Chapter 22: Don't Move

Descending from the mountain, the two young women actually wanted to walk with them.

It was unclear what had gotten into these two; they ignored the handsome man standing right there and instead insisted on tailing Cen Mo, calling her "team leader" and "sister," and begging for her contact information.

Cen Mo felt quite helpless. She wasn't fond of interacting with strangers; when they had grabbed her arm earlier, she had already felt uncomfortable, only refraining from pulling away out of politeness. Now, she refused without hesitation: "I don't think so. I don't have my phone with me right now."

Only then did the two women give up, though they still pestered her, hoping to walk together.

Su Xingzhi’s expression had remained cold throughout. He shot them a single glance and said, "It’s inconvenient."

It was a simple three-word rejection, yet the two women shrank back, too afraid to speak. After whispering to each other for a moment, they chose a small side path and headed down the mountain.

Watching from the side, Cen Mo found it quite amusing. These two must be terrified of Su Xingzhi, she thought. It was the same earlier; the moment they heard him speak, they had let go of her arm with remarkable speed.

The thing was, he didn’t even look fierce. He was so handsome—how did he manage to terrify these girls into such a state of trepidation?

Su Xingzhi bent down to pick up both of their backpacks. Without another word, he glanced at her and started down the mountain first.

Cen Mo followed. The two moved one after the other, their pace much slower than during the climb up. Although Cen Mo had good stamina, the ascent had already taken its toll, and the descent was much steeper than the climb; a moment of carelessness could lead to injury, so she had to be extremely cautious.

As the sun dipped below the horizon, the temperature dropped significantly. Fortunately, Cen Mo had brought a jacket. She told Su Xingzhi, took her backpack from him, and put the jacket on.

"How much longer until we're down?" she asked, catching her breath.

"Very close. About ten minutes." The man looked back at her, then suddenly shifted his body to the side, clearing the path: "You walk in front of me."

"Okay." Cen Mo agreed, knowing he was worried about her safety.

Suddenly, her backpack was yanked upward with such force that it felt as if she were being lifted off her feet, which felt incredibly awkward. She quickly looked back. Su Xingzhi had a firm grip on her backpack strap, his tone calm: "It's fine, keep walking. I’m just worried you’ll slip and fall."

*You can't just lug someone around like a chick just because you're worried about them slipping!* The backpack had a chest strap that was digging right into her stomach, and now, with this tug, her belly ached.

Cen Mo grumbled internally but said nothing. After all, he meant well. She just kept her head down and continued the descent.

Su Xingzhi hadn't really seen the back of Cen Mo’s head with her hair tied up before. They had always walked side-by-side, or she had been behind him during the climb. Now, he caught a glimpse and realized that the hair at the nape of her neck was actually shaved—short, like a man’s crew cut. But her head was perfectly round; she likely hadn't been forced to sleep in a position that flattened it as a child. It actually looked quite cute.

Su Xingzhi raised an eyebrow, suddenly recalling the way those two women had looked at his little secretary earlier—eyes full of adoration, clinging to her arms so intimately, one on each side.

Not to mention, what was the point of asking for contact information? So they could message her every day?

How could a young girl be better at charming other girls than a man?

Su Xingzhi felt a rare sense of a headache coming on. On second thought, he figured the problem lay with her hairstyle. He squinted slightly and let go of her backpack.

When Cen Mo felt her ponytail being tugged, she jumped and froze, thinking, *Is he annoyed that I’m walking too slow, and he’s going to drag me by my ponytail to make me hurry up?* That would be too cruel; she barely had any hair left as it was—the rest was all shaved off.

"Hey, stop pulling, we can talk this out!" she protested, preparing to turn around.

But a large hand pressed down on her head, pinning her in place like Mount Tai. They were nearly at the foot of the mountain now, and the path was flat enough that she needn't worry about falling. She twisted her head around, trying to resist.

"Don't move." The man’s voice was impatient, but his touch was incredibly gentle. One hand remained pressed to the top of her head while his other hand reached up to undo her hair tie. He let her long hair down, then ran his fingers through it to smooth it out.

So, he had gone through all that trouble just because he didn't want her hair tied up?

Cen Mo felt a mix of laughter and frustration. Ever since those two girls started chatting her up, she had noticed Su Xingzhi’s expression looked off—as if he were deeply displeased.

Well, it made sense. A man had stood there for ages ignored, while the young girl got swept away by members of her own gender. Anyone would feel a blow to their ego, right?

Thinking this, she felt she understood.

When Su Xingzhi walked side-by-side with her again, Cen Mo gathered her thoughts: "Actually, Mr. Su, you are quite handsome."

The man glanced at her but said nothing.

Cen Mo continued: "It’s just that your aura is too intense. Try to be more approachable in the future, stop glaring at people, and young girls will like you."

Su Xingzhi stopped in his tracks and turned to look at her: "So, you’re teaching me how to pick up girls now?"

The term "picking up girls" sounded strangely out of place coming from him. Cen Mo thought for a moment: "Not really, but you were a bit unhappy earlier, weren't you?"

"..."

Su Xingzhi was left speechless, not knowing how to respond. He had been worried about the girl's orientation, but now it seemed she was as straight as an arrow.

...

After returning to her room, Cen Mo took a shower. She had worked up a sweat climbing the mountain and felt sticky and uncomfortable.

The room was hers alone, which was peaceful. After drying her hair, she wanted to tie it up to get it out of the way, but she couldn't find her hair tie anywhere. She had only brought one, which she usually kept on her arm, but after sitting on the sofa for a long time, she had no idea where it had gone.

Why was her memory suddenly failing her? Cen Mo frowned. She couldn't be bothered to look for it, so she picked up a drink and wandered aimlessly around the room.

It was a little boring.

There was no group training tonight, and even if there were, she wouldn't go. It was pitch black outside; what was she supposed to do, sit on the grass and braid weeds?

It was past six in the evening, and the sky was gradually darkening. Cen Mo changed her clothes, planning to find some entertainment—maybe hit the hot springs, or just go for a run if nothing else worked out.

Having showered, her fatigue had mostly faded. The resort had great scenery and facilities; staying in her room would be a waste of time.

Suddenly, someone knocked on the door. She opened it to find an employee from Yachuang standing there—a woman in her forties named Zhou Juan, a supervisor in the marketing department.

Cen Mo had spoken to her a few times but wasn't close. "Supervisor Zhou, what's up?"

"Secretary Cen, living all by yourself? Aren't you lonely? It’s much better to be with your colleagues; you can chat if you’re bored," Zhou Juan said, peering into the room with a smile.

*Shouldn't we be sleeping at night? What’s there to be bored about?* Cen Mo thought, too lazy to argue. She asked again, "Is there something you need?"

"Ah, it’s like this," Zhou Juan said. "Everyone is tired after a long day, and we want to have a group dinner tonight. Secretary Cen, you should come too. You really should participate in group activities; don't be so unsociable."

Cen Mo found her words grating. Suppressing her temper, she frowned and asked, "What time? Where?"

"In fifteen minutes, right next to the training grounds from today." Zhou Juan didn't leave immediately, instead resting her hand on the doorframe: "Also, Secretary Cen, there are some things I don't know if I should say, but I feel I must."

Whenever someone says "I don't know if I should say this," they almost always end up saying it anyway. They’d likely burst if they didn't.

Cen Mo raised an eyebrow. "Go ahead."

Zhou Juan stayed half in the hallway and half in the doorway. "Don't take this the wrong way, Secretary Cen. I’m older than you and have more experience, right? I just want to advise you as someone who’s been there: this antisocial personality of yours is wrong. You never communicate with anyone. Look at how poor your reputation is in the company."

Cen Mo wondered if this woman was truly stupid or just acting like it. Who spoke to people like that? She started lecturing the moment she opened her mouth, full of self-righteous platitudes. Did she think she was here to be her mother?

Opposite her, Zhou Juan wore an expression of "I’m only doing this for your own good" and continued: "You’re still young, always thinking that interests come first, trying to climb the ladder by any means necessary, without thinking about whether your foundation is stable or neglecting your relationships with colleagues. You’ll understand when you finally fall. Just like today's training—the only people who will be underneath to catch you are your friends."

Cen Mo had reached her limit.

Zhou Juan’s tone was the spitting image of those annoying relatives who had nothing better to do than gossip and badger people about getting married—cloaking their nosiness in "concern" just to satisfy their own vanity and show off their "wisdom."

It was absolutely disgusting.

Cen Mo had originally intended to show her some respect, but that was no longer necessary. She pointed directly at Zhou Juan and asked, "Auntie Zhou, since you're so concerned about me, I should be concerned about you too, right? How old are you this year? You've been with the company for so many years, why are you still just a small supervisor? Have you reflected on yourself? Is there something wrong with your brain? Don't just flap your gums all day; try exercising your mind. Maybe take some supplements? I heard you divorced your husband and don't get along with your kids—is there something wrong with your personality? You really should reflect on that; it must be your own fault that your husband couldn't stand to be with you..."

Cen Mo didn't stutter once. Her words turned Zhou Juan’s face deathly pale, as if she were about to faint. The woman waved her hands frantically and retreated, not daring to utter another word.

The hallway was busy with Yachuang employees, and many had heard everything. Zhou Juan couldn't afford the humiliation.