Chapter 10

Just like her, Assistant Li felt like he was dreaming.
He’d just received a message from the president, instructing him to clear all appointments for next Monday and mark it as “marriage registration.”
Marriage registration? No way was the boss cancelling an entire day’s schedule just to accompany his assistant to get a license.
He really hadn’t expected Miss Qin to move this fast.
One assistant and one lackey stood there, equally dumbstruck.
On the drive back, the Young Lady was practically glowing, her brows lifted, her eyes bright and lively. “Chu Yan is going to marry me!”
“This is way faster than just getting engaged.”
“I’m not telling my parents yet. I’ll wait till we get the license on Monday and give them a surprise.”
Wen Jiu: …
The novel had never said what the Qin parents thought of the male lead. If their impression was bad, that surprise might turn into a scare.
“Wen Jiu, I’m so happy. Right here…” Qin Yao pressed a hand to her chest, a soft flush blooming on her cheeks. “It feels like it’s overflowing with happiness.”
“I can be with Chu Yan all thanks to your help.”
“When a corporate project is completed, the planning and tech teams get bonuses. Wen Jiu, I should give you a bonus too.”
Qin Yao suddenly leaned in, her face magnified in front of Wen Jiu.
For tonight’s date, she’d specifically changed into a soft, pale-blue sleeveless dress. It made her look noble and elegant, but still delicately girlish.
A tiny diamond hair clip sparkled in her hair; a sapphire pendant at her throat caught the light. The tips of her wavy hair brushed past the necklace, revealing a strip of pale neck, lazy and a little spoiled.
As she leaned close, a sweet but not cloying fragrance washed over Wen Jiu, like a peach iced tea on a scorching summer day.
“Miss Qin?” Wen Jiu was so sugar-struck she practically rippled. Whatever the Young Lady had just said evaporated from her brain.
Her mind went completely blank for a solid three seconds.
Only after replaying those last few sentences did she snap out of the spell of Qin Yao’s beauty.
She jolted back to herself, heart hammering, thunk-thunk, nearly losing her footing and performing a spontaneous face-plant on the spot.
Three seconds earlier, Qin Yao had thought of the perfect reward and told her, “I’ll buy the place you’re renting now and give it to you.”
“You’ve been my lackey all this time; it’s embarrassing if you don’t even have a place of your own. And that apartment isn’t expensive. You won’t feel pressured taking it.”
Her voice was sweet and soft, but her tone was firm, brooking no refusal.
Wen Jiu’s eyes welled up.
What firmness? What forcefulness? The Young Lady was literally afraid she would feel pressured accepting it and had gone out of her way to explain. She even sacrificed her own image, claiming it was just to “save face” that she was buying it.
Written as “lackey,” read as “treasured favorite.”
She didn’t care about technicalities. She was clearly the Young Lady’s favorite person.
In Wen Jiu’s eyes, tangible things like this far outweighed the unrequited devotion Qin Yao poured after Chu Yan.
She would absolutely help the Young Lady hold onto the male lead and do her best to secure her a beautiful marriage.
So she liked the male lead? Great. Marry him, then!
“Miss Qin, how are you this good? I want to chase after you for the rest of my life.” The sticky-sweet words weren’t nearly as hard to say as she’d imagined. Wen Jiu’s eyes shone with tears; she was one step away from flinging herself into Qin Yao’s arms and sobbing into her shoulder.
“Ugh, you’re getting stickier by the day.” Qin Yao pouted, but the lifted corners of her lips and the bright, satisfied joy in her eyes gave her away.
It was the joy of being seen, of having her worth affirmed.
Back at her rental that night, Wen Jiu tossed and turned on the big bed, too wired to sleep, her mouth twitching up and up.
Clutching her quilt, she grinned.
Heh. She had a house now.
Rolling over and squashing the blanket down, she grinned again.
Oh ho, no more rent to pay.
Unexpected windfall. The sky had finally picked her to dump its blessings on.
After a sleepless night, she went to work the next day with dark circles, but the happiness glowing on her forehead was impossible to conceal. It was rare to see dark circles and that kind of expression together; even the usually focused, non-interfering colleagues in the president’s office couldn’t help sneaking a few extra looks.
“Wen Jiu, what’s making you so happy?” Someone finally couldn’t resist asking, after watching her smile all morning.
Wen Jiu stood straight as a slim poplar sapling, shoulders back, eyes bright, youthful energy radiating everywhere.
Hearing the question, she tucked away her big, toothy grin; the poplar turned into a shy mimosa, and she ducked her head. “How did you know my sister gave me an apartment in Beicheng?”
The overly curious coworker: …
To work as a secretary in Chu Corp’s president’s office, your starting point was at least “comfortable middle class.” Even without family money, if you were capable, your annual income would be in the high six figures or even seven.
But earning it yourself and being gifted something were two different worlds, especially when that “something” was property in Beicheng.
Unbothered by any potential jealousy, Wen Jiu added deliberately, “It’s only a ten-minute walk from the office.”
Coworker: ???
Coworker: !!!
The company’s building sat in the heart of the financial district, where property prices started at eighty thousand per square meter and going up to one hundred sixty thousand wasn’t unheard of.
They looked back at Wen Jiu’s dazzling smile, but this time, no one was moved by her joy. They only managed a polite curve of the lips.
Then they turned around and quietly clenched their molars to dust in envy.
Lunch that day was tasteless, like chewing wax. Nothing was good.
On the Young Lady’s orders, the Qin family’s butler moved at top speed. That very afternoon, the property certificate and related documents were delivered directly into Wen Jiu’s hands by the Qin family’s chauffeur, who was even wearing the highest-level ceremonial white gloves.
Eyes shimmering, Wen Jiu held the freshly issued title deed. The bright red booklet had no warmth of its own, but her palms felt hot.
She drifted in a sea of fortune the entire day, forgetting the existence of heaven and earth. When she finally came back to herself, it was nearly quitting time.
She hurried off to find Assistant Li to hand over some tasks.
“You’re saying… you want to take over arranging the president’s schedule?” Assistant Li thought he’d misheard and asked again, suspicious.
He’d seen eager employees who wanted to take on more work. But in his impression, this “Miss Wen sent in by Qin Yao” was definitely not that type.
“Assistant Li, it’s not like I’d sabotage President Chu,” Wen Jiu said, her eyes spinning in their sockets. “He is my ‘brother-in-law,’ after all.”
Assistant Li narrowed his eyes slightly.
His stereotypes were strong; he still didn’t trust Wen Jiu.
What no one expected was that Chu Yan agreed to the adjustment, and removed all of Wen Jiu’s other responsibilities.
In other words, she only needed to handle his schedule. Nothing else.
After she came back from Assistant Li’s office, everyone in the department looked at her like she was a walking neon sign that read: connections.
The words “inside connection” practically shone above her head.
But once they heard she’d taken over scheduling, their expressions grew… complicated. They shifted from “staring at a connected hire” to “staring at a kind soul,” each of them suddenly soft and gentle, though none of them explained why.
Lan Mingyan went to ask around and came back to whisper to Wen Jiu, “Wen Jiu, if you’re in charge of President Chu’s schedule, you’ll have to stick by his side all the time. Your days off are going to be all over the place.”
“Isn’t scheduling the easiest job?” In Wen Jiu’s mind, she’d fill out the monthly calendar once, then coast. If anything changed mid-month, she’d just tweak it a bit. Easy money, perfect for slacking.
“It might be that way in other companies, but not in ours.”
“Assistant Li’s always glued to President Chu because of the schedule. He has to follow him constantly and adjust things in real time. He’s basically half a personal assistant.”
“Once you take this on, you’re not just lightening his load, you’re basically becoming President Chu’s personal assistant too.”
The bolt of lightning struck hard.
Besides carrying out the Young Lady’s tasks, Wen Jiu had secretly hoped for normal weekends. She wanted days to go out and play with Miss Qin, she absolutely did not want to be chained to the male lead twenty-four-seven.
She swallowed her frustration and decided she’d just do it for a while.
Opening the calendar, she started clearing out all the non-essential dinners from Chu Yan’s evenings. Anything marked in red by Assistant Li as important to the group’s profits she left alone; everything else, she crossed out.
Evenings, naturally, should be reserved for the Young Lady.
Wedding night, heigh-ho, heigh-ho, let the Young Lady pounce on her man as often as she liked.
There was a banquet on Saturday that Chu Yan had to attend.
Wen Jiu didn’t know if it was the same one the Young Lady was invited to, but it didn’t matter. She told her anyway.
Qin Yao: I was going to ask whether Chu Yan was going, but now I don’t need to. Come find me after work and go pick a dress with me. They just delivered some this afternoon.
Wen Jiu: Okay, Miss Qin.
Scanning further down, she saw Sunday: Dinner with both sets of parents. (Qin & Chu)
Drowsily scrolling through the schedule, Wen Jiu jolted awake.
Yeah, that part she would not tell the Young Lady. Better to let it be a surprise.
Wen Jiu: Miss Qin, President Chu has asked you to dinner on Sunday.
Qin Yao, Young Lady: Really? He finally learned how to talk. I’m going to check the new clothes the brands sent over. What style do you think I should wear? Should I go… spicy? (chili emoji.jpg)
Since it was basically a “meet the parents” dinner, Wen Jiu thought carefully and typed: You’re getting your license the day after the date, Miss Qin. Maybe go for something soft and sweet. No need to rush pouncing on President Chu.
Qin Yao, Young Lady: You’re right. We’ll be taking photos the next day; I can’t stay up too late or I’ll have dark circles.
The Young Lady did care very much about her looks.
She was the type who insisted on her beauty sleep, except on nights when she was planning to pounce on the male lead.
The schedule only showed the coming two weeks. Within that period, aside from meeting the parents and getting the license, there was nothing particularly special.
Wen Jiu slid her mouse over the calendar, making little adjustments here and there, and quietly opened up several prime “pouncing nights” for the Young Lady.
“Wen Jiu, my boyfriend and I wanted to invite you to dinner, if you have time.” As quitting time crept up, Lan Mingyan asked shyly.
“I was thinking tomorrow afternoon, since it’s Friday. But now that you’re basically President Chu’s personal assistant, I don’t know if that’ll interfere with your work.”
“There’s no time like the present. Let’s do it today.”
Wen Jiu’s gaze fell on Lan Mingyan, and she finally remembered a very important plot point.
She’d been so busy matchmaking the Young Lady and the male lead that she’d completely forgotten about the female lead.
In the original story, the reason the heroine agreed to a fake marriage with the male lead came down to one root cause: her boyfriend cheated.