My Childhood Friend, Who Is An Omega, Has Become My Personal Secretary - Chapter 26.1

Her breathing was slightly hurried, and her decent disguise began to crack.

Mia was a person habitually flighty, completely forgetting the frivolous words she had spoken to Zhang Linen, and Ji Zeyuan didn’t expect her to remember.

“Jessica, did I do something to offend your secretary? If so, I can go and apologize to her.” Mia was extremely anxious; she didn’t know where she had gone wrong, and Ji Zeyuan had never spoken to her with such harshness before. This was the first time, and Mia was inevitably flustered.

Before Ji Zeyuan could answer, her phone suddenly rang. It was Zhang Linen’s exclusive ringtone. Ji Zeyuan ignored Mia and quickly picked up the phone.

Mia could only remain quiet for the moment.

“Are you still in Imperial City?” Zhang Linen’s gentle voice came through the phone.

The corners of Ji Zeyuan’s mouth lifted slightly as she said, “Mm, but I’m finishing up soon and heading back to the company. Are you alright by yourself?”

“Mm…” Zhang Linen’s voice suddenly grew smaller. In the noisy background, she vaguely asked, “What’s the matter?” It seemed she had pulled the phone away to speak with someone else.

There was a burst of static on the line, and about half a minute later, Zhang Linen’s voice sounded again: “I’m a bit busy right now, I have to hang up.”

“I’ll see you at our company when you get back.”

With that, Zhang Linen hung up the phone and looked up at Li Ziruo, who was standing before her, revealing a highly sarcastic smile: “Are you serious? You’re being bullied in the workplace by colleagues because of your loose tongue, and now you come to me to help you solve this?”

Li Ziruo’s face was ashen, and the look in her eyes toward Zhang Linen carried not a shred of hope.

Zhang Linen sized up the dense whistleblower documents regarding workplace bullying that Li Ziruo had submitted. Her finger tapped the table as she thought for a few seconds, and then, unexpectedly, she agreed.

“I understand. I will help you resolve this, but there are conditions.”

Hearing this, Li Ziruo’s dim eyes brightened: “I can agree to any condition, as long as I can escape this…”

Li Ziruo bit her lip in great pain and didn’t continue.

Zhang Linen looked up, thought for a moment, and said, “Alright, I understand. You may leave.”

Li Ziruo bowed and turned to leave when suddenly Zhang Linen called out to her: “I’m coming with you.”

On the way to the Brand Planning Department office, Li Ziruo was very afraid and nervous; she could not fathom what Zhang Linen was thinking.

Submitting the whistleblower documents directly to Zhang Linen this time was merely a desperate move; she hadn’t held much hope and had come with the mindset of being fired.

Now that Zhang Linen was silently following her to the department, Li Ziruo was also worried that Zhang Linen might be holding a grudge and wanted to humiliate her in public again.

With an uneasy heart, Li Ziruo followed behind Zhang Linen back to the department. Dinner time had just ended, and some people might be resting in the office, so she tried to push the door as lightly as possible to avoid disturbing her colleagues.

The moment the door opened, a bucket of dirty water splashed down. A foul-smelling chill spread across her entire body. Li Ziruo shivered, closed her eyes, and held her breath.

“Ta-da! An opening ceremony surprise!” The perpetrator laughed arrogantly and clapped: “Our department’s mascot is back! Where have you been playing hooky for so long? Don’t tell me you went off to spread more rumors about others again?”

“Oh, Zhou Yao, what are you saying? Be careful, or our sister Ziruo won’t let you off either!”

Zhou Yao made a comical expression, his hook nose wrinkling up: “Oh, I’m so scared.”

Li Ziruo kept her head down and said nothing, silently wiping the dirty water from her face to keep it from flowing into her nose and mouth.

“Why aren’t you talking?” Zhou Yao stepped forward, persistently trying to shove Li Ziruo, when he suddenly caught sight of Zhang Linen behind her. His face stiffened.

However, his expression quickly returned to normal, and he smiled sheepishly at Zhang Linen: “Secretary Zhang, my apologies for letting you see such an unpleasant scene.”

The colleagues watching behind him bowed to Zhang Linen one after another, but none showed the slightest hint of panic from being caught doing something wrong; instead, they all seemed quite self-satisfied.

Zhang Linen looked over everyone present with an expressionless gaze. She pressed her index finger under her nose, looking somewhat disgusted as she said to Li Ziruo: “Stay away from me, don’t touch me.”

Li Ziruo’s nose felt sour, and with a look of humiliation, she shifted to the side to make room.

Zhang Linen stepped into the room. Zhou Yao hurried to bring a chair for her with great flattery. Zhang Linen glanced down at it but did not sit.

“What is your name?” Zhang Linen asked calmly.

Zhou Yao smiled and held up his employee badge: “My humble name is Zhou Yao, an employee under Supervisor Hua.”

Zhang Linen looked at him coldly, without a trace of a smile on her face.

Being stared at with such cold eyes, even the most foolish person would realize their behavior was not being approved of. Zhou Yao’s smile gradually solidified; he swallowed hard and tucked away his playful look.

A silent atmosphere persisted for several minutes, and everyone in the department office looked up.

Zhang Linen spoke slowly, filled with mockery: “If Hua Jianjiu knew you were this kind of person, she probably would have kicked you out to another group long ago.”

Zhou Yao’s face turned ashen, but he didn’t dare to talk back.

Zhang Linen then looked at the other employees who had stood by and abetted the behavior; they all lowered their heads as her gaze swept over them.

Li Ziruo’s body was still soaking wet, and the cold air from the air conditioner made her shiver.

“The company has no need for employees who act like thugs. I will handle you strictly according to company regulations.” Zhang Linen said, then looked at Li Ziruo: “Follow me to the office to change into a set of clothes.”

Li Ziruo looked up in a daze. Zhang Linen had already withdrawn her gaze and walked out the door. Li Ziruo snapped back to her senses and hurriedly turned to follow.

“Secretary Zhang, thank you,” Li Ziruo said in a small voice. Zhang Linen ignored her.

Back at the office, Zhang Linen took a set of casual clothes from the spare clothing cabinet and threw them to Li Ziruo. Touching the soft, smooth fabric, Li Ziruo spoke hesitantly: “Secretary Zhang, these clothes are too expensive, I can’t wear them. Besides, I have my own clothes.”

Zhang Linen said indifferently: “It’s just a piece of clothing; I have many. Furthermore, if you wear the clothes I give you, those people won’t trouble you anymore in the future.”

Li Ziruo froze, then silently took the clothes into the partitioned resting room to change.

After changing, Li Ziruo appeared very ill at ease. She faced Zhang Linen, opening her mouth several times before finally managing to say: “Secretary Zhang, I maliciously speculated about you and spread rumors. I am truly sorry.”

Zhang Linen looked up unconcernedly: “You aren’t the first. These rumors have existed since I entered Jixia.”

Li Ziruo was stunned. Zhang Linen sneered: “But you are the only one stupid enough to be so blatant. I could completely dismiss you, but… Hua Jianjiu wanted to protect you, and she paid a certain price for it.”

“What?” Li Ziruo looked shocked, seemingly entirely unaware of this.

Zhang Linen gave a mocking scoff: “If it were anyone else, I might think they were feigning ignorance, but given that your brain capacity is clearly different from the average person, perhaps you truly don’t understand what Hua Jianjiu has endured for you.”

Li Ziruo: …

“I…” Li Ziruo opened her mouth as if to explain or ask, but just as she spoke the first word, Hua Jianjiu suddenly pushed the door open and entered, shouting: “Is Li Ziruo with you? I heard—”

Her voice stopped abruptly. Hua Jianjiu looked at the disheveled Li Ziruo with a face full of worry and hurried forward to check if she was injured.

“Next time, remember to knock,” Zhang Linen reminded her calmly.

Hua Jianjiu’s eyes were filled with heartache as she cupped Li Ziruo’s chin, looking her over.

“Sorry, I wasn’t here just now. Did those people bully you again?”

Zhang Linen silently rolled her eyes, her brow furrowing with a faint, sarcastically mocking smile: “Hua Jianjiu, you missed your chance to be the hero saving the damsel, so now you’re starting a melodrama here in my office?”

Hua Jianjiu: …

Although Hua Jianjiu was used to Zhang Linen’s sharp tongue, Zhang Linen always managed to inadvertently push the “sharp tongue” attribute to new heights. Hua Jianjiu’s lips twitched, and she couldn’t help but think: If this girl licked her own lips, would she die from her own poison?

…

After being hung up on by Zhang Linen, Ji Zeyuan’s mood was somewhat subtle.

She stared blankly at her phone for over ten seconds until Mia’s voice snapped her back to reality.

“Jessica, we’ve known each other for so long… although there have been quarrels in between, the happy times we spent together are still many… at least that’s how I feel.” Mia’s attitude was sincere. “If you’ve made up your mind not to talk to me anymore, then I won’t pester you, but can you tell me the reason?”

Ji Zeyuan saw through her at once. she knew Mia too well; if she clearly stated the reason, Mia would only become more persistent, trying every possible way to “make amends” even if the other party didn’t want it.

This was her standard tactic as a “trashy woman,” used on lovers and friends alike.

Once she obtained forgiveness, Mia would feel that the slate was wiped clean, completely forgetting her mistakes and the promise she made to change.

“Davis.” A hard-to-conceal contempt flowed from Ji Zeyuan’s amber eyes. “Get out, or I’ll have someone help you get out.”

Mia’s placating smile froze, and her green eyes dimmed. She stayed still for a moment, seeing Ji Zeyuan’s cold face and apparent determination, and could only silently get up and leave. As she reached the door, she turned back unwillingly; Shen Jiuyue glanced at her as if watching a show, then quickly looked away.

“Jessica, although I don’t know the reason, you’re still very angry right now, so I won’t bother you. I’ll come find you again later.”

After saying this, Mia closed the door and left before Ji Zeyuan could respond.

The private room fell quiet. Ji Zeyuan silently took small bites of her food, but her mind was entirely on Zhang Linen’s phone call. She couldn’t even taste what she was eating.

“President Ji,” Shen Jiuyue suddenly spoke, naturally picking up a piece of meat for Ji Zeyuan. Ji Zeyuan looked down at it but didn’t take it. She put down her utensils and waited quietly for Shen Jiuyue to continue.

Shen Jiuyue’s expression carried a trace of caution amidst her hesitation: “I am very grateful that you didn’t hold me accountable for deceiving you, but I feel I still owe you an apology. I used your kindness for my own selfish interests…”

Ji Zeyuan interrupted her: “Since I didn’t expose you, you can pretend I didn’t notice. In fact, apologizing now won’t change my opinion of you; instead, it will only make things more awkward for yourself.”

Shen Jiuyue laughed at herself: “President Ji’s words truly make me feel ashamed, but I feel that if I continue to pretend nothing happened, it will only make the situation worse.”

Ji Zeyuan gave an impatient, faint smile: “Actually, it won’t.” After all, our relationship isn’t that close to begin with.

She didn’t say the second half aloud, but her eyes had already signaled her attitude—everything was understood without being spoken.

There was no anger in Shen Jiuyue’s eyes; instead, she looked a bit hurt. She smiled self-deprecatingly and remained silent.

After that, the small dinner didn’t last long. Upon parting, Shen Jiuyue stopped Ji Zeyuan as she was about to board the elevator.

“President Ji, although you may not believe me, what I wanted to tell you regarding your secretary was not something bad about her.” Shen Jiuyue returned to the politeness of their first meeting, but her smile carried a hint of strain.

Ji Zeyuan paused and said deliberately, “I didn’t think that.”

Shen Jiuyue pursed her lips, her gaze frank, clearly knowing Ji Zeyuan was just being polite. She didn’t argue but simply stated: “When your secretary came to the film set before, I noticed she was taking Sertraline tablets.”