Chapter 11 : Overbearing President

If Liu Yuguang and Kang Lu had any doubts before, they were now completely certain—Shi Pengpeng was just talking nonsense.

If she had randomly mentioned someone else, it might have been more believable, but she just had to say Yan Jing. 

And what was Yan Jing’s status in MaoZhua? 

If she really had a connection with him, why would she have struggled so hard just to get a minor recommendation spot on MaoZhua, only to have Liu Yuguang easily snatch it away?

It was clear that she was still unwilling to accept reality, so she had found a way to sneak into MaoZhua’s training session. 

As for her intentions, they weren’t hard to guess.

Young people were often naïve and had never witnessed the dangers of society. 

They always thought this was a place where they could seek justice.

Understanding this, Liu Yuguang was no longer in a hurry. 

He even deliberately teased her: “Pengpeng, if you really want to work with MaoZhua’s channels, you could’ve just told me. Why go through so much trouble? I told you when you joined that you’re always welcome in my department.”

When Shi Pengpeng first joined Fuxi Foods, Liu Yuguang had noticed her good looks and suggested she transfer to his team, subtly implying that she shouldn’t waste her beauty.

Shi Pengpeng was extremely disgusted by his approach and had rejected him without hesitation. 

Losing face, Liu Yuguang had held a grudge against her ever since. 

Snatching her channel wasn’t just about MaoZhua’s resources—it was also about putting her in her place.

“If there’s nothing else, I’m leaving.” 

Shi Pengpeng had no interest in arguing with him and turned to leave.

“Stop right there.” 

Kang Lu reached out to block her path.

Shi Pengpeng was forced to pause, suppressing her impatience. 

“What now?”

“Nothing much.” 

Kang Lu eyed her coldly with a trace of disdain. 

“But this isn’t a place for you. Please leave immediately.”

If Shi Pengpeng had any sense, she would have accepted the olive branch Liu Yuguang had just offered. 

But since she was so stubborn and unyielding, Kang Lu wouldn’t let her stay in the venue any longer.

Though she was insignificant and likely didn’t know much, she looked like a troublemaker. 

If she caused a scene and someone with influence heard about it, it would be troublesome to handle.

Shi Pengpeng’s face darkened. 

“On what grounds?”

“On the grounds that I’m a manager at MaoZhua,” Kang Lu sneered, then gestured toward two security guards nearby.

The two guards quickly jogged over. 

One of them asked, “Manager Kang, what’s the matter?”

Kang Lu glanced at Shi Pengpeng and said, “This person was not invited. We don’t know how she got in. Please escort her out.”

“Yes.” 

The security guard nodded and turned to her. 

“Miss, please come with us.”

“Don’t listen to him,” Shi Pengpeng stepped back and pulled out her temporary work badge. 

“I have credentials.”

Kang Lu narrowed his eyes slightly as if realizing something. 

“Oh, so you stole one of our badges.”

Shi Pengpeng: “…”

Is this guy for real? 

He guessed right, but maybe he shouldn’t have.

Hearing Kang Lu’s words, the security guards became even more convinced she was an intruder. 

Seeing her reluctance to comply, they prepared to take action.

Shi Pengpeng was speechless. 

“I really am Yan Jing’s friend!”

Liu Yuguang found her insistence laughable. 

“If you’re Yan Jing’s friend, then I must be Yan Jing’s father—”

Before he could finish, a cold voice interrupted: “I don’t recall having a bastard father out here.”

Liu Yuguang turned his head, only to find a handsome young man standing nearby, looking at him with an unhappy expression.

Just as he was feeling confused, he saw Kang Lu’s face suddenly change dramatically. 

He blurted out in shock: “Y-Yan… President Yan, why are you here?”

Liu Yuguang: “?? Who?”

Yan Jing had just signed a contract with Xue Chengyin when Wei Chi reminded him about the training session. 

Due to an unexpected issue earlier in the day, his schedule had been tighter than expected. 

Wanting to keep a low profile, he entered through the side door and took a small path toward the main stage. 

However, as soon as he turned the corner, he saw Shi Pengpeng being surrounded by a few men, seemingly in a dispute.

Sensing something was off, Yan Jing approached to get a better understanding of the situation—only to hear Liu Yuguang’s ridiculous statement.

Realizing his mistake, Liu Yuguang wished he could slap himself on the spot. 

He quickly put on a flattering smile.

“So, you’re President Yan! My apologies, I was just joking…”

Yan Jing ignored him and turned to Shi Pengpeng. 

“What’s going on?”

Kang Lu thought Yan Jing was addressing him and quickly replied, “President Yan, this person stole our work badge to sneak into the venue and even had the audacity to impersonate your friend. I was just about to have security escort her out.”

“What are you talking about?” 

Yan Jing looked at him with confusion. 

“She is my friend.”

Kang Lu and Liu Yuguang: ???!!

Yan Jing’s words were like a thunderclap on a clear day, leaving both Kang Lu and Liu Yuguang stunned. 

Their expressions twisted with disbelief.

“T-this…” 

Kang Lu looked at Yan Jing, then at Shi Pengpeng, momentarily at a loss for words.

Yan Jing raised an eyebrow. 

“What’s the problem?”

“N-nothing!” 

Kang Lu snapped back to reality, his reaction quick enough. 

He immediately waved the security guards away and switched to a friendly demeanor. 

“Oh, so that’s how it is! A misunderstanding, just a misunderstanding! Haha, I failed to recognize true greatness.”

Seeing how quickly he changed his tune, Shi Pengpeng couldn’t help but chuckle.

Kang Lu’s face instantly turned green.

Yan Jing glanced at her, his lips twitching slightly. 

“You still find this funny?”

Shi Pengpeng shrugged, looking completely justified. 

“A girl who smiles often won’t have bad luck, right?”

Yan Jing: “…”

“Forget it.” 

Yan Jing rubbed his temple, sighing helplessly. 

“Come with me.”

This little troublemaker was actually the reason today’s major contract between MaoZhua and NianGuang Group got signed. 

And yet, in just a short while, she had almost been thrown out.

She really couldn’t be left unattended. 

Someone had to keep an eye on her.

Shi Pengpeng, however, was unbothered. 

She let out a casual “Oh” and happily followed him.

Even after the two walked away, Liu Yuguang was still struggling to process what had just happened. 

He turned to Kang Lu, his voice shaky. 

“Manager Kang, how… how did this happen? What do we do now?”

If he had stayed quiet, it would have been fine. 

But the moment he spoke, Kang Lu, who had just started to calm down, immediately recalled who had caused all this trouble. 

Gritting his teeth, he snapped, “You still dare ask me? Didn’t you say she was just some fresh-out-of-school rookie? How the hell does she know Yan Jing? You’ve completely screwed me over!”

“You can’t put it all on me,” Liu Yuguang retorted, finally losing his temper. 

He had been working in the corporate world for years and had a certain status. 

Being scolded like this was intolerable. 

“Manager Kang, you took plenty of money too. You can’t expect to take no risks at all, can you?”

“That little bit of money means nothing! Do you even know what kind of person Yan Jing is?”

“How would I know what kind of person he is? But Manager Kang, if you’re that scared of him, maybe you shouldn’t have gotten involved in the first place.”

***

As they walked, Shi Pengpeng couldn’t help but marvel, “Damn, Jing-ge, I didn’t expect you to be the Vice President of MaoZhua Live!”

Yan Jing looked at her oddly. 

“You didn’t know before?”

When they had gone on their blind date, Shi Pengpeng had bluntly admitted that she was interested in his “good conditions,” and afterward, she never asked about his job. 

Yan Jing had assumed she already knew all about him.

Shi Pengpeng wanted to say How would I know? but then remembered she had just owed him a big favor. 

She figured she should give him some face, so she vaguely replied, “I vaguely heard my grandpa mention that you had a good job…”

Hearing this, Yan Jing looked at her with even more disdain.

So, she didn’t even know what he actually did, but the moment she heard he had a “good job,” she eagerly showed up for the blind date?

How disgraceful!

But since he had already made his stance clear, he didn’t dwell on it. 

Instead, he changed the topic. 

“What exactly happened between you and Kang Lu and that other guy?”

Although Kang Lu had tried his best to cover things up earlier, Yan Jing wasn’t an idiot. 

There were so many people at the event, and even if Shi Pengpeng had snuck in, under normal circumstances, she wouldn’t have drawn attention—let alone been targeted for removal.

Something must have triggered it.

Shi Pengpeng hesitated, not because she was embarrassed to tell him, but because she wasn’t sure where to start. 

She wasn’t naive—she had heard about Liu Yuguang’s shady ways before. 

So when she found out that MaoZhua had agreed to let Liu Yuguang list non-compliant products, she already had some suspicions.

Seeing Liu Yuguang and Kang Lu together earlier, and then noticing how defensive they were around her, only confirmed her doubts.

But she had no concrete evidence, and she wasn’t familiar with MaoZhua’s internal policies. 

If she spoke up recklessly, Yan Jing might not be able to act on it, and she didn’t want to put him in a difficult position.

Noticing her hesitation, Yan Jing’s expression darkened. 

“What? You don’t trust me?”

“It’s not that.” 

Shi Pengpeng blinked. 

“I was just wondering if it’s worth mentioning.”

Yan Jing lifted his chin slightly, his tone commanding, “If it’s about MaoZhua, whether it’s worth mentioning is for me to decide.”

Shi Pengpeng was momentarily taken aback by his imposing presence, almost forgetting how miserable he had looked in front of supernatural beings. 

But since he had put it that way, she didn’t hold back and recounted everything in detail. 

She didn’t even need to voice her suspicions—if he had risen to this position, he would naturally think even further than she would.

Sure enough, as soon as Yan Jing finished listening, his face turned cold, and he sneered. 

“I knew that bastard Kang wasn’t clean.”

The e-commerce department handled partnerships with numerous merchants, meaning there was a lot of profit to be made. 

It was almost impossible to prevent some people from getting greedy, especially in a company as large as MaoZhua. 

But the Agricultural Aid project was a government-supported initiative, and its goal wasn’t just to sell products. 

Yan Jing absolutely would not allow anyone to exploit it for personal gain.

“Don’t worry, I’ll get to the bottom of this,” Yan Jing assured her. 

“And I’ll also make sure your recommendation spot is reinstated.”

Shi Pengpeng’s eyes lit up. 

“Really?”

If Liu Yuguang ended up getting investigated, it would undoubtedly implicate Fuxi Foods. 

She hadn’t even considered the possibility of getting her recommendation spot back.

“Of course.” 

Yan Jing raised an eyebrow. 

“Technically, you just did me a favor.”

Shi Pengpeng immediately understood.

Yan Jing had probably already suspected Kang Lu of shady dealings but, for some reason, hadn’t been able to take action yet. 

Her incident had inadvertently handed him the perfect opportunity to make a move.

Shi Pengpeng clasped her hands together and said playfully, “You’re welcome.”

Yan Jing chuckled coldly. 

“Kang Lu really kicked the wrong iron plate this time.”

Shi Pengpeng: …Is this the legendary charm of a domineering CEO? I love it.

“Jing-ge, you’re the best!” 

Shi Pengpeng beamed at him, her eyes sparkling as she earnestly promised, 

“Don’t worry, from now on, whenever you need me, I’ll be by your side. I won’t leave your side for a single step.”

Yan Jing: “…”

This was the first time Shi Pengpeng had ever given him such a straightforward show of approval. 

He wasn’t used to it. 

His face turned slightly unnatural, and seeing her admiring (or was it?) expression, he worried she might be getting the wrong idea. 

He cleared his throat and emphasized, “I’m just doing my job. Don’t overthink it.”

Shi Pengpeng was confused. 

What’s there to overthink?

Oh well, whatever. 

The boss is always right.

She obediently nodded. 

“I understand, I understand.”