Plunder-Chapter 225: Conspicuous Bag

In order to ensure Qiao En’s safety, Zhou Jin’an personally drove her to the company.

"I can go up by myself, there’s no need for you to accompany me."

At the elevator, Qiao En wanted Zhou Jin’an to leave, but he insisted on taking her upstairs.

"It’s no trouble, I’ll leave right after I see you go in."

However, once Qiao En entered the workspace, Zhou Jin’an didn’t leave.

He went straight to Zhou Chucheng’s office.

"Big brother, you’re here."

There were people in Zhou Chucheng’s office, but when Zhou Jin’an appeared, radiating an air of cool authority, they consciously got up and left the room.

"I am here to inform you of something important."

Zhou Jin’an stood at the door, not stepping inside.

"What’s the matter, big brother? Why so formal? Come in and have a cup of coffee first; I just ground it myself—try my handiwork."

Zhou Chucheng said as he stood up.

But Zhou Jin’an had no interest in Zhou Chucheng’s hand-ground coffee. 𝑓𝓇𝘦ℯ𝘸𝘦𝑏𝓃𝑜𝘷ℯ𝑙.𝑐𝑜𝓂

"From today onward, don’t assign Xu Yayun any tasks that are taxing on the mind or body, got that?"

The request sounded a bit unreasonable.

A smile played on Zhou Chucheng’s face, "Got it, but my comprehension isn’t great; I didn’t quite understand, so I’m hoping big brother will make it clear."

"Alright, then I’ll be more specific."

Zhou Jin’an wasn’t being polite; for Qiao En’s sake, he was all in.

"Don’t make her run around dealing with upward and downward communications; don’t assign her the mentally and physically taxing tasks of socializing and meeting clients, what I’m saying is, it’s better to give her less to do. Have I made myself clear enough this time?"

Zhou Chucheng finally got the message.

But as his assistant, Qiao En was inevitably supposed to take on these tasks.

He didn’t understand Zhou Jin’an’s intention at first and thought Zhou Jin’an was doing this so that he, using Zhou Chucheng’s hand, might force Qiao En to resign.

"I understand, but big brother, why are you doing this? Sister-in-law has been doing well here, she would know if you do this, wouldn’t she?"

"How would she know if you don’t tell her?"

Zhou Chucheng laughed; it was the first time he had seen Zhou Jin’an be so domineeringly indulgent towards someone.

Nevertheless, in his heart, Qiao En deserved it.

"Big brother, may I ask what you’re trying to achieve by doing this?"

"To protect her."

Zhou Jin’an replied succinctly, yet Zhou Chucheng didn’t get the answer he wanted.

"If I’m not mistaken, sister-in-law is pregnant, right?"

Zhou Chucheng asked tentatively.

Zhou Jin’an didn’t conceal it, but rather proudly declared, "If anything happens to them—her and the child—in your care, I swear I’ll take you down."

Hearing this, Zhou Chucheng was not annoyed at all and instead broke into a wide smile.

"Big brother, congratulations, rest assured, I’ll take good care of sister-in-law and your nephew."

Zhou Jin’an left only after making arrangements for Qiao En.

Not long after he left, Zhou Chucheng set to work making deployments.

He dialed the extension phone on Qiao En’s desk.

"Assistant Xu, come to my office."

When Qiao En arrived, there was already a young girl in Zhou Chucheng’s office.

"This is Gong Xuanzhi, starting today, she will be following you."

Zhou Chucheng spoke with a grave expression, being a person who kept work and personal matters separate; he would not mix any personal feelings into the situation because of Qiao En’s relationship with Zhou Jin’an.

"Assistant Xu, I look forward to learning from you."

Gong Xuanzhi extended a hand proactively towards Qiao En.

Qiao En was puzzled.

Zhou Chucheng, without even lifting his head, quickly cleared up her confusion.

"Xuanzhi is very talented but just too young and lacking in work experience; I hope that you will teach her well. She will accompany me to social engagements and the like in the future."

Qiao En had no objections to Zhou Chucheng’s arrangements.

"Alright, Director Zhou, I understand what to do."

As she left Zhou Chucheng’s office, Gong Xuanzhi followed her like a little tail.

"Assistant Xu, sorry to trouble you, but I heard from Director Zhou that you were awesome before, having worked as an assistant at Nanchen. I admire you so much, I’m practically your little fan, so please don’t hesitate to put me to work; I’m full of energy and can’t use it all up."

"Then I’ll be putting you to work."

Qiao En said politely.

She wasn’t someone skilled at mingling with others.

Fortunately, Gong Xuanzhi was just as Zhou Chucheng had described: very intelligent, eager to learn, and hardworking, to the extent that Qiao En only needed to give her a slight pointer, and she would immediately grasp and apply it.

Throughout the morning, many of Qiao En’s tasks were completed by Gong Xuanzhi, leaving her with some leisure time.

Come lunchtime, Qiao En ordered takeout.

Gong Xuanzhi volunteered to help her pick up the order, but just as she stepped out, a call came through from the reception desk.

"Assistant Xu, your husband is here."

Qiao En was surprised—Zhou Jin’an was usually very busy around noon. How could he have time to come here?

She hurriedly got up and left the workspace.

In the front hall’s rest area, Zhou Jin’an sat on the sofa with his long legs crossed, talking on the phone.

Upon seeing Qiao En come out, he quickly hung up and made his way over to her in just a few strides.

"Slow down, walk slowly."

He wanted to help Qiao En walk, but she looked uncomfortable.

"What are you doing here?"

"I’ve come to bring you lunch. What else would I be here for? Are you really going to eat takeout at noon?"

Zhou Jin’an pointed to a thermal bag on the table in the rest area. He had brought over two large bags.

Qiao En felt warm-hearted.

But she was more concerned about Zhou Jin’an’s conspicuous presence; his frequent appearances at the company would only draw more attention to her.

So, she urged him, "You go back to the car first; I’ll come down in a moment."

"Let’s eat here."

Zhou Jin’an didn’t think much of it, but Qiao En had her reservations.

"I’m going to the restroom. I’ll find you in the parking lot shortly."

She hurried toward the restroom.

Returning, she passed by the two young ladies at the reception desk who were eating takeout and quietly discussing.

"Assistant Xu is really lucky. She married such a good husband. I’m incredibly jealous."

"It’s not just luck, think about it—the CEO of Nanchen, who is he? She was just an assistant there for three years and she’s already transformed into the president’s wife. A woman like that must be cunning and have remarkable skills."

Qiao En walked by without the two noticing her.

She purposely coughed, but didn’t look towards the reception desk.

The two girls, however, were startled, and seeing Qiao En pass by, they hurriedly buried their heads under the table.

As Qiao En stepped off the elevator, Gong Xuanzhi had already brought up the takeout.

"Assistant Xu, where are you going? I’ve brought up your takeout, and I also got you a cup of coffee—iced Americano. You should be fine with that, right?"

Gong Xuanzhi was very enthusiastic, but at the moment, Qiao En wished she could turn invisible.

"Thank you, just put it on my desk."

Saying that, she quickly walked downstairs.

In the underground parking lot, the Maybach was parked dominantly.

As Qiao En approached, Zhou Jin’an immediately opened the door for her.

"Eat while it’s hot."

To be able to have lunch with Qiao En, he had specifically turned down all his business lunch invites. From now on, he intended to share every meal with Qiao En.

The most romantic thing in the world was enjoying countless meals with the person you love.

"Could you not come anymore in the future?"

Qiao En pouted and started to make a request.

She really didn’t want to be too conspicuous a package.

Although Zhou Chucheng had made a new work arrangement today and she had no objections, she couldn’t help but overthink.

"What’s wrong? Has someone made things difficult for you? En’en, you are my wife. Caring for my wife and doting on my wife is my duty, and I enjoy doing so."

The smile that spread across his face was as radiant as ever.

Qiao En now realized that Zhou Jin’an’s smile had a contagious effect when he laughed.

"No, nobody’s making things difficult for me. I just don’t want too many people to notice me. Also, I want people to recognize me for my work abilities, not because I’m Zhou Jin’an’s wife."

Zhou Jin’an understood this point.

Therefore, he chose to respect it.

"Alright, starting tomorrow, I won’t go to your company’s lobby anymore. I’ll keep my distance. Is that okay?"

"Okay."

Qiao En agreed.

But that afternoon, when work ended, Qiao En finally understood what Zhou Jin’an meant by keeping his distance—what exactly did that mean?