After saying that, Jiang Cheng pulled out the chair beside him, motioning for Fang Yuan to sit.
Fang Yuan had originally intended to sit opposite him.
Seeing the gesture, she didn't refuse.
She walked over and sat down as if it were nothing.
To cover her nerves, she took several USB drives from her bag.
"These are Ying-er's flash drives, full of the material she recorded. I was afraid they might get lost in the mail, so when you head back to Modu, could you hand them to her? Safer that way."
In truth, this was just an excuse Fang Yuan had invented.
It wasn't that she wanted to see Jiang Cheng herself.
She mostly wanted to give Zhou Ying more chances to meet him.
She knew her daughter all too well.
As long as Jiang Cheng didn't reach out, Zhou Ying would never make the first move.
Ever since meeting An Xin and Annie, Fang Yuan had worried about Zhou Ying.
Jiang Cheng hadn't noticed her little scheme.
"All right. I'll give them to her when I'm in Modu in a few days."
After speaking, Jiang Cheng slid the menu toward her.
"I've ordered a few dishes; add whatever else you like."
The moment he finished, the Waitress began serving.
Glancing at the dishes, Fang Yuan closed the menu. "What you picked is plenty—most of it's my favorite. Thank you, Jiang Cheng."
His thoughtfulness was something she often envied Zhou Ying for.
Jiang Cheng said nothing.
He naturally reached for the bowl in front of her.
Ladled out a serving of spare-rib and Job's-tears soup and set it before her.
"This soup dispels dampness. I thought it'd suit you—give it a try."
She accepted the bowl.
Surprised, she said, "I didn't expect you to know I'm prone to dampness."
Hmm… Jiang Cheng nearly asked how could he not know?
After all, last time…
But that was clearly something he couldn't bring up now.
He changed the subject. "Tired these past two days?"
Pleased by his concern, Fang Yuan's cheeks flushed faintly.
Pushing aside her thoughts, she focused on business.
"Not too bad. It's over—the three of them have been taken away by Uncle Hat for investigation. Jiang Tai's Finance Department will probably be cleaned out…"
Jiang Cheng understood her implication.
Zhang Wen's embezzlement once or twice might be solo.
Faking accounts for over a decade required help from Finance.
"Tomorrow I'll tell Wang Wei to replace everyone in Finance and have HR hire fresh staff from outside."
He'd foreseen it at the kick-off banquet.
Calling out Jiang Tai's Finance issues in front of the crowd wasn't just venting.
It was preparation for a major purge.
Fang Yuan nodded. "Newcomers may start slow, but they're meticulous."
Rookies tread carefully, so they pay attention to details.
And they have no entrenched interests—exactly what Jiang Cheng wanted.
A company needs stability, but also new blood.
Otherwise, with only old hands, it stagnates and spawns parasites.
With that, Jiang Cheng lifted the decanted Bordeaux the Waitress had poured and raised his glass to her. "I'm glad you were here for this. You've worked hard—may I toast to you?"
From the moment she'd entered, Fang Yuan had sensed the shift in his manner.
He hadn't once called her "auntie."
He spoke to her as "you" and "I."
The subtle change stirred thoughts she tried to ignore.
She brushed them aside.
Smiling, she lifted her glass.
The deep-red wine swirled, releasing rich fruit notes.
Her slender fingers cradled the stem, lowering her glass slightly in respect as they clinked.
"Cheers," she murmured, then drained the glass.
Her pale neck arched like a swan's; the soft roll of her throat as she swallowed held a quiet sensuality.
The wine flushed her cheeks at once.
Noticing her haste, Jiang Cheng said, "Easy—it creeps up on you."
Clearly in high spirits, Fang Yuan poured herself another half glass. "It's fine… I feel like drinking today."
Unlike Zhou Ying, she enjoyed a quiet drink at home.
"I want you to head Jiang Tai's Finance Department. How does that sound?"
"But what about Zheng De?"
"If you take the post at Jiang Tai, we'll find someone trustworthy for Zheng De. You know Jiang Tai's turnover dwarfs Zheng De's—I can't leave that job to just anyone."
Zheng De was only a small, familiar subsidiary; its scale couldn't compare.
Moving from Zheng De's books to Jiang Tai's meant a leap of several rungs.
Though she felt attached to Zheng De, she couldn't refuse such an opportunity.
In her youth, Fang Yuan had wanted only to be a wealthy socialite.
For more than ten years she'd been an idle trophy wife.
Now only she knew how much she'd changed.
From good-for-nothing to elite professional—a dream for many ex-socialites like her.
Without coyness, she thanked Jiang Cheng earnestly.
"Jiang Cheng, thank you. If you truly entrust this role to me, I promise to give everything I have and do even better."
"Sometimes I think: if Ying-er hadn't met you, neither of us would be living this well, nor would I have such a job. From the bottom of my heart—thank you."