Transmigrating Into the Beautiful CEO’s Doomed Substitute - Chapter 144

Shen Zhibing waited in her office for a while, but Yun Fei didn’t bring any new documents in. She called Yun Fei: “Are there no more documents that need approval today?”

“President Shen, all the critically urgent ones have been processed. The rest can wait until tomorrow.”

Shen Zhibing understood immediately.

“Qi Zheng bribed you?”

Yun Fei chuckled and denied it: “President Shen, you misunderstand. I have always only been your secretary.”

Shen Zhibing curved her lips, her mood instantly relaxing. Yun Fei saying there were no urgent matters meant she could perhaps leave work early.

Yun Fei stopped smiling and added seriously: “Please relay my best wishes to Xiao Qi for her birthday, President Shen.”

Tomorrow was Qi Zheng’s birthday, and Shen Zhibing had spent many days preparing her gift in advance.

“All of you leave on time today.”

Ten minutes later, Shen Zhibing left her office.

As soon as she got in the car, she received a message from Qi Zheng saying she had changed her flight at the last minute and had already landed. Shen Zhibing’s mood brightened even more, and she called her directly: “Why didn’t you tell me you changed your flight?”

“I wanted to give you a surprise.”

“Well, is your surprise ready? I left work early, so don’t blame me for not telling you beforehand and affecting your preparations.”

She could hear Qi Zheng’s suppressed laughter through the phone, but Qi Zheng was a little surprised: “Really?”

“I’m already on my way home.”

“I’ll hurry back.”

The urgency Qi Zheng casually revealed before hanging up piqued Shen Zhibing’s curiosity. She wasn’t worried that Qi Zheng was hiding anything bad from her, but the person was usually very composed. How could she be so flustered just because she left work early?

The more she thought about it, the more she looked forward to seeing her.

Returning to Yunlu Garden, Aunt Xin opened the door and immediately greeted her: “Third Miss, Miss Qi hasn’t returned yet.”

“She called me, she’ll be a little late.”

She had told them in advance that she wouldn’t be returning to Yunlu Garden tonight. Aunt Xin specially informed her: “Everything at the villa has been prepared.”

Aunt Xin had intended to go and arrange things personally, but Shen Zhibing said it would be too easily discovered by Qi Zheng.

Shen Zhibing took a shower, chose a figure-hugging cocktail dress, and started applying makeup.

Her relationship with Qi Zheng was stable, but due to their busy work schedules, their time together was limited. They had agreed to make time for a date every month. A formal date, to maintain a sense of ritual.

This month coincided with Qi Zheng’s birthday, and Shen Zhibing was worried she wouldn’t make it back, but Qi Zheng had proactively promised she would be home on time.

The woman in the mirror was still breathtakingly beautiful, shining from within, nurtured by love. Yet, she still noticed the fine lines at the corners of her eyes. She rarely worried about age-related issues.

But the fact that she was six years older than Qi Zheng occasionally pricked at her heart. Qi Zheng was growing increasingly mature; besides her composure and introversion, she had developed a confident and capable presence, her charm growing with each passing day.

She wasn’t worried about Qi Zheng having other thoughts; she simply wanted to always offer her best self to her loved one.

Staring blankly into the mirror for a moment, Shen Zhibing continued meticulously drawing her eyeliner.

Though Qi Zheng had never explicitly said it, she just knew that Qi Zheng liked her eyeliner, and also knew Qi Zheng liked her hair pinned up.

Giving up complicated and heavy accessories, she wore a pair of pearl earrings, adding a touch of clarity to her mature elegance.

As soon as she finished getting ready, she heard Aunt Xin’s voice outside. It must be Qi Zheng returning.

Her body reacted faster than her mind, and Shen Zhibing quickly walked out.

The door had just opened, and the person she hadn’t seen in half a month was standing right in front of her.

“I’m back.” Qi Zheng gave her a big hug, just like always.

Noticing her makeup today, Qi Zheng’s eyes lit up. She withdrew her hand from behind Shen Zhibing and presented her with a single rose.

“Hope you like it.”

She hadn’t been particularly fond of flowers before, and Qi Zheng rarely sent them. But this one was exceptionally vibrant and immediately caught her eye.

Smiling, she graciously accepted it, but intentionally asked: “Why the sudden thought to send flowers?”

“I’ve wanted to send it for a long time, but never found the right opportunity.”

“Thinking about it for so long, and you only sent one?” The implication was that she was stingy.

Qi Zheng still held her waist, not bothered by her teasing.

She maintained her usual doting and composed demeanor, which made Shen Zhibing anxious. Tapping her arm lightly, she urged: “Hurry up and reveal the answer.”

“I grew it myself, so waiting for it to bloom took time. As for why I only sent one, it’s because this is the only rose I need in my life.”

While talking about the rose, her eyes never left Shen Zhibing.

Her eyes sparkled, conveying her certainty and singularity.

Shen Zhibing was her only choice; a love like this was enough once.

Now Shen Zhibing finally understood why Qi Zheng had been gone for several hours recently, and why she had called Li Yunshan repeatedly before her business trip. They usually discussed business openly, but the instructions before her trip had seemed mysterious.

She took a light sniff. The faint scent of the flower couldn’t overpower Qi Zheng’s familiar fragrance: “Coincidentally, I also have a gift for you tonight.”

Hearing this, Qi Zheng smiled, leaned in, and kissed her. After half a month apart, she truly missed these lips.

Shen Zhibing responded, and they kissed deeply for a moment.

“So being this beautiful tonight was all for this?”

Shen Zhibing knew immediately that she had misunderstood, thinking that she was the gift. They had played that game before, but tonight was different.

“You’re getting more and more improper.”

Qi Zheng didn’t press the matter; whatever Shen Zhibing gave her, she would love.

“Time is short, I’ll go take a shower first.”

They had reserved a restaurant, and both dressed elegantly, entering hand-in-hand.

Qi Zheng recounted interesting stories from her business trip, while Shen Zhibing shared the new dish she had learned to cook.

“You’ve successfully bribed my secretary now. Very impressive, huh?”

“It means our lives are overlapping more and more.”

Shen Zhibing slowly sipped her red wine. Even the way Qi Zheng cut her steak was captivating to her.

Perhaps it was the effect of their short separation, her gaze drifted from Qi Zheng’s face down to the hand holding the knife and fork, and she couldn’t look away.

Qi Zheng’s hands were beautiful, a natural kind of beauty.

After dinner, Shen Zhibing said she wanted to take her somewhere. Qi Zheng thought it would be the mountaintop, but the car drove directly to the city suburbs.

She hadn’t been back to this villa in a long time. Shen Zhibing hadn’t mentioned it much since they got back together. Qi Zheng thought they would be living in Yunlu Garden from now on, so she was surprised to come here tonight.

“Come with me.”

Shen Zhibing held her hand and pushed open the villa’s front door. Qi Zheng was stunned; the place had clearly been redecorated.

The style was distinctly different from the past, shedding its lavish extravagance for a sense of leisure and elegance. The collected artworks were also rearranged, highlighting the owner’s preferences and taste.

“What do you think of this new style?”

Qi Zheng nodded: “To be honest, it’s much better than before. The first time I came, all I could think of was ‘over-the-top’.”

They both recalled the scene from that time and couldn’t help but laugh.

Seeing that the renovation was approved by Qi Zheng, Shen Zhibing was delighted and pulled her upstairs.

“Look at this first.” She stood at the door of the guest bedroom, the room where Qi Zheng had once lived.

Qi Zheng opened the door. The scene inside looked familiar, and she looked at Shen Zhibing: “Isn’t this…”

“You still remember?”

Qi Zheng nodded. The room had been changed to look exactly like Shen Zhibing’s bedroom next door. How could she not remember?

Shen Zhibing then led her to the door of her own room and gestured to the door: “Let’s revisit the old place, then.”

Qi Zheng and she walked in hand-in-hand. The entire villa had been renovated, yet only this room seemed unchanged. Perhaps it had been refreshed, but it was completely faithful to its previous appearance, with no obvious differences.

Qi Zheng turned around and stopped by the wardrobe. Most of the clothes inside had been removed, and the empty space only highlighted the two formal dresses left behind.

They were the dresses they wore the first time they danced together. Qi Zheng immediately saw the lipstick mark left on the shirt she had worn.

“I wanted to keep the memory of that night.”

Qi Zheng understood the emotion in her eyes. She walked to the record player and saw the unreplaced vinyl record.

She lowered the needle, and the familiar song filled the room.

Qi Zheng turned around and extended her hand to the person standing before her: “May I have the honor of another dance with you?”

Shen Zhibing smiled and placed her hand in Qi Zheng’s palm: “The pleasure is all mine.”

They embraced and danced slowly. The melody and their hearts spoke to each other.

[A gentle kiss has already moved my heart,

A deep love makes me yearn for it even now…]

Qi Zheng kissed Shen Zhibing along with the song, with the same tenderness and cherishment as that night.

“Qi Zheng, I temporarily transferred this villa to Yun Fei’s name before you signed the agreement. Now, I am formally giving it to you.”

Shen Zhibing hooked her neck and confessed her feelings in Qi Zheng’s ear again.

Her love for Qi Zheng had been sealed that very night.

Her hand was as mischievous as it was that night, still capable of stealing Qi Zheng’s breath. She, too, had emerged from her cocoon in Qi Zheng’s hands, blossoming in the moonlight to become the most vibrant rose in her life.

With the change of environment, they also changed their rhythm, soft and continuous, cycling multiple times, filling everything with love.

When Shen Zhibing woke up the next day, she felt someone kissing her shoulder. She didn’t need to guess who it was. She completely relaxed and leaned back, falling into the embrace she craved.

But the feeling on her hand was slightly different. Shen Zhibing opened her eyes and saw a ring.

“I loved yesterday’s gift, but I forgot to make a wish.”

Shen Zhibing turned to face her: “What do you want?”

Qi Zheng interlaced their ring-adorned fingers: “I want a Mrs. Qi.”

Shen Zhibing paused for a moment, then squeezed her hand tighter in return: “I’ll make that wish come true for you.”

Qi Zheng leaned closer, her smile deepening: “But now I have one more small wish.”

“It’s your birthday today, you’re the boss.”

Qi Zheng moved in even closer, murmuring against her ear: “Have breakfast in bed.”

…

Two years later, Shen Zhibing glanced at the time. She had ten minutes until her scheduled interview and was a little reluctant to turn off the video. Qi Zheng was being interviewed on a finance channel. She had been selected as one of Haicheng’s Top Ten Outstanding Young Entrepreneurs this year.

“Miss Qi, you insisted on listing domestically, even though your competitor has already rung the bell on the NASDAQ. Do you regret this?”

Qi Zheng’s company had just formally submitted its IPO application, so this topic was unavoidable.

“Never. Because I was very clear from the start that all information and data from this project would remain 100% domestic.”

Qi Zheng was usually gentle and reserved, rarely making such overtly targeted statements, but today she seemed unafraid of the topic. The host seized the opportunity to follow up: “Is this due to information security, or a requirement from your investors?”

“Both, but mainly because I should not, and cannot, share such a massive amount of data with the world. The internet makes global communication easy, but personal privacy has boundaries. Even while fully enjoying the convenience of the network, one must guard the last line of defense.”

Yun Fei and her team entered the office. Shen Zhibing turned off the screen and adjusted her mood. Today, as an Outstanding Investor of the Year, she would be interviewed by a major media outlet, and naturally, talking about Qi Zheng would be unavoidable.

“President Shen, can you talk about the reasons for your unwavering lead investment in Qi Zheng’s team from the A-round to the C-round?”

“She is doing something very meaningful, and at the same time, it will bring generous returns to the Shen Group. I can’t think of a reason not to increase the investment.”

“Facts have proven your vision to be sharp and accurate. The industry unanimously favors this IPO. If successful, it will indeed be a massive success.”

That meant Qi Zheng’s personal wealth would surge overnight, and as the lead investor across three rounds, the Shen Group would naturally make a fortune.

Shen Zhibing didn’t hide the pride on her face: “Qi Zheng is my most successful investment to date.”