Shi Ran sat at her desk, still planning how to contact Huo Xiaohua, when the two of them walked in without knocking.
Her brow furrowed, "Don't you knock?"
Du Rui and Li Fan exchanged a glance, ignoring her question.
"You gave me a week, and it's not even time yet. What's the rush?"
Meng Jingwei had told her long ago that Du Rui and Li Fan responded better to toughness than softness, and Shi Ran had kept it in mind.
She closed the files on her desk and adopted a stern demeanor, "With the time you're wasting here talking nonsense, you might as well focus on leading the team. Otherwise, if you bring in sponsors but lose the competition, you'll disgrace the company."
Shi Ran's words hit a nerve, and they were momentarily taken aback.
"Fine, if you're so confident of winning, we'll wait for your results. Old Du and I are waiting," Li Fan shot her a look and turned to leave.
Du Rui said nothing, merely casting a cold glance at Shi Ran before following Li Fan out.
With the office quiet again, Shi Ran leaned back in her executive chair and let out a long sigh, feeling immense pressure.
*Buzz buzz buzz—*
Her phone rang on the desk. She picked it up to see Tang Si's number flashing on the screen.
At a glance, she directly hung up.
Since last night, Tang Si had called her several times. But Shi Ran couldn't help but feel annoyed whenever she thought about the words that had hurt her pride, spoken by Tang Si in the Rose Hall of Fei Yun Hotel.
Therefore, she hadn't answered his calls.
As soon as one call was hung up, he called again. Shi Ran hung up again.
After a moment of silence, the phone rang once more.
Shi Ran, incredibly annoyed, answered the phone without even looking at the screen. She held the phone to her ear and roared in fury, "Tang Si, are you annoying or not? Why do you keep calling incessantly?"
After she finished yelling, the other end fell silent.
Hearing no response, Shi Ran asked, "Say something?"
"Cough cough..."
The person on the other end of the phone coughed lightly and cleared his throat.
Shi Ran noticed the voice sounded wrong. Her brow furrowed, and she immediately brought the phone closer to check.
It was a good thing she checked, because seeing it made her jump up from her chair in fright. "Ah? I'm sorry, I'm sorry, President Huo, I didn't know it was you. Really, I apologize..."
Even though Huo Xiaohua was not in front of Shi Ran, she still bowed and apologized, while also hitting her own head fiercely with her free hand, secretly calling herself foolish.
"It's alright. Thank you for driving me back last night. Are you free for lunch? Shall we have a casual meal together?"
Huo Xiaohua extended a personal invitation.
The sudden change in attitude caught Shi Ran off guard. Her mind went blank for a few seconds, and then she nodded vigorously, "Yes, yes, yes."
"Okay, eleven-thirty this noon, at Lansen Western Restaurant."
"Oh, alright, alright, President Huo."
She responded repeatedly, and the call had already ended on the other side.
Shi Ran held her phone and looked at the number again. The astonished expression on her face gradually turned into joy, and she jumped up excitedly, "Yeah!"
Since Huo Xiaohua had taken the initiative to ask her out, it meant there was still a chance for their cooperation talks.
Shi Ran, filled with excitement, sat back in her executive chair and casually picked up a book on 'Sales Psychology' to read.
Even though she wasn't in sales, she would still apply knowledge of sales psychology when negotiating with people.
Time ticked by, and finally, it was eleven o'clock.
Shi Ran didn't dare to waste any more time. She left the company and drove to Lansen Western Restaurant.
Upon arrival, she stayed in her car, quietly waiting for the appointed time. Seeing that it was already twenty past eleven, she called Huo Xiaohua, "President Huo, I've arrived at the Western Restaurant. Where are you?"