Chapter 21 – Abbess Miejue Gave Leng Xiyao a Hard Time
Leng Xiyao hugged her tightly and said, “Suqing, don’t be sad. I was kidding.”
She looked at Mo Suqing and said, “The thing is, I heard a rumor that Gu Group is under severe attack from Mighty Empire these days. I wonder whom Gu Jiannan has provoked?”
She pressed her lips together and continued, “In A?City, anyone who sets himself against Mighty Empire is dead meat! I am truly sorry for Gu Jiannan right now.?It’s like getting?his temple?pressed?against the muzzle of a gun!”
Although Leng Xiyao had said she was sorry for Gu Jiannan, her face revealed that she obviously took pleasure in his misfortune. She would lose no opportunity to express her support for Mo Suqing by abusing her enemy.
Catching the words “Mighty Empire,” Mo Suqing’s expression changed a little. Didn’t Ye Zhongjue work for Mighty Empire?
She pondered over the whole thing for a while and then said, “So Gu Group had an accident. No wonder Gu Jiannan didn’t show up today. I was thinking about how it is unlike him to give up all of a sudden. Back in high school when he was trying to pursue ? ? ?me, he sure waited for me outside my house every day. Not a single day did he fail to show up. I will give him this credit: he is a man of perseverance.”
Mo Suqing gave a bitter laugh and continued, “However, ever since I?found out?about him and Mo Sulian,?I’ve cut all ties. His personal affairs are no longer mine to worry about.”
Leng Xiyao’s mouth slightly twitched. “When I told you Gu Group is suffering some mishap, why did your expression change?”
Mo Suqing leaned against the wall and replied thoughtfully, “It’s not a big deal. It just occurred to me that Ye Zhongjue is an employee of Mighty Empire.”
Leng Xiyao didn’t connect the dots at first. Then, “Are you implying that Ye Zhongjue has something to do with it?”
Mo Suqing tilted her mouth and said dismissively, “Of course not! I just remembered he works for them, that’s all. He’s only an assistant. What can he do?”
“That’s true,” Leng Xiyao nodded in agreement. ?“Anyway, it’s a good thing he didn’t show up. You don’t need to sneak into and out of the office like a thief now.” she joked as an afterthought.
Mo Suqing pushed off the wall and put on a sinister smile, “What did you say?”
Leng Xiyao suddenly realized that she had said something inappropriate. She laughed nervously and said, “What? I?have been?quite forgetful recently… What did I say? I completely forgot.”
She feigned ignorance and quickly fled before Mo Suqing had time to react.
Mo Suqing smiled fondly after her. They had been friends forever. How could she not know Leng Xiyao was only kidding? To be honest, she did feel good about not having Gu Jiannan harass her anymore.
Mo Suqing walked out of the restroom and saw that Leng Xiyao had her head on the desk, looking desolate. She approached with concern.
“What happened?to?you? You were fine in the restroom just now. Why are you unhappy all of a sudden?”
Leng Xiyao raised her head and looked at her miserably. Her lips moved but her voice was less than a whisper.
Yet Mo Suqing made it out. “Abbess Miejue came. I don’t know why, but she just flipped out and yelled at me with no apparent reason. She said I do not work hard enough and am not at my desk all the time, and that if I continue like this, she’s gonna fire me…” Mo Suqing’s brow furrowed. She looked at the others who were working around them, their heads hung low.
“She told you this in front of everybody?”
Leng Xiyao pressed her lips together and nodded slowly. Mo Suqing’s face darkened. Abbess Miejue never flared up like this without a cause. Why had she gotten mad at Yao today?
Mo Suqing could not explain her behavior, but she was certain of one thing: she was not happy about it.
Leng Xiyao was a friend and sister to her. Even if she was the one who had been humiliated today, she wouldn’t have been half angry.
Mo Suqing patted Leng Xiyao on the shoulder and said, “Alright. Stop thinking about it and do your work.”
Then, she walked toward the editor-in-chief’s office.
Leng Xiyao was going to stop her, but it was too late. Mo Suqing pushed open the door to An Huilin’s office.
An?Huilin looked up. Her expression was very ugly, as if something entirely unacceptable had happened to her.
“What are you doing here?”
Mo Suqing looked at her with a stony face and said without preamble, “Yeah, you are the boss and have the right to admonish your subordinates. However, a lot of people didn’t come in today and many of those who did are hardly working. Why did you?only?get mad at Leng Xiyao? Because she looks like a pushover?”
An Huilin sneered. “What, are you standing up for Leng Xiyao?”
“So what if I am?” Mo Suqing returned coldly.
“Humph!” An Huilin snorted. “Nowadays, no one likes to stand out like you do anymore. It’s okay, I’ll cut you some slack because you are stepping up for a friend. But I can tell you one thing, I gave Leng Xiyao a dressing-down not because of anything work-related. I won’t tell you the real reason, so you can go now!”
Mo Suqing was puzzled.?It’s unrelated to work? But the two of them don’t have any interaction outside work, so how could there be another reason?
However, An Huilin had asked her to leave, so barring a change in her expression, Mo Suqing only said, “Then, I hope you won’t use work as an excuse to settle personal scores again!”
She turned and walked away, leaving a steely-looking An Huilin behind.
She glared at the general direction of Leng Xiyao, her eyes twinkling as if with tears.
For the entire morning, Mo Suqing too wasn’t in a very productive mood. The fact that she had a super star to stalk in the afternoon for a gossip story and the?incident with?An Huilin picking at Leng Xiyao did not help with concentration.
Finally, it was lunch time.
Leng Xiyao and Mo Suqing went out for lunch. The dishes?had?yet to come. Mo Suqing looked at Leng Xiyao and asked, “Yao, have you had some disagreement with Abbess Miejue?previously?”
“Not that I know of,” Leng Xiyao shook her head slowly. She seemed to be a little distracted. Apparently, she was still thinking about what had happened in the morning.
“That’s weird!” Mo Suqing frowned. “When I confronted Abbess Miejue, she said she didn’t treat you like that because of work stuff. But, she didn’t mention the real reason either. I thought you might have offended her in one way or another, and that’s why she gave you such a hard time.”
Leng Xiyao moaned, her tone full of sorrow, “That’s not possible! For one thing, we haven’t worked for the magazine for a long time; for another, I have helped get all the big scoops. I really don’t think I have done anything worth her wrath in the workplace and I certainly don’t have any interaction with her in private, so how could I possibly offend her? She was crazy, embarrassing herself like that in front of everybody.”
“Forget it! Let’s not think about it anymore!” Mo Suqing patted her on the shoulder and said, “I’ll tell you what, you go back home and get some rest in the afternoon. I will gather the news for today by myself. Okay?”
Leng Xiyao thought for a moment and nodded. Indeed, she was not herself today.
“Okay. You be extra careful; call me if anything happens!”
“No problem,” Mo Suqing tore open the packaging of the chopsticks and handed them to her. “Don’t worry. I’ll be fine.”
They finished lunch fairly quickly. When they were about to part ways, Leng Xiyao suggested casually, “We haven’t had anything huge for some time. I have an idea. When I am back, you and I should go dig up something together.”
“What’s the idea?” Mo Suqing looked at her curiously.
Leng Xiyao said mysteriously, “This morning, we were talking about Mighty Empire, one of the two giants in A?City?with The Unparalleled being the other. We know that since the new CEO of Mighty Empire showed up three years ago, no one has seen him in person or found out what he looks like yet! So I say let’s be the first one to do that. It will undoubtedly be the top story.”
Leng Xiyao looked at Mo Suqing, full of pride. “Suqing, isn’t it a good idea?”
Mo Suqing looked at her and replied, “As far as I know, no one knows what the CEO of The Unparalleled looks like either. Why don’t you suggest looking him up instead?”
Leng Xiyao said easily, “I’m just more interested in Mighty Empire!?Are you coming with me or not?”
Then, she swung Mo Suqing’s arm back and forth pleadingly.
Mo Suqing gave her a “what should I do?with?you” look. “Fine! We will start gathering information as soon as you are back. Now, go home and get some rest.”
“Okay!” Leng Xiyao nodded, beaming, her mood having improved considerably.
Then, she added, “Suqing, I will begin my research on Mighty Empire at home this afternoon.?Be careful when you’re on your own.”
She gave Mo Suqing a broad smile and reassured her, “We didn’t bust Guan Zixuan last time, but I believe we will definitely catch him this time! I am sure the information is correct.”
Leng Xiyao shut herself up when she noticed the look on Mo Suqing’s face. She had forgotten that their last attempt to bust Guan Zixuan was the time Mo Suqing had found out about Gu Jiannan and Mo Sulian.
Mo Suqing’s lips twitched a little. She smiled lightly and spoke in an ironic tone, “It’s okay. It’s all behind me now. I have made my peace with it. I have gotten married, haven’t I? Don’t have any scruples when you are talking to me.”
Despite what Mo Suqing had said, Leng Xiyao still felt guilty about saying the wrong?things.
“Don’t feel bad! Look at you screwing?up your pretty face like that. Now, go home and get some rest.” Mo Suqing said in a brisk tone and playfully pinched Leng Xiyao on the cheek.
Leng Xiyao looked at her, unsure. “Are you really alright?”
“I’m fine!” Mo Suqing looked at her with a big smile.
Leng Xiyao heaved a sigh of relief before saying, “Then, I’m going home!”
“Okay, bye!” Mo Suqing waved a little and?watched?her leave.
When Leng Xiyao’s figure became a small dot, Mo Suqing’s smile faded. She remained at the same spot for a long time before turning and walking back to the company.