Chapter 22: The File Deleted

The first message read: [I am not angry.]
The second read: [Eat well, and don't overthink things.]

Yu Yuchu scrolled down on her phone.
That was it???
Indignantly, she navigated to the contact settings and changed Pei Jiayin’s nickname to: "Ice-Cold Man."

The next day, as soon as Yu Yuchu arrived at her desk, Cui Jing notified her to attend a meeting. After several days of edits and revisions, she had finished her portion of the proposal the previous night. Lacking inspiration, her writing had turned out rather dry. While there was nothing particularly brilliant about it, it was at least error-free.

With everyone on the project present at this meeting, Yu Yuchu figured the project was likely nearing its conclusion. The advertisement campaign was small and the cooperation term short; having pushed it this far was already quite an achievement. Yu Yuchu let out a soft sigh and lowered her head to scroll through her phone while waiting for the meeting to begin.

"Is everyone here? Let’s start the meeting."
Before Cui Jing could even begin, a voice interrupted.
"Sorry."
An employee arrived late. Cui Jing frowned but said nothing more. She cleared her throat and said, "Let’s get started."

Yu Yuchu finally put her phone away, yet an ominous feeling lingered in her heart. She lifted her head to scan the room and caught Mu Chuan’s gaze. He looked just as bored, distracted, and slacking off as she felt. Yu Yuchu smiled at him, but she felt as if something was missing. Just as she was about to survey the room again, she heard someone call her name.

"Yu Yuchu, pay attention."
Cui Jing’s voice was not loud, but it was enough for many in the room to hear. Startled, Yu Yuchu gave a slight jump. She immediately pulled back her gaze and, face burning, began listening intently to Cui Jing’s summary.

By the time she started daydreaming again, the meeting was nearing its end. With lunch break fast approaching, she took out her phone and messaged Mu Chuan.
[What are you having for lunch?]
[Light meal.]
[Truly a lost cause.]

After the meeting, Yu Yuchu returned to her desk, intending to send the proposal she had finished the night before to Cui Jing.

The moment she opened her laptop, she noticed something was wrong. She usually saved her pending work files on the desktop; she disliked deleting files, which meant her desktop was always a mess. She had grown accustomed to it over time. But today, the order of her files seemed different from before.

Yu Yuchu’s heart skipped a beat, and she instantly felt a surge of tension. She clicked on her proposal, only to find a screen notification stating that the file did not exist. Her heart sank to the bottom of her chest. She tried again, only to discover that the backup was gone as well.

She immediately messaged Cui Jing.
[Sister Jing, there’s a problem with my proposal. Could you give me some time to fix it?]

The reply came back quickly.
[What happened? Come to my office.]

Yu Yuchu hurried into the office with her laptop, unaware of a dark gaze tracking her from behind. Cui Jing sat upright at her desk, her almond-shaped eyes narrowed. They were beautiful eyes, yet they lacked no aggression. When that gaze pierced through her, Yu Yuchu couldn't help but shrink back. After all, she was still a novice, and when it came to handling emergencies, she lacked the seasoned experience of someone like Cui Jing.

She steadied her nerves and spoke calmly: "My files were permanently deleted, including the backup."

Yu Yuchu placed her laptop in front of Cui Jing, the words "File does not exist" displayed clearly on the screen. She didn't beat around the bush; she stated the problem directly. Yu Yuchu knew Cui Jing wasn't the type to ignore facts. Since the problem had already occurred, complaining was useless and a waste of time; she had to find a solution immediately.

As expected, Cui Jing only took one look before picking up her phone and offering a solution. "Don't panic. I'll have someone check the security footage. In the meantime, try to recall the content of your files. If that doesn't work, I will discuss it with our partners."

The single phone call she made put Yu Yuchu’s mind at ease. That was the benefit of working with someone decisive. No hesitation, no dragging things out.

"Okay."
Yu Yuchu pulled up a chair and began rewriting the files. Although she had written the draft just yesterday, recalling everything perfectly was quite difficult. She had prepared three plans; she could patch together the first and third ones to make them passable, but the middle one was a real struggle.

"Is the security system in this area undergoing maintenance these last two days?"
"Understood."
Cui Jing hung up the phone with a look that suggested Yu Yuchu had truly rotten luck. Yu Yuchu felt helpless.

"Give me the afternoon. I can likely send you the first and third plans by four o'clock."
"And the second one? How much time do you need?"
Cui Jing stared directly at Yu Yuchu. That sharp gaze seemed to see right through her again.
"One night. I need at least one night to come up with a new plan for you."
She generally remembered the theme, and she was confident she could do it in one night.

Cui Jing was silent for a moment, as if calculating the timeline in her head. Before long, her crisp voice returned: "Send it by nine o'clock tomorrow morning. I can ensure the project timeline remains on track, but if it goes past that time..." Cui Jing pointed at the ID badge on Yu Yuchu’s chest, "I cannot guarantee anything."

Yu Yuchu’s heart sank, but she did not back down. Even though she was the victim, she was also the primary person responsible for the project potentially stalling. At this moment, she had to bear the responsibility alone.

Yu Yuchu nodded and packed up her laptop to leave. Before she walked out, she heard Cui Jing add, "Our company’s maintenance is contracted to an outside firm with a fixed schedule."

They were both smart people; Yu Yuchu understood that Cui Jing was giving her a hint. No wonder she felt something was off during the meeting—there had been an empty chair next to Mu Chuan. The number of chairs in the meeting room was always exact, never more or less. And the person who was absent happened to be an employee of the same rank as Mu Chuan.

She was being warned that she had been sabotaged.

"Thank you, Sister Jing."

Yu Yuchu closed the door, a gloomy look flashing across her face. While it was not wise to jump to conclusions, for her, there was only one person who could be the mastermind behind this: Wan Ninghe.

Someone had been late to the meeting, and she hadn't been looking at her phone. Thinking back, that person must have stayed behind intentionally to delete the files while her computer screen was unlocked. And the security maintenance, it all pointed to a deliberate setup.