The Woman He Regrets Losing

Chapter 10 – Confronting Jiang Qingyan

The visitor was Zhao Xinghui, an investment manager from the Second Department—the very same man who had once offended Yao Man.

On her first day at Rongli Capital, Yao Man had already stirred up a significant mess.

Back then, the Second Department was negotiating an AI project that was crucial to the company’s strategic direction for the coming year. Wen Ruan had personally led the early-stage talks alongside Zhao Xinghui, and everything had been settled.

All that remained was to review the revised agreement one final time. If nothing appeared amiss, the contract could be signed that very day.

However, Wen Ruan was dispatched last-minute to an industry summit, leaving Zhao Xinghui in charge of finalizing the deal.

It should’ve been a mere formality.

But just as the founder was about to sign, his deputy received a phone call, raised a hand, and stopped him.

And then—an unexpected twist.

The project was snatched away by Minghe Capital.

The reason, according to the founder’s profuse apologies, was simply that Minghe’s offer was better.

The deal had slipped through their fingers. Wen Ruan was furious.

At the time, He Zheng was abroad. All of Minghe’s affairs were handled by Shen Yifan. Wen Ruan called him directly.

To his credit, Shen Yifan didn’t deny anything.

“At 9:30, Cao Wangshan’s deputy suddenly called me,” he said, “claiming to have Rongli’s final version of the contract. He used your bottom line to negotiate with us.”

“The terms he offered weren’t unreasonable—well within our acceptance range. It was practically a gift, stolen right out of Rongli’s hands. There was no reason for us to decline.”

Wen Ruan’s first reaction was disbelief.

Rongli’s final version of the contract had been personally delivered into the meeting room by Zhao Xinghui. He had supervised the entire process, and the founder hadn’t taken any photos.

Yet, the image Shen Yifan sent her was unmistakably their final draft.

There was no need for her to investigate.

Shen Yifan had already done so on her behalf.

“He Zheng said it was underhanded to steal food from your plate, so as a personal favor, I got Cao Wangshan drunk over lunch and tricked the truth out of him,” he explained.

“Apparently, his deputy had accompanied him to Rongli. Right after stepping out of the elevator, the deputy received a phone call. When it ended, he went to look for the meeting room and happened to run into one of your employees.”

“He meant to ask for directions, but your employee mistook him for one of Rongli’s and handed him the contract, asking him to deliver it to Zhao Xinghui.”

“That deputy is notoriously cunning. He took a photo of the contract before handing it over and then called me to negotiate with your bottom line.”

“When I agreed, he stopped Cao Wangshan just in time. Same terms, better offer from us. Cao Wangshan isn’t an idiot.”

—“Your employee mistook him for one of Rongli’s and handed him the contract.”

Who? Who could have been so foolish—so utterly careless?

It was almost laughable. Even He Zheng, all the way across the ocean, called just to mock her.

“Rongli really knows how to produce talent. Who was it? Who’s that stupid? Wen Ruan, if you find out, let me know. I want to recruit them as a spy for Minghe. Hahaha.”

She gritted her teeth and replied, “You can die laughing for all I care!”

Later, Zhao Xinghui retrieved the surveillance footage.

It was Yao Man.

The footage showed Yao Man walking toward Zhao Xinghui with the printed contract in hand. Midway, she spotted Jiang Qingyan exiting the office with his bag. Without hesitation, she shoved the contract into a nearby man’s hands.

“Give this to Zhao Xinghui!”

And with that brief command, she dashed after Jiang Qingyan.

The man she handed it to was none other than that wily deputy. After finishing his call, he returned looking for the meeting room and happened to ask Yao Man for directions.

Having just returned from abroad and only on her first day at Rongli, it was understandable that she made a mistake.

The failure to secure the contract had angered the higher-ups. It was a serious blunder, yet the one at fault was Rongli Group’s own cherished princess. The incident could have been quietly smoothed over.

But Yao Man, ever concerned with saving face, couldn’t bear the humiliation of such a major blunder on her first day.

So, during the accountability meeting, she struck first—placing the blame on Zhao Xinghui and claiming he had lost the contract.

She demanded his resignation for negligence. Zhao Xinghui, though seething, dared not speak out, and secretly sent the surveillance video to Wen Ruan.

Zhao Xinghui was loyal to her.

So she entered the conference room and played the video, shielding Zhao Xinghui from blame.

And thus, on Yao Man’s very first day at Rongli, Wen Ruan had thoroughly offended her.

—

“Director Wen, there’s a situation!”

Zhao Xinghui entered, closing the door behind him. He sat across from Wen Ruan and handed her his phone.

It was a video.

In the dimly lit corridor beside a bar restroom, a man in a floral shirt leaned against the wall, cigarette dangling from his lips, with his arm draped around a short-haired woman.

Wen Ruan didn’t recognize the woman—but she knew the man.

Yao Tianyu, Yao Man’s younger brother. Known internally as "Young Master Yao" of Rongli Group, he also served as the Executive President of Rongli Capital.

Beneath his polished title, however, were two infamous labels:

A womanizing playboy and a scumbag of legendary proportions.

Wen Ruan had no interest in his personal affairs, but Zhao Xinghui wasn’t one for trivialities, so she kept watching.

The music from the restroom was muted. The angle and distance of the footage were ideal—clear enough to catch fragments of their conversation.

The woman clung to Yao Tianyu’s neck, coquettish.

“You said, for my birthday, you’d gift my dad ‘Zhaoce’ all wrapped up. You better not be lying.”

Yao Tianyu replied, “Of course not.”

Their flirtation continued, but Wen Ruan’s expression had already darkened.

Zhaoce was her project.

Two years ago, Zhang Tongtong’s husband Pan Rui had founded Fireworks Studio with a few partners. Zhaoce was their latest game under development.

Wen Ruan had tested the beta version and found both the content and user experience promising. She saw real investment potential.