Seeing the four bowls of noodles already on the table, Shi Xinxin couldn't say anything more.
She glanced at the time; it was getting late. If she dawdled any longer, she'd be late for work.
So, she had no choice but to sit down at the dining table and finish her bowl of noodles in a bad mood.
The three little ones sitting opposite her were all eating with great enthusiasm, not just because they were happy to have noodles, but more because their father had finally wised up.
Mommy had said yesterday that she wanted noodles for three meals a day, and Daddy had hired this chef at a high price today. It truly showed he cherished Mommy!
After Shi Xinxin finished her noodles, she saw that the expressions on the faces of the three little ones were vastly different from her own.
She sighed in her heart about their lack of conscience and carried the bowls to the kitchen, not forgetting to instruct, "I'm going to work now. You three remember to put the bowls in the dishwasher."
The three little ones, who were enthusiastically slurping noodles at the dining table, quickly responded.
Shi Xinxin was already accustomed to them being home alone and had no worries.
Xiao Qian at home often read literary works, while the other two played with electronic devices in the study. All three children possessed intelligence far beyond their peers, making them completely different from the wild kids playing in the dirt outside their front door. Shi Xinxin naturally felt at ease.
Inside CL Company, as Shi Xinxin walked into her office, Yang Yue approached her with an iPad.
"CEO Shi, there's an auction at the National Conglomerate tomorrow. Huashu, the brand representative, has gifted us a few invitations and hopes we can grace the event with our presence."
Upon hearing it was a brand representative, Shi Xinxin paused her intended refusal. She took the iPad handed to her by Yang Yue and looked at the screen, where an invitation with a gold-embossed border was displayed.
As she read the auction's notes, she walked towards her seat, "Is this brand representative the same one who sent us the new products last time?"
Yang Yue nodded, "This brand representative has a not-insignificant relationship with CL, so I thought I'd ask for your opinion."
Shi Xinxin, usually decisive, never accepted flattery from other companies nor attended public events held by external organizations.
However, due to the issue with the new products last time, CL owed this brand representative a considerable favor, so Shi Xinxin felt obliged to attend.
Considering she had no important matters tomorrow, Shi Xinxin placed the iPad on her desk, "Alright, then help me prepare the schedule. I'll be at the auction on time tomorrow."
Yang Yue acknowledged and immediately set about executing the task.
Warm sunlight streamed through the floor-to-ceiling windows, creating a gentle halo around her. Shi Xinxin slowly rotated in her office chair, looking at the electronic invitation on the iPad.
Seeing the three standard Kai script characters on the invitation, Shi Xinxin suddenly remembered that Sheng Chenjin had also mentioned attending an auction.
However, she was still angry yesterday and didn't inquire further about which auction it was.
Shi Xinxin took out her phone, opened her contacts, and pressed on "Sheng Chenjin."
The call was answered quickly, and a man's deep, magnetic voice came through, "Xinxin, calling me now, do you want to thank me for helping you hire a chef?"
This man was truly narcissistic. The words Shi Xinxin was about to ask turned into a retort, "I'm not saying this to be critical, but narcissism is an illness, it needs treatment."
Sheng Chenjin ignored the literal meaning of her words and chuckled softly.
Shi Xinxin cleared her throat seriously, "Let's talk business. What's the deal with the auction you mentioned yesterday?"
The brand representative inviting her wasn't particularly prominent in the business world, essentially a small company.
CL had coincidentally partnered with this small company when it was first established.
Therefore, the organizer of this auction couldn't be someone of great stature, but Shi Xinxin still felt uneasy, her mind inexplicably turning to Elder Feng.
Since she had finished recording that episode, Elder Feng had been silent, leading one to suspect that this fox was secretly plotting something big behind the scenes.
He was in the dark, and Shi Xinxin was in the open. Unable to see his hidden actions, Shi Xinxin felt the need to take some precautions.
Sheng Chenjin hadn't thoroughly investigated the organizer of this auction either; he had casually mentioned it to the three little ones out of interest.
He slightly moved the phone away and looked up, "Bai Feng, go investigate the organizer of this auction."
Bai Feng, holding his laptop, began to search.
He quickly found the information, "This auction is primarily a jewelry auction, and the organizer is from the Mingyang Su family."
Sheng Chenjin had deliberately put the call on speakerphone, so Shi Xinxin could hear Bai Feng's words clearly.
Upon hearing those familiar four characters, Shi Xinxin's expression immediately turned grim.
Indeed, enemies crossed paths.
"Only Su Li from the Su family is involved in the jewelry industry, so this auction must be her doing," Shi Xinxin's voice was icy.
Sheng Chenjin was aware of her issues with the Su family and raised an eyebrow slightly, "Then we won't go. Have someone sabotage the auction."
"No need," Shi Xinxin, though in a bad mood, remained rational.
She thought of the group lurking in the shadows, watching them, and said slowly, "Don't forget, there are still a group of people watching us from behind. We can't afford to make any mistakes."
Sheng Chenjin, who had the power to control everything, had never feared those people.
But given Shi Xinxin's concerns, he reluctantly agreed.
Shi Xinxin proactively ended the call. She informed Yang Yue and then left the company early, driving to the city center mall owned by CL.
Su Li's auction this time was definitely more than just about making money.
Soon, Shi Xinxin arrived at the city's largest mall. She observed that business was quite good inside, and her mood, which had been darkened by the Su family, finally lightened somewhat.
The mall manager recognized Shi Xinxin and hurried to greet her, "CEO Shi, why didn't you let us know you were coming? We weren't prepared at all."
Shi Xinxin waved her hand, "Go about your business, I'll just wander around."
The manager stood still, watching her boss leave, and breathed a sigh of relief.
The first floor was mainly the clothing area, vast in size. Shi Xinxin browsed for half an hour before reaching the women's wear section.
She looked around, nodding with satisfaction.
Each store had some customers, and the turnover seemed good.
However, perhaps due to the high rental prices in the mall, some shops were still vacant. Shi Xinxin was contemplating adjusting the prices downwards when she returned...
Suddenly, she bumped into someone.
"Ouch!" the other person exclaimed, quickly stepping back.
Shi Xinxin reflexively took a step back. In those few seconds, something clattered to the ground.
Before she could even see, the other person shrieked, "Hey, aren't you looking where you're going?!"
Shi Xinxin frowned and finally managed to say, "Sorry."
The other person was a woman dressed fashionably, but her jacket was covered in coffee stains, looking terrible.
"You have to pay me!"