Chapter 17 Another Misunderstanding

Su Jinqi left the CEO's office dejectedly, only to coincidentally see Jin Shanya and Secretary Gao, among others, returning from a meal. They all looked startled and headed back to the General Secretarial Office.

Su Jinqi hadn't eaten lunch yet and didn't return to her office; instead, she took the elevator to the restaurant.

In the office, Secretary Gao gossiped around Jin Shanya: "Secretary Jin, look, she went to the CEO's office again at noon. Who knows what she was up to. What do you think her relationship with Mr. Li really is?"

Jin Shanya pondered, "Seeing how her relative was fawning over Mr. Li yesterday, they probably aren't close."

Her voice shifted, "But then again, she said to come back for meals when it's nothing serious. That sounds like something a relative would say."

"Are you saying that Su Jinqi is related to Mr. Li?" asked Secretary Gao, covering her mouth in shock, "Should we still be isolating her? What if she complains about us to Mr. Li?"

Jin Shanya scoffed, "If they were really relatives, would she be assigned to work as a Third-level Secretary? In my opinion, she and her aunt are in cahoots, trying to cling to Mr. Li, who they see as a lucrative opportunity!"

Secretary Gao suddenly understood and nodded, then brown-nosed, "They wish! If anyone in our company matches Mr. Li, it's you, Secretary Jin! You and Mr. Li have been through life and death together. What does Su Jinqi have? She's delusional to compete against you."

Jin Shanya felt flattered by these words and proudly said, "Keep it down. I'm nothing special, not worthy of Mr. Li."

"How could you not be worthy? Haven't you noticed how the Chairman's wife scolds everyone but smiles only at you?"

"Really? I didn't notice."

"Yes, the Chairman's wife really likes you."

Jin Shanya smiled, pleased inside. Her crush on Li Jinghan in the company was no secret. After following him for five years, he must know her feelings. She was waiting, but still no response. As another year was about to pass, she couldn't wait any longer, couldn't just watch him from afar. She wanted to be closer to him, much closer.

Therefore, she decided to remove any barriers to her pursuit of happiness—starting with Su Jinqi!

In the afternoon, Jin Shanya assigned Su Jinqi a lot of tedious work.

"Get it done before you leave," Jin Shanya commanded.

Su Jinqi flipped through the files and said, "Secretary Jin, I'm afraid I can't finish it before the end of the day."

"If you can't finish, you'll work overtime! Mr. Li needs it tomorrow!" Jin Shanya glared at her and left.

Su Jinqi took a sip from her thermos of sweet ginger tea, then prepared a cold remedy. From last night to now, she had been relentlessly busy. Add to that being sick, her body was at its limits. Looking at the massive stack of files in front of her, she massaged her temples worriedly.

"Secretary Zhang, are you busy this afternoon?" Su Jinqi spoke to Secretary Zhang across from her.

Secretary Zhang looked up at her briefly with a blank expression, then lowered her head again.

Su Jinqi then looked towards Secretary Zhou next to Zhang, who quickly bowed her head like avoiding a plague.

Su Jinqi sighed silently—so this is what being isolated feels like. Still, it was alright since their relationship was usually not close, not enough to be heartbreaking.

But why were they isolating her? Could it be that they really listened to Jin Shanya and became her accomplices?

Not wanting to dwell on it, she started working busily. When it was time to leave, she had only completed a small portion of her workload. Watching her colleagues leave, Su Jinqi laid her head down on the desk, feeling cold and dizzy, wanting to close her eyes and sleep a bit. But remembering the unfinished work, she mustered her energy to continue working.

Li Jinghan left the office before the end of the day to attend a dinner event. When he returned home, it was almost 9 p.m.

"Young Master, you're back," Mrs. Hui hurriedly approached him.

"What's the matter?"

"It's so late, and Jinqi hasn't come home yet."

Li Jinghan stopped climbing the stairs and asked in a stern voice, "She hasn't come back?"

After a few sharp words at noon, she learned to sulk and stay out all night!

Mrs. Hui anxiously said, "She's not answering her phone either. It's quite a distance from the subway station to our home, I'm worried something might have happened."

"Ming Can, go drive out and look for her," ordered Li Jinghan before heading upstairs.

Mrs. Hui nervously muttered, "Ah Can, Jinqi was sick this morning, what if she fainted on the way and ran into some bad people?"

"Don't worry, I'm going to look for her right now," Ming Can quickly left.

About an hour later, Ming Can called Li Jinghan, saying, "Mr. Li, we found Secretary Su—she was working overtime at the office. We're on our way back now."

"Okay, got it," Li Jinghan hung up with a grim expression.

Ming Can drove quickly, noticing Su Jinqi's weak state in the rearview mirror, he asked with concern, "Secretary Su, haven't you had dinner yet? Should I get you something when I step out?"

"Thank you, Assistant Ming, but I don't feel like eating," Su Jinqi said weakly, with her eyes closed.

Ming Can remained silent for a while, then heard breathing sounds from the back seat.

When the car arrived home, Ming Can woke Su Jinqi and called her to get out of the car.

Mrs. Hui hurried over and asked, "Where have you been? I called you and you didn't answer. You had me worried sick!"

"Mrs. Hui, I'm sorry, I was working overtime at the office and forgot to turn my phone back from silent mode—I'm sorry for making you worry," Su Jinqi quickly apologized.

"It's okay, let's have some dinner," Mrs. Hui pulled her by the hand towards the kitchen.

Feeling unwell, she didn't eat much and put down her utensils soon after.

"Jinqi, go upstairs later and talk to the young master," Mrs. Hui said.

"What for? It's normal for me to work overtime," Su Jinqi felt resistant inside.

Mrs. Hui explained, "He asked Ah Can to go find you when you didn't come back. See, he cares about you."

Su Jinqi scoffed internally; after belittling her at noon, he cared? Hard to believe.

While they were talking, Ming Can walked in and said to Su Jinqi, "Secretary Su, the sir is in the study and is calling for you."

"I feel really unwell, can it wait till tomorrow?" she asked.

"Secretary Su, we always listen to sir's words, and we hope you do the same," Ming Can said sternly.

With no choice, Su Jinqi reluctantly went upstairs.

The study door was ajar, she knocked lightly twice on the door and walked in.

"Mr. Li, what did you want to see me for?"

Li Jinghan lifted his eyelids and asked sarcastically, "Feeling bold, aren't you? Staying out all night, who are you showing your displeasure to?"

Su Jinqi was wronged again and, despite feeling weak, protested, "I was working overtime tonight, not what you're thinking!"