Before she knew it, it was already time to leave work.
While waiting for her ride, Zhou Zhuofei suddenly remembered something—since Xie Huai was bringing his sister along, did that mean Xie Ya would be there too?
If he was going, maybe she could use that to her advantage? After all, Xie Ya owed her a favor, and he’d have to find a way to repay it eventually.
But she quickly dismissed the thought. She couldn’t rely too much on Xie Ya. When faced with Xie Huai’s domineering pressure, he had no choice but to obediently go home and admit his mistakes. Clearly, he wasn’t much help.
When she got home that evening, Zhou Zhuofei ate a light meal. Since she had a dress fitting the next day, she decided to make a last-minute effort—keeping her dinner simple, doing a deep skincare routine, exfoliating, and applying a face mask.
She had all the necessary skincare products, and friends and colleagues had given her plenty more, but she usually forgot to use them.
By the time she finished her routine, it was already late. Not wanting to stay up, she went to bed early.
The next morning, she deliberately checked herself in the mirror, turning left and right, and felt quite pleased with how she looked.
She suddenly recalled Du Yu’s dramatic warnings about seizing youth. It all seemed a bit exaggerated. As long as she kept a good mindset, she could stay youthful forever.
Just before leaving work, Zhou Zhuofei was unexpectedly assigned to help Zhan Zilang retrieve some items from the warehouse.
Uncertain about the details or how long it would take, she quickly messaged Xiao Wang on the way to inform him, giving him time to adjust their plans if needed.
Zhan Zilang, walking beside her, glanced over and immediately recognized Xiao Wang’s profile picture.
“Zhou-jie, are you talking to Secretary Xiao?”
“Huh?” At his question, Zhou Zhuofei instinctively pulled her phone away, not wanting him to see her conversation with Xiao Wang.
Zhan Zilang hadn’t thought much of it at first, but her reaction made him feel like he’d been caught snooping. He frowned. “Uh… is there a problem?”
“No, nothing.” Realizing she’d overreacted, she forced a calm tone. “You just startled me by speaking up suddenly.”
Now Zhan Zilang was even more confused. “I’ve been right next to you this whole time. It’s not like I appeared out of nowhere?”
“Alright, alright, my bad. I’m just a bit jumpy.” She patted his arm reassuringly.
Zhan Zilang was just venting—he was easy to placate. Who wouldn’t grumble about being assigned work right before clocking out?
But there was no avoiding it. Soon, Huanyu would hold its annual Group Strategy Summit.
All subsidiaries under the group would send representatives to attend the three-day conference, where they’d discuss the company’s strategic goals and annual plans.
An event of this scale required the entire administrative department’s involvement. The meetings were usually held at the New World Hotel.
Not only that, but to streamline operations, the administrative staff would stay at the hotel during the event, eliminating all commute time.
Right now, Zhou Zhuofei and Zhan Zilang’s task was to locate the materials and props left over from last year’s conference for reuse.
Yet Zhan Zilang kept staring at her thoughtfully. “Zhou-jie, you’re acting kinda weird today.”
Her heart skipped a beat. Had he figured her out?
Wait—she hadn’t slipped up, had she?
“Am I?” She played dumb. “What’s weird about me?”
“Normally, if you got assigned work right before leaving, you’d be the first to complain, saying it’s cutting into your gaming time. But we’ve been walking for ages now, and you haven’t said a single word about it.”
“Seriously… what kind of image do I have in your mind, huh?”
Zhan Zilang actually pondered this. “Like an innkeeper in a game. Usually, you’re all warm and attentive, making sure players have food and drinks. But if someone accidentally kills one of your chickens, you’d grab a butcher’s knife and slaughter them on the spot. A mix of kindness and brutality, I guess?”
“Seems I’ve been too nice to you. You’re about to see the brutal side.”
Zhou Zhuofei snorted, but she had to admit his assessment was spot-on. Normally, she’d definitely be griping, but today was different—after work, she’d be seeing Xiao Wang again.
Just thinking about it made the extra workload feel a little less annoying.
They arrived at the basement warehouse, packed with supplies that might only be used once a year.
Even with the ventilation system, turning on the lights revealed dust floating visibly in the air, carrying a musty scent.
Zhou Zhuofei divided the tasks, assigning each of them half the area.
The custom shelving units towered over her, forcing her to stretch just to reach the top.
As they searched separately, checking items off the list, they chatted intermittently. Eventually, Zhan Zilang brought up his upcoming job confirmation.
His parents were pleased with his recent performance, so he took the chance to ask about future arrangements.
“From what they said, it sounds like they want me to work at my uncle’s place for another two years.”
“Still in administration?”
“No, the operations department.”
“That’s great, isn’t it? Operations is a core division.”
“What’s so great about it? I’ll be under my uncle’s watch all day.” Zhan Zilang sighed. “Nothing like the freedom I have now.”
“You’re only this free because you’re an intern. You think you can slack off half the day once you’re confirmed?”
“I know, I just don’t want to—” He trailed off with another sigh.
This time, Zhou Zhuofei didn’t respond. After a long pause, he couldn’t help calling out, “Zhou-jie? You listening?”
“Huh? Hold on…” Her reply was distracted. “I’m replying to a message.”
Zhan Zilang felt slighted. “You’re not even paying attention to me!”
“I have to reply when someone messages me.”
“Make them wait!”
“Just a sec…”
Despite her words, it took her a while before she finally responded.
“What were you saying? Your real issue isn’t working for your uncle—it’s not being able to slack off, right?”
“Well… if you put it that way, sure.”
“…”
“Why’d you go quiet again? Who keeps messaging you?”
Zhou Zhuofei’s voice immediately chimed in, "I’ve already replied to my messages! I was just thinking about how to answer your question. Honestly, I don’t know either. In the past, I would’ve advised you to face reality early—people need to learn to grow up and take responsibility. But now, you’re still so young and don’t have the pressure of survival. Wanting a few years of freedom is something I can actually understand."
"Zhou-jie, you really get me!"
"But there’s one very important problem."
"What problem?"
"I’m not your parents. My opinion won’t help you at all."
As soon as the words fell, a man’s soft chuckle echoed in the warehouse.
Zhan Zilang froze. Wait, he hadn’t laughed—where did that sound come from?
A chill ran down his spine. But why didn’t Zhou-jie react at all?
Just as he was debating whether to ask Zhou Zhuofei about it, he heard her slightly surprised tone, "That fast?"
Huh? Was she talking to him?
Then, a familiar voice followed, "I was already on my way downstairs while replying to your message."
Oh, it was Xiao Wang. Wait, why was Xiao Wang here?
Unable to resist, Zhan Zilang peeked out and saw Xiao Wang standing at the entrance, speaking in Zhou Zhuofei’s direction.
The moment he revealed himself, Xiao Wang noticed him right away and greeted him, "Xiao Zhan."
"Xiao Wang, what brings you here?"
"I came to find Zhuofei. Hope I’m not interrupting your work?"
"Not at all." After answering, Zhan Zilang ducked back to continue searching. Since he’d just seen Zhou Zhuofei messaging Xiao Wang earlier, his appearance didn’t strike him as odd.
Zhan Zilang refocused on locating the items on the list.
Soon, footsteps approached, followed by Zhou Zhuofei and Xiao Wang conversing, though their voices were too low for him to make out the words.
After a murmur of exchanges, Zhan Zilang suddenly realized something.
Didn’t Xiao Wang usually call Zhou-jie "Xiao Zhou"? Why did it sound like he’d just used her full name?
Since he always referred to her as Zhou-jie himself, it took him a moment to recall her actual name.
"How much longer will you take?" Xiao Wang walked over and asked.
Zhou Zhuofei handed him the marked checklist. "The ticked ones are found. Just a few more left."
Xiao Wang glanced at it, promptly pulled out his phone, and snapped a photo of the list. "Three people will make it faster. I’ll start searching from that side."
As he spoke, he casually unbuttoned his suit jacket.
Zhou Zhuofei’s gaze flickered unintentionally. The white dress shirt revealed slight creases with his movements, especially around the chest area, where the fabric stretched taut over his well-defined muscles, their contours faintly visible.
At the sight, fragments of memories flashed through her mind. A sudden warmth crept up her cheeks, and she quickly averted her eyes.
Back then, she hadn’t noticed any of this at all…
Zhou Zhuofei took a deep breath and deliberately turned her back to Xiao Wang, forcing herself to focus on the task by blocking her line of sight.
With Xiao Wang’s help, their efficiency improved significantly. Zhou Zhuofei checked off several items in quick succession.
Soon, she spotted the last item at the top, but it was tucked deep inside, blocked by a pile of clutter. If not for her sharp eyes, she might’ve missed it entirely.
Muttering to herself about which genius had placed it there, she set down the checklist and her phone, reaching out to move the obstructing items.
The pile didn’t look heavy, but stretching on tiptoe made it awkward to exert force. Her first attempt to clear a path didn’t go as smoothly as she’d hoped.
Rubbing her slightly sore arm, she prepared to try again.
Just as she reached out once more, footsteps approached from behind. "Need this? Let me help."
Xiao Wang stepped up behind her and effortlessly lifted the clutter Zhou Zhuofei had been struggling with.
"Not that one—I’m trying to get the thing inside." She gestured toward the back, but her hand accidentally brushed against Xiao Wang’s arm. "Sorry," she said quickly.
"No problem. This one?" Xiao Wang reached further in.
Before Zhou Zhuofei could step aside, his body leaned forward with the motion, closing the distance between them until their shoulders nearly touched.
Feeling something press against her shoulder, she glanced down and froze for two seconds before pretending nothing had happened and sidling two steps away.
She stole a glance at Xiao Wang’s reaction, but his expression remained neutral, as if he hadn’t noticed the brief contact.
Well, minor bumps and brushes were normal in daily life. Who’d pay special attention to such trivial details?
Zhou Zhuofei lowered her head slowly, realizing she might’ve been overthinking it.
"This one?" Xiao Wang had already retrieved the item with ease.
Zhou Zhuofei hurried to confirm, "Yes, that’s it."
"This is the last one, right?"
After double-checking the list with Zhan Zilang, she finally declared the task complete.
"Alright, we can clock out now."
At the mention of leaving, Zhan Zilang was the most eager, leading the charge outside. "Let’s go, let’s go! Time to punch out!"
Zhou Zhuofei wasn’t in a rush. She took a moment to reorganize the items so other colleagues could find them easily tomorrow.
Xiao Wang stayed to assist, and by the time they finished, Zhan Zilang had long vanished. Surprised, Xiao Wang asked Zhou Zhuofei, "Is he always like this?"
"Not usually. Normally, I’d call him back." She explained, "Today, he probably saw you here and bolted faster."
Xiao Wang could tell she was covering for Zhan Zilang, but this alone suggested the intern wasn’t particularly meticulous. It likely wasn’t the first time Zhou Zhuofei had to clean up after him.
From their usual friendly dynamic, he’d assumed they worked well together. Yet, unknowingly, Zhan Zilang had been adding to Zhou Zhuofei’s workload, sparking a flicker of irritation in Xiao Wang—even though he knew the internship was more of a casual endeavor for Zhan Zilang.
With that in mind, he decided to come clean. "There’s something I think you should know."
Zhou Zhuofei was locking the warehouse door and replied offhandedly, "Go ahead."
"Actually, Xiao Zhan being assigned to your department was my doing."
"Oh, that…" She deliberately drew out the syllable. "I already figured that out."
Ever since she learned Zhan Zilang was also an anime enthusiast, she’d suspected Xiao Wang had orchestrated the placement. What were the odds otherwise?
"At the time, I thought since you’re around the same age and share interests, communication would be smoother. Plus, if things worked out, it’d benefit you too. But looking back, adding another intern must’ve created small issues in actual work. I apologize—I didn’t think it through properly."
Zhou Zhuofei couldn’t help but marvel once again at Xiao Wang’s gentleness. How could there be such a wonderful person in the world?
She said to Xiao Wang, "There’s no need to apologize. Isn’t work just about getting paid to do a job? It’s not like I came here to be treated like royalty. Compared to some colleagues, Zhan Zilang might be a bit impulsive, but he’s still somewhat endearing. It’s really fine, Xiao… You don’t need to worry about it."
Though she had already agreed to change how she addressed him, adjusting wasn’t easy. Zhou Zhuofei nearly slipped and called him "Secretary Xiao" again, but thankfully caught herself in time.
Seeing that Xiao Wang still seemed bothered, she quickly changed the subject. "Let’s hurry. Won’t the dress shop close soon if we’re too late?"
"That won’t happen. I’ve already made an appointment with them."
"Then let’s go."
When they arrived at their destination, Zhou Zhuofei realized it wasn’t just a dress shop—it was a high-end custom atelier.
The studio’s layout looked straight out of a fashion film, with dress forms and half-finished gowns everywhere. The walls were adorned with sketches and photos of models on the runway, and even the staff dressed with distinctive style.
Zhou Zhuofei was led by the designer to the ready-to-wear section. After listening to recommendations and explanations, she chose an elegant, emerald-green, off-the-shoulder gown. Its clean lines and minimal embellishments suited her taste perfectly.
Once she’d made her selection, an assistant guided her to try it on. As she passed Xiao Wang, she overheard him discussing something with the designer—phrases like "General Manager Ling" and "women’s wear" stood out.
With the assistant’s help, she slipped into the dress. Though it looked form-fitting, it didn’t feel as restrictive as she’d expected, allowing her to move comfortably.
"Miss Zhou, this dress suits you so well," the design assistant said, adjusting the details before admiring her reflection with a designer’s satisfied smile. "Your neckline and shoulders are perfect for off-shoulder styles."
"Thank you," Zhou Zhuofei replied.
She was pleased too. The fabric hugged her curves without being sheer, its rich texture adding depth to the emerald green, which made her skin glow.
She studied herself in the mirror for a while. If only her phone were handy, she’d have snapped at least three photos to send to Du Yu.
"I’ll open the curtain now."
The fitting area was semi-open, designed like a mini runway with mirrors and a ceiling-mounted track for movable drapes. Normally, the space was open, but when the curtains were drawn, it became a private area.
Which meant that once the curtain was pulled back, Xiao Wang and the designer would be right there.
