Tempt Flirting/Camp With Love - Chapter 4
Chapter 4
Clouds tinged with orange surged along the edge of the sky, and the passage of time became almost visible to the naked eye.
The editorial department of the magazine was lit by rows of desk lamps, and everyone was immersed in the rhythmic clatter of keyboards. Even the air was thick with the urgency of a looming deadline.
Zheng Shuyi only began to come back to her senses as she wrapped up today’s article, finally accepting the fact that the man who tried to hit on her last night was actually the little uncle of the mistress, and he had retaliated today by coldly rejecting her attempt to flirt.
Pretty petty, huh.
Unaware that the corners of her lips had curved into an odd smile, Zheng Shuyi stared intently at the screen, typing rapidly as she muttered under her breath. She looked full of inspiration and brimming with creativity.
However—
“Banks and wealth management companies are expected to launch new financing plans next year. The Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission urges all scumbags to go die, get ground into ashes, and used as fertilizer. The mistresses shall have irregular periods, acne all over their faces, and fungal infections that spread like wildfire.”
“What?” Kong Nan, sitting at the next desk, squinted as she leaned over and glanced at her screen. “What are you writing?”
Zheng Shuyi’s soul snapped back into her body. She blinked, scanned the screen, and calmly deleted that line.
“Nothing.”
She shut her laptop, raised her head to look at the glow in the sky, and fell into deep thought.
After finishing the summit report that afternoon, Zheng Shuyi didn’t go home. She stayed in the office to work on the interview outline for Shi Yan.
Heartbroken in love, one must shine at work. Zheng Shuyi was determined to produce a brilliant piece that would impress Tang Yi—so Tang Yi wouldn’t think she was a pitiful loser just because of a breakup.
Zheng Shuyi was not only vengeful, she was also fiercely proud.
In the blink of an eye, Friday arrived. Zheng Shuyi took her voice recorder and notebook to the headquarters of Mingyu Bank.
Like most office buildings, visitors had to register at the front desk on the first floor.
This particular building had a good orientation. Sunlight poured through the glass and fell on the smiling faces of the three formally dressed receptionists, giving a touch of human warmth to an otherwise cold structure.
The security guard standing nearby glanced at the press pass hanging from Zheng Shuyi’s neck and said with feigned casualness, “Are all your magazine’s reporters this pretty?”
Zheng Shuyi smiled in response to the compliment.
But the moment she picked up the pen, her eyes suddenly flickered.
Xu Yuling?
Why was Xu Yuling’s name on the visitor register?
Even though the name was common, it probably wasn’t just a coincidence—especially since the “purpose of visit” column said “interview.”
Speaking of Xu Yuling, she and Zheng Shuyi had clashed since day one at the magazine. Over the past two years, they had frequently competed for sources.
So seeing her name here, with an entry time of 10:00 a.m., Zheng Shuyi was immediately filled with a sense of foreboding.
She rushed toward the elevator.
Inside, time seemed to stretch. Though she stood upright, her hands were unconsciously clenched into fists, and her heart had jumped into her throat.
Thirty seconds later, the elevator arrived. With a “ding,” it broke the silence.
As the doors opened, Zheng Shuyi looked up just in time to see Chen Sheng walking down the corridor.
“Secretary Chen!” she called out as she stepped quickly out of the elevator. “I’m Zheng Shuyi, a reporter from Financial Weekly. I had an interview scheduled this afternoon at 3:30 with the president’s office.”
Chen Sheng furrowed his brow slightly and looked puzzled. “Didn’t you say you had something come up?”
Zheng Shuyi’s heart sank.
Xu Yuling really had intercepted her.
Sure enough, Chen Sheng added, “Your colleague already completed the interview this morning.”
Zheng Shuyi’s mind went blank.
Chen Sheng glanced at his watch and added, “She came in the morning, and President Shi happened to be free.”
Zheng Shuyi: “…”
If profanity were censored, her brain would now be filled with so many “beep beep”s it would qualify as public nuisance.
But what could she do?
The invitation was extended to Financial Weekly, and Shi Yan wouldn’t care which reporter showed up. He certainly wouldn’t get involved in their internal drama.
The article still had to be published. At most, the editor-in-chief would say Xu Yuling lacked integrity. But no one would take down a high-profile interview for something as fragile as “ethics.”
Zheng Shuyi nodded, clenched her teeth, and forced a stiff smile.
“Sorry, that was our internal miscommunication.”
Someone like Chen Sheng could easily see through all this, but he chose the path of least resistance and nodded politely. “Sorry to trouble you.”
“No—” Zheng Shuyi’s words cut off halfway. She didn’t finish her sentence.
She was staring at something ten meters away.
The doors to the president’s office slid open. The six assistants and secretaries at the adjacent desks all stood up. A sharply dressed young woman carrying a stack of documents quickly stepped aside.
From the doorway, a man walked out.
His face was calm, his movements quiet, but he drew everyone’s attention.
As his gaze casually swept across the hallway, a glint of light reflected from his glasses, highlighting his sharp features and giving him an unapproachable air.
The surroundings were spotless, yet eerily quiet.
Zheng Shuyi blinked. After confirming she wasn’t seeing things, she realized:
The man in front of her—the one she had been trying to track down for a week—was none other than “Little Uncle.”
But she didn’t feel lucky or triumphant.
No, she felt like she’d just been struck by lightning.
Seeing him here made everything clear.
This man she’d been chattering about for half a month, the one she had once rebuffed and then tried to flirt with… was Shi Yan.
No wonder Yue Xingzhou had moved on. With that kind of backing behind her, how could anyone compete?
This was unbelievably—unbelievably—coincidental!
What fate! What a cosmic joke!
If only she hadn’t first rejected his approach, then tried to hit on him herself.
While her mind was roaring with thunder and lightning, Chen Sheng had already approached Shi Yan and whispered something into his ear.
Shi Yan looked up, his gaze meeting Zheng Shuyi’s—her expression somewhere between confused, awkward, and dumbfounded.
She froze, unable to look away, and simply stared at him.
But after a second or two, Shi Yan calmly averted his gaze and continued walking toward the elevator.
Zheng Shuyi stood frozen in place, frantically weighing her options:
Option 1: Slink away like nothing happened and vanish from Shi Yan’s life forever.
Option 2: As her elementary school teacher once said—Never give up. Seize every opportunity. She would do the interview, and if possible, become his… aunt-in-law.
Her body made the decision for her.
Zheng Shuyi smiled.
She had long, smooth black hair parted cleanly in the middle. One side tucked neatly behind her ear, the other falling softly beside her face. Dignified and elegant.
But when she smiled, her eyes sparkled with so much life that even her formal outfit couldn’t hold it back. It was like butterflies fluttering out, vibrant and unstoppable.
Yet Shi Yan didn’t look at her again.
He walked past her like she was a wax figure.
Zheng Shuyi: “…”
Still smiling, she nodded at the air to boost her own morale, then turned and called out:
“President Shi, we scheduled an interview for this afternoon.”
Shi Yan stopped and turned his head slightly, raising one eyebrow.
The air felt frozen. The surrounding assistants and secretaries all turned their curious gazes on them.
Everyone knew the Financial Weekly interview had already been done.
Even Chen Sheng looked baffled.
Did this woman just forget?
Zheng Shuyi could feel the tension, but she did her best to act clueless.
If she didn’t fight for it, she’d go home empty-handed.
She dug her nails into her palm, smiled brightly, and said clearly:
“I’ve been looking forward to this interview for so long. Finally, today’s the day. Would you happen to be available now?”
The hallway went dead silent.
Shi Yan’s eyelids lowered slightly. Just before he looked away, he noticed her hands clenched tightly at her sides, knuckles pale from the strain.
Then she frowned, pursed her lips, and whispered just loud enough for him to hear:
“Just a moment of your time, please?”
Shi Yan suddenly felt a weird itch in his back molars.
A few seconds later—
Without even looking at her, he spoke in a flat, emotionless tone that was still perfectly audible to everyone.
“Come.”
The silence was surreal.
Everyone glanced at each other in disbelief—but no one dared say a word.
Only Zheng Shuyi responded quickly enough.
As Shi Yan walked away, she finally snapped back to reality.
—You free now?
—Come.
In Zheng Shuyi’s mind, that meant: Of course I’m free! So damn free!
What a saint!
Delighted, she followed behind him.