CHAPTER 223: CHAPTER 223: WAITING FOR YOU TO COME HOME

Bian Yue arrived at the company very early the next day, without pondering too much about the reason.

She simply attributed it to being extremely busy with work.

That excuse allowed Bian Yue to temporarily forget the unpleasantness with Shen Jinci from last night.

Meanwhile, at Mintang Media, Ah Si and Meng Qi were waiting at the door of the office and approached her as they saw Bian Yue appear.

"President Bian!" Ah Si said with a smile: "You’re finally here, we’ve been waiting for you for a long time!"

Bian Yue looked at Ah Si amusedly and teased him: "What’s the matter? I haven’t fallen behind on paying your salaries, have I?"

"That’s not it!" Ah Si paused and handed a gift to Bian Yue, "This is a gift Meng Qi and I picked out for you, hoping Honey can continue to flourish."

The simple greetings and well-wishes slightly dispelled the clouds in Bian Yue’s heart.

She shook the gift box in her hand and verified: "This isn’t too expensive, is it?"

"Not at all, we couldn’t afford anything expensive!" laughed Ah Si. "It’s just a simple little gift."

Bian Yue smiled softly, "Then I’ll accept it, thank you."

Ah Si heartily said no thanks were necessary, while Meng Qi, standing nearby, smiled at Bian Yue with a slightly constrained expression.

Taking the gift, Bian Yue entered her office and opened it to find a simple rabbit ornament.

Indeed, it was the type of thing a young girl would like.

Bian Yue chuckled, placed the ornament on her desk, paused for a moment, and suddenly thought of something. She called anny on the intercom.

anny quickly entered, curiously looking at Bian Yue: "President Bian, what’s up?"

Bian Yue handed over the ornament, "Check this."

"What should I check?" anny laughed upon seeing the trinket Bian Yue passed to her, "It’s genuinely cute. Who gave it to you?"

"Ah Si gave it, saying it’s from both him and Meng Qi."

"What’s there to check?" anny didn’t understand.

Bian Yue’s expression was calm as she spoke in a detached tone, "Check to see if there are any surveillance or eavesdropping components."

anny’s eyes widened in astonishment, "Isn’t that unlikely? When has Ah Si ever been so cunning?"

"Ah Si might look simple-minded, but Meng Qi’s complexion seemed off. Just check it for me," whispered Bian Yue gently.

anny agreed, but still looked at Bian Yue with a complicated gaze. Hesitating for a moment, she said with some doubt, "President Bian, aren’t you being a bit too cautious now?"

Bian Yue looked mildly startled.

She knew her paranoia had heightened, but on deeper reflection, even Bian Yue herself couldn’t pinpoint when this problem had started.

She fell silent for a moment, then looking helplessly at anny, she softly said, "I don’t want to be like this either, but right now I can’t afford to make a single misstep. Later I’m going to discuss the new script with Lu Zhonian; please hurry and check it."

"Okay..." anny took another look at the ordinary-looking ornament and said with a smile, "Don’t worry, President Bian. I’ll give it a thorough check today."

Bian Yue smiled and responded gently, "Thank you for your hard work."

With the intense daylight, Bian Yue finished dealing with assorted matters and then headed to Xinghe.

On the way, Shen Jinci sent her a message saying he needed to go abroad and would be back in seven days, asking Bian Yue to take care of herself.

Bian Yue, visualizing Shen Jinci’s expression when he sent the message, felt an indescribable heartache and sourness.

She typed out a slow response— "Is it really urgent? Do you have to go abroad now?"

But the next moment, Bian Yue frowned and deleted the entire message.

Biting her lip, her expression complex, she took her time and rewrote— ’Okay, take care on your journey, waiting for you to come home.’

After sending it, Bian Yue stared blankly out the window.

Her mind was so troubled that she remained immersed in her own world even upon reaching the entrance of Xinghe.

The driver kindly said: "President Bian, we’ve arrived."

Only then did Bian Yue snap back to reality and stepped out of the car.

Lu Zhonian had been waiting for a while and his eyes and brows stretched with a smile when he saw Bian Yue walk in.

He set down his cup and nodded with a smile towards Bian Yue, slowly saying, "Haven’t seen you in days. I heard you struck a bet with Lixing."

Bian Yue sat down, looking at Lu Zhonian with no mood for small talk, "My dealings with Lixing have nothing to do with our partnership, so no comment."

Lu Zhonian raised an eyebrow and placed a cup of tea in front of Bian Yue, "Why do I feel like you’re taking it out on me?"

"I’m not."

"But your attitude seems quite bad," Lu Zhonian straightened his suit jacket, his demeanor formal as he slowly sat down, looking at Bian Yue with a light smile and a pondering gaze, "Let me guess why you’re so angry? Because... I told you those things?"

"Lu Zhonian, you know very well, the reason you told me is just that you want me to give up the partnership with Lixing, so that Xinghe can dominate the market. Even if I hold the final say, it’s hard to have absolute power in Honey," Bian Yue’s voice was cold, equally straightforward, "I admit, I pushed for the partnership with Lixing exactly to suppress your influence in Honey."

Lu Zhonian couldn’t help but laugh.

Bian Yue was a unique presence in his career, straightforward and never beating around the bush, disdaining to entertain anything circuitous in her view.

Pondering for a moment, Lu Zhonian nodded with an undiminished smile, "But how can you be sure that Lixing is more suitable for Honey than Xinghe is? Perhaps neither of us are good people."

"It doesn’t matter, only when there are three parties can there be checks and balances, right?" Bian Yue said coldly, "Can we talk about the partnership now?"

"Of course, we can. But before we discuss the partnership, I still wanted to ask you one last question."

Bian Yue coldly responded, "Ask."

"Now you know, the events of the Bian Family back then were not unrelated to the Shen Family. I don’t understand why you would choose to stay with Shen Jinci." Lu Zhonian slightly tilted his head with a hint of mockery, "Could it be that the glory of the Bian Family doesn’t weigh as much in your heart as Shen Jinci does?"

Bian Yue, without a moment’s hesitation, slowly said, "I never compared Shen Jinci and the Bian Family together. Back then, our positions were different. I understand the difficulties of his position, so I don’t hate him, nor do I blame him. He didn’t use me, he was just making a business decision and did not interfere in the Bian Li family conflict."

"So then?"

"So between us, it’s just a matter for negotiation, and all I need from him is an explanation..."

Lu Zhonian looked surprised.

Bian Yue’s composure astonished him, no wonder she still proceeded with the partnership with Lixing despite such blows.

Suddenly he felt it was dull, and said with diminished enthusiasm, "Alright, let’s talk about the new project."