He Siyu arrived at her company’s entrance at seven o’clock as usual to wait for her, but after half an hour, she still hadn’t shown up. Instead, the security guard mentioned that her team had passed the preliminary selection for Xinghong Trade’s bidding process and had gone out for a celebratory dinner after work.
She really didn’t hold back—after knowing her colleagues for just two days, she was already joining them for lively gatherings.
He waited for two hours before finally seeing her emerge from the dinner. To make matters worse, an overly attentive male colleague offered to take her home. Just two days, and she was already on such good terms with them.
He Siyu’s expression darkened, his mood souring.
But then he noticed her gaze lingering on him. Turning his head, he met her inquisitive, glass-like eyes.
She was studying him intently.
His eyes flickered briefly before he spoke, his tone still sharp. “What are you looking at?”
Sang Ning snapped out of her thoughts and stepped closer. “What are you doing here?”
“Just passing by,” he replied stiffly.
She blinked, then nodded. “Oh.”
He Siyu narrowed his eyes, sensing her usual dismissiveness.
“Get in. I’ll take you home,” he said tersely.
Sang Ning nodded and opened the passenger door.
Seeing that she didn’t refuse, the gloom in his heart lightened slightly. He circled the car, got into the driver’s seat, and steered into traffic.
“You drank?” He noticed the faint flush on her cheeks.
“Mm, just two beers.”
Her face reddened easily with alcohol, but she wasn’t drunk—just a little flushed.
He Siyu frowned. “You’ve only known them for a few days, and you’re already drinking with them?”
“It was for the celebration.”
“What does that have to do with you? You’ve only been in the team for two days. The bidding was their work—passing the preliminary round isn’t your achievement. They invite you, and you just go? I don’t see you being this agreeable with me.”
Sang Ning turned to look at him. “But I wanted to go.”
His brow twitched. “Why?”
“Because I’ve never done it before.”
He Siyu: ?
“Is this some kind of milestone?”
“If it’s something new, I want to try it.” Sang Ning smiled, her glass-like eyes shimmering under the neon lights.
Since arriving in this era, she didn’t want to miss any novel experiences.
He Siyu couldn’t understand her reasoning, but seeing the sparkle in her eyes, he suddenly felt that her joining such a mundane dinner wasn’t so bad after all.
Still, he kept his stern expression. “But they’re strangers. You should be more cautious. What if someone got drunk and—”
“They wouldn’t dare. They know I have connections—even if they don’t know exactly what, they’re all very polite to me.”
In the workplace, everyone was shrewd.
The less someone’s background was known, the more careful people were around them—no one wanted to step on a landmine.
Besides, Sang Ning needed to establish herself in the precision manufacturing project and build her own network. This rotation was the perfect opportunity.
Playing the aloof young miss might be impressive, but it wouldn’t help her integrate or gather useful information—nor would it help her cultivate allies.
“And,” she added, pulling out a small canister from her bag, “I brought this.”
He Siyu’s gaze froze at the familiar item.
“You’ve been carrying this around?”
Sang Ning nodded. “Always.”
He Siyu: “…”
His eyes flickered before he turned back to the road. “You’re quite cautious.”
She tucked the pepper spray back into her purse and smiled. “Just being careful.”
The car stopped at the usual intersection near the Nan residence.
“I’ll head home now,” Sang Ning said politely. “Thanks for the ride.”
He Siyu replied indifferently, “Mm.”
She stepped out and walked away without looking back.
He Siyu remained in the car, watching her retreating figure, lost in thought.
Would she give him a thank-you gift for driving her home?
She had already thanked him.
---
After the previous night’s dinner, Sang Ning had grown closer with her team.
With the celebration over, everyone now focused on preparing for the final round of bidding.
Team Leader Lin, however, was uneasy. “Honestly, our chances aren’t great. The other two companies are stronger, especially Linsheng—they’ve worked with Xinghong for years. It’ll be hard to snatch this deal from them.”
“At least we passed the preliminaries and got a bonus. Whether we win or lose the final round, it’s fine,” Li Cheng said cheerfully.
They hadn’t expected much from this bid anyway. Even if they lost, making an impression could help with future collaborations.
Sang Ning thought for a moment before speaking up. “A long partnership doesn’t always mean smooth sailing. I looked into Xinghong and Linsheng’s past projects—Linsheng’s delays have been getting worse over the last two years. Xinghong might not be entirely satisfied.”
Team Leader Lin was surprised. “Sang Ning, you’ve only been here a few days, and you’ve already dug up all this?”
She nodded. “I also noticed during the last bidding session that Xinghong took this seriously—it wasn’t just a formality to hand it to Linsheng. Young President Pei even attended personally, which suggests they’re considering a change.”
The others nodded in agreement. “That makes sense!”
“The other competitor, Qifeng, has excellent craftsmanship—their parts are flawless. But because of their meticulous work, their prices are high. Mass production would drive costs up even more.”
Sang Ning turned to Team Leader Lin. “If we want to beat them, we still have a chance. Against Qifeng, we have a price advantage. Against Linsheng, we’re hungrier to prove ourselves—so we’ll offer more sincerity. If we prepare our pitch from this angle, we might pull off a win.”
Team Leader Lin clapped excitedly. “Brilliant! That’s a fantastic approach! With this, we might actually have a shot!”
Wang Qi grinned. “If we really pass the final round, our team’s bonus will be huge! Sang Ning, you’ll be our hero!”
Sang Ning shook her head modestly. “I just got here—I haven’t done much. The groundwork was all your effort. The credit is everyone’s.”
Team Leader Lin slapped the table enthusiastically. “Alright! Let’s get started on this plan right away!”
For the next week, Sang Ning was busy, often working until seven or eight in the evening. With the final bidding round approaching, the team was fired up.
At 7:30 p.m., Sang Ning walked out of the office with a few colleagues.
“Sang Ning, how are you getting home? Want me to drop you off?” Li Cheng offered warmly.
Wang Qi giggled. “Why would she need you? Her boyfriend picks her up every day.”
“Huh?” Li Cheng blinked in confusion.
Sang Ning also paused at the term.
Boyfriend—that was a strange label.
Wang Qi winked at her. “Look, that Land Rover’s parked over there again. Go on, we’ll head out. Bye!”
“I’ll get going too,” Li Cheng said, waving.
After they left, Sang Ning walked toward the Land Rover waiting by the curb.
She pulled open the car door and got in. He Siyu casually set down his phone, his lazy gaze shifting to her. "What were you talking about for so long just now?"
Sang Ning met his eyes earnestly. "They said you’re really handsome."
He Siyu raised a brow. "Oh."
As usual, he drove her to dinner, his tone light. "Why are you getting back later and later these days?"
"The final selection is coming up soon. Everyone’s pushing hard, preparing seriously." Sang Ning was equally serious.
Though she had only joined this project halfway through, it still held great significance. She wanted to start strong—for good luck.
"When’s the final selection?" he asked.
"Next Thursday."
No one in the team was taking time off this weekend. They’d rest after the project wrapped up. After all, if they succeeded, the bonus would be substantial.
He Siyu paused for a couple of seconds before asking, "So, are you free next weekend?"
Sang Ning nodded. "I should be."
"Oh."
She tilted her head. "Is there something going on?"
He pressed his lips together, his grip on the steering wheel tightening slightly. "Nothing important."
Sang Ning gave him a strange look. He’d been acting weirder lately.
But she didn’t have the bandwidth to dwell on it. Her mind was already buzzing with the bid proposal, leaving little room for anything else.
Tonight, he took her to a private kitchen. After dinner, as always, he drove her back to the usual intersection.
Sang Ning thanked him politely, shut the car door, and walked toward the Sang residence.
This time, as she reached the front door, she suddenly sensed something and stopped in her tracks. Turning around, she looked back—
Only to collide abruptly with the depth of his gaze.
