Wendy hurried to smooth things over, saying, "Oh, President Liu, please don't say that. What arrogance? We designers are all just a bit reserved."
The man addressed as President Liu smiled with narrowed eyes. "I like you reserved types." He then deliberately patted Wendy on the shoulder.
Gu Susu was startled. She hadn't expected Wendy and this President Liu to be so casual with each other. Was this just a simple acquaintance dinner?
Wendy quickly removed President Liu's lecherous hand and beckoned, "Don't just chat, take your seats. Let's talk while we eat."
The two men unceremoniously took their seats first, with Wendy sitting to President Liu's right.
There were only four seats at the dining table. The remaining empty seat was directly between President Liu and another middle-aged man. Gu Susu didn't want to sit there and remained standing.
Seeing this, Wendy quickly got up, came to Gu Susu's side, and pulled her, saying, "Why are you just standing? Sit down."
Gu Susu was pushed by her to the middle seat and could only sit down silently, hoping to finish the meal quickly.
After the dishes were served, President Liu and the other man kept urging her to drink. She never picked up her wine glass, only claiming she was allergic to alcohol and couldn't drink.
The expressions of the two men instantly changed. Wendy quickly said to her, "It should be fine to drink a little. This is the best imported red wine."
Gu Susu looked at her coldly and said, "I can't touch a drop. Drinking alcohol can be life-threatening for someone with an alcohol allergy."
Both men at the table wore disappointed expressions. Wendy felt a bit embarrassed and forced a smile, saying, "It's okay, she can't drink. I'll drink with you, President Liu."
However, the two men had no interest in drinking with Wendy. They continued to stare at Gu Susu, making her feel extremely uncomfortable and wanting to leave.
President Liu suddenly placed a hand on Gu Susu's leg and said, "Little Gu, this won't do. You're too reserved outside, you won't get anywhere. Your President Huang wants us to help clear out those backlog of clothes, but with your attitude, how can we cooperate with your company?"
Gu Susu felt disgusted and moved her leg away. She understood his implication: if she didn't drink, they wouldn't help Saiou Company.
But what did that have to do with her? Shouldn't the sales department be responsible for selling finished fashion, not her? She was a designer.
Gu Susu immediately stood up, swept a cold glance at President Liu, and said, "I am a designer, not public relations, nor sales. I'm sorry, I have something at home. I'll be leaving now."
Wendy's expression had already turned displeased. She also stood up, "Gu Susu..."
But before she could finish speaking, President Liu gave a look to the other man. That man immediately pinned Gu Susu down and forced her to sit, twisting her hands behind her back.
President Liu, holding a wine glass, pinched her chin and forcefully poured the red wine directly into her mouth. "I want to see what happens when you have an alcohol allergy. Playing these games with me? You won't leave here after a few drinks!"
Gu Susu hadn't expected them to suddenly force-feed her alcohol. She struggled, choking on the wine they poured into her, and coughed violently.
"President Liu, let her go. She's an employee of our company after all, and I brought her. She just doesn't know how to socialize, but you can't do this," Wendy said, snatching the wine glass from President Liu's hand to stop him.
President Liu's face also turned cold. "You bring this ungracious person here. Do you not want to cooperate with us?"
"No, no, I didn't know she'd be so stubborn. I came here specifically to discuss cooperation with you," Wendy said, trying to appease him with a smile.
"Then seal the deal," President Liu said, pouring wine into another empty glass. "If you want to cooperate, you two need to make us feel comfortable and happy tonight, understand?"
He then smiled and patted Wendy's face.
Wendy dared not stop him again. President Liu picked up another glass of wine, preparing to pour it into Gu Susu's mouth.
However, Gu Susu was no longer the naive girl she used to be and knew she had to protect herself in such a situation.
When President Liu tried to pry her mouth open again, she directly kicked him in the face with a high kick, hitting him right on the nose.
President Liu cried out in pain, and blood flowed from his nose.
The man holding Gu Susu's hands quickly let go and rushed to President Liu's side, asking, "Are you alright? Stop the bleeding quickly!"
Gu Susu immediately got up, cast a cold glance at Wendy, and pulled open the door, rushing out. Behind her, she heard President Liu still shouting, "Idiot, don't mind me, bring her back!"
Gu Susu didn't dare to look back and ran forward with her head down. Inadvertently, she felt herself bump into a wall.
But it wasn't a wall, but a tall figure. She quickly looked up, thinking she was hallucinating.
Why would she run into him at this moment? Yang Sijie.
"Susu, why are you here?" Yang Sijie asked. As he spoke, he saw a middle-aged man about to rush towards Gu Susu, but he stopped when he saw Yang Sijie and slowly retreated.
Gu Susu looked back in a panic, instinctively gripping his wrist tightly. "Sijie, Sijie, I..."
But upon closer inspection, no one was chasing her. She still held Yang Sijie's wrist and said, "Can you take me away from here and send me home?"
Yang Sijie agreed without a second thought, abandoning his scheduled clients. He held Gu Susu's hand and led her away from there.
Just a few steps after they exited the club, Gu Susu felt her eyelids grow heavy, and the hand Yang Sijie held began to tremble.
She continued to walk forward, her legs starting to weaken, unable to move.
The glass of wine President Liu had forced into her mouth was not just red wine; it was problematic.
Yang Sijie noticed her abnormality and looked at her, asking, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"
Gu Susu could no longer stand steadily. Looking at his sincere and gentle eyes, she trusted Yang Sijie completely, unlike the two men who wanted to force her to drink.
"Brother Sijie, take me home. My eyelids are so heavy, I want to sleep..."
Yang Sijie saw her gaze becoming unfocused, so he quickly picked her up and drove directly to the hospital.
...
Gu Susu woke up, struggling to open her eyes. She felt her mouth was moist and not dry at all.
When her vision cleared completely, she saw Yang Sijie holding a water cup right beside her.
She tried to sit up, but she still felt numb all over and lacked strength.
"Brother Sijie, what happened to me?"
Yang Sijie didn't answer her and asked with concern, "Do you want more water?"
Gu Susu slowly shook her head lying on the bed. She recognized the room she was lying in as the room in Yang Sijie's villa, where she had been before.
"You didn't send me home?"
Yang Sijie put down the cup in his hand and explained, "Last night, I didn't know why you suddenly fainted, so I took you directly to the hospital. After the doctor's examination, they said you might have ingested something wrong, but there were no major issues, and they told me to give you more water until you woke up."