Transmigrating Into the Beautiful CEO’s Doomed Substitute - Chapter 64

As Shen Zhibing entered, she surveyed the small shop entirely. She was accustomed to immediately grasping potential dangers or the safest exit routes upon arriving in a new environment, allowing her to settle in with peace of mind.

Hearing Qi Zheng’s comment, she recalled their previous conversation about the “buzz of life” when she was taken to a night market for street food. This time, she picked up the thread: “What do you think the ‘buzz of life’ is?”

Qi Zheng first thought the “buzz of life” was just the smell of the wok-fry, but quickly decided that wasn’t accurate enough. Then she thought it was the lively atmosphere and the crowd’s energy while eating, but that also seemed incomplete. After several attempts at definition, she found herself unable to articulate it.

Shen Zhibing waited patiently for her answer, but her eyes suggested she already had her own view, waiting only for Qi Zheng to finish before beginning a discussion.

Qi Zheng laughed. “I really can’t seem to find any other words for it; ‘buzz of life’ is the most comprehensive and apt. In short, it’s a feeling. I can’t describe exactly what it is.”

Shen Zhibing took a sip of soymilk and casually said, “It’s authenticity, and security.”

Qi Zheng paused, touched by the insight.

“Qi Zheng, I think the ‘buzz of life’ you’re referring to is the ability to experience a sense of authentic living through the environment and the process of eating, along with the steadfast satisfaction that food brings.”

Qi Zheng slowly nodded. Shen Zhibing’s interpretation seemed to cut straight to the core of her feelings. The fleeting feeling she couldn’t grasp before was now clear after this summarization.

“Qi Zheng, you are sometimes too distant in your everyday life.”

Huh? Distant?

Qi Zheng hadn’t expected her to bring this up suddenly. She asked, puzzled, “President Shen, in what way?”

Shen Zhibing seemed to quite like the soymilk here, initially sipping it slowly, but now she had already drunk a significant amount.

“You are only dedicated and focused on your work. In life, you are resisting everything.”

Qi Zheng pondered this for a moment. It seemed somewhat true, but it wasn’t a matter of principle or a problem, was it?

“Everyone has their own attitude towards life. As long as it doesn’t affect work, there shouldn’t be a mandatory standard dictating how everyone must live.”

“True, everyone has the freedom to choose their lifestyle.” Shen Zhibing looked at Qi Zheng. “But your distance is deliberate.”

This time, Qi Zheng couldn’t just brush it off with a smile. She wasn’t angry; instead, her interest was piqued, and she wanted to hear President Shen’s opinion of her.

Seeing her interest, Shen Zhibing didn’t hold back and stated directly, “You deliberately maintain a distance from your family, classmates, and colleagues. They do not exist in your life.”

Qi Zheng wanted to say, of course, they don’t; most of these social relationships belong to the original owner. She was operating under the original owner’s identity, but she wasn’t obligated to fully inherit the original owner’s messy relationships.

But Shen Zhibing didn’t know this, so Qi Zheng could only respond with a smile.

To Qi Zheng’s surprise, Shen Zhibing didn’t stop there but continued, “Qi Zheng, you are intentionally avoiding forming intimate and genuine relationships. You want to escape at any time.”

Qi Zheng’s heart thumped, even accelerating. She didn’t feel the guilt of being caught red-handed, but a sudden jolt of surprise.

Her aloofness and indifference stemmed from seeing through and letting go of past events, but wasn’t it also a mechanism for self-protection? Subconsciously, she believed that everything here belonged to the original owner, and she was merely an unwilling participant, never having truly wanted to live properly as her authentic self in this world.

She seemed to have always been an observer, never fully entering the scene.

As for escaping, Qi Zheng knew she was unlikely to return to her previous world, so she could only strive forward in her work, the only place where she felt safe, fearful of falling into a passive situation before she was fully prepared.

This would be a completely foreign passivity, one that would make her feel helpless and even terrified. She disliked that feeling.

Qi Zheng didn’t know how to answer President Shen’s remark. She lowered her gaze, still thinking. She didn’t want to completely refute Shen Zhibing’s words but was instead engaged in an examination of her own state.

Perhaps this was something she hadn’t even realized herself.

Seeing no reaction from Qi Zheng, Shen Zhibing sighed softly to herself and then said, “You’re doing all this because you want to escape me, aren’t you?”

It was less a question and more an assertion.

Qi Zheng looked up at the sound, and a hint of unconscious sadness seemed to cross President Shen’s face.

Qi Zheng thought she had misread the expression. She looked closely again and was sure she must have been mistaken; how could President Shen have an expression like that?

“I did indeed want to break free from the contract’s constraints, and I also wanted to distance myself from you before.” Even now, Qi Zheng couldn’t agree with the contract the original owner had signed.

Shen Zhibing’s tone became slightly urgent: “And now?”

“Now, I still want to terminate the contract as soon as possible, but I don’t feel as strong an urge to keep a great distance from you as before.”

Shen Zhibing’s voice was low. “A great distance. How far is that, exactly?”

Qi Zheng spread her arms, both hands extending over the table’s edge, air-drawing an exaggerated space—the distance one might pull a few strands of noodles apart. “A bit further than this.”

As expected, Shen Zhibing’s expression darkened further.

But she didn’t get angry, which occasionally made Qi Zheng feel that President Shen’s temper was not as unbearable as it had seemed when they first met. Women struggling with love are often emotionally volatile, but Shen Zhibing looked much calmer now.

At the very least, her charm was no longer being undermined by her moods and temper.

Seeing that the joke had run its course, Qi Zheng became serious. “Frankly, being by your side, President Shen, has taught me a lot. I have never encountered a boss like you.”

Shen Zhibing thought Qi Zheng was deliberately comforting her. “You just graduated. I’m your first boss. Who else could you have met before?”

Qi Zheng knew she wouldn’t understand those reasons, so she didn’t argue, and the conversation seemed to drift back toward work.

The late-night snack was satisfactory. After a moment of hesitation, Shen Zhibing dropped Qi Zheng back at the villa and returned to Yunlu Huayuan herself.

After that, Qi Zheng noticed that the constantly busy President Shen suddenly had much more time available, somehow squeezing it out of her schedule. She always had one day free on the weekend, and most of that free time was spent with Qi Zheng.

Sometimes Shen Zhibing would ask Qi Zheng to go to the gym, sometimes invite her to play ball, and Qi Zheng would also suggest cycling in the suburbs. For the first time, their interactions had a normal extension outside of the company.

**

Qi Zheng looked at the balance in her account. It had increased significantly from before, but she was still far from her goal. Today, she received the selection criteria and procedure for the special task force from Yun Fei, which were even stricter than the company’s usual internal competency reviews.

No written exam, three rounds of interviews—the difficulty was imaginable.

Qi Zheng had been preparing for a long time but still couldn’t help but feel nervous.

Jiang Youyou heard the anxiety in her voice over the phone and encouraged her: “Don’t you worry. You are so good now, and your work performance is excellent. Your President Shen already knows your ability; she definitely won’t make things difficult for you.”

Qi Zheng didn’t dare to take it lightly. “Everyone who makes the candidate list is a business elite. I have the least experience, so how could I think that?”

“Since it’s a competition based on skill, who cares about experience or age? As long as you have real talent, you’ll definitely succeed.”

Qi Zheng was amused by Jiang Youyou’s conviction. “People who don’t have to take the test are always more relaxed and optimistic than those who do.”

“I’m trying to cheer you on! How can you be so ungrateful, Qi Zheng? Would you be happier if I poured cold water on you?”

Qi Zheng sometimes found Jiang Youyou’s rapid-fire speaking style a bit overwhelming, preferring Shen Zhibing’s measured and composed pace.

Just as Qi Zheng’s thoughts drifted, she heard Jiang Youyou, with a hint of grievance and indignation, say, “Qi Zheng, do you know what Lin Hang was saying about you after the class reunion ended that day?”

She had heard about this a while ago and had been holding it in, not telling Qi Zheng. But this afternoon, she heard a new rumor in the group chat, and it made her furious.

“That I’m a gold-digger?” Qi Zheng recalled Lin Hang’s deliberate display of his car key that night, followed by his silence after seeing the emblem on Shen Zhibing’s car. It was easy to guess his intention.

“More than that! That shameless jerk was secretly telling people that you commute in luxury cars and have a personal driver, which you absolutely cannot afford with your current ability and background.”

Salespeople are glib. Lin Hang didn’t state it directly, but by making a few snide remarks, it was easy for people to connect them to the old rumor that Qi Zheng had slept her way to the top.

Even with her usual indifference, Qi Zheng couldn’t be unmoved by such slander. “Why is Lin Hang suddenly fixated on me?”

If Shen Zhibing picking her up that night was an accident, then his later comments about Qi Zheng’s Bentley commute and personal driver were definitely not a coincidence.

“Who knows? But he’s always been calculating. Back in school, he once waited outside a female student’s dorm for half a month just to pursue her.”

Qi Zheng, however, was thinking: Is Lin Hang stalking me?

“You should be more careful recently. If he really harasses you, gather the evidence and tell my brother. I’ll ask him to give you a discount; his rates are very cheap.”

Jiang Youyou didn’t know the real reason for Qi Zheng’s frugality, thinking she had to take care of her family. She had heard that her gambler father was back, and Qi Zheng’s burden would be considerable going forward.

“Thank you.”

Before hanging up, Jiang Youyou finally remembered the important matter for the evening. “Ahhh! Talking to you made me almost forget. Crystal Alley is having a concert! Do you know?”

“Who?”

“Ah, Crystal Alley! The band you loved most when you were in school, the one you said had the super amazing lead singer.”

Oh, oh, oh. Qi Zheng remembered. The original owner did like this band a lot. She had wanted to go see them perform several times with Lin Muyun, but Lin Muyun was always too busy with work.

“I managed to get two tickets for next weekend. Want to go together?”

Qi Zheng was about to refuse, but Jiang Youyou was so enthusiastic, and she was a little swayed. Since she spent every weekend relaxing with President Shen, Qi Zheng wondered if she should ask President Shen if she was interested in going together, but then decided she definitely wouldn’t like it.

Shen Zhibing appeared more mature and elegant than Lin Muyun. She probably wouldn’t want to go to a performance by a semi-underground band like this.

“Alright. I’ll treat you to dinner that day, and then we’ll go to the show together.”

Shen Zhibing had just left the psychiatrist’s office and was contemplating the message on her phone. What should she and Qi Zheng do this weekend? The weather forecast predicted a high chance of rain this weekend, so outdoor activities were ruled out.

The psychiatrist suggested trying different activities to increase novelty and help uncover her potential. Constantly repeating things within one’s comfort zone makes it difficult to discover one’s full self.

Shen Zhibing’s eyes fell on the recent performance listings. Qi Zheng was young, and young people usually enjoyed movies, plays, or concerts.

There weren’t any particularly interesting movies recently, as most big blockbusters were holding out for the year-end slot.

A play or a concert?

Shen Zhibing called Qi Zheng, wanting to ask for her opinion.

To her surprise, Qi Zheng replied, “I’m sorry, President Shen, but a classmate has already asked me to go to a concert this weekend.”

A classmate? She recalled that Qi Zheng had always been distant from her classmates. She hadn’t bothered to devote any energy to them during the period right after graduation—when class friendships are typically most active—and now she was going to a concert with one?

Had her relationship with her classmates improved since the last reunion?

Shen Zhibing didn’t push it and remained calm. “Then I wish you a pleasant time.”

After she hung up, Qi Zheng belatedly sensed a hint of surprise in President Shen’s voice at being rejected, likely because she hadn’t expected Qi Zheng to have other plans.

However, the weekend was her free time, and there was no rule that she had to spend it with anyone. Qi Zheng thought she was probably overthinking it. If she understood such a simple principle, President Shen surely would, too.