Transmigrating Into the Beautiful CEO’s Doomed Substitute - Chapter 86

A week later.

Shen Zhibing was silent during the real estate company’s presentation meeting, making everyone increasingly uneasy, thinking that the day’s report content was unsatisfactory to President Shen.

Shen Zhibing looked at the constantly changing data and related materials on the big screen, her thoughts drawn back to last summer. At that time, Qi Zheng was among the figures presenting in front of the screen.

The Yongfeng project had progressed slowly in the early stages and had encountered many obstacles in the middle. However, the formal signing went very smoothly. This year’s reports were mostly routine and did not have any particular difficulties that needed to be resolved.

Shen Zhibing only needed to understand the project’s progress and was no longer as strict about the data as she had been initially.

“In the next phase, we must communicate well with the regulatory authorities, but be mindful of the boundaries and distance. Everyone should understand what can be done and what cannot. If you encounter situations where communication is impossible, you can apply to the headquarters for resources, but the kind of incident that happened in Miancheng is absolutely not allowed to occur again.”

The Miancheng branch company has become an extremely failed typical case within Shen’s Group. Shen Zhibing has repeatedly used it as a cautionary reminder in meetings, which made Shen Shijun once feel embarrassed.

The real estate company has always been directly managed by Shen Zhibing, and the management team was also selected by her. Their style of work naturally would not be as outrageous and exaggerated as the Miancheng branch. However, after a round of self-inspections by various local branches in the early stage, the results still made her heart tremble.

Even those under her direct supervision, she still had to repeatedly remind.

Back in the office, Shen Zhibing’s expression did not visibly soften. Yun Fei continued to brief her on other work, but Shen Zhibing was thinking about something else.

After a while, she interrupted Yun Fei and asked, “Is Qi Zheng starting school at the end of the month?”

Yun Fei paused, then replied, “Yes. She just settled down, and next week is orientation.”

Shen Zhibing tapped her steel pen lightly on the desk: “Is the Business School’s orientation still the same old tricks?”

Yun Fei recalled: “It probably won’t change much. I’ll ask Xiao Qi then.”

Shen Zhibing nodded slightly and then fell silent again.

Seeing that the topic seemed to be concluded, Yun Fei was about to continue her previous report, but then heard Shen Zhibing suddenly ask, “What is your current frequency of contact?”

“Twice a week. Sometimes through messages, and if there’s a lot going on or the time difference is right, we’ll have a voice call.”

Shen Zhibing pursed her lips, returning to silence. The force of the steel pen tapping the desk increased slightly, emitting a dull thud.

Qi Zheng had not contacted Shen Zhibing even once after leaving the suburban villa that day. The note with the termination notice and the bank card password became their last connection.

However, Qi Zheng had messaged Yun Fei immediately after her safe arrival and subsequently told Yun Fei about settling into the pre-booked apartment and familiarizing herself with the surroundings near the school. Yun Fei also promptly relayed all this information to Shen Zhibing, which should have been enough.

But Shen Zhibing felt uncomfortable, very uncomfortable.

The anger caused by Qi Zheng’s unannounced departure had never completely subsided, occasionally surging up, so Shen Zhibing simply stopped going to the villa. But whenever Yun Fei mentioned Qi Zheng’s recent developments, her emotions still fluctuated.

Yun Fei saw her face was gloomy, even worse than during the meeting, and guessed it was related to Qi Zheng.

“President Shen, do you have any instructions regarding Xiao Qi’s study and life there?”

After all, the funding came from Shen’s Group, and it wasn’t impossible for Shen Zhibing to take charge if she truly wanted to. But of the many people who had gone before, Shen Zhibing barely remembered their names.

“Let her be free to act on her own.”

Shen Zhibing occasionally brought up Qi Zheng afterwards, but most of the time it was Yun Fei who actively relayed the latest news from the US to her after receiving it.

This weekend, Shen Zhibing had a rare moment of free time and went golfing with Yu Xinyan and Yun Fei. It was still hot in late summer, but it couldn’t stop their superb golf skills.

Shen Zhibing felt a bit hot after playing half a round, and her enthusiasm was halved.

Yu Xinyan accompanied her back for a drink, smiling as she looked her over: “You were the one who suggested playing golf, and you’re also the one who called it quits early. What’s wrong, President Shen?”

Shen Zhibing took a few sips of orange juice, and the weariness in her heart was only barely suppressed.

“I feel hot, I want to rest for a while before playing again. What’s the big deal?”

Yu Xinyan smiled even more meaningfully: “President Shen, are you… not up to it?”

Shen Zhibing glared at her, clearly not accepting such slander.

Yu Xinyan shrugged, believing she wasn’t wrong, and looked at Yun Fei, trying to find an ally: “Yun Fei, don’t you think President Shen has been acting strangely lately? She often spaces out and asks inexplicable questions, and she’s even learned to hide it.”

Shen Zhibing firmly denied this unfounded comment, but she was curious to hear how Yu Xinyan had arrived at such a conclusion.

Yun Fei subtly signaled Yu Xinyan with her eyes, indicating that she shouldn’t take the joke too far. President Shen’s mood lately was not as bright as the summer sun, and even with their close relationship, some things shouldn’t be said carelessly.

Yu Xinyan gently patted her hand, signaling that she knew what she was doing.

“Ever since Qi Zheng went to the US, the frost on your face hasn’t thawed. Am I wrong?”

Shen Zhibing calmly put the orange juice back on the table, looking at her: “Is that so? I don’t think so.”

“You’re also working overtime until late at night every day. Although you used to work overtime too, you wouldn’t keep the exact same expression all day.”

Shen Zhibing slightly adjusted her posture, still calm: “Go on.”

Yun Fei listened silently on the side. President Shen has been a bit abnormal lately; perhaps she hasn’t noticed it herself.

“What more is there to say? President Shen, aren’t you just angry that Qi Zheng didn’t say goodbye to you before she left that day?”

At this, Shen Zhibing’s composure completely broke, and her face instantly darkened.

She had only told Yun Fei about this, and only mentioned that she went to pick up Qi Zheng that day only to find that the person was already on the plane. But she knew Yun Fei’s discretion after so many years of working by her side, so it wouldn’t have been Yun Fei gossiping and leaking the information.

Yu Xinyan didn’t let anyone else take the blame and admitted openly: “I saw her flight landing time on her Moments and calculated that she must have flown early in the morning. You only left the company after lunch that day, so how could you have met her?”

If Shen Zhibing had known beforehand that Qi Zheng was on an early morning flight, she wouldn’t have gone from the company to pick her up. It was obvious that Qi Zheng left on her own and didn’t tell Shen Zhibing.

Shen Zhibing felt the emotions of that day being stirred up again. Initially, she was indeed extremely angry, but recently, she suddenly discovered that besides anger, there was also a hint of an indescribable emotion.

This newly generated emotion was not intense, but it was long-lasting, swirling and turning in her heart, more bothersome than the initial rage. She had expected Qi Zheng to contact her once she arrived in the US, at least to explain the change in the flight.

But she waited a whole day and didn’t hear anything, while Qi Zheng messaged Yun Fei to report her safe landing. Shen Zhibing thought, forget it, Yun Fei is usually in charge of these matters, so telling Yun Fei was the same.

So she waited patiently for two more days, and when Yun Fei reported that Qi Zheng had settled down in the apartment, she still hadn’t received a message from Qi Zheng.

Forget it, if she doesn’t contact me, then so be it. She didn’t have anything that needed to be known immediately. Knowing that Qi Zheng had arrived smoothly and was about to start a new life, Shen Zhibing had no reason to keep probing.

However, now, she gleaned another piece of information from Yu Xinyan’s words: Qi Zheng had posted information about her landing flight on her Moments.

So why hadn’t she seen it?

Shen Zhibing felt a slight upheaval in her heart, but her expression remained largely unchanged from before. She gave a half-smile, glanced at Yu Xinyan, and then turned to Yun Fei, asking casually, “Did Qi Zheng really post information about her landing flight that day?”

At first glance, this sounded like she didn’t quite believe the basis of Yu Xinyan’s earlier deduction. But to Yun Fei, who was very familiar with Shen Zhibing, it seemed like an attempted cover-up.

What President Shen really wanted to know was clearly about Qi Zheng’s Moments situation.

But that shouldn’t be the case; everyone has WeChat. The people in the President’s Office even have a small group, which isn’t too active, but President Shen occasionally speaks in it.

Yun Fei nodded. It was impossible to lie, as Qi Zheng had indeed posted that message at the time. However, the three-day visibility setting was generally popular, so it was normal not to see it now.

But, if President Shen hadn’t seen it back then either…

Shen Zhibing smiled again. Yun Fei and Yu Xinyan exchanged glances, then quietly lowered their heads to drink their beverages.

It is highly likely that President Shen has been blocked by Qi Zheng, or at least categorized into a special group—the kind where “many things are not visible.”

After the break, Shen Zhibing stood up, picked up her club, and continued to move forward, but the force of her swing was greater each time, and on the last swing, she even hit the ball off course. Yu Xinyan covered her mouth and laughed watching from behind, while Yun Fei was somewhat worried.

Shen Zhibing looked weary and wasn’t interested in the suggestion of going out to eat together after the sport, so they parted ways outside the golf course. On the way back, Yun Fei rode in Yu Xinyan’s car.

“I said last time that things between President Shen and Qi Zheng were definitely not simple, but you didn’t believe me. How about it? Is this performance today obvious enough?”

Yun Fei sighed: “This is not something we, as employees, should concern ourselves with.”

“We are helping her as friends now. Has Old Shen ever been normal these past few years? It was only better for the half year or so when Qi Zheng was around, especially early this year, she was glowing and clearly living a very happy life.”

Yun Fei didn’t deny this statement. President Shen was very busy at the beginning of the year, but her condition was indeed good. However, this situation didn’t last too long, then it quickly deteriorated, and now it seemed she was back to the past.

“You also understand Qi Zheng’s personality, right? Would she be someone who leaves without an explanation or is impolite? The big boss is going to personally see you off, how dare you slip away without a word?”

Yu Xinyan analyzed it logically, as if she had been watching closely all along. Yun Fei frowned, reminding her: “Focus on driving.”

Yu Xinyan was afraid of no one but Yun Fei. The person who was just talking excitedly immediately quieted down and drove properly.

Yun Fei naturally took the words to heart, but as Shen Zhibing’s secretary, no matter the occasion or capacity, she couldn’t casually say certain things.

However, she hadn’t failed to notice what Yu Xinyan had just said. Since Qi Zheng left, President Shen had several times casually asked about her situation and asked her to put more effort into taking care of Qi Zheng’s life in the US.

She claimed that since Qi Zheng was new to a foreign environment, she needed more help.

But Yun Fei could sense that President Shen actually wanted to know more about Qi Zheng’s recent status. Judging from this, Qi Zheng had indeed not contacted President Shen after leaving. And in their regular communications, Qi Zheng even proactively asked about the situations of Xin Jia and the third secretary, but barely mentioned President Shen.

This was simply too unusual.