When Chen Mo entered the room, he saw Xiao Yu sitting absentmindedly on the bed. Her gaze was unfocused, lost in thought.
Seeing her like that, he quietly walked over and sat down beside her.
"Xiao Yu."
"Huh? Sleep," she said quickly, snapping out of her daze and lying down.
"Still mad at me?" Chen Mo asked softly. "If you are, go ahead and hit me. I'll let you."
"No," Xiao Yu turned to face him. "After biting you, I'm not mad anymore."
"Then why do you look so down?"
"When I left work today, I overheard some coworkers talking about how they saw the company chairman," Xiao Yu said quietly. "Their description… it reminded me of you. Then I remembered what President Zhao said. And the phone you gave me—the marching ant logo… At first, it was just a hunch. But today, everything clicked."
Chen Mo wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "And then?"
"I searched online for info on the Marching Ant Company. There's barely anything about the chairman—just your name. Do you know how I felt when I realized it was you?"
"What?"
"I was happy… and angry," Xiao Yu said, her voice soft. "Happy because my boyfriend turned out to be amazing. Angry because you kept it from me. If you hadn't come clean tonight, biting you would've been just the beginning."
Her emotions were a mix—relief, frustration, pride. She had no idea how to process it all earlier. But now that he'd finally admitted it, at least she didn't have to keep pretending.
"I'm sorry," Chen Mo said. "No more secrets, I promise."
"Don't apologize," Xiao Yu replied, smiling. "Honestly, I kinda wish I didn't know. I liked it better when you were just an ordinary guy. Now I need to think of a proper punishment."
Chen Mo's tense expression relaxed. "What kind of punishment?"
"I was planning to give you everything this weekend," she teased. "But since you've been lying to me for six months, you're not allowed to touch me for the next six."
"What?! No way!" Chen Mo looked devastated.
"What, not willing?" Xiao Yu smirked. "As punishment for lying, I'll move out too. You can wash your own dirty socks."
"I didn't say I'm not willing! After all these years, you think I can't handle half a year? You'll be mine eventually anyway."
"Whose 'mine'?" she raised an eyebrow. "You're still on probation. Try anything shady, and I'll head back home and set up blind dates."
Chen Mo couldn't help but laugh, and Xiao Yu buried her head in his arms, grinning.
The next morning, Chen Mo woke to see a faint smile still on Xiao Yu's face. His heart finally settled. She was okay, and that was all he needed.
After breakfast, they headed to the company together.
"Xiao Yu, are you seriously showing off like this in front of everyone?" Li Ruoxuan popped up at the company gate just as they arrived, seeing them holding hands. "Don't tell me he's going to start working here too?"
"He actually is," Xiao Yu said casually.
"No way! You're going full PDA now? Chen Mo, which department are you joining?"
"No department," Chen Mo replied, smiling.
"…Wait, don't tell me you came to apply for a job?" Li Ruoxuan asked, confused.
"Chairman."
Li Ruoxuan froze. Zhao Min had just walked over, smiling at the two of them.
"C-Chairman?" Li Ruoxuan blinked at Chen Mo, completely thrown off.
"Chen Mo is the chairman of the company," Xiao Yu said softly, leaning toward her.
"Oh." Li Ruoxuan's face stiffened. "Xiao Yu, you traitor! You let me embarrass myself in front of the chairman! Ugh—Chairman Chen, good morning!"
With Zhao Min introducing him so openly, all eyes immediately turned to Chen Mo. This was the first time she had publicly confirmed his identity.
"Hello, everyone," Chen Mo greeted with a calm smile.
"Good morning, Chairman!" the employees responded quickly, standing straighter.
"You're all doing great. Let's talk inside. Come on," Chen Mo said, then led the way into the building with Zhao Min.
"Let's go," Xiao Yu said, grabbing Li Ruoxuan's arm as they followed behind.
As soon as they left, the office buzzed with excitement.
"No wonder Xiao Yu became the president's assistant on day one—she's the chairman's girlfriend!"
"He's so young… and handsome."
"Quiet! Minister Li is coming. Get back to work!"
In Zhao Min's office, the four of them settled in.
"I wanted to meet the management team today," Chen Mo said.
"So you finally decided to show up?" Zhao Min teased. "You know, in the six months since the company launched, you've only visited a handful of times. I usually have to report everything to you by phone."
Chen Mo chuckled without denying it.
Still, Zhao Min felt at ease. His trust empowered her. She'd been managing everything solo and doing her best, but now with Chen Mo around, she could finally let go of some of the pressure.
"I'm going to call a meeting—everyone's here to prepare for the smart assistant launch anyway," Zhao Min said, heading out to notify the management team.
Chen Mo turned to Xiao Yu. "I'll officially start working tomorrow. For now, get my office space set up. And speed up the lab renovations."
Then, turning to Li Ruoxuan, he said, "You'll take Xiao Yu to the admin department and help her get settled."
"Me?" Li Ruoxuan pointed at herself, stunned. "Why me?"
"You sold her out to me back in the library, remember? I owe you a favor," Chen Mo grinned.
Li Ruoxuan stuck out her tongue, recalling that moment. Back then, she casually told Chen Mo about Xiao Yu. Who knew it would lead to this?
"Xiao Yu, what about you? Are you really going to be his assistant?" Zhao Min asked, half-joking.
Xiao Yu blushed slightly and stayed quiet, sitting close beside Chen Mo.
"No, let her continue following you," Chen Mo said. "I can't teach her anything. You can."
Not long after, everyone gathered in the conference room. With the smart assistant launch tomorrow, all the department heads were already present.
Chen Mo, Zhao Min, Xiao Yu, and Li Ruoxuan entered the room together. The chatter died instantly.
People stared at Chen Mo with quiet awe—he was no longer the mystery figure behind the company. The chairman had arrived.
Chen Mo walked to the center seat and looked around the table.
"Good morning, everyone," he said. "Many of you have seen me in passing, but allow me to formally introduce myself: I'm Chen Mo, chairman of the company…"