Wednesday Morning.
“Secretary Chi, Young Master Bai from the Bai family is here. He’s asking to see President Zhou, but he doesn’t have an appointment. What should we do…?”
Chi Zhan was deep in the day’s schedule—it was a particularly busy morning. A Bluetooth earpiece nestled in his left ear, he quickly scrolled through the memo tab. One page was labeled Player Preferences.
“Have Young Master Bai wait in the lounge for a moment,” Chi Zhan said calmly. “Take out the gift box on the third shelf, second from the left—the one with the pink ribbon. Tell him it’s from President Zhou.”
The receptionist set down the phone and turned to the young man scanning the lobby. With a gentle smile, she said, “President Zhou is currently tied up, but he’s prepared a gift for you. Please come with me.”
When Chi Zhan knocked and stepped into the office, Zhou Yanxing was standing by the window, still on the phone. His figure was impeccable—even in a subtly luxurious black dress shirt, those broad shoulders, narrow waist, and endlessly long legs were impossible to ignore.
Chi Zhan stood at 179 centimeters, tall by most standards. Yet every time he faced Zhou Yanxing, he couldn’t help but feel a distinct pressure—an inescapable sense of being overshadowed.
Zhou Yanxing was a full head taller than him.
The reflection on the window caught Chi Zhan’s figure. Zhou Yanxing glanced his way from the corner of his eye and gave a casual wave without turning around.
Chi Zhan understood instantly.
—He wasn’t taking the meeting.
Still refusing to see him.
Zhou Rui Tower stood in the heart of City A’s most prosperous district, its reach spanning numerous industries. The main building rose fifty stories high. From the floor-to-ceiling windows, one could see an expanse of sky and city that even five-star hotels couldn’t rival—an uninterrupted vista of clouds and cosmopolitan brilliance. A testament to unimaginable wealth.
And the man behind it all, Zhou Yanxing—sharp-eyed, decisive, never once caught in a misstep. At just twenty-six, he held dual master’s degrees from Ivy League schools. In a mere three years, he’d built himself into an unshakable figure—young, formidable, and already a rising titan of the business world.
To the outside world, Zhou Yanxing was the picture of intellect and authority: swift, ruthless, and irresistibly charismatic.
But Chi Zhan knew it wasn’t quite so simple…
President Zhou, truth be told—had a few minor flaws.
Of course, that was just the opinion of a subordinate. Nothing definitive.
Zhou Yanxing ended the call and glanced over at Chi Zhan, who hadn’t left yet. “Is there something else?”
Chi Zhan replied, “This is the fifth time Young Master Bai has come to see you. Still not taking the meeting?”
As he spoke, his gaze discreetly assessed Zhou Yanxing.
The president seemed unusually irritable today. That morning, he’d already asked for two cups of unsweetened black coffee. Even his voice carried a faint edge of impatience—like the heavy, electric air before a storm.
Chi Zhan had turned it over in his mind but couldn’t think of anything that might’ve triggered Zhou Yanxing’s foul mood.
He hadn’t been on the job long enough to read the man’s microexpressions with any real accuracy.
