The meeting was presided over by Vice President Liao.
He introduced to the room full of people, "This is the head of the financial consulting team we’ve hired for this restructuring, Chief Qian Fei. She will now brief everyone on the project’s specifics and subsequent arrangements."
Qian Fei turned on the microphone in front of her, and her crisp voice, amplified, echoed clearly throughout the conference room.
She concisely and powerfully outlined the current situation of the group’s listed company and the preliminary restructuring plan, methodically coordinating the schedules for other intermediary agencies to begin their on-site work.
Seated at the head of the table, she made decisive calls like a general commanding a battlefield.
In the chairman’s office, Li Yifei stared at the large screen on the wall, his gaze unwavering.
When had his woman grown so outstanding? So outstanding it was downright astonishing.
His eyes fixed on the screen, his face brimming with pride, he said to Li Qiansheng beside him, "Well? Pretty impressive, isn’t she? This is the person I chose! With the brilliance she’s showing now, there’s no family background she isn’t worthy of!" He reluctantly tore his gaze from the screen for a moment to look at the face so similar to his own and added, "Can I finally tell her who my real father is this time?"
Li Qiansheng was also watching the screen. "I know you’ve always thought I meddle too much, always interfering with your choice of girlfriends. But you must understand, you’ll be responsible for an entire group in the future. You owe it to every employee under that group to ensure that after I pass the baton to you, some random woman you blindly pick won’t squander our family fortune." He paused before continuing, "This one, though… she seems passable."
Though young, the girl had a rare presence that commanded the room. Every word she spoke was logical and well-structured, and her work assignments were systematic and straightforward, making it easy for others to understand their tasks and willingly follow her arrangements.
Her decisive style in delegating tasks was somewhat reminiscent of him.
No wonder—he’d heard she was groomed by his son.
He couldn’t help but steal a glance at his son, whose proud, unblinking eyes were glued to the screen.
The kid’s emotions right now were probably the same as his own had been back when he’d first heard his son had started a company, earned money, and bought a villa.
●︶3︶●
The meeting lasted over two hours before finally drawing to a close.
Before adjourning, Qian Fei turned off her mic and asked Vice President Liao, "Is there someone here who’s very familiar with the entire business operations of the listed company? I’d like to learn more about its specifics!"
Vice President Liao scanned the lower end of the conference table, spotted Wang Ruohai, and pointed at him, saying to Qian Fei, "There—that’s the director of the business department, Wang Ruohai. He knows the listed company’s operations best."
Qian Fei froze, following Vice President Liao’s finger to where Wang Ruohai sat not far from the door.
When she looked over, she found Wang Ruohai staring back at her. And seated across from her was Liao Shiyu.
Liao Shiyu glanced at Wang Ruohai, then followed his gaze to Qian Fei.
Suddenly, the scene struck her as somewhat comical.
The faint melancholy and sorrow in Liao Shiyu’s expression almost made Qian Fei feel like she was the other woman caught between her and Wang Ruohai.
The world was truly bewildering—it was hard to tell who was whose third wheel.Deputy General Manager Liao said from the side, "After the meeting, I'll ask Wang Ruohai to stay behind and have him cooperate with your work as much as possible. Director Qian, does this arrangement work for you?"
Qian Fei quickly turned her head with a smile and replied, "Yes, that's fine!"
Deputy Manager Liao pressed the intercom button to announce the end of the meeting and added, "Director Wang from the business department, please stay behind."
Everyone at the conference table stood up, preparing to leave, creating a bustling atmosphere for a moment.
Qian Fei felt a sudden impulse and took out her phone. As she was checking her messages, Wang Ruohai had already walked up beside her.
Deputy Manager Liao introduced them.
Qian Fei put away her phone, looked up at Wang Ruohai, and extended her right hand. "Director Wang, hello. I hope we can work well together in the future!"
Wang Ruohai hesitated for a moment before also extending his right hand. "Hello, Director Qian!" His voice sounded hoarse, and based on her past understanding of him, Qian Fei almost mistakenly thought he was on the verge of tears from some sorrowful event.
She released his hand and noticed Liao Shiyu at the far end of the conference table, her expression even more melancholic.
●︶3︶●
Li Yifei stared at the large screen on the wall, gritting his teeth. "Damn it! I sent him to the meeting to admire you from afar, not to shake your hand! What’s going on with Uncle Liao?" He turned his head with a fierce expression toward Li Qiansheng. "I can’t hold back anymore. I’m telling her tonight who my father is!"
●︶3︶●
After leaving the conference room, Qian Fei and Deputy Manager Liao walked side by side at the front, while Wang Ruohai followed behind in his subordinate role.
As they walked, Qian Fei chatted casually with Deputy Manager Liao. "I had no idea until now—Qiansheng is such a massive enterprise! Chairman Li has truly worked hard to grow the group to this scale. I heard his health hasn’t been great lately? It seems his wife must be under a lot of strain too."
Deputy Manager Liao chuckled. "If only he had a wife—the real problem is there’s no one to share his burdens!"
Qian Fei made an understanding sound and asked, "Is Chairman Li still single?"
Deputy Manager Liao, ever the conversationalist, laughed heartily. "‘Single’ is a term for you young folks. At our age, it’s more accurate to say ‘widower’! Old Li’s wife passed away many years ago."
Qian Fei made another acknowledging sound and nodded.
When they reached the elevator, Qian Fei said, "I’ll head to the business department with Director Wang to get a better understanding of things. Deputy Manager Liao, you can return to your office. I’ll come find you if anything comes up!"
●︶3︶●
Deputy Manager Liao took the elevator going up, while Qian Fei and Wang Ruohai took the one going down.
The elevator was empty except for them. Through the mirrored surface, Qian Fei saw Wang Ruohai standing rigidly behind her, staring intently at her.
She turned around and asked, "It’s just the two of us now. You don’t have to stand so formally behind me, do you?"
Wang Ruohai looked at her and smiled, though his smile seemed to carry an indescribable bitterness. "You’ve become so outstanding now—so outstanding it makes me feel ashamed."
Qian Fei turned back around. She didn’t know how to respond.
If not for him, she might never have become the person she was today.
For the rest of the time, Qian Fei stayed with Wang Ruohai in the business department’s director’s office.
At first, Qian Fei was somewhat distracted. After stepping out to the restroom, she checked her phone again before turning it off, clenching her jaw as she splashed water on her face.
After that, she settled her mind and focused wholeheartedly on her work.As the workday neared its end, Qian Fei said to Wang Ruohai, "I might need to go over some more documents. Would you mind staying late with me?"
Wang Ruohai looked at her and replied in a low voice, "How could I mind? Moments like these are hard to come by for me now. In the future, they might become impossible to find."
The others gradually left the office one by one. Soon, the vast workspace held only the two of them.
Absorbed in reviewing the documents, Qian Fei lost track of time. When she finally looked up, she found Wang Ruohai sitting across from her, staring at her intently without blinking.
Her chest suddenly felt tight.
She closed the folder and stood up. "Let's call it a day. There isn't much left—I'll finish it tomorrow."
Wang Ruohai remained seated, unmoving.
With no other choice, Qian Fei urged him, "Let's go?"
Wang Ruohai finally stood and walked over to her, looking down at her face.
"Two years ago, Yao Jingjing stormed into the company, cornered me, and pointed at my nose, saying, 'Wang Ruohai, one day you’ll realize how blind you were. One day you’ll see that you picked up a sesame seed but lost a watermelon. One day you’ll cry when you realize you’ve lost the one treasure you can never get back in this lifetime!'" He paused, his eyes reddening. "Yao Jingjing was right. I was blind. I did trade a watermelon for a sesame seed. I did lose my treasure."
Qian Fei took a deep breath. She hadn’t known Yao Jingjing had done this for her in silence.
She met Wang Ruohai’s gaze and said firmly, "Wang Ruohai, let’s both move forward. Dwelling on the past is meaningless. If I hadn’t looked ahead, I wouldn’t be who I am today!"
With that, she turned and walked away without waiting to see the expression on his face.
In this world, there was no time machine to turn back the clock, no pill to erase regrets. Everyone had to take responsibility for their past actions.
She refused to soften her heart for a man’s remorse—because another man had done far more for her, even if some of his actions hadn’t exactly pleased her.
●︶3︶●
By the time Qian Fei and Wang Ruohai stepped out of the building, dusk had settled.
She pulled out her phone to check the time, but the screen remained dark after pressing the home button. Only then did she remember she had turned it off.
She slipped the phone back into her pocket, her mind wandering.
Suddenly, Wang Ruohai shouted from behind, "Watch out!" Before she could turn around, he shoved her aside from behind.
Stumbling, she fell to the ground. When she looked back, she saw Wang Ruohai sprawled where she had just stood, rubbing his head with a pained expression. Beside him lay a half-meter-square sign, its surface still wet with the freshly painted character "school."
Qian Fei scrambled to her feet and rushed to his side, helping him up. "Are you okay?"
Two people came running over, frantically apologizing. "We’re so sorry! We’re teachers from the English school upstairs. We hung the sign outside to dry the paint faster, but we never expected it to fall and hit someone! Are you hurt? Do you need to go to the hospital?"
Qian Fei, still supporting Wang Ruohai, asked again, "Should we go to the hospital?"
Wang Ruohai looked at her anxious face and actually smiled. "I’m fine. Don’t worry!"
●︶3︶●
Qian Fei hailed a cab and took Wang Ruohai home.As Wang Ruohai was about to get out of the car, he said to her, "Feifei, seeing you worry for me like this makes me feel that even if I were crippled or killed by that falling object, it would be worth it!"
Qian Fei calmly replied, "I'd be worried for anyone who took a hit like that for me. And Wang Ruohai, really, I have a boyfriend now!"
Wang Ruohai's gaze shifted from fervent to sorrowful before he finally stepped out of the car, his silhouette lonely.
Qian Fei withdrew her gaze and told the driver to turn around and head toward her home.
When she opened the door after arriving, she saw Li Yifei sitting on the couch watching TV.
They spoke almost simultaneously.
Li Yifei, slightly anxious: "Why are you back so late? And your phone was off!"
Qian Fei, tonelessly: "When did you get here? Don’t you need to go home and spend time with your dad?"
Then they both paused. Qian Fei said, "Oh, my phone probably died."
Li Yifei moved closer, pressing her shoulders to make her sit on the couch while he pulled up a chair to sit opposite her. Rubbing his hands together, he said, "Jinjin, there’s something I want to tell you, but can you promise not to get too angry? Or if you do get angry, you can hit me, scold me, or even torment me—just don’t mention breaking up or anything like that, okay?"
Qian Fei smiled and said, "That depends on what it is! Go ahead, tell me."
Li Yifei grinned sheepishly. "Well, it’s actually pretty simple. I just wanted to tell you what my dad’s real name is!"
Qian Fei smiled again, this time so brightly it made Li Yifei uneasy. "Your dad? Let me guess—his name must be Li Qiansheng, right?"
Author’s Note:
Some readers have pointed out that Qian Fei, as just a sponsor representative, wouldn’t be able to become the chief. First, this is for the sake of the story’s appeal. Second, you can interpret it as Li Yifei’s behind-the-scenes arrangements. Let’s not dwell on this too much!
Actually, in the early years, investment banking was quite prestigious, and sponsor reps were highly regarded. But in recent years, things have slowed down (with IPOs basically halted). Moreover, passing the associate sponsor exam isn’t easy—it’s very hard to pass on the first try, and even after passing, registering as a full sponsor rep isn’t straightforward. Some people pass the exam but never get a project to register under, so they remain associates for years.
Someone like Qian Fei, transforming so dramatically in just over two years, is theoretically possible—but in reality, it’s nearly impossible. But hey, this is fiction! If it were too realistic, it wouldn’t be as fun to read. So as long as it fits within the theoretical rules, knowledgeable readers, please don’t overanalyze—just treat it as a wish-fulfillment story!
Also, have you all abandoned me lately? I’ve been replying to comments from the last chapter, but many familiar faces are missing. Where have you all gone?
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