Chapter 11: An Unexpected Aid

Gu… Gu Jiachen?

A black and gold European watch gleamed on his sturdy wrist. As Zhou Ruoyu gazed at the interview answers he handed her, the long-haired, black-haired young woman’s mind completely froze.

She couldn’t comprehend the situation unfolding before her. Zhou Ruoyu slowly lifted her head, her bewildered gaze meeting Gu Jiachen’s somewhat playful eyes for several long seconds. A moment later, she heard Gu Jiachen’s voice, deliberately lowered.

“Just take a look,” he said. “The questions she’ll ask later are all on this.”

A sharp intake of breath.

Something was wrong. Terribly wrong!

Zhou Ruoyu gasped, a cold shiver running down her spine. Was Gu Jiachen… helping her?

Her rival, her enemy, the despicable pervert she’d mentally labeled him as—was he actually helping her cheat during an interview, precisely when she was being cornered?

Why was he doing this?

Zhou Ruoyu couldn’t fathom a reason. No matter how she thought about it, it made no sense. This man was the boss of Chensi Group, her interviewer, yet he was offering assistance to an applicant right there in the interview room?

Could it be that he simply couldn’t stand the female HR’s aggressive demeanor? Was he… truly that kind?

For a fleeting moment, Zhou Ruoyu found herself plunged into deep self-doubt. She wavered between ‘Is this a trap?’ and ‘Could Gu Jiachen actually be a good person?’

However, she quickly ran out of time for such contemplation. The young woman took a deep breath, then hastily snatched the papers from the table, burying her head to read and memorize them at lightning speed.

‘Who cares?’ she thought, dismissing her worries. ‘Whether it’s a trap or not, I might not have answered them anyway. What if it’s real? If it’s real, wouldn’t I be gaining something?’

‘At worst, I just won’t get the job!’

A while later, the female HR, who had gone to the restroom, returned, humming a light tune. Having splashed water on her face, she looked refreshed, as if much of her resentment had dissipated.

Yet, Zhou Ruoyu had a nagging feeling that the HR’s good mood stemmed from having devised a plan to deal with her.

Indeed, as the HR sat back down and saw Zhou Ruoyu still there, a cold sneer instantly twisted her lips. She picked up the very paper Zhou Ruoyu had just scanned, and spoke with a sarcastic, mocking tone:

“Oh, still here, are we? Fine, fine. These professional questions I have are quite difficult; they’re designed to weed out the freeloaders who come for interviews.”

“Little girl, to avoid awkwardness, let’s just do a written test directly. I advise you, if you can’t answer a single one later, just say you don’t know. Don’t waste time scribbling nonsense~”

It seemed she couldn’t even be bothered to waste more words. She promptly tossed a test paper to Zhou Ruoyu. The black-haired young woman took the paper, scanned the questions, and a faint smile touched her lips. Picking up a gel pen, she began to write with fluid strokes.

After handing over the paper, the female HR disdainfully closed her eyes, a triumphant, scornful smile playing on her lips. She was intimately familiar with the difficulty of this particular test; even many top university graduates struggled to answer it well.

How could a young woman who treated her interview with such casualness possibly complete it?

She fully expected Zhou Ruoyu to submit a blank paper or a haphazardly filled one. Then, she would ruthlessly mock and insult her, making her feel utterly worthless, even worse than trash!

Ideally, the girl would be so infuriated she’d cry and run out of the company! And while she was at it, she’d complain to the boss about how fragile young people’s mentalities were these days~

The female HR waited confidently for Zhou Ruoyu to turn in a blank sheet. Yet, a moment later, the continuous scratching sound filling the air caused her heart to suddenly clench.

She quickly looked up, then watched in disbelief as Zhou Ruoyu, writing as if divinely inspired, furiously scribbled away. The writing was incredibly fluid, the content exceptionally detailed. Although her handwriting was a bit messy, the black-haired young woman’s smooth progress undeniably caused a wave of panic to rise in the HR’s chest.

Wha… what was happening? ‘She must be… just scribbling nonsense, right?’

Still unable to believe reality, the female HR shook her head, vehemently denying what she saw. However, to her shock, the very next second, Zhou Ruoyu directly put down her pen. She then slapped the test paper back onto the desk in front of the HR, a cold smirk gracing her lips.

“Miss Interviewer, I’ve finished the written test.”

“You…”

The female HR frowned deeply, then tremblingly picked up the test paper and a red pen. She muttered under her breath:

“I’m telling you, don’t think you can pull any tricks, scribbling nonsense and assuming I won’t notice… well…”

Unfortunately, as her red pen repeatedly marked correct answers, matching the girl’s content exactly, the HR’s tone gradually faded. Eventually, it vanished entirely, replaced by a barely audible, mosquito-like mumble.

Zhou Ruoyu rested her chin in her hand, giving the HR a slightly smug look. Then, she spoke:

“Miss Interviewer, the answers are right here in front of you. You’re not still going to try and find fault, are you~ Is it really necessary to nitpick over a point or two? Just finish grading it quickly…”

“This…”

The female HR’s face instantly cycled through shades of green and purple, a picture of acute embarrassment. She slowly looked up, meeting Zhou Ruoyu’s gaze awkwardly, utterly at a loss for words. She felt as if crisp slaps were echoing across her cheeks.

After a moment, it was Gu Jiachen beside them who first let out a cold chuckle, then spoke:

“So, what was the score?”

“Over ninety… a-approximately, I suppose…”

The female HR’s face was pale. She awkwardly tried to conceal something, perhaps the fact that the young woman’s paper actually had no mistakes at all.

Unfortunately, the difference between a hundred and ninety-something was indeed negligible. Gu Jiachen’s eyes immediately lit up, and he then smiled playfully, nodding as he praised her:

“That indicates Miss Zhou’s professional abilities are quite impressive indeed! Very well, since that’s the case… could I ask you to step out for a moment?”

“I wish to speak with Miss Zhou alone.”

“Ah, th-that’s how it is…”

The female HR suddenly began to sweat profusely. She cast a worried glance at Zhou Ruoyu, for no other reason than that this position was for an assistant secretary to Gu Jiachen.

This was someone who would be by President Gu’s side at all times in the future. If Zhou Ruoyu were truly hired, the HR would have offended her before she even started, and in the future, Zhou Ruoyu would undoubtedly whisper ill of her to Gu Jiachen, seeking revenge, wouldn’t she?

A sharp hiss escaped her lips.

The thought sent a wave of regret through the HR. When she stood up, her legs felt weak from fright, and she barely managed to support herself by leaning on the table as she shuffled out of the room. The female HR could only silently pray that President Gu would not keep this young woman.

Unfortunately…

Gu Jiachen was very interested in Zhou Ruoyu~

No, extremely interested!

****

After the female HR closed the office door and left, only Zhou Ruoyu and Gu Jiachen remained in the large, dimly lit office.

The black-haired young woman nervously swallowed. Just as she was about to say something to Gu Jiachen, the man in front of her suddenly stood up. He then slowly walked over to her side, extended his hand, and placed it on her shoulder.

“Hmph… your memory is quite impressive, Miss Zhou~”