Chapter 15: Do You Dare To Do It Again?
This translation is originally posted on https://love4baihe.blogspot.com please read it there. and check out other stories too.
Gossip spread throughout the company overnight.
A new junior clerk was suddenly promoted to the President's secretary. When things change unexpectedly, there must be hidden mysteries. Speculation about 'Song Qingluo's background' quickly spread...
The next day, Song Qingluo came to the administrative department to pack her things.
Colleagues came forward one after another to congratulate her. Some curious ones wanted to inquire about the details, but she pretended to be clueless, feeling only anxious.
With many belongings, she especially brought a suitcase and managed to fit all her items in at once.
When passing by Manager Cao's desk, Song Qingluo stopped and slightly bowed to her: “Manager Cao, thank you for your guidance and training during these days. I will always remember your kindness.”
A smiling fox's face: smiling on the outside but not inside.
Her unsatisfactory evaluation of Song Qingluo had already been invalidated.
Song Qingluo ignored her and walked away quickly with her suitcase.
People were coming and going in the large office area. She received countless glances, her face was calm, but inside, her emotions surged and cheered.
Arriving at the President's office, only Assistant Xu was there.
Song Qingluo's lips curved into a smile as she greeted her warmly: “Assistant Xu, good morning. I've come to report.”
"Miss Song." Xu Man smiled and nodded.
Yesterday, Wen Ruoxian personally arranged a workstation for Song Qingluo. Today, she came first to tidy up her workstation, organize her things, and then proceeded to the HR department for a job transfer process, all under Xu Man's guidance.
Song Qingluo handed over the big paper bag in her hand: "I'm afraid I'm going to trouble Assistant Xu in the next few days. This is a little gift, consider it a token of meeting. Please guide me more in the future.”
Knowing that Assistant Xu would guide her today, she picked some things from her home storage overnight - an unopened Hermès Bolide bag and two scarves - all were gifts given to Ms. Song by clients and then passed on to her. She didn't lack them, so she decided to keep them at home as alternative gifts.
It is important to have a good relationship with the people around the old-fashioned.
Xu Man, experienced in various situations, gracefully accepted it and spoke frankly: “Thank you, Miss Song, but it's unnecessary. President Wen has already briefed me about your situation…”
People around the old-fashioned also speak like the old-fashioned; rigorous, thorough, and formal.
Though she didn't quite like it, she still needed to win them over.
"Just call me Qingluo. I'll also call you Man-jie."
"Sure."
The Young Miss has a cheerful personality, and Xu Man has a good impression of her.
After tidying up her workstation, Song Qingluo followed Xu Man to the HR Department to complete the procedures, attracting the attention of many colleagues as they came and went.
Xu Man began explaining the job tasks.
"Your job is relatively simple. It mainly involves managing documents, taking meeting minutes, and assisting President Wen in organizing drafts... more administrative, no need for fieldwork, social events, or projects.”
Originally, these were all Xu Man's duties. Since the Young Miss had taken on the title of secretary, she should share some responsibilities.
This was also Wen Ruoxian's intention.
Assign some simple and easy tasks to the Young Miss. When she's played enough and gets tired, she'll naturally leave.
Song Qingluo was not most interested in these things. She patiently waited for Xu Man to finish before asking, “What about personal life? As a secretary, what aspects should be considered, like what does President Wen like to eat? Drink? What habits does she have?”
She wanted to know everything about Wen Ruoxian.
Otherwise, there is no point in being a secretary.
"We have all that." Xu Man took out her phone, added her on WeChat, and sent a screenshot of the notes.
The old-fashioned’s daily habits.
Doesn't drink coffee, or soft drinks unless necessary, doesn't drink alcohol unless necessary, drinks plain water in summer, floral or fruit tea in winter. Doesn't like takeout or fast food, has a housekeeper specifically for cooking, and if she leaves work early, she goes home to cook. Usually wears size M clothes, shoe size 38...
There are even approximate dates for menstrual periods.
This translation is originally posted on https://love4baihe.blogspot.com please read it there. and check out other stories too.
Song Qingluo was secretly happy, as if she had obtained confidential information, it was not in vain that she had endured the humiliation and worked hard step by step to come to Wen Ruoxian's side.
“Thank you, Man-jie, I'll take care of President Wen's life from now on." Thinking that before this, someone was closer to Wen Ruoxian than herself, she felt slightly dissatisfied in her heart and somewhat uncomfortable. She was eager to snatch something back.
As if it should have belonged to her.
Xu Man smiled and said, "Okay, but President Wen doesn't really need someone to take care of her very much. Most of the time, I just give her a little reminder. She knows well and can take care of herself."
Song Qingluo nodded casually, but in reality, she didn't mind much. "Why hasn't President Wen come yet?"
It's already ten o'clock.
The boss is just willful.
"There's a luncheon meeting. President Wen will go directly to the hotel," Xu Man looked at her watch and said, "I should also go there to meet up. You can do your own thing. I'll probably be back around two in the afternoon."
"Okay."
The entire President’s Office became Song Qingluo's exclusive world.
The old-fashioned is gone, and work is no fun at all. But after all, she is here to work. As a secretary, she couldn't be too capricious. She should do something at least.
Song Qingluo wrote all the screenshots of the memo into the "Old Fashioned Observation Diary".
Repeatedly reading it several times, memorizing each point in her mind, like memorizing music, but it was simpler than that, effortless. She tried brewing some chrysanthemum tea and wolfberry tea and took a few sips herself, but it was tasteless.
As expected, old-fashioned.
Even the drinks were so tame and serious.
Song Qingluo couldn't understand what was so good about these teas. How could some people resist the temptation of coffee and alcohol?
Her mother counts as one, and so does Wen Ruoxian.
She poured out the remaining tea, with nothing else to do, Song Qingluo looked at the clutter on the desk, noticeably messy, so she started tidying it up. Then she went ahead and cleaned the entire office, throwing all the waste paper into the shredder.
Then boil the chrysanthemum tea and put it on the pot holder.
The old-fashioned will definitely be surprised when she comes back.
How could there be such a diligent, caring, and meticulous secretary like her?
At lunchtime, Song Qingluo went out for a nice meal, came back, flipped through a book, and lying on the sofa with her phone, she shared her "achievements" with her friend.
Shi Chuning: [Shouldn't the next step be moving into her house?]
It's in the plan.
Song Qingluo thought silently.
How could she legitimately move into the old-fashioned's house?
As she pondered, her eyelids started to fight, and drowsiness set in...
After dealing with the luncheon meeting, Wen Ruoxian and her assistant returned to the company.
Passing by the administrative department, she instinctively glanced inside, noticing the empty seat by the window. It then dawned on her that the person who usually sat there was currently in her office.
She involuntarily quickened her pace.
The President’s Office was a large suite, with an extravagant workstation set up outside, complete with a coffee pot, ambient light, and blind box figurines, clearly becoming a symbol of the Young Miss.
Wen Ruoxian saw it from afar.
But the person wasn't at the workstation.
"President Wen, the contract sent by the Legal Department is on the desk. Please review it first. If there are any issues, they can be amended this afternoon," Xu Man said, putting down her bag.
“Mm." Wen Ruoxian pushed open the office door and both she and Xu Man froze in surprise.
On the sofa, Song Qingluo lay sprawled out, sound asleep, one long straight leg stretched out near the coffee table, the sole of her shoe barely an inch away from the cup, and scattered pillows on the floor.
"This…"
Xu Man didn't know whether to laugh or cry and turned to her boss, "Do you want to wake her up?"
Wen Ruoxian looked at the person on the sofa and sighed, feeling amused again. The corners of her lips raised a slight arc: "No, let her sleep."
It's better if she sleeps.
At least she won't bother her while awake.
Thinking so, she walked over gently, picked up the fallen pillow, shifted the tea set aside, brought her own usual blanket, and carefully covered Song Qingluo.
For a brief moment, she bent down, observing this face up close.
Her sleeping face was calm and peaceful, her long and curly eyelashes were like moth wings, resting quietly above her eyes, casting a faint shadow. She seemed to be dreaming of something delicious, with her lips moving slightly.
Wen Ruoxian was in a trance for a moment and couldn't help but hold her breath for fear of disturbing the sleeping spirit.
Realizing she was indulging in watching, she quickly straightened up.
She turned around and walked to the desk.
"Did you tidy up the desk?" Wen Ruoxian looked at the empty surface, then turned to ask Xu Man.
Xu Man was puzzled, "No."
"The contract?"
"I put it on the desk..."
"Did the cleaners come by?"
"I'll go ask."
Xu Man went to inquire with the cleaners, while Wen Ruoxian pulled open drawers and cabinets, finding some unapproved documents in one of them. They were supposed to be on the office desk.
"President Wen, the cleaners said they didn't clean today. I brought the contract here at nine o'clock," Xu Man quickly returned.
"It should be here." Wen Ruoxian flipped through the documents but didn't find the contract. She frowned, "It's not here."
She then opened the back cabinet, and searched through it.
Still no trace.
Xu Man was puzzled too.
"Umm..." a soft sound came from the sofa.
Song Qingluo was disturbed by the conversation, stretched lazily, opened her eyes, and drowsily sat up, "Wen Ruoxian? You're back."
Only then did Wen Ruoxian remember there was someone else in the room?
Suddenly recalling something, she asked, "Did you move things on my desk?"
Song Qingluo paused, noticing the odd expressions on both their faces. Her mind gradually cleared, "Oh, I tidied up your desk a bit and put everything into drawers and cabinets."
The desk was now bare, only with a computer screen, pen holder, and some ornaments.
Wen Ruoxian finally relaxed, "Where's the contract?"
"What contract?"
"The contract on the desk."
As she spoke, Xu Man pointed to the specific location, supplementing for her boss, "It was right here."
"That was the contract?" Fear flashed in Song Qingluo's eyes, "I saw it lying by the edge of the desk, a bit curled up. I thought it was scrap paper, so... I threw it into the shredder."
Wen Ruoxian: "..."
Xu Man: "..."
There are scraps of paper in the trash can next to the table.
There was a sudden silence in the room.
A heavy atmosphere slowly circulated.
Looking at that expressionless face, Song Qingluo suddenly realized that she had gotten into trouble.
She made a blunder on her very first day as a secretary.
"I'll go to the Legal Department now." Xu Man reacted swiftly, speaking quickly before leaving the room.
Only two people remained in the office.
Wen Ruoxian stared at Song Qingluo's face, her eyes dark and unclear: "Did you do it on purpose? To see if I'd get angry, to see if you could infuriate me to death?"
Her voice was very soft.
It makes people unable to discern her emotions.
"No," Song Qingluo stood up, "I really thought it was scrap paper. A third of it was sticking out, about to fall off, and there were no words on it. I didn't look carefully..."
The Young Miss disliked being wrongly accused in her lifetime. She hurried over to the desk to gesture.
"Even if I want to make you angry on purpose, I won't joke about something as important as a contract. I'm not that kind of person. You can't accuse me unjustly."
Seeing her distressed and teary-eyed, Wen Ruoxian couldn't help but relent.
She wasn't entirely convinced that it was intentional.
"I was just asking."
"Even when asking, you shouldn't wrongly accuse someone."
What an ancestor.
Even when making a mistake, she was so self-righteous.
Whether it was intentional or not, this question needed to be addressed immediately, not allowing her a chance to misinterpret.
Perhaps it wasn't intentional, but a mistake is still a mistake.
"Okay, it wasn't intentional. I believe you." Wen Ruoxian nodded lightly, glancing at the trash bin.
Luckily, it was a contract that hadn't been signed yet.
There hadn't been any actual loss, and they could draft another copy in time.
But what if the next time it was a signed contract?
She didn't dare to think about it.
There must not be a next time.
"What do you think we should do now?"
"I..."
Song Qingluo's momentum instantly wilted, unable to say a word for a while.
Wen Ruoxian moved around the desk, sat in a chair, slightly raised her chin, looked at her steadily, and spoke slowly and clearly, "First, the office cleanliness is the responsibility of the cleaners, no need for you to intervene. Second, without permission, do not tamper with anything on my desk. Third, when you see any documents in the office area, it's better to be cautious and learn to seek permission before handling them. What you might consider as scrap paper could be someone else's months of hard work."
"Do you understand?"
She didn't get angry, just looked at her in such a calm and indifferent manner, her tone gentle yet nonchalant, as if she was mentioning today's rain.
But Song Qingluo felt deeply ashamed.
She didn't dare to lift her head or meet her eyes, feeling like a student caught making a mistake by a teacher.
It wasn't as satisfying as being scolded by Manager Cao.
"I understand..." Song Qingluo replied softly.
Wen Ruoxian continued, "Do you dare to do it again?"
Author's Note:
Xiao Qingluo: I'll dare next time, hehe (not really)