[Quick Transmigration] Rescue Little White Flower (GL) - Chapter 14: Saving Little White Flower in Workplace (14)

Chapter 14: Saving Little White Flower in Workplace (14)

Zhao Xingyue’s office was spacious, divided simply into two areas: a reception area and a work area.

The reception area had a sofa set and a coffee table, with a kettle of herbal tea on it. The work area featured a large mahogany desk, bare except for a computer, documents, and a water cup—no decorative knickknacks in sight.

Behind the desk stood a massive bookshelf filled with thick books in various languages—Chinese, English, and others Shen Qingwei couldn’t identify.

After a quick glance around Zhao Xingyue’s office, Shen Qingwei stood in front of the desk, hands clasped in front, adopting a standard apologetic posture. She said softly, “Good morning, President Zhao.”

No response.

She looked up and saw Zhao Xingyue engrossed in a newspaper, her expression unchanged from when Shen Qingwei entered, not even a twitch of her brow.

Thinking Zhao Xingyue hadn’t heard, she called again softly, “President Zhao?”

This time, there was a response.

But it was just a faint “Mm.”

Shen Qingwei understood now—the anger she’d sensed over the phone wasn’t her imagination. Zhao Xingyue was genuinely upset.

Though she didn’t know what she’d done wrong, since she’d displeased the big boss, she’d better stand quietly.

Shen Qingwei lowered her head, standing there, pinching her nails. She regretted wearing new shoes to work today. Not only had they rubbed her heels raw, but her toes felt crushed.

The room fell silent, the only sound being the occasional rustle of Zhao Xingyue flipping the newspaper.

A knock came from the door. After Zhao Xingyue called “Come in,” the secretary entered, placed some documents on the desk, and glanced curiously at Shen Qingwei as she left.

What’s going on?

She’d never seen President Zhao punish someone like this.

[What’s up?] she mouthed to Shen Qingwei.

Shen Qingwei shook her head slightly. [I don’t know.]

Zhao Xingyue coughed. “Ahem—”

The secretary quickened her pace, scurrying out of the office.

Shen Qingwei bowed her head, her expression growing more docile.

Zhao Xingyue’s fan support group chat—

Min-jie: “@Li Sisi, what’s up with your department’s Shen Qingwei? I saw her standing in President Zhao’s office for like twenty minutes.”

Li Sisi: “No idea. Our department’s curious too. President Zhao called her up out of the blue, didn’t say a word about why.”

Someone asked: “Did Shen Qingwei mess up?”

Li Sisi: “How could she? She just started this morning, hasn’t even done anything yet. To mess up, she’d need something to mess up first.”

She tagged the secretary. “Min-jie, what’s going on in there? Spill the tea.”

Min-jie: “Buddha says, ‘Cannot say, cannot say.’”

In the office, Zhao Xingyue held the newspaper but was watching Shen Qingwei through the lens in her eyes.

The high-tech from the Underworld allowed her to observe her target from every angle, so she easily caught Shen Qingwei’s expression.

Zhao Xingyue put down the newspaper. “What’s wrong? Feeling wronged?”

Shen Qingwei pouted. “I wouldn’t dare.”

Zhao Xingyue: “Then who’s that dissatisfied look for?”

Shen Qingwei: “My feet hurt.”

Zhao Xingyue glanced down at her feet. With the lens in her eyes, she easily saw Shen Qingwei’s raw heels and the toes cramped in her shoes.

She tilted her chin, gesturing for Shen Qingwei to sit.

Whether it was a cut or a scrape, the blade had finally fallen.

Shen Qingwei let out a breath, quickly pulled over a chair, and sat down. Legs together, back straight, hands on her knees, she sat more properly than a kindergarten student.

After she sat, Zhao Xingyue spoke. “Your hourly wage is about eighty yuan. Standing for half an hour just earned you forty. Happy?”

Before Shen Qingwei could answer, she continued, “If you like, you can come stand in my office every day. You’re pretty enough to be a decorative vase. I’ll pay your salary, give you standard raises each year. How’s that?”

Her words clearly showed she was still angry.

Shen Qingwei’s feet ached terribly—she wouldn’t dare agree to stand here daily. She shook her head like a rattle. “No, no, President Zhao, I’m not worthy of your office. I’ll work hard and contribute to Zhao Group’s success.”

Zhao Xingyue laughed in exasperation, tossing the folded newspaper onto the desk with a slap, startling Shen Qingwei.

Shen Qingwei looked up to see Zhao Xingyue leaning back in her chair, legs propped on the desk. “You call working hard fetching tea, delivering packages, and taking out trash?”

“For that kind of work, three thousand a month would have plenty of aunties lining up. Why am I paying you a four-figure salary?”

Shen Qingwei finally understood why Zhao Xingyue had called her up.

She stood, bowed deeply, and apologized sincerely. “I’m sorry, President Zhao. I understand.”

Zhao Xingyue lowered her legs. “Do you really?”

Shen Qingwei nodded vigorously. “Really.”

Something flew toward her. She fumbled to catch it and saw it was a tube of aloe vera gel.

Zhao Xingyue said, “There’s a pair of new flats under the sofa. I bought them but haven’t worn them. Our shoe sizes are close—you should be able to wear them.”

After speaking, she ignored Shen Qingwei, flipping open the documents the secretary had brought. When no sound came for a while, she looked up curiously to find Shen Qingwei clutching the aloe vera gel, shoulders trembling, quietly crying.

Zhao Xingyue pulled a tissue and handed it over.

Shen Qingwei took it, face flushed, and thanked her. Limping in her stiff heels, she hobbled to the reception area’s sofa.

Under the sofa was indeed a shoebox containing a pair of white flat leather shoes, their material looking soft.

She carefully eased her feet out of her shoes.

Shen Qingwei gasped. “Hiss—”

The blisters on her heels, formed during her commute, had burst. Sticky fluid coated her feet, and the broken blisters exposed raw, red flesh.

Her toes weren’t much better, especially the second and third, their joints rubbed raw, stinging in the air.

Zhao Xingyue hadn’t realized her foot injuries were so severe.

“Wait.” As Shen Qingwei prepared to apply the aloe vera gel, she looked up to see Zhao Xingyue standing, opening a cabinet under the bookshelf, searching for something.

Soon, she pulled out a white medical kit.

Seeing Zhao Xingyue kneel before her, Shen Qingwei hurriedly pulled back her foot. “I can do it myself.”

Zhao Xingyue grabbed her ankle. “Don’t move.”

Cleaning the wounds with alcohol hurt.

It hurt so much Shen Qingwei wanted to scream.

But watching Zhao Xingyue carefully clean her wounds with a cotton swab, she didn’t want to make a sound, only to gaze at her quietly.

Her movements were meticulous and gentle, not missing a single wound.

She used one cotton swab after another until all the wounds were cleaned.

As Shen Qingwei moved to pull her foot back, Zhao Xingyue said again, “Don’t move.”

Applying the ointment wasn’t as painful as the alcohol, but Shen Qingwei’s eyes reddened.

Zhao Xingyue looked up, seeing her teary eyes.

“Why are you crying?” She handed over a tissue box with the back of her hand. “Here, wipe your face. I’m going to wash my hands.”

When Shen Qingwei left Zhao Xingyue’s office, her feet no longer hurt.

Zhao Xingyue told her to leave the shoes in the cabinet and pick them up after work to avoid colleagues noticing she’d come to the president’s office and left with a pair of shoes.

Zhao Xingyue’s exact words were: “I called you up to lecture you, and you’re leaving with a pair of shoes? People who don’t know might think I’m playing favorites, giving a new employee perks on their first day.”

Her reasoning wasn’t wrong, but she forgot how sensitive women are to fashion.

As soon as Shen Qingwei stepped out of the elevator, she glanced around, puzzled. She couldn’t shake the feeling that people were looking at her strangely, though she wasn’t sure if it was her imagination.

Zhao Xingyue’s fan support group chat—

Colleague A: “@Li Sisi, Sisi, your department’s Shen Qingwei, who got called up by President Zhao on her first day, is back.”

Colleague B: “She looks all smiley, like she didn’t get scolded.”

Colleague C: “Her eyes are red, probably cried. I don’t know whether to be jealous or pity her. Getting to interact with President Zhao on her first day is huge, but President Zhao’s temper is terrifying when she’s mad.”

Li Sisi was working on some documents when she saw the group chat messages. Shen Qingwei had just walked in from the hallway.

One glance, and Li Sisi noticed something off about Shen Qingwei.

Li Sisi: “Holy crap, look at Shen Qingwei’s shoes—XX brand. President Zhao’s a huge fan of that brand. I’ve seen her wear every high-heel style from them.”

Colleague A: “?”

Li Sisi nodded at Shen Qingwei expressionlessly, forcing her gaze back to her computer screen. Her hands on the keyboard were screaming on behalf of her inner self: “She changed shoes! Shen Qingwei was wearing cheap heels when she came to work this morning.”

Someone caught on: “Wait, you’re saying Shen Qingwei went to President Zhao’s office and came back wearing President Zhao’s shoes?!”

That comment set off an explosion in Zhao Xingyue’s fan support group chat.

They buzzed with theories about Shen Qingwei’s identity—how could she be called to the president’s office just to get a pair of shoes? Was the rumor from Secretary Min-jie about Shen Qingwei being punished by standing true or not?

Secretary Min-jie: “Of course it’s true. Why would I lie to you?”

Li Sisi: “What’s Shen Qingwei’s deal? She doesn’t seem like some rich or connected kid. I’ve got an eye for that.”

Someone speculated wildly: “Isn’t Shen Qingwei an S University grad? I remember President Zhao gave a lecture at S University once. Maybe they have a teacher-student relationship, and she called her in for some guidance?”

Then someone else popped up in the chat.

“Anyone remember the drink President Zhao bought downstairs yesterday?” The person dropped a bombshell. “If I’m not mistaken, I think President Zhao gave that drink to Shen Qingwei.”

“…”

“…”

“…”

Shen Qingwei looked up, bewildered, at the busy office, unsure why she felt like everyone’s eyes were on her.

Speculation about their relationship ran wild. The most accepted theory was a teacher-student connection. But wilder guesses abounded—some relatively normal, like Shen Qingwei being a distant relative of Zhao Xingyue. Others were outrageous, suggesting Shen Qingwei was Zhao Xingyue’s kept woman.

“Come on, President Zhao’s a woman. If she’s keeping anyone, it should be a dashing young guy like me.”

“Young guy, you? Go take a look at that wrinkled old face in the mirror. Opposite-s3x relationships are just for reproduction—same-s3x is true love, got it? President Zhao dumped her scummy fiancé, didn’t she? Sure, she cut him off cleanly, but she’s still a woman. Women get hurt by love. When she was completely done with men, Shen Qingwei, a gentle and kind woman, came into her life. President Zhao thought, women are great—soft bodies, sweet voices, and they understand each other. So, boom, she turned.”

“Get lost, if anyone’s turning, it’s with me.”

“Scram, shameless hussy. Tonight, President Zhao’s picking my card, okay?”

“Get out, why are you all eyeing my wife?”

Wife?

Seeing that message, Li Sisi furiously typed a “Pfft” and sent it.

“Li Sisi—”

Hearing Shen Qingwei’s voice, Li Sisi instinctively switched tabs. Turning and seeing it was Shen Qingwei, she asked awkwardly, “What’s up?”

Shen Qingwei had sharp eyes. Though she only caught a glimpse, she saw the words “Zhao Xingyue Fan Support Group” at the top of the chat window. She smiled inwardly, surprised at Zhao Xingyue’s popularity in the company—enough to have a dedicated fan group.

Did she know about it?

Noticing Li Sisi wasn’t publicizing the fan group, Shen Qingwei tactfully didn’t ask. She stood, walked over with documents in hand, and said, “Sisi, I wanted to ask about this part…”

Seeing Shen Qingwei settling into work smoothly, Zhao Xingyue felt relieved.

With nothing pressing, she started browsing this world’s shopping websites. The Underworld didn’t have such advanced stuff—or rather, even if it did, she couldn’t use it.

Life as an Underworld civil servant was dull. Unlike Heaven, where they held gatherings every few days, living it up, Underworld workers were buried in endless tasks. Everyone’s daily workload was impossible to finish in a day. It piled up over decades, even centuries.

In that situation, forget buying new clothes or shoes—there wasn’t even time to sleep, let alone shop.

Back in the human world, though here for a mission, Zhao Xingyue found life suddenly leisurely and wasn’t quite used to it.

The original owner’s clothes and accessories were handled by a dedicated team, updated every season, so Zhao Xingyue didn’t need to worry. The clothes online were pretty, but few caught her eye. Thinking of Shen Qingwei, who didn’t seem to have many nice outfits, Zhao Xingyue recalled her measurements and added items to the cart for her.

Shen Qingwei had performed decently at work today. These small gifts could be considered a reward.