8 Chapter 8

By the time she got into her office and settled down, the letter of congratulations and further details had arrived in her email.

She clicked on it and read through it. As she scrolled down and read, she became increasingly excited. The conditions were extremely good. She would be given a well furnished three-bedroom apartment close to the headquarters, with a car and a chauffeur, paid for by the company.

She would also get a twenty percent raise. It meant she no longer had to go house hunting as she had earlier planned. Although she had her own car, she figured getting a new one was icing on the cake, especially with a driver.

That way, picking up Han Yichen would be easier, even if she worked overtime. And who would complain about more money? She wasn't a money grubber, but she understood how important money was in the grand scheme of things.

What made her extremely excited though, was the perk of being able to have "discussions" with the Retired Chairman. When she saw this, she was ecstatic.

Reading more carefully, it was explained in the letter that the Chairman and his special assistant would be having regular meetings with the Retired Chairman as he would be passing on his business legacy to his successor through training sessions.

Reading up to here, she got up and began to dance to the tune of "walking on sunshine"

"I'm walking on sunshine, wooah

I'm walking on sunshine, woooahh

I'm walking on sunshine, woooahhh

and don't it feel good!"

She belted out, moving her legs in time to the tune. Su Meilan, who came in to inform her that she had a guest stood and gawked at her.

She had just started working with Pei Yueran when she was promoted two weeks ago, so she had never seen this version of her.

So Director Pei can be so.... "interesting"? She was naturally unaware that ever since tragedy struck, the times Pei Yueran had been this uninhibited were so few that they could be counted on one hand.

Gu Nanze was just as stunned. He had known Pei Yueran since their university days. He was her senior by two years, so they didn't have much time to spend together in school.

They had a good senior-junior relationship back then, and he was even planning to confess to her during the university's annual Gala event when she brought Han Lei to him and introduced him as her boyfriend.

He graduated soon after, and they lost contact. They met again when he joined AiChen Mobile seven years ago, some months after the death of her husband and he could always notice the deep sadness lurking in her eyes even as she threw her everything into work.

"Someone is definitely excited", he teased, moving closer to her. That was when Pei Yueran noticed the presence of other people and calmed down. She smiled at Gu Nanze and greeted him. He had been a good friend to her for a long time, and she felt relatively comfortable around him.

"I'm just a bit excited", she smiled sheepishly.

"Congratulations. You deserve all this and more. We will miss you though", he said. Pei Yueran was sitting at her desk and looking at the email again, so she missed his affectionate gaze.

"I'll miss the company too, but it's only temporary, and I'll keep in touch, so don't worry.

That reminds me, I'm going out with Qianhua tonight. She wants us to celebrate the good news and she asked me to invite you. Would you like to come?"

Su Qianhua was a friend she also met at university, so the three of them were mutual friends of sorts.

"Sure. Place and time?"

"Royal Gardens, 8pm."

"Oh, I see it's going to be a grand celebration, right?"

"Not exactly. I've told Qianhua that each person is entitled to just one item on the menu.", Pei Yueran replied jokingly.

"Stingy!"

Both of them laughed.

By the time closing hours rolled around, the notice had been put up and everyone knew. Congratulations came from all around as Pei Yueran walked to the parking lot.

She smiled and thanked everyone. By the time she got back from First International with Han Yichen in tow, it was already 6:30pm.

They showered and Han Yichen ate dinner. He then went to his room to study, while Pei Yueran got ready for her outing.

She left after reminding Han Yichen to lock the door securely and not go out unless necessary. He nodded and wished her a lovely time.

*****

"Dear, he's calling."

"Pick it and let's hear what he has to say."

Li Qianye cleared his throat and picked the call. "Hello"

"Good evening Father"

"It's Chuanmo. How are you?"

"I'm fine thank you, how are you and Mother?"

"We're fine son."

"Will you be coming to the company tomorrow? I want to discuss something with you."

"Ah, n-no. Y-your mother and I have somewhere to be early in the morning and it's very important, we can't cancel it."

Li Chuanmo raised an eyebrow when he heard his father stuttering. His father only stuttered when he was feeling guilty or trying to avoid something.

He said, "how about in the afternoon or evening then?"

Li Qianye looked at his wife, Zhang Heying, for help. She was better and bolder at this than he was.

She rolled her eyes and mouthed, "tell him that the Fus have invited us to their resort for a few days. We will not be available, but he can tell us what he wants to say on the phone."

This old man of hers was good at everything except this. Was his son that scary? Was there a need to avoid him this much?

Li Chuanmo replied after a moment. "No problem then, talk to you later. Take care."

Li Qianye patted his chest dramatically after the call disconnected. "I'm glad he didn't talk further. I have a few days to come up with answers to his questions."

His wife narrowed her eyes suspiciously. Chuanmo let it drop too easily. Maybe he was tired, she guessed.

Forty minutes later, just as they were settling at the dining table for dinner, the doorbell rang. The Butler went to open it and announced, "It's the Young Master and Little Master."

"It's over!" Li Qianye screamed inwardly.