The Arrogant President’s Cute Assistant

Inside the studio.

“Xiaoxi-Jie, may I come in?” Xiaojing’s sweet voice rang out at the door.

Ye Ranxi was reviewing some documents in the office. She nodded and said, “Come in.”

Her hand was still recovering from an injury, so she was only handling some relatively simple paperwork, while leaving the more complicated design sketches to Xiaojing.

Xiaojing, a bit anxious, brought in the design sketches. Noticing Ye Ranxi working, she spoke with a hint of nervousness, “Xiaoxi-Jie, what do you think of this?”

After some practice, Xiaojing’s design sketches had improved quite a bit, now carrying a bit of her own style.

“It’s great. You can definitely take this to Ling Corporation.”

“Really? I was worried my drawings weren’t good enough… So, are you taking these sketches to Ling Corporation?” Xiaojing asked curiously.

After all, she was still a young girl, quite interested in The Big Boss’s personal life. Besides, now that Ling Xiaonai and Ye Ranxi were about to get married, there must be quite a bit of spark between them…

Ye Ranxi nodded, realizing it had been a while since she’d seen Ling Xiaonai. It wouldn’t hurt to bring these sketches over and see him as well.

Just as she was about to stand up, she noticed Ling Xiaonai had already appeared at the office door without her realizing.

Seeing The Big Boss like this made Xiaojing’s heart race. She sweetly told Ye Ranxi, “Xiaoxi-Jie, if there’s nothing else, I’ll just head out now.” Then she lowered her head and slipped past Ling Xiaonai, not daring to linger for another second.

Xiaojing had so many traits reminiscent of her… Ye Ranxi remembered her own past self was just like that. To her, Ling Xiaonai was everything in her life; with him around, nothing seemed insurmountable. He was like a warm harbor, protecting her from any harm. However, after all the hurt he had caused her, she realized the one who hurt her the most was none other than him.

“What brought you here?” Now Ye Ranxi found herself becoming increasingly hypocritical; she despised Ling Xiaonai in her heart, yet she could still play the role of a delicate woman, leaning into his embrace and smiling softly.

“I missed you, so I came over.” It had been several days since he last saw this girl, and she seemed to have lost a bit of weight. He pinched her cheek playfully, “Why aren’t you eating more?”

“I want to, but I’m just too busy with work.” Just then, Ling Xiaonai walked over, and she handed him all the design sketches in her hands. “My hand hasn’t fully recovered yet. These sketches are all done by Xiaojing. What do you think?”

Ling Xiaonai casually glanced over the sketches after taking them from her. He had complete confidence in her designs. Besides, when they first collaborated, it wasn’t just for the benefit of Ling Corporation; it was for her.

At first, Ye Ranxi thought Ling Xiaonai would take the sketches and leave, but he simply sat down on the sofa. Ye Ranxi had no choice but to put down her work, lean into his arms, and grab a magazine to flip through aimlessly.

“By the way, there’s a reception in a couple of days. Are you going?” Ling Xiaonai stroked her long eyebrows, his tone filled with affection.

In the past, Ye Ranxi adored lively events, but now, as a well-known designer, her social obligations had multiplied, and she didn’t enjoy attending those events anymore. If she had free time, she’d much prefer to stay home and chat with Qian Yexue; that felt much more interesting.

“Are you going?” Ye Ranxi leaned her small face into his palm. “If you go, then I’ll go.”

“Shall I come pick you up?”

“Sure, I’ll dress up a bit nicer, and then we can go to the reception together.”

After chatting for a while, Ye Ranxi urged Ling Xiaonai to get back to work. “You should hurry back to work; otherwise, I’ll be starving.”

“You’re not even my wife yet, and you’re already thinking about making money for me?” Ling Xiaonai chuckled while holding her, clearly in a good mood.

“Who says that? I don’t want to marry you,” Ye Ranxi shot him a glance. “Even though you’ve proposed and we’ve taken wedding photos, we haven’t even gotten our marriage certificate yet! If you upset me, I could just grab a random man off the street.”

“If any man dares to compete with me, I’ll bankrupt his company.”

Ye Ranxi couldn’t help but laugh at his words, playfully pouting, “You’re so fierce! If there were any nice men around me, they’d probably get scared off.”

Now that they mentioned the wedding photos, Ling Xiaonai suddenly remembered that their wedding photos had already been shipped back to the country. “By the way, our wedding photos have arrived from abroad.”

“Really? Can we put them in the room at your place?” Ye Ranxi had previously mentioned wanting to live with the Ling family, but Ling Xiaonai had turned her down.

“Xiaoxi, do you not like the old villa?” He asked, recalling the beautiful memories they shared there. Did she really not want to live in such a place again?

Yes, there were many memories tied to that place. However, the more beautiful those memories were, the more they vividly surfaced in her mind, reminding her of the painful and harsh reality she faced now.

“But Auntie and Uncle must really want you to live with them…”

“Xiaoxi, you don’t have to sacrifice your happiness for me. You can do whatever you want; I won’t stop you.” Ling Xiaonai sighed while holding her. In the past, he was always afraid of losing her, keeping her close because he worried she might leave him at any moment. Now he realized that what he called love was nothing but a form of confinement; she truly had no freedom at all.

Ye Ranxi nodded, feeling a bit wronged as she asked, “Do you think they don’t like me, which is why you don’t want to go back to live there?”

“No, it’s for your sake.”

Ye Ranxi wasn’t sure if his words were true or false, but hearing him say it was all for her made her heart tighten a little. She admitted that she was somewhat touched, but she hadn’t forgotten her own purpose for returning.

“Alright, it’s almost time to get off work. If you don’t leave now, the people in the office will laugh at me,” she said, knowing that everyone in the world was aware she was about to become Mrs. Ling, all thanks to Ling Xiaonai’s frequent and unannounced visits to her office. Besides, his long stays there were becoming a topic of amusing discussion during their breaks.

Seeing that Ling Xiaonai wasn’t leaving, Ye Ranxi playfully kissed him on the lips, giving his soft lips a quick lick with her tongue before reluctantly letting him go.

Once Ling Xiaonai left, the office returned to its usual quiet. She picked up her documents and continued to read them as if nothing had happened.

Today was the day of the reception, and Ye Ranxi had handed all her work over to her subordinates at the studio. She got up early to get ready.

Although attending receptions had become a habit, she had attended relatively few with Ling Xiaonai. In the past, standing beside him, she always felt inferior. Now, she finally had the chance to stand next to him openly, just as she had hoped, accepting the envious or jealous gazes from those around them. Yet, she still felt no joy.

As she sat at the dressing table, changing into her dress and fixing her hair, Qian Yexue smiled and walked over. She took the comb from Ye Ranxi’s hands and gently started to comb her long, waterfall-like hair. “Dressed up so beautifully, where are you off to?”

“There’s a reception today, and I might be going with Ling Xiaonai,” Ye Ranxi said, feeling too lazy to do her own makeup. After all, Qian Yexue was much better at it, so she handed everything over to her friend.

Since being with Pei Yuanyi, Qian Yexue seemed much happier, often sporting a gentle smile. Ye Ranxi sighed, glancing at herself in the mirror. It felt as though she had everything yet nothing at the same time. From an outsider’s perspective, she must appear to be the happiest person in the world. Yet in her eyes, she was just a failure burdened by hatred.

After spending a good half-hour arranging Ye Ranxi’s long hair into an elegant updo, Qian Yexue applied a bold makeup look, ensuring that she would turn heads when she arrived with Ling Xiaonai.

“This lip color…” Ye Ranxi gazed at her somewhat striking reflection in the mirror, barely recognizing herself.

“No worries, you look great like this!” Qian Yexue quickly intervened as Ye Ranxi reached for a tissue to wipe away the makeup they had worked so hard on. “Just go as you are; I guarantee all the men will be staring at you.”

Ye Ranxi smiled and nodded, “Alright, I’ll go along with what you say.”

Ling Xiaonai was supposed to pick her up at noon, but he never showed up and ended up sending Pei Yuanyi instead.

“Xiaonai has something urgent, so I’m here to take you,” Pei Yuanyi explained as he got out of the car.

Qian Yexue’s expression darkened upon hearing this. “Xiaoxi has been waiting for him all morning! What could possibly be so important that he couldn’t come himself?”

“I’m fine. He must really have something pressing to deal with,” Ye Ranxi reassured her with a smile and nodded, following Pei Yuanyi to the car.

The old Ye Ranxi would have surely pouted and complained by now. But the more Pei Yuanyi got to know her, the more he realized that she had grown beyond the girl who only used to whine and act cute. She had matured significantly.

“Make sure to take good care of Xiaoxi,” Qian Yexue said, a hint of concern in her voice as she reminded Pei Yuanyi.

“Yeah, I’ll drop Xiaoxi off at the reception and come right back,” Pei Yuanyi replied, his eyes showing reluctance to leave, as if he wanted to hug Qian Yexue right then.

Ye Ranxi didn’t expect their relationship to develop so quickly. She teased Pei Yuanyi about it for a while in the car.

When they arrived at the reception venue, Ye Ranxi got out and urged Pei Yuanyi to go back, “You should go back to keep Qian Yexue company. I can go in by myself.”

“Are you sure you’ll be okay alone?” Pei Yuanyi asked with concern.

“I’ll be fine! Besides, isn’t Ling Xiaonai inside? Just hurry back to Qian Yexue,” Ye Ranxi insisted as she walked toward the reception. Only then did Pei Yuanyi leave.