Chapter 51

The elevator quickly reached the first floor, and Yan Wei led Zhou Qiaoqiao outside. Yan Ye and Mr. Huang had to go to the underground parking lot to take their cars, but both of them chose to accompany Yan Wei to the exit first.

So, along the way, everyone saw Yan Wei striding forward with an imposing manner, while their CEO, Yan Ye, and Mr. Huang followed silently behind him.

Front desk receptionists: “…”

Because Yan Wei’s aura was too strong, no one in the lobby seemed to find anything unusual about the scene.

They continued walking until they reached the gate of Yu Yao’s building, and only then did Yan Ye speak, “Brother, don’t you need to call for a car?”

Yan Wei shook his head and then, under their expectant gaze, led Zhou Qiaoqiao to the bus stop.

Yan Ye: “…”

Mr. Huang looked at Yan Wei’s back and couldn’t help but sigh, “Does President Yan take the bus to work?”

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He felt guilty, but Yan Wei’s physical condition at that time couldn’t handle the already soaring Yuyao. People… are all driven by self-interest.

Mr. Huang watched Yan Wei and Zhou Qiaoqiao disappear behind the bus billboard and then turned to leave.

Yan Wei took Zhou Qiaoqiao to the bus stop. Since it was not yet 5 o’clock, the bus was not overcrowded.

Yan Wei and Zhou Qiaoqiao boarded the bus and found seats. Only then did he ask Zhou Qiaoqiao, “Are you getting used to it?”

Zhou Qiaoqiao nodded, “Yes, today I just organized my own desk and got to know some colleagues.”

Yan Wei nodded and handed her a bag of pastries, saying, “A donut, a gift for your new job.”

Zhou Qiaoqiao smiled happily. Two people in love don’t need extravagant or valuable things to express their love for each other. Zhou Qiaoqiao started her new job, and Yan Wei wanted to give her a gift, that’s sincerity. It doesn’t need to be expensive, perhaps just a handkerchief, or taking her out for a meal, or like now, buying her favorite donuts.

And then… they ate together.

The sweet chocolate coating beautifully covered the donut, and Yan Wei watched Zhou Qiaoqiao’s satisfied expression as he also took a donut and started eating.

Both of them were a little tired today, so they had beef noodles at the noodle shop near the entrance of their residential area for dinner.

Rubbing their stomachs, they took a stroll downstairs before Yan Wei and Zhou Qiaoqiao returned home together.

This way, two weeks passed, and Zhou Qiaoqiao finally began to adapt to the new work environment.

Yan Wei still went to pick her up at her company every day and then left under the watchful gaze of the sunflowers.

After work that day, Yan Wei still held two cups of milk tea waiting at the entrance of the finance department.

The weather had turned cooler, and Zhou Qiaoqiao had already put on her autumn outfit. She held the hot milk tea that Yan Wei had brought for her and smiled, saying, “Today, I met a new colleague named Zheng Qian. She’s very cute and bought me two donuts, but she refused to take the money from me.”

Zhou Qiaoqiao was happy to make new friends, and Yan Wei listened with a faint smile.

In the evening, Yan Wei went to the supermarket and cooked dinner for Zhou Qiaoqiao.

Yan Wei had been busy lately and hadn’t cooked for a long time, so Zhou Qiaoqiao enjoyed the meal very much.

After dinner, the two of them cuddled affectionately. Yan Wei hugged her on the bed and said in a relaxed tone, “Qiaoqiao, I might have to leave for some time.”

Zhou Qiaoqiao didn’t understand what he meant and let out a surprised sound, turning her head to look at him, asking, “Where are you going?”

Yan Wei said leisurely, “The United States.”

Zhou Qiaoqiao asked him, “Why?”

“On a business trip,” Yan Wei gave an answer that Zhou Qiaoqiao had already anticipated.

Zhou Qiaoqiao had never specifically asked about Yan Wei’s job, but she understood that business trips were a normal thing.

However, Yan Wei had never been on a business trip since they started living together. So, when he suddenly said he would leave for some time, it left her feeling empty.

Seeing Zhou Qiaoqiao lower her head without saying a word, Yan Wei reached out and gently patted her head.

After a while, Zhou Qiaoqiao asked somewhat unhappily, “How long will you be gone?”

Yan Wei replied, “Probably around one month.”

Zhou Qiaoqiao softly acknowledged with an “Mmm,” and Yan Wei chuckled, then turned over and pressed her, asking, “Are you unhappy?”

Zhou Qiaoqiao shook her head, and Yan Wei sighed, saying, “I’ll be back soon. Wait for me to come back, and we’ll go get our wedding photos together. Don’t go alone; it’s too heavy. When I return, we’ll have both our families meet, and then we’ll get married. How does that sound, Qiaoqiao?”

Zhou Qiaoqiao’s downcast mood recovered a bit, and she responded with a firm “Okay, I’ll wait for you.”

Yan Wei planted a kiss on her forehead, and the next morning when Zhou Qiaoqiao got up, Yan Wei had already left.

Zhou Qiaoqiao looked at the disappearing warmth by her side, and suddenly, a sense of emptiness enveloped her heart.

Humans are social creatures, and even those who have been alone for a long time won’t adapt well to loneliness. During the time Zhou Qiaoqiao lived alone, she never realized Yan Wei’s presence invading her life. It was only when he left that she discovered Yan Wei’s influence in every aspect of her life.

In the week after Yan Wei left, Zhou Qiaoqiao lived peacefully in Yuyao. She got along well with her colleagues, had a kind and friendly boss, and enjoyed an easy and pleasant job.

Of course, as Zhao Xinyue had mentioned, Zhou Qiaoqiao’s job was indeed simple. In the finance department, there was a specialized section that, to put it nicely, handled reimbursements for expenses; to put it bluntly, it dealt with the whims of those high-profile celebrities.

Entertainment companies’ reimbursements were different from those in other industries. Zhou Qiaoqiao’s job was to assist the celebrities as their assistant and sign and stamp various expenses incurred during their work. She would then inform the cashier to make the payments.

Perhaps due to Zhou Qiaoqiao’s identity, after she took over this job, the responsibility for managing reimbursements was transferred to her. As a result, she had control over a sum of money solely designated for reimbursements. In other words, when it came to small expenses claimed by celebrities, Zhou Qiaoqiao had full authority to handle them alone.

However, it was natural for some celebrities to have certain temperaments. Those with higher status might have bigger egos and more unclear reimbursement requests. To avoid offending people, some unverifiable expenses might be accepted and brushed aside. This had happened before, of course, and if such actions were discovered, it would be problematic. But as they say, where the water is clear, there are no fish, and the company might not necessarily be unaware of these matters.

Zhou Qiaoqiao herself wasn’t a typical young lady from the Yan family, nor was she here to experience the life of a Yan household miss.

However, she did have the blessing of being considered the Yan family’s eldest young lady, and this identity granted her treatment that was overly generous compared to what others might receive in her position.

The previous person in this position was said to be a Miss Zhang. Miss Zhang followed the company’s instructions, worked diligently, and put in a lot of effort. However, despite her efforts, it was rumored that she had been slapped twice, had coffee spilled on her once, and even had an incident with a celebrity’s manager posted on Weibo.

Of course, Zhou Qiaoqiao’s identity made a difference here. In most cases, nobody dared to cause trouble for her. Even if there were some expenses that were within the reimbursement scope, but Zhou Qiaoqiao didn’t want to claim them, the managers would tactfully leave it be. Whether she wanted to handle the reimbursement herself or let the celebrity cover the expenses, Zhou Qiaoqiao never bothered to care.

On the 7th day after Yan Wei left, Zhou Qiaoqiao had peacefully passed these days.

But trouble wouldn’t stay away forever; there would always be some people who weren’t afraid of offending others. Perhaps these people believed their own status was significant enough, or they felt that Yan family’s young master identity wasn’t sufficient, or maybe they simply didn’t belong to the Yan family’s faction.

As the company grew larger, people’s hearts became more diverse. Not everyone was following behind the Yan family, hoping for scraps!

As the company grew larger, business became more complicated. Some people’s status allowed them the privilege of being arrogant.

On this day, a fine drizzle was falling from the sky, the autumn rain mixed with a chill. Zhou Qiaoqiao had already put on a red sweater, and beneath her black skirt were thin stockings.

On Zhou Qiaoqiao’s desk, there was a cup of coffee. She held the coffee cup in her hands, feeling the warmth emanating from it.

Standing by the floor-to-ceiling window, she watched the busy people below, holding umbrellas and rushing for the bus. In this bustling life, everyone seemed like ants, not making much of a contribution to the world.

Zhou Qiaoqiao noticed that the rain was getting heavier and regretted not bringing an umbrella. She felt sad, thinking that if it were Yan Wei, he would definitely have brought her an umbrella.

Of course, during these days when Yan Wei was away, he would send messages to Zhou Qiaoqiao every day, and they would also video call each other at night.

Today, Yan Wei seemed unusually busy, and Zhou Qiaoqiao sent him two sentimental messages, but she didn’t receive any response from him.

Zhou Qiaoqiao could only return to her seat and check the clock; there were still two hours left before the end of the workday.

She had already completed various end-of-month tasks, such as sorting files and entering data into the computer.

As she watched the clock, which indicated one more hour to go before she could leave, Zhou Qiaoqiao started to wonder if the rain would stop. She also pondered whether she should buy dinner for the evening.

Suddenly, the door to the finance department was forcefully pushed open, and a doll-faced woman swept her gaze across the entire office. Everyone in the office fell silent, lowering their heads and not speaking. The woman let out a cold snicker and asked, “Who is Zhou Qiaoqiao?”

Holding her coffee cup, Zhou Qiaoqiao was taken aback, never expecting someone to come looking for her.

With a puzzled expression, she turned to the woman and said, “I am.”

Zhou Qiaoqiao knew this woman was a celebrity, a big one at that. She was responsible for handling reimbursements related to the miscellaneous expenses incurred when these stars went out for work, and, of course, the issues didn’t stop at just miscellaneous expenses.

As a result, she often offended these stars. However, after Zhou Qiaoqiao took over, those so-called issues ceased to exist. Most of the time, it was the assistants who came to her for reimbursements. When the stars came, they would seek out other people in the finance department, dealing with more significant financial matters.

It was the first time that someone had come directly to her.

The woman let out a cold laugh and swiftly approached Zhou Qiaoqiao’s desk. She slapped a pile of documents in front of Zhou Qiaoqiao and demanded, “Why can’t these be reimbursed?”

Taking a sip of her coffee, Zhou Qiaoqiao glanced at the documents in the woman’s hand and replied, “They exceeded the approved amount.”

“Exceeded? Exceeded what?” the woman asked loudly.

“What do you mean?” the woman’s voice was icy, how could someone dare to disrespect her during this time?

“The amount exceeded.” Zhou Qiaoqiao looked up at her, calmly saying, “The hotel accommodation cost exceeded the limit of 1000 per night, and the food and lodging expenses exceeded the limit of 300 per meal.”

The woman scoffed and said, “It’s not just me.”

Zhou Qiaoqiao nodded and continued, “Even so, with one more manager and three assistants, the accommodation cost exceeds 3000 per night, and the food and lodging expenses exceed 1000 per meal. Your reimbursement exceeds the limit set by the company. You’ll have to report it to Manager Jiang.”

The woman sneered and said, “Manager Jiang told me to find you, and now you’re telling me to find him. Are you both trying to bully me?”

The woman’s name is Shi Suoya, 29 years old. In the entertainment industry, she can be considered a late bloomer. Her real name is Shi Jiajia, and she gained fame through a reality TV show. However, her journey in the entertainment industry hasn’t been smooth, despite having a doll-like face.

It wasn’t until she was 23 that she became a minor celebrity. At 26, she took on a time-travel drama and turned the tide, becoming popular over the country. Her doll-like face became one of her unique features, and she now has over 80 million followers on Weibo, firmly establishing herself as a top-tier actress in the current entertainment scene.

And Zhou Qiaoqiao’s change of luck was surprisingly similar. Since Shi Suoya became popular, she seemed to get popular roles in whatever she acted in, immediately earning her the title of ‘Viewership Queen.’ She also became one of the leading actresses in Yuyao’s entertainment industry. The income she brought to Yuyao each year was enough to make them regard her with high esteem. However, Shi Suoya’s temper… was not good.

Shi Suoya debuted at the age of 17 and spent at least 6 years playing supporting roles. Even when she gained some fame at 23, she only qualified for competing for supporting roles. She still had to rely on others’ favoritism: the directors, investors, seniors, junior actresses, and even the crew and makeup artists.

In such days, the fire within Shi Suoya grew bigger and bigger.

Before becoming famous, she was respectful and humble to everyone she met. Even if she had a temper, she had to suppress it.

After becoming popular, it was as if the repressed emotions found an outlet, and the fire within her burst forth. Shi Suoya’s explosive temper became well-known among her peers.

Seeing Zhou Qiaoqiao still sipping her coffee slowly, the fire dragon in Shi Suoya’s heart opened its eyes and roared to life. “What do you mean?” Her voice carried a chilling tone. How could someone dare to disrespect her at this stage?

Zhou Qiaoqiao calmly replied, “It’s nothing, just that it exceeds my reimbursement limit. You should talk to Manager Jiang; I won’t process it for you.”

Shi Suoya sneered, “You’re just relying on being the young lady of the Yan family, huh? Do you really think you can do whatever you want? In the company, doesn’t everyone know that the Yan family’s young master was kicked out? You’re nothing more than a beggar who came here for charity.”

The expected explosive reaction from Zhou Qiaoqiao didn’t happen. She remained calm and said, “Go talk to Manager Jiang for reimbursement.”

Shi Suoya: “…” She felt like she was dealing with an unyielding stone.

After staring at her for a while, Shi Suoya slowly asked, “I heard you climbed into Young Master Yan’s bed yourself?”

Zhou Qiaoqiao still didn’t get angry; she calmly took another sip of coffee and then looked sadly out of the floor-to-ceiling window as she asked back, “Are you envious?”

Shi Suoya: “…”

“Go to Manager Jiang for reimbursement!” Zhou Qiaoqiao repeated the same sentence.

Shi Suoya hadn’t been so angry in a long time. She glared fiercely at Zhou Qiaoqiao and sneered, “I don’t care about this little money, but I won’t let it go like this.”

Shi Suoya was about to turn and leave, but she saw a cup of water next to Zhou Qiaoqiao’s computer. She glanced at Zhou Qiaoqiao and reached out to take it.

Zhou Qiaoqiao had a moment of realization and lunged to snatch it, but Shi Suoya was quicker. She took the cup of water and splashed it towards Zhou Qiaoqiao. Zhou Qiaoqiao was caught off guard, and Shi Suoya burst into laughter, pointing at Zhou Qiaoqiao and saying, “You deserved that!”

The office became even quieter, with everyone staring wide-eyed at Shi Suoya. Nobody expected her to be so audacious. After all, she was the Yan family’s young lady! Even if the Yan family’s young master had been kicked out, the last time he visited, the CEO himself came out to welcome him!

Zhou Qiaoqiao reached up to wipe her face and then looked at Shi Suoya, saying, “Fortunately, you didn’t snatch the coffee.”

Shi Suoya was taken aback, and then she saw Zhou Qiaoqiao splash the coffee towards her with a “hey.”

The coffee was still somewhat hot, and the feeling of it splashing on her face was uncomfortable.

A piercing scream echoed in the quiet office…

Zhou Qiaoqiao held the coffee cup, standing there in a daze, muttering to herself, “Yan Wei, I caused trouble.”

The already silent office became even quieter.

Zhou Qiaoqiao saw someone rush into the office; it was probably Shi Suoya’s manager. She screamed, “Suoya! Suoya! Call an ambulance!”

Zhou Qiaoqiao looked bewildered and said, “Uh… this coffee… it’s warm.”

And so, amidst the screams of Shi Suoya and her manager, the office turned chaotic, but then it suddenly became quiet again with Zhou Qiaoqiao’s words…

The manager supported Shi Suoya’s hand, looking at Zhou Qiaoqiao, who had the same stunned expression.

Zhao Xinyue, who had just returned from outside, looked at the messy office and asked, “What’s all the fuss about?”

Then she glanced at Zhou Qiaoqiao’s ** hair and the red sweater that was now darkened by the wetness.

“Young Madam…” Zhao Xinyue was about to ask what happened, but then she saw Shi Suoya standing in front of Zhou Qiaoqiao’s desk, also with messy hair and a long-sleeved white jacket with brown stains all over it.

Zhao Xinyue: “…”

Shi Suoya sneered and said, “Sure, sure, sure!”

She laughed three times in a row and questioned, “Manager Zhao, Yuyao is not just the Yan family’s company, and the finance department is not under Manager Zhao’s sole control. You should talk to Boss Fei about this!”

Watching Shi Suoya leave with the support of her agent.

Who is Boss Fei?

Zhao Xinyue frowned and looked in the direction Shi Suoya left, sighed, and the company was about to become uneasy again.

After another 7 days, Zhou Qiaoqiao finally found out what Shi Suoya was up to. On the 14th day after Yan Wei left, rumors of Zhou Qiaoqiao embezzling public funds began to spread on Yuyao’s online and work groups.

On that day, Manager Jiang came to find Zhou Qiaoqiao and said, “Come to my office.”

Zhou Qiaoqiao followed him, only to find that there were not only Manager Jiang but also Zhao Xinyue and Yan Ye present.

Zhou Qiaoqiao frowned, and Yan Ye glanced at Zhao Xinyue. Zhao Xinyue spoke, “You’ve seen the matter on the company’s online platform, right?”

Zhou Qiaoqiao nodded and said, “I haven’t.”

Zhao Xinyue then looked at another woman whom Zhou Qiaoqiao knew. Her name was Wang Mei, and Zhou Qiaoqiao would hand over the accounts to her by the end of the month. They had just reconciled yesterday, and there were no problems.

Wang Mei glanced at Zhou Qiaoqiao and said, “There’s a 100,000 yuan discrepancy in the accounts.”

Zhou Qiaoqiao was shocked, but she firmly said, “There were no issues when we reconciled yesterday.”

Wang Mei said, “The accounts didn’t reconcile yesterday. I can’t say for sure, but I also can’t take responsibility for it. So, I reported the matter to Manager Jiang last night.”

Zhou Qiaoqiao realized that this was a false accusation. If the accounts didn’t reconcile, she should have approached Zhao Xinyue, the head of the finance department, not Manager Jiang. Why would she go to Manager Jiang?

Wang Mei continued, “The balance you provided and the account you submitted did not match.”

As the accounts were not in Zhou Qiaoqiao’s hands, she couldn’t refute the accusation. All she could say was, “But, they matched when we reconciled yesterday.”

How could 100,000 yuan disappear out of nowhere? If the money is missing, there should be receipts; if the receipts are gone, the money should be there. So…

Zhou Qiaoqiao felt a chill run through her body, and cold sweat began to surface.

“Do you have any recollection of this amount?” Yan Ye asked.

Zhou Qiaoqiao looked up at him and said, “This month… there were no receipts for 100,000 yuan reimbursements.”

In other words, this money was taken in multiple transactions. You could be framed by one person, but how could multiple people frame you?

Zhou Qiaoqiao’s disadvantage in this matter was that the original receipts for reimbursement were destroyed. After submitting the bills, something must have gone wrong, and she knew for sure that the destroyed receipts were all for cash reimbursements.

In other words, there were records of the money being withdrawn by Zhou Qiaoqiao but no evidence of it being spent.

This embezzlement method was very crude because the accounts couldn’t be balanced. However, this low-level tactic was meant to tell Zhou Qiaoqiao clearly, “I am framing you openly, and you know, everyone knows, but… you have no evidence.”

Yan Ye sighed and asked Jiang Hong, “What do you think?”

Jiang Hong was a 40-year-old man with fine lines at the corners of his eyes, and he wore silver-framed glasses, appearing gentle and refined.

He said, “As the finance manager, if there’s a problem with the work, it’s naturally her responsibility.”

Zhao Xinyue glanced at Zhou Qiaoqiao with pity. She could see that Zhou Qiaoqiao was innocent, and so could others. Not to mention, this scheme was too simple!

However, the people involved in this matter were not limited to those present; it also included Yuyao’s second-largest shareholder and various factions within Yuyao. It was already beyond Zhao Xinyue’s ability to handle. In this situation, it wasn’t about evidence, but about who had more power.

Zhou Qiaoqiao knew that this was not just an accounting error or false record; it was embezzlement of public funds. Moreover, it was done using a very low-level method to create false records.

“I will re-audit those bills. My memory is good, and I should be able to find any mistakes or missing receipts,” Zhou Qiaoqiao said.

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Sansukini: 25 episodes left. Some face-slapping coming up. Don’t mess with Yan Wei’s baby.

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