Chen Le Xin slept for three hours.
That was enough.
By eight-thirty, she was already in the office, revised proposal open on her screen, jaw set. The bar confrontation replayed in fragments she refused to examine too closely. Liu Kai Ying's tone. Her proximity. That infuriating calm.
Focus.
At nine sharp, Xiao Lan appeared at her desk.
"Senior Manager Liu wants you in her office," Xiao Lan said. Neutral. Unreadable.
Le Xin stood immediately. "Now?"
"Yes."
Of course.
The top floor was quiet—too quiet. Kai Ying's office door was open, glass walls exposing everything and nothing at the same time. Kai Ying stood by the window, back straight, hands behind her back like a general surveying a battlefield.
Le Xin stepped inside.
"You're late," Kai Ying said without turning.
"It's nine on the dot."
Kai Ying turned then, blue eyes cool behind her glasses. "You were late yesterday."
Le Xin didn't bother hiding her irritation. "Is this about the project, or is this personal?"
A dangerous question.
Kai Ying walked back to her desk and sat. "Sit."
Le Xin didn't.
"No," Le Xin said. "Say what you want to say."
A pause.
Xiao Lan, seated silently in the corner, glanced up for half a second, then back down.
Kai Ying studied Le Xin slowly. Deliberately.
"You challenged my authority," Kai Ying said. "Twice. Once in the meeting. Once in public."
Le Xin crossed her arms. "You misuse it."
"That's not for you to decide."
"That's exactly why I decide," Le Xin shot back. "Someone has to."
The silence sharpened.
Kai Ying stood again, moving around the desk. Each step was measured.
"You think you're indispensable," Kai Ying said. "You're not."
Le Xin laughed once. "Then fire me."
Kai Ying stopped in front of her.
Close enough that Le Xin could see the faint tension in her jaw. The restraint.
"I don't fire people emotionally," Kai Ying said. "I bury them with performance reviews."
There it was.
Threat, clean and professional.
Le Xin felt anger surge—but also something colder. Smarter.
"Then let's be clear," Le Xin said evenly. "You don't like me because I don't bend."
Kai Ying's eyes narrowed slightly. "I don't like you because you don't listen."
"I listen," Le Xin replied. "I just don't obey blindly."
A long beat.
Kai Ying turned away first.
"New structure," she said. "You'll report directly to me on this project. Daily updates. No autonomy."
Le Xin stiffened. "You're sidelining my authority."
"I'm controlling damage."
Le Xin leaned forward, voice low. "You're trying to break me."
Kai Ying looked back at her.
Cold. Precise.
"No," she said. "I'm testing you."
The words landed hard.
Le Xin straightened. "Then don't complain if I push back."
Kai Ying's lips curved slightly. "I expect nothing less."
Xiao Lan finally spoke. "Senior Manager, the board call is in ten minutes."
Kai Ying nodded. "Send Chen Le Xin's revised proposal to legal."
Le Xin blinked. "Legal?"
"Yes," Kai Ying said. "If it fails scrutiny, it fails permanently."
Le Xin understood immediately.
This wasn't micromanagement.
This was war.
She turned to leave, then stopped at the door. "One more thing."
Kai Ying looked at her.
"You came to Tian Rong's bar last night," Le Xin said. "That was unnecessary."
Kai Ying didn't deny it.
"I go where I choose," she replied. "Don't confuse coincidence with concern."
Le Xin smiled thinly. "Good. Because I don't need your concern."
She walked out without waiting for a response.
An hour later, Tian Rong's phone buzzed.
Tian Rong:
why does your boss look like she's about to declare martial law.
Le Xin:
she already has.
Tian Rong sent a laughing emoji. Then another message.
careful
people like her don't start fights they plan endings.
Le Xin stared at her screen.
Then typed back:
let her plan
I'll survive it
Across the building, Liu Kai Ying ended the board call and removed her glasses.
Xiao Lan hesitated. "Senior Manager… are you pushing Chen Le Xin too hard?"
Kai Ying rubbed the bridge of her nose.
"She won't break," Kai Ying said. "If she does, she was never worth this much trouble."
Xiao Lan didn't ask what this much trouble meant.
But as Kai Ying looked at the closed office door, one thing was clear:
This wasn't just about control anymore.
It was about winning.
And Chen Le Xin was the only one who made her work for it.
---
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