C11 Organizing Documents

Lih Jingyan took a deep breath and looked at the imagined face of Shu Ann before him, a bitter smile on his lips as he spoke, "Do you know how much it hurt back then? Do you know?" He placed his hand over his heart, feeling a dull ache, and continued, "I like you, you know? I really like you. So when you said you didn't like me, it hurt so much. It's because I like you that my heart aches. Why? What's wrong with me? Why don't you like me? Can you tell me? What's wrong with me? I'll change everything. Please, don't dislike me."

There was a hint of pleading in Jingyan's eyes as he looked at Shu Ann, hoping for a nod or some comforting words. But Shu Ann just kept smiling gently, as if he hadn't heard a word Jingyan said, maintaining that harmless smile.

Jingyan waited for a moment, and when Shu Ann still didn't speak, he gave a bitter smile and said, "You won't even lie to me a little, will you? Of course, why would I have any illusions about you? You're just so indifferent."

A flicker of anger appeared in Jingyan's eyes as he glared at Shu Ann and said, "To you, I'm just a subordinate, right? What is your heart made of? Can't you feel that I like you? How can you be so cold? Does seeing me so lost over you make you proud? That's just like you, Shu Ann!"

Suddenly, as if something snapped, Jingyan stood up in anger. He felt utterly embarrassed, especially since Shu Ann had already made it clear that to her, he was just a subordinate, and she didn't like him at all. Yet here he was, wallowing in self-pity like a scorned lover, wondering what he was even doing.

Taking a deep breath, Lih Jingyan irritably loosened his tie and walked into the bathroom. He splashed a handful of cold water on his face, the chill snapping him back to reality. Shaking his head, his gaze gradually cleared. He reminded himself to stay true to who he was and not let anyone, not even Shu Ann, disrupt his life.

After washing his face, Jingyan took a shower and lay down on his bed. Staring at the empty room, a flicker of loneliness crossed his eyes. But soon, he closed them, his thoughts a mystery to anyone else. The night passed quietly.

The next morning, hushed voices came from the break room. "Did you see the boss today? His dark circles are so pronounced, and he looks really upset. Do you think something's bothering him?"

"Who knows? We haven't had any tough cases lately. Maybe it's something personal?"

"Could it be about his girlfriend or something?"

"Let's not gossip. If someone hears us, we'll be in trouble."

The two female employees quickly left the room.

Meanwhile, the subject of their conversation was brooding in his office. Why couldn't he get Shu Ann out of his head? Frustrated, Jingyan thought bitterly about how she had ruined his sleep.

After sitting at his desk for a while, Jingyan finally stood up, grabbed a thick stack of documents, and stormed out with a scowl.

"Thud!" The stack landed heavily on Shu Ann's desk.

"Go through all these documents and make the necessary corrections. If there's anything you don't understand, come ask me," he said curtly. Without waiting for a response, Jingyan turned and walked away.

Shu Ann sat alone, staring blankly at the massive stack of documents on her desk, feeling utterly speechless.

“Hey, Shu Ann, did you do something to upset the Chairman? He looked pretty grumpy this morning and dumped all this work on you,” her coworker from the next cubicle said, quickly putting down the files they were pretending to work on and coming over with a smirk.

“How would I know? I haven't even seen the Chairman for days, let alone had the chance to annoy him. I'm just a nobody here. Maybe he's just having a bad day and taking it out on us,” Shu Ann sighed, rubbing her forehead as she glanced at the mountain of paperwork. “Who knows what’s gotten into him this time...”

Her coworker, noticing Shu Ann's expression, commented, “Oh man, you should have seen the Chairman’s face when he came by. It was terrifying! I swear, it was like he had a dark cloud following him. He looked like we all owed him a fortune. I was so scared when he walked over, I thought my heart was going to stop. I even thought he was going to scold me for the snacks on my desk. But thanks to you, Shu Ann, you saved me from that! I owe you one!”

Shu Ann rolled her eyes at her coworker and said, “If you keep chatting instead of working, our supervisor might just make your fears come true.”

The colleague suddenly felt a chill down his spine. Turning his head, he saw the manager glaring at him intensely. A shiver ran through him, and he quickly retreated to his own desk from Shu Ann's side. Before leaving, he patted Shu Ann on the shoulder and mouthed a silent "good luck" before hurrying back to his work, worried that the manager might actually come over to give him trouble.

Shu Ann glanced at his colleague and couldn't help but chuckle. However, when he turned back to the towering stack of documents on his desk, a wave of bitterness washed over him, and his smile faded.

Resigned, Shu Ann pulled the hefty pile of papers in front of him. As he opened the first page, his expression changed instantly. Did Lih Jingyan even know what kind of documents he had given him? Had Jingyan really reviewed these papers? Sure, Shu Ann was Jingyan's secretary, but he was still relatively new to the job and not entirely familiar with Jingyan's work. Moreover, these documents seemed to be the most complex ones from previous years. Shu Ann rubbed his forehead in frustration and let out a wry smile. Why had Jingyan dumped all these challenging documents on him? Did Jingyan trust him that much, or had Shu Ann somehow unknowingly offended the chairman, prompting this overwhelming task as a form of retribution?

Oh well, Shu Ann thought with a resigned smile. As Jingyan's secretary, he couldn't exactly refuse the chairman's requests. Besides, organizing these documents was part of his job. Jingyan assigning them to him was perfectly reasonable, and Shu Ann had no grounds to avoid the task.

Taking a deep breath, Shu Ann rubbed her aching head and slowly opened the file in front of her, beginning to read it carefully.

But it wasn't long before her brow furrowed tighter and tighter. Finally, after a while, she resignedly put down the file. She was still unfamiliar with the job, and now Chairman Lih had handed her the most complex documents to deal with all at once. Even if she wanted to tackle them seriously, she felt overwhelmed.

Shu Ann shook her head in frustration. She was truly outmatched by Lih Jingyan. What had she done to upset him? Why was this powerful CEO wasting time personally giving her a hard time? Looking at the thick stack of documents in front of her and the few pages she had managed to flip through, she silently cursed Lih Jingyan. But what could she do? This was her job, and she couldn't neglect it just because she was unhappy with him. She wasn't here to slack off, and besides, Lih Jingyan certainly wouldn't let her get away with that.

Taking another deep breath, Shu Ann lifted her head, silently cheering herself on. She believed she could understand and organize these documents. She couldn't give in to adversity!

After striking a determined pose, confidence reignited in her eyes. She was determined to finish these documents and prove herself to Lih Jingyan. She wouldn't let him underestimate her.

With renewed confidence, Shu Ann reopened the file. Although she still didn't fully understand everything, she felt much more assured than before. She picked up a pen, marking the parts she didn't understand. After finishing the document, she went through it again, finding the marked sections and organizing them on a blank sheet of paper. With furrowed brows, she read, marked, and wrote, losing track of time as she worked.