Chapter 28: Is He Here for an Interview?

Just a moment ago, Xu Yunzhou, who had already walked to the atrium of the shopping mall, received an unfamiliar call.

"Who is this?"

From the receiver came an extremely unique, cold, and clear female voice:

"My surname is Song."

The other party got straight to the point without any pleasantries,

"I heard you resigned from 'Hengchuang Technology' today."

She accurately stated the name of his former company.

"Are you interested in changing environments and coming to develop on my side?"

Xu Yunzhou frowned slightly:

"Thank you for President Song's kind intentions, but I temporarily have no plans to look for a job, I want to rest for a period of time first."

"Heh,"

An extremely light laugh came from the other end of the phone, carrying a condescending scrutiny,

"Having taken four hundred and twenty thousand in resignation compensation, you're prepared to completely lie flat and enjoy life?"

(TL: "Lie flat" / Tang ping is a popular Chinese slang meaning to give up on rat-race ambitions and do the bare minimum to get by.)

She paused, intentionally slowing the rhythm of her voice,

"It seems... your vision and ambition only reach this far."

Xu Yunzhou frowned. From the time this incident happened until now, it had only been an hour or two. Besides Li Yuan, the finance department, and himself, almost no one knew the exact amount!

How could this mysterious woman know so clearly, without the slightest error? Just who is the mole in this company?

"No need to be surprised."

As if possessing telepathy, the other party spoke calmly the moment he was shocked, revealing the answer,

"That previous company of yours, 'Hengchuang Technology,' I am its largest investor. That four hundred and twenty thousand was personally and specially approved by me, making them transfer it to you."

Her tone was as flat as if stating a trivial matter unrelated to herself,

"As for the sudden closure of the company... naturally, it is also the result of my order to immediately withdraw capital and cut off funding."

All the clues were connected at this moment!

Li Yuan's abnormally humble retention, the instantaneous collapse of the company, and this compensation money far exceeding expectations... it turned out the background all pointed to the same source!

Why was she taking care of him like this?

Xu Yunzhou took a deep breath, his strong desire to explore completely hooked.

"Taking the liberty to ask, President Song,"

His tone became much more solemn,

"Which company is it that you control?"

"Qingsheng Media."

Xu Yunzhou was even more shocked. Wasn't this the company Su Qianran was at? Two companies that couldn't be reached even with an eight-meter pole actually had the same behind-the-scenes boss? This world is too small.

(TL: "Can't be reached with an eight-meter pole" is an idiom meaning completely unrelated.)

He suddenly remembered the favor of Zhang Xiaoyu telling him the truth yesterday; this favor should be returned.

So he turned back to the store:

"Qiao Xi, do me another favor, pick a gift suitable for a girl. The requirement is to express gratitude, but it doesn't need to be too flashy."

Suppressing the myriad questions in her heart, Qiao Xi's professionalism made her act quickly. She meticulously selected a limited-edition starry sky blue velvet clutch.

She handed the bag to Xu Yunzhou, her tone carrying a bit of cautious probing and a trace of resentment even she hadn't noticed:

"This one... is our limited edition for this season, there are only a few in all of Binzhou. It's really beautiful... Is it, to be given to Ranran?"

Xu Yunzhou took that bag and smiled faintly:

"No."

After decisively paying the bill and leaving again, Qiao Xi looked down at Su Qianran's previous reply full of superiority on her phone screen.

Holding the mentality of not minding if the drama blew up bigger, she replied with a message:

"He indeed bought a gift, it's our hottest, hardest-to-buy starry sky blue limited edition clutch of this season~ Unbelievably pretty! But he clearly stated it's not for you oh, Ranran, what exactly happened between you two?"

...

Behind the bright and clean front desk of Qingsheng Media, Su Qianran was sulking at her phone screen.

That message from Qiao Xi carrying an obvious provocative tone pricked her heart like a thorn.

"Not for you oh~"

These words jumped repeatedly before her eyes, making her chest feel suffocatingly blocked.

Starry sky blue limited edition clutch... She had been yearning for it since seeing it in a magazine before, and even hinted at Xu Yunzhou a few times.

He shut her off back then with words like "too expensive" and "impractical."

Now he actually bought it, and it's not for her? Who does he dare to give it to, which little bitch?!

Just as she was gnashing her teeth, her foundation unable to cover up her livid complexion, from the corner of her eye she suddenly glimpsed a familiar yet unfamiliar tall and straight figure walking in from the company's main door.

It's Xu Yunzhou!

Su Qianran's heartbeat abruptly missed a beat.

She saw he had changed out of his usual casual wear, wearing a high-quality light gray suit that made his shoulders look broad and his waist narrow, his figure tall and slender.

His hair seemed to have been meticulously styled as well. His whole person emitted an unprecedented steadiness and... elite temperament.

And in his hand, he was carrying that iconic exquisite shopping bag of "Aether," its size and shape exactly able to fit that clutch Qiao Xi mentioned!

In an instant, all the depression and anger were washed away by uncontrollable joy!

Ha! As expected! That little bitch Qiao Xi just wanted to sow discord!

What "not for her"? Xu Yunzhou clearly specially dressed up looking like a proper human being, carrying a gift, and came to the company to seek reconciliation like a peacock spreading its tail! I knew he couldn't leave me!

Although her heart blossomed with joy, Su Qianran didn't show it at all on her face.

She rapidly adjusted her expression, trying hard to suppress the corners of her mouth that wanted to rise.

She deliberately turned her head away, her line of sight shifting to the computer screen, pretending to be fully engrossed in handling work. Using her side profile to face him, she muttered silently in her heart:

"Hmph! Now you know to come beg me? Too late! If I don't make you suffer a bit and learn your lesson, my name isn't Su Qianran! I must make him humbly apologize in front of the whole company, and offer the bag with both hands, only then will I consider whether to forgive him..."

She deliberately slowed her breathing, pricked up her ears, waiting for those familiar footsteps to stop in front of her, waiting for that call carrying a flattering tone.

One second, two seconds, ten seconds...

The expected scene did not happen.

The front desk area was surprisingly quiet, only the faint sound of a colleague typing on a keyboard nearby.

Su Qianran finally couldn't hold back anymore, and secretly glanced over from the corner of her eye—the place where Xu Yunzhou stood just now was already empty!

She raised her head in astonishment, looking around, but where was the shadow of Xu Yunzhou?

"Eh? Where is he?"

She couldn't help muttering in a low voice, her face written with confusion.

A colleague at the workstation next to her who was touching up her makeup heard it and replied casually:

"Oh, you mean that handsome guy just now? He was personally picked up and taken upstairs by Director Zhang from the HR department. Looks like he's here for an interview, right? His temperament is really good, is he applying for operations or as a manager?"

Su Qianran blanked again, but immediately, an emotion of ecstasy drowned her!

Just now Zhao Lili said Xu Yunzhou resigned, and she was still wondering about it. It turns out he turned around and came to the company she was at for an interview!

He did this just to be the near water pavilion that gets the moon first, to be able to see her every day, to keep an eye on her, to avoid another "accident" like yesterday! He didn't even hesitate to give up the tech industry he had been in for years, running to a completely unfamiliar media company! How deep an obsession, how strong a love must this be!

(TL: "Near water pavilion gets the moon first" is an idiom meaning using one's convenient position or proximity to gain an advantage.)

"Hmph, consider yourself to have a bit of a brain, knowing to chase me here."

Su Qianran thought beautifully in her heart. Even the bit of guilty conscience from fooling around with Chen Beichen yesterday was diluted by this vanity of "being extremely valued,"

"It seems he is still unsure about me spending the night with Chen Beichen, or... after weighing it, he found he simply can't leave me, and plans to pretend not to know, choosing to let bygones be bygones? That works too. Seeing as he is so sincere, and even specially dressed up like a proper human being to come to my territory for an interview..."

She had already made up her mind in her heart, and even began constructing the upcoming scene:

"When he comes out of the interview, as long as he comes over and says a few soft words to me in front of all the colleagues in the company, with a sufficiently humble attitude, I will... I'll just give him a slightly good look and reluctantly forgive him!"

She even began imagining how, after Xu Yunzhou successfully joined the company, she would enjoy his cautious flattery in the company, making everyone envy her for having such an infatuated ex-boyfriend who wouldn't hesitate to change jobs for her.