Secretary Ying Yue (1)

Ying Yue glanced at the stiff posture of her boss. So typical of him. He was cold to everyone -- even her, for most of the time. He rarely smiled, which was a shame, because he had the looks that could rival the hottest actor in the country. He was always either expressionless, frowning, or yelling at someone. No doubt, he just finished scolding his brother. She saw Vice President Fei pouting like a child coming out of his office just a short while ago.

When she got to his desk, she put a thick white folder on it and stood to the side like she always did, noting that his cup of coffee was already empty. She made a mental note to get him another one later after lunch. Her boss was making markings on a document, focused on his work with his brows drawn together. He was still young, in his late twenties in fact, but today he looked older. As the CEO of Fei International, he carried a heavy load on his shoulders, managing all the assets of the company that stretched as far as hotels and malls to other international investments. It was said that it would take only one word from him to bankrupt another company.

Fei Huangjin finished off marking the document before acknowledging her presence. He looked up at her inquiringly with a brow raised.

"CEO Fei, I've put together the data on Sung Industries." She approached him and opened the folder she placed on his desk to its first tab. "This is background information on the Sung family, including their internal conflicts, CEO Sung's favorite food, hobbies, and err..." She coughed lightly, "indecencies."

"…" Fei Huangjin cocked his head to one side. Internal conflicts and indecencies? He wanted to ask her how she always managed to compile these things, but decided to keep quiet. It didn't matter how she got them as long as he was benefiting from the results.

She flipped to the next tab and to the next one. "These are the breakdown of their stocks and company dealings for the past 5 years. And this one is the list of their shareholders." Ying Yue made sure to put an emphasis on her last statement. Acquiring the list was a pain in her ass. She had to go undercover and flirt with CEO Sung's executive assistant to find it. The memory made her momentarily cringe in disgust.

The corners of Fei Huangjin's lips curled slightly upward and he breathed out a sigh of relief. As if a great load had been lifted off him, Fei Huangjin could feel the intensity of his headache decrease.

He'd had a rapid turnover of secretaries since he took over Fei International at the age of 23. In fact, he's had 18 of them in five years. But this Ying Yue, she was the only one who was competent and smart enough to handle the job. He forwent with getting an executive assistant because she was capable enough to be both his secretary and executive assistant. She'd been his secretary for a year now and her opinions were extremely sharp that he took the time to ask her for them. And he usually didn't like asking for anybody's opinion -- not even his late father's.

He scanned the first page of the report. It was remarkably detailed. Even down to the relationships that CEO Sung's children have. "Have you read through all of this?"

Ying Yue winked at him. "You know I did."

A stark contrast to her smiling face, Fei Huangjin's expression was inscrutable. He was, as they said, a man no one could take down, much less stare down. He gave himself a few seconds to think about it before directing a question at her, "What do you think about their company?"

He saw her adjust her feet and lifted a hand, gesturing her to sit down. She stalked over to the seat in front of his desk, grateful that he noticed her discomfort. She was wearing 4-inch heels after all.

She sat up straight, her hands poised in front of her. She had been prepared to give her view on the matter. "Their company seems to have been doing well before the drop this year. And if you decide to acquire them, it wouldn't be a burden to Fei International…"

He scanned her face--examining her while thinking about what she just said. It seemed like there was more than she let on with the way she narrowed her eyes while she talked. He cocked his head to one side. "But?"

She continued, "But I found some discrepancies in their dealings and accounts--I've outlined them at section 5 of my report, and… I'm not very fond of CEO Sung either." She pursed her lips and crossed her legs.

He looked out his window and though about what she said for a moment. A few seconds later, he nodded his head. "Are you speculating they might be hiding the real status of their finances?"

"Yes." She became relieved that he understood.

"Mmm." He drew his mouth to a thin line and glanced at her to check her reaction. "And CEO Sung was the one who tried to hit on you last month with his wife in the same room, correct?"

She blushed, surprised that he actually remembered. She had to hand it to her boss -- he noticed pretty much everything. She was suddenly reminded of the saying, a good general does not shut his ears to thunder, or his eyes to lightning. She straightened her lips into a thin line. "Yes, Mr. Fei."

"I'll go over their proposal tonight." He tapped his fingers on the table, not betraying a hint of emotion.

"Are you planning on accepting it?" She looked at him earnestly, sounding a lot like she didn't like what he just said. She mentally scolded herself for being too straightforward. It was conversations like these with her boss that made her forget her place sometimes.

He briefly looked up at her, knowing full well she was opposed to it. "Of course not."

She let out a breath of relief and gave him a bright, happy smile. "Well then," she stood up and smoothed down her skirt, "what would you like for lunch, Mr. Fei? Should I order from Jade Palace?"

"Mmm."

"The usual?"

"Please." He turned his attention to his computer and scanned his e-mails.

Ying Yue was about to close the door to his office when he called out to her one last time. "Miss Ying."

She turned back to him with her eyebrows raised. "Yes, Mr. Fei?"

"Order something for yourself, too."

She smiled even brighter. "Absolutely. Thank you, Mr. Fei." She was giddy with joy and shut his door with a grin.