Scum A with a Sweet Black Lotus O – Chapter 128
by Little PandaSystem: 【Impossible! Absolutely impossible!!!】
Pei Xuezhi: “You are?”
The profound and handsome face opposite her froze for a moment, then immediately smiled again, easily diverting the topic, “It seems the impression I left on Xuemei1 wasn’t deep enough.”
As the person spoke, she stood up, revealing a tall figure, clearly an Alpha.
She walked around the desk, reaching Pei Xuezhi in a few steps, and extended her hand, noble yet restrained.
—Not awkward at all, it seemed.
“Let’s reintroduce ourselves. Chi Guisi2.”
She blinked, and amidst her mature composure, an unexpected hint of playfulness was revealed, as if instantly closing the distance between them.
“Jiang City First High School… Has Pei-xuemei forgotten?”
Pei Xuezhi naturally wouldn’t forget.
Quite the opposite.
Her memory was excellent.
Especially when it came to certain individuals with suspicious behavior, like the one before her now.
She even remembered the other person’s name—Chi Guisi.
It wasn’t that she had any particular way with Alphas other than Fu Chaoyun; although the person and her aura were distinctly different, the way this individual had appeared before her back then was too familiar.
Familiar to the point of… reminding her of some unpleasant matters.
All of this was too coincidental, forcing Pei Xuezhi to overthink.
Could it be that she couldn’t find that person’s tracks, but instead, that person had proactively approached her?
Pei Xuezhi remained vigilant.
Right now, she was doing it deliberately.
Deliberately not taking the hand the other person proactively offered, merely nodding slightly. Faced with the other’s attempt to awaken her memory, Pei Xuezhi appeared even colder and more reserved.
She said, “CEO Chi.”
She didn’t answer the other’s question directly, only addressing her by title. By not answering, she was also reminding the other person of the current setting.
—Get a clear understanding! Don’t you dare mix public and private affairs.
Having her overtures rejected4 by Pei Xuezhi twice in a row, her extended olive branch5 also unaccepted, Chi Guisi, though not completely losing her composure6, had a much cooler expression now.
She no longer attempted to reminisce with Pei Xuezhi, switching to collaborator mode in a second, directly picking up the phone on her desk to dial an internal line.
“Wendy, ask Su to come over.”
Hanging up the phone, she then said to Pei Xuezhi, “Please wait a moment.”
Her attitude was entirely business-like, and she no longer paid Pei Xuezhi any particular attention.
Soon, a secretary assistant brought coffee. Pei Xuezhi had it placed aside and didn’t drink it.
Chi Guisi attended to her own work, no longer speaking to her.
The atmosphere in the office was a bit too quiet, but Pei Xuezhi adapted well enough and didn’t feel awkward. After waiting less than three minutes, a knock on the door sounded again.
“Come in,” Chi Guisi’s voice was steady.
Pei Xuezhi looked up.
Approaching her was another elite woman, also an Alpha.
Compared to Chi Guisi, whose features were deep-set and defined due to her mixed heritage, this Su’s appearance and aura seemed much gentler.
“BOSS.”
Chi Guisi directly introduced, “This is CEO Pei from Connor Group. You will be responsible for the collaboration project our company has with hers.”
“Su, Chinese name Qin Shu7, Finance Director.”
Pei Xuezhi briefly met with this Qin Shu, then handed over the specifics of the collaboration to her subordinates.
Chi Guisi directly assigned a subordinate to discuss the collaboration with her. Whether it was an initial show of force8 or an attempt to regain lost ground9… her side didn’t need to lower its own status.
Collaborations between large groups and major enterprises were naturally discussed by those below; she only needed to stand at the highest point and oversee the overall situation.
The representatives from both sides chatted for a few sentences. Further detailed discussions would require arranging another time and place, so the two exchanged contact information, and that was it for the day.
Until she left, that CEO Chi Guisi never addressed Pei Xuezhi again, just leaving her out in the cold, as if to demonstrate that her own temper was not to be underestimated.
Walking out of the building.
Pei Xuezhi looked up at the sky and the sun.
The other party had let her off so easily and even sent someone else to engage with her. Could it be that all her previous speculations were wrong?
Not necessarily.
Let’s wait and see.
For a period of time afterward.
People from Pei Xuezhi’s company were constantly discussing the collaboration with that Qin Shu, but the progress was not very ideal.
After Pei Xuezhi inquired, her subordinates reported, “Their attitude is very good, but they never get down to specifics10. It feels like they are intentionally delaying things.”
Is that so?
Just because she had slighted the other party during their meeting that day, Chi Guisi had her subordinates delay her progress, perhaps even to force her to go over there.
And then what?
Would she need to “admit fault” or “apologize”?
Pei Xuezhi now had capital backing her, no longer like in the past. She herself wasn’t afraid of danger, but she was now a person with “family background” and thus had ties and responsibilities.
Before doing anything, she needed to consider more.
Pei Xuezhi tapped her fingertip lightly and, in a moment, made a decision, “Continue negotiating with them. This time, our stance can be a bit firmer.”
Since the other party wanted to play hard to get11, then they should at least pay some price!
After all, this was a deal worth several billion.
Pei Xuezhi had the time and patience to wear them down.
Until one day, Fu Chaoyun came to her company to see her, and the two chose to eat directly in the cafeteria.
Fu Chaoyun was the boss’s family member.
The two were now striving in different enterprises. They were busy, but it didn’t affect their relationship.
For example, today Fu Chaoyun had dumped all her work on her subordinates and run off.
Fu Chaoyun had eaten in Pei Xuezhi’s company cafeteria several times already, and many employees recognized her. Because Fu Chaoyun had a good attitude and wasn’t bossy towards subordinates, and would occasionally wander around and listen to company gossip12 when Pei Xuezhi was busy, the employees had a very good impression of her.
As long as it didn’t involve commercial secrets, they would talk and complain without avoiding her, and would even secretly take some photos to upload to the Super Topic.
Yes!
Half a year had passed, and their CP Super Topic was still alive. Although its popularity wasn’t at the peak it reached when the dating show was airing, because rich women frequented the Super Topic, spending heavily to commission fan content13, and the content output was timely, it was still quite active now, in a stable development phase.
“That Director Qin from Wilson, so young, but really difficult to deal with, ah.”
“Her attitude is good, sure, but from beginning to end, there’s not a single concrete statement. Slippery as an eel14.”
“Team Two has been negotiating for so long and hasn’t gotten anywhere. It feels like she’s clearly stringing our company along15 for fun.”
“I heard that when CEO Pei visited Wilson back then, she had an unpleasant encounter with that Alpha in power…”
“She wouldn’t be retaliating, ba?”
“I heard her English name is Su, and her given name is just the character Shu? Better not be ‘Shu’16, the leader of Team Two gets a headache just seeing her. She clearly makes people ‘uncomfortable’!!”
Fu Chaoyun heard everything clearly from the side.
No matter how much power she currently held at Fu Corporation, when she was with Pei Xuezhi, she was just someone living off her partner17.
At this moment, she was fulfilling the duties of a pretty-boy18 A. Pei Xuezhi still had urgent matters to attend to, so she had gotten their meals a bit earlier and was waiting for the other to come down and eat together.
Hearing the preceding conversation, Fu Chaoyun also chimed in, “So this Wilson director is called ‘Qin Shu’? Qin as in the Qin Dynasty, Shu as in comfortable?”
The president’s “wife” suddenly inserting herself into the conversation startled these few employees for a moment, then they replied.
“Yes.”
Fu Chaoyun asked a couple more specific questions, and even said thanks after they finished.
Turning her head.
Her expression became serious and contemplative19.
Qin Shu, Qin Shu.
This was a name that had appeared in the original work, and not some minor character either, even though all the plotlines so far had been messed up…
No.
Fu Chaoyun chose to poke the trash system. Her wording and tone were rather harsh, “Qin Shu has appeared ahead of schedule, did you know?”
The system, which had been withdrawn20 for many days, suddenly logged on.
It had probably been offline21 for too long. Suddenly seeing the light of day again, it was still a bit unaccustomed, its entire processing hub dazed for a moment, unable to function properly.
???
Plot? Qin Shu?
“System.” Fu Chaoyun continued to poke it, saying bluntly, “Fix the plot, ba. Even if you’re trash, you have to find a way to make use of that trashiness.”
The system finally recovered—
【No! Way!!! Absolutely impossible!!!】
Footnotes
- 学妹 | xuémèi | Junior female schoolmate. A term used by an older schoolmate (male or female) to address a younger female one from the same school/university.
- 池归思 | Chí Guīsī | A Chinese given name. Chi (池) is the surname, meaning “pond” or “pool.” Guisi (归思) can be interpreted as “thoughts of returning” or “contemplation on returning.”
- 米珊 | Mǐ Shān | A Chinese given name. Mi (米) is the surname, meaning “rice.” Shan (珊) means “coral.”
- 驳了面子 | bóle miànzi | Lit. “to refute face”; Fig. To cause someone to lose face; to reject someone’s gesture or request in a way that embarrasses them or diminishes their prestige.
- 橄榄枝 | gǎnlǎnzhī | Olive branch, a symbol of peace or reconciliation. Here, it refers to a friendly gesture or an offer.
- 拉下脸 | lāxià liǎn | Lit. “to pull down one’s face”; Fig. To look displeased; to drop one’s smile and show annoyance or anger.
- 秦舒 | Qín Shū | A Chinese given name. Qin (秦) is the surname, a dynastic name. Shu (舒) means “comfortable,” “relaxed,” or “to stretch out.”
- 下马威 | xiàmǎwēi | Lit. “dismounting prestige/power”; Fig. An initial display of authority or strength to cow or intimidate someone upon first meeting or taking up a new post.
- 找回场子 | zhǎohuí chǎngzi | Lit. “to find back the ground/arena”; Fig. To regain lost prestige, face, or advantage; to get even.
- 落不到实处 | luòbudào shíchù | Lit. “cannot land on solid ground”; Fig. Fails to materialize; doesn’t get down to specifics; not concrete or practical.
- 欲擒故纵 | yùqíngùzòng | Lit. “to want to capture, yet deliberately let go”; Fig. A tactic of feigning disinterest or letting someone go in order to make them more eager or to capture them more effectively later; playing hard to get; giving line to catch a fish.
- 八卦 | bāguà | Lit. “Eight Trigrams” (from the I Ching). Fig. Gossip; to gossip. This usage is very common in modern Chinese.
- 重金筹粮 | zhòngjīn chóuliáng | Lit. “heavy gold to gather provisions/fodder.” Fig. (fandom slang) To spend a lot of money to commission or encourage the creation of fan content (“fodder” or “grain” for fans).
- 滑不溜秋，跟条泥鳅似的 | huábuliūqiū, gēn tiáo níqiū sìde | 滑不溜秋 (huábuliūqiū) means very slippery, smooth, or slick, often implying evasiveness. 泥鳅 (níqiū) is a loach, a type of slippery fish. The phrase means “as slippery as a loach,” describing someone evasive and hard to pin down.
- 钓着 | diàozhe | Lit. “to be fishing/angling”; Fig. To string someone along; to lead someone on; to keep someone interested without committing.
- 舒 | Shū | The character means “comfortable” or “relaxed”.
- 吃软饭 | chī ruǎnfàn | Lit. “to eat soft rice”; Fig. To live off a woman; to be a kept man or dependent on a female partner for financial support.
- 小白脸 | xiǎobáiliǎn | Lit. “little white face”; Fig. A derogatory term for a handsome young man kept by an older or wealthier woman; a pretty boy, gigolo, or toy boy.
- 眉目沉敛 | méimù chénliǎn | Lit. “eyebrows and eyes sink and restrain”; Fig. A composed, serious, or contemplative expression; features showing deep thought or gravity.
- 自闭 | zìbì | Lit. “autism” or “autistic.” In internet slang, it can mean to be withdrawn, isolated, unresponsive, or to shut oneself off, often used humorously to describe someone being quiet.
- 掉线 | diàoxiàn | Lit. “to drop the line”; Fig. To be disconnected (from the internet, a game, etc.); to go offline.
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