The richest man's parents were kidnapped, and his adorable son captivated the entire family.

Two days later, Xie Yumin was discharged from the hospital. Wrapped in a faded coat that was pilling in many places, she struggled to flag down a rusty taxi at the hospital entrance.

Rain dripped continuously from her disheveled hair, and her cheap canvas shoes were already soaked through.

Looking out the car window at the towering glass curtain wall of the Gu Group, she felt a mix of emotions.

The taxi stopped in front of the old residential building, and Xie Yumin dragged her tired body up the damp and dimly lit stairs.

As soon as I reached the door, I saw the landlady, Aunt Wang, standing there with her hands on her hips, her face full of impatience.

The door lock has been replaced with a brand new style.

"Miss Xie, it's not that I'm being unreasonable."

Aunt Wang looked Xie Yumin up and down, her gaze lingering like knives on her faded clothes and soaking wet shoes. "Look at all this dust in the house. The water and electricity are more than half a month overdue. If it weren't for your pitiful state, I would have..."

She paused deliberately, her eyes full of disdain. "I rented this house to someone else a long time ago. You have to move your things out today."

Xie Yumin clenched the hem of her clothes, her nails digging deep into her palms.

"Aunt Wang, could you give me a few more days?"

"I'll have a job soon, and I'll definitely pay the rent back then."

"Hmph, that sounds nice!"

Aunt Wang snorted coldly, crossing her arms over her chest. "How many times have you said that? I can't believe your empty words anymore."

"Either pay the rent today or leave!" she said, making a move to rush into the house. "I still have to clean the house; the new tenants will be here tomorrow."

Xie Yumin hurriedly stood in front of the door, her eyes reddening: "Aunt Wang, please..."

Just as tensions were rising, Xie Yumin's phone suddenly rang with a transfer notification.

She took out her phone with trembling hands; the screen showed a transfer message from Gu Yinshen.

There was also a line of text attached below.

"I'll lend it to you for now, remember to return it."

Xie Yumin stood there stunned. After the landlady, Aunt Wang, came over and saw the amount, her expression instantly turned fawning: "Oh, little Xie, I knew you had a way."

"Now we can pay the rent! It was all a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding!"

As she spoke, she eagerly opened the door for Xie Yumin, saying, "Go in and tidy up quickly. If you need anything, just let me know."

Xie Yumin stared at the transfer notification on her phone, her heart filled with complex emotions.

She knew that this so-called "borrowing" was just another scheme by Gu Yinshen, a rope to further bind her.

But at this moment, she had no other choice.

……

The next day, the Gu's Building was shrouded in a thin mist in the early morning, and the glass curtain wall reflected a cold light.

Xie Yumin stood in front of the revolving door, took a deep breath, straightened her back, and walked in. As the elevator ascended, her slightly worn but neat suit was reflected in the mirror.

The interview waiting area was packed with people, and the air was filled with the scent of expensive perfumes.

Xie Yumin had just sat down in an empty seat in the corner when she heard whispers coming from not far away.

"Look at her bag, isn't it a knock-off from Taobao?"

The girl with chestnut-colored curly hair covered her mouth with her fingers painted with French manicures and gestured with her chin toward Xie Yumin.

"I heard this time they're hiring a president's secretary. I don't know where she gets her confidence from."

Another boy wearing gold-rimmed glasses flipped through the gold-embossed resume in his hand, his tone full of disdain, "I graduated from an Ivy League school and interned at a multinational corporation. What makes her think she can compete with us?"

Xie Yumin stared down at her slightly worn leather shoes, her fingernails digging crescent-shaped marks into her palm.

She pulled out a crumpled resume from her bag; the edges of the paper were already frayed.

The resumes of the people around him were all in custom-made folders, exuding sophistication and professionalism.

At that moment, an HR person dressed in a black business suit came out.

"Next up, Xie Yumin."

As Xie Yumin stood up, she accidentally bumped into the table next to her, spilling coffee onto the designer suit of the chestnut-haired girl.

"You are blind!"

The girl screamed and jumped up, "This dress costs over 20,000 yuan, can you afford to pay for it?"

"Yes, I'm sorry..."

Xie Yumin frantically pulled out a tissue to wipe herself, but the girl pushed her away.

"You poor wretch, don't touch my clothes with your cheap tissues!"

The girl glared at her with disgust. "Someone like you doesn't even deserve to be interviewed at Gu's! Go home, wash up, and go to sleep!"

A burst of laughter erupted around them. Xie Yumin's face flushed red, and her hand clutching the tissue trembled slightly.

But she quickly straightened her back and looked the girl straight in the eye: "I'm here for an interview based on my abilities, not my clothes."

After saying that, she strode towards the interview room, the murmurs behind her gradually fading into the background.

When the door to the interview room was pushed open, a blast of cold air, carrying the scent of cedarwood, hit me.

Xie Yumin looked up and saw five interviewers sitting behind the oval conference table. Gu Yinshen, who was in the middle, was twirling a pen, and his gaze behind his glasses scanned her from head to toe like a scanner.

"sit."

Gu Yinshen pointed to the empty seat opposite him, his voice as cold as if he had been pulled out of an ice cellar.

The desktop was as smooth as a mirror, reflecting Xie Yumin's slightly pale face, as well as the gilded characters of "Gu Group's Core Values" on the wall behind her, which were painful to the eyes under the overhead light.

The middle-aged interviewer on the right pushed up his glasses and glanced at her rumpled resume: "Ms. Xie, you have no work experience in large companies. Why do you think you are qualified for the position of president's secretary?"

Before he could finish speaking, a suppressed sneer came from the corner.

Xie Yumin placed her hands firmly on the table, the stinging pain of her nails digging into her palms keeping her alert: "Although my resume isn't particularly impressive, I'm good at learning quickly and handling emergencies."

She paused, looking directly into the turbulent undercurrent in Gu Yinshen's eyes, "And I am also very clear about my strengths, knowing what to say and what to do in what situation."

"I believe some people have already seen this very clearly."

The air in the conference room froze instantly.

Gu Yinshen abruptly stopped spinning the pen, the metal body of which struck the table with a crisp sound.

The female interviewer on the left frowned and quickly jotted something down on the evaluation sheet.

The chestnut-haired girl appeared by the door at some point, arms crossed, a smirk playing on her red lips.

"It seems Miss Xie is very confident."

Gu Yinshen suddenly stood up, the rustling sound of his suit fabric rubbing against each other was particularly clear in the quiet room.

"However, confidence alone is not enough—"

Gu Yinshen tapped the table lightly with his fingertips, making a rhythmic tapping sound, like a death knell.

The projector behind him suddenly lit up, and dense financial data covered the entire white wall. "This is Gu's overseas acquisition data for the past three months, and there are three artificially created accounting loopholes."

He picked up the laser pointer, and a red dot jumped across the screen: "You have thirty minutes to find the vulnerability and come up with a solution."

After saying that, he slammed a timer on the table, and the countdown on the electronic screen glowed with a blinding red light.