Chapter 31 A Matter of Time

Looking again at the gossiping employees' chat records...

"Wow, Mr. Shen's gentlemanly hand! He definitely knows there are cameras around...""Mr. Shen's sexual tension makes the woman look so small in comparison...""When an iron tree blooms, it's so sweet. I don't care, I'm officially shipping them!""Is this woman here for work or for romance?""Don't just post one photo; give us the video!""I never thought our usually serious and unsmiling Mr. Shen would have this side to him in private...""This isn't even private; it's clearly in the meeting room!""More updates, please, we need more!"

Oh no. I haven't even secured the project yet, and now the entire company knows about me and Shen Jibai. Whether this is a blessing or a curse, I can't quite figure out at the moment.

In a panic, I forwarded the chat to Shen Jibai."What should we do? Should we clarify things?"

He, however, remained calm as ever."Oh, they'd find out sooner or later. It's fine to make it public now."

I was utterly confused until his second message came through immediately after."Let's have dinner tonight to celebrate your studio."

His tone was so casual, as if...

Staring blankly at the message for a few minutes, it suddenly dawned on me.

In a corporation as large as Shen Group, who would dare leak his private matters without the president's approval? Unless, of course, they didn't want their job anymore.

By choosing to reveal our relationship now, Shen Heqing would no longer have any reason to interfere with me. As for Song Yixin, this was essentially an announcement of her elimination. The rumors about her being his fiancée would naturally collapse.

Without saying a word, Shen Jibai had silently resolved all the issues.

He had quietly smoothed over all the wounds caused by my reckless behavior.

And I was the one who realized this only after the fact.

"Shen Jibai, for someone like you, sometimes I think Shen Heqing is right—I don't deserve you."

I typed this in the chat box, hit send, and then added another line after some thought:"Of course, others might not even be as good as me."

To maximize efficiency in commuting between my apartment and the studio every day, I asked Shen Jibai to lend me a car he didn't usually drive.

When his driver pulled up in front of the studio with a flashy, ostentatious red sports car, I was speechless at first but quickly accepted it.

Fair enough. It's true he doesn't usually drive this car.

After all, given Shen Jibai's current age and social status, he'd have to be out of his mind to drive a convertible around, revving the engine and showing off.

Tsk. This car does match the image he has of me: reckless and attention-grabbing.

The studio officially plunged into an endless cycle of brainstorming and script revisions.

As for my "dates" with Shen Jibai, they were squeezed into the cracks of my schedule. Every night when I returned to my apartment late, I would see his car parked by the roadside.

"Can I come upstairs and sit for a while?" Shen Jibai asked, wrapping his arms around my waist as I leaned back against the steering wheel.

His tone was tender and seductive, carrying a hint of allure. "Hmm? May I?"

Sitting on his lap, I stubbornly shook my head.

He frowned, his smiling eyes tinged with dissatisfaction and amusement, as if he had already seen through my little tricks.

No matter what, I couldn't let myself get distracted at such a critical point in the bidding process. If he came upstairs, we both knew what might happen. And if people later claimed I climbed the ladder by sleeping with a man, it would completely undermine the sleepless efforts of everyone at the studio.

I couldn't ruin the long-term happiness of a group of people for a moment of personal indulgence.

He tilted his head slightly, his gaze darkening as he bit my lip lightly. "Then I'll just have to take you... right here."

His eyes were misty yet intense, deep and commanding.

As he kissed me deeply, I struggled to resist."No... I'm not ready yet..." My voice was soft and tender, making it hard to blame me, yet it was firm and resolute.

The next second, he gritted his teeth and set me back in the passenger seat. Then, he silently buckled his own seatbelt.

"Go upstairs and rest early. Don't linger in the car and disturb my thoughts."

Sitting in the shadows of the dimly lit car, his face was visibly displeased, yet it didn't detract from how handsome he looked from this angle.

Before getting out of the car, I didn't forget to turn back and smile sweetly. "Drive safely. Text me when you get home."

He scoffed disdainfully, muttering under his breath,"Heartless woman."

With a rev of the engine, he drove off into the night.

The midnight streetlights were cold and hazy.