Song JinXing didn't get the call he was waiting for. Instead, he first received the folder Zhong Ruanxing had tidied up and sent over.
Song JinXing opened the folder and found that she had categorized the files clearly: "Meeting Minutes," "Project Progress," "Financial Statements This Week," "Business Cooperation," and so on, very easy to understand at a glance.
Of course these couldn't have been done by Tong Ling. Zhong Ruanxing didn't know much about economics yet, but she was perfectly capable as a secretary.
She sent over a "Exhausted" emoji:
- Reply after reading. These all need to be dealt with tomorrow. I have to fly to Shanghai early tomorrow morning for a seminar.
No wonder she hadn't gone online to see the news about herself today. She must have been run off her feet.
By comparison, he was relatively relaxed.
The pressures and workload faced daily by a president of a company were not something ordinary people could withstand. Song JinXing had not realized this before. Perhaps it was because he was a natural fit for the business world, and handling business matters came easily to him.
But just think about those subordinates in the company who worked overtime every day and complained daily. Not everyone was like him, possessing strong self-control and superior intelligence, able to handle any amount of work with ease.
For her, this role reversal was actually more difficult.
But she hadn't objected even once from the very beginning.
From the moment he had calmly made all the arrangements, Zhong Ruanxing had just been in a state of acceptance.
She had given up her beloved acting career and plunged instead into a completely unfamiliar field. When she didn't understand financial terminology, she studied it herself, and when she couldn't comprehend the reports, she asked him for help.
Facing the unknown always induces panic in people. He was able to calmly accept all this without any pressure at all, unafraid of the complete change in his surroundings, because he was ill. His mental illness made him lonely, but also strong.
But Zhong Ruanxing?
Song JinXing suddenly realized that she had accepted all this entirely relying on her own resilience and optimistic personality.
She was far tougher than he had imagined.
After so many years of ups and downs in the entertainment industry, her stress tolerance was no worse than his.
He stopped the action of sending a voice message and replied with a text message instead:
- I've finished processing them and will send them to you. Go rest first, review them tomorrow morning.
Zhong Ruanxing was exhausted indeed. She sent back a good night emoji and immediately fell asleep. When she woke up the next morning and looked at her phone, there were indeed files he had sent in WeChat, sent at 11pm last night.
Zhong Ruanxing secretly clicked her tongue in admiration. As expected of an Ivy League top student, she thought he would have to stay up until dawn to finish so much work. She didn't expect him to get it all done in less than two hours.
After breakfast, Fu Ling called: "Boss, the car is ready. Shall we go to the airport now?"
Zhong Ruanxing dragged her small suitcase out the door. In the car, she delegated the follow-up work according to the files Song JinXing had replied, everything well arranged.
She took a nap, and by the time they reached the airport, it was just in time to board. Not working hours, Zhong Ruanxing didn't like wearing suits. Taking the opportunity of flying, she had changed into loose athletic wear today, giving off a bit of a relaxed youthful vibe compared to usual.
At the boarding gate ticket check, two flashes of white light brushed past beside her.
Zhong Ruanxing was too sensitive to camera flashes. She immediately glanced over.
The two young girls who were sneakily taking photos were caught red-handed and revealed an embarrassed smile. Fu Ling also noticed and immediately said sternly, "Sorry, please delete the sneak shots immediately."
One of the girls apologized repeatedly, "Sorry, sorry, we thought you were a celebrity so we took the photos. We'll delete them right away."
Zhong Ruanxing nodded slightly at them and walked through the boarding gate.
After she had walked some distance away, the two girls clicked their tongues, "Such a strong aura!"
"What a pity, so handsome yet not a celebrity. I've had enough of ugly men in the entertainment industry!"
"I was blinded by his looks just now! Did you see his watch? He's wearing a Patek Philippe! Anyone who can wear Patek Philippe can't possibly be mixing in the entertainment industry. He must be some rich second generation."
The two lamented in unison, "So handsome and so rich, God is so unfair!"
...
Zhong Ruanxing was the last one to board the plane.
First class was not full, with only three people scattered about. The flight attendant came to take her bag, but Zhong Ruanxing declined and stowed it herself.
The pretty flight attendant smiled politely, "Sir, your seat is here."
Zhong Ruanxing nodded and was about to sit down. Suddenly the youth wearing sunglasses in the last row who had been playing on his phone leapt up, "It's you!!!"
Judging by his tone, it sounded like she had killed his father.
Zhong Ruanxing looked up with a puzzled expression. It was Fu Ling who recognized the other party first, and said in a low voice, "Boss, it's the one last time at the antique market..."
Before he finished speaking, the youth ripped off his sunglasses and strode over angrily, "Well, well! Finally caught you! Not only didn't you buy my stuff, you even reported me for illegal vending, got me caught by the city management! Heaven's justice has eyes, today I will..."
"Yu Xuan!" The well-dressed woman beside him suddenly snapped, "Sit down!"
"Sis!"
"Hurry up and sit down. This is on a plane, not your home to fool around as you please. If you have something to say, sit down first and talk."
The youth called Yu Xuan pouted sullenly, but didn't dare defy his sister. He could only glare fiercely at Zhong Ruanxing before reluctantly going back to sit down.
Zhong Ruanxing raised her brows slightly and also sat down properly. She happened to sit in the same row as Yu Xuan's sister, just separated by an aisle.
After sitting down, Yu Xuan's sister took off her sunglasses, turned and smiled at her, "Mr. Song, sorry about that. My brother is young and was a little rash. Let me apologize on his behalf."
Zhong Ruanxing remained impassive. "Do we know each other?"
The woman, exuding refinement from head to toe, smiled lightly, "I saw you from afar at the city construction bidding meeting earlier this year." She reached out across the aisle, "Bai Yinyue."
Surname Bai?
Zhong Ruanxing suddenly recalled that the matchmaking partner the Song family patriarch had forced her to meet was the daughter of the Bai family.
This was Song JinXing's matchmaking partner!
She was...quite pretty.
Zhong Ruanxing lightly tapped her fingertips and said, "So it's Miss Bai."
Yu Xuan in the back row cried out incredulously, "Sis, he's the matchmaking partner you've been trying to meet but haven't been able to..."
"Bai Yu Xuan!"
At his sister calling out his full name, the boy immediately didn't dare make a sound, and obediently sat back down again.
Bai Yinyue controlled her expression that was on the verge of flipping out, and revealed a gentle smile again, "Mr. Song, my brother had some conflicts with our family earlier and ran away from home. He probably misunderstood you, please don't take it to heart."
"It's fine." Since she was being so polite, Zhong Ruanxing was also quite cordial.
Bai Yinyue explained, "He was peddling wares at the antique market. He was probably reported by other shop owners there and got caught by the city management. That was how we found out." She gave a helpless smile, "My brother is rash. Letting Mr. Song see a joke."
The Bai family daughter was beautiful, elegant in speech and manner, proper in courtesy. She seemed more like a well-bred rich young lady compared to Song Jiawei whom she had met.
So this was what Song JinXing's matchmaking partner looked like.
With his family background and genteel upbringing, it was fitting that he would be matched with such a well-matched young lady.
Zhong Ruanxing somehow felt a little disappointed for some reason.