"Thank you for acknowledging my looks."
With that prompt, Jiang Ruoqi finally remembered.
There had been a minor upheaval in the group before—the boss's children had returned from abroad, and people were choosing sides. Sophia had indeed gossiped with them about the boss's family affairs. Their Bald Boss had two sons and a daughter. The eldest son and daughter had been groomed by his side after graduation. When they matured, the eldest son entered the subsidiaries' boards and was listed as the group's Co-CEO. The eldest daughter, leveraging her overseas study experience, had voluntarily applied to establish an overseas company to explore new markets. Each child had their own career plans, and seemingly everything was harmonious—father and children at peace, mutually supportive. This apparent calm had quelled the underlying infighting within the group. But everyone had forgotten that the boss also had a youngest son, born late in life.
Also his own flesh and blood—presumably the most favored—but he turned out to be the biggest exception. He had been studying well at a British high school, then suddenly transferred back to the mainland and entered an international high school in Xinhai. Instead of applying to prestigious international universities like his siblings, he had used the bonus points for compatriots from Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan to get into a 985 university in Xinhai. From what she remembered, this young master had always stayed in the mainland. To the group headquarters in Gangcheng, he was practically a nonentity. So even for Jiang Ruoqi, a veteran employee, it took a moment to react when she heard the words "Second Young Master." If she hadn't found traces of the Bald Boss in his features, she wouldn't have recalled that the boss had a youngest son "exiled" to the mainland.
Jiang Ruoqi's eyes darkened. She thought to herself, he's truly the boss's son after all—so he hadn't entered the group because he'd been prepping the path in the mainland all along. But in these troubled times, sending a clueless rich second generation to be her assistant—what was the Bald Boss plotting? Was it to use the Xinhai turmoil to warn her, or to warn the shareholders represented by her stepmother? Either way, it wasn't good.
Jiang Ruoqi instantly felt so irritable she wanted to curse, but the resentment lodged in her chest, churning back and forth, making her feel terrible all over. Yet in front of others, she couldn't lose her composure. Her heart continued racing, accompanied by a flush of heat, making it hard to regulate the sudden bad mood. So annoying. Jiang Ruoqi hated trouble, and she hated anyone or anything that created it. But before someone making a living could completely lose it, they had no right to vent at the boss. So for the first time, faced with a thorny problem, Jiang Ruoqi had the urge to quit and run. Solve the trouble, or escape from it?
She touched the nail growth at the edge of her manicure, pressing her fingertip into the raised part of the overlay. She immediately felt the pain as the gel polish damaged the nail bed. Her rational side told her to stop, but her compulsion for a smooth, flat surface made her want to grit her teeth and tear the entire overlay off. In front of her, the young master lifted his chin, his flirtatious eyes fixed on her intently—as if... he was trying to find dissatisfaction in her expression, then use that to start something else. That was the confidence of someone born into privilege.
Jiang Ruoqi took a deep breath and told herself to let it go. Too troublesome, and the timing wasn't right. She smoothed the overlay against the direction of the lift, as if she could foresee that after wrecking it, the rough nail surface would snag on her clothes and hair. And she still had a lot to do—that would only make her more annoyed.
"Let me confirm one more thing," Jiang Ruoqi said, looking at HR. "This arrangement—making him my assistant—was it instructed by the group?"
"Yes, the group's executive assistant sent the email."
"Alright." HR was about to say more, but Jiang Ruoqi quickly cut in. She glanced at the time on her phone and nodded at the other woman apologetically. "You've seen his face now. I'll handle the rest with him. Annie, go back to your work. Everyone's busy—I won't keep you."
The HR manager was a bit stunned at Jiang Ruoqi's calm reaction to having a "time bomb" as an assistant, but with her extensive workplace experience, she quickly recovered. Speaking graciously, though she was responding to Jiang Ruoqi, her words were meant for both of them. "Sure. If anything comes up, feel free to reach out."
HR walked away, her figure disappearing around the corner.
Jiang Ruoqi dropped her fake smile and strode toward her office. "Follow me to the office," she said without looking back, stepping straight in. But she remembered to leave the door open, signaling for the young master to enter.
Duan Jinchen stood still, his brow deeply furrowed. After a long moment, he finally let out a resigned "tsk" and trudged toward the small office.
The office faced south. By now, sunlight had flooded the room, making it feel warmer than the mechanically set central air conditioning. Jiang Ruoqi took off her coat and hung it on the rack. As she tilted her head back, her long curly hair fell to reveal half of her bright, delicate face. It was President Jiang in full makeup again, with nude-toned eyeshadow—clear and generous—trying to offset the allure of her features. The high-waisted trousers perfectly accentuated her slender waist. With her shirt and long hair, her overall style was an intellectual facade masking stunning beauty.
Jiang Ruoqi stepped into Duan Jinchen's line of sight as he walked in. He felt that if no one had introduced her, he might have instinctively taken her for some executive's secretary, not the actual person in charge. He even wondered whether she had truly single-handedly managed those impressive projects on her résumé. Did she really have the ability to shoulder such responsibility? A pretty face did make people instinctively doubt one's competence—Duan Jinchen was no exception. He had evidently concluded that Jiang Ruoqi's position was unearned. He resented being assigned as an assistant to a 'vase.' So he behaved like a thorny rich second-generation. He walked to the small sofa and plopped down, propping his long legs on the coffee table, crossing them. His features might suggest a romantic, devoted young master, but his slouchy, roguish air made it clear he couldn't be bothered to pretend in front of Jiang Ruoqi.
Duan Jinchen lounged lazily, his tone languid, as if this were his office: "I didn't get a chance to ask in front of everyone earlier. Now I'm curious, President Jiang. You're so young—just which path did you take to make the old man trust you enough to put you in this position?"
Sarcastic and insinuating—basically hinting that she had traded on her looks. Jiang Ruoqi wanted to laugh. Was being female some kind of original sin? Any woman who was a bit younger would inevitably be slandered that her achievements were ill-gotten. From school to work, the prejudice was deep-rooted, nothing new, and only highlighted the person's own dirty mind. Jiang Ruoqi didn't show her annoyance, but she rolled her eyes internally. After finishing with her coat, she pulled out her swivel chair and sat down, then turned on her computer, her voice always flat.
"I came in through the back door."
Duan Jinchen, hearing this, lost his grip on the edge of the coffee table, his legs slipped, and he nearly lost his balance and fell off the sofa. He hurriedly grabbed the armrest, steadied himself, and adjusted his posture, probably wanting to look unruffled. But in reality, his flirtatious eyes were wide open.
Paper tiger. Jiang Ruoqi mentally tagged Duan Jinchen, who was scrambling in her peripheral vision. Out of mischief, she even glanced up. When people are embarrassed, they have a lot of fidgets. Duan Jinchen's ears were even red—though it was hard to tell if that was from sitting with his back to the sun or from being flustered. Jiang Ruoqi looked away, returning her attention to the computer screen, but still seized the opportunity to kindly clarify for the young master: "My stepmother is Chen Jiameng. Her Baoli Real Estate holds 2% of the group's shares under a subsidiary's name. She's only a small shareholder, but to pull strings and get me a subsidiary director position isn't too hard."
Her words were half true, half false, but someone actually believed them.
"Hah, seems your stepmother doesn't care much about you," Duan Jinchen couldn't help sneering. "If she really had the chops, she wouldn't have stuck you here as a director."
Jiang Ruoqi was playing the pig to eat the tiger. She poked her head out from behind the computer screen: "Tell me more."
Duan Jinchen stopped crossing his legs, propping his head on his hand with an impatient tone: "Do you know how your predecessor left?"
"Not really," Jiang Ruoqi replied. But rationally, she guessed it was because the CEO upstairs had squeezed him out.
Duan Jinchen waited expectantly for Jiang Ruoqi to sincerely ask, so he narrowed his eyes and bided his time. But to his surprise, Jiang Ruoqi never said what he expected. Still, within three minutes, he stole glances at her eight times. Unfortunately, Jiang Ruoqi was a master of the cold war—playing deaf and dumb to 'toy' with Duan Jinchen was child's play. So in the end, Duan Jinchen couldn't hold out. With a look of great reluctance, he cleared his throat and spoke.
"Ahem! I'm in a good mood today, so I'll just tell you straight up. Let you know that the waters in Xinhai are not easy to wade through!"
Okay, that was a very chuunibyou speech. And how did he manage to speak Mandarin without a Hong Kong accent, yet hit every syllable with such emphasis that the stress fell on the most unexpected places? Jiang Ruoqi held back, but she couldn't help silently mocking him.
Unaware of Jiang Ruoqi's inner thoughts, Duan Jinchen continued on his own: "The last director who sat here disagreed with the CEO upstairs on every major issue. Their conflict was an open secret. They just never brought it into the open because one was a top company executive and the other was a director handpicked by the group headquarters. But who can endure it every time? And then, during the critical period of the new product launch, the marketing director couldn't take the opposition anymore and quit."
As expected. Jiang Ruoqi wasn't surprised. According to company procedure, before a marketing department's proposal and fund request reached the group, it had to be approved first by the subsidiary's top executive—the CEO upstairs. So it was easy for him to cause trouble. Though she didn't think the first hurdle for her would be here, Jiang Ruoqi's mind wandered, calculating how best to submit her plan. But wandering attention is easy to catch. Duan Jinchen, who was observing her, noticed her shift in focus. His expression changed abruptly, and he turned sarcastic: "You came through the back door—even if I explained more, you wouldn't get it. I suggest you quit soon. If you can't handle the upstairs boss and end up with a mess of bad accounts, you'll never get into a good company again."
Sarcasm aside, it was true. Resigning now versus resigning after a mistake that leaves a blemish on your record—that's a watershed moment in a career.
Jiang Ruoqi snapped back to attention, but her focus veered: "You seem to know the ins and outs of the infighting pretty well. But why are you telling me all this? Trying to persuade me?"
The young master snorted and said nothing more.
Stubborn tsundere. Can't he just say things outright? Jiang Ruoqi sighed, unsure if the playboy rich second-generation was genuinely being helpful or just wanted to scare her off because he didn't like the look of her. She probed further: "How much do you know about the company's business?"
Duan Jinchen rolled his eyes upward, clearly cursing mentally: "That's a question I should be asking you." This was his family's company, after all.
Jiang Ruoqi gave a fake smile: "I'm just seeking advice from the heir."
Duan Jinchen harrumphed, again condescending to explain: "Hengchang Group was founded by my great-grandfather in gold trading. The brand was built by that generation in Taipa, expanded to the Macau Peninsula, and then settled in Gangcheng. No matter how the group develops in the future—whether it spawns sub-brands like Glint or invests in new lucrative projects—Hengchang Jewelry remains the core, always will."
"But the Co-CEO who controls the core is Oliver, your eldest brother Duan Jianshuo," Jiang Ruoqi interjected. She didn't want to sow discord, but she had to reiterate this unpleasant fact to test Duan Jinchen. His attitude toward Gangcheng would determine her own attitude going forward.
Duan Jinchen's eyes narrowed, and he shot Jiang Ruoqi a cold look: "He's my brother—it's only right."
Jiang Ruoqi played dumb, raising her eyebrows and nodding. Internally, she sighed, wondering whether this fraternal harmony was genuine. But that wasn't the key point she wanted to know: "I've been with the company for almost seven years, also through the back door, but I've never heard of you before. Why did the group suddenly send you here, and as my assistant? And why did you agree to it?"
Duan Jinchen pursed his lips, not answering. He kept his eyes fixed on Jiang Ruoqi, but his gaze finally held a bit more seriousness.
Jiang Ruoqi wasn't intimidated. She continued with her own work. She could roughly guess that the Bald Boss sending his son to her side was definitely not a good thing. She had no outlet for her resentment, and didn't want to give the culprit a pleasant face. A moment of silence passed—two people, or rather Duan Jinchen, in a one-sided standoff with Jiang Ruoqi. And once again, the young master lost his nerve and spoke first.
"Leo told me Glint is in crisis. A crisis, but also an opportunity. And I need Glint to get better and better."
Leo was the Bald Boss's assistant. Jiang Ruoqi had had a pleasant conversation with him before leaving Gangcheng. He seemed to have mentioned then that he'd already found an assistant for her in Xinhai, so she could rest easy. Rest easy, my foot! If she didn't run now, she'd have endless worries ahead! Connecting cause and effect, Jiang Ruoqi figured out all the intricacies. The second young master before her wasn't really neglected—his 'fief' was Glint, the sub-brand in Xinhai. And she wasn't just a grain of sand sent by the group to annoy the subsidiary CEO; she was also a whetstone to help the young master ascend, a shield to protect him. That is, everything might have been arranged even earlier—earlier than the provocation at the group meeting. They had planned for Duan Jinchen to take over the subsidiary, but first placed him in a basic position and found a 'shield' capable of opposing the local CEO to stand in front of him. If the shield succeeded, the 'young master' would ascend. Even if it failed, it wouldn't embarrass the group or the second young master. But unexpectedly... at the group meeting, the local CEO had passed the buck, forcing the Bald Boss to move the plan forward. She suddenly became that 'shield,' and in principle, she could only succeed, not fail.
"So what did you mean by telling me to run?" Now that she had figured out the Bald Boss's intentions, Jiang Ruoqi understood Duan Jinchen's actions even less. If he was looking for a scapegoat, Gangcheng must have briefed the young master. Why did he first put on an act of being a playboy to intimidate her, then pretend to be kind and advise her to leave the company? What was his angle?
Duan Jinchen raised an eyebrow slightly, scanning Jiang Ruoqi again. His gaze lingered on her beautiful eyes, which had shifted back to the computer and didn't look away. He cursed inwardly—what a fake show. "I didn't expect you to really be a back-door hire. A useless vase already has a hard time getting anywhere. If your résumé picks up a blemish, your only way out is to marry well."
He really was treating her like a vase. Not only did the young master judge by appearances, but it seemed he didn't trust his father in Gangcheng at all.
"It's not surprising at all that men judge by appearances," Jiang Ruoqi sighed, closing her laptop after the file transfer was complete. Her tone remained flat: "But at least thank you for acknowledging my looks."
Duan Jinchen: ? That's what he meant?
"You..."
"I'm afraid I'll disappoint you. I'm not considering resigning anytime soon," Jiang Ruoqi interrupted gently. "And although I came in through the back door, I won't indulge others who do the same. The group assigned you to me as an assistant, so you have to do the work." She pushed her laptop forward. "Help me notify everyone—in half an hour, all those involved in the new product launch campaign should meet in Conference Room 4. The materials are on my laptop, so make sure to connect the projector in advance. Also," she added with fake politeness, "buy me an iced Americano, dark roast, with an extra shot. I'll transfer the money to you later. Thanks."
Duan Jinchen thought he'd misheard: "You? You're asking me to buy you coffee???"
Jiang Ruoqi stood up, picked up her laptop, walked over to Duan Jinchen, and handed it to him very seriously: "If the company hasn't assigned you another assistant, then yes."
Duan Jinchen felt like he was being roasted. Jiang Ruoqi shook the laptop at him again, and Duan Jinchen was forced to take it, clearly clenching his molars: "President Jiang, quite the airs!"
Jiang Ruoqi reminded him warmly: "Time's ticking. You have 27 minutes until the meeting, Assistant Duan."
"Got it!"
The young master turned and dashed out of the office. Jiang Ruoqi stood by the window, watching him go far, and lowered her arms that had been crossed over her chest. On closer inspection, the callus on the side of her middle finger, formed from writing, had already peeled off a layer. As she drifted into thought, she unconsciously rubbed at the uneven spot again. There were definitely aspects of the situation she hadn't fully figured out, but for now, she couldn't think them through. Jiang Ruoqi decided to let herself off the hook.
Oh well, cross that bridge when she came to it.