She couldn't hold a candle to her

Qiao Hua looked at Yan Yu in surprise. "It's you?"

Dressed in a dark suit, Yan Yu exuded a mature, dependable air. "Good morning."

Qiao Hua glanced at the office behind him. "Why did you come out of there?"

His eyes held a smile. "That's my office... or, to be precise, this is Yan Yu's company."

Qiao Hua's eyes widened slightly. "You mean this company belongs to you?"

Yan Yu nodded.

Qiao Hua felt a little confused. "Wait... didn't you say last time that you were an interviewer here?"

The smile on Yan Yu's lips deepened. "Can't a CEO conduct interviews?"

"It's not that you can't, it's just..."

It was just that CEOs rarely took part in recruitment personally, so when she met Yan Yu last time, she had genuinely assumed he worked in HR.

Yan Yu could naturally tell what she was thinking. He explained, "This time, I was hiring my own assistant. I'm rather demanding, so I handled the interviews myself."

Qiao Hua pointed at herself, bracing herself as she asked incredulously, "You're demanding, so you chose me?"

There had been so many candidates that day. Qiao Hua had no work experience, and her qualifications weren't particularly impressive either. Even she had thought she had no chance of getting hired, yet Yan Yu had chosen her.

Even Qiao Hua wouldn't have believed there was nothing else behind it.

But she couldn't think of a reason for Yan Yu to do this. They had merely been classmates in the same department, not particularly close friends.

Yan Yu knew what Qiao Hua was trying to say. He clarified, "Personal feelings did play a small part in my decision to hire you, but more importantly, I believe in your abilities."

Back in college, Yan Yu and Qiao Hua had interned at the same company. Among the students interning there, Qiao Hua had been one of the best.

If only she hadn't married Gu Wenze so early...

At that thought, a trace of unreadable emotion surfaced in Yan Yu's dark eyes.

Qiao Hua didn't notice the change in him. She said self-deprecatingly, "I haven't worked in three years. What abilities could I possibly have?"

Yan Yu teased, "We've known each other since college. Don't you think I know you by now?"

Qiao Hua thought about it. He had a point.

In fact, the original owner of her body had been highly motivated in college. If she hadn't let romance cloud her judgment, she wouldn't have ended up losing both her love life and her career.

Seeing Qiao Hua lost in thought, Yan Yu adopted a lighter tone. "Although I've hired you, whether you pass probation still depends on your own abilities."

Yan Yu's words actually put Qiao Hua at ease. A faint smile appeared on her face. "Don't worry. I'll work hard. I won't let your kindness go to waste."

Yan Yu's smile remained. "Good. If there's anything you don't know, you can ask my secretary. She'll explain it to you."

The secretary behind Yan Yu gave Qiao Hua a faint smile.

Qiao Hua smiled back.

Thanks to the experience the original owner had gained during her internship, Qiao Hua picked things up quickly. In less than half a day, she had familiarized herself with the job.

Only when it was time to leave did she stretch wearily. That was the sight that greeted Yan Yu when he walked out of his office.

Yan Yu teased, "Working that hard? Looks like you really do intend to give it your all."

Qiao Hua smiled. "I can't let the strings you pulled for me go to waste."

Yan Yu laughed, then finally got to the point. "How are you getting home?"

Qiao Hua checked her watch. "I'll take a cab. That's how I got here this morning, too."

Yan Yu paused. "Your husband isn't picking you up?"

Qiao Hua replied casually, "He's a busy, important man. He doesn't have time to pick me up from work."

After a moment of silence, Yan Yu said, "Actually, there's something I've wanted to ask since last time. Why didn't you go work at your husband's company?"

He had heard that Qiao Hua's husband was someone important. Arranging a job for her should have been effortless.

Qiao Hua's tone was light. "I don't want to rely on him."

Besides, if she divorced Gu Wenze later, she would have to leave him anyway.

Rather than deal with that, she might as well stay out of the Gu Group from the start.

Yan Yu opened his mouth as though he wanted to say something, but ultimately said nothing.

"All right, I'm heading out."

Qiao Hua picked up her bag, said goodbye to Yan Yu, and clocked out, never noticing that his gaze followed her as she left.

Qiao Hua took a taxi home. As it passed an intersection with traffic lights, she spotted two familiar figures. Gu Junxing and Tan Ruiyu were shopping at the market.

[Who would've thought a pampered second son like Gu Junxing would actually go somewhere like a market?]

[Looks like the Gu Family really intends to cut him off.]

A familiar inner voice suddenly sounded in Gu Junxing's ears. He turned and immediately spotted Qiao Hua sitting in a taxi by the roadside.

His anger flared at once. He put down the vegetables he had been choosing and led Tan Ruiyu over by the hand.

"What are you doing here?" Gu Junxing asked harshly. "Did you come to laugh at me?"

"Who has time to come here just to laugh at you? I'm on my way home from work and happened to pass by."

Hearing that Qiao Hua had a job, Gu Junxing reacted as though she'd told him a joke. He sneered, "Looks like my brother doesn't want you, so you had to find work somewhere else, huh?"

"Jiang Nan found a job too. Does that mean your brother doesn't want her either?"

Gu Junxing faltered. "How could Jiang Nan be anything like you? She's independent and self-reliant. You can't even hold a candle to her."

Qiao Hua thought that when she found a job, it meant she could no longer get by at home, but when Jiang Nan found one, it meant she was independent and self-reliant. Gu Junxing certainly had double standards down to an art.

Qiao Hua glanced at the red plastic bag in Gu Junxing's hand. "You're pretty independent and self-reliant yourself. You've even learned how to buy groceries in such a short time."

Hearing the sarcasm in her voice, Gu Junxing's expression immediately darkened. He clenched his fist. "For the woman I love, I'm willing to do anything!"

As he spoke, he put an arm around Tan Ruiyu's shoulders, as though trying to prove something. Lifting his chin proudly, he said, "You see? Even without money, Ruiyu and I are doing just fine."

Qiao Hua nodded perfunctorily. "Sure, sure. You're right."

[Gu Junxing won't be happy for much longer. Tan Ruiyu will lay her cards on the table soon enough.]

[Once she dumps him, he'll have no choice but to crawl back to the Gu Family and apologize to Weng Fenghua. Unfortunately, it'll be too late. By the time he discovers he has AIDS, it'll already be in its late stages.]

Gu Junxing gritted his teeth so hard they nearly shattered.

How many times was Qiao Hua going to bring up him getting AIDS?

Someone as clean-living as him would never get such a disgusting disease.

Gu Junxing's grip on the plastic bag of groceries tightened involuntarily. "Just you wait. Ruiyu and I will be happy together for the rest of our lives."

Qiao Hua glanced at Tan Ruiyu beside him. There was no telling what she was thinking.

Gu Junxing hadn't noticed, though. He kept talking. "Unlike you. No matter how much you do, my brother will never love you."

"I heard Jiang Nan is back. My brother will dump you soon enough. Just wait for the divorce."

[May your words come true. I hope those two stay together for good, and soon.]

[Once I'm divorced, I won't have to see any of your family's nasty faces again.]

Gu Junxing's expression turned a little odd. Why wasn't Qiao Hua reacting the way he had imagined?

But he soon figured it out. Qiao Hua had to be pretending to stay calm. She loved his older brother so much; how could she not panic? She simply didn't want him to notice.

"Keep pretending you don't care. When you get kicked out of the Gu Family, I'll definitely set off firecrackers to celebrate."

With that, Gu Junxing took Tan Ruiyu's hand and turned away, heading back to buy groceries.

As they walked, Tan Ruiyu looked back at the polished, glamorous Qiao Hua in the taxi, then looked at herself. A hint of jealousy showed in her eyes.

Why did Qiao Hua get to work a white-collar job at a big company while she had to haggle over groceries with Gu Junxing in a filthy place like this?

Tan Ruiyu couldn't help clenching her fists, resentment showing on her face.

It seemed she ought to start planning for her own future too.

By the time Qiao Hua returned to the villa, it was already dark outside. Nanny came over to take the coat she had removed. "Ma'am, sir said he won't be home for dinner tonight."

Qiao Hua paused. "Really?"

Holding the coat, Nanny nodded.

In her excitement, Qiao Hua blurted out, "Wonderful! I finally don't have to eat dinner while looking at his sour face!"

"Ma'am, what did you say?"

Seeing Nanny looking at her strangely, Qiao Hua cleared her throat and reined in her glee. "Oh, I said it's fine. He's just not coming home for dinner. That's normal."

Nanny hesitated. In truth, when he had called that day, she had heard a woman's voice on the other end.

After a moment's hesitation, Nanny decided not to say anything.

She should just focus on doing her own job.