Chapter 7: No Effort Required

It really didn't take any effort at all.

The young woman pointed to a dress in the salesperson's hand and turned to ask Sang Qi, "Does this look nice?"

Sang Qi glanced up, "It looks nice."

The woman then pursed her lips in a smile, "Then I'll go try it on."

She hugged the dress and walked into the fitting room.

I spent a whole 0.01 seconds analyzing their relationship.

Judging by the woman's attitude towards Sang Qi, and the fact that someone as busy as Sang Qi could accompany her to buy clothes, it was enough to illustrate the nature of their relationship.

They were either a couple or husband and wife.

I hadn't heard that Sang Qi was married, so the likelihood that they were a couple was greater.

I wasn't interested in their relationship; I was interested in his cuffs.

One of his hands was scrolling on his phone, while the other hand was habitually clenched into a fist and held in front of his mouth and nose.

I took the opportunity to get closer to him and bent over in front of him to look at his cufflinks.

As expected, his shirt's cufflinks were custom made. Although they were different from mine, what they had in common was they were both exquisitely expensive.

As I was mulling over this, I suddenly felt my face grow warm.

Looking up, I met a pair of sharp eyes watching me.

Sang Qi had seen me—well, of course, it would be weird if he hadn't noticed me from this close.

I straightened up and grinned cheekily at him, "What a coincidence, President Sang?"

He must have recognized me. Though his expression didn't change, there was a flicker of light in his eyes.

However, he didn't respond to me, instead casting his gaze behind me.

The salesperson suddenly exclaimed, "Wow, Miss Yao, you look absolutely stunning in that dress."

The salesperson's shout startled me and I turned to look at the breathtakingly beautiful woman.

She stood there elegantly and gracefully.

To be honest, this dress, simple and elegant, suited someone with a pure and simple aura.

She was too voluptuous, and her aura was rather complex, not really fitting for this dress.

I dare say, she definitely didn't wear it as well as I would have.

It's just that she was luckier than me, having a wealthy boyfriend.

All the salespeople in the store flocked around her, lavishing her with praise.

It was the perfect opportunity for me to cozy up to Sang Qi.

"Do you remember me, President Sang?" Since he was ignoring me, I took the initiative to strike up a conversation.

I guessed there were too many women who hit on him daily, so he didn't even bother to let his gaze rest on my face for a moment.

But then again, he didn't spare Miss Yao more than a glance either, returning to his phone after a brief look.

I reached out and snatched his phone away. He looked up at me in astonishment.

I knew no one dared to do this, only I had the guts.

I casually slipped the phone into my pocket, confident that as a woman, he wouldn't do anything to me.

After all, as a public figure and heartthrob, he'd be concerned about his image.

He pursed his attractive thin lips and uttered three words, "Miss Xia."

I knew he'd remember me—the person who had personally complained about me wouldn't forget me in just a mere three days.

"Nice to meet you." I smiled at him, extending my hand.

He didn't accept my handshake and just looked at me, "Give me back my phone."

"You got me fired." Right now, a phone is precious to a person, especially to someone like Sang Qi, there must be secrets in his phone he wouldn't want others to know.

Holding such a big bargaining chip, how could I be afraid of losing the bet?

He curled his lip to form an arc of indifference, "So, you're seeking revenge?"

"I didn't bring a knife." I sat down next to him, standing for too long made my back hurt.

He shifted away slightly, as if not too willing to sit close to me.

I didn't mind, I was here to negotiate with him, not to fall in love.

"You cost me my job, give me a job and we'll be even." I had been unsure about how to approach Sang Qi, but the moment I saw him just now, I was suddenly inspired.

I'm quick-witted like that, and even I want to praise myself for it.

His amusement showed in a smirk, "Are you threatening me?"

"I suppose so." I pulled his phone out of my pocket, opened my collar, and tossed it down.

The phone was cool against my chest, so cold that I shivered.

He probably hadn't seen someone so shameless before, so he froze momentarily.

"Now unless you turn me upside down, you won't be able to get your phone back." I was quite proud of myself, as I always resorted to the most underhanded tactics whenever I had to deal with a story that I couldn't crack.

Our chief editor often says my face is of little use to me; in critical moments, I'd just throw it away.

As we were in a standoff, the sound of high heels clicked from behind me.

I knew that Miss Yao was coming over.

As soon as she approached, the somewhat strong scent of her perfume wafted over.

I'm allergic to a certain brand of perfume, so very rudely I sneezed several times.

Miss Yao glared at me, her eyes wide as copper bells, "Who are you?"

"Someone associated with President Sang."

Actually, I was telling the truth, but Miss Yao blew up immediately.

Pointing at me, she stomped her feet, struggling to find words, then turned to ask Sang Qi.

"Qi, you tell me, who is this woman?"

Her voice was sharp, like the sound of a broken branch scraping on glass, grating on the ears.

She was quite beautiful, just a bit low on emotional intelligence.

Because I could see Sang Qi's face darken in an instant.

He glanced at me and replied briefly, "Report to the HR department of the company at eight o'clock tomorrow morning."

He was efficient, not the type to waste time.

I was rather satisfied, so I stood up to take my leave.

He called after me, "Xia Zhi."

He remembered my name, which meant I hadn't been complained about in vain.

I turned back and smiled at him, "I'll give you back your phone tomorrow, don't worry, I assure you on my personal integrity that I won't look at your phone."

He wasn't expecting me to be so shameless, and by the time he reacted, I had already left the store.

With so many stores in the mall, I twisted and turned, ensuring that even if he had the intention to follow, he would lose track of me.

After circling around several shops, I stopped at a corner and pulled out the now warm phone from my embrace.

A high-end custom phone, the kind that costs over two million on JD.com, said to offer butler-like services, booking flights, hotels, and other high-end services with just one click.

It's good to be rich, everything's more convenient.

I took Sang Qi's phone fearing he might go back on his word later, or send me to Dayu tomorrow to work as a cleaner.

With the phone, at least I had the leverage to negotiate with him.

As a woman, it's particularly tough to get by in this world, so sometimes I have to resort to extraordinary measures.

Holding onto Sang Qi's phone, I returned to the villa and left it aside without touching it.

All afternoon and evening, the phone wouldn't stop ringing.

I didn't even bother to look, until Little Jin reminded me, "Miss Xia, your phone."

I said I wasn't fortunate enough to use such an expensive phone, then tossed it downstairs and went up to sleep.

In the middle of the night, I heard voices downstairs.

Lately, I don't know why, but I've been a light sleeper, waking easily.

I stepped out of my room, leaned over the banister to look downstairs, and saw a tall man standing in the hall wearing a coffee-colored coat. He was bathed in the light of the crystal chandelier, possessing a somewhat mesmerizing beauty.

It was Sang Qi, phone in hand.

I scrambled downstairs, tearing towards him like a whirlwind and snatched the phone from his hand.