100 Days with the Contract Lover - Chapter 91

Yu Nuanxin had anticipated that the first thing Yu Linglong would do as her supervisor was to make her life difficult. Resigned to her fate, she followed her into the office. “What do you need?”

Yu Linglong tossed her designer handbag onto the desk and sank into the leather chair with an air of disdain. She shot Nuanxin a contemptuous glance. “Is that the attitude you’re supposed to have toward your supervisor?”

“What kind of attitude would you prefer?”

“Just looking at your face makes me sick! Dressing up like this-are you trying to gain sympathy? Well, guess what? It’s even more repulsive. I’m curious, though-how do you feel right now? Jealous? Bitter? Angry? You’ve been by Nangong Yao’s side for so long, and all you’ve managed to become is a lowly lawyer. Meanwhile, I show up and immediately become your supervisor. Yu Nuanxin, you’re honestly the most useless woman I’ve ever met.”

The more Yu Linglong spoke, the more animated she became, her eyes blazing with triumph. She was practically gloating, her metaphorical fox tail wagging high in the air.

But for someone like Nuanxin, who didn’t care about people she deemed irrelevant, Linglong’s words barely registered. Especially when it came to someone as unreasonable as Yu Linglong. She waited patiently for her to finish her tirade, then responded calmly, “Supervisor, have you finished? I have work to do.”

“Don’t pretend to be so composed. You must be seething inside! Your colleagues hate you, your family hates you, your husband hates you. I can’t think of a single reason why you should even bother staying alive.”

“That’s my business. You don’t need to worry about it. For now, I have no reason to stop living.”

“You-” Linglong was infuriated. She couldn’t provoke Nuanxin, nor could she gain the upper hand verbally. She was left fuming. “You’re such a detestable burden. No wonder Nangong Yao can’t stand you. He specifically told me to ‘take good care’ of you!”

“Then I’ll thank the president and the supervisor for their ‘care’ in advance. I’m just a small employee and don’t have time for idle chatter. I’ll be going now.” Nuanxin didn’t give her another glance and walked straight out the door.

Yu Linglong ground her teeth in frustration but quickly consoled herself. There was no need to get angry over a defeated opponent. The calmer Nuanxin appeared on the surface, the angrier she must be inside. Linglong hoped she’d choke on her own rage. After all, Nuanxin was now her subordinate, and Linglong had all the time in the world to torment her until she begged for mercy.

No matter how much Nuanxin tried to ignore the office politics, the thought of Linglong being her direct supervisor was enough to give her a headache. Linglong would undoubtedly find every possible way to make her life miserable. And the one to blame for all this? Nangong Yao. He seemed determined to ruin her life. If she tried to make peace with him, would he show mercy and rein Linglong in?

Wishful thinking! He’d probably double down on the torment.

Ugh! So frustrating! When would this nightmare finally end?

…

From her very first day, Yu Linglong began currying favor with the staff, treating them to dinner and karaoke after work-everyone except Nuanxin. Sometimes, to leave early, she would dump her tasks onto Nuanxin, who often found herself working until midnight.

But in a way, this wasn’t entirely bad for Nuanxin. At least staying late at the office meant avoiding Nangong Yao, the cold-hearted tyrant. As long as she didn’t have to deal with those two, she didn’t mind being overworked.

It didn’t take long for the other lawyers to notice Linglong’s hostility toward Nuanxin. They began piling all the unpleasant tasks on her-dirty work, menial chores, even cleaning the bathroom or fixing lightbulbs. They treated her like she wasn’t even human. By the time she got home each night, her body felt like it was falling apart. Even with a strong will, her physical endurance had its limits.

One day, Linglong called Nuanxin into her office and tossed a file onto the desk. “Take this to the president’s office. Hand it to him personally.”

“I’m just a low-level employee. I’m not qualified to meet the president. You’d be a better choice for this. Besides, I’m sure you’d want to go.”

“Just do as I say! Why do you have so many excuses?” Linglong was already annoyed that Nangong Yao had specifically instructed Nuanxin to deliver the file instead of her. Being teased about it only made her mood worse.

But Nuanxin wasn’t thrilled about it either.

She grumbled internally, blaming Nangong Yao for stirring up more trouble. Was he trying to escalate the tension between them until they came to blows in the office?

Reluctantly, she took the file and headed to the president’s office. Just as the elevator doors were about to close, they suddenly reopened. A stunningly professional-looking woman inside nodded at her. “Come in.”

“Thank you!” Nuanxin thought the woman looked familiar but couldn’t place where she’d seen her before. She assumed they must have crossed paths at the company. She reached to press the button for the top floor, only to see it was already lit. “We’re headed to the same floor.”

“Mm-hmm.” The woman didn’t say anything else, and Nuanxin didn’t feel comfortable starting a conversation. They rode in silence to the top floor. When the doors opened, Nuanxin stepped out first and approached the secretary. “Hi, I have a file to deliver to the president.”

“Do you have an appointment?”

“Do I need an appointment to deliver internal documents?” She gave her department and name.

The secretary checked her records. “I’m sorry, but there’s no appointment under your name.”

“But the president specifically asked me to deliver this personally. Could you please call him?”

“The president has instructed us not to forward calls unless it’s an important client.” The secretary looked her up and down. With her unremarkable demeanor, Nuanxin didn’t seem like someone handling anything critical.

“Could you please-”

“She has an appointment with me. Let her through.”

Nuanxin turned around and saw the woman from the elevator. She quickly expressed her gratitude.

“Yes, Assistant Xiang. Please follow me.”

“Thank you!” Nuanxin gave the woman several grateful glances before following the secretary. She whispered, “She’s the president’s special assistant?”

“Yes. Xiang Wei is quite famous in the company. Haven’t you heard of her? Are you new?”

“Uh-huh.” Nuanxin nodded awkwardly. A few seconds later, she suddenly remembered where she’d seen Xiang Wei before-she had been with Nangong Yao. At the time, Nuanxin had assumed she was his lover or girlfriend. She hadn’t expected her to be his special assistant. The realization made her feel a bit inferior. Xiang Wei was capable, intelligent, beautiful, and kind. Compared to her, Nuanxin felt utterly inadequate.

But why was she even comparing herself? Because of Nangong Yao? That was ridiculous! Whatever kind of woman suited him had nothing to do with her.