Transmigrating Into the Beautiful CEO’s Doomed Substitute - Chapter 22

Qi Zheng didn’t understand where Shen Zhibing’s emotion, which could instantly switch to a state of alertness, came from, but she genuinely felt tired for President Shen.

“I studied finance. It’s normal to pay attention to financial reports. Furthermore, my thesis advisor is an asset appraiser, and he often mentions this kind of content to us.”

Shen Zhibing asked no more questions and accepted this explanation.

However, having Qi Zheng go to the real estate company was not a whim. Shen Zhibing had considered that abruptly placing an undergraduate graduate in the headquarters was indeed not entirely justifiable. Moreover, she had asked Shen Qixing, and there were not many legitimate vacant positions. Only the Secretary’s Office, where she would see her almost daily, had an opening.

However, the current Qi Zheng was not yet qualified enough.

“Since you have some understanding of the Yongfeng matter, that’s even better. I will call them tomorrow, and someone will contact you then.”

From the sound of it, Shen Zhibing had arranged a job for her?

Qi Zheng wasn’t particularly happy. After all, Shen Zhibing’s approach of making a final decision without saying a word or discussing it was really difficult for her to adapt to.

“President Shen, although I follow the news about Yongfeng, I never thought about working for a real estate company.” Qi Zheng didn’t like this industry; she preferred to deal directly with money.

“It’s just to let you accumulate some experience, not to keep you there forever. Besides, didn’t you always want to find a company that could rival the Lin family?”

The meaning in Shen Zhibing’s eyes reminded Qi Zheng that the original host had completely lowered herself to provoke Lin Muyun. In Shen Zhibing’s eyes, the original host was probably a lunatic driven mad by love.

But in Qi Zheng’s eyes, how much better was Shen Zhibing?

“I can go, but I have one condition.”

Shen Zhibing listened with interest. She wanted to know what else Qi Zheng could want after being actively offered such a good job opportunity.

“I will only participate in this one project. Once the Yongfeng transaction is complete, I will leave the real estate company.”

Qi Zheng thought, three months should be enough. Besides, with this kind of experience, finding another job would be much easier. She didn’t want to be tied to the Shen Group long-term, and even less did she want Shen Zhibing to think it was charity.

“And then?” Shen Zhibing guessed that Qi Zheng didn’t want to stay in the real estate company for long because she wanted to get into the headquarters, after all, the headquarters had more resources and was closer to her.

“Then, please provide me with an internship certificate and be able to objectively evaluate my work performance during that period.” The original host missed the internship period before graduation. She didn’t have any decent internship experience, so she wanted to make amends.

Shen Zhibing was a bit surprised that this was what Qi Zheng asked for.

“Anything else?” She thought, Qi Zheng should get to the main point now, just like Lian Ao, who eventually circled back to the Yongfeng topic after several layers of groundwork.

Recalling the unpleasant gathering with Lian Ao not long ago, a sharp pain shot through Shen Zhibing’s heart, but she absolutely refused to show any sign of sadness on her face.

She only let herself see her wounds.

Qi Zheng was very straightforward: “No other requests.” She paused after saying that, then added, “I will do my best and won’t cause you any extra trouble.”

Although Qi Zheng didn’t like Shen Zhibing’s unilateral arrangements, she had no better option now, and participating in the Yongfeng project was a good benefit. Having gone through several interviews, Qi Zheng clearly understood how difficult it was for an inexperienced fresh graduate to land a decent job.

Shen Zhibing looked at Qi Zheng with suspicion, trying to find more flaws. Only such a simple request? Just for an internship certificate and a work evaluation? She grew increasingly puzzled, always feeling that Qi Zheng was different from the person she first met.

When they discussed the terms of their cooperation, she could clearly see intense and hidden desire in Qi Zheng’s eyes, mixed with hatred and greed. Yet now, Qi Zheng always displayed a peace and seemingly Buddhist mindset, as if she were a completely different person.

Shen Zhibing recalled Lin Muyun’s past assessment of Qi Zheng and couldn’t help but sneer internally; right out of college, her skill at putting on airs had improved.

“I agree. As long as you work seriously, I will have the real estate company provide you with an objective and fair performance evaluation certificate.” Shen Zhibing readily agreed to Qi Zheng’s request, but she didn’t believe for a second that this was all she wanted.

Since you want to act, I’ll give you a big enough stage to perform to your heart’s content.

Shen Zhibing suddenly felt exhausted. Everyone around her, near or far, was putting on an act. Was it truly impossible to find someone who was sincere to her and whom she could trust?

The next day at the company, Shen Zhibing instructed Yun Fei to handle the matter. Although she didn’t know who Qi Zheng was, since President Shen personally instructed it, Yun Fei naturally didn’t dare to be negligent. After informing the HR manager of the real estate company, the manager stated that they would contact Qi Zheng that very day and strive to have her start work as soon as possible.

“President Shen, arranging a newcomer to join the project team at this time, won’t it cause unnecessary speculation?” Yun Fei reported the latest progress and voiced her concern.

Shen Zhibing wasn’t too bothered: “She’s just a college graduate with no experience. Just let her follow along and learn.”

Hearing this, Yun Fei guessed that Qi Zheng likely belonged to a “connected” person. But for President Shen to personally arrange it, she felt that this “connected” person was extraordinary.

Shen Zhibing handed a report to Yun Fei: “Help me thoroughly investigate the information of these companies again.”

The real estate company responded quickly, and sure enough, they arranged a start date with Qi Zheng that day. Her advisor was worried about Qi Zheng’s job situation, but when he heard she was going to intern at the Shen Group’s real estate subsidiary tomorrow, his eyes lit up.

“You’re something else. You quietly got into such a good company. No wonder you weren’t interested in the companies I recommended last time.” Although it wasn’t the Shen Group headquarters, getting into the Shen Group’s core industry was excellent.

Perhaps President Shen intended to let Qi Zheng train in the grassroots for a while before promoting her to the headquarters for intensive cultivation. In any case, the advisor’s persistent worry was finally resolved.

Because she was going to intern at the real estate company, the training courses had to be compressed and adjusted. Fortunately, Qi Zheng had performed exceptionally well in the early stages, so Aunt Xin confidently cut several foundational skills courses, keeping only the advanced training.

Even so, Qi Zheng’s time became tight. To maintain normal training, she would have to work overtime on weekends. Aunt Xin initially thought Qi Zheng would be unhappy, but to her surprise, she expressed understanding after the discussion.

“Miss Qi, your hard work now will definitely pay off handsomely in the future.”

Aunt Xin didn’t know what kind of work Shen Zhibing would arrange for Qi Zheng in the future, but Qi Zheng’s ability and attitude made her believe that once she joined the Shen Group, Qi Zheng would definitely become a capable assistant to President Shen.

Because President Shen’s chief secretary, Yun Fei, personally handled the communication, Qi Zheng received special treatment at the real estate company. After a simple interview, she immediately completed the internship procedures. The HR manager tried to subtly inquire about her relationship with President Shen, but Qi Zheng calmly stated that she missed campus recruitment, and President Shen was willing to give her a chance.

“For President Shen to value you so much, you must have great potential.” The reason for saying this was that there was nothing particularly remarkable in Qi Zheng’s file.

Her grades were average to above average, and she had won several single-subject scholarships, but she was definitely not the kind of person Shen Zhibing would consider special talent. Yet, President Shen had indeed given her unique treatment. The HR manager, who had seen countless people, dared not take it lightly and could only observe carefully.

The Yongfeng project was the real estate company’s current key business. Core elites from various departments had been drawn to form a project team, which regularly reported to President Shen at headquarters. Now, there was an extra person in the team, and the team leader didn’t know what work to assign to Qi Zheng.

However, she couldn’t be slighted, so he had to assign the youngest person in the team to mentor her. Speaking of the youngest, anyone who could join this special project team was at least thirty-five years old.

“Xiao Qi, first familiarize yourself with these materials. They are all about Yongfeng Company, plus the assessment report for the land we’re bidding on. If anything is unclear, come ask me.” The person was named Dong Xiao, but being asked to mentor Qi Zheng didn’t make him smile at all.

Everyone who managed to secure a spot on the team was highly motivated, working overtime and extra shifts, hoping to achieve results and leave a good impression on President Shen. At the very least, they could get an ‘A’ in their department’s year-end evaluation, with more bonuses as consolation.

But now he had to divert his energy to look after Qi Zheng. Even though he knew she had a close relationship with President Shen, Dong Xiao still felt Qi Zheng was slowing him down.

After piling the thick stack of materials onto Qi Zheng’s desk, Dong Xiao pretended to give a few words of encouragement and then hurried off to the team meeting. Every meeting was information-heavy, especially the discussion of the latest report revisions based on President Shen’s feedback, which directly impacted their performance in front of President Shen next time.

Qi Zheng didn’t seek out Dong Xiao all day, until the meeting ended, which was after closing time. A colleague clapped Dong Xiao’s shoulder, wanting to inquire about Qi Zheng’s background: “Old Dong, how’s your apprentice doing? Is she obedient?”

Dong Xiao gave him a forced smile: “It’s just the beginning, who knows what she’ll be like. I asked her to familiarize herself with the materials before the meeting. She’s probably gone home by now.”

The two chatted as they walked back to the office, and Dong Xiao was surprised to find Qi Zheng was still there.

“How much have you read?”

“One-third left.”

Dong Xiao paused while tidying his files, unconvinced. He carefully looked at Qi Zheng’s desk. Sure enough, there were file folders on both the left and right sides. The left side contained what she had read, and the right side was the remainder.

The left side was indeed taller.

“Xiao Qi, you’re a newcomer. You need to take your time to learn and understand many things. Haste makes waste.”

Dong Xiao walked to her desk and looked at Qi Zheng meaningfully.

Out of politeness, Qi Zheng had to stop what she was doing and look at him.

“I asked you to familiarize yourself with the materials, but I don’t demand that you finish them in two or three days. You don’t have to rush. If you just skim through them like this, it’s the same as not having read them, and it becomes pointless.”

Qi Zheng nodded but said: “Everything I’ve read, I believe I understand well enough.”

Dong Xiao’s heart skipped a beat. He looked carefully at the files on the left; he was familiar with them all. He would believe it if someone with a few years of work experience read that fast. But for an undergraduate graduate like Qi Zheng, who had no formal internship experience before, this speed could only mean she was skimming.

Dong Xiao sighed helplessly, but he couldn’t criticize her openly. She was a newcomer, and the leaders had instructed them to give her special care.

But if Qi Zheng continued like this, she would be exposed sooner or later.