Chapter 58: It's a Shame, You're Born to Grovel!

Watching Xu An'an sneaking around like a little thief, yet looking so adorably innocent, Jiang Li sat there, thoroughly amused, and even reminded her, “Don’t swing the door open all at once—they might be standing right outside.”

Xu An'an quickly peered through the small window to make sure the hallway was empty.

She turned back, “I’ll pass by the nurses’ station later and ask a nurse to come apply your ointment.”

“Come back after their evening shift,” Jiang Li instructed.

With her task complete, Xu An'an hurried off.

Just as she found a nurse and turned around, she spotted Lin Jiaojiao standing not far away. Xu An'an, however, remained completely unfazed and chose to ignore her.

Lin Jiaojiao, of course, would never let Xu An'an off so easily.

But she was shocked—though it was only a little after six in the morning, Xu An'an had arrived at the hospital even earlier than she had to see Jiang Li. She’d always thought no one in the world could come earlier than her, just as no one could love Jiang Li more than she did.

“Stop right there!”

“Get out of my way,” Xu An'an replied, her impatience showing—she just wanted to get breakfast as soon as possible. “You avoided jail time because you have a good grandfather. I hope you cherish this second chance.”

Lin Jiaojiao didn’t listen to a word of her advice, glaring at Xu An'an with the righteous indignation of a spurned wife confronting the other woman.

“What exactly is your relationship with Li? Just friends? I don’t believe it!”

“How amusing. Believe what you like—it’s none of my business.” Xu An'an sidestepped Lin Jiaojiao and walked straight toward the elevator.

But Lin Jiaojiao wouldn’t give up, reaching out to grab Xu An'an.

Xu An'an, already on guard, deftly dodged and, with a swift motion, slapped Lin Jiaojiao hard across the face, her long-restrained anger finally erupting.

“Are you done yet?”

“Do you think you can push me around just because I’ve tolerated you? Let me tell you, I’ve only backed down repeatedly out of respect for the deal between Old Master Jiang and Old Master Lin!”

“Too bad for you—you were born to be a nuisance!”

“Let’s settle things, then. That slap just now, I gave it on Jiang Li’s behalf. His hands are still badly injured!”

Smack!

Under Lin Jiaojiao’s astonished gaze, Xu An'an landed another fierce slap.

“And this one is for myself.”

“If you dare try anything again, it won’t just be a slap. Try me if you don’t believe it.”

With those words, Xu An'an turned and left, her departure as effortless as a gust of wind.

By the time Lin Jiaojiao came back to her senses, the elevator doors had already closed, leaving her to fume in place.

Wang, Jiang Li’s assistant, who had witnessed everything from the shadows, silently gave Xu An'an a thumbs-up in his heart and rushed off to report to Jiang Li.

“Second Master, you should’ve been there—Miss Xu’s slap was clean and sharp!”

“And she said the first slap was to vent your anger.”

Whatever came to mind, Jiang Li’s lips curled into a pleased smile, and he found himself looking forward to the evening. He instructed Wang to go check the security footage.

First, to delete the footage of Xu An'an slapping Lin Jiaojiao.

Second, to look for the fat cat’s whereabouts.

…

When Xu An'an returned to the magazine office, she was surprised to find Shang Yan chatting with Xue Shengnan. She went back to her desk, puzzled, and put her bag down.

A while later, Xue Shengnan approached her—with Shang Yan following, smiling so sweetly, a stark contrast to the sharpness she’d shown the day before. “Reporter Xu, congratulations, you’ve passed my assessment.”

Xu An'an was at a loss. “President Shang, what do you mean? What assessment?”

“Why, my own assessment of you,” Shang Yan said, folding her arms. “Many people have wanted to interview me, but I’ve always refused because they’re all too opportunistic. But you’re different.”

Xu An'an still didn’t understand and looked at Xue Shengnan for help.

Xue Shengnan merely smiled in silence.

Shang Yan didn’t bother to elaborate. “Why don’t we finish the interview from the other day? I happen to be free all morning.”

Not only was she agreeing, she had come of her own accord. It felt like a fox paying its respects to the hen—nothing good could come of it.

Xu An'an smiled politely. “Of course. Please wait a moment while I prepare.”

“Naturally. I dropped in unannounced, after all. Take your time—I’ll wait in President Xue’s office,” Shang Yan said, patting Xu An'an’s shoulder as if to say she had high hopes for her.

Once Shang Yan and Xue Shengnan left, Xu An'an turned to Xiao Mei beside her.

“Doesn’t something seem off to you?”

“She even brought us breakfast and coffee,” Xiao Mei pointed to the long table not far away. “Yours is especially lavish.”

Xu An'an had eaten just one meat bun on her way in and was still a bit hungry. Looking over, she saw the spread was indeed generous—a sandwich packed with beef, egg, and ham, two eggs, a latte, and a portion of fresh fruit.

It really was just like the fox paying respects to the hen.

Xu An'an dared not touch it—who knew what might be in the food? She went off to prepare her interview questions, then headed to Xue Shengnan’s office.

Shang Yan requested a private interview and had reserved a reception room.

“Miss Xu, you’re not still dwelling on what happened the other day, are you? I tell you, that was all just part of the assessment, a misunderstanding, not the real me.”

The more she tried to explain, the more suspicious it all sounded.

Xu An'an didn’t bother arguing and began the interview. “You’ve already seen these questions, President Shang. Let’s get started—since this interview was arranged at the last minute, I have to head out afterwards to interview a basketball player.”

“These are all prior commitments, I hope you understand.”

Remembering her purpose, Shang Yan forced down her irritation. “Fine, let’s begin.”

The interview was short, barely half an hour.

Xu An'an then offered to fetch Shang Yan some water.

Shang Yan was indeed thirsty and waited leisurely, not expecting someone else to enter instead.

“Where’s Xu An'an?”

“She’s gone out to interview the basketball player,” the staff member replied.

Shang Yan had no choice but to rush after her.

The previous evening, she’d seen Xu An'an dining with Jiang Li, realizing she’d misjudged the situation. That was why she came seeking her out. But she hadn’t anticipated Xu An'an would be so dismissive!

…

On the way, Xu An'an received a call—the athlete she was to interview had been hospitalized due to an accidental injury. She was asked to interview him at the hospital.

Coincidentally, this athlete was staying at the same hospital as Jiang Li.

Xu An'an decided she’d visit Jiang Li at noon since he was injured protecting her.

Arriving at the hospital, Xu An'an found the athlete’s ward and, to her surprise, discovered Gu Yang was there as well. Only then did she learn that Gu Yang was the athlete’s boss.

Gu Yang greeted her with a smile, “Miss Xu, we meet again.”

“I’m sorry about what happened last time. Let me treat you to a proper meal next time,” Xu An'an replied.

“How about later today?”

“Sorry, I need to visit the Second Master. As you know, if it weren’t for him, I might have been the one hospitalized.”

At this, Gu Yang smiled meaningfully. “It seems you and the Second Master are more than just ordinary friends?”

A shadowy figure lingered just outside the ward door.