Why Aren’t You Cultivating Immortality? (GL) Chapter 13

Time froze for an instant. Bai Moqing lifted her head slightly and stared blankly at Xiao Xing, who was a few centimeters taller than she was. Her heart churned like rivers overturning seas.
Two people. A hotel. A room. How ambiguous.
But President Xiao’s upright eyes held no improper thoughts. It seemed she only wanted to discuss work.
“Is it not allowed?” Her red lips parted lightly. Xiao Xing moved closer to Bai Moqing, and the fresh, elegant scent of her perfume rushed into Bai Moqing’s nose, blurring the other woman’s reason.
Her body temperature rose sharply. “Y-yes.” The moment Bai Moqing opened her mouth, she became a stutterer, and her face reddened along with it.
As for Xiao Xing, the corners of her lips lifted slightly, revealing a faint smile, as if she was laughing at how easily Bai Moqing became shy.
“But looking at you, it seems you don’t want to let me in.”
Bai Moqing looked down at her own posture and was deeply embarrassed. She quickly turned sideways to make way. “President Xiao, please come in.”
Looking at President Xiao’s calm back, Bai Moqing had never known she had such a young-girl side.
It seemed that whenever she faced Xiao Xing, she became unlike herself.
Xiao Xing entered the room and swept her gaze around it. The layout was the same. The furnishings were the same. Both rooms used a light-luxury style. She pushed open the floor-to-ceiling window and walked onto the balcony. Even the view from here was exactly the same.
Not far away was a health and leisure park built beside the water. In deep autumn, everything in view was golden and crimson. When the wind blew, the few remaining maple and ginkgo leaves on the branches danced in the air and drifted to the ground.
Seas had changed into fields. Everything had changed. Only these trees remained as they had once been.
Xiao Xing turned and looked at Bai Moqing, who stood by the floor-to-ceiling window. “This afternoon, I will take you to the branch company. Tonight, there is a business dinner. Can you drink?”
Bai Moqing shook her head. “No.”
Xiao Xing walked up to Bai Moqing. “Can you not, or do you not want to?”
She remembered the first time she met Bai Moqing. Back then, Bai Moqing was a cultivator who had just stepped onto the path of cultivation, young, proud, and full of spirit.
She had worn pure white fitted clothes. Her long hair was casually tied back with a ribbon. She held a sword, and a gourd of wine hung at her waist.
Calling her a swordswoman would have been more fitting.
Her figure moved like a swimming dragon, and her swordwork flowed like clouds and water. The spiritual energy of heaven and earth moved with her sword intent and entered her body in an endless stream.
When the sword form ended, she pulled the wine gourd from her waist, removed the stopper, tilted her head back, and drank boldly.
A brief daze crossed Bai Moqing’s face. Wine. She no longer remembered how many years it had been since she drank it. She could not even remember why she had stopped drinking.
Returning to herself, she faced Xiao Xing’s probing gaze and answered, “I can’t drink.”
“Mm. At the business dinner tonight, I will say you are my driver.” Xiao Xing withdrew her gaze and looked at her watch. It was almost eleven. She raised her eyes. “I will take you to lunch. After that, we will go to the branch company. What do you want to eat?”
“Something light is fine.” After blending into ordinary life, Bai Moqing no longer fasted from grain, but she only ate light food.
Xiao Xing pondered briefly. Remembering a nearby vegetarian restaurant that mainly served light dishes, she brought Bai Moqing there.
After lunch, they drove to the branch company.
People normally did not work on weekends, but the president had arrived, so the branch company’s department managers had no choice but to stand by at the company. The small subordinates under them naturally did not dare rest either.
In the meeting room that could hold thirty people, every department manager and deputy manager of the branch was present. Each sat upright, not knowing why the president had suddenly come.
Looking at the president’s dark expression, it probably was not good.
Sure enough, as soon as she arrived, her opening move was to dismiss the PMC department manager.
The PMC department manager was a strong, solid man of thirty-five, but he had a very delicate name: Yang Wenhua.
Being dismissed by Xiao Xing without even a reason made him flush with anger. He slapped the table on the spot and questioned her with a thick neck. “Xiao Xing, I haven’t made a mistake. What right do you have to make me leave?”
The heavy slap on the table frightened the nearby managers so badly they trembled like sieves. Xiao Xing, however, did not change expression. She raised her brows, looked at him coldly, and threw a document in front of him.
Sitting beside Xiao Xing in the role of secretary, Bai Moqing recognized it as one of the documents they had brought from headquarters that morning.
Yang Wenhua grabbed the document and opened it. One line after another clearly recorded the year, month, and day he had falsely reported material plans, causing the company’s materials warehouse to pile up stock. It then recorded how he downgraded soon-to-be-scrapped raw materials and resold them at low prices, making profit from the process. Every amount was precise down to the single digit. His face instantly turned pale.
Losses of several million were enough to make him pay until his family was ruined and his home destroyed.
The meeting room was so quiet that only breathing and heartbeats remained. Seeing Yang Wenhua unable to speak, Xiao Xing said coldly, “In these two days, hand over all the work in your hands to Manager Hu. After that, you no longer need to come to work.”
She glanced at Hu Feng, the PMC deputy manager. “Go now.”
Yang Wenhua gritted his teeth and left. The other managers present were so frightened that each lowered their head, not daring to look toward Xiao Xing.
Xiao Xing still had three documents in her hand. Killing the chicken to warn the monkeys. Yang Wenhua was only the little chicken that had been killed. The main event had not yet begun.
Her gaze landed on the sales manager seated in the first position. Wu Kun tugged at the corners of his mouth and forced a smile, his heart pounding like a drum. He was afraid he would be the second Yang Wenhua.
Only when he heard Xiao Xing say, “Manager Wu, starting with you, report this month’s work,” did Wu Kun let out a breath.
This kind of unprepared work report most easily reflected a person’s ability and also most easily exposed problems in the work.
As sales manager, Wu Kun had a clever tongue and was good at speaking. His mind spun, and he immediately began reporting. The finance manager sitting below him was not as smooth with words. His face turned pale, and his legs trembled from nervousness.
One after another, they spoke. Xiao Xing listened carefully to each person. Whoever was speaking, she looked at them. As for Bai Moqing, from beginning to end, her gaze only fell on Xiao Xing.
She had thought that the usual Xiao Xing already had enough force, but she had not expected Xiao Xing at work to be even more magnificent and imposing. Every move carried the aura of someone in power. Her methods were decisive. She gripped the throat and soothed the back, directly making people lose the ability to resist.
Xiao Xing gathered the documents and handed them to Bai Moqing. Seeing Bai Moqing staring at her in a daze, she called softly, “Moqing.” Only then did Bai Moqing react. The meeting was over.
At that moment, everyone still sitting in the meeting room was drenched in sweat and chilled all over. But they were celebrating inwardly. Their jobs were safe, unlike the warehouse manager and purchasing manager, who had been dismissed for dereliction of duty and major fault.
It would be hard for them to find work in the industry from now on.
Bai Moqing accepted the documents and followed Xiao Xing out of the meeting room.
When they walked out of the branch company entrance, the fiery sunset at the horizon was sending out its last warmth. Bai Moqing secretly let out a breath.
Xiao Xing heard the breath and turned to look at Bai Moqing. Golden afterglow softened Xiao Xing’s face. Bai Moqing saw it, and her heart skipped. It seemed she had seen this scene somewhere before.
Unfortunately, Xiao Xing did not use such a beautiful scene to confess. Instead, she asked Bai Moqing, “Bai Moqing, are you willing to be my secretary?”
A breeze blew over, scattering Bai Moqing’s long hair. Xiao Xing raised her hand and tucked the hair behind her ear. She smiled faintly. “Are you willing?”
Bai Moqing had the illusion that President Xiao was not asking whether she would be her secretary, but whether she would be her girlfriend.
“I am wil… Sorry, President Xiao. I think I am still more suited to the archive room.” She had nearly been bewitched by President Xiao’s beauty. Bai Moqing quickly stepped back to put distance between them.
Yet the warmth and touch that had brushed her ear would not fade.
She wanted to say more, but Xiao Xing withdrew her smile, turned, and left.
After getting in the car, Xiao Xing took Bai Moqing back to the hotel. During the drive, Xiao Xing did not say another word to Bai Moqing, nor did she give her even one glance.
Bai Moqing looked at Xiao Xing’s side profile. Several times she wanted to speak, but in the end she gave up each time. She turned her head and looked at the scenery outside, and at Xiao Xing’s faint reflection cast on the car window.
The car stopped in front of the hotel. Xiao Xing finally spoke. “Stay at the hotel. I will go to the business dinner alone.”
Before unfastening her seat belt, Bai Moqing turned to Xiao Xing. Their eyes met. Bai Moqing could not understand Xiao Xing’s gaze, nor could she read the emotion on her face.
Hadn’t she wanted to bring Bai Moqing along? Why did she suddenly change her mind?
After hesitating, she asked, “President Xiao, will you be all right alone?”
Xiao Xing answered coldly, “I will.” She urged Bai Moqing to get out.
Thinking of President Xiao asking whether she could drink, Bai Moqing placed her hand on the buckle but could not press it. If she let President Xiao go alone, what if she got drunk…
“President Xiao, I should still go with you.”
Xiao Xing refused. “No need.” Her attitude was very cold. She reached out, unfastened Bai Moqing’s seat belt for her, pressed the button, and opened the car door.
This kind of fully automatic car was truly hateful.
Bai Moqing was forced out of the car by Xiao Xing. As soon as her feet had steadied, the door closed. With one press of the accelerator, the car shot away like an arrow leaving a bowstring, leaving Bai Moqing only a white rear view.