01: CEO

PARENTAL GUIDANCE IS ADVISED 13+

[PREVIEW OF THE PRESENT PART 1 (VOL4)]

"What's the gun for???" Wang Xiu asked, curving her lips to sneer at the intruder holding her at gun point. Her clear glasses glistened from the night lamp at her desk that was left to light her office at this ungodly hour.

The intruder holding the gun did not answer and stepped back from the drawer they forcefully opened to search for files that the woman had hidden in her office.

"We both know what will happen if you kill me here," Wang Xiu added, enlarging the grin on her lips.

Her face shifted from a mischievous victim to a serious foe when the intruder didn't falter from her warning. She slowly stepped forward, closing the gap between the gun and her body. The cold metal nozzle of the weapon touched the silk shirt on her chest. Another notch brought her near the thief, demonstrating her fearlessness from the masked trespasser or the bullet that could kill.

"You give me no choice," The intruder announced, muffling their words from the full-faced mask. Hiding their identity and being extremely cautious. They didn't want to leave any impressions by using gloves. The thief holding the gun continued to direct the firearm at Wang Xiu's heart while suppressing the tremble in their hands.

"Then, I'll offer you a choice," Wang Xiu uttered, gazing straight into the criminal's eyes and began to slowly bend her knees without breaking eye contact.

The black skirt she wore rides up a few inches above her knees, after bending her long flawless legs to entice the intruder's liking. She unfastened a few buttons of her red shirt, revealing a peek of her breast that made men's eyes peer down in awe at her flesh.

Wang Xiu didn't mind setting her knees on top of papers scattered across the room that the thief threw out searching for an important contract she acquired from a client. The drawers from her red marble table were haphazardly pulled open while her computer screen was broken from being thrown down at the red-carpeted floor of her office.

Quivering from anticipation, Wang Xiu lifted both of her delicate hands to touch the rough jeans covering the legs of the culprit who wanted to kill her. She slid her palms from the knees upward, reaching the belt wrapped around the robber's torso. The burglar holding the gun didn't stop Wang Xiu as she began to unclasp the lock of the belt to reveal the buttons of the pants.

"You certainly have no shame..." The intruder commented, pointing the loaded handgun at the woman's head.

"Shame is for the weak. I'm here to win everything, even you, my dear." Wang Xiu replied, biting her lower lip and gazing mischievously at the thief.

She turned her eyes straight at the stiff pants in front of her face and willfully unbuttoned them to loosen the jeans. Before she could unzip his fly, the burglar stepped away. And halted the next phase of her tempting offer to the thief with a firearm.

The robber set the buttons of the jeans back and clasped the belt with one hand while the other held the gun aiming haphazardly at the woman. Without a word, the intruder veered around and rushed in the direction of the door, leaving her office without getting what they planned to steal from her.

The woman moaned her frustration loudly and raised her thick brows before standing up from her feet. Wang Xiu fixed her tight black skirt by pulling it delicately down to her knees and with her palm, she brushed the dust off the fabric. She combed her long black hair between her fingers and fastened her silk shirt back before stepping towards the black swivel chair behind the red marble table. 

Wang Xiu gracefully sat at the leather chair, stretching her long legs to set her feet on top of the slab. She took her phone out of her purse to dial a number from her contacts. The phone rang twice before a man answered her call.

"You are still alive?" the voice of a man answered.

"Your killer is soft. Next time, if you want me dead, do it yourself," she scoffed.

Wang Xiu touched the screen of the phone and hung up the call. She placed her mobile phone on the table and fixed the position of the glasses on her nose. The wide grin on her lips went back recalling the intruder and the scene she caught at her office in the middle of the night. Thinking the evening would have been more exciting if the thief accepted her invitation to rob the clothes off her body before running away.

π - π - π

[PREVIEW OF THE PAST PART 1 (VOL3)]

[ZHANG WANG XIU POV]

"Thank you, everyone. I wouldn't be here without my hard work and giving myself the best support I needed to get this far," she laughed and stared at every employee standing around her in the assembly hall.

The room was filled with claps and laughter, motivating her further as she finally achieved the power to have a voice in this corporation. She had been working diligently for almost ten years as one of the executives of a construction company owned by the husband of her aunt. Not a blood relative of the former CEO, yet here she is, being appointed as one instead of the son that they have raised and love.

"I will be the worst boss you will ever have. I'm warning you now so you won't have to complain to HR about me swearing a lot until you cry," she opened her speech with a clear unfavorable tone to assert her strict approach when it comes to working under her,

"But, I assure you, I will be the best boss this company will have because I have goals to make our company the best there is in this country. We won't be scouring for contracts or bidding for a fraction of work. We will be the best not only in quantity but in quality. And soon they will hunt us and beg us to accept their deals," she proudly explained standing upright in front of the crowd who stared at her eagerness and nodded their heads to approve of the woman's plans.

One particular man posing at the back of the crowd scowled at Wang Xiu's dialogue. He wore a metallic navy blue three-piece suit made of the finest fabric tailored only for him by a famous designer. His clean-cut brown hair brushed upward was styled by a personal stylist that he hired to make him look presentable wherever he goes. The man's face was like a flawless sculpture etched to perfection with thick black eyebrows, narrow pointed nose, and thin lips that make him handsome.

Everyone in the hall clapped their hands as she ended her speech full of wonderful promises. The cheerful noises continued to lighten up the mood of the employees, eagerly waiting for tonight's celebration for the new CEO of Long Construction and Development Corporation.

The man patiently waited as the crowd of employees dispersed and moved back to their desks. She noticed the man with one of his hands in his pocket and the other lifted to chest-length while peering at the time from the expensive watch wrapped on his wrist.

Strutting towards the man after shaking hands with other executives of the company, congratulating her for getting the position that was meant for the man standing remotely distant from the crowd that gathered at the auditorium.

"Long Li Jun, glad you are here in time to hear my speech," she greeted with pleasure in her eyes and arched on her lips.

"If you are going to repeat that speech tonight, please don't," the man replied sarcastically, fixing his suit by pulling the sleeves on the wrist.

She stared at the man from head to toe. The luxury the man displayed was largely more than what any executive at the company can afford and even as a CEO, she would have to consider the price of her clothes and not lavishly buy anything she wanted. Then, she stopped and peered down at the floor, studying what brand of leather shoes Li Jun wore to hide his enormous feet.

"Testoni???" she asked while staring down at the elegant footwear being mirrored by the black tiled floor of the room.

"Yes!!!" Li Jun blurted, making a little tap dance to show off the expensive shoes his feet were wearing. "You truly have a good eye, Xiu-Sheng," the man added, laughing at the woman who puts her arms across her chest whenever Li Jun calls her with a pet name. 

Sheng for Li Jun means Victory and uses Xiu Sheng to say that the woman always wins.

"And you certainly have a pocket to buy any expensive things you want," she responded, sneering at the man who proudly struts the easy money he earns for being an actor compared to being a CEO of his father's company.

"I can't make myself look cheap, an actor has to have the best. I have a lot of fans looking up to me," Li Jun explained, pouting his thin lips while taking his cellphone out of his pocket to boast about the number of followers he has on social media.

She laughed while Li Jun boasted everything that his fans commented on at his last photoshoot for a new television series a cable channel produced for him. He would be the leading star and she guessed that Li Jun will be busy dating his leading lady again.

"Will you be able to make it to the party tonight?" she inquired and started to walk towards the elevator to get to her new office on the top floor.

"Don't worry, Xiu Sheng. I'll be there," Li Jun answered, following the woman who waits for the elevator door to open.

"Thank you, Li Jun," she meant every word, gazing at the man with sincere appreciation for giving her a chance to replace him as CEO.

"And thank you too, Xiu Sheng! Congrats on being the new CEO," Li Jun stared at the woman who has been his best friend since they were young.

A "ding" sound made Wang Xiu glance away from Li Jun. The elevator opened and a group of employees passed by them. When she turned her head to look at her cousin, the man was already a few steps away from the exit door of the building.

The man didn't say goodbye yet she knows there was no need to do that. Li Jun could still be around whenever she needs him and she promised to support him whenever she can.