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

Mr. Huo's methods for pursuing Wanwan are quite sophisticated.

Make your own hand-drip coffee! I won't let her drink instant coffee every night! Who could resist that!

Xia Ruo mentally gave Huo Sinian's strategy for winning her heart a perfect score, then strode back to her workstation:

"Wanwan, Mr. Huo personally made you a hand-drip coffee." She lowered her voice.

"They said drinking instant coffee is bad for your health."

Lin Wanzhi was looking at the documents when she heard this. She looked up and her eyes widened.

"Huh? Mr. Huo? For me? Why?"

Xia Ruo shrugged, a meaningful smile curving her lips: "What do you think?"

She deliberately dragged out the last syllable, leaving plenty of room for imagination.

Lin Wanzhi's expression changed from confusion to horror.

She shrank back, moving about half a foot away from the cup of coffee, her hands flared out in front of her like a fan.

"No, no, no—I'm scared—Is Mr. Huo trying to poison me?"

Her voice rose half a tone, drawing a sidelong glance from her colleague at the next workstation.

"How could that be?" Xia Ruo pulled up a chair and sat down, leaning closer to her and lowering her voice.

"I saw him do the whole process with my own eyes, from grinding the beans to pouring water, he was very serious about every step."

Don't worry, Mr. Huo is just showing concern for you.

"No, no—" Lin Wanzhi shook her head frantically.

"Ruoruo, please drink it for me! I won't touch a single drop of coffee starting today!"

Looking at her expression that seemed to say, "President Huo, please don't come any closer," Xia Ruo couldn't help but sigh inwardly.

She truly lives up to her reputation as the female lead in the novel.

She only waits for the male lead to appear, and she will only fall for him. No matter how outstanding, gentle, or considerate other people are, they will never catch her eye.

Is this the legendary protagonist's halo?

Even a handsome guy like CEO Huo can only have a place on the female lead's "rejection list".

Poor Mr. Huo. His unrequited love ended before it even began.

"Okay~ then I'll drink it for you," Xia Ruo said, handing over the cup of coffee.

"I like to drink."

She took a sip. The flavor was rich and smooth, with a balanced acidity and bitterness, and a lingering sweetness. It was definitely a million times better than instant coffee.

I sat back down at my desk, opened my phone, and sent a message to Zhou Siyan:

"Brother, I was scared by the CEO at work today, sob sob! My heart was racing when he suddenly talked to me!"

After sending it, she thought about it and realized that the "heart racing" comment might cause a misunderstanding.

But then she thought about it again and realized that what she said was true. She was indeed startled when Huo Sinian suddenly spoke to her. Her heart racing was a physiological reaction, not a sign of being attracted to someone.

Zero: [Why is my heart racing?]

Xia Ruo stared at the line of text, a slight smile curving her lips. See? She really cared.

She thought for a moment and replied:

"Because it was so sudden! And he's quite handsome, who wouldn't be nervous getting so close... But don't worry, brother, I only have you in my heart!"

After sending it, she felt that she had written a really good script.

Honestly—Huosinian is indeed handsome, that's an objective fact;

It's another way of comforting people—the key is in the last sentence, "My heart only belongs to my brother." Perfect, no flaws.

In the office, Zhou Siyan leaned back in his chair, his phone screen lit up with the message Xia Ruo had just sent.

"And he's quite handsome."

He stared at the words, and the corners of his mouth slowly curved into a smile. She said he was handsome.

She didn't know that "he" and "brother" were the same person.

So, without her knowledge, she complimented her boyfriend on his good looks in front of him.

Zero: [Am I more handsome than me?]

When he typed those words, he couldn't suppress the smile on his face.

Downstairs at her workstation, Xia Ruo almost burst out laughing when she saw the message.

Jealous? I knew it.

"How could that be! My brother is the most handsome! My brother is the most handsome man in the world!"

She typed two exclamation marks in one go, and added a flying kiss emoji.

After sending the message, she leaned back in her chair, took another sip of her hand-drip coffee, and thought to herself: she had evolved from being "forced to do it" to being "effortlessly skilled" at coaxing people.

Would you consider this a professional skill gained from transmigrating into a book?

Zhou Siyan looked at the "Number One Handsome Man in the World" sign, and a smile finally spread across his face.

He put down his phone, picked up the documents on the table, but couldn't read a single word.

My mind is filled with the image of her in the break room, holding her water cup, trying to appear calm, and secretly glancing at his profile...

He murmured softly, his tone tinged with indulgence and amusement: "Little liar."

You've kept this from me for so long, wanting to try something different, right? Wanting to learn something new, right?

Then I will grant your wish.

He picked up the intercom on the table and said in a calm tone, "Have Manager Zhang come to my office."

……

When Zhang Nan knocked and came in, Zhou Siyan was looking down at a document, not even lifting his eyelids.

He first asked a few routine questions, which Zhang Nan answered one by one, in a clear and organized manner.

He nodded, then changed the subject: "Have Xia Ruo, the new employee, independently write a proposal based on the projects in the materials from the past two days. It's due by tomorrow morning."

Zhang Nan was stunned for a moment, then subconsciously pleaded for Xia Ruo:

"Mr. Huo, Xia Ruo has only been here for two days and hasn't gotten familiar with the business yet. It would be too difficult for her to write a plan overnight."

Should we give her a few more days, or arrange for someone to look after her?

Zhou Siyan finally raised his head, his gaze falling on Zhang Nan's face:

"If you dare to ask for a monthly salary of 100,000, you have to demonstrate the abilities that come with it."

Zhang Nan's lips moved slightly, but she didn't say anything more.

That's something that can't be refuted.

She could only nod: "Understood, Mr. Huo."

……

When Zhang Nan came down from the top floor and walked to Xia Ruo's workstation, she looked somewhat troubled.

She took a deep breath, trying to make her tone sound less like she was announcing bad news:

"Xia Ruo, President Huo wants you to write a project proposal tonight, incorporating the projects from the materials we've gathered over the past two days. It's due by tomorrow morning."

Xia Ruo froze on the spot, her peach blossom eyes wide open:

"What? You want me to write this all night? Sister Zhang, are you serious?"

Zhang Nan sighed, briefly recounted what had happened in the office, and added at the end:

"Don't put too much pressure on yourself. I'll compile a few past project proposals and send them to you for reference later."

I guess President Huo just wanted to take this opportunity to test your true abilities, not to deliberately make things difficult for you.

Lin Wanzhi listened anxiously from the side, her brows furrowed into a tight knot:

"Are you only letting Ruoruo write?"

One night isn't enough time! I'll stay and help her; two people are always faster than one."

Zhang Nan shook her head, a hint of helplessness in her voice:

"No, President Huo specifically instructed that Xia Ruo must complete this independently."

Xia Ruo leaned back in her chair, her mind racing. She hadn't offended this big boss.

Although she did want a busy job as an excuse to postpone the meeting, writing a complete plan in one night was something she had never experienced even when she was working like a slave at the rice company in her previous life.

Could it be that when I told him in the break room that I "wanted to come to the company to gain experience and learn more," he took it to heart?

She thought about it and then rejected the idea.

How could a high-ranking CEO, who is extremely busy, possibly assign work to an intern just because of a polite remark?

No, it's really not that bad.

Her gaze unconsciously fell on the empty coffee cup on the table, and suddenly she froze as if struck by lightning.