“You... you know. Who told you?” Lan Mi’s joyful expression vanished instantly, replaced by a cold, forbidding aura that warned everyone to keep their distance.
“No one told me.” Que Tang had already reached the point of ‘breaking the jar’—she had nothing left to lose, so she didn't care about laying all her cards on the table. “I looked into it myself. That ten million you mentioned simply doesn't exist. In fact, every piece of data you gave me was fake. To use me, you went so far as to start faking records from six months ago. You even put on a performance with the department managers just to lure me in... Lan Mi... why?” Her eyes were rimmed with red as she glared at her.
To think she had actually believed the second female lead! She couldn't believe all of it was a lie. What had she been doing, working overtime for over a month? Que Tang felt a dull ache in both her IQ and her dark circles.
“I didn't even know you before I joined the company, did I?” Que Tang looked at her with eyes full of sorrowful confusion. “Did you target me from the very beginning? Or would you have done this to anyone who applied for the job? Would you sacrifice yourself just for a chance to bring down Wanqi Aotian?”
“Que Tang!” Lan Mi was speechless. How could she explain? She couldn't exactly say: *I am a reborn soul; I knew you would apply to our company long ago.* Wouldn't that just prove she had been using her from the start? No matter how she explained it, Que Tang would leave her...
For the first time in her life, she was trapped in such a desperate dilemma.
Que Tang waited for an explanation that never came. In truth, she understood that the woman simply couldn't explain it. Her shoulders slumped, and her forced strength finally crumbled. “Forget it. Things have come to this; explanations are meaningless.” She unclipped her ID badge and placed it on the conference table. “General Manager, I resign.”
She walked toward the door. As she passed Lan Mi, the woman grabbed her arm tightly.
“No, Que Tang, don't... I can make it up to you, I can do anything. Just don't go.” Lan Mi looked at her with pleading eyes. She didn't understand what was happening to her. Originally, it shouldn't have mattered if Que Tang found out, right? But now that Que Tang actually knew and was leaving, Lan Mi was panicking, lost and helpless.
Que Tang stared at the hand gripping her right arm. “Please let me go, General Manager...” She shook off Lan Mi’s hand and walked quickly out of the conference room.
The shareholders outside saw the door open again and watched intently, only to see the General Manager’s assistant run out in tears.
Sprinting past them, she rushed into the General Manager’s office to grab her belongings. She took the elevator down to the lobby and stepped out of the company gates without looking back.
Once she was on the bus, she immediately wiped away her tears and excitedly asked Little Mushroom how her acting was.
“Meow~ As expected of a stage actress, Host! Your acting is a perfect hundred.”
“I have a reputation for being able to cry in three seconds, okay?” Que Tang looked out the window in a great mood. “After working so hard for so long, I finally get a break. I must be the most hardworking person in all of modern web novel history.”
“But didn't you almost star in *Office.avi*, *Kitchen.rmvb*, and *HotelSuite.mkv*? You looked like you were enjoying yourself, Host. Meow~”
“Did you come back just to troll me? And here I was, preparing all different flavors of dried fish to welcome you... I guess you don't want them after all,” Que Tang said with a cold smirk.
“No! Host, you are so generous, beautiful, and charming! You are as poetic as a painting, gentle, bright, cold, intellectual, mature... surely you won't hold a grudge against a stupid kitty like me, meow~” Little Mushroom pleaded piteously.
“Hmph. At least you know your place.”
Lately, an atmosphere like a gathering storm had permeated Lan Mi’s company. Ever since the day of the board meeting when the assistant left in tears, she hadn't been seen again. However, the General Manager hadn't approved the resignation, so Que Tang’s position was temporarily filled by a secretary from the Sales Department.
But the General Manager—whose smile used to be as gentle as a spring breeze over Lugu Lake or autumn rain soaking Jiuzhaigou—now wore a constant scowl. she was stern, humorless, and possessed a hair-trigger temper, capable of berating anyone into the ground for the slightest mistake.
Currently, Lan Mi’s office was the number one place in the company that everyone wanted to avoid.
Lan Mi was well aware of how the employees viewed her, but to her, it didn't matter at all. It was only after Que Tang left that she realized the other assistants were so dim-witted they seemed to have left their brains at home. She had to remind them of everything; they only moved when told. They couldn't even brew a cup of black coffee without turning it into a caramel macchiato.
Whereas before, Que Tang... with just a single look, she would immediately find whatever Lan Mi needed and hand it to her.
Lan Mi looked at the small green potted plant on her desk, which Que Tang had prepared for her to ease eye strain from the screen.
She subconsciously glanced toward the corner of the office where Que Tang used to stay... it had been reverted back into a guest sofa. She had ordered the assistant’s desk moved outside, simply because she couldn't stand the sight of that busty, brainless sales assistant.
As it turned out, the flat-chested Que Tang was better.
But where was Que Tang?
She had thought that even if Que Tang left, she wouldn't feel anything—at most, it would just be the inconvenience of adjusting to a new assistant. But she realized she was wrong, catastrophically wrong.
Lan Mi buried her face in her hands. She had... she had actually fallen in love with Que Tang long ago. But she had been too blinded by her obsession with revenge to see it, and she had used Que Tang’s affection to hurt her without restraint.
Wasn't this exactly why she hated Wanqi Aotian so much? And yet, she had done the same thing to Que Tang... How stupid could she be?
The moment she came to her senses, she had rushed to Que Tang’s apartment, but no matter how much she knocked, no one answered. It wasn't until a neighbor came out that she learned Que Tang had moved out the very day of the board meeting.
Her assistant had known she was being used, yet she had willingly allowed it, doing things she hated...
Thinking of Que Tang alone in some corner, licking her wounds, Lan Mi felt a pain so sharp she wished Que Tang would just beat her up.
“Hey, stupid cat, kick the TV remote over here, would you?” Que Tang was lounging on the sofa in Han Geng’s house, gesturing for Little Mushroom, who was rolling on the floor, to pass her the remote.
After leaving the board meeting that day, she had immediately gone home to pack her valuables. She gave away what she didn't want to her neighbors and then ran to Han Geng to ask for a place to stay. Although this Senior had a very peculiar hairstyle, he was a genuinely good person. Seeing his junior crying like a pear blossom in the rain, he assumed something terrible had happened and agreed without asking a single question.
Because Han Geng was busy with work, he wasn't home much, often staying at his firm. This allowed Que Tang to let her true nature loose. She spent every day lying on his sofa, watching TV and eating snacks, too lazy to even cook. She and Little Mushroom shared dried fish, one bite for her, one for the cat.
She flipped to the news channel, and the first headline was about Lan Mi. A large sidebar title read: *Construction Industry Giant to Merge with Wanqi Group.*
She chewed on a piece of dried cod, thinking that Lan Mi’s net worth was about to double again. But why hadn't she been paid her salary yet?
Lan Mi pushed through a crowd of media reporters and entered her office, her expression cold as she prepared to discuss the partnership contract with Han Geng. After a period of negotiation, they had finally drafted terms that both sides could accept.
As soon as she stepped into the conference room, she saw Han Geng glaring at her coldly.
“If it isn't the Group Chairperson whose net worth is about to double?” Han Geng said mockingly. Though he was a bit slow on the uptake, the fact that his junior had been hiding at his house for days without going to work, combined with the memory of that previous dinner invitation, made him realize she had likely been heartbroken. Although he regretted not making a move sooner, as her Senior, he was more furious that this woman had bullied her so badly. He didn't bother being polite to Lan Mi.
Lan Mi gave him a brief, neutral look and signaled the project manager to bring out the contract. She sat to the side, her mind wandering to Que Tang. By the time she snapped back to reality, the contract was signed, and Han Geng was standing right in front of her.
“Even though I despise you, I wouldn't have signed this if your concessions hadn't allowed me to achieve my ultimate goal. But once this project is finished, I will never have any dealings with your company again for as long as I live.” Having said his piece, Han Geng shook his fluffy, permed hair in anger and stormed out.
Lan Mi was stunned for a moment. She realized that if Han Geng was this angry... it might be related to Que Tang. A sliver of hope suddenly surged in her heart, and she immediately ordered someone to find out where Han Geng lived.
The information came quickly. She left the company at once and drove to Han Geng’s residence.
“Master Wang, is this way of washing hair okay?” Since she was unemployed and bored of staying home all day, Que Tang had come downstairs to chat with Master Wang from the barbershop. As they talked, she had a sudden whim and started learning the art of the "Wash, Cut, and Blow-dry" from him.
“Xiao Tang, your hand strength is really something. Why don't you come work for me as an apprentice?” Master Wang said with a smile as he lay back, enjoying Que Tang’s service.
“Haha, no thanks. I’m just here to kill time and bother you. My hair-washing skills are the only thing passable; if I tried to cut hair... I’m afraid your shop’s reputation would be ruined in two or three days.” Que Tang rinsed away the foam, revealing Master Wang’s fresh, shiny scalp. She grabbed a new towel to dry it and said proudly, “All done, Master.”
“Thank you so much, Xiao Tang.” Master Wang sat up. “In that case, let me teach you how to do perms and dyes. You can't really ruin a haircut doing that,” he said earnestly.
Que Tang doubled over laughing. “Sure, I’ll come back another day to learn. I have to go home and feed the cat now.” She saw the clock on the wall and realized it was time for Little Mushroom’s meal. She bid Master Wang goodbye and walked out of the shop, happily swinging her keys.
“Que Tang.”
Que Tang froze, staring blankly at Lan Mi standing before her.
“You really are here.” Lan Mi had been waiting downstairs at Han Geng’s place and saw her walk out of the barbershop. She stepped forward to grab Que Tang’s hand, but Que Tang dodged.
“What are you doing here? No, how did you know I was here?” She looked at Lan Mi with distant, detached eyes.
Seeing her cold expression, Lan Mi clenched her fists to restrain her emotions, a gentle smile forced onto her face. “Que Tang... give me another chance. Can we talk?”
Que Tang turned her head away. “General Manager, there is nothing left for us to say.” *A boss who doesn't even pay salary—one star review!*
“Que Tang.” Unable to control herself any longer, Lan Mi lunged forward and pulled Que Tang into a tight embrace, burying her face in the girl’s shoulder. Only when her nose was filled with Que Tang’s scent did her agonizing regret finally ease slightly, giving her a sense of reality. “I... I really do love you.” Tears began to spill from her eyes, one by one. “I’m sorry. Please forgive me, okay?”
“General Manager... I’m sorry.” Que Tang stood there and let her hold her, but she didn't respond. “I really don't know how to tell if you’re being truthful or not. I’ve been fooled once. Even though I knew you were using me, I jumped into your trap without hesitation to help you achieve what you wanted. Now that I’ve finally managed to pull myself out, I won't repeat the same mistake twice. Besides... I’m already with my Senior.”
“Impossible! Que Tang, Han Geng isn't good enough for you!” Lan Mi cried out in disbelief.
Que Tang was silent for a moment before bluntly admitting she was lying. “Fine, I lied to you. But so what if it’s a lie? Do you expect me to believe you again?”
Hearing this, Lan Mi tightened her grip in a panic, terrified that if she let go, Que Tang would vanish without a trace again. She held Que Tang and cried for a long time before finally making a decision. “Your guess was right. I did target you from the start. I had the Finance Department create six months of fake reports.” Feeling the resistance in her arms, she immediately added, “Que Tang, do you believe in rebirth?”
Que Tang stopped struggling and said in disbelief, “Rebirth?”
“Yes... I was reborn.” She lifted her head, her face flushed from crying as she looked at Que Tang. “I will explain everything to you. Just listen to me finish before you decide, okay?” she pleaded.
Looking at Lan Mi’s state, Que Tang lowered her eyes and, unwilling to admit she had softened, gave a small nod.
“Meow~ Female lead’s happiness +10, it’s at 60 now. Keep it up, Host!”
“...” Que Tang had acted so hard her own eyes were tearing up. Being this invested in the role was truly exhausting.
