16: I Can Help You

Liu Xiaoxiao's face flushed. Gritting her teeth, she snapped, "Who told you to lay your hands on this beautiful woman yesterday!"

Shen Yifei couldn't be bothered to bicker with Liu Xiaoxiao any longer. He retorted, "I already told you, we still don't know who started it yesterday!"

"Hmph, I'm too lazy to argue," Liu Xiaoxiao said, rolling her eyes at Shen Yifei. "Get in the car!"

"Wouldn't it have saved a lot of time if you'd just done that earlier?" Shen Yifei chuckled.

"Say one more word, and I'll kick you out of the car!"

After a moment of playful bickering, the BMW finally drove off.

They arrived downstairs at the Lingya International Building.

"Director Liu," Shen Yifei said with a cheeky grin, "it's already past working hours. If there's nothing else, I'll head back to my desk. And since you took me to lunch, don't you dare dock my pay, alright?"

Liu Xiaoxiao gritted her teeth in annoyance, glaring furiously at Shen Yifei. "Hmph! You'd better behave yourself. Next time, I'll make sure you regret it!"

Damn it, there's a next time? Shen Yifei's mood soured slightly. Couldn't this girl just cut him some slack? All she ever thought about was messing with him.

Too lazy to ponder it further, Shen Yifei arrived at the Public Relations Department Manager's office. The female colleagues were already at work, and Lin Caier was in the office, busy with spreadsheets.

"My apologies, Assistant Lin, I'm late," Shen Yifei said apologetically.

"It's fine," Lin Caier said, managing a faint smile.

He plopped down onto the chair, comfortably crossing his legs, and picked up some documents from the desk, perusing them under the guise of 'working'.

After a while, Lin Caier seemed unable to fight off her drowsiness and actually fell asleep, face down on her desk.

Employees were certainly not allowed to sleep during working hours, but Shen Yifei was quite considerate of the girl and didn't disturb her sleep.

Just then, a young, pretty female secretary came over to deliver some documents, pushing open the office door.

"Assistant Lin, this is the company's plan for next month—"

"Shh!" Shen Yifei rose from his seat, lowering his voice to the female secretary. "Assistant Lin is tired; don't disturb her rest. If there's anything, just tell me."

Feeling the indoor air conditioning was too cold, Shen Yifei casually draped his suit jacket over Lin Caier.

"Manager Shen, you're so handsome! I've never seen such a gentle and considerate manager!" The female secretary's eyes sparkled as she gazed at Shen Yifei with a smitten expression.

Shen Yifei felt a surge of pride. "A manager as good as me," he thought to himself, "is practically impossible to find!"

"Ahem, ahem, let's get down to business," Shen Yifei said, clearing his throat.

"Mhm," the female secretary said, smiling as she handed the documents to Shen Yifei.

Shen Yifei was already well-versed in the work, and handling it was simple.

As the female secretary left, she didn't forget to give Shen Yifei a flirtatious wink. Leaning close to his ear with a mischievous smile, she whispered, "Manager Shen, are you free tonight? I'd like to invite you to dinner."

Shen Yifei revealed a playful smile. From his angle, he could vaguely discern the enticing hint of cleavage peeking from beneath the young, pretty female secretary's uniform collar.

As it was a fashion company, the female employees' dress code was also quite sexy and stylish.

Seeing Shen Yifei's eyes linger on her chest, the girl's lips curved, and she subtly jutted her chest forward. That tantalizing glimpse of snowy white was practically blinding.

"So forward, is that really okay?" Shen Yifei felt his ears burn and his heart pound. He was, after all, a virile man, and the recent aloof demeanor of the 'ice beauty' (a common trope for a beautiful but cold-hearted woman) at home had left him feeling somewhat suppressed, occasionally yearning for an outlet.

Though he could be an absolute rogue when he truly let loose, he wasn't looking for an affair right now.

Shen Yifei gave a self-deprecating smile. Even if he *did* think that way, the 'ice beauty' at home probably wouldn't care if he cheated or not.

"Next time, perhaps. I'm busy tonight."

After sending the girl away, Shen Yifei continued with his work.

Lin Caier seemed utterly exhausted; she actually slept all the way until closing time.

After waking up, the girl realized she had made a huge mistake, and seeing Shen Yifei's jacket still draped over her, she couldn't help but blush.

Lin Caier said nervously, "I'm so sorry! It's my fault; I'll find a way to make it up to you. Manager Shen, why didn't you wake me up?"

"You were sleeping so soundly, how could I bear to disturb you?" Shen Yifei chuckled. "Don't worry, I've already done your work for you."

"Oh..." Lin Caier looked embarrassed, not knowing what to say.

Seeing the girl's flustered and shy expression, Shen Yifei chuckled and patted her delicate shoulder. "Alright," he said, "it's already time to get off work. Hurry back and get some good rest tonight."

"Mhm, thank you," Lin Caier said, taking a deep breath, her emotions somewhat complex.

Just at that moment, her phone suddenly rang. She picked it up and answered.

"Lin Caier, where are you now?"

Hearing the gloomy voice from the phone, Lin Caier's face instantly went pale, revealing a look of dread.

Soon, she composed herself and said to Shen Yifei, who was standing beside her, "I'm sorry, Manager Shen, I have to go now!"

With that, she quickly grabbed her bag and hurried out of the office.

Shen Yifei noted Lin Caier's expression. Normally, he wouldn't interfere in others' business, but he was a little curious, feeling that Lin Caier might be in some trouble.

Anyway, he was also planning to leave, so he simply followed behind Lin Caier.

Lin Caier's expression was hurried. As she walked, she picked up her phone and asked, "He... Hetao, how did you get my phone number?"

"Don't worry about how I know, Lin Caier," the voice sneered. "Tonight is your last chance. Don't you dare disappoint me."

Lin Caier gritted her teeth and pleaded, "Please, just let me go!"

"No way," the voice snarled. "I'm telling you, I already know where your mother's hospital is. I'm out of patience. 7 PM, I'll be waiting for you at Xiangshan Park (Fragrant Hills Park), in the city's suburbs. If you don't come, you'll have to bear the consequences yourself!"

Lin Caier felt both furious and helpless. She hadn't expected that man to be so utterly shameless, actually using her own mother to threaten her.

After hanging up, Lin Caier walked out of the Lingya International Building, looking utterly distraught.

"Assistant Lin, what happened?" Shen Yifei stepped forward, striking up a conversation with her.

Lin Caier looked back at Shen Yifei, then immediately turned her head away. "No... nothing," she mumbled.

Despite her evasiveness, Shen Yifei still saw a hint of tears welling in the girl's eyes. His sympathy immediately surged, as he had, after all, a rather good impression of Lin Caier.

"If you trust me," Shen Yifei smiled, "I can help you solve whatever trouble you're in."

"Manager Shen, you're a good person," she said. "I'm really fine."

After saying this, Lin Caier ran off.

Shen Yifei felt a bit deflated. Was his credibility really that low?

Just then, his phone rang too. He pulled it out and saw that it was actually a call from the 'ice beauty'.

"Hey, wifey, what's up?" Shen Yifei asked with a laugh.

Su Muqing was already immune to Shen Yifei's shamelessness. She snorted softly, "I'm out on business right now; I'll be home late tonight."

Shen Yifei had no doubts about Su Muqing's words. If this woman said she was doing business, then she truly was, because she simply disdained lying to him. After all, they weren't truly engaged anyway.

"But I don't have a key to the house!"

"Then figure it out yourself. Don't bother me."

With that, Su Muqing hung up.

Shen Yifei's mood soured considerably. This woman's attitude was simply awful, wasn't it? Thinking about it, he was truly pathetic; he was her nominal fiancé, yet he didn't even have a single house key.

He sighed. And since Shen Yifei had no other plans for the evening, seeing Lin Caier flag down a taxi by the roadside in the distance, he also hailed a taxi and followed.

Shen Yifei was still a bit worried about Lin Caier. Based on his experience, he could guess that something unpleasant was afoot, so he decided to follow and see.

Lin Caier didn't eat dinner; she directly took a taxi to Xiangshan Park (Fragrant Hills Park), in the city's suburbs.

The environment here was beautiful; normally, in the evenings, it was the best place for couples to stroll and flirt.

However, because several cases of young women being assaulted had occurred in Xiangshan Park in recent days, no one dared to come to this place anymore. It was very quiet at night, and coupled with the overcast sky, very few people were moving around in the park.