Chapter 42

Wei Xiaolu was completely in spur-of-the-moment mode. She took two quick steps forward and hugged the skincare set to her chest.

“Then what are we waiting for?” She deliberately blinked with exaggerated effort, putting on an innocent, completely clueless look as if she hadn’t caught the hidden meaning at all. “I can put my set away right now, and tonight we can try this one together to see if it’s any good.”

The highest level of acting often only required the simplest trick of all: say it, then run.

Wei Xiaolu really did grab the skincare products and bolt out immediately. Only when she reached the bathroom and braced herself against the sink did she dare press a hand to her chest and let out a long breath.

If she stayed in front of Shen Siyan for even one more second, she was going to give herself away. There was no helping it; her heart felt as if it had fallen into a great ruin, pounding with a kind of near-suffocating despair that seemed determined not to let her live.

But then Shen Siyan’s voice came closer from behind her. “Sure. Then let’s try it together.”

Three, two, one.

Wei Xiaolu timed it perfectly; by the time Shen Siyan walked into the bathroom, she was already wearing a face full of excitement and anticipation.

“I’ll open the packaging first.” Wei Xiaolu turned her back and moved over to the trash can.

The bathroom was only so big, and with the huge mirror reflecting everything, Wei Xiaolu felt like every breath she took could not possibly escape the other woman’s eyes. So she deliberately made the cardboard box rustle noisily, drowning out all the other sounds in the room.

“Then I’ll take my makeup off first.”

Out of the corner of her eye, Wei Xiaolu saw Shen Siyan say that, then tie her hair back with the black cord on her wrist and squeeze a line of makeup remover oil onto her hands before smoothing it over her face.

She applied it very carefully. By the time Wei Xiaolu had finished unboxing everything, she still wasn’t done.

“I’ll try it first; I just finished washing my face,” Wei Xiaolu said, acting like some old lady who didn’t care at all about hygiene. She didn’t even bother with the proper order of toner, lotion, and cream; she just slathered it on her face haphazardly.

After rubbing it in, her skin actually felt pretty comfortable. She patted her cheeks and shared the result with Shen Siyan. “It feels really refreshing.”

Shen Siyan glanced over at her, then smiled, washed the makeup remover oil off her hands, dried them with a tissue, and reached straight toward Wei Xiaolu.

“Hm?” Wei Xiaolu jumped.

“Here,” Shen Siyan said, her fingertip touching the side of Wei Xiaolu’s nose. “It’s not blended in.”

That hand was right below her eyes; Wei Xiaolu could see the little circular motion Shen Siyan was making. She felt like a cake soaked with water, the cream on top not even melted yet, while the whole thing had already gone soft at the core.

She suddenly started doubting whether there really was any cream left unblended. Even if there was, Shen Siyan’s fingertips had stayed on her face for far too long.

Still, maybe it was only because she was greedy for that fleeting touch, longing for it to linger a little longer, that her senses had slowed down.

...And her heartbeat had, too.

Wei Xiaolu stared unblinking into Shen Siyan’s eyes.

Their gazes met, and Shen Siyan wasn’t looking at her face at all.

“All done.” As that hand withdrew, Wei Xiaolu finally noticed the smile lingering on Shen Siyan’s face.

Shen Siyan’s smile was not soluble in oil, Wei Xiaolu thought.

Then Shen Siyan lowered her head to wash off the makeup remover oil, and when she looked up again, she was still smiling. Wei Xiaolu thought again: Shen Siyan’s smile wasn’t soluble in water either.

So would Shen Siyan’s smile dissolve in the skincare set she’d given her?

As Wei Xiaolu watched her carefully work through the skincare routine with slow, gentle hands, she still detected that understated but lingering hint of amusement.

“How does it look?” Shen Siyan finished the last step, turned her face toward Wei Xiaolu, and showed her.

Wei Xiaolu looked at her fixedly. Her soul was crashing around inside her body, jostling her gaze until it went a little unfocused. “Mm... it looks very soft.”

The smile on Shen Siyan’s face abruptly vanished.

It was that suddenly serious expression that made Wei Xiaolu tear her eyes away from Shen Siyan’s lips; once she realized what she’d just said, she wanted nothing more than to die on the spot.

“Really! I mean, after putting it on, it kind of feels like all the collagen’s come back to life. It looks really easy to pinch!” Wei Xiaolu frantically tried to salvage the situation, though in truth her soul was already smashed to pieces by her own explanation.

Telling your boss that her face was soft and easy to pinch—she really did have an unusual talent for standing out.

But thankfully, Shen Siyan picked up on it and even cooperated by lifting a hand to lightly pinch Wei Xiaolu’s cheek. “Yes, very soft.”

For a moment, Wei Xiaolu couldn’t even tell whether it was the word “soft” itself that clashed with her wild image, or whether it was more bizarre coming out of someone as perceptive and composed as Shen Siyan.

But the reality was that this strange little action had numbed part of her chest, and even the tip of her heart was trembling.

After finishing her inspection of Wei Xiaolu’s face, Shen Siyan seemed finally satisfied and arranged the skincare products neatly on the sink. “Leave them here. We’ll use them together from now on.”

“...Okay.” Wei Xiaolu was still walking the road where body and soul were separate realms, and answered dazedly.

Even with no romantic experience whatsoever, she knew this kind of interaction had absolutely crossed the line. But while she was enjoying the ambiguity, she was also afraid this might all be nothing more than wishful thinking. Maybe the Shen Siyan who was always so tactful and polished in dealing with people treated everyone this intimately; maybe Wei Xiaolu was just one more person on the receiving end of her care.

Wei Xiaolu washed her hands, said good night to Shen Siyan, and drifted back to her room.

She was still curled under the covers savoring it all when—outside, Shen Siyan had already started the engine. Wei Xiaolu heard CEO Shen on the phone, discussing how to formally sue Zhaolan on the grounds of trade secret infringement and unfair competition.

What had just happened in the bathroom only five minutes ago was still fresh, yet the voice coming through the wall was calm and reasoned.

Could softness and slaughter switch this quickly in one person?

Wei Xiaolu paused for a while longer, then suddenly reached up and pinched her own cheek.

It didn’t feel particularly nice; she had just used a little too much force... and her face actually hurt a bit.

That pain pulled her out of the hazy, lingering mood. On one side was the fixed, ordinary reality around her; on the other, the capable, decisive superior making plans through the wall.

“Okay, let’s proceed in parallel,” Shen Siyan’s voice came again. “I’ll have my intern upload a set of false data to lead Zhaolan toward the wrong R&D direction first; that should drain some of their energy and resources and buy you some time for the legal action.”

Wei Xiaolu buried herself completely under the blanket.

She didn’t want to hear any more.

The call felt like a bucket of cold water poured from head to toe, waking her up.

She clearly realized that no matter how much ambiguous behavior there was in private, Shen Siyan was first and foremost her boss; between them stood an insurmountable gulf of rank and experience.

Shen Siyan was powerful and charming, but she was also far, far out of reach.

These irritating realities made Wei Xiaolu feel gloomy, so she hooked the sheep-shaped pillow over with her foot, hugged it, and fell asleep.

That sleep was a bumpy, drifting one. The next day at work, she was still a little dazed. After returning the wine to Wang Chen, she sat down at her desk and still hadn’t fully woken up when Shen Siyan handed down a new assignment.

“Xiaolu,” Shen Siyan said, “I’ve already discussed it with Qian Longyue. Coordinate with him and upload a batch of fake data into Qiding’s processing tool.”

The moment Shen Siyan said it, Wei Xiaolu thought of what had happened the night before again, and her eyes darted away. “Okay, okay, CEO Shen. I’ll do it right away.”

Once she had the task, Wei Xiaolu took a deep breath, pushed those chaotic thoughts aside, and focused on the work in front of her.

After coordinating with Qian Longyue, she uploaded the processing data as required. It was still a mechanical motion, but an unusual sense of participation rose in her heart.

It was as if she were fighting side by side with Shen Siyan, laying out the plan together. She wasn’t just some screw anyone could casually pluck up; it felt like she had value of her own now.

And when it took two days to finally finish processing the data, that sense of labor yielding reward deepened again when she saw the blueberry smoothie Shen Siyan handed her.

“Good work,” Shen Siyan said, looking at her with warmth in her eyes. “This is for you, a reward for our little hero.”

“Thank you, beautiful boss.” Wei Xiaolu accepted it happily and thrust in the straw with a sharp little sound before starting to drink.

“Is the data all processed?” Shen Siyan leaned against the edge of her desk and asked softly.

“Yep, everything was uploaded according to Engineer Qian’s requirements.” To emphasize her contribution, Wei Xiaolu even nodded vigorously.

“That should be about it, then. We’ve done everything we can,” Shen Siyan said, her eyes narrowing slightly. “Now we just wait to pursue our rights through legal channels.”

Wei Xiaolu swallowed a big mouthful of blueberry and asked, “So does the task force need to do anything else?”

“No need,” Shen Siyan said with a shake of her head. “Just continue your normal work.”

“Oh...” Wei Xiaolu thought about it, but curiosity still got the better of her. “Then CEO Shen, what about Sister Chen? Since the leak wasn’t from the task force, does that mean she’s actually pretty loyal to our company...”

When Shen Siyan heard the question, she seemed to have anticipated it long ago; a confident curve appeared at the corner of her mouth.

“Chen Yuran,” Shen Siyan said, lowering her voice a little, “isn’t loyal to the company. She’s only loyal to the work itself.”

Wei Xiaolu nodded somewhat vaguely.

“So,” Shen Siyan said, flicking the copper coin grass on the desk, “it won’t be easy to win her over.”

Wei Xiaolu frowned. “Then what do we do?”

“Let her walk over on her own,” Shen Siyan looked at her, a sharp glint flashing in her eyes. “We need to create two conditions for her: one chance she can’t refuse, where she can throw herself completely into the work, and one safe ladder that lets her break free from Chen Dongqi’s control.”

Wei Xiaolu raised a hand and propped her chin in the crook of her thumb and forefinger, pretending to think.

“Question for you,” Shen Siyan said, as if suddenly in a playful mood, smiling lightly. “How do you think we should do it?”

“Hm...” Wei Xiaolu considered it. “She performed so brilliantly in the task force this time. If there’s another good project, I think Sister Chen could totally be put in charge.”

Shen Siyan smiled and lifted her chin slightly, signaling for her to continue.

“And since Zhaolan’s reputation has basically collapsed this time too, they’ll definitely be too busy trying to save themselves for a while. CEO Chen should loosen her grip on Sister Chen a bit,” Wei Xiaolu said, tapping her chin. “If we can find some way to use this opening to get Sister Chen out of that technical services company, that’d be best.”

Shen Siyan suddenly laughed.

The smile in her eyes was like a pool full of stars. She leaned forward slightly, not hiding her delight at all. “Your thinking is exactly the same as mine, little sister.”

“Maybe your brainwaves got transmitted to me,” Wei Xiaolu said with a grin, trying hard to ignore that look on Shen Siyan’s face that said my little deer has finally grown up. “Well, I’ve been around you so long, of course I’d pick things up through exposure and start using my brain.”

“My people are definitely smart,” Shen Siyan said, tapping Wei Xiaolu lightly on the head like knocking a wooden fish. Then she straightened and started analyzing. “I’ve already begun the concrete steps. Later I’ll apply to establish a special project group; the resource level will be the highest in the department, and I’ll leave the lead position to Chen Yuran.”

Wei Xiaolu’s eyes lit up.

“Also, the matter of Chen Dongqi using her identity to register the company under her name; I’ve already found a lawyer for her.” Shen Siyan added that as well.

“CEO Shen, you move way too fast!” Wei Xiaolu was shaken, and the admiration in her voice was genuine.

After all, these past two days Shen Siyan had been busy with all the Zhaolan mess, yet she had still been able to handle these things at the same time. She was simply formidable.

“Fast?” Shen Siyan smiled. “I’ve been busy with all this for the past two days; I haven’t had much time with you.”

“That’s true, we haven’t had dinner together for several days,” Wei Xiaolu said, tilting her head up. “Is CEO Shen still working overtime today?”

Shen Siyan shook her head.

“Then let me treat you to a big meal!” Wei Xiaolu suddenly brightened and clenched her fist. “To celebrate us finally getting through one hurdle.”

“Your internship pay came in?” Shen Siyan raised an eyebrow.

“Hehe.” Wei Xiaolu lifted her chest proudly. “It did! But they still haven’t told me the conversion result yet. Sister Qiu from Human Resources said it’ll take a while longer.”

“Then I won’t be polite today; I’ll freeload off my little sister’s meal,” Shen Siyan said, pausing before adding, “Another day I’ll give Xiaoqiu some feedback on how well you’ve been doing in the task force lately and praise you a little more.”

Oh my god!

Wei Xiaolu got so excited she grabbed Shen Siyan’s arm in one swoop, her voice practically squealing. “Ahhh, thank you, CEO Shen! CEO Shen, I love you!”

Shen Siyan pressed her lips together with a smile that wasn’t quite a smile.

But Wei Xiaolu’s shrill shouting was just too hard to resist, and in the end, after yet another “CEO Shen, I love you so much!” she finally gave in and laughed out loud.