Chapter 168: Director Jiang’s Sister

Chapter 168: Chapter 168: Director Jiang’s Sister

The quiet, unassuming high school girl she had just insulted and treated with such blatant hostility might actually be someone untouchable.

Then, she overheard the first receptionist’s tense voice speaking into the receiver.

"Yes... Yes, she is currently waiting in the lobby. Yes. Understood, I will make sure of it." The first receptionist responded with utmost professionalism.

After finalising the details with the executive assistant on the other end of the line, she terminated the call and gently placed the handset back onto its cradle.

Shen Weiwei whipped her head toward the first receptionist instantly, unable to mask the sheer panic and desperation etched across her face.

"Is she... Is she genuinely Director Jiang’s younger sister?" Shen Weiwei blurted out in a breathless whisper, desperately praying that she had somehow misheard or misunderstood the entire situation.

"Yes. Director Jiang’s personal secretary is already heading down here to escort her up to the executive floor." The first receptionist confirmed, shooting her a cool, unsparing look.

"What?! Are you serious? Then... oh god, I am completely finished." Shen Weiwei’s face drained of all color, turning a ghastly shade of white as the horrifying gravity of her misconduct finally hit her.

She had actively gone out of her way to offend and drive away Director Jiang’s own flesh and blood! If Director Jiang ever caught wind of how brutally she had spoken to Qiao Meixia just moments ago, wouldn’t she be summarily fired, blacklisted, and perhaps facing legal termination?

As those terrifying thoughts spiralled through her brain, Shen Weiwei abruptly pivoted toward the waiting area, intending to march right over to Qiao Meixia and throw herself into a desperate, grovelling apology before the situation escalated beyond repair.

"I have to go beg for her forgiveness right now." Shen Weiwei stammered, taking a jerky step forward.

However, before she could advance even a single inch, the first receptionist lunged outward, grabbing her wrists in a tight, vice-like grip to halt her movement.

"What on earth do you think you are doing?!" Shen Weiwei hissed, spinning around to glare at her coworker with wild, frantic eyes.

"Director Jiang’s secretary gave us a direct, explicit order not to disturb or approach the young lady under any circumstances." The first receptionist explained through clenched teeth, her voice low and stern.

"But—!" Shen Weiwei tried to argue, her chest heaving as overwhelming anxiety clawed at her throat.

She glanced nervously toward Qiao Meixia, who was still sitting placidly in the plush visitor’s chair, completely unaware of the absolute meltdown happening behind the counter.

She needed to apologise immediately, if only to salvage whatever shredded shreds of dignity she had left and prove that her rudeness was just an isolated brain fart. If she sat around waiting until Director Jiang officially launched an investigation, it would be far too late to save her career.

"Are you completely out of your mind? Do you actively want to disobey an executive order? You have already committed a massive career suicide offence today. Do you seriously want to dig your own grave even deeper?" The first receptionist hissed, fixing her panicked colleague with a scorching glare.

"That... ugh!" Shen Weiwei ground her teeth together so hard her jaw ached, utterly paralysed as she failed to find a valid counter-argument.

She knew deep down that her coworker was entirely correct. If she ignored the secretary’s explicit directive and blindly rushed toward Qiao Meixia out of sheer panic, she would likely trigger an even more catastrophic reaction. Yet, standing frozen behind the desk while doing absolutely nothing made her skin crawl with dread.

While the two receptionists remained locked in their tense, panicked exchange, Jiang Suhan’s executive secretary had already stepped out of the private elevator on the ground floor. He was moving with swift, purposeful strides, intent on locating Qiao Meixia just as his boss had commanded.

Exiting the lift lobby, he scanned the expansive marble-floored reception area, searching for the familiar high school uniform described to him over the phone.

The first receptionist immediately spotted his arrival and snapped into a rigid, highly professional posture.

"Pardon me, where is the young lady?" Jiang Suhan’s secretary asked politely the moment he reached the front counter.

"She is right over there." The first receptionist replied instantly, extending a neatly manicured hand toward the private VIP waiting nook in the corner of the lobby.

Jiang Suhan’s secretary tracked the direction of her gesture and pivoted his body. Within a second, his eyes locked onto a young girl dressed in a pristine academy uniform. She was sitting quietly in the plush armchair, looking remarkably calm, composed, and completely unbothered by the high-pressure corporate environment surrounding her.

He immediately closed the distance, walking briskly across the polished floor.

"Miss Qiao?" The secretary addressed her in a respectful, measured tone once he reached the edge of the seating area.

Qiao Meixia lifted her chin, turning her calm, dark eyes upward to meet his gaze.

As she looked up, Jiang Suhan’s secretary finally had a clear, unobstructed view of her face. For a brief, fleeting second, he was genuinely taken aback by her striking appearance.

This young lady possessed an innate, quiet elegance that felt far more refined and authentic than the other younger sister he had previously encountered in the household. Furthermore, the delicate structure of her facial features bore an undeniable, striking resemblance to Jiang Suhan himself, far more pronounced than any familial similarities shared with Jiang Yanna.

A quiet, involuntary comparison began to form inside his mind.

Even though he had already been briefed by corporate rumours that President Jiang had recently managed to track down and reclaim his long-lost biological daughter, seeing her in the flesh was an entirely different experience. He certainly had not anticipated that she would look so unmistakably like his own boss.

"Miss Qiao, Director Jiang specifically alerted me that you would be dropping by this afternoon. He instructed me to bring you straight up to his private executive suite first. He’s currently tied up in an urgent shareholder meeting, but he should be wrapping it up shortly." The secretary explained smoothly, keeping his demeanour entirely professional.

"Hmm," Qiao Meixia acknowledged quietly, smoothly rising to her feet without a trace of hesitation.

Jiang Suhan’s secretary gestured toward the private elevator banks and guided her forward. Reaching the secure entry panels, he swiped his master clearance badge and pressed the designated button for the top executive floor, standing respectfully by her side as they awaited the lift.

Once the doors slid shut and the cabin began its smooth, lightning-fast ascent, the secretary could not help noticing that Qiao Meixia remained completely silent throughout the ride. She showed zero inclination to initiate idle chatter, nor did she exhibit any childlike curiosity regarding the inner workings of the multi-billion-dollar conglomerate or her eldest brother’s prestigious empire.

The high-speed elevator continued climbing upward through the massive skyscraper, yet the teenage girl standing beside him remained as tranquil and uncommunicative as a statue.

Jiang Suhan’s secretary could not help but marvel internally at how vastly different his boss’s newly recovered sister was compared to the other young miss of the household.

He had crossed paths with Jiang Yanna on several occasions in the past. She was undeniably a bubbly, overly sociable young woman who invariably greeted everyone she met with a bright, rehearsed smile.

The very moment she discovered he served as her eldest brother’s primary executive secretary, she bombarded him with an endless stream of eager questions concerning Jiang Suhan’s daily schedule, preferences, and corporate habits. She had consistently gone out of her way to project an image of a deeply devoted, inquisitive younger sister, eagerly seizing every conceivable opportunity to insert herself into her brother’s professional orbit.

However, this newly found biological sister was the exact polar opposite in every measurable way.

Even now, standing shoulder-to-shoulder in a confined elevator with her brother’s right-hand man, Qiao Meixia radiated total indifference toward him and her surroundings. She refused to open her mouth unless directly addressed, maintaining a stoic, emotionless mask that gave away zero internal thoughts.

She possessed an aura of chilling detachment, treating a ride up a high-rise corporate tower with a total stranger as though it were the most mundane, utterly uninteresting chore in the world.

Out of the corner of his eye, Jiang Suhan’s secretary cast a brief, highly curious glance at her profile, finding himself increasingly fascinated and slightly intimidated by this uniquely enigmatic young lady.

It was glaringly obvious that Qiao Meixia was cut from an entirely different cloth compared to Jiang Yanna.

The high-speed elevator finally decelerated, coming to a smooth, silent halt as it reached the designated executive floor.

***This novel is a contracted work with w e b n o v e l. c o m. If you do not read this novel on w e b n o v e l. c o m, that means it has been stolen. Thank you, from your shameless author, ZerahNeko***