Sweetie, don't look at him, kiss me.

The elevator doors closed, leaving Fang Shiyang in the lobby.

She stood at the elevator entrance, watching the metal door close completely, her brows furrowed so deeply they almost knotted together.

As a design director, she was only a middle manager in the Century Building. How could she be qualified to go upstairs with Madam Ji and Su Tingwan?

She bit her lip, looked down and took out her phone, found Ji Linzhou's number, and was just about to dial when she looked up and saw the door to the VIP lounge on the side of the lobby open.

Ji Linzhou walked out, still holding his phone, his expression indifferent, revealing no emotion.

Fang Shiyang's eyes lit up, and he quickly ran to meet her: "Something's happened."

She ran up to him and whispered, "It's terrible! Old Madam Ji is here, with Su Tingwan, a huge group of reporters and livestreaming influencers. They've all gone upstairs now."

Ji Linzhou frowned slightly: "What are they doing here?"

"What else can you do besides force someone into marriage?"

Fang Shiyang was so anxious that he kept wiping his sweat: "Please don't go up there. Just let them miss their target, and they'll leave once they've had their fun."

Ji Linzhou paused for a moment, then looked up at her: "Where's Lin Qingmian?"

Fang Shiyang paused for a moment, then suddenly remembered: "Qingmian... was pulled up by Su Tingwan."

"Su Tingwan said she wanted to set a wedding date with you, and insisted on dragging Qingmian up to be a witness. I couldn't stop her..."

Before she could finish speaking, Ji Linzhou had already lifted his leg and strode towards the elevator.

Fang Shiyang quickly caught up and grabbed his arm: "Boss!"

Her voice trembled with anxiety: "There are so many reporters watching down there! If you go up now, you'll have to give Su Tingwan an explanation today!"

"You know how venomous those reporters are. If you don't go along with them, tomorrow's headline will be 'The CEO of the Ji Group abandons his mistress after starting a relationship'."

Ji Linzhou stopped and looked back at her.

The man's gaze was calm, but his voice was cold and devoid of warmth: "Then give them an explanation."

After saying that, he turned around and took two steps, then stopped again.

"besides."

He glanced back at Fang Shiyang: "Don't tell Lin Qingmian that I'm the boss of the Morning and Evening Line."

Fang Shiyang paused for a moment: "But...you're going to meet today..."

Ji Linzhou was silent for two seconds, then his thin lips moved slightly: "The meeting is canceled."

The man said those words and turned to walk into the elevator.

The elevator doors closed, and the floor numbers began to change.

Fang Shiyang stood in the empty hall, opened his mouth, but couldn't say anything for a long time.

She glanced at the elevator, then at her phone, and suddenly felt that everything today had an inexplicable and eerie quality.

The boss and that designer named Lin Qingmian...

What exactly is their relationship?

Top floor.

Outside Ji Linzhou's office, two young women at the secretary's desk stood helplessly in front of the imposing Madam Ji and Su Tingwan, whose eyes were red with tears.

"Where is Ji Linzhou?"

Grandma Ji tapped the ground with her cane: "Make him come out and see me!"

The young secretary's voice trembled with fear: "Mr. Ji... he's not in his office. He hasn't come back since the meeting this morning..."

"Not here?"

Grandma Ji frowned and turned to look at Su Tingwan.

Su Tingwan's aggrieved expression froze for a moment, but she quickly regained her gentle and dignified demeanor.

She gently took Old Mrs. Ji's arm: "Auntie, it's alright. Lin Zhou might really have gone out on something. We'll just wait a bit."

After saying that, she turned to look at Lin Qingmian, a gentle smile curving her lips: "Miss Lin, please don't stand there, come in and sit down."

As she spoke, she actually acted like the hostess, ushering Lin Qingmian into Ji Linzhou's office.

Lin Qingmian lowered her eyes, did not refuse, and followed him inside.

The office is large, with floor-to-ceiling windows offering a panoramic view overlooking the entire city of Fuzhou.

Madam Ji sat down on the sofa, Su Tingwan sat beside her, and Lin Qingmian sat down on a single chair opposite her.

The secretary hurriedly brought in tea and then left, leaving only the three of them in the office, along with the subtle awkwardness in the air.

Su Tingwan picked up her teacup and took a sip, seemingly in no hurry to speak.

After about half a minute of silence, Old Madam Ji finally couldn't hold back any longer. She raised her eyes and glanced at Lin Qingmian: "You're quite the sitter."

Lin Qingmian looked up at her: "Otherwise what?"

Old Madam Ji sneered, "How dare you, someone who was jilted by the Ji family, sit in Ji Linzhou's office?"

Lin Qingmian didn't say anything, but simply picked up the water glass in front of her and took a sip.

Seeing this, Su Tingwan put down her teacup and sighed, "Auntie, please don't say that about Miss Lin. Actually, I've heard some things about what happened between her and Xingye back then."

She looked at Lin Qingmian, her gaze gentle yet carrying a certain condescending pity: "Back then, Miss Lin also sacrificed a lot for Xingye. She waited outside the Ji family's gate for several days, getting soaked in the rain and even developing a fever... That kind of affection is quite touching."

Madam Ji snorted coldly: "What's there to be moved about? I've seen plenty of girls who throw themselves at you, but I've never seen one as shameless as this."

"The engagement has been called off, yet she keeps pestering me. Doesn't she feel ashamed?"

Lin Qingmian's fingers tightened slightly as she gripped the water glass.

She put down her water glass and said in a calm voice, "Madam Ji, if you want to wait for Ji Linzhou, I will wait with you. But if you just want to chat about these old stories, then I'm afraid I can't keep you company."

As she spoke, she took her phone out of her bag.

The phone vibrated as soon as the screen lit up, before it was even unlocked.

The caller ID displayed three words: "Zhang Yuzhu".

Lin Qingmian's fingertips paused for a moment.

She hesitated for a second, but still pressed the answer button.

Zhang Yuzhu's shrill, piercing voice immediately came from the other end of the phone: "Lin Qingmian! Have you no shame?"

"Your sister looked at the photos in the news over and over again, more than a dozen times, and finally recognized that the woman whose face was blurred was you!"

"You're already married, how come you're still involved with Ji Linzhou? Are you trying to kill our whole family?"

Before Lin Qingmian could speak, a hand suddenly reached out from the side and snatched her phone away.

It was Su Tingwan.

She had somehow appeared beside her, holding her phone and smiling as she spoke into the microphone, "Mrs. Lin, please don't be angry, this is Su Tingwan."

Zhang Yuzhu on the other end of the phone was clearly stunned.

Su Tingwan continued with a smile, "Miss Lin is currently in Linzhou's office, and we are waiting for her to return."

"If you're interested, why don't you come over too? We can talk things out together and avoid any misunderstandings later."

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the phone.

A few seconds later, Lin Qingqing's voice came from the other end, tinged with laughter: "Okay, we'll be right there."

After hanging up the phone, Su Tingwan returned the phone to Lin Qingmian, smiling gently and innocently: "Miss Lin, your family is just concerned about you, please don't think I'm being nosy."

Lin Qingmian took the phone, her fingertips tracing the cold edge of the screen: "No."