Chapter 23: Welcome Party

g the cup trembled, and she almost spilled the water inside."Swelling and cramping""Yeah." Auntie Song seemed not to notice the fleeting fear in Fu Xiaoyao's eyes, nodding calmly.Fu Xiaoyao shrank bac...Fu Xiaoyao left the study and went downstairs to get cleaning supplies. After tidying up the mess outside Lu Hanchuan's study, she returned to her room.

The next day, she went to work with two panda eyes. Yulin saw her and jumped up in surprise, "My god, did you steal a cow last night"

"Don't sit on the noodles, you'll be seen." Fu Xiaoyao pushed Yu Lin off the desk. "What are you stealing I had a nightmare all night."

"One night"

"Yeah, it's just back and forth, over and over again. It's so exhausting." Fu Xiaoyao yawned, looking completely drained with bloodshot eyes.

She had barely slept all night. Every time she closed her eyes, her mind was filled with dreams of Lu Hanchuan forcefully taking her bone marrow even though she hadn't agreed to donate.

That dream was so real it was terrifying. She even thought, if she really refused him, would he actually do that

"What kind of nightmare did you have" Yulin leaned in to Fu Xiaoyao, her curiosity piqued.

Fu Xiaoyao lowered her eyelids, "Let's not talk about that. What brings you to me so early in the morning"

Seeing her change the subject, Yu Lin raised an eyebrow. "You forgot, the welcome party!"

"I haven't forgotten, but the welcome party is in the evening. What are you telling me this for now" Fu Xiaoyao said with a lack of interest as she organized her documents.

"Of course, I'm asking if you have a dress prepared."

"A gown" Fu Xiaoyao was taken aback, her movements stopping mid-way.

Yu Lin winked with a smile, "Didn't I tell you"

"Will I need to wear a dress to the welcome party" Fu Xiaoyao looked at her with a confused face.

Yu Lin's smile faded, her expression turning serious. "You don't know This news was sent to the entire company yesterday, it was your secretary team who notified everyone."

Yesterday……

Fu Xiaoyao bit her lower lip, a hint of anger coloring her delicate face.

Her expression fell into Yu Lin's eyes, instantly understanding everything, "They deliberately didn't notify you"

"It should be!" Fu Xiaoyao nodded.

It's not surprising she wasn't told. She wasn't well-liked by the secretaries anyway, and was even targeted yesterday.

"That's too much! I'm going to go find them and settle the score. You're both secretaries, and you're still Lu總's personal assistant. Why are they bullying you like this!" Yu Lin clenched her fists, gritting her teeth as if ready to burst out.

Fu Xiaoyao hurriedly grabbed her, "Alright, Linlin, don't be impulsive! You can't afford to provoke them. If things get out of hand, you'll be punished. It's not worth it."

"Is that all" Yu Lin glared at him unwillingly.

Fu Xiaoyao handed her a cup of water. “This is my first time being a secretary, so I don’t know anything. That’s why they dare to bully me so openly. But once I get used to this job, they won’t dare.”

"You're too soft-hearted, you can't be a little tougher!" Yulin angrily poked Fu Xiaoyao's forehead for not arguing back.

Fu Xiaoyao let out a soft chuckle, glanced at the time in the lower right corner of her computer, and reminded him, "You should go back to your department. It's roll call time."

"Oh right, almost forgot. I'll head back first then. How about we go pick out a dress together after work this afternoon"

Fu Xiaoyao's expression stiffened, she thought for a moment about her flat wallet, her heart aching, "Okay..."

"Alright, then! See ya!"

Yu Lin left, and Fu Xiaoyao slumped in her chair, staring at the less than four-digit sum in her phone's message, her head feeling much larger. "What kind of dress can this buy"

"A gown" A cold male voice suddenly rang out at the door.

Fu Xiaoyao instinctively straightened her back and looked over. Lu Hanchuan stood at the door in a silver-gray suit, with Qiao Assistant behind him.

"What kind of dress were you just talking about" Lu Hanchuan's thin lips moved slightly, asking again.

Fu Xiaoyao put down her phone and stood up. "It's the welcome party tonight, everyone in the company is required to wear formal attire."

"Is that so" Lu Hanchuan turned his head to glance at Qiao's assistant.

"Yes, because Mr. Lu invited many well-known figures in the industry, so the Vice President informed everyone to dress in formal attire."

"Got it." Lu Hanchuan responded faintly, raising his foot and walking towards his office.

After giving Fu Xiaoyao a formulaic smile, Qiao's assistant quickly followed after her.

Fu Xiaoyao pouted, confused, closing the office door. She didn't quite understand what Lu Hanchuan meant by saying just two words and leaving.

Unable to figure out the reason, Fu Xiaoyao shook her head and returned to her desk, continuing to organize the materials she had just gathered.

The data is limited, just organize it and then scan it into the computer for storage.

After finishing work, Fu Xiaoyao brewed a cup of coffee and idly browsed the web on her computer. Suddenly, she thought of something, her eyes dimmed, and she put down her coffee. With a solemn expression, she typed a line into the keyboard, and a page immediately popped up: The Disadvantages of Bone Marrow Donation!

When she saw that bone marrow donation wouldn't take a life, she let out a slight sigh of relief, but seeing the after-effects listed afterward, her heart instantly sank.

"30% of the population may experience aging, reduced bone marrow production, and elevated white blood cells leading to leukemia..." Reading this, Fu Xiaoyao's hand holding the mouse trembled, her face paled slightly, and fear began to creep into her heart.

She didn't expect the aftereffects to be this severe, none of which she was willing to accept.

After all, no one knows if she's one of the thirty percent.

What should she do What could she possibly do

Fu Xiaoyao bit her nails, her body shrinking back.

She suddenly felt a chill, even though the office air conditioner wasn't on. It was as if she were standing in an ice cave. Her anxiety intensified, making it hard for her to breathe.

Such anxiety persisted until noon, when the secretary staff brought her a stack of documents to deliver to the CEO's office.

Fu Xiaoyao patted her cheeks, took a deep breath, adjusted her mindset, and picked up the documents to find Lu Hanzchuan. Just as she was about to knock on the door, it opened.

Joe's assistant came out from inside and was surprised to see her, "Secretary Fu is here just in time, I was about to look for you."

He used honorifics, Fu Xiaoyao was still quite unaccustomed to it and twisted her body, "Assistant Qiao has something to do with me"

"Mr. Lu asked me to inform you that you don't need to come to work this afternoon."

"Not working anymore" Fu Xiaoyao widened her eyes in alarm, her voice rising, "He's going to fire me"

Jo's assistant's lips twitched, and she smiled, "No, you misunderstood. Mr. Lu isn't going to fire you, he's giving you half a day off to go back and rest up. Otherwise, you won't have the energy to attend the welcome party tonight."

"So that's how it is." Fu Xiaoyao let out a breath, awkwardly scratching her neck.

Qiao's assistant looked at the other hand she was holding, "Are these for Mr. Lu"

"Yes." Fu Xiaoyao nodded.

"Here you go, I'll take it in for you. You just go back and rest."

"Okay, thanks, Joe," Fu Xiaoyao said without refusing, handing him a stack of files.

Joe's assistant took it and returned to the office, gently placing it on Lu Hanzhan's desk.

Lu Hanchuan heard the movement and lifted his head from behind the computer, "Did you tell her"

Joe's assistant nodded.

Lu Hanchuan rubbed his tired eyes, "You go order a dress suitable for Fu Xiaoyao in a while."

"Besides the gown, are there any other options" Qiao's assistant hesitated for a moment before asking.

Lu Hanchuan touched his chin and pondered for a moment, “High heels are also prepared. As for jewelry... I remember that swan necklace was sent to customs. You go pick it up this afternoon.”

Joe's assistant stared at him in surprise, "Are you planning to give this to Miss Fu But isn't this the gift you were preparing for Miss Qi Ya"idn't answer, turning his head to look at Fu Xiaoyao, "What do you think"Fu Xiaoyao lowered her eyes and smiled, "Mr. Jiang and Miss Jiang are right, the flowers have already been picked, they can't b...