It was past nine in the evening when the recording finally ended.
Rong Yu carried her bag and walked out, only to run into Lan Rouxue right away.
Lan Rouxue’s gaze lingered on that bag.
The live-stream audience claimed it was a counterfeit, but only she knew the truth—it wasn’t.
The Ji Family had been incredibly generous to this Rong Yu.
Luxury goods, high-end cars, even setting up a talent show just to debut her…
"Congratulations on winning first place in the group competition, Miss Rong," Lan Rouxue said, her voice laced with sarcasm. "Though, you might want to work harder on your personal popularity score."
The deciding factor for debut was personal popularity.
And Rong Yu had already managed to offend two of the hottest contestants right from the start. Surviving in such tight competition would only get harder…
Rong Yu crossed her arms, her tone icy. "If Secretary Lan can’t separate personal feelings from work, I doubt you’re fit for the role of Chief Secretary in the CEO’s office."
It didn’t take a genius to figure out Lan Rouxue was behind the incident with the makeup artist.
Snide remarks in private were one thing.
But deliberately sabotaging work?
Keeping someone like that in the Ji Corporation was nothing but trouble.
Lan Rouxue froze, then laughed. "And may I ask, Miss Rong, what authority do you have to dismiss me from my position?"
She had studied abroad for years, graduating from Princeton University, and was personally invited by the Ji Corporation’s HR director to join the company. On top of that, her relationship with Zhiyuan was anything but ordinary. Whether professionally or personally, no one had the right to remove her.
Rong Yu shook her head. "You can choose to resign voluntarily, or wait for the Ji Corporation to issue a termination notice."
"Miss Rong, you’re getting way ahead of yourself!" Lan Rouxue’s voice trembled with suppressed fury. "Don’t think Old Master Ji’s favor makes you untouchable. At the end of the day, the old man’s losing his grip. Zhiyuan is the true head of the Ji Family. I’m his girlfriend—the future lady of the Ji Corporation. Who do you think you are, telling me to leave?"
Rong Yu’s eyes turned frosty. "Keep an eye on your phone, Secretary Lan."
With that, she walked away.
Lan Rouxue clenched her jaw, barely holding back her rage.
She was about to call Ji Zhiyuan when a text notification chimed on her phone:
"Ms. Lan Rouxue, due to your violation of company regulations, after careful consideration by the board, you are hereby requested to complete resignation procedures within three days. The company will provide compensation in accordance with labor laws…"
Rong Ruoyao had been looking for Lan Rouxue to discuss a collaboration between the Rong Family and the Ji Corporation.
From a distance, she spotted Rong Yu talking to Lan Rouxue.
At first, she assumed Rong Yu was trying to curry favor.
But then Rong Yu walked off without a backward glance, while Lan Rouxue stomped her feet in fury and even smashed her phone.
Not daring to approach, Rong Ruoyao quickly retreated.
Outside, Shen Lin greeted her with a bright smile. "Well? Did you rank first overall?"
Rong Ruoyao nodded. "I just saw Rong Yu arguing with Secretary Lan. Whatever she said made Lan Rouxue so angry she threw her phone. If she’s offended the secretary, won’t it be even harder for our family to collaborate with the Ji Corporation?"
Shen Lin frowned. "How could she be so thoughtless… But Secretary Lan probably doesn’t know she’s the Rong Family’s eldest daughter."
She had considered waiting for Rong Yu to leave together.
Rong Ruoyao whispered, "If fans see us together as sisters, it might cause trouble."
So the mother and daughter got into their car and drove off.
Meanwhile, Rong Yu was escorted by staff to the top floor of the Ji Corporation.
Old Master Ji had already prepared a lavish late-night feast. "Mom, your performance today was spectacular! You must be exhausted—have something to eat first."
Rong Yu was starving.
Only after eating her fill did she notice Ji Zhiyuan sitting on the nearby couch, looking like he had something to say but couldn’t find the words.
"Zhiyuan, is this about Secretary Lan?" She set down her chopsticks. "Yes, I hacked into the Ji Corporation’s internal system and sent her the termination notice."
She’d been dabbling in software engineering lately and found it fascinating.
The Ji Corporation’s system seemed like good practice.
To her surprise, it took less than a minute to breach their firewall.
"What happened with Secretary Lan?" Old Master Ji asked, bewildered. "Why was she terminated?"
Rong Yu leaned back on the sofa. "Zhiyuan, explain it yourself."
Ji Zhiyuan reluctantly recounted the incident, then defended, "Great-Grandmother, Rouxue didn’t mean to target you. As a woman who cares about appearances, she was just focused on fixing her makeup and didn’t consider the contestants in the moment. That was her mistake, but it doesn’t warrant dismissal."
"Since when does Secretary Lan disregard the bigger picture like this?" Old Master Ji looked stunned. "Contestants were waiting to go onstage, and she pulled the makeup artist away for herself? If you and your team hadn’t come up with a solution, eight young girls would’ve lost their chance to debut because of her! A blunder this serious absolutely calls for termination."
Ji Zhiyuan pressed his lips together. "At least demote her first?"
"Hah!" Old Master Ji’s beard quivered with indignation. "Lan Rouxue is unfit to be Chief Secretary—just as you’re unfit to lead the Ji Corporation as CEO."
Ji Zhiyuan stiffened.
Since childhood, he had been the pride of the Ji Family, showered with praise wherever he went. At twelve, he was named heir and gradually took over the company’s operations.
The old man had always said no one was more suited to be CEO than him.
Yet now, over such a trivial matter, his entire worth was being questioned.
People made mistakes. Rouxue had only slipped up once—why couldn’t she be given another chance?
Seeing his silence, Old Master Ji shook his head in disappointment and called out, "Secretary Jiang, come up here!"
Secretary Jiang, the Chief Secretary to the Chairman and head of the entire secretarial department, arrived within ten minutes. A bespectacled man in his forties, he exuded professionalism.
Old Master Ji declared, "Draft a share transfer agreement for me."
Secretary Jiang nodded.
Given the old man’s advanced age, it made sense to transfer his majority shares to CEO Ji sooner rather than later.
He quickly prepared the document and slid his laptop over.
Old Master Ji frowned. "The name’s wrong. It’s not Ji Zhiyuan—it’s Rong Yu."
He didn’t want his mother to shoulder too much responsibility.
But in this world, without status or power, one could easily be trampled upon.
Case in point: even a lowly secretary had dared to bully the Ji Family’s matriarch.
"Don’t look at me like I’ve lost my mind," Old Master Ji told Secretary Jiang. "Yes, I mean Rong Yu."
Secretary Jiang glanced at Ji Zhiyuan.
Their esteemed CEO sat with his head bowed, wilted like frostbitten eggplant.
With neither of the Ji Family’s leaders objecting, he had no choice but to proceed. It wasn’t his place to openly question the old man’s sanity…
Once the contract was printed, Old Master Ji reviewed it carefully, signed, and pushed it toward Rong Yu.
