You Should’ve Said Earlier that you’re Such a Little Flirt! - Chapter 1

“Qingqiong, you’ll be in charge of Ms. Li’s project.”

The project supervisor tapped her fingers on Xu Qingqiong’s desk and tossed a file in front of her.

Xu Qingqiong flipped open the folder, and her gaze instantly turned cold.

Generally, planning small-scale solo art exhibitions was the most difficult type of work—they were tedious, demanding, and the clients changed their minds on a whim.

Moreover, as for this Ms. Li, Qingqiong had seen her paintings before; they were the “self-amusement” type of hobbyist work, the kind of art that was difficult to present in a professional setting. Her personality wasn’t exactly easygoing either.

Combining all these factors, this project had become a “hot potato” that no one wanted to touch.

After a quick glance, Xu Qingqiong threw the file back onto the desk and refused outright: “I’m busy with my wedding lately. I don’t have the time.”

Xu Qingqiong was getting married.

However, the entire department had no idea who her fiancé was. Although Qingqiong frequently mentioned she was getting married, she hadn’t sent out a single invitation to her colleagues. Instead, she used the wedding as an excuse to dodge all sorts of messy assignments and team-building events.

The supervisor had long been fed up with her.

Previously, the supervisor had intended to bring her cousin into the company. Instead, Xu Qingqiong had swept in—a high-achieving overseas graduate from a prestigious university who outperformed the cousin in every way.

The supervisor could have handled the situation behind the scenes, but unexpectedly, Xu Qingqiong had a “background”—and a significant one at that. Usually, Qingqiong acted “above the law,” pushing away menial tasks and simply ignoring company events she didn’t want to attend.

Worse still, no one knew exactly who her backer was, which made the supervisor grit her teeth in frustration.

“Your marriage is your business. You haven’t followed up on many projects lately. By rights, you should be the one taking this on.”

“By rights?” Xu Qingqiong lazily lifted her eyelids to glance at her. “Then by rights, you should do this project yourself. Why didn’t you give me the big projects before? Now you’re throwing a leftover, rotten watermelon my way.”

She enunciated her words slowly and mockingly: “Are you quite alright?”

Among the three main planning teams in the project department, her team was the most ridiculous. The primary reason was the supervisor’s heavy bias; she would secretly hoard high-bonus, easy-to-manage projects for herself, leaving the difficult, troublesome scraps for everyone else.

Other colleagues endured it just to keep their jobs. Xu Qingqiong, however, didn’t indulge her.

Being hit where it hurt, the supervisor exploded out of guilt and anger. “What kind of attitude is that?”

Xu Qingqiong spared her a glance. “What attitude? I have whatever attitude you have. You face me with a face like a corpse, yet you expect me to greet you with a smile? Are you quite alright?”

The supervisor’s face turned unsightly. Provoked, she slammed her hand on the desk.

A baby-faced female colleague nearby suddenly spoke up in a weak, pleading voice: “Qingqiong, don’t fight…”

Although she called out Xu Qingqiong’s name and appeared to be advising her, she effectively cut off the supervisor’s next retort.

Xu Qingqiong glanced at her.

While they were at a standoff, the atmosphere behind them suddenly fell silent. Someone whispered, “President Lin is here.”

The click-clack of high heels on the floor echoed as a flurry of hurried footsteps approached.

The supervisor hissed through gritted teeth, “Don’t think I can’t do anything about you.”

“Oh.” Xu Qingqiong didn’t take the threat to heart. Her peripheral vision fell on a cold, elegant figure dressed in a tailored women’s suit.

The woman radiated a chilling aura, her deep-set eyes slightly lowered. She walked briskly, followed by two assistants and several department managers. The moment she entered, the entire office held its breath.

This was their top boss, Lin Konglu, the future helmsman of the Ses Group.

As the largest entity in the art exhibition planning industry, Ses Group was world-renowned. Its future successor was equally famous for being cold and strict. She was extremely serious and rigorous about work, making everyone feel intimidated. Every time she appeared, the managers held their breath, terrified of being caught in a mistake.

As the cold and stern President Lin walked past Xu Qingqiong, her footsteps faltered for an almost imperceptible second.

Xu Qingqiong followed the crowd and offered a perfunctory greeting: “Good morning, President Lin.”

Her voice was lost among the chorus of colleagues.

Yet, Lin Konglu looked over with precision, her gaze landing on her. She gave a slight nod.

Their eyes met.

Surprised that she would suddenly look over, Xu Qingqiong was stunned for a moment before being the first to look away, staring down at the floor.

No one noticed this brief interlude.

After Lin Konglu left, the tense atmosphere dissipated. Having lost the upper hand in the confrontation, the supervisor was fuming. She turned to leave.

Xu Qingqiong pointed at the file on the desk and called out, “Wait a minute. Take this with you.”

This attitude infuriated the supervisor again. Forcing down her rage, she grabbed the folder. She scanned the room and spoke loudly with pointed intent: “Who exactly is Qingqiong’s fiancé? How come we’ve never heard you talk about him?”

She was mocking her, implying that the fiancé was someone shameful who couldn’t be mentioned in public.

Xu Qingqiong thought absentmindedly: Didn’t he just walk right past you? Didn’t you see?

She gave the supervisor a side-eye. “Is it any of your business?”

“…You!”

“‘You’ what? I’m going out on field duty to follow up on a project,” Xu Qingqiong dropped the line, grabbed her baseball cap, put it on, and left with ease.

Her previous project had already concluded; there was no “field duty” to attend to. She was clearly leaving work early. However, having just lost face, the supervisor couldn’t stop her. She could only watch her leave, forced to swallow her resentment.

Out of habit, Xu Qingqiong took the elevator to the underground parking lot, her mind wandering back to that scene earlier.

The woman in the impeccably tailored high-end suit… elegant figure, slender waist, and a rose-shaped brooch on her chest. Those slightly heavy eyes looking through the crowd at her—the cold soul wrapped so tightly in that suit had momentarily shown a trace of melting.

In that coldness, there was actually a hint of… sexiness.

Hiss. She quickly shook that terrifying thought away.

She thought to herself: Lin Konglu looked quite good in that suit today.

As if summoned by her thoughts, her phone vibrated.

Lin Konglu had sent a message: “I’m working overtime. You go back first; I’ll have my assistant drive you.”

It was only after Xu Qingqiong reached the B2 level that she remembered she had been too lazy to drive this morning and had hitched a ride with Lin Konglu.

Feeling a bit annoyed, she simply replied: “Okay, thanks.”

Lin Konglu: “Mm.”

Lin Konglu didn’t even ask when she was getting off work, as if she had expected her to leave early.

After waiting a few minutes, a young assistant came down. The assistant had a round face and a very trendy English name—Buff—with a unique Chinese transliteration, Ba Fu.

The two got into the car and fastened their seatbelts.

The assistant, Buff, offered her congratulations: “Qingqiong, big congratulations! When exactly is the wedding date set for?”

She was one of the few insiders in the company who knew about the engagement between Qingqiong and Lin Konglu. Internally, she reminded herself that this was her future “boss’s wife.”

Buff glanced through the rearview mirror.

Xu Qingqiong was huddled in the back seat playing with her phone, eyes lowered. She gave a distracted “mm” and said flatly, “Probably… next month.”

Her expression held none of the joy, trepidation, or excitement typical of someone about to get married.

Since the engagement, many people had congratulated her. As the future head of the Ses Group, Lin Konglu was beautiful, had an incredible aura, strong capabilities, and immense wealth. Inside and out, she was perfect in every way—the ideal marriage partner.

Little did they know that Xu Qingqiong was merely putting on a brave face in private.

Lin Konglu was perfect, sure, but she wasn’t Qingqiong’s type. Qingqiong liked people who were gentle, cute…

But everyone knew Lin Konglu was the most serious and rigid of all, always wearing a cold, ascetic expression. She was the exact opposite of what Qingqiong liked.

How could she possibly be happy?

Returning home early, Xu Qingqiong ordered takeout, finished it quickly, and feeling exhausted, decided to take a nap.

Perhaps because the events of the day had left a deep impression, she accidentally drifted into a dream.

In the dream, in an empty office, she sat completely unclothed on a cold, hard wooden desk. Her feet were pressed together, dangling in the air, her heart pounding with nervous tension.

Standing before her was the calm-faced Lin Konglu, wearing that same suit with the rose brooch. Lin Konglu swept a cold, indifferent gaze over her before leaning down to kiss her.

As the kiss deepened, Lin Konglu’s hand, which had been resting on her waist, slid downward. Pressing against her kneecap, she commanded in a voice as crisp as melting snow: “Open up.”

Xu Qingqiong shuddered violently and woke up drenched in sweat.

The two had met through a blind date and weren’t familiar with each other before. Since the engagement, they had moved in together to cultivate their relationship.

Having another person suddenly inserted into her life made Xu Qingqiong feel very uneasy at first, and it had been a long time since she had “taken care of herself.”

Because of that strange dream, her body felt uncomfortably flushed.

She checked the time. It was still early; she estimated Lin Konglu wouldn’t be back so soon.

After hesitating for a few seconds, she opened a small box hidden in her cabinet and ducked under the covers.

The summer day was sweltering. A bead of sweat dripped from the tip of her nose as she dizzily chased pleasure, gradually climbing toward the edge of the cliff of desire.

Just as she was about to lose control, the bedroom door suddenly clicked open.

Someone pushed the door open gently and stood at the entrance, glancing at her with dark, calm eyes.

Lin Konglu is back!

The thought flashed through her mind, and a sense of shame pulled her into a rapid whirlpool just as desire surged over her.

With one hand on the doorknob, Lin Konglu neither turned to leave nor stepped closer. She simply stood there quietly, waiting for her to finish.

With half her face hidden under the quilt, Xu Qingqiong couldn’t guess what she was thinking. She bit her lip and offered an embarrassed greeting: “You’re back?”

Because of her guilt, her voice was pitched exceptionally low, carrying an unusual softness—sweet and clingy, like a spoiled child.

Lin Konglu suddenly closed the door and walked toward the bathroom.

A minute later, she emerged. Her hands were wet, and she wiped the remaining droplets from her fingers with a tissue as she walked.

Her footsteps stopped abruptly by the bedside. Looking down at Xu Qingqiong, she flicked her wrist and tossed the tissue into the trash can.

Then, one hand gripped Xu Qingqiong’s wrist, pinning it against the headboard, while the other hand flung the obstructing quilt aside.

Without the protection of the blanket and with her wrists restrained, Xu Qingqiong instantly lost her sense of security. Like a clam stripped of its shell, she was forced to reveal her snow-white, tender skin. She gasped, “You…” What are you doing?

Before she could finish the sentence, Lin Konglu had already leaned in to kiss her.

Support You Should’ve Said Earlier that you’re Such a Little Flirt!