Xi Xianya didn't answer him, saying, "Oh, right, wait a moment. I haven't returned your umbrella yet."
As she spoke, Xi Xianya went to the nearby storage room and took out the umbrella, intending to return it to Ai Yifeng.
Ai Yifeng refused, saying, "Keep the umbrella. You might need it for unexpected downpours after work."
"That's too kind of you. You must have a spare umbrella in your car."
"It's just an umbrella." Ai Yifeng dismissed it and asked, "Has President Qin arrived yet?"
"Yes, he's in the CEO's office with President Xiao." Hearing Ai Yifeng's casual attitude about the umbrella, her mood sank further.
Ai Yifeng said no more, downed his coffee, tossed the paper cup, and headed to Tianyi's office.
In the office, An Jing was telling Tianyi that Xi Xianya had, once again, gone through the inbound and outbound goods records of the logistics department after everyone else had left the previous night.
An Jing, based on the surveillance footage, believed she hadn't found the documents she was looking for.
Tianyi asked curiously, "What is she looking for those documents for?"
An Jing also shook his head.
Tianyi suddenly thought of something and asked, "You mentioned earlier that her father used to run what kind of company?"
"A freight company." An Jing replied, also pondering the question. "Could her father's company have had business dealings with our group?"
"It's possible. Go and investigate further."
"Understood." As An Jing was about to leave, Ai Yifeng walked in.
"Yifeng, are you here to see President Qin?" An Jing greeted him. "I have something to attend to, so I'll leave you two to chat."
Ai Yifeng replied with a simple "Okay."
Tianyi turned on the computer on his desk and asked, "Yifeng, what's up?"
"It's about the changes to the bidding proposal."
"Alright, tell me what new ideas you have."
Ai Yifeng explained the proposed changes and the reasons behind them to Tianyi.
After listening, Tianyi found his ideas excellent and asked, "Have you had the finance department calculate the revised costs? Besides good ideas, we also need to consider the economic cost, as bidding is also a price war."
"Not yet. I'll draft the new proposal now and have the finance department estimate the cost."
"Yes, go ahead and do that."
...
Xi Xianya left the pantry and walked into the corridor, contemplating the idea of working as a clerk in Ai Yifeng's network department.
Who wouldn't want a comfortable job? But she couldn't leave the top floor until she uncovered the truth behind her father's company's bankruptcy.
She was listlessly sweeping the corridor when her phone vibrated in her pocket.
Taking out her phone, she saw it was Zhao Jianhua calling. She answered, saying softly, "I'm at work. Is there something you need?"
"God-daughter, why aren't you calling me Godfather anymore?"
Hearing Zhao Jianhua's voice made her feel nauseous. "If you have something to say, say it. Otherwise, I'm hanging up."
"You've gotten feisty now that you have a lead, haven't you?" Zhao Jianhua asked. "How's the investigation going? Did Qin Tianyi and the others cause your father's downfall?"
"If they weren't good people, then you wouldn't be fit to be my father's friend," Xi Xianya retorted ungraciously.
Zhao Jianhua's tone also turned less amiable. "Your father has always been the one trying to get closer to me. There's no such thing as a free lunch. If you accompany me, you'll have everything."
"You beastly animal..."
"Don't act so chaste. If you disliked me, why didn't you report me to the police back then?" Zhao Jianhua sneered. "You took my money to pay for your mother's medical treatment, and now you're scolding me. You're so ungrateful. It seems I need to teach you a proper lesson."
"You'll never touch me again!" Xi Xianya said, filled with shame and indignation.
"Don't be so absolute." Zhao Jianhua declared, "Accompany me to entertain some friends tonight. I'll send you the address of the club."
"I won't go!" Xi Xianya stated resolutely.
"You must come, or you'll see how captivating you are online." Zhao Jianhua hung up.
Xi Xianya wished she could smash her phone. She took a deep breath, realizing she had fallen into a tiger's den and couldn't escape Zhao Jianhua.
A moment later, she received Zhao Jianhua's location.
She understood perfectly that "accompanying his friends" meant no good. No matter how much she resisted, she knew she had to go and deal with it tonight.
Then, Zhao Jianhua sent another message: "Dress up nicely."
She simply turned off her phone, feeling an indescribable sense of powerlessness.
After nightfall, she took leave from the bar where she sang and went to the club Zhao Jianhua had mentioned.
Such clubs were money pits for the rich. As soon as she entered the lobby and gave Zhao Jianhua's name, a waiter led her to a VIP room. She steadied herself and saw that besides Zhao Jianhua, there were two middle-aged men in the room.
The three men were chatting when Zhao Jianhua saw her. He smiled and beckoned her over, saying, "My dear god-daughter, you're here. Come and sit."
The other two men immediately looked her up and down, their gazes holding a subtle interest that made Xi Xianya feel uneasy.
Zhao Jianhua had her sit between him and another man and introduced her, "This is Mr. Wang, and this is Mr. Zheng. This is my god-daughter. You can all call her Xiaoya. She sings very well and is a resident singer at a bar."
One of the men smiled and replied, "Mr. Zhao, you're truly blessed to have such a beautiful god-daughter."
Xi Xianya felt uncomfortable all over and gave a silent smile.
Zhao Jianhua, displeased with her reaction, said, "Didn't I tell you to dress up nicely? Why are you dressed like this, without even any makeup?"
Xi Xianya glanced at him indifferently and remained silent.
Someone tried to smooth things over, saying, "Old Zhao, you're outdated. This kind of pure beauty is trending now. Why do you insist on your god-daughter wearing heavy makeup? It's so vulgar."
"Yes, yes, Mr. Wang is right." Zhao Jianhua said, pulling her arm. "Why don't you quickly pick a song for Mr. Wang and sing with Mr. Wang and Mr. Zheng?"
Xi Xianya remained seated, picked up a glass of poured wine, and drank it in one gulp.
Zhao Jianhua whispered unhappily in her ear, "You can drink later. Sing with them first. You know the consequences of not obeying."
Xi Xianya pushed him away, stood up, and went to the big screen to select a song.
What did he take her for? A prostitute?
Seeing her selecting a song, someone teased, "Xiaoya is a resident singer. We wouldn't dare sing in front of her. Don't pick one, don't pick one."
"Oh, come on." Zhao Jianhua said with a smile to the two men, "With a professional here, our singing will be more interesting. Otherwise, we'd be off-key."
He then said to Xi Xianya, "Pick a few love duets. Let us learn some singing techniques too."
Xi Xianya randomly selected a few songs, only thinking about how she could leave the room.
When the first love duet she picked began to play, Zhao Jianhua quickly handed the microphone to Mr. Wang, saying, "This one's good. You sing it, you sing it."
Mr. Wang declined a few times, then confidently picked up the microphone and sat next to Xi Xianya, saying, "Then you'll have to guide me on how to sing it."
"Mr. Wang, please don't be so polite," Xi Xianya said with a perfunctory smile and began singing the female part.