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The familiar scent enveloped her, bringing a sense of comfort. Her tears left streaks on his neatly pressed suit, creating a patchy mark.
She leaned against him for just a moment before pushing him away. She didn't want to infect him with her own distress.
"I'm fine."
Junxi wiped her tears away and resolutely turned her back to him.
Zhou Xuanyu stood still, watching her struggle to suppress the tremors in her shoulders.
"Come here."
Junxi shook her head.
Without waiting for her response, Zhou Xuanyu pulled her back, forcing her to look at him.
"I know you can't hear anything right now. If you want to be alone, that's fine, but promise me you'll go home and not go anywhere else." He gently cupped her face in his hands. "Get some sleep, and I'll come pick you up for dinner tonight. Okay?"
His eyes were close enough that they resembled dark gemstones—dim yet captivating, allowing her to meet his gaze without hesitation.
The elevator stopped, and the doors were about to open. Zhou Xuanyu still held onto her, waiting for her reply.
Junxi didn't want to drag Zhou Xuanyu into her turmoil at this moment, nor did she want to attract more gossip.
She nodded perfunctorily, as if agreeing to his request. Just as the elevator doors opened, she slipped out from under his arm and ran away without looking back.
Zhou Xuanyu stood in the elevator, casually blocking the closing doors until he watched her run out of the lobby.
In an instant, the warmth on his face turned to frost. He retraced his steps, finding that the crowd in the large conference room had not dispersed, and the conversation still lingered on Junxi's background.
The Infant Water Spirit remained at the center of the crowd, appearing to know everything about the events of years past.
Seeing Zhou Xuanyu return, everyone tactfully began to leave. Zhou Xuanyu said nothing as he stepped onto the stage and seized the microphone from the host.
"Nobody is allowed to leave!"
His cold tone echoed through the conference room via the loudspeaker.
Galen, standing at the door of the conference room, timely closed it.
"I will only say two points. First, Wen Junxi was hired by me; I judge people solely on their abilities, not their past. Those curious about her family matters are welcome to bring their resignation letters to gossip with me. I am confident that I understand her character and history better than anyone else here."
Zhou Xuanyu paused, his dark pupils resembling two black gun barrels. As his gaze swept across the room, everyone lowered their heads, too intimidated to meet his eyes.
"Second, Baby Anchor's performance on stage today was shockingly different from that offstage. However, compared to the glamour in front of others, Hengfu Group values integrity behind the scenes even more. Baby Anchor's philosophy contradicts that of Hengfu Group; therefore, I hereby announce that Hengfu Group will never collaborate with Baby Anchor's studio again."
A stir erupted among the audience.
They could hardly believe that Zhou Xuanyu would disregard even his rumored girlfriend for a newcomer who had been with the company for less than two months.
But Zhou Xuanyu did not care what others thought. After finishing his statement, he jumped down from the stage and strode toward the door, where Galen opened it for him.
"Clean up; I don't want to hear any more rumors about Wen Junxi," he instructed Galen.
"Yes."
"Zhou Xuanyu!"
The Infant Water Spirit hurriedly chased after Zhou Xuanyu.
Hearing the call, Zhou Xuanyu did not turn back.
"Zhou Xuanyu! Stop!" The Infant Water Spirit rushed over, disregarding the bustling corridor, and directly grabbed him, pulling him close. "Zhou Xuanyu, it's one thing if you don't let me love you, but how could you abandon our years of friendship for that girl!"
As she spoke, the Infant Water Spirit began to choke up, forgetting all about her composure.
Zhou Xuanyu stood quietly, watching her put on a show as if it were a circus act.
"Are you done making a scene?" he asked.
Seeing that he offered no comfort and instead spoke such words that embarrassed her, she felt a surge of anger and stepped forward to grab Zhou Xuanyu's collar.
"Zhou Xuanyu, how can you be so heartless?"
Zhou Xuanyu grasped the Infant Water Spirit's hand and flung it away. "Do you believe that if you keep trying to get at Wen Junxi, I can be even more ruthless?"
Junxi ran out of Hengfu Group and immediately bumped into Xue Waiwai.
Although Hengfu Group and Zhongyuan Group were only a street apart, this was Junxi's first chance encounter with Xue Waiwai since moving out of school.
"Wen Junxi!"
Xue Waiwai had come out to buy afternoon tea for her colleagues. From a distance, she noticed something was off with Junxi, who was running out in a hurry. Without a second thought about her own tasks, she dashed over to Junxi.
"Junxi, what's wrong?"
Xue Waiwai examined Junxi's face. Although Junxi wasn't crying at that moment and had wiped away any traces of tears, her eyes were still red and puffy, clearly indicating something was amiss.
"I'm fine," Junxi said, raising her hand to shield her eyes from Xue Waiwai's gaze.
"You know how to play dumb. Let me ask you, why are you out here during the day instead of at work? Are you going to buy soy sauce?"
"Aren't you also out here during the day?"
"I had no choice! The office is filled with a bunch of difficult people. Every day they scream for afternoon tea, as if the boss hired them to work or just to drink tea. It's my bad luck; every afternoon I have to run errands while pretending to be enthusiastic and willing." Once Xue Waiwai started venting, there was no stopping her.
Junxi listened closely and realized that Xue Waiwai wasn't having a great time either.
"Xue Waiwai, let's go get a drink," Junxi suddenly suggested.
"Now? Drink? Wen Junxi, have you hit your head on the door of Hengfu Group or something..." Xue Waiwai said, extending a finger and pushing firmly against Junxi's forehead, nudging her back.
Junxi stumbled a few steps but quickly regained her balance.
"If you’re not going, then I’ll go by myself."
Xue Waiwai caught her breath and thought for a moment.
"Forget it, forget it. I'm about to go crazy. If I don't act a little rebellious this time, those people will think I'm easy to bully. Let's go, let's go, we're going to drink. To hell with their afternoon tea!"
Junxi, who had just been teary-eyed, suddenly felt the clouds lift upon hearing Xue Waiwai's spirited words. She hailed a taxi and opened the door for both of them. As they settled into the car, they exchanged a knowing smile, like rebellious children about to embark on some mischief.
The driver asked where they were headed, and together they announced the name of the bar—Heya.
Heya was their revolutionary base from their dorm days; whenever one of their sisters faced some heartache or distress, they would all head to Heya for a few drinks to ease their worries.
It had been a while since they last visited, but Boss Lady still remembered them. She served drinks with such enthusiasm that even though Xue Waiwai and Junxi could barely scrape together enough money to cover the tab, she didn’t mind at all.
Xue Waiwai, feeling touched, hugged Boss Lady and planted a kiss on her cheek, laughing and choking back tears as she said, "This is what true friendship is all about!"
Boss Lady pushed her away with disdain. "Come on, are you already drunk before we even start?"
"I'm not drunk, I'm not!"
"Drinks aren't free. Next time, bring more business my way."
"Definitely!"
Because Boss Lady had sent over so many drinks, Junxi and Xue Waiwai felt too guilty to ask for a private room. Fortunately, it was quiet in the afternoon, and sitting at the bar was still relatively peaceful.
"Junxi, can you finally tell me what happened?" Xue Waiwai asked quietly as the warmth of the alcohol began to take effect.
"My parents' situation, everyone at work knows about it." Junxi raised her glass and downed it in one go.
In just a little while, she had already consumed several bottles of beer, but aside from feeling full, she felt nothing else. The more she wanted to get drunk, the harder it became.
"How did it get to the company? Did someone investigate you?"
"Maybe."
"Who is so despicable as to pry into someone else's private matters? What a lack of morals!" Xue Waiwai banged the bottle against the bar, showing her indignation.
"Xue Waiwai, I'm the daughter of a corrupt official. Would you look down on me?"
"Don't be ridiculous! Who your dad is has nothing to do with me. I only care about who you are."
"But who am I?" Junxi sighed lightly.
Having shed the crown of the Wen family heiress, who else could she be? For years, she had wanted to carve out a different path and become another version of herself, but no matter how hard she tried, it seemed she was still stuck in place.
"You are Wen Junxi!" Xue Waiwai put her arm around her shoulder. "You are you; no one can compare to you."
Junxi forced a smile.
Xue Waiwai noticed something was off. "I mean, Wen Junxi, your identity has been brought up before; why are you so bothered by it now?"
In the past, she could have laughed it off and pretended not to hear anything. But that was because Zhou Xuanyu was no longer by her side.
But now, here she was on his turf, mocked and humiliated by others. Where was she supposed to put all her pride?
She really didn't want to cry, but in front of Zhou Xuanyu, her weakness came upon her so unexpectedly and fittingly...
Junxi opened a few more bottles of wine for herself.
"Drink less and talk to me more," Xue Waiwai tried to pull her back.
Junxi pushed her hand away.
"Xue Waiwai, don't stop me. It won't help today."
As she spoke, Junxi lifted the bottle and drank straight from it. Xue Waiwai had never seen Junxi act so out of character.
In the past, whenever their group came to Heya, no matter how much they drank, Junxi was always the most rational one. She would clean up after them and keep a clear head, helping each of them back to their dorms. But today, she seemed to be in a completely unrecognizable frenzy.
Xue Waiwai suddenly felt anxious. She picked up her phone and stood up.
"Hey, where are you going?" Junxi stopped her.
"I'm just going to the restroom," Xue Waiwai replied evasively.
"Then hurry back!" Junxi waved her off.
Xue Waiwai nodded and ran to a quieter hallway, dialing a number.
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