Chapter 11 Encounter with Ex-Husband

“You need to figure out what kind of women are his type, then just do your best to become them.” She blinked in confusion, unable to comprehend what I was suggesting. I paused, thinking of another way to help the poor girl while I poked at my food in contemplation, “Or, find a way to know his mother. Men are usually born with some Oedipus complex.” Her eyes lit up at the declaration, “You mean, I should please his mother?” I did not really care how she interpreted my advice, so I simply smiled at her in response. It took a while before she managed to gather all her bearings, and having accepted the fact that Sang Qi refused to see her now, she finally agreed to go home. I saw her off and only went back to the building after making sure that her car had departed as planned. I was welcomed with the sight of Sang Qi having a meeting in the conference room with the senior managers upon my arrival. Looking around, a number of secretaries seemed to be busy taking minutes of their discussion with their voice recorders turned on. I sat in a corner and begun to do the same. Writing in shorthand was a basic skill for journalists, so it was not challenging for me. I worked concisely—drafting an outline and planning to add details with the recordings later as a follow-up. Like how I usually worked, the process soon became smooth and clear, as what I was accustomed to. The assembly ended with only the rest of the secretaries remaining in the area. Tension quickly rose and engulfed all employees in a suffocating hold; the atmosphere swiftly lowering in temperature at the image of coldness the head of the company appeared to exude with his intimidating aura. The workers all gripped their recorders tightly while scanning through their papers in a frantic manner, doing a last double-check at what they had written down. Sang Qi must be very strict with their works, or else they would not have been thrown into a massive panic like this. Making matters worse, it did not help that the group’s leader was currently missing in action, so they were left disjointed and lost without the guidance of a superior. In their apprehensive state, they had even failed to notice a new addition to their members as I popped down with them. I scanned the table infested with open gadgets and found an unoccupied laptop. Few minutes passed by as I typed in a flurry to finish the notes of the meeting hurriedly. Once complete, I printed it out and gave it to one of the floundering assistants, “For Mr. Sang.” My foreign voice halted their anxious movements as they sharply turned to appraise and acknowledge my existence, “Who are you?” “I’m Xia Zhi, your new leader.” They merely nodded, no shred of doubt washing over their faces. The girl I talked to held out her hand in greeting, “Ms. Xia, my name is Xu Wan.” Following Xu Wan’s introduction, the others extended their own formalities, “It’s our honor, Miss Xia, I’m Yan Qiu. ” I shook hands with them and memorized their names in an instant. Xu Wan went to deliver the minutes as ordered and after a while, she came back and called out to me, “Miss Xia, Mr. Sang needs to see you.” I dusted off my attire in preparation to meet the boss and went to his office. Contrary to the garments he wore earlier, he was dressed now in a dark blue shirt with golden stripes printed on its material. His cuffs shone where the light hit the pair of delicate cufflinks sown on it, highlighting its distinguishable and intricate design. “What are you looking at?” He demanded icily. “A handsome man, ” I replied in a beat, laughing playfully. He met my gaze, expressing the sheer disgust he had for me in his blank eyes. It was clear that he detested me, but it was no longer news that I was not aware of. Nevertheless, I planned to continue being a thorn on his side until I receive my justice. He was not free to leave unscathed after disturbing my peaceful life; I would not allow him to just walk away without taking responsibility for what had happened. “You claimed to be the head of my secretaries?” He queried. “You promised me that if I could get rid of Yao Keyi, I will get to pick any position that I want. This is what I want.” I knew that I was being too bold and impolite, but Sang Qi was no ordinary man. He had his fair share of people bowing to him anywhere he went, so if I had to capture his attention, I could only depend on my dauntless courage to have a shot at it. “You got rid of her? But she will always come again.” “You condition was to get rid of her, not kill her. As long as she’s alive, she will certainly show up,” I placed a hand on a cocked hip, challenging him, “But I accomplished my task, and I believe that you will keep the promise, right?” His lips curved into an attractive smile. He was indeed a good-looking man. With a father like him, my child must be beautiful no matter whether they were to be a boy or a girl. “Xia Zhi,” he called, pulling me out of my trance. “Yes?” I answered in a scurry. “There’s a lunch meeting at noon and a cocktail party tonight. You need to go with me. I’ll hire you if your performance is satisfying.” I gaped, my hands falling limp at my sides as I sneered at his proposition, “That’s not what you offered me earlier.” “I’m the one who makes the decision. You’re in no place to bargain,” He remarked and went to focus on his work again, “Get out. Meet me at 12.” I stared at him, stunned, before eventually leaving silently. At my dismissal, I roamed around to pass time and spent the rest of the morning getting familiar with my new job. My major obligations were the collection and the summarization of the materials provided by other secretaries and to report them to Sang Qi. However, I later uncovered that social engagement was not part of my job description. I asked Xu Wan about it and she told me that these kinds of events usually required the presence of the executive assistant rather than the secretaries. Perplexed, I inquired, “Who is his executive assistant?” “Mr. Ho.” Another Mr. Ho! I scowled reflexively. This surname was officially on my blacklist. Moments passed and soon, it was twelve o’clock. I waited for Sang Qi in front of his office per his prior command and trailed after him when he walked out wordlessly. I meekly pursued him, almost crashing to his back when he instantaneously ceased his trudging and turned around, gauging me. “Don’t you have any other clothes?” I blinked, looking down to examine the old business suit I wore. My outfit consisted of a silk blouse, a skirt and a pair of ordinary high heels. Personally, I did not see anything wrong with my getup. A journalist like me did not need to worry much about dress codes, after all. Comfort and convenience were of utmost priority, so I only wore sneakers and jeans daily if it were possible. My lack of professional clothing landed me with the only option of wearing this same attire that I had for the interview with Sang Qi last time. Sad as it may be, it was true that I did not possess anything more formal than this. “I have a bunch of shirts and jeans. If you’d like it, I can go back and get changed in a minute.” His brows furrowed in frustration, seeming to be restraining the anger and exhaustion he felt from dealing with me, “It’s all right for the lunch meeting, but I’ll take you to buy a proper dress later for the cocktail party tonight.” I hummed in thanks, praising him sincerely, “You’re such a kind boss.” My compliment fell on deaf ears as he headed straight for the elevator to proceed to our appointment. Sang Qi sat on the back seat of the car while I sat at the front on the way to the restaurant. The ride descended into a comfortable silence when he broke it with his question, "Do you know the person we’re dining with?" A smirk made its way to my face. As I said before, I was always prepared, "Senior management of Datong Electronics." After hearing my answer, he did not bother explaining further. I took a peek at him through the rearview mirror. He looked like a sleeping prince with the way he was relaxed and resting at the moment. His eyes were closed, and his long and thick eyelashes that framed his eyelids fluttered every so often to brush the smooth skin of his cheeks. With his perfect appearance, prominent family background and social status, it was not so far-off to say that he was of regal lineage in this modern world. Which then leads me back to my predicament—In this sense, many women would dream to have a child with him, so why did it have to be me? And, why did he have to take me that way? I grit my teeth, overwhelmed once again by issues that should have been resolved the moment they sprung up. I really hoped I could ask him about all my concerns once he was already too intoxicated to lie during the banquet later. Perhaps, it was indeed by pure luck that I would be accompanying him for the cocktail party. It might be my only chance to pressure him for answers. The lunch meeting was in a high-class restaurant. A big bonus for me, since I was used to feeding on fast food when I was a journalist due to the lack of time brought by the heavy work load. Furthermore, the financial department took forever to reimburse the money I paid in advance. I smiled happily as we walked into the restaurant and cast a glance at Sang Qi before I passed a note to him. He looked at the letter and frowned, "What's this?" "Receipt of my breakfast with Yao Keyi. It was for work, so you have to pay me back." With only an empty stare thrown at me, he simply dropped it before walking ahead. I rushed to pick it up briskly, disbelieving that he would refuse me so rudely despite his standing as the leader of the Dayu Group. Grumbling in disdain, I was putting the receipt back into my purse when I heard a familiar voice politely call out to him. "Nice to meet you, Mr. Sang. I'm Ho Cong, the marketing manager of Datong Electronics." Ho Cong? What a small world we lived in, seriously. I looked up, and found my husband’s fixed stare on me.