang Linen understood. A sudden wave of vertigo hit her, and her body began to sway.

Mia didn’t notice her discomfort, still caught up in her narrative.

“I admitted that I took the card from your office without permission.” Mia paused again, looking down pensively.

Zhang Linen didn’t want to hear any more. She finally understood why Ji Zeyuan had suddenly changed her tune and agreed to Shen Jiuyue’s invitation.

But there was one thing she didn’t understand.

Ji Zeyuan was so smart; she must have known the amusement park trip could only be kept secret for so long. Even if she truly thought it could be hidden, she should have acted with more caution.

Yet, almost on the same day, the scandal between Ji Zeyuan and Shen Jiuyue flooded the trending topics.

Clearly, there was nothing between her and Shen Jiuyue, yet she still acted ambiguously and offered no explanation afterward.

Zhang Linen’s head throbbed painfully. Mia’s faint scent of pheromones hit her like the stench of foul sewage, making her feel nauseous.

“Miss Mia, please retract your pheromones,” Zhang Linen snapped, unable to bear it any longer.

Mia was taken aback. She raised her arm to sniff herself, sounding confused: “I’m not releasing any pheromones.”

Zhang Linen broke into a cold sweat. She clutched her chest, struggling to breathe as if she were being strangled.

Mia finally noticed her abnormality and rushed forward with concern: “Miss Secretary, are you alright?”

Zhang Linen couldn’t make a sound. A flash of white light crossed her vision, and then everything went black.