The Green Tea Supporting Girl Is Still Playing Her Role Today (GL) - Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Wen Pinghan quickly forgot about the strange man and woman.

It was just a chance encounter, nothing worth dwelling on. Her family issues were already enough to keep her stressed.

“Pinghan, you don’t look great. Is your cold still bothering you?” A colleague was passing out snacks and handed her a piece of bread to tide her over if she was hungry.

After getting soaked in the rain last time, she caught a cold the next day. A few packets of medicine didn’t help much. She coughed lightly, covering her mouth, then smiled and took the bread. “I’m fine, thanks.”

“You should find time to get some proper medicine from the hospital,” the colleague said, knowing she was too busy to go. It was a critical moment for the sales manager promotion, and every supervisor was pushing hard to boost their performance.

Qisheng Group was a major multinational corporation, specializing in home appliances sold domestically and abroad, a well-known industry leader. With a large company and a great platform came fierce competition. Countless young people flocked in, eager to seize every promotion opportunity.

Wen Pinghan had joined Qisheng right after graduation, working diligently from a business associate to a sales supervisor. Her performance was consistently strong, and just a few days ago, her boss had spoken with her, hinting that the promotion was almost guaranteed. She had to keep everything on track to avoid any slip-ups.

“When you get promoted, don’t forget to treat us,” her colleague teased.

Wen Pinghan smiled, her voice slightly nasal. “Let’s talk about that after it happens.”

Just then, a young woman hurried to her desk, grinning. “Sister Han, if you get promoted, what’ll we do without you?”

It was Lin Zhimin, a subordinate in her team, playful and sweet-talking, never intimidated by Wen Pinghan, her boss. From her first day, she’d been calling her “Sister Han.” Though some in the team called her a brown-noser behind her back, she didn’t care.

Wen Pinghan knew she was fishing for gossip. “It’s not set in stone yet. But per the rules, when a supervisor moves up, the new supervisor needs to have outstanding performance. You? Focus on finding more clients instead of hanging out in the break room gossiping.”

Lin Zhimin thought about her own performance and wasn’t sure she’d make supervisor. Her hopes weren’t high, but she wasn’t too worried about it.

“Don’t underestimate break room gossip, Sister Han,” Lin Zhimin giggled, lowering her voice to share what she’d heard. “I heard someone’s parachuting into our department.”

“Who?” Wen Pinghan asked casually.

“The princess,” Lin Zhimin said, pointing upward mysteriously. “She’s coming to be our marketing manager.”

“The princess? Who’s that?”

“The chairman’s daughter! Haven’t you heard about her?” Lin Zhimin looked at her in disbelief. “They say she’s gorgeous but not very capable. After lounging at home for two years post-graduation, her dad finally shoved her in here to get some experience.”

Lin Zhimin sighed dramatically. “Life’s tough. Us humble workers have to serve a parachuting princess.”

Upper-level personnel changes didn’t affect low-level employees like them much. There wasn’t even an official announcement—just rumors, not even a name or education background dug up.

Wen Pinghan calmly closed her folder and lightly tapped Lin Zhimin’s head. “Alright, stop playing the victim. No one’s asking you to be a maid.”

“But I heard she’s got a bad temper,” Lin Zhimin mumbled.

“Has anyone met her? Is the source reliable? Have you seen her bad temper yourself?” Wen Pinghan fired off three questions.

Lin Zhimin went quiet.

“Get back to work.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

*

“Tch, born with a silver spoon.”

The Porsche wove through traffic. As it turned, Xie Zhifei looked up, gazing at the towering building ahead, its end out of sight, grand and imposing. And this was just a branch office.

She was no longer the overworked Xie Zhifei but the heiress Xie Zhifei. Same face, completely different fate.

The original character was born into wealth, with no ambitions other than a lovesick obsession. She’d been smitten with her childhood friend Gu Zhizhang since they were kids. He was a wealthy heir, handsome, and always surrounded by admirers.

She knew her strengths and clung to Gu Zhizhang. Whenever a girl tried to get close, she’d insert herself as his “sister,” subtly or overtly driving them away from his sight.

Gu Zhizhang, clueless about her manipulative ways, trusted his “sister” completely, leading to many misunderstandings with the female lead.

Per the original plot, after idling at home for too long, Xie Zhifei was sent by her father to a branch office to gain experience. But her incompetence dragged down the company’s profits, and she was foolish enough to embezzle funds.

Today was Xie Zhifei’s first day as the new manager.

In the parking lot, a secretary was waiting, opening the car door for her. After a brief introduction, she led her to the elevator and up to the executive offices.

The marketing manager role wasn’t huge but wasn’t small either. Because she was the group’s heiress, other senior leaders showed up.

The meeting was filled with polite small talk and formalities. Xie Zhifei, having dealt with big scenes in her past life, handled it with ease. Of course, even if she’d been reckless, no one would dare say anything—her character was known for being arrogant anyway.

After the brief meeting, everyone returned to their posts. Xie Zhifei settled into her office, where the secretary began briefing her on her duties.

The secretary’s voice, droning on, sounded like a high school teacher, and Xie Zhifei started feeling sleepy.

Mid-yawn, she caught a familiar name, and her yawn froze.

“Wait, what did you just say?”

“The sales manager promotion list has been submitted. The candidates are Liu Shanshan, Wang Jiaren, Wen Pinghan, and…”

Why was Wen Pinghan here?

In the original plot, Wen Pinghan was a low-level newbie at Gu Zhizhang’s company. Why was she at Qisheng?

Did she quit here and join Gu Zhizhang’s company later?

But if she was already up for a promotion, why leave to start over elsewhere?

And her resume showed she studied education in college, with relevant internships, yet switched to sales after graduation?

“Ms. Xie, anything else you’d like to know?” the secretary asked cautiously after finishing the report.

“Yes.”

Seeing her frown, looking preoccupied, the secretary straightened up, bracing herself. “What is it?”

“Where’s the restroom?” Xie Zhifei asked.

“Oh, my oversight! Please follow me.” The secretary quickly led her to the restroom.

Once inside, Xie Zhifei mentally pinged the system: [What went wrong with Wen Pinghan’s promotion this time?]

System: [The original plot doesn’t cover this detail.]

“…” Xie Zhifei rubbed her chin. “You guys only wrote the details for the leads’ romance, huh?”

[Yes,] the system admitted honestly. [Everything serves the romance.]

“No wonder your rating’s low. Love for the sake of love, drama for the sake of drama.” Xie Zhifei critiqued ruthlessly.

System, aggrieved: [That’s why we’re fixing the plot…]

By the end of the day, Xie Zhifei had a rough grasp of her job. She picked up the promotion file, which included each candidate’s work summary, leadership recommendations, and performance records.

No matter how she looked at it, Wen Pinghan was the clear standout.

She slipped the file into a drawer and left the office. Her phone rang—a friend inviting her to play tennis.

With nothing else to do, she happily agreed.

On the tennis court, she worked up a sweat. During a break, a few guys came over to flirt but were chased off by her friend.

“Scram, you guys. Our beauty’s already taken. No chance for you.” Her friend shooed them away, then turned to Xie Zhifei, only to light up. “Look, your crush is here.”

Xie Zhifei turned and saw Gu Zhizhang walking in with a racket, her mouth twitching.

Crush, my foot.

Before she could say anything, her friend called out to Gu Zhizhang. He glanced over, then walked toward them.

“Fei, what a coincidence,” Gu Zhizhang smiled.

“You here to play too?” Xie Zhifei asked.

“Yeah, catching up with an old classmate.”

“I’m a bit tired, so I’ll head out,” Xie Zhifei said, looking drained.

Her friend stared, tempted to grab her ear and ask what was wrong. Gu Zhizhang was here, and she wasn’t seizing the chance to be alone with him? Tired? Wasn’t she the one who went starry-eyed every time she saw him?!

Xie Zhifei walked into the changing room and started taking off her clothes. Hearing footsteps behind her, she assumed it was her friend and said without turning, “If you want to keep playing, go ahead. I’m tired.”

“…What?”

Xie Zhifei froze, spinning around to find herself face-to-face with Wen Pinghan.

Both were startled.

Wen Pinghan’s mind inexplicably recalled Xie Zhifei’s words: “We’ll see each other again soon.”

Xie Zhifei hadn’t expected to meet her here. Based on the plot, they weren’t supposed to cross paths in this place. This was a members-only club, too expensive for an ordinary worker like Wen Pinghan to afford.

So, she must be here because…

“Why are you here?” Xie Zhifei asked.

“Accompanying a client to play tennis,” Wen Pinghan said, her gaze lingering on Xie Zhifei for a second before she awkwardly lowered her head, grabbed her clothes, and headed to a stall.

Xie Zhifei glanced down, quickly pulling her sportswear back on, and pieced together the situation.

This was a novel centered on romance.

The male and female leads would run into each other in all sorts of settings.

This tennis club must be the spot for their second encounter. The client Wen Pinghan was with was likely Gu Zhizhang’s old classmate.

A tennis court, sweaty and charged—perfect for sparking attraction.

Gu Zhizhang had just met up with his classmate and was chatting when he saw Xie Zhifei come back out in her sportswear. Confused, he said, “Fei, weren’t you leaving?”

“Changed my mind. I want to play more.”

Her friend joined them, her eyes darting between Xie Zhifei and Gu Zhizhang with a knowing look. “Not tired anymore?”

“Nope, not tired!” Xie Zhifei said energetically.

Soon, Wen Pinghan emerged. Seeing Gu Zhizhang, she wasn’t as surprised as before. She walked to her client’s side. “Mr. Li.”

Gu Zhizhang stared at her, a flicker of delight in his eyes, and turned to his classmate. “Who’s this?”

“Didn’t want to lose to you, so I brought a ringer,” his classmate laughed. “How about a match?”

“Two on two?”

“Sure, find a partner. How about Ms. Xie?”

Gu Zhizhang was about to agree when Xie Zhifei cut in, “No, I’m suddenly tired again. Xiaojing, you play.”

Her friend: “???”

What? A rare chance to team up with Gu Zhizhang, and you’re passing? Are you sleepwalking or something?!

Xie Zhifei sat on the sidelines, watching the makeshift teams compete. Neither side had any coordination, and she couldn’t help but chuckle.

Before long, Xiaojing, already worn out from earlier, was panting and sticking out her tongue. “I’m done. I can’t. Someone else take over.”

Xie Zhifei played dead.

Xiaojing shot her desperate looks, but she didn’t budge.

Frustrated, Xiaojing halfheartedly hit a ball, sending it off course—straight toward Wen Pinghan.

A muffled groan.

The next moment, Gu Zhizhang rushed to the other side, anxiously checking on her.

“As expected,” Xie Zhifei muttered. She’d been observing and noticed Wen Pinghan’s skills were solid. Xiaojing’s shot wasn’t hard, and under normal circumstances, it wouldn’t have hurt Wen Pinghan enough to keep her down. Yet here she was, unable to stand, sweating profusely.

“Your plot is ridiculous,” Xie Zhifei complained to the system. “Such an obvious bug, and you let it slide? You gave Wen Pinghan top-notch tennis skills but a fragile body like some delicate heroine? Just so she’d get hurt and give the male lead a chance to swoop in?”

System: […]

The system immediately started fixing the character design flaw.

Meanwhile, Wen Pinghan, startled by Gu Zhizhang’s sudden closeness, tried to pull away. But he grabbed her leg, saying in a domineering tone, “You’re hurt. I’ll call my private doctor.”

“No need,” Wen Pinghan frowned.

“It’ll be quick—”

“Let me handle it,” a voice interrupted from behind. They turned to see Xie Zhifei approaching with a righteous expression. When she looked at Gu Zhizhang, her face softened, and she blinked. “Brother Gu, I’m a doctor.”

Gu Zhizhang: “???” Since when are you a doctor?

“When you got hurt rock climbing, I learned how to treat injuries. This is nothing,” Xie Zhifei said. In front of everyone, she scooped Wen Pinghan up in her arms. “Let’s go to the changing room to deal with it.”

Wen Pinghan: “…?”

Everyone else: “???”

Xiaojing watched, baffled, as her friend carried off a stranger, leaving two handsome guys standing there dumbfounded. She couldn’t fathom Xie Zhifei’s move. Turning to the guy surnamed Li, she said, “Hey, handsome, wanna be friends? My tennis sucks, but my kissing’s top-notch.”

Gu Zhizhang: “…”

In the changing room, Xie Zhifei treated Wen Pinghan’s wound.

Wen Pinghan looked up. “Thanks.”

“My turn to say you’re welcome.” Xie Zhifei smiled, opening a locker and pulling out a bag, handing it to her.

Wen Pinghan gave her a puzzled look, opened it, and saw her old T-shirt, carrying a faint fragrance.

She paused, surprised. “You knew I’d be here? You brought this shirt on purpose?”

“No,” Xie Zhifei said. Not used to looking down at people, she crouched to meet Wen Pinghan’s eyes, her expression warm with a smile. “I just made sure I was ready to see you anytime.”