Mister Li, the Heart Bandit

Panda Novel

Ji Weixi calmly soothed her. “Don’t panic. We’ll search around—it might have simply dropped somewhere.”

“Alright!” Tian Miaomiao nodded fervently.

The little excited pranced to Ji Weixi’s feet then. “Mommy, I’ll help too!”

However, Tian Miaomiao picked him up and put him on the sofa. “Don’t make things worse, kid! You don’t know what it looks like.”

“Okay…” The little one’s sparkling eyes dulled, but soon sparkled again. “I’ll cheer you up! Do your best!”

“What should I do, Xixi?” Tian Miaomiao said bitterly. “This is the first time I feel an impulse to hit him.”

“That’s what his biological father wants to do too. You two could group up for a child-spanking duo.”

“…”

The two of them then searched far and wide—Tian Miaomiao was actually fumbling inside rubbish bins too.

However, there was no sign of it as noon arrived.

Tian Miaomiao threw herself prone on the ground. “It’s over. I don’t have a future.”

Ji Weixi got to her feet. “I’ll talk things through with the one named Qiao Ai.”

“No!” Tian Miomiao quickly rushed towards her and stopped her. “Xixi, whatever you do, don’t do that. You have no idea how much she hates you!”

“Don’t you know? She’s one of the veteran designer’s in the CBS fashion wing, and she should have taken the job of chief designer, but you parachuted down and stole her place. She can’t wait to kill you, and you’re going there?”

“I’m the one who lost the drafts. I’ll just go and confess since I’m just a mere employee. At most, she would hate me and try to get back at me, but she can never fire me. After all, you are madam president, and she could never lift a finger against you!”

“I’m not madam president!” Ji Weixi promptly corrected.

“It’ll happen eventually!” Tian Miaomiao and the little one chorused.

Ji Weixi was dumbfounded, and she actually had no comeback for that.

“Anyway, Xixi, I’ll go look for Qiao Ai and fess up. “Tian Miaomiao waved.

Ji Weixi looked at her back as she left with narrowed eyes. Suddenly, her mind went back to that morning when she ran into a girl as she left the meeting room.

Her drafts were strewn across the floor, and the girl panickily picked up a few pieces and returned them to her.

At the time, Ji Weixi took them without paying much attention.

But now that she thought carefully… there was one that the girl did not pick up.

She quickly gave chase, running up to Tian Miaomiao and caught her. “I know where the draft is.”

Tian Miaomiao’s eyes brightened. “Where?”

Ji Weixi frowned and shook her head. “I don’t know who she is. All I know is that she looks delicate and pretty… and is quite young.”

“Does she have a mole between her eyes?”

Ji Weixi was uncertain. “…Maybe?”

She only had a single glance of the girl. How would she remember her clearly?

“Then I know who it is. Let’s go! To the design department!” Tian Miaomiao pulled her forward without further ado.

***

All the women in the design department were dressed elegantly.

The workspace was decorated with large, dazzling crystal chandeliers, as well as porcelain white decors presenting an atmosphere of minimalism.

On a slightly caving platform, pearl-white desks were arranged together. Several well-dressed women were hammering away on their keyboards, taking up a pen for sketching from time to time.

Opposite them was an area laden with crystal floorboards. In that spot, a woman was sitting lazily on a leather couch and having a taste of some red wine.

She looked up for a few glances when Ji Weixi and Tian Miaomiao entered, but gave them the cold shoulder.

Tian Miaomiao cleared her throat and said loudly, “This is Ji Weixi, chief designer.”

It was the first time Ji Weixi had come to the design department despite being a parachuted chief designer.

Everyone looked up, measuring Ji Weixi up incessantly.

White blouse, a waist-hugging black skirt, black heels.

Simple and matching.

However, her clothing accentuated her perfect curves on her tall form. Her watery eyes were lively and dazzling—with her umber-dyed brows, she looked like someone no one should cross.

The woman sitting on the main seat stood up then.

She was wearing a pearl-colored high-waist v-collared romper. Her hair, short, trimmed and silver made her look sharp and unfriendly along with her exquisite makeup.

“So, you’re Ji Weixi. Hello, I’m Qiao Ai.”

Ji Weixi extended her hand. “Hello.”

Qiao Ai pretended that she did not see it and smile. “May I know what’s your business here?”

Ji Weixi did not feel awkward at all with Qiao Ai’s reaction, and withdrew her hand naturally.

“I’m looking for Qin Shishi.” Tian Miaomiao said.

Qiao Ai shrieked at the top of her lungs. “Qin Shishi, come here!”

The girl named Qin Shishi stood up from her seat and approached them tamely.

As Tian Miaomiao described, her small face was delicate and pretty, and there was a mole between her eyes. She looked harmless and simply incapable of attacking.

It was indeed her.

Ji Weixi stepped up and asked calmly, “Do you remember crashing into me outside the meeting room?”

Perhaps because she had worded her question like an interrogation, Qin Shishi’s heart thumped.

Was she here for revenge?

Qin Shishi was at once tearful. “Miss Ji, I did not do that on purpose… please, spare me…”

Ji Weixi was speechless—did she look so terrifying?

She quickly softened her tone as much as possible. “I’m here to ask about something else, actually. Did you leave out one of the drafts that dropped on the floor when you returned them to me?”

Qin Shishi thought about it and nodded. “Yes, I wanted to return it to you after I saw it, but you had already left.”

“But…”

She glanced at Qiao Ai cautiously then, “I realize that the draft is Sis Qiao’s , so I… I handed it to her…”

Tian Miaomiao promptly took a deep breath before breathing it out profoundly, the burden in her heart relieved.

However, just as Ji Weixi was about to talk to Qiao Ai about it, the latter’s pulled a long face immediately.

“Miss Ji, so that’s why you came. What a coincidence, I would have gone looking for you if you didn’t.” Qiao Ai smiled coolly. “You had clearly told us that our design templates were fine and that we can start manufacturing, but why did you edit my designs when you returned the templates? You could have told us if you were unhappy about it!”

Ji Weixi was at a loss. “When did I edit your work?”

Those words certainly left Qiao Ai disgusted with Ji Weixi.

She had clearly changed the designs, but feigned innocence and would not even admit it.

She hated such people the most!

Well, time to present the evidence.

Qiao Ai went to her desk and opened her drawer, and spread out the template right in front of Ji Weixi.

“Are you saying this isn’t your work?”

It must be said that one could tell from Qiao Ai’s designs that she’s a veteran and an excellent designer.

It was a ripple-patterned skirt, exuding a mild classic beauty with smooth lines. It did not hug the waist, which was very suitable for women with a little tummy.

Still, Ji Weixi had a strong impression of that draft too, and being a designer herself, she could see at once where it had been edited.

The skirt’s collar had been raised, and a ring of white lace was added to its short sleeve.

It was effectively an excess.

Ji Weixi looked up and said flatly, “I did not do that.”

Qiao Ai knew that she wouldn’t admit to the fact, and so coldly smiled, mocking, “Of course you didn’t. It’s not like I could do anything against you even if you did since you have someone supporting you behind the scenes.”

As soon as those words were spoken, the air was full of awkwardness and the smell of gunpowder.