He stole his best friend's photos and fell for a tycoon's heir through online dating.

The two walked out of the mall, and the setting sun dyed the whole street orange-red.

The clouds on the horizon burned into one, and the warm sunlight shone on my face, making even the air feel soft.

Lin Wanzhi was still chattering away, but Xia Ruo didn't hear a word she said.

She took out her phone.

There were three unread messages on the screen, all from Zhou Siyan.

Zero: [Why isn't the baby talking?]

Zero: [Are you too tired from shopping?]

Zero: [Sweetie, go back to your dorm and get some rest.]

As Xia Ruo looked at the three messages, the unease in her heart slowly dissipated.

Compared to Zhou Siyan, Lin Wanxun's matter is really nothing.

"Brother, I spent a lot of money today, and I feel a little bad about it."

Zero: [What's there to feel sorry about? The money your brother earns is for you, baby.]

Zero: [Not spending is the real waste.]

Xia Ruo stared at the words "not spending is a waste" and suddenly felt that every word this man said was like brainwashing her.

But she had to admit that the brainwashing was quite effective.

"Then brother should also be careful with his money, because I don't want him to work too hard."

Zero: [Okay, I'll listen to you, baby.]

(Transfer: 100000 yuan)

Xia Ruo stared at the transfer, numb to it all.

She silently accepted the money and put her phone back in her pocket.

"Ruo Ruo, what are you grinning about?" Lin Wanzhi leaned closer, her face almost touching Ruo Ruo's.

"No." Xia Ruo put on a serious face.

"Your grin is practically reaching your ears, and you're still saying no!"

"That's from being exposed to the setting sun."

"Sunset glow? Do you think I'm a three-year-old?"

"Even a three-year-old is smarter than you."

"Xia Ruo!!!"

Lin Wanzhi lunged at her with her claws outstretched, while Xia Ruo laughed and dodged to the side. The two of them played around in the sunset, swinging their shopping bags back and forth, attracting the attention of passersby.

The wind blew from behind them, scattering their laughter in the orange-red light.

In the distance, the glass curtain wall of the shopping mall reflected the last rays of sunlight, shining like a giant mirror.

In front of the floor-to-ceiling windows of the rooftop restaurant, a man stood there, holding a half-finished glass of red wine in his hand, his gaze passing through the glass and landing on the two playful figures below.

He watched for a long time until the two shadows turned the corner and disappeared completely into the twilight.

He put down his wine glass, picked up his phone, and saw a message Xia Ruo had just sent: "Brother, I spent a lot of money today, and it hurts a little."

He stared at the line of text, a very faint smile slowly curving his lips.

"Baby."

We look forward to your joining the company.

After saying that, he picked up his wine glass and drank the half-glass of red wine in one gulp.

-

On Monday morning, sunlight peeked out from behind the clouds, bathing the entire Dingxin Media Building in a pale golden light.

Xia Ruo and Lin Wanzhi stood at the entrance of the building, looking up at the gilded signboard. The two of them were like two baby birds leaving the nest for the first time, both excited and nervous.

Lin Wanzhi clutched Xia Ruo's sleeve: "Ruo Ruo, I'm a little nervous..."

Xia Ruo looked down at her crumpled sleeve and sighed.

"What's there to be nervous about? The contract's already signed, they're not going to eat us alive, are they?"

She spoke words of comfort, her tone nonchalant, but in reality, she was also feeling uneasy.

Lin Wanzhi was afraid of not doing her job well and being scolded by her boss.

Xia Ruo was afraid that the job wasn't busy enough, tiring enough, or enough to give her the right to tell Zhou Siyan that she didn't have time to meet.

She needs this job to be like a meat grinder, shredding her time and energy to pieces, leaving her with no energy left to reply to messages.

Only in this way can she postpone the "meeting" indefinitely.

"Let's go." Xia Ruo took a deep breath and pushed open the glass door.

The lobby was spacious and bright, with marble floors and the Dingxin Media logo hanging on the wall behind the reception desk. A faint, pleasant woody scent filled the air.

The receptionist verified their identities and handed them two elevator cards with a smile.

"Manager Zhang is waiting for you on the fifth floor. Take the elevator up and turn left."

Lin Wanzhi took the card, thanked her quietly, and followed Xia Ruo into the elevator.

"Ruoruo," she said, looking at her reflection in the elevator and adjusting her collar, "do you think Manager Zhang is very strict?"

"She's an HR person, whether she's strict or not doesn't really concern us."

"So who is our direct supervisor?"

Xia Ruo thought for a moment: "I don't know. It's not written in the contract."

"..." Lin Wanzhi's expression was as if she had been doused with a bucket of cold water.

"You signed this contract like this? You don't even know who's in charge?"

"You didn't even look at it! Besides, with a contract offering a monthly salary of 100,000, who cares about you?"

Lin Wanzhi opened her mouth, only to find that she couldn't refute it.

The elevator doors opened, and at the end of the corridor stood a man in a black suit, his back to them, talking to Zhang Nan.

His back was tall, with broad and straight shoulders, and his suit was well-tailored, clearly not from a ready-made clothing store.

Zhang Nan saw them and waved: "Over here!"

The man turned around.

Xia Ruo's first reaction was—what did this person eat to grow up like this?

He was very tall, probably over 1.88 meters, wearing a dark gray suit jacket over a thin black sweater. He wasn't wearing a tie, and the collar was slightly open, revealing a section of his well-defined collarbone.

His facial features looked as if they had been carved with a knife.

His brow bone is high and sharp, and his nose bridge is like the ridgeline of a mountain, making his face look three-dimensional and austere.

His thin lips were slightly pursed, and what was most striking about him were his eyes.

The eye sockets are slightly sunken, and the pupils are very, very dark, so dark that when you stare at them, you feel that they are not a pair of eyes, but two bottomless pools of water.

He stood there, expressionless, motionless, and without saying a word.

But the temperature in the corridor seemed to have dropped by two degrees.

Xia Ruo glanced at him once, then subconsciously looked away.

It's so oppressive.

She even felt that this man was more terrifying than Zhou Siyan.

At least when Zhou Siyan is on screen, she still sends cat emojis.

"Mr. Huo, these two are the new interns."

Zhang Nan stepped aside to make way, her tone respectful but not servile.

"Lin Wanzhi, Xia Ruo."

Huo Sinian's gaze first swept over Lin Wanzhi's face, lingered for a moment on her pale yellow dress, and then slowly moved to Xia Ruo.

His gaze slid from her almond-shaped eyes to the small mole on the tip of her nose, from her slightly pursed lips to the tiny silver earring on her earlobe.

"Hmm." He nodded, his voice deep and authoritative, carrying a calm and collected air.

"Manager Zhang will show you around the business."

After saying that, he turned and left.

Zhang Nan watched him walk away, then smiled at the two of them with a sigh of relief, and said in a low voice:

"President Huo is a very nice person, he just seems a bit cold, but you'll get used to it. Come on, I'll take you to your workstations."

Lin Wanzhi tugged at Xia Ruo's sleeve, her eyes fixed on the direction where Huo Sinian had disappeared, and whispered:

"Ruoruo...Mr. Huo is so handsome..."

Xia Ruo pulled her forward expressionlessly: "Being handsome can't put food on the table."

She said that, but what she was really thinking was:

That aura is terrifying.

Being in the same space with him made her feel like a schoolchild who had made a mistake, standing at the door of the principal's office, not daring to breathe.

Fortunately, he wasn't her target.