Chapter 17: The New Assistant

As the night deepened, a chill crept over Ran Xing. After seeing Wen Xiaoning off, she had been waiting outside for a full half hour. Judging the time to be just right, Ran Xing finally raised her arm to check her watch.

It was eight o’clock in the evening.

The timing was perfect.

Her lips had turned pale from the cold. Wrapping Xiao Yi’s windbreaker around herself, she curled up tightly, exhaling warm breaths and fixing her gaze steadily on the hospital entrance.

If it weren’t for the need to be absolutely flawless and earn Xiao Yi’s complete trust, she wouldn’t have endured such suffering outside.

Lost in thought, a pair of red high heels appeared before her.

Even under the night sky, the leather of those shoes shone brilliantly.

Ran Xing looked up along the woman’s shoes.

Approaching her line of sight was a blonde beauty about 1.7 meters tall.

She wore a deep blue plaid shirt with the top button undone, revealing a glimpse of her snow-white collarbone at the neck.

Her black suit pants were paired with a brown trench coat, hands tucked into pockets, walking as if carried by the wind.

Her strong eyebrows and large eyes gave her an elegant and charismatic appearance.

Seeing the woman stop in front of her, Ran Xing instinctively tensed.

“Who are you?”

The woman withdrew her hand and bent slightly in a polite manner.

“Hello, I’m Wang Ying, Miss Ran’s new assistant. From now on, I will be responsible for all of Miss Ran’s business affairs.”

Ran Xing let her hand hang in the air, meeting the woman’s gaze with a cold tone.

“Sorry, you haven’t been interviewed by me, so you can’t be my assistant yet.”

The woman didn’t get angry. Instead, she withdrew her hand with a knowing smile in her eyes.

“Mr. Xiao hired me. Besides, your previous assistant met me a few days ago and completed the handover of work with me.”

Ran Xing rested her hand on the wheelchair, visibly relaxing.

“Oh? So?”

The woman stepped forward, placing both hands on the wheelchair handles and began pushing Ran Xing toward the ward.

Calmly she said, “So, I’ve already signed the contract.”

Though Ran Xing was instinctively wary of a stranger approaching, at this moment, no one else was willing to be her assistant.

She had no choice but to accept reality and cautiously probe the woman’s background.

“Then introduce yourself.”

Wang Ying spoke simply and efficiently: “My name is Wang Ying, mixed Chinese and foreign blood, twenty-six years old.”

Ran Xing was surprised. “That’s all?”

Wang Ying smiled. “My detailed resume has been sent to Miss Ran’s email; you can check it.”

“So you’ve already met Xiao Yi?”

“Yes, today I went to the film set to check on the progress and met Mr. Xiao. He even reminded me a few times to take good care of you.”

Ran Xing didn’t respond and let the woman wheel her back into the ward.

As soon as they entered, Ran Xing asked somewhat disappointedly, “Is Xiao Yi still filming?”

“Yes. For some reason, Mr. Xiao seems very busy these past few days. I guess today was a makeup shoot and he might not come back until very late.”

Wang Ying said this while watching Ran Xing’s expression with a theatrical air.

“I understand,” Ran Xing said expressionlessly, pushing the wheelchair toward the bed. “I’m tired. If you have nothing else, you can go back first. Oh, and help me arrange for discharge tomorrow.”

Wang Ying obediently replied, “Okay. By the way, this is a phone Mr. Xiao bought for you. The numbers for both me and Mr. Xiao are already saved inside, so you can contact us if needed.”

She pulled a phone from her pocket and handed it to Ran Xing.

Ran Xing took it without emotion. “Thank you.”

After Wang Ying left, Ran Xing finally let down her guard, lying blankly on the bed, recalling her deal with Wen Xiaoning.

Wen Xiaoning was right—she couldn’t let anyone know she suffered from bipolar disorder yet.

After all, to get close to Zhang Tong, she had to rely on the international advertisement in three months.

She still needed her celebrity status.

Otherwise, she would never have let someone intent on destroying her roam free.

...

After seeing Ran Xing lie down, Wang Ying quietly turned off the lights and closed the door.

Twenty minutes later,

Wang Ying stepped out of the elevator and into a VIP ward at the far end of the corridor, locking the door behind her.

Having finished everything, she stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, staring at the neon lights of the city outside, casually lighting a slim cigarette and taking a drag.

Leaning lazily against the window frame, she exhaled smoke rings.

While admiring the night view, her phone rang.

Seeing the familiar number, she answered without hesitation.

“Hello, Young Master Xiao.”

Just after she spoke, the other side caught the hoarseness in her voice instantly.

“Smoking again?”

Then, somewhat annoyed, the voice reminded her, “Forgot to tell you, Ran Xing doesn’t like the smell of smoke.”

Wang Ying scoffed, stubbed out the cigarette in the ashtray, waved away the lingering smoke, then sat on the sofa, slowly exhaling.

“Sorry, this habit started abroad. I can only promise not to smoke around her.”

“Have you seen her?”

Wang Ying hummed in confirmation, complaining playfully, “Yes, I have. She’s really as cold as you said.”

No response came from the other side, only a calm voice asking, “Did you give her the phone?”

“Yes.”

“Did she say anything?”

Wang Ying rolled her eyes, feeling speechless.

“She said nothing.”

“Did she ask about me?”

Wang Ying paused, then sighed, “She did.”

“Did she ask what I do?”

Wang Ying couldn’t help but laugh, “Don’t worry. She took the phone but didn’t ask what you do.”

Half-joking, she added, “Of course, she didn’t think about you either.”

The other side darkened.

“I told you to come back, not to annoy me. Anyway, did you get my phone from the registration desk?”

“Just got it. The nurse said a little boy handed it over.”

“Lu Qing said the caller was a young woman’s voice. I was wondering if it might be…”

Halfway through, the voice fell silent, then said, “Forget it. Probably just my imagination.”

Wang Ying didn’t pay much attention and casually speculated, “I think Ran Xing was out for a walk wrapped in your coat, accidentally dropped the phone, and a woman picked it up. That woman had to leave early, so she gave the phone to a little boy to hand over to the nurse. But I did see Ran Xing outside just now. I guess she doesn’t know she lost the phone.”

“Wait, what did you just say?”

The voice grew anxious and hurried.

Wang Ying frowned. “Brother, I’ve said so much. Which part don’t you understand?”

“You just said Ran Xing was still outside?”

“Ah…” Wang Ying sighed deeply. After all her reasoning, the other side hadn’t really listened.

“I guess she was probably enjoying the night view.”

Wang Ying replied casually.

The other side ignored her and said only,

“I’ll be back in twenty minutes.”

“You just remembered she hasn’t eaten dinner yet?” Wang Ying couldn’t help but tease.

“I’ve been remembering.”

The voice on the other end was uneven, a bit heavy, as if running.

“Oh.”

Wang Ying was about to hang up when the other side suddenly added,

“She can’t get used to food made by others.”