Transmigrating Into the Beautiful CEO’s Doomed Substitute - Chapter 17

Shen Zhibing was woken up by a phone call in the morning. She had been dreaming almost all night, filled with fragmented scenes. She knew they were just bits and pieces of the past, but she couldn’t string them together, letting her thoughts jump erratically.

The call connected, and Yun Fei’s voice came through: “President Shen, I apologize for bothering you so early. We just received news this morning that Yongfeng intends to change its plan and is no longer going to sell the land.”

Shen Zhibing, who was still lying with her eyes closed, immediately sobered up upon hearing this news. Ignoring the slight headache, she abruptly sat up, throwing off the blanket to get out of bed.

“Is the news confirmed?”

“It’s internal news from Yongfeng,” Yun Fei said somewhat cautiously, but Shen Zhibing instantly understood the reliability of the information.

Large companies constantly monitor each other, sometimes even placing their own contacts within the other’s internal structure. The Shen Group had always been very cautious about this, regularly auditing the backgrounds of all its internal staff. But when it came to external companies, the Shen Group was unwilling to miss any opportunity for deeper insight.

“Was this decided after the meeting with Shi Qun’s people last night?”

Yun Fei considered it for a moment, then replied: “That’s still uncertain.” She heard Shen Zhibing’s breathing quicken slightly, and added, “Changing the land sale plan requires the approval of Yongfeng’s board of directors. Even if President Le temporarily changed his mind, he still needs the recognition of the other directors to implement it. Perhaps Yongfeng was only using the sale as a cover, essentially looking for new capital injection.”

Shen Zhibing knew Yun Fei’s analysis was reasonable, but she still couldn’t completely let go of Lian Ao’s meeting with President Le last night. What angered her was that Lian Ao couldn’t possibly be unaware of the Shen Group’s interest in this project, and what angered her even more was that he hadn’t informed her at all, essentially “poaching” the person who was supposed to meet with her.

Even in the business world among old rivals, Shen Zhibing could clearly say: “Despicable.”

However, this person was Lian Ao. This made her feel even more unsettled, and she became more pessimistic about the future commercial standing between the two families.

“Keep monitoring this matter. Inform me immediately of any new developments. Also, have the person in charge of acquisitions from the real estate company come to my office this morning. We need to formulate a new strategy.”

After arranging work, Shen Zhibing prepared to take a shower and head to the office. She opened her closet and paused when she saw some clothes in a style different from her usual. Then she remembered that she had asked Aunt Xin to prepare them for Qi Zheng earlier—the efficiency was indeed high.

Shen Zhibing was quite satisfied with this. She casually slid to the other side of the closet, which now belonged to Qi Zheng. Pushing aside a few tops, mostly casual styles in very bright colors, a youthful vibe.

Shen Zhibing recalled Qi Zheng’s usual style and felt these colors were a bit too flashy. Although Qi Zheng hadn’t graduated yet, she mostly wore solid, muted colors; candy colors were clearly not her style.

Shen Zhibing’s gaze shifted sideways. Thin coats in khaki and navy blue were also prepared. The styles were simple and elegant, and the brand logos were not obvious, subtle yet luxurious—not bad.

Shen Zhibing suddenly came to her senses, finding herself a little ridiculous. With a heap of company matters waiting for her, she had time to study Qi Zheng’s clothes here. She picked out her clothes for the day from her side and closed the closet door.

Just then, she heard footsteps in the room and realized Qi Zheng was still here.

“Why are you here?” Shen Zhibing’s habitual alertness made her look unfriendly at the moment.

Qi Zheng was speechless but had to explain: “You wouldn’t let me go back last night. You insisted I sleep here.”

After saying that, she deliberately pointed to the sofa. The wrinkled blanket showed how pitiful Qi Zheng had been last night.

Shen Zhibing was half-skeptical, recalling the events of last night. She had a vague impression that Qi Zheng had indeed brought her back, and she vaguely remembered saying that Qi Zheng was not allowed to go back. But had she really told her to sleep here?

She thought about it but still had no definite answer. But it didn’t matter; it was already in the past.

“I’m going to take a shower. You should tidy yourself up too.”

Shen Zhibing turned and walked towards the bathroom. Qi Zheng also turned around to find her backpack by the sofa. Thankfully, she was smart enough to bring a change of clothes yesterday, or it would have been embarrassing again.

“Wait.” Shen Zhibing suddenly stopped her, signaling with her eyes, “Your change of clothes is there. You can choose from the right side.”

It was a walk-in closet, large enough for two people to walk circles in. But Qi Zheng was not happy. She could control herself not to spend money when using Shen Zhibing’s card, but what did it mean to wear someone else’s clothes?

They were about the same height, but the curves were different. Shen Zhibing’s clothes were almost all form-fitting; they wouldn’t look good on her.

“What are you standing there for? Don’t waste time.”

“President Shen, I brought my own clothes.”

Shen Zhibing glanced at her dismissively and sneered, “With your taste, it’s fine for school, but when you go out with me in the future, you can’t wear them anymore.”

“Why? What’s wrong with wearing a style I like?”

I’m not indecently dressed, nor am I disrespectful or messy. Why can’t you let me wear clothes according to my own preference?

Shen Zhibing was rushing back to the company and looked at her impatiently: “In the future, while you’re here, you must listen to me. Don’t question ‘why’ everything; there isn’t that many ‘whys’ in this world.”

Without giving Qi Zheng a chance to speak again, Shen Zhibing walked straight into the bathroom.

Qi Zheng symbolically looked in the closet—a row of brand-new clothes, with tags still attached. Current season’s styles were all available, even for early autumn. Moreover, the left and right sides had different styles; the left was clearly more professional suits, while the right was much more casual.

Qi Zheng didn’t expect President Shen to secretly like this kind of youthful style. Does she still have a little girl living in her heart?

She looked at the price tags—prices she couldn’t afford yet. Luckily, she had brought her own clothes; otherwise, being forced to wear such expensive garments would mean owing Shen Zhibing a little more.

Qi Zheng was now waiting for Jiang Youyou’s reply. Although she didn’t know the exact cost of breaking the contract, she was consciously trying not to take advantage of Shen Zhibing anymore.

Shen Zhibing changed her clothes and went downstairs; Qi Zheng was already sitting in the dining room waiting for her.

She looked at the clothes Qi Zheng was wearing, clearly her own style, and a hint of displeasure flashed in her eyes.

After sitting down, Aunt Xin had the kitchen send over breakfast. After greeting her, Qi Zheng silently began eating a fried dough stick.

“Why didn’t you listen?”

Qi Zheng had just swallowed a bite of the dough stick and hadn’t had a chance to drink her soy milk, so she looked up confused.

“I told you to choose one from the closet. Why didn’t you follow instructions?”

Shen Zhibing’s vulnerability and confusion only appeared on specific occasions. Most of the time, she was like a hedgehog covered in armor, wrapping herself up tightly.

“I have my own clothes. And those in the closet don’t suit me.”

Aunt Xin stood nearby. Seeing the two argue over clothes, she took the opportunity to explain: “The clothes for Miss Qi were prepared by me. It’s my fault for not fully understanding. I’ll have a new batch swapped out today.”

Shen Zhibing didn’t speak, which meant she agreed with Aunt Xin. She wasn’t too satisfied with those clothes either.

Qi Zheng was surprised, though. She hadn’t expected those clothes to be specially prepared for her. She had thought they were all Shen Zhibing’s.

“President Shen, I didn’t know those clothes were all for me. Thank you for your kindness.” She was aware of the prices of those clothes. Even though she didn’t wear them, she still needed to express her gratitude.

Then she turned to Aunt Xin: “There’s no need to exchange them for others. That’s too wasteful.”

Aunt Xin was already uneasy because this matter wasn’t handled perfectly. After Qi Zheng declined, she subconsciously looked at Shen Zhibing.

Shen Zhibing remained silent, her expression not looking good.

“Aunt Xin, just proceed with your plan to get new ones.” Shen Zhibing looked at Qi Zheng indifferently, “As for whether others will wear them when the time comes, we’ll see.”

Qi Zheng felt that bringing Shen Zhibing back last night was a mistake. She really shouldn’t have been soft-hearted. At the very least, when she handed her over to Aunt Xin at the door, she should have firmly insisted on returning to school.

Jiang Youyou called her and told her that she had spoken to her brother about the contract.

“My brother is going on a business trip these two days. He said he could arrange a time to meet and discuss the details when he gets back.”

Qi Zheng was very grateful: “Okay, thank you!”

Her mood suddenly lifted, and her tone with Jiang Youyou became light and cheerful. Shen Zhibing occasionally glanced at her, but Qi Zheng was completely oblivious.

During breakfast, Shen Zhibing’s phone remained busy, with messages constantly coming in. A message from Lian Ao was among them. Shen Zhibing hesitated for a moment and rejected his intention to meet tonight.

Lian Ao called her, but Shen Zhibing pressed the ignore button, only texting that it was not convenient to answer right now.

She was still feeling somewhat uncomfortable and hadn’t figured out how to discuss the Yongfeng matter with Lian Ao face-to-face. Given her personality, while she could tolerate pretense and hiding things in the business world, she absolutely could not accept any deception from a close lover.

After dealing with her tasks, Shen Zhibing asked Aunt Xin to call the driver, preparing to return to the company.

“Wait for my call tonight.”

Huh? Another appointment? Qi Zheng hadn’t expected it at all. They had just been at odds, and now Shen Zhibing wanted to schedule her again?

More accurately, she wanted to occupy her time.

“Does President Shen have something on tonight?”

“Do I need to distinguish between having something on or not to see you?”

Shen Zhibing was once again focused on dealing with messages on her phone. The disdain and casualness in her words made Qi Zheng very uncomfortable.

“But I also have my own things to take care of. If it’s not particularly urgent, we can reschedule.”

Shen Zhibing finally looked up, smiling faintly: “Does taking you out to eat, shop, and watch a movie count as having something on?”

Qi Zheng thought, Is President Shen addicted to eating out after last night? But she didn’t want to go through the hardship of sending her home again last night.

“You must be with me tonight. This is your obligation.”

The cold sneer at the corner of her mouth almost explicitly emphasized that she should properly fulfill her duty as a good plaything.

Shen Zhibing wore a black suit today, which perfectly accentuated her aloof and proud temperament. Her hair was swept up, making her look even more capable. The captivating President Shen in others’ eyes seemed like an unreasonable person to Qi Zheng.