The company hired two accountants in total.
The first accountant, Zhao Yatong, was transferred to Guangming Distillery by Xu Xiuwen.
The second accountant is also a woman, neither too young nor too old, with five years of work experience. Her work performance is decent, and of course, her appearance isn’t bad either.
Her na is Yu Zhaozhao.
Shortly after, Xu Xiuwen called Song Xiaomi.
Soon, Song Xiaomi and Yu Zhaozhao ca running upstairs from downstairs.
When the two entered the office, they saw President Xu and his new secretary.
The two won felt uneasy, unsure of the reason for the eting.
Xu Xiuwen didn’t waste ti. He got straight to the point and asked sternly, “Yu Zhaozhao, did Lu Xinyao resign?”
His tone was cold and very serious.
Yu Zhaozhao was startled and quickly replied, “Yes, President Xu.”
“Who allowed her to resign? Don’t you know she was my secretary? Without my permission, why did you help her process her resignation? And it’s been half a month since she left—why didn’t you inform ?”
Xu Xiuwen’s voice was serious.
Although he wasn’t yelling, there was an undeniable sense of authority.
Yu Zhaozhao imdiately bowed her head and said, “I’m sorry, President Xu. It was my mistake.”
“I don’t want to hear your apology; I want to know why. Why didn’t you tell about this for so long?”
Yu Zhaozhao explained seriously, “President Xu, it was Lu Xinyao who told you had already approved her resignation. That’s why I processed it. I didn’t expect her to deceive . I thought you were aware, so I didn’t bring it up. It was a lapse in my duties...”
Hearing this explanation, Xu Xiuwen stared at her for a few seconds.
Finally, he concluded that she wasn’t lying.
It seed the truth was just as she had said—Lu Xinyao had deceived her.
As his secretary, Lu Xinyao must have told Yu Zhaozhao that Xu Xiuwen had already approved her resignation.
As the company’s accountant, Yu Zhaozhao naturally wouldn’t doubt her.
After all, their company was still small and not very formal. Despite being in charge of accounting, Yu Zhaozhao also handled so HR matters.
Perhaps she never expected Lu Xinyao to deceive her.
With this thought, Xu Xiuwen’s anger towards Yu Zhaozhao subsided considerably.
“Now let ask you, what’s the deal with Liu Xinran? The company hired a new employee and arranged a new secretary for —why wasn’t I inford?”
Yu Zhaozhao’s expression remained calm as she replied, “President Xu, Secretary Liu was assigned by Director Hang.”
Hearing this from the accountant as well, Xu Xiuwen had no choice but to believe Liu Xinran hadn’t lied.
At this point, Xu Xiuwen turned to look at Song Xiaomi, who was visibly uneasy.
“Song Xiaomi, let ask you: why didn’t you tell about Lu Xinyao’s resignation?”
“I thought you already knew, President Xu.”
Another identical excuse.
Xu Xiuwen couldn’t help but feel helpless.
He rubbed his temples and continued asking, “Then let ask you, has Lu Xinyao moved out of the company dormitory?”
“Sister Xinyao has already moved out. Her room is now vacant.”
“Do you know where she went after resigning?”
After hesitating for a second, Song Xiaomi shook her head.
“Alright, I understand. Also, Yu Zhaozhao, from now on, if there are any personnel changes in the company, I don’t want to have to find out myself.”
“Understood, President Xu.”
“Alright, you two can leave now.”
Xu Xiuwen waved his hand, signaling for the two won to leave.
Song Xiaomi and Yu Zhaozhao bowed their heads and turned to leave.
Now, the room was left with only him and Liu Xinran.
Xu Xiuwen continued rubbing his temples, feeling a headache coming on.
Xu Xiuwen didn’t know how to handle Liu Xinran.
At the sa ti, he was very curious.
Why did Hang Fei agree to let her join the company and even arrange for her to take the position of his secretary?
After the two won left, Liu Xinran smiled faintly and said, “President Xu, if there’s nothing else, I’ll head out too.”
“Wait a mont.”
Xu Xiuwen stopped her.
He stared at Liu Xinran.
Her face was undeniably beautiful.
In bars, there were many so-called “ambiance beauties” and “lighting beauties”—girls who only looked stunning in the colorful, dimly lit environnt. Outside of that, their beauty didn’t hold up.
The first ti Xu Xiuwen briefly t Liu Xinran was in a bar.
He had been montarily impressed by her looks but hadn’t thought much of it afterward.
It wasn’t until now that he realized Liu Xinran wasn’t just an “ambiance beauty” or “lighting beauty.”
Her facial features were exquisite, her skin fair.
She was tall, probably around 1.7 ters.
Wearing high heels, she stood almost as tall as Xu Xiuwen.
Her figure was impeccable, perfectly proportioned—neither plump nor too slim to appear underdeveloped.
She wore a won’s business suit.
Even in such ordinary clothing, her curves were noticeable, yet she didn’t co across as overly provocative.
On the contrary, she exuded an air of elegance—a kind of innate nobility.
“Is there sothing you need, President Xu?” Liu Xinran’s face carried a polite smile.
But Xu Xiuwen felt there was sothing unsettling about her smile, as if it wasn’t entirely well-intentioned.
“Don’t you think you owe an explanation?”
“An explanation for what?”
Xu Xiuwen didn’t speak, simply staring at her.
“Oh, I get it. You want to explain why I ca to work at your company? There’s no special reason—I just needed a job, so I ca.”
Xu Xiuwen thought to himself: You’re Li Xiangjun’s lover, yet instead of staying comfortably in that role, you’ve co to work at my company?
Suddenly, a thought struck him—could it be that Liu Xinran had set her sights on him?
But then, how did she even know his real na? How did she find out that he owned a company, and how did she locate it so accurately?
Xu Xiuwen had many questions swirling in his mind.
Keeping his tone calm, he said, “Liu Xinran, I don’t have ti to play gas with you. If you’re looking for fun, I suggest you find soone else.”
“Heh... President Xu, have you misunderstood sothing? I’m here to work, not to play. Just because we’ve t before, does that an I can’t work at your company?”
If she were genuinely here to work, Xu Xiuwen wouldn’t be unwelcoming.
But it was clear Liu Xinran wasn’t here for a legitimate job.
Xu Xiuwen casually glanced at her clothes.
All high-end brands.
The price of just one item she was wearing could likely buy everything Song Xiaomi and Yu Zhaozhao were wearing combined.
Her salary at the company probably wouldn’t even be enough to buy her a single outfit.
“Stop ssing with . What’s your real purpose here? Just say it!”
Xu Xiuwen decided to stop beating around the bush and got straight to the point.
Hearing this, the smile on Liu Xinran’s face gradually faded.
She looked back at Xu Xiuwen, her gaze now serious.
“If anyone’s been ssing around, it’s you. I should be asking you—do you find it fun to play with people?”
“When did I ever ss with you? What are you talking about?”
“Oh really? You’ve never?”
“I, Xu Xiuwen, act with a clear conscience.”
“Ha...”
Another mocking laugh escaped her lips.
“Then should I address you as President Xu or President Yang?”
President Xu? President Yang?
Xu Xiuwen froze for a mont but quickly understood.
“President Yang” referred to the fake na he had given her—Yang Baishan.
In an instant, he realized what she was implying.
He rembered that night at the bar when he had casually given her a false na, thinking he’d never see her again.
Yet here she was, not only eting him again but also exposing his lie.
Feeling a little awkward, Xu Xiuwen averted his gaze, his tone softening.
“President Xu, it seems you were the one playing gas first,” Liu Xinran said.
“Well... back then, I thought—anyway, I was wrong about that. I owe you an apology.”
Xu Xiuwen’s tone was genuinely apologetic.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have lied to you and given you a fake na.”
Liu Xinran smiled again. “Forget it. I didn’t take it to heart.”
“Thank you. By the way, I’m curious—how did you find even after I gave you a fake na?”
“What’s so hard about that? Just ask soone, and you’ll find out,” Liu Xinran replied casually.
“Who did you ask?”
“Who do you think?”
Although she didn’t explicitly say, Xu Xiuwen imdiately thought of soone—ng Dong.
ng Dong often frequented that bar and knew all about Xu Xiuwen’s real identity.
Judging by Liu Xinran’s expression, she must have learned about him through ng Dong.
That ng Dong, seriously! Why didn’t he give a heads-up?
Xu Xiuwen silently grumbled about ng Dong in his heart but kept a polite smile on his face.
“Liu Xinran, I have another question.”
“You sure have a lot of questions,” Liu Xinran said, her words making Xu Xiuwen feel a little embarrassed.
But then she added, “Alright, ask away.”
“Why did you co to work at my company? And how do you know Hang Fei? Why did he agree to let you join and even arrange for you to be my secretary?”
“That’s one question?” Liu Xinran asked with a faintly amused smile.
“Don’t worry about how many questions there are. Just answer.”
“I already told you—I ca here for a job, to make money. But you don’t believe .”
“Don’t joke around. The clothes you’re wearing cost more than what my employees earn in a month.”
“Alright, fine, no more jokes. The truth is, I ca here to avoid my dad.”
“To avoid your dad?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“Why?”
“Have you forgotten my English na?”
“I haven’t—Rachel?”
“Exactly. Now you get it, right?” Liu Xinran blinked playfully at Xu Xiuwen.
Xu Xiuwen frowned, deep in thought.
Suddenly, it clicked.
In Friends, Rachel ended up working at the coffee shop because she ran away from her wedding.
Could Liu Xinran be escaping a marriage too?
Judging by his expression, Liu Xinran smiled faintly. “Looks like you’ve figured it out. That’s right—I don’t like my fiancé, so I ran away.”
“If you don’t like him, why not just call off the engagent? Why run away?”
“You don’t understand. I just graduated from university and returned to the country. My dad imdiately arranged a marriage for . The other family is an old friend of his, so I had no way to refuse.”
“Then you could’ve gone to work sowhere else. Why co to a small company like ours?”
Liu Xinran glanced at him and said, “At first, I wasn’t sure if I really wanted to run away, so I went to bars every day to drink and think. That night when I t you, you gave the push I needed. So I made up my mind to back out of the marriage. Since it was your fault, of course, I ca to you to take responsibility.”
“I can’t take that responsibility. You should find another job. You’re a returnee from overseas—it’s a waste for you to work as my secretary in a small company like this.”
“I don’t care. It’s because of you that I decided to escape the marriage, so you have to take responsibility. And I don’t mind working for a small company.”
Xu Xiuwen fell silent.
Liu Xinran observed his expression and suddenly said, “My fiancé’s family is quite influential. If they find out you’re the one who ‘lured’ away, they might get very angry.”
“Why drag into this? I don’t think I’ve done anything to offend you.”
Xu Xiuwen’s face turned cold.
He was usually a patient man, but no one could stay calm in the face of soone digging a pit and forcing them to jump into it.
If it weren’t for the potential complications, he might have lost his temper right there.
Perhaps sensing Xu Xiuwen’s irritation, Liu Xinran quickly said, “Don’t be angry. I know what I did wasn’t fair, but I’ll compensate you.”
“Compensate? Do you think I care about that? And what could you possibly offer ?”
Xu Xiuwen deliberately let his gaze sweep over Liu Xinran from head to toe, his eyes filled with mockery.
His expression seed to say, Your body might be worth sothing, though.
Liu Xinran felt uneasy under his bold, invasive gaze.
If it were anyone else, she wouldn’t have hesitated to snap at them or even slap them.
But because it was Xu Xiuwen—and because she was the one in the wrong—she held back her frustration and said, “You own the Guangming Distillery, right? If you want to break into the Feishi (Fei City) market, I can help you.”
“How could you help ?”
Xu Xiuwen’s earlier aggressive expression was just to scare her; he wasn’t genuinely interested in her.
Hearing her offer, he quickly returned to his usual composed deanor.
Liu Xinran smiled and said, “I know Qian Jian. I can connect you with him.”
Hearing the na Qian Jian, Xu Xiuwen froze.
The na wasn’t unfamiliar to him.
Qian Jian was the largest liquor distributor in Feishi. Nearly every distillery in the province had dealings with him.
He had extensive channels at his disposal.
Through him, not only could they establish a foothold in Feishi’s liquor market, but they could also expand across the entire province.
Xu Xiuwen weighed the pros and cons in his mind.
Keeping Liu Xinran around had its benefits, but also potential downsides.
The downside was that her fiancé might take his anger out on him. But then again, he might not. It was impossible to say for sure.
The upside was that if she wasn’t bluffing and could really get Qian Jian to work with Guangming Distillery, it could be a ga-changer.
The new liquor could potentially make a significant splash in the provincial market.
After all, the liquor market in Anhui Province was fiercely competitive.
Although Xu Xiuwen had a lot of confidence in the distillery’s new product, if there was a shortcut available, why not take it?
Still, he hadn’t made up his mind yet.
“How can you prove that you know Qian Jian? Are you close to him?”
Liu Xinran smiled. “Not really. If I didn’t know you owned a distillery, I wouldn’t have bothered paying attention to so distributor. But Uncle Li is close to him.”
“Uncle Li? Who’s that?”
“You know him too. He helped you out the other day. Don’t you rember?” Liu Xinran said with a smile.
Her reminder jogged Xu Xiuwen’s mory.
It was the bar owner he t that night—Li Xiangjun.
Xu Xiuwen also rembered hearing from ng Dong that Liu Xinran was supposedly Li Xiangjun’s lover.
That was what he had always believed.
But now, hearing Liu Xinran call him “Uncle Li,” Xu Xiuwen suddenly realized the rumors might not be true.
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